Three Cheers for Dr Pike!

Is he the only honest (and brave) scientist in Britain?

Top scientists were last night accused of trying to hush up a damning report on the dumbing down of GCSEs to avoid embarrassing the Government.

Scientists being less than impartial, and trying to hush up inconvenient evidence?

Surely not…

The report by the Science Community Representing Education (Score) group said some exam questions required no scientific knowledge.

It also found maths was examined 'in a very limited way' and in some cases 'the allowable answers given in mark schemes did not reflect correct science'.

So, you can give a wrong answer, and still achieve a mark?

Who said ‘Education, education, education..’ again? I’ve quite forgotten…

But the Royal Society of Chemistry, which is represented on the group, broke ranks last night to blow the whistle on a cover-up.

'It would seem to me the public interest is being subordinated for political reasons, which is unacceptable,' said Dr Richard Pike, the society's chief executive.

Good for you!

Although the report was available online and to those that specifically requested it, the press release containing some stark criticism was unavailable.

It included a quote from Sir Alan Wilson, the chairman of Score, who said: 'It is astonishing that there are questions in our GCSEs that have no relation to science and that mathematics, the cornerstone of sound scientific understanding, is so woefully represented.'

And so long as that was based in fact – and it clearly was – what’s the harm in saying it?

Sources at the chemistry society said the Score coalition - based at the Royal Society - was concerned the findings would play into the hands of the Conservatives and education spokesman Michael Gove, and upset key civil servants.

Because upsetting the government and key civil servants would cut them off from the gravy train of government grants, of course.

Dr Pike said: 'My concern is that the civil servants in the Department for Children, Schools and Families are becoming increasingly politicised, even when confronted with evidence.

'Within the learned society community, for the most part, they don't want to cause trouble. They are cosying up with the civil service and cosying up with all the people involved in writing exams.'

A damning indictment of the creep of politics into every sphere and the influence of the largesse it can provide if you are prepared, as Dr Pike clearly isn’t, to forego your principles.

But then, prostitution thrives in harsh financial times, doesn’t it? So maybe we shouldn’t be too surprised….

The March Of The Greens….

Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, announced yesterday that planning rules would be changed to make it easier for 6,000 onshore wind turbines to be built. Britain's "default position" would be to accept new onshore turbines, he said.

Because we’ve got to press forward with the big green con, or the public might start to realise that it is a con…

Still, good luck trying to hide it from them when their bills go up:

Government figures show that household energy bills could rise by up to £250 a year to pay for more renewable energy, although it claimed that efficiency measures would keep the increase down to £77 by 2020.

As part of the plans, motorists and air passengers were warned that they could face more "green" tax increases – although ministers refused to give details. And seven million homes would receive "green energy makeovers" to increase energy efficiency.

Ah, of course. The usual suspects victims. Motorists (Ministers have chauffeurs) and air passengers (Ministers get the public to pay their air fares).

And what houses are supposed to receive these ‘green makeovers’? Public housing?

Critics of turbines, which can be more than 300ft high, say they disfigure the landscape and cause noise. Some engineers also question whether they are efficient enough to be economically viable but Mr Miliband said people must come to accept wind farms as a necessary part of Britain's energy sector.

NuLabour in all its authoritarian glory – the people (who vote them in) must do as the politicians want, or else…

He said ministers would be sensitive to residents' concerns about turbines, but insisted: "They have to go somewhere."

Then I vote for them to go slap bang outside the house of every Minister and politician who voted for it. In the case of most of them, that’ll be ALL their houses.

And if that’s not enough, then we can move on to all those high profile green campaigners. Put your money where your mouth is, George Monbiot!

But it may all come to naught anyway. Like these other bold plans:

The government is expected to announce a scaled-down version of its grand plan to create up to 10 "eco towns".

Yet another of Brown’s ideas is quietly shelved once its usefulness – gaining headlines and green votes - has expired.

When are they going to do the same with the man himself?

But the zero-carbon developments - some earmarked on open countryside - have caused protests and a legal challenge.

The government is now likely to confirm a first wave of just three or four towns in areas with council support.

Note that: council support. Not the public’s support, but their local government lords and masters. Who may (or may not) have considered their views…

Opponents have included actress Judi Dench, author Jilly Cooper and former tennis star Tim Henman's father Tony Henman.

The Conservatives have also been critical of the way eco towns have been handled, but say they would not cancel schemes that enjoyed local support if they win the next election.

They need to clarify just what they mean by ‘local support’.

If they, too, consider that getting the council onside is all that needs to be done, they can think again…

”… Got the morning paper and the headlines read:"Danger to the queen" …”

“…Buckingham Palace better tighten things up...”:

Buckingham Palace and the Greater London Authority are under pressure to explain why a BNP member was last week allowed to attend a garden party hosted by the Queen.

