Spoof job advert for UK prime minister is so accurate it could be real

'The successful candidate must be lacking in integrity, moral fortitude and shame'

 by Jack Peat

 2022-10-22 11:21

in Politics

Larry & Paul’s recruitment agency has put out an ad for the vacant position of UK prime minister.

Liz Truss was forced to resign from the position on Thursday after just 44 days in the job.

This makes her the shortest-serving Prime Minister in British history.

It comes after one of the most chaotic and tumultuous days ever seen in Parliament.

Wednesday saw Suella Braverman leave her role as Home Secretary, followed by confusion over whether the chief whip had resigned, and reports of bullying and manhandling in the parliamentary lobby over a vote on fracking.

This was after a humiliating few weeks in office which saw the Prime Minister sack her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng just weeks after he had implemented her financial plan in the government’s disastrous mini-budget.

She then announced that Jeremy Hunt would be the new chancellor, someone who has publicly disagreed with Truss’ economic strategy of tax cuts, and made this clear by putting her mini-budget through the shredder.

Needless to say, most people could probably do a better job at PM, something comedians Larry & Paul have been keen to stress in this video:

 

Entries for ‘things that lasted longer than Truss’ flood in on social media

‘Believe’ by Cher was number one in the UK for five days longer than Liz Truss was Prime Minister.

 by Jack Peat

 2022-10-22 09:59

in Politics

Liz Truss resigned as Tory leader on Thursday after a chaotic 44 days in office.

She signalled the end of the shortest term by any prime minister following a botched financial statement, the loss of two of her most senior Cabinet ministers and an open revolt by Tory MPs.

Ms Truss fell 74 days short of George Canning’s 118 full days as PM – the Tory statesman died in office from ill health in 1827, and had, until Thursday, held the unwanted record of shortest serving prime minister.

During her 44 full days in No 10, she oversaw the pound plummeting, the cost of government debt soaring and poll numbers plunging before tearing up her “Trussenomics” plans.

Entries for ‘things that have lasted longer than Truss’ have flooded in on social media.

Here’s the pick of the best:

 

UK economic outlook downgraded by ratings agency following political instability

Moody’s said the change in outlook was driven by ‘heightened unpredictability in policymaking’.

 by Jack Peat

 2022-10-22 09:40

in Business and Economics, Economics

The UK’s economic outlook has been downgraded from “stable” to “negative” by the ratings agency Moody’s due to political instability and high inflation.

In a report published on Friday night, Moody’s said the change in outlook was driven by “heightened unpredictability in policymaking amid weaker growth prospects and high inflation” and “risks to the UK’s debt affordability from likely higher borrowing and risk of a sustained weakening in policy credibility”.

Rating agencies rate a country on the strength of its economy and provide governments with a score based on the likelihood that they will be able to pay back debt.

The rating affects how much it costs governments to borrow money in the international financial markets.

According to the agency, an outlook period “typically lasts 12-18 months”.

“Negative”

However, while the UK’s economic outlook has been graded as “negative”, Moody’s credit rating for the UK remains unchanged at Aa3.

The agency said this rating reflects the UK’s economic resilience “despite the weakening in fiscal policy predictability in recent years”.

It added: “The country’s long-standing institutional framework remains strong and will continue to support the UK’s ability to respond to shocks, as seen during the pandemic. Furthermore, the structure of the UK government debt, with a very long average maturity of around 15 years, as well as a deep domestic investor base adds a degree of resilience to the credit profile in the face of shocks.

“The UK’s local and foreign currency country ceilings remain unchanged at Aaa. The three-notch gap between the local currency ceiling and the sovereign rating is driven by the government’s relatively small footprint in the economy, a fairly robust external payments position and a diversified economy.”

It comes as Chancellor Jeremy Hunt vowed to do “whatever necessary” to drag government debt lower after official figures revealed that borrowing swelled to £20 billion in September.

Challenges

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that a jump in debt interest grew borrowing beyond the expectations of economists, laying bare the challenge facing the Chancellor and new prime minister ahead of the fiscal event at the end of this month.

The latest reading for borrowing, excluding state-owned banks, marked the second-highest September on record, only surpassed during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the ONS said.

Borrowing in September outpaced the predictions of economists, who had forecast £17 billion for the month, and was significantly above the £14.8 billion estimated by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) back in March.

Mr Hunt said: “Strong public finances are the foundation of a strong economy.

“To stabilise markets, I’ve been clear that protecting our public finances means difficult decisions lie ahead.

