It seems that major mortgage lenders do not trust searches contained within HIPs (Home Information Packs) because they are commissioned and purchased by the sellers.
Some mortgage lenders are now insisting that they will only offer mortgages if searches are carried out by the buyer's solicitor, others will accept the HIPs but only if the buyer’s solicitor guarantees them, against anything that might threaten the marketability of the property the searches fail to turn up.
This is effectively resulting, in lenders legal representatives commissioning their own searches and passing the cost on to the purchaser.
So the searches are being paid for twice. Once by the seller, because the government is forcing them to and then again by the purchaser.
The party formerly known as the Conservative’s housing spokesman, Grant Shapps, noted that: "This is yet more proof that HIPs are almost completely and utterly worthless.” “Gordon Brown cannot claim to be on the side of homeowners unless he scraps this disastrous scheme."
The Fib Dems’ housing spokesman, Paul Holmes, lambasted HIPs as: "a shambles", saying "It is unbelievable that the Government did not foresee these problems," "The packs are clearly not worth the paper they are written on."
Unbelievable indeed, considering that concerns about possible partiality and reliability of information and searches contained within HIPs are by no means new.
In fact the government were perfectly aware of the potential problem, as exactly that concern was expressed in a report for the office of the (then) Deputy Prime Minister old ‘Two Jags’ himself, in March this year.
Concerns were raised in it as to how independent the report would be if it was commissioned by the seller - and tellingly, concern over whether or not the report would be acceptable to mortgage providers.
So Nu-Lab did have an idea the problem might well surface but chose to chance it anyway…
Wednesday, 22 August 2007
Monday, 20 August 2007
Government preparations for English Council tax revaluation continuing behind the scenes
Yet more evidence (as if anyone with a modicum of sense needed it) that Nu-Lab politicians wouldn’t know the truth if it were to walk up to them and roundly slap them in the face with a halibut ;-) as they so richly deserve.
‘Caseworkers’ working for the Valuation Office Agency, the people tasked with increasing council tax assessments, who in turn come under HM Revenue & Customs have been issued a new handbook.
It is a 120-page job, freshly updated in June. It contains helpful advice to these state sponsored professional snoopers. Things like how to measure architect’s plans and the size of gardens. Instructions to penalise homes, which have pleasant surroundings, good schools and fast road links.
So it seems, that despite having ‘officially’ shelved plans for a Council tax hike, after fierce protests, this ‘shelving’ is actually a sham to keep the voters quiet. Nu-Lab have reportedly briefed the agency that: “it is imperative that every opportunity is taken to maintain and further improve the extensive electronic database built up during the revaluation exercise."
Eric Pickles, the shadow local government secretary, said: "Official Government documents prove Gordon Brown's council tax inspectors are still moving ahead with his plans to hit nice neighbourhoods with higher council taxes.”
He revealed that close to a million covert photographs of homes in England had been surreptitiously taken by the government and pointed out that this secret revaluation would ensure Gordon Brown was poised to implement a council tax hike immediately after the next general election, should Nu-Lab win.
Despite this a Department for Communities and Local Government spokesperson still claimed: "There is no revaluation taking place, or underway.” Possibly even ‘technically’ speaking not actually untrue.
Clearly not actually a full on revaluation, but there is little doubt that no opportunity to quietly gather information is being lost and everything is being put in place that can be to take advantage of that - so fast that English homeowners won’t have time to blink when Gordon decides the moment is right to lower the boom on them.
‘Caseworkers’ working for the Valuation Office Agency, the people tasked with increasing council tax assessments, who in turn come under HM Revenue & Customs have been issued a new handbook.
It is a 120-page job, freshly updated in June. It contains helpful advice to these state sponsored professional snoopers. Things like how to measure architect’s plans and the size of gardens. Instructions to penalise homes, which have pleasant surroundings, good schools and fast road links.
So it seems, that despite having ‘officially’ shelved plans for a Council tax hike, after fierce protests, this ‘shelving’ is actually a sham to keep the voters quiet. Nu-Lab have reportedly briefed the agency that: “it is imperative that every opportunity is taken to maintain and further improve the extensive electronic database built up during the revaluation exercise."
Eric Pickles, the shadow local government secretary, said: "Official Government documents prove Gordon Brown's council tax inspectors are still moving ahead with his plans to hit nice neighbourhoods with higher council taxes.”
He revealed that close to a million covert photographs of homes in England had been surreptitiously taken by the government and pointed out that this secret revaluation would ensure Gordon Brown was poised to implement a council tax hike immediately after the next general election, should Nu-Lab win.
