The BBC’s Peston has been pumping out article after article that strangely enough seem to favour the Labour Party…his latest effort doesn’t buck the trend…
Tories’ curious message on work
Reading it you get the impression that Peston is desperately looking for something to say that is negative about the Tory manifesto. He is tortuously constructing a case against the Tory policy to take the lowest paid out of tax claiming that it goes against all Tory principles…but it doesn’t….Low paid workers get allowances and tax credits and many other benefits….upping their actual pay will take the bureaucracy out of that…rather than being taxed and then having to reclaim that tax they get it direct.
Peston bizarrely moans that the Tories are too left wing…..
This is not a point about whether the state is too generous to them.
It is about the contract we all make with the state.
And he goes on and on in a similar vein...’And another thing…’….it does look like he is determined to attack the Tory policies in a very negative manner…after all, taking the poorest out of tax altogether must be a Labourite’s dream…apparently not, when it’s done by a Tory.
Anyway….here’s ‘another thing’ to keep you amused…some old history from the Guardian…enjoy….
Peston’s run
One of the more interesting parts of the new Banking Act is its abolition of the requirement for the Bank of England to issue a weekly financial return. Combined with a certain BBC journalist’s rational desire to get ahead, it was the knowledge that the Bank of England would eventually have to fulfil its weekly compulsion to tell the world what it was up to that was the chief cause of the Northern Rock bank run.
Theoretically, removal of the weekly return requirement allows covert intervention into the banking system, and may possibly be used by the Bank to prevent future bank runs. This would let the Bank better fulfil its role of ensuring financial stability – thereby serving the public good, rather than that of Robert Peston.
When someone at the Bank of England (or the Treasury?) leaked to him that Northern Rock was turning to the Bank for support, Peston rationally decided to reveal all to the public in the BBC’s Thursday 13 September 2007 evening broadcasts. Peston argues that it was in the public interest to do so. This is debatable.
It was quite clear to anyone who has studied any financial history that a bank run would ensue. Indeed, I was waiting at the entrance to my local Northern Rock branch early on the Friday morning to watch the queues as they started to form.
The big question is this: would the run have occurred without Peston’s broadcasts?
Peston’s broadcasts of his insider information meant that the Bank and the Treasury could only react to the run and did not have the time to proactively prevent it from occurring. A bank run could have been quite easily avoided altogether.
Peston has been blamed by many others for the Northern Rock bank run, most notably by members of the Treasury select committee. (Others have interesting ideas that the Treasury engineered the bank run itself in order to nationalise Northern Rock on the cheap, using Peston merely as a pawn.) Peston, of course, has vigorously defended his actions.
He had a role in causing sufficient panic among depositors for them to run on their bank. A defence that he didn’t know he would cause a run is not a very good one.
Here…
Peston confronts his critics
The BBC’s Business Editor Robert Peston broke the story of Northern Rock’s descent into crisis and has been blamed for causing the subsequent run on the bank.
On a recent trip to the bank’s home city of Newcastle he was confronted by Doreen and Denis Shannon who lost £60,000 from shares in Northern Rock and with it their retirement savings.
“after all, taking the poorest out of tax altogether must be a Labourite’s dream…apparently not, when it’s done by a Tory.”
Not at all. Labour are committed to re-introducing the 10p rate and at a much lower starting point, thus taxing millions of the poorest workers who currently pay no income tax at all. Labour must think that the poorest workers are rich and using food-banks fraudulently if they think they can afford to give 10% of their income in tax to a labour run government.
Oh, and don’t be surprised when labour doubles that to 20p… Again!
“Labour must think that the poorest workers are rich and using food-banks fraudulently if they think they can afford to give 10% of their income in tax to a labour run government.”
At some stage during the vote run up foodbanks will feature.
Geyza and others may be interested to know that contrary to perceived opinion the largest foodbank organiser in the country limits recipients to a maximum of three weeks supply.
