Today the BBC will deliver coverage of the inauguration as president of a 78 year old man in a foreign country . How will it be covered ? A celebration ? A festival for the Far Left ? Or something more neutral ?And how will the BBC treat the outgoing President ? 5pm UK time – we ll get the answer .
Midweek Thread 20 January 2021
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https://foxhole.news/2021/01/22/one-million-seniors-refuse-to-pay-the-telly-tax
New figures from the BBC have revealed that a million over-75s have refused to pay the telly tax since last August, when free TV Licences for the age cohort came to an end.
The firm’s policy director Clare Summer divulged to a campaign group that 2.7m of the group have bought a licence while another 750,000 have claimed a free licence on the basis of Pension Credit entitlement.
The figures point to a million seniors who are refusing to cave in, leaving the BBC nearly £160m out of pocket.
Senior Citizens campaign group Silver Voices has responded to the new figures, with director Dennis Reed warning that “the BBC has got itself on the horns of a dilemma. Its carrot and stick policy to cajole the over-75s to pay the licence fee has clearly stalled, but any change of policy to take legal action against this huge group of older people will be both costly and extremely unpopular.”
Where’s the carrot?
Bottomline the BBC is quids in cos 73% of non-benefits pensioners have paid
Em those good news stories so often seem to be spin, and are rather bad news.
The article is lifted from the Express
“The corporation hit 4.5 million older pensioners with a bill for the first time in 20 years last August,”
“BBC policy director Clare Sumner wrote to Silver Voices stating 2.7 million licences have been bought by the over-75s”
“Another 750,000 have applied for a free licence because they are on Pension Credit.”
So from the 4.5 million the BBC used to get nothing
2.7m have coughed up, that’s 73% of those who are not claiming Pension Credit
1m haven’t , that’s 27% of those who are not claiming Pension Credit
2.7m *157.5= £425m gain to BBC that it didn’t used to get
The government used to provide the BBC with the funds for oldies. When did they stop paying? If paid until last Spring then BBC are down on their income.
added after googling
From 1st April 2020 government funding for over 75 licences ceased and from 1 August 2020, a new scheme was introduced. Under the new scheme, anyone aged 75 or over who receives Pension Credit will still be eligible for a free TV Licence which the BBC will pay for.
They stopped paying after HMG did a deal with BBC to allow a licence price hike in compensation for the lost over-75 income.
With so many people living inconveniently – pre-covid anyway – beyond their projected lives, the BBC now need to make up the shortfall, not to make more interesting programs of course but to ensure pension fund viability.
Post epidemic evaluation might shed more light, perhaps?
Not the least scandalous aspect is that the BBC leaflet sent to explain the change of 75+ status blames the government directly, while the duplicity and dishonesty lies squarely with W1A.
Well done theover 75’s . I will be proud to join their ranks in five years time. If the over 75 refuseniks stick to their guns there is nothing that the BBC will be able to do about it. And of course those foolish over 75’s who have paid will certainly be refusing next time round. I can only hope that the example of this first million inspires millions of younger folk to become reufniks .The total number of LF bought in the UK is about 25 million. If two or three million become refuseniks then the BBC will be in deep trouble and I am sure that once the refuseniks band wagon starts rolling it will quickly become unstoppable.
No need to wait for this weak and cowardly Tino ( tory in name only ) government to take action against the BBC we can do it ourselves.
The government was NOT fully funding OAPs TV licences until April 2020
rather “this funding was phased out between April 2018 and April 2020”
So BBC had been partially funding it for almost 2 years before then.
Remind me how many times you said you’d house a refugee ???
Idiot.
Well he was doing a lot better than the BBC then!
Didn’t John Simpson claim to have liberated Kabul?
That’s the Washington Post!!! How many misleading claims do they make?!
Bath Rugby Club false positives
Tuesday : ‘We’ve tested the whole rugby league and 24 players have tested positive, and 19 of them are at your club’
.. Right we’ve shut everything down
Thursday afternoon ‘We’ve retested & actually only 1 was positive the other 18 were false positives’
FFS It’s well know that if you test 20 people you never get 20 positives as if some people have some natural resistance
The lab must have known straight away the initial results were wrong.
However I guess it didn’t make that much difference in this case
cos you still had one positive player so his contacts would have to isolate.
https://www.rugbypass.com/news/bath-rugby-statement-randox-testing-error/
Stew, which test was used and has it been proven to differentiate between the common cold, normal influenza and Covid in all its mutations?
