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warc | 202143 | Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has emphasised that she expects the economic growth next year to be in the range of 7.5-8.5 per cent, which will be sustained for the next decade.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has emphasised that she expects the economic growth next year to be in the range of 7.5-8.5 per cent, which will be sustained for the next decade.
Low base effect, along with a rise in demand, pushed India's industrial output higher by 11.9 per cent in August, on a year-on-year basis.
India’s growth projection released by the latest World Economic Outlook remains unchanged from its previous WEO (World Economic Outlook) update of July this summer but is a three-percentage point in 2021 and 1.6 percentage point drop from its April projections.
In his address after the three-day meeting of the rate-setting panel, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said recovery in aggregate demand gathered pace in August-September, and it is reflected in high-frequency indicators, like railway freight traffic; port cargo; cement production; electricity demand; e-way bills; GST and toll collections.
Addressing the 41st AGM of CroplifeIndia, an apex body of 15 Crop science companies, Tomar said the Centre has launched a digital agriculture mission and focusing on use of drones in the farm sector.
During the current fiscal, CEA KV Subramanian said that growth would be in double-digits and it could moderate to 6.5 - 7 per cent in the next financial year.
During the first half, the government has raised Rs 7.02 lakh crore by issuing bonds, the finance ministry said in a statement.
The Indian economy grew by a record 20.1 per cent in the April-June quarter, helped by a very weak base of last year and a sharp rebound in the manufacturing and services sectors in spite of a devastating second wave of COVID-19 case.
Two of the accused were getting instructions from the ISI. They were asked to conduct recce of suitable locations in different places in India for planting IEDs.
The UN report said that India suffered a contraction of 7 per cent in 2020 and is expected to grow 7.2 per cent in 2021.
Arvind Kejriwal government rolled out the 'Business Blasters' project under which seed money will be given to students of classes 9 to 12 and they, in turn, have to invest it for running small businesses
Starting today, Sept. 7, all businesses will have to accept payments in Bitcoin, except those lacking the technology to do so.
The bench said that petitioners are at liberty to seek remedy under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act (SARFAESI Act), 2002.
"Business community played a significant role in the economic development of Pakistan and a number of steps have been taken to facilitate them, particularly during Covid," the Prez said.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Tuesday said that the there are "signs of recovery" as far as the global economy is concerned but "we are not yet out of the woods". Das made the remarks at the 21st FIMMDA-PDAI annual conference.
The fare of the new coaches is 2.4 times the base price of the existing sleeper class of mail and express trains, officials said, adding 50 such coaches have been given to different zonal railways.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that the government is "ready to do everything required" to revive and support economic growth.
"The path of the economy continues to depend on course of the virus. Progress on vaccinations will likely continue to reduce the effects of the public health crisis on the economy, but risks to the economic outlook remain," the Fed said in a statement after concluding a two-day meeting, Xinhua reported.
In India, where exports make up relatively small shares of the economy, high commodity prices have boosted the value of exports. This is one factor that helped reinvigorate India after its first devastating wave of COVID-19.
Top News
Latest News | 3,987 | 1,977 | 7,963.91654 |
warc | 202143 | Have you been living with unwanted skin lesions for too long? Introducing Lamprobe – a non-invasive procedure that can remove warts, moles, skin tags, telangiectasia, fibromas, cherry angiomas and other minor skin irregularities in just seconds.* This is a safe, effective and scar-free method of milia, skin tag and wart removal in Melbourne!*
You can now get the flawless skin you want in under a few minutes.*
Skin irregularities removed and improved in just 1-2 sessions*
Non-invasive treatment Mild downtime to no side-effects* Suitable for minor, non-cancerous skin conditions* GP agreement required for some treatments
*Individual results may vary
CONTACT US
*Results may vary from individual to individual.
Frequently Asked Questions
Lamprobe uses radio and high frequency technology for facial wart removal and the treatment of other minor skin abnormalities such as milia, moles and skin tags.*
This non-invasive treatment dries out fluids such as sebum (an oily substance found on the skin), cholesterol and blood to remove irregularities, leaving you with healthier, brighter, smoother skin.*
Lamprobe emits radio waves to the treatment area to draw liquid out of the skin. The heat from the waves vaporises cells and peels dead skin to leave you with a rejuvenated appearance.*
Each session with our technicians can take as little as 3-5 seconds per lesion.* Unlike surgical wart removal, little to no downtime is involved. This makes it a great treatment to fit in your lunch break and get on with your day afterwards.*
Lamprobe is for anyone with minor, non-cancerous skin conditions.* It is most effective for removal of the following types of skin irregularities:
Because Lamprobe is non-invasive, side-effects are highly unlikely. In some cases, you may experience slight redness or scabbing following wart, skin tag or milia removal in Melbourne. However, these side-effects subside within a few days.*
As long as you don’t have any skin diseases or infections, Lamprobe should be risk-free.*
During your initial consultation for laser wart removal in Melbourne, we will take a full medical history to evaluate your suitability.
Lamprobe will reduce or remove irregularities in your skin.*
The number of sessions you require will depend on the type and size of skin lesion being treated. You may require follow up treatments with our clinic to achieve effective reduction or removal of some types of irregularities such as warts or moles without scarring.
Prices start from $150 for the removal of up to three small skin tags or milia and $25 for any additional lesion thereafter.
*Disclaimer: All photographs represent one person’s experience, and results may vary for each patient. All photographs are of actual patients from Instant Laser Clinic. The visible change in these photographs has occurred as a result of the procedure/s undertaken. Some before and after photos shown are not exact, in that they vary in light, contrast, clothing, background, distance from camera, hairstyle and make-up. | 3,055 | 1,487 | 6,202.451244 |
warc | 202143 | What if you live in a world where your life actions are created in advance by one superhuman being? Predestination is a concept viewed upon particular religious, expressed as the notion as every event in your life is ordained and predetermined by God. It is often mentioned in the Islamic and Western Religious views, where both have formed their own judgements regarding how predestination essentially works in sharing multiple similarities and differences. In brief, the Islamic conception of predestination offers two perspectives coming from the Mu’tazilites and Ash’arites, both sharing the idea of control over freedom. The Western religious view on the other hand claims that God gave human beings free will to determine their own paths in life.
The major difference is historical. The Shiites did God holy book, the Day of Judgment, and destiny. Both believe in the five Pillars of Islam. Both face the direction of Kaaba when praying. Both could pray in any mosque; regardless the praying leader; is Sunni or Shiite.
For many Muslims, experience and intuition work hand in hand, along with the logic that helps them in arriving at the Islamic faith. According to Parrot (n.p. ), Islam believes in the existence of God in many ways. One is that Muslims believe that God or Allah holds a higher power and that no one on this planet should know that his lord is Allah. Additionally, Islamic religion would respond to the atheists ' claim that the idea of God is
Islam is a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion articulated by the Qur'an, a religious text considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of God, and, for the vast majority of adherents, by the teachings and normative example of Muhammad, considered by most of them to be the last prophet of God. An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim. Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable and that the purpose of existence is to worship God. Muslims also believe that Islam is the complete and universal version of a primordial faith that was revealed many times before through prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Although a large majority of Muslims do maintain that the previous messages and revelations have been partially misinterpreted
Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest living religions, is a pre-Islamic and ancient monotheistic religion. Along with monotheistic features, Zoroastrianism also contains dualistic features and it shares many central concepts with the major world religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It is centered on the words of the prophet Zoroaster and focuses worship upon Ahura Mazda, the Lord of Wisdom, and also acknowledges two competing principles representing good and evil: Spenta Mainyu (“Bounteous Spirit”) and Angra Mainyu (“Destructive Spirit”) (What, n.d.). People are free to choose between the good or evil, but then they are responsible for their choices and deeds. Humans are intimately involved in this struggle, holding off chaos and destruction through active goodness (What, n.d.).
The Honest Spirit (Gabriel) came down with it, to reveal it into your heart that you may be one of the warners, in a perfect Arabic tongue" (Sura 26:192-195). "Say, 'Anyone who opposes Gabriel should know that he has brought down this (the Qur 'an) into your heart, in accordance with God 's will, confirming previous scriptures, and providing guidance and good news for the believers '" Gods Representatios:Monotheism, belief in one God, is the most important and foundational concept in Islam. Muslims believe in one God who created the universe and has power over everything within it. He is unique and exalted above everything He creates, and His greatness cannot be
Additionally, another similarity between Jesus Christ and Muhammad’s teachings, is that those they taught had recorded the words, teachings, and experiences of both religious figures, that were turned into scripture that is considered to be the word of God and studied by billions of people around the world today. Both religious figures were the same in that they grew up in poverty, a very basic humble upbringing, they also lived a life of persecution for their beliefs. Muhammad, like Jesus, respected women even though the culture at the time did not. Chatting with Ahmad, he explains what Muhammad teaches Muslims, he teaches about Islam, to worship God alone, and also that Islam enjoins good characteristics such as truthfulness, patience, deliberation, kindness, humility, modesty, keeping promises, dignity, mercy, justice, courage, patience, friendliness, contentment, chastity, good treatment, tolerance, trustworthiness, gratitude for favors, and self-control
“The Sunni and Shiite sects of Islam encompass a wide spectrum of doctrine, opinion and schools of thought. The branches are in agreement on many aspects of Islam, but there are considerable disagreements within each” (Harney). A disagreement is that the Shiites consider Ali and subsequent leaders as imams. Sunnis regard imams as prayer leaders without any spiritual or political authority, a stark difference from Shiites who believe imams are a direct descendant of Muhammad. They believe in 12 imams, the last of which has vanished in Iraq after the murder of his father.
There are many similarities and difference in Western religions and Eastern religions. There are many religions in the world first we will be comparing and contrasting Hinduism and Christianity. To begin with, one thing that 's identical between these religions is they are both very Monotheistic. They also believe in one god, with many forms. Even so, they are very different from each other because there are millions of forms of dharma, supreme god, and trinity father son, holy spirit.
Addressing the whole of humanity as a single Ummah the Qur’an invites all humans to cultivate an attitude of peace(Ahmed 2015). Qur’an says: “And Allah calls to the abode of peace, and leads whom He will to a straight path” (Qur’an, 10:25). The word peace in its different forms appears in around one hundred and thirty-eight places in the Qur’an(Ahmed 2015). In the same vein Badawi, (2015) adds, the Qur’anic Arabic Term Jihad has been commonly mistranslated as “Holy War”. The Qur’an was revealed in Arabic, not in English.
Thesis Throughout the world, Christianity and Islam were the two major religions that people practice to this day. Although there are some difference involving their view on God and the role of women, similarities also exist between them because Muhammad was heavily influenced by Christianity. As a result, both religions believed in an afterlife, either in hell or paradise. In addition, both religions spread its influences through military | 6,820 | 3,151 | 14,523.072041 |
warc | 202143 | Smart cities: A socio - economic necessity The urban population is growing rampantly, and smart city is no longer optional for city managers. It is an absolute necessity for cities to do well economically as well as socially
The conversation on Smart cities has been around for a few years, and there are several definitions for it. While scenes from Sci-Fi movies with flying cars and automated breakfast to bed technologies could transition from screen to reality in some years, it is not limited to that.
World Economic Forum’s community paper — Smart at Scale: Cities to Watch 25 Case Studies — broadly explain Smart City as one that ‘uses new technologies to find efficient and affordable solutions to urban challenges’.
The paper sheds light on the function of smart-city applications which can address various challenges faced by cities around the world. Some of them are congestion, rising population, gaps in infrastructure, inadequate service delivery, exclusion, poverty, limited livability, vulnerability to climate change, and natural and man-made disasters.
The real-time data collected by smart-city technology equips cities to implement and improve systems for waste management, traffic congestion, citizen safety, affordable housing, water resource management, smart buildings, efficient use of energy, and renewable energy resources to name a few.
All these elements impact the quality of life of residents in cities which cannot be overlooked. Zihan Zhao and Yuhan Zhang, in "Impact of Smart City Planning and Construction on Economic and Social Benefits Based on Big Data Analysis", say ‘the essence of smart city design is to use big data technology to process urban information intelligently’.
The urban population is growing rampantly, and smart city is no longer optional for city managers. It is an absolute necessity for cities to do well economically as well as socially. The absence of smart-city solutions is not only a hindrance to the development of cities around the world, especially in developing countries; it can distress the very foundation of it.
‘Smart city construction is used by many major developed countries as an important strategy for stimulating economic development and maintain-ing long-term competitive advantages’, explains Zhao and Zhang.
McKinsey Global Institute’s 'Smart cities: Digital solutions for a more livable future' report explores the effect of smart-city applications on various quality of life dimensions like safety, time and convenience, health, environmental quality, social connectedness, jobs, and cost of living.
The report dives deep to reveal that through judicious use of smart-city applications, the safety of residents in a city can be improved with better traffic safety, data-driven policing, and optimised emergency response that will enable first responders to arrive quicker than they are currently able to.
Set to use its maximum effect, smart-city technology can help lower incidents of crime such as assault, robbery, burglary, and auto theft significantly. The increased sense of safety and security that residents can feel in a city as a result of this is invaluable.
It has the potential to help residents save time by reducing the time taken for commute on public transport, intelligent traffic management that will help office workers regain 15 to 30 minutes a day all of which in turn will have a positive impact on overall productivity.
On the health front, smart-city solutions can help to improve chronic dis-ease treatment, help reduce air pollution and resulting health complications, and even offer digital tools for a better health experience.
Backing environmental diligence, smart-city systems can help monitor a city’s air quality and lower green gas emissions. It can help optimize en-ergy use and track electricity and water consumption and waste.
Connectivity is key for people everywhere and every day. Smart-city solutions can improve person-to-person connection, connect the public to the local government making two-way communication a lot easier, and help bring communities together.
A high rate of unemployment is never good news for the economy. Smart-city systems can have a moderate impact on boosting employment by enabling e-career centres and digital hiring platforms that can become efficient mechanisms for hiring and drawing more unemployed and inactive people into the workforce. It can reduce barriers in setting up a start-up or small business and even offer data-driven education and re-training.
Cities can get more out of their assets with the use of smart-city technologies and respond promptly to dynamic changes which offer a range of economic advantages.
It is time for cities in developing countries to take smart-city out of conference agendas and instead embrace it for its undeniable viability.
Lal Bhatia is chairman at Hilshaw Group. Views expressed are his own and do not reflect the newspaper's policy.
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warc | 202143 | If you’re a snowbound Northerner, the best way to get in shape for golf in the spring is to stay in shape for golf all winter long.
The problem with most amateur golfers is that they put their bodies in the closet along with their clubs and forget about both for three or four months. They pay for it with a relearning process every year when they return to golf in the spring.
There are many things you can do indoors over the winter to keep your golf muscles in shape and to maintain your touch and feel for the game so you don’t have to start all over when warm weather arrives. I see two major areas of neglect among my students: One is flexibility work and the other is the short game. You can always make both better over the winter, and I’ll show you how
in the following posts.
Winter can and should be a time to check your fundamentals – your grip, posture and ball position – and check your equipment, which is something few amateurs do even during the season.
If you can, try to get away for a few days in early spring to a warmer climate. Hit some balls and play a couple of rounds before your course opens up north. If you can’t do that – or even if you can – seek out an indoor or heated driving range and use it once or twice a week.
The important thing is to have a game plan. Put your priorities in the proper order, develop a regimen and stick to it. When the snow melts, you’ll be glad you did.
One of the best ways to prevent muscle atrophy over the winter is to swing a Weighted Club and a Swing Fan at least three times a week on alternate days. The two exercises complement each other. The weighted club builds strength and increases range of motion. The fan is more of a speed tool that creates more lag in the downswing and strengthens the forearms.
If you decide to take this approach, start easily with 25 repetitions each, gradually building up to as many as you can handle. If you can build up to 100 or more a day, so much the better.
I’ve never had any student, female players especially, who didn’t benefit if they used them. They pick up more swing speed and more yardage, up to a couple of clubs with the iron game.
Or you can make your own weighted club simply by applying lead tape to an old club or slipping on a weighted “donut” available in most golf shops.
Don’t buy either if you’re not going to use them. They don’t do any good sitting in the closet. | 2,485 | 1,254 | 4,740.127592 |
warc | 202143 | A regional destination for cancer care, close to home.
Hope is closer than you think.
LMH Health Cancer Center is more than a regional destination for progressive hematology and oncology care—we are also your partner for state-of-the-art and highly personalized cancer care close to home.
Here, your multidisciplinary cancer care team is led by board-certified physicians with a shared commitment to excellence for every patient. With training at NCI-designated cancer centers and extensive experience helping people overcome cancer every day, we bring the latest cancer therapies and disease-specific treatment options to you, right here in Lawrence.
We have an exceptional team delivering evidence-based, high-quality cancer care. Our accreditation by the Commission on Cancer shows the quality of care we deliver, right here, close to home. It also highlights the importance of multidisciplinary care for our patients, which we know increases overall survival.
Jodie Barr, DO, Board-Certified Oncologist & Hematologist, LMH Health
As a team, we work closely with you, your family, and our regional partners to ensure you receive the precise care you need. From surgery and traditional therapies to clinical trials, genetic research, support groups, survivorship resources and more, we deliver patient care excellence with a personal touch that makes our center feel like home.
Here are just a few of many reasons why LMH Health Cancer Center is a top choice for patients and referring physicians across the region:
National Accredited by the Commission on Cancer
Our Commission on Cancer accreditation demonstrates our deep commitment to quality across the full continuum of cancer care, from prevention to treatment and far-reaching support.
Lifesaving Physician Expertise
With board certification in oncology, hematology and internal medicine – and elite fellowship training at NCI-designated cancer centers across the country – our physicians consistently receive 5-star ratings for personalized care that achieves the best possible outcomes.
State-of-the Art Technology
From our diagnostic and treatment technologies to breakthrough treatments and therapies, our center and staff are always on the cutting edge of evidence-based, high-quality cancer care. We are dedicated to delivering the latest cancer treatment options for every patient.
Immediate Care & Next-Day Appointments
Because no patient should have to wait when it comes to lifesaving cancer care, we provide next-day appointments and quality time with a provider at every visit. Our team also includes nurse navigators to guide you through your cancer journey.
Precision Medicine for Personalized Care
With treatment plans tailored precisely for each patient’s cancer type and genetic makeup, we provide patient-centered care with a personal touch.
Clinical Trials
As part of the Masonic Cancer Alliance, we bring the latest clinical trials to Lawrence so our patients can access and participate in developing new drug therapies and treatments.
Collaborative Multidisciplinary Cancer Care
From diagnostics to surgery to radiation and medical oncology, our multidisciplinary clinical team works closely with you and one another to deliver the right care at the right time, every time.
Regional Referral Partnerships
While our services are comprehensive, cancer is complex. Should your treatment plan require any type of care that we cannot provide, rest assured we have referral partnerships to ensure a seamless experience for all your cancer care needs.
Lifetime Cancer Risk Assessments
Our experts perform clinical genetic testing for the breast cancer (BRCA) gene and colon cancer (HNPCC or APC) genes to provide prevention-based counseling for people with higher cancer risks due to hereditary factors.
Expertise for All Cancer Types
Our oncologists and hematologists have extensive experience in treating a wide range of cancer types. The most common cancer types we treat at LMH Health Cancer include:
And, from our social workers, well-being support groups, lifelong survivorship programs and our retail shop – Mario’s Closet – we are your partner for everything you need to survive and thrive for years to come.
I love our patients, and I’m glad to provide comfort at a very scary time in their lives. We are also the bridge between the final cancer treatment and life afterward—our survivorship team brings it all together and looks at each person holistically to make sure they stay healthy.
Amy Shealy, RN, LMH Health, Nurse Navigator, Survivorship Program
Comprehensive Cancer Care for Every Patient
Specialized Surgical Care
Our board-certified general surgeons and reconstruction/plastic surgeons are part of our multidisciplinary team specializing in breast cancer, skin cancer, colon and colorectal cancer, and many other cancer types.
Medical & Radiation Oncology
Medical oncologists treat tumors with chemotherapy, immunotherapy and/or targeted therapy, often in coordination with radiation oncologists for precision radiation that destroys cancer cells and shrinks tumors.
Genetic Testing & Counseling
Our cancer risk assessment program identifies and inform patients at higher risk for breast or colon cancer due to genetics. We also develop personalized prevention and screening plans based on those findings.
Hematology Diagnostics & Care
All our oncologists are also board-certified hematologists with extensive experience diagnosing and treating a variety of blood diseases and disorders, clotting abnormalities, and blood cancers such as leukemia.
It’s important to receive care close to home because there is a fatigue associated with traveling for care. In my experience, patient do better if they don’t need to travel at all for their care—it means less stress and exhaustion during treatment, which is critical for improving health.
Chad Tate, MD, FACS, General Surgeon, LMH Health | 5,984 | 2,630 | 13,380.952091 |
warc | 202143 | Mashvisor Tools Investment Property Calculator For Analyzing Real Estate Investments by Diala Taneeb September 24, 2016January 28, 2019 by Diala Taneeb September 24, 2016January 28, 2019 Spreadsheets? Outdated! Gone are the days when investors have to research average costs and income and enter their figures into tiny, little cells. This tedious process becomes even more agonizing when a spreadsheet has to be created for every property that an investor is considering. With today’s technology and resources, investment property calculators are taking over and helping investors quickly analyze multiple properties at a time. What is an investment property calculator? An investment property calculator is a tool in which investment cost assumptions are entered to generate automatic calculations and predictive outcomes, to indicate if a property is a good investment opportunity. Related: The Use of Predictive Analytics in Real Estate Investing What does it calculate? There are so many calculations or values that help an investor infer if they should invest in a specific property or not. Let’s quickly go over what Mashvisor calculates: Cash Flow This is probably the most important value investors inquire about because cash flow is an investor’s monthly profit. Think about it as an investor’s salary. Cash flow is equal to the monthly expenses deducted from monthly income. Mashvisor’s interactive investment property calculator takes into account the following Recurring Monthly Costs: mortgage payment (principal and interest), property tax, HOA insurance, property management, maintenance, and utilities. The calculator has a cell for “Other” Recurring Monthly Costs. Vacancy provision is a good “other” to consider. Enter between 4-8% of income. Cash flow should be positive. Cash-on-Cash Return This number gives the investor the returns on a property based on the amount of cash put in the investment. It is calculated by dividing cash flow by investment costs. The investment property calculator takes into account the following investment or Startup Costs: down payment, furniture, appliances, and closing costs. The calculator also has a cell for “Other” Startup Costs. Inspection and renovation (if applicable) are costs that should also be taken into account. While cash-on-cash return can be calculated for a specific property by entering these values, it is also automatically presented when clicking any property or neighborhood on Mashvisor’s dashboard. There are two average cash on cash return values given for a neighborhood – traditional and Airbnb. Depending on the location, some investment properties perform better with a traditional lease or by being listed on Airbnb. Cap Rate This calculation is also very important to investors because it is the purest form of understanding a property’s returns. Cap rate tells the returns of a property independent of its financing or the way it was paid for. Therefore, this number indicates the returns as if the property was already paid for. Cap rate is calculated by dividing the net operating income by property price. Cap rate is not on the investment property calculator but is automatically presented by clicking a property. When users are looking at several investment properties simultaneously on Mashvisor, they want to quickly know the cap rate without having to factor in the down payment or loan type that will be used. Related: How To Do Investment Property Analysis Filter calculations When looking for properties on Mashvisor, these calculations can be filtered so that properties that meet the investor’s criteria appear. Cash on cash return, cap rate, budget, and rental income can all filtered to quickly find the investment properties that meet the set requirements. What else does it calculate? The interactive investment property calculator does not only give the returns based on what is entered, but also provides insights by using predictive and comparative data and algorithms. When the user is entering values in the investment property calculator, the income may be unknown. Mashvisor data is able to project a property’s expected income, both traditional and Airbnb. Therefore, a user can click a property and get a breakdown of rental income, expenses, cash flow, and cash on cash return for both traditional and Airbnb strategies without even having to enter any numbers. This can then be altered by using the mortgage calculator. But, what if an investor wants to have an understanding of an overall neighborhood? The data is able to give a neighborhood’s average median home price, traditional rental income, Airbnb rental income, Airbnb occupancy rate, and the optimal strategy (traditional or Airbnb). This means investors can search any city and quickly analyze a neighborhood, helping them to narrow down potentials areas, and bringing them closer to finding a property. Why is it better than spreadsheets? Investment property calculators have a couple of advantages over spreadsheets. Clearly, they save time and brainpower. Investors can spend months just analyzing different areas in order to find the best real estate markets and investment properties. Unfortunately, their research doesn’t stop there. They then have to look at comps in order to estimate costs and income to start making those spreadsheets to calculate returns. Investment property calculators do all of this work for the investor. The average values are already entered into the formulas, which means investors do not need to look at comps. Secondly, these calculators and analyses are based on comparative and historical data, which means the assumptions are more likely to be accurate than a real estate investor’s estimates. Finally, although this is all about numbers, there is somewhat of a human aspect to this tool. The Mashmeter gives an overall neighborhood score, grading how well the neighborhood is for real estate investing. Related: How To Find Investment Properties Using Analytics Investment property calculators are becoming the new go-to tool in real estate investing. They are expediting the research process and making real estate analytics easier to understand. Searching for the best investment properties can take a lot more time than one might think, start using investment property calculators to save time and motivation! Use Mashvisor’s investment property calculator to find and analyze real estate investment properties. Start Your Investment Property Search! START FREE TRIAL Start Your Investment Property Search! START FREE TRIAL Cap RateCash FlowCash on Cash ReturnInvestment CalculatorPredictive AnalyticsRental Strategies 0 FacebookTwitterGoogle +PinterestLinkedin Diala Taneeb Diala is among the most experienced content marketers at Mashvisor. She loves writing about everything real estate including investment strategies, how to buy a profitable rental property, and the best locations for investing in real estate. Previous Post Buying Investment Properties With No Money Next Post Buying Investment Property: What To Look For In A Realtor Related Posts 3 Tools for Long Distance Real Estate Investing How to Find a Rental Property for Sale with Mashvisor Mashvisor Review: Real Estate Analysis Made Easier Than Even Before The Best Investment Property Calculator in 2019 Rental Property Calculator: The Must-Have Real Estate Investment Tool Airbnb Estimator: A Tool for Estimating Income How to Find Income Property for Sale in 2020 Cash on Cash Return Calculator Tells You More Than Just Numbers Mashvisor: The #1 Investment Property Calculator for 2021 Cap Rate Calculator: The Tool That Every Real Estate Investor Needs The Real Estate Market Analysis Tools That Every Investor Needs The Best Airbnb Occupancy Calculator for 2020 | 7,861 | 3,119 | 19,555.466175 |
warc | 202143 | Cryptocurrency has become the buzzword of 2021 as its widespread adoption has its moment in the sun. With nearly $2 trillion locked in over 6,000 currencies, they are here to stay. But the decentralised nature of cryptocurrencies leaves the market susceptible to manipulation and volatility.
Take, for example, the announcement of Litecoin’s, a popular cryptocurrency considered to be a fork of Bitcoin, partnership with Walmart on September 13, 2021, on GlobeNewswire. It was a momentous announcement as Walmart is one of the biggest retailers in the world. Major business publications like CNBC and Reuters featured it on their websites lending it credence. Litecoin’s Twitter handle tweeted the information eagerly affirming it as legitimate.
Its market price jumped by 20 percent following the news. Many thought that a cryptocurrency had finally been acknowledged by a major retailer and other businesses would soon follow suit. It was, as the crypto community says, the first stop on its journey to the moon.
What happened when the partnership was revealed to be a hoax?
The enthusiasm waned as quickly as the price of Litecoin after the announcement turned out to be a hoax. Walmart rushed to clear up the confusion by stating unequivocally that it was the subject of a fake news release.
“… that falsely stated Walmart announced a partnership with Litecoin. Walmart had no knowledge of the press release issued by GlobeNewswire, and it is incorrect. Walmart has no relationship with Litecoin,” read the official statement.
The article was taken down following Walmart’s comments, and most publications were left red-faced. GlobeNewswire issued a notice across its service confirming that journalists and other readers should disregard the news release. The Litecoin Foundation said it “screwed up” in carrying out its due diligence before tweeting out the information from its handle.
This incident is certainly not unique to the crypto ecosystem as is evident from various manipulative schemes in the equity market. It is also not the first time crypto markets have been rocked by a hoax as it is notorious for various pump and dump schemes. It must be noted that stock market manipulation invites consequences in terms of fines and prison time for culprits. This is where the crypto market lags as it is yet to find a way to assure skeptics and investors alike that it can punish opportunists and manipulators.
The lack of a mechanism to deal with such tactics is hurting investor sentiment around crypto. It faces several regulatory battles from governments all over the world. Some countries have banned it altogether including China which raises more questions about the future of cryptocurrencies.
Is it time to embrace regulations?
The unprecedented interest in the crypto market has made it impossible to avoid the spectre of regulations. Moreover, a regulatory framework with comprehensive penalties is the need of the hour to deter such incidents in the future. In the aftermath, it is not a matter of if, it is a matter of when.
If a Fortune 500 company would have tweeted fake news from its handle which sent its stock price soaring on the bourses, it would have had to pay millions of dollars in fines and penalties whereas Litecoin got away with a mere apology and a promise to be better in the future.
In 2018, Elon Musk had a run-in with the Securities and Exchange Commission who found that Musk had misled investors after he claimed over Twitter that he had secured funding to take Tesla private at $420 a share. The SEC sued him for securities fraud as the deal was far from realisation. Musk quickly settled with the SEC, and under the terms of the agreement, it was decided that Tesla will approve tweets from Musk about the company’s finances or other information.
Crypto markets have been susceptible to price fluctuations from many corners including Elon Musk. Musk is an eccentric billionaire who doubles up as a sh*tposter on social media. He has influenced the price of Dogecoin, a meme cryptocurrency, on several occasions but escaped any reprisal due to want of a commission to rein him in and regulate his Twitter activity.
The Walmart-Litecoin fiasco also brings the murky web of news wire websites into the spotlight. The sites operate with little oversight in an age of misinformation never seen before. It is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. They have to do more to bring fact-checking to the forefront of their business.
Stumbling blocks faced by regulators
The problem is that most governments are walking on thin ice when it comes to crypto regulation. The complex nature of cryptocurrencies renders the process cumbersome and tedious as the currencies span the globe. Many are wary of their money-laundering implications and are hoping that the enthusiasm will die down on its own. India has been dragging its feet on a crypto bill for years leading to a topsy-turvy policy around crypto.
In the absence of a policy framework, such instances are only going to become frequent as more people flock to crypto exchanges to avoid missing out on their astronomical gains. This is not to say that countries have been unable to come up with policies around crypto. United States, Japan, and Singapore have all been able to address some of the pressing questions concerning the ecosystem. It is not to say that they have perfected the framework but they are a good reference point.
The crypto ecosystem in its current form is not going to be able to achieve what the community has envisioned, it has to evolve to account for the problems which crop up. The community has to come up with a solution in the form of a self-regulatory body that fosters an ecosystem where misdeeds attract consequences.
Also read: South Korean traders may lose billions as Seoul tightens its grip on crypto exchanges When it comes to crypto assets as currency, risks outweigh benefits: IMF warns Google removes 8 fake cryptocurrency mining apps after cybersecurity firm exposes them as malware Government Should Do The Heavy Lifting And Regulate Crypto-Currencies Have something to add? Post your comment and gift someone a MediaNama subscription . | 6,238 | 2,920 | 13,185.252055 |
warc | 202143 | As an agency that marries brands with music and entertainment, we are always looking to partner with artists and tours that have green initiatives, primarily to ensure eco-conscience consumers view the property that our brand is supporting as friendly to the environment.
Our challenge is to always ensure that any green initiatives that are core to our client, and included in their consumer-facing messaging, is consistent with, and hopefully amplified, by any music/entertainment partnerships and activations.
If a green brand aligns with a non-green property, the mixed message to consumers can certainly harm the brand's overall platform.
One of our green-friendly brand clients is with the Lilith Fair outing (coast-to-coast music tour featuring female artists) and I must say its green platform, powered by the innovative company Reverb, is one of the best out there. Some of Reverb's Green Activations on Lilith Fair include:
Eco-Village | Festival-like village at each show, with environmental displays and activities to educate and engage fans Fan Carbon Offset Program |Allows fans to offset their carbon footprint at the show Jumbotron Slideshow | Played before the show and during set breaks with eco-trivia, tour greening information, andtext messaging campaigns Online Carpooling | Resource for fans looking to carpool to and from shows, featuring tour-specific community groups Biodiesel FuelingCoordination | Working with production teams and drivers to arrange biodiesel fuelings from local and sustainable stock Hospitality & Catering | Coordination ofeco-friendly choices backstage including locally sourced organic food, green cleaning supplies, etc.
Another brilliant green move in the music industry came from the reggae artists Mellow & Pyro who wanted to shoot a video clip, but wanted to have it be as carbon-neutral as possible. To this end, volunteers pedaled out the required energy on converted bikes.
The additional power needed was tapped conventionally from the socket and amounted to only a single kilowatt hour. The shooting used a total of only 0.93 ton of carbon dioxide, which the group neutralized with a donation to a foundation.
This is all just the tip of the iceberg as more tours and entertainment properties in general will continue to go green and those of us in the agency world will continue to support those efforts on behalf of our brand clients in order to reinforce their own green messaging to consumers. | 2,466 | 1,252 | 4,839.426518 |
warc | 202143 | We have been doing this long enough to know the in’s and out’s of insurance providers, insurance claims, and anything insurance related. From commercial claims with multiple tenants and multiple insurance providers, to residential claims over a spilled glass of red wine, our public insurance adjusters have you covered.
What is a Public Adjuster?
A public adjuster is a licensed professional hired to represent your interests when you have an insurance claim. Your insurance company will provide a company adjuster that will represent their interests.
Why should I hire a public adjuster?
Insurance company adjusters do not require a license and are usually very inexperienced simply due to the high demand and turnover of the position. A public insurance claimer adjuster is licensed to negotiate claims and guarantee your greatest settlement no matter how inexperienced your company adjuster may be.
When should I hire a public adjuster?
As soon as possible. It’s important to have someone on your side from day one. You wouldn’t wait until after your trial to hire an attorney right?
Will my insurance rates go up or will my insurance company cancel me for hiring a public adjuster?
No. This question should be answered by your specific agent, but generally everyone’s insurance rates for your area will increase if it’s deemed to be a high claim volume area.
Is my insurance settlement taxable?
No. Insurance settlements are not considered income and are not subject to taxation.
What if my claim was already paid and closed or denied?
You have 1 year from the date of your claim to file or re-file your claim. Insurance companies regularly re-open and cover and pay more on claims even after they have been closed. | 1,764 | 836 | 3,629.282297 |
warc | 202143 | Over the past few weeks a number of new B.C. COVID-19 restrictions have been introduced to curb the spread. Some of these include the banning of social gatherings and a new mask mandate.
Residents are now required to wear masks in all indoor public spaces and — according to a news release sent on Tuesday, November 24 — you can get slapped with a big fine for not following the mask mandates.
There are a number of spaces where masks have now been made mandatory including malls, coffee shops, retail and grocery stores, liquor and drug stores, restaurants and bars, places of worship, public transit or ride-sharing services, common areas of fitness centres, and common areas of post-secondary institutions.
Basically, anytime you're inside in a public space, your mask should be on.
$230
Fine for breaking the mask-wearing rules.
The news release went on to say that masks are now required in common areas of apartment buildings, condos, and workspaces.
If you’re wondering what qualifies as a mask, the government describes it as “a medical or non-medical mask that covers the nose and mouth. Face shields are not a substitute for a mask, as there is an opening below the mouth.”
There are some exemptions including people who are unable to put on or remove masks by themselves or other reasons such as “psychological, behavioural or health condition.”
You can take off your mask briefly to eat or drink.
The release explained the penalty further. “Anyone without a mask in an indoor public place or who refuses to comply with the direction of an enforcement officer, including the direction to leave the space, or who responds with abusive or belligerent behaviour, may be subject to a $230 fine,” it read.
These new rules and punishments are effective immediately. | 1,828 | 954 | 3,391.572327 |
warc | 202143 | Everything the Conservatives have done since the 2019 general election has been predicated on the next election being held in 2023, not 2024.
Until the Fixed-term Parliaments Act of 2011, parliaments only tended to last the full five years when the government feared defeat: that’s why the 1945, 1959, 1987, 1992 and 2005 parliaments ran their full lengths. (That which followed the October 1974 election did not because the Labour government collapsed, but had Jim Callaghan been able to avoid going earlier than required, he would have done so.)
While the introduction of fixed-terms was a net benefit to the UK constitution because it reduced the power of the executive relative to the legislature – and deprived the sitting prime minister of one of their many in-built advantages over the opposition parties – its most malign consequence was establishing five-year terms as the default rather than the exception.
There is no reason to repeal the act
other than to regain that advantage, and part of that advantage lies in going to the country earlier than you need to: as incumbent governments did in 1955, 1959, 1970, February 1974, 1983, 1987, 2001 and 2005.
So a good hint that Boris Johnson’s first preference is for a 2023 election is the government’s imminent plan to repeal the act, while a stronger one is Rishi Sunak’s spending plans, which set him up for a giveaway Budget in 2023 and a very tight one in 2024. HuffPost UK’s Paul Waugh laid out a persuasive case as to the Chancellor’s thinking in his evening email.
There is much that could go wrong for the government and lead it to wait until 2024, but it seems a reasonable central scenario that the Conservatives will at least try to go to the country in 2023, provided that their plan for increased austerity has had not averse political consequences for the party.
[Hear more from Stephen on the New Statesman podcast]
I have to say, I personally think this is unlikely: Sunak’s plan for an additional £4bn of departmental spending cuts means the government is far more likely to end up having to pursue its plan B of a 2024 election, most likely after doing exactly what George Osborne did in his mid-term budgets: an easing of cuts with a hefty dose of hidden stimulus via infrastructure spending, particularly on roads.
But as Waugh notes, there is an added complexity: the constituency boundary review. For a variety of reasons, the United Kingdom is now long overdue a boundary review, and the Conservatives have long believed that boundary changes will redress an inequity that favours Labour. This isn’t really true any more due to changes in the two party’s support bases since 2005, but this fact need not overly trouble us: what matters is that Conservative MPs believe it to be true.
As Waugh suggests, this means that there is in practice a very limited window for a 2023 election: the boundary changes are due to be unveiled in June, and I am yet to meet anyone in any party who wants a midwinter election again. That makes an election in August or September 2023 fairly likely.
There is another Tory advantage here, too: boundary changes are particularly difficult for the Liberal Democrats. A big part of the way they establish themselves as parliamentary challengers is localised campaigning around a specific set of issues. Significant boundary changes (which are likely given it has been more than a decade since the last review) will both reduce the Liberal Democrats’ hopes of making gains and force the party into a more defensive campaign than it would otherwise hope for.
Of course, you don’t have to think about this very long to see the potential risks for the Conservatives: let’s say that by the summer of 2023, it looks likely that the result of the next election is they are re-elected with a reduced majority. This is great for the Conservative Party as a whole, but it is not so good for individual Conservative MPs.
Boundary changes can often be times of great internal difficulty in political parties, and there is no guarantee which party will find the experience more traumatic. If the 2023 local elections have gone well for one party, it will be easier to sell the idea that, actually, trading a marginal seat with a majority of 1,000 for your side for one of 1,000 for the other side is no downgrade at all. If they have gone badly, then the whole experience may be more fraught.
And the political difficulties of finessing the Conservatives’ response to boundary changes may be one reason why, even if the Tories’ economic plan runs to script, they may find that 2024 is a more attractive date. | 4,705 | 2,249 | 9,631.756336 |
warc | 202143 | All B.C. students kindergarten to grade 12 will be required to wear a mask when inside starting Oct. 4. The new measure builds on previous guidelines that mandate masks for students grades 4 to 12.
“We need to make changes to fit the situation as it’s arising. We know the COVID-19 virus is being transmitted more rapidly, particularly to those who don’t have the protection that vaccination offers,” said Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer. “This extra measure adds another layer of protection as we navigate this phase of the pandemic.”
Students will have to wear a mask when inside a school building, including while at their desks and on buses, according to a release from the province.
The public health office (PHO) will also begin to release new monthly reports about how the virus affects school-aged children.
As announced in August, regional medical health officers (MHOs) may recommend additional health and safety measures in response to local and regional conditions. MHOs will continue to work with school districts to recommend any additional regional measures as required, according to the province.
Existing guidelines include daily health checks, hand washing, staying home when sick and improved ventilation systems. The guidelines also contain strategies for schools to help create space between people, including staggered recess, lunch breaks and class transition times, managing the flow of people in common areas and using available space to spread people out. | 1,530 | 815 | 2,802.809816 |
warc | 202143 | 1.4 Interaction design activities
As the previous activity shows, in order for an interactive product to do a good job it must be designed with the user in mind. Indeed,
user-centred design is a core approach of interaction design, meaning that every good interactive product is designed around the users, their environment and their activities, so that it is fit for purpose.
In order to support user-centred design, the interaction design process includes some fundamental activities. To help you recognise what these are, think again about what you did in Activity 4:
You tried to use a device like your phone or remote control with heavy gloves or thick socks on your hands, which gave you an idea of how users with certain physical characteristics and in certain contexts might struggle, what their needs might be, and what changes you might have to make to meet those needs. You then came up with alternative design ideas. You drew up the alternative designs. You tried ‘interacting’ with the drawings while wearing your gloves or socks, to see which might work better if it were to be developed into a product.
In other words, you conducted the four fundamental activities that make up the interaction design process – establishing requirements, designing alternatives, prototyping designs, and evaluating prototypes.
Establishing requirements– a requirement is a need that a particular interactive product must be able to satisfy. Establishing what is required of the product is essential to ensure that the interaction is the best possible fit for the user, both in terms of what the user needs to do with the product and how they experience the interaction. Requirements will depend on the characteristics of the user, the activities the user will perform using the product, and the environment in which the user interacts with the product. In the example of a phone or remote control, requirements are shaped by the need to use the device (e.g. mobile phone) to do certain activities (to make phone calls), given the size and mobility of the user’s hands (bigger than standard or fingerless) and the user’s physical environment (ski slope). Designing alternatives– coming up with alternative designs enables designers to explore different ways of interpreting and satisfying the requirements for a particular interactive product. This is an essential and highly creative part of the process. In the phone and remote control example, this activity began when you started jotting down alternatives for the controls. Design ideas should be informed by fundamental design principles that derive from what we know about how our minds and bodies work. Prototyping designs– once interaction designers have identified a number of possible ideas, they need to figure out which ones have the potential to work best for the users, their activities and their environment. To do this, designers need to prototypethe most promising design ideas to make a first, often rough, model so that they can try them out. In the example of the phone or remote control, as you thought of different designs, you were also prototyping them by drawing the alternative interfaces you thought of. Prototyping can also be used to explore different aspects of a design. Evaluating prototypes– evaluation enables designers to assess the limitations of a particular design, to find out to what extent a prototype meets requirements that have already been identified, to identify requirements that have not already emerged, and to establish what changes need to be made so that requirements are met.
In your interaction design exercise, you performed a rough evaluation of your paper-based prototypes of a phone or remote interface by trying to ‘interact’ with your designs while wearing the gloves or socks. Therefore, while this was a task that was relatively easy to execute, it had all the elements of what we consider to be the fundamental activities in interaction design. In this course you will be introduced to different ways of achieving better designs that are informed by the needs of users. | 4,143 | 1,736 | 9,734.618088 |
warc | 202143 | What Are the Beginning Signs of Gum Disease? General Dentistry Philadelphia Share this article:
Gum disease is the #1 cause of adult tooth loss in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t realize that gum infections can cost them their smiles. By recognizing the earliest symptoms of periodontal disease, Philadelphia gum disease treatment with Main Street Dental Center City can reverse infection before the damage becomes permanent.
Early Signs of Gingivitis
Gingivitis is the first stage of gum disease. Thankfully, gingivitis is 100% reversible. The key is to catch it early and incorporate a great oral hygiene routine each day. The most common symptoms to watch for include:
Gums that bleed when you brush or floss Slightly swollen gumlines Red or irritated gums Mildly tender or itchy gums
Gingivitis can usually be reversed with two solid weeks of impeccable oral hygiene. If symptoms don’t improve, you may have periodontal disease.
Symptoms of Periodontitis (Gum Disease)
Untreated gingivitis will gradually progress into moderate gum disease. At this point, your gum tissues will start to detach from your tooth and create “pockets” underneath them. These pockets tend to become filled with plaque bacteria and tartar buildup, contributing to additional infection, detachment, and bone loss.
Depending on how severe your gum disease is, symptoms will include the above-mentioned signs of gingivitis as well as:
Receding gumlines Visible tartar buildup Loose teeth Sore teeth when biting or chewing Halitosis Food getting stuck when you eat Visible spaces between teeth Tooth loss Dangerous to More Than Just Your Smile
Your mouth isn’t the only thing that suffers when gum disease goes undetected. Chronic periodontal infections can also strain your immune system and make it more difficult for your body to fight co-existing medical problems. We’ve seen from extensive research that people with unmanaged gum disease are also more likely to struggle with diabetes, stroke, heart attack, high blood pressure, pneumonia, ED, infertility, and premature labor. There might even be links between gum disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and various cancers.
Treating your oral infection boosts your immune system and makes other treatments more successful.
Gum Disease Treatment
The best Philadelphia gum disease treatment is early screening and intervention, while gingivitis is still reversible. But if you don’t catch gum disease until bone loss begins, a series of deep cleanings will likely be prescribed. These soft tissue therapy visits help eliminate the source of infection to halt additional bone loss, stabilizing your smile for the years ahead.
Bleeding Gums? Call Our Philadelphia Dentist
Dr. Eidelson offers in-house gum disease treatments for our patients with active periodontal infections. If you have swollen or bleeding gums that don’t respond to brushing and flossing, it’s time to schedule an exam and professional dental cleaning. Contact Main Street Dental Center City today to reserve your next appointment. | 3,108 | 1,514 | 6,242.686922 |
warc | 202143 | Checking for remote file health...
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warc | 202143 | FIRST home buyers and battling borrowers are missing out on the best mortgage deals as wealthier homeowners and investors enjoy unprecedented discounts.
Since the last official Reserve Bank interest rate cut in August 2013, Australia’s average variable mortgage rates have dropped almost a quarter of a percentage point but the big banks have not budged.
Instead of cutting standard variable rates for the masses they are offering a select few huge discounts — between 1.1 and 1.35 percentage points off. For an average new mortgage of $450,000 that’s a saving of up to $4300 a year.
Former Reserve Bank governor and current ME Bank chairman Bernie Fraser said wealthier people seeking the biggest home loans always received better rates, particularly from major lenders.
“I think there is an element of unfairness in this, but others will argue that this is competition — the market — at work,” he said.
Mr Fraser said prospective borrowers should shop around, including smaller lenders. “Perhaps they will be lucky and find a fairer bank which consistently gives good deals to less wealthy clients.”
Consumer group Choice’s director of campaigns, Matthew Levey, said average borrowers were losing out because the bigger, lower risk customers were more profitable to banks.
“There’s more room to drop variable rates than they have, and they have chosen to put the cost on consumers,” he said.
Oracle Lending Solutions managing director Angelo Benedetti said he was seeing variable mortgage rates as low as 4.6 per cent. Variable rates for the big banks, which dominate the market, sit between 5.88 and 5.98 per cent.
“The higher the loan amount and if they are borrowing less than 70 or 80 per cent of the value, the bank is going hell for leather and giving substantial discounts for the life of the loan,” he said.
“It doesn’t look good from the outside, but the people who have got lots of equity, have paid a lot of their loan off and are in a good financial position are getting rewarded.”
Mr Benedetti said people with smaller mortgages below $200,000 could still get discounts of about 1 per cent if they negotiated or used professional advisers.
Smartline Personal Mortgage Advisers executive director Joe Sirianni said banks never passed on in full last year’s Reserve Bank rate cuts.
“Rather than surrendering all of it, they are being selective in discounting what they have to,” he said.
“The banks are being more sophisticated in risk pricing. If you have a large loan amount and a low loan-to-value ratio, shop the deal around. They are all hungry for business.” | 2,708 | 1,365 | 5,112.465934 |
warc | 202143 | 11 Oct 21
The trading position of an energy company partly owned by Warrington Borough Council is deteriorating amid soaring energy prices.
24 Sep 21
CIPFA has launched two new consultations on its Prudential Code and Treasury Management Code, focusing on commercial investment and officer training respectively.
10 Sep 21
Swindon Borough Council has scrapped plans to acquire a local retail park, after it was advised the purchase would be “risky”.
9 Sep 21
A government policy paper proposing limits on some UK local authorities’ borrowing has received a mixed reception from voices within the sector.
2 Sep 21
Mansfield District Council is set to sell a hotel it owns in Edinburgh, after the Covid-19 lockdown led to the operator saying the site was ‘unsustainable’.
31 Aug 21
Coventry City Council is set to create a shareholder committee to manage commercial investments, in a bid to avoid financial difficulties experienced by some authorities.
27 Aug 21
Warrington Borough Council has defended an investment loan made to a company owned by a billionaire, saying the finance is secured against assets.
12 Aug 21
Councils are allowed to use Public Works Loan Board borrowing to restructure existing debt even if they are pursuing banned commercial investment, according to new government ...
11 Aug 21
The value of Spelthorne Borough Council’s commercial portfolio shrank by 5% last year, as Covid-19 hit property prices.
10 Aug 21
Government proposals to limit commercial investment by local authorities, including the potential re-introduction of borrowing caps, are credit positive for the sector, according to ratings...
6 Aug 21
The value of Warrington Borough Council’s commercial property portfolio reached £510m last year, despite the financial slowdown relating to Covid-19.
29 Jul 21
The government has raised the prospect of statutory borrowing caps for local authorities to prevent excess risk in capital spending.
19 Jul 21
Councils should be legally required to comply with CIPFA's Prudential Code to help curb risky investments, according to MPs.
30 Jun 21
An investment company set up to buy commercial property on behalf of two councils has suffered cumulative losses of more than £12.5m since it launched four years ago.
29 Jun 21
Uttlesford District Council is applying for a credit rating to allow it access to a greater range of borrowing to fund its multi-million programme of out-of-borough commercial investments.
25 Jun 21
Sefton Council has approved plans to borrow £800,000 over the next three years to help improve the performance of an authority-owned shopping centre.
24 Jun 21
CIPFA is proposing to boost the information it provides on proposed borrowing restrictions on borrowing for yield in its update to the Prudential Code.
18 Jun 21
Local authorities commercial investment needs a change focus, to help unlock latent potential in region, says Jonathan Werran, chief executive of think tank Localis.
11 Jun 21
A district council is planning to invest £56m in commercial property outside its boundaries this year, funded through borrowing from other local authorities.
18 May 21
A combination of pressures from Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic could squeeze city council revenues and put more pressure on budgets, according to ratings agency Standard and Poor’s.
11 May 21
Belfast City Council has rejected a commercial investment strategy, put forward with the aim of helping raise additional funds and finance the authority’s Covid-19 recovery.
24 Feb 21
The government is considering whether a “system leader” could oversee local government audit in the future, after it rejected the Redmond review’s proposal of a statutory body.
23 Feb 21
Torbay Council has become the latest authority to shelve its planned commercial investment following PWLB rules changes – scrapping £68m of its planned programme.
19 Feb 21
The value of two retail investment properties purchased by North Somerset Council has dropped by more than £26m in the three years since they were purchased due to Covid-19.
11 Feb 21
Leicestershire County Council says it could raise £18m of revenue each year to fund services after agreeing an £89m expansion of its commercial property portfolio. | 4,363 | 1,970 | 9,317.330457 |
warc | 202143 | Do you feel confident in your everyday life? How about in your relationship? Confidence feels great. When you have it, others recognize it. So what are the secrets to building confidence?
1. Become a master. Whether it is your vocation, an art, or your relationship confidence is built by you building mastery. Select something you are interested in and learn everything you can about it. Want to learn more about how to be a fabulous partner? Look into Relationship Help At Home.com Want to become an expert around personality? Look into Personality-Experts.com Find courses and training that enable you to become a master at those things you care most about in life. As you become an expert, you will feel more confident and better about yourself. 2. Take good care of yourself. Nurture your body with healthy food, exercise and rest. Choose one new self-care habit and put it in place this month. Think of those things that will make you feel...
I am sure there are more than 10 reasons why finding and living your purpose enhances your life, but if you begin with these 10, your life will be greatly expanded and enhanced.
When you’re doing something that you feel and believe matters, you will naturally find yourself wanting to help other people improve their lives. When other people witness your passion and watch as you live out your purpose in life it often inspires them to make positive changes in their own lives. The world needs more people to live their passion and serve their true purpose in life.
When you discover your purpose you find what makes you feel most alive. Living your purpose leads you toward your greatest dreams. With your passion and purpose serving as rocket fuel to your greatest dreams, you no longer find yourself making excuses to be less than... | 1,796 | 877 | 3,655.484607 |
warc | 202143 | Today's Spotlight: Background, "Benefits" & Uses for Rose Geranium Essential Oil
Oh the sweet, uplifting scent of Rose Geranium essential oils. As our daily lives become more stressful, especially in a year like 2020, with COVID-19, more people are looking for ways to relax themselves, aside from exercise and simply trying to eat healthier.
One of the ways in doing this is through combining essential oils with aromatherapy, meditation, yoga and even massages. Some of the more popular essential oils include, lavender, peppermint & Bergamot oils, but today we'll talk Rose.
Rose Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens var. roseum) is another go to choice for many, for both home remedies and other uses. Rose Geranium is part of the "Scented Geraniums" and belongs to the genus Pelargonium botanical family. This essential oil is different then Geranium essential oil in that it offers a more floral rose scent.
These plants grow in temperate to subtropical areas like Southern Africa. The leaves smell strongly like, (you guessed it), roses!
The plant family shares a lot of essential features. However, Rose Geranium is said to be superior because of its fragrance and other rose properties.
The benefits of Rose Geranium like many of the essential oils we've discussed, dates back centuries. It was essential as a traditional remedy in treating certain medical conditions, like burns and other topical ailments. It was also used to help treat certain respiratory ailments, such as the common cough.
Over the years, research and lab data has shown some potential benefits of this essential oil, as well as expanding on the initial uses of this oil. Today you'll see this oil referenced when it comes to treating acne, reducing inflammation, relieving anxiety symptoms and balancing hormones.
Here are some of the potential uses and benefits of Rose Geranium essential oil.
Uses:
Medicinal Use/Inflammation
Keep in mind that some claims about essential oils have been researched and some even proven within that research. However other claims are just that, they are claims., meaning more research, duplicating results of initial findings, or initial research needs to be done. We'll do our best to talk about some of the research that is out there as of 2021.
Rose Geranium essential oil may enhance emotional stability, help in aiding pain relief, and speed wound healing. This oil may also be useful in improving moodand reducing body inflammation.
In fact, a 2013 study was one of the first to report a significant anti-inflammatory finding as a topical skin treatment. In this study it was used on ear edema and mice paws.
As far as helping to reduce anxiety and providing more emotional stability, Rose Geranium has also been studied for this role.
A review of studies done in 2017, looked at 13 separate clinical trials. Five of the trials looked at it's analgesic effect, five more looked at the usage of Rose Geranium on physiological relaxation. The other clinical trials attributed to it's potential anti-depressant, anti-anxiety, and improving sexual dysfunction effects.
The study concluded that in fact Rose oil can impact all of the above in some way....
For instance, one clinical trial concluded that it increased the release of dopamine and norepinephrine, and inhibited nitric oxide synthase. Certain mechanisms of action of this oil could be responsible for increasing sexual desire.
Other studies, like this one in 2013, concluded that inhalation of Rose oil demonstrated that, when used in combination with conventional therapy, it reduced renal colic pain. Or in 2015 when it was studied for post-operative pain in children, saw a significant reduction in pain when using aromatherapy/rose oil compared to a placebo group.
This could be do to essential oils ability to stimulate certain parts of the brain, like the limbic system. The increase parasympathetic & sympathetic activity means increased release of neurotransmitters, that can help regulate or improve mood.
In Persian medicine, rose oil has been used for things like wound healing, relieving headache, hemorrhoid's, inflammation of the GI tract and muscular pain.
Insect Repellant
Rose geranium essential oil has been used as aninsect repellent, however Geranium oil is not part of the EPA's insectrepellent ingredients. However, it is one standard essential oil with provennatural repellent abilities.
Some studies have looked at and evaluated different essential oils of geranium. Like this study done in 2013, in which all 10 essential oils from geranium that were used were noted to act as a repellent, specifically to ticks.
The research even suggested certain compounds in geranium oil having the potential for commercial development.
Aromatherapy Diffuser
You can dilute geranium oil with distilled water and a few drops of citrusy essential oil to an aromatherapy diffuser. The mixture put in a spray bottle can have a similar effect as an aromatherapy room spray.
Add just a few drops to your aromatherapy diffuser and enjoy the beautiful floral aroma. Rose Geranium also pairs well with citrusy scents. Try combining this essential oil with orange, lime or citronella.
To get a different floral scent, combine this oil with hints of lavender, or jasmine.
Try it in a car diffuers as well for those stressful drives-in's to work!
Cosmetic Application
You may see Rose Geranium essential oils mixed in with some of your favorite face creams. You can also use it diluted on the skin, as it's said to have properties that helps to remove dead skin cells, refine skin appearance, as well as balance skin's bum production, cleanse clogged pores, clear infections causing acne, enhance circulation, and reduce signs of varicose veins and cellulite.
There is also evidence of "some" essential oils having antimicrobial properties within certain compounds that make up the oils. One study in 2008 looked at the effects of various Rose oils from Bulgaria, Turkey, Morocco, Iran and China, against certain strains of bacteria and yeast.
