Another nail....

Let's be honest my friends, some stuff just pisses you off. We try very hard to stay balanced, even-tempered and moderate but then something comes along that does it again -bangs another nail into the coffin of your sanity.

Today, despite West Ham finally winning a game - away from home against a proper team - I am sorely tried. A miasma of gloom has descended upon me prompted by the futility of it all.

And then I read this....

The chief executives of 10 housing associations who are paid more than David Cameron will be targeted by the housing minister, Grant Shapps, at the associations' annual conference in Birmingham tomorrow. He will tell the National Housing Federation conference that since the prime minister cut his salary to £142,500 when he took office in May, housing associations should review how much they pay their senior staff and should subject them to the same scrutiny as ministers and public bodies.

One of the targeted organisations - Places for People - is one of the UK's largest property management and regeneration companies. It has nearly £3bn in assets and manages over 60,000 houses. Its 2009 turnover was approaching £290 million. It's a big, complex, PRIVATE, organisation and it pays its Chief Exectuive over £200,000.

I don't see this as a problem. And certainly not a problem meriting a cheap headline for a government minister.

Grant Shapps is a Tory. We believe in private organisations doing what private organisations do best. Housing associations are private organisations - how much they pay their bosses is absolutely nothing...nothing...zilch...to do with Mr Shapps.

....

Sutcliffe's Guide to Ministerial Ignorance: No. 1 - The Odeon

Gerry Sutcliffe, Sports Minister and Bradford MP has vaulted onto the Odeon bandwagon in his usual opportunistic and just slightly ignorant manner. It all sounds good with calls for penalty clauses, pre-lets and other exciting controls over the redevelopment of a GOVERNMENT-OWNED building.

This is the same Gerry Sutcliffe who, when leader of Bradford Council signed up to the disastrous superdome proposals for Odsal.

This is the same Gerry Sutcliffe who failed to persuade his mate John Prescott to allow the Sterling Capital development at Odsal to proceed.

And this is the same Gerry Sutcliffe who did everything he could to scupper a subsequent Odsal development that involved some changes at Horsfall Stadium half a mile away.

Now how do we put this so Gerry might understand?

You can't make someone develop a site unless they want to build. Developers will not sign up to penalty clauses - why should they, they're not contractors - and will need planning permission in order to negotiate any pre-lets. We can't make them build a white elephant, Gerry.