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The truths they don't want you to read....

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Inclement weather

We have now disappeared off on a family holiday, so blogging will be even slower over the next fortnight, due to time zone differences, sheer laziness on my part and a lack of anything really interesting to comment upon.

We are wandering about on a mouse hunt; eating some wonderful food; and lazing by the pool when there is nothing much else to do.

Our little daughter - aged 30 months - walked for about 6 hours and about 10 miles around the Magic Kingdom yesterday with her jaw dropping as she saw all the superstars.

Her bigger brother has tried to go on every ride possible, from the scary to the utterly terrifying, and despite his lack of height has tried to blag his way onto everything. Mostly without success.

Her eldest brother has helped us find fine eateries, and has consumed adult portions of anything and everything with frightening regularity.

Sign of the day in Taco Bell: "We are open until 1am - make us your 4th meal of the day"

The inclement weather? It was thunderstorms, monsoons and tornados on Monday. But it was still wonderfully hot.
 

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I see on the CnES web page the Golf Club SY have applied for Saunday licence.

Anonymous said...

1st APRIL FOOL - apparently not, read on (from The Scotsman):

01 April 2010
By RHIANNON EDWARD
THE chief executive of Scotland's largest local authority earns more than the First Minister, a survey has revealed.

Alex Salmond received about £140,000 for his role as First Minister and an MP. Mr Salmond also currently receives a third of his MSP salary – about £18,000 – but he gives this away.

The fourth annual "rich list" contains local authority employees across the UK who earn over £100,000. No staff working for Clackmannanshire, Orkney, Shetland or Argyll and Bute councils are paid more than £100,000 the list showed.

It also revealed there was a 14 per cent rise in the number of council staff across the UK earning more than this in the past year, when compared with the previous year. Now 1,250 staff earn six-figure sums across the UK, with 31 earning more than the Prime Minister and 219 paid better than Cabinet ministers, the survey found.

John O'Connell, policy analyst at the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "Town hall bosses have had a very good recession at taxpayers' expense. More of them than ever are earning massive amounts, and they even enjoyed a healthy pay rise while everyone else was suffering pay freezes, cuts or redundancies.

"It is unfair that these public servants have been having a whale of a time while the ordinary taxpayers, who fund their generous deals, have been struggling to survive the recession. Now that most councils are in financial trouble, these senior managers must take serious pay cuts to help make ends meet."

A recent survey by the Tories revealed that more than 75 staff at Scottish councils earn six-figure sums. The survey, obtained using freedom of information, also revealed that Glasgow City Council has 410 staff who earn between £50,000 and £70,000.

The TPA research, based on replies to freedom of information requests, identified at least 1,250council staff getting £100,000 or more – 151 more than in 2007-8 – averaging £2,418 a week. There was also an increase in the very top pay scales across the UK, with 166 on packages worth more than £150,000 – up from 135 the previous year.

WHO EARNS WHAT

CHIEF executives' pay and expenses at Scotland's councils 2008-9:

Aberdeen - (no chief executive salary)

Aberdeenshire (Alan Campbell) - £131,429

Angus (David Sawers) - £125,096

Clackmannanshire - (no staff above £100,000)

Dumfries and Galloway (Phil Jones) - £129,455

Dundee (David Dorward) - £129,504*

East Ayrshire (Fiona Lees) - £118,713*

East Dunbartonshire - (did not respond)

East Lothian (Alan Blackie) - £108,150

Edinburgh (Thomas Aitchison) - £154,798

Eilean Siar (Malcolm Burr) - £126,328

Falkirk (Mary Pitcaithly) - £125,975*

Fife (Ronnie Hinds) - £146,402

Glasgow (George Black) - £170,950

North Lanarkshire (Gavin Whitefield) - £148,109

Orkney Islands - (no staff above £100,000)

Perth and Kinross (Bernadette Malone) - £118,713*

Renfrewshire (David Martin) - £130,609*

Scottish Borders (David Hume) - £119,753

Shetland - (no staff above £100,000)

South Ayrshire (David Anderson) - £105,680

South Lanarkshire (Archie Strang) - £146,502

West Dunbartonshire (David McMillan) - £113,640*

West Lothian (Alexander Linkston) - £127,138

*No expenses