As far as an antioxidant (which are well-known agents for improving skins ability to heal itself), Rose Geranium has demonstrated these antioxidant properties, as this one review of studies in 2017 determined.
This same study (mentioned above) discussed P.gravenolen's ability to even outperform current anti-fungal drugs in place, and being effective against strains of Gram-positive bacteria.
To use in cosmetic application, this essential oil can be added to face creams, at a rate of 2-3 drops per 1/2 ounce. If you wish to add it to a carrier oil, this is also an option. We prefer lightweight carrier oils.
Natural Body Shampoo
Adding rose geranium oil to your favorite shampoo may give itextra soothing properties. You can combine it with a skin condition carrier oil, liquid castlesoap, and floral water, and potentially reap the added benefits.
The ability to help blaance oil production, may also aide in preventing scalp conditions, such as dandruff.
Other Potential Benefits:
Menopause and Peri-menopause
Geranium itself has been linked to helping with symptoms of menopausal women.
When using it in aromatherapy, geranium essential oil stimulates the secretion of salivary estrogen. There is some research out there like this 2008 study, that suggests aromatherapy massage may be an effective treatment for menopausal symptoms.
It emphasized symptoms such as hot flashes, depression and pain, however, it could not be determined whether the positive effects were from aromatherapy, massage or both.
Strengthens the Immune System
It is also perpetuated that Rose Geranium essential oil, due to it's studied antiviral and anti-fungalproperties, can help to strengthen the immune system to fight against illness and infections.
Much of this research needs to be repeated and confirmed, though it seems.
A 2017 review of studies indicated that Rose Geranium does in fact, across several studies, show wide spectrum antibacterial and antifungal properties against certain pathogens.
Improves Skin
Rose Geranium Oil has a good reputation for skincare. Like mentioned earlier it can help clear dead skin cells, as a result, it may help to reduce the appearance of enlarged pores and eliminate acne-causing bacteria due to it's studied antibacterial properties.
It is also useful in deodorizing, rejuvenating skin complexion, and speeding up the fading of scars, blemishes, acne, and rashes.
Be sure to research how to properly dilute all oils before applying any essential oil to your skin!
Help Manage Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
Geranium essential oil's herbaceous aroma is said to have soothing andsedative properties. These enhance the feeling of relaxation, promotingstability and optimism. These properties are beneficial to individualsexperiencing fatigue, anxiety, depression, and grief.
It's important to always consult with a physician before using any essential oil treat any sort of physical or mental ailment.
If wanting to use this oil in a bath or massage setting, simply dilute it with a carrier oil. Always test you dilution on a small area of skin to make sure you don't have any negative reaction, is best.
Rose Geranium Side Effects!
Any of the essential oils we discuss are for external application only, as we do not suggest ingestion of them for any purpose. If you wish to use Rose Geranium for therapeutic purposes it's always important to consult a medical expert. The same goes for use in pregnant women and children. Always consult a medical professional before use in women who are pregnant.
Essential oils should not be used as a replacement to current treatments for any condition that you may have, unless you have spoken to a medical professional.
If any allergic reaction were to occur during use, discontinue immediately, and consult an expert. It's also advised not to apply any of discussed essential oils to orifices such as your ears, nose, eyes or any other sensitive area of the body.
Final Thoughts!
Whether your choose a well known essential oil like Rose Geranium, or decide to go with another option like ylang ylang or Patchouli, you are bound to stumble on one that at least intrigues you from an aromatic standpoint.
Remember to always do your research when deciding to apply any essential oils to skin, and ask a proper health provider if ever considering them to help treat any physical or mental issue.
Feel free to share your experience with essential oils and/or aromatherapy on our blog!
Resources
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5511972/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23072267/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25878704/
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236079796_Bioactivity-Guided_Investigation_of_Geranium_Essential_Oils_as_Natural_Tick_Repellents
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1934578X0800300706
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2529395/
- https://www.acanceresearch.com/cancer-research/pelargonium-graveolens-rose-geranium--a-novel-therapeutic-agent-for-antibacterial-antioxidant-antifungal-and-diabetics.php?aid=18420 | 11,148 | 4,907 | 25,147.179947 |
warc | 202143 | Commercial Pest Control Companies Clarksville AR 72830 Safeguard Your Property From Termites, Ticks, Roaches & Other Pests
If you have actually been having trouble managing pesky insects, you might want to take into consideration calling a
Clarksville pest control company for help. When pest issues start to get out of hand, it is extremely tempting to deal with them. However that strategy just serves to make them even worse. Cockroaches are specifically damaging to the health of your family. Still, they can be controlled relatively conveniently.
For termites, you have to be careful as they can trigger severe damage if left unattended. There are a number of ways to control termites without making use of hazardous chemicals.
These methods can consist of managing the food supply as well as environment, yet often it is the pests themselves that are the problem.
We Treat The Following Pest Problems in Clarksville:
Why Select Our Local Clarksville Pest control experts Full range of pest control and termite treatment services. Flexible scheduling, as well as the same and next-day pest control service Clarksville, AR. Using the latest in pest control and inspection technology. Highly trained and experienced representatives. Providing 24/7 support as well as emergency services. Green, environmentally-friendly treatments that are child and pet-friendly. Effective Termite Control Service
Termite control experts are cognizant of exactly how tough it can be to get rid of termites. They know that once termites have laid their eggs on a structure, they have currently made their way into the wood. However there is a secret to termite control that they do not inform you. This trick is related to the way the termite colony functions. When termites have made their nest inside the wood, they will certainly remain to do so till the colony is damaged.
To kill termites, you require to quit them from reproducing. Eliminating the termites within a building is not enough to keep them away. Those termites that have regrouped and also moved on to a new location will still discover an area to feed. It’s necessary to exterminate the colony that sent out these termite worker ants and also eliminates it.
Take Control of Unwanted Guests! Bed Bug Exterminator Clarksville, AR
A Clarksville bed bug exterminator is an expert who can get rid of your pesky insects and their eggs at home. A bedbug colony stands out since it refers to all the insects that are all together in one location. Several of these can siphon the blood of the same human host, however in this situation, they are doing so as part of a family, not merely as a solitary living, breathing living hive mind. It’s a common mistaken belief that infestations can be spotted by physical signs, nonetheless.
A bed bug exterminator in Clarksville, Arkansas can get rid of bedbugs as well as bed bugs eggs in your mattress with heat treatment. He will blend cozy water and ammonia, eliminate the insect eggs, and damage the adults. He will certainly then vacuum the mattress to remove the bedbugs and plagued material from the bed.
Pest Control Companies Clarksville, Arkansas
Are you looking for a trusted pest control companies in your city or area? How do you recognize if a business is legitimate? Well, the answer to this question depends on the efficiency of the pest management firm. If a firm is not successful, it is useless given that lots of other companies can do the same job better and also securely.
Below are some things to watch out for when choosing a respectable professional:
Is Your Exterminator Professional? – An exterminator in Clarksville, Arkansas is an expert on removing pests. The extermination of insects entails not only utilizing chemicals but also other techniques that will certainly remove them.
Are All Pests Removed at Once? – Some pest management companies in Clarksville offer their services in an entire house treatment where all the insects in a details area are gotten rid of at the same time. Rather than spending cash on a whole house treatment, you should select a complete and also one-time treatment. By doing so, you can anticipate a long-term and also long-term solution for your pest issue.
Pest Control Services Clarksville, AR
If you are looking to get rid of frustrating insects and rodents staying in your home or around your place of business, among one of the most common means is to hire pest control services. Numerous companies in Clarksville offer pest control services for different functions, such as annihilating cockroaches in a home or apartment building, mice, rats, mosquitoes in your office, as well as insects in your golf course.
Our pest control in Clarksville experts offer numerous solutions for both residential as well as likewise commercial structures, includes:
Emergency Pest Control Cockroach Exterminator Ant Control Rodent control Wasp and Bee Removal Termite Control & Treatment Bed Bug Treatment Residential and Commercial Exterminators Spider Control Mosquito control Bat Extermination Tick and Flea Control And Much More! Emergency Pest Control in Clarksville, AR
Emergency pest management in Clarksville, Arkansas is there to assist you in taking care of a rat or insect trouble ASAP. You might be asking yourself where a small insect you’ve seen in your house is originating from and figure out a significant infestation of rats residing in your garage. This can be a significant trouble, and also you require to get rid of them as soon as possible.
Even if you have actually never ever taken care of this situation in the past, I very recommend using the most effective method to get rid of these concerns. It could sound severe at first, however it is for the benefit of your health. These pests can bring illness and get hurt if you do not make use of proper procedures to eliminate them.
The crucial to eliminating all of them is to remove their food source. You can conveniently do this by sealing off any type of holes in your house and also avoiding various other animals from having the ability to enter contact with your food.
Residential Pest Control in Clarksville, Arkansas
If you have several rodents in your bathroom and kitchen, it is most likely time to take a closer check out your approaches for our pest solutions. Most people are unaware of how conveniently they can be pushed back by simple house items like paper towels, paper napkins, as well as the likes.
This has actually come to be specifically real with rodent infestation as well as the growth of termite damages. With using pest deterrents, you can safeguard the health of your family and also your home.
Our company provides residential pest control Clarksville, Arkansas, services throughout the year. During your initial go to, we will initiate a typical pest-off program for your entire home. This consists of a full extensive inspection of your house and lawn to make sure that none of the brand-new rodents currently exist. When it is complete, the technician will certainly establish what kind of treatment is appropriate for your home.
Take Control of Your Family’s Protection! Clarksville Commercial Pest Control for Businesses
Commercial pest management is frequently referred to as the term utilized to determine the services rendered by a commercial company. There are a number of various sorts of pest management, all differing significantly in how they manage their individuals and also just how much money they charge. Nevertheless, restaurant proprietors’ most common technique is to work with a professional exterminator service in Clarksville, Arkansas.
The use of a professional pest inspector can offer a substantial amount of convenience to dining establishment owners. In this case, a professional inspector will determine issues prior to ending up being way too much of an issue. Pests are not just a problem; they can posture a danger to your staff and customers. In the long run, it may be difficult to find a treatment for your pest problem. This is where a professional pest inspector is available in convenient.
Total Pest Management Service in Clarksville
Pest management is something that many homeowners take into consideration, but few in fact do. This has its benefits, yet it likewise has its costs. It can be a really pricey task to have a Arkansas professional appeared as well as spray for months. It can also cost quite a bit of money to hire a person to get rid of the pests once they are already in your house. This is why most people pick to take advantage of eco-friendly pest control in Clarksville.
There are a number of eco-friendly pest management companies in Clarksville that you can utilize, so ensure that you make the best choice– a company with a positive track record for helping people get rid of pests securely as well as efficiently.
… | 8,906 | 3,874 | 20,287.93237 |
warc | 202143 | Slumber Search is supported by readers. Some links on Slumber Search are referral links. If you use one of these and buy something, Slumber Search may make a small amount of money. More info.
For those that have chronic pain and tender spots across the body, it can be exceptionally hard to find long term comfort, especially when you are also
suffering from a sagging or compressed mattress. Also, balancing pressure point relief with back support is another serious consideration. By analyzing hundreds of mattresses and customer feedback, we've crafted this top rated list of mattresses that range exceptional pressure point relief to quality, well-rounded support. +4.2x more cloud like
Listed top rated mattresses vs. average comparable mattresses
+2.6x better pain relief
According to the Mayo Clinic, Fibromyalgia is a "disorder characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain accompanied by
fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues." The symptoms that are commonly felt are widespread pain, fatigue, and cognitive issues (often described as 'fibro fog').
According to WebMD, symptoms can be relieved through managing stress, regular exercise, dietary adjustments, medications, and ensuring your body gets the support it needs to rejuvenate with a good night’s sleep.
Getting a good night’s rest is key to recovery for both the body and mind from the stress of daily activities. Since most of this healing occurs during deep sleep cycles, it makes sense why not getting enough sleep leads to soreness and increased stress levels.
In conjunction with a suitable mattress,
exercising earlier in the day, avoiding caffeine in nights and evenings, sticking to a regular sleep schedule, keeping a sleep diary, and sleeping only as much as needed to feel rested can help.
Although medically unproven, some claim that
alternative remedies such as acupuncture, behavioral therapy, CBD, meditation, and increased intake of vitamin D have increased quality of life since dealing with fibromyalgia.
Mattresses that have
good support and mold to one’s body help people with fibromyalgia sleep better by reducing pressure points. While soft mattresses may feel good initially, they have less spinal support, which over the course of the night causes more soreness. Mattresses with memory foam, latex, or hybrid innerspring mattresses tend to offer the ideal blend of softness and support for those with fibromyalgia.
Memory foam contours well to the unique curves of one’s body, but is not the most breathable material. As such, if you get hot easily or live in a warmer climate, you may be better suited by a mattresses with a top layer that helps keep you cool such as a
Bear Mattress. Additionally, proper alignment of the spine is key and helps alleviate pressure on tender spots. Level Sleep mattress is perfectly designed for this and is clinically tested for pain alleviation. Not only are all these mattresses highly rated by people with fibromyalgia, but they all have memory foam that will contour to your body, along with a heat distributing top layer such as gel or moisture wicking polyester.
In our Guide: How Fibromyalgia Sufferers Sleep Differently we found that those suffering from fibromyalgia write longer, more critical reviews. Our goal is to help you find your perfect mattress, but in the rare case it doesn't happen, the last thing you want is to be stuck with a headache and trying to exercise a return policy with a history of being unresponsive. To find the best mattress, our proprietary algorithm weighs reviews from
fibromyalgia sufferers as well as customer satisfaction scores more heavily to help you get the relief you need.
Suffer from tossing and turning? It could be because your current mattress doesn't support and align the spine properly. That's where Level's TriSupport™ technology can help. Their technology is
a marvel in zoned support with a high-end all-foam design made in the USA. While the shoulders and hips are relieved of pressure, the middle spine is supported properly. With a patented design that is supported by chiropractors, Level Sleep is worth consideration for back and side sleepers needing well-aligned support.
DreamCloud is one of the most exciting brands with
3 of the best rated hybrid mattresses available. The DreamCloud offers the highest value of any hybrid mattress, featuring ultimate support, balanced pressure relief, and a cashmere blend top. The DreamCloud Premier is a fluffy dream that doesn't sacrifice support, great for all-around sleepers. Their DreamCloud Premier Rest adds a pillow top with a 16'' profile for the pinnacle of sumptuous, plush comfort. Customers report deeper sleep with these mattresses and with 'Buy Now and Pay Later' financing through Affirm and a 365 day trial, this is one of the best luxury bargains anywhere.
Bear mattress offers three amazing mattresses that have received rave reviews from customers. Their
original memory foam has won acclaim with athletes on a budget, the Bear Hybrid is great for those looking for a pressure-relieving higher end feel, and their Bear Pro is perfect for those looking for an ultra-cooling contouring feel. From the Celliant® to copper cooling, these mattresses also are designed to be superior at cooling, alleviating muscle pain, and supporting the spine. With these three competitive mattress options, folks report loving these beds.
Meet Awara, the
pressure relieving latex hybrid mattress, featuring natural dunlop latex, and a sustainable mission for a price point that comparatively carries much more value for its 13'' thick mattress than many other latex mattress companies. Whether you are sensitive to chemicals or enjoy the invigorating feel of latex, you can rest easy that your purchase is eco-conscious since Awara holds a certification with the Rainforest Alliance and a partnership with Trees For The Future that plants trees for every mattress purchased. With a universally comfortable medium-plush feel, Awara brings a comfy sigh of relief to its sleepers.
Puffy is an online mattress brand that makes three mattresses:
The Puffy Mattress, The Puffy Lux Mattress, and The Puffy Royal Mattress. Each of these offer a highly rated, pressure-relieving feel that is making a splash in the mattress in the box industry. With coil hybrid designs in their Lux and Royal, folks find these mattresses more plush than many other options, which is great for those with a lighter body type. With an aim at providing a balanced, fluffy feel for less than in-store and offering both all-foam and hybrid designs, Puffy is worth a second look!
One of the most popular mattress brands,
Nectar has revolutionized the all-foam mattress industry with designs that focus on universally comfy firmness and support. With 3 mattresses to choose from, customers have reported enhanced cooling and supreme pressure relief in the Nectar Premier & Premier Copper. With value-add benefits like a full year trial and 'forever' warranty, thick quality materials for the price, optional white glove delivery, and 'Buy Now, Pay Later' financing through Affirm, it should be a serious consideration for value-conscious shoppers. From the UK? See our review for the UK version.
Brooklyn Bedding is a quality-focused mattress maker that produces a variety of mattresses with
different firmness options. Manufacturing all of their mattresses in their own Arizona based factory, Brooklyn Bedding is able to pass on competitive prices and value to their customers. Also, read about their specialty brands: ultra-firm Plank Mattress, plus-size friendly Titan Mattress, customizable Rubix Mattress, latex Bloom Mattress, eco-friendly Ecosleep, and cooling Propel Sleep.
If you have allergies or are concerned by harmful chemicals, Plushbeds has you covered! They are
GreenGuard certified, which means that their mattresses don't have harmful compounds or allergens, which is great for those with chemical sensitivities. They have a wide array of offerings including latex, memory foam, and coil mattresses. With deep sales throughout the year, you may even be able to snag one of these mattresses at a discount.
WinkBeds got its start manufacturing
factory-direct luxury hybrid mattresses made in the US to compete with the luxury showroom market. They have innovated through the years and now include both a luxury-style all-foam and latex hybrid mattress in addition to their classic hybrid. With both reviewers and customers appreciating the quality of their mattresses, WinkBeds is a top brand to consider on your mattress search.
Tuft and Needle made a big splash in the mattress industry when it offered one of the lowest cost all-foam mattresses in a box directly to customers, their
T&N Original Mattress. Since then, they've elaborated on their initial concept with two more innovative designs: The Mint and The Hybrid, which provide high quality, superbly pressure-relieving offerings. On top of that, the Mint Mattress was recently upgraded to include antimicrobial protection embedded in its cover layer. With their three mattresses and 100,000s of positive reviews, customers have spoken in approval of T&N. | 9,210 | 4,102 | 20,517.059971 |
warc | 202143 | How to Find Wholesale McDreamy Tomato Seeds
Buying wholesale products for your kitchen is a good idea. It is a smart move that can help you save money. It also gives you a lot of choices so you are certain you get the right products at the right time.
If you are on a tight budget, then you can start buying wholesale discount food stuffs like sauces, bulk spices and bulk vegetables. You can get them from online shops or supermarkets. But if you want to enjoy more savings, you should consider buying products in wholesale. This is where the Internet comes in handy. Online stores are offering various types of wholesale discount foods and products. The best part about these is that they come at wholesale prices and you can save a lot of money.
There are plenty of benefits when you choose to buy bulk products. The first benefit is the savings that you will have. Since you are able to purchase them at a wholesale price, you will be able to buy a large amount of the same product. You will not only be able to save more but also be able to purchase different varieties of the same kind of vegetable or flower seeds.
In this day and age, we have to make do with what we have. We have to make do with less. In some cases, it may be necessary to cut down on our food intake just to be able to feed our family. By getting bulk seeds and plants, you will be able to avoid having to do that.
Another great benefit is that you can be assured that you are getting healthy seeds. There are many suppliers online that offer wholesale discount foods. They make sure that they only offer top quality and disease-free seeds. If you want to ensure that you are eating healthy, then you definitely want to make sure that you are getting your vitamins and minerals from these wholesale discount foods.
Another reason why you should buy them in bulk is because they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. This means that you will be able to grow your own tomatoes in bulk. Imagine coming home late in the evening and finding that you have run out of room for dinner. You will be able to grow whatever vegetables that you need. With the variety of shapes and sizes available, you are bound to find something that you will love to grow.
Finally, you should consider the fact that if you want to enjoy fresh tomatoes all year round, then you should make sure that you get the quality that you need. This is especially important when you are in the midst of an unpredictable climate. You never know how the weather will play out. By growing your own tomatoes, you will get what you want and keep your food fresh.
When you consider all of these reasons to buy wholesale discount McDreamy tomato seeds, you will realize that it is easy to do. You just need to consider the benefits of saving money and making sure that you get the best quality seeds. These seeds can be found at wholesale prices online. If you think that this is a great way to get seeds for your garden, then you should start searching today.
If you are like most people, you are probably wary of buying online. You may have seen horror stories about the things that you buy online. However, you should try to look past the rumors and hype to find the products that you really want to save money on. Finding a wholesale discount can be a very easy task if you know where to look.
Many people think that if you are going to buy wholesale discount McDreamy tomato seed, then you are only getting low-quality seeds. But, this is not true. Since you are saving money, you can choose the exact amount of seeds that you need. If you choose the wrong amount, you could end up with small plants instead of the large and healthy ones that you are after.
To make sure that you get the best deal on your wholesale discount McDreamy tomato seeds, you will need to do some research. This includes looking at what different companies have to offer. For example, some companies will offer cheap tomato seeds but they will not offer anything on when it comes to shipping and handling. This could make it more difficult for you to get your hands on a large quantity of seeds. However, if you look hard enough, you will be able to find a company that can offer you a good price on good quality seeds. | 4,246 | 1,752 | 10,258.743151 |
warc | 202143 | LIPOSA pharmacopuncture, a new herbal formula, affects localized adiposity by regulating lipid metabolism in vivo Authors: Affiliations: Department of Convergence Korean Medical Science, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea Published online on: September 13, 2021 https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2021.10725 Article Number: 1290
Copyright: © Lee et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.
This article is mentioned in: Abstract Pinellia ternata(Thunb.) Breitenb., the whole plant of Taraxacum platycarpumDahlst. and the root of Astragalus membranaceusBunge. The present study investigated the effects of pharmacopuncture treatment with LIPOSA on localized adiposity. Male C57BL/6J mice were fed high fat diet for 8 weeks to induce obesity. Then, 100 µl LIPOSA was injected into the left‑side inguinal fat pad at various concentrations, including 13.35, 26.7 and 53.4 mg/ml. Normal saline was injected into the right‑side inguinal fat pad of each mouse as a control. The treatment was performed three times per week for 2 weeks. The weight and histological changes were analyzed in the inguinal fat pad of the obese mice. The expression levels of adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), hormone‑sensitive lipase (HSL), autophagy‑related gene (ATG)5, ATG7 and LC3‑II, as lipophagy‑related factors, were evaluated to confirm the lipid‑catabolic effects of LIPOSA. LIPOSA pharmacopuncture markedly decreased the weight of the fat tissue and the size of the adipocytes in the inguinal region of the mouse models of obesity in a dose‑dependent manner. The expression levels of ATGL, HSL, ATG5, ATG7 and LC3‑II were significantly increased by the LIPOSA treatments. In addition, LIPOSA pharmacopuncture was found to decrease the expression levels of ACC, PPAR‑γ and PEPCK. The results indicated that subcutaneous injection of LIPOSA can degrade local fat and induce lipophagic and lipase activation effects. In addition, lipid metabolism related to fat accumulation was regulated by the LIPOSA treatment. The present study suggests that LIPOSA pharmacopuncture can be a non‑surgical alternative in the treatment of localized adiposity. | 2,301 | 1,164 | 4,402.342784 |
warc | 202143 | CGL Additional Insured Decision from Defective Construction in Myrtle Beach
In one of his earliest decisions as a newly appointed United States District Judge for the District of South Carolina, Judge Joseph Dawson waded into the complex world of additional insured insurance coverage for construction defect claims in
Lendlease (US) Construction, Inc. v. National Fire Insurance Company of Hartford, No. 4:19-CV-959-JD, 2021 WL 4226164 (June 14, 2021). The decision was generally a straightforward application of commercial general liability insurance and additional insured law, but the decision deals with an all-too-common residential defect exclusion and also leaves one issue unanswered.
The decision concerns insurance coverage claims arising out of an underlying South Carolina state court construction defect case from Horry County, South Carolina. In the underlying state court action, the property owner sued three general contractors for defects in the design and construction of a mixed-used development of seven buildings in the Myrtle Beach area. The owner alleged the defective construction of exterior building components caused water intrusion and resulting damage to the buildings.
As part of the construction project, one of the general contractors entered into a contract with a roofing subcontractor which required the roofer to have commercial general liability (“CGL”) insurance and to name the general contractor as an additional insured (“AI”) on the CGL policy. The roofer’s CGL insurer issued a policy to the roofer with a blanket AI endorsement. The blanket AI endorsement provided AI coverage to any entity the roofer was contractually required to add as an AI. The AI endorsement limited the AI coverage to “liability due to your negligence specifically resulting from ‘your work’ for the additional insured” and excluded coverage for liability “resulting from the sole negligence of the additional insured.”
The general contractor filed a declaratory judgment action in federal court seeking a declaration that the roofer’s insurer must defend and indemnify the general contractor in the underlying state court action as an AI on the roofer’s CGL policies. The insurer moved for summary judgment contending the general contractor is not entitled to defense or indemnity as an AI.
The Court denied summary judgment on most of the insurer’s grounds on the basis that there were genuine disputes over the material facts regarding whether the underlying action involved defective work by the roofer and whether the roofer performed work during the policy period. However, the Court did grant summary judgment for the insurer under one of the two policies at issue because that policy contained a provision that if property damage occurs during more than one policy period, there is only coverage if the insured first knew of the damage during the policy period. The general contractor admitted it did not know of the property damage at issue in the underlying suit until years after the policy period.
Of note, one of the grounds on which the insurer moved for summary judgment was the policy’s inclusion of a “Residential Construction Defect” exclusion that barred coverage for claims arising out of defective residential construction where the claim was reported more than twelve months after the named insured completed its work. The decision does not contain any discussion as to why summary judgment was denied on this ground other than stating that there are genuine issues of disputed material facts. The decision seems to indicate the parties admitted that the claims were not reported until more than twelve months after the work was completed, so the disputed material facts must be as to some detail. Presumably, the Court found a disputed issue of material fact as to whether the exclusion applied because the development was a “mixed-use development” containing commercial and residential spaces.
The issue the order does not address is whether it would matter if the named insured, the roofer, knew of the property damage during the policy period but the additional insured general contractor did not know of the damage until years later. Whether the named insured knew of the damage during the policy period would seem to be an essential element in deciding whether that policy provision has been met, and it seems entirely possible that a named insured could know of property damage years before the additional insured general contractor. However, because the decision does not discuss the issue, there may have been no dispute on this issue and no reason to discuss it.
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warc | 202143 | Customer Decisions on Benefits
Reasons for Negative Volatility Capsule: You should pursue several avenues to understand why the Company loses sales volume in the market place. This sales volume is very expensive to recover once lost. The reasons for this negative volatility are likely to get worse without your attention in your efforts to improve current products and services.
For helpful context on this step:
Videos:
Perspectives:
Symptoms and Implications:
The reasons that customers demand more than one supplier in their relationships reflect some industry-wide failures, usually in product availability or in pricing. The customer has developed a mistrust of the entire industry. But volatility goes beyond an industry failure. It brings customer-buying decisions and supplier failures to the level of the individual supplier performance.
Negative volatility is commonly the result of bad performance. It should not happen. Once a customer buys from you, inertia sets in. They would really rather not leave you for another supplier. They know your Company and its products better than they know your competition. Once you have "failed" the customer, though, inertia works like the alligator's tail. It swings the other way. Then, the customer would rather not purchase from you again. The Company should understand the reasons for the industry's, and its own, negative volatility. Your product and service improvement program should eliminate as many of these reasons as you can.
In each of the questions to follow, the Company has a choice on the depth of its analysis. You may develop an understanding of negative volatility at the level of the total industry, at the level of the company as a whole, by the causes of volatility for the Company and by its forms. The understanding of the reasons for the Company's negative volatility is developed further in the questions below.
In the following questions, you also develop an understanding of the Company's specific failings leading to negative volatility. You can conduct this analysis of the company at more than one level. You may separate the Company's total negative volatility into the volatility caused by your own "failure" as opposed to a competitor's "win." You may also pursue the causes of negative volatility into its two forms, Get Out and Decrease Use. The larger the market the more valuable are the answers to the more detailed questions. The Company may choose to answer in less detail if time or resources are limited.
Share Sources and Beneficiaries
Not all reasons for volatility are equally important. A reason for volatility is important only to the extent of the sales volume that it means for the Company. You may rank each reason for volatility in an order determined by the total sales volume change that the reason might represent.
As part of the review of visible volatility the Company might analyze who gains and loses net volume in direct competition with the Company. This analysis hints at areas of benefit differences to explore that might have escaped your notice.
Summary Points Next: Hidden Negative Volatility | 3,131 | 1,393 | 6,990.244078 |
warc | 202143 | In a move to further expand our regional offering, we have appointed two Commercial Energy Consultants, enabling the business to offer more local and competitive energy services to customers.
Accredited Energy Assessors, Tom McLeish and James Bradley, have joined TEAM as part of our strategic growth plans, and development of our service offering.
A former Energy Consultant for Sodexo UK and Ireland, Tom McLeish will strengthen the delivery of our services in the north of England and Scotland. With a wealth of experience in energy and BI analytics, Tom is a CIBSE accredited ESOS Lead Assessor and Low Carbon Consultant, experienced in delivering Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR), Monitoring and Targeting, and maintaining ISO 50001 energy management systems.
In his previous role at Sodexo, Tom led internal and external ESOS transport audits producing associated emissions reducing recommendations. He delivered energy consumption audits, managed SECR for both the organisation and business clients, and was responsible for securing more than £860,000 per year in carbon allowances for over 500 buildings with complex organisational and portfolio structures. Additionally, he is an accredited Elmhurst Energy DEC assessor, with experience in producing compliant building surveys for a diverse range of properties.
As an Energy Consultant, Tom will work closely with customers providing a full range of specialist advice on energy and sustainability management. This will include Energy Policy and Strategy development, auditing, reporting and preparation of performance indicators. He will also support customers to define and deliver net zero strategies, helping them to reduce their carbon emissions and meet their sustainability commitments.
Commenting on his appointment, Tom McLeish said:
I am delighted to be joining TEAM at a time of growth and be part of the company’s plan to support customers on their path towards net zero, helping them to fulfil their energy and sustainability needs.
I have spent several years in the industry advancing my expertise in energy analytics, supporting clients through all the stages of the monitoring and targeting process, including the development of tailored reporting models to identify energy consumption and cost performance trends. Now I am looking forward to working with many different sectors and creating solutions that address their unique needs at this very critical time for energy management.
Sterling Accredited Energy Assessor, James Bradley, is based in Brighton, extending our reach in the south of England. James is experienced in delivering Level 3 and 4 TM44 Air Conditioning Inspections, Display Energy Certificates (DECs), and Commercial Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). He has extensive experience in providing ESOS and Building Improvement Reports, BRUKL calculations, Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES), BREEAM Reports and IESVE 3D Thermal Modelling and Simulation.
James will work closely with TEAM customers to help them achieve their compliance needs, understand and utilise their consumption data to optimise their energy efficiency and sustainability, and make cost savings. His experience working in partnership with organisations across different sectors and disciplines will further strengthen our consultancy offering.
On joining the Energy Consultancy team, James said:
I am passionate about helping organisations to optimise their energy efficiency and become more sustainable through energy strategy and compliance. Having spent many years as a Mechanical Engineer and Commercial Energy Assessor, I have a great understanding of building efficiency, and low carbon design, and I am looking forward to working with TEAM customers to address their energy challenges.
The development of our Energy Consultancy over the last two years includes the addition of a suite of services designed to support energy and sustainability professionals with the challenges of modern energy management. These include Net Zero and Carbon Reduction Strategy, Energy Behaviour Change Programmes and Targeted Charging Review advice. Our Tenant Billing services arm has also been supported with the launch of an outsourced Tenant Billing service, designed to relieve landlords of the overheads and administration of operating a tenant billing function.
Timonthy Holman, Head of Operations for TEAM added:
This is an exciting time for our Consultancy team, after a period of developing a range of new services to add to our portfolio, we are now in the process of expanding our reach and bringing on board Energy Consultants that are better placed to service the North and South of England.
Both Tom and James bring with them many years of experience in the energy sector, and will be key in delivering our new services, and in working alongside customers to realise their energy management and carbon reduction ambitions. | 4,943 | 2,175 | 11,172.316322 |
warc | 202143 | You make Ditch time so much fun!
For the bulk of the shore-bound striper fishermen on the East Coast, it has become law that the Canal is the only place where one can catch striped bass with both feet planted on solid earth. It has also been decreed by the Canal faithful that plugging is the superior method for taking fish from the Big Ditch. Don’t misunderstand me, I concede that the Canal is an awesome place to fish and it definitely is the easiest place to connect with a big striper from shore—please notice that I didn’t say ‘catch’. On the flipside it has become one of the hardest places to land a big fish, due—in part—to the depth, ledges and currents, yes. But a bigger hazard these days is the crowd.
We have reached a point now in the great history of the Cape Cod Canal where you’re just as likely to set up next to a guy that will not even look at you as you are to set up beside a guy that will work in sequence with you and give you space if you hook a giant. The “assisted release” has become an all-too-common problem at the Canal—this occurs when you hook a good fish and the guy down tide of you hurries to cast because he thinks your fish might be traveling with an entourage. The result is a Magic Swimmer creeping up your line and wild hooksets from the dude down-tide because he thinks he’s hooked up… and… snap. Other versions of the assisted release are bent out hooks because an inconsiderate caster forced you to horse your fish in. Or, my personal favorite, the “cat’s cradle” release. This happens when a hooked fish breaks the surface and every person within 90 yards of the splash casts on it. Oh, what fun!
So how do you deal with this? The first step is to match your tackle to task. You need a rod and reel that can handle putting an abrupt end to a blistering run in a crowd. I use the Lamiglas 1231MH for this task; other rods that I know will get it done are the Century 1328 and the ODM NXFX-1068—I have not tried the ODM, but I’ve heard some good things, to be safe, try one before you buy it. The reels that excel in the Canal are the same reels that are used in jig-and-pop tuna fishing: the Shimano Stella, the Daiwa Saltiga and Saltiga DogFight and my personal choice, the Van Staal 275. These reels are not cheap, but they have the power, speed and durability to get it done, reliably.
Then you have to start thinking about the weaknesses in your method. Plugging is a ton of fun in the Canal, but treble hooks and split rings are not always up to the task, especially when two hooks find purchase in the fish of your dreams. One single, stout, hook is going to cure three different headaches all at one time. First of all, you’re just never going to straighten the hooks in the shads I will recommend here; there’s little if any leverage and the hooks are very tough. The single hook also makes landing your fish 1,000 times easier because you only have to worry about one hook point, not six like you do when using most plugs. Lastly, when the action hits fever pitch, releasing the fish can be done in seconds, giving you more time with your line in the water. Then there’s the versatility. The Tsunami 7- and 9-inch shads can be fished throughout the entire water column—you can burn them in just under the surface, you can swing them in the tide or cast way up-current and bounce them along the bottom. Burning them in is every bit as effective as burning a Magic Swimmer.
When the tide slows way down, I like to switch over to the 6-inch Tsunami Deep shads—known as ‘Fat Shads’ by the Canal regulars. These get down pretty fast and can be jigged effectively in slow current. They are also universally effective, day and night, and their versatility means they can work in all but the fastest stages of the tide. (If the fish are blitzing, they’ll work at any stage of the tide.) And best thing about them is that they catch. Hundreds of 40-plus-pounders have been hauled from the Canal on these shads or shads like them since they hit the scene over a decade ago. I know several hardcore Canal guys that swear by the 9-inch Tsunami Shads all season long—affectionately known as the ‘rubber duckie’ in some circles. Their only downside is that they can get a little beat up after several fish, but they can be melted back together with a lighter. And my fishing partner has started to cinch a zip tie around the body of the shad, just forward of the hook bend and this helps keep the body from pulling down when a fish takes it, and tearing where the hook exits the plastic. So when you make your trips to the Canal this season, leave a few plugs out of the bag and make some room for these Tsunami shads, they catch fish, they make your life easier and they add a level of calm to your Canal experience. See you in the trenches. | 4,940 | 2,402 | 9,836.810991 |
warc | 202143 | In a recent opinion piece for the Mail, Conservative MS for Monmouth Peter Fox compared Universal Basic Income to “rapists and murderers” taking money from your wallet on the street.
Let that sink in.
Someone elected to serve as a representative for the people of this country thinks it’s acceptable to use such language about a policy he disagrees with. A policy he’s clearly done very little research on.
Before I address the inaccuracies littered throughout his article, we should all agree that those kinds of remarks have no place in our political discourse. Disagree all you want but leave the scaremongering and hate at the door, Mr Fox.
A Universal Basic Income, or UBI for short, is not a socialist or communist plot. This is a common attack from those on the right.
What they fail to mention is that the godfathers of neoliberalism – Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman – also advocated a form of Basic Income. Friedman was, of course, the economic brains behind Thatcherism.
More recently, the Pope said “UBI could reshape relations in the labour market, guaranteeing people the dignity of refusing employment terms that trap them in poverty. It would give people the basic security they need.”
If Mr Fox is a man of faith, perhaps the big man giving it the sign-off will change his mind.
The point is that the policy has support from across the political spectrum and throughout civil society. It’s not left or right – it’s forward.
The policy doesn’t have its roots in Alaska, as inaccurately stated by Mr Fox.
It’s true that citizens of the state receive a form of Basic Income. It’s also true that the policy has been a great success – that’s why it’s been going for around 40 years.
But the idea has been around for centuries, first finding fame in Thomas More’s novel 'Utopia'. It’s experienced a renaissance of late following Democrat Andrew Yang’s exciting run for the presidency of the United States.
In the UK, especially in Wales, we've seen a surge in support for UBI because people have realised that our welfare state is no longer fit for purpose.
It was designed at a time when most people had secure, long-term employment. But in an economy where work is becoming more precarious year by year, this system now traps people in poverty rather than helping them to find a way out.
That’s what a UBI aims to do – to give people a chance. It’s a foundation from which everyone can build because they have a guaranteed income that ensures they won't face destitution when times are tough. Everyone will receive a fixed and regular income with no questions asked, regardless of their income, wealth or employment status.
Yes, that means people who don’t need it will receive a UBI. But the richest in society will pay it back through tax. You give with one hand and take it back with the other. This strips away billions of pounds of needless bureaucracy because the state no longer means tests benefits.
The DWP's punitive cut-off points and taper rates will no longer be in place. People will no longer have to jump through hoops to put food on the table.
They won’t have to wait five weeks or more to get their first payment, as with Universal Credit. A Universal Basic Income will always be there for you, from cradle to grave.
We know that UBI works. The pilot in Finland, contrary to what Fox said in his article, found that participants worked more hours than those who did not receive a Basic Income.
The improvement was marginal, but it didn’t go backwards. People didn’t work less and so it completely debunked the myth that everyone would just sit on their backsides and stop working.
READ MORE: Is it time for Wales to embrace UBI?
We know from previous pilots around the world that UBI improves school performance, health and wellbeing, community cohesion, reduces crime and so much more. The recent stimulus cheques given to Americans as part of their Covid recovery package saw an increase in small businesses being set up.
These are the kind of outcomes the likes of Peter Fox should be shouting about from the rooftops. A fitter and healthier population means less pressure on our health services and small businesses setting up shop delivers an economic stimulus. It's a win-win.
Those positive findings are precisely why we want to test a UBI in Wales. We're not saying we should roll out the policy tomorrow. But let’s give it a go and see whether the benefits found in other countries emerge here. If they don’t, I’ll hold my hands up and say we got it wrong and that Peter Fox was right.
But I’m confident that won’t happen if we get the Welsh pilot design right. A wide-ranging pilot will show the positive impacts the policy will have on those most in need, as has happened all over the world.
That’s why UBI Lab Cymru, along with the Future Generations Commissioner, WEN Wales, Chwarae Teg and Basic Income Earth Network wrote to the First Minister in July calling on him to design a ‘Care Leavers Plus’ pilot. We’ve also set up a Senedd petition so that the public can support our campaign.
Wales has an opportunity to change the UBI conversation forever. We can once again be the country where a universal policy that cares for people from cradle to grave is born – just like the NHS was more than 70 years ago.
*Jonathan Rhys Williams is the co-founder of UBI Lab Cymru and a solicitor for Watkins and Gunn. If you value The National's contribution to Wales' conversation, help grow our team of reporters by becoming a subscriber. | 5,692 | 2,767 | 11,268.802313 |
warc | 202143 | A statement signed by several groups that included the Crisis Coalition and the Human Rights NGO Forum, also revealed that many groups have been placed under “direct surveillance from both state and non-state handlers” and are not allowed to work without escorts.
The development follows last month’s suspension of 29 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) by the Governor of Masvingo province, Titus Maluleke, who claimed they had failed to submit memorandums of understanding (MOUs) that he requested last year.
“We have also learnt that some of the NGOs which appear on Maluleke’s ‘ban’ list are organizations which have refused to pay corrupt officials to finalise MOUs,” the statement said.
Other provinces have reportedly followed suit and are forcing NGOs to pay for the MOUs, which the groups insist are not required by law. Fees being charged by the local authorities range from $100 up to $1,000 per year.
“In terms of the 2003 Policy on the Operations of NGOs in Humanitarian and Development Assistance, NGOs are only requested to sign MOUs with Government Ministries or Agencies,” the statement said.
McDonald Lewanika of the Crisis Coalition told SW Radio Africa the provincial fees are “unwarranted and illegal” and NGOs should ignore them. “The fees are not standardized and there is no framework, policy or legislation that exists. It’s clear this is corruption,” Lewanika explained.
He added: “The attack is clearly intensifying with each word about elections uttered by ZANU PF and Robert Mugabe and a clear implementation of their congress resolution to subdue NGOs they perceive as threats to them.”
Patience Zirima, coordinator at The Media Alliance of Zimbabwe, expressed the same sentiment, saying: “It’s an affront to democratic principles. People have the right to freedom of association and when you go out into remote areas you really feel that something is going on with the authorities.”
Zirima pointed to the continued disruption of civil society meetings and the interrogations of media practitioners as attempts by the state to limit the information which gets to people ahead of elections.
She said: “This creates an atmosphere of fear and the groups cannot carry out their work of helping people.” Zirima added that NGOs play a critical role and the government should consider them partners instead of enemies.
The groups that signed the statement dismissing MOUs include the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, Media Alliance of Zimbabwe, National Association of Non Governmental Organisations, National Constitutional Assembly, Women’s Coalition, Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, Zimbabwe Election Support Network and Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum. –
SW Radio Africa News | 2,837 | 1,403 | 5,467.746258 |
warc | 202143 | The formation of a public company is a long and arduous process. First, the company is floated by its promoters, and the process of gathering financial backing begins. The promotion of a company is the very first step in this long process. Let us take a look.
Suggested Videos Formation of a Company
Formation of a company involves completion of several legal formalities and procedures. The process of formation of the company can be divided into four stages, viz.,
Promotion of a company Incorporation Subscription of capital Commencement of business.
However, only a public limited company is required to fulfil all these four stages. A private limited company is required to fulfil only the first two stages. In other words, it can start business immediately after obtaining the certificate of incorporation.
Promotion of a Company
It is the first stage in the formation of a company. It begins with a person or a group of persons having thought of or conceived a possible future business opportunity and then taking an initiative to give it a practical shape by way of forming a company. Such a person or a group of persons who proceed to form a company are known as promoters of the company.
Promoters not only conceive a business opportunity but also analyze its prospects and bring together the men, materials, machinery, managerial abilities and financial resources that are necessary for the formation and existence of the company.
Browse more Topics under Formation Of A Company Functions of a Promoter (i) Identification of Business Opportunity
The promoter first identifies a potential business opportunity. This opportunity may be regarding the production of a new product or service or making a product available through a different channel than before or production of an old product with new updated features or any other such opportunity having an investment potential.
(ii) Feasibility Studies
The promoter after having conceived a business opportunity analyzes the opportunity to see whether it is feasible, technically as well as economically. All identified business opportunities cannot be converted into real projects.
Therefore, the promoters undertake detailed feasibility studies so as to investigate all aspects of the business that they intend to begin with the help of various tools like a study of the market trend, industry trend, market survey, etc. and with the help of specialists like engineers, chartered accountants etc. A venture is only feasible when it passes all the three below mentioned tests.
Technical feasibility:Sometimes an idea may be good and unique but technically not possible to execute because the required raw material or technology may not be easily available. Every business requires funds. Financial feasibility:Sometimes it may not be feasible to arrange a large amount of funds needed for the business in the limited available means. Also, financial institutions may hesitate to grant huge amounts of loan for the new businesses. Economical feasibility:A business opportunity may be technically and financially feasible but not economically feasible. It may not be a profitable venture or may not yield enough profits. In such a case, the promoters refrain from starting the business. (iii) Name Approval
Once the promoters have decided to launch a company next step is to select a name for the company and get it registered with the registrar of companies of the state in which the registered office of the company is to be situated. An application with three names, in the order of their priority, is filed with the registrar to get the name approved.
(iv) Fixing up Signatories to the Memorandum of Association
The promoters decide upon the members who will be signing the Memorandum of Association of the proposed company. Usually the signatories of the memorandum are the first Directors of the Company. However, the written consent of the persons signing the memorandum is required to act as Directors and to take up the qualification shares in the company.
(v) Appointment of Professionals
Promoters are also required to appoint certain professionals. These professionals help them in the preparation of necessary documents that are required to be filed with the Registrar of Companies such as mercantile bankers, auditors, lawyers, etc.
(vi) Preparation of Necessary Documents
The promoters are required to prepare necessary legal documents that have to be submitted to the Registrar of the Companies for getting the company registered. These documents are return of allotment, Memorandum of Association, Articles of Association, consent of Directors and statutory declaration.
Solved Question for You
Q: What is the position of the promoters in a company?
Answer: Promoters perform several activities to get a company registered and make it commence a business. The promoters are neither the agents nor the trustees of the company. They have a personal liability for all the contracts which are entered by them for the company before its incorporation until the same is not ratified by the company later on.
Promoters have a fiduciary position with the company and thus they should make a profit only if it is disclosed and should not make any secret profits. Also, the promoters are not legally entitled to claim the expenses incurred in the promotion of a company.
However, the company may choose to reimburse the pre-incorporation expenses. The company may also allot shares or debentures or give an option to purchase the securities at a future date to the promoters. | 5,568 | 2,346 | 13,151.017903 |
warc | 202143 | It can be quite daunting to fill your closet with stylish, well-made yet affordable shoes. You can succeed if you prepare yourself for your next trip to the shoe store. Get started with this information.
Do not wear sneakers without socks. Wearing sneakers without socks can cause blisters. You may also subject yourself to fungus of the foot, since moisture will be able to collect. Wearing cotton socks with some foot powder is the best way to keep your feet dry.
Make sure you find the size for both of your feet. Many people have one foot that’s a bit larger or longer than the other. Look for a shoe that fits the largest one if you want to be comfortable.
Never wear your sneakers without putting on a pair of socks first. You can hurt your feet from the shoe rubbing against the skin if you do this. It may also cause foot fungus to grow, due to your feet getting moist. It is better to don a pair of cotton socks and use a bit of foot powder to maintain dryness.
Wearing flip flops is not always a good option. They offer no support and you are vulnerable to blisters, stubbed toes, and sprained ankles. Wear them in the house, at the beach or in your yard only.
Arch Type
Determine what your arch type is before you get athletic shoes. Not all of them are created to fit properly on all arches. Get your foot wet and stand on a sheet of paper. The wet areas will reveal your arch type. If you have a flat arch, then the majority of your foot print is going to be visible. If you have a high arch, you won’t be able to see the middle. This can be helpful when you are looking for a shoe that will fit comfortably.
Always measure both of your feet. Sometimes, one foot is bigger than the other. Look for a pair which fits the biggest foot comfortably.
Don’t let yourself believe that shoes will become more comfortable with time. They must fit right from the initial try on. They might stretch as you think they might. All that may happen is that your feet will get hurt, and you won’t want to wear them any longer.
An enviable shoe collection is at your fingertips. Getting shoes you love at good prices is an art in itself. Use the above tips and you will accomplish your shoe shopping goal with ease. | 2,241 | 1,094 | 4,527.065814 |
warc | 202143 | Show 'em some love.
Also, know you're not alone.
Pass the pita, please.
Uh, did you know that it has omega-3s??
Pros share how you can try it in three steps.
Consider it calcium's little helper.
Live your best sniff-free life.
Cubes, spheres, and hearts are all optimized for different purposes.
Think of it as an internal thermostat that self-regulates, no matter what stressors you're experiencing.
Sign me up.
To water more, or not to water more?
You'd be wise not to stand between this Earth sign and their path to success.
Think less woo-woo, more physics.
What's wrong with seeing life through rose-colored glasses?
And, how to do it on yourself.
They're blue (da ba dee)...
A lot of 'em are already in your shampoo.
Stylish, cool, and charitable, too.
Feeling crazy in love? Don't waste another minute pining.
When leg day meets date night.
Your bed may stop supporting you long before you notice any springs poking through.
What to know before trying it.
Plus, what to do if your requests are going unanswered.
There's a reason why health pros swear by it.
A life coach offers 6 actionable tips.
Snip, snip!
It's a staple of the Nordic diet for a reason.
A life coach shares her top tips.
Just remember: It's called a yoga "practice" for a reason.
Starbucks, who?
You don’t have to sacrifice style for the sake of the planet.
Between reading, exercising, and just being good to yourself, there's an option for everyone.
Let's clear this up once and for all.
I'm all ears.
Yup, turmeric is definitely on the list.
Give it a try with the five basic exercises outlined here.
Consider adding these to your meal-prep rotation.
Think of it as the JOMO of mindfulness exercises.
Cardio fiends: There's a good chance red is one of your main aura colors.
11 common causes of postcoital discomfort, explained.
Here's how to deal when late-night hand paralysis strikes.
Wear 'em, meditate with 'em, manifest abundance with 'em—the list goes on.
There's no way to prevent this unconscious habit—but you can perform damage control.
To start, don't judge yourself, and celebrate your wins.
The plastic may be safe for you to drink from, but that doesn't mean it's BFFs with Mother Nature.
The simple hand positions help connect your mind and heart.
It happens—you just have to get back out there.
Question one: How can becoming a human pin cushion make you feel calm?
Pop that balloon-feeling with these science-backed tips clinical nutritionists swear by.
No massage appointment required.
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Please wait a moment... | 2,603 | 1,423 | 4,624.303584 |
warc | 202143 | Everyone has seen the cliched drunk Santa in movies (and maybe even in real life). However, public intoxication is no joke. It’s also legal In Minnesota. Yes, you read that correctly. You can’t be arrested for simply being drunk in public. But don’t take that as permission to get soused and tell off your boss....Read More
Most of the time, when parents have visitation, they have the child during their scheduled time, and they can watch movies, eat, work on homework, and whatever else they feel like doing, unsupervised. But some visitation arrangements aren’t like that. Sometimes, a court order requires another adult to supervise the parenting time. This is sometimes...Read More
Home Studies are required for adoptions, including those by a relative, foster care to adoption, and private adoptions. No matter what type of adoption you decide to move forward with, like all adoptive families in Minnesota, you must first be approved to adopt through a Minnesota-licensed home study provider. Home studies in Minnesota are done...Read More
A few generations ago, when someone was adopted, information about the birth parents was usually wholly unknown. Adoptions were closed. Today, it’s estimated that only 5 percent of adoptions are closed. “That means that 95 percent of today’s adoptions involve some level of openness, whether they are mediated, fully open, or somewhere in between.”[1] What...Read More
To begin the divorce process, you will need to have your spouse served with a summons and petition. This ensures that they know your intentions to divorce them and what you are asking for from the courts. While it may seem easy enough to have someone served, there are many ways that the process can...Read More
Fault vs. No-Fault Divorce can be confusing. Minnesota is a no-fault divorce state. What does that mean? What is the difference between fault and no-fault divorce? Grounds for divorce This is the difference between fault and no-fault divorce. With fault divorce, the person who is filing for divorce is saying it is their spouse’s fault...Read More
A Parenting Consultant (PC) is a form of alternative dispute resolution. Their role was created by Minnesota Court Rule 114.02(a)(10), which allows parties to develop an alternative dispute resolution process. How Disputes Arise A Parenting Consultant works with your family on an ongoing basis to resolve disputes such as parenting time and decisions about where...Read More
Child custody arrangements are often the most challenging aspect of a divorce case. While it is never ideal, joint child custody is usually the best way that the child can spend time with both parents. Now, COVID-19 is causing many to question if the changed circumstances we all are facing should also change these custody...Read More
How has COVID-19 Affected Divorce in Elk River, and the rest of the state? Covid-19 and Divorce are topics that have become very familiar in the past few months in Minnesota and globally. University of Washington associate sociology professor Julie Brines, and doctoral candidate Brian Serafini, examined divorce rates in Washington for 14-years. Between the...Read More
When planning a wedding, the happy couple will think of the dress, the cake, and the officiant. Other things that should be considered, as well. What will happen in the event of a divorce? Who will get what assets? Is Aunt Tilly’s china at risk of being divided up, or worse, awarded to your spouse...Read More | 3,530 | 1,699 | 7,207.516186 |
warc | 202143 | Shh/ BMP-4 signaling pathway is essential for intestinal epithelial development during Xenopus larval-to-adult remodeling.During amphibian larval-to-adult intestinal remodeling, progenitor cells of the adult epithelium actively proliferate and differentiate under the control of thyroid hormone (TH) to form the intestinal absorptive epithelium, which is analogous to the mammalian counterpart. We previously found that TH-up-regulated expression of bone morphogenetic protein-4 ( BMP-4) spatiotemporally correlates with adult epithelial development in the Xenopus laevis intestine. Here, we aimed to clarify the role of BMP-4 in intestinal remodeling. Our reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and in situ hybridization analyses indicated that mRNA of BMPR-IA, a type I receptor of BMP-4, is expressed in both the developing connective tissue and progenitor cells of the adult epithelium. More importantly, using organ culture and immunohistochemical procedures, we have shown that BMP-4 not only represses cell proliferation of the connective tissue but promotes differentiation of the intestinal absorptive epithelium. In addition, we found that the connective tissue-specific expression of BMP-4 mRNA is up-regulated by sonic hedgehog (Shh), whose epithelium-specific expression is directly induced by TH. These results strongly suggest that the Shh/ BMP-4 signaling pathway plays key roles in the amphibian intestinal remodeling through epithelial-connective tissue interactions. Developmental Dynamics 235:3240-3249, 2006. (c) 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.[1] References Shh/BMP-4 signaling pathway is essential for intestinal epithelial development during Xenopus larval-to-adult remodeling.Ishizuya-Oka, A., Hasebe, T., Shimizu, K., Suzuki, K., Ueda, S. Dev. Dyn.(2006) [Pubmed]
Annotations and hyperlinks in this abstract are from individual authors of WikiGenes or automatically generated by the WikiGenes Data Mining Engine. The abstract is from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.About WikiGenesOpen Access LicencePrivacy PolicyTerms of Useapsburg | 2,109 | 1,043 | 4,238.220518 |
warc | 202143 | The world may be opening up post-lockdown but many people are still spending more time at home than they were before – and for some – working from home remains enforced. As a result, interior design trends have shifted, evolving from simple styling to something more fundamental to our way of living. The fact is, some of our needs at home have changed, so our home interiors are changing along with it.
Here are our top 5 favourite trends to look out for this autumn…
Wellness at home
Now more than ever the home environment needs to be more than a place to eat, sleep and relax; it’s a place that must go further to offer comfort, luxury and a little escapism. That’s why creating spaces for wellness is growing – whether that’s an oasis of calm in the bathroom or a sanctuary in the bedroom. Everything from paint colours to natural fabrics can be incorporated to create the mood you want.
A reading corner
Closely linked to creating spaces for wellness, is the growing trend for a reading corner. Comfy-looking arm chairs or snug chairs are a must, along with a well-chosen coffee table, cushions and a warm blanket or throw. The good news is, you don’t need much space either – any corner in your lounge, spare room, bedroom, open plan kitchen dining area, or even the landing, can be used to create a quiet sitting area.
House plants
House plants have always had their place in the home but since lockdown the trend (and desire) for bringing the outside in has grown significantly. House plant subscriptions have also multiplied, and for now at least, it looks like indoor plants are here to stay. As a result, there is now plenty of choice when it comes to picking plants for your home – from trees to hanging plants to succulents – so there’s something for everyone.
Modern day vintage
If you live in a modern home but are partial to second-hand furniture or other vintage-style pieces, then you may be unknowingly following this trend already. It’s all about blending contemporary design with handpicked retro accessories such as deep velvets, vintage shaped sofas and pouffes, and other decadent designs features.
An outdoor space for every season
Before lockdown spending time enjoying your outside space was limited to the warmer, summer months. But now that has changed and gardens and patios have become an important part of our homes – whether we’re relaxing or entertaining. So, as we head into autumn, the focus is on soft seating, warm blankets, festoon lighting and heating solutions that allow you to enjoy your outside space all year round. | 2,649 | 1,320 | 5,139.461364 |
warc | 202143 | Diomec Plus paste is a nutritional aid which assists in normalising the digestive system in horses suffering with diarrhoea. Diomec contains Diosmectite, which binds bacteria, toxins and water in the gut which aids in solidifying the faeces.
Dosage:
Administer twice daily into your horse’s mouth for three days, or as directed by the prescribing veterinarian.
Up to 60 kg : 10 ml.
Up to 250 kg : 30 ml.
500 kg : 60 ml.
Always ensure fresh water is available.
Composition:
Each ml contains : Diosmectite 400 mg.
Warnings: If diarrhoea persists for two days or more without improvement seek veterinary advice immediately, especially if the effected horse is still a foal. Do not use this product for more than 10 consecutive days. Do not use after the expiry date on the packaging. Sizes: 60ml. | 809 | 486 | 1,320.034979 |
warc | 202143 | Google said it is buying a Manhattan office building for $2.1 billion, one of the clearest signals yet of big technology companies’ growing appetite for office space, even as these firms embrace remote work.
