[Tubby Isaacs]

May be that some lower productivity jobs have been lost with the increase in employers NI and the minimum wage. The labour market should be settling down now. See if the rise is sustained.

I noted before that lots of people thought that these jobs shouldn't even have existed because the wage was too low and the tax payer was picking up costs of tax credits. I'm not sure about that argument- some jobs are genuinely low productivity, particularly in areas where there's not much money about. That's not really anybody's fault in lots of cases (poor paying jobs in eg Central London are a different matter). But anyhow, it seems that some of these jobs don't exist any longer, but I'm sure lots of the complainers aren't any happier than before.

We'll have to see if unemployment starts to fall. Might turn out that the changes were an economic masterstroke.

[The Weeping Angel]

Some changes of tax treatment, and restrictions on some of the more expensive models, apparently. My guess is that, in the words of Arthur Daley when buying a second car, "these fall out of bed price wise" rather rapidly. But I don't know much about the scheme, admittedly.

Either way, it's kicked off a hornet's nest.

“Life costs more if you are disabled. Energy and day-to-day living costs remain stubbornly high across the board. The government shouldn’t be looking to ramp up costs on disabled people. They could leave more disabled people isolated, and less able to get into work.”

Emma Vogelmann, the co-chief executive of the disability group Transport for All, said: “As disabled people we often find public transport is unusable – broken pavements, nonexistent bus routes, and packed stations we can’t navigate. A Motability car changes that – it allows us to work, shop, and do the school run. Scaling back the scheme would lock disabled people away from daily life. Does the chancellor want to take away our freedom?”

[Boiler]

Stuff like that would please the berks that want "Motability" emblazoned on the side of such cars so they know who to hate.

[The Weeping Angel]

Stupid Red Tory government wanting to create 40,000 clean energy jobs.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... MP=bsky_gu

Plumbers, electricians and welders will be in huge demand as part of a national plan to train people for an extra 400,000 green jobs in the next five years, Ed Miliband has said.

The energy secretary unveiled a scheme to double the number of people working in green industries by 2030, with a particular focus on training those coming from fossil fuel jobs, school leavers, the unemployed, veterans and ex-offenders.

He said the plan would involve measures to ensure companies receiving public grants and contracts need to create good jobs across the clean energy sector. It would also promote greater trade union recognition and collective bargaining in the clean energy sector, including when jobs are offshore.

Miliband’s announcement was welcomed by unions, from Unite to the GMB, which have long been pushing for a more detailed plan for how people will switch from fossil fuel industries to those in clean energy in the future.

As part of the plan, 31 skilled trades will be designated as priorities for recruitment and training, with plumbers, heating and ventilation installers at the top of the list, with an additional 8,000 to 10,000 needed by 2030. Carpenters, electricians and welders are the next highest in demand on the list, with 4,000 to 8,500 extra of each required.

Miliband said the national plan “answers a key question about where the good jobs of the future will come from”.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Fucking A!

[Andy McDandy]

"Dole scum, lefty students, career criminals and people from traditionally Labour areas given jobs bribe", as the Mail might report it, before asking where are the jobs for the good people of Clacton.

[Boiler]

If some of those jobs can be training EV technicians, that'll be brilliant - some of the tales I've heard coming from main dealers trying to charge for e.g. a new traction battery at £22k when it's actually just a damaged connector are horrific - and the more independents the better in my view. There are, frankly, a lot of dinosaurs out there and much as many would like, EVs are not going to go away.

[Youngian]

Reminded of Roy Hattersley handing out advice to the Blair government a few months after Labour's historic victory on Newsnight. "We need to find our feet as we haven't been in power for 18 years," Tessa Jowell retorted to the serial election loser

Neil Kinnock gives Keir Starmer warning and hits out at Labour's 'basic errors'
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... fgDvs9BlEQ

[Tubby Isaacs]

The actual criticisms aren't that big. The Winter Fuel Allowance, inadequate comms.

[The Weeping Angel]

Meanwhile more problems for Starmer as the Guardian speculates based on some briefings.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... 1760969542

It is hard to imagine that any newfound unity will follow the result. Powell’s supporters in particular feel deeply aggrieved by how their candidate has been portrayed as the reckless outcast.

Over the weekend Powell was described as “the Momentum candidate” and Phillipson gave an interview saying she would cost the party the election.

“People keep saying the gloves are off – there is only one candidate with the gloves off and it’s not Lucy,” one MP said. Another said: “It’s clear that when the leadership preach unity they only mean one thing – avoid any criticism or debate even when we’re making serious mistakes.”

There will be no big event to mark the result on Saturday, just a camera in Labour HQ with the results and a short speech from the winner. Some of Powell’s backers are irritated by the low-key plan. There are fears that she may be in effect frozen out – and uncertainty over whether she would be able to do her own broadcast rounds or election organising. “They need to respect the mandate if she wins,” one ally said.

Senior strategists had hoped five weeks ago to avoid a contest altogether, with a high threshold for MP nominations. Keir Starmer made appointments in the reshuffle for the party chair and the deputy prime minister, crowding out the role of deputy leader.

But with a restive parliamentary party a fix looked unlikely even though some ministers and aides piled pressure on MPs to back Phillipson.

After the first polls dropped, amid the turmoil over the departure of both Rayner and Peter Mandelson, Powell looked unassailable with a 17-point lead. But the race has a number of unknowns.

Phillipson’s team have made a number of strong policy interventions including on child poverty. Low turnout is expected from an apathetic party membership. And Phillipson, who has close union relations, has gained the endorsements of three major trade unions that have a vote in the deputy leadership – and which have never been polled.

[Tubby Isaacs]

So it's hard to imagine that there won't be a big fall out from (checks notes) this event where not many are expected to be bothered to vote? Funny how the "Starmer disgrace to Labour's history" candidate turns out to be the one with stronger union links too...

[Tubby Isaacs]

One of the Guardian's few good writers, Nils Pratley, on Net Zero. He thinks that the 2030 target for 95% renewable regeneration should be set back a bit because it's going to cost too much for not very much extra benefit.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/ni ... l-deadline

Doubtless this will be represented in some quarters as a massive betrayal, and a capitulation to "fossil fuel lobbyists" (not least by a certain recently elected political leader) but seems like it wouldn't be. There's at least some expert opinion saying we need to do exactly this.

[Tubby Isaacs]

You'll be amazed to hear this but...

Keir Starmer will attend Cop30 in Brazil, No 10 confirms
After speculation and conflicting pressures, prime minister will attend climate summit next month

Does anybody at the Guardian ever get hauled in about the speculation that turns out to be misplaced? I haven't looked at the story yet, perhaps this is "a response to the impact of Zack Polanski", just like everything else seems to be "a response to Reform".

[Malcolm Armsteen]

It seems to be Viner's approved tactic.

[Tubby Isaacs]

It seems to be Viner's approved tactic.

A few posters are saying that an article today about (among other things) how immigrants are going to have to do A Level English is misleading. The changes is apparently from B1 to B2, from intermediate to higher intermediate, neither of which levels a native speaker without considerable special needs would struggle to reach. All grist for the "we recommend a vote for the Greens and Lib Dems" mill, I expect. And when it comes to it, are either of those parties going to run on taking it back to a lower level?