'Generous Student Funding Should Be Cut'

:Students could face a triple blow of higher fees, bigger loan repayments and fewer grants in new plans to be outlined by business leaders.

• Cuts to "generous" levels of student support are needed to preserve the quality of teaching and research at the country's universities, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) claims.
• Following a year-long study into the relationship between business and university in the face of a global recession, the CBI says it has concluded that "tough choices" must be made.
  The report notes that 25% of public funding going to higher education is spent on student support, and the UK has one of the most generous levels of support in the world.
  The Government has asked English Universities to make £180m in savings between 2009 and 2011 - and the CBI suggests undergraduates should foot the bill.
  It recommends that students pay higher interest rates on their loans - rather than the 0% they currently enjoy.
• Maintenance grants should be reviewed - a tougher system would see only those who really need them get them.
  And it claims a rise in tuition fees is "inevitable" - with the fee cap of around £3,000 rising to £5,000 or more.
• The report has prompted outrage from the National Union of Students (NUS), which said the suggestions would come as a bitter blow.
  NUS president Wes Streeting said: "At a time of economic crisis, when many hard-working families are struggling to support their offspring through university, I am astonished that the CBI should be making such offensive recommendations.
  "Students are already leaving university with record levels of debt, while graduate job prospects are at an all time low."
• The CBI says the focus on university education must be on quality rather than quantity, and suggests that the Government's target for 50% of 18-30-year-olds to go on to higher education should be dropped.
• For law student Tom Collins, a move to bump up the tuition fees would certainly block any chance of reaching the university education target.
  "There are a huge number of people now who are taking wafer thin decisions given the graduate job market on whether it is financially viable for them to go to university," he told."I think stepping up the fees to £5,000 a year is going to deter many people."

reply to MP eamil 14/09/09

Dear Mr MP

Thank you for getting back to me so quick!

how about keeping part of the bus with no announcement, thats not hard is it! people have choice in this country, why make many local people listen to this unnecessary loudness speakers, who ever you talk to, this can be solved, why they still have not sort out the heating problem, so only solution would be have part of the bus with no announcement.

drivers will play, you will not belive how loud some of the bus announcement are,if they can put it more louder they may will do it, just sicking.ok I agree some people with hearing difficulty may benifit from this,but will make everyone else deaf.

it is good have a system, but have to think it through, before spending million pounds on it, will you sent in troops to rescue 1 person, but on the process kill 99 people, thats what on board announcement doing right Now.How many people in a local bus, do not know where they are going,not many, most of the times, none.Maybe this help in central LONDON.

why not have a button inside the bus, so if someone gets on and not know where they are going, than they can press than it will announce once and tell where the bus is going,or the next stop, instead, this bloody thing announce even if I am the only one in the bus, how is that helps, as for your comments,ipods and mobile 'phones virtually drowns out - think again, you have not been on the buses likely have you. These speakers on the buses are so loud that I could hear it from outside the bus. wow, I never hear ipod or Mobile phones.I do not use mobile/ipod on the bus, I am a very polite person, unlike some.

I hope you try the buses that I have mention on my previous e-mail and if you still think that I am over reacting, guess what I even bought a ear defender,it's that bad.

Make a chance or change will come to you.

Thank you

Yours
Mr Robin Hood

Reply from Ealing MP for email 14/09/09

Dear Mr X

(I'm sorry not to address you formally but I don't have your full name or address),


I spent years working on the 'buses and racing up and down the stairs shouting out the names of the next stop so I actually welcome the audible and visible announcements which I reckon are an important part of the service and spare the driver from having to do as I did.


Having said that - I'd not previously noticed the disparity in volume and can well imagine how infuriating this would be (even if the noise from bloody i pods and mobile 'phones virtually drowns out the announcements).



Let me speak to the newly appointed head of surface transport at TfL and see if a sane standard can be set and a reasonable level agreed.



Thanks for getting in touch and I'll let you know what I find out if you can let me have your address.



Best wishes,

Mr MP

A letter to Ealing MP, 15/09/09 via E-mail.

Dear Mr MP

I need your help on the following area,transport for LONDON, what I ask from you is, you political power, as I have contacted the TFL for number of times and with little effect, they just sent me the same letter that they have typed in advanced.

