Originally Posted by Vinny van Gogh

£900 per year council tax in London......jeez mate you just move to you Sydney hovel from a London sub-standard hovel.
Our Manchester hovel costs me just under £1400 and as it is based of property value---It seems amazing that your London weigted Council tax was only £900. Anyway, some granny and her dog were appreciative i,m sure Must go now back to work and more taxes to help the down and outs

Originally Posted by chels

Hey, I didn't live in hovel in London! The postal address was actually Kent, but it came under the administration of a London borough. And because yourself and a couple of others were surprised at the level of tax I was paying, I thought I better check and make sure I hadn't dreamt it up...

Anyway, the council tax (Band D) was/is 1040 pounds. I was entitled to a single person discount, which also brought it down. It was a lovely area, really green thanks to lots of open spaces, good schools and facilities etc etc. Much as I don't like the Tories, because they had control of the council they kept the council tax down.

Sorry about going completely of subject, but I had to make that one clear!

Re being a half-decent barrister - I don't think you meant that as a compliment...

Originally Posted by bondipom

http://www.unhcr.org.uk/info/briefin...ues/myths.html

"Britain Tops the Asylum League"
Daily Express, 1/3/02 IN FACT…

• In 2001 the total number of people who applied for asylum was 88,300.
• This compares to 98,900 in 2000 and represents an 11% decrease.
• Of the industrialised countries Germany, with 88,363 applications in 2001 is the top destination for asylum seekers, followed by the UK and USA (86,394).
• Per capita, the UK, received far few asylum applications in 2001 than most other western European countries.
• The UK ranked tenth after Austria, Norway, Switzerland, Belgium, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands and Luxembourg.
• The number of asylum seekers the UK accepted is only 0.5% of its population

Originally Posted by jayr

And as opposed to backing up comments with a third source 'cut and paste', your knowledge of numbers of illegal entrants to the Uk is based on what? Your opinion? You counted them personally?

Originally Posted by chels

1. England can't have it both ways. Economic migrants were encouraged to come to the country when there have been shortages of workers.

2. There is still a need to fill many of the jobs in lower-paid sectors. Areas like London, where the population is falling, need more, not less people. Economic migrants are some of the very people who are willing to take such jobs.

3. The birth rate in England (and Australia) is falling. To keep population levels at a economically viable level, first world countries have to look to the developing world.

4. Why (including this post) are only non-white, or non-Christian migrants referred to as a 'problem'?

5. In the 1930s, the Daily Mail ran a similar crusade against Jews fleeing Nazi persecution. There were similar articles to the ones it runs today about how people were fabricating tales of hardship, persecution, etc and how, if they were allowed in, they would take over the English culture with their foreign ways.

6. Does the Daily Mail (and the Sun, Daily Telegraph etc) create the views or does it reflect what some of the public really thinks? My view is that it reflects the views of its readers - if they didn't want to read that rubbish, they wouldn't buy the paper, it would quickly go out of business, so it prints what they want to read and gives them the so-called facts to back their claims up.

7. One of the nicest men I know, who is like a surrogate dad to me, believes in this Daily Mail twaddle about asylum seekers, legal and illegal, and economic migrants, flooding the country, sponging off our benefits, ripping the tax payer, living in mansions etc. Funny thing is, he's never met such a person, neither have I. I've yet to meet anyone who has, apart from Daily Mail journalists! If such a nice bloke can hold these views, it doesn't surprise that so many less nice people are similarly inclined.

8. I'm no expert on this subject. I read about things, in both the left and right wing press and try to form an opinion. Which is all this post is - my opinion.

Originally Posted by jc_hoops

Thing is, I live over here and can tell you right now, these figures are crap, made up by a very scared Government. So, stop using numbers that you know nothing about and can not relate to, your on the other side of the planet !!

Just one thing, not to multi-culture in Bondi mate....but you know all the answers for multi-culture living, me thinks you talk out you a@se !!

Originally Posted by jc_hoops

Don't have to mate, I live here and have seen with my own eyes how this country has been over whelmed with them...

Originally Posted by jc_hoops

Don't have to mate, I live here and have seen with my own eyes how this country has been over whelmed with them...

Originally Posted by bondipom

You seem full of knowledge.

Originally Posted by jayr

Describe 'overwhelmed'.

Originally Posted by bondipom

With who?

Originally Posted by jc_hoops

Thing is, I live over here and can tell you right now, these figures are crap, made up by a very scared Government. So, stop using numbers that you know nothing about and can not relate to, your on the other side of the planet !!

Just one thing, not to multi-culture in Bondi mate....but you know all the answers for multi-culture living, me thinks you talk out you a@se !!

Originally Posted by jc_hoops

Better than full of "$hit"

Originally Posted by Koza

Outrageous!
How could anybody these days believe jews are persecuted in Russia?

Originally Posted by bondipom

I have backed up my arguments and this is all you can come up with.