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School debt sets new records in Kansas
While student achievement remains relatively low and stagnant, local school boards' focus on constructing new buildings set a new record for school debt at $6.53 billion for the 2019 school year. Debt per-student for the 177 districts with bond debt also set a new record at $15,137. The data comes from the Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) and is available for each district at KansasOpenGov.org.
USD 230 Spring Hill in Johnson County has the highest per-pupil debt at $52,772. The next highest amounts are USD 482 Dighton ($45,772), USD 490 El Dorado ($42,036), USD 323 Rock Creek ($40,208), and USD 376 Sterling ($39,846).
The highest level of total debt outstanding of $527 million is in Johnson County at USD 233 Olathe. Two other Johnson County districts are in the top five; USD 229 Blue Valley ($345 million) and USD 512 Shawnee Mission ($313 million). USD 259 Wichita ($343 million) and USD 500 Kansas City ($250 million) are also in the top five.
School debt from issuing bonds must be approved by voters in each school district, but many districts receive extra state funding to offset the cost, creating a 'taxation without representation' situation for taxpayers across the state. It is effectively a subsidy in which a district like Olathe in Johnson County gets "free money" from patrons in Iola or Newton to build a new facility and make sure it has all the bells and whistles to boot. This anomaly is used as a selling point by most districts, with school boards encouraging patrons to vote for the new school debt because people outside the district will pick up part of the cost.
Construction diverts money from instruction
State aid to help pay off bond debt skyrocketed from about $52 million to $203 million last year, which has had a 'squeeze-out' effect on state aid for Instruction and other operating costs of educating students.
If state aid for bond debt remained steady at $52 million each year since 2005, legislators could have made $948 million more available to educate students through the regular funding formula, and ideally allocated the money exclusively for Instruction.
The KSDE Accounting Manual says Instruction accounts for direct interactions between teachers and students; this 'bible' of school spending says, "Although all other functions are important, this function acts as the most important part of the education program, the very foundation on which everything else is built. If this function fails to perform at the needed level, the whole educational program is doomed to failure regardless of how well the other functions perform."
School districts allocated 54.2% of expenditures to Instruction in 2005; that allocation has been declining over the years and was just 52.8% in 2019.
This year, the Kansas House of Representatives passed a bill that would be a big step forward in getting kids the education they deserve, but Senators didn't have a chance to vote on it. The bill requires districts to certify they've allocated sufficient funds to Instruction so that students could reach grade level. School districts lobbied hard against this accountability measure. At least one superintendent said, "If this passes, we'll be held accountable!" Indeed.


Nominations are now open for the 2019 NECA Excellence & Apprentice Awards!
The National Electrical and Communications Association (NECA WA), is committed to encouraging and rewarding the excellence and professionalism demonstrated by its members and electrical apprentices.
The NECA WA Excellence Awards promote innovation and outstanding achievement, as well as providing the recognition and publicity within our industry that NECA members, EGT hosts and their apprentices deserve. NECA WA strongly encourages its members to submit their project and apprentice nominations for these awards. We even offer the services of a professional submissions writer, who can assist you to prepare your entry - free of charge!
The award winners will be announced at the 2019 NECA Excellence Awards night on Friday, 30 August 2019 at Crown Perth.
Once you have registered your contact details, you will receive an automated email response with full instructions on how to complete your submission and the link to access the online portal.
Excellence Awards – Wednesday, 12 June 2019.
This prestigious awards evening celebrates and rewards apprentices' outstanding achievements and efforts in the electrical and communications industry. NECA WA encourages all apprentices who have excelled in their training to apply.
Nomination categories are open to first, second, third and fourth year apprentices who are employed by either a NECA WA member or an EGT host employer.
All award finalists and their employers will be invited to attend the 2019 NECA Excellence and Apprentice Awards, which will be held at Crown Perth on Friday, 30 August 2019.
Click here to download the Judging Criteria for 4th Year Apprentice Categories.
Click here to nominate your interest online.
Apprentice Awards – Wednesday, 15 May 2019.
If you require further clarification or assistance with the preparation of your Excellence Awards submission, or help with your Apprentice Nomination, please contact Claire Gerber, NECA WA's Event Manager, on (08) 6241 6100 or by email at events@necawa.asn.au.


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House of Roy taps into LGBT culture
By Hayleigh Gowans — Contributing Writer
Members of the House of Roy, Ithaca College's first Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender residential learning community, are already participating in events geared toward providing support for the LGBT community.
In its first semester, the community houses 14 students in rooms on one half of the first floor of Eastman Hall. Six of the residents are sophomores and the rest are freshmen, senior Catherine Kirchhoff, co-creator but not a resident of the community, said.
Junior Benjamin Jeffirs, the resident assistant for the House of Roy, said the living community focuses on helping residents acclimate to their school and surroundings, educating people about the LGBT community and encouraging student involvement on and off campus.
Sophomore Matt Obetz, a resident in the House of Roy learning community, speaks with senior Catherine Kirchhoff, co-creator of the living community, Tuesday. Programs for the floor began with a luau Aug. 29. KELSEY O'CONNOR/THE ITHACAN
"[The residents] need to get out and meet people who are not just the kind of people they see all the time," Jeffirs said. "I want to provide them with a safe place where they can explore these different beliefs."
As with members of other residential learning communities on campus, residents in the House of Roy are encouraged to participate in events related to their program. All other students are welcome to participate as well.
Some programs the residents of the House of Roy will be involved with include volunteering at the Center for LGBT Education, Outreach and Services; movie nights; the LGBT fall film series, which includes films currently scheduled through December; a prom; a potluck with other groups on campus; and guest speakers invited to talk about LGBT issues.
Residents are also encouraged to participate in other activities hosted by the Center for LGBT Education, Outreach and Services.
The House of Roy already helped to plan and host the Welcome Back Lavender Luau, which took place Aug. 29 during the college's week of welcoming events.
Jeffirs said he hopes events such as these will increase awareness of the LGBT community and LGBT issues on campus.
"The House of Roy will bring a whole new level [to] the sexual and gender diversity on campus," Jeffirs said.
Kirchhoff said she started working on getting the House of Roy approved in April 2009. Kirchhoff and Lis Maurer, director of the college's Center for LGBT Education, Outreach and Services Program, were key players in establishing the housing option.
"[LGBT housing] is a growing thing on college campuses … so I felt like it was time to get the ball rolling," Kirchhoff said.
Kirchhoff said Ron Trunzo, associate director of Residential Life and Judicial Affairs, also contributed to the efforts to institute the new housing option.
The community's name came from the mnemonic "ROYGBIV" for the colors of the rainbow, a symbol of the LGBT community. The rooms reserved for the community filled up mostly over the summer, with one of the allotted rooms remaining vacant this fall, Kirchhoff said.
The Office of Residential Life's website, IC Peers, Intercom and Facebook were used to promote the community, Kirchhoff said.
Housing in the House of Roy is open to any on-campus student who expresses an interest in the LGBT community.
Freshman Kira Sobiech, a resident living in the House of Roy, said she chose to apply to live in the residence hall because she thought it would be a good opportunity to get involved on campus.
"We have events that concentrate on LGBT history and rights," she said. "It's nice in the sense [that it's] a community."
Freshman Garen Whitmore, another resident of the House of Roy, said he became interested in living in the dorm because of the community's emphasis on cultural learning.
"It's just like being with people who have had the same experiences, or similar experiences, or completely different experiences, but you can all talk and compare in a safe place," Whitmore said.
Kirchhoff and Jeffirs said they plan to work together on increasing the total number of residents — especially the number of upperclassmen — by next year. They say they hope the numbers grow enough to have the House of Roy occupy an entire floor in Eastman.
Maurer said she hopes the House of Roy will continue to grow.
"The future is limitless," Maurer said. "The idea of living-learning communities on campus is that students come together around a common theme and make the community what it is."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


JTL's seventh and final regional awards ceremony of 2014 takes place at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire on Wednesday (26 November) evening, where the London and East of England Apprentice of the Year will be named.
The awards, which have been taking place up and down the country in recent weeks, are an opportunity to pay tribute to the fantastic work done by JTL apprentices over the last 12 months, and will be attended by the nominees, their nearest and dearest, JTL staff and employers.
There are five nominees vying for the title of London and East of England Apprentice of the Year 2014, with the shortlist made up of four electrical apprentices and one plumbing apprentice.
Electrical apprentices Natasha Crowe, of Alpha Electrical Ltd, Scott Gillespie, of Bouygues E&S FM UK Ltd, Steven Hylands, of Bancroft Group Ltd, and Alexander Turner, of RJ Stearn Ltd, are joined by plumber James Ransom, of Kent Eco Homes Ltd.
The nominees have been put forward to receive the accolade by their JTL Training Officers, having stood out from their peers. The winner is chosen after all of the nominees are judged on a mixture of their classroom work, practical abilities and feedback from their employers.
The evening will also see an award presented to the company named JTL's Employer of the Year for the London and East of England region.
Six other regional winners have already been named and announced from around the rest of the country, and the Apprentice of the Year for London and East of England will join them to go head to head for the title of JTL National Apprentice of the Year at a ceremony at Drapers' Hall, London, in February.
Best of luck to all of the nominees involved!


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Bishop Dolan may refer to:

 Timothy Dolan, Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York
 Daniel Dolan, sedevacantist traditionalist Catholic bishop

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Q: How to get path of the running process, with lack of user's permissions Is it possible to extract path to the process, if this process is executed by admin account from the user account? if your user account don't have permissions to this process.
CreateToolhelp32Snapshot gets list of all processes in a system, not depending on user permissions, but this snapshot contains only .exe names, without path.