USimon Jack , BBC Business reporter giving us the great news about Nissan (project fear wrong again).
I don’t think the expression ” said through gritted teeth ” has ever been more apt ????????
On more than one occasion I can recall our Simon being extremely downbeat about Nissan and Brexit !!!!!
He , like many at the BBC truly believed , and probably hoped Nissan would relocate in Europe ….alas no.
Humble pie Simon ??????I
The real reasons Nissan pulled its investment
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47115753
Nissan: UK factory still under threat from no-deal Brexit
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52900528
Simon knows jack.
BBC WEB-SITE Watch #1 – conflict, what conflict?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-55751936
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science_and_environment
I am amused and would like to be part of the Awkward Squad at an early Press Conference of President Biden. John Kerry, Joe Biden’s choice of US Special Envoy on Climate, has criticised former President Trump as being reckless over Climate Change and endangering lives by pulling the USA out of ‘the Paris Climate Accord’.
The question I would ask President Biden, repeatedly, is whether he will end NASA’s and Elon Musk’s and Richard Branson’s space exploits. I would point out that the CO2 generated in manufacture and producing electricity for mission control – if not in the fuel – will mean that the USA could never meet its Climate Change targets under the Paris Accord.
“A question from someone else, please.” would no doubt precede the prompt withdrawal of my White House Press Accreditation. Has Sopey got his White House Press Pass back yet?
I follow the exploits of SpaceX and Elon Musk closely. The developments and speed at which he drives change in the science of re-useable, recoverable rockets is nothing short of incredible. If you have not seen the Falcon 9 system first stage landing or the on-going development of Starship its worth a look.
It shames the archaic behemoth that is NASA (Who still look to create one-shot rockets that burn up on entry or pollute the skies and seas) and easily demonstrates the difference between public and private sectors.
If there were to be restrictions placed on his endeavours by Biden and the mentalists, I am sure he would move his entire outfit to a more welcoming country, happy to embrace the jobs, investment and technological benefits this would bring.
Biden and the Demonrats, sending America back to the stone-age.
Not been on much, as fed up with the mindless comments of a number of trolls that were here, the reams of posts ref Biden and a finally admittance this week to an NHS treatment centre for a minor procedure.
Not BBC, but
I can confirm I was Covid negative on entry the hospital.
Pre-Treatment booths were empty, unlike my last visit 4 years ago.
Procedure was carried out with minimal fuss. Specialist, plus 4 others including someone monitoring the activity.
Nurses were happy and not stressed, also confirmed not very busy.
Recovery had 4 bays out of 8 occupied.
All good but I know await my dry cough and ability to claim £500 from HMG.
West
Congratulations on getting out .I hope you are recovering well. I’m sure the quality and quantity of activity around the NHS varies enormously – comrade myrie did his now infamous and much repeated ‘body bag ‘ piece from the Trust in which I have the unfortunate bad luck to reside in NE London .
I think people are too frightened to ‘trouble ‘ them with non covid medical issues for fear of being infected .
Today at 1700 the PM will be doing the ‘gotcha ‘show – the first question will be about President Trump – the second will be about the £500 bung ……
Ha ha, thanks Fed, so far so good. Time will tell.
I’m sure the situation across the country varies greatly and allows HMG to manipulate and mask the figures to whatever extent they wish. But for sure, the project fear regards Covid is ingrained in many.
Like you I am now pretty much AntiBeeb free, just a few select bits on the Radio and even that involves great use of the off button or dial… So,
I’ll miss the gotcha show, need to keep the blood pressure under control.
Keon Lincoln murder probe: Boy dies after Handsworth attack
Local Labour MP, Khalid Mahmood, described the boy’s death as “extremely tragic” and “a needless thing to have happened”.
He said: “We must work with police as much as we can to stop this happening again.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-55762203
So from Mahmood’s restrained response
we can take it as black on black can we
The BBC, and specifically the ‘Today’ radio programme continue to further ease themselves into the mire of biased ‘journalism’. There is one spot on the ‘Today’ programme which has (as far as I am aware) been generally apolitical – although, pretty left-leaning on social issues. In the past couple of weeks, however, the ‘Thought for the Day’ slot it has been allowed, if not encouraged, to provide a platform for pretty outright left-wing political bias, disguised as commentary on how we could better live our lives. It has become just as vitriolic in its reflections as the rest of the BBC’s output – without exception anti-Trump and anti-conservative in its nature, and I fear that this will now become the norm for the ‘great and good ‘ of this country to vent their left-wing spleens at anything that does not fit their ideas – and all without any recourse to balance, of course.
