Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Valmy]

So you mean every fairy princess didn't get her 10,000 unicorns? 

[garbon]

Rayner is an MP for a Manchester constituency which she will travel to and from at least once a week, that's about 5 hours or so on the train which can be productive working time with the right kit.

MPs are only paid £84k so they tend to get things on expenses if they can, most could easily get more pay in the outside world. They did not get paid or get expenses at all till c1904; I'm sure Rees-Mogg et al would be happy to return to those arrangements...it makes sure that the hoi polloi can't serve as an MP.

I don't know. It feels odd to suggest that people who make 84k a year should be absolved of buying their own airpods.

Conversely it seems petty to whinge about the government spending 200 quid on earphones that are standard equipment for MPs doing their job.
Put a value on the time being spent moaning about this and you come to a lot more than 200 quid.

I do not follow. I'm also unconvinced that airpods need to be standard kit. They've never come with any of my work phones.

[The Larch]

BBC offices in India raided by tax officials amid Modi documentary fallout
Searches come weeks after release of documentary critical of PM that was later blocked by government

BBC offices in India have been raided by tax department officials, just weeks after the release of a documentary critical of the prime minister, Narendra Modi, which was later blocked by the government.

According to those working at the broadcaster, more than a dozen officials from the country's income tax department turned up at the BBC offices in Delhi, where hundreds of employees are based, to conduct a "survey". Documents and phones of several journalists were taken and the offices were sealed.

Officers told local media the searches on Tuesday morning were part of a "tax evasion" investigation into the business operations of the BBC in India and several accounts and financial files were seized.

The BBC confirmed the raids at the offices and said it was fully cooperating. "We hope to have this situation resolved as soon as possible," said the statement.

The raids come as the BBC is at the centre of a controversy in India over a two-part documentary series, India: The Modi Question, which focused on the role that Modi, who was then the chief minister of Gujarat, played in violent Hindu-Muslim riots that ripped through his state in 2002 and left more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead.

Modi has been haunted for years by allegations of his complicity in the violence, and they led to him being banned from the US for almost a decade. The BBC documentary revealed that a British government document from the time had found Modi "directly responsible" for not stopping the killings of Muslims during the riots, and said the violence had "all the hallmarks of genocide".

The series was not released in India but prompted an outcry from the Modi government, who accused the broadcaster of bias and a "colonial mindset", pointing out that Modi was cleared of all charges by a supreme court panel in 2012.

Emergency laws were invoked to ban any links or clips of the documentary being shared on social media. In defiance of the ban, students across the country staged screenings of the documentary at universities and several were detained by police.

The BBC has stood firm by the documentary, stating that it was "rigorously researched according to highest editorial standards".

Following the searches, Gaurav Bhatia, a spokesperson from Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), described the BBC as the "most corrupt organisation in the world".

"If any company or organisation is working in India, they have to comply with the Indian law. Why are you scared if you are adhering to the law? The [tax] department should be allowed to do their work," he said.

The raids of the BBC were criticised by members of the opposition. "At the time India holds the presidency of the G20 nations, PM Modi continues to brazenly show India's slide into authoritarianism and dictatorship," said the Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi in a tweet.

Akhilesh Yadav, leader of the Samajwadi party, said: "When a government stands for fear and oppression instead of fearlessness, then one should realise the end is near."

The BBC has been under increased scrutiny since the furore over the documentary, including a petition to the supreme court to have the BBC banned in India, which was dismissed by the judges.

The BBC is just the latest organisation to be hit with a tax evasion investigation following critical reporting on the Modi government. The India operations of Amnesty International, which had produced several reports on the erosion of human rights and freedom of speech in India, had to be shuttered in 2020 after their accounts were frozen by a central government agency.

[Josquius]

I do not follow. I'm also unconvinced that airpods need to be standard kit. They've never come with any of my work phones.

Maybe they are for parliament employees.
But even if not, we accept that being bought earphones is acceptable, why then does it cross the line when you're spending 100 quid extra for nicer ones?

[garbon]

I do not follow. I'm also unconvinced that airpods need to be standard kit. They've never come with any of my work phones.

Maybe they are for parliament employees.
But even if not, we accept that being bought earphones is acceptable, why then does it cross the line when you're spending 100 quid extra for nicer ones?

You are asking why there should be reasonable limits on expenditure?

[Josquius]

I do not follow. I'm also unconvinced that airpods need to be standard kit. They've never come with any of my work phones.

Maybe they are for parliament employees.
But even if not, we accept that being bought earphones is acceptable, why then does it cross the line when you're spending 100 quid extra for nicer ones?

You are asking why there should be reasonable limits on expenditure?