The deal for the new building on Manhattan’s West Side is the most expensive sale of a single U.S. office building since the start of the pandemic—and one of the priciest in U.S. history, according to data company Real Capital Analytics.
Google’s purchase of the 1.3 million-square-foot waterfront property is the latest sign that fears of the office building’s demise look overblown. Vacancy rates across the U.S. are well above pre-pandemic levels and office rents have tumbled. But in recent weeks there is evidence that cheaper space is luring back corporate tenants, which have been shrugging off delays in returning to the office because of the Delta variant and are planning for the years ahead.
In Manhattan, office asking rents are down to where they were in 2017, but August leasing activity for Midtown was more than double the previous month, according to real-estate firm Colliers. French bank Crédit Agricole SA signed a new lease in Midtown, while swimwear maker Longevity Brands added space in the Garment District.
Newer office buildings, meanwhile, are finding buyers again after a stretch last year when these properties mostly repelled investors. Towers with tenants committed to long-term leases have sold at high prices, in part because low interest rates make them look like attractive investments in comparison. In March, private-equity firm KKR & Co. paid $1.1 billion for a San Francisco office building leased to Dropbox Inc., the most expensive office sale in the city in more than a decade.
Google, Facebook Inc., Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and other tech giants have emerged in recent years as some of the biggest renters and buyers of office space throughout the U.S. Tech companies are taking advantage of lower office-building prices and putting billions of dollars in cash reserves to use, real-estate investors say.
“Even if they have 20% of their workforce working remotely, business is just growing so fast that the other 80% still needs a place to go,” said Brian Kingston, chief executive of real estate at Brookfield Asset Management.
Cities usually welcome the arrival of big tech companies for bringing an influx of well-paid employees and a boost to property-tax revenue, though these companies’ presence has also fueled concerns over rising commercial and apartment rents.
Google has embraced remote work more aggressively than many large-company peers, letting employees work at home since the spring of 2020. Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google parent Alphabet Inc., said last month that the company would delay its return to the office until January. But the Manhattan office purchase underscores how the company views office space as an important part of its long-term strategy.
Google, like many of the country’s bigger employers, has said it envisions a hybrid workplace. Mr. Pichai told employees that most of them would end up spending around three days a week in the office and two days working remotely, according to a May email he wrote to employees that Google published.
“We know that our employees, in order to really be happy and productive, need to collaborate,” said William Floyd, Google’s director of public policy and government affairs. “Because of that need to collaborate, we’ve been investing more and more in office space.”
Sustainable Business
Google is already leasing the building, a former freight terminal dubbed St. John’s Terminal, in the Hudson Square neighborhood. The company has an option to buy, which it said it plans to exercise in the first quarter of 2022. The Manhattan building is currently under construction and expected to open in mid-2023.
Google often prefers to buy buildings because owning spaces makes changing them in the future easier, like reconfiguring floor plans. “We like to control our own space,” Mr. Floyd said.
The sellers are two Canadian companies: real-estate firm Oxford Properties Group, which joined with Related Cos. on Manhattan’s Hudson Yards commercial and residential development, and CPP Investments, a pension-fund manager.
Google has been expanding its New York offices in recent years and now employs around 12,000 people in the city—its biggest workforce outside California. That number is up from around 7,000 in 2018, Mr. Floyd said. The company’s offices, some owned and some leased, are clustered in Manhattan’s Chelsea and Hudson Square neighborhoods.
The acquisition of St. John’s Terminal cements Google’s status as one of Manhattan’s biggest commercial-property owners. The company paid $2.4 billion for the nearby Chelsea Market building in 2018 and owns 111 Eighth Ave. and the Milk Building at 450 W. 15th St. Globally, Alphabet held $55.9 billion worth of land and buildings as of June 30, according to its latest quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Tech companies have said they favor New York over cheaper cities because of its large skilled labor pool and appeal to many young professionals. Amazon once planned to open a second headquarters in the city but backed out of the plans in 2019 after the subsidies it would receive drew opposition from local lawmakers. Google’s latest deal shows that the Amazon episode has done little to dent New York’s appeal to tech companies.
“New York City is the place for world-class talent, and Google’s acquisition of 550 Washington Street in Manhattan for its workforce demonstrates that,” Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer said.
Write to Konrad Putzier at konrad.putzier@wsj.com
Copyright ©2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Appeared in the September 22, 2021, print edition as 'Google’s Office Purchase Is Priciest Since Pandemic.'
Most Popular News Most Popular Videos Join the Conversation Howard Hanna Built a Big Real-Estate Firm and Kept It in the Family Today’s Tech Founders Don’t Just Own the Company. They’re Also Getting Huge Pay Packages. Effort to Bar Tech Companies From ‘Self-Preferencing’ Gains Traction How YouTube Makes Sure Its Hitmakers Don’t Stumble An Ohio Pension Manager Risks Running Out of Retirement Money. His Answer: Take More Risks. Why Ford Picked Tennessee for Its New Electric-Vehicle Plant At Times Like These, Inflation Isn’t All Bad Ed Beauvais Helped Reshape U.S. Airline Industry Tight Labor Market, Supply Constraints Point to Persistent Inflation Where Will Wally the Wandering Walrus End Up? | 6,830 | 3,343 | 13,496.553993 |
warc | 202143 | Many factories may have a cleanroom. This area is designated as a safety zone, free of contaminants. When companies produce certain products such as medicines or electronics, they need to be sure that they are built-in rooms free of dust and allergens. Strict controls are used to maintain validity. Why is this important? Why should these rooms be used? Here are five facts about the importance of cleanrooms.
1. It Helps Keep Company Promises
Companies may make promises about their items being free of allergens. This data is important to ensure customer safety and avoid cross-contamination. The cleanroom remains free of things that could harm the product or interfere with the client’s use.
2. It May Be Strictly Controlled
The room is often temperature regulated to safeguard the product’s integrity. In addition, the air is filtered heavily to draw out things that could interfere with the creation. For instance, HEPA filters are often used that remove dust, bacteria and pathogens. Contamination is then pushed outside and not recirculated back into the room.
3. It Is Fairly Common in Factory Settings
It’s not just the medical field that relies on a cleanroom. In fact, many industries desire a space that is considered safe for production. Along with pharmaceuticals, military applications, contact lens design, and electrical part companies may all rely on these zones.
4. It Is Actually Cleaned
Professionals test the rooms to check their authenticity. Businesses may require bio-safety cabinet testing to check to see if the protocols are working up to their standards. If they aren’t they know to recalibrate and fix any issues.
Cleanrooms are a widely accepted space used by businesses to maintain the validity of their products. It is closely watched and controlled to ensure that outside factors don’t interfere with production. Make sure to check the air quality and inspect the premises regularly to ensure it is all working properly. | 1,992 | 997 | 3,908.076229 |
warc | 202143 | Cleaning tips are not something that every person who owns a home will ever need to use. For individuals who do not own personal their own home, having these washing tips handy is a major lifesaver. Not merely may be the housekeeper one of the most essential individuals in the home, but the home chores are important as well. There are many issues that can arise when a person doesn’t learn how to perform certain tasks properly.
One from the major problems associated with cleaning would be that the housekeeper will not be able to focus on a task because it is taking so long to clean a room. A good way to handle this problem is to find the trouble creator and use the cleaning ideas to get the job done faster. For instance, if a child is definitely walking over the area, it is easier to completely clean in a short while.
A good vacuum cleaner is also a very useful tool. In case a person includes a small kitchen, he or she can avoid having plenty of mess in a little space. It also helps to ensure that a person is able to perform different duties without causing even more mess.
One of the biggest cleaning tips is to make sure that one has a large enough home to cope with. There is nothing worse than having to clean small spaces in order to clean your kitchen. If you have a small region, the difficulty is that the door can not close properly, which will lead to a mess. If you find room for a big machine, the person can properly deal with the task.
Another means of avoiding messes in the house would be to bring a wall dryer in to the home. This might appear to be a no-brainer but most people don’t believe about using these. They are not likely to like the odor from the dryer.
Other cleaning tips are usually to employ a towel to clean off chaos after it has been cleaned. To be able to get the mess out of the clothes, it’s important to truly have a good washing towel to utilize. A person can also find extra towels and use them at periods when the accurate home is not being utilized.
It is essential to consider if a person can clean the home by himself. If a person doesn’t have the perfect time and energy to clean up, he should hire someone to clean it for him. When a person has a lot of money to make investments, he can hire a professional to completely clean his house.
One of the best tips would be to browse the homeowner’s insurance policy carefully. Many policies are no-fault and they cover repairs that might occur from harm because of mishandling. When there is a problem with the property, it is possible to get a fresh policy that covers it.
If a person has a problem with shifting the furniture, he should ensure that he takes photos of the places that need to be cleaned. Once he has got the pictures he should take them to the house to get the cleaning done properly. You’ll be able to save a complete bundle by carrying it out this method.
When there’s dirt under the cushions of a chair, it is possible to clean it. A similar thing can be said about the walls. Individuals usually do not use a clean-up remedy around the furniture and wall space, but the incorrect alternative might lead to plenty of harm to the materials.
A person should make sure that he enters the habit of cleaning the carpets of the house weekly. Once he’s got cleansed it, it is a good idea to allow it to dry and then it could be cleaned again in a few days. If the carpeting is one which the household uses, it can be set at by the one who cleans it once.
A person should read cleaning ideas to understand the ways in which he is able to clean the house. Almost all people believe everything in the real home could be washed, but this is not the case. Some guidelines can help make washing the real house easier for the person.
Here’s more info regarding https://www.gleamerscleaning.co.uk/carpet-cleaning-liverpool visit our own internet site.
A lot more recommendations from recommended publishers: | 3,981 | 1,823 | 8,562.534833 |
warc | 202143 | Hiring A Water Mitigation Installer
You most likely have actually found movies as well as report about organic disasters and catastrophes. This is because disasters like these can take place anytime, generally when you minimum expect it. This is actually additionally one of the reasons federal government never neglects to remind folks to ready on their own in this type of situation for safety and also safety main reasons. Certainly, flooding is actually becoming one of the major troubles of property owner in the course of stormy seasons. You can locate hundreds of flooding cleaning and also water removal services online but just how to spot the very best flood clean provider?
To offer you much more insights regarding how to choose the greatest water cleaning as well as removal service provider, listed below are lists of points that you require to take into consideration just before finalizing a deal with service contractors. • Business Background Check Out Carrying out a background inspection is taken into consideration to be the absolute most important points that an individual need to do just before working with company contractors. This are going to provide you an idea about how the service provider works, especially in water extraction solutions as this requires to be performed properly and also properly. Swamped cellars must be actually checked through properly seasoned as well as professional flood clean up service providers as it could be really harmful. You will certainly certainly never recognize if there's an available fuse or even live electric power, which can induce serious accident or maybe death, going here. • Resources and Equipment Besides the water extraction solution contractor's expertise, you likewise require to inquire about the resources and equipment that they utilize in carrying out flood clean solutions. Choosing a flood elimination service provider that is actually outfitted along with the most recent tools as well as gadgets for getting rid of excess water may be actually beneficial as it can produce the task less complicated as well as a lot faster. You likewise require to evaluate if their tools are actually ensured secure and also may do no injury to your facilities. • Service Specialists Work Experience Upon checking the flooding reduction business's background, it is actually likewise strongly encouraged to ask for the service professional's operating knowledge and also if they are actually understandable to implement water extraction and also carpeting drying appropriately. This suggests that you require to verify if the solution specialists are certified specialists, along with if they are actually guaranteed and also adhered. The truth that you just employed qualified experienced water elimination service contractors will certainly assist you certainly not to fret, regardless of whether you need to have to leave your home, go here. • Price versus Performance We are all conscious that when these 2 factors are integrated, it can generate one of the most enjoyable kind of solution. However sadly, this hardly ever occurs. That is why you need to have to translate the performance of the company contractors based on comments. Do certainly not be actually drawn to look for economical water mitigation companies as this may risk the high quality of job. Instead, search for water and mold removal solution professionals along with effective files, who are capable of delivering ultimate quality water extraction solution for a quite sensible rate. You may possess various other suggestions on just how to find the very best water extraction professionals that may manage your swamped cellar more effectively. You only need to accomplish a little bit of analysis initially just before making a deal given that the water removal job needs adventure as well as understanding. | 3,883 | 1,746 | 8,582.18614 |
warc | 202143 | Infusion for sinusitis with plantain. Infusion for sinusitis with plantain. Medicinal plants are used in chronic sinusitis and in the acute period of the disease. They help relieve inflammation, relieve nasal congestion, and eliminate pain. Infusion for sinusitis is also useful in the season of increased incidence of acute respiratory viral infections to prevent an […]
Posts Tagged ‘Influenza’ adminon 9 января, 2021 adminon 8 января, 2021
Linden and raspberries for colds. Linden and raspberries for colds. Linden is a long-known remedy that helps get rid of the symptoms of colds, viral infections, or is used for prevention. Linden tea especially saves in winter. It is drunk with hypothermia to keep warm, in addition, the body is saturated with useful vitamins. In […]
adminon 21 декабря, 2020
Influenza Treatment. Often, bronchitis, asthma, and other serious illnesses appear as a complication after the flu, so its prevention is extremely important. To «resist» an epidemic, pour one tablespoon of calendula flowers with a glass of boiling water and boil for several minutes. Insist for an hour, then strain and take 1-2 tablespoon before meals […]
adminon 15 октября, 2020
During epidemics. Flu treatment. The flu goes. Every year we hear terrible warnings from doctors about the insidiousness of the flu viruses. Flu treatment. Almost all suffer from it. And only a few lucky people manage to do without complications, which manifest themselves sooner or later. This elementary weakness and lethargy is possible for a […]
adminon 4 октября, 2020
How to resist viruses? Flu remedies. To combat viruses, as well as to prevent associated diseases, there are many antiviral plant remedies. With ODS and flu, viruses affect the respiratory organs, so plants that are rich in essential oils, as well as herbs that have a bitter taste and strengthen immunity, come to the aid […]
adminon 25 мая, 2019
Why is it so dangerous flu. Influenza symptoms treatment. Why is it so dangerous flu. This is simply that many do not understand. All complications do not occur from the virus, but under the influence of secondary infections. Virus-induced pneumonia develops in several cases. It develops very seriously against the background of the flu. Often […] | 2,496 | 1,166 | 4,825.02916 |
warc | 202143 | Baldwin, H.M., Pallas, K., King, V., Jamieson, T., McKimmie, C.S., Nibbs, R.J.B. , Carballido, J.M., Jaritz, M., Rot, A. and Graham, G.J. (2013) Microarray analyses demonstrate the involvement of type i interferons in psoriasiform pathology development in D6-deficient mice.
Journal of Biological Chemistry, 288(51), pp. 36473-36483. (doi: 10.1074/jbc.M113.491563)
Text
89900.pdf - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution.
2MB
Abstract
The inflammatory response is normally limited by mechanisms regulating its resolution. In the absence of resolution, inflammatory pathologies can emerge, resulting in substantial morbidity and mortality. We have been studying the D6 chemokine scavenging receptor, which played an indispensable role in the resolution phase of inflammatory responses and does so by facilitating removal of inflammatory CC chemokines. In D6-deficient mice, otherwise innocuous cutaneous inflammatory stimuli induce a grossly exaggerated inflammatory response that bears many similarities to human psoriasis. In the present study, we have used transcriptomic approaches to define the molecular make up of this response. The data presented highlight potential roles for a number of cytokines in initiating and maintaining the psoriasis-like pathology. Most compellingly, we provide data indicating a key role for the type I interferon pathway in the emergence of this pathology. Neutralizing antibodies to type I interferons are able to ameliorate the psoriasis-like pathology, confirming a role in its development. Comparison of transcriptional data generated from this mouse model with equivalent data obtained from human psoriasis further demonstrates the strong similarities between the experimental and clinical systems. As such, the transcriptional data obtained in this preclinical model provide insights into the cytokine network active in exaggerated inflammatory responses and offer an excellent tool to evaluate the efficacy of compounds designed to therapeutically interfere with inflammatory processes.
Item Type: Articles Status: Published Refereed: Yes Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Baldwin, Dr Helen and King, Dr Vicky and Pallas, Mr Kenny and Nibbs, Professor Rob and Jamieson, Mr Thomas and McKimmie, Dr Clive and Graham, Professor Gerard Authors: Baldwin, H.M., Pallas, K., King, V., Jamieson, T., McKimmie, C.S., Nibbs, R.J.B., Carballido, J.M., Jaritz, M., Rot, A., and Graham, G.J. College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > Institute of Cancer Sciences Journal Name: Journal of Biological Chemistry Journal Abbr.: J Biol Chem. Publisher: American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc. ISSN: 0021-9258 ISSN (Online): 1083-351X Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2013 The Authors First Published: First published in Journal of Biological Chemistry 288(51):36473-36483 Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License | 2,947 | 1,481 | 5,834.303849 |
warc | 202143 | How Contemporary Daily life Has an hardcore pre workout effect on Our Mental and Physical Well being
hardcore pre workout >Workout is defined while any motion that helps make your muscle tissue function and requires your entire body to burn off calorie consumption. Up to date reports have shown that interval training is definitely often tolerated good on folks with heart disease, and it can produce considerable benefits. Limitation moment on the subject of community multimedia Drastically. “Modernism at Art work Design and style and Design,” New You are able to: St. Martins Media. Work out will improve the good quality of living for men and women who’ve had tumor, and it can improve their fitness also. And when your lung and center overall health improve, you have more electricity to equipment regular tasks. Allow us start looking worries some of the incredible features of activity then simply conversation about how you will find started off.
They argue that modernity, contingently understood as marked by an ontological formation in prominence, demands to turn out to be defined a lot of even more inside of words of different techniques of as fundamentally | hardcore pre workout
To reap the positive aspects of work out, only obtain even more dynamic throughout your day time – get the stairways rather of the elevator or rev upward your residence stuff. Matching to the Several Locations Review , research workers learned guys and women around pick out Eu locations and observed that all those who also got a new healthful diet regime got a new reduced 20-yr loss of life level.
When ordering the most desirable back home gym tools, the main components to consider are the type of work out, price and size. Standard, medium exercise – weight-bearing routines much like going for a walk mainly, going, jogging , and dancing – keeps your bone robust. The average real human moves through this environment via car or public transport typically, commuting a couple hours per day to and from a job they do not like or hate to work for ~8 hours, returning at the end of the day to an enclosed rectangular box of a home or apartment where they’re cut off from most people in their peoples lives.
Regarding to the You.S. Office of Well being & Man Companies, intellectual health and fitness makes reference to a person’s mental, cultural, and internal well-being. Instances of nominal aerobic pastime include brisk running or maybe skating, and vigorous aerobic action might include jogging or perhaps biking. Also, due to a total final result of solutions, very much more constant checkers than non-constant checkers look disconnected from their spouse and children, perhaps when they will be throughout the same area, and extra than one 1 / 3 of constant checkers say that they will be unlikely to encounter with pals and friends and family throughout person as a result of to social multimedia.
We in Increase Exercise have got had the satisfaction of functioning with Philip and some of the additional coaches found at Standard Exercising and we suspect they represent what is ideal with the market. Vigorous high energy exercise includes activities many of these as high energy and functioning dancing. Even more study is usually needed to know to what level adding physical activity improves memory space or slows down the development of cognitive decrease. Exercising and physical action might get enjoyable. Current research by The Connected Press-NORC Middle for General public Affairs Research discovered that teenagers older 13 to 17 years aged have shifted their favored interpersonal media systems and are now many most likely to use Snapchat and lnstagram. | 3,729 | 1,909 | 7,190.387114 |
warc | 202143 | 28 Mar 2019 13:58
Tags
<h1>Dwelling Lengthier And Living Much better With Clever Nutrition Alternatives</h1>
<p>Meals is the gasoline your body use for precisely what they generally do. Meals gives us your building prevents the body must transfer, construct new muscle groups, and maintain our brain proceeding. That's why nutrients is a vital issue for keeping your whole body healthier. Please read on for many tips on nutrition that will make you are feeling far better.</p>
<p>Swap white colored flour items with some other whole grain products. The visible difference in between whole wheat grains and standard whole grains is that whole wheat grains have a higher fiber content and protein information. Cereals are still really gratifying without getting weighty or poor. Scan the components on the tag and ensure that "total-grain" is listed prominently.</p>
<p>To step away from Points Everyone Ought To Know Relating to Health And Nutrients and other sugary refreshments, you have to find an alternative. It is organic to obtain urges for anything sweet: why not attempt fruit juice? Or better yet, blend juice and drinking water. Purchase some grapefruits and squash them your self. You can do the same with many different fruit, and merge different kind of fruit drinks for flavoring.</p>
<p>Suppose you happen to be deciding if they should try to eat meat or otherwise not. The two main types of factors. The first is no matter if meats is "clear" foods. Would it be brought up on the "manufacturer farm" under dangerous conditions? Will it be packed with hormones, nitrites and nitrates? In that case, it is not necessarily a wholesome meals. One other thing to consider is moral this really is a more advanced and person determination.</p>
<p>Restrict your intake of iced meals if you're viewing your salt ingestion. The sodium information in many frosty food is ridiculous. Some even include a whole day's amount of salt. They could be hassle-free, but they are you ready to threat your overall health around spending several more a few minutes in your kitchen?</p>
<p>Eat a healthier mix of distinct foods in your diet. Should you be trying to build muscle or slim down, you may be focusing on food items to match your training session schedule, but don't neglect to enjoy in a healthy way in which includes food items from all of the food groups. This will help keep your body loaded with the nutrients you should function.</p>
<p>Would you like to lessen the volume of steak you take in? When you have addressed yes, then consider adding it on other food items rather. Rather than generating meat the key dish, integrate it into foods depending on greens and healthful whole grains. The Mediterraneans and Asian happen to be using this secret for a long time, and so they don't experience heart problems as much as a result.</p>
<p>An excellent nutritional tip would be to set a good instance to your youngster. You need to make wholesome alternatives since - how you will try to eat - will specifically influence the way your youngster eats. If you eat harmful plus your meals are horrible, chances are your youngster will follow exactly the same behavior.</p>
<p>Vitamin E Antioxidant is often overlooked in the realm of skin care. It is a wealthy essential oil that could be used internally or employed externally towards the encounter and body. Within a crunch, the pills could be broken open and suited for the face or entire body. This is a wonderful face face mask and is effective like a strong lotion.</p>
<p>To lower your blood pressure level, you ought to involve plenty of potassium in your diet. Studies have shown that eating potassium regularly can provide drastically reduced blood pressure level. A few examples of meals full of calcium mineral are lima beans, carrots, and spinach. Prepared orange fruit juice is yet another excellent resource.</p>
<p>Don't transform too much at once. Make your self a summary of all you aspire to alter. Make your way straight down that collection gradually. Start out with the things you can simply change, which include removing foods that are fried and soft drinks out of your diet program. When you have achieved this, it is possible to proceed to more challenging issues.</p>
<p>A lot of the foods we eat nowadays are full of chemical preservatives and artificial substances that are really easy to get enslaved by, and therefore are not good for the body. Keep away from buying almost any canned food, or food items that comes from a box. Make your individual meals in your own home which means you understand specifically what you will be eating.</p>
<p>Going angling in oceans that certain is aware of cost nothing from air-borne pollutants and so are thoroughly clean might be a enjoyable strategy to produce fresh sea food to supplement ones diet program. The fish that may be eaten that day, frosty, or preserved are a healthful meals to dietary supplement versions diet program with an excellent nutritious solution.</p>
<p>Peas can create a delightful addition to your diet plan. Whilst they do consist of some starch, they likewise have a lot of fiber, health proteins, nutritional vitamins, and minerals. Nutrients Tips People Need To Use . As well as eating freshly steamed back garden peas, in addition they produce a good divide pea soups when dried, or when frosty, create a excellent addition to mix-fries.</p>
<p>To improve your health, restriction your consumption of unnatural foods. Scale back on junk foods and meals fried in essential oil. When you do consume junk foods opt for ones made from whole grains. Whole grains will be more source of nourishment dense in comparison to the options and also since it takes your body much longer to get rid of whole grains down, you remain full for a longer time.</p>
<p>To prevent investing Don't Forget Of Learning About Appropriate Nutrition about sensible food than you really need to, inform yourself by doing very own investigation. For instance, some recommend available the very best benefits from steel-cut oats, which might be more pricey. Nevertheless, any oats which must be slowly prepared or boiled have the identical vitamins and minerals in them. In spite of this, stay away from pre-made oats flavored with fresh fruit, as they can have higher salt and sugars information.</p>
<p>If you are searching to enhance your overall health by concentrating on better nutrients, begin with consuming fresh fruits very first thing each morning. The natural sugar give you a enhance of power. Fruit can be another strong approach to break the "quick" after a extended sleeping. Fresh fruit is extremely wholesome, and tastes wonderful.</p>
<p>To satisfy the requirement for proteins that may be element of a healthy diet, the best choice is little servings of slim meat. Healthy proteins gives plenty of energy and reduces urges at a discount well balanced meals. It can be difficult to get healthy proteins in foods which do not also provide harmful elements. The slimmer the meat the greater, in order to avoid unwelcome body fat.</p>
<p>In Healthy Living As Well As The Diet regime Recommendations You Should Consider that eating healthy needs to be a life-extended goal, your nutritious education and learning must be a regular process. The information talked about in the following paragraphs develop simply the idea of your iceberg of nutrients information accessible. Applying them can easily kick off of your journey to healthier dietary habits. Find deeper types of knowledge which means that your mind's nutrients is not dropped at the same time.</p> | 7,635 | 3,620 | 16,037.718232 |
warc | 202143 | The 18 the Constitutional Amendment made Right to Education a justiciable fundamental right with the following pledge; ‘The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years in such manner as may be determined by law.’ (
Article 25-A of the Pakistani Constitution)
After a decade the performance on ground is abysmal in all federating units. There were amazing legislative leaps as the law for federal capital-Islamabad was passed in 2012. As of today the Executive has failed to frame the rules that are require to implement this Act. Another catch in operationalization of the law is that the government has to notify the areas where the state will provide ‘free and compulsory’ education. Islamabad has 50 Union Councils and even after 8-year not a single inch has been designated to bestow the fruits of constitution.
In 2013 Sindh enacted its law for free and compulsory education in the light of Article 25-A of the Constitution. This law was supposed to come in force at ‘once’ and its rules were notified in 2016. However there is very little tangible progress on the ground.
Balochistan passed its law in 2014 and with the exception of tribal areas was deemed to have been effective since June 2013. There is hardly any significant progress on the ground.
Khyber Pakhtunkhawa enacted its law for free and compulsory education in 2017. Here again neither the rules have been made nor any operationalization notification have been issued.
In the Constitution of Pakistan Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) have a different legal status. There are conversations to import the spirit of the right to education in the constitutional arrangement of AJK and in the autonomy order of GB.
After advocacy and trainings by Awaz-CDS, some legislators in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab have taken-up the issue of rules and notification of areas. They have invoked various parliamentary tools as a wake-up call and push the government to do the needful. | 2,062 | 1,048 | 3,980.368321 |
warc | 202143 | 04-01-2021
Jennifer Freyd was a fully tenured psychology professor at the University of Oregon. A graduate of Stanford and Cornell, she specialized in trauma studies, taught students, oversaw a research lab, edited a preeminent journal, and served on several University committees. She filed a lawsuit asserting that the University paid her significantly less than her male colleagues of equal rank and seniority.
While working at the University, other educational institutions reached out to her in an effort to persuade her to leave but she let them know she was not interested. Her husband also worked for the University of Oregon, and she wanted to continue her work there. Other institutions also reached out to her male colleagues at the University to recruit them. The University of Oregon responded to these recruitments by providing “retention raises” to these professors as an incentive to stay. Because Freyd was uninterested in leaving, the University of Oregon did not offer her a “retention raise.” As part of an unrelated records request, Freyd saw the salaries of the Psychology department; she was paid between $14,000 and $42,000 less per year than her male colleagues. She believes the “retention raises” accounted for much of the disparity. In her analysis, she found that even female faculty who were more receptive to offers from other institutions did not benefit in the same way from these raises.
After a federal district court dismissed the case, the Ninth Circuit revived Freyd’s Equal Pay Act claim. The University argued the male professors performed different research, ran different labs, obtained funding from different sources, and sat on different committees, making their work easily distinguishable from Freyd’s. However, the circuit court concluded a reasonable jury could decide that the male comparators “perform a common core of tasks” and did substantially the same work. Each individual taught, researched, advised students, and participated in University committees. The court stated it was unable “
as a matter of law to pronounce their responsibilities so unique that they cannot be compared for purposes of the Equal Pay Act.” To ensure the Act is “broadly remedial” and will be workable across industries, the appellate court held it should be presented to a jury. | 2,387 | 1,158 | 4,763.693437 |
warc | 202143 | Tennis is a very popular sport. Everyone can play tennis from beginners to the pros. There are two primary types of tennis players. They are classified based on their ability to hit the ball further than a forehand or backhand. Tennis players are often unable to hit forehands due inexperience with how to effectively engage their muscles in is the best way to hit powerful forehands. Likewise, tennis players also struggle with backhands due to the fact that they aren’t aware about the proper way to position themselves to hit a great backhand down the court. So, these two crucial areas of the game must to be addressed by those who want to be successful in the game.
The grip is the most critical element of a successful tennis swing. Many beginners make the error of gripping the racket to tightly or too loosely and end up hitting the ball too far, making improper contact, or even having the racket fall off when they are swinging at the ball. The best method to hit the ball correctly is to keep the racket in the proper position.
The other important factor to remember is that your forehand’s swing path should begin straight and then curve toward the top of your body as you approach the top of your follow-through. This is called a high arc or cut shot. A hook with a low angle will have a natural wrist hinge and wrist extension. These aspects will affect the type of shots you should be learning. If you are practicing the bank shot technique your forehand’s swing path will naturally curve toward the top as you get closer to the ball.
Remember to always swing with your shoulders squared with the ball. This will keep your shoulders in constant contact with the ball while your arms move freely. Keep in mind that the shoulders must never leave the socket or your tennis racquet during your swing. It could make it extremely difficult to catch the ball when this happens.
When approaching the ball, make sure that your arm is pointed towards your side, and not to your backside. By putting your arm to the side will weaken your ability to generate energy and generate a good backswing. To get your arm to rotate correctly it is essential to hold a firm grip on the club. A weak grip could result in injury. It can cause you not to hit the ball, or cause you to overextend your arms. This could cause injury.
Another key factor in the proper grip is the angle you stand at. Tennis beginners are typically right-handed and have their left hand draped across their body. The left arm of beginner players is often slung across their body. The majority of coaches suggest that you hold the club with the neutral grip or similar to a baseball position. A neutral grip can stop you from hitting with an arm that isn’t dominant.
Tennis players with open stance forehands tend to have problems with their forearms. If players have an open stance forehand, they tend to over-turn their wrists, and they do not have a proper grip. This issue can be fixed by using an upright grip. Closed grips are the best choice for players with an open forehand. This can be achieved by placing the racket on your head, while your knees are bent and your elbows are locked.
Tennis players who are non-dominant hand should move the racket in front of their head and above their shoulders. The racket should point towards your crotch in case you are left handed and should be facing your waist if you are left-handed. This will stop the over-the-head swing or the under-shoulder swing from happening. Keep your wrists straight while you swing. Also, ensure that you don’t allow any side of your body too much space. | 3,637 | 1,631 | 8,034.40282 |
warc | 202143 | By TrueSport
When it comes to preventing cliques and bullying behaviors, it’s best to be proactive. While it’s easy to get caught up in drills, rosters, and logistics, coaches who focus on building strong team-wide relationships from the first day of practice are less likely to run into the social problems, like cliques, that hurt teams and players.
TrueSport Expert Nadia Kyba, a social worker and expert in conflict resolution, explains how to avoid cliques forming, and how to deal with them if they do.
1. Understand the skill of team-wide relationships “The more coaches can do in terms of relationship-building on the team, the better,” says Kyba. “It’s just as important as skill-building in terms of performance and athlete retention: it’s going to serve you when things go south or when people want to leave. The great coaches that I speak to are on top of avoiding cliques from day one.” 2. Recognize that cliques are natural “Groups of kids who know each other from school or from different activities will naturally want to stick together because it’s comfortable,” Kyba says. “I think that it’s really important to acknowledge that it’s sometimes tough for kids to make new relationships, especially if they’re feeling insecure about their athletic abilities. Close friendships among teammates are fine and normal, but cliques are the negative side of small groups of friends in larger team contexts. When others are being excluded, that’s when a coach needs to step in.” 3. Explain why team dynamic matters Many coaches make the mistake of gruffly splitting apart small groups of friends. Especially for young athletes, they may not understand why they’re being separated—and they may even feel as though they’re being punished. “Be really transparent about why you’re working to build relationships between everybody on the team, rather than just a few groups of people,” Kyba says. “If you can explain this, it’s easier for the kids to see that you’re not just out to ruin their lives.” 4. Make sure it’s not a punishment Many coaches let athletes pick their groups early on, and only split them up once the kids are acting up, being loud, or ignoring instructions. But that ultimately makes separating cliques into a punishment rather than a default for the team. ” Separating groups of friends from day one can ultimately create a better team dynamic,” Kyba says. “Normalize that by not letting athletes divide themselves.” 5. Split groups differently “Be intentional about splitting groups differently on a consistent basis – even for social activities,” Kyba says. “If your team does a group dinner but everybody just sits in their little social circles, it’s not really doing anything to team-build.” You may need to assign tables or opt for activities that keep athletes moving around. 6. It’s a season-long process “I know a hockey coach who’s been coaching for 40 years. He works on building the team relationships from day one and has it down to a science,” Kyba says. “For example, he would assign lockers in the locker room and change them weekly. He would do icebreakers at every practice. He would even look at carpools and make sure that every single time, the carpools were different. He mixed up rooming assignments and seats on planes. He had it all logged in an Excel spreadsheet to keep track. It was a huge focus for him, and his teams did amazing as a result.” 7. Get parents on board Don’t just tell parents you’re trying to avoid cliques: Make them part of the process! “That hockey coach also got the parents on board: he thought that it was really important for the parents to also role model team-building,” Kyba says. “He had the parents drive other kids that they didn’t already know in their carpools, so they could get to know the kids on the team. They also had to get to know the other parents—and parent cliques can be just as tough as athlete ones!” 8. If you see something, say something One of the biggest mistakes a coach can make is ignoring a clique when it first starts to form, hoping it will go away or won’t cause a problem. “When you see a clique forming, it’s important to address it immediately,” Kyba says. “Get back to those icebreakers, randomize seats on the bus, and change up your practice teams.” 9. Don’t just separate The biggest mistake coaches make when addressing the issue of cliques is separating, but not changing the behavior. Separating groups of athletes is a place to start, but unless you’re also focusing on building relationships between all of the teammates, your athletes are likely to end up resentful and unfocused. “Find ways that teammates can collaborate, even outside of competition,” says Kyba. “For instance, if a few athletes are creative, get them to do the team’s social media together. Give them a purpose and a reason to work together that isn’t just passing the ball.” Takeaway Preventing cliques is one of many ways to proactively avoid conflict on a team, including bullying behaviors. Use these tips from TrueSport Expert Nadia Kyba to prevent and address cliques on your team. About TrueSport TrueSport®, a movement powered by the experience and values of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, champions the positive values and life lessons learned through youth sport. TrueSport inspires athletes, coaches, parents, and administrators to change the culture of youth sport through active engagement and thoughtful curriculum based on cornerstone lessons of sportsmanship, character-building, and clean and healthy performance, while also creating leaders across communities through sport.
For more expert-driven articles and materials, visit TrueSport’s comprehensive LEARN resource.
This content was reproduced in partnership with TrueSport. Any content copied or reproduced without TrueSport and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency’s express written permission would be in violation of our copyright, and subject to legal recourse. To learn more or request permission to reproduce content, click here. | 6,344 | 2,751 | 13,817.974555 |
warc | 202143 | Since the theory of chaos was introduced in cryptography, the use of chaotic dynamical systems to secure communications has been widely investigated, particularly to generate chaotic pseudorandom numbers as cipher-keys. The emergent property of the ultra-weak multidimensional coupling of p one-dimensional dynamical systems lead to randomness preserving chaotic properties of continuous models in numerical simulations. This paper focuses on such families called multiparameter chaotic pseudo random number generators (M-p CPRNG) and proposes algorithm approach to test the robustness of time series generated by M-p CPRNG. First, a single one-dimensional chaotic map to construct a regular chaotic subsampling is considered. Parameters on which depends the map are estimated using only the sequences generated by this map to cipher a message. A previous study [1] using the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) has shown that a necessary minimum shift value corresponding to a particular subsampling of a chaotic cubic map is obtained from which it is not possible to estimate the parameters. In this paper, new cipher breaking methods are considered for the same purpose: assessing the security of the time series. These methods are investigated in the same way than EKF one and compared to the results provided by EKF. The EKF was first improved by introducing a modified Gram-Schmidt method and the nonlinear least squares method was also tested. The one-dimensional cubic map was again considered and a new parameter leading to EKF oscillations is especially studied.
− In the range of short time of neural network training (up to 12 minutes) the accuracy of estimation remained on the same level. The neural network, when trained on several examples, behaved almost the same as when trained for a longer time. All of the analyzed examples were allowed for assessment of the surface roughness Ra parameter for a stable process, for a normal work of a tool. The occurrence of a more significant increase in surface roughness (both in surface roughness parameters and in surface image features) caused an immediate increase in the predicted Ra value. In further steps this predicted Ra value kept growing in spite of the decrease of reference Ra value and of values of image wavelet features.
dividuals to estimate the population level parameters as well as the distribution of the individual parameters. The importance of capturing the parameter variability among individuals has long been recognized, and recently it has been shown that different genotypes can play a significant role on how a drug is metabolized and processed [13, 18]. Thus, capturing the inter-individual variation in model parameters is crucial, especially when considering extrapolation between species, doses, and exposure routines. As mentioned previously, several methods have been developed specifically for the case of estimating the distribution of individual parameters so long as longitudinal individ- ual data is available. Yet there are a lack of methods available aimed at accounting for parameter variability when true individual data is not available. To the authors’ knowledge, there is only a little previous work (see [1, 4, 8]) in the mathematical or pharmacological literature which attempt to account for inter-individual variability when individual subjects cannot be tracked over time. When aggregate data is treated as individual data, as is traditionally done in most physiological pharmacokinetic studies, then one can only account for the average dynamics, and all parameter values (either estimated through means of an inverse problem, or measured in separate experiments) represent the average behavior. There has been a recent push in the pharmacology modeling com- munity to better understand the uncertainty and variability associated with the model development and calibration, and incorporating this information into the risk assessmentprocess (see [9, 10, 19] and the references therein). We emphasize that capturing the uncertainty due to inter-individual variability when the individual is not available for repeated measurements has yet to be addressed. We propose that the methods outlined in this work provide a more realistic quantification of pa- rameter uncertainty in the case where only unidentified individual data is available, which in turn leads to more reliable predictive capabilities and risk assessment analysis.
and 2b show the MEWE’s bivariate marginal sampling distributions for (a, b) and (g, κ) respec- tively, as n ranges from 500 to 10 5 (colors from red to white to blue as n increases). Note that the sample sizes here are 10 times larger than in the plots for the i.i.d. setting. For each n, we plot M = 1, 000 estimators based on independent data sets. Each estimator was computed with p = 1, m = 10 4 , k = 20, and one iteration of MCEM. The intersections of the black lines indicate data-generating parameters. Figure 2c shows the MEWE’s marginal distribution for κ for the dif- ferent levels of n, centered and rescaled by √ n, illustrating the rate of convergence anticipated by Theorem 2.3, but that the asymptotic variance is larger than in the i.i.d. case. Figure 2d shows the autocorrelation function of a data set generated with θ ? = (3, 1, 2, 0.5), ρ = 0.75, and n = 1, 000. 13 3 Estimators in the well-specified sum of log-Normals model, as described in Section 4.2. Figure
For the simulation part, the AC1A excitation system model and AC8B excitation system model have been implemented in MALTAB/Simulink, based on the IEEE standard 421.5, which is updated in 2005. On the other hand, for the optimization part, the goal is to look for suitable parameters such that, with the same input, the simulation output will match the field data from the real machine. We formulated the problem as a least square problem and applied Damped Gauss-Newton method (DGN) and Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) method to solve it. We used both the MATLAB ParameterEstimation Toolbox and the MATLAB programs developed by us to implement the algorithms and get the parameters. For both of the AC1A models and AC8B, we did the case studies and validation. And this is also a project sponsored by Progress Energy, who provided two suites of “bump-test” field data of AC1A excitation system and AC8B excitation system as well. Besides the results, we
We said above that DALEχ runs the tendril search “until convergence”. Convergence is a tricky concept in Bayesian samplers. It is even trickier in DALEχ . Because DALEχ is not attempting to sample a posterior probability distribution, there is no summary statistic analogous to Gelman and Rubin’s R metric for MCMC ( Gelman and Rubin 1992 ; Brooks and Gelman 1998 ) that will tell us that DALEχ has found everything it is going to find. We therefore adopt the heuristic convergence metric that as long as DALEχ is exploring previously undiscovered parameter space volumes with χ 2 ≤ χ 2 lim , DALEχ has not converged. The onus is thus placed on us to determine in a way that can be easily encoded which volumes in parameter space have already been discovered. In Appendix A we describe an algorithm for taking a set of parameter space points { ~ P } and finding an approximately minimal D-dimensional ellipsoid containing those points. Each time DALEχ runs a tendril search as described in the previous paragraphs, we amass the χ 2 ≤ χ 2 lim points discovered into a set { ~ T } and fit an ellipsoid to that set as described in Appendix A . While running the tendril search, DALEχ keeps track of the end point of each individual leg of the search. If the simplex search ends in a point that is contained in one of the ellipsoids resulting from a previous tendril search (the set of “exclusion ellipsoids” {X} referenced earlier), the simplex search is considered to be doubling back on a previously discovered region of parameter space and a “strike” (analogous to what happens when a batter in baseball swings at the ball and misses) is recorded. Similarly, if the simplex point ends inside of the ellipsoid constructed from the points { ~ T } discovered by the previous legs comprising the current tendril search (and the volume of that ellipsoid has not expanded due to the current simplex) a “strike” is recorded.
The method of automatic identification of se- mantic frames is based on probabilistic generative process. Training data for the algorithm consists of tuples of grammatical relation realizations ac- quired using a dependency parser from the train- ing corpus for every lexical unit. For example, sup- pose that the goal is to generate semantic frames of verbs from a corpus for grammatical relations sub- ject and object. The training data for lexical unit eat may look like {(peter, cake), (man, breakfast), (dog, meat), ...}, where the first component of the tuples corresponds to sub- ject and the second to object.
when a dataset is available, the distribution in which the data set is derived from is a key question. In parametric estimation, a distribution is postulated and then the parameters are estimated, but if the postulated distribution is not right, then the analysis became questionable. But in nonparametric density estimation, no distributional assumptions are made. Hence it became a popular tool in density estimation. There are several nonparametric density estimation procedures. Some of the procedures are given below:
The fractional Brownian motion (fBm for short) has already been widely applied in hydrol- ogy, traffic volume prediction, estimation of Hurst exponent of seismic signal, finance, and various other areas due to its properties such as long-range dependence, self-similarity, and stationarity of its increments. However, fBm is not sufficient for some random phe- nomena, so many researchers have chosen more general stochastic processes to construct stochastic models. For instance, Azzaoui and Clavier [] studied impulse response of the -Ghz channel by using α-stable processes. Lin and Lin [] studied pricing debt value in stochastic interest rate by using Lévy processes. Meanwhile, the weighted fractional Brownian motion (wfBm), which is a kind of generalizations of the fBm, can be also used for modeling.
Many studies on the modeling of akin process have been reported [1-3]. From previous findings, the mathematical modeling of the hydrolysis process leads to a nonlinear parameterestimation problem and the model parameters of the process have been determined either using conventional graphical-based technique [4] or nonlinear regression method [5]. However, the usual approach to estimate model parameters of a biological process is by using nonlinear techniques since the graphical methods have shown inferior parameter estimates compared to those generated using nonlinear techniques [6]. On the other hand, the nonlinear techniques also have their drawbacks. This scheme often fails in the search for global optimum if the search space is non linear in parameters [7]. For a large value of least squares sum, a slow convergence often appears [8]. A common practice to deal with the local convergence problem is to test different initial guess parameters. However, the probability of finding an initial condition suitable for all parameters decreases as the number of involved parameter, increases [9]. Because of the limitations imposed by those methods, an attempt was made to estimate the model parameters of the tapioca starch hydrolysis using genetic algorithm.
Abstract—A sequential method of unknown autoregressive parameters estimation of TAR(p)/ARCH(1) model, which all are assumed to be unknown, is presented. This procedure is based on the construction of the special stopping rule and weights for weighted least square estimation method, which allow us to guarantee the prescribe accuracy of the estimation. Also a sequential procedure of change point detection is proposed. Upper bounds for its basic characteristics, such as the probability of false alarm and the delay probability, are obtained.
Dynamic thermal rating (DTR) of transmission lines based on actual environmental parameters can greatly improve line capacity [1]. Without reconstructing the existing transmission lines, DTR can ease the contra- diction between electricity consumption and power supply and improve line utilization with great eco- nomic benefits. DTR can be determined by line ampacity calculation model based on CIGRE standard [2–4]. The ambient environmental parameters of transmission lines are significant factors that affect the DTR, but the difference between the measured value and the true value cannot be ignored, and the uncertainty of DTR needs to be evaluated [5–8].
estimators of amplitude, delay, and phase are proved to be in turn consistent. Moreover, simulations are carried out to show that, for finite N, the CCAP CFO estimator vari- ance can be smaller than that of the CCAN estimator. It is worthwhile to emphasize that the considered algorithm is not based on the usual assumption of white and/or Gaussian am- bient noise, and it exhibits the typical interference and noise immunity of the algorithms based on the cyclostationarity properties of the involved signals.
After determining the gist of the time parameter prediction, the β distribution of the construction duration can be further obtained. In [13], three fixed- time probabilistic estimations are used to solve this problem, that is, estimate the duration on the basis of fixed three- time probabilities. Three fixed -time probability estimation methods can be divided into two categories, the first type is an empirical formula algorithm based on a large number of experimental data, such as several kinds of mean and variance calculation formulas for fixed probability combinations. The second type is the β probability density distribution fitting method using computer numerical solution, to find the parameter a, b, r and s which result in the smallest variance of the fit, and then to determine the β distribution. The fundamental difference between the two methods is reflected in the initial data access, where the first category requires fixed probabilities and combinations while the second category of fitting method is relatively flexible. According to the literature [12], the error of the fitting method is smaller and more reasonable. The β distribution variance can be expressed as
Control charts, viewed as the most powerful and simplest tool in Statistical Process Control (SPC), are widely used in manufacturing and service industries. The double sampling (DS) X chart detects small to moderate process mean shifts effectively, while reduces the sample size. The conventional application of the DS X chart is usually investigated assuming that the process parameters are known. Nevertheless, the process parameters are usually unknown in practical applications; thus, they are estimated from an in-control Phase-I dataset. In this thesis, the effects of parameterestimation on the DS X chart’s performance are examined. By taking into consideration of the parameterestimation, the run length properties of the DS X chart are derived. Since the shape and the skewness of the run length distribution change with the magnitude of the process mean shift, the number of Phase-I samples and sample size, the widely applicable performance measure, i.e. the average run length (ARL) should not be used as a sole measure of a chart’s performance. For this reason, the ARL, the standard deviation of the run length (SDRL), the median run length (MRL), the percentiles of the run length distributions and the average sample size (ASS) are recommended to effectively evaluate the proposed DS X chart with estimated parameters. The key idea of this thesis consists of proposing four new optimal designs for the ARL-based and MRL-based DS X chart with estimated parameters. In particular, these newly developed optimal designs are the ARL-based DS X chart with estimated parameters obtained by minimizing (i) the out-of-control
In this article, we address the parameterestimation of micromotion targets in synthetic aperture radar (SAR), where scattering parameters and micromotion parameters of targets are coupled resulting in a nonlinear parameterestimation problem. The conventional methods address this nonlinear problem by matched filter, which are computationally expensive and of lower resolutions. In contrast, we address this problem by linearizing the forward model as a linear combination of elements of an over-complete dictionary. The essential idea of sparse signal representation models comes from the fact that SAR micromotion targets are sparsely distributed in the
Abstract: Abduction is a kind of logical inference, and has been studied in computer science and artificial intelligence (Fin- lay and Dix 1996). Recently, Sawa and Gunji (2010) introduced a diagram to represent three types of inference: i.e. deduc- tion, induction, and abduction, which are articulated by C.S.Peirce. Sawa-Gunji’s representation provides a new approach to a numerical aspect of abduction. In the present paper, we show that Sawa-Gunji's representation of abduction is consistent with Finlay-Dix's one, and integrate the two representations. Both parameterestimation and abduction occupy a similar position on the integrated representation, although they are not completely corresponding. We present "incomplete" pa- rameter estimation as a sort of "simulated abduction", which is a numerical aspect of abduction. It is applied to a first-order autoregressive (AR(1)) model. As a result of numerical analyses on AR(1), the incompletely estimated parameter (IEP) follows a Cauchy distribution, which has a power law of the slope -2 in the tail, although conventionally estimated parameter is normally distributed. It is shown that the Cauchy distribution of the IEP is based on structure of ratio distribution of normal random variables generated from the AR(1). This research suggests that the distribution of the IEP is not based on a mech- anism of system itself, but on relationship between data structure on the given system (i.e. the given AR(1) process) and one on the system observer (i.e. the estimator of the AR(1) parameter). | 18,517 | 7,592 | 44,512.019231 |
warc | 202143 | Predicting Factors Affecting the First Recurrence of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Using Random Survival Forest Abstract
Predicting survival time has many Effective implications in life quality management for the remainder of the patient's life. Also, survival data are highly variable and make accurate predictions difficult or impossible. Random Survival Forest by repeated tree construction on Bootstrap samples and averaging on the results of these trees reduce the prediction error and cause further generalization of these results. In this retrospective study, the records of 141 patients with epithelial ovarian cancer who were referred to the oncology and radiotherapy ward of Imam Hossein Hospital in Tehran from 2007 to 2018 were used. Random Survival Forest was fitted to the data to investigate the key factors affecting the first recurrence of epithelial ovarian cancer. The mean age of the patients in our study was 52 (23-82) years and the median time to the first recurrence in these was 17 (0.5-127) months, respectively. According to RSF results, using variable importance criterion (VIMP) metastatic tumor with relative importance 2.665 and also using minimal (MD) by depth 2.349, tumor stage with relative importance 1.993 and depth 2.678, and maximum platelet count with relative importance 2.132 and depth 2.683 were the most important variables affecting in the first recurrence of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer. One of the disadvantages of classical methods is the inappropriate fitting of many variables and the need for specific assumptions. More advanced methods such as RSF without the need for any specific assumptions with less prediction error can well explain event variations when exposed to high-dimensional data.
2. Paik ES, Lee J-W, Park J-Y, Kim J-H, Kim M, Kim T-J, et al. Prediction of survival outcomes in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer using machine learning methods. J Gynecol Oncol 2019; 30: e65.
3. Lipson R. Predicting Ovarian Cancer Survival Times: Performance of Parametric Methods and Random Survival Forests [dissertation]. Canada: Simon Fraser University., 2014.
4. Ishwaran H, Kogalur UB, Blackstone EH, Lauer MS. Random survival forests. Ann Appl Stat 2008;2:841-60.
5. Okunade KS, Adetuyi IE, Adenekan M, Ohazurike E, Anorlu RI. Risk predictors of early recurrence in women with epithelial ovarian cancer in Lagos, Nigeria. Pan Afr Med J 2020;36:272.
6. Xiaoyan L. Risk factors of epithelial ovarian cancer recurrence. Modern Oncol 2016;24:2283-5.
7. Ditto A, Leone Roberti Maggiore U, Bogani G, Martinelli F, Chiappa V, Evangelista MT, et al. Predictive factors of recurrence in patients with early‐stage epithelial ovarian cancer. Int J Obstet Gynecol 2019;145:28-33.
8. Dietrich S. Investigation of the machine learning method Random Survival Forest as an exploratory analysis tool for the identification of variables associated with disease risks in complex survival data [dissertation]. Berlin: University of Berlin., 2016.
9. Ishwaran H, Kogalur UB, Gorodeski EZ, Minn AJ, Lauer MS. High-dimensional variable selection for survival data. J Am Stat Assoc 2010;105:205-17.
10. Deldar M, Anbiaee R, Jalilian A, Sayehmiri K, Azimi S. Comparison of Cox’s Regression Model and Weibull’ Parametric Model in Evaluating Factors Affecting in First Recurrence of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer. Acta Med Iran 2020;58:445-51
11. Siroky DS. Navigating random forests and related advances in algorithmic modeling. Stat Surv 2009;3:147-63.
12. van der Schaaf A, Xu C-J, van Luijk P, van’t Veld AA, Langendijk JA, Schilstra C. Multivariate modeling of complications with data driven variable selection: guarding against overfitting and effects of data set size. Radiother Oncol 2012;105:115-21.
13. Broadhurst DI, Kell DB. Statistical strategies for avoiding false discoveries in metabolomics and related experiments. Metabolomics 2006;2:171-96.
14. Loh WY, Shih YS. Split selection methods for classification trees. Stat Sin 1997;7:815-40.
Files Issue Vol 59, No 8 (2021) Section Articles DOI https://doi.org/10.18502/acta.v59i8.7258 Keywords Epithelial ovarian cancer First recurrent Random Survival Forest.
Rights and permissions This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. | 4,309 | 2,146 | 8,575.833644 |
warc | 202143 | How many guys got naked and suddenly found a foul odor assaulting their nostrils? “Can it really be me?” they think, and all too often it is. Severe penis odor is a major hindrance for potential partners and partners, and a very common penis health problem. And for many men, the smell of the penis is especially strong after sex. For these men, taking steps to decrease or eliminate penis odor after sex can make a big difference in the overall attractiveness of their penis.
Makes sense
Of course, it makes sense for a penis to have a certain smell around it. After all, for too many hours a day, the average penis is kept locked behind not one, but two layers of clothing. And often one or both layers are very tight. This creates a situation where heat builds up, followed by sweat, which activates bacteria that cause unpleasant smells. The layer of pubic hair and ball hair also provides increased insulation, increasing the heat quotient and the resulting sweat.
In other words, a man already enters a sexual situation with the potential to be too mature in the scent department of the penis. Several things happen during sex that can exacerbate the problem.
– More heat. There is a reason why sex is often classified as “hot and heavy” when it is intense. Significant heat is often generated during sex, especially penetrative sex. And since the penis is generally in a closed situation, inside a vagina or anus, that only adds to the heat and sweat. – The smell of another person. Also, during sexual intercourse, the penis comes into direct skin-to-skin contact with someone else’s body odors. Bacteria from you are transmitted to the penis. Also, in many cases, there may be other factors, such as a vaginal yeast infection, that can significantly aggravate the odor problem. – fluids. And of course, fluid exchanges come with their own scents. Whether a man’s semen dries on the penis or his partner’s vaginal fluids, they can aggravate the problem of penis odor. Steps to follow
So what are some common sense steps to help decrease post-se penis odor?
– Start clean. The less the smell of penis is added to sex, the less it is eliminated after sex. Practice good general rules of penis hygiene, such as regular washing, even under the foreskin, for intact men. Before your appointment, put on clean clothes, including underwear. – Consider shaving. Many men who shave the pubic area report that the odor from the penis is less persistent. This may be because less insulation causes less heat, but thick hair is also likely to trap and retain more odors overall. – Use a condom. A condom not only helps prevent the spread of sexually transmitted infections, it also prevents many odor-causing bacteria from coming into contact with the skin of the penis. It won’t absorb them all, but it should help. – Finish clean. A man does not need to jump out of bed and run to the bathroom as soon as he has completed his sexual mission, but he does need to make sure to wash thoroughly before dressing again or falling asleep. Washing off post-sex odors as soon as possible is the best way to keep them from burying and settling in your midsection. – Protect yourself from the smell of penis after sex by regularly applying a penis health cream to the top drawer (Health professionals recommend Man 1 Man Oil, which is clinically proven to be gentle and safe for the skin). To be most effective, the cream must come in contact with vitamin A, which has antibacterial properties that can combat lingering odor from the penis. It is also wise to select a cream with a powerful antioxidant, of which alpha lipoic acid is excellent. The antioxidant helps to strengthen the skin of the penis by fighting the elements that cause oxidative damage to the skin. | 3,843 | 1,822 | 7,920.123491 |
warc | 202143 | No open funding opportunities at this time. Please check back.
AAC helps individuals who have completely, or partially impaired language abilities interact and communicate with others on a daily basis. These tools aid the person in meeting needs and wants. In addition AAC also provides the individual with a way of making social connections and expressing thoughts in a communicative way.
According to American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) recent estimates, well over 2 million persons who present with significant expressive language impairment use AAC.
AAC exist in many forms and is branded under a lot of different names. Two main forms exist aided and unaided. Unaided involves the use of sign language, gestures, and body language. Aided involves the use of pictures, cards, boards, speech generating devices, text to speech, and others aid types.
AAC users come from a large variety of backgrounds. Disabilities that impact the language abilities effect all races, gender, and socioeconomic statues. Autism, speech delay, aphasia, muteness, dysarthria, apraxia of speech, genetic disorder, and traumatic injury are all among the cause of impairment of speech.
Copyright © 2021 Beyond All Expectations - All Rights Reserved. | 1,257 | 693 | 2,258.246753 |
warc | 202143 | In the mid nineteenth century while the British
tonwere traveling along well-marked roads in comfortable coaches pulled by fine horseflesh they might have purchased at Tattersall’s, hundreds of thousands of Americans walked – yes, walked – thousands of miles in search of a better future.