A: CreateToolhelp32Snapshot and Process32First/Next will give you the process ID of each process. Use that ID with OpenProcess to get a process handle, and then pass that handle to QueryFullProcessImageName (requires Windows Vista or later). When you call OpenProcess, request just PROCESS_QUERY_LIMITED_INFORMATION access, and you should be able to access even elevated-privilege processes.

A: Spended a lot of time trying to cope with permissions. I think, in fact - it is possible to grant necessary privileges to process, to make processes of user and admin see each other and cooperate. But, I didn't find suitable solution using this method.
Exactly what i needed - synchronyze applications running under different users, and I found solution for my case - Global mutex!
When application is starting, it creats it's own mutex and check if there existing a simmilar process searching his mutex.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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In the last few years we have seen a boom in electric mobility around the world. Although it is too late, India is gradually becoming a viable market for electric vehicle companies and customers alike. From electric cars like Nexon EV to electric scooters like Ather 450X and Ola S1 Pro, the EV revolution is finally making waves in the country. A crucial factor that leads potential customers to hesitate is the availability of chargers. With EV's rising popularity, we've listed some methods to find EV Charging Stations near you in India. These apps and websites make it easy for you to find EV charging stations in the country.
Best Apps And Websites To Find Electric Vehicle Charging Stations In India (2022)
Finding a charging station for electric vehicles is no longer a problem thanks to charging station aggregators and first-party apps from leading providers of charging networks. Without further delay, let's take a look at the possible options.
As one of the best GPS and navigation apps for iPhone and Android, Google Maps is constantly adding helpful new features to Google Maps. One such feature is the ability to find EV charging stations near you. All you have to do is Search for "charging stations for electric vehicles" or "charging stations for electric vehicles" and Google Maps shows you nearby charging stations along with the charging plug and the output power. It's the easiest way to find a charging station near you in India.
Download Google Maps (free, Android and iOS)
EV connector
Allegedly using India's first aggregator platform for EV charging stations over 1,000 entries, EV Plugs is a handy mobile app to Find charging stations from EESL, Tata Power, Statiq, Magenta, Ather and more. After downloading the app, you can choose to own an electric bike or a car to find compatible charging stations right away. You will also see navigation instructions from Google Maps in the app. Not only that, the app also has filters to sort charging stations by plug type and distance, which should come in very handy as the network of EV charging stations in the country grows.
Download EV plugs (Free, Android and iOS)
Another charging station app to consider is Statiq. Unlike EV plugs, Statiq has its own charging network with over 150 charging stations and allows you to book a slot and make payments. Static too shows you the real-time status of the charging stations, Distance from your current location with directions, price per kW and operating times. Overall, Statiq is a feature-rich app for locating chargers in the company's charging network.
Download Statiq (Free, Android and iOS)
To help owners of Nexon electric vehicles find charging stations conveniently, automaker Tata Motors has created an easy-to-use website for EV charging point aggregation. Aside from the Tata Motors dealer service stations, the website lists chargers from EESL, Ather, Tata Power CCS2 and slow chargers, Zeon chargers and Statiq chargers. However, you cannot see the real-time status of these stations here.
Test the Tata Motors Charging Locator (Visit)
Tata Power EZ Charge
If you rely largely on the Tata Power EV charging network to charge your EVs in India, you should consider installing the Tata Power EZ Charge app. It provides you with all the essential details such as distance, operating hours, real-time status and available plugs and plug types. Since it's intended for Tata's charging network, so can you Use the app to pay for your charges with ease.
Download Tata Power EZ Charge (Free, Android and iOS)
Loading list
ChargeList is another website that you can use to search for charging stations in India. However, it's not as mature as competing offerings, but rather takes a simple approach. You can browse the ChargeList map view to see listed charging stations across the country.
Try ChargeList (Visit)
Q. How much does it cost to charge an Electric Vehicle (EV) in India?
The cost of charging an electric vehicle in India varies by region. For example, the cost of charging an electric vehicle in Delhi is Rs. 4.5 per unit for low voltage EVs and Rs. 5 per unit for high voltage EVs. Now the price is around Rs. 15 per unit in Mumbai and Rs. 7.28 per unit in Bengaluru.
Q. How many EV charging stations are there in India?
At the time of this writing, there are nearly 1,000 public charging stations for electric vehicles in India and their infrastructure is set to expand in the future.
Q. Is there an app or website with a list of all EV charging stations in India?
Yes, you can use an app like EV Plugs to search all EV charging stations in India. There are also apps like Statiq and Tata Power EZ Charge to check the availability status of charging stations in your area in real time.
Q. Can my Electric Vehicle (EV) be charged at home in India?
Yes, you can charge your EV at home in India using a compatible plug and charging cradle.
Q. Are there Tesla charging stations (or Superchargers) in India?
Although Tesla has not yet installed any charging stations in India, we could expect the company to install its charging stations in India as part of its expansion plans.
Find EV charging stations near you in India
Although the EV charging network is not as ubiquitous as gas stations in India right now, it is growing exponentially in India. If you've just bought your first EV, we hope this article has helped you navigate the complex world of charging networks to make sure you never run out of juice. If you're using a charging station app not mentioned above to find charging points, let us know in the comments.
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How to Fix Snapchat Cameos Not Appearing in the App
How To Edit or Change a Snapchat Story After Posting


Two dreams diverged along Ron Mattocks' path, and he cannot help but ponder the difference.
Is it a wise move?
"But how can I draw this map? /Easier for me to unpeel my brain's soft folds /than chart the land that made me, spun itself /into my body until I cry aloud at my face in mirrors: Illinois."
Oklahoma Poet Laureate Benjamin Myers reflects on the pleasures and discontents of rural life.
Driving posts for fences is a pain, and this automatic pneumatic tool makes it painless.
A small Hudson Valley fruit farm is very different than a large Midwest commodity farm.
Having another child seemed like a lost cause for Brian Rutter and his wife. They found a solution, and it might surprise you.
New parents neglect the dog to messy consequences.
Now That's Manly. He Opens His Beer with a Chainsaw.
That night, with my burned hands, I was inconsolable. My Dad could think of nothing else to comfort me but to take me to the pickup and drive out back to see the cows.
If we had a video camera at the time, we'd have been ten thousand dollars richer.


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Super Bowl Fatigue? Ticket Prices Are Dropping, As Patriots Return
By editor • Jan 23, 2019
Tom Brady and the Patriots beat the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl two seasons ago. They will return to the Super Bowl, in Atlanta, to face the Los Angeles Rams on Feb. 3. (Darron Cummings/AP)
Originally published on January 23, 2019 8:15 am
Super Bowl tickets are super expensive, as always, but the average resale price is about $1,000 less than at this time last year.
And the price of admission to the big game has been dropping steadily since Sunday, when the Patriots won the AFC Championship. Again.
The average asking price on the secondary market is $7,078, according TicketIQ, a New York firm that aggregates tickets from multiple vendors. That's an eye-popping sum but a relative bargain, compared with last season's rate of more than $8,000.
The market for Super Bowl tickets is subject to multiple factors, including the number of available seats and the teams involved. New England's appearance — the club's fourth in five seasons — contributes to what TicketIQ founder Jesse Lawrence calls a "worst-case demand scenario."
In any team's fan base, there are only so many households that can afford a Super Bowl trip. Even among those few, it might be a once-in-a-lifetime indulgence.
"For lots of Patriots fans, that once-in-a-lifetime thing has already happened," said Victor Matheson, a sports economist at the College of the Holy Cross.
The Pats are playing in their ninth Super Bowl since 2002.
Matheson and Lawrence noted the Patriots' opponent, the Los Angeles Rams, only recently returned to that city, after a 21-season hiatus. The Rams do not have the passionate following in L.A. that the the Pats' last Super Bowl foe, the Eagles, have in Philadelphia.
With Rams fans still developing and some Patriots fans tapped out, ticket prices could continue to decline, Lawrence predicted.
Fans who do go to the game in Atlanta may have to spend any ticket savings, relatively speaking — and then some — on lodging. The host city's hotels are virtually sold out, enabling homeowners to command premium prices on booking sites like Airbnb.
Real estate broker Kianya Campbell owns or manages 13 residential properties within walking distance of Mercedes-Benz Stadium. She's listed a three-bedroom house for more than $3,000 per night on Super Bowl weekend; a condo goes for about $2,500. Her prices are not out of the norm for properties so close to the stadium.
Campbell is a fan of the Falcons, the team the Patriots beat in a Super Bowl two years ago. But she is willing to rent to Pats fans.
"I personally don't have any resentment toward them because [Rob] Gronkowski is on my fantasy football team," Campbell said. "So, I appreciate him and believe in him and wholeheartedly support him."
Copyright 2019 WBUR. To see more, visit WBUR.
Angry With NFL After No-Call, Saints Fans Resort To Lawsuits, Billboards
By Laurel Wamsley • Jan 22, 2019
It's a meeting of two truly American pastimes: football and lawsuits.
First, the football.
Late in regulation in Sunday's NFC championship game, the New Orleans Saints were tied 20-20 with the Los Angeles Rams in pursuit of the Super Bowl.
And in Atlanta, where the Super Bowl takes place Feb. 3, Saints fan Matt Bowers bought a smattering of billboards to convey his hurt feelings.
"NFL Bleaux It!" proclaims one. "Saints Were Robbed," cries another.
Have a penchant for Louisiana-style outrage? Get in touch with Bowers.


