text:
Lords: 25 February 2020
Lords Chamber
Immigration: Points-based System
Volume 802: debated on Tuesday 25 February 2020
The Minister of State, Home Office
(Baroness Williams of Trafford) (Con)
My Lords, with the leave of the House, I will repeat a Statement given by my right honourable friend the Home Secretary in the other place. The Statement is as follows:
"With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to make a Statement about the United Kingdom's new points-based immigration system. Last week, I announced our plans for a radical new approach that works in the interests of the British people. It will be a fair, firm and fundamentally different system in the control of the British Government that prioritises those who come to our country based on the skills they have to offer, not on the country they come from. It will enable the UK to become a magnet for the brightest and the best, with special immigration routes for those who make the biggest contribution. We will create new arrangements for new migrants who will fill shortages in our NHS, build the companies and innovations of the future and benefit the UK for years to come. As this Government restore our status as an independent sovereign nation, we will set out our own immigration standards and controls as an open, democratic and free country.
The Government have listened to the clear message from the British public and are delivering what people asked for in the 2016 referendum and the December 2019 general election. That includes ending free movement through the introduction of a single global immigration system that prioritises the skills that people have to offer, not where they come from, and restoring public trust in our immigration system with a system that truly works for this country. That is what the people voted for and we are a Government who will deliver on the people's priorities.
We are ending free movement: that automatic right for EU citizens to enter and reside in the UK, which does not apply to people from other countries. Now that we have left the EU, this ambitious Government of action are ending the discrimination between EU and non-EU citizens so that we can attract the brightest and best from around the world. Our country and people will prosper through one system and an approach in the control of the British Government—one that will also deliver the overall reduction in low-skilled immigration that the public have asked for.
Many of the values that define our great country originated from the huge benefits that immigration has brought to our nation throughout its history. People from every corner of this globe have made an enormous contribution to the fabric of our society. This is why at the heart of the new single global immigration system will be a focus on attracting talented people from around the world and on the contribution that they and their families will make, irrespective of their country of origin.
Last Wednesday, I published a policy statement setting out our new UK points-based immigration system, which will start operating from 1 January 2021 and work in the interests of the whole United Kingdom. This will be a single, comprehensive, UK-wide system for workers and students from around the world. Our points-based system will provide simple, effective and flexible arrangements and give top priority to the skilled workers we need to boost our economy and support our brilliant public services. All applicants will need to demonstrate that they have a job offer from an approved sponsor. The job must be at an appropriate skill level, and the applicant must be able to speak English and meet tougher criminality checks and standards.
We have acted on the advice of the independent Migration Advisory Committee to make the skilled workers route more flexible, as businesses asked for. We have reduced the required skill level to the equivalent of A-level qualifications and cut the general salary threshold to £25,600. The threshold for many NHS workers and teachers will be set in line with published pay scales to ensure that our public services do not suffer and we attract the talent that we need. Experienced workers who earn less than the general threshold—but not less than £20,480—may still be able to apply tradeable points to reward vital skills and bring us the talent that our economy needs. For example, a PhD in a relevant subject will earn extra points, with double the number of points for specialists in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Additional points will also be awarded for occupations that struggle to fill vacancies, and I am asking the Migration Advisory Committee to keep its list under regular review to ensure that it reflects the needs of the labour market. The Government will ensure that talented employees from overseas, on whom our great NHS relies, can come here to work and provide high-quality, compassionate care. That means we will prioritise qualified staff who seek to move to the UK to work in our NHS, as well as retaining our own national commitment, through the investments made by this Government, to invest in and train more brilliant nurses, doctors and health professionals in our own country. The new NHS visa system will provide a work visa with a fast-track decision, a larger dedicated advice service for applicants and reduced fees.
Like many other Members, I represent a partly rural constituency. Our commitment to British agriculture is clear. In addition to the reforms that I have outlined, I am quadrupling the size of the pilot scheme for seasonal workers in the horticulture sector to ensure that our farms, and our horticultural sector, continue to thrive. This is happening immediately.