There were no well-sprung vehicles with velvet cushions to help absorb the roads’ bumps and few inns to offer them beds and hot meals. Instead, these pioneers loaded their belongings into Conestoga wagons, yoked sturdy oxen together to pull their canvas-covered temporary homes, and headed west. So many of them traveled the same route that the wagon wheels carved ruts as deep as five feet into the limestone hills.
Some went to California, hoping to find a fortune in gold. Others were attracted by the promise of fertile land in Oregon. Still others fled religious persecution as they pulled handcarts toward the Great Salt Lake. Though their routes diverged soon after they reached what is now Wyoming, virtually every wagon train stopped at Fort Laramie. It was here that the pioneers rested their oxen, made necessary repairs to their wagons, and replenished their supplies at the post trader’s store. For, while crossing the plains had been arduous, the worst was yet to come. Mountainous terrain, the fear of Indian attacks, the threat of early snow, and the knowledge that there were few other places to purchase supplies made Fort Laramie seem like an oasis on the journey west.
The fort that greeted travelers in the mid nineteenth century bore little resemblance to Hollywood’s idea of a western Army post. It lacked the wooden stockade and dilapidated wooden buildings that film makers have immortalized. In their place was a collection of buildings that might have reminded the pioneers of a New England town, but it wasn’t always so.
The first fort on the location, a trading post named Fort William, was relatively small and had a wooden palisade. While Hollywood might have liked it, it was destined for a very short life. When another fort was built nearby and threatened its status as a major fur trading post, Fort William was replaced by a new fort constructed on the same location. Fort John, as the new post was named, was made of adobe, was considerably larger than Fort William, and was able to compete with the nearby fort.
When the fur trade declined, Fort William’s existence might have been in jeopardy, but it gained a new lease on life as the first of the emigrant trains came through. Now, instead of serving as a center for trading buffalo hides, it became a major supply point for the wagon trains.
One of the most prominent landmarks was Old Bedlam, the two-story frame building that’s still in existence and that has the distinction of being the oldest military structure in Wyoming. Though its use changed several times, including serving as the post headquarters for a few years, it retained the nickname it gained during the early years of its existence when it served as bachelor officers’ housing. One can only guess what those officers did to warrant that name.
Close by Old Bedlam was the post trader’s store, more commonly referred to as the sutler’s store. It was here that travelers could find everything from teakettles to blankets to foodstuffs to basic medical supplies. The sutler’s store also housed the post office, an important stop for travelers starved for news from home.
It’s no wonder that those hardy pioneers looked forward to reaching Fort Laramie. | 3,579 | 1,735 | 7,215.759078 |
warc | 202143 | Often, we prefer peace to the sea, the calmness there soothes us.
The silence heals us. That’s the reason everyone loves sunsets at beaches. It’s a nostalgic experience.
But does that last forever?
Sometimes the sea to releases its anger, frustration, rage, and distress. The impact is known to all of us. We humans behave in the same way. We have the conviction that we can endure all these feelings but the more we try to control them, then we become more vulnerable. We are in this chaotic world where every day we walk with all these emotions building inside us and we can’t vent it out easily. Today we have many advanced technologies to cure any physical disorders but what about Mental health? The workload, Peer pressure, Wrong company, betrayal, losing friendships, Academic pressure, Financial problems. We have all one or the other reasons that destroy our inner peace and we lose ourselves. We can share it with friends, family but what if they are the reasons for that? Many times, we rely on them for our problems but when they turn away with the changing world, we lose our hearts. Most of the time, in our teenage and young adult life, this is the scenario.
Many of us walk with this void every day and at the end of the day, it drains you out. The lack of tranquility gets you every time and we feel angry, enraged, frustrated. Our inner self loses its calmness and we become chaotic. The more we try to keep it together, the more we lose ourselves. We have to vent out our feelings because We love the sea only when it’s calm.
“The problem is most of us live sort of on the waves, where there’s a lot of turbulence and wildness,” says Davis, a Welsh poet. “But again, this deep, calm, awareness is actually within each person”.
Let go of the things that don’t value you. Let it be any object that reminds you of pain or any person who does not value you. You’ve done the best you can to hold on to the things that you love. Accept what it is and be silent. Silence can be the best therapy. Feel the emotions and let them out with a trusted one.
Take small baby steps each day to cure yourself. Breathe in and breathe out. It helps the nervous system, which initiates the relaxation response in our body. Visualize your happy place. Do what you love the most: watching films, dancing, listening to songs, sleep. More importantly, “TRUST THE UNIVERSE”. When I go through a problem my mother always reminds me that, “whatever happens, it happens for a good reason”. Believe it. Let’s help each other and be there for those who need us. | 2,639 | 1,345 | 5,003.30855 |
warc | 202143 | Fruits and vegetables thrown in a waste bin
Peter Diesel | Image Bank | Getty Images
Singapore-Covid-1 is a wake-up call that highlights the urgency of the fight against the global food waste crisis, experts and industry players told CNBC.
Between global lockdowns and stagnant travel, the epidemic reveals weaknesses in supply networks, as disruptions disrupt agricultural labor, transportation and supplies, and increase global food shortages and inflation.
“The epidemic is a very good wake-up call,” said William Chen, director of the food science and technology program at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
“Before Kovid-19, people took climate change less seriously because food came easily. But now the problem is starting to take place in people’s minds,” he added. “I don’t see it as a reason to lose, but the current system is a good opportunity to clean the house.”
Food waste is one of the biggest challenges in the world.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that one-third of all food produced – or 1. Billions upon billions of tons – lost or wasted every year. Another UN report found that food waste also accounts for between 10% and 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Boston Consulting Group, reducing food waste could save 700 billion. And Southeast Asian businesses are jumping on the bandwagon and going to prevent food waste, as well as redistributing and recycling excess food.
Increased appetite in dealing with food waste
In 2020, Singapore generated 665,000 tons of food waste, accounting for about 11% of the total waste generated in Singapore.
.
Coming out of the epidemic, more hotels and airlines are now tackling food waste and putting stability “front and center” on their priority list, said Rainer Loe, co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based AI Food Waste Management start-up, Lumitix.
This was a dramatic change from a few years ago when food waste was “just on the radar” and conversing with industry players was “incredibly challenging”.
He said the growing acceptance was partly due to increased education, new government regulations and staying higher on the corporate agenda.
The firm has developed an artificial intelligence-powered tracker that has been placed in dustbins to measure and track all food waste. By learning in real time what and how much food waste is generated, chefs can take steps to reduce the amount produced for certain foods in the buffet line.
It reduces food waste by up to 40% and food costs by up to 8%, Lumitics found.
From 2024, owners and occupiers of commercial and industrial premises in Singapore who produce large quantities of food will have to separate their food waste treatment under a new law.
Large hotel chains such as Lumitics Accor, Hyatt, Marina Bay Sands, as well as carrier partners such as Singapore Airlines and Etihad Airways.
It plans to expand to 1,000 locations in the Asia-Pacific region over the next five years, starting in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia.
“The whole industry is starting to wake up to the idea that food waste is the biggest unused cost-saving opportunity for any kitchen,” Loe said.
Turning food waste into a ‘surprise box’
Another player in the fight against food wastage is Yindii, the launch of a Thai anti-food waste. It has launched an app to connect eco-conscious Bangkok residents with bakeries, cafes, supermarkets and restaurants.
These businesses fill out their unsold list in a “surprise box,” which allows customers to snap at 50% to 80% off at the end of the day and deliver to their home.
Yindii founder and French entrepreneur Louis-Alban Batard-Dupre described the food waste situation in Bangkok as “catastrophic”, with only 2% of food waste being recycled.
In Thailand, about 17 million tons of unused food is disposed of each year, and about 64% of its 27.4 million tons of waste is made up of organic waste, including food and kitchen waste.
The players in the industry themselves have underestimated the problem.
“Most of the food businesses we’ve met think they don’t waste too much. When they start calculating 6 to 14% extra income quickly, we usually get a call back,” he said.
He said the mindset of traders is also changing as more brands are ready for the future of post-Covid tourism.
Butterd-Dupree said at the time they were “ashamed to generate food waste because it reveals that their store doesn’t sell every day or that it’s a dirty word.” “But telling the world that you’re fighting for this planet is far more powerful than trying to hide a systemic problem in every business.”
Watermelon dumped near the Brahmaputra river in Bangladesh
Andre Pistoli | Stones | Getty Images
To date, Yindii has seen more than 20,000 surprise box purchases. He said redistributing food that was thrown away also helps many people living below the poverty line.
Hindi partners include Hinton Sukhumvit Bangkok, Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok, Sofitel Bangkok Sukhumvit and JW Marriott. In the next few months, it plans to expand to Thailand and other cities in Southeast Asia. Technology as a way forward
Technology has started to play a big role in tackling food waste.
Southeast Asia is particularly vulnerable to food waste because there are many small farms that rely on intensive livestock farming and lack the means to invest in more efficient agro-technologies, said Chen from NTU, a consultant on Asian development. Banks.
The growing middle-income class also spends more.
One of the UN’s sustainable development goals is to halve food waste at the retail and consumer levels by 2030 and to reduce food losses in the post-harvest production and supply chain.
More private-public partnerships will be important, where “enthusiastic small start-ups” can grow with technology and government funding, or work with large multinationals to bridge the gap, Chen said.
Another profitable venture is “upsycling”, which typically takes ingredients that are usually thrown away and processed into new high-quality, marketable products.
For example, Sophie’s Kitchen, a plant-based seafood company, is using soybean residue as a culture medium for microLG cultivation in place of the fast-growing alternative protein market.
Audrey Chia, an associate professor at the National University of Singapore Business School, said other examples include adding high-value ingredients, such as salted eggs, to the skin of commonly discarded fish, or using black soldier flies.
Similarly, predictive technology can also help restaurants and retailers estimate food demand or production.
“Ironically, this is a vicious cycle. The slower we take action on climate change, the more extreme weather we will see and the greater the risk of zoonotic disease – which could lead to increased food wastage,” Chia said. | 7,071 | 3,408 | 14,121.251761 |
warc | 202143 | OPEC will launch the 2021 edition of its Annual Statistical Bulletin (ASB) on Thursday, 30 September 2021, at 14:00 (CEST) via videoconference.
OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo will present the publication’s major highlights, as well as the new additions and improvements integrated into this year’s version of the ASB.
The launch will also feature a round table session with the Secretariat’s key analysts and researches involved in the ASB, in addition to showing a highlight video.
First published in 1965, the ASB, one of OPEC’s flagship publications, continues to provide a wide range of data on the global energy industry, as well as key economic indicators, serving as an important source of reliable data for policy-makers, analysts and researchers, academics and other industry stakeholders.
It features data focused on production, supply and demand, imports and exports, and exploration and transportation activities, including important statistics covering OPEC’s 13 Member Countries.
The Secretary-General stated: “I am very pleased to announce the launch event of the 56th edition of OPEC’s Annual Statistical Bulletin, which has become a key reference source for stakeholders across the industry. For over 61 years, OPEC has placed a high priority on providing accurate, timely and transparent data, and the ASB has been a key tool in helping us achieve this.”
“Despite the various restrictions and challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the OPEC Secretariat team has prevailed in producing a publication that will be extremely effective in meeting the industry’s growing need for reliable information,” he added.
This year’s ASB will be available as an interactive version and a PDF on the OPEC website, as well as through a smart app compatible with iOS and Android platforms. Further details in this regard will be available following the launch.
Source: classfmonline.com | 1,983 | 1,024 | 3,704.569336 |
warc | 202143 | If you make scent leaf tea every day, I encourage you to keep it up. Scent leaf, Nigerians love to call it, a species of a tropical plant that belongs to the Lamiaceae family. A lot of us are not informed of the enormous benefits of the scent leaf. Whose botanical name is Ocimum gratismum. Also known as Hawaiian basil, clove basil, and African basil. Many people prepare food with this leaf without knowing its health benefits. Well, if you cook with this leaf, I will reveal the truth about it.
Scent leaf in Africa Most people have little or no knowledge about the amazing health benefits of the amazing leaf. Did you know that you can use the Scent leaf to cure many diseases and infertility problems? I assure you that the use of aromatic leaves in your diet will bring great health benefits to your body. So I will explain below how scent leaf Tea can be beneficial to you.
Health benefits of Scent leaf tea
1) Leaf leaves help digestion, which helps with stool clearance and weight management.
2) It is useful to treat oral infections, it kills all the bacteria in the mouth and also causes tooth decay and bad breath.
3) It is used in the treatment of fever, colds and flu. skin diseases and ringworm is used in the treatment.
For scent leaf and fertility it is advisable to implement scent leaf tea in your diet. Because scent leaf on its own pack a lot of health benefits especially the faster maturation of eggs role that it plays like a performance. The use of scent leaf tea in our daily foods as women also helps the delayed stimulation of menopause
. The benefits of scent leaf in pregnancy can be used either by tea or by implementing it in your vegetable food to be a benefit of its goodness. The spiritual benefit of scent leaf
The other advantage is the spiritual benefit of scent leaf; Some are subject to charm and mantra. It could be their partner or spouse who is using it to control them. Others are subject to the mantra of evil. They steal, lie or do other kinds of bad things but they do not do it with their clear mind or intentionally. When you see this in your life or in a child or sibling, please prepare and use a scented water bath to break this spell or charm. Do not wait until something catastrophic happens to you. Learn to use this water bath periodically.
Some are not subject to spells or charms. They are subject to curses. An old or sick person may have cursed them in a bad condition. If you know you can not reach that person and apologize, because that person is already dead, please start your scented water bath without further delay. Curses are effective and can harm you as long as you carry them on your head.
How To Make Scent Leaf Tea
To get new natural scent leaf tea, it is advisable to make tea on the stove, boil water and add tea leaf, spices or other ingredients. Wash the lemon leaves well. The best tea to make on the stove is herbal tea. Tea made with fresh ingredients and spices such as scent leaf, ginger and lemon tea or black tea. All work with almost any type of loose tea. Boil water and scent leaves in a kettle, then heat. If you prefer to drink your tea sweet or with milk. This is the time to mix milk and sugar or honey.
Side Effects
For side effects of scent leaf, taken scent leaf tea in moderation, have no adverse side effects. Scent leaves extract causes the following side effects: It causes very low blood pressure in people with high blood pressure Scent leaf oil and extract slow blood clotting and increases bleeding in most cases, pregnant women. And it can cause excessive bleeding or have a bleeding defect in patients undergoing surgery.
Conclusion
Aqueous infusion of scent leaf in 100 mL / L drinking water improves feed efficiency, which reduces body weight, live weight, carcass weight and abdominal fat. Therefore, scent leaves are a natural growth stimulant. However, more studies are needed on the effect of its administration on various physiological parameters to ensure its safety as a feed additive for broiler chicks. | 4,035 | 1,895 | 8,555.477573 |
warc | 202143 | Description
Developed to give the nutrient blend that you need to keep you full and satisfied throughout the day.
Thanks to your constant feedback and our great online community we were inspired to do research to find a shake that fit our philosophy. That is why we have worked extremely hard, to produce a shake that follows our Mediterranean style ethos.
The Fast 800 shakes are made with 100% natural ingredients to support people in a healthy lifestyle. While we recommend food first, we understand that people live busy lives and cannot always cook for themselves. To help on these days, we have developed these nutritional shakes for those difficult days.
Real food, ready in 30 seconds with no cooking and careful portion control each time. Use regularly for breakfast in place of the bowl of cereal, or lunch/dinner when you don’t have time to cook.
10 shakes per 500g package
Developed to give the nutrient blend that you need to keep you full and satisfied throughout the day.
Unlike other mainstream meal replacements, the Fast 800 shakes have absolutely no added sugar and are very low in simple carbs.
Whether you go for the original whey-based meal replacement shakes or the vegan shakes, they are high in protein.
High in fibre, key for great gut health. With over 25g of fibre in 4 servings (800 calories).
Nutritious and high in the minerals and vitamins needed for healthy living. All within carefully controlled 200 calorie servings.
Slow release and satisfying. The nutrient dense low-sugar/low-carb calories in the Fast 800 shakes will keep you full between meals without raising blood sugar levels.
Made only with natural ingredients, these shakes contain no artificial additives and are designed to be convenient real food
Both the original (and vegan!) shakes are 100% vegetarian.
Containing 25% of your recommended daily intake of essential minerals and vitamins per each 200 calorie serving, to help provide you with the nutrition you need.
Whether at work, cooking a separate meal for the family, or just can’t quite face the washing up, make yourself a shake!
As we always recommend real food first, try not to replace more than 2 meals daily or 8-10 per week.
For a small meal (200kcal) take 5 level scoops (50g) of our formulation and add it to 300-400ml of water (add more or less water depending on taste). Shake well and enjoy!
For a creamier texture, try adding unsweetened almond milk (≈25kcal per 200ml serving) or your favourite milk.
If you are underweight, under 18 years, pregnant, breast feeding or have a significant health condition you should consult a health care professional before consuming this product. This product is intended to be taken instead of occasional meals and not as your only food.
We always love to hear of other ways to enjoy the shakes – if you’d like to share what works for you just send us an email at shakes@thefast800.com!
ALLERGENS (WHEY) – Contains
milk and tree nuts (almond). May also contain gluten, soy, peanut and other tree nuts. Whey protein concentrate (37%), Almond meal (11%), Sunflower meal (10%), Psyllium husk, Cocoa powder (8%), Pea protein isolate, Linseed meal (6%), Coconut flour, Natural Flavours, Dietary fiber (inulin), Vitamins and Minerals (Magnesium, Zinc, Iron, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Folic acid, Potassium, Niacin, Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B6, Riboflavin, Thiamin), Monk fruit extract.
Per Serving (50g) Per 100g Calories (kcal) 211 421 - Energy (kj) 880 1760 Protein (g) 21.9 43.8 Carbohydrates (g) 6.4 12.8 - Sugars (g) 3.2 6.5 Fat (g) 8.9 17.9 - Saturates (g) 2.0 4.0 Salt (mg) 72 143 Fibre (g) 8.6 17.3
Per Serving (50g) Per 100g RDI (per shake)* Vitamin A 187.5µg 375µg 25% Thiamin 0.28mg 0.55mg 25% Riboflavin 0.43mg 0.85mg 25% Niacin 2.5mg 5mg 25% Folate 50µg 100µg 25% Vitamin B6 0.4mg 0.8mg 25% Riboflavin (mg) 0.5µg 1µg 25% Vitamin C 10mg 20mg 25% Vitamin D 2.5µg 5µg 25% Vitamin E 2.5mg 5mg 25% Calcium 200mg 400mg 25% Magnesium 80mg 160mg 25% Iron 3mg 6mg 25% Zinc 3mg 6mg 25% Iodine 37.5µg 75µg 25% | 4,132 | 2,044 | 8,138.665362 |
warc | 202143 | Do you perceive yourself as a problem solver, manager, or a spectator? Think about it. First, a colleague identifies a current or potential problem. Next, are you their top-of-mind, go-to resource to find a solution? Or are you the last person clients and colleagues consider for complex problem solving? Alternatively, are you a sought-after, stellar… [Continue Reading]
Collaboration-resistant colleagues are tough to work with. Because there is not one idea you can introduce to the table they haven’t heard of before, thought of themselves, or already learned. Or so they say. Do you work with collaboration-resistant colleagues? Your collaboration-resistant colleagues are “been there, done that” folks. Not knowing, not having an answer… [Continue Reading]
Does a continuous learning strategy fit into your professional roadmap? Are you always focused on learning new stuff, different ways of perceiving problems, and additive skills for professional improvement? When you explore truly new ways of thinking, then doing, your entire professional performance is rewired and impacted, moving forward. You know the feeling, don’t you?… [Continue Reading]
When you use shifting story narratives to persuade, justify or invite people to join your story, the effect is just the opposite. Instead of saying yes, they can become skeptical: of you, your solution and even your organization. Why? Because people do not intellectually or emotionally co-invest in stories that shape-shift. And considering that, overall,… [Continue Reading]
More frequently, I hear about pandemic professional overwhelm. Because my colleagues and clients acknowledge how overwhelm and exhaustion are taking a toll on how they show up for work. How about you? At this point in our epic journey together, ponder how pandemic professional overwhelm becomes an elephant in our virtual meeting rooms. And in… [Continue Reading] | 1,950 | 977 | 3,790.225179 |
warc | 202143 | The timing for the conference was ideal: A mere week after Europe’s leaders confirm their commitment to CCS with an explicit reference to the technology in the European Union’s 2030 framework on climate and energy (read more here). With the opening of the world’s first full scale commercial CCS facility at Boundary Dam in Canada last month (read more here), the mood at the SCCS Conference was one of optimism and renewed motivation to see European projects delivered.
As Chris Littlecot of the NGO E3G noted: “We now have an open door to CCS”. These were the words with which he encouraged attendees to take the opportunity to think afresh at the breakout session focused on ‘Incentivising CCS to 2030+’. Other breakout sessions addressed ‘R&D catalysts’ and ‘Destination North Sea’.
What the EU can learn from the US
The event was widely attended by leading CCS figures from both sides of the Atlantic. Member of the European Parliament Jude Kirton-Darling spoke of the social arguments for CCS when applied to industry. If Europe is to meet its reindustrialization and growth goals, CCS is going to be a part of the picture. She also mentioned the potential of a European ‘energy union’ (the understandings of which are still varied) to represent the potential of a new ‘internal market’. Kirton-Darling was followed by fellow EU-actor Ilinca Balan from the European Commission. Balan has been driving CCS matters in the Directorate-General for Energy and reported on ongoing policy work. She has also been following the financial developments surrounding the Rotterdam CCS project ROAD, which has recently been given a further extended deadline.
Joining from the United States and the Clean Air Task Force was Kurt Waltzer, who discussed the US experience with regulatory change and impetus for CCS. With the US’s first full scale commercial CCS facility opening next year at Kemper County, Mississippi, the comparisons offered valuable lessons for Europe. Most poignant was perhaps the CO
2 market which exists in the US and which to a significant extent has driven technological development. The use of CO 2 for Enhanced Hydrocarbon Recovery (or EOR) as a stepping stone to developing a solid business case for CCS was underlined and Waltzer encouraged Europe not to miss the window of opportunity that now exists to drive CCS with EOR in the North Sea.
The move to implement an Emission Performance Standard (EPS) in the US, which will effectively outlaw certain coal power plants without CCS, was also of interest at the conference. Bellona Europe has submitted a joint call on Europe to follow suit (read more here). But Waltzer also drew attention to other implications of this move, namely that CCS technology will now be legally recognised as feasible technology in the US. This could mean that a building permit for a new power station could be challenged on grounds of not including CCS. These sentiments were echoed by Scottish Minister for Energy, Fergus Ewing, who noted that similar expectations to use best available technology need to also be placed on hydrocarbon producers. | 3,185 | 1,629 | 6,055.214856 |
warc | 202143 | Topics:Personal Loans 101 Financial Advice Personal Loan Industry News Home Improvement Financing Credit Advice Debt Consolidation Personal Finance Basics Personal Finance Retirement Interest and APR Emergency Loans Bad Credit
Millennials are often the brunt of internet memes and office humor. I should know, I'm a millennial myself. This group born between 1981 and 1996 are given unique opportunities, yet face unique financial challenges that generations before them simply did not. Technology has opened the door for some amazing advancements, yet modern income levels have not mirrored the same sort of acceleration. For example, the average salary of a millennial today is an estimated 20 percent lower, than the average salary of a baby boomer at the same age. Low salaries, rising debts, and increasing costs of living leave millennials at a financial disadvantage when it comes to saving for one of the most important things — retirement. If you yourself are a millennial, you need to be proactive about becoming financially savvy and thinking towards the future. Saving for retirement now in this early stage of your career is critical to your retirement planning success, because you can leverage the power of time and compound growth. Why is it important to get started early? 35-Year Investment Growth Table Where do I start with retirement planning? Why is it important to get started early? Time is one of the most crucial elements of investing. The more time your money has to grow, the more interest you’ll be able to accrue on your investments. Sure, the stock market can be volatile over short time periods, but on average a diversified index fund grows by about 10 percent. If you let your investment sit for years, the dips and highs of the stock market will eventually adjust to a healthy return, but you just have to be patient. The personal finance expert at Semi-Retire Plan, Mr. SR, lays out what investing can look like if you get started early. “For the simplicity of this example, let’s say that the stock market consistently grows by 10 percent each year. Let’s say you invest $5,000 at the beginning of each year and achieve that 10 percent growth per year. That 10 percent growth during the year equates to $500, so you’ll have a total of $5,500 after that first year. The next year, you’ll invest another $5,000, plus your existing $5,500 also grows by 10 percent. In year two, you’ll have $1,050 in growth." Over time, the growth of your investment will actually outweigh the money that you’re putting into your portfolio each year. Let’s extend this example for a period of 35 years. Check out the $ growth and Total amount in account columns, in particular." 35-Year Investment Growth Table Year # New money invested at the start of each year Total money invested during the year (previous total + new money invested) Percentage growth $ growth Total amount in account at the end of the year 1 $5,000 $5,000 10% $500 $5,500 5 $5,000 $30,526 10% $3,053 $33,578 10 $5,000 $79,687 10% $7,968.71 $87,655.84 15 $5,000 $158,862 10% $15,886 $174,749 20 $5,000 $286,375 10% $28,637 $315,012 25 $5,000 $491,735 10% $49,174 $540,909 30 $5,000 $822,470 10% $82,247 $904,717 35 $5,000 $1,355,122 10% $135,512 $1,490,634 Before year 10, the annual growth in the account starts to exceed the amount you’re contributing to the account. After year 25, your annual growth starts to exceed $50,000. After year 30, your account balance is over $1 million. By the end of year 35, your account has nearly $1.5 million. And you only contributed $175,000 total.” This is why they call compound interest the seventh wonder of the world. Over time your money will earn more than you’re able to contribute on your own. Saving for retirement can become a much for achievable goal if you use the power of compound growth. Use the time that you have to your advantage. Where do I start with retirement planning? Here are some practical steps you can take to start planning out retirement. 1. Take advantage of matching/free money Many employers will match a certain percentage of your retirement account contributions. Take advantage of that small percentage that they are willing to match and reap the rewards of the free money. Even if you can’t yet afford to contribute a large percentage of your income to retirement savings, make it a priority to earn the employer match if it’s offered. Mr. SR, the personal finance specialist, says that, “Ideally you’ll work your way up to contributing at least 15 percent of your income to retirement savings. Different experts will recommend different percentages for retirement savings. Personally, I like to save about 20 percent. Aspiring early retirees may save 50 percent or more. Either way, your personal savings rate should ultimately reflect your target retirement age and retirement expenses.” 2. Create an emergency fund After you qualify for the full employer match, set some money aside as an emergency fund. You don’t want an unexpected expense or job loss to cause you to go into debt. Even though an emergency fund isn’t “saving for retirement,” it does protect your investments and it protects you from accruing high-interest debt. Here is a great video that gives a quick overview of how to prepare for a financial emergency. 3. Pay off and consolidate debt Speaking of debt, your early career years are a great opportunity to focus on limiting and eliminating anything you owe. One of the best ways to consolidate multiple debts is by following the avalanche method: Focus on clearing your smallest debt first while making minimum payments on the other debts. Once you’ve paid off the first debt, allocate the amount you were paying toward the first debt into the second smallest debt on the list. Focus on paying off this second debt. You then keep snowballing your payments until each subsequent debt is finally cleared. In addition, if managing all of your different debts is giving you a headache then considering consolidating all of your debts with a personal loan. A personal loan can be a great option to simplify debt and refinance for a lower APR rate. It’s one payment to worry about and a possible alternative to the avalanche method. 4. Consider tax-advantaged accounts When it comes to additional retirement investing, any tax-advantaged retirement account you qualify for will be better than a taxable brokerage account. However, choosing between the different tax-advantaged accounts can feel perplexing, personal finance expert at Semi-Retire Plan breaks down different retirement accounts that you should look into. “Early in your career, Roth accounts (like a Roth IRA or Roth 401k) can be advantageous. Roth accounts let you pay income tax on money now but then the growth in the account is tax-free. At a basic level, Roth accounts are a good option if you think your current income is lower than your income will be in retirement. Conversely, tax-deferred accounts like a 401k or 457 let you avoid income tax now — but you will pay taxes on the money and growth later when you withdraw it from the account. These tax-deferred accounts can be most helpful when you’re at or near your highest-earning part of your career because you’ll defer the taxation until later when your income will likely be lower.” 5. House hack if possible Another factor you may have more flexibility with in your twenties and thirties is your housing arrangement. This age range can create an opportunity for income or savings through “house hacking.” Typically this involves buying a property that you live in and also sublet to tenants. Then, you can essentially reduce or eliminate your monthly housing costs with the income from your tenants. I would argue that even renting with multiple roommates is a housing hack, in a way. You can drastically reduce your personal housing expenses this way, even without owning the property. The trickiest thing about this method is finding the right tenants. If you have tenants that are not the most respectful to your house and amenities, maintenance fees can start to add up. Start by screening tenants with a detailed application, here is a free rental application that can be used a great starting off point to find the perfect tenant. 6. Stick to your plan After reading through this article my hope is that you will start to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your current retirement plan — or the lack thereof. Perhaps you are an investing guru, but you haven’t considered house hacking. Or, maybe you’re about to finally pay off that pesky college debt, but don’t know how to take advantage of an employer match. Wherever you are in your personal financial journey, use these tips to effect change in your own life. You may approach these tips out of order, but the important thing is to recognize where you are lacking on your journey to retirement and make some actionable steps today to improve. Make a plan and stick to it. Retirement saving is a marathon, not a sprint. | 9,182 | 4,029 | 20,515.354679 |
warc | 202143 | File Name: probability and nonprobability sampling in research .zip
Size: 19639Kb Published: 01.05.2021 Non-Probability Sampling Nonprobability Sampling Non-Probability Sampling: Definition, types, Examples, and advantages Sampling in epidemiological research: issues, hazards and pitfalls Home QuestionPro Products Audience. Non-Probability Sampling
The difference between nonprobability and probability sampling is that nonprobability sampling does not involve random selection and probability sampling does. Not necessarily. But it does mean that nonprobability samples cannot depend upon the rationale of probability theory. At least with a probabilistic sample, we know the odds or probability that we have represented the population well. We are able to estimate confidence intervals for the statistic. In general, researchers prefer probabilistic or random sampling methods over nonprobabilistic ones, and consider them to be more accurate and rigorous. However, in applied social research there may be circumstances where it is not feasible, practical or theoretically sensible to do random sampling.
Quantitative researchers are often interested in being able to make generalizations about groups larger than their study samples. While there are certainly instances when quantitative researchers rely on nonprobability samples e. The goals and techniques associated with probability samples differ from those of nonprobability samples. The reason is that, in most cases, researchers who use probability sampling techniques are aiming to identify a representative sample A sample that resembles the population from which it was drawn in all the ways that are important for the research being conducted. A representative sample is one that resembles the population from which it was drawn in all the ways that are important for the research being conducted. In fact, generalizability is perhaps the key feature that distinguishes probability samples from nonprobability samples. The important thing to remember about random selection here is that, as previously noted, it is a core principal of probability sampling.
Nonprobability Sampling
Non-probability sampling represents a group of sampling techniques that help researchers to select units from a population that they are interested in studying. Collectively, these units form the sample that the researcher studies [see our article, Sampling: The basics , to learn more about terms such as unit , sample and population ]. A core characteristic of non-probability sampling techniques is that samples are selected based on the subjective judgement of the researcher, rather than random selection i. Whilst some researchers may view non-probabilit y sampling techniques as inferior to probability sampling techniques, there are strong theoretical and practical reasons for their use. This article discusses the principles of non-probability sampling and briefly sets out the types of non-probability sampling technique discussed in detail in other articles within this site. The article is divided into two sections: principles of non-probability sampling and types of non-probability sampling :.
Non-probability sampling is generally used in experimental or trial research anddoes not represent the target population. Non-probability sampling uses subjectivejudgement and utilizes convenient selection of units from the population. Non-probability sampling methods produce cost savings for personal interviewsurveys; the resulting samples often look rather similar to probability sample data Fowler There are several non-probability selection methods that areused in practice. We will briefly overview these methods in the followingsections. The sample is composed of conveniently accessible persons who will contribute to the survey. Samples of volunteer subjects should be included here.
NON-PROBABILITY SAMPLING BE USED? H. T. SCHREUDER1, T. G. GREGOIRE1 and J. P. WEYER2. 1 USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research.
Non-Probability Sampling: Definition, types, Examples, and advantages
Survey data collection costs have risen to a point where many survey researchers and polling companies are abandoning large, expensive probability-based samples in favor of less expensive nonprobability samples. The empirical literature suggests this strategy may be suboptimal for multiple reasons, among them that probability samples tend to outperform nonprobability samples on accuracy when assessed against population benchmarks. However, nonprobability samples are often preferred due to convenience and costs. Instead of forgoing probability sampling entirely, we propose a method of combining both probability and nonprobability samples in a way that exploits their strengths to overcome their weaknesses within a Bayesian inferential framework. By using simulated data, we evaluate supplementing inferences based on small probability samples with prior distributions derived from nonprobability data.
Sampling in epidemiological research: issues, hazards and pitfalls
Surveys of people's opinions are fraught with difficulties. It is easier to obtain information from those who respond to text messages or to emails than to attempt to obtain a representative sample. Samples of the population that are selected non-randomly in this way are termed convenience samples as they are easy to recruit. This introduces a sampling bias. Such non-probability samples have merit in many situations, but an epidemiological enquiry is of little value unless a random sample is obtained. If a sufficient number of those selected actually complete a survey, the results are likely to be representative of the population.
A sample is a subset, or smaller group, within a population. When designing studies, researchers must ensure that the sample replicates the larger population in all the characteristic ways that could be important to the study's research findings. Some samples so closely represent the larger population that it's easy to make inferences about the larger population from your observations of the sample group.
Conclusions and Recommendations The final section presents the conclusions of the Task Force. Those conclusions are summarized below. Great advances of the most successful sciences - astronomy, physics, chemistry - were and are, achieved without probability sampling. Statistical inference in these researches is based on subjective judgment about the presence of adequate, automatic, and natural randomization in the population.
Published on September 19, by Shona McCombes. Revised on February 15, Instead, you select a sample. The sample is the group of individuals who will actually participate in the research. To draw valid conclusions from your results, you have to carefully decide how you will select a sample that is representative of the group as a whole.
И оба идете со . | 6,936 | 2,851 | 16,698.949141 |
warc | 202143 | As a business owner in the UAE, you’ve probably realized that nothing beats digital marketing. You’ve probably also realized that you need to distribute your digital marketing budget between Social Media (Facebook/Instagram) and Google.
bfound Blog
By 2020, 50% of all online searches and 30% of all website sessions will be conducted using voice search. How does this work and what does your business need to stay on the map? At bfound, we’ve got your back.
Sports fans your prayers have been answered! bsports – built and powered by bfound – has brought the UAE’s best sports academies together on one platform.
With Expo 2020 around the corner, the completion of Amazon’s acquisition of Souq and the ramping up of marketing by platforms like Noon and Namshi, the UAE is now primed for a new digital boom. Internet and mobile device penetration in the UAE are at a globally recognized high and promise to synergize marketing efforts if leveraged sensibly. The iron is hot, and it is time to strike. The only question now is:
What’s your plan?
Did you know that 94% of the companies operating in the UAE are SMBs and 74% of them are struggling to find new customers because of inadequate online presence?
If you haven’t heard about it before, Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a marketing strategy that takes the concept of picking a niche to the extreme. It doesn’t target a whole marketing segment as usual, instead, it targets specific high-value high-opportunity accounts that can bring on much more revenue and reputation to the company. One of the things that makes it very attractive as a marketing strategy is it allows a very high level of personalization. Since you’re targeting individual accounts, you can craft your offering and your approach to provide these clients with solutions that perfectly address their pain-points. Allowing you to set higher price points and increasing the probability of them signing up for what you have to offer.
A satisfying customer experience is the lifeblood of any SMB. It’s what keeps customers coming back to the business again and again, and it’s what encourages them to refer their family and friends too. And a bad customer experience can drag the most successful business to the ground. What does that have to do with conversational marketing? and what is conversational marketing to begin with? that’s what we’ll explore next.
One of the main factors that set SMBs (Small and Medium Businesses) apart from large scale enterprises is the need for rapid growth from one side and having limited resources from the other side. All while competing, in some or all targeted market segments, with companies that are more established, with more budget and stronger reputation.
Youtube Ads is one of the highly underestimated tools for advertising in the UAE market. That’s why we will help you uncover the opportunities that Youtube Ads have to offer for your business and how to leverage them for more reach, sales and customer loyalty.
Small businesses find themselves in a unique and difficult situation, as they need to find a way to stay relevant in fields with larger competitors, but with fewer resources. Some businesses manage to not only survive, but thrive, with unique offerings and top-tier customer service. However, the issue is that you still need a way to communicate these facets to your audience, and Google Ads may be the key way to do so. Here are some potential benefits for small businesses that employ Google Ads. | 3,577 | 1,772 | 7,032.882619 |
warc | 202143 | Three years and counting higher returns and lower risks
By Jeremy Schwartz, CFA & Bradley Krom, WisdomTree.
What started as a thought experiment proposed by Cliff Asness in the late 90s has grown into one of the most successful crowdsourcing ideas in the history of ETF product development.
Take advantage of the historical inverse relationship between US stocks and US bond yields and provide a capital efficient mix of 90% stocks and 60% ‘stacked on top’ bond futures,
1 WisdomTree has created a strategy — the WisdomTree US Efficient Core Fund (NTSX)– which generated cumulative returns higher than the S&P 500 Index with lower volatility and smaller withdrawals since its creation in August 2018.
Although there is no guarantee of investment, we are confident that this approach can continue to add diversification value at the heart of portfolios.
Cumulative returns
For standardized performance of NTSX, please click here.
For definitions of terms in the tables, please visit our glossary.
Another way to quickly summarize past performance, with three years of data now available, NTSX received 5 stars from Morningstar, placing it near the top of the large-cap blends category. Based on risk-adjusted returns as of 08/31/21 on 1,254 funds for the large cap blended category for the 3 year period.
Morningstar’s Risk Dashboard presents key metrics from the past three years of live data:
NTSX ranked in the lowest risk fund category in the mixed fund category. NTSX ranked in the top decile of funds based on risk-adjusted returns for performance in the large funds category. NTSX had a beta of 0.84, illustrating the lower risk dynamics (and less than the 90% allocation to equities, showing the diversification value of bonds). For definitions of terms in the image, please visit our glossary. What Could Go Wrong: Rising Yields and Falling Inventories
While it is clear that a rising environment bond yields and falling stocks would be the worst outcome for absolute returns of NTSX, we’ve had a mini episode of it over the past three years, and NTSX has always tended to outperform long-only exposure to equities.
This is mainly because losses on fixed income securities have historically tended to be smaller than losses on stocks. The bottom line may continue to be less bumpy when stocks drop.
Return over 2 years Current market challenges
Many investors are grappling with lower expected returns from stocks and bonds, with bond yields near historic lows and equities evaluations near the peaks.
Fears of inflation have risen and investors are looking for strategies that could diversify market volatility at the end of this Taurus the cycle or inflation risk of any money printing that has occurred in the world.
The challenge of adding assets like gold or commodities to portfolios: where do you fund allocations from? Commodities can provide a hedge against inflation to preserve purchasing power, but they do not offer the “risk-reducing characteristic” that bonds offer in the traditional sense of the market.
Using capital efficient strategies like NTSX at the heart of equity allocations creates room to “stack” all diversification strategies, be it gold, commodities, managed futures, or whatever else. alpha-strategy oriented seeking to increase returns or reduce the overall risk of the portfolio.
To illustrate this idea of back stacking with an example:
Exchange the efficient core NTSX for 10% of traditional stocks in a portfolio, this frees up space to reduce traditional bond fund allocations by 6%, and then you can use that 6% to allocate to any return stream you want. would like to stack on top of their original allowances. Specifically, in our 90/60 mix of stocks and bonds, the 10% swap results in an allocation of 9% to stocks and 6% to bond futures. Without cutting down on bond allocations, a 10% equity position swap with NTSX would result in a 1% decrease in the allocation to equities and an additional 6% exposure to bond futures. Managed futures strategies could be an ideal portfolio complement to a capital efficient core fund like NTSX due to the historical ability of managed futures contracts to provide tactical hedges and short exposure to markets. Other Efficient Core supplements could be: Other income-oriented allocations to potentially increase portfolio income Other high-growth themes if they are focused on capital appreciation mandates Conclusion
We believe that our Efficient basic suite delivers significant innovation to the market and helps investors be creative in designing and optimizing their portfolios.
Now, with over $ 600 million in assets and a three-year track record, we see the time to reconsider how NTSX could improve your wallet.
Watch our latest video on Efficient Core Suite below.
1. Corey Hoffstein, one of the advocates of a capital efficient portfolio approach and who was quoted in Barron’s about the need for such strategies before our launch, recently wrote an article outlining the concept of stacking returns. in “Return Stacking: Strategies for Overcoming a Low Return Environment” with two colleagues from ReSolve Asset Management. Initially published by WisdomTree, September 16, 2021.
Significant risks associated with this article
This information must be preceded or accompanied by a prospectus; Click on here to view or download the prospectus. We recommend that you carefully consider the objectives, risks, costs and expenses of the Fund before investing. The prospectus contains this information as well as other important information about the Fund. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.
There are risks associated with investing, including possible loss of capital. Although the Fund is actively managed, the Fund’s investment process is expected to depend heavily on quantitative models, and the models may not work as intended. Equity securities, such as common stocks, are subject to market, economic and business risks which may cause their prices to fluctuate. The Fund invests in derivatives to gain exposure to US Treasuries. The performance of a derivative instrument may not match the performance of its underlying benchmark asset. The Fund’s use of derivatives will give rise to leverage, and derivatives may be volatile and may be less liquid than other securities. Therefore, the value of an investment in the Fund can change quickly and without warning, and you can lose money. Interest rate risk is the risk that fixed income securities and financial instruments linked to fixed income securities will lose value due to an increase in interest rates and changes in other factors, such as as the perception of the creditworthiness of an issuer. Please read the Fund’s prospectus for specific details regarding the Fund’s risk profile.
For each fund with a history of at least three years, Morningstar calculates a Morningstar Rating
MT each month by subtracting the return on a 90-day US Treasury bill from the load-adjusted return for the fund for the same period, and then adjusting that excess return for risk. The richest 10% of funds in each broad asset class receive five stars, the next 22.5% four stars, the next 35% three stars, the next 22.5% two stars, and the poorest 10% a star. Morningstar Overall Rating MT for a fund is derived from a weighted average of the performance numbers associated with its Morningstar rating over three, five and ten years (if applicable) MT metric. The WisdomTree US Efficient Core Fund (NTSX) has been measured against the following number of US domiciled large cap blended funds over the following periods: 1,254. With respect to these large cap blended funds, the WisdomTree US Efficient Core Fund (NTSX) received a Morningstar rating MT of five stars for the period of three years. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
Morningstar Quartile Rankings are based on the Morningstar Percentile Rank in the Morningstar category, where 1% – 25% = first quartile (1); 26% – 50% = second quartile (2); 51% – 75% = third quartile (3); and 76% – 100% = fourth quartile (4). The Morningstar Percentile Rank compares a fund’s Morningstar risk and return scores against all funds in the same category, where 1% = best and 100% = worst.
Morningstar Risk is an assessment of changes in the monthly returns of a fund compared to similar funds. The greater the variation, the higher the risk score.
Morningstar Return is an assessment of the fund’s excess return over a risk-free rate (the return on 90-day T-bills) against similar funds.
© [2021] The morning star. All rights reserved. The information contained in this document: (1) is the property of Morningstar and / or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not guaranteed to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses resulting from the use of this information.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc. | 9,196 | 4,036 | 20,597.581764 |
warc | 202143 | Feather mites are a problem often seen in the breeds with more feathers (as the name suggests), and is caused by the Chorioptic mite. They’re smaller than lice and not visible to the naked eye. Feather mites cause irritation and itching in horses.
How do you prevent feather mites in horses?
Clean the horse’s skin, especially around any scabs or sores, to remove dead skin cells before treatment. This reduces the places for mites to hide and also interferes with their food source.
Where do horse mites come from?
Where do mites come from and how do horses get them? Mites can live in numerous places, but in an equine environment are most commonly found in (and transmitted by) straw and hay, the wings of birds, and other infected horses.
How do you get rid of feather mites in horses?
There are no licensed treatments for mites in horses. However the commonly used treatment is Dectomax, an injectable drug licensed for use in cattle. Two treatments are given 10-14 days apart.
Where do horses get feather mites from?
CHORIOPTIC MANGE – ‘FEATHER MITES’
The mite feeds on the skin debris and have a three week life cycle, hatching from eggs laid on the skin surface. The can live in the environment, off the horse, for around 70 days.
Can you see feather mites on horses?
Mange mites aren’t visible to the naked eye. They are found in the feathers, making the horse incredibly itchy and causing scabs to form. The mites live on the surface of the skin and feed on dead skin flakes. Sometimes the crusts they produce can move – making it seem as if the horse has “walking dandruff” .
Can humans get horse feather mites?
Sarcoptes scabiei var. equi. Sarcoptic mites of horses are a species-specific strain of Sarcoptes scabiei, a mite species that infests also sheep, cattle, pigs, other livestock and also humans. This means that it can be transmitted to humans.
How do you prevent horse mites?
Mites not only infest the horse itself, but also their surroundings, such as other horses, the barn, and any tack, blankets, saddle pads, and brushes. As such, be sure to wash all blankets, pads, and brushes. It would be best to use a separate set of blankets, pads, and brushes for any horse that is allergic to mites.
What time of year do horses get mites?
Horses with a lower resistance are more susceptible to mite allergy. In autumn the horses’ resistance is running at full capacity. In addition to large fluctuations in temperature, the change of season initiates the shedding process of horses as well.
What kills feather mites?
A relatively safe method of treatment is to put one drop of 0.1% ivermectin in propylene glycol on the bare skin; however, the mites are killed only after sucking blood. Other ectoparasites may cause some irritation or feather damage.
How do you know if horse has mites?
Signs that could point towards horses being infected by mite
Itchiness, particularly around the legs. Leg pounding. Horse rubs its legs together. Horse bites its legs.
Can horse mites bite humans?
Mites are species specific, so even if they get on you, they’ll die in a few days. … You might experience an itchy rash or bumps from the mites, but over-the-counter anti-itch products should take care of the problem. If the itching or rash doesn’t go away in a couple of days, see the doctor.
Can feather mites live on humans?
They will bite humans they encounter but cannot survive on humans. As a result of their ‘test biting’ while searching for a new bird host, the mites inject saliva. This can lead to severe irritation with rashes and intense itching. Scratching of the bites may result in secondary infections.
Can feather mites cause lameness?
Chorioptic mange mites can be the indirect cause of lameness in long term/chronic cases. If left untreated the horse will constantly stamp his feet which affects the joints eventually.
What does mange look like in horses?
Mange. Appearance: small, round bumps at first, soon followed by bald spots, with scaly, thickened skin, usually on the lower legs of draft horses with heavy feathering, although any horse can be affected. In more serious cases the skin may be rubbed raw and show signs of secondary infections.
How do you treat chickens for feather mites?
How to Naturally Treat Mites & Lice
Dust Baths. If you don’t have a dust bath area for your chickens, consider making one in your yard. … Diatomaceous Earth. Diatomaceous Earth (DE) may sound scary, but it is actually a naturally occurring type of sedimentary rock. … Keep the Coop Clean. … Coop Mite Spray. … Garlic Juice.
2.01.2020 | 4,688 | 2,178 | 9,797.876951 |
warc | 202143 | Selenium has important functions in your horse’s body. It is an anti-oxidant that in conjunction with vitamin E, prevents free radicals from damaging otherwise healthy cells. Selenium is also important for maintaining adequate levels of circulating thyroid hormone.
What are the symptoms of selenium deficiency in horses?
Deficiency in selenium can cause a variety of symptoms in horses, including myopathy (muscle disease), impaired movement, difficulty in suckling and swallowing, respiratory distress and impaired heart function.
How much selenium does a horse need per day?
The FDA has set a daily recommended level of selenium for an “average” horse at a total of 3 mg per day. Many different types of feeds and supplements contain selenium. Take the time to read the labels and calculate how much, if any, selenium is contributing to your horse’s diet.
How much selenium is toxic to horses?
In the case of selenium, more can be toxic. The upper safe total intake of selenium per day, based on the most recent National Research Council publication Nutrient Requirements of Horses, is 20 mg for an average 1,000-pound horse.
What are the symptoms of selenium deficiency?
What are the symptoms?
infertility in men and women. muscle weakness. fatigue. mental fog. hair loss. weakened immune system.
11.11.2017
What is the best selenium supplement for horses?
Three forms of selenium are used in feeds and supplements: inorganic sodium selenite, inorganic sodium selenate, and organic selenium yeast. The yeast form has been found to be more bioavailable than the inorganic forms, more readily raising horses’ serum selenium levels.
How do you know if your horse needs magnesium?
Signs that your horse may be magnesium deficient
Very tight, sore back not related to activity, fitness level or saddle fit. Horse never really relaxes. Cranky about being brushed or palpated especially over the back on either side of the spine. Cranky about being blanketed. History of tying up. Do horses need salt blocks?
In addition to shade and a source of fresh water, every summer turnout space needs to have a salt block. Horses lose large amounts of the essential mineral in their sweat, and if it’s not replenished, an electrolyte imbalance may develop, leading to low blood pressure or even neurological or cardiovascular problems.
Is it safe to take selenium everyday?
When taken by mouth: Selenium is LIKELY SAFE for most people when taken by mouth in doses less than 400 mcg daily, short-term. However, selenium is POSSIBLY UNSAFE when taken by mouth in high doses or for a long time. Taking doses above 400 mcg can increase the risk of developing selenium toxicity.
What is vitamin E and selenium good for in horses?
Platinum Antioxidant formula contains Vitamin E, Vitamin C and Selenium. These antioxidants work together and may help support cells, tissues, and organs when confronting the effects of free radicals that are formed during normal metabolic processes and exercise in horses.
How do you know if your horse needs selenium?
SYMPTOMS OF SELENIUM DEFICIENCY
Stiff gait. Sore, painful muscles. Poor performance. Muscle spasms and/or trembling. Tying up (nutritional myopathy/rhabdomyolysis)
5.08.2019
Is there selenium in grass hay?
Your hay analysis reports that your grass hay contains . 1 ppm of selenium. You feed 12 lbs of hay each day.
Are selenium blocks safe for horses?
Some mineral blocks that are safe for horses have unsafe copper levels for sheep. There are also mineral blocks with and without selenium. Selenium is an essential antioxidant that horses require in their diet.
What blocks selenium absorption?
Drink alcohol. Take birth control pills. Have a condition that prevents your body from absorbing enough selenium, such as Crohn disease or ulcerative colitis.
What happens if you don’t get enough selenium?
Selenium deficiency can cause Keshan disease (a type of heart disease) and male infertility. It might also cause Kashin-Beck disease, a type of arthritis that produces pain, swelling, and loss of motion in your joints.
What is the best form of selenium to take?
What is the best form of selenium supplements? Selenium is available as selenomethionine, selenocysteine, selenite, and selenate (1). Selenomethionine and selenocysteine are better absorbed by the gut (11). | 4,374 | 2,062 | 9,127.702231 |
warc | 202143 | The U.S. Corn Belt trended warmer and drier than normal, for the week-ending September 18th.
According to data from WeatherTrends360, the region ranked the 5th warmest and 4th driest in the last 30 years for this timeframe.
Although the regional trend for the week was drier than normal, showers did fall across portions of the Upper Midwest and Northern Plains.
However, for many, these rainfall totals were less than 1” for the week. The heaviest rains this past week fell along the Gulf Coast as Hurricane Nicholas made landfall on Tuesday in Texas as a weak category 1 hurricane. Nicholas downgraded quickly after making landfall and rains from the system hung around the Gulf for much of the week.
According to data from WeatherTrends360, the third full week of September 2021 is forecast to once again bring warmer than normal trends for all, but precipitation trends will be mixed.
More eastern Corn Belt states such as Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and into Illinois are likely to receive above normal precipitation this week while much of the remainder of the Corn Belt trends drier than normal.
Areas of Minnesota, especially northern and central, could also see some overall wetter trends for the week.
Although the weekly trend for temperatures may be above normal, these trends will vary throughout the week. The region is expected to start the week on a much warmer than normal note, but by mid-week, cooler trends push through for a couple days before warmer temperatures return for the weekend.
Warmer trends for much of September are helping the U.S. corn crop reach maturity at a rate that is fairly similar to last year and ahead of the 5-year average pace thus far. Harvest of the mature crop is getting underway and should benefit from the drier trends in the central and western Corn Belt this week. | 1,831 | 915 | 3,633.984699 |
warc | 202143 | Guillermo Perez says he’s not a stereotypical Tesla owner. He isn’t an
uber-rich guy who drives a quirky, high-tech car to impress his friends.
He’s a Chicago firefighter. And he says he worked hard to be able to buy his 2014 Tesla model S85, which cost just under $100,000 but, he figures, at least uses zero gas, so he would save there.
“I was pro-Tesla,” says Perez, who loved the idea of driving an American-made product that’s also environmentally friendly. “I literally threw my life savings into it.”
So he was pretty unhappy when a software update that the company pushed out in May to address a potential fire risk in some Tesla models ended up also cutting into how far he could drive without needing to recharge the battery pack and making the recharging process take longer.
After the May 15 update, Perez says the maximum range on his electric car suddenly fell from 255 miles to as few as 221 miles — a drop equivalent to the driving distance from downtown Chicago to Naperville.
The Northwest Side resident got in touch with Tesla.
“They said everything was fine,” Perez says. “I was, like, ‘Obviously not because I’m calling you.’ I thought it was odd — 30 miles right away.”
Perez is among more than two dozen Tesla owners who have filed complaints with the federal government about the change, which they say the company made to their cars without fully disclosing what the effects of that would be.
And a federal lawsuit filed in northern California in August seeks to include about 2,000 Tesla owners in a class-action case against the automaker. The suit, filed by attorney Edward C. Chen of Irvine, California, on behalf of lead plaintiff David Rasmussen, asks that all Tesla Model S and X cars be recalled and that Tesla owners be compensated either through a buyback or a battery-pack replacement, plus monetary damages.
Chen also has filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, asking the federal agency to investigate the software updates and the potential fire risk.
His petition accuses Tesla of “using over-the-air software updates to mask and cover up a potentially widespread and dangerous issue with the batteries in their vehicles.”
Tesla company officials didn’t respond to several requests for comment.
Unlike a traditional gasoline-fueled car, the all-electric vehicles sold by Tesla since 2008 run on rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Each car’s battery pack contains several thousand individual battery cells.
The cars are connected to the Internet and receive software updates much like a smartphone gets updates. Tesla owners are required to accept the software updates to keep their warranties active.
The car’s display screen shows the percentage of charge in the battery pack and indicates how many miles the car can go before recharging it.
That mileage can be affected by a number of factors — such as driving speed, how much weight the car carries, using the heat or air conditioning. But the number of miles displayed is supposed to give drivers a sense of how far they can still go — much like a gas gauge does for a conventional vehicle.
The batteries in question were offered with an eight-year, unlimited warranty that applies even to subsequent owners if the vehicle is sold.
NHTSA has received at least 25 complaints filed by Tesla owners in eight states that say the software update hurt their battery packs’ capacity.
Thousands of complaints and comments have been posted on a Tesla fan website.
Tesla brags that it has engineered “the safest car ever built” — a boast that U.S. regulators have cautioned is misleading.
In the past year, a handful of car fires have prompted concerns among Tesla owners.
First, a Tesla Model S caught fire in Los Angeles in June 2018 while its owner was sitting in traffic.
Then, in April, another Model S burst into flames while parked in a garage in Shanghai, China.
That was followed by a fire in San Francisco in May in which an unplugged Model S ignited while parked overnight in a residential garage.
Two weeks after the San Francisco fire, another Model S ignited in the garage of a shopping mall in Hong Kong. According to news accounts, the car was parked for about half an hour before the battery began to smoke and the car burst into flames.
As Tesla looked into the cause, it pushed out a software update May 15 to all Model S and X vehicles that the company said was being done “out of an abundance of caution.”
According to the lawsuit filed in California, the update notice that consumers were sent didn’t disclose that downloading it could affect the car’s mileage.
Rasmussen, the Victorville, California, plaintiff who is seeking class-action status for that lawsuit, so it would include other Tesla owners as well, says the effect of the update was immediate. He says his Model S’s range plummeted from about 247 miles to 217 miles.
Rasmussen says that 30-mile loss of range is significant, given his 125-mile one-way commute to work at a technology company. He says he’s used to stopping at a Tesla super-charging station but that now he has to do that more frequently, as well as having to wait longer for the battery pack to charge.
Perez, the Chicago firefighter, says the update sharply throttled his car’s charging ability. When he first got his car, he says, it took about an hour to fully charge it. Since the update, he says, it takes nearly twice as long.
“It would take forever to charge,” Perez says.
And planning road trips is now more complicated, according to Perez, who says he has to charge more frequently than he did before.
As a group, Tesla owners are known for their enthusiastic embrace of the brand. Loyal and often a little nerdy, they tend to rave about the technology and talk about how they enjoy supporting an environmentally friendly product.
In the early days, stories of positive customer interactions were common, with Tesla founder Elon Musk wowing fans by proclaiming his commitment to service and providing personal responses to them on Twitter.
That’s one reason why Rasmussen says he’s so disappointed. He says he supports addressing a potential fire risk but wonders, based on what he views as a lack of transparency on Tesla’s part, whether the fix will even be enough.