I ask why 150 quid on something clearly necessary for doing the job is considered a scandalous extravagance.
Especially next to the usual budgets being handled by the government. Its not even a rounding error. Its below petty cash even.

[Richard Hakluyt]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

[The Larch]

Are British MPs given any gear by Parliament for their work? I just checked and Spanish MPs are given a "tech kit" consisting on an iPad, an iPhone and a home internet high speed connection. When they leave parliament they can either give them back or buy them.

[Josquius]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I try to get work to pay for it as much as I can though sometimes they won't.
They wouldn't approve a decent new router for me but they did give me a bunch of other things that I use for both-some employers give shit, some give really good stuff.
I haven't gotten one but I know a fair few people have gotten good desks and office chairs from employers.

[Tamas]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I (we) just swallow the cost like Internet or getting a better desk, since they are dual use (private and work), not to mention heating and electricity costs. But in our case this is still way cheaper than commuting (which was only partially funded by our employers), so won't complain. I wouldn't mind an MP's expense account though to cover these.

[The Larch]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I (we) just swallow the cost like Internet or getting a better desk, since they are dual use (private and work), not to mention heating and electricity costs. But in our case this is still way cheaper than commuting (which was only partially funded by our employers), so won't complain. I wouldn't mind an MP's expense account though to cover these.

You're getting screwed. I believe that over here courts have determined that companies are responsible for the share of the home expenses related to WFH for the equivalent of the employee's workday. IE, you company pays a share of your electricity, internet, heating and so on for the duration of your WFH workday. They also have to provide you with the necessary equipment for you to WFH, so you're not required to provide your own computer, for instance.

[garbon]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I (we) just swallow the cost like Internet or getting a better desk, since they are dual use (private and work), not to mention heating and electricity costs. But in our case this is still way cheaper than commuting (which was only partially funded by our employers), so won't complain. I wouldn't mind an MP's expense account though to cover these.

You're getting screwed. I believe that over here courts have determined that companies are responsible for the share of the home expenses related to WFH for the equivalent of the employee's workday. IE, you company pays a share of your electricity, internet, heating and so on for the duration of your WFH workday. They also have to provide you with the necessary equipment for you to WFH, so you're not required to provide your own computer, for instance.

Almost like different countries have different laws.

[garbon]

I do not follow. I'm also unconvinced that airpods need to be standard kit. They've never come with any of my work phones.

Maybe they are for parliament employees.
But even if not, we accept that being bought earphones is acceptable, why then does it cross the line when you're spending 100 quid extra for nicer ones?

You are asking why there should be reasonable limits on expenditure?

I ask why 150 quid on something clearly necessary for doing the job is considered a scandalous extravagance.
Especially next to the usual budgets being handled by the government. Its not even a rounding error. Its below petty cash even.

Because it isn't necessary to have a costly option. There plenty of other cheaper headphones that can serve the same function. I know that as someone who has at times been provisioned with a work payphone.

I only waded in on this as it appeared it was being stated that we should be happy to fund airpod purchases by MPs.

Also it has come up because Labour decided to make an issue of expenses. I don't think it look well, particularly for the average wage owner, to see Labour going in on expenses while their own members don't buy their own apple products (a luxury brand mind you).

[garbon]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I (we) just swallow the cost like Internet or getting a better desk, since they are dual use (private and work), not to mention heating and electricity costs. But in our case this is still way cheaper than commuting (which was only partially funded by our employers), so won't complain. I wouldn't mind an MP's expense account though to cover these.

Same my employers have funded little but I think worth it not to lose time/money on commutes. Plus I can make better use of downtime.

[The Larch]

What do people on the board do when there is a piece of kit that is used for both work and private life?

I don't work    but my wife does and she pays for such things out of her own pocket, even though her phone, broadband bill, zoom/teams hardware etc etc are essential for work post covid.

I (we) just swallow the cost like Internet or getting a better desk, since they are dual use (private and work), not to mention heating and electricity costs. But in our case this is still way cheaper than commuting (which was only partially funded by our employers), so won't complain. I wouldn't mind an MP's expense account though to cover these.

You're getting screwed. I believe that over here courts have determined that companies are responsible for the share of the home expenses related to WFH for the equivalent of the employee's workday. IE, you company pays a share of your electricity, internet, heating and so on for the duration of your WFH workday. They also have to provide you with the necessary equipment for you to WFH, so you're not required to provide your own computer, for instance.

Almost like different countries have different laws.

Who would have thought so. 

Btw, I said courts in my post but it is actually coming from a law regulating WFH that was approved last year and that specifically doesn't cover Covid related WFH. Even though, companies during Covid were still required to provide their employees with the necessary material to WFH over here.