The conversion of means-tested grants into loans has meant that the poorest students end up graduating with the biggest debts, says Lord Forsyth.

And he warns that the current repayment system was more expensive for people in middle income jobs such as nursing, rather than high-paid lawyers or financiers, who would pay off their debts more quickly.

"The people who get screwed by this are those in the middling jobs," says Lord Forsyth.

"This was all done on the basis that it would create a market in higher education - and that has failed, there isn't a market."

Lord Forsyth says that there is no meaningful consumer choice or competition - and he dismissed the system for rating teaching quality in universities, the teaching excellence framework, as a "bit of a joke".

"Because no-one ever turns up to look at the teaching," says Lord Forsyth.

Fiona Hill Nick Timothy Lynton Crosby // Tim Bale, a historian of the party and professor of politics at the University of London, argues that the Tories have gradually stopped presenting voters with an appealing vision of Britain. “In the 80s, they had a good balance of negativity and positivity,” he says. This meant exploiting the flaws of Labour leaders such as Michael Foot and Neil Kinnock while also promising a society of entrepreneurs and mass property ownership, an attractive idea in an era of increasing materialism. Yet at the 1992 election, under Thatcher’s less secure successor, John Major, this started to change. “He didn’t want a negative campaign,” says Bale, “but he was persuaded.” When the Conservatives won the election unexpectedly, victory was attributed by many Tories – and commentators and Labour politicians – to a single crude-but-effective Conservative campaign phrase: “Labour’s Tax Bombshell.”

And HSBC announced it was preparing to move 1,000 staff from London to Paris when the UK leaves the EU. [...] Guy Verhofstadt said there was 'no way' the UK could pick and choose aspects of the EU [...] German Chancellor Angela Merkel said: "The be-all and end-all is that Europe does not let itself be divided, and we will ensure that with very intensive contacts.'' EU governments would consult their business sectors, she added, and she was "not worried that we will not stick together". [...] The Financial Times praises the prime minister's "bold vision" but warns that the road ahead will be perilous. [...] At Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Corbyn urged Mrs May to "stop her threat of a bargain basement Brexit, a low-paid tax haven on the shores of Europe".
He added: "It won't necessarily damage the EU but it would certainly damage this country." [...] Mrs May told MPs: "What I set out yesterday was a plan for a global Britain, bringing prosperity to this country and jobs to people and spreading economic growth across this country." [...] "not just nasty but also blind to reality".

Universities in England are already announcing a tuition fee increase above the £9,000 limit before Parliament has even finished debating plans which would pave the way to raise fees.

Stay Argument - acknowledgement that EU/Brussels is not perfect. but is it a reason to burn everything down and walk away? Westminster is not perfect either. The electoral system either (first past post, 24 something % of votes got Conservatives a majority in Westminster Parliament, while UKIP, other 24 something percent of votes, got just one seat in Westminster). Whitehall either.

David Cameron is risking a “double betrayal” of Scotland if his government fails to make urgent changes to the Scotland bill, Gordon Brown has warned. The former Labour prime minister said the package of new powers for Holyrood must be amended to give MSPs unconditional authority to top up welfare payments, without any risk of such decisions being vetoed by the UK government. He said such changes were necessary to fulfil the pledge of more powers made by Westminster before last year’s independence referendum and to deliver in full on the recommendations of the Smith commission, which the prime minister set up to carry out a review of devolution. [...] Brown saying: “In other words, if a decision was made by the UK government on tax credits, about child benefit or benefits for the unemployed, and the Scottish parliament did not like that decision, it would have the power if it so wished, and if it was prepared to pay for it, to top up these benefits.”

Because whilst the commission offers weighty analysis, it's a knotty political decision in the end. And whilst the commission says Heathrow, the prime minister's "no ifs, not buts" promise not to sanction expansion there would take one heck of a lot of wriggling out of. Just think Nick Clegg and tuition fees and what broken promises can do to you. But here's another thought: David Cameron won't be prime minister forever. He'll be gone in less than five years. And it takes longer than that to build a runway. // &! bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33341548 - The government will make a decision on airport expansion by the end of the year, David Cameron has said.

has lots of papers on // "Extreme austerity a political choice not economic necessity." (UK) // "We are all in this together." Conservatives and LibDems >> &! http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/may/05/uk-living-standards-fell-for-all-but-the-richest-under-coalition-analysis &! http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/may/22/social-mobility-data-charts &! http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-24566926 //

min 37 BOE owns over 1/3 of outstanding gilts // pattern of global demand ([luxury, vanity, status, brand], [convenience, on-demand,] [software, automation, robots, driving down manual labour cost - corporate/wall street] [connection with your customer] [Data] // GDP growth (national income, profits from corp) outpaced income growth (income from labour). is double // austerity, fiscal policy: to force a surplus of the budget (and current account/balance of payments) over 10 year time frame (2x conservative parliament) without thinking where the demand comes from (income growth thus more disposable income thus consumer &* business demand (more employment), thus higher tax revenue). And only thinking about cutting, is a Career Politician move, sticking 2 his talking points of Plan A. // dont compete w BRIC/Developing/Frontier Market on price (exporting). It's a race to the bottom, it can not work. Thus it has to be Industrial Revolution 2.0 !!! Differentiate. Brand. Being Remarkable.

This is the amount that the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated that prostitution contributed to the economy in 2012, following a decision by the EU that prostitution and illegal drugs should be counted as part of a country's Gross Domestic Product. The ONS estimates that: about 61,000 people work in prostitution in the UK the average cost per visit is about £67 each prostitute sees about 23 clients per week, working 52 weeks a year - in total about 1,200. Multiply those figures up and you get £5.7bn (which is $8.9bn, or 7.3bn euros).