“I completely believe that there’s something defective in these batteries that should be covered under warranty,” he says. “Just tell us what’s going on.”
Perez agrees: “I’m still hopeful Tesla will change around and be back to the Tesla I used to know.” | 6,786 | 3,177 | 13,888.124646 |
warc | 202143 | The evolution of patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN) varies greatly, and predictive tools are needed to assess confidently the risk for progression. Although in many studies clinical risk factors such as hypertension and proteinuria have consistently been linked to outcome, the independent value of pathology remains debated. Pathologists have developed a number of classifications over the years, at times with seemingly conflicting results. In 2009, the International IgA Nephropathy Network Group, working in collaboration with the Renal Pathology Society, proposed a set of four predictive renal biopsy findings independent of clinical assessment, the MEST score (M, mesangial hypercellularity; E, endocapillary proliferation; S, segmental glomerulosclerosis/adhesion; T, tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis) (1,2). This study differed from previous classification by using a stepwise methodology initially considering all plausible variables, subsequently eliminating those with poor reproducibility, avoiding highly collinear biopsy findings, testing their univariate predictive value and, finally, adjusting for clinical risk factors of progression. It also simultaneously considered two important, albeit different, outcomes: The rate of renal function decline and the survival from a 50% reduction of renal function or renal failure. Despite this meticulous approach, certain limitations were unavoidable. Its retrospective design and uncontrolled treatment allocation could have influenced the results. Validation of the Oxford classification has been carried out in children as well as adults (3,4). Verification is necessary because premature implementation of biased conclusions can harm patients and mislead future research.
It has been emphasized repeatedly that a validation study should consist of an adequate sample of different but related patients compared with the derivation population (5). “Relatedness” is defined by patients at risk for the same event. Whether a decision rule can be extrapolated to a population at different risk can never be confidently answered from the initial study, regardless of its quality. The original Oxford study excluded patients with an (
1) initial estimated GFR (eGFR) <30 ml/min per 1.73 m 2, ( 2) proteinuria <0.5 g/d, and ( 3) follow-up period of less than 12 months. On the basis of these criteria, one can argue that three important subgroups of patients with IgAN were disregarded from the classification: Patients with advanced disease, patients with low-grade proteinuria unlikely to progress over a few years, and, finally, the rare but important patient presenting with a rapidly progressive form of IgAN.
In this issue of
CJASN, Alamartine et al. (6) carried a validation endeavor in 183 adult patients who had IgAN and were followed for an average of 77 months. Pathologic assessment was assessed and covariates gathered identically to the original study. The authors stated that very mild and very severe forms of the disease were not a priori excluded. Many wished the original study had included them, and addressing these groups is clinically relevant. Consequently, differences in the study populations have surfaced. Mesangial and endocapillary hypercellularity was present in 81% and 42% in the Oxford cohort, respectively, as opposed to 21% and 14% in this study. The validation cohort was 13 years older without children, and the initial proteinuria was 1.24 g/d as opposed to 1.7 g/d originally. Finally, 13 and 12 patients presented with stages 4 and 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD), respectively. Treatment allocation seemed similar.
Clinicopathologic correlations mirrored those found in the Oxford study with the notable exception of the M lesion showing no relation with proteinuria. The E, S, and T lesions also predicted the survival from a combined event by univariate analysis, but none remained significant when adjusting for clinical variables. In the multivariate model, only baseline eGFR was a positive predictive factor for doubling of serum creatinine or ESRD. Interestingly, proteinuria and BP also failed to predict survival independently from a combined event when factoring in the initial eGFR. Both were strongly associated with outcome univariately, as expected. Table 3 offers a glimpse of the important collinearity between tubulointerstitial disease and eGFR when the hazard ratio for the T lesion jumps from 1.24 to 5.11 when eGFR is removed from the equation. The original study also showed this attenuation, to a lesser extent, perhaps having excluded patients with stages 4 and 5 CKD. Using the rate of renal function decline (slope) as an outcome allows the impact of the initial eGFR that weights strongly on renal survival analyses to be distinguished. However, estimating the slope can be difficult and biased by a single outlier. Consistency using both outcomes offers reassurance.
The lack of independent value of the E, S, and T lesions must be carefully interpreted. Validation studies typically include fewer patients and are expected to show a similar signal compared with the original study without necessarily duplicating every result (5). Two additional features here may have influenced statistical power. The initial eGFR varied considerably, and patients included in the Oxford study presented with more frequent mesangial and endocapillary hypercellularity than in the present one. This study does offer interesting insight as to whether the Oxford classification can be extrapolated to those with more advanced CKD, with fewer proliferative lesions and lower proteinuria. In this study, 25 patients had an eGFR <30 ml/min per 1.73 m
2 and perhaps in such patients, the M, E, S, and T lesions offer less predictive value. Interestingly, the M lesion also was questioned in a recent validation study (7). It is the only variable that must be calculated and for which disagreement is more likely to appear among pathologists. Interesting also are the differences in clinical practice: In the Oxford study, endocapillary hypercellularity was most commonly associated with the use of and response to corticosteroids, whereas in the study by Alamartine et al. (6), endocapillary hypercellularity was the lesion that was less frequently associated with this form of treatment.
The inability to produce a classification that applies to every individual may seem disappointing. However, when examined closely, the excluded patients from the Oxford study do present unique distinguishing features. Those with consistently low proteinuria do not progress, patients with advanced scarring and little proliferation rarely benefit from immunosuppression and, finally, crescentic IgAN is approached clinically like a vasculitis. Such is the diversity of IgAN. A close parallel can be drawn with lupus nephritis. Coincidentally, multiple pathologic classifications in lupus have been proposed and debated, but none have been derived using a stepwise approach, yet.
Disclosures
None.
Footnotes
See related article, “The Use of the Oxford Classification of IgA Nephropathy to Predict Renal Survival,” on pages 2384–2388.
Copyright © 2011 by the American Society of Nephrology | 7,232 | 3,235 | 16,066.888408 |
warc | 202143 | THE IRISH JUDICIARY body has voted in favour of adopting new guidelines aimed at reducing the amount of damages that can be awarded to claimants for personal injury cases.
The Judicial Council’s Personal Injuries Guidelines Committee’s draft guidelines to replace the guidance in the Book of Quantum – which gives an approximate level of damages for injuries – were submitted to the Council in December and adopted today.
The council said that the Personal Injuries Guidelines will provide greater certainty as to the level of damages likely to be awarded by a court if the case proceeded to trial.
The report on the draft guidelines states that the committee decided that a catalogue of injuries would be the most accessible and appropriate form for the guidelines to take.
“The catalogue now proposed is a list of injuries, ranging from the major to the minor, each of which has assigned to it a range or bracket within which an award should ordinarily fall,” the report reads.
“In individual cases, where the facts are exceptional and warrant a departure from the guided bracket, the court may depart from the guided bracket, provided that a justification is given for doing so as set out in section 22 of the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 (as amended).”
The Committee said it placed particular emphasis on injuries which are litigated frequently, “and especially those of up to 5 years’ duration”.
“The Guidelines give detailed guidance as to what level of damages should be awarded in these types of cases. However, they also allow for discretion for the judge to take into account the facts of individual cases.”
The guidelines, now that they have been adopted by the Judicial Council, take effect once Section 99 of the Judicial Council Act 2019 is commenced by the Minister for Justice.
‘Dismay’
Justice Minister Helen McEntee, who will bring proposals to Cabinet on Tuesday on how to implement the guidelines, said she hopes this will have a lasting impact on the award of damages in personal injuries cases.
“It is my hope that the new guidelines will bring consistency, reduce litigation and reduce awards, which are a major driver of insurance costs.
“The guidelines will of course require further consideration in the coming days and I will report on the implementation of the guidelines and the initial impact they have by the end of the year,” said McEntee, who previously indicated that she would propose a minor legislative amendment be made so that the Personal Injuries Guidelines take legal effect in respect of claims as early as possible.
The Personal Injuries Assessment Board said the guidelines, which will be used by both PIAB and the Judiciary to assess compensation in personal injury claims, will bring greater transparency and consistency to awards and “importantly they will reduce the overall levels of awards in Ireland which were until now significantly out of kilter with other countries”.
“For PIAB, as the main body charged with implementing these guidelines, what we hope they will achieve is more claims being settled through PIAB, and less cases going into costly and lengthy litigation,” PIAB Chief Executive Rosalind Carroll said.
Carroll said the next step for PIAB will be to examine the guidelines in detail to ensure the country’s systems and processes are ready when they become law.
Less impressed were the Alliance for Insurance Reform, who reacted with dismay at today’s publication and called on the government to dramatically reduce the proposed damages for minor injuries.
Peter Boland, Director of the Alliance, said he has written to An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, in his role as Chair of the Cabinet Committee Sub-Group on Insurance Reform, to intervene immediately and cap general damages such that damages for minor injuries are reduced by an average of 80% compared to the previous Book of Quantum guidelines.
As part of drafting the new guidelines, the Committee carried out research as to how Irish court awards fare when compared to awards made by courts elsewhere, in particular, Northern Ireland, England and Wales.
Eoin McCambridge, managing director of McCambridge’s of Galway and director of the Alliance, said an 80% reduction on minor injuries would only bring Ireland down to where England and Wales currently are “and would still be nowhere near the equivalent damages in other European countries”.
For example, under the new guidelines, a minor thumb injury with no sprain or breakage was reduced from an average of €21,200 to €12,000 (-43%), the alliance says the same injury would receive damages of €4,582 in England and Wales.
“We are not talking about damages for serious injuries here. Where a person is seriously injured due the negligence of someone else, they must be properly compensated and that is what insurance is there for,” said McCambridge.
“What we are talking about are the bumps, bruises and mild, fully recovered whiplash injuries where treatment ends when the legal action is finished. We reward these injuries at a level unprecedented in Europe and these are the awards that are damaging Irish society.”
Likewise, Insurance Ireland the new guidelines were a step in the right direction but do not represent the comprehensive reform that it was seeking.
“Of particular concern in today’s announcement by the Judicial Council is the fact that for soft tissue injuries such as minor neck injuries, an award range of €500 to €12,000 is indicated,” CEO of Insurance Ireland, Moyagh Murdock, said.
“Interpretation of ‘ substantial’ is going to have a significant bearing on the awards, and there is still a risk of judges making widely varying awards of damages in respect of relatively comparable injuries.
Also of concern is that the new guidelines are not retrospective, which means any claims currently going through the system will still attract awards based on the old book of quantum regime. Under consideration
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said the government is committed to bringing down the cost and increasing the availability of insurance, especially for businesses and voluntary groups.
“We will now carefully consider what is set out in the new guidelines. We will have to see how they bed down over the next few months to see if any further action is needed,” he said.
“The important thing for government is that ultimately, the value of awards given in cases is consistent with the damage caused. Inflated personal injury awards inflate premiums and we want to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
The Judicial Council said the reduction in insurance costs was not the role of the Committee and that the answer to this depends upon whether or not or to what extent awards of damages made by Irish courts are responsible for the levels of insurance premiums in the state.
“If there is such a correlation, whether or not the cost of insurance in the State will be reduced as a result of the introduction of the Guidelines will depend upon whether any savings which will accrue to the insurance companies as a result of the Guidelines will be passed on to policyholders.”
Source the journal.ie | 7,374 | 3,183 | 16,413.694628 |
warc | 202143 | Remember last summer when the talking heads on CNN told us about the “fiery but peaceful protests” happening nationwide? Or how Chirs Cuomo said, “Please, show me where it says protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful.” The outlet also reported that Jacob Blake was shot by a Kenosha police officer, without noting that Blake had a knife. Instead, the incident, in which Blake was in violation of a restraining order and resisted arrest, demonstrated a need for a “racial reckoning,” according to CNN’s Ray Sanchez.
The anti-police narratives held up by CNN and other corporate media outlets led to Democrat cities nationwide removing money from the police budget. The idea of “reimagining” policing took hold, and CNN jumped on the bandwagon with think pieces and interviews with the queen of the defund the police movement, Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
Enter Matt Dornic, the head of strategic communications for CNN. He lives in Northwest Washington, D.C., where homes like the ones in the video he posted sell for around $850,000. On Twitter, Dornic reported dodging random gunfire in his upscale neighborhood, calling the incident unacceptable:
(Volume up) Here’s a video of me dodging random gunfire in NW DC last night at 842 pm. This is unacceptable. pic.twitter.com/bhqXMoAkXl
— Matt Dornic (@mdornic) October 12, 2021
It is unacceptable, and no one should diminish Dornic’s fear or shock at random gun violence. However, we cannot overlook the irony of CNN having promoted anti-police rhetoric for over a year because leaders in Washington heeded the call from CNN and other corporate media networks. Mayor Muriel Bowser famously painted “Black Lives Matter” in giant yellow letters on 16th Street leading toward the White House and named it Black Lives Matter Plaza NW. In July 2020, the city council voted unanimously to cut $15 million from the police department budget. City leaders reallocated the funds to public safety efforts not connected with law enforcement.
A large portion of the money in the proposed legislation would be refunded to public safety efforts that are outside of D.C.’s law enforcement.
This includes funding a new position for a Gun Violence Director to spearhead the District’s interagency strategy for preventing gun violence, more funding for the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE) and more allocated funds for the city’s social work programs.
So how is that working out? By May of 2021, almost 10% of the D.C. police force had retired or quit. Police union chairman Greggory Pemberton blamed police reform laws passed by the city council, noting that officers and their families were experiencing harassment. The year-over-year increase in homicides was 35%. There was a spike in carjackings by July, and approximately 70 more officers turned in their badges. Looking at unsolved homicides, they nearly exclusively ended black lives.
Recommended: The Rebellion Against ‘Woke’ Has Begun
This summer, Bowser attempted to backpedal by proposing to hire 170 more officers by the end of 2022 and add $11 million back into the law enforcement budget. She was stopped short by the city council, which only allocated $5 million to hire 40 officers. An additional $12.5 million will go to violence prevention programs like it did last year, despite no evidence that they curb crime.
It is not even clear that the department would be able to find 170 new police officers. The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department typically hires 250 officers per year. Following the budget cuts in 2020, the MPD hired only 21 recruits. Nationwide, 86% of departments report staffing issues. It is even more difficult in cities like Washington, where leaders do not support police officers.
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the United States recorded its highest murder rate increase in a century between 2019 and 2020. The agency noted a 30% year-over-year rise, and it continued to increase in the first half of 2021. According to City Journal editor Heather Mac Donald, the Ferguson effect, seen after BLM burst onto the scene following the death of Michael Brown, cost 2,000 additional black lives in 2015 and 2016. The George Floyd effect will dwarf those statistics across all racial and socioeconomic lines unless something changes.
So maybe Dornic and his colleagues at CNN should turn down the anti-police rhetoric and dismissal of rising crime statistics. One example is Don Lemon, who told Chris Cuomo, “If you watch a certain state TV and you listen to conservative media, you would think that, you know, entire cities are just, you know, embroiled in fights and fires and whatever.”
“We went out and had a great dinner in New York City tonight,” Lemon shared. “People actually walked up to us and said thank you for — I watch you every night. I can’t believe — they thought they had to do a double-take at us actually hanging out and not seeing on the TV screen. But New York City was not, you know, a hellscape, was it?”
Of course, then Lemon made the salient point, “Before people try to twist what we’re saying. Nobody is condoning violence here. We know that there is violence out there, but entire cities are not on fire and in tumult. There are a few blocks.” Maybe Dornic should tell him it is more than a few blocks now. And that law-abiding citizens on every block deserve to feel safe. | 5,550 | 2,767 | 10,787.09794 |
warc | 202143 | Coffee is the best beverage to ever have in the morning. The three most looked-up to about coffee are the aromas, the flavor, and the caffeine content. Strong coffee tends to give a richer aroma, while weak coffee is not really desirable. The weakest coffee is determined by caffeine capacity in a cup of brewed coffee.
But there are distinctive definitions of weak coffee. There are people who love weak coffee because it has less caffeine content which is better for them.
Contents
There are definitions you could give to weak coffee. Yet, it is better to look at who you ask this question too. That is because coffee drinkers have different preferences. The weakest coffee in most coffee shops is a latte.
A latte is considered the weakest coffee because it contains a higher percentage of steamed milk than other recipes. While some people talk about espresso as the weakest drink based on its caffeine content.
A single shot of espresso contains only 60 to 100 mg of caffeine but other drinks start at least from 80 to 100 mg of caffeine. An espresso shot has the most caffeine per volume but is still the weakest per drink.
Those who think that an espresso shot is a strong coffee, probably do not drink much coffee or espresso. So, that is why the definition of a weak coffee partly depends on drinkers’ preferences.
Sometimes, weak coffee also refers to poorly brewed coffee. A coffee that has poor quality, extracted badly and unflavorful, tastes watery is also considered a weak coffee.
As mentioned, a weak coffee differs from contexts, the beans quality, brewing methods, roasting levels, however in this portion the weakest coffee is determined by caffeine capacity in a cup of brewed coffee. Below is the caffeinated content list of different caffeine levels of drinks.
This caffeine standpoint shows that espresso is the weakest coffee counted on caffeine (mg). A single shot of espresso is only 2 ounces and its caffeinated content is only 75 mg.
Thinking of a shot of espresso alone would make you categorize it into a strong coffee. A shot of espresso contains a strong amount of caffeine starting from 60mg to 100mg. But compared to other types of coffee drinks such as cold brew, iced/hot latte, mocha, espresso is the weakest.
To most coffee drinkers, cold brew and mocha are not considered strong drinks, but in fact, there is more caffeine in those drinks compared to espresso. So, if you are looking for the weakest caffeinated coffee, you should go with espresso, only 75mg caffeine per shot.
Decaf coffee has 97% of its caffeine removed. Yet, decaf is not a regular coffee. Moreover, decaf is mostly referred to when some people want to avoid a high amount of caffeine. But do bear in mind that decaf is not a caffeine-free drink. Just that decaf has a lot less caffeine compared to regular coffee drinks.
If decaf is a weak coffee, then why isn’t it listed in the table above? Well, for coffee lovers, it is hard to consider decaf coffee as a mainstream coffee, that is why it is not listed in the table above. But if you are looking for a cheap and less caffeinated coffee, decaf should be a fit.
If you are a big fan of Starbucks and looking for the weakest coffee in there, you should try Decaf Pike’s Place Roast. The small serving of this drink contains only 15 mg of caffeine and the tall cup comes with 20 mg.
And the other weakest is the espresso shot, it comes with 75 mg caffeinated content for shot serving per volume. Starbucks serves a variety of types of coffee, cappuccino, hot/cold chocolate, americano, etc.
Wanting a caffeine-deficient cup of drink at Starbucks, you can consider Decaf pike’s Place roast. However, if you want a little more of a real drink but low caffeine, you can get an espresso shot.
Though, there is no factor found that leads to a weak coffee. But there are several points in caffeine content that weak coffee can be made through several steps.
A less caffeine coffee happens when the coffee doesn’t meet the water ratio and that leads to a weak coffee. The weak coffee here doesn’t refer to poorly extracted beans, but a cup of coffee that has a low caffeinated content. So, if you want to avoid weak coffee, you should sustain a good sufficient water ratio.
The brewing method somehow is one of the steps that decides the fate of your coffee. Different methods brewed determine the level of caffeine in your coffee. Like an espresso shot has the lowest caffeine content per volume while cold brew coffee has a tendency of higher caffeine per drink. The strength of cold brew seems so enervating as compared with an espresso shot, in actual fact, it has a greater impact on drinkers.
The caffeine count also comes from types of coffee beans and roasted levels. So, lightly roasted beans and dark roasted beans cultivate different levels of caffeine.
Lightly roasted beans offer the highest level of caffeinated content compared to dark roast. A cup of drip coffee using lightly roasted coffee beans has more acidity and tastes much bolder and stronger than other roast brewed. When the coffee has a strong taste, it tends to have more caffeine content.
Dark roast coffee beans contain a lesser amount of caffeine during the roasting process. But that doesn’t make a bad point for dark coffee, it just has lesser caffeine content.
Besides, the roasting process that partly decides on the intensity of your coffee, choosing the right type of bean is also important. And there are two most preferred beans, the Arabica bean, and the Robusta bean.
Arabica bean is the most preferred one for most coffee drinkers. Arabica beans have a complex flavor profile of chocolate, caramel, flora, bright/dry/low acidity, fruity, etc. the natural arabica beans really have a nice aroma and amazing brewed taste.
Robusta bean is a bit cheaper than arabica bean but that is not the point since the quality of the bean doesn’t lay on its price tag. The Robusta beans are more preferred when the drinkers want a bolder and strong taste coffee. Robusta coffee has higher caffeine content.
So, the roasting and types of beans are crucial and could tell the strength and the difference of cups of coffee.
To sum up, after acknowledging the true definition of weak coffee, bear in mind that the weak coffee here isn’t about its quality. Howbeit, if you want to try an actual weak coffee, you better get an espresso. Decaf is also good, just espresso sounds more of an actual coffee.
Reference: Here’s What You Should Know About The Coffee Types Explained By TRT World | 6,593 | 2,618 | 16,401.913293 |
warc | 202143 | As Bitcoin rallies past $57k, Quant explains using on-chain analysis why the cryptocurrency may see a pullback here.
Bitcoin Funding Rate And Futures Open Interest Show Rising Values
As explained by an analyst in a CryptoQuant post, some BTC indicators are showing values that have historically signaled that a correction could be coming soon.
The first metric of relevance is the Bitcoin funding rate, which is defined as the periodic payment that futures contract traders have to pay. Positive values imply most traders are bullish and long traders are paying this fee to short traders.
While negative values mean just the opposite; traders are bearish on Bitcoin and short traders have to pay long traders.
The other indicator is the futures open interest. This metric shows the total number of futures contracts that are open at the end of the trading day.
Here is a chart showing the trend in both these indictors for Bitcoin:
The funding rate and futures open interest vs the BTC price | ソース: CryptoQuant
上のグラフが示すように, both the indicators have been observing a rise in their values recently. The quant has marked instances where similar values were seen on the chart before.
Looks like when such a trend in these metrics has been seen before, a correction has followed soon after.
関連資料 | Bitcoin Eclipses Trillion-Dollar Market Cap on Equity ETF Approval – Crypto Weekly Roundup, 10月 11, 2021
また, it seems like both the long-term holders and short-term holders are in profit right now, as the below chart highlights:
The long-term SOPR and the short-term SOPR | ソース: CryptoQuant
Both long-term and short-term Investors being in such profit means they are becoming more likely to take some profits at this level.
関連資料 | On-Chain Data Shows Bitcoin Miners Hold Off On Selling Despite BTC Rallying Above $57k
This fact combined with the rising funding rates and futures open interest makes the Quant believe that BTC could see a pullback in the short term soon.
BTC価格
執筆時点, Bitcoin’s price floats around $56.9k, アップ 14% 過去7日間で. Over the past thirty days, 暗号が得られました 24% 値.
Here is a chart showing the trend in the price of BTC over the last five days:
Bitcoin's price shows a strong move up as the coin breaks $57k | ソース: TradingViewのBTCUSD
BTC has continued its climb up in the last few days as the coin now rallies above $57k. It’s unclear at the moment if the crypto can keep this momentum up, but if the funding rates and futures open interest is anything to go by, the market may be leading to a correction soon. Long term indicators, しかしながら, still remain bullish.
Unsplash.comからの注目の画像, TradingView.comからのチャート, CryptoQuant.com アドブロックテスト (なぜ?)
ソース: Newsbtc | 3,155 | 1,516 | 5,537.899077 |
warc | 202143 | By Steve W.
When we talk about the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and the fact that, because it prevents the federal government from recognizing same-sex unions, lesbian and gay partners are denied over 1,100 benefits, we’re not just talking about marriage, are we? We’re really talking about health insurance, Social Security, estate tax and much more.
The lifetime monetary cost of being in a same-sex relationship when compared to a heterosexual marriage has now been estimated by The New York Times’ financial analysts Tara Siegel Bernard and Ron Lieber in a two-month exercise that they had originally thought would take them only one week.
To do this they created a hypothetical family that was designed to mirror the average heterosexual married couple, comparing the financial situations of the two couples based on the options open to them and creating a best and worst case scenario for the outcomes of that comparison for the gay couple.
The same-sex family they created was made up of
“two women living in New York state in a committed partnership that lasts 46 years, until the first partner dies at age 81”.
Here is the context for the analysis:
“Our goal was to create a hypothetical gay couple whose situation would be similar to a heterosexual couple’s. So we gave the couple two children and assumed that one partner would stay home for five years to take care of them. We also considered the taxes in the three states that have the highest estimated gay populations: New York, California and Florida. We gave our couple an income of $140,000 [which was split between the two partners so that one partner earned $110,000 and the other earned $30,000] which is about the average income in those three states for unmarried same-sex partners who are college-educated, 30 to 40 years old and raising children under the age of 18.”
The analysts then calculated the taxes incurred and the federal benefits denied as a result of the government not recognizing the couple’s union.
What did they find?
Worst case scenario, not being able to claim the same benefits as their heterosexual counterparts cost the same-sex couple a huge $467, 562.
Best case scenario it would cost them $41,196.
Best or worst case scenario, it still seems to add up to injustice.
According to the data the analysis provides, the areas in which same-sex couples are worst hit by the denial of benefits are in health insurance, Social Security and estate taxes.
In health care, the figures depended largely on whether an employer allows same-sex couples spousal benefits. If they didn’t, as was the hypothetical situation in the worst case scenario, the couple were forced to buy health care coverage for both themselves and their two children, adding up to a cost of $211,993. If spousal benefits were allowed, this figure was significantly reduced but still quite dramatic at $41,196.
In Social Security, due to a denial of survivor benefits and higher spousal benefits, as well as other factors, the projected result was a loss of around $88,511 when compared to what a claimant from a heterosexual married couple would have been entitled to receive.
In estate tax, same-sex couples can not enjoy the same ability to move money between themselves tax-free like heterosexual married couples do. True this is only going to be a significant problem for really quite wealthy gay couples, but the worst case cost ran to $43, 378. If they were wealthy before, they would be considerably less so after.
The study also noted that because same-sex couples were not eligible for the Marriage Penalty Tax, they could stand to save up to $112,146 in income tax during their life-time. This number was also factored in to the final totals. I’d wager its a price that same-sex couples would be more than willing to pay if they had the choice, however.
The other categories that the analysis factored in were the costs of having a child, pension income, spousal I.R.A., tax preparation and financial planning.
With the analysis simulating an average same-sex couple, it does not take into account the legal fees and implications associated with a same-sex partner who is a foreign national, which would have further increased the costs.
To read the full New York Times article where you can also see the results in chart form, click here.
The analysts concluded that if DOMA was repealed, and the federal government then began recognizing same-sex marriages, this huge disparity in taxation and benefits could be greatly diminished. They also asked the question: Were gay and lesbian couples being discouraged from having children due to these large benefit gaps and tax penalties?
While a $140,000 annual income might seem high for either a heterosexual or homosexual couple right now, and this average feels anything but typical when the rest of America is factored in, the analysis does show that DOMA has real and tangible consequences beyond just denying people the right to have federally recognized marriages, and demonstrates the inequality that DOMA creates.
Take Action Now: Support the Respect for Marriage Act and help repeal DOMA today. Have Your Say: Do you think that this analysis is a reminder that DOMA unfairly discriminates against same-sex partners?
Or do you think that the study has weaknesses and doesn’t in fact tell us much at all?
Posted at Care2. | 5,434 | 2,497 | 11,636.202643 |
warc | 202143 | There is a quote—often attributed to Francis of Assisi, a 13th-century monk—which you have likely heard over the years: “Preach the Gospel always, and when necessary use words.”
I understand what Francis was saying (if, indeed, he said it). His desire was to see Christians live in such a way that people could recognize Jesus in them. A modern way of saying this may be, “Don’t just talk the talk. Walk the walk.”
And there is much to be said about living a life that pursues righteousness and honors Christ. In fact, we are repeatedly instructed to do so throughout Scripture. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2).
Unfortunately, it seems many Christians today believe that if they just live a good life, they don’t need to verbally share the love of Jesus with others. This is sometimes referred to as “lifestyle evangelism,” and when it is put into practice without a verbal witness, it becomes an eternity-altering lie.
Let me state this plainly and clearly: You cannot be good enough to get your friend into Heaven. You cannot live such an upstanding, righteous and hope-filled life that your loved one will get a “buddy pass” into eternity. After all, if you can’t earn your own way into Heaven (see Ephesians 2:8-9), how would you expect to do that for others?
The answer is not found in living a good life. A Biblical witness for Christ involves actions and words. You need to open your mouth and share the truth of Scripture—the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus—and give them a chance to respond to the free gift of forgiveness that Christ offers.
Let’s look at Romans 10. In this passage, the Apostle Paul writes beautiful truths about salvation, saying things like:
“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (verse 9).
“For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame’” (verse 11).
“For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved’” (verse 13).
But Paul follows this with a multilayered problem in verses 14-15: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?”
First, you can’t cry out to Jesus in repentance if you’ve never had the opportunity to believe in Him. Second, you’ll be hard-pressed to believe in Jesus if nobody has ever told you about Him. And finally, how would you hear about Jesus if nobody is willing to stand up and open their mouths to share the hope of Christ?
Paul caps off and emphasizes the thought a couple of verses later when he says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).
You’ll notice that faith does not come by mowing your neighbor’s yard or raking your neighbor’s leaves. Faith does not come by attending church every Sunday, and it does not come by generous philanthropic endeavors. These are all worthwhile things, but they won’t bring salvation to anybody.
Faith comes by hearing! And, specifically, by hearing the Word of God, the truth of Scripture, proclaimed.
Now here comes the uncomfortable part for many of us: This is a burden and responsibility we share as followers of Jesus.
You may say, “How can that be? I’m not a ‘preacher,’” as Paul references in Romans 10:14-15. However, as one who has repented, surrendered and embraced the hope that Christ offers, you are indeed called to “preach” the Word to those with whom you interact.
While you may not preach in front of hundreds or thousands, you should still be able to put into action the words of 1 Peter 3:15: “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”
Some of the most incredible soul winners I’ve encountered haven’t attended a single seminary class, but they are so passionate about Jesus that they can’t help but tell others about Him. It doesn’t require education, per se, but it does require intentional effort. You can’t live with both feet in the world and expect to reach others with the Gospel.
If you are truly going to share the hope of Jesus, you must have your head and your heart prepared for every opportunity the Lord puts in your path.
First, spend time in the Bible. Remember, “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” So study it. Know it. Memorize it. Anchor yourself to it. As you embed Scripture in your heart, the Holy Spirit will bring it back to you and equip you to share it with others.
Second, spend time in prayer, entering into the presence of God. As you do this, God will change and soften your heart, and you will grow closer to Him. You’ll be drawn to live a life that honors Jesus, which, again, is important and worthy, while also having a sensitivity and confidence to open your mouth and verbalize your faith when the door is opened.
Remember, it is important to behave in a way that opens the door to conversations about our faith. Our actions should affirm our love for Christ and not be a stumbling block for others. But, on top of that, be available and ready to share the Good News. “Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest’” (Matthew 9:37-38).
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New King James Version. Above: Will Graham preaches in Fairmont, West Virginia.
Photo: Ron Nickel/©2021 BGEA | 6,046 | 2,815 | 12,274.561279 |
warc | 202143 | SEO Aka search engine optimization is one of 2022 essentials because this is now a digital market where whose up is evaluated by its digital value by page ranking on search engines and traffic engagement.
It is said that SEO in 2022 market is in search of SEO’s for their vacant spaces at workplaces or they are enlarging the space of SEO experts in companies for influential marketing.
Over the years, it has been observed that SEO users are increasing and their numbers are rapidly changing within the 12 months. In 2025 and upcoming years will be more welcoming to 2022 SEO’s as past Covid year has the improvised value of digital marketing more. The need for SEO to increase SEO users and maximize the demand of SEO experts is a required attribute for 2022. There are not any definite or standardized techniques for SEO but there are some keys for meeting the requirements of search engines to gain page ranking.
There are 5 suggestive effective techniques from BeOnTop.ae site for best SEO in 2021:
Necessarily use of Keywords
Keywords are the group of words used by the audience in the search of products type in the search engine by which search engine page ranking is measured or decided.
So the keywords should be used in the content for the respective products according to the needs of the targeted audience to enable your site to come up in the search engine ranking. UK Keywords research mainly matter in title, subtitles, Meta tags, and Meta description but also should be added in other content for an explanation of the product.
Regular On-Page Optimization or On-Page SEO in 2022
Regular on-page optimization means regular content checkup that whether the content is updated and helping to rank your site or it is useless, whether the needs of the targeted audience are fulfilled or they are in search of another valuable web page. In on-page optimization or page, SEO keywords are updated mainly to make the content updated and valuable.
Worthy Off-Page SEO in 2022
Off-page SEO or off-page optimization is something not visible to viewers but it’s worthy because it increases the value of off-page SEO service sites by backlinks, social shares, and guest blogging. It actually looks after the popularity of your content or site among the targeted audience by updating how a site looks like a search engine.
SEO Audit in 2022
An SEO audit can be explained as SEO reflection in which an expert or user of SEO plans for the updated version of the site by looking at results of on-page and off-page SEO. It is a process of reviewing your site’s presence and authoritative value.
Commitment in 2022 SEO Actions
SEO is not a nightdream or one-day challenge but it is a rigorous effort to be rank first at the search engine ranking for more than 6 months and maybe more, depending upon your SEO strategies and content excellency according to the targeted audience.
You have to be patient, responsible, and regular, and determined to your SEO goals with consistency for top search engine ranking.
You may have a different plan or strategies to way for your SEO but these might help you to enhance your idea of SEO and become an expert in it. In 2025 and coming centuries will be digitally controlled by 2022 SEO advisors and those who want to be there should learn SEO with modern updates. | 3,338 | 1,526 | 7,218.479685 |
warc | 202143 | West Virginia Division Of Natural Resources2021 Fishing, Boating And Water Safety Guidelines Boating Education Requirements:
Anglers using boats must obey boating laws. In West Virginia, anyone born on or after December 31, 1986 must successfully complete a NASBLA-approved Boating Education Course before operating a motorboat.
Contact a Natural Resources Police Officer for an available course near you. You can also take the online Boating Education Course available at wvdnr.gov. Click on boating under the Law Enforcement heading.
Personal Floatation Device (PFD):
Most boating fatalities are the result of the boat capsizing or passengers falling overboard. Nearly 80% of those who died in boating accidents were NOT wearing PFD.
If you are fishing from a vessel, West Virginia law requires that you have a PFD (life jacket) that is in good condition, properly sized and readily available for each person on board. Any child under the age of 13, including infants, must wear a PFD while the vessel is underway. Vessels 16 feet and over must have a throwable Type IV PFD ring or cushion on board that can be thrown to a person in the water in addition to the previously stated PFDs. Tygart and Stonewall Jackson lakes have a federal regulation requiring mandatory wearing of PFDs regardless of age on all vessels under 16 feet, including kayaks and paddleboards.
Courtesy on the Boat Ramp:
Boat ramp traffic jams can be prevented if everyone practices common courtesy at the ramp. Be sure you observe these simple courtesies:
Prepare your vessel for launching or for the drive home well away from the ramp. Use at least two experienced people to launch and retrieve the vessel (one to drive the towing vehicle and one to operate the vessel). Never block a ramp with an unattended vessel or vehicle. Move the vessel away from the launch lane immediately after removing it from the trailer. Return briefly to pick up the vehicle driver once he or she has parked the vehicle and is back at the ramp. When retrieving, do not pull your vessel into a launch lane until the towing vehicle is at the ramp. The line is formed by vehicles with trailers, not by vessels in the water. Drop off the vehicle driver, and wait offshore and clear of the ramp until he or she arrives with the trailer.
Learn more about boating safety at www.register-ed.com or take an online course at wvdnr.gov.
Safe Boating Rules:
Boating accidents usually result from a collision with another boat or an object in the water such as rocks or pilings. A little boating knowledge, common sense and courtesy could prevent most accidents.
Don’t operate a boat under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Don’t overload the boat. Don’t sit on the edge of the boat. If you must stand up, do so carefully and away from the sides. Drive at a safe speed. Use navigation lights at night. Keep a lookout for other boats and follow the rules of navigation. Always let someone know where you are going and when you plan to return. Don’t fish during a thunderstorm.
Every vessel or watercraft must carry the proper safety equipment. A vessel means every description of watercraft, other than a seaplane on the water, used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water. Examples of watercraft include kayaks, canoes, inflatable pontoon boats and other vessels.
Check the weather conditions before you leave. Lightning, strong wind and high waves create hazardous conditions. If caught on a lake in a strong storm, put all fishing gear in the bottom of the boat, stay low in the boat and get off the water as soon as possible. In high waves, the best way to keep from capsizing is to steer the boat at a slight angle into the waves.
Alcohol and Drugs:
Operating a boat under the influence of alcohol or drugs creates the same risks and carries the same penalties as DUI. Intoxication affects your balance, which is already challenged by being in a boat. It also affects your coordination, vision and thinking ability. Alcohol also causes you to lose body heat faster should you fall into the water, increasing the risk of hypothermia. A blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 or above qualifies as legally intoxicated.
Commercial River Traffic:
While boating on the major rivers of West Virginia, always be alert for large commercial vessels. Large vessels always have the right-of-way because of long stopping distances and blind spots around them. Also, turbulent water around the large vessel could capsize a small boat easily.
Stay out of danger zones and restricted areas around locks and dams.
Person in the Water:
Reach-Throw-Row-Go is a method of rescuing a person who is in trouble in the water. If the person is close to you, REACH out with a long object such as an oar or tree limb to pull the person into the boat or onto shore.
If you can’t reach the person, then THROW them a life-saving device. If possible, it should be tied to the end of a line so you can pull the person to you. An inflatable ball or foam cooler can be used if the proper device is not available.
If there is nothing to throw, ROW a boat to the person in trouble. The person should be pulled in over the stern or back, of the boat if possible to prevent the boat from tipping over. If the boat has a motor, it must be shut off before you get to the person in the water.
GO (swim) to the person ONLY as a last resort and only if you have had life-saving training. People who are drowning often panic and injure or drown someone trying to rescue them.
Safety with Fishing Equipment:
Hypothermia is a condition in which your body loses heat faster than it can produce it. Without treatment, your life is in danger. Exposure to the cold along with wind, wetness and exhaustion causes hypothermia. A common misconception is that the air or water temperature must be below freezing before you can become hypothermic. Actually, many cases of hypothermia develop in air temperatures between 30 and 50 degrees. And because water takes away body heat 25 times faster than air of the same temperature, any water colder than 70 degrees can cause hypothermia.
Symptoms of hypothermia include uncontrollable shivering, fumbling hands, slow speech, confusion and exhaustion. To treat hypothermia, get the victim out of the cold, give warm drinks, keep the person awake, remove all wet clothing and get the victim into dry clothes.
Fishing in Cold Weather:
To stay warm, wear several layers of clothing. Air trapped between the layers serves as insulation. A wool hat prevents heat loss from your head. Fishing is difficult with most gloves, but lightweight rubber gloves, gloves without fingertips, and gloves that have a flap to expose your fingers allow greater manual dexterity.
Ice Fishing:
West Virginia doesn’t possess numerous ice fishing opportunities and in some ways, that makes the sport a little riskier. Anglers may be tempted to venture out on a frozen lake or river before checking the thickness of the ice. Ice should be at least four inches thick before it is considered safe. Due to variations in ice thickness on a waterbody, extreme caution should be exercised.
Wading:
There are several rules you should follow for safe wading.
Wade with a fishing buddy. Wear your PFD. Find out whether the bottom is rocky or muddy. Shuffle your feet or probe with a stick along the bottom to avoid holes. Study how swiftly the water is moving. Wear appropriate footwear (considering water temperature and bottom substrate). Reporting Procedures:
The record of the largest fish of each species legally taken with rod and reel by a licensed angler in West Virginia waters is maintained by the Division of Natural Resources. Certificates of accomplishment are awarded for each record holder.
Anglers landing a potential state record fish should report the catch as soon as possible to the district fisheries biologist in the closest DNR district office. Please follow these guidelines to ensure accuracy of reporting.
Name, address and telephone number of angler. Species of fish, where, when and how caught. Total length of fish measured from tip of snout to end of tail. Lay fish on top of ruler on a flat surface. Close the mouth of the fish and squeeze the tailfin lobes together. Do not measure along the curvature of the fish’s body. Fish must be weighed on a scale certified by the West Virginia Division of Labor. Signatures and telephone numbers of two persons who witnessed the length and weight measurements. A DNR fisheries biologist must verify the species, length and weight of the fish. A photograph of the fish is desirable.
If a DNR biologist is not immediately available, wrap the fish in plastic wrap and freeze it. Contact the local DNR biologist as soon as possible. | 8,802 | 4,035 | 19,037.188104 |
warc | 202143 | It is not a matter of whether you need to be fit, but how much.A new study has found that people with an unhealthy lifestyle are much more likely to have a sore or painful knee in the future. The study, conducted by the University of Sydney’s SUNY Health Sciences Center and the University at Albany Department of Medicine, […] | 339 | 247 | 448.797571 |
warc | 202143 | Specialist advice and assistance
38.43Committees are regularly empowered to appoint specialist advisers either to supply information which is not readily available or to elucidate matters of complexity within the committee's order of reference.1 Such advisers normally attend not only meetings of the committee at which oral evidence is taken but also meetings at which the committee deliberates. They do not examine witnesses2 or take part in voting. They are normally paid for work done on a daily basis.3 Committees may also commission research in connection with their inquiries.4
Other persons,5 being in most cases staff of the House with special responsibility in the matter concerned, attend sittings of committees (including their deliberations) without being witnesses. For example, Counsel to the Speaker is appointed to assist the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments (see para 31.32 ) as is Counsel to the Chairman of Committees of the House of Lords. Other committees receive assistance of a similar kind.6 The duties of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards include advising the Committee on Standards on the interpretation of the
Code of Conduct and on questions of propriety and investigating specific complaints from Members and from members of the public in respect of registration and declaration of interests and other aspects of the propriety of a Member's conduct, and reporting on these matters to the committee.7
Committees may also be assisted by other staff of the House, such as the financial and legal specialists in the Committee Office Scrutiny Unit, the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology and other research specialists from the Library.
Select committees also regularly arrange informal meetings (including seminars) attended by persons who can assist them in fulfilling their duties to the House. Such persons are not treated as witnesses and the information they give is not evidence. Nonetheless, the information obtained from such occasions may very well contribute to the conclusions of the committee as expressed in its report.8 In addition, committees have increasingly used innovative techniques for gathering information relating to their inquiries, such as Internet forums.9
Footnotes Select Committee on Procedure, Fourth Report of Session 1964–65, HC 303, p ix; Estimates Committee, Fifth Special Report of Session 1964–65, HC 161; Select Committee on House of Commons (Services), First Report of Session 1965–66, HC 70. Exceptionally, the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards (a joint select committee) was given power by both Houses to invite specialist advisers (including counsel appointed as specialist advisers) to question witnesses: CJ (2012–13) 180; LJ (2012–13) 233. Committees have been specially empowered to consult with certain individuals officially concerned with the matters of their inquiry, CJ (1867–68) 182–183; ibid (1932–33) 136; ibid (1933–34) 12. These persons were not present at the deliberations of the committees. Committees on the Army, Air Force, and Naval Discipline Acts have sometimes been given authority to communicate with governmental drafting committees, ibid (1951–52) 245; ibid (1952–53) 10; ibid (1953–54) 9; ibid (1955–56) 194.
For example, Liaison Committee, Third Report of Session 2007–08, The work of the committees in 2007, HC 427, para 87; and First Report of Session 2012–13, Select committee effectiveness, resources and powers, HC 394, para 78. For an example of the use of this facility to conduct a Citizens' Assembly, see joint Report from the Health and Social Care (Ninth Report) and the Housing, Communities and Local Government (Seventh Report) Committees of Session 2017–19, Long-term funding of adult social care, HC 768, paras 7–8. The general practice is, however, stated by a Speaker's private ruling (Mr Speaker FitzRoy, 1930) that the rule that the deliberations of a committee should be conducted in private ought to be observed strictly. See Estimates Committee, First Report of Session 1926, HC 59; Estimates Committee, Sixteenth Report of Session 1948–49, HC 306, p 102. See para 38.68 (Regulatory Reform); para 38.72 (European Scrutiny); para 38.79 Finance Committee); and para 38.79 (Administration Committee). See also para 38.66 (Public Administration Committee, in respect of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Health Service Commissioner) and para 38.65 (Committee of Public Accounts, in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor General). SO No 149. See paras 5.5, 38.78. For example, Sixth Report of the Defence Committee of Session 2002–03, HC 93-I, p 31, n 138. Liaison Committee Reports of Session 2008–09, HC 291, paras 103–5, and of Session 2009–10, HC 426, paras 111–26. | 4,870 | 2,173 | 10,636.456512 |
warc | 202143 | “To See Together Without Claiming to Be Another”: Stories as Relations, Against One-Direction Mode of Indigenous Stories Travelling Abstract
Once communities’ stories are taken up by researchers and shared within the ivory tower of academia, the stories circulate within the ivory tower. It is often the case that these archived stories from communities are used by researchers, without asking permission from the communities where the stories originate. In this article, we aim to critically review and reflect on underlying theories and practices in conventional Eurocentric academia that allows for a ‘one direction’ mode of storytelling dissemination, allowing researchers to take the ‘version’ of community knowledge and/or stories without seeking the original approval from the communities themselves. We suggest ‘thoughtful’ questions for both settler and Indigenous researchers to consider in hopes of promoting ‘travelling back to original sources’ in their scholarly work.
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Vickers, P. (2007). Ayaawx: In the path of our ancestors. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 2, 592-598.
Vowel, C. (2016). Indigenous writes: A guide to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit issues in Canada. Portage & Main Press.
Wilson, S. (2008). Research is ceremony: Indigenous research methods. Fernwood Publishing.
Younging, G. (2018) Elements of Indigenous style: A guide for writing by and about Indigenous peoples. Brush Education.
Engaged Scholar Journal: Community-Engaged Research, Teaching, and Learning, 7(1), 86 - 105. https://doi.org/10.15402/esj.v7i1.70002
Copyright (c) 2021 Eun-Ji Amy Kim, Sandra-Lynn Leclaire
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License CC BY 4.0 that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Authors are able to enter separate, additional contractual agreements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. Authors are permitted to post their work online (e.g., in an institutional repository or on their website) after the publication of their work in the Engaged Scholar Journal. Please note that while every opportunity will be taken to ensure author participation in the editing process, due to time constraints final copyediting changes may be made before publication to ensure APA adherence throughout all submissions. | 7,610 | 3,749 | 15,094.147773 |
warc | 202143 | Limitations
In the course of the research, the key objective was to find as much information as possible about employee engagement through introducing a learning culture while minimizing limitations along the way. In examining learning culture as a vehicle for boosting engagement and improving organizational outcomes, several limitations related to this issue emerged. First, it was revealed that different organizations had varying approaches to learning culture.
For example, employees in some environments demonstrated an interest in increasing their competencies, such as taking language or management courses, without the help of their companies. In other contexts, the learning culture was seen as an organizational responsibility, meaning that the organization’s management was expected to ensure that the company provided training courses and other activities to boost employee engagement.
A second limitation of the study involved the reluctance of organizations to share their procedures associated with improving employee engagement. When contacted in the effort to obtain information on how companies deal with improving engagement or to identify characteristics of the learning culture adopted in the interest of boosting performance, relatively few organizations agreed to share relevant information.
These firms saw the issue as keeping their trade secrets to themselves or appeared afraid that poor practices might be outlined and criticized. In addition, department heads often maintained secrecy in order to avoid advertising their employees’ success due to fear that competitors might copy their practices.
A third limitation associated with the current research was based on the lack of background information on the part of employees regarding appropriate engagement processes in addition to the learning culture of their organizations. This barrier was especially relevant because the workers were instructed to complete a survey, and prior knowledge about these matters would have allowed them to be more informed in their choices.
Finally, surveys in general have inherent disadvantages as data collection methods, and these were related to several issues in terms of research limitations in this case. For example, some of the survey questions in the study under consideration led to confusion among respondents. This means that further modification of the survey is needed to ensure that each respondent can provide more accurate answers and avoid confusion. In addition, since the survey was customized to cater to the employees’ experiences with improving their engagement, the possibility of bias error was also present.
In discussing research limitations, it is important to note that no research is perfect. However, understanding both potential and actual mistakes is critical to future endeavors, along with identifying the kinds of procedures that should be put in place in order to avoid future errors. In this case, a multiple-choice survey was developed to research how the engagement of workers was improved in an organization. While surveys are convenient, they can also constitute somewhat flawed data collection methods. For instance, respondents may interpret the provided options for answers differently, leading to unclear data (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018).
As one practical example of this phenomenon, some respondents view such options as “strongly agree” and “agree” as the same, providing the grounds for unnecessarily broadened responses. On a related note, the research used a Likert-scale-based survey to explore the concept of employee engagement and learning culture. While such surveys are commonly used and offer researchers flexibility and efficiency, they often require some additional adjustments.
Conclusion
In conclusion, employee engagement is seen as a valuable means for improving the overall environment in an organization and ensuring that workers bring the necessary level of enthusiasm and expertise to boost productivity and reach established organizational goals. In addition, a learning culture serves as an accompanying feature that makes the improvement of employee engagement more fruitful and efficient.
The process works through the identification of a value set to which workers can relate and engage with at the workplace. Combining employee engagement and learning culture to create a system to improve efficiency is a strategy that can help an organization’s management to become aware of existing issues and implement strategies necessary for improving the overall work environment. In doing so, it can be useful to employ available technologies for connecting employee engagement to a learning culture within a company. In such cases, technologies act as enablers in building strong connections between engagement and culture within companies.
In this study, the researcher implemented a survey to explore the subject of employee engagement and learning culture. Sixty-three respondents agreed to participate in the collection of data, all of whom were employees in SIA from different departments, sections, and levels. The participation of workers from different parts of an organization is important to ensure various perspectives are made available.
In analyzing how training courses for employee development were chosen, most (70%) respondents said that they were the ones to choose their training courses by themselves instead of simply attending courses selected by their managers. Another important finding of the survey involved the sharing of new knowledge and experiences acquired during learning courses. Many respondents indicated a liking for sharing their knowledge and experiences with their colleagues in the workplace: in particular, 56 out of 63 employees identified this practice as a valuable aspect of the organization’s learning culture.
In many ways, sharing lessons learned with other employees is a positive approach to reinforcing and supporting learning through collaboration and communication among workers. This process can be considered beneficial because knowledge sharing is one of the most prominent features of teamwork, strengthening and empowering organizations to reach their goals. Nevertheless, it is important to note that 19% of the respondents said that their colleagues did not share training information with them, an issue that requires addressing in the future.
In response to questions related to the use of technologies as facilitators in the learning culture, more than two-thirds of the survey participants said that they liked using the Internet as a key source of information, along with developing new skills that can be applied in workplace settings.
A similar number of respondents indicated that they were aware of available Internet-based information resources that offer online courses on different subjects and at various levels of expertise. Such results indicate that the Internet is a valuable resource that can be used for different purposes when searching for information related to quality improvement and boosting the levels of engagement of employees who adhere to an organization’s learning culture.
Overall, the study was useful for aligning the concepts of employee engagement and learning culture in the effort to boost productivity in the workplace. The implications for future studies are vast because various organizations approach employee engagement in differing ways. However, developing a more comprehensive survey will be necessary to account for the possible limitations of the current research. The present study serves as an important contribution to the current body of knowledge about employee engagement and learning culture.
Reference
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2018).
Questionnaire design. Web. | 7,854 | 3,207 | 19,058.256314 |
warc | 202143 | Project Description What is a liquid facelift?
A liquid facelift involves injecting dermal fillers into the skin to plump up the skin. It differs from a surgical facelift in that it doesn’t involve cutting into the skin.
The goal of a liquid facelift is to reduce sagging and wrinkles. It can also: Plump up lips Reduce the hollow areas under your eyes Fill your cheeks if they look gaunt Tighten wrinkles around your lips, eyes, and forehead Reduce the appearance of scars
The ideal candidate for a liquid facelift is someone with relatively few wrinkles and a small amount of sagging. If you have a lot of sagging skin, or if you want dramatic results, a surgical facelift might be better for you.
How does a liquid facelift work?
The connective tissues in your skin — such as collagen and elastin — break down as you age. You might also lose fat in your face, which can lead to your face looking gaunt. Many people feel that this makes them look older, and they look for a procedure that will “reverse” this effect.
Fillers work by literally filling up space in the layers of the skin. This plumps it up to reduce the appearance of wrinkled and sagging skin.
How to compare liquid facelift vs. traditional (surgical) facelift?
Many people choose a liquid facelift over a surgical facelift because it:
will produce more natural-looking and subtle changes is a quicker procedure with minimal recovery is less painful involves less bruising is less expensive When will I notice the result and how long it will last?
The results should be immediate. Depending on the kind of filler used, the results last anywhere between 6 and 24 months. After this point, you might need to get more fillers to maintain your appearance.
Price:
Depends on the amount of products consumed for face lift, starting from AED 1650. | 1,847 | 927 | 3,602.347357 |
warc | 202143 | Account Eliana Grace
The market is further catalyzed by numerous technological advancements leading to the emergence of innovative and advanced product variants. Significant growth in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical sectors is also bolstering the demand for flexible packaging. In the coming years, the growing popularity of sustainable and recyclable packaging alternatives will continue to spur the growth of the global flexible packaging market. Flexible packaging is primarily manufactured by using easily reformed materials that could be molded into different shapes. | 580 | 351 | 953.447293 |
warc | 202143 | [PDF] Lifestyle Drugs Market Must Reflect Steady Growth and Future Reach – UNLV The Rebel Yell
Lifestyle drugs are drugs that are used to treat
way of life sickness. These are the diseases that arise from our lifestyle choices, which include baldness, impotence, wrinkles, alcoholism, or smoking. These conditions are mostly non-threatening and painless. Over-the-counter lifestyle drugs can be used to change not only the appearance, but also the physical and mental abilities of a person.
Some examples of lifestyle drugs include Viagra (sildenafil citrate), which is used for erectile dysfunction, Latisse and Botox are used as cosmetic drugs, Provigil (modafinil) used to improve energy and focus, Yaz and Levora are the United States Food and Drug Administration. approved birth control drugs, and Zyban or Chantix are smoking cessation drugs.
FREE | Sample request is available @ https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-sample/4489
* The sample consists only of
Table of Contents (ToC). Research frameworkof the report itself. Research methodologyadopted for this. Major Company Profiles Covered In This Report: Pfizer Inc, Biesterfeld Spezialchemie GmbH, Roman Inc, Sytheon Ltd., Unilever plc, Johnson & Johnson, Neutrogena Corporation, Oriflame cosmetics, Eli Lily & co, Novo Nordisk A / S, AstraZeneca plc. GlaxoSmithKline plc. and Allergan plc.
The increase in product launches and approvals is expected to drive the growth of the global lifestyle drugs market. For example, on April 16, 2021, Mayne Pharma released a statement that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved its Nextstellis, a birth control pill that contains E4, a natural estrogen, has a mechanism of action unusual, which may be more beneficial than other estrogens. Mayne Pharma is dedicated to creating new oral drug delivery systems to produce and distribute brand name generic drugs, delivering better and more accessible drugs to patients.
The increase in the consumption of tobacco and cigarettes among the people is expected to drive the growth of the global lifestyle drugs market. For example, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2019, cigarettes were smoked by 14.0% of all adults (34.1 million people): 15.3% of men and 12.7% of women and each day approximately 1,600 young people try their first cigarette in the United States
Rising mergers, deals and acquisitions by market players are expected to propel the global lifestyle drugs market during the forecast period. For example, on January 23, 2020, Greenstone, Upjohn’s generic business in the United States and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pfizer Inc., and Roman, an innovative digital healthcare clinic for men, officially confirmed an agreement. purchase that will provide Roman members with access to the only generic form of Viagra approved by the US FDA (sildenafil citrate). These factors are expected to support the growth of the global lifestyle drugs market during the forecast period.
Request a Free Brochure Research Report @ https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-pdf/4489 Some notable offerings from the Coherent Market Insights report on the Lifestyle Drugs Market:
• We will provide you with an analysis of the extent to which this Drugs Lifestyle market research report acquires business characteristics along with examples or instances of information that helps you better understand it.
• We will also help you identify usual / standard terms and conditions, such as offers, value, warranty and others.
• In addition, this report will help you identify trends to forecast growth rates.
• The analyzed report will forecast the general trend of supply and demand.
How does Coherent Market Insights help take strategic action for the lifestyle drug market maker?
• The data provided in the Lifestyle Drugs Market report offers a comprehensive analysis of significant industry trends. Industry players can use this data to strategize their potential trade movements and generate remarkable revenue over the coming period.
• The report covers price trend analysis and value chain analysis as well as the analysis of the diverse supply of market players. The primary motive for this report is to help companies make data-driven decisions and strategize for their trade movements.
In addition, the research report examines:
Competitive companies and manufacturers in the global market
By product type, applications and growth factors
Industry Status and Outlook for Major Applications / End Users / Area of Use
Thank you for reading this article; you can also get a section by chapter or a report version by region, such as North America, Europe or Asia. | 4,775 | 2,264 | 9,935.965106 |
warc | 202143 | Housing its homeless neighbors and those in need has always been a major concern for a city as densely populated as Seattle. With issues exacerbated by the pandemic, one company has devised a new way to meet housing needs through adaptable design and simple materials.