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Failure to stem leakage undermines water efficiency campaigns says watchdog
Water companies "risk dampening consumers' motivation to use water more wisely" by failing to stem leakage, the Consumer Council for Water (CC Water) has warned.
In a report last week the watchdog said there was a "gulf" between the lowest and worst company leakage records and it was concerned that industry efforts to stem leakage had "flatlined over the past five years."
CC Water said that lack progress in reducing leakage levels "could undermine some water companies' campaigns to help and encourage consumers to value their tap water and use it more efficiently."
CC Water chief executive, Tony Smith, said: "Consumers view leakage as a dreadful waste and it can drain their own motivation to save water.
"Some water companies need to show much more ambition in tackling leaks, otherwise all of our efforts to encourage consumers to use water more wisely will fall on deaf ears."
A Water UK spokesperson said: "Water companies spend millions of pounds each year, which has helped to cut leaks by a third since the mid-1990s and most companies are still beating their targets. We've had some major successes in combatting leakage over the years, and at the same time we know that people want to do the right thing and use water wisely to help the environment."
According to the CC Water report, Water water everywhere, the largest reductions in leakage in 2016/17 were reported by Affinity Water (-4.4%), United Utilities (-2.8%), Bournemouth Water (-2.6%) and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (-2.5%).
In contrast, Dee Valley Water (+14.1%), Essex and Suffolk Water (+9.1%), Cambridge Water (+8.2%), Portsmouth Water (+7.6%), Thames Water (+5.4%) and Bristol Water (+5%) reported the biggest increases.
There was a gulf in the performance of the worst and best performers with Thames Water losing around 179 litres of water per property each day, compared to Southern Water with less than 80 litres lost per property each day.
The watchdog said consumers were not getting the message that they had an important part to play in curbing leakage. It reported that average daily consumption was 141 litres – up more than 1% on the previous year.


There you will find a Word file with an example of code that you can use in Dynamics AX.
This code respect the Best Practices of Microsoft.
Overwrite the "enter" method on the combobox and write the following.
Now only option 1 will be displayed.


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Report: Tillerson Called Trump a 'Moron' at July Pentagon Meeting
AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File
John Hayward
NBC News cites three unnamed "officials familiar with the incident" to report that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson referred to President Donald Trump as a "moron" at a July 20 Pentagon meeting. Tillerson is said to have been contemplating resignation at the time.
According to the report, Tillerson "stunned a handful of senior administration officials" by calling Trump a moron after a "tense two-hour meeting in a secure room at the Pentagon called 'The Tank.'"
The sources seem to be curiously reticent about exactly why Tillerson said this. Much later in the article, NBC identifies them as "three officials who were present or briefed on the incident," so it is not clear if any of them actually heard Tillerson's alleged outburst or knows what he was talking about when he dropped the insult.
Earlier in the piece, NBC says Tillerson made his fiery comments after the Pentagon meeting that included "members of Trump's national security team and Cabinet officials," so it is unclear exactly who he was talking to. NBC states it is also "unclear whether Trump was told of Tillerson's outburst after the Pentagon meeting," and it is also "unclear" if Vice President Mike Pence was "aware of the incident," which seems rather odd.
Trump continues to have public differences of opinion with Tillerson, but he has not criticized him in the way Donald Trump might normally be expected to respond to someone who called him a moron. The White House said as recently as Monday that Tillerson still has the president's full confidence. Several White House officials are quoted in the NBC piece downplaying tensions with Tillerson.
Tillerson's top spokesman, R.C. Hammond, flatly denied to NBC that his boss called Trump a moron, and said Tillerson did not consider resigning over the summer. NBC's sources say Vice President Mike Pence, White House Chief of Staff General John Kelly, and Secretary of Defense James Mattis labored mightily to persuade Tillerson to stay and become more supportive of the president's agenda.
According to Hammond, the only instance of Pence discussing a subject other than policy with Tillerson was a meeting in which Pence "asked Tillerson if he thought Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, was helpful to the administration, or if he was worried about the role she was playing."
Without any context for the controversial Tillerson remark from its sources, NBC is left to speculate about why the secretary of state would have called the president a moron. NBC puts considerable effort into implying that Tillerson, an Eagle Scout and former president of the organization, was alienated by President Trump's "politicized speech" to the Boy Scouts of America, but the beginning of the article mentions that the speech was delivered several days after Tillerson allegedly insulted Trump.
A more likely motivation is suggested when NBC notes the July 20 Pentagon meeting came the day after "a meeting in the White House Situation Room on Afghanistan policy where Trump rattled his national security advisers by suggesting he might fire the top U.S. commander in the war and comparing the decision-making process on troop levels to the renovation of a high-end New York restaurant," according to sources who were present at that meeting.
National SecurityPoliticsAfghanistanBoy ScoutsDefense Secretary James MattisDonald TrumpPentagonSecretary of State Rex TillersonVice President Mike Pence


Tesla will fund new employees in both the Clark and Washoe county school districts and help bolster half a dozen science-focu.
The caller told a 911 operator that one man had been sitting in a parked car near the caller's house for about 20. "If I w.
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Georgia officials on Tuesday said charges were pending against a high school student who on senior skip day lost control of her car and collided with a tree, injuring herself and killing her classmate.
The district said although all students. two meals a day at school will help her bank account. "For her, that's huge," Coo.
Negotiating lower car insurance can help you save hundreds of dollars each year. Here's how to. Step 1: Set a goal of how much coverage you need. After many days of back and forth with our salesperson, they finally reached a price they could agree on. Apparently, me being a student saves me about 40$/ month!
Andrew Brown / The Kroger Co. via Reuters They may resemble giant metal toasters on wheels, but these strange-looking vehicle.
A Florida professor has been arrested after cops said he stalked a doctoral student who spurned him after. They said at one point Borji sent the woman 800 texts in a single day. "Our detectives act.
This weekend, @tempcover CEO Alan Inskip spoke to @CarolLewis101 at @thetimes about how Tempcover and other insurance industry disruptors are helping to give faster, fairer and cheaper cover to customers.
The goal of the investment is to encourage students. (All day) Carson City's Karson Kruzers are busy these days getting into gear for their 33rd annual Run What Cha Brung car show, to be held on Ju.
Museums: Most museums will have student discounts, so all you have to do is check with them. Amazon: Students get six months of Amazon Prime for free, which normally costs $70. This allows them to get.
The college student's car had broken down. but he wasn't about to miss his first day of work at a moving company called Be.
(AL.COM) — When a young Birmingham college student's car broke down the night before he was supposed to start a new job, he d.
For a moment, Lora Church figured she had just forgotten where she had parked her car. When she walked out. the National I.
A university student who walked 20 miles to his first day of work after his car broke down was left in tears over his. I s.
. funds for alternative transportation projects and accepting a plan to stretch this year's "Car Free Day" into two days. C.
Jul 2, 2013. Some car insurance discounts are common, while others are more unusual. these days, and a high one could help cut your car insurance bills by. and even college students enrolled in a commissioning program such as.
(Screenshot: Bellhops) Chattanooga-based tech moving company Bellhops rewarded a new employee's dedication and humility after.
Friday is World Jump Day and Sky Zone is offering a deal. From noon to 5 p.m., buy one. the students didn't know what stan.
In a Facebook post, Graham wrote: "This Alabama college student was NOT going to be late for his first day of work with a mov.
"I ran my car off an icy mountain road and ended up in a river," he said. The insurance. a married student, I went to clas.


