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Progressive Vision is backing a campaign against plain packaging of tobacco products. Following an announcement by the government that they will be consulting on plain packaging in the spring, and in response to a campaign in support of plain packaging, the Hands Off Our Packs! campaign aims to collect signatures to a petition calling on government to dismiss any plans for plain packaging. Plain packaging – the idea that by removing all branding from cigarette packs, leaving only the health warnings on the packet – is wrong on many levels. Cigarettes and other tobacco products are legal – tobacco companies … Continue reading →

Miles Bullough, Head of TV for the Bristol-based animation company Aardman, who make Wallace and Gromit, has said that the company is thinking of heading off-shore due to rising costs. According to a BBC report, “The main problem, he said, was that while films made in the UK can receive government help in the shape of a 15-20% tax credit, UK TV animation receives nothing.” Funny, I thought the main problem was rising costs. After all, if the costs weren’t rising, funding wouldn’t be so much of an issue. According to the article, “Companies in Canada, Ireland and France also … Continue reading →

If there’s any doubt that the Coalition Government could be reducing government spending much more drastically, the dogged regularity of news stories on studies proving that lives could be saved if only we taxed X, Y or Z more must surely dispel it. Not content with smoking bans and alcohol pricing fixes, ‘fast’ or ‘junk’ food seems to now be firmly in the sights of various authoritarian health campaigners and once again draconian measures are being called for. So today on the BBC we have a report that a study by Oxford University shows that if the Scots, Welsh and … Continue reading →

Pointing to the costs to the public purse of alcohol misuse in Scotland (£900 per person per year, apparently), members of the Scottish National Party last year attempted to introduce measures to set minimum prices for alcoholic drinks at 45p per unit. That attempt was thwarted, but now, armed with a clear majority in the Scottish Parliament following last May’s elections, they’re coming round for a second attempt. That they are willing to do so shows a severe lack of imagination in policy making by Scotland’s ministers. Yes, alcohol misuse is a problem and yes, it costs the public purse. … Continue reading →

The UN population fund has revealed that by the end of the week, the world’s population will tip the 7billion mark. Whatever your views, the rapid rate of increase is remarkable. When I was born 30 years ago the world population was ‘just’ 4.5billion. But the overwhelming response by the media, as we welcome the 7billionth inhabitant into the world, has been that of doom and gloom. Brendan O’Neill yesterday noted the racist subtext to the stories, all of which are illustrated with pictures of Chinese, Indians and Africans undertaking earth-annihalating activities such as getting on a train, stopping at … Continue reading →

The day of the EU Referendum vote has dawned. This afternoon, around 90 MPs are expected to rebel against their whips and vote in favour of a referendum on our membership of the EU. The media is presenting this as a ‘Tory splits’ story and much of the discussion has been on whether we should be in the EU or not, but to have that discussion at this stage is meaningless. The question before Parliament today is: is it right that the public have a say on our future relationship with the EU? This motion came to Parliament as the … Continue reading →

A charity called the Intergenerational Foundation has released a report suggesting that the government give elderly people with large houses tax breaks if they downsize, or replace council tax with “a proper land tax, to reflect the social cost of occupying housing, particularly housing that is larger than one’s needs” in an attempt to persuade the elderly out of their larger homes. The Intergenerational Foundation (IF) is an interesting organisation. Their aim is to level the playing field between the generations, pointing to the huge amount of spending that has taken place at the expense of the young and generations … Continue reading →

Are you a part of the one in four households currently in fuel poverty? If so, David Cameron has a message for you: shop around to get the best deal. That’s his solution. He wants to see more competition in the energy market, driving prices down. Well, don’t we all? But it’s disingenuous at best for the government to attempt to lay the blame for the current crisis wholly at the feet of the energy companies. Sure, the choice of 400+ tariffs are confusing for consumers. Whilst we all like choice, the concept of ‘too much of a good thing’ … Continue reading →

One can imagine the scenes at the Department for Health being reminiscent of Yes, Minister. Obesity rates are rising. The instinct of the public servants is to come up with a brilliant plan in which the Government intervenes, perhaps by employing a vast army of food weighers to knock on our doors at around 7 – 8.30pm to ensure that we’re eating appropriate sized portions of appropriately healthy food (hey, that would create jobs too!). The Conservative minister is uncomfortable with this idea. After all, this just isn’t what he got into politics to do. So what happens? Well, in … Continue reading →

The Quality Care Commission has today released a further report in to the standards of care received by elderly patients in NHS hospitals across the England. Between March and June they made unannounced inspections in 100 hospitals, looking at standards of care for dignity and nutrition were being met. Shockingly, just 45 of those hospitals were fully compliant. 20 hospitals were found to be failing to meet the standards completely, thus breaking the law. The watchdog listed the common failures in delivery of both dignity and nutrition as: Call bells put out of people’s reach or not responded to in … Continue reading →