City Pods recently unveiled its prototype housing unit: a pod designed to be placed indoors, in underutilized spaces that have heating and plumbing, such as warehouses or empty storefronts. The pods offer a safe, comfortable and private space for an individual to sleep. These units are built from easy-to-replace PVC panels with an aluminum frame. The panels are easy to clean, resistant to bacteria, and can easily be swapped out or reconfigured if necessary.
The pods also come equipped with fans, sprinkler systems and Amazon Fire tablets affixed to the wall to allow residents to access virtual services in the privacy of their room. The interior space totals about 64 square feet, although they can be expanded up to 50% by adding more panels. The pods have a target price of about $12,000 per unit and will be built in Washington State.
One community college in Puget Sound is weighing the pods as an option for its homeless students, as the pods are less cost prohibitive than building new residential buildings on campus. The college may use a vacant Safeway as a potential option for the pods, but amenities like bathrooms, showers, and communal kitchen and laundry spaces still need to be considered.
Statewide, there is a clear need for new housing options; a recent study by the University of Washington determined there were 839 tents being used as shelter in 2019, with numbers increasing by 53% after the pandemic. A one-night count in early 2020 estimated that there were about 23,000 people in Washington experiencing homelessness — a number that has likely increased since the onset of the pandemic. | 1,898 | 1,040 | 3,443.775 |
warc | 202143 | What are the consequences of defaulting on a student loan?
Failure to repay student loans can have serious financial consequences for borrowers, including collection fees;
wage garnishment; money being withheld from income tax refunds, Social Security, and other federal payments; damage to credit scores; and even ineligibility for other aid programs, such as help with … Can student loans be forgiven if in default?
If your loan is currently in default,
you are not eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Unfortunately, in order to be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness on your Federal Direct student loans, you have to be enrolled in an eligible repayment plan and consistently making on-time payments. What happens to defaulted student loans after 7 years?
Student loans don’t go away after 7 years. There is no program for loan forgiveness or loan cancellation after 7 years. However, if it’s been more than 7.5 years since you made a payment on your student loan debt and you default,
the debt and the missed payments can be removed from your credit report. What happens if you never pay your student loans?
Failing to pay your student loan within
90 days classifies the debt as delinquent, which means your credit rating will take a hit. After 270 days, the student loan is in default and may then be transferred to a collection agency to recover. Can you go to jail for not paying student loans?
Can You Go to Jail for Not Paying Student Loan Debt?
You can’t be arrested or sentenced to time behind bars for not paying student loan debt because student loans are considered “civil” debts. This type of debt includes credit card debt and medical bills, and can’t result in an arrest or jail sentence. What is the default rate on student loans?
One out of every ten Americans has defaulted on a student loan, and
7.8% of all student loan debt is in default. An average of 15% of student loans are in default at any given time. 11% of new graduates default in the first 12 months of repayment. Can student loan debt negotiate?
Student loan settlement is possible, but you’re at the mercy of your lender to accept less than you owe. Don’t expect to negotiate a settlement unless:
Your loans are in or near default. Your loan holder would make more money by settling than by pursuing the debt. Does the government lost money on student loans?
It is an eye-popping number: $435 billion. That is the amount of money the federal
government can expect to lose on its $1.37 trillion student loan portfolio, according to an analysis consultants performed for the Department of Education. Do student loans come off your credit after 7 years?
Amount of Time a Defaulted Student Loan Debt Will Remain on Your Credit Report. Typically, a defaulted debt, including student loan debt, will be taken off your credit report
after 7.5 years from the date of the first missed payment. Do private student loans go away after 7 years?
Private student loans
don’t go away unless you pay them off, but in most cases, they’ll fall off your credit report after seven years. Are student loans wiped after 25 years?
After 30 years,
any and all remaining debt is wiped You stop owing either when you’ve cleared the debt, or when 30 years (from the April after graduation) have passed, whichever comes first. If you never get a job earning over the threshold, it means you won’t have repaid a penny. | 3,482 | 1,567 | 7,539.518826 |
warc | 202143 | The Tesco share price slid on morning trades as concerns of the country’s supply chain mount.
In a warning to the government, Tesco’s head of distribution Andrew Woolfenden predicted that “
pictures of empty shelves will get 10 times worse by Christmas and then we’ll get panic buying” if the shortage delivery drivers is allowed to fester.
Fuel rationing added to investors concern. Some filling stations are starting to run out of fuel stock. While there is no shortage of fuel in the UK, big suppliers can’t distribute them due to a lack of manpower.
All these developments will eventually impact Tesco one way or another. Investors are trying to gauge the hit to the supermarkets’ bottom line. Right now, they are not too worried.
Tesco share price may drift lower over the near term. Its price chart shows a steady action around the round number 260p level.
Jackson has over 15 years experience as a financial analyst. Previously a director of Stockcube Research as head of Investors Intelligence providing market timing advice and research to some of the world’s largest institutions and hedge funds.
Expertise: Global macroeconomic investment strategy, statistical backtesting, asset allocation, and cross-asset research.
Jackson has a PhD in Finance from Durham University. | 1,331 | 756 | 2,255.305556 |
warc | 202143 | Committee (2nd Day)
Schedule 1 : Local retention of non-domestic rates
Amendment 18
Moved by
18: Schedule 1, page 21, line 30, leave out “major”
My Lords, in moving Amendment 18 and speaking to Amendments 28 and 29, my purpose is primarily to flag up an issue of principle. I remind the Committee of my involvement with the first tier of local government, as president of the National Association of Local Councils, the national body representing parish and town councils, and whose assistance in this matter I acknowledge.
My support for the idea of a larger share of business rates going to billing authorities under the business rate retention scheme which we discussed on Tuesday was, I have to admit, not entirely altruistic. It was founded on the belief that too little was being channelled back to the billing authority given the many other claims on the funding stream implicit in that arrangement, certainly if we are to have any real incentive flowing from it. By implication, therefore, little or nothing would be available in practice, even if the principle of my amendments was agreed, to flow to the first tier of local government.
The Bill is—in part, at any rate, or so we are led to believe—about introducing the financial aspects of the Government’s localism agenda, which I support wholeheartedly. It is a process of trickling down powers and responsibilities from central government to local government and from local government to neighbourhoods and parishes. I hope that that is a given—I am glad to see the Minister nodding. At Second Reading, I flagged up an issue concerning a defect in the Bill, namely that the process of financial trickle-down seemed to halt at the principal authority level. There is nothing in the Bill for parish, town and neighbourhood councils. In short, and viewed in very local terms, the financial benefits do not flow to the very local level where the properties on which the tax is raised are actually located and in which locality exists a neighbourhood-based, statutorily constituted and precepting local authority.
I remind the Committee that local initiatives which would raise revenue in business rate terms are not by any means confined to principal authorities. Parish and town councils up and down the country are, and continue to be, involved in schemes to encourage retail, commercial and other value-added activity.
These amendments are framed in what I admit is a deliberately crude fashion with a view to highlighting the complete absence of a local council share in the retained element of the BRRS and to ask why, in the name of all that is called localism, the redistribution of this is limited to major precepting bodies only. Removing the word “major” from various provisions as a qualification to the beneficiary precepting bodies is intended thereby to include local councils which also have a precept in the redistribution benefit.
Before 1989—I think that was the date, but my memory may have failed me—parish and town councils did get such a share, but it was scrapped when the community charge was introduced. While that denial of benefit might have been appropriate at the time, local councils have made enormous advances and shown what they are capable of doing. Indeed, I have a list with me of the very many initiatives up and down the country which all show how much can be achieved with tiny sums of money. I think that the Minister would be amazed at just how much can be done with very little money if the collaborative ethos and common purpose that particularly hallmark neighbourhood and parish initiatives are given a fair chance. However, that cannot be done without any resources at all.
Many of these initiatives are specifically aimed at business activity. The demise in the ability of principal authorities to fund many services, let alone any new initiatives, leave the local council—often a parish or town council with quality council status and a real drive to benefit their community—to pick up the reins. As I have said, this cannot be achieved without some resources. We already know the common practice of principal authorities agreeing to pass services and functions to parishes yet simultaneously claiming that there is no budgetary allocation to pass on to enable those services to be provided in practice.
I do not entirely blame principal authorities. In fact, I have been involved on and off with principal authorities for rather longer than I have been involved with parish and town councils in many respects. Principal authorities have been caught financially between what can only be described as a rock and a hard place. However, at local council level it looks bad and in neighbourhood terms it seems almost like a financial sleight of hand, which is known in the jargon of the sector as double taxation; namely, the service is passed further down the line but none of the resources—which are somewhere implicit because there is a cost element in a principal authority’s budget—get passed on. The closure of public toilets in resort towns that rely heavily on coach loads of day visitors and attempts by the town councils to keep them open is just one exemplar of that situation.
I cannot know what the Minister’s response will be, although I have my suspicions. Probably the least likely outcome is that she will accept the amendment. The question then is: what does she propose? Will there be a line of funding that will benefit the local council sector, and what guarantees can she give that, if that money is made available via a principal authority, it will be passed on?
I am realistic about funding things at neighbourhood and local council level. I accept that the question of how to distribute such a local council share will arise if the principle is accepted, but that is further down the line. Furthermore, I also accept that the last thing that we need is a plethora of very small schemes or even those which are not worth while just because money is available or because it will be lost if it is not spent in a particular financial year. Worthwhile projects, unfortunately, have lead-in periods that do not sit conveniently into a fiscal year template. I am familiar with the undesirable effects of an overrestrictive “use it or lose it” regime.
The Government’s message regarding local government finance is clear: not only is there no new money but there will be a 10% cut. However, if anything is to work at neighbourhood, parish and town council level, there has to be some redistribution of resources, unless the Government are willing to stand accused of some sort of large-scale deception by the very constituents they promised to assist. I hope that that is not the case. However, given that the maximum effect can be achieved with tiny resources and the ability at local council level to leverage a huge amount of voluntary commitment, there is a very good reason to make a modest redistribution. I look forward with interest to the Minister’s response on this matter, which I believe is critical to the objectives of true localism. I beg to move.
My Lords, this is an intriguing series of amendments, and we have a degree of sympathy with them. The amendments would include parish and town councils within the scope of those for whom billing authorities must share their portion of the business rates. I suspect that the difficulty with this is that other parts of the components of the scheme for business rate retention would have to be applied as well. You could not just make the payment without the other bits and apply it potentially to many thousands of authorities.
Under the current local government arrangements business rates are paid to central government and come back via the formula grant, not, I understand it, to local precepting authorities but to billing major precepting authorities. However, this does not work under the business rate retention scheme. The retained business rates have to be allocated between authorities and the proposed basis is that, with two-tier arrangements, 80% of the business rate would be allocated to district authorities and 20% to major precepting authorities—police and fire and rescue included. As I understand it, the rationale for the 80/20 split is that lower-tier authorities are typically responsible for planning and more able to influence economic development.
The noble Earl might well argue—he touched on this—that the new regime for neighbourhood planning opens up that opportunity more to parish and town councils. Some are already very much involved in a drive to improve the economy of their areas. However, if such councils are not to be encompassed within the tariff top-up arrangements for billing authorities, it would seem to follow that they should have their own calculation. It might not be difficult to establish the business rate base but to derive a funding amount would presumably require some breaking out of the formula grant, and I am not sure how easy that would be to do.
In passing, we should note that there will be a requirement for billing authorities to work with local precepting authorities to address the council tax support funding. If I have read the documentation correctly, it is envisaged that this could well involve a payment from such authorities to town and parish councils.
While I understand where the noble Earl is coming from on this, the practicalities make the amendment difficult to accept. However, I will be interested to hear the Minister’s response. There is the germ of an idea here that needs support.
My Lords, I think I agree with the comments of the noble Lord. There is an issue here that relates to the deletion of “major”. Will the Minister respond on the content of the Localism Act? On the rights and powers of precepting authorities, my memory is that some crucial amendments were made to the Bill on Report, which enabled the protection of the rights of parish councils and neighbourhood planning councils. Is the Localism Act sufficient to deliver the resources that should lie within the money, particularly that raised through the community infrastructure levy, to very small neighbourhood areas? I would appreciate the Minister’s guidance on that point.
My Lords, I thank the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, for introducing this little amendment. Neither he nor other speakers will be totally surprised when I say that it is not acceptable in its current terms. I shall tell him and the Committee why.
We recognise that parish councils underpin many neighbourhoods across England. They have been given a specific role under the Localism Act. Local, parish and town councils are specifically mentioned as being able to generate neighbourhood plans. As has been said, they are the focal point for a wide range of local involvement and action under the Localism Act. For some parish and town councils, that range of activity and involvement will include promoting economic growth but they do not have the same financial levers to deliver growth as principal authorities do. I know—the noble Earl has just said so—that some town and parish councils are keen to receive a share of business rates. That was evident not only from what the noble Earl said but from the Government’s consultation on rates retention last year, when several parish and town councils expressed in their response a desire for a change in this matter.
However, the local government resource review was set up to look at how principal authorities are funded, with a view to giving them greater financial autonomy, strengthening the incentives to support growth in the private sector and the regeneration of local economies, and reducing their reliance on central government funding. The funding of parish councils is therefore outside the scope of the review’s terms of reference. The Government’s proposals for business rates retention are focused on changing the allocation of business rates, which previously fed into formula grant, which is not paid to parish or town councils. Therefore, allocating parish and town councils a proportion of business rates would be at the expense of the principal and major precepting authorities, thus weakening the growth incentive. I just add that of course all parish and town councils have a precepting power so that in general they are able to cover their costs. Although I accept that that may not be a great contribution to growth, it is certainly something that they are able to do.
The Government consider that it might be appropriate to reassess this position in the context of an untimed, unnamed and unexpected fundamental review of the business rate retention scheme, but I would advise noble Lords not to hold their breath on that.
As I said at the outset, the noble Earl will not be surprised when I say that I cannot accept the amendment.
My Lords, I shall not profess to any great surprise at what the Minister has just said. Notwithstanding the point made by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie—that this would have a knock-on effect on other issues—I would have hoped that the principle of making sure that there was an adequate stream of funding somewhere or other would be accepted. I know that in other parts of the Bill there are proposals for a degree of funding, and this will undoubtedly come up at a later stage in our discussions. None the less, the principle of linkage between having a stake in the income and, as it were, presiding over the geographical area in which part of this revenue is drawn seems to be fairly inescapable.
Nor should it be assumed that, for instance, parish and town councils are necessarily small, parochial—with a small “p”—bodies; some town councils around the country have larger budgets than a principal authority. I suppose it is fair to say—and to some extent I say this in the Minister’s defence—that one problem is the huge diversity in the size and complexity of parish and town councils. None the less, if we do not have some sort of aspirational link between the funds generated and what is done at local level, it seems to me that that will be a fundamental failing. Perhaps the review did not look far enough down the trickle-down waterfall to pick up some of the things that concern me.
These were intended as probing amendments. I have made a note of what the noble Baroness has said but I shall reserve my position in seeking leave to withdraw the amendment because this is something to which I may well need to come back at a later stage. With that, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment 18 withdrawn.
Amendment 19
Moved by
19: Schedule 1, page 21, line 31, at end insert “, and
the percentage referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) shall be determined following full consultation with local government”
My Lords, I shall speak also to Amendments 32 and 40 in this group. Amendment 19 relates to the determination of the central and local shares and requires them to be set after full consultation with local government. It is accepted that this determination must currently be specified in a local government finance report and thus be subject to a parliamentary process, but that is not a substitute for engagement with local government.
We accept that there has been extensive engagement in relation to the Bill but what does the Minister see as the regular process going forward in this regard? Perhaps she could outline for us an anticipated timeline of events in future years after the introduction of the business rate retention scheme, although I hesitate to call it a steady state.
Amendment 32 relates to tariffs and top-ups. The local government finance report will spell out the basis of the calculation of these payments, but before it is laid, the Secretary of State must notify such local government representatives as he sees fit. The amendment requires there to be a consultation rather than local government just being notified. Amendment 40 is a parallel amendment related to the process for amending reports.
I will just touch on the amendments in the name of my noble friend Lord Smith, who is unable to be here today. Amendment 20 mirrors our Amendment 19 and is identical. Amendment 23 causes the finance report to give details of the consultation; a proposition which we support. Amendment 25 requires the report that should be sent to local authorities to be there by the end of November, for obvious reasons. Amendment 33 mirrors our Amendment 32 and is a duplicate. Amendment 34 requires that the Secretary of State must consult on the detail and not just on the general nature of the proposals, which is the requirement at the moment. These amendments are all about proper engagement with the local government sector. Perhaps the Minister will let us know the Government's intention. I beg to move.
That would actually be a quicker way of proceeding.
I agree with the amendment moved by the noble Lord. The Localism Act was about devolving power and decentralising decision-making. This set of amendments makes it clear that there should be full consultation with local government before decisions are made. When decisions are made, that cannot just be about notifying those decisions but should clearly explain through consultation first but secondly explanation of the decision that has been made, particularly in a matter as complex as tariffs and top-ups. Thirdly, there has to be consultation on the detail not just on the general nature of things.
I hope that the Minister will take on board that feeling because the Localism Act has changed the balance of responsibility between central and local government. It would help enormously if it were not just left for the Secretary of State to have a set of powers whereby things can be announced but not actually explained.
My Lords, I entirely support the amendment moved by my noble friend and supported by my erstwhile colleague on Newcastle City Council and fellow vice-president of the Local Government Association. It clearly makes sense, and, as the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, said, it is clearly in the spirit of the Localism Act.
However, there is another aspect. The Government set much store on the proposals in relation to the business rate as part of an approach to incentivise and increase local investment by business, growing the local economy and all the rest of it. In that context, it would surely be sensible if, in addition to consulting local government perfectly properly on these topics, they also consulted business. That cannot be done at every local level by the Government and councils will no doubt continue to have discussions with their own local businesses. However, as I pointed out on our first Committee day when I quoted the London chambers report, some 53% of businesses believe that councils set the business rates now. So there is a certain amount of education to be done here. But at the national level, I would have thought it important for government to consult, particularly about that proportion of the business rate that is to be held centrally rather than devolved locally, because that clearly would be a matter of concern to the business community.
Without the necessity of moving anything formally, it would be helpful if the Minister could put on the record an intention that in any consultation about the business rate and the various elements, resets and proportions and so on, the Government will consult the business community as well as local government.
My Lords, I apologise for leaving the Committee early last time. I had a meeting of my council to attend. I must also explain I am not a vice-president of the Local Government Association but I am in receipt of a very kindly letter from it inviting me to become one.
Oh!
I shall be able to join other noble Lords.
As I said when I spoke briefly yesterday on another matter, I do not think that everything has to be prescriptively set out in legislation. I will be listening very carefully to what my noble friend the Minister says about consultation because the points that have been made by other noble Lords are very well made. It is obviously vital, particularly in the first stages of a new process, that a real and meaningful consultation takes place. We will be very interested to hear what my noble friend says about whether or not it is necessary to put this in the Bill.
I would like to refer to two amendments specifically. I will not follow the comments made by my noble friend Lord Shipley, but the points he made about “general nature” in Amendment 34, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Smith of Leigh, were well made and I agree with him. Amendment 25, also tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Smith of Leigh, which inserts,
“no later than the end of November each year”,
is also interesting. I have no doubt that officials in the department will say it is very unwise to put something such as this in the Bill because you never know what is going to happen, et cetera. But everybody in local government is aware that these things seem to be creeping later and later. It was always November, and you knew what was going to happen; then it was December. Now we are facing a whole range of legislation, specifically this one, with very short timescales, which we discussed at Second Reading.
I know that it is not only my noble friend’s department that is involved in these discussions, but some earnest by the Government to inform local government rather earlier than has become the norm would be highly desirable. Even if my noble friend cannot accept Amendment 25, I hope she will accept that many in local government would like to know where they stand a little earlier in the financial year than has been the case all too frequently in recent years.
My Lords, I follow what the noble Lord, Lord True, has said. I have been involved on and off for many years with various organisations that are reliant on sums of money coming from local government, and if local government is pushed to the wire in terms of setting its budgets, this has a knock-on effect in every allocation it might make to any other body. I am not involved with any organisations that receive money by way of grant at the moment, but in the past I have attended meetings at which finance officers and chief executives of these small bodies have been absolutely tearing their hair out because they do not know where they stand; they do not know whether they are going to have the budgetary allocation to enable them to keep core staff, and so on.
Leaving these things to run until a very late stage is pernicious because the downstream effects are incalculable and affect employment and the viability of schemes. So I would like to reinforce what the noble Lord, Lord True, has said about that: there needs to be a better lead-in period to deal with these things and it should not be left to the last minute on the basis that it does not matter. It matters very much and I wish to impress that on the Minister.
I thank noble Lords for their helpful explanations of these amendments. They deal variously with aspects of the local government finance report, particularly around the consultation arrangements that will apply. I agree that proper engagement is very important to ensure a successful outcome.
The Bill provides that the central and local shares, and the basis of calculation of payments flowing to and from local authorities, will have to be set out in the annual local government finance report. As we do currently, we will continue to consult local government on a draft local government finance report in the autumn before laying the report before the House of Commons in January or February each year. The noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, accepted this point in his opening remarks.
Amendment 25, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Smith, and I think spoken to by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, seeks to bring forward the laying of the final local government finance report. Although I can sympathise with the good intentions of the noble Lord in bringing forward this amendment, I cannot recommend that the Committee accepts it. Amendment 25 would bring forward the process by three months from the current timetable.
The Government have always endeavoured to give local authorities the information they need as early as possible. The noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, asked me about the timetable. The current process for the local government finance report is as follows: the summer consultation is in about July and sets out the basis of calculation; the draft report comes out in approximately November and has the detail; and the final report comes out in January 2013. As for the future process, we may not need to carry out the summer consultation in future years unless there are substantial changes to the calculations.
In the past, the local government finance report timetable has been driven by the availability of up-to-date data to make the necessary calculations. Under a rate retention scheme, this will still be the case. For example, the September RPI figure, which will be used to uprate tariffs and top-ups, will not be available until later in the year. In reset years, the need for updated data will increase.
Although I cannot accept the noble Lord’s amendment, I can assure him that the Government will continue to use their best endeavours to ensure that local government, as far as possible, has the information that it needs to undertake its budgeting processes. Although I understand the intention behind each of the amendments in this group, I ask noble Lords to withdraw them. I believe they are either unnecessary, since, in practice, consultation with local government will continue to take place as it does now as a matter of course, or, in the case of the timing of the report, undesirable, since they may limit our ability to use the most up-to-date data for calculations. I am sure that that is not what the Committee desires.
My Lords, I thank the Minister for his reply and all noble Lords who have spoken in this short debate. Nearly every one who spoke was sympathetic to and in agreement with the thrust of these amendments. Indeed, that was the tenor of the noble Lord’s comments. I understood from what he said—it seems to be on the record and we will read it in
Hansard tomorrow—that there is the clear intention to continue to consult with local government on a timely basis. That is very important.
We have to reflect a bit on the issue around getting that information available in November, but the noble Lord, Lord True, and the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, made some very powerful points in support of the amendment—in particular, the sooner you know what your resources are, the better able you are to deal with those who are looking to you for support and engagement.
I agree with my noble friend Lord Beecham, as ever, that there are other interested groups here, particularly concerning the central share and how that is going to be dealt with. I think that the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, was right when he said that the Localism Act has basically changed the scene so far as this is concerned. I take a degree of comfort from the Minister’s response—particularly the commitment to make sure that the consultation continues.
I guess that we will have to see what the nature of the components is. We will be coming later to what is likely to be in a local government finance report, given that formula grants are going to be less important, if not disappear altogether. We will also be dealing with what is in the document to consult on. In the mean time, I thank the Minister for her response and beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment 19 withdrawn.
Amendments 20 to 25 not moved.
Amendment 26
Moved by
26: Schedule 1, page 22, line 14, leave out “, if the authority acted diligently,”
My Lords, I shall speak also to Amendments 27, 30 and 31. Amendment 26 relates to payments to the Secretary of State of a billing authority’s central share. Regulations can define the non-domestic rating income and include, among other things, an assumption of an authority acting diligently. Ministers may well say that this term is well embedded in the local government finance legislation, and doubtless the Minister will be able to point us in the right direction so far as concerns its meaning and why it is necessary. However, perhaps we can just recap. Whose judgment will determine whether an authority has acted diligently and what regard will the judgment have to what might be varying policy frameworks? Are the Government looking for something here which goes beyond efficient billing and collection arrangements?
On Tuesday, we heard from the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, about the maintenance of the business rating system and the challenges faced there. He highlighted the fact that collection risks are on local councils but that maintenance obligations lie with the Government. Perhaps the obligation for authorities to act diligently will be matched by an obligation on the Government properly to fund the valuation service.
If the Secretary of State deemed a council not to have acted diligently, what would the consequences be? Would the council have a right of appeal? If the Government are confident about the benefit of the incentive in these provisions, why is it not enough to encourage councils to act diligently?
Amendment 27 is a minor probe concerning payments of the central share. Paragraph 7(2) of Schedule 1 contains the words,
“in the course of the year”,
which suggests that all payments, even if subsequently adjusted, will be made during the year rather than later and in respect of the year. The amendment of my noble friend Lord Smith suggests that it should be paid in two instalments. Perhaps the Minister can enlighten us about the Government’s intent on that.
Amendment 30 refers to payments to major precepting authorities. This provision again deals with an authority’s non-domestic rating income, which will be defined in regulations as the amount payable to it,
“subject to such adjustments as may be specified”.
It is understood that the adjustments that would be made will include such matters as mandatory, discretionary and hardship reliefs, and the cost of collection, et cetera.
The noble Baroness will be aware of representations received from Sporta concerning the impact of the new system on mandatory and discretionary relief. Sporta represents charitable, leisure and cultural trusts. Under current arrangements, the Government meet the cost of mandatory relief and a proportion of discretionary relief, which is recognised in the government’s technical paper 2,
M easuring B usiness R ates. I have the authority of the chief executive of Sporta to quote from the letter. It refers to the business rate retention scheme and the central and local shares. He says:
“The effect of this approach will dissuade many authorities to set up, extend or support leisure and cultural trusts—for two main and exceptional reasons. First, leisure trusts operations can involve large amounts of buildings and facilities, and therefore business rate concessions are significant. Therefore any transfer to them, or new investments by existing trusts, would impose substantial unfunded costs on the local authority. Second, unlike with the position of most other charities, local authorities can themselves directly influence the creation of trusts—by deciding or not to transfer assets to them on a lease and by awarding, or not, a contract to them for operation of facilities. The disincentives created by unfunded concessions could therefore be great and thus the benefits of having more community facilities run by trusts would therefore be lost—and this is happening now as local authorities react to the statements which the Government has already made”.
It goes on to say:
“We understand that the DCLG Working Party which is considering the regulations recognises in principle the problems for the charitable sector which the prospective loss of compensation for local authorities will create. However, we should like to ensure that DCLG are fully aware of the special problems which will be faced by leisure and cultural trusts, because of their scale and as a result of the fact that the formation of the trusts can often be dependent on the decisions of local authorities themselves”.
The concern relates to new or extended provision, as it seems that existing provision would be reflected in calculating the baseline and, therefore, the tariffs and top-ups. Those will not be changed—apart from RPI adjustments—until resetting. In the mean time, local authorities will take a 50% hit for any relief granted. Perhaps the noble Baroness can give us an update on current thinking because this seems to be a particularly serious issue. I would be interested to hear if there is a solution in hand.
Amendment 31 is again a minor probe. This is about certified accounts. It makes reference to the use of certified calculations or information, which is related to payments to the major precepting authorities. Can the Minister expand on what use is anticipated of these accounts and information? There is a broader issue, which I do not propose to press, about what is being certified by auditors and what the nature of that certification is, but perhaps that is a matter that I might take up outside of the Committee.
Amendment 39, in the name of my noble friend Lord Smith, requires the Secretary of State to make top-up payments in two instalments, which seems an entirely reasonable proposition. I beg to move.
My Lords, I shall speak very briefly on Amendment 26. I am sure that the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, would not thank me for sitting silently when the matter revolves around the question of non-domestic rating. There are two words in the clause that the proposal seeks to amend. One is “diligently” and the other is “payable”. A great deal hinges on those two words.
I previously explained at Second Reading and in comments made in the debate on the Queen’s Speech that there is a problem with the management of the tax base, which is implicit in the bundle of rateable values that afford the basis on which this particular bit of local government finance arises. I would have to say that diligence may be there in abundance, but efficacy is not. Later on—although I suspect not today—we will come to amendments that I have tabled where I set about trying to deal with some of the shortcomings implicit in the present system.
There is no unwillingness to implement a proper and fair system at all levels of central government, government agency and local authority. But if the system is underfunded and suffers from a lack of degree of care and maintenance input, problems will arise. What may be diligence to one body of people may look like neglect to others. I am particularly concerned that if the term “payable” means what would otherwise have accrued to the billing authority in this sense but does not for whatever reason, that represents the horns of a dilemma, bearing in mind that, as the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, said, the billing authority has no responsibility for the maintenance of the tax base. In other words, it has no stake. Some of my amendments try to address that. As matters stand, the billing authority has no role in the accuracy of the list or indeed whether something is in the list as a non-domestic hereditament or not.
It concerns me that, if the Government’s own Valuation Office Agency cannot catch up with this, to try to make that somehow by implication the responsibility of the billing authority must be wrong in the absence of additional resources in which to achieve it. Clearly, there are no additional resources because we are talking about a 10% cut. If it came to be interpreted by the courts, although I am no lawyer, I fear that the words “diligently” and “payable” may have the sort of meaning that I rather fear and the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, fears might be attributable to them.
It could put the billing authority in an extremely difficult situation and could have knock-on effects throughout a large number of billing authorities with the potential for what I can only describe as a large degree of mayhem in local government accounting for any given year until it works through the system. I support the principle of what has been said.
I thank the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, for moving the amendment and I hope that I can reply to most of the points that have been raised. Amendment 26 seeks to remove the obligation on local authorities to act diligently, which are the words that have been questioned regarding the collection of the non-domestic rating income due to it under Sections 43 and 45 of the Local Government Finance Act 1988.
This section focuses on the need to establish the payment that will have to be made by the billing authority to the Secretary of State in respect of the central share that is due. It is obviously important that there is a clear understanding of what is meant by non-domestic rating income in this context, and this paragraph confirms that the Secretary of State will introduce regulations that provide that clarification.
In preparing those regulations, we are clear that the Secretary of State should be taking into account not just the income that the billing authority receives, but the amount that it would be reasonable to expect any authority to collect if it acted diligently. That is the amount that is due to it, and if it does not get that and its collection rate is below 100%, it is still being assessed on the former amount. This is not a new concept. The principle of diligence is well established, as the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, intimated, in the 1988 Local Government Finance Act in its treatment of a billing authority’s contribution to the business rates pool; for example, Part 2 of Schedule 8.
Local government is therefore familiar with the principle of due diligence as part of its responsibilities for collecting non-domestic rating income. It would send a rather unfortunate signal if we were to suggest a lessening of the responsibilities of local authorities to ensure that the business rates that are due to them are actually paid. I think that most local authorities understand and make enormous efforts to ensure that they get the maximum amount of business rating that they possibly can. I certainly remember being challenged when we got up to 97%; now we want to get to 100%.
Amendment 27 relates to the regulations that will be introduced to establish the administrative arrangements to be put in place for processing payments of the central share. We are clear that we intend to be as accurate as possible in making the calculations for the amount of the central share. However, it is obviously prudent to ensure that mechanisms are put in place to deal with those scenarios where it is subsequently determined that the payments to the central share that have been handed over by billing authorities are either lower or higher than those required. Paragraph 7(2)(b) of Schedule 1 makes it clear that the regulations to be introduced by the Secretary of State on the administration of central share payments may make provision to deal with under or overcontributions. Having reflected on that paragraph, and the proposed amendment, it is not clear to me in what way the proposed amendment will improve the clarity of the intention of that paragraph.
Amendment 30 would prevent the Secretary of State including, within regulations governing the calculation of payments to be made by billing authorities to major precepting authorities, adjustments to reflect either costs that fall on billing authorities or different circumstances that will need to be reflected in any payment schedule; for example, we envisage that, in defining non-domestic rating income, the regulations will make an adjustment for the cost of collecting the business rates income. Otherwise, there is an obvious undesired outcome that the billing authority has to absorb the cost of that administration alone. Similarly, the definition of income will reflect specific circumstances where the rates collected may be apportioned slightly differently; for example, as we confirmed in our statements of intent, it is our intention that all the business rates income from new renewable energy projects will be retained by the planning authority. The regulations would enable the relevant adjustments to be made to reflect such circumstances.
Amendment 31 relates to the circumstances that might apply following an audit of a billing authority’s calculations for the purposes of making payments to its major precepting authorities. We hope that there will be few, if any, occasions, where the audit of a billing authority’s calculations and information certified by the audit did not match what was supplied to the major precepting authority. However, there might be occasions when this is the case. Paragraph 9 confirms that regulations may make provision for the use of the certified information in relation to payments to the major precepting authority. Use of certified information in this way would mirror the arrangements set out in paragraph 40(6), which provides that the Secretary of State should be able to rely on certified information and existing non-domestic rating pooling.
Transparency over the funding to be available, and the basis of the calculations used to determine that funding, will clearly be important to everyone to establish confidence. This section sets out that the regulations may include provisions to establish what might happen where there is a mismatch between the information supplied and the certified information produced by the audit. In such a scenario, we envisage that all parties would want to understand the nature of the difference and how the certified information and calculations might be used to correct, where necessary, any mismatch. In my view, the regulations are absolutely the right place to provide that additional clarity on the use of the certified calculation or information.
Amendment 39, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Smith, and spoken to in his absence by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, would replace the current flexibility in the Bill and instead require payments from central government to local government to be made in just two instalments. I hope that I am able to reassure noble Lords that it is our intention, subject to consultation with local government, to spread payments in respect of the rates retention scheme, both to and from local authorities, over the course of a year. We intend to do this by setting up a schedule of payments over the year. We will consult on the number of instalments over which the payment should be made. However, we believe, at this stage, that the two payments envisaged in this amendment would be too restrictive under these circumstances. I ask the noble Lord, with this explanation in mind, to withdraw the amendment.
The noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, asked about mandatory payments. I understand that will be outside the central charge. I may need to write to the noble Lord, but mandatory payments are clearly important as they cannot be ducked. I understand the question of sports and leisure clubs is still under discussion, and perhaps we may be able to deal with that at a later stage.
My Lords, can the Minister clarify something further for me following what I said a short while ago? Let us imagine the situation of a popular coastal town, in which there are a large number of properties that may be used seasonally for holiday purposes. Many will in fact be people’s second homes and may even get a reduction when assessed for council tax because they are second homes. Because of the seasonal nature, it is difficult to track whether these are going to fall above or below what I believe is the 140-day threshold of occupation for holiday purposes. I have to say that I am not sure whether that is for general tax purposes rather than local tax, but the question then is what their whole or main use is. In theory, if one is using the property year-round for holiday lettings, that is clearly a change of use, but there is no requirement to go for planning consent and it probably does not require any building regulations control. There may be some issues to do with health and safety, but how would the billing authority know what stock lay out there and what it was used for?
I appreciate that the Minister may need to come back on this, but in such a situation, how would a billing authority know whether it was behaving “diligently” or whether it was supposed to go around tracking down who all these people are? When I did an investigation last year into holiday homes, I found that a very large number of what I understood to be holiday homes, which were clearly being advertised as such through letting agencies, were in fact subject to a council tax assessment. If we are not careful, we will be putting an absolutely impossible burden on the billing authority, if “diligently” causes it to fall foul of something that is going to be extremely difficult for it to catch up on.
Along with the noble Earl, I do not expect my noble friend to answer this point now. The issue of “diligently” is, in law, an important one given that we are framing a new approach. We need to understand how that will be assessed, particularly if it also comes up with reference to the relationship between local authorities and precepting authorities. It cannot be a subjective test. The Secretary of State will not say, “I don’t think they’re doing a good job but those people are”. Secretaries of State have never acted like that in the history of local government, have they?
Therefore, there has to be some kind of objective set of criteria. In the example that the noble Earl has just given, will those criteria set out the extent to which local authorities must pursue these matters? Will they be quantitative? If you do not collect a certain proportion, will you therefore, prima facie, be judged to be less diligent than you ought to be? That raises potential difficulties. As noble Lords in this Committee have already said, the criteria certainly could not relate to variations from year to year. For example, my own authority’s business rate take in the past financial year dropped from £77 million to £68 million. You might look at that and say, “Goodness, Richmond doesn’t seem to be operating very diligently”. However, the Rugby Football Union, one of the biggest payers in the authority, had a revaluation so an accumulated adjustment came through in one financial year. Over time, that will average out.
These are all possible sources of uncertainty. Before Report stage, will my noble friend undertake to take on some of the points that have been made and give us some further insight into how this judgment will be made? I was very grateful for the way in which my noble friend responded constructively to the points made by noble Lords. Before Report, perhaps a little more light could be shed on how this assessment will be made.
In reply to the last point of my noble friend Lord True, if I can provide anything useful, of course I will. My noble friend is the leader of a council and, as far as I know, he has been acting under the duress of being presumed to be acting diligently ever since he took over. This has been part of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 since it was passed. It is not new. It is entirely the same wording as local government has been operating under for the past 24 years and it is well understood. Local government finance officers must also understand it. It means that you go about getting in the money that you are required to have to the very best of your ability. The challenge—particularly now, with the economy in the situation that it is—is to get in as much as possible of the amount that you should have.
I am not sure whether the Government will judge the level of diligence but it is perfectly open to someone else to challenge whether a local authority has acted diligently if, for example, its revenue drops substantially. I do not think there is anything more that we can say about it but I will be more helpful if I can. However, this is a very well worn path, which is probably no different from what we will do.
The noble Earl, Lord Lytton, raised the question of holiday homes. I know that he has extensive amendments coming up later. The local authority collects only the money as assessed against whatever the nature of the property is. If a valuation office, which must value all properties, values a holiday let as a normal domestic property, so be it. The local authority does not challenge that. It is left to the valuation office or anybody else to suggest that perhaps a property is being used as a business and might need to be looked at again. Therefore, holiday homes are not particularly relevant to this matter at the moment. I hope that is helpful.
My Lords, I thank the Minister again for her response to these amendments. On the issue of acting diligently, this is a probing amendment; I did not necessarily want the words deleted from the text. I wanted to understand how they might be applied in the current situation. We are in a different situation. Previously, the collection of business rates was turned over to central government and came back via a formula. That formula drove what local authorities had. It is going to be different in future; that is what the system is about. The Minister said that this is well tried and tested. How many challenges have been made under these provisions in the past three years? Who have those challenges come from? She hinted that they might come from anyone. It would not necessarily be the Government who have to take this view. This is important, particularly in the light of the comments by the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, whose knowledge of the rating system is profound and will be very helpful to us in this Committee. He can spot nuances that would not be apparent to some of us at least. We need more information on this. We will look to bring something forward on Report if we cannot get some clearer idea.
Will the Minister at least deal with the question of whether there is a right of appeal and what the sanction will be? If a local authority was deemed not to have acted diligently, what would the Government do? Would they gross up the business rate they receive in the calculations that are made? What is the sanction? Is it one that only government can apply? Is there a right of appeal against it? This raises lots of questions.
The other amendments were effectively probing, apart from the amendment about mandatory and discretionary rate relief. Quite apart from the specific circumstances that Sporta has written about—I understand there is some discussion on them—there are issues of principle here. How will it work in future for new provision that under the old system, and under the new system, would be subject to mandatory relief? The Government would have picked up the whole of the tab for that, but now it gets shared with the local authority. The local authority picks up half the cost which, other things being equal, is likely to make it less inclined to grant relief, not because it would not wish to, but simply because it would not have the resources to do it. Is that analysis right, or is there a different analysis? I know there are issues about how the baseline is set and how the existing provision features, but can we at least have a bit more about that as well?
Mandatory is mandatory. Mandatory means that you have got to do it. I am more concerned about the discretionary aspect. There are two lots: a mandatory grant and a discretionary grant. As I understand it—I am sort of swinging backwards and forwards here—the mandatory grant will be taken into account in the share. It would not be deducted, as it were, from the local authority’s income. I will write to the noble Lord on that because we do not want confusion. It seems to me that if it is an absolute requirement to pay it, there must be some payoff from that. Local authorities determine what they should collect and what they write off. Their auditors check it. I shall write to the noble Lord further on the mandatory grant because I do not think we are getting anywhere.
With regard to due diligence, it refers in practice to the sums that a local authority writes off as bad debts. It is for a billing authority to determine those sums and for the authority’s auditor to determine that they are reasonable. Due diligence would seem to me to work on the basis that you use your best endeavours. The noble Lord asked whether anyone has ever been challenged on it. I think that is going to be very hard to unearth because local authorities would be the only ones to know. If we have anything useful on that, I will let the noble Lord know, and also whether there could be an appeal. It might be helpful and save the noble Lord a lot of trouble on Report if we lay that out more clearly for him and for Members of the Committee, which I will do.
I am grateful to the Minister. I am happy to leave to correspondence the issue of due diligence, the consequences, and what appeal rights there may be. I hope that we will know in good time for Report so that we can revisit it if we need to.
I will just have one more go at mandatory relief. I go back to the document that the department itself issued: technical paper 2
M easuring B usiness R ates. Paragraph 4.22 states:
“The main consultation paper explained that there would be no changes to the current system of reliefs, or to the criteria that determine eligibility. The Government does not believe that, under a rates retention scheme, the cost of mandatory relief should be borne entirely by the authorities in whose area it arises”.
The same follows for discretionary relief.
Particularly in relation to discretionary relief, that must be a deterrent. I presume that that comes because of the 50:50 share. From what the Minister said earlier, are the Government reviewing this issue to reconsider whether there are any changes to the impact of the legislation that they might introduce? This does not affect only sport: I am sure that the department has had representations from a number of entities on this. Again, we would certainly wish to explore this further on Report if we cannot get some clarity or solutions relating to this by the time we get there.
My Lords, the answer to the noble Lord’s point is that it will be part of the consultation in the summer. Consideration is still being given to the position on reliefs and the consultation will produce an answer. I hope that by Report we will know for certain what the answer is. But I take the noble Lord point’s completely about something that you have to do and how that will be shared. Discretionary seems to be more something that is within the ability of the council to decide. But I do not want to dig myself any deeper into a hole here. I will leave it and write to the noble Lord. I understand that the noble Lord is happy about due diligence.
When the Minister is writing, will she help us to understand not just the impact on local authorities but the consequences for those bodies to which they might have contracted? Also, what impact do the Minister and the Government think that that might have on localism and the big society, for example?
Amendment 26 withdrawn.
Amendments 27 to 34 not moved.
Amendment 35
Moved by
35: Schedule 1, page 24, line 33, at end insert—
“( ) A review of the basis on which the Secretary of State calculates payments to authorities must be undertaken in conjunction with any revaluation of rateable values on non-domestic property after 2015.”
My Lords, in moving this amendment I will also speak to Amendment 36. Both are in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin. However, as noble Lords will know, he has literally just finished a three-and-a-half-hour debate in the Chamber and I have agreed to speak to these amendments since my noble friend Lord Shipley and I added our names to them. The noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, has promised to return when I have finished.
Amendment 35 refers to the review of the basis on which the Secretary of State calculates payments to authorities. That is probably best known to all of us here as the reset. The reset will review the needs and resources formula on which the local share calculations, such as the tariff and top-up, are based. The Government’s intention, as set out in the statement of intent on the central and local shares published on 17 May, is that the first reset should take place in 2020, which will also coincide with a revaluation; subsequently, as we know, the resets would be at 10-year intervals.
Amendment 35 prescribes that resets should happen at the same time as the five-yearly revaluation of non-domestic rates. The next revaluation is due in 2015 and the following reset would therefore be in 2020, as currently intended. Amendment 36 requires a review of the baseline funding level and changes in needs and resources to be carried out when local authorities are compiling their non-domestic rating lists. This is the same as a revaluation. Section 41 of the 1988 Act provides that this must happen once every five years. Therefore, the effect of both these amendments is the same. I beg to move.
My Lords, as we have heard, Amendment 35 requires that any review of tariffs and top-ups must be undertaken in conjunction with any revaluation of rateable values. As I understand it, that is broadly the intent of the Government. However, it would seem that locking into this approach effectively gives fixed reset periods. One of the problems with this, as the Government have identified, is that the further in advance a reset period is known, the more possible it becomes for local authorities to plan on that basis and potentially manage growth and investment in their areas to achieve maximum gains from the reset process. This could result in perverse outcomes as local authorities seek to defer growth in their local areas in the year before a reset is due. It also produces a rigidity in the system and an ability to have regard to how resources in the system are aligned to changing levels of underlying need.
In their response to the resource consultation, the Government have said that it is proposed to adjust each authority’s tariff or top-up following revaluation to ensure as far as possible that their income from business rates retention will be unaffected by the valuation. However, I am not sure whether that necessarily amounts to a full resetting involving the recalibration of the baseline; it seems to be a different process. Perhaps we can have some clarification on this. Indeed, I am not sure that it would be possible to use the formulation to set the baseline at the point of a revaluation because the business rate base would be the historic one, not the updated one. I would be grateful for some clarity as to what is involved in an adjusting of tariffs and top-ups that is not the full reset—I can see from the Box behind the Minister that that probably is the position. Of course, having regard to changes in relative needs in resources is absolutely key, and we support that.
It is a difficult balance between preserving the flexibility of earlier resets so that you can respond more quickly to changes in needs and resources and seeking the benefits of a practical update that perhaps has the benefit of a longer-term incentive. On balance, we would argue for the flexibility to be able to respond more readily, particularly given some of the data about how quickly the council tax base can change over time.
My Lords, I support the principle of what the noble Lord, Lord Tope, said in moving the amendment because we are in circumstances of unparalleled turmoil in the non-domestic sector. The present—2010—local rating lists are based on an antecedent date of 2008. It will not escape the Committee that that coincides with the peak of the market before much of the fallout of the financial situation had filtered its way though. One of the effects of that has been to produce some significant shifts in the way in which land use is now looked at. It will also be apparent to many noble Lords that there has been a growing level of conversions of properties that were once commercial into residential. This is, for many reasons, to do with the problems of building on greenfield sites, issues concerning the interim arrangements regarding the national planning policy framework and the removal—effectively the abolition—of the strategic planning system when the coalition came into being. I do not apportion any blame. We are where we are.
It is quite clear that a lot of businesses are paying rates on the basis of transitional relief escalation based on 2008 levels of value and are increasingly of the view that they are unsustainable. I have previously pointed out that on a like-for-like basis, non-domestic ratepayers appear to be paying more pro rata for their floor space than residential property owners pay under council tax for equivalent space. That may not be the case in central London—I have to defer to the noble Lord, Lord True, and others with greater knowledge of that—but in the rural shires, that certainly seems to be the situation. This fuels all sorts of things. If something is used for a commercial purpose, it fuels a lack of willingness to make any sort of declaration because people do not want it to go that way. One might say that there is no incentive on a billing authority to point something up as a non-domestic hereditament in circumstances where it gets 50% clawback. If it were under council tax, it would have got the lot, but I leave that for the time being because that is not the thrust of what I wish to say.
Next year we will have another antecedent valuation date for the 2015 valuation. The likelihood is that outside central London large numbers of values will fall. The transitional relief for substantial movement may well kick in, so as they have been counting up year on year towards 2015, after 2015 they may well be counting back down again. I have great concern about the reset not being until 2020 because the turmoil visited upon all sectors, residential and non-domestic, public sector and private sector alike, is making for great uncertainty and a great deal of unpredictability. It seems to me that by 2020, seven years down the road, assuming this comes into force in 2013, it will be so far out of date that something needs to be done about it before that time. I know that the Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation, of which I am a member, is equally concerned about the long-term effects, given the problems with the arrangements for the reset and valuation being so out of kilter in their degree of modernity.
This is a science. One has to try to work out how many financial criteria dance on the head of one pin, and I might not be the best person to describe this in detail, but I foresee a problem and I would like to hear what the Minister has to say about it.
My Lords, briefly, I support what has been said by my noble friends. I understand why my noble friend and her colleagues in the Treasury have put forward this proposal but, without repeating points that I made at Second Reading, the acceptance by many authorities of the transfer from one system to another is an acquired acceptance of accumulated unfairnesses—as some would call them—of all varieties. I hope that my noble friend will consider favourably some of the points that have been made by my noble friends, such as this factor and the kind of turbulence and uncertainty that the noble Earl has just been referring to—and I gave the example of the extraordinary movement in our business rate revenue of about 11% between the last two years—the fact that, in the future, we cannot foresee it and that we are going way beyond the public spending survey period.
My Lords, if the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, was here, I would tell him that I am grateful for his amendment and the explanations that have been given on his behalf by the noble Lord, Lord Tope.
It might help noble Lords if I remind the Committee—if it needs reminding—how the rate retention scheme will deal with the spending needs of local authorities and how it will handle the changes in rates income that authorities will experience at a revaluation. When the scheme is first set up in 2013-14, we will determine whether authorities have to pay a tariff or whether they receive a top-up payment. To do this, we will compare the local share of the business rates that an authority collects with what I shall simply call the baseline funding level, which is essentially the number that currently falls out of the formula grant process. In other words, it is the share of money that the Government believe each authority should have, taking account of its needs and resources—a calculation that is done currently.
Therefore, at the point that we set up the rate retention scheme, we will have fully taken account of the needs in the same way as we do now under formula grant. Thereafter, we do not intend that the rate retention scheme will take account of needs again until the system is reset, and we have already indicated—and noble Lords have said they understand this—that our aspiration is to have the first reset in 2020 and to have resets only every 10 years thereafter; so 2020 would be eight years after the introduction of the scheme. This is to ensure that there is a sufficiently long time between resets to incentivise growth. If, instead, we were to adjust tariffs and top-ups every year, or every few years, to reflect changing needs, we would completely destroy the incentive effect that this scheme is designed to achieve.
As noble Lords will recognise, if authorities are to be encouraged to invest in growth, they need to be certain about the reward that they will get. As has already been pointed out, authorities will often incur costs as a result of growth and, just as often, those costs are incurred before the rewards from increased rates materialise. If the rate retention system were to be set up in a way that risked authorities incurring costs but then not seeing rewards because tariffs and top-ups had been adjusted, they would have no incentive to invest in growth.
How long the system needs to be stable for is a matter of judgment. Amendment 36 of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, would effectively require a reset for needs every five years to coincide with a revaluation. The Government believe that this period is too short. The timeframe over which investment is made and over which costs and rewards materialise will very often be longer than this, a point that was made by many of those responding to last summer’s consultation on the scheme. This is why after 2020 we intend to reset the scheme every 10 years. However, as I indicated last time, we will always retain the ability exceptionally to reset earlier if, for example, we found that the needs and resources had got significantly out of line.
I turn to Amendment 35, and the points made by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie. Having said that we would not reset tariffs and top-ups except every 10 years, I must finesse that position slightly. Although we will not reset tariffs and top-ups for need, we will reset them at a revaluation to reflect the resulting changes to authorities’ income. I will not repeat everything that I said previously about revaluations on Amendment 15, but suffice it to say that a revaluation will change the rates income of an authority overnight between 31 March and 1 April. I think that this is a point that the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, was trying to get at. That will happen for reasons that have very little to do with the authority or with businesses in the area.
For example, at the 2010 revaluation, one council saw its rates income decline by several million pounds, even though there had been no changes to the businesses or physical changes to the nature of the property on the ground. This cannot be right, and therefore at a revaluation we will amend tariffs and tops-up to ensure that, as far as possible, an authority has the same income immediately after the revaluation as it had before. We can do this through the mechanism of the local government finance report, as required by Part 4 of Schedule 1 to this Bill. Amendment 35 is therefore unnecessary and I hope that the noble Lord, Lord Tope, on behalf of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, will be persuaded to withdraw it.
That was helpful, as I have been trying to understand the difference between a full reset and a change in the tariffs and top-ups. What factors would be taken into account? The noble Baroness said that need is going to be ignored, which would certainly bother a number of us. How is that going to be achieved?
My Lords, the needs assessment will be the same as the assessments for the baseline that were made initially. As I understand it, you would have to revaluate against that baseline.
I am very grateful to the Minister for that explanation and to all noble Lords who took part in this debate, which raised some interesting and useful points. We will read it carefully in
Hansard and I am quite certain the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, will read it with even more care and interest. I do not speak for what he may intend to do when he has done so, but in the mean time I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment 35 withdrawn.
Amendment 36 not moved.
Amendment 37
Moved by
37: Schedule 1, page 24, line 33, at end insert—
“(3) Such basis of calculation must take account each year of an assessment of the level of need in each local authority, and in particular their ability to comply with their equality duty and obligations under the Child Poverty Act and homelessness provisions.”
My Lords, in moving Amendment 37, I shall speak also to Amendment 38. We are still with tariffs and top-ups, which are important because, apart from levies and safety nets, they are the route to seek to address matters of needs and resources. Some local authorities collect more business rates than they currently receive in formula grant, while business rates collected by others are lower than their current funding levels. Hence, there is a need to rebalance resources, a process that we support. However, this requires establishing a business rates baseline for each authority and a baseline funding level. Amendment 37 sets down a general test for this, which requires that the basis for calculation that must be set out in the local government finance report should specifically have regard to an assessment of need. This amendment particularises that local authorities should be resourced to be able to comply with their equality duties, their obligations under the Child Poverty Act and homelessness provisions. The noble Baroness will note that these are the very same issues that central government has pressed on local government, reminding it of its responsibilities in relation to council tax support schemes.
Amendment 38 requires the local government finance report to set out details of the calculation of the baseline position. Establishing the baseline requires establishing the business rate that each billing authority collects and how this is shared between billing and non-billing authorities. The Government have proposed that this is determined by averaging business rates income, although the number of years over which it is averaged has not yet, apparently, been agreed. The amendment requires this to be made explicit in the finance report, but perhaps the Minister can in any case give us an update on this as well as set out the criteria that will determine the final basis of determination. Reverting to our previous discussion, how would this work in relation to a revaluation if the basis of the business rate baseline was an historic average? It would be difficult to do that at the point at which you had a revaluation because you would be averaging on the old basis. There is a difficulty there, but that is an aside.
Establishing the baseline also involves determining an income or funding level, and it is proposed that it is based on the 2012-13 formula grant, subject to some adjustments. It is these adjustments that the amendment also requires to be spelt out. In this regard, we support the decision to update population data, as these are a key driver of the cost of services.
So far as relative needs formulae are concerned, the Government maintain that they have increased the proportion of formula grant distribution going to relative needs at the expense of the central allocation, as this would support the most dependent authorities. For the purpose of the tariff/top-up calculation, the higher the formula, the lower the tariff or the higher the top-up will be. Can the Minister update us on what is happening on these adjustments and tell us the current thinking because the outcome of these deliberations is locked in until a reset and it can be significant? If the proposal is to set the formula grant for the current year, the Government switched data to help the disadvantaged authorities by the central and relative needs shares. If they are thinking of putting that into reverse for the purpose of this calculation, then presumably the risk is that those disadvantaged authorities will not have the benefit that the formula for the current year has given them. I should be very grateful if the Minister could deal with that.
Paragraph 2.47 of the resource review consultation document states:
“In the current settlement we increased the proportion of formula grant distribution going to relative needs at the expense of the central allocation to support the most dependent authorities but made no change to relative resources”.
On the consultation, it states:
“Responses were mixed on this point and we have decided to look again at this issue prior to further consultation, when we will take a decision on whether, or not, to consult on any proposals”.
So the question is: are the Government going to consult and what are those proposals? I beg to move.
Perhaps I may intervene for a moment in relation to Amendment 37 to probe the meaning of the word “need”. I should like to raise an issue concerning exempt student households. It is becoming an increasingly serious matter on which I would appreciate the Minister’s guidance.
Student households are exempt from council tax. They are also exempt from business rates where it is a house in multiple occupation but owned by a landlord. The principle has been that councils get reimbursed from the national pot. In the past couple of years, that has not been happening as it should, and in some cases there is around a 25% deficit so that only around three-quarters of the income that would be expected is being received, yet local services are being provided without all the income that is necessary to pay for them.
I understand that the consultation that is taking place over the summer with local authorities will look at this issue, but I am seeking an assurance from the Minister that the matter will be taken very seriously. In the past, need has been taken to include full reimbursement of the loss because student housing is exempt.
My Lords, as I was about to say, the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie of Luton, was asking about the consultation on the needs and the formula. That is part of the summer consultation, so it will be dealt with before we meet again on Report. I am not going to muddy the water before that, so I will leave that there. I do not think there is any intention to change the exemption from council tax for students and business premises.
The first reset will start in 2013-14 and the Government will set out in the local government finance report all those elements sought by Amendment 38, but only in 2013-14 and in any reset year. I do not need to go through again the arguments I have already deployed in relation to Amendments 35 and 36 but, as I have already said, outside of a reset year, we do not intend to reset tariffs and top-ups to take account of need. We have been through this. This is because the scheme is designed to produce, and we intend it to deliver, a significant incentive for local authorities to promote growth. We think that incentive would be destroyed. Instead, we intend that the scheme should give authorities absolute clarity for a period of up to 10 years—clearly it will be eight at the start—about the payments that they will receive or make to central government. This will give them the strongest possible incentive to respond to business concerns, secure the necessary investment and increase their income through sustained growth.
I am sure that the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, will recognise that, for these reasons, the Government cannot accept either of these amendments, and I hope that he is persuaded to withdraw Amendment 37 and not to move Amendment 38.
Will the Minister clarify her answer to the question asked by the noble Lord, Lord Shipley? She indicated that the system would not change. Is that the system of a couple of years ago or the system that seems to have been drifted into on student accommodation?
I should be very happy to have a written note about this prior to Report. It would help us enormously. The issue is that the exemption should be fully refunded to local authorities; as I understand it, in the past few years it has not been. It is becoming a problem for places that have large numbers of houses that are wholly exempt because they are wholly occupied by students. There is simply no income at all.