This is the problem: I have pointed it out, how it can be sloved and make it better for everyone who use the local buses, not just few that who does not know the direction.It is not fair on the many local people have to put up with loud speaker announcement,It is so loud the speakers itself vibrate.Only a few buses that I find the volume is set right and it is ok,end of the day, as I have explained below,if TFL will follow my idea, it will make many million of people in LONDON happy,but they are being arrogant NOT to follow it, as they did not think of that themself or pure arrogant.

IS IT TOO HARD TO KEEP PART OF THE BUSES WITH NO ANNOUNCEMENT, E.G DOUBLE DECKER BUS, CAN BE SET THAT UPDECK WILL HAVE NO ANNOUNCEMENT, IF ANYONE GET ON THE BUS, NOT KNOW WHERE THEY ARE GOING, THAN THEY CAN STAY DOWNSTAIR AND LISTEN TO THE SPEAKER,WHILE PEOPLE WHO DO NOT WANT TO LISTEN TO IT WILL GO UP, ONLY THING WORRYING THE BUS COMPANY, IS THEY DO THAT, THAN EVERYONE WILL GO UPPERDECK, WHICH WILL POINT OUT THAT THEIR NEW MULTI POUNDS SYSTEM IS NOTHING BUT BULLY THE LOCAL PEOPLE.AS FOR SINGLE DECKER BUS,THEY CAN STILL TURN THE HALF OF THE BUS,BACK OF THE BUS SPEAKERS TURNED OFF,THERE ARE TOO MANY SPEAKERS ON THE BUS,MORE LESS ONE FOR EACH 2 SEATS,WHY DO THEY NEED TO KEEP THE VOLUME SO HIGH, I JUST DO NOT KNOW! WELL THAN AGAIN CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHY THEY PUT ON HEATER ON SUMMER TIME AND FAN ON WINTER TIMES, I HAVE EXPERIENCE IT MANY TIMES, NOT TOO HARD

I have listed the letter that I sent to TFL on my blog and I will also list this on my blog too, but leave your name blank to protect your privacy, if you give me your permission than I will be happy to add your name on my blog, http://www.howislondonlife.blogspot.com/

If you have help me on this, I will point out other problems in Ealing, need your political will get this right, thats what I belive, Gorvenment should be run by the people for people.

1, first letter: http://howislondonlife.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-is-wrong-with-london-buses.html
2, 2nd letter: http://howislondonlife.blogspot.com/2009/09/letter-to-london-buses-070909.html

Robin Hood

Reply for the letter sent on 16/08/09

This is the reply for this letter: http://howislondonlife.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-is-wrong-with-london-buses.html

I sent two letter with each with different name and address, guess what, I got the same letter in reply. I wonder they red my letter... it not too hard to give the people chose, is it. there should be a place where local people can travel without all these deafening speaker announcement.

Our Ref: 1004620939
Date: 08.09.2009


Dear Mr X

Thank you for your enquiry regarding buses with their heating on during the summer months and the onboard announcements now on London bus services.I can appreciate your concerns with the heating being on aboard buses at this time of year, as the summers getting warmer this has become more of an issue than a few decades ago.
In response to these challenging conditions, Transport for London (TfL) has altered the specification of all new buses, which our operators must abide by. We have also invested £1.5 million in recent years to make existing buses more comfortable. While travelling conditions will never be ideal on very hot days in London, the measures outlined below should certainly reduce discomfort during hot weather:

· All double deck buses have been retro-fitted with additional upper-deck side windows above the front row of seats to improve ventilation. This will undoubtedly improve air flow when it is hot.

· As well as having more opening windows on the upper deck, all new buses entering service (including single deck and bendy buses) must have heat-reflective white painted roofs, body insulation, tinted glass and thermostatically controlled heaters, which automatically switch off.

· Another important feature is air-ventilation systems. Since the vehicle specifications were updated in October 2006, all new double deck buses were additionally required to deliver cooled air to reduce ambient temperature inside the upper saloon.These increase air circulation by forcing interior air out of the rear of the upper saloon and this in turn sucks fresh air into the vehicle through apertures and open windows. This system brings outside air into the vehicle but it does not condition it, such as lower temperature or humidity.