Gawker founder Nick Denton has stepped down as the company’s president and named a seven-person managing board in his stead, Capital New York reports. Denton will remain on as the company’s chief executive even as he “[scales] back his day-to-day involvement in running the company.” [Source: Capital New York]

Shakeup at Gawker Media Editorial director Joel Johnson told staffers yesterday they'd receive an email from Gawker honcho Nick Denton "stating that he had been fired," Peter Sterne reports. Denton still envisions a product role for Johnson at the company and will create an executive editor and a group managing editor position. "We hear that Deadspin editor Tommy Craggs is the leading internal candidate" for exec editor. (Capital - http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/media/2014/12/8557674/joel-johnson-out-editor-gawker-management-shake) | Denton's memo: "Hard to imagine, but 2015 is going to be even more intense than this year." (Jim Romenesko)

"They're at loggerheads," Salmond told BBC1's Sunday Politics programme. "I think that their vow was cooked up in desperation from the last days of the campaign. I think everyone in Scotland now realises that. "Incidentally, [the] Yes campaign isn't surprised by this development. It's the people who were persuaded to vote no who were misled, who were gulled, who were tricked, effectively. They are the ones who are really angry." [...] Downing Street has dismissed Salmond's accusations, insisting the Scottish devolution timetable would be honoured. "Lord Smith of Kelvin has agreed to oversee the process to take forward the devolution commitments with powers over tax, spending and welfare all agreed by November and draft legislation published by January," a No 10 spokesman said. "This government has delivered on devolution and we will do so again." +!+!+!+ Salmond - bbc.in/1sU03so +!+!+!+ Ed Miliband - bbc.in/1AYZqCb +!+!+!+ Salmon on unelected House of Lords - bit.ly/1p9g8t3

via bit.ly/1rbwEvV || "Salmond revealed that in his telephone call to Mr Cameron after the referendum result was announced, he asked the Prime Minister if the UK Government would honour the pledge made to the Scottish people by Gordon Brown prior to the vote.  Something Mr Salmond said, was not confirmed by the PM. He said: "I spoke to the Prime Minister today and, although he reiterated his intention to proceed as he has outlined, he would not commit to a second reading vote by 27th March on a Scotland Bill. That was a clear promise laid out by Gordon Brown during the campaign. "The Prime Minister says such a vote would be meaningless. I suspect he cannot guarantee the support of his party." [...] The refusal to commit to new powers for Scotland prior to the next UK general election is in breach of the 'vow' made to the Scottish people days before the independence referendum. [...] Gordon Brown was said to have 'brokered a deal' with all three London parties."

panic reactions, cancelling obligations ... ie osborne and carney even cancelled obligations post vote date for the following weekend & as usual - fear mongers & the establishment come out of the woodshed as last measure (bankers and big business saying X without evidence or backing with facts)

>>> Scotland's exit will have 'huge consequences' on businesses. Actually 'huge consequences', he said, actually in regard to UK's potential EU Exit in 2017 when people will vote on the matter. PERIOD. THIS WORDING OF THE HEADLINE WAS CHOSEN DELIBERATELY ... TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT. +++ Alex Salmond attacks BBC + Nick Robinson on 'Market sensitive information' (11Sept14) - http://youtu.be/6Jo113LjqB0 +++ Alastair Darling's only argument is about Finance and Wall Street, that Wall Street doesn't like uncertainty << Career Politicians & Toffs - http://youtu.be/dxcJu2EvJ6Q +++ and here comes the IMF with another "markets don't like uncertainty" quip - http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/referendum-in-schottland-iwf-warnt-vor-negativen-auswirkungen-a-991140.html

all 7 members of the dept of education are privately educated. in times of shortage if school places, that is getting worse by the year, and classes with more than 30 children. >> http://news.uk.msn.com/in-pictures/where-were-david-cameron-and-the-cabinet-educated567980 >> http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/07/15/reshuffle-2014-diversity-balance-david-cameron_n_5587123.html >> !!! http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2014/07/leader-cameroon-dream-fades-new-right-continues-rise !!! >> ++ http://www.sott.net/article/275638-David-Camerons-elitist-cabinet-saturated-with-Etonians-and-other-private-school-alumni

Only Nigel Farage can be totally satisfied today although he knows all too well that winning a national election which he described as a "free hit" on the political establishment is much easier than winning a single seat in Westminster. A year ago few took that prospect seriously. They do now. +++ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27567744

Is this UK's Tea Party moment, or is this the start of future elections of 4 Party System / Political Landscape.

Election results prove Ukip can damage Labour as well as Tories Both parties need to rethink their campaign strategies if they are to beat back the Farage fox in the Westminster henhouse http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/may/23/election-results-prove-ukip-damage-labour-tories-farage || + Ed Miliband NEED TO RAISE HIS GAME! >> What do the council results mean for the 2015 general election? It is not easy to extrapolate from local election results, but these ones could suggest Labour falling just short of a working majority http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/may/23/what-council-results-mean-2015-general-election ||| + London is Ukip's worst nightmare The local election results highlight how out-of-step London attitudes pose a serious dilemma for Labour and Tories ""LONDON is metropolitan elite concerned chiefly with itself."" - http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/23/london-ukip-nightmare-labout-tories-local-elections-farage || +++ http://bbc.in/1qZCqn1