It would be very helpful if the Minister could clarify a position that is increasingly causing concern. There may be a house for students that is completely exempt from business rates and council tax. Then one of the students goes into a part-time job while continuing their degree. My understanding is that if the student’s income from their part-time work is above the threshold, that brings the whole property into council tax, although the student continues to be eligible for a single person discount. That seems to run directly against the concern about work incentives for universal credit and against the need for students to find part-time work, given the increase in fees that they now have to meet for the first time. Will the Minister clarify whether this affects business rates or council tax?
My Lords, I thank the Minister for her reply. Of course, we are in the Moses Room so I shall withdraw Amendment 37 and not move Amendment 38. Before I do so, I return to the issue of the baseline and needs and resources. Even if one accepts that the formulation used when setting the baseline is a fair and reasonable basis on which to do so, what evidence do the Government have to suggest that it is capable of holding in an appropriate way and that there will not be a divergence of needs and resources over seven years, 10 years or any other period?
My Lords, when I was winding up I said that the Government would keep this under review and that, if there were a major change, the Government would be prepared to look at it on an individual authority basis within the local government finance settlements. Is that what the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, is asking?
In part it is. I can see that the Government might feel moved to adjust the formulation following a very significant change. However, we are talking about people’s lives here. Incremental changes to support can have a dramatic effect on them. I have looked at the impact assessment and the assessment of economic benefit, which was a fairly opaque document. I am trying to identify what work the Government have done so that we do not need to worry about resetting after three years, five years or any other period, and so that we are confident that, broadly, those parameters will hold over that period.
I will let the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, know. Whatever the calculation up to that point, the intention is to ensure that there is a settled time between resets in order to establish growth and benefits from that. I have said that a couple of times. The noble Lord will not expect me to answer now on all the calculations. I shall take a look and, if I can get further information for him, I will do so in due course.
Amendment 37 withdrawn.
Amendments 38 to 40 not moved.
Amendment 41
Moved by
41: Schedule 1, page 31, leave out lines 37 and 38
My Lords, in moving Amendment 41, I shall also speak to our other amendments in this group, Amendments 42, 44, 45 and 45A. Amendment 41 is a probing amendment. It concerns regulations about the levy payment calculations. These can be made,
“by reference to such other factors as may be specified in the regulations”.
Will the Minister indicate the type of other factors that it is envisaged might feature?
Amendment 42 would require the Secretary of State to allow 28 days for representations to be made on the basis of the calculation and to implement a process for receiving representations. I am sure that there will be informal arrangements but there should be some formal process by which local authorities can challenge the calculation.
Amendment 44 requires a report to Parliament after three years. The Government have yet to conclude on the safety net but it could be something like a 7.5% to 10% reduction from baseline funding, which, as time goes by, other than being uprated by RPI, would become an increasingly distant figure. Can we have an update on the thinking and on what evidence will be used? A significant diminution in base funding for an authority could be cumulative and we would be very concerned about that. We have debated before a significant loss of the business rate base: we heard from the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, last week. Some of it might be involuntary because of major closures; some of it might be voluntary, such as the discouragement of major regeneration projects. We need a clear path to review how it is working, so we believe that a report to Parliament at three years to see how that safety net is operating is very important.
In similar vein, Amendment 45 seeks to put down some criteria and the need for an evidence base. I apologise for the late tabling of Amendment 45A; it just got stuck in the system. It is a probing amendment intended to focus on the cumulative impact of the safety net, particularly when local authority reserves are being depleted and, in any event, the Government are focusing on levels of reserves.
I have put my name to Amendment 46, which is in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, who will perhaps talk to it if necessary. There is something of a hotchpotch of issues there but it is intended to be probing in order to understand issues concerning the levy concept. I beg to move.
My Lords, this group includes Amendment 46 in my name, to which I am delighted to see the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, has added his name. We come to this in a splendid example of a total coalition, if I may put it like that to my noble friend the Minister.
I will say a word about a special point that affects the City of London in a moment, but the point about Amendment 46 is that it is asking that volatility in local authority income due to rating appeals is formally recognised and “fully compensated”. The justice of this is self-evident. Under the current proposals for business rate retention, local authorities will be unable to benefit from business rate yield growth due to rental increases after revaluation. However, when it comes to reductions, local authorities are expected to manage and absorb funding volatility caused by rating appeals after revaluation, subject to the provisions of the safety net. Of course, volatility in funding will fall entirely on the local authority.
Just as with other matters of this kind, it is not within the control of local authorities because the rating revaluations are all done by the Valuation Office Agency, which is outwith local authority control, and yet the Bill is providing that local authorities must bear the risk. This seems unbalanced and unfair. If it is right one way, it must surely have the converse effect of being right the other way. I should be grateful to hear my noble friend’s answer to that.
Under the current proposals there is what London Councils describes as asymmetry—a view that I entirely endorse. It seems to me that they are wholly asymmetrical and that, in these circumstances, there must be some form of indemnity from the Government against significant VOA errors. Without this, local authorities will simply have to bear the whole risk, which could be quite substantial.
I give notice that the City corporation has raised with me a separate point on which it may wish somebody to table an amendment on Report. It is a slightly different point but it comes up under the same general issue. It is technically distinct from our proposal, which I have just described under Amendment 46; nevertheless, it seems to be in some way similar. Our Amendment 46 deals with appeals founded on some error by the VOA. The City’s difficulty concerns appeals or alterations founded on a subsequent change of circumstances—namely, for instance, a movement in the local property market that produces an oversupply of commercial property. They have had experience of this in the City. Of course, it does not affect just one office or one set of business premises; it affects them all at much the same time. Therefore, it could have quite a serious impact on the City and on other areas where there are high concentrations of high-yield commercial property.
Even after the dispute has been resolved, the refunds can be backdated for several years, which means that the local authority has to wait for them. Here again the argument should be that local authorities should not be exposed to this kind of risk, because the Government have already accepted that they are not to be exposed to bearing the risk of general movements in the local property market. If it is right there, why is the same argument not applied to movements due to appeals from the valuation office? I understand that it would be appropriate to raise a separate amendment if one was going to try to incorporate something in the Bill, so at this point I am just giving notice of this issue to my noble friend. However, I think that there is a point on which she may wish to comment—she probably knows about this—as well as on what I would call the enlarged coalition proposal under Amendment 46 that the volatility of the ordinary valuation process should be borne by the Government and not by local authorities.
I rise to make the coalition complete and show that it is indeed a multi-coalition point. My name appears on this amendment, as does that of my noble friend Lord Tope. Most of what I wanted to say has been covered by my noble friend Lord Jenkin. I just emphasise that the Valuation Office Agency is another separate body and that it will make decisions on appeals. It will decide whether there is any liability but local authorities will have to pick up the pieces. It seems that there is central government on one side and local authorities on the other. To my shame, I am not sure whether the Valuation Office Agency is still a part of HMRC but it certainly was as a valuation office. Local authorities will be caught between a rock and a hard place because things will happen that neither government nor local authorities will be involved with, and local authorities will then just pick up any compensation that might be needed. Although my noble friend Lord Jenkin widened it in many ways, so far as I can see, all the amendment is seeking is to ensure that losses due to appeals are fully compensated from the safety net. We believe that this would be fair and equitable for local authorities.
My Lords, I formally put on the record that I am pleased to be part of this expanded but temporary coalition. The case has been well made. The broader point that the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, made is well worth pursuing, and I would be happy to talk to, and possibly again support, him and extend this coalition in those limited circumstances.
If the noble Lord is going to join the coalition, why not from the Front Bench, given the way things are going?
This group of amendments presents a good opportunity to discuss the key element of the rates retention scheme; that is, the operation of the levy and the safety net. From the outset, we have signalled our intention that the rates retention scheme will include a safety net mechanism to protect local authorities from significant downward shocks to their income. We did so in recognition of the inherent volatility in the business rates system, to which my noble friend Lord Palmer has just referred, that can see rates income vary from year to year, principally because of appeals, to which the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, referred, which are generally out of the local authority’s control, or a sudden change in local economic circumstances as a result of, for example, the closure or relocation of a major business. The safety net will be funded by a levy on the disproportionate benefits that some authorities would otherwise experience simply because of their high initial business rates baseline. The detailed calculations required to determine whether a local authority is to make a levy payment or receive a safety net payment and, if so, the amount of any such payments will be set out in regulations, which will be subject to the affirmative resolution procedure under paragraphs 20 and 23 of the schedule. In both cases, those regulations will need to set out the precise detail of what is to be measured and how it is to be measured, and the provisions in paragraphs 20 and 23 give the scope to be able to include all relevant items in defining income for the purposes of the calculations. Amendment 41, moved by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, seeks to remove some of that scope by removing the ability in regulations to make provision for the calculation of levy payments to be by reference to some factor other than retained business rates income.
I shall lay out how we think the calculations will work. The noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, will be aware that we intend to set a proportional levy at 1:1, which will mean that all authorities can expect to retain up to 1% growth in their baseline funding level for every 1% growth in their authority’s business rates baseline. This will require the authority’s retained rates income for the year to be compared with its baseline starting level. In other words, that is the rates income we initially calculated that the authority would collect—its business rates baseline—plus or minus any top-up or tariff before applying the levy rate to the difference between the two. The initial comparison or the application of the levy rate could be described as another factor.
We are also trying to create a legislative framework that will stand the test of time. Noble Lords have already referred to the need to keep the safety net under review, and we agree with that. A consequence of keeping it under review is that we may at some point in the future want to redefine how the safety net works and we may—who knows?—want to include a reference to other factors. If a future Government were to do that, they would, of course, have to get the agreement of Parliament to those changes through the affirmative resolution procedure, so the right level of scrutiny is clearly available.
There is no secret conspiracy here. We do not intend to take account of some other mysterious factors. The provisions as they stand simply enable the way the levy payments are to be calculated to be set out in regulations. It is true that they may also provide some flexibility, but we have no plans to do anything other than provide for a proportionate levy on retained business rates income, as I have set out.
I have more sympathy with the noble Lord’s Amendment 42—that must be the first time I have said that since we started.
Don’t get too excited. The amendment for which I have more sympathy, Amendment 42, seeks to ensure that there is a period during which authorities can challenge the calculation of the levy payment, but I do not believe that it is necessary to set that out in regulations. The basis of the calculations is, as I have explained, to be set out in regulations and local authorities will have ample opportunity to comment on that. Individual calculations will be based on the information supplied to local authorities, so there should be no reason for the calculations to be wrong.
However, I appreciate that local authorities have concerns, as this is something that we have discussed in the working groups that we have with them. Although I am not convinced that a requirement in the Bill is appropriate or necessary, I shall take this away to give further consideration to how we might meet those concerns. That is my sympathetic bit.
Turning to the discussion on the safety net threshold, prompted by Amendments 43, 45 and 45A, noble Lords will be well aware that decisions about the levels of the safety net threshold and the levy ratio are very closely linked. They must balance a range of competing issues and they cannot be divorced. While the safety net needs to offer protection against significant shocks in the local rates base, as I mentioned earlier, it will be funded by other local authorities through the levy. Therefore, the levy ratio must be set at such a level as to generate sufficient income to fund demands on the safety net at the chosen support threshold. Equally, that level must be such that it continues to offer an incentive to authorities to pursue growth.
We have carefully considered all these issues and believe that the levy ratio at 1:1, together with the safety net support threshold in the range of 7.5% to 10% below baseline funding, offers the best combination on balance. We will be consulting local government over the summer before any final decisions are taken. Therefore, although I appreciate the intention behind the noble Lord’s amendments, I am not in a position to accept them.
I think that Amendment 44 tabled by the noble Lord, Lord McKenzie, is unnecessary. I understand his aim but he will no doubt appreciate that we will of course want to keep the operation of the safety net under constant review, particularly during the early years of the scheme. If we believe that it is not offering the right level of support, we will change it.
Finally, with Amendment 46 my noble friend Lord Jenkin seeks to ensure that provision is made for the effect of appeals on an authority’s income—a matter raised earlier by the noble Earl, Lord Lytton. We recognise that the impact of rating appeals on an authority’s income is outside the control of the authority but we do not believe that this amendment is the way to deal with it. Instead, as I have previously explained, we will be building two significant protections into the scheme. First, we will be reflecting appeal losses in the initial calculation of tariffs and top-ups. In other words, we will set the level of tariff or top-up as though authorities have collected less income from rates than is the case, recognising that over time they will lose some income on appeal. Generally, we have put in place the safety net so that, where authorities lose more on appeal than is allowed for in the initial calculation, they will be substantially protected through the safety net payments.
With those assurances, I hope that the noble Lord will feel able to withdraw his amendment.
My Lords, I think I understood what my noble friend said and I am grateful for her generally positive response. However, I think I heard her say that the high-income authorities will pay for the funding of the safety net. Of course, I do not know how a high- income authority is defined. If it is a tariff authority—and my authority expects to be a tariff authority—I have just given an example: one appeal has had the effect of knocking 4% off the overall business income. I do not expect the Minister to answer this point now but I hope that there is not an assumption that every tariff authority is necessarily able to bear that sort of short-term turbulence. I should just like to put that point on the record.
Within that, the authorities that will pay the levy are those described as having a disproportionate increase. That is an authority that may have the ability to raise an enormous amount of new money. If the tariff is there and an income is not coming in or is dropping, you cannot be described as having a disproportionate income.
I am grateful for that, but that is probably something better dealt with in correspondence. Is anyone from Westminster here? In short-term parlance, we all understand that Westminster is the kind of authority thought of as being disproportionate, with due respect to my friends in Westminster. Could officials let us know about that disproportionate definition tariff? Obviously, if the authority that has to finance the safety net should also be one of those gaining from it, we are in a slightly odd situation as I read it.
I will write to the noble Lord. My understanding is that as long as you have sufficient income left as a tariff authority, you probably would not justify help from the safety net. It is for those who lose an enormous amount of income and are not able to cope with that because it is below the base line. None the less, I shall have the noble Lord written to about that.
My Lords, I am grateful for what my noble friend said about looking again at the issue raised by Amendment 46, but I am not sure that I wholly understood. I do not want to anticipate the argument that we might have on any amendment that she might bring forward on Report, but I understood that she said that one thing that the Government might do would be to try to take into account the impact of appeals. Is that what she said? How can you know before the appeal has been heard? I just do not understand. It is just another estimate, whereas the amendment is looking for full compensation for that. I am not sure whether I have properly understood what my noble friend said in her earlier response.
It must be extremely difficult to work out in advance how many appeals will be won or lost. There will be an assessment of what that will be and it will be taken into account at an early stage. The noble Lord is asking for full compensation on every appeal that is lost or won—if it were the other way round, we could take money back. At present, if it is likely that a lower amount of rates will be collected than expected because of outstanding appeals, that will be taken into account. That is some form of compensation, it seems to me.
May I ask for further clarification? The Minister indicated that the appeals losses would be included in the initial tariffs and top-ups. Obviously, one accepts, as she said, that you cannot give an accurate figure for something that will happen in the future. However, there must be some basis on which the assessment will be made. Will it be based on an average across the country of previous appeals under another system—a completely different system? Will it be based on a figure plucked from the air, or the rate of inflation? There has to be some understanding of how that assessment will be approached—some framework—even though, as we all know, you cannot forecast the future.
My Lords, before the Minister responds to that, we are in danger of losing sight of some of the basic geometry of what has happened here, which was alluded to by the noble Lord, Lord True. He talked about an event that caused the complete recalculation of a large part of the rate base for his authority. I have explained before that it customarily takes about two years from when you lodge an appeal against a non-domestic assessment before the valuation officer has the time to start discussions. That is not the time that it takes to get to the tribunal; that is the time in which you might get a substantive response. The time that it takes to get to an appeal may depend on various other things, including whether it is grouped with certain like matters.
For the sake of example, let us suppose that it takes between two and a half and three years to get the result of an appeal—for a valuation tribunal to pronounce on the matter. Assuming that it does not go beyond that appeal to a higher tribunal, the recalculation can start and might go back many years, as the noble Lord, Lord True, said. Having done all this tariff business, if I may call it that, how many bits of recalculation will be spread over this timescale, which extends backwards as well as into the future? I fail to understand how this can be made to work. My simple arithmetic—I do not regard myself as terribly numerate—suggests that there are too many variables to call the outcome. It has to be simplified.
My Lords, we are talking about a safety net, but it seems that both the number of holes in that net and their size are to be estimated. It is quite a difficult position. The formulation of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, seems much more rooted in objective fact and would give a degree of certainty. Should the Minister not take this matter back for another look?
My Lords, I am happy to do that. The historic figures, which will be used across the country, will be used as the basis of what we have been talking about. We can try to bottom out the detailed calculations between now and Report. It is probably more helpful if I write to Members of the Committee so that they can see what they are. However, the rates system is not new; we have had a system of business rates for ages. At least some of it will not change at all. There have been rates and appeals for all that time. There is not a huge difference in the mechanism but the results may be slightly different. I will write to noble Lords about that as well; it will be a long letter.
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness again for her responses to these amendments. She said that business rates have been with us for a long time. They have but what is before us is a fundamental change in which risk moves from central government to local authorities. It is a lot of risk for local authorities. Like a number of noble Lords who have spoken, I understand that something is embedded in the baseline figures, but I am not convinced that that fundamentally deals with the ongoing problem that the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, has outlined. Like the noble Lord and others, I will read the record on that. I am sure that it is something to which we shall return.
I was on the point of being overjoyed by the Minister’s response to Amendment 42 but was less so when she was not able to accept it. However, I am grateful that at least the spirit of the amendment is alive and that it will be taken away for further consideration.
On Amendment 44, I accept that there will be ongoing routine monitoring and assessment of how the safety net will work. That is not inconsistent with there being some formal report to Parliament on how it has worked and what its effects will be. We will certainly wish to return to it on Report. In the mean time, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment 41 withdrawn.
Amendments 42 to 46 not moved.
Amendment 47
Moved by
47: Schedule 1, page 36, leave out lines 25 to 31 and insert—
“(2) Before making such a determination, the Secretary of State must consult such relevant authorities and bodies representing relevant authorities as the Secretary of State thinks appropriate about whether the Secretary of State should make such a determination.
(3) If, following consultation under sub-paragraph (1), the Secretary of State determines that the amount referred to in sub-paragraph (1) is to be distributed among one or more relevant authorities, the distribution may not be made unless—
(a) the basis on which the Secretary of State intends to make the distribution (“the basis of distribution”) is specified in the local government finance report for the year in question, and(b) the report is approved by a resolution of the House of Commons.(3A) If a report is approved by resolution of the House of Commons under sub-paragraph (3)(b), the Secretary of State must calculate what amount (if any) fails to be paid to each relevant authority as its share of the amount referred to in sub-paragraph (1).”
We now turn to the issue of the distribution of the remaining balance of the levy fund, which comes on page 36 of the Bill. As the Bill currently stands, it is entirely up to the Secretary of State to decide how that is going to be done: whether it is going to be rolled over or distributed to local authorities. Amendments 47 and 48 propose that this should be a matter of consultation between the local authorities and the Government, and then be subject to approval by Parliament via the local government finance report. Without that, there is no way for Parliament to exercise any control over the distribution of the levy, which could be quite a significant sum at the end of the period to which it applies.
The logic of the system that the Government are introducing is that it is local government money. It should therefore be returned to the local authorities and not be the subject of a further centralisation of control by the department. It is the old question and the department seems to want to retain overall control over the decision as to whether the balance should be rolled over or distributed, whereas in accordance with any sort of localism agenda it should be recognised that it is local government money and it is for local government to decide what should happen. At least it should be the subject of consultation, as the amendment provides, and then be dealt with subsequently in the local government finance report and so be within the control of Parliament. I hope that my noble friend will be able to see the sense of that and how it is in accordance with the Government’s overall policy of localism. I beg to move.
My Lords, I have added my name to Amendments 47 and 48 and wholeheartedly support the proposition that has been argued by the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin. There is nothing more to say on that matter.
The noble Lord, Lord Beecham, and I also have Amendment 49 in this group, which is a bit of a failsafe proposal. It says:
“Should any part of a balance on a levy account for any year remain undistributed after 3 years from the end of that year, the Secretary of State shall report to Parliament on the reasons therefore”.
If it is accumulating over that period, there is real cause for concern. This is an added protection and certainly does not displace the propositions in the earlier two amendments.
My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, has covered most of this but I wish to add a few words on Amendment 47. This ensures that the Secretary of State must consult on whether the remaining balance on the levy account is redistributed to local government or rolled over to the following year. I really feel that this amendment is trying to prevent this legislation from resembling the National Lottery, where if someone does not win a prize it is rolled over to the next round. Here, instead of there being a balance that is distributed to the people whence it came, we are suggesting that it is rolled over to the next lot of recipients in some lottery-type arrangement. All this amendment is trying to do is to limit the levy to the period to which it relates and to those who have contributed to the levy within that period.
My Lords, we are in danger of amending the amended. These clauses were amended in the other place as a result of some of the concerns there. These amendments would reverse changes to the way that the Government distributes surplus levy income that were made in the other place. I recognise the noble Lord’s intentions in tabling these amendments—indeed they reflect much of the Government’s proposed process for distributing the levy surplus when we first introduced the Bill in the other place. However, as the Bill was amended to meet concerns raised there, I cannot accept these amendments. We have said that any surplus levy income that is not needed to fund the safety net will be distributed back to local authorities. We will not simply hold larger and larger surpluses.
Amendments 47 and 48 propose that the Secretary of State should consult with relevant authorities in advance of determining how much levy surplus should be distributed back to local authorities and set out the basis of distribution of levy surplus in the annual local government finance report. Although I sympathise with the intentions behind these amendments, setting out the distribution of any levy surplus through the local government finance report rather than through regulations is not the best approach. In fact, there are unintended consequences of this approach, in particular for the timings of payments to distribute the levy surplus.
When the Bill was discussed in Committee in the other place, concern was raised that the proposed process for distributing surplus levy was a bit long-winded. Setting out the basis of distribution through the local government finance report would mean that even when the Government had taken a decision to distribute some or all of any surplus back to local government, authorities would have to wait six months to a year before they saw the money. As a result of that, the Government agreed to look into speeding up the distribution and therefore amended the Bill—which is how it stands now—so that the process for distributing levy surplus, and the basis of that distribution, could be set out in regulations, ensuring that the payments can be made immediately after the decision to make them is taken.
Furthermore, to provide appropriate parliamentary oversight, the Government ensured the regulations would be subject to the affirmative procedure and hence subject to the approval of both Houses of Parliament. Regulations will need to be in place well in advance of any levy surplus being distributed, so authorities will have the certainty that the noble Lord is seeking. Once the regulations are in place, they will have this certainty each and every year until and unless they are revoked.
Amendment 49 requires the Secretary of State to report to Parliament the reasons why any remaining balance of the levy account has not been redistributed within three years. Again, although I recognise the intention behind this amendment, I do not believe it to be necessary. I reiterate that it has always been the Government’s default position not to hold back excessive amounts of surplus levy. The levy account will also operate with a high degree of transparency—the payments made both to and from this account will be easy to identify, as will the overall balance. Furthermore, the Comptroller and Auditor-General will report on the account and lay this report before Parliament in the same way as he currently does in the report entitled
Pooling of N on- Domestic Rates and Redistribution to Local A uthorities in Englan d. This will provide Parliament with adequate opportunity to raise the issue of the levy balance, if required, through the normal processes.
On the basis of these arguments and the fact that this has already been amended, I hope that noble Lords will not press their amendments.
My Lords, apart from the redistribution of this levy to local authorities, it remains the case that it is funded by what is paid by businesses on their non-domestic premises. I simply wish to have an assurance from the Minister that under no circumstances could this be used or treated as any sort of contingency fund to overcome inherent deficiencies and time lags in the system. As I have previously pointed out in the context of this Bill, non-domestic ratepayers are getting a bit of a raw deal in terms of what they pay per square foot by comparison to other contributors to local government finances. Their values are based on 2008 antecedent valuation date figures, for which they are paying ever more through the processes of transition, in circumstances where their own economic situation is increasingly challenged. Furthermore, I believe that the Valuation Office Agency has admitted that there is an element in the national non-domestic multiplier for losses and adjustments resulting from appeals.
There is only one adjustment that can be made in such circumstances and that is an adjustment for a decrease in the amount of the tax base. That is the only way that the Valuation Office Agency or the Treasury can envisage such an adjustment. So businesses are paying already for an inherent error factor in the system. It would be quite wrong for me, with my associations with businesses and with the profession of valuation—which is so much at the heart of a substantial outgoing for businesses—if I did not get up and flag up that particular point because at each stage there is going to be some fund that might be redistributed or some element built in as a contingency figure, and increasing numbers of business ratepayers will start to rebel and make common cause about what starts to look like an iniquity. I am asking for some reassurance from the Minister on that particular point. On the levy side, this cannot be used as any sort of contingency fund to add to the ones that already seem to be built into the system.
My Lords, I have already said that if there is a surplus on the levy it will be redistributed to local authorities as soon as possible and in agreement with them. So I do not think that the noble Lord’s comments are valuable at this point. There is a very straightforward intention here. The levy that arrives from a surplus of growth within some local authorities, if there is an excess of it, is distributed back. I must say to the noble Lord that I have 30 pages of response to amendments that he has put down on all these matters, so perhaps we could deal with them all at that stage.
My Lords, I listened to my noble friend with care. Due to the extraneous noise overhead, I am not sure that I heard it all. This Room is rather vulnerable to the helicopters flying overhead. I got the impression that she feels that there is merit in what we are saying and that she understands that her regulations will in fact deal with it. Would that be a fair summary?
Amendment 47 withdrawn.
Amendments 48 and 49 not moved.
Amendment 50
Moved by
50: Schedule 1, page 42, line 21, at beginning insert “The Secretary of State may provide for the designation of areas in which certain non-domestic revenues shall be ring fenced to support infrastructure investment financed using tax increment finance and other mechanisms, and in order to do so”
In moving this amendment, I shall speak also to Amendments 51, 52 and 53. The amendment is in my name and that of my noble friend Lord Tope, but I hope that there is broad sentiment around many of the issues that these amendments contain.
The amendments address tax increment financing. For anyone who remains in doubt, and I know that most here are well aware, tax increment financing is simply a mechanism for using future increases in business rates generated by a project, such as new infrastructure, to finance that project in the first place. In other words, it allows a local authority to trade in future taxation income for the present benefit that will create that taxation stream.
As many noble Lords are aware, this is a mechanism commonly used in the United States, where it has provided extensively for the regeneration of communities, but it dates back to Victorian times in our own country and similar kinds of mechanisms effectively created many of our great cities. It is very British at its core. We are all delighted to see this come back into the framework of local government thinking, but we would also like to see it come into the real economy in an effective way—in fact as well as in framework and description. That is why I tabled these amendments.
Amendment 50 is relatively straightforward and effectively puts tax increment financing into the Bill. It is beyond most of us to understand why it is not there in the first place, particularly when the Chancellor in his Budget referred to TIF, its acronym, frequently and in virtually every debate uses the phrase “tax increment financing”. For the sake of clarity, for goodness’ sake let us deal with that and make sure it is in the Bill itself.
Amendment 51 goes to more substantial issues. Many of us who are concerned about local government and about the broader economy have been looking to TIF as a way to finance much needed infrastructure, particularly in the cities that are the engines of the economy. This comes at a time when the nation needs growth above all things. We are also aware—and anyone can look at today’s
Financial Times—that the Government have found it exceedingly difficult to package together infrastructure financing. All of that makes TIF more important.
It is of great concern that the Chancellor has, in effect, capped large projects or TIF 2—I was not going to address TIF 1 very much—at £160 million. Indeed, the Minister will be far better aware than I am of the many applications from the core cities. She will know if there are good quality infrastructure projects that could and should be funded by TIF that exceed that £160 million figure. I do not have any insider knowledge, but I would be stunned if that were not true. A PwC study not that long ago showed that something like double that could be put in train in one year although it would take many years to work its way through. The demand and need are clearly there.
In addition, volume matters in order to create a market. I return to the point that the
FT makes about the difficulty of accessing the financial markets for infrastructure finance. Numbers such as £160 million are frankly not worth the candle as far as the financial markets are concerned. To develop the expertise, achieve the understanding, get mastery over the rules and legislation and then go out and build the investor base that will buy, there is a need for a steady stream of substantial projects, not just in year one but going on year after year, to create and build up a market.
We know that the financial markets can absorb this kind of financing because they do it for the US. British banks as well as American banks do it for US cities. Continental banks are doing it for the US and the continent. In other words, there are many players, but they will not do the work, engage themselves in the process and deliver the financing if they are only going to get a trickle. They need a proper volume. On the one hand, we have projects that are positive for the economy and on the other hand we have a mechanism that can fund them and the goal of these amendments is to help the Government to bring these two together.
We recognise that behind much of the Treasury’s resistance to allowing projects beyond a cost of £160 million is the notion that TIF funding will have to be added to the numbers for the deficit. I think that that is highly questionable and many others would consider it to be so. If PFI funding was off books, then, my goodness, this funding is far more off books because you are generating a project whose cash flow returns paid for the project in the first place. It is an absolutely classic example of off-balance-sheet financing. Indeed, it is far less risky than something such as PFI, which included all kinds of variants and complications, whereas, almost by definition, TIF draws together the immediate focus of the initial investment and the tax revenue generated over the life of a project. That link is immediate and direct, whereas it was much more obtuse and diffused with PFI.
As I look at the accounting standards, I wonder whether enterprise zones are being treated differently, even though their financing mechanism is essentially identical. This is something that I do not know the answer to; we asked, but have not received an answer. Are they getting different accounting treatment? If they are, that simply underscores the point.
The amendment provides,
“that any indebtedness incurred against such amount shall not be treated as a liability of the public sector through adjustments to the Accounts and Audit Regulations made under section 27 of the Audit Commission Act 1998”.
When the Minister was kind enough to invite Members from all sides to have discussions with the Bill team about a range of issues in the Bill, I asked whether some justification could be provided for this accounting approach versus forms of accounting used for PFI and enterprise zones. I do not know whether it has been possible to develop that. I also asked whether the Government have talked to the financial markets to understand what needs to be put in place for these to run as live, rather than theoretical, projects. Going back to the
FT article, we have a real problem with the gap between theory and practice, but we have an opportunity to close it in this Bill.
The other two amendments follow on quite closely. With regard to Amendment 52, perhaps someone can explain to me why we have to have a specific date on which designation takes place—the first day of a year, or whatever it is. That is completely beyond me. I think that Amendment 52 is just a bit of good sense.
Amendment 53 is another way of approaching this issue. It essentially says to the Treasury that the way to make a decision about whether to do TIF financing is to look at the individual project proposed, decide whether it is a damned good project that needs to be done and can be paid for in the way proposed, and, if it passes the various tests and criteria, authorise it. It takes away the need to set a fixed ceiling and allows the Treasury to make intelligent decisions about the projects that come before it, judging them on their individual merit. At the same time, the Treasury is in a position to look at the overall economy and public finances. That would allow an intelligent, customised approach to these kinds of projects. None of this tackles TIF 1—an area I wish the Government would look at again. However, we talked about that at Second Reading. I beg to move.
My Lords, I support the amendments in this group. The British Property Federation has said that it and others have been deeply frustrated by the way in which a policy that could have been a significant driver of growth and urban renewal has been watered down to such an extent that it will have very little impact. It seems a real shame. TIFs could be such a valuable mechanism in helping local authorities to play a really serious part in achieving local economic recovery and growth. The disappointment is that the Government are planning to control so strictly the numbers of these projects that could be encouraged by being outside the business rates growth levy or the proposed business rate system resets.
I can suggest reasons why TIFs are necessary and useful. The first is that they will help the construction industry, which is in a very bad state—the worst position it has been in for several decades—to become the engine of growth that takes us out of recession once again. We need the construction industry, and it needs the boost that TIFs could bring. Specifically in relation to housing—my pet interest—TIFs would not fund any new housing development, but they could fund the infrastructure that supports and surrounds such developments. I chaired the LGA/DCLG commission on ways in which local authorities could ease housing shortages, and I was struck by how there is synergy between what TIFs can do and easing housing shortages. A housing development can so often not go ahead because the infrastructure scheme that would surround it cannot be financed. I saw a major site, a large site of derelict land in the London Borough of Newham, which needs a big bridge built to bring it to life and enable it to be regenerated for housing, offices and commercial developments. It needed a TIF infrastructure scheme to get it going, but it would pay for itself over a period.
Then there are benefits to central government: higher stamp duty revenues resulting from rising property values—I am trying to appeal to Treasury self-interest here—higher income tax and higher corporate tax due to the increase in economic activity. Then there are savings to central government as people would get jobs and no longer require the social and health benefits they were receiving and there are the social benefits of regeneration. All these things flow from getting this sorted.
As I understand it, what is worrying the Treasury is that TIF funding goes straight on to the national debt. It is counted as being part of public expenditure because local authorities are at the heart of it. If housing associations were the ones doing the borrowing—they could not possibly be—it would not count at all. It is because local authorities are there in the middle of this arrangement that the Treasury finds reasons to block this, other than on a very modest scale— £160 million is not going to get us going. This is a self-inflicted punishment that the Treasury is insisting upon because it is not commonplace in other countries to regard as public expenditure prudential borrowing that is going to be repaid out of a flow of income that is predetermined, clear and visible. The Treasury has decided this, and it could undecide it without troubling any European agreements. I think the anxiety is that the international banking community will say, “They are changing the rules in the United Kingdom. This will scare the international financiers. The UK is up to something with these new TIFs”. I think the international banking community would like to see the UK economy getting stronger and things happening and moving forward. I do not think that the Treasury is right in holding the line on its definition, which is contrary, for example, to the definition of public expenditure in Germany, France or Holland.
It would seem entirely sensible for the Government to adopt a lighter-touch approach in relation to the approval of potential TIF projects under option 2, enabling TIFs to be a really significant mechanism for investment with minimal bureaucratic interference.
My Lords, may I add some further remarks about tax increment financing and say how much I agree with all the comments so far on this set of amendments? For several years, I have been absolutely convinced of the importance of tax increment financing for driving cities. In recent months, I have assisted as an adviser to the Government on their cities policy; I declare that interest. This derives from being convinced by the group of eight English core cities and their secretariat, when I was leader of Newcastle City Council, that tax increment financing potentially unlocked growth in a way that conventional capital infrastructure funding schemes did not and could not. I am particularly struck by devolution in Scotland having led to there being, in various states of preparedness, some six tax increment financing schemes on the drawing board.
The importance of this has been exceedingly well explained so far but it really matters financially. This is not just about business rates; it is about other taxes, too. Once growth in building and development happens, other taxes will follow. For example, there will be stamp duty, income tax, VAT and corporate tax revenues, all of which enable the Government to gain from growth in the country generally.
The PricewaterhouseCoopers 2008 report made absolutely clear the potential for the UK here. It drew on 40 years of US evidence and made it clear that this could be replicated in the United Kingdom. Many professional bodies—this is not just a matter for local government—now say that tax increment financing is now a thing for the future and that we must just do it. However, delivering it means that the reins must be loosened by the Treasury. First, TIF should not be treated as an in-year spending decision. Secondly, the Treasury should not place an arbitrary limit on the number of schemes permitted each year. Its consent should apply to all those schemes that meet the criteria. Thirdly, there must be longer periods, of up to 25 years, over which debt can be repaid because investment requires certainty of income for investors. Therefore, TIF cannot just be prudential borrowing with resets. For many potential schemes, 10 years—or seven in the first instance—will not be enough.
I have shared the concerns of such organisations as the British Property Federation and many others, which all urge the Government to look again at tax increment financing to understand its potential for growth, and to encourage the private and public sectors, working in partnership, to make sure that growth can be delivered. It is through growth that government spending can be maintained at its current levels.
My Lords, I shall add a word or two on this, about which I spoke briefly at Second Reading. I agree entirely with the arguments that have been put forward so far. The speech of the noble Lord, Lord Best, was extremely clear and he made his point with great force.
We have been here before. I introduced in the House of Lords a Private Member’s Bill on business improvement districts, or BIDs. That was based on a precedent from the United States, as is TIF. We got it right though the House of Lords but the previous Government found no time for it in the Commons, so it failed. Two years later, a Bill was introduced by the Government, which the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, presented with enormous pride, saying, “Look at what we’re doing”. It was my Bill, almost word for word, but the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, whom I have known for some time and for whom I have great regard, did not acknowledge that fact at all. I took the view that I was not prepared to make a fuss. The fact is that I was pleased to see BIDs reach the statute book, and they have been quite effective so far, so one has seen this happen.
I have some sympathy for my noble friend at the Dispatch Box, but of course the person who ought to be answering these arguments is my right honourable friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander. That is part of our system. I have been the Chief Secretary so I know and understand the system, which is extraordinarily advantageous to Treasury Ministers. They make the operational department answer all the arguments that are put up. The most we can expect from my noble friend on this is if she says that she is impressed by the strength of the arguments and that she will prevail upon her Secretary of State to have another go at the Treasury. The fact that the Treasury is proposing to treat this simply as an addition to the borrowing requirement in the year in which it is spent is, as the noble Lord, Lord Best, and others have made clear, to ignore totally the reality of what a TIF is. It is not just spending in the year; it uses the prospective revenue from additional business rate income in order to raise a loan which can then be used for infrastructure projects. Many examples could be given, such as money being spent on a housing estate, roads and so on.
That is what everyone expected would happen. When we heard the announcement back in 2010 by the Deputy Prime Minister, enormous hopes were raised. I would suggest that the Chief Secretary to the Treasury might be invited to answer why those hopes have not been met. As I say, I have some sympathy for my noble friend because there is nothing she can do about it except to go back to the Secretary of State and have another go by bearding the Treasury and saying, “Look, this is not a tenable argument. It has to be made to work”.
After all, the Government have made a great song and dance about how one of the ways we can secure economic growth is by investing in our infrastructure. Some very large schemes have been put forward on that basis in the hope that they will be funded by the private sector or even from inward investment. A few hours ago I was discussing foreign direct investment in the Chamber, and this is the same issue. If one can borrow money in order to be able to develop infrastructure in this country, one is creating jobs and building in growth, which is what we all want to see. What is in the Bill—simply having TIF 1 and TIF 2—is what I would say advisedly is simply a form of emasculation. I quoted at Second Reading the view of one of the local authority associations. It has looked at this carefully and does not think it adds anything that will be of any use to anybody. It pains me to have to say this to my noble friend, but I would ask her to go back to the department to say, “We cannot defend this. The arguments are overwhelming and we must look at it again”. Otherwise I suspect that we shall be asking the House to accept amendments on Report perhaps along the lines of those put forward by my noble friend Lord Tope and the noble Baroness, Lady Kramer, tabled today. Again, I feel very strongly about this and share their views absolutely, so I hope that my noble friend may be able to respond.
My Lords, unlike my noble friend Lord Best and the noble Baroness, Lady Kramer, I am not an expert on TIF, but I can relate to this process, having been involved with development schemes in one form or another. I understand the principle behind this and I strongly support it. I feel like something of a spoilsport in view of what has been said because I have just one slight concern. In normal circumstances if one was looking forward to steady and progressive growth, one would say, “Let’s do it”. However, the information that I have had has indicated that one or two municipalities in the United States have suffered from solvency problems after getting themselves involved in these things because of a larger-scale downturn that was beyond their or probably anybody else’s control. I could understand a Treasury reticence about opening what it might see as a floodgate if it felt that we were in sufficiently uncertain times—and I believe that we are in quite uncertain times—and that, as a long-term punt, it could not foresee a guarantee of growth that would pay that back.
There are many instances right across London. I go back to the early days, when Canary Wharf was being developed. One of the problems that it hit was that, at that time, it could not finance the Jubilee line extension. In effect, it caused the developer to become insolvent. If you imagine that being done on a municipal scale, then obviously it is a very significant issue. The guarantees are not built in. I do not think that any of us would want to find that municipalities involved in TIF schemes would become insolvent. I am sure that there must be safeguards.
I will just add a word because the points that the noble Earl, Lord Lytton, makes are important. One reason why we framed Amendment 53 as we did is so that the Treasury can take a look at projects. In the United States no federal approval takes place—essentially, it is the state that decides off its own bat. In the UK, we are saying to the Treasury, “We are not going to just say to local authorities, ‘Do as you will’”. The Treasury has the opportunity to come in and take a serious look and will give permission, but on a project-by-project basis.
I was on the board of Transport for London after the Jubilee line was completed. The point the noble Earl makes is the reverse one, and the Jubilee line is an ideal example. Even with overruns, the Government put in something like £3.5 billion to build it and developers walked off with something in excess of £30 billion in profit because of the increased values around the various stations, extra rents, land prices and whatever else. At least now, with the opportunity to capture increased business rates, we can get some of that money in to create the project in the first place.
In effect, what happened in London was that the money did not circulate back and the whole Jubilee line project was delayed for years until the Government thought that they could find capacity within the public accounts. It would have happened immediately, and been of great benefit to this country, if people had been looking at TIF financing structures. That is one of the reasons why they are so valuable.
My Lords, that was what I was trying to say in terms of the Jubilee line, so I am sorry if I gave a false impression. These things are vitally important to leverage in that sort of level of finance. My only concerns are the times we live in. If one is dealing with a development appraisal in conventional valuation terms, the process contains a high number of price-sensitive variables, so much so that my professional body, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, does not really advise using that sort of development appraisal, or residual valuation, approach for producing what it calls a regulated purpose valuation because of the inherent number of price-sensitive variables. I do not want to pour cold water on things—I simply wanted to point out that TIF is a tremendously good idea but we must make sure that the circumstances are ones in which it can robustly survive.
My Lords, having spent some considerable time searching through the Bill to find where TIF was, I have to congratulate the noble Baroness on discovering it. It is a bit like Higgs boson. The physicist who discovered the Higgs boson will no doubt get the Nobel Prize for Physics. Perhaps we should nominate the noble Baroness for the Nobel Prize for political metaphysics.
I reiterate my congratulations to the noble Baroness—and indeed the House of Lords Library.
The noble Baroness was rightly critical of some of the aspects of the public finance initiative with which she lived for around 20 years. I was with an LGA delegation on one of our rare visits to 10 Downing Street when we met the then Prime Minister, John Major, at the very beginning of this process. Of course, it has been adopted by successive Governments with considerable enthusiasm. But it always struck me that, whereas there was a good case for that kind of scheme where you could see a revenue stream, there was very little case where there was not a revenue stream. Schools and hospitals, for example, could not be allowed to close or fail, so there did not seem to be a chance of risk-classing in those sorts of cases, whereas on a more commercial basis it seemed quite appropriate. This, arguably, is a better version of PFI.
Of course, as the noble Baroness said, TIF derives from America, where they have other forms of municipal financing, such as bond issues. At some point we might want to look again at those as opposed to this particular scheme, which is analogous in some respects but tied more particularly to specific projects. There are certainly distinct advantages to this. I note the point that the noble Baroness, Lady Kramer, made about the relationship with enterprise zones. I hesitate to raise—for the fourth or fifth time—the question of enterprise zones and their relationship to various aspects of this Bill. I hope that I will have a reply to some of my previous questions, but I join the noble Baroness in asking about the relationship of enterprise zones to the TIF programme.
I am intrigued by Amendment 51, which seeks to avoid the trap of any such financing being regarded as part of what we used to call PSBR—now debt—and takes it off balance sheet. It seems such a simple solution that I wonder why it has not been adopted before, perhaps in relation to other matters. I hope that it stands up; it would be good if it did. If it does, I think we would be in a similar position to that of former Labour Ministers in 1931, when the incoming Government went off the gold standard and they said, “They didn’t tell us we could do that”. If this proves to be a viable mechanism, I hope that it will have a wider application, and indeed it might.
The noble Lord, Lord Best, referred to his special field of expertise, housing, and rightly pointed out that the schemes will not be available to support housing but will be available to support infrastructure. There are two aspects to that. First, there is surely another way of promoting housing construction. If the Bank of England is going to pump endless billions into the vaults of our esteemed banks, would it not be better to pump that money directly into housing construction? This would have precisely the same effects on the economy that the noble Baroness has alluded to: the net cost after you take off the savings to the benefits system—increased tax income from corporate tax and the like—would be less than the amount devoted. You would have assets on the balance sheet—this is not money for current expenditure—and that might be a way forward. I suppose that is not really within the province of the Local Government Finance Bill, but it raises the question of TIF and its use for infrastructure.
As I understand it, the Government have been looking for investment in infrastructure from pension funds and the like. I recall a recent report, although I cannot remember whether it was produced by the National Association of Pension Funds or the IFS, which indicated that there was little interest thus far in such funding from those sources, whereas this offers a clearer route to making rather more rapid progress, and I very much hope that it will be pursued.
Nevertheless, there are some potential flaws in the present proposals. In particular, the amount allocated— I think the noble Baroness said £160 million although I thought it was £150 million, but it is in that region—is pitiful, as she rightly said. I do not know whether yesterday’s “city deal” announcement dealt with this £150 million or £160 million—whatever the figure is—which I thought was to be allocated to the authorities involved in that city deal but, if so, however it is divided up, it is a very small amount indeed and will do very little. Even in a single authority, it would not do an enormous amount. Spread across eight authorities, it would do very little. I hope that this is seen as a first instalment and that the process will go on to much larger sums in future, and rapidly, if we are to see a real impact on the present situation in the economy.
TIF 1 also has its problems because, as the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, and the noble Baroness, Lady Donaghy, pointed out, the restrictions seem to be quite perverse. The timescale for repayment is particularly so because, if there are to be resets and so on, nobody is going to be taking on large sums that have to be repaid in a very short time, as the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, rightly said. Indeed, lenders may very well be reluctant to lend over those times. I entirely concur with the view expressed by the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, that it is ridiculous to have an absolute limit and for there to be a cap on expenditure in the first year. On the contrary, I would have thought the more the better to get the thing moving in the early stage.
We certainly approve of the concept and hope it can be made user-friendly, if I can put it that way, to lenders and authorities. These amendments certainly go some way to taking us in that direction. Again, the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, is quite right. We cannot expect too much of the Minister in replying today, unless she has somehow received a blank cheque from the Treasury, which would be a first. I am sure she will report back the strength of feeling among people with considerable expertise in these matters, whether ministerial or professional, and we might see some improvement.
On Report, it would be helpful to have explicit reference to the scheme in the Bill. It has to be very clear what we are talking about and whether there are to be any changes in the scheme as adumbrated so far. It is clear that this is not going to be a panacea. It will not do everything, but it would be a welcome extra tool for local government, which is perfectly capable of using it effectively, as it has demonstrated for generations. It can and does play a significant part in regeneration, very often in partnership with the private sector. I very much look forward to the day when local authorities can get on with schemes under the aegis of TIF—however it eventually emerges from this Bill—and, perhaps, other measures.
I note that Scotland seems to have jumped the gun. That is interesting because presumably—certainly in the present state of affairs—what happens there would impinge upon the national UK debt. Sitting where the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, and I sit, just over the border, it would be extremely irritating if it were found that Scotland was able to do a great deal and we in the north-east were not. Of course, the same would go for many other parts of the country where there is huge need and demand for investment of this kind, and for the contribution that that could make to the economy.
I certainly commend these amendments, and I hope that the Government in one form or another can look sympathetically at them and address the very legitimate concerns that have been raised in order to make a good policy work effectively, which is what we must all seek.
My Lords, this has been, as I thought it would be, a very interesting debate. I am not necessarily going to be able to give noble Lords all the enthusiastic encouragement that they look for but there is no doubt that this is something that will generate more discussion, and I accept that.
I know from the noble Baroness’s Amendment 51 that there has been a search for the words “TIF” and “enterprise zones” to be spelt out in the Bill. They are not specifically identified but I assure the Committee that the provisions under paragraph 37 of new Schedule 7B deliver both TIF 2 and enterprise zones. An amendment that names TIF in the Bill is therefore unnecessary.
Before turning to the substance of the amendments, I want to say that it has been interesting that the whole discussion has been on the basis of TIF 2 and none of it on TIF 1. I need to point out that the measures in the Bill relate to TIF 1, TIF 2 and enterprise zones. For the benefit of the record, I think that at some stage we need to spell out what TIF amounts to.
However, we want to clarify the position and remove misunderstandings about what is possible or not possible within the policy. I think it would be fair to say that noble Lords have not really acknowledged that, as a result of the Bill, all local authorities will have unfettered access to a share of business rate growth to increase their potential borrowing. As things stand at the moment, under TIF 1 it will be possible for local authorities to undertake developments unfettered. They can do so with their normal prudential borrowing.
TIF 1 rests wholly within the business rate retention scheme and the core feature of the rates retention system, including the levy and reset. Beyond that, the Government will not impose any further constraints, and local authorities will be able to get on with it. I know that the criticism has been—
We did not raise TIF 1 here because it is more of a reset issue, but will the Minister acknowledge that, with the way the reset works, the capacity to do TIF 1 will be exceedingly limited because the whole project has to go from conception to completion and complete repayment within a very narrow reset period? The consequence is that certainly by year two or year three it will be absolutely impossible to raise the financing because nobody will have any certainty that there will be a flow of business rates beyond the end of the reset date to complete the payment cycle. Perhaps the Minister will acknowledge that it is a de minimis amendment. The language may not be de minimis but the effect of the way in which the reset period works makes it de minimis.
I will persist with my view that there is an advantage here for local authorities in that they will have the opportunity with tax increment financing within the reset period of seven years, and then, with the longer reset period, 10 years, to help with those projects. In addition, the Government will guarantee long-term certainty over revenues and enterprise zones—as mentioned by the noble Lord, Lord Beecham —meaning that local enterprise partnerships, with which the revenue will sit, will be free to undertake long-term borrowing without any central government controls. Those are the two areas which do not come under TIF 2.
Finally, the Government stated, and made clear, in the 2011 Budget that they will support a limited number of TIF 2 schemes in the core cities, to which the noble Lord, Lord Shipley, referred. The Secretary of State may specify, in regulations made under paragraph 37 of new Schedule 7B, that business rates uplifts, from a very clearly defined area, will be disregarded from the levy and reset calculations for a specified period. The amendments specifically concern this measure.
The Government are fully committed to supporting growth. I noted carefully what the noble Lord, Lord Best, said about housing and about housing construction stimulating the economy. We will continue to have that debate, but the measures to do that are currently in place and are not related to TIF. There have also been a lot of questions about the £150 million in support from TIF for what will amount to a limited number of core cities. Some of those core cities have been announced today and are currently putting forward substantial and interesting proposal bids for this money. I have no doubt that it will work its way through the system.
Amendment 51 seeks a way to get TIF 2 reclassified as non-public sector debt, to which I say, “Oh dear”. Business rates are a tax, and taxes are uniquely established by the tax-raising power of government. Therefore, TIF 2 must be recorded as government borrowing. There is absolutely no choice to be made about how TIF 2 is accounted for—it is not the Treasury sitting on our shoulders here, it is the Office for Budget Responsibility that has made that decision. It is an independent body and has made very clear how this will score.
Furthermore, core cities that are successful in the TIF 2 competition will be undertaking additional borrowing that has not already been reflected in the Government’s local authority self-financed expenditure forecasts. The Government have been clear that we will need to limit the amount of TIF 2 that occurs so that the Government remain within the wider deficit reduction plans.
In respect of balance sheet issues concerning enterprise zones, the policy to allow rates to be retained within the zones will lead to an increase in the local authority self-financed expenditure forecasts and will be scored as public expenditure. As the business rates retention system does not start until April 2013, no costs have yet been accrued. The Government are working with local enterprise partnerships on forecasting these costs and will be discussing the detail with the Office for Budget Responsibility ahead of the Autumn Statement. That may give some substance for the noble Lord, Lord Beecham, who says I have not answered any of his questions. Given this, it is not possible to take TIF 2 schemes off the balance sheet, as the amendment seeks.
Amendments 52 and 53 would not only remove important controls from the system—I have already explained the importance of maintaining the Government’s fiscal deficit policy—but would add further layers of complexity to the operation of the scheme. That would potentially impact on all the calculations of central shares and precepting authorities, removing the certainty that precepting authorities would have about the income they were to receive in that year. Noble Lords will not be surprised when I say that I cannot accept their amendments. I will not be surprised if they say they are going to return to this at a later stage.
Can the noble Baroness clarify whether, when the Office for Budget Responsibility made clear that this could not be off-budget, it gave a full explanation as to why it said this, and whether the Government have to accept what the Office for Budget Responsibility says? I wonder if it is a swing of the pendulum against the outcome of PFI. Having a fuller picture of why that independent body said this might give us the opportunity to explore the subject further rather than just accept that it is closed.
With regard to the point about whether we have to accept what it says, the answer is yes. The OBR advises the Treasury, but what it says pretty well has to be taken on board and dealt with in the way it says. I do not think I have a note at the moment of the reasons behind what it said. If they are in the public arena, I will make sure the noble Baroness knows what they are.
My Lords, I am absolutely fascinated by the comments on the Office for Budget Responsibility. It is incumbent on the Government to provide us with the analysis or the statement that it made that requires this from its perspective to be on books because it would be very interesting and beneficial to everybody to get the comments of the accounting community and some of the various international standards boards. It would mean that we could have a fully constructive discussion. I cannot think that any of that could possibly be confidential. In fact it would be perfectly odd if it was confidential to explain why one made a decision that something needed to be allocated to one particular set of accounts or another. That would be exceedingly helpful.
It would also provide us with the criteria, because obviously there are many different ways to structure TIF projects. If various poor cities are bringing forward their proposals in such a way that they have inadvertently set them up so that they fall on books when, with some further thought and different structuring, they could be off books, that would be extremely sensible for everyone to know. That surely must be in the public arena, so I look forward to that.
Having heard the tone of this meeting, the Minister is exactly right to understand that this is an area that we would wish to pursue. I so much appreciate all of the various speeches and analysis that have happened from the noble Lords, Lord Jenkin and Lord Best, and others. It underscores the importance to local authorities up and down the country who are trying to drive forward economic growth in their communities and see TIF as a very significant tool with which to be able to achieve it.
I thank the Minister for her explanation, but she is exactly right: we will continue to push and I hope that she will take the issues back.
Amendment 50 withdrawn.
Amendments 51 to 53 not moved.
Amendment 54
Moved by
54: Schedule 1, page 46, line 12, at end insert—
“Publication of Impacts and ResetsCalculation and supply of information on the impact on total resources available for Local Authorities39A (1) The Secretary of State must for each year and in relation to each billing authority in England identify—
(a) the total level of resources available for each billing authority in the preceding year including—(i) the local share of an authority’s non-domestic rating income;(ii) the total of any top up or tariff;(iii) the total of any levy paid to the Government;(iv) the total of any safety net paid by the Government;(v) the total amount of resources raised through council tax;(vi) the total of any homes bonus paid by the Government;(vii) any other payments made by the Government considered appropriate to be included by the Government following consultation with local government;(b) an estimate of the total level of resources available for each billing authority in the forthcoming year including—(i) the local share of an authority’s non-domestic rating income;(ii) the total of any top up or tariff;(iii) the total of any levy paid to the Government;(iv) the total of any safety net paid by the Government;(v) the total amount of resources raised through council tax;(vi) the total of any homes bonus paid by the Government;(vii) any other payments made by the Government considered appropriate to be included by the Government following consultation with local government. 39B (1) The information under paragraph 40A must be set out in a report, to be called an “Impact of Business Rates Retention Report”.
(2) The Secretary of State must for each year, alongside the local government finance report, lay or make arrangements for laying, the Impact of Business Rates Retention Report before the House of Commons.
(3) As soon as is reasonably practicable after an Impact of Business Rate Retention Report is laid before the House of Commons, the Secretary of State must send a copy of the report to each relevant authority.
Resets of the Business Rates Retention System39C (1) The Secretary of State shall be required to make arrangements for a ‘reset’ of the Business Retention System every 3 years to coincide with each spending review period.
(2) The reset is to take on board a reassessment for each authority of—
(a) relative spending needs;(b) relative resources available through council tax income;(c) relative resources available through business rates.(3) The assessment of relative need is to be determined in full consultation with local government.
Designation of tax increment financing schemes39D (1) The Secretary of State may by regulation—
(a) designate one or more tax increment financing schemes;(b) provide for the calculation in accordance with the regulations, for each year for which the designation has effect and in relation to the billing authority of the amount mentioned in sub-paragraph (2);(c) provide for that amount to be disregarded for the purpose of the calculation under paragraph 39C(2).(2) The amount referred to in sub-paragraph (1)(b) is the total amount which, if the authority acted diligently, would be payable to it for the year under section 43 or 45 in respect of the hereditaments in the tax increment financing scheme.”
My Lords, I beg to move Amendment 54 in the name of my noble friend Lord Smith, who is unable to be with us today. The thrust of the amendment is to cause a report, termed an,
“Impact of Business Rates Retention Report”.
It calls for the report to be laid before the House of Commons alongside the local government finance report. I believe that the intention is that the report would cover the current and upcoming year. It further calls for the Secretary of State to make arrangements for a reset of the system every three years, which we have debated already, to coincide with each spending review period. We have not particularly touched upon that issue. The amendment also requires the Secretary of State to designate one or more TIF scheme and for the revenues to be disregarded in assessing the reset of the business rate retention scheme; a matter which we have just debated at some length.
The thrust of this amendment is a reminder of the complexity of the new system and the difficulty which will confront local authorities in setting their budgets, especially in the early years of implementation. I note in passing that the proposed report is focussed on billing authorities, but it would seem logical to extend it to major precepting authorities. In any event, the report should include payments to major precepting authorities. It would also be appropriate for such a report specifically to identify revenue support or Section 31 grants payable to local authorities and also the central share of business rates aid to central government.
