Ask and it shall be given unto you. Seek and ye shall find……but for marketing nous, hats off to the Co-op who are going to prison for new customers. Their initiative started in a private prison in Manchester in 2006, with the result that prisoners who have a bank account are much less likely to reoffend than those without a bank account. Not having one can make it difficult to get a job plus having one open already makes the guys concerned feel more integrated and less excluded from the rest of us  http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/dec/03/bank-accounts-prisoners-co-operative

Gerry Robinson’s BBC programme on long-term care and dementia showed two sides of the care issue. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/search/?q=gerry%20robinson Many homes pay their staff not much above the minimum daily wage and very few allow any time in their duties to have a daily chat with their charges. In some cases, conversation with another resident or carer is about 6 minutes a day (usually at mealtime) and they are left washed, fed and dressed staring into space all day. In contrast, in the more expensive £750 per week home where there was interaction and conversation going on, the residents looked happy and healthy. Reminded me of visiting a relative in what was considered to be a good care home a few years ago. Walking into the lounge, some faces would light up when they saw me, only to drop again when I carried on to the room where my uncle was.

Ever wondered about a lingering smell in some care homes? Simple explanation from an owner of 10 care homes who diplomatically described the cause as anti-social behaviour. Seems a few of the residents would rather use the carpet than the toilet and even with steam cleaning, a trace lingers on. Care can be at home of course, see  http://www.caringandsharing.info/ and look forward to episode two of Gerry Robinson’s mini-series.

But on the day of PBR and all the changes with it, a strange thought occurs to me – was our Chancellor of the Exchequer ever in the Foreign Legion? Have now read four books about Brits in the Légion étrangère (don’t ask) so while not an expert, have at least done some homework. Extra inspections, drill, marches are done for the sake of doing them or done in the most complicated way are the most annoying memory. OK all armies have this  to some extent, but the Légion étrangère deems to have more than its share and so does this government. A never ending series of pension & tax changes makes you wonder if the Chancellor sees us as raw recruits to be knocked into shape or perhaps he is following Salvation Army founder General Booth’s philosophy “The Devil finds work for idle hands”.

According to my most recent read Dairy of a Legionnaire by Gareth Carins (spoiled by poor proof reading with howlers like kepi blanche) there are usually plenty of people wanting to join. In his intake, there were so many it took 3 weeks rather than the usual 1 or 2 weeks to process them. Most of the rejects were from eastern Europe apparently and their awful teeth was their downfall with less than 5 per cent of the original group chosen for basic training.

But back to Pension Simplification which started in 2002 and has become an oxymoron. Recent changes announced in the PBR of 9th December reduce from £150,000 to £130,000 the level where previous changes take effect. Plus the way in which this relevant income is calculated has now been changed, meaning pension advice for people making chunky pension contributions, has to be revisited – in other words, more fees for advice. The way recent ISA allowance changes were introduced for example, with different allowances for people over the age of 50 are another.

And please don’t get me started on HIPs (Home Information Packs). A significant part of the previous few years of house market activity was from people who put their house on the market to see the level of interest generated. If the interest was good, then a sale might happen which benefitted everybody including the government. Now with a £300 cost of a HIPS before you can show your property, few are inclined to do so. Just the sort of hindrance you need in a weak property market when people can’t get mortgages because bank and building societies are not really in the mood for lending. Conversations I hear sometimes from colleagues trying to get their client’s mortgage arranged border on the surreal, making me wonder if I should start a website with a title something like www.stupidmortgageconversations.com Perhaps naming and shaming would loosen things up a bit, not to mention providing some entertainment and enough ideas to start a new Monty Python or Little Britain series? The domain is available at time of writing…

But on the point of regulation, let me leave the final word to Miles Templeman, Director General of the Institute of Directors “As a nation we face some difficult choices. We either squeeze public spending, taxation and regulation, or all three will squeeze the life out of the UK economy.”