· It is expensive to fit the standard air-ventilation systems to older buses, particularly when these are gradually being phased out anyway by the renewal of route contracts, to be replaced with new vehicles which have better natural air flow systems. However, if older vehicles continue in service for longer than expected, they would normally be refurbished and re-enter service with thermostatically-controlled heating systems, extra upper saloon windows that open and white roof panels.

Every year we remind our operators to ensure the heating is switched off on all their vehicles between May and September, as it is normally not required. If you find any buses with the heating switched on during warm weather, I would be grateful if you could let me know (as well as providing me with the date, time, route and vehicle registration, where possible). That way we can liaise with the garage to ensure the problem is immediately rectified.
With regards to your comments about audio announcements on London buses, these announcements are a key part of a new real time passenger information system - iBus - which is currently being rolled out across the entire London bus network. I am sorry to learn that you feel that the on board announcements are disturbing your journey. However, London Buses is committed to making our bus services as accessible as possible. For many passengers - not just those who are visually impaired or have other disabilities, but also tourists or simply those who aren't familiar with a particular route - the iBus announcements will provide a clear benefit.

Our research with people with disabilities showed that the system was already eagerly anticipated and satisfying an existing need - as one vision impaired passenger said "It's something I've been waiting for, for years".

From the outset of the project it was recognised that a policy for the visual and audio components of these announcements would be required and this has been developed from:

· Experience from other UK and European users
· Feedback from a long-running prototype on the route 149, , a busy route through a variety of different city/residential settings
· Requirements identified by the Real Time Passenger Information Group (RTIG)
· Requirements identified in the Disability Discrimination Act

Following review and refinement this process has resulted in the current policy where:

· Destination announcements are made whenever a bus stops and opens the doors to let on passengers
· Next Stop announcements displayed approx 20m after leaving the previous stop and announced approx 100m before the Next Stop itself
· "alight here for….." announcements for places of specific interest - this is being rolled out later in 2009.

The policy itself maybe reviewed in the future, but at this moment there are no plans to alter it.

The volume used for the announcements has been assessed to ensure clarity throughout the vehicle and is intended to be loud enough to hear clearly but also enable passengers to "tune-out" if they are familiar with the route. We have monitored the system since early 2007 and have standardised the volume levels used.

The volume level is set centrally for each bus-type. Of course, anomalies do sometimes arise owing to the different batches and variants of vehicles. As such, we do recheck the levels when we receive reports of excessive noise on particular routes or vehicle types to ensure that it adheres to the policy outlined above.
Once again thank you for taking the time to contact me and I hope the information provided is of interest. If I can be of further assistance please let me know.Yours sincerely

Mr Y
Customer Service Advisor

Reply to the letter: A letter to LONDON BUSES 07/09/09

This is the reply to the letter sent out on :A letter to LONDON BUSES 07/09/09

Our Ref: 1004737413
Date: 11.09.2009


Dear Mr X
Thank you for your recent e-mail about audio announcements on London buses.

These announcements are a key part of a new real time passenger information system - iBus - which is currently being rolled out across the entire London bus network. I am sorry to learn that you feel that the on board announcements are disturbing your journey. However, London Buses is committed to making our bus services as accessible as possible. For many passengers - not just those who are visually impaired or have other disabilities, but also tourists or simply those who aren't familiar with a particular route - the iBus announcements will provide a clear benefit.

Our research with people with disabilities showed that the system was already eagerly anticipated and satisfying an existing need - as one vision impaired passenger said "It's something I've been waiting for, for years".

From the outset of the project it was recognised that a policy for the visual and audio components of these announcements would be required and this has been developed from:

· Experience from other UK and European users
· Feedback from a long-running prototype on the route 149, , a busy route through a variety of different city/residential settings
· Requirements identified by the Real Time Passenger Information Group (RTIG)
· Requirements identified in the Disability Discrimination Act

Following review and refinement this process has resulted in the current policy where:

· Destination announcements are made whenever a bus stops and opens the doors to let on passengers
· Next Stop announcements displayed approx 20m after leaving the previous stop and announced approx 100m before the Next Stop itself
· "alight here for….." announcements for places of specific interest - this is being rolled out later in 2009.

The policy itself maybe reviewed in the future, but at this moment there are no plans to alter it.