My noble friend’s amendment, however, raises the issue of what the local government finance report will look like in the future. No doubt thousands of councillors will miss ploughing through the intricacies of the formula grant, although this will have to be covered at the outset to set tariffs and top-ups. Under this Bill, the local government finance report must precede the specifying of central and local shares, the basis of calculation of tariffs and top-ups and the amounts to be credited to the levy account. However, what will happen routinely to the relative needs formula after the initial calculation of these matters? Will this still feature as part of the annual local government finance report? If not, on what basis will the Government be able to assess need for determining whether there should be an early reset or an in-year safety-net payment—indeed, for the distribution of revenue support grant itself? It would be helpful if the Minister at least outlined these and perhaps arranged to write in detail.
We have already debated resetting and the potential conflict between the benefit of a longer period to enhance the incentive and a shorter period to be able to react to divergences of resources and needs. My noble friend’s amendment touches upon another point. Resetting is not just about recalibrating tariffs and top-ups, as we discussed; surely it is also about central and local shares, a matter that we are certain to return to on Report. However, if the Government’s principal argument to justify the central share is the need to control local authorities’ spend, surely the dawn of a new spending review period should at least trigger a review of relative shares, undertaken, as the amendment suggests, in consultation with local government.
As for TIF, my noble friend’s amendment goes with the grain of the Government’s approach, even if only a tiny grain, and we covered that territory in our earlier debate. I beg to move.
My Lords, as the noble Lord has acknowledged, we discussed in earlier amendments a number of the things that he has raised, focusing too on the case for requiring the Secretary of State to undertake reviews of resources and need, and for the Secretary of State to take account of changes in relative needs and resources in resets of the system. Given those exchanges, I will not rehearse all the arguments again as they will be on record.
However, it will not surprise the Committee that I cannot support the amendment, as it would fundamentally undermine the purpose of our changes to the funding of local government. There are two key principles at the core of those changes. The first is to deliver a powerful incentive for local authorities to drive growth in their area, and to benefit from that growth. I remind the Committee that such authorities are all around the country; growth is not a southern phenomenon.
Secondly, we are clear that the arrangements should deliver strong protections to those areas that are less able to generate growth or where the business rates are less than the needs of that area. That takes in tariffs, top-ups and levies. We have made clear that baseline funding levels will be equivalent to what councils would have received under the formula grant. As a result, each local authority’s baseline funding level, and therefore the calculation of its tariff or top-up, will be based on figures that take account of the different needs of each area, so our changes will recognise relative needs.
Having established the baselines, an integral part of our proposals is to provide certainty and predictability to councils. Those authorities that have a lower business rates base need to have certainty that their top-up payments will remain fixed, subject to being uprated by RPI annually. Those authorities that, at the beginning of the scheme, have spending needs in excess of their business rates need to have confidence that any tariff that they are paying is fixed—again, subject to being uprated by RPI.
That level of stability in the scheme is crucial to enabling local authorities to carry out their budget planning. At the heart of our arrangements is enabling local councils to benefit from growth. To maximise that incentive effect, we have set out an aspiration to allow 10 years before resetting tariffs and top-ups. At the start of the scheme, the statement of intent that we published in May confirmed that we would not expect a reset to take place before 2020—and I have acknowledged that that is eight years, not 10.
The use of a lengthy period between resets was also strongly supported by respondents to the consultation that we undertook last year on the parameters of the proposals. However, we have also been clear that in exceptional circumstances we could consider the need for a reset to be undertaken on a different timescale. This could reflect on significant changes in need and resources. Noble Lords can be reassured that we are not blind to such possibilities.
Noble Lords will also appreciate that each year we will publish a draft local government finance report which will be subject to consultation and approval in the other place. I am sure that authorities will use the opportunity provided by the provisional settlement, as they always have done, to make their views known on the resources available to them. As always, we will listen carefully to any such representations.
However, at this stage we are confident that we have developed the right balance between providing an appropriate timeframe for councils to benefit from the incentive effect while also providing stability and security for councils. A period of only three years between resets would not achieve that balance and would, in my view, undermine the incentive effect.
The amendment also proposes text on the designation of tax increment finance schemes. As we discussed, TIF is very firmly part of our proposals, and paragraph 37 already provides the appropriate powers to facilitate such schemes and to ensure that the business rates from such schemes are disregarded for the purposes of setting top-ups, tariff and levy amounts. With those explanations, I hope that the noble Lord will be able to withdraw the amendment.
I thank the Minister for her response. I think that we have aired issues of reset and TIF enough for today. However, I want to return to the first part of my noble friend’s amendment. I did not have the chance to discuss the background with him so I am interpretingwhat he may have intended, but it gives rise to an issue about what that local government finance report will routinely look like in the future.
Obviously, the first year will have particular features, but if we look at current local government finance reports, there is a whole raft of information and regression analysis that drives the formula grant and helps establish need right across the country. What will happen to that in the future? Presumably, the information will not routinely need to be available on the Government’s proposition in that report, so what will it look like? What will it contain? It will clearly have to contain certain information that has to precede the decisions and payments and so forth that flow from the Bill, but what will be the core of that and will it have details about the revenue support grant and the basis on which it might be distributed?
I am not going to detain the Committee tonight. We have the details and I will make sure that the noble Lord has them. The ingredients of the local government finance report, which will be annual, will probably change from time to time, but if I may, I will write to the noble Lord with the details.
Amendment 54 withdrawn.
Schedule 1 agreed.
Clause 2 : Revenue support grant
Amendment 55 not moved.
Amendment 56
Moved by
56: Clause 2, page 2, line 21, at end insert—
“( ) In making any change to revenue support grant arising from introduction of any part of this Act, the Secretary of State will ensure that no council with responsibilities for adult social care services is required to reduce their funding of those services in real terms until legislation has been introduced that provides a comprehensive and sustainable solution for the funding of those services.”
My Lords, this amendment is in my name and that of the noble Lord, Lord Best. I tabled this amendment to probe the Government further because of the unsatisfactory response to my questions that I received at Second Reading. It is to the issues that I raised then concerning the parlous state of funding for adult social care that I wish to return this afternoon with this amendment. I do so because of the implications for that situation of this Bill. While it gives more local discretion to local authorities, it takes further resources away from local government overall when many authorities are in dire straits over the funding of adult social care, which in some authorities can account for 60% of their expenditure.
The desperate situation that has arisen over the funding of adult social care arises to a great extent because the Government have totally failed to come forward with any response to the funding proposals made a year ago in the report of the Dilnot commission, of which I acknowledge I was a member, or indeed with any alternative proposals if they did not like what the commission suggested. The signals that they have consistently given out are that they will not produce any clear funding reform proposals when they publish their White Paper and draft Bill on adult social care, which the Whitehall rumour mill suggests may be next week. Any light that the Minister can throw this afternoon on what the Government’s policy is on funding adult social care would be more than welcome. I wish to encourage some indiscretion on the part of the Minister.
The amendment is intended to prevent a bad situation getting worse. It will have no impact whatever if the Government get their act together and come forward with proposals that can be implemented to place the funding of adult social care on a sound and sustainable basis. Much of that soundness and sustainability would come from service users paying more if they had the resources to do so, as the Dilnot commission proposed, so this is not simply a matter of ratcheting up public expenditure. The amendment would prevent making any changes to the revenue support grant arising from measures in the Bill for those local authorities with responsibilities for adult social care if that would mean a real-terms decrease in funding to those services before the Government have introduced legislation that provides a comprehensive and sustainable solution for funding those adult social care services.
The solution to whether the amendment has real impact is totally in the hands of the Government. All it does is give them a pause for thought before services for the poorest, vulnerable, elderly and disabled people and their carers are reduced further. Let me briefly say why this pause is necessary. I am relying to some extent on figures produced from a parliamentary Answer on local government expenditure provided by the Minister’s own department. I have to say that the information was not provided in the most helpful format, which is hardly surprising given the story that the data tell. However, with the help of the Library I have managed to explore the data in a way that is reasonably intelligible.
The data establish the rapid decrease in adult social care expenditure by local authorities under this Government, even though service demand is going up rapidly because of demography and local authorities are doing their utmost to protect adult social care services by cutting other services. I pay tribute to them, across the political spectrum, for their political courage on this issue.
The data show that at constant 2011 prices, local authority expenditure on adult social care went up from £15.46 billion to £16.4 billion between 2008-09 and 2009-10. Noble Lords will recognise that 2009-10 was the expenditure for the last year of the previous Government. It then fell back to £15.54 billion in 2010-11, declining again in 2011-12 by another £0.5 billion, although there are some technical changes that slightly confuse the picture. The evidence available to me and other noble Lords who are close to local government suggests that expenditure will fall again significantly in real terms in the current year.
There is the very real possibility that expenditure on adult social care will be some £2 billion less in real terms when the Bill takes effect next year compared with 2009-10, despite the best efforts of local government to make amends and try to cope with that set of problems. The knock-on effect of this for the NHS is considerable. When I was a Minister, the Department of Health formula was that for every pound you cut from adult social care, you spent £1.30 on the NHS. You can do the arithmetic for the implications of all this for the NHS as well as for users of adult social care services.
The financial pain is significant when you realise that eight out of 10 local authorities provide services only to people who have substantial or critical needs. The latter often means that they have needs in the last few weeks before death. Increasingly, residential and nursing homes are declining to accept local authority-funded clients because the fees do not meet the service costs of an increasingly dependent group of people. Those fees have to be subsidised by people who pay their own fees, rather than being state-funded. Even if you are assessed as having substantial or critical needs, the support that you or your carers receive is often inadequate to meet the assessed needs, especially in relation to domiciliary care.
This is a very serious situation and the Government should take account of that in the speed with which and the way in which they implement this legislation. The adult social care funding system is bust. Until the Government grasp the nettle of repairing it quickly, we should not use this Bill to make a bad situation worse. I beg to move.
I must advise the Committee that, following a printing error, Amendments 54A and 54B should be numbered Amendments 56A and 56B to Schedule 2.
My Lords, I shall be brief in supporting the amendment of the noble Lord, Lord Warner. We all owe him a debt of gratitude. He was one of the three Dilnot commissioners, along with Dame Jo Williams and Andrew Dilnot. Their report remains the key piece of policy guidance to which we all look to reform the system fundamentally.
I have declared my interest as president of the Local Government Association, which is right behind this amendment. The LGA has made adult social care its highest priority. It is the issue about which it is most concerned at the moment. If we take out the dedicated schools grant, social care is already much the largest area of local government spending. The 28% cut to central government support for local authorities over the current spending review period has not, I am glad to say, led to a 28% reduction in social care services for older people, adults with learning difficulties and others in need of care. Local authorities have absorbed some 85% of those cuts through service redesign and efficiency savings. However, this can go on for only so long before very painful results become apparent.
The cost of adult social care services is now set to rise, on a trajectory that the LGA has calculated, from some £14.4 billion to £26.7 billion over 18 years. That is an increase of 85%. By the time we get 18 years down the road, we very much hope that a series of measures will be in place to head this off before we get to the point at which virtually all local government expenditure must be on social care. However, there is the period in between in which things may get worse and we do not want this legislation to heighten those dangers.
It seems unlikely that a Bill could be introduced before the next election. If something came forward in 2015, it would probably be enacted in 2016 and become effective in 2017-18. We would already be several years down the road. The King’s Fund has estimated that by 2014-15 the gap in social care provision will already have reached £1.2 billion a year. Central government support needs to be in place now. We will get a reset in 2020 but in the intervening period funding for social care is a really important consideration for the Government. Although there may not be an expectation of the noble Lord’s amendment being accepted in its entirety, the sentiment behind it is strongly supported by the Local Government Association.
I support my noble friend’s amendment. I am confident that the Minister will not reproduce the rather unwise remarks that we sometimes get on the Floor of the House that in seeking to cut the deficit you cannot afford to spend money on social care. There are sources of finance that could be available to government—any Government, including mine, which could and perhaps should have done this as well so I am not making a partisan point—which would adequately fund the Dilnot proposals on pension tax relief, about which some of us know something and others know relatively little. I may be in the second group.
At the moment pension tax relief is £30 billion and the difference between the standard rate and the higher rate is £7 billion. In the past we weaned the country off mortgage tax relief, first by bringing it down from higher rate to standard rate—that was done by a Conservative Government; the noble Lord, Lord Lamont, I think, but it may have been the noble Lord, Lord Lawson—and subsequently it was abolished altogether. The point about this is that in all our thinking about funding people’s long-term savings and their ability to cope with long-term care and so on, we think there is something called work and something called retirement, and that you should save from the one and transfer it to the other. We have to start thinking much more about people’s longevity, which is a good sign, and moving money from work to early retirement and from early retirement to later retirement; there are three categories.
If you were to ring-fence the money that is currently spent on higher rate tax relief down to lower rate tax relief, which is enjoyed by higher rate taxpayers on their way in, even though they pay only lower rate tax on the way out, it would be redistributed within the pensioner community from younger pensioners in their 60s and 70s to that same group of pensioners as they age into their 80s and 90s. For what it is worth, it would also redistribute, to some degree, from the better off to the poorer. As far as I am concerned, it would hit every winning duck that we want to hit: we would make pension tax relief fair; we would redistribute within the pension community in a ring-fenced way; we would redistribute from the better off to the poorer; and we would, I am sure, be able to commend it to the public in terms of fairness, because most people will be postponing income they might have got in their 60s and 70s to be able to have it in their 80s and 90s.
Before the Minister says that we cannot possibly do anything about this given the deficit—and I realise that this is for HMRC and the Chief Secretary and so on to think about—I would like to put this into play because I would be very sorry indeed if the proposal coming out next week was put into the long grass on the grounds that there can be no funding available and therefore we have to struggle on from an interim ad hoc base, as we are doing at the moment. There is a way if there is political will, and I am quite sure it is the sort of proposition that could command support right around the House and from all political parties. It would be fair, decent and affordable and it would give people security.
My Lords, I am giving only my own views at the moment. I have not sought the views of my Front Bench on this. I am coming out of the pensions world on this and my concern about the unfairness in pension tax relief and the way that we could link this to the funding for long-term care that my noble friend has mentioned. But certainly not; they are my views.
It might just help the Committee to say that there are plenty of suggestions around, which the Government are well aware of, that enable you to implement the Dilnot proposals without any increase in public expenditure. What you are required to do, though, is reprioritise, which the Government are unwilling to do, as far as I can see. Starters for 10 would be not just the creative proposal of my noble friend but means-testing generous winter fuel payments, free TV licences and bus passes for people who are higher rate taxpayers. Plenty of proposals have been put forward for using inheritance tax to pay for that. All these proposals could be put into play if the Government were prepared to enter objectively into a discussion with the Labour Front Bench in the other place, with whom they are having so-called cross-party talks, but very little creativity seems to be coming from the government side.
My Lords, I am not empowered to commit the Labour Party to a particular policy stance on this, although I find some of the arguments and options advanced by my noble friends quite interesting. What I do know is that the Conservative Front Bench walked away from joint-party discussions two and a half years ago, have done nothing so far about Dilnot and, by all the auguries that we are hearing, do not propose to do very much about it. We will see in due course, if and when we get some proposals that may come before the Recess.
In what has been a long—perhaps inordinately long—municipal career, my most rewarding period was when I served as chairman of the social services committee of my council for four years in the 1970s. We managed to transform the provision of social services, at that time including children’s social services, since hived off—in my view, perhaps rather unfortunately —in a way that would now be impossible, given the financial situation. This is therefore a matter that is very close to my heart and, of course, to the hearts of many others.
It is disturbing that, as we have heard from my noble friend Lord Warner and the noble Lord, Lord Best, the financial situation is deteriorating really quite rapidly in the face of substantially rising demand, produced in part by demographic change, and in part by the advance of medicine and care. Younger people with physical and learning disabilities are living longer and elderly people are living longer, and we must be glad of that but, as we have heard, it imposes considerable pressures on services and budgets. We have heard some of the data on that this afternoon.
It is often assumed that we are talking largely about the older population. That is not the case because younger people with learning disabilities are growing fastest in terms of numbers and in terms of the costs that have to be met to care for them. The Local Government Association’s projections are that the percentage of expenditure on younger people will rise substantially—indeed, more than for the elderly. The cost of care for that particular group is expected to rise by 42% by the end of this decade. As the noble Lord, Lord Best, has pointed out, that ultimately could lead to virtually the entirety of local authority budgets being devoted to adult social care of all kinds. In any event, the LGA estimates that if current demand, which is likely to develop, were to be met in full, funding for all other services would drop in cash terms, assuming a level playing field, by 66% or 80% over that period, so we are talking about a very large potential gap. The consequences of some of the savings that have been referred to by my noble friend and the noble Lord, Lord Best, are rather worrying. The financial pressures on providers of residential care are causing considerable difficulties.
That is partly a function of what I think was a strategic mistake in the 1980s, when the Government of the day effectively pushed local government out of the direct provision of residential care for the elderly and, because of a differential funding system, local authorities became very dependent on private sector providers, many of which have since disappeared. Of course, the problems that we had with Southern Cross were of a rather different kind. However, in fairness, with the fees that councils feel able to pay, many private providers are now finding it very difficult to provide a good level of care. This is potentially a scandal in the making. I am aware that there are now a number of cases pending where judicial review is being sought about the decisions of local authorities in terms of the fee levels that they are offering. Therefore, this is in many ways a crisis that is almost upon us.
The noble Lord made a particularly telling point when he referred to the relationship of all this to the health service. We are still looking at these provisions in separate silos but it is high time that there was an across-the-board look at them. The previous Government, rightly, invested very considerable sums of money in the health service but, by a factor of many fold, much less in local authority social services provision. That balance needs to be rethought in the interests of the health service as much as in the interests of local government. If, as the noble Lord pointed out, local authorities are unable to sustain people in the community, inevitably there will be far higher costs for an overstretched health service.
That raises the issue of what is now called community budgeting and what was, under the previous Government, called Total Place. There is a need to get budgets and services together. This may be something that the forthcoming government response to Dilnot will touch upon. However, whatever happens, there has to be a reasonable funding system so that the pathway of care from within the community to, if necessary, residential care and ultimately healthcare—and indeed, with healthcare alongside, supporting people in the community —is sustainably funded throughout. The present indications are that that is simply unlikely to happen—hence the relevance of my noble friend’s amendment. We cannot allow the situation to develop in which, because of budget pressures, the already restricted level of provision of care, now confined very largely to substantial critical elements, particularly for the elderly, continues. There has to be an assurance that authorities, and indeed those who work with authorities and supply services for them, can rely on medium and long-term planning of resources, particularly, although not exclusively, in residential care. We also need to see investment in community care with extra care, housing provision and the like. Unless there is that assurance, which the amendment seeks to bring about, it is difficult to see how it can properly be planned for.
The Minister is obviously not in a position to commit the Government to great expenditure or to commit other departments to such expenditure. However, it would be helpful to have an assurance that her department is in discussion with other, relevant departments—notably, although not exclusively, the Department of Health—about coming to a coherent cross-governmental view about the policy objectives and how they might be fulfilled, particularly in partnership with local government, and about securing a long-term, workable financial basis. Otherwise, not only will people suffer in this context but the impact on other local services will potentially be very severe. All the talk of localism will disappear because there will be no scope for any decisions other than those required to support social care provision. That is not an acceptable outcome for the people who need that help or, indeed, for the rest of the community.
My Lords, the problem of adult social care does not rest with the local authorities alone. The noble Lord, Lord Beecham, has already pointed out that there is a similar responsibility on the National Health Service. If this problem had been capable of being resolved, it would have been by now. I recognise the noble Lord’s frustration coming to this Bill as a result of his work on the Dilnot commission, and I understand it fully. However, everybody here will be aware of the ongoing discussions every time you turn on the radio or television. There was another discussion last night on “Newsnight” on these serious problems, which are, at the moment, more or less intractable. The last thing I want to do is to try a light touch on this. I appreciate fully that this is a very serious matter, but so do the Government. The Government are wrestling with this, like previous Governments did. If the noble Lord was dealing with social services in 1970 and was then leader of a council, he and I at both stages were dealing with having to reduce expenditure and increase and toughen criteria.
This has long been a problem and it has gradually got worse because of the demographics and the general increase in costs. We are now against the background of an enormous deficit—which was not the responsibility of this Government but which we are having to deal with—which is not helping the situation either. As I said at Second Reading when the noble Lord, Lord Warner, brought this up, the Government—as he and others know—are committed to publishing a White Paper shortly that goes across both departments. I confirm that my department is in regular touch with the Department of Health about it. The White Paper will set out the plans to transform care and support. I recognise very clearly that this is beginning to absorb an enormous amount of public funding.
Clearly, the battle is to decide whether any personal contributions have to be made or whether there are other routes. If you are forcing people to sell their houses, you are in very difficult territory. I understand the reason the noble Lord, Lord Warner, brought this up. I am not going to accept the amendments for the reason that this is not solely a part of local government and it is certainly not a part of what we are discussing at the moment. I only add that the Government have already allocated an additional £7.2 billion over four years to adult social care, so we are not pulling back on our commitment to it. We are very much committed. We now have to wait for the White Paper. I very much hope that the noble Lord will not return to this at a further stage.
Well, my Lords, that was all very interesting from the Minister. I suppose I thank her for it. I am not sure that I was very convinced by any of it. To get it on the record, this Government set up the Dilnot commission. They encouraged us to produce a report within 12 months, which we dutifully did. It is now 12 months since we reported, and there has not been a peep out of the Government about what they want to do. I do not mind if they do not like it, but they might have had the decency to suggest another approach that they would like. However, what we have had is silence and all the signals—from the cross-party talks and elsewhere—are that what we will get next week is a White Paper and a draft Bill that will be extraordinarily silent on the subject of money. I am a very patient sort of chap. I am very happy to wait until I see this document and what the arguments are and to consider it over the Summer Recess. I do not approach that with any great optimism. I am happy to withdraw the amendment on this particular occasion but I do not give any assurances to the Minister that I will not come back to this on Report, refreshed after the Summer Recess.
Amendment 56 withdrawn.
Clause 2 agreed.
Schedule 2 : Amendment of provisions about revenue support grant
Amendment 56A
Moved by
56A: Schedule 2, page 47, line 35, at beginning insert “Subject to subsection (1A),”
My Lords, I am happy with that and do not think it is going to take very long. I start with an apology for tabling these amendments just yesterday, but they arose out of the debate we had on Tuesday and I make no apology for returning to the issue of the local and central share, and what this entails. We accept entirely that the Government intend to use the central share for the purpose of local government in England, although, as defined, this does not have to mean actually paying it to local government. This is what the statement of intent promises. It is also clear that for the first two years of the scheme, revenue support grant will be made available to local authorities to keep them whole, because their local share of business rates will be below the control total set by the 2010 spending review.
This amendment looks beyond these years and requires revenue support grant to be paid in any year when the central share is positive. It is of course at this stage just by way of a probe, because it begs a lot of questions and we need a lot more detail to make it secure. However, it is designed to give the Government the chance to say how they are going to use the central share and on what basis. They must have some notion. What principles will be applied after 2014-15? Will its use be driven by a needs/resources approach or on some other basis? What is that basis?
I was going to have another go at a question I posed previously. I think it may have been dealt with in the letter I received from the noble Baroness—for which I thank her—just before Committee started. I have not yet had a chance to absorb it. I will perhaps reserve my powder on that particular issue but the substantive issue remains as to what that central share will be used for after those initial two years and on what basis will any use of it be determined.
My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for dealing with the amendment briefly. I think that other members of the Committee, who look like they are gathering their papers together, will be grateful if I can be equally brief. As the noble Lord said, we have covered quite a bit in previous amendments and I hope that my letter to all members of the Committee will deal with some of those issues. We know, and I have explained, that the central share will be repaid in total to local government. I acknowledge that it will come back in a way that is not in the control of local government but it will come back in the form of specific grants, initially with the revenue support grant part of that. The revenue support grant might reduce in due course, but, if it does, the local share will increase. It will be a balancing act between one and the other. Because of the relationship between the central share and fiscal control, it is conceivable that there could be a situation where no revenue support grant was paid but the Government would still be collecting some small amount of central share that they would again return to local government via specific grants.
In general, the proposition is that everything that goes to government by central share would go back to local government by other specific grants, some of which are laid out. We have had some discussion about that. I have had discussions elsewhere on what the specific grants would be and I hope we may be able to throw more light on that in the not-too-distant future. I hope that the noble Lord will withdraw the amendment.
I thank the Minister for her reply, which has taken us a little further forward. We well understand that, one way or another, the central share will be used in its entirety for local government in England. Knowing what that means in more detail, particularly its distributional effect, still eludes us. It certainly eludes me. It would be helpful if more information on that could be forthcoming between now and Report. I know we will want to return to this issue. For this evening’s purposes, I am happy to beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment 56A withdrawn.
Amendment 56B not moved.
Schedule 2 agreed.
Clause 3 : Additional grant
Amendment 57 not moved.
Clause 3 agreed.
Clause 4 : General GLA grant
Amendment 58 not moved.
Clause 4 agreed.
Committee adjourned at 6.16 pm. | 198,504 | 65,321 | 595,928.329327 |
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warc | 202143 | Valuers need to be signed up with the Council, which is a statutory body established by law, and which manages the training and administers the nationwide expert tests that are a requirement for attaining registration. In 2005 the Council established an Assessment Standards Committee with the function of establishing and promoting standards that would reflect best practice; these have actually tended to follow a rules-based technique.
Given that Israel executed the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in 2008, the occupation has actually been engaged in carrying out valuations for functions of monetary reporting. In the UK, real estate appraisal is referred to as residential or commercial property valuation and a property appraiser is a land valuer or home valuer (usually a qualified chartered property surveyor who specializes in property valuation).
The RICS expert standards for valuers are published in what is typically known as the Red Book. The 2017 version was the RICS Valuation International Standards (1 July 2017), superseding an edition released in 2011. RICS Valuation Standards consists of necessary rules, finest practice assistance and associated commentary. The 2017 version embraces and uses the International Valuation Standards (IVS) released by the International Assessment Standards Council (IVSC).
While based in the UK, RICS is a global organization and has actually ended up being very active in the United States over the last few years through its affiliation with the Counselors of Real Estate, a department of the National Association of Realtors. Appraisal practice in the United States is controlled by state. The Appraisal Foundation (TAF) is the primary requirements body; its Appraisal Standards Board (ASB) promulgates and updates best practices as codified in the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), while its Appraisal Certifications Board (AQB) promulgates minimum standards for appraiser accreditation and licensing.
The ASC supervises the TAF. Banks make widespread usage of home loan and mortgage-backed securities, and would be unable to do so without appraisals. The Financial Institutions Reform, Healing, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA) demanded all the states to establish systems for licensing and accrediting realty appraisers. To achieve this, the Appraisal Subcommittee (ASC) was formed within the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), with agents from the various Federal home loan regulatory agencies.
But prior to the 1990s, there were no typically accepted standards either for appraisal quality or for appraiser licensure. In the 1980s, an ad-hoc committee representing numerous appraisal professional organizations in the United States and Canada met to codify the very best practices into what became known as the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
Cost Savings and Loan Crisis resulted in increased federal regulation by means of the Financial Institutions Reform, Healing and Enforcement Act of 1989, which required federal financing regulators to adopt appraisal standards. A nonprofit company, The Appraisal Structure (TAF), was formed by the exact same organizations that had established USPAP, and the copyright for USPAP was signed over to TAF.
TAF performs its overcome 2 boards: the Appraisal Standards Board promotes and updates USPAP; the Appraisal Credentials Board (AQB) promotes minimum recommended standards for appraiser certification and licensure. Throughout the 1990s, all of the states adopted USPAP as the governing requirements within their states and established licensure standards which fulfilled or went beyond the recommendations of TAF.
In addition, there are expert appraisal companies, arranged as personal non-profit companies that date to the Great Anxiety of the 1930s. Among the oldest in the United States is the American Society of Farm Supervisors and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA), which was established in 1929. Others were established as needed and the chance occurred in specialized fields, such as the Appraisal Institute (AI) and the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) founded in the 1930s, the International Right of Method Association and the National Association of Realtors which were founded after World War II.
In March 2007, three of these companies (ASFMRA, ASA, and AI) revealed an arrangement in concept to merge. NAIFA (National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers), a charter member of The Appraisal Foundation, helped to write Title XI, the Realty Appraisal Reform Amendments. It was founded in 1961. Among the most recognized expert companies of real estate appraisers in America is the Appraisal Institute (AI).
Founded together with others in the 1930s, the two organizations merged in the 1990s to form the AI. This group awards 4 expert designations: SRA, to residential appraisers, AI-RRS, to residential review appraisers, MAI, to industrial appraisers, and AI-GRS, to business review appraisers. The Institute has enacted extensive regulations concerning the usage and screen of these classifications.
According to the institute, the letters "do not represent specific words", and an MAI might not utilize the words "Member, Appraisal Institute" in lieu of the MAI mark. The main intention for this guideline is to prevent hallmark dilution. These designations need participation in appraisal method classes, ethical training, exams, and an evaluation of the prospect's work by designated appraisers.
The NAA has actually established an advisory group including leadership at the state organizations and coalitions called the Board of Governors where those states can assist assist the NAA in acting in the very best interest of all appraisers. The NAA also has actually a designated subscription, MNAA (Member of the National Association of Appraisers, who is an individual who holds an appraisal license, certification or similar appraisal credential issued by a governmental firm; and who accepts the subscription requirements and goals of the National Association of Appraisers.
The Massachusetts Board of Realty Appraisers (MBREA), founded in 1934, is the only state appraisal association that has actually been called a sponsor of the Appraisal Foundation (Home Valuation Tools). Over the last few years, the Royal Organization of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has become extremely concerned in the United States, and has formed a partnership with the Therapists of Realty, a department of the National Association of Realtors.
The Real Estate Therapy Group of America is a small group of leading U.S. appraisers and property experts who have actually jointly authored a disproportionately large body of appraisal method and, the National Association of Property Appraisers (NAREA), founded in 1966, with the objective to elevate the professionalism and success of the Appraisal Industry.
In Russia, on par with many other former Soviet Union economies, the profession emerged in the first half of 1990, and represented a clean break with the former practice of industry-specific prices experts and with activities of statutory price-setting authorities in the Soviet Union. Currently, property assessment, as it is called, is a specialism within general-purpose "assessment profession", which works in a self-regulatory mode supervised by "self-regulated expert companies" of valuers (SROs), i.
public supervisory entities developed under provisions of unique legislation (which really loosely can be likened to trade unions). The principal among those is Russian Society of Appraisers, established in 1993 and currently exercising oversight over about half of the evaluation profession membership. Amongst its 6000+ members a large bulk are real estate valuers, rubbing shoulders with organization and intangible properties appraisers.
In late 2016, it was mandated that valuers should travel through mandatory state-administered attestation procedure to verify their skills, the information of which regarding breakdown in specialization or otherwise remain to be worked out. Since mid-2016, Valuers in Russia, including real estate valuers, are deemed to be purposely-educated individuals maintaining their Assessment SRO subscription and bearing unrestricted home liability for the outcome of their services, that is their expert status is modeled on the company of public notaries.
High-end appraisal services are principally represented by evaluation arms of the International "Big-four" consultancies in the nation, however there likewise exist credible nationwide corporate appraisal brand names. The majority of appraisals in the country tend to be performed for statutory purposes envisaged by the Federal Valuation Law (the most current modification in 2016) and other associated laws, such as the Joint Stock Companies Law - Home Valuation Report.
Assessments for corporate accounts used to be a lot more prominent before 2000, when the national accounting regulator ceased to incentivize the accounting reasonable value option. At present, the mass appraisal of property for taxation functions is also starting to be contracted out by the Federal government to the institution of expert valuers.
Authorities courts tend to accept the resolutions of such Councils. In some unusual circumstances the imprimatur of SRO's Specialists Councils is likewise needed for an evaluation done by a specific valuer to enter into impact. The technical information of practice of genuine estate valuers in Russia are aligned with the global pattern. | 9,614 | 4,097 | 22,485.073957 |
warc | 202143 | People like Chris Chan don’t deserve respect.(i.redd.it)
[deleted]
How can you quantify, objectively that? It's all based on these people's words. They say that their life sucks because they feel like they should have been the other sex.
It's simply unprovable, and you simply cannot make a distinction between true and fake because of that. It's all based on their words and feelings. "Fake" trans people might very well feel that their life is qualitatively worse for being their sex and that they would be better as the other, they just have different reasons to feel that way.
Why is it that "I hate being male because I don't have boobs!" is more valid than "I hate being male because I don't have boobs to fondle!"?
Gender dysphoria is not simply “I hate being male because I don’t have boobs” and the other statement is a fetish that does not fall into the lgbt category. And it’s not all based on words and feelings. Sure, talk therapy is a big part of the diagnosis but research has been done and brain scans have shown that in trans people, their brain structure resembles that of the gender they identify as.
That last bit is being disproven as we speak
It would have probably been proven already but it is known that gender related studies are being repressed and manipulated.
The second to last paragraph of that article gives more proof that sex =/= gender.
Awesome, so if that's settled, why is it that they don't use those scans to prove, without any doubt, that trans people have the brain of "their" gender? Do they scan the brain of every single person who identifies as trans so that we can say, without any doubt, which one is legitimate and which one isn't?
Answer: no. Those brain scans are not part of the diagnosis for dysphoria. The only thing they use to diagnose dysphoria is the person's word. I wonder why that is...
Just FYI, there are several studies that show that male and female brains are not different, and others that say that they are different and that those differences are due to brain plasticity and not because of gender identity.
Hell, there are studies that say that homosexual people have brains similar to the brain of heterosexual people of the other sex because attraction modifies the functionality of the brain. Does that mean that homosexual people are actually trans?
Yeah, the persons word combined with months of therapy and consults from multiple doctors, as well as multiple evaluations of both mental and physical health. The diagnosis is not taken lightly. Do you honestly believe that anyone could walk into a therapist office, say “I feel like the opposite sex”, and with absolutely no other consult, get diagnosed with gender dysphoria, regardless of if they are given hormones or not? There is structured criteria for the diagnosis and the traits must be shown over a minimum period of time. It’s not a matter of a one time visit. Doctors don’t diagnose any mental disorder based simply off words.
“T” doesn’t belong in the “LGB” community. Also, it’s insulting to reduce people to letters and lump them together as if they’re an undifferentiated mass. I swear to God, the far left is becoming as homophobic as the far right.
…you should really, really, really read Galileo’s Middle Finger by Alice Dreger. What most people don’t realize is that, historically, the majority of men who identify as women do so because of sexual arousal at the idea of being a woman. It’s called autogynephilic transexualism, and it’s kind of amazing that transactivists have been able to keep people from learning about it. Hell, it’s right there on Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blanchard's_transsexualism_typology?wprov=sfti1
Thank you! I’m not trans but I am an ally due to seeing the struggles of friends and having experienced discrimination due to being a lesbian. For what they have gone through it’s the least I can do to try and challenge the generalizations I see on the internet.
It both disappoints and infuriates me. Disappoints in that there are so many people who can’t look past the often extreme sides that social media boosts and listen to what their neighbors are saying. Infuriates me in that the fetish crowd has put their wedge in a community not meant for them and thus set back all lgbtq people. It’s ok to have fetishes, to the degree that those fetishes do not cause harm and you display them only to other consenting adults. It’s proven that there are men who “get off” on thinking of themselves as women, and most likely vice versa. But the lgbtq community is not a fetish community, so it’s not the place for them. Trans people do not think of themselves at the opposite sex to get aroused, and unfortunately the “euphoria” that some do experience when picturing themselves as the opposite sex is sometimes read by anti trans people as arousal when it is simply confidence in themselves and feeling comfortable in their body. Fortunately, there is a ton of pushback against those with that fetish from the lgbtq community because we see that they are hurting us. For years, people who experience same sex attraction have fought with people claiming that it’s just a fetish. Now we have insane people who are otherwise straight and cis being quite vocal about their fetish and trying to work their way into a community not meant for them. I’m sure there are fetish communities for people who get sexually aroused by imagining themselves as the opposite sex. If they are otherwise straight and cis and only experience those feelings in a sexual nature, then they need to stay in their fetish communities and stop trying to associate themselves with lgbt.
I’m bringing up this point because you said anti-trans altogether and not just anti transwomen. Something I have noticed lately, especially on this subreddit, is many “gender critical feminists” being outright rude to and harassing trans men as well as transwomen. I just find it a bit strange for a group claiming to not want men dating lesbians to be frequently invalidating FTM people, aka not lesbians or people interested in dating lesbians. If you keep up the same view, those people are clearly not men in your mind. So why are you invalidating them as well? They are (in GC terms, not mine) “women who want to be men”, but they do not have an interest in dating lesbians because they are not comfortable being labeled as a woman and lesbians would not be interested in dating them because they present as men. It just seems like it’s become more about dislike for those who are different and less about “protecting lesbians” when you target people not following the romantic radar of your group.
Thankfully, I feel as though trans acceptance is still rising as most people can differentiate between the attention seekers and the people who just want to live their lives. Hell, even if it isn’t necessarily full on acceptance and it’s just not policing others decisions and invalidating the identities of those who you don’t even know that is on the rise, most will take it. And that’s why it’s important to continue to speak out and continue to stress that lgbtq “feelings” (for lack of better terms) are about love, relationships, and acceptance, not kinks.
Again, thank you for your respectful reply. I enjoy being able to be a voice of reason, but it seems as if this subreddit is often overwhelmed by those opposed to factual discussion and ideas being challenged. Sorry for the novel, there’s just a lot I wanted to say to throughly answer you! | 7,777 | 3,424 | 17,025.815421 |
warc | 202143 | Everybody is talking about Measles – but what does the virus actually do in the body? Is it really so harmful that you need a vaccination? We go deep into the body of an infected person and see what Measles does and how the immune system reacts to it!
This video is adapted from Johann Hari's New York Times best-selling book 'Chasing The Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs.' For more information, and to take a quiz to see what you know about addiction, go to www.chasingthescream.com
2015 • Health
Where are the limits of human technology? And can we somehow avoid them? This is where quantum computers become very interesting.
2015 • Technology
Every second of your life you are under attack. Bacteria, viruses, spores and more living stuff wants to enter your body and use its resources for itself. The immune system is a powerful army of cells that fights like a T-Rex on speed and sacrifices itself for your survival. Without it you would die in no time. This sounds simple but the reality is complex, beautiful and just awesome. An animation of the immune system.
2014 • Health
Automation in the Information Age is different.
2017 • Technology
What is UBI? How would free money change our lives.
2017 • Economics
Finding alien life on a distant planet would be amazing news - or would it? If we are not the only intelligent life in the universe, this probably means our days are numbered and doom is certain.
2018 • Astronomy
Is String Theory the final solution for all of physic’s questions or an overhyped dead end?
2018 • Physics
What are the principles behind Homeopathy and does it work?
2018 • Health
Why should you care about the well-being of people half a globe away?
2018 • Economics
A war has been raging for billions of years, killing trillions every single day, while we don’t even notice. This war involves the single deadliest being on our planet: The Bacteriophage.
2018 • Science
Did you know that we could start building a Lunar Base today?
2018 • Astronomy
Organic food is a huge trend: it promises a healthier and better life. But can Organic food really live up to the expectations or is it just baloney?
2019 • Health
Everybody is talking about Measles – but what does the virus actually do in the body? Is it really so harmful that you need a vaccination? We go deep into the body of an infected person and see what Measles does and how the immune system reacts to it!
2015 • Health
Consciousness is perhaps the biggest riddle in nature. In the first part of this three part video series, we explore the origins of consciousness and take a closer look on how unaware things became aware.
2019 • Brain
Modern life would be impossible without plastic – but we have long since lost control over our invention. Why has plastic turned into a problem and what do we know about its dangers? This video is a collaboration with UN Environment and their Clean Seas campaign, If you want to take action to turn the tide on plastics, go to http://www.cleanseas.org and make your pledge.
2019 • Environment
Everybody is familiar with the feeling that things are not as they should be. That you are not successful enough, your relationships not satisfying enough. That you don’t have the things you crave. In this video we want to talk about one of the strongest predictors of how happy people are, how easily they make friends and how good they are at dealing with hardship. An antidote against dissatisfaction so to speak: Gratitude.
2019 • Lifehack
In December 2019 the Chinese authorities notified the world that a virus was spreading through their communities. In the following months it spread to other countries, with cases doubling within days. This virus is the “Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2”, that causes the disease called COVID19, and that everyone simply calls Coronavirus.
2020 • Health
Since the Industrial Revolution, humans have released over 1.5 trillion tonnes of carbon dioxide or CO2 into the earth's atmosphere. In the year 2019 we were still pumping out around 37 billion more. That’s 50% more than the year 2000 and almost three times as much as 50 years ago. And it’s not just CO2. We’re also pumping out growing volumes of other greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxide. Combining all of our greenhouse gases, we’re emitting 51 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents each year. And emissions keep rising – but they need to get down to 0!
2020 • Environment
The sun. Smooth and round and peaceful. Except when it suddenly vomits radiation and plasma in random directions. These solar flares and coronal mass ejections, or CMEs can hit earth and have serious consequences for humanity.
2020 • Astronomy
By the end of the 21st century, humanity is becoming desperate. Decades of heatwaves and droughts have led to unusually poor harvests, while the warming oceans yield fewer fish each year. In the tropical zones, millions suffer from famine and resource wars have made millions more flee to the north. As things quickly get worse, in an act of desperation, the world's governments decide to enact an emergency plan...
2020 • Technology
The largest things in the universe are black holes. In contrast to things like planets or stars they have no physical size limit, and can literally grow endlessly. Although in reality specific things need to happen to create different kinds of black holes, from really tiny ones to the largest single things in the universe. So how do black holes grow and how large is the largest of them all?
Never before in human history have we been richer, more advanced or powerful. And yet we feel overwhelmed in the face of rapid climate change. It seems simple on the surface. Greenhouse gases trap energy from the Sun and transfer it to our atmosphere. This leads to warmer winters, harsher summers. Dry places become drier and wet places wetter. Countless ecosystems will die while the rising oceans swallow coasts and the cities we build on them.
2021 • Environment
Stem cells found in the bone marrow are crucial for our health because they are needed to become new blood cells that sustain and protect our bodies. But when the transformation goes wrong, harmful mutations can cause the cells to start replicating without control -- a type of cancer known as leukemia. Danilo Allegra and Dania Puggioni explain how this happens and how certain treatments provide hope for those suffering from the disease.
Track the importance of data mapping and analysis in the quest to improve public health. The painstaking work of past data detectives made us aware of epidemic "curves" as well as the extent of health inequalities among different U.S. communities.
For every pound we spend on food shopping, 77p goes to the supermarkets, giving them a huge influence over what we eat. But can we trust the supermarkets to tell us the truth about what we are buying and how it was produced? Or do their profits come first? In an experiment to discover the hidden truths about our everyday foods, Horizon has built the first ever truly 'honest supermarket'. Drawing on the latest scientific research and leading experts from across the UK, the team have built a supermarket where the products are labelled with the real story of how they are produced and their effect on us and the environment. We invite the British public to come in and discover the truth about their favourite foods. And in our on-site lab, new scientific discoveries reveal the food facts the supermarkets aren't telling you. Presented by Dr Hannah Fry and dietician Priya Tew, The Honest Supermarket takes a cold hard look at what's really going on with the food we eat. From new research that reveals you're likely to be ingesting plastic particles along with your bottled water to the lab tests that uncover the disturbing truth about just how old your 'fresh' supermarket fish really is… You'll never look at the food on your supermarket shelves in the same way again.
Following reports that taking extra vitamins is pointless and possibly even dangerous, Gloria discovers whether the vitamins she takes each day are really necessary or if she can get all the nutrients she needs from her food? Chris tests out a new meal plan to see what difference changing what you eat makes to how you power through the day, and even how you sleep. | 8,556 | 3,976 | 17,925.422535 |
warc | 202143 | From the birth of the devil in ancient Persia, where a beloved family dog becomes a seething beast, to a searing story of saintliness among macaque monkeys, join an exploration into the human potential for change. One of history's greatest monsters is transformed into one of its shining lights.
2020 • Astronomy
In what kind of world can a child born in 2020 expect to grow up? When did our slide into planetwide environmental destruction begin? Enter the possible world that awaits a 2020 baby in her twenties: one darkened by our refusal to confront the real and mounting challenges we face but one which still offers a message of hope.
2020 • Astronomy
Today we are talking about the life -- and death -- of stars. Low mass stars live a long time, fusing all their hydrogen into helium over a trillion years. More massive stars like the Sun live shorter lives. They fuse hydrogen into helium, and eventually helium into carbon (and also some oxygen and neon). When this happens they expand, get brighter, and cool off, becoming red giants. They lose most of their mass, exposing their cores, and then cool off over many billions of years.
The Mars InSight lander is on a 6-month journey to the Red Planet, with hopes of uncovering some of our planetary neighbor's secrets. Digging deep into Martian soil, the lander will measure marsquakes and also study the deep interior of Mars - perhaps revealing the origins of the planet.
Suppose you placed a camera at a fixed position, took a picture of the sky at the same time every day for an entire year, and overlaid all of the photos on top of each other. What would the sun look like in that combined image? A stationary dot? A circular path? Neither. Oddly enough, it makes a ‘figure 8’ pattern, known as the Sun’s analemma.
The first part, Everything, sees Professor Al-Khalili set out to discover what the universe might actually look like. The journey takes him from the distant past to the boundaries of the known universe. Along the way he charts the remarkable stories of the men and women who discovered the truth about the cosmos and investigates how our understanding of space has been shaped by both mathematics and astronomy. | 2,223 | 1,188 | 4,096.083333 |
warc | 202143 | Why do some experts think the potential election of Trump — an ardent capitalist with legions of friends on Wall Street — would crash stock markets?
The most recent warning of an epic market crash comes from Wedbush analyst Ian Winer, who bases his assertions on some of Trump’s economic proposals. They include Trump’s call for significant tax cuts on high earners coupled with increased military spending.
Winer, talking with CNBC last week, said the U.S. economy would have to grow “somewhere between 8 and 9 percent…just to make us neutral.” That means greater deficits and increased financing costs, even as the Federal Reserve will likely keep rates below historic levels for the near future.
Add to that Trump’s plan to deport undocumented immigrants, which comprises roughly 11 million people. This mass exodus would not only be expensive to execute, but also costly to the bottom lines of companies that depend on cheap labor. Replacing undocumented immigrants with American citizens would, likely, increase payroll and cut into profit margins.
Lastly, he argues that Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on trading partners such as China and Mexico would simply make imported goods more expensive for average American consumers, thereby limiting available dollars to spend elsewhere.
Put together these policies would cause such economic hardship, Winer claims, that the price/earnings ratio of the S&P 500 would drop to nearly 11, and “that’s how you get to 1,000 on the S&P,” Winer says. The S&P 500, right now, is slightly above 2,000. Hence stock market Armageddon.
So, why exactly is Winner wrong?
Well for one thing, there is no complex algorithm he’s relying on to conclude that rising deficits, 11 million deportations, and rising tariffs must equal a market P/E ratio of 11. The stock market simply doesn’t work that way. It’s merely his guess.
Also, even if Trump is elected, there’s no guarantee he will be able to persuade Congress to take an axe to tax rates or dramatically increase spending on military (however that manifests itself), even if the GOP retains control of both chambers.
But here is the counter part of all
Wall Street’s long-time number one Washington analyst, Andy Laperriere explains why for the first time in his career he is predicting the stock market will plummet if certain candidates win the presidency. | 2,443 | 1,303 | 4,398.524942 |
warc | 202143 | Unless something changes, we can expect Bush to pack the Supreme Court with justices who threaten every right women have gained. Roe v. Wade is the first issue, but equal pay, overtime, all kinds of workers’ issues, the war in Iraq — those also are issues of concern.
Clearly, the social conservative movement is all about fear over the roles of women and men. No matter how many women enter the workforce or begin to climb the ladder, their cultural roles never change — they’re still wife and mother. Even among our own progressive movement, gender is neither a priority nor an issue we understand deeply. So we have to analyze the situation and understand the role gender plays in this conversation.
It is no small thing to have had the most amazing progressive organizing campaign in my lifetime. I know that this election will convince young women to run for office. With our voter mobilization effort, Vote, Run, Lead (http://www.voterunlead.org), we seeded our next step. During training, we brought in a diverse, progressive group of young politicians to speak to young women. They demystified politics and inspired many to consider running.
Young women are not apolitical: Seventy percent of them volunteer and act personally on issues they care about. They like to touch and feel them, engage them by tutoring people one-on-one. It’s our job to take that instinct and that talent and show young women that if they want to have an ongoing affect they have to get involved politically.
In the long run, this is the only way we can make permanent change. If we could channel all of the energy spent trying to hold back legislation that negatively affects women’s lives into women having power and making policy, it would be a whole other matter. We can’t stop fighting, but we also have to get people into power.
Reader donations, many as small as just $5, are what fund the work of writers like this—and keep our content free and accessible to everyone. If you support this work, will chip in to help fund it?
It only takes a minute to donate. Click here to make a tax-deductible donation. Marie Wilsonis the president of The White House Project. | 2,202 | 1,170 | 4,053.938462 |
warc | 202143 | An increase in disruptive and violent students is a disturbing trend being seen in classrooms around the United States. From preschool all the way up through senior year, children and teens in public schools are being exposed to far more behavioral incidents than their parents or grandparents ever experienced.
It used to be that kids were embarrassed to misbehave in public, and they were scared of the consequences they would face at school and at home. But today many kids haven’t been taught to feel shame, and all of the consequences have been removed from schools by way of legislation and court cases. And most students don’t face consequences at home either.
Teachers are facing more behaviors every year that completely disrupt their classroom and it impacts the quality of education that all students are receiving. It takes precious class time, instills a sense of fear and introduces disrespect for the teacher and school administrators.
Many of these increasingly disruptive behaviors fall under 4 main categories and include:
Excessive Talking Inappropriate conversations with peers during class time Taking phone calls in class Calling out across the classroom Blurting out random words or answers Yelling Attention-Seeking Behaviors Making random noises Blaring music through headphones Throwing things Tapping on the desk Walking around the classroom Power Struggle Ignoring directions Breaking classroom rules Arguing Walking out of class Cursing at or threatening the teacher Violence Hitting Biting Spitting Destroying the classroom
The question is, how are teachers being prepared to manage their classrooms with of these disruptive and violent behaviors now taking place?
While they’re required to attend many professional development courses throughout the year on classroom management, these courses typically focus on what the teachers are doing wrong instead of how to manage these behaviors in students and how to get the classroom back under control.
For example, classroom management courses typically inform teachers that they should:
Greet students at the door Build relationships Give plenty of gentle reminders Optimize classroom seating Praise and reward students through small gifts Set clear expectations Be present at all times Be consistent
While these tips certainly help most teachers and students build healthy relationships in class, they do nothing to address the very aggressive and violent behaviors from students who have no impulse control, no respect for authority, and no desire to build relationships with their teachers. And they certainly don’t help teachers prepare to handle students with mental health disorders.
Instead, advice is given to teachers on how to stop bad behaviors before they happen by creating the perfect environment. Tips like adjusting the temperature level, having seating arrangements, not allowing classroom discussions to be too loud, and making sure all students’ eating, drinking, and bathroom needs are being met are supposed to be the solution.
With an estimated learning loss of 144 minutes per week for a total of 14.5 days per year due to classroom disruption, how do school districts address this topic in professional development? Since it’s not currently addressed during training programs, and most teachers are ill-equipped to manage these students, the entire class pays the price of a reduction in learning time and the potential fear factor of these behaviors happening continuously.
Virtual schools and virtual classes eliminate these disruptive behaviors so teachers and students are assured an environment of active learning and safety. Virtual education is a solid alternative to dealing with the day to day challenges that occur in our brick and mortar classes almost daily.
Virtual classes, when using the right technology, offers more teaching/learning tools and provides teachers with immediate feedback and quiz results so they know what the students are doing and how they are learning. | 4,035 | 1,876 | 8,581.902985 |
warc | 202143 | Wonderful Target Outdoor Clocks Beach Style Dining Room New-york with Wicker Dining Chairs White Trim Rectangular Dining
With the direction technology will work this sort of times, obtaining a clever residence incorporates come to be even extra exciting. Versus your home's lighting, climate manage and even safety, the devices oneself can increase are approximately countless. Such things can simply crank out oneself need in the direction of continue to keep incorporating extra. If oneself already personalized a clever residence and are presently questioning of upgrading it, here's a effortless rundown of what oneself will need in the direction of do in the direction of crank out your clever residence "smarter."
Increase Voice-Controlled Programs
Formerly, voice-controlled devices could possibly basically perform tunes. Now, there are voice-controlled devices that can act as your assistants. They can fixed your alarms, manage your lighting and even Deliver oneself instructions, even devoid of urgent any buttons. Some of this sort of devices can even warn oneself if some thing weird happens at residence.
Put in Sensible Lighting
Automating your lighting can reduce a massive component of your electric power bill. Couple them with sensors, dimmers and wireless manage and you may be ready in the direction of help you save even extra. By yourself can fixed your lighting in the direction of turn on and off, relying on your person schedule or, increase movement sensors, therefore oneself will not likely waste energy. By yourself can even seek the services of your smartphone in the direction of manage the brightness, coloration as very well as the environment of your residence.
If your clever cell phone is just not sufficient, oneself can put in a clever product that can explain to oneself any time oneself incorporate still left your lighting on. Aside against the alerts, this product can furthermore Deliver oneself an estimate of how much electric power your residence incorporates already eaten.
Protected Your Router
After you are establishing a clever residence, your concern should not be confined in the direction of the variations of devices you may invest in; oneself furthermore incorporate in the direction of just take acceptable techniques on how you may risk-free just about anything within it. Your router is a single of your home's weakest destinations. A great deal like your front doorway, oneself should really increase it in the direction of continue to keep thieves out.
Start by way of altering your password. As quickly as oneself receive your router, variance its default password with nearly anything that cannot simply be guessed. Chorus against working with your beginning 12 months or the previous digits of your cell phone selection. As much as opportunity, produce a extensive password and crank out positive in the direction of seek the services of alphanumeric figures in the direction of crank out it even tougher in the direction of crack.
It can be furthermore a positive notion in the direction of consistently improve your safety application in the direction of minimize your devices' vulnerability in the direction of fresh new hazards, like spying equipment and viruses. Put in a malware protection in the direction of avert suspicious and destructive Ideas against jogging on your computer.
Improve Your Smoke Detector
An everyday smoke detector that will become induced can induce confusion, primarily if oneself incorporate many programs at residence. If it is just not monitored, you will find no direction you may get alerted pertaining to a opportunity fireplace - unless of course oneself incorporate some welcoming neighbors wanting after your residence. For your safety and safety, it is really easiest if oneself can improve your smoke detector in the direction of nearly anything smarter.
Wonderful Target Outdoor Clocks Beach Style Dining Room New-york with Wicker Dining Chairs White Trim Rectangular Dining Utmost clever smoke detectors presently are professional quality and can previous a very long time. Some of them even appear with devoted purposes in the direction of assistance crank out monitoring a good deal simpler. Aside against battery lifestyle, they can furthermore tell oneself exactly which regional of the residence is exhibiting improved climate. They can even talk oneself in the direction of your regional police and firemen for a effortless answer.
Such added attributes can suggest a substantial selling price tag. On the other hand, considering that they can augment your residence safety and initiate a faster remedy, they can be deemed as valuable investments.
If oneself are on a limited spending budget and spending in fresh new devices doesn't feel doable at the moment, your next easiest choice is in the direction of invest in a product that can turn everyday devices into clever kinds.
Take a Sensible Doorbell
As residence automation turns into even extra highly developed, you may obtain your self currently being ready in the direction of do the things that seemed extremely hard prior to. Just take, for illustration, answering your doorway, even if you are not bodily at residence.
You can expect to be ready in the direction of tell the delivery gentleman exactly where in the direction of leave your parcel or look at on somebody who's been exhibiting interest in your front gate for many times. Burglars choose properties that are unoccupied. Through currently being ready in the direction of resolution the doorway and clearly show that oneself can watch what is actually happening in excess of your residence, you may be ready in the direction of crank out your residence a good deal much less favorable for theft.
Sensible doorbells can do therefore much extra than that, primarily any time they are equipped with the right features. With night time eyesight attributes, live streaming and a two-way communicate function, you may be ready in the direction of determine thieves and intruders even prior to they conduct their packages. By yourself can even background movies in the direction of serve as demanding evidence in case somebody manages in the direction of get within your residence.
Also, by way of monitoring your feed, oneself can look at on your little ones and realize any time they come residence securely against higher education. By yourself can furthermore get alerts any time they leave the residence devoid of your permission.
More than To By yourself
How Sensible is your Residence? Comprise oneself upgraded all your safety devices and installed fresh new kinds accessible in the sector? Comprise oneself manufactured your residence "safe enough"? I would Deliver this a moment idea and re-visit all the information stated in excess of in the direction of incorporate a relaxing lifestyle devoid of feeding on in the direction of anxiety pertaining to your residence safety. | 6,943 | 2,851 | 16,840.001754 |
warc | 202143 | The Role of Business Ethics and Religiosity in Student Ethical Decision Making Abstract
This research aims to investigate the role of business ethics and religiosity in student ethical decision-making. The business ethics literature explains that ethical decision-making is influenced by internal factors of an individual nature and external factors of a situational nature. This research tried to fill the gap in the previous research that has been done. This study used two independent variables: business ethics and religiosity variables, and the independent variable is ethical decision-making. This study used experimental methods to test the hypotheses. Participants involved in this study are undergraduate economics and business students from a private university in Jakarta. The data analysis technique in this study used analysis of variance (ANOVA). The result found that business ethics courses and religiosity influence the students' ethical decision-making. Moreover, the results found that the interaction of gender and religiosity did not affect students' ethical decision-making. This research contributes to behavioral research and business ethics literature, especially in ethical decision-making.
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