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Grub Street Project :: People :: Lewis Theobald
Lewis Theobald
by William Hogarth
1736 (pub. 1794)
Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University Library, Hogarth 794.01.20.05 Impression 2 Box 135
Copy of a detail from Hogarth's "Distressed poet." This version of the image, published in 1794 after Hogarth's death by Wm. Richardson of Castle St. in Leicester Fields, identifies the poet as scholar Lewis Theobald. Theobald was one of the "scriblers" employed by the unscrupulous bookseller Edmund Curll, as Alexander Pope's favoured son of the Goddess Dulness "Tibbald."
Pope had had a feud with Theobald since Pope's Works of Shakespear (1725) had prompted Theobald's rebuke in Shakespeare Restored; or, A Specimen of the Many Errors As Well Committed As Unamended by Mr. Pope, in His Late Edition of This Poet (1726). Theobald had further antagonized Pope when, working as attorney for the heirs of Pope's mentor and friend William Wycherley, he had secured the rights to Wycherley's poems. The Posthumous Works of William Wycherley Esq; In Prose and Verse. Faithfully Publish'd from His Original Manuscripts, by Mr. Theobald was published in 1728 by sometime business partners of Curll, A. Bettesworth, J. Osborn, W. Mears, W. and J. Innys, J. Peele, T. Woodward, and F. Clay. Pope had worked closely with Wycherley between 1705 and 1710 editing and revising the poems with an eye to eventual publication, though Wycherley had ultimately decided against printing the verses. Much to Pope's indignation Theobald's edition tainted Wycherley's reputation with its inclusion of unfinished pieces and verses falsely attributed to Wycherley. Moreover, Theobald had made editorial changes to the poems and made no acknowledgment of Pope's work. Pope's Dunciad (1728) and Dunciad Variorum (1729), in retaliation, crowned Tibbald the King of Dunces.
The print quotes from Pope's description of Tibbald attempting to write great verse:
Studious he sate, with all his books around,
Sinking, from thought to thought, a vast profund:
Plung'd for his sense, but found no bottom there;
Then writ, and flounder'd on, in mere despair.
Dunciad Book 1, line 3
Knocking his wig askew as he scratches his head, Tibbald scribbles out "Poverty a Poem"—Theobald's "The Cave of Poverty, a Poem. Written in imitation of Shakespeare" (1714). A copy of Edward Bysshe's The Art of English Poetry (1702), a handbook for poets, lies open on the table. Bysshe's manual, with its "Rules For making English verse," rhyming dictionary, and all the "Most Natural, Agreeable, & Noble Thoughts" of the English poets listed alphabetically by subject, suggests a dull, pedantic, and unoriginal approach to poetic expression.
The painting behind Tibbald appears to be a commentary on the avaricious trade in authors' works by greedy booksellers and complicit writers and editors unequal to the task of original composition. The image features Pope and the bookseller Edmund Curll, another of Pope's dunces. Though commenters have suggested that Pope is thrashing Curll here, the opposite seems more likely. Lying on the ground, physically weaker with a curved spine and in the signature pose and cap from Vertue's 1722 portrait that appears in many later portraits and caricatures, this figure seems a truer depiction of Pope who would have hardly resembled the able-bodied man looming over him.
Assuming this is the case, Curll uses what seems to be a printer's pole with a page draped over it bearing the title "Popes Letters" ( Mr. Pope's Literary Correspondence for Thirty Years; from 1704 to 1734, which Curll had pirated to capitalise on Pope's popularity and likely also to embarrass him by exposing his private—occasionally bawdy and vain—discourse with friends). Pope holds a rolled page bearing the text "to Curll," a reference to his duping Curll into publishing the letters so he in turn could publish his own authorised Letters of Mr. Alexander Pope, and Several of His Friends (1737). The speech balloon issuing from Curll, reading "Veni Vidi Vici 1735," quotes Curll's introduction to the second volume of his pirated Correspondence (1735), in which he proclaims as the fictitious Philalethes: "in regard to all the Attacks which have been made upon him [Curll], by this petulant little Gentleman [Pope], especially the last, 'VENI VIDI VICI.'"
Tibbald here represents the hack's complicity in the production of unauthorized publications in an exploitative industry where the original creators had virtually no rights in their works. Copyright was owned by the publishers of a work, and, in the spring of 1735, London booksellers were campaigning for a bill that would extend the term from fourteen years. Pope's concern about the bill was that there should be protection for authors, and this provided another, more immediate objective for his trick on Curll, that is, to have the pirated edition appear before the bill passed. Pope and Hogarth shared a purpose in the spring of 1735: Hogarth's works were also flagrantly pirated—particularly egregiously, The Harlot's Progress by Elisha Kirkhall in 1732. Hogarth himself had been campaigning for a bill to ensure engravers the exclusive rights to their own works, which received Royal Assent on 15 May 1735.
A larger view of the room shown here is found in Hogarth's painting "The Distressed Poet" of 1736, which has hanging behind the poet a print of Pope as an ape, from the frontispiece to Pope Alexander's Supremacy and Infallibility Examin'd (1729). The print of "The Distrest Poet" first published on 3 March 1736 shows Pope and Curll, as in the print shown here; a third variation published on 15 December 1740 shows a map titled "A Plan of the Gold Mines of Peru," and the poem titled "Riches a Poem." His financial situation often precarious, in 1741 he would appeal to the public for support at a benefit performance of Double Falshood .
—Allison Muri, September 2018, revised July 2022
This image is provided courtesy of the Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University Library. Yale University makes digital copies of unrestricted public domain collections available for use without limitations through the University's electronic interfaces (Yale University Policy on Open Access to Digital Representations of Works in the Public Domain from Museum, Library, and Archive Collections). The copyright term for this image is assumed to be expired.
People of London
The Grub Street Project
Directed by Allison Muri


text:
Efternamnet Undén har burits av:
Viktor Undén (1844–1923), svensk apotekare, far till Torsten och Östen
Torsten Undén (1877–1962), svensk diplomat
Östen Undén (1886–1974), svensk politiker
Håkan Undén (1919–1993), svensk konsthantverkare och skulptör

Se även
Unden, sjö i Sverige


Next time you have to pee in New York City, you might want to make a trip up to the New York Public Library. A nearby public bathroom has opened after two months of renovations costing a whopping $300-thousand. The john features delivered flowers, imported titles, classical music and artwork and is open to any and everyone, including the homeless.


A pre-launch tour of one of the original Apple Stores back in 2001 (Tysons Corner, VA). Apple got it right. Love the Flower Power iMacs at the cash register and the red "batphone" to call Cupertino at the Genius Bar!


Track your certifications, CE's, and training hours the easy way, and have all your records with you when you need them. Just snap a photo of your certification or sign-in sheet, add a few bits of info, and this app will do the rest. Your records will always be up to date and available. Easily see which certs are expiring soon, quickly check your training hour totals, or make a report with a complete breakdown of categories and subcategories.
For example, an EMT can make a report since the last certification date with all the continuing education classes in subcategories such as medical, trauma, assessment, etc. If you are applying for a new fitness instructor job, you can export all your certifications with expiration dates and photos of certs in an email within seconds. A firefighter can verify annual training hours with dates, subjects, and sign-in sheets in a snap.
You can choose your own categories and subcategories, so this app works for firefighters, EMS personnel, nurses, doctors, school teachers, IT professionals, fitness instructors, pilots -- you name it! Actually, you can store anything with an expiration date, and anything that you might need with you in a pinch, like your drivers license, passport, cards from your wallet, ID cards, insurance cards, etc.


Professor Gerald Tannock's new book Understanding the Gut Microbiota has been released by publisher John Wiley & Sons. It was written while Professor Tannock was a James Cook Research Fellow (awarded by the Royal Society of New Zealand).
The book discusses the community of microbial species (the microbiota or microbiome) that inhabits the large bowel of humans, and provides a long-term perspective of this high-profile and fast-moving topic. Building on general ecological principles, the book aims to help the reader to understand how the microbiota is formed, how it works, and what its consequences are for humans.
Copies of the book can be purchased through the Wiley website or from other sources such as Amazon. Professor Tannock's first book Normal microflora: an introduction to microbes inhabiting the human body (1995) is also still available.


Directly at a sandy beach is situated the hotel Vik Gran Hotel Costa Del Sol. At the beach, there are sun loungers and sun umbrellas for a fee. The city La Cala de Mijas is approx. 200 m away. The following attractions can be reached from the hotel: Fuengirola Zoo (approx. 8 km away) and Aquapark (approx. 6 km away). For mobility during your holiday, there are a taxi rank (around 20 m away), a bus stop (approx. 100 m away) and a nearby car rental company. An underground station is located in a distance of approx. 8 km. Locations further away can be reached via the railway station in a distance of around 8 km. For medical treatment in emergencies there is a hospital around 6 km away. The airport (AGP) is approx. 35 km away.
The 6-storey 4-star beach hotel has 302 rooms, and spread over one main building and one adjoining building. It offers its guests a 24h reception, a lobby, 3 lifts, air conditioning, a safe (for a fee), a parking area (for a fee) and a money changing facility. To ensure you don't go hungry there is a restaurant. You will be warmly welcomed in both the hotel's bars. WiFi is available for free. Additionally the hotel has a conference room with a total 80 seats. For guests dependent on a wheelchair the hotel has a ramp / lifting platform and a wheelchair accessible lift. Room cleaning is free of charge. Laundry service and medical service are available for a fee.
The outside area of the hotel includes one fresh water pool. Here, there are sun loungers and sun umbrellas for free available. A bar at the pool offers guests refreshing beverages.
Breakfast (from 07:00 - 10:00) from the buffet. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Half board Plus: breakfast and dinner. All inclusive: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Water, soft drinks, coffee & tea, cakes & pastries, small snacks, beer, wine, cocktails and national alcoholic drinks at certain times. All inclusive Light: breakfast and dinner. Water (10:00 - 23:00) and soft drinks (10:00 - 23:00 ). Furthermore beer, wine, national alcoholic drinks as well as coffee & tea at certain times. Welcome drink.
Sports and entertainment: Billiards, darts and table tennis. In the immediate vicinity of the hotel, different watersports activities are available (partly from local providers). A golf course is approx. 500 m from the hotel. Bicycle rental. Entertainment for adults: activity programme with evening shows. Adult's games room. Child supervision: activity programme for children (from 2 - 12 years).
Additional fees may apply for certain facilities, amenities or activities. Some services depend on the local climatic conditions and the season. Languages spoken: English, German, French, Italian, Dutch and Spanish. Accepted methods of payment: Euro / MasterCard and Visa.
With: baby cot (for free), internet (for free), safe (for a fee), sat TV. Bathroom with bathtub or shower.
Are available furnished with: internet (for free).
*HB+ Includes: Breakfast + dinner + drink included during the dinner - 1/4 water and 1/4 wine or client could change it for 1 soft drink or beer.
A small corner to unwind, enjoy refreshing cocktails and sunbathing.


text:
Fabio Capello's England team to visit Auschwitz during European Championships in Poland
One of the many embarrassments that clung to England like a bad smell during the South Africa World Cup was their refusal to experience the country. They even turned down the chance to visit Robben Island while having a rest day in Cape Town.
The front of the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1945 Photo: GETTY IMAGES
By Henry Winter
11:00PM GMT 28 Jan 2012
Commendably, the FA's desire for England to engage more fully in a tournament and the host nation will see Fabio Capello and his players visit Auschwitz from their Euro 2012 base in nearby Krakow.
This week, all players at professional clubs will receive educational notes about last Friday's Holocaust Memorial Day from Kick It Out, football's equality and inclusion campaign. Schools are being sent copies of "The Y-Word", the short film about anti-semitism in football.
Education is the key in tackling discrimination. But so are images of famous footballers paying their respects to those who perished in Auschwitz. England have been to the concentration camp before.
Sven-Goran Eriksson, his captain David Beckham and 14 other players went in September 2004 before a World Cup qualifier with Poland in Katowice. "It's good that the players are thinking about going back,'' said Lord Ouseley, chair of Kick It Out.
Clubs are doing more to make their players more rounded and socially responsible characters. Some clubs made their players aware of Holocaust Memorial Day. Some did not.
Wilshere 'gutted' with fresh injury setback
Michel Platini: why do the English hate me? I'm French
England to fast-track Oxlade-Chamberlain
Cahill: Chelsea move will boost England
We need more gems like Rooney and Gascoigne
Bates wants Cup sanctions
"Of course it's difficult for players to get involved in a major event like the remembrance of the Holocaust when they have matches at the weekend,'' added Ouseley.
"Some clubs were represented. I think the PFA also have a responsibility to raise awareness of its members of the importance of these events like Holocaust Memorial Day, to have a better understanding of history.''
Tom Huddlestone, the Spurs midfielder, did a live link from Spurs Lodge to pupils at a school in nearby Wood Green, touching on the issue of discrimination.
A balance is required. Footballers are professionals, employed by to win and must spend the majority of their life concentrating on such ends. Yet acquiring some perspective about the evils that can lurk in society will make them better people.
It might also make them better players by appreciating their good fortune.
Henry Winter »
Tottenham Hotspur »
The world's best 100 rugby union players
Football's top 20 hard men