Despite this a Department for Communities and Local Government spokesperson still claimed: "There is no revaluation taking place, or underway.” Possibly even ‘technically’ speaking not actually untrue.
Clearly not actually a full on revaluation, but there is little doubt that no opportunity to quietly gather information is being lost and everything is being put in place that can be to take advantage of that - so fast that English homeowners won’t have time to blink when Gordon decides the moment is right to lower the boom on them.
Sunday, 19 August 2007
Will Sachem Brown agree to sell another Island to the Europeans
Does anyone here remember the Wappinger Confederacy or the Manna-hata, a tribe of native Americans who lived on the east coast of what is now the USA who were part of it?
What about Peter Minuit? He was born in Wesel on the German Rhine probably of Huguenot Walloon descent.
Now in 1624 when the Spanish invaded and occupied Wesel. Minuit escaped to Holland. He went to the Dutch West India Company's colony of New Netherland and became Governor.
One of his first actions was to legitimize European occupation of the territory, he called together the native sachems and agreed a purchase of the island that the settlement of New Amsterdam had been built on with trinkets and cloth valued at 60 guilders, then worth about 112 pounds (0.7 kg) of silver.
It has been suggested that the Sachems were not absolutely clear as to exactly what they were agreeing to at that meeting.
As many of you will be aware that Island is now known as Manhattan Island, part of New York City in the USA.
There is a modern day parallel here - with another Island. One off the North West coast of Europe. Known as Britain.
The thing is that most native American Sachems, or chiefs were not royalty, or kings. They were chosen by the community - elected - and there were usually multiple chiefs, both peace chiefs and war chiefs. The Chiefs were effectively elected and only loaned their power by the people of their tribes to be used on their behalf.
Rather like, as a (not quite) random example, British members of Parliament.
They are not Princes in their own right. They do not own the country by right. They are elected.
Any power they hold and wield as an MP is only to be used on behalf of the electorate and is loaned for a limited period of time by the electorate.
It is not transferable; they cannot confer it on any other person, or bodies. If MPs and Prime Ministers want to give away or sell those powers, the citizens powers, on loan, held by them in trust, then they need to go back to the citizen and specifically ask the citizen’s permission. That is known as a referendum.
Yes Sachem Brown that means you and your fellow political class Cronies. You have no right to give, or sell, those powers to Brussels; they are not yours to give.
You promised not to without a referendum, now for once honour your party’s tarnished word.
The Manna-hata should have been more careful of what they were agreeing to - so should we.
What about Peter Minuit? He was born in Wesel on the German Rhine probably of Huguenot Walloon descent.
Now in 1624 when the Spanish invaded and occupied Wesel. Minuit escaped to Holland. He went to the Dutch West India Company's colony of New Netherland and became Governor.
One of his first actions was to legitimize European occupation of the territory, he called together the native sachems and agreed a purchase of the island that the settlement of New Amsterdam had been built on with trinkets and cloth valued at 60 guilders, then worth about 112 pounds (0.7 kg) of silver.
It has been suggested that the Sachems were not absolutely clear as to exactly what they were agreeing to at that meeting.
As many of you will be aware that Island is now known as Manhattan Island, part of New York City in the USA.
There is a modern day parallel here - with another Island. One off the North West coast of Europe. Known as Britain.
The thing is that most native American Sachems, or chiefs were not royalty, or kings. They were chosen by the community - elected - and there were usually multiple chiefs, both peace chiefs and war chiefs. The Chiefs were effectively elected and only loaned their power by the people of their tribes to be used on their behalf.
Rather like, as a (not quite) random example, British members of Parliament.
They are not Princes in their own right. They do not own the country by right. They are elected.
Any power they hold and wield as an MP is only to be used on behalf of the electorate and is loaned for a limited period of time by the electorate.
It is not transferable; they cannot confer it on any other person, or bodies. If MPs and Prime Ministers want to give away or sell those powers, the citizens powers, on loan, held by them in trust, then they need to go back to the citizen and specifically ask the citizen’s permission. That is known as a referendum.
Yes Sachem Brown that means you and your fellow political class Cronies. You have no right to give, or sell, those powers to Brussels; they are not yours to give.
You promised not to without a referendum, now for once honour your party’s tarnished word.
The Manna-hata should have been more careful of what they were agreeing to - so should we.
Saturday, 18 August 2007
The trouble with Greens...