“We will do whatever is necessary to drive down debt in the medium term and to ensure that taxpayers’ money is well spent, putting the public finances on a sustainable path as we grow the economy.”

The recently appointed Chancellor has already reversed a number of key financial policies announced last month by predecessor Kwasi Kwarteng, including plans to scrap the increase in corporation tax to 25 per cent.

The latest ONS data revealed that increased borrowing was driven by £7.7 billion of debt interest payments for the month, reflecting an increase of £2.5 billion compared with the same month in 2021.

It was the highest September interest figure since records began in 1997.

Significantly higher debt interest payments linked to Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation drove the increase, the ONS said.

PROOF D&I POLICIES REALLY DO INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY
CONTRIBUTOR: Gautam Sahgal, CEO - Perkbox | Published: 23 OCTOBER 2022


Research* has highlighted the importance of effective diversity & inclusion (D&I) in supporting a workforce’s productivity, with 42% of businesses reporting an increase due to improved policies. Despite this, nearly a fifth (17%) of businesses still don’t think it is necessary to improve D&I in the workplace.

A quarter (25%) of those who have taken action have seen a direct correlation between improved policies and increased revenue. The research revealed that 33% of teams are noticeably happier due to improved D&I policies, 32% of teams became more creative and innovative, and 31% are finding it easier to attract new talent.

However, the research suggests a reluctance for further improvement stems from fundamental barriers, including concerns around employee privacy, skills shortages and budget constraints:32% of businesses want to respect their employees’ privacy, and understand they may not wish to share aspects of their personal lives
22% have access to a limited talent pool and are under pressure to hire fast
20% don’t have the budget to hire external consultants to support in improving D&I

Mona Akiki, Chief People Officer at Perkbox comments: “The benefits of creating a workplace which is more inclusive should certainly be incentive enough for action on D&I. But it makes good business sense too. To stand out against competitors, businesses need the best talent, more creative workforces, and the ability to deliver the services that their own diverse customers demand – which D&I naturally supports.”

“To attract and retain that diverse workforce, it’s important that your benefits and rewards package isn’t just a one-size-fits-all offering. Employees deserve maximum choice and the ability to select what is meaningful to them — this will make them feel genuinely valued as individuals, rather than be seen as just another number.”

Supporting D&I across a borderless workforce

Almost two-thirds of businesses (62%) will be increasing the number of remote staff they hire outside of their main country of operations over the next year. D&I is particularly important for these borderless businesses as they begin to benefit from greater diversity in their cultural make up.

Consequently, nearly a third (29%) of businesses have begun encouraging reward and recognition by employees and managers to ensure that colleagues in any location feel acknowledged and part of company culture. However, only 26% provide each employee with a benefits pot that allows them to choose the rewards and support that suit them best.

Gautam Sahgal, CEO of Perkbox states: “To be competitive in the talent market, leaders must create a strong company culture. One which reflects and meets the needs of a modern workforce.

“This becomes increasingly important as more businesses embrace borderless working. With a globally dispersed workforce, businesses need to work harder to ensure their people feel valued and part of something bigger. Key to this will be offering benefits which can be tailored to accurately reflect the modern workforce, as opposed to settling for a one-size-fits-all approach.

“In addition, installing a reward and recognition offering will be critical to showing employees that you see and appreciate their efforts, no matter where they’re working from. ”

Research from Perkbox*

Passengers in fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes are ‘crime victims,’ US judge says

Reuters Sat October 22, 2022

A US judge in Texas ruled on Friday that people killed in two Boeing (BA) 737 MAX crashes are legally considered “crime victims,” a designation that will determine what remedies should be imposed.

In December, some crash victims’ relatives said the US Justice Department violated their legal rights when it struck a January 2021 deferred prosecution agreement with the planemaker over two crashes that killed 346 people.

Boeing agrees to pay $200 million for misleading the public about the 737 Max

The families argued the government “lied and violated their rights through a secret process” and asked US District Judge Reed O’Connor to rescind Boeing’s immunity from criminal prosecution – which was part of the $2.5 billion agreement – and order the planemaker publicly arraigned on felony charges.

O’Connor ruled on Friday that “in sum, but for Boeing’s criminal conspiracy to defraud the (Federal Aviation Administration), 346 people would not have lost their lives in the crashes.”

Paul Cassell, a lawyer for the families, said the ruling “is a tremendous victory” and “sets the stage for a pivotal hearing, where we will present proposed remedies that will allow criminal prosecution to hold Boeing fully accountable.”