And why, exactly, does the Palace have to ‘explain’ themselves to anyone over when a party is held? And who they choose to invite?

Questions were raised yesterday over whether officials had misled the public to avoid further embarrassment, following the scandal that erupted when Barnbrook invited BNP leader Nick Griffin as his guest. Mr Griffin later decided not to attend.

Both the Palace and the Assembly allowed reports giving the incorrect date of Mr Barnbook's visit to be published.

Which disappointed no-one, except those looking to make political capital out of it.

Like this group:

A spokesman for anti-fascist group Searchlight said: 'We were surprised to hear Richard Barnbrook's attendance at the garden party was kept so quiet.

‘Surprised’? No, I don’t think that was the word you first thought of….

The Uselessness Of ASBOs…

A gang of yobs have had a ban on hoodies lifted because two of them still have their clothes bought for them by their mum.

Hey, if ASBOs aren’t shaming enough, perhaps having the details of how your mum still buys your clothes for you at 18 and 22 splashed all over the press will do the job?

Oh, but I forgot. There is no shame any more:

Police say the four thugs are linked to more than 300 crimes, including violence, burglary, car theft, assault and shoplifting.

They were given an anti-social behaviour order for terrorising their estate and banned from wearing hooded tops.

And then even that hopeless little slap on the wrist was rescinded by a do-gooder magistrate:

But the hoodie part of the ban was lifted because Jonathan Webb, 22, and his brother Joshua, 18, have a wardrobe full of hooded tops which were bought recently by their mother.

Might I suggest a handy solution?

Magistrates altered the Asbo to let the Webbs and two other gang members wear the tops, but only with hoods down.

Why the two other gang members? Did the other two’s mum buy their clothes too?

The Webbs, Jake Allen, 18, and Adam Langdon, 18, had made life a "living hell" for residents of the Honicknowle housing estate in Plymouth.

The list of previous convictions for the four over four years filled 200 pages.

Why, then, are they even ASBO’d in the first place?

Why are they not behind bars, where they belong?

So, That Vaccine Then…

…it’s going to take a bit longer than the government’s spin would seem to indicate:

Vaccines to protect millions of Britons from swine flu will not be available for several months, the head of the World Health Organisation warns today.

Heh!

Told you so…

Her remarks, in an interview with the Guardian, cast serious doubt on ministerial claims in parliament that the first stocks would arrive in August.

You mean, ministers have been economical with the truth again? Say it ain’t so!

Dr Margaret Chan, WHO director general, said: "There's no vaccine. One should be available soon, in August. But having a vaccine available is not the same as having a vaccine that has been proven safe. Clinical trial data will not be available for another two to three months."

So, not only are we not getting a vaccine for the foreseeable future, we don’t even know if we have one that will work yet.

Smashing!

Andy Burnham, the health secretary, urged people yesterday to keep the threat posed by swine flu "in perspective", noting the vast majority of sufferers made a full recovery. Britain was "front of the queue" for vaccine stocks, he told GMTV.

But while it is known that the government asked two major drug companies in June to urgently develop a vaccine, trials of preliminary batches of what they hope will be an effective jab have only begun in the last fortnight. A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "We expect delivery of the vaccine in the coming months.

Vaccine development can take some time. We hope to have enough vaccine by the end of the year to cover half of the population, but that's a forecast and it could go up or it could decrease. We can't be more precise about when it will be delivered and go into people's arms."

I wonder which half….?

When They Talk About ‘Rip Off Britain’..

…who knew the councils were getting in on the act?

A grieving mother has been ordered to take down a memorial bench for her 17-year- old son and lease one from a council at five times the cost.

Gary Pitchford's friends raised £137 for a bench and brass plaque to go next to his grave in a council cemetery after he died in a car crash.

But the council says it is unauthorised and that Di Pitchford will have to pay almost £700 for an approved one which is almost identical.

Well, we can’t have an unauthorised bench in a graveyard! Why, anything could happen…

Miss Pitchford, 43, said: 'I was disgusted. I feel someone is being a real jobsworth, they have obviously never lost a child. I am on anti-depressants to help me cope and this is just another punch in the stomach.

'In my opinion our bench is sturdier and better quality than the council's one. I think they are preying on grieving families and charging them extortionate prices.'

Yes. Yes, they are…

His brother Wayne, 20, organised a collection for a hardwood bench so Gary's friends had a place to sit and reflect on his life.

Miss Pitchford said: 'I didn't know you needed permission until I got a letter saying the bench was against the council's rules and regulations and I had to lease one from them for 20 years for £700.

'What happens after 20 years - do we have to pay another £700?'

Oooooh, no. It’ll probably be treble that by then, thanks to inflation.

Got to pay the salary of all those councillors, consultants and council staff somehow…

The family have also been told that the bench is disturbing other mourners at the cemetery, in Colchester, Essex.