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Making markets again
My "post":https://crookedtimber.org/2005/06/24/market-making-versus-market-taking-in-politics/ last week about Rick Perlstein's pamphlet got some "interesting":http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_06/006592.php "reactions":http://www.reachm.com/amstreet/archives/2005/06/26/the-next-big-idea/ (and some "wrongheaded":http://www.janegalt.net/blog/archives/005369.html ones too). I was particularly taken with Matt Yglesias's reworking of Perlstein's argument and suggestions for how it might be applied. This said, I think Matt is wrong when he claims that the argument over market-making versus market-taking isn't really an argument between the left and the center of the Democratic party. While there's no reason _in principle_ that the one set of disagreements should map onto the other, there's an enormous degree of overlap _in practice_. In internecine battles over policy, New Democrat/DLC types have made hay with the claim that leftwing policies simply don't sell in the marketplace of American politics. As a result, they tend to exaggerate the extent to which these market rules are a given, and to discount the possibility that they might be changed. A case in point, which I've just come across, is this "review":http://www.ndol.org/ndol_ci.cfm?contentid=253353&kaid=127&subid=171 by Ed Kilgore of Perlstein's "book on Barry Goldwater":http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=74-0809028581-0 . Kilgore criticizes non-centrists for defying
bq. the commonsense view, based on extensive political experience, that Democrats can best meet the contemporary rightwing challenge by occupying the abandoned political center and peeling off moderate, independent, and even Republican voters.
Kilgore argues that Reagan and his allies won through fortuitous circumstance rather than ideological zeal, and contends that those who believe otherwise are afflicted with a variety of religious messianism
bq. Indeed, the left's new fascination with the conservative movement, and with politicians like Goldwater and Reagan, can best be understood as reflecting a powerful desire to believe that ultimate success does not require, and may actually prohibit, ideological flexibility, submission to public opinion, or the responsibility to achieve actual results. A period of losing may well precede the day of victory, in this view, and the left's current leaders may, like Goldwater, never enter the promised land themselves. But someday, if their people remain faithful and refuse compromise with impurity, an Aaron will arise, and redemption will be at hand.
Now, like all caricatures, there's a little truth to this, but only a little. The "net-roots" whom Kilgore disparages as zealots in fact showed an extraordinary degree of flexibility in embracing a candidate last year whose views they didn't share, but whom they thought might win. But the problem in Kilgore's article goes deeper than this. By recasting the debate as one between unrealistic ideological purists (bad) and those who are willing to make political compromises and move towards the center (good), he completely fails to address Perlstein's underlying argument. Perlstein's real claim, if I understand it rightly, is that long term political success doesn't come from adapting your party to a political marketplace in which the enemy has set the rules of competition. It comes from a concerted effort over time to remake those rules yourself. This doesn't have to be pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking. Nor does it have to be something which is antithetical to ND/DLC types' policy goals. Matt's suggestion for a new kind of family and childcare politics is a good example of an initiative that could help remake the rules of debate, and that both leftists and centrists could get behind. But it _does_ require people like Ed Kilgore to stop using the current rules of the political marketplace as a stick to beat the heads of leftists, and to start thinking creatively about how those rules might be changed. So far, I'm not seeing much evidence that they want to do this.
SomeCallMeTim 06.30.05 at 1:52 pm
I'm not sure it's fair to say that the DLC/TNR crowd represents the "center" and that the anti-Iraq crowd represents the "left". Prior to Iraq, a lot of the "left" (Atrios, Krugman, etc.) would have been classed as centrists; MY previously made the point that the only large-scale difference between much of the "left" and much of the "center" is Iraq policy. I don't know that, for example, opposition to Iraq maps in any particular way to initial trust/distrust of market-made solutions to various problems. It might be more accurate to talk about the "center" (us) and "Democratic Right" (DLC/TNR).
abb1 06.30.05 at 3:52 pm
To changing the rules you'd have to change the language and, perhaps, the culture first. In the US 'socialist' is a swear word, invading countries is 'liberation', idle super-rich are 'the most productive members of the society' who 'create jobs', etc.
Ginger Yellow 06.30.05 at 4:16 pm
"Indeed, the left's new fascination with the conservative movement, and with politicians like Goldwater and Reagan, can best be understood as reflecting a powerful desire to believe that ultimate success does not require, and may actually prohibit, ideological flexibility, submission to public opinion, or the responsibility to achieve actual results."
So how does Kilgore explain the left's new fascination with Karl Rove? Maybe the left's fascination with Goldwater and Reagan can best be understood as reflecting a powerful desire to understand how we got into this horrific political situation, and how we can get out of it.
So how does Kilgore explain the left's new fascination with Karl Rove? Maybe the left's new fascination with the conservative movement, and with politicians like Goldwater and Reagan, can best be understood as reflecting a powerful desire to understand how we got into this horrific political situation (much like the one the Republicans faced pre-Goldwater), and how we can get out of it.
y81 06.30.05 at 6:43 pm
For the pedant, the biggest problem with Kilgore's article is that he seems to have confused Aaron with Joshua. It's so hard to take the uneducated seriously, though I know that they are often good people.
Ben Alpers 06.30.05 at 8:02 pm
Haven't yet read either Perlstein's pamphlet or Kilgore's repost. But I think it's worth noting that one of the many ways in which the ND/DLC crowd is dishonest is their constant talk about the need to compromise. "New Democrats" tend to talk (especially to progressives) as if they are really quite left, but, sobered by experience, understand that they can only win by moving to the center. In fact, they are convinced centrists and/or conservatives who understand that they cannot sell their ideas on the merits to their party's grassroots, so they package their ideas in terms of the iron laws of electoral necessity. Unfortunately, the grassroots tends to buy this nonsense. Whatever the electoral possibilities of the actual left, the New Democratic vision of the center keeps losing election after election. There may be reasons to support this vision (though I don't see them). But easy electoral success is not one of them.
Sven 06.30.05 at 11:22 pm
Kilgore et al are seriously misreading the "netroots'" major beef with ND/DLCism. "Compromis[ing] with impurity" may be a issue among some subscribers to The Nation. But Daily Kos or Atrios readers' chief concern isn't about ideology as much as cajones.
The most effective charge against Kerry during the campaign wasn't that he's a liberal – that was red meat for the Rush Limbaugh crowd. It the was oft-repeated "flip-flopper" label, which was most effective among Kilgore's precious middle.
Nils gilman 06.30.05 at 11:31 pm
Given the tacit agreement on all the major issues that confront our society — the fact that there is de facto major-party consensus on all the big issues that might roil political debate in this country — the real political battle becomes which relatively trivial issues we will choose to debate. And in this respect, the Republicans have made bitches out of the Democrats for the last two electoral cycles.
Quite obviously, the big issues facing the country during the last electoral cycle were (1) the probity of the choice to invade, and the path forward in, Iraq; (2) the massive budget deficit; (3) what to do about entitlements with an aging population. But were these the central issues the two candidates debated?
Karl Rove's genius is that he knows exactly which political issues are the "right ones" to choose for establishing effective Republican differentiation. Instead, the electoral debate, as played out in the so-called liberal media, focused almost entirely on secondary issues chosen by Rove: gay marriage, Swifties, and "personal character."
There are two problems here. The first is that the Democrats, under DLC guidance, have utterly failed to differentiate themselves from the Republicans on the major issues of the day. This was why I was disgusted by Kerry, but felt that Dean would have been a good candidate. (Dean was "a choice, not an echo," as the Goldwater phrase would have it.) The second problem was that insofar as they were going to concede parity on the vital issues of the day, the Democrats also ceded the choice of secondary issues to the Republicans.
The result was all but inevitable, and in retrospect it's frankly amazing that Kerry got as close as he did.
Firebug 07.01.05 at 2:24 am
Kilgore's premises are wrong. The fact is that, on various economic issues, the public is further left than the Democrats. A large majority of Americans want universal health care. Polls also show that more than 50% of Americans want to be union members. Economic populism is a winning agenda. It's time to purge the DLC and tell them to go to the Republican party where they belong.
dave s 07.01.05 at 4:41 am
All I know is my own experience – that I thought the Dems were the party with good ideas and voted Dem from McGovern through Clinton I, then voted Dole, Bush, Bush. It seems to me that the Dems need to try and find a way to get me back, and the way to do it is through the center (and through making me confident they intend to defend the country) not through going left.
abb1 07.01.05 at 6:33 am
McGovern was more to the center than Clinton2, Gore and Kerry?
Is it possible that you have drifted to the right (e.g. by accepted Republican definition of what 'to defend the country' means) and are beyond the reach now? And that, I'm afraid, is the whole point here.
James Kroeger 07.01.05 at 11:14 am
"…Unfortunately, the only success of any significance that the DLC can point to over the past dozen years was Bill Clinton's election and re-election. In the end, Bill Clinton's Presidency was actually a personal achievement, not an achievement of the Democratic Party."
"Unfortunately, Bill Clinton and his cohort at the DLC are profoundly mistaken in their belief that Clinton's success was due to his "centrist" positions on the issues. Democrats who tried to run on Clinton's centrist agenda were regularly swept away by Republican candidates throughout the Clinton Era. The only reason why his centrist positions helped to get him elected is because he was able to deftly take away the ammunition his opponents were depending on to define him in a negative way. By eliminating distinctions between himself and his Republican opponent, he was able to reduce the choice for voters to "Who do you want for your President? Him or me?" With his charm, he was the obvious choice for many. As many have pointed out, the only problem with this approach is that you can only agree with your opponent for tactical reasons so many times before you actually become your opponent."
"Bill Clinton is a great, great guy. How can anyone not like him? His charm reminds me of the 1980's, when I would listen to one of Reagan's State of the Union speeches and say, "You know, he even makes me want to believe what he's saying, and I know that just everything he just said is 100% wrong." The comparison to Reagan is apt. I predict that one day historians will agree that Bill Clinton was truly a far greater Political Personality than Ronald Reagan ever was. He was/is every bit the equal of Ronald Reagan when it comes to personal charm, and that is saying a lot. But Bill Clinton was/is also extremely intelligent—in a book-learning sort of way—while Reagan regularly turned to The Reader's Digest for incisive analysis of the issues. There is no doubt in my mind that Bill Clinton would have easily trounced Ronald Reagan if they had been matched up against each other at the same time. Charming & Intelligent vs. Charming & Amiable Dunce."
Beware of the DLC.
Anthony 07.01.05 at 12:51 pm
Sven has a very good point about the "flip-flopper" label sticking rather too well to Kerry; and Nils is correct that Rove's genius consists of choosing the issues which resonate the most with the voting public in a way which tilts them Republican.
I don't entirely believe Firebug's analysis, because polls which show that the majority of Americans want national health insurance generally don't ask about the costs or other options, and how those issues affect people's opinions. Those are issues which the Republicans would bring up if a Democrat proposed National Health.
The "making markets" paradigm would require a moderately liberal Democrat to vigorously put forward a generally coherent vision of liberalism, set forth in terms which the middle-of-the-road voter can identify with. It would help if such a Democratic candidate could successfully portray the Republicans as weak on some significant issue, and create a perception that the Republicans didn't have coherent principles, but rather a laundry-list of issues and interests all grabbing for a share of the pie.
Middle-of-the-road voters can be swayed to vote quite a ways from the political center, if the argument is presented in ways which match some of the usually conflicting values which those voters hold. The Republicans have been far better at that than the Democrats, except on a few issues (like same-sex marriage) where they're losing ground on the issue.
The Democrats might be able to do it, but there isn't a candidate in 2008 who can do it, unless Edwards does a lot better this time around. It may also not be the Democrats' time yet. The liberal ideological consensus was the dominant ideological paradigm from 1932 to 1980; in that time, except for Goldwater, conservatives were oppositional rather than advancing an alternative ideological vision. The Democrats today are oppositional, with a few exceptions. The question is whether Howard Dean is the Barry Goldwater or the Robert Welch of the Democrats.
Universal healthcare – in 1993, before the 'great universal healthcare' debate started, 70% wanted universal healthcare. A couple of months later, when the dust settled, it was under 50%. Thank you Bob, Viagra-man. Anything (OK, almost anything) can be demagogued to appear the opposite of what it is – if you have enough money and audacity. And they have both.
wa ki on Boris Johnson open thread
J-D on Boris Johnson open thread
SusanC on Sunday photoblogging: fox on the tracks
Chris Bertram on Sunday photoblogging: fox on the tracks
David J. Littleboy on Boris Johnson open thread
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Adding the list of Welcome releases, we're stoked to announce that Arbor Skateboards has paired up with Ali Nas, rounding out their global talent along with previously announced Axel Serrat from Spain and Tyler Gillingham from Canada.
Congrats to Ali and Arbor. This is another great match thanks to team manager Ryan Ricker and we hope to see more epic footage from the collab.
With only a few months of sunshine in Norway a year, it's rad to see the dedication Ali Nas has for the sport he loves. We are excited to welcome Ali Nas to the Arbor Skateboards Team. Bringing his motivation, charisma, and magic tricks to the table, we know it's going to be a good time having Ali around. Welcome to the Team Ali!