Boeing did not immediately comment.

After the families filed the legal challenge saying their rights were violated under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act, Attorney General Merrick Garland met with some of them but stood by the plea deal, which included a $244 million fine, $1.77 billion compensation to airlines and a $500 million crash-victim fund.

The deal capped a 21-month investigation into the design and development of the 737 MAX following the deadly crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019.

The families of the victims of the Ethiopian Airlines crash of the Boeing 737 Max jet held a vigil in front of the US Department of Transportation headquarters in Washington, DC on Sept. 10, 2019.

Boeing did not disclose key details to the FAA of a safety system called MCAS, which was linked to both fatal crashes and designed to help counter a tendency of the MAX to pitch up. “Had Boeing not committed its crime” pilots in Ethiopia and Indonesia would have “received training adequate to respond to the MCAS activation that occurred on both aircrafts,” O’Connor ruled.

The crashes, which have cost Boeing more than $20 billion in compensation, production costs, and fines, and led to a 20-month grounding for the best-selling plane, prompted Congress to pass legislation reforming FAA airplane certification.

Boeing wants Congress to waive a December deadline imposed by the legislation for the FAA to certify the MAX 7 and MAX 10. After that date, all planes must have modern cockpit alerting systems, which the 737 planes do not have.

Last month, Boeing paid $200 million to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges it misled investors about the MAX.

Centuries-old Asura head statue unearthed at Cambodia's famed Angkor
SovanNguon - Thursday

Photo taken on Oct. 19, 2022, shows an Asura head statue in Siem Reap province, Cambodia. (ANA/Handout via Xinhua)

A 60-centimeter-high sandstone Asura head statue was unearthed in front of the south gate of the Angkor Thom temple in Cambodia's famed Angkor Archaeological Park.

The sandstone statue, which is centuries old, is being preserved at the Preah Norodom Sihanouk-Angkor Museum, and the conservation team will continue to find its original body.

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- A centuries-old sandstone Asura head statue has been discovered in front of the south gate of the Angkor Thom temple in Cambodia's famed Angkor Archaeological Park, the APSARA National Authority (ANA) said in a news release on Thursday.

Asura is a demigod, titan or antigod, according to the context. They exist in both the Hindu and the Buddhist religions.

Chhouk Somala, head of the registration team of the ANA's Department of Conservation of Monuments and Preventive Archaeology, said the Asura head statue was found on Wednesday at the location of the former souvenir stalls in front of the south gate of Angkor Thom.

"At first, our team dug 30 to 40 cm deep and found three pieces of ancient stone, then they washed, and assembled them to become the Asura head," he said in the news release.

The Asura head statue is 60 cm high, 65 cm wide, and 59 cm thick, he said, adding that the Bayon-style statue had been built simultaneously with the Bayon temple during the reign of Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century and early 13th century.

Currently, the statue is being kept at the Preah Norodom Sihanouk-Angkor Museum, he said, adding that the team will continue to find its original body.

Located in northwest Cambodia's Siem Reap province, the 401-square km Angkor Archaeological Park, which was inscribed on the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1992, is the most popular tourist destination in the Southeast Asian nation.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ancient park attracted up to 2.2 million international tourists in 2019, earning a gross revenue of 99 million U.S. dollars from ticket sales, according to the state-owned Angkor Enterprise.

The ANA said that tourists have started visiting the Angkor site again after the COVID-19 pandemic has waned.

"This is a sign that the growth of tourists will return to normal after the absence of tourists for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic," the ANA said. ■

Clean idea: Calgary tech company turning CO2 emissions into soap

Sarah Offin / Global News/ Yesterday

Together CarbinX and CleanO2 are creating what they say is the world's first carbon capture soap.

Jaeson Cardiff never meant to get into the business of making soap.

He was actually working as a plumber when, in the depths of an inner-city condo's utility room, he started developing an idea to help the environment.

"We're trying to convert emissions into useable goods and have those goods sold on the open market," said Cardiff.

He's now the co-founder of CarbinX, a cleantech company in Calgary that has developed a technology to capture carbon monoxide from natural gas appliances, like furnaces and boilers.

CarbinX machines are about the size of two refrigerators and capture carbon emissions by using a hydroxide chemical to absorb it.

Read more:
Calgary energy company eyeing Pincher Creek for potential carbon capture hub

And rather than just store that carbon, it's being turned into potassium carbonate, which is then added to soap.