The trouble with Greens in general and especially Green toadying politicians, is that they don’t think through what they are doing and will almost certainly end up having their rear ends thoroughly savaged by the ‘law of unintended consequences’ time and again…
The latest instance? The EU, desperately stampeding like demented green lemmings, set a target of ensuring 10% of petrol and diesel is sourced from renewable sources by 2020 – in other words bio-fuel.
Presumably an attempt to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide - Sounds ok if you don’t think about it too deeply.
If you do think about it more deeply though, like say a UK-based team of scientists who published those thoughts in Science.
Then you might think that reforestation and habitat protection are an enormously more preferable direction to go in because forests absorb up to nine times more CO2 than the production of biofuels could save, using the same area of land.
Dr Righelato one of the authors pointed out that: "In all cases, the amount of CO2 sequestered (by forests) over a 30-year period is considerably greater than the amount of emissions avoided by using biofuels,"
If you want to make biofuels then so-called second generation biofuels are better, made from waste products like used cooking oil or feedstocks such as straw, grasses and wood (lignocellulosic material) rather than grains or palm oil.
A major problem with the growth of biofuels is that it is actually leading to increased deforestation.
Apart from being counter productive in reducing carbon dioxide, something that will bother many, it is also contributing to deforestation of rainforests in Malaysia and Indonesia, as the land there is turned over in massive chunks to palm oil production to feed the increasing demand. Something else that should cause concern.
On top of that those forests are the only home of the Orangutan and as their natural environment is destroyed to feed the demand for palm oil the poor Orangutan is being driven towards extinction.
Orangutan rescue centres in Indonesia are having to cope with an influx of orphaned baby orangutans saved from forests cleared to make way for oil palm plantations. Significant areas of Tanjung Puting National Park, the world's most famous protected area for orangutan, are under threat from oil palm plantation.
And that should concern us all.
It is a hideous irony that the well meaning blundering of Green Politicians, who really don’t think further than the end of their noses, are actually busy ‘paving the road to hell’ by actively harming the environment and contributing towards driving a great Ape towards extinction.
Friday, 17 August 2007
Now three bedroom home sellers in England to be forced to pay for HIPs
The UK Government is now feeling confident enough to start forcing sellers of three bedroom homes to pay for Home Information Packs from September, practically indistinguishable in effect from a new tax on offering a property for sale.
There was not too much fuss from four bedroom homeowners and now Nu-Lab are picking off the three bedroom property owners, having first allowed the impression it may not happen - once any objections to that have died down it is likely to be the rest of the market.
What they call defeat in detail.
Nu-Lab were probably mindful of rumblings of discontent from trained inspectors who had been expecting to milk the market for big bucks and were complaining about the poor return they were getting on their training so far. Having a whole new class of 3 bedroom cash cows to milk should sweeten them up.
NU-Lab’s Communities Minister Baroness Andrews is trying to claim that:
"HIPs and EPCs can help families to save hundreds of pounds off their fuel bills, and cut a million tonnes of carbon a year,"
Yeah - and a pair of scissors will help you ‘cut your electricity bills in half’ too.
HIPs could only actually save a purchaser money if the purchaser pulls out of a sale because they think the bills are too expensive and a purchaser can find out exactly the same thing, at no cost to anyone, by just asking to see the bills.
The government funded and created tool the Energy Saving Trust, claims the average consumer (weasel word) could cut their fuel bills by (more weasel words) as much as £300 a year if they follow the recommendations in the EPCs.
One wonders how much it might cost the average consumer to actually follow those recommendations and how long it would actually take to recover the expense in fuel savings…
The Baroness went on to try to claim HIPs, “have the potential” –
Weasel words that mean they might not actually do it at all then, like ‘Up to’ in a diet ad, prefacing ‘6 inches off your waist’
- “to reduce the millions of pounds wasted by consumers when buying and selling a home, by increasing transparency and competition in a process that hasn't changed for a generation.”
What is it about Nu-Lab? If anything is over a few years old they seem to think it needs to be junked and replaced - including the democratic process.
The fact is of course that EPCs are EU imposed requirement largely as a result of pressure by the green lobby - but much of the political elite would prefer the citizen didn’t dwell on that, or even know it.
They also probably would prefer it if you didn’t dwell on the fact that the EU only requires their subject states to ensure they are carried out every 10 years.
So why have Nu-Lab gone so far over the top? So much further than the EU required?
Well, apart from the fact that it will add to the client population dependant on the state, energy assessors will be required to log details of the properties into a central database that will hold records for 20 years.