The volume used for the announcements has been assessed to ensure clarity throughout the vehicle and is intended to be loud enough to hear clearly but also enable passengers to "tune-out" if they are familiar with the route. We have monitored the system since early 2007 and have standardised the volume levels used.

The volume level is set centrally for each bus-type. Of course, anomalies do sometimes arise owing to the different batches and variants of vehicles. As such, we do recheck the levels when we receive reports of excessive noise on particular routes or vehicle types to ensure that it adheres to the policy outlined above.
Once again thank you for contacting me and I hope the information provided clarifies the situation. If I can assist you with anything else please let me know.Yours sincerely

XY
Customer Service Advisor
DO NOT DELETE............................. {ticketno:[400222]} DO NOT DELETE.............................

I have deleted the sender name and the person received this letter, to protect their privacy.I have the original e-mail with the sender name on file.

Six teenagers shot in north London

:Six teenagers shot in north London

Six teenagers are recovering after being shot in north London, the Metropolitan Police have said.

The young males, aged between 16 and 19, were injured in the shooting in the Cornwall Road, West Green Road and Phillip Lane area of Haringey at around 9.30pm on Friday.
All the youths were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds but none of their conditions are believed to be life threatening. No-one else was injured.
One of those taken to hospital has been discharged and arrested in connection with the incident.
Four other males have also been arrested and are in custody at different north London police stations.
Scotland Yard said officers from Operation Trident, which investigates gun crime in the black community, are leading the investigation into the incident.
The force has appealed for witnesses to get in contact.

Charity calls for 'mock muggings'

:Mock muggings should be staged across the country to find out the willingness of passers-by to intervene and report crimes, a charity suggested Wednesday.

Witness Confident wants to encourage individuals to break free from the "walk-on-by" culture and take more action when they observe criminal activity.
The charity also suggests the creation of an online social network which could encourage witnesses to come forward.A government review last year said trust in the criminal justice system had eroded as the public felt "cut-off" from its workings.
The charity group said it has developed twelve ideas to help people reconnect with the system."Mock muggings can be a way of working with the police to test public reaction," Guy Dehn, head of the charity said.
"Don't be a have-a-go-hero unless you really know what you are doing. But if you are there and can take a photo safely, then that can make the difference. "It's a time consuming and laborious process to report a crime. We need to take all the hassle out of it for the public.
"And by doing that, we make it more likely that people will engage and that means that there will be less crime because people will get caught," he added .

Hello 999? I've Left My Coat On The Bus:Stupidest 999 calls revealed

:Police are urging the public not to dial 999 unless it is a genuine emergency and have released audio of several callers who have tied up phone lines unnecessarily.

The appeal is part of 999 Day - the ninth day of the ninth month in 2009 - to remind people that making non-emergency calls puts lives at risk.
To emphasise their plea, police have issued audio extracts from such inappropriate calls.
In one, a man in a betting shop has rung 999 because staff will not pay him his winnings.
"The woman there is being funny with me - I think it's because I'm a Scouser," he tells the the call handler.
"They say they won't pay me because I look under 18. I look 25 - I look older than 25 - and I'm 21."
One woman calls the emergency number because a car is blocking a road, adding: "It's in the middle of the road and there's no way to get round it."
Another gentleman asks to be put through to a local station because he has left his coat on a bus, while another woman tells the operator she has "no credit on her phone".
Greater Manchester Police also want to stress the importance of providing 999 handlers with as much information as possible when it is a real emergency.
Those at the other end of the line have to establish what has happened in a split second - and calls are more often than not taken in stressful moments.
These details help to provide the best response to the emergency.
In a scenario where someone is having a heart attack, the 999 operator can help a caller administer chest compressions until an ambulance arrives - giving the victim a greater chance of survival.

Fast Food Giant Loses McCurry Court Battle

:Fast food giant McDonald's has lost an eight-year trademark battle against a Malaysian curry restaurant after a court allowed the latter to use the prefix 'Mc'.

