MT Comment & Humour What would YOUR fantasy cabinet be?
By Tony Watts - Editor - 19/06/2009
Assuming that this article is legible, and not covered by large sections of black ink, I’d like to ask you a question: who would be in your fantasy cabinet?
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Learning is good for you
Learning opens our minds and enriches our lives - so why have educational opportunities for older people been cut back? Wayne Bennett, manager of the lifelong learning centre Dillington House, sets out the case for a change of policy.
None of the above
Well, who got your vote in the Euro and local elections? It didn't take a rocket scientist to realise that Labour was going to get a thrashing. But it was gratifying that our reader survey, which over 1600 of you took part in, was right on the money - right back in April, when you gave your replies - it had predicted a big swing to the Tories... and also to the minority parties.
Terry Waite: I’ll stand to sort out Parliament
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I returned from a visit overseas the other day to be greeted with the first of several major explosions which continue as I write. If I mention clearing moats, horse manure and second homes you will know immediately to what I am referring.
The politics of perks
You couldn’t make it up. Well that’s not strictly true. If our MPs had put half as much ingenuity and genuinely creative thinking into their policies as they did into their expenses claims, we’d now be a very prosperous country.
No expenses spared for our hard working MPs...
It's no time to be an MP, what with the public and media baying for Parliament's collective blood. There they all are, trying hard to remember which lobby they've been told to go into and vote by their Whips, and everyone is saying they're on the make just because they've been ordering manure, or having their wisteria cut back, at the taxpayer's expense. They must be crying into their nightly bottle of Chateau Lafite.
But I guess, given the choice, I'd probably prefer to be an MP rather than someone who has lost their job in the recession and is faced with losing their home; or a pensioner living below the poverty line.
We all have our weaknesses
We all have our weaknesses, says Terry Waite, and I am now, for the first time in print going to reveal one of mine
Stop the discrimination
Promises to end discrimination against older people aren’t enough, argues Michelle Mitchell, Charity Director for Age Concern and Help the Aged. We need a solid commitment from the Government - and you can help achieve that.
Something funny for the weekend...
Customer: "I've been ringing 0800 2100 for two days and can't get through to enquiries, can you help?"
Operator: "Where did you get that number from, sir?"
Customer: "It was on the door to the Travel Centre."
Operator: "Sir, they are our opening hours."
We've been sent these gems which illustrate that, just sometimes, it's not the call centre's fault that misunderstandings arise.
Why can't we have free prescriptions?
It is now two years since prescription charges were abolished in Wales, and many people think it’s high time the scheme was extended to English patients as well. The Scottish Assembly plans to abolish all prescription charges by 2011, and the issue is currently under review in Northern Ireland. But for the UK, what about the estimated loss of revenue to the NHS - which is estimated at £435 million in the next financial year?
Suffering need not destroy
I am often asked if I continue to meet with the former hostages John McCarthy and Brian Keenan. John lives in England and we do meet from time to time but as Brian lives in Ireland he and I meet less frequently.
However, last week we were given a unique opportunity to all meet again as the BBC approached us and asked if we would take part in a Radio Four programme ‘The Reunion’.
Mature Times readers give researchers food for thought
We are what we eat. But are Britain’s older people getting a fair deal from government, food manufacturers and supermarkets? David Smith of the Welsh Food Alliance says that there’s room for a lot of improvement.
'No dogs, please' - you're on camera, ladies
Last year people attending a Gender Conference with the Federation of International Artists (FIA) in London gasped when they heard an actress read out a casting brief for a job which stipulated "No dogs, please!". Such an obviously insulting and sexist remark would have caused an outcry were it to have described race, creed or disability, but it is deemed fair game or even "funny" when applied to older people in the media - and especially older women.
Proof of age, please!
If you have a problem, just ask our readers! We asked you how to prove you are over 60 to enjoy discounts and benefits. Here are just some of your replies.
Excuse me, but can you prove your age?
Jayne Warren explores the idea of ID cards for the over 60s