How? Is it singing in a loud voice? Waiting until they sit down on it, then making a noise like a whoopee cushion?

Exactly how can a bench ‘disturb’ people? What kind of people would admit to that?

And just why does the bench from the council cost nearly five times as much as an equivalent from a high street retailer?

Colchester Borough Council, which runs the cemetery and memorial gardens, defended its actions by saying that grieving families are sent a brochure from which they can choose an approved memorial.

This includes a 6ft bench made from iroko hardwood which comes from a sustainable source and has a brass plaque attached, it said.

Ahhh. Another green con that the council has bought into. I might have known…

Councillor Tim Young, who has responsibility for the cemetery, said the brochure makes clear that benches will be sited at the council's discretion. 'It's made of a special sort of wood and also the quality-of the bench is exceptional', he said. 'It does cost £685 but it lasts 20 years.

'We do not want anybody just to buy a bench for £30 from the home furniture company that will bring down the standards and quality in the cemetery.'

Well, quite.

After all, if people went out and compared the price of things they could buy for themselves against the price of things the council supplied, they might wake up and realise just why their council tax is so high.

And then they might decide to hang you and your colleagues from the nearest lamppost. And not with environmentally-sustainable hempen rope, either…

… he added: 'We appreciate that this family has suffered a tragedy and we are trying to work with them to find a solution. I agree that £685 is a lot of money.

' I think it is time for a review of some of these rules and regulations.'

Do you?

I think it’s time we decided to stop paying for people like you to run every aspect of our lives – and deaths – for us…

What Happens In Downview, Stays In Downview…

A drug dealer is appealing against her deportation on the grounds it will violate her human rights as a lesbian.

She didn’t worry too much about violating this country’s laws, did she?

The Jamaican argues she will be persecuted for her homosexuality if she is returned to her home country at the end of her sentence.

She had a boyfriend before her conviction for supplying class-A drugs, but has since had several same-sex lovers in prison.

So? Exactly how are the Jamaicans going to know that she decided to bat for the other team while she was banged up?

Does the Home office stamp her passport with a big red ‘L’ for lezzer on departure? Does it take out a full page ad in the Jamaican gay press?

Yesterday the Court of Appeal heard that the woman, called A for legal reasons, wants to stay in the UK where she says she has found love with a fellow inmate.

Well, I suspect the people would rather she didn’t. She came here as a criminal in order to smuggle drugs, after all.

But the Home Office refuses to accept the relationship is genuine and said it was just a ruse to get her deportation order returned.

They argue her same-sex relations were merely the result of the lack of male alternatives - similar to one of the lesbian flings depicted in prison dramas such as Bad Girls. Her case is set to cost the taxpayer tens of thousands of pounds.

Because, of course, she’s getting legal aid.

Ain’t the UK grand?

She says in Jamaica she faces the threat of criminal gangs who would set out to kill her because of her homosexuality.
Her legal case is that deporting her would violate her rights to life, freedom of expression, a private life and freedom from discrimination.

She has no claim on this country – she came here expressly to break the law.

This, right here, this fannying around (no pun intended) is why ordinary people’s patience is fast running out.

But the Home Office believes her alleged relationship is 'part and parcel of a campaign to be allowed to stay in the UK'.
They claim that as A's alleged girlfriend is also Jamaican, there is nothing stopping the couple returning to the Caribbean and setting up home there together.

Nothing, that is, except the lawyers on the gravy train…

A, who is fighting her case using legal aid, said she was 'lost and frightened' when she left Jamaica as a teenager, but is now more confident-about who she is.

She says she had homosexual and heterosexual relationships before being imprisoned, but had become 'more socially confident' behind bars, and as a result, had confirmed in her mind her lesbianism.

Who says prison doesn’t change people?

Mr Chelvan (her barrister) said officials had agreed that if it was found she was a lesbian then she would be 'at risk' in Jamaica, and had also accepted she was in a lesbian relationship.

He said the Home Office's behaviour was a 'public disgrace' and had 'undermined public confidence' in the immigration system.

No, sorry Mr Chelvan, but I think you’ll find this case has actually boosted confidence a bit, despite the cost.

Well, assuming the HO wins. Which is by no means certain…

Ferrets In A Sack, Tory Edition

Edward McMillan-Scott, the party's longest-serving MEP and former leader in Strasbourg, rebelled against David Cameron's Conservative and Reformist Group (ECR) and its new Right-wing East European allies.

He ran against the ECR choice of Michal Tomasz Kaminski, a member of Poland's Law and Justice Party (PiS), because he was unhappy with a lack of debate about his candidacy and the controversial new alliance.

And he won.

So he has been expelled by The Dave’s acolytes…

Mr Kaminski is a close aide to Lech Kaczynski, Poland's Right-wing president. The Tory support for his candidacy was vital in securing the membership of PiS's 15 MEPs in the ECR. They constitute its second largest grouping.

