The madness of health and safety

In the last week it has been reported that a school in Edinburgh had to employ a tradesman to hang children's pictures at a cost of £350.

Now we are told that a group of parents who volunteered to paint their childrens classroom walls cannot do so because of so called health and safety rules.

Both cases are simply bonkers.

The idiots who have interpreted the rules in these ways are frankly not fit to occupy any position of responsibility or authority.

In the first case, I have to ask why the school janitor couldn't do this? Any reason behind this clearly has nothing to do with health and safety, it is down to the stupidity of contracts entered into under the Labour Governments PFI arrangements. Arrangements which were never supposed to be used for this kind of contract and has exposed those involved in drafting them as incompetent, at best.

In the second case, I'd like to see these so called best practise guidelines, because they cannot say that an ordinary volunteer cannot do something as basic as painting a wall.

In any case, what are they worried about? A volunteer is by definition offering their services voluntarily. Presumably those people understand the risks involved. There is not a court in the world that would uphold a claim by a volunteer against the education department where someone volunteered to help and through misadventure was injured (pot of paint falling over? Slipping off a ladder?)

I think it's time that we dealt with the jobsworths in the education department. Get rid of them and allow common sense to take over again.

Drogba's ban

Maybe it's just me, but I was appalled by the behaviour of Chelsea player Didier Drogba after their semi final defeat by Barcelona.

Verbally abusing referees is simply not acceptable and it is high time that football authorities took steps. In this case they have. A 6 match ban and a large fine have been handed down.

This is s step in the right direction, but only a step. Footballers need to understand that like it or not they are role models in society. They are heroes to many, as such their behaviour directly influences a large number of people.

No one questions that society is broken and something needs to be done. Selfish self indulgence, lack of discipline, arrogance, lack of respect for authority, violence are all manifestations of that breakdown.

It would be nice to thionk that footballers would take their role seriously and start to live lives that show a good example to those who follow them. Hold your tongues, stop lashing out, think carefully before being seen drunk at night clubs are just some of the ways that they could make a difference to some.

In terms of football authorities, could I suggest that a draconian clamp down on behaviour would help. For example, a sending off results in an immediate season's ban. A second sending off and you never play again- anywhere.

Lothian Buses- Queensferry

Queensferry, despite being part of Edinburgh is not served by Lothian Buses. I have written asking why. I have no doubt that I will receive an answer saying why it cannot be done, although I would love to be surprised and receive a response to the effect that they are looking to do something positive and introduce a service or even extend a service.

Why for example could the 41 not run express to Queensferry?

Identity Cards

http://www.no2id.netIf ever there was a totem of the Labour obsession with total control of people's lives then this is it.

We do not need identity cards in this country. It changes the relationship between the state and the citizen. The state is here to serve the citizen, ID cards will turn that on its head. The arguments about national security are spurious at best, an ID card would not have prevented a single one of our terrorist attrocities.

Good to see therefore that Senior Conservatives are warning potential contractors that their contracts will be cancelled, so don't spend any money.

Trident

I notice that Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg says that He would not renew Trident. Of course he can say what he likes safe in the knowledge that he will never be called upon to implement and of his commitments.... Not even a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

Those who will have to make that decision know that life isn't so simple.

Scottish Conservatives top European Parliament attendance records

Speaking as an independent analysis of Scottish MEPs’ attendance records in the European Parliament revealed that Scottish Conservative MEPs Struan Stevenson and John Purvis topped the league table and the SNP finished bottom, Struan Stevenson said:

"Scottish Conservatives have always said voters should judge us on our record and this is independent proof that our record is good. Tory MEPs have not only been more open with our expenses than any other party but this evidence says we are also the hardest working. We always said we would offer a strong voice for Scotland in Europe and now we have the proof.

"The SNP claims to be Scotland's voice in Europe but again this evidence shows their MEPs are all too often posted missing. This seems to be a chronic problem in the SNP - Alex Salmond is an MP, he claims an MP’s wage, but rarely attends Westminster.

"I am proud that the evidence over the last few days has shown that Scottish Conservative MEPs are hard working and leading the way in openness on expenses. Where we have led, others are scrambling to follow, except Labour who refuse to come clean over their Euro expenses. Which only begs the question: What have they got to hide?"

Cut Crime - say the Lib Dems

I received a number of election communications recently including one from the Lib Dems who claimed to want to cut crime, and criticised the Conservtives for failing to support a European arrest warrant.

This is an EU invention that allows anyone to be extradited to another European Country for something that is not a crime in Britain. This is all part of their enthusiasm for a United States of Europe.

What's more this is the Lib Dem party that have consistently been soft on crime, for example advocating shorter jail sentences, letting off burglars (Simon Hughes and Mark Oaten), Votes for prisoners including rapists and paedophiles and calling for the legalisation of hard drugs and to quote Vince Cable MP, 'Liberals (and LibDems in particular)…' come across as '…"soft": preoccupied with understanding rather than punishing criminals, fretting about threats to freedom from excessive police powers, pressing for liberalisation of drug laws rather than enforcing them'

Sorry folks, I'm not taking lessons from the Lib Dems on cutting crime.