Yep it is all about capacity, those who suggest upgrading the west coast main line might like to remember the last time this was done at the cost of £8bn with very little to see for it.

The capacity will only come from a new line.

What would be good is a fully integrated continental railway. Imagine getting on at Manchester and getting off in Madrid! Thats the way to get people off planes!

I quite anjoy a pootle up the high street on saturday mornings. Butchers, bakers, greens, hardware shop and stop by the LBS for consumables.

Obviously if I’m away at the weekend this doesn’t happen.

So the best option would be to open until 7pm on one or two days a week. Dr’s Surgery does this why not shops?

Generally I find the meat, braed or veg to be far better than the supermarkets.

Honestly you lot really need a reality check. WHERE do you think the money comes from????

Relative ton their skills and ability tube drivers are OVERPAID. If you paid everyone with that level of skill and ability with that wage the country would go bankrupt!

All that is happening is …well yes Mr Crow is doing an excellent job by holding the country to Ransom. What you fail to understand is that this is at the expense of the rest of the population, i.e. taxpayers. That extra money could have invested in better infrastructure or employed another person.

There is a case that people at the top are overpaid, that is a different issue.

People should be paid relative to their skills and abilities. In this respect tube drivers are overpaid although not quite to the same excesses as the directors and senior managers. We can’t all be paid the same and I agree the ratio between senior managers and shop floor workers is too high. However even if you reduce the ratio it still would not compensate to allow equivalent workers to be paid the same as tube drivers.

Fair enough if they can get it. Just remember that in doing so it unfairly penalises the general tax paying public.

Can we all just calm down and agree that their all overpaid!

Its just that some are actually paid to drive the gravy train.

Since the summit and veto appears to have resolved the sum of bugger all i’m struggleing to see what all the fuss is about.

No one has got to grips with the fundemetal problem and instability of the Euro. It’s still borked.

Treaty or no treaty the outcome is the same. Unless the Germans actually allow full integration with the ECB as lender of last resort the whole currency is doomed. DOOOOMED I tell you 😡

I bet there are more miles of better quality purpose built mountainbike trails in the tweed valley than in the whole of wales

Now whos talking bobbins.

I’m only saying that imo Wales is better. I find it better developed and more accessible. Some of the natural trails in mid wales are simply stunning.

I’m not sying Scotland is crap, i just prefer Wales and some of the Scottish trails are well overhyped.

Just sayin like ….

(I have lived in Scotland)

Yes, take away the 7 stanes and there isn’t a great deal left.

Why not develop the ski resort for biking. The train would be ideal for transporting bikes!

Glad to see their finally ctaching up with Wales (imo the best mountain biking venue in the world!)

Can anybody explain what the EU summit actualy achieved (or even would have if DC had not vetoed). To me it seems like bugger all.

A little tinker here and a tweak there but hardly what was required to actually save the Euro?

Did the same a few years back except I moved to New Mills, ticks all the boxes though (As long as you avoid the A6, but then the new link road is back on!)

God forbid we should make the people who got us in to this mess actually pay for this. FFS we have public sector workers to shaft please please let the rich off the hook Dave and don’t sign

What do you think actually pays for public services …after all they arn’t wealth generators ….ah yes that would be taxes paid by among others the city of London.

Best not to bite the hand that feeds you….

Dave isn’t protecting bankers, he is protecting the tax revenues that fund the country.

I’m uneasy about being outside of this treaty but weve been outside the Euro and that has served us well. Until all the deatils fall out its impossible to tell if the veto was warranted or not.

Right now its impossible to tell if it was a good deal for Britain or not as we simply do not know the details.

At the end of the day the city contributes about 10% to the uk economy if not more so its important that that it is protected. Yes we need to rebalance our economy but that will not happen overnight.

Its hardly suprising this “big lie” has had an effect ….

meanwhile …back in the real world 😈

Quite liked the one ton weekender articles they use to have, good to know you can have a great weekend away on a budget.

(Including the Mary Townley on an £89 Halfords bike …classic!)

Try getting the council to add cement to the cold fill (or to your own repairs). This will bind together the material much better without making a hard concrete surface.

I have this problame in my kitchen! Kitchen is prtially below ground and always cold. FF is by door in a stone alcove, probably not the best place. Solution provide a small heater in the kitchn on a thermastat so the ambient temperature never gets that low.

http://www.nationalcyclingcentre.com/t/bmx-centre

You mean this!

To put this in perspective its a 40K job company well known for working staff hard but also looking after aforementioned staff.

Car + benefits on top.

Consultancy is often better in my sector! 37 – 40 hrs for most practices (civil engineering).

Most contractors 42.5 so 47.5 (+ extra depending on operational needs is quite steep).

Ok, should be productive hour of work as their really busy! Pay will actually be slightly worse per hour.

But like I said job security, interesting work and good benefits otherwise.

Yes, as a helmet mounted light only. The beam is whey too narrow to handlebar mount for off road stuff.

I use mine helemt mounted with a DX 900 lumen on the bars, this combo works surprisingly well.

It is a little heavy and moves about if there is any slack in the helmet straps – get that sorted and you will hardly know it is there!