So, why is a supposed ‘moderate’ touchy-feely chap like Cameron cuddling up to hard-line right wingers?

Mr McMillan-Scott, 59, a Conservative MEP for 25 years, has not hidden his unease with the PiS, which has banned homosexual marches for being "sexually obscene". Last night he said he had "mixed emotions" about a victory for "real democracy" over party fixers. He said the ECR remained at the margins following Mr Kaminski's defeat. "David Cameron should be pleased that there is still a Tory at the top in Europe," he said.

Well, yes. But he’s not.

Because it’s not his Tory. And he’s now exposed as every bit a control freak as Blair and Brown….

Mr McMillan-Scott has suggested that he has new evidence linking Polish MEPs in the ECR to extremism. "I intend to take up my concerns with the Conservative leadership and follow my research further," he said.

Earlier, Mr McMillan-Scott had refused to back down in the election and the whip was withdrawn as he prepared to hear the results of the parliament-wide vote.

The Dave will brook no dissent…

A Tory spokesman said: "Mr McMillan-Scott had his whip suspended when he indicated he was putting in his nomination for vice-president of the European Parliament which was not in accordance with the decision of the delegation to support another person for that post.

"He was offered the opportunity to withdraw his name to avoid harming the reputation of the Conservative Party. Despite discussions and attempts to achieve this end, he went ahead and confirmed his nomination."

You think this is harming the reputation of the Conservative Party?

Heh!

The expulsion of Mr McMillan-Scott, the MEP for Yorkshire and Humber, is a major blow for the Tories. "This is bad news for a lot of us and there will be repercussions," said a colleague.

Oh?

I can’t wait..

Another insider said: "Everyone knows that Edward was deeply unhappy that the Tories were leaving their traditional centre-Right allies and this was his way of showing it."

Something to keep an eye on in the future.

Ross has a take on this too.

Ferrets In A Sack, Labour Edition

Home Secretary Alan Johnson last night refused point blank to cap the number of immigrants coming to Britain.

And he said he does not 'lie awake at night' worrying about the population hitting 70million.

Well, no. I suppose if I were him, with a huge pension, allowing me to live anywhere I chose, I wouldn't either.

Immigration Minister Phil Woolas has pledged that the Government will not allow the population to grow to that level. But last night he was apparently undermined by his boss.

Who won’t stand for any jumped up little underling stealing his limelight, thank you very much. Particularly by appealing to the voting public.

'I do not lie awake at night worrying about a population of 70million,' he told the cross-party group of MPs.

'I'm happy to live in a multi-cultural society. I'm happy to live in a society where we not only welcome those coming to live and work in this country, but also where we can go and live and work in other countries.'

Just how ‘multi cultural’ is Hull West and Hessle, anyway?

The Home Secretary did acknowledge the recession has made it more difficult for ministers to convince British workers who have lost their jobs that immigration is beneficial.

But his argument goes against evidence that the vast majority of jobs created in the private sector have gone to immigrants - meaning local workers have failed to feel the benefits.

Who are you going to believe – the Home Sec or your lyin’….

Oh.

Last night MigrationWatch director Sir Andrew Green said: 'No wonder the political class is in such disrepute.

'Here is a new Home Secretary immediately riding roughshod over public opinion that is hugely opposed to the mass immigration which this Government is encouraging.

'For a start, how is a government that is broke going to pay for all the houses, schools and hospitals that an extra seven million immigrants will need in the next 20 years?'

It isn’t.

Because it won’t be the government when this juggernaut comes rolling down the hill. It’ll be someone else’s problem.

And Alan Johnson will be livin’ large in (no doubt) a very un-multicultural part of town...

Former Labour Minister Frank Field, who runs a cross-party group called Balanced Migration, which campaigns to limit the number of immigrants to manageable levels, was dismissive of the Home Secretary's claims not to lie awake at night. He said: 'It must be a misquote because it should be.'

Oh, Frankie, Frankie...

That’s the politician’s equivalent of ‘No, he won’t beat me today, he does really love me…’ is it?

Do You Think You'll Find Any..?

Teenage gang members will undergo brain scans in an experiment designed to find out why they are so violent.

Scientists from University College London and charity Kids Company will use a 'mobile laboratory' to test 'hoodies' on London streets in an attempt to prove their brains have been scarred by years of abuse and neglect.

And what if that proves to be the case? Does that excuse what they do to others?

I suspect the answer will be 'Yes':

Kids Company founder Camila Batmanghelidjh developed the theory that children's brains can be damaged by neglect or abuse after interviewing 400 youngsters at the charity.

She said: 'We need to change the natural argument that these children are morally flawed.

Good luck with that.

Oh, yeah. And that's (of course) a charity swiftly heading into fakecharity waters, thanks to £12mill from the DCFS...