Google has threatened to remove its search engine from Australia if the Australian Government pass a bill to force it to share profits with Australian News Outlets…
https://trends.gab.com/trend-feed/600aa2205db3705aa0a63ec3
Way to go Ozzies! and if you are an Ozzie and don’t know this just switch your search engine to https://duckduckgo.com it’s far better, more secure and doesn’t get involved in politics so totally none lefty too!
I’m in web IT and I know exactly what google do with your info using their trackers.
Over the past few days, the BBC has had the entertainment industry as its theme of the week, as the next particular area where the government should be funding, to the tune of billions, some BBC cronies. It joins the long list now of groups who sit there whining that they should be the next (after Rashford’s lot) to get free taxpayer cash to help them follow their particular dreams.
Note that none of these groups is altruistic enough to suggest that they could do with less tax-payer money in order to to fund these other whiner groups, or even suggest where we could make large cuts (BBC, for instance) to ensure the well-being of their mates.
Classic was this morning’s moan – the entertainment industry can’t get insurance to cover them against the effects of the Coronavirus – hence the cancellation of so many music festivals – including the Beeb’s favourite, Glasto.
So, as opposed to the approach of these groups who want to spend taxpayers’ money on trying to make themselves rich – here’s an actual proposal. The likes of Bono, Sting, Elton et al – and there are many of them in this industry, could put their money where their mouths are and start up, and fund, a Lloyds Group to insure the entertainment industry – music Festivals, etc., etc. I bet that more than a few of them are already Lloyds Names anyway. There’s nothing to prevent them from doing so, and they might even make a profit if they insured wisely !
This, they could plough back into their industry as an investment for the future. Everybody wins, right ? Especially the taxpayer who doesn’t have to fund all those whining BBC cronies.
This is a great idea, Richard!
I love the amazing but proven story that Woodstock went ahead during the H2N2 pandemic in 1968, so all those kids and their mums and dads, grannies and grandpas, steps, hangers-on, oddballs, layabouts, scroungers can go to Glasto without fear of illness (except terminal deafness/boredom coming from the various hodge-podge of ‘stages’ dotted around a filthy farm)!
And even better, Jon Snow can do the reporting!
Why, I’d pay at least a 5p piece to send all those tiresome BBC oiks down there, just to watch their gurning mugs trying to make the latest group ‘Snotlip’ look more than an end-of-the-pier side-show!
Question – ‘Why does Bono always wear dark glasses’?
Because he’s a c***!
BBC Dual Standard News
The Twitter account of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has posted an image which appears to depict the former US president playing golf beneath a warplane or large drone.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-55765516?
Iran’s supreme leader tweets attack threat to golfing Trump
***
Jack…. oh… Jack????
Top Comment:
“And yet he is still on Twitter? Shows Twitters real feeling on incitement to violence. “
And that of the BBC.
Presumably they are all RTing and liking and giggling like schoolgirls. Even the women?
Want a laugh. Go to Facebook now.
BBC Radio 4
Writer-activist Glenn Greenwald sees danger in silencing Donald Trump and asks:
* Does all free speech have the potential for harm?
* Who decides what speech is dangerous?
* What have mainstream news sources done to lose trust?
The Media Show with Amol Rajan https://bbc.in/366p0OX
***
Bless. Mates.
In complement.
http://isthebbcbiased.blogspot.com/2021/01/a-gaggle-of-blubbing-gushing-babbling.html
That Radio4 Facebook page has – a new post about Orwell
Since Radio4 doesn’t have many listeners these days
the biggest comment is from an anti-Farage person with 14 likes
@GuestWho I don’t get you there
Greenwald wasn’t horrible
His second point was OK “we in the media should ask that we have done wrong to lose the trust of the public”
His Third point “#3 The public have gone over to untrustworthy sources on the internet, over old established trustworthy media”
… That’s BS
.. ah that is the funny bit , that his media is trustworthy
His first point was that Facebook remove Palestinian youths just cos Israeli military tell them to .. and that a private company should not have the power.