The country's Federal Court dismissed a bid by McDonald's Corporation to overturn an Appeals Court ruling that allowed McCurry to keep its name.
McDonald's had failed to properly frame its questions when applying to challenge the Appeals Court's earlier verdict, Chief Judge of Malaya Ariffin Zakaria said.
"It is unfortunate that we have to dismiss the application with costs," the judge said.
McCurry, which is short for "Malaysian Chicken Curry", serves Malaysian staples including fish head curry, according to the company website.
"We feel great that this eight-year legal battle is finally over, and we can now go ahead with whatever we plan to do, such as opening new branches," McCurry owner P Suppiah said.
McDonald's, which has 185 outlets in Malaysia, first sued the curry restaurant in 2001 and a High Court ruled in favour of the international fast food chain in 2006.
McCurry then took the matter up to the Court of Appeal, which backed the Malaysian restaurant.
McDonald's subsequently took the matter to the Federal Court.
The McDonald's operation in the south east Asian country is run as a franchise by prominent businessman Vincent Tan.

Man Dies As Bus Crashes Into Betting Shop

:A man has been killed after he was hit by a bus that had mounted the pavement and crashed into a betting shop.

The vehicle smashed through the window and ended up stuck halfway inside the William Hill bookmakers in Dukinfield, Greater Manchester.
The shop's ceiling collapsed and an outer wall was destroyed in the crash which involved the 346 service just after 3pm.
Police said it was not known whether the victim was placing a bet at the time or if he was a pedestrian who was shunted into the shop by the vehicle.
Firefighters have been searching the premises to see if anyone else was inside.
One onlooker thought the single decker bus had swerved to avoid a pedestrian before smashing into the corner shop front.
A Greater Manchester Police (GMP) spokesman said: "A man was killed when he was in collision with the front of the bus.
"No one on the bus was injured and there are no reports of any further injuries at this stage."
A spokesman for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: "Between 20 and 30 people from the bus escaped safely.
"We can confirm one fatality of someone inside the shop and we are currently establishing if anyone else is in there."
Firefighters have been working to make the building safe and a number of roads were closed.
Simon McDonald, who was nearby at the time of the crash, said: "I heard a bang and when I came out there was a lot of dust and people climbing off the bus."

A letter to LONDON BUSES 07/09/09

Dear Sir/Madam

I would like to let you know that I am very unhappy with your onboard audio announcement system,it is too loud and UNNECESSARY. Why? who would want to listen to announcement which is keep telling you, where the bus is going! would you get on a bus,if you do not where is going, you will not.Than why have that announcement.

Ok, it also put out announcement of some roads name, not all.This may help some people, but how often.Why make so many local people listen to this thing over and over again,you could have set up a button, so if anyone does not know where they are going press it than listen to it, instead you [ LONDON BUSES ] make everyone listen to it everytime,even if I am the only one in the bus, still have to listen to this loud announcement system, guess what since I last wrote to, I have pain in my both ears, all I ask you to do is turn it down or turn part of the bus speakers off, so if someone do not want to listen to it, than they can go and sit there. e.g turn the speakers off upper deck on double decker buses, thats not too much to ask, is it? while you are at it, keep the heater off too on upper deck.It appears most of the drivers love heater,so lets keep upper deck nice and cool for those want it that way.

Today I show a lady, with she has something in her ear to block the noise.How sad is that, ask youself this question, how would you feel, if someone in your shouts at you every few mins, telling you where you are going, you are going to tell that person, shut up, I know where I am going.Who ever set this up, must be sacked for careless and no consideration for the many bus users.He/she wanted help the very few but happy to make many bus users life hell on that process.

So what is it going to be,sure you will not take no word of mine, I am going a head and sending this letter to my local MP and also send it to Watch Dog and some news papers too, so will send their agent on the bus to check for themself, if they think this is a abuse done by LONDON BUS STAFF.Someone will pay a havey price for this.I do not know how many of you will lose your jobs,when you make a mistake, if soemone tells you it's wrong, you look at it, and change it, you just do not sit on it and be arrogant.

There is so much you can teach the bus drivers to make bus user life better,e.g certain bus stops connect with another bus rute, when a bus stops there, if there is an other bus behind it, bus in the front should wait and see if anyone want to transfer from that bus to his.Only a tiny amout of drivers do this, you can teach the rest. If you say, you have and they not following it, I doubt that,Bus driver reply, when I asked them to switch off the loud speaker, as I am the only one in the bus, their reply is - they been told not to switch it off. Bravo...