It is because they are there to provide for the difficult period between claiming for a benefit and it starting, or family crises when families split up etc., and nowadays perhaps less forgiveably when people have sanctions applied by the DWP for the unemployed not keeping to their side of the benefits payments “deal”.
It is not to provide constant sustinence to “poor” families in work.
Please bear the above in mind when the BBC mention foodbanks.
I listened to Peston yesterday on a BBBC program and at the end of his piece I had no idea what the hell he was talking about.
Neither does he.
Peston probably thinks ‘job done’ then.
On holiday this week and so have caught more of the BBC than I care to admit. One thing has shocked me: the extent of anti-Right bias is much worse than I thought. It’s seeped onto the national news programmes such as News at Six an Ten but also the obscure programmes. It’s everywhere and the BBC don’t even bother to hide it now. Sky News us just as bad, too, It’s terrible.
It’s when you get exposed to the full range of BBC output that you realise the extent of the problem. Because I work an irregular pattern (no pattern at all, in fact) I am often flicking between R4, R3 and Classic FM during the day – and flicking is the right word! Rarely do you find a programme on R4 these days that hasn’t got a political angle.
This might not be a blatant ‘vote Labour’ pitch but it will very often be some element of cultural Marxism – from the drivel on ‘You And Yours’ (once memorably dubbed ‘you and somebody else’s’ by a colleague) to Woman Sour, the polemical plays and arts programmes, ‘Green’ propaganda broadcasts – there really isn’t much that the Leftists aren’t using to propagate their spiteful creed .
I remember Reith (of less than blessed memory) reacting in feigned horror when I pointed out here how even The Food Programme is regularly used as a tool for the promotion of ‘progressive’ views. It was clear that he, no doubt like many of his colleagues at the BBC, didn’t even listen to it.
Same here in Wales. Anyone listening to Al Beeb on a night shift will notice Al Beeb ‘Wales’ disappear and be replaced in the early hours by the world service . Even worse !
Why are we forced pay for such a service?
What is so scary about the World Service is that it deliberately presents a version of a Britain that doesn’t exist and never has, outside of the tiny little circle of Guardianistas who run the BBC.
Sadly, this is another scam we are forced to pay for.
The Honourable Robert Peston is the son of a Labour peer. Look no further.
I’ve noticed lately that he is wearing less formal clothing, lets his hair wild and long, and speaks in riddles. I wonder if he has had some kind of breakdown?
his wife died about a year ago. I think hes depressed. He looks an absolute mess. He doesnt look as though he is eating properly and his appearance is shocking even for a lefty
As much as id like to see him swinging from a lamp post for treason, i cant help but feel sorry for him. Thats the problem with Right wing people like us, we’re far too nice, unlike a lefty who would be celebrating Pestons grief
Anyone know how his application for Editor of the Guardian is going?
Need I say anything else? The views presently being expressed will serve him in good stead for the interview!
Peston didnt get the job as editor for the guardian. it went to the North American Editor Katherane Viner
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-31993356
Peston even thinks the BBC is too Right wing and biased against the Left. Common Purpose probably thought he was better placed at Al Beeb than the Guardian in order to brainwash the sheeple
http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2014-06-24/robert-peston-theres-no-left-wing-bias-at-the-bbc
Thank you.
I see Dame Liz Forgan mentioned in the first link. Yet another in the interchangeable BBC / Guardian employment chain.
There was a big fuss in the media over his change of style. His wife had cancer for a long time. It would have been tough. Maybe he’s trying to make a fresh start and we can only wish him well. I’d be more concerned over his enthusiastic support for Common Purpose and his organisation Speakers For Schools. Check out the photo on Peston’s twitter page:
Tweets by Peston
When I was the age of those kids, my teachers were exhorting me to think for myself. Guess what type of message today’s kids get from Peston.