Now the Valuation Office Agency, which is responsible for council tax valuations, has apparently applied for access to that database.
So crafty old Gordon Brown is effectively actually charging home owning sheeple something between £400 and £600, at current estimates (expect them to rise soon), to fund Government compliance with an expensive EU requirement - and also supply all the information required to reassess their council tax bills.
And he can claim green credentials for doing it!
No matter what you think of his morals or the reliability of his promises you have got to admire the man’s, truly breath taking, devious cunning…
There was not too much fuss from four bedroom homeowners and now Nu-Lab are picking off the three bedroom property owners, having first allowed the impression it may not happen - once any objections to that have died down it is likely to be the rest of the market.
What they call defeat in detail.
Nu-Lab were probably mindful of rumblings of discontent from trained inspectors who had been expecting to milk the market for big bucks and were complaining about the poor return they were getting on their training so far. Having a whole new class of 3 bedroom cash cows to milk should sweeten them up.
NU-Lab’s Communities Minister Baroness Andrews is trying to claim that:
"HIPs and EPCs can help families to save hundreds of pounds off their fuel bills, and cut a million tonnes of carbon a year,"
Yeah - and a pair of scissors will help you ‘cut your electricity bills in half’ too.
HIPs could only actually save a purchaser money if the purchaser pulls out of a sale because they think the bills are too expensive and a purchaser can find out exactly the same thing, at no cost to anyone, by just asking to see the bills.
The government funded and created tool the Energy Saving Trust, claims the average consumer (weasel word) could cut their fuel bills by (more weasel words) as much as £300 a year if they follow the recommendations in the EPCs.
One wonders how much it might cost the average consumer to actually follow those recommendations and how long it would actually take to recover the expense in fuel savings…
The Baroness went on to try to claim HIPs, “have the potential” –
Weasel words that mean they might not actually do it at all then, like ‘Up to’ in a diet ad, prefacing ‘6 inches off your waist’
- “to reduce the millions of pounds wasted by consumers when buying and selling a home, by increasing transparency and competition in a process that hasn't changed for a generation.”
What is it about Nu-Lab? If anything is over a few years old they seem to think it needs to be junked and replaced - including the democratic process.
The fact is of course that EPCs are EU imposed requirement largely as a result of pressure by the green lobby - but much of the political elite would prefer the citizen didn’t dwell on that, or even know it.
They also probably would prefer it if you didn’t dwell on the fact that the EU only requires their subject states to ensure they are carried out every 10 years.
So why have Nu-Lab gone so far over the top? So much further than the EU required?
Well, apart from the fact that it will add to the client population dependant on the state, energy assessors will be required to log details of the properties into a central database that will hold records for 20 years.
Now the Valuation Office Agency, which is responsible for council tax valuations, has apparently applied for access to that database.
So crafty old Gordon Brown is effectively actually charging home owning sheeple something between £400 and £600, at current estimates (expect them to rise soon), to fund Government compliance with an expensive EU requirement - and also supply all the information required to reassess their council tax bills.
And he can claim green credentials for doing it!
No matter what you think of his morals or the reliability of his promises you have got to admire the man’s, truly breath taking, devious cunning…
Thursday, 16 August 2007
UK Police Chief calls for price controls, tax hikes - and increases in police powers
The government campaign, publicly spearheaded by NU-Lab’s John Grogan, to raise extra revenue on alcohol gathers pace and now they have got Nu-Labs ‘politicised policemen’ weighing in amongst others.
The Chief Constable of Cheshire, Peter Fahy, (surprise, surprise) wants yet more police powers to stop drinking in the street and is urging his political masters to increase taxation on alcohol and raise the legal drinking age to 21.
Jon Stoddart, the Chief Constable of Durham Police, is supporting his ‘suggestions’ as “sensible” and the Chief Constable Northumbria Mike Craik is also calling for hikes in taxation on alcohol.
Maybe if these highly paid (evidently ineffective when it comes to drunks) police managers actually bothered effectively enforcing the existing applicable laws in those locations where it may be needed, before demanding new ones they might have more credibility.
Chief Constable Fahy amply demonstrates his authoritarian anti free market tendencies by also demanding the Government set price controls on alcohol. Calling for a high minimum price to be set for alcohol that it will be illegal to reduce, or discount.
"The supply of alcohol should not be left to the market," he liberally remarked…
This man is actually rather scary. This is a precedent we should never allow to be established.
The Chief Constable of Cheshire, Peter Fahy, (surprise, surprise) wants yet more police powers to stop drinking in the street and is urging his political masters to increase taxation on alcohol and raise the legal drinking age to 21.