It's been a great past year for fans of Anime movies, with 'Your Name' taking the world by storm and being followed up by the equally impressive 'A Silent Voice' not long after. Thrown into the mix was new installments in the Yu-Gi-Oh, Fairy Tail and Sword Art Online franchises (Although sadly neither One Piece Film Gold nor Girls und Panzer der Film has graced our screens yet, for shame on you distributors. SHAME!) and so following in tradition myself and friends went to see 'In This Corner Of The World.' and had a really nice time.
Produced by MAPPA (Hajime No Ippo, Terror in Resonance, Yuri on Ice) written by Sunao Katabuchi (Mai Mai Miracle) and featuring character designs by Hidenori Matsubara (Sakura Wars, Princess And The Pilot, Oh My Goddess!) the film follows a young woman named Suzu's life from the early 1930s to 1940s and beyond.We start in a small town called Eba, part of Hiroshima City and are introduced to Suku; a girl who loves to paint. In 1944 she is proposed to by a young man who lives in Kure City, a large naval port around 15 miles away. She accepts the proposal and adjusts to her new life with her new family.
Given the time period you the viewer are already aware of key events taking place around Suzu and have an advantageous outlook on the world she lives in, however the film never becomes dull or boring, around two-thirds of the film is Suzu trying to settle into her life with a comedy of day to day life from Rationing with elderly townsfolk and attempting (and usually failing) to cook meals or sew new clothes for herself. The real power in the film is that Suzu is not a character of power or intellect and instead the film convinces you that, while fictional this is an actual ordinary person, trying to live an ordinary life in a corner of the world gripped with war and loss.
After around the halfway point is when the film ramps things up as the war starts to take its toll on Suzu and the world around her as everything is torn apart including important people to her and an important part of her, she eventually begins to suffer from depression and starts planning to return home when the horrific Hiroshima bombing takes place. With the war ending Suzu eventually, loses any will to live as almost everything has been taken from her, however, what's left of her family eventually gives her the motivation to push forwards.
The film was great from start to finish and was an exceptional piece of artwork the entire time, the use of paints and colour to represent the world around Suzu was incredible and the film often took the time to look at the little things, sometimes completely changing art style when the occasion rose, it didn't cut corners and everything looked incredibly well done considering other titles from the studio. It felt unique in its own style while managing to provide the serious tone of the film when required.
While the film is fictional you can see and feel the amount of effort they went to in putting the film together, from the simple and traditional culture and things we see in Suzu's day to day life around the house to the dark, cruel and horrific scenes of war. It's one of those films where you'll walk away feeling like you've learnt a bit of history and perceived something from a different perspective to what you would usually find in titles such as Barefoot Gen or Grave of the Fireflies – it makes the film feel a bit more fleshed out.
The film boasts an impressive side cast of characters, each of which having an important role to play in Suzu's story and there was never a character who felt they were added for nothing more than a joke or for show, each one has the past and a future and it made the world feel more like a community rather than just about Suzu and most, if not all of the character's fates are revealed as the film draws out.
It's hard to put much of a negative on this film to be honest, with the type of film it is it's one that I recommend that everyone watches at least once, the biggest issue I think I'll find with the film is that it doesn't have a huge appeal that either Your Name or A Silent Voice had, or perhaps it just simply wasn't pushed. Our local viewing had less than ten people for the showing which for how good the film seemed almost criminal. In This Corner Of The World is a fantastic journey exploring a unique perspective of the war, it's interesting and respectful to the issues it raises and brings the viewer in enough to care about what's happening. I would say it's an essential viewing for any serious fan of film or Animation.