"What the carbonate does is act like a water softener. So it's going to give the lather a really silky feel," said Michelle Regel, the owner of partnering company CleanO2. It's purported to be the world's first carbon capture soap.

While Cardiff admits the soap was developed as a marketing tool, the company is now selling some 100,000 bars every month.

"People are so excited about finally having a way to participate in capturing (greenhouse gases)."

More than 50 of the CarbinX systems are currently in use globally — everywhere from airports to condo buildings — reducing green house gases from appliances by about 20 per cent. Next year they hope to get to 50 per cent.

"The long-term goal for us is to completely decarbonize the heating industry," said Cardiff.

Video: Queen’s University researches how to transform carbon dioxide into sustainable fuel

Notley pitches rate caps, new schools and hiring campaigns at NDP AGM

Dylan Short - Calgary Herald

Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley speaks at the NDP provincial convention in downtown Calgary on Saturday, October 22, 2022.

Promises to fix health care and quell the rising cost of living were part of NDP Leader Rachel Notley’s speech at her party’s AGM Saturday as she also took the chance to take shots at the governing UCP party.

Speaking to a packed room in the Imperial Ballroom at the Hyatt Hotel in downtown Calgary, Notley called Alberta’s largest municipality an “NDP stronghold” during a campaign-style speech ahead of a spring general election in which her party will look to form government.

Notley said she would be releasing her party’s platform over a number of stages over the next several weeks. On Saturday, she unveiled a number of policy planks, including plans to build “hundreds of schools” and introduce a number of caps on everything from tuition costs to utility bills.


Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley speaks at the NDP provincial convention in downtown Calgary on Saturday, October 22, 2022.

“We will get prices under control,” said Notley. “We’ll put a rate cap back onto your utility bills, we will freeze auto insurance rates, we will keep the gas tax off the price of the pump until inflation has returned to more normal levels.”

Notley said her government would work with other levels of lawmakers to increase rental housing and would “restart the most aggressive affordable housing construction program” the province has ever seen. She also said they would have the most aggressive hiring campaign for health-care workers in Alberta’s history.

Notley stressed the fact that oil and gas prices would ebb and flow and stressed the importance of expanding other sectors of the economy to protect from when prices aren’t as rosy as they currently are.

While pointing to a number of initiatives that her party introduced while in power, Notley also said she did not get everything right while she was premier.

“I get that and I take responsibility for that,” said Notley. “But I will not be deterred from this work.”

The 2022 NDP AGM was held Friday and Saturday with more than 1,300 people registered to attend. Notley said it was the biggest convention in the party’s history and urged members to carry that energy and momentum forward into the new year.

The AGM also served as an opportunity for grassroots members of the party to have their say in helping to shape the party’s policy positions moving forward. The attendees debated a number of policy resolutions that ranged from the party supporting the creation of a senior’s advocate and accessibility legislation to supporting the re-indexing of AISH and increasing other supports for Albertans with disabilities.

RACHEL ,UNLIKE SMITH AND UCP, TALKS TO THE MEDIA

Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley speaks to media at the NDP provincial convention in downtown Calgary on Saturday, October 22, 2022.

Party members also debated resolutions around class sizes, eliminating the Kananaskis Conservation Pass and a number of policy directions around boosting health care.

“(Members) are very concerned about health care, the state of our health care, education, what it looks like for kids in our classes, post-secondary. They want to see an economic recovery that includes everybody — not just a few at the top,” said Notley. “They’re talking about those things, and then they’re also talking about how can we help. They’re at the point now just rolling up their sleeves and saying, ‘What can we do?'”

The AGM was held at the same time the UCP held its annual meeting at the River Cree Casino near Edmonton.

Notley used her Saturday speech to take a shot or two at the governing party and their new leader. Speaking to media after her speech, Notley said she has no ill will towards the new premier personally but that she is worried about “the hurtfulness” of some of her policies.

“I do worry about the hurtfulness of some of her statements and some of her policies with respect to real Albertans with the consequences of those decisions will be,” said Notley.

Notley said she has never declared victory until the votes are counted but that she is optimistic ahead of the general election based on what she is hearing from Albertans.

dshort@postmedia.com

Notley-led NDP to focus on economic diversification, healthcare measures for next election campaign

Elise von Scheel - Yesterday - CBC

NDP Leader Rachel Notley says a government led by her would cap and freeze taxes and fees in a number of areas in an effort to combat the high cost of living.


Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley unveiled some of her party's plans during their annual convention on Saturday. They will focus predominantly on healthcare and economic measures as they take on the United Conservative Party in next spring's election.© NDP

In a speech to party members Saturday, she said part of her economic platform includes a cap on utility rates, freezing auto insurance rates, continuing to hold off on collecting a gasoline tax and putting a cap on post-secondary tuition fees.

Alberta's New Democrats are holding their annual convention in Calgary this weekend. In her address to the approximately 1,400 members in attendance, Notley unveiled the thrust of the party's election platform — meant, as she says, to position them as the alternative to the current governing party.

Her party plans to focus predominantly on healthcare and economic measures as it takes on the United Conservative Party in next spring's election.

"We will get prices under control for the things you don't have a choice about paying for," Notley vowed.

"We will defend and repair and rebuild public healthcare in Alberta, stronger than ever."

The current UCP government is providing utility rebates this fall to households. They also suspended the gas tax earlier this year, but reintroduced a portion of it at the start of October.

Notley offered few specific policies, but outlined the broader direction for the platform the party intends to adopt for the campaign — which she says will be rolled out in stages starting in a few weeks.

The NDP is committing to replenishing supports for seniors, families and those receiving income assistance. Notley says they would launch a massive healthcare worker recruitment campaign.

She also said the NDP would build hundreds of new schools and would move on an "aggressive" affordable housing construction program.

If elected, the party intends to orient the provincial economy around industries like geothermal, hydrogen, digital media, agri-food and renewable energies.

"Our determined drive to diversification is critical to strengthen our economy and to effectively respond to climate change," Notley said.

"We will not pit these two issues against each other. If we do, we will fail at both."

But Notley also acknowledged that not all decisions her government made when they were in office from 2015 to 2019 were well received by Albertans.

"We didn't get it all right. I get that and I take responsibility for that."

Notley also committed an NDP cabinet would have gender parity.

Members at the convention are also debating policy proposals that could be incorporated into the NDP's election platform. Saturday morning members passed resolutions on things like repealing the UCP's K-6 curriculum and repealing a handful of labour laws brought in by the UCP.

Follow along live with the Alberta UCP annual general meeting

Trevor Robb - 

Danielle Smith poses with the Alberta UCP caucus at the McDougall Centre on Friday, Oct. 7, 2022.© Dylan Short

This weekend marks the first time the United Conservative Party will debate policy under the leadership of newly minted Premier Danielle Smith.

The Edmonton Journal will be providing readers a one-stop-shop for all things UCP annual general meeting with an online live stream carrying the conference from the River Cree Resort in Enoch, near Edmonton, a live-blog at EdmontonJournal.com with digital editor Trevor Robb, and analysis from Postmedia columnists from both the Edmonton Journal and our sister paper, the Calgary Herald.

Provincial affairs journalist Lisa Johnson will be on the ground at the convention to provide in-depth coverage of the day’s events as they unfold. Be sure to follow Lisa on Twitter .

Premier Danielle Smith is expected to give a keynote address at 1 p.m. Saturday.

20 policy resolutions on the table

In total, Alberta’s United Conservative Party will debate 20 policy resolutions, including a couple that have proven controversial .

One resolution drafted by the party’s Edmonton West-Henday riding association aims to ban the instruction of several related concepts, “whether it is advanced under the title of so called critical race theory, intersectionality, anti-racism, diversity and inclusion or some other name.”

Related
Ban on teaching anti-racism, diversity included in Alberta UCP policy resolutions


UCP policy resolution could see municipal officials register as lobbyists

It calls for a “halt” to what it calls differential treatment due to ethnic heritage, and “any student being taught that by reason of their ethnic heritage they are privileged, they are inherently racist or they bear historic guilt due to said ethnic heritage or that all of society is a racist system.”

Another proposed policy from Airdrie East calls for the party to “uphold the rights of parents and caregivers so as not to require them to affirm or socially condition a child in a gender identity that is incongruent with the child’s birth sex,” arguing that barring evidence of criminal neglect or abuse, parents are best suited to guide their child’s development.

A resolution from Calgary-Klein argues the party should establish legal requirements for the government to consult with stakeholders and the public before enacting “significant” legislation, arguing the UCP government has shown a lack of communication. While a resolution championed by the Calgary-North West constituency association would call on the provincial government to have councillors, administration and staff from municipalities register as lobbyists if they are dealing with the province.

You can read all of the proposed draft policies  here