Jon Stoddart, the Chief Constable of Durham Police, is supporting his ‘suggestions’ as “sensible” and the Chief Constable Northumbria Mike Craik is also calling for hikes in taxation on alcohol.
Maybe if these highly paid (evidently ineffective when it comes to drunks) police managers actually bothered effectively enforcing the existing applicable laws in those locations where it may be needed, before demanding new ones they might have more credibility.
Chief Constable Fahy amply demonstrates his authoritarian anti free market tendencies by also demanding the Government set price controls on alcohol. Calling for a high minimum price to be set for alcohol that it will be illegal to reduce, or discount.
"The supply of alcohol should not be left to the market," he liberally remarked…
This man is actually rather scary. This is a precedent we should never allow to be established.
Wednesday, 15 August 2007
UK Government survey claims majority in favour of rubbish bin tax
Very few householders in the UK can be unaware of the State campaign to levy extra charges for rubbish collection. The Government wants to get local councils to impose new "incentive" charges on homes throwing out the most rubbish. There was talk of having chips fitted to rubbish bins to monitor how much rubbish was thrown out.
It is highly contentious and has met with much public resistance, including popular petitions.
Basically more stealth Taxation - brought to you by the Original Taxmeister himself the PM Gordon Broon, disguised as Green measures.
Imagine the surprise the other day when DEFRA released the results of a poll it had carried out purporting to show that 52% of the population were avid for the new tax to be introduced. How did the phrase those questions?
A DEFRA spokesman stated the ‘findings’ of the survey would be taken into consideration by ministers in waste disposal developing policy. You just bet they will. One wonders if they will give similar weight to petitions against the proposal, or surveys that might show less public enthusiasm…
Curious that a government department produces a survey that supports the Government line on such a contentious issue…
It is highly contentious and has met with much public resistance, including popular petitions.
Basically more stealth Taxation - brought to you by the Original Taxmeister himself the PM Gordon Broon, disguised as Green measures.
Imagine the surprise the other day when DEFRA released the results of a poll it had carried out purporting to show that 52% of the population were avid for the new tax to be introduced. How did the phrase those questions?
A DEFRA spokesman stated the ‘findings’ of the survey would be taken into consideration by ministers in waste disposal developing policy. You just bet they will. One wonders if they will give similar weight to petitions against the proposal, or surveys that might show less public enthusiasm…
Curious that a government department produces a survey that supports the Government line on such a contentious issue…
Monday, 13 August 2007
The police really do seem younger every day.
It used to be said you can tell you are getting older when the police start looking younger.
A teenager could be forgiven for worrying about advancing old age, based on the fact that a Police Force in the UK (Thames Valley) have decided to recruit two 16 year olds.
Granted they are community support officers, not actual police officers. Never-the-less the uniform is very similar - and no doubt intended to be, the less observant members of the general public are likely to take these youths of police officers.
One sees this sort of thing in fiction and now Thames Valley are apparently intent on creating their own version of the ‘Bow Street Irregulars’.
The Police ‘Union’, the Police Federation, pointed out that "These children are going to be put in a uniform the public believe to be of a police officer and be expected to take on responsibilities on the streets,"
A teenager could be forgiven for worrying about advancing old age, based on the fact that a Police Force in the UK (Thames Valley) have decided to recruit two 16 year olds.
Granted they are community support officers, not actual police officers. Never-the-less the uniform is very similar - and no doubt intended to be, the less observant members of the general public are likely to take these youths of police officers.
One sees this sort of thing in fiction and now Thames Valley are apparently intent on creating their own version of the ‘Bow Street Irregulars’.
The Police ‘Union’, the Police Federation, pointed out that "These children are going to be put in a uniform the public believe to be of a police officer and be expected to take on responsibilities on the streets,"
Man does not live by caffeine alone.
A teenage girl in County Durham, in the UK made the mistake of knocking back seven double espressos - Wow!
She had to be rushed to hospital when she developed a fever and started hyperventilating.
It seems she was under the impression the coffees were single measures and overdosed on caffeine.
She said: ” I was having palpitations, my heart was beating so fast and I thought I was going into shock”
"My nerves were all over the place.”
She had to be rushed to hospital when she developed a fever and started hyperventilating.
It seems she was under the impression the coffees were single measures and overdosed on caffeine.
She said: ” I was having palpitations, my heart was beating so fast and I thought I was going into shock”
"My nerves were all over the place.”
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