Europe's highest minimum wages

:Luxembourg and the Netherlands top the list of the best places to earn bottom bucks.
If you're having trouble managing to get a multimillion-dollar bonus from an investment bank, or even a six-figure salary, you could always go to Luxembourg and work on the minimum wage.
Drivers and street cleaners in the diminutive but wealthy country are guaranteed to take home at least 1,413 euros (£1,234) a month on average, or 16,956 euros (£14,802) a year, making Luxembourg top of the list for minimum wages in Europe.

If you factored in the United States, where the minimum wage stands at approximately $1,380 (£844) a month, Americans would rank in seventh place among European nations after Luxembourg, the Netherlands , Belgium , France , the U.K. and Ireland , according to data from the European Commission's statistical office, Eurostat, which adjusts and equalizes wages based on their purchasing power.

The Netherlands is the second best country in Europe to get a minimum wage, currently standing at 1,336 euros (£1,166), while Ireland is in sixth place with 1,462 euros (£1,276).
The Irish minimum wage has become controversial after its economy contracted at an alarming rate following the collapse of its construction sector and spiraling deflation. "A lot of employers, particularly in the Irish construction and leisure and hotel sector, want to have the minimum wage cut," says Robin Chater, secretary general of the Federation for European Employers.
Ireland has a significant immigrant population and many of its largely Eastern European workers would rather take a pay packet that's below the Irish minimum wage than head back to their home countries where pay is even worse and jobs are scarcer. In Latvia for instance, the monthly minimum wage is 343 euros (£299), while in Bulgaria it's just 240 euros (£210).
The Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark don't don't have a minimum wage at all because they are so highly unionized. "The unions there felt that a national minimum wage would interfere with collective bargaining, and it might even bring the price of labor down," says Chater.
Nordic countries prefer to have a collective agreement between unions and employers as the reference point for wages, not one set by the government. In some cases, particularly in Denmark, Chater says that has led to a very strong degree of cooperation between employers and workers. "It's quite harmonious. There's a balance in the level of compromise."

France , which has Europe's fourth-highest minimum wage at 1,189 euros (£1,038) is famous for its strong, highly politicized unions that have fought to keep salaries for low-paid workers at a reasonable level.
Their knack for collective bargaining with employers comes in part from their pervasive influence in French society, where they often take on a community role by being part of local social welfare organizations or even controlling child care in certain parts of the country.
In spite of their strength in France and elsewhere, union membership across Western Europ has been steadily falling over the last few years. Even in France unions represent only about 8% of the working population, according to Chater.
The reason: Heavy industry--including steel mills, car plants and machine making, long a union mainstay--has been largely outsourced to Asia and developing economies over the last two decades. As a result, heavy industry in Western Europe has declined and so have unions, with their appeal being lost particularly on the younger generation of workers.

Eastern Europe
History is also being unraveled in Eastern Europe , but in a different way. Before the fall of communism in the early 1990s, around 90% to 95% of the economies of countries like Latvia, Lithuania and the Czech Republic were in state hands, and minimum wages were calculated to be at a subsistence level--just enough money for a person to survive.
Since then, and as countries like Poland and Slovakia have joined the European Union , minimum wages have increased dramatically. Even now they are some of the fastest growing on the Continent, with the Slovakian minimum wages having increased by 9.2% in 2009, according to Eurostat.
The government of Romania, where the minimum wage is just 263 euros (£230) a month, has set itself a target of bringing the minimum wage up to 50% of the average salary by 2014. That might be tricky in the middle of a recession, but politicians there have already started putting the legislation through parliament.
The big question for Europeans now as they struggle to emerge from the worst recession since the Second World War is what to do about minimum wages. Employers in Ireland, for instance, argue that the minimum wage should be cut to make local companies more competitive and improve economic fortunes.
But others, particularly unions, would say that the argument goes beyond the issue of economic impact and is a higher question of social justice and ensuring that people stay out of poverty.
Chater of the Federation for European Employers believes there is a strong argument for the minimum wage in Ireland to at least be frozen for a couple of years. On the other hand, the minimum wage in some Mediterranean countries such as Greece and Portugal, as well as in Eastern Europe, seem "very low."
But he adds that the current economic climate means that in spite of aspirations of many politicians, "it probably won't change."