To be fair, Robert has switched to cover a job (Economics Ed) that he might be qualified for (just) but that he isn’t really geared to do. He’s unable to broadcast live (he’s best when reading a short text to mic) and, the story goes, unwilling to be trained to do so. In addition, as Business Editor he had a gold-plated contact book, where he could really find out what is going on from the many people he knows in business.
Not so easy with economics.
It shows.
The point about taking the lowest paid out of tax altogether is that you’ve given away a political lever. As a Government you no longer have the ability to announce a tax reduction for the lowest paid, along the lines of: “See, Big Brother loves you. He’s giving you more money. Vote for Big Brother.”
I think this is the real reason the Left hate it.
No, I don’t think that’s quite it.
The 10p tax rate impacts/ benefits everyone, rich included since that is what you pay up to the first trigger level but it kicks in at a lower level, so instead of 12500 (or whatever it is now) at say 10,000.
That way, the government can generate some kind of revenue to cover the cost of topping up the income of those self-same poor via the tax credit system.
The effect is that the government builds up a groundswell of people who will always vote for them, because they don’t want their income to drop.
In that way, the poor always stay poor and the government looks generous to some.
If I recall correctly, the 10p rate was a limited band, in the same way the Personal Allowance ceased to be available to Highest Rate band taxpayers a while back. Could be wrong on that, I should keep up but there’s just too much out there now including visits here!
While an increased PA is good, as would be a 10% rate band, it does nothing to help workers & pensioners with incomes under the previous (or even previous two or three) PA level(s), a point completely lost on Danny Alexander. The increases in PA & re-introduction of the 10% band tend to help the middle-earners (and those on large pensions) the most.
Peston has clearly had one visit too many to Red Ed’s Mystic Tent.
Robert Peston, son of Baron Peston former Labour MP ennobled for his services to the party.
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
It’s good to be rigorous…
Peston is a really odd gentleman.
Adam Boulton on Sky was arguing the same thing with Michael Gove. Surely if workers are going to pay less tax then they’ll lose benefits? The logical conclusion of this argument from Boulton, Peston etc. is that taxes should rise, not fall. I’m guessing ultimately their argument is that 100% of salaries go to the state.
“Are you going to make sure the Sikh vote turns out for us?”
How patronizing can you get?
If Nigel Farage had said such a thing, the BBC would be in uproar.
But as Red Ed said it, it doesn’t get a mention!
Why sould Sikhs vote Labour, as it was under Labour that gang rape of KUffar girls by Muslims , including Sikh girls, became widespread.
EASY MEAT
Click to access Easy-Meat-Multiculturalism-Islam-and-Child-Sex-Slavery-05-03-2014.pdf
I immediately stopped at this paragraph;
“And what’s odd about guaranteeing that huge numbers of employed people will never pay tax is that David Cameron appears to be comfortable about the notion that these people can enjoy all the expensive services and benefits provided by the state without making even a gesture of a contribution towards them.”
Apart from the fact that, if they were unemployed, they would equally be a drain on society (even more so), just because they won’t pay income tax doesn’t mean they won’t pay VAT or tobacco duty or fuel duty or alcohol excise.
The difference is – people who earn tax free money have more money on which taxes can be levied. The government will get their tax-take irrespective of whether it is taxed at source or in the free market.
Ed Miliband needs a more reliable source of income to fund his policies, and that’s income tax. It is the most undemocratic way of taxing citizens! Need I say more?
Another day another Peston anti-Tory article. He makes much of a potential rounding error difference in the deficit 5 years hence. All problems for the Tories, but suppose it is, as Labour are seeking not to address the matter.
The International Monetary Fund has today highlighted the challenge to be faced by the next government in returning the public finances to balance.
Its new official forecast is for the gap between spending and taxes still to be a deficit of £7bn in 2019-20, compared with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast made at the last budget for a surplus of £7bn.
Its gloomier projection may be seen as a particular embarrassment for the Tories
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32327177