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You are here: Parliament home page > Parliamentary business > Publications and Records > Hansard > Commons Debates > General Committee Debates > Other Standing Committees
House of Commons Session 2005 - 06
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Standing Committee Debates
Draft Communications Act 2003 (Maximum Penalty for Persistent Misuse of Network or Service) Order 2006
Column Number: 1
Fifth Standing Committee
on Delegated Legislation
The Committee consisted of the following Members:
Mr. Eric Forth
†Berry, Roger (Kingswood) (Lab)
†Blunt, Mr. Crispin (Reigate) (Con)
†Burt, Lorely (Solihull) (LD)
Davey, Mr. Edward (Kingston and Surbiton) (LD)
†Dhanda, Mr. Parmjit (Gloucester) (Lab)
†Hendry, Charles (Wealden) (Con)
Holloway, Mr. Adam (Gravesham) (Con)
†MacDougall, Mr. John (Glenrothes) (Lab)
†McIsaac, Shona (Cleethorpes) (Lab)
†Michael, Alun (Minister for Industry and the Regions)
†Mole, Chris (Ipswich) (Lab)
†Moon, Mrs. Madeleine (Bridgend) (Lab)
†Mudie, Mr. George (Leeds, East) (Lab)
†Reed, Mr. Jamie (Copeland) (Lab)
†Short, Clare (Birmingham, Ladywood) (Lab)
Streeter, Mr. Gary (South-West Devon) (Con)
Viggers, Peter (Gosport) (Con)
Geoffrey Farrar, Committee Clerk
† attended the Committee
[Mr. Eric Forth in the Chair]
The Minister for Industry and the Regions (Alun Michael): I beg to move,
That the Committee has considered the draft Communications Act 2003 (Maximum Penalty for Persistent Misuse of Network or Service) Order 2006.
It is a pleasure to sit under your kindly and generous chairmanship, Mr. Forth. I can give evidence regarding both those traits. I apologise for arriving at speed.
The purpose of the draft order is straightforward: it is designed to strengthen the regulatory regime to stop those who persistently misuse electronic communications networks or services, including those who make nuisance silent calls to consumers. In research published in June 2005, Brookmead Consulting discovered that on average about six silent calls a month were made to every consumer in the UK and that some consumers received two to three silent calls per day. Brookmead was commissioned by the Direct Marketing Association, which is the body for the direct marketing industry.
Misuse, which is defined in the Communications Act 2003, arises when a person uses an electronic communications network or service and the effect or likely effect of its use is to cause another person unnecessarily to suffer annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety. I have seen for myself—as, I am sure, have other hon. Members—the misery that such behaviour can cause to elderly or confused people. We therefore need to stop it.
As well as silent calls, this type of behaviour includes the misuse of automated calling systems, number scanning, the misuse of the calling line identification facility, misuse for dishonest gain and the misuse of allocated telephone numbers. The aim of the draft order is to ensure that consumers are adequately protected from all those types of behaviour, but there is a particular focus on silent calls.
The draft order raises the maximum penalty that the Office of Communications—Ofcom—can impose on those who persistently misuse electronic communications networks or services, which includes making nuisance silent calls, from £5,000 to £50,000. Silent calls are usually made by marketing companies that use a computerised calling device that dials a telephone number and automatically transfers the call to an available sales agent. If an agent is unavailable to take the call, it is abandoned by the dialler on answer
and the recipient receives a silent call. Silent calls may also be generated by organisations in the financial services sector, market research calls and companies engaged in number-scanning activities, because they dial a sequence of telephone numbers to find out which ones are in service, the results of which are used to develop a clean list of numbers that have commercial value.
Clare Short (Birmingham, Ladywood) (Lab): I have been highly irritated by such calls being made to my mother. Most people do not know that silent calls to any number can be blocked; that should be publicised more. I have here an e-mail from David Hickson, which I presume that other members of the Committee have received. He says that a higher fine will not work because people do not know who is calling, and that there should be a duty to provide a mechanism that ensures that when someone silently calls, even if there is no person at the other end, the name of the organisation that the call is from is stated. That seems to make a lot of sense.
Alun Michael: My right hon. Friend is right; that is not the subject of the order, but I shall discuss that type of mechanism, which can make a difference. Like her, I have had the experience of seeing my mother affected and disturbed by such calls. I think that of all of us have had similar experiences.
The answer requires more than one step. We are dealing today with the step that would increase the penalties. The order will mean that behind the improvements put in place within the industry will be the threat of financial penalties of considerable significance if the organisations concerned do not observe industry standards and regulations made by the regulator. Until now, the fine has been £5,000. The order will increase it to £50,000.
Clare Short: The logic of the argument sent to all of us is that Ofcom is not using its powers and that therefore, simply increasing the fine will not be effective. If people do not know what organisation is causing the distress, no one will be fined anyway. What is the point of increasing the fines if that will not solve the problem?
Alun Michael: That was exactly the point that I put to Ofcom in our first discussion. I shall come to the history, which is quite important and will help to explain the context.
We have considered the nuisance and tried to bring into place a number of things that would work together through the powers of the regulator and the Government in the order. I have seen the e-mail to which my right hon. Friend refers, and I think that it misses the point. I shall explain, and I shall be happy to give way again if she is still not satisfied.
My right hon. Friend pointed to the question of the level. We need to be sure that the penalty is proportionate. Ofcom commissioned research that showed that 63 per cent. of adults were concerned about silent calls, with 35 per cent. saying that they were very concerned. People aged over 65, to reflect
her point, expressed more concern, with 63 per cent. saying that they were very concerned. By contrast, 24 per cent. of 15 to 24-year-olds said that they were very concerned. Silent calls are also likely to cause more distress among women, at 38 per cent., than among men, at 33 per cent. I hope that all Members will agree that in view of the number of silent calls received by consumers, we need to take effective and decisive action.
Last summer, Ofcom asked us to consider raising the maximum penalty from £5,000 to £50,000. In arguing for the power to levy a higher penalty on those who persistently misuse networks and services, including those who make nuisance silent calls, Ofcom said that the current maximum penalty was not sufficient for the level of consumer harm and worry caused by those calls. Ofcom also argued that the maximum penalty of £5,000 was not a real sanction or effective deterrent.
In considering Ofcom's view, to which I was immediately sympathetic, I looked at the history, which shows that when the 2003 Act came into force, silent calls were not a significant issue. Only in the past two years has the problem burst into prominence. The original penalties were simply not designed to tackle silent calls. Their main target was malicious calls from individuals, such as calls in a row between neighbours or the activities of pranksters. I was surprised to discover the obsessive activities of people involved with hunting and other single-issue groups that apparently saw making silent or not-so-silent calls as a legitimate way to press their point of view.
The difference now is the recent growth in the number of silent calls caused by commercial activity. It is right to revisit the maximum penalty level. Rather than individuals, large corporations with very large sums of money and considerable commercial activity could now receive the penalties.
Charles Hendry (Wealden) (Con): I am grateful to the Minister for setting out some of the background. For the sake of clarity, can he tell us how many individuals or organisations have been fined the maximum £5,000 for any reason?
Alun Michael: None have. That was the first question that I asked Ofcom, as I said when I responded to my right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Clare Short) a few minutes ago. The reason is that in relation to the commercial activities taking place, £5,000 is not a major penalty. On each occasion when a breach has occurred, Ofcom has undertaken an investigation and then placed requirements on the companies. There is considerable evidence that those requirements have been complied with. Ofcom has therefore not had to impose a fine. However, the problem remains; we are still getting a high level of silent calls, which is why we want to take the further step, in conjunction with Ofcom's activities which I shall mention in a moment, of making possible a higher level of penalty to ensure that the measure is proportionate and effective.
Chris Mole (Ipswich) (Lab): I welcome the efforts to reduce the number of silent calls through the mechanism that we are discussing. To what extent will it address the problem, given the difficulty in tackling silent calls that originate outside the UK?
Alun Michael: Clearly, there is a greater difficulty with calls that originate outside the UK—they are technically very difficult to deal with. If we can deal with those that come from within the UK or on behalf of UK companies—the requirement falls also on calls that come from outside the UK but on behalf of UK companies—we shall make a considerable impact. That is where there are commercial benefits to be derived. So by regulating the industry we can have an impact.
Perhaps I should make the point—Members' questions have led me into this territory—that on 1 March, new Ofcom rules were introduced. Accountability for information and the recording of information are now part of the context, so from 6 April, which is when the increased fines will come into place, all the different bits of the equation will be in place to pressure the industry to back up the discussion that it has already had in order to drive out silent calls.
I know from discussions with Ofcom, which is accountable to Parliament rather than to Ministers for its regulatory work, that it is as determined as we are to see a successful outcome, and has been working on the matter for some time. As I have indicated, I agreed to Ofcom's request to increase the maximum penalty to £50,000, and on 31 October 2005, the Department of Trade and Industry launched a consultation, as we are obliged to do. The provisions in the order that we are discussing were subject to that public consultation which closed on 24 January. There was overwhelming support for raising the maximum penalty and so we are proceeding with the order to implement that increase.
Let us turn to the context in which those penalties might be applied. One of Ofcom's principal duties is to further consumer interests. Under the 2003 Act, Ofcom can take enforcement action when it has reasonable grounds for believing that somebody is engaged in persistent nuisance. Ofcom does that by issuing a notification allowing a period for representations. In practice, Ofcom also requires specific measures to resolve a problem and/or to improve the performance of the company concerned. If those changes are not delivered within a specified time frame, Ofcom can impose financial penalties. The higher penalty of £50,000 will act as a more substantial deterrent or encouragement to the industry to co-operate in moving quickly in the future, while also proving a more appropriate sanction for those who inflict such widespread consumer harm and nuisance.
Our legal advice is that a fine can be imposed for each event rather than for each service provided. So the potential impact for pernicious and persistent exploitation of the system could lead to a much higher burden of penalties. I want those who are tempted to exploit the public through the system to know that heavy penalties are possible and that Ofcom will use
them if necessary. Having said that, I have been assured by Ofcom that it will consider all cases on a case-by-case basis, taking a firm but flexible approach that takes account of all mitigating circumstances.
Ofcom will also monitor and evaluate on a regular basis how the increased maximum penalty is working and will assess whether consumers are benefiting. That seems to me to strike the right balance. We do not want to constrain legitimate activity, but we do want to ensure that nuisance activity is nipped in the bud quickly. I am sure that the message from both sides of the Committee will be for Ofcom to use its new powers as flexibly as possible to tackle the problem of silent calls. The maximum penalty could be increased further through a similar process, but I am persuaded that that is unlikely to be necessary.