No.

[Dons on Flak jacket]

Difficult times means difficult choices and I think the current coalition are not doing that bad a job!

There are too many people who simply cannot grasp the idea that we need to live within our means. On the whole I don;t think there doing a bad job in the whole.

Flame away!

[scurries into bunker]

Elf now you are being ridiculus.

BH’s apply to everyone of all faiths and none. Doesn’t matter where your your holy days fall they arn’t BH’s unless its coincidental.

As for science being used for evil …its people that do evil, not science or technology …and don’t get me started on the fundamentalist nutters who block stem cell reasearch and other emerging technology.

Chartered Engineers develop appropriate solutions to engineering problems. They may develop and apply new technologies, promote advanced designs and design methods and introduce new and more efficient production techniques, or pioneer new engineering services and management methods. The title CEng is protected by civil law and is one of the most recognisable international engineering qualifications.

So were sorted right?

[From the engineering council website]

You could make a case for saying it’s the primary catalyst in the development of theological thought – certainly has been since the Enlightenment.

So how do you explain the treatment of say ….women, Gays and in some religeons non believers?

I’d say that pretty much all the abrahamic religeons are still well behind the times and are being dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century in a vain bid to survive as a viable inclusion on modern life.

Come on …tell me where I’m wrong! 😀

So, how would you propose that such moral codes were propagated and spread without the framework of organised religion?

Its called evolution my dear.

And the main problem with organised religeon is that it cannot evolve with progress and the current zeitgeist of humanity. For example the ridiculus rules implemented by the catholic church (i.e. condoms).

Ro5ey its great that your enjoying church and loving the new friends and community. Thats not to say that this is for everyone and you don’t exactly come across as a comitted believer!

You can however get this from many other organisations such as clubs or even Humanist associations. You realy should read the book, its well reasoned and articulated.

My only problem with religeon is the disproprtionate influence it has on everday life from politics to the economy and war. It would be easier to be a gay US president than an aetheist US president. Yet I suspect that there is a significant proportion of the US population that are of no faith.

Here our head of state is also head of the CofE and a I actually suspect that the agnostic and aetheist population outnumber any group of active faith – weird, damm right it is?

£2

(I could hazard a guess, and it’s nothing to do with religion)

It is to do with poor sex education which is heavily influenced by Religeon. There may be cultural issues as well but its quite obvious that if the catholic church promoted protected safe sex the transfer of HIV and other STD’s would be much reduced.

And lets drop the hooker argument is bollox (unless were also saying no to sex outside of wedlock …which even then doesn’t hold water). People may have many sexual partnerss throughout their life without ever being unfaithful.

There is nothing wrong with this – unless your a looney religeous nutter

Binners that a partcularly crap comment from you. Its not about dodgy hookers it is about unprotected sex.

…and yes the with regards to Catholics he does have a lot to answer for with his ridiculus and outdated rules.

I really don’t get why this petition is even being made?

The title ‘Chartered Engineer’ IS protected in law. Engineering is a profession with many aspects and levels, fact.

Ok so maybe the person who mends my washing machine is a mechanic or technician rather than and engineer …the fact is that he/she is still undertaking a form of Engineering.

After all the Dr. title isn’t only reserved for medical professionals it is for any one who has a PHD.

Its totally right that a the ‘Chartered Engineer’ title is legally protected and those who fail to recognise the value of professional registration don’t understand the engineering profession.

Regds, Frodo CEng MICE

From Ecc road to East Manchester it looks like your driving. Not the M62 mind. Probably Snake Pass to M67. You can go A623 if the Snake is closed in winter although that closes too when it really gets bad.

Woodhead pass is also a good alternative but it looks like an hour plus driving?

Very difficult to renegotiate contracts that have alraedy been signed. You don’t have a legal leg to stand on. You could use repeat business as leverage but many of the problems were projects that were rushed without the full risks been known.

Hence the high price tag, now on some of these projects the risks may have been realised and hence the contractor would not have made anything more than a modest profit.

Where the contractor sucessfully managed these risks large profits could be made.

The onus must be on the client to define and manage risks and liability to maximise value for money. The government of the day failed. I’m not saying any other administartion would have done better but they surely could not have done any worse.

Such as?

The opening post onwards! Page 1 is particularly bad.

PFI was a Tory invention, and the rest were immediately upheld by CallMeDave .

PFI is actually a very useful financial method of funding projects. The fact that it was badly managed by the previous ‘Labour’ government does not mean that used on the right projects with the right risk management and planning cannot provide value for money.

Think of it as a mortgage. Most people cannot afford to buy a house with cash. A mortgage however allows the purchase for little more and less than renting an equivilent house would be. Its a similar principle.

Off course it is (to you), because it supports your view.

No I’m saying that as we have a left leaning paper which has presented what appears to be a fair and balanced article. If this appeared say in the mail or telegraph then it may be just as factual but in many peoples eyes less credible.

Some of the vitriol and dogma spouted on here is quite frankly unpleasent and certainly not credible.

The Indy artcle is probably the best analysis i’ve read of the current situation both balanced and credible.

….certainly more credible than most responses to this thread 😯