Duffus #1 It’s the military that have the power
#2 I bet Israeli military do no such thing ..rather they want junior terrorists to be public so they can monitor them
Now didn’t pre-President Biden get Twitter to remove President Trump ?
A process that interfere’s with the democratic process
Better ways of asking what you don’t get.
The BBC po-faced not grasping the bleeding obvious in their coy questions was the point.
Not bBC (again – sorry Fed).
Chairman of Migration Watch UK writes in The Conservative Woman (Alp Mehmet – I didn’t realise he was also a former British diplomat).
He asks all the obvious questions and also mentions the killer Khairi Saadallah, the terrorist who committed a triple murder in Reading last summer. He had been here since 2012 and was denied asylum but allowed to stay because it was not possible to send him back to Libya. Why not? His bid for asylum was turned down, he committed various offences that led to imprisonment and had been released from prison fifteen days before the attack; I still don’t understand why he was released into the community given that he was to be deported.
Well we hear in the Telegraph today that he was not deported due to a ‘legal barrier’. I cannot read the article but I assume that it was ‘human rights’ lawyers up to their disgusting tricks again.
BBC and elections.
Those it loves, cannot get enough of, and… others…
https://camera-uk.org/2021/01/22/bbc-news-ignores-palestinian-elections-decree/?
OT, but…
Ben Affleck and Sacha Baron Cohen Bro Down About ‘Borat,’ ‘Chicago 7’ and ‘The Way Back’
Ben Affleck (“The Way Back”) and Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat 2,” “Chicago 7”) sat down for a virtual chat for Variety’s Actors on Actors.
Bless. Can’t wait for the Will Gompertz review.
“Covid: Senedd drinking a ‘possible breach’ of Wales alcohol ban”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-55749415
A rule for some…………
I just love the BBC’s latest, greatest ploy these days – before (or even during) interviews with government ministers – and not, of course true of their cosy chats with Labour and Liberal representatives – where they wheel out someone who the likes of Nick Robinson, Justin Webb, Martha Kearney and Mishal Husain can wheedle some sort of sob story out of….and throw it in the Minister’s face, knowing full well the Minister cannot possibly respond to any such report about something/some individual they may not know anything about, which the beeboid then tries to put forward as representative of the whole population, simply to get a response they can then criticise.
I especially have grown tired of the breathless, whining demeanour adopted by the two female newsreaders above, as they pretend to be in caring mode – but only as long as the vox-pop person is at the other end of the interview.
“Early evidence suggests the variant of coronavirus that emerged in the UK may be more deadly, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55768627
“May” ?
Is this to prepare us for further lockdowns?
Are new variants being brought into this country maliciously ?
“may be more deadly”
As briefed by NERVTAG – Professor Neil Ferguson et al.
Do we believe it?
Best to think in terms of a cull. Behind all the fancy talk are many of us old people being prepared to go.
GWF
A brutal view but maybe toward the truth . One of those lines of thought best avoided is – how would things have been if the virus was even more of a killer or targeted the young /very young …. awful thought …
Don’t you just love it when the BBC brings on a story which clearly is targeted at getting a negative comment out of the interviewee about the government ?
This morning saw the son of someone who had been in hospital with Covid for 306 days, some 179 of them in ICU, I think he said, with whom anyone would have shared empathy…. but there it was, the dig at the tail end, when his father had apparently asked what had happened in the world whilst he’s been out of circulation (????? – the guy apparently hadn’t looked at any papers or TV when he was recuperating in a non-ICU ward ????). The son immediately told him that Boris Johnson was still PM, only to be greeted with a pronounced ‘eye-roll’ from his father…. yeah, right…. he never mentioned the millions of deaths from Covid, the US election fiasco, Brexit completed….. etc., etc.
The BBC knows how to find these people – and probably spends millions doing so, to try to ensure that anyone they interview will have a political bias in one direction only.
Richard – that is a brilliant technique and will lead to the inevitable
‘We asked for a minister to appear but no one was available “ ( which appears to be standard on C4 news ) …
Why didn’t they state it in percentages ?
The old variant had a death rate of 1%
the new one has one of 1.3%
That is actually a big difference
cos it’s a 30% rise
Stewgreen
I think they assume a lot of people watching ‘don’t do numbers ‘- surprised that there were no gotcha questions but the usual suspects were noticeably absent – where’s Beff?
I’m going to put up the weekend thread in a minute . Thanks for this particulary busy one … I can’t think why ? ….
ENDS