One reason why it will have that impact is that the measure does not come alone. To give consumers additional protection from silent calls, Ofcom introduced new measures for the use of automatic calling systems on 1 March. The new measures need the following key requirements to be observed: a pre-recorded message must be provided for all abandoned calls; calling line identification—that gives the recipient the number of the caller—must be provided for all calls made; unless a dedicated agent is available, numbers subject to an abandoned call must not be redialled for at least 72 hours; and abandoned call rates must be kept below 3 per cent. of total calls for any 24-hour period. I have discussed the way in which Ofcom monitors the system with the nine organisations that it investigated and on which it has imposed the requirements. Ofcom inspects the raw data from those organisations to ensure that they comply with its requirements.
A regulatory impact assessment was carried out, and the results have been published with the Government's response to the consultation. That assessment concluded that the order introduces no additional regulatory burden for legitimate businesses.
The order is designed to strengthen the powers of Ofcom, allowing it to provide better protection to consumers from nuisance silent calls. We are confident that the increased maximum penalty of £50,000 combined with Ofcom's new measures will act as a substantial deterrent to those people who make nuisance silent calls.
Mr. John MacDougall (Glenrothes) (Lab): Like my colleagues, I welcome the increase to the fines. The difficulty lies in the looseness of the interpretation. For example, how is persistent defined—one call, two calls? If 100 people make one, two or three calls each, it would be a considerable nuisance to the recipient. Does the Minister agree that attention should be paid to how the content of the order is interpreted?
Alun Michael: Attention has been paid to interpretation. In fact, I discussed it with a representative of Ofcom last week because I wanted to be clear about the interpretation that it would use.
Essentially, three calls is persistent calling. As the fine is set per event rather than per service, three calls followed by another three calls amounts to two events, and such action would soon result in the maximum £50,000 fine. Therefore, my hon. Friend can be satisfied that fines for persistent calling, as it has been interpreted, would be onerous for any company that disregarded the Ofcom requirements and the higher penalties provided for by the order. I take entirely my hon. Friend's point. Of course, interpretation has not been included in the statutory instrument, which deals with the levels of fines only. However, I am happy to reassure my hon. Friend about the nature of the interpretation, which I am satisfied is strict.
Clare Short rose—
The Chairman: Order. Before I call the right hon. Lady, the Minister has just reminded the Committee—as I was on the verge of doing—that we must be careful. I am prepared to be reasonably relaxed, but we are not discussing the substance of the statute. We are here to discuss only the level of the fine. I am prepared to accept some dialogue about context but I ask the Committee not to stray too widely. We are not revisiting the substance of the main issue.
Clare Short: I will abide by your request, Mr. Forth, but the point is, unless there is some way for people to know who is making the nuisance calls, will the fine achieve its objective effectively? The Minister said that there would be requirements for firms to have pre-recorded messages and number recognition to tell people who they are. How will that be implemented? Will they be blanket requirements? In future, will all companies that make silent calls be obliged to comply with those requirements or will they be enforced only when Ofcom makes a ruling in an individual case? If so, how will Ofcom know which company made the silent calls?
Alun Michael: I am happy to respond to those questions. Essentially, the requirement will be placed on industry as a whole, so it will be for all the companies. If that was disregarded and identification was withheld, Ofcom could obtain information from BT on the caller's identity, because that information is held on the BT switches and Ofcom has powers to require BT to provide the information. That applies to BT's overseas call centres, too.
It is relevant to the increase that we are discussing, which is from £5,000 to £50,000, that in discussing the issues with Ofcom I sought to be sure that it would actively pursue the wider context of the requirements that it could put in place, because I was certain that that was what members of the Committee would want. The level of the fine stands behind the gamut of the statute and the powers given to Ofcom. I was given every assurance that Ofcom would intervene vigorously. It expected to enforce the new rules that it put in place, which were put in place only earlier this month. It expected to use the fine levels, should that be necessary, and to impose fines per incident were there to be the aggravated incidents that would give rise to
that being justified. Within that context, Ofcom intends to be proportionate in dealing with issues. I point out that on the two occasions on which it has carried out investigations—the first involved seven companies; the second involved two—there has been subsequent compliance.
Let us hope that providing for the increased penalty is a success. It will be if we find that silent calls virtually cease without the necessity of imposing fines. Having said that, the fines will be used if necessary. The level is important. It is important to ensure that both the higher fine level and multiples of it are there, along with the other elements that Ofcom has put in place, to guarantee compliance. I hope that the Committee supports that approach and will join me in encouraging Ofcom to use the powers available to it in enforcing the rules that it has laid down. I commend the order to the Committee.
Charles Hendry: It is a great privilege and pleasure to serve under your chairmanship for the first time, Mr. Forth. We saw a hint of tolerance and generosity at the beginning of the debate when you allowed a slight laxity of time that perhaps was unexpected to us. We have also seen that you are not prepared to allow us to stray far from the issues before us and we understand that.
I am grateful to the Minister for setting out the background to the order and the reasons for increasing the fines from £5,000 to £50,000. In general, he has made a compelling case and we support it, because we recognise that the nuisance calls that are experienced today are extremely different from what was originally envisaged. Indeed, it would have been impossible to envisage the nature of those calls when the initial fines were put in place. We also support the tighter guidelines being issued by Ofcom. That is important. Those guidelines alone will mean a significantly enhanced peace of mind for people who find nuisance calls, and silent calls in particular, a source of great anxiety and a great nuisance.
Understandably, much of the discussion so far has crystallised around nuisance calls. As we all know from our constituents and from other anecdotal evidence, such calls are becoming an increasing daily nuisance for many consumers, and we recognise that action must be taken. We also know about the international experience. For example, in the United States—which you will be extremely familiar with, Mr. Forth—consumers receive four times as many unwanted calls as UK consumers. Given the international nature of many of the organisations behind those telephone calls, we have to recognise that that is the direction in which things will go in the United Kingdom. This is a big issue for the public. The media report much higher viewer feedback whenever it is raised.
As the Minister said, in 2005 the Direct Marketing Association commissioned research on the issues through the Brookmead report. That report identified that although most consumers said that unwanted
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calls caused them unacceptable inconvenience, 20 per cent. said that they became anxious when they received a silent call, and that figure increased to 40 per cent. among younger women. As we have also heard, the matter is of particular concern for older people as well. Most people felt that the number of unwelcome calls that they were receiving was increasing.
In 1997, the Direct Marketing Association established the telephone preference service, which was placed on a statutory footing in 1999. It was designed for consumers to register their numbers to prevent companies from calling them for the purposes of telemarketing. As canvassers, we know that that is often deeply unhelpful when we are trying to contact people in the run-up to elections, but we also recognise that it is very important for people to be able to guarantee their privacy in that way.
Given the annoyance of unwanted calls, it is no wonder that more than 12 million people have registered their numbers with the telephone preference service. That is an astonishing amount considering that the availability of the scheme has not had much publicity and it shows that people are increasingly angered by nuisance calls. We know that 100,000 complaints about nuisance calls have been made through the Direct Marketing Association since 1999, but as the Minister said earlier, there have been no prosecutions and no fines.
The Minister set out the types of case that the £5,000 fine was designed to deal with. Even though we can understand that things have moved on in terms of complexity, it has never been used for the original purposes. No one has been fined £5,000 even under the original terms of the sort of nuisance activity that might be carried out. It is astonishing that 100,000 complaints have been made but there has not been one prosecution or fine.
Yet we are told today that the operation can work only if that punishment, which has never been used, is increased tenfold to £50,000.
Alun Michael: I did not say that it would only work if the fine penalty were increased tenfold; what I said was that Ofcom felt that there should be an increase and we agreed, because it would indicate the seriousness, and the likely penalty, should somebody disregard Ofcom's requirements. I am sure the hon. Gentleman would accept that there should not be fines when organisations have complied with Ofcom's requirements, which is what has happened until now.
Charles Hendry: I understand that distinction, but my point is that a maximum fine has been in place for a number of years but it has never been used. We must recognise that the system is flawed, which is one reason why we need to address it. We should not hide from that fact in any case.
The Minister yesterday answered my parliamentary question about the nature and the number of investigations that had been carried out by the Information Commissioner who received and dealt with just 96 complaints in the fourth quarter of 2005. Let us put that in perspective. Over those three
months, British Telecom will have received approximately 500,000 complaints—it gets 150,00 to 200,000 complaints a month and the Direct Marketing Association and other complaints bureaux will have received a further 15,000 complaints, but the Information Commissioner has looked into just 96 of them. That is something that does not add up. There must be greater activity on the problem because at the moment the public are not being protected against what they see as a growing nuisance. The Information Commissioner must take further action against those who abuse the rules.
Alun Michael: I am not sure about the hon. Gentleman's reference, because the Information Commissioner does not regulate calls.
The Chairman: Order. As I feared, we are beginning to stray from the proposal, which is very limited and very restricted. I am prepared to allow hon. Members to put matters in context but I am not prepared to allow the further exploration or revisiting of extraneous issues. I hope that the Committee will bear that in mind.
Charles Hendry: I accept your advice, Mr. Forth. I will correspond with the Minister to put my parliamentary question and his answer in the context of the debate.
The Minister admitted in answer to another parliamentary question that there is no measurement of the number of complaints against individual companies, so we cannot have the information that would enable us to identify the major offenders who should be fined. I asked how many companies had had more than 50 complaints made against them and I was told that that information is not collected. Of the many complaints that are made, we have no idea—and neither, apparently, do any of the organisations involved in monitoring this—whether they concern single offenders, three-time offenders, the occasional hunt leader who decides to call a Minister in the middle of the night, or a persistent offender who has caused thousands of complaints. Until that issue is addressed and a system is in place, we will not be able to provide sufficient security and assurance to the public.
We need more information from the Minister about why the existing measures have not been used more. Why have there been no prosecutions under the initial terms and guidance of the Act? What constitutes a misuse is clear. The explanatory memorandum states:
"A person misuses an electronic communications network or service if the effect or likely effect of his use of it is to cause another unnecessarily to suffer annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety, or he uses the network or service to engage in conduct which has or is likely to have the effect of causing another person such annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety."
It is extremely clear what that covers, so why have the existing powers not been used?
What is the basis for the £50,000 fine amount? Did the Minister go back to Ofcom and ask, "Why not £100,000 or £500,000"? Why did he settle on £50,000?
We accept the need to increase it, but the Minister needs to explain to the Committee the reason for the failure to use the existing powers.
11.1 am
©Parliamentary copyright 2006
Prepared 31 March 2006