We will continue to welcome international students who want to study in our world-class universities across the United Kingdom, and there will be no cap on their numbers. Those who apply will be accepted, provided they are sponsored by an approved educational institution, have the necessary academic qualifications and English-language aptitude, and are able to support themselves financially once in the United Kingdom. When they have finished their studies, our new graduate route will allow them to stay in the UK and work at any skill level for up to a further two years. Let me also take this opportunity to reassure the House that the immigration arrangements for members of the Armed Forces, musicians and performers are completely unchanged and these routes will operate as they do now.
In line with ending free movement, there will be no immigration route for lower-skilled work. No longer will employers be able to rely on cut-price EU workers. Instead, we are calling upon them to invest in British people, as well as investing in technology and skills to improve productivity, and to join the UK Government's mission to level up our skills and economic growth across our country. These changes are vital if we are to deliver a high-skill, high-wage and highly productive economy, and, because we have provided certainty in respect of the new immigration system, the economy and businesses have had time to adjust.
The proposals set out in our policy statement are just the start of our phased approach to delivering a new immigration system. We will continue to refine our immigration system and will build in flexibility where it is needed. Over time, more attributes for which points can be earned—such as previous experience and additional qualifications—may be added, which will allow us to respond effectively to the needs of the labour market and economy. However, to be effective, the system must also stay simple, so there will not be endless exemptions for low-paid, lower-skilled workers. We will not end free movement only to recreate it in all but name through other routes.
The world's top talent will continue to be welcomed in this country. From January, we will expand our existing global talent route to EU citizens, giving all the world's brightest and best the same streamlined access to the UK. Reforms that I introduced last week will allow us to attract even more brilliant scientists, mathematicians and researchers through that route to keep this country at the cutting edge of life-changing innovation and technology, and the points-based system will provide even more flexibility to attract the finest international minds with the most to offer.
Alongside the employer-led system, we will create a points-based unsponsored route to allow a limited number of the world's most highly skilled people to come here without a job offer, as part of the phased approach, if they can secure enough points. Our new, fair and firm system will send a message to the whole world that Britain is open for business, as we continue to attract the brightest and best from around the world, but with a system that the British Government have control over. Our blueprint for taking back control will transform the way in which people come to our country to work, study, visit or even join their family. Our new independence will strengthen border security, allowing us to reject insecure identity documents from newly arriving migrants. We will be able to do more to keep out criminals who seek to harm our people, communities and country.
Finally, I am pleased to say that, when it comes to EU citizens already in the UK, the EU Settlement Scheme—the biggest scheme of its kind ever in British history—has already received 3.2 million applications, resulting in 2.8 million grants of status. Through this system we will finally develop a true meritocracy, where anyone with the skills who wants to come here will have the ability to do so. This is just the start of a phased approach to delivering a new system. I will shortly be bringing forward an immigration Bill and radically overhauling and simplifying the complex Immigration Rules that have dominated the system for decades. For the first time in decades, the UK will have control over who comes here and how our immigration system works. I commend this Statement to the House".
Lord Rosser
(Lab)
I thank the Minister for repeating the Statement made yesterday in the House of Commons. In their separate policy statement, the Government said that the points system set out in the Statement the Minister has just repeated will reduce overall levels of migration, without telling us what reduction is expected. That leads one to suspect that this policy statement is a continuation of the Government's policy of talking big, in their eyes, about reducing migration to satisfy their own anti-immigration constituency, when the reality is the exact opposite.
Over the last decade, we have been told by the Government of their determination to reduce net migration. For many years, their objective was to bring it down to the tens of thousands. Net migration actually went up under Conservative Governments over the last decade, even though the Government had control over non-EU migration which, in each and every year since 2010, has been in excess of net migration from EU countries. In 2018 non-EU net migration, over which the Government have control, was in fact three times the rate of net migration from the EU.
Are the Government now telling us that EU net migration—which I believe was about 75,000 in 2018—was made up of large numbers of people who we really do not need in this country? How many people are the Government now saying came into this country in 2018 and 2019 who they now want to stop coming in, first from EU states and secondly from non-EU states, and who will no longer be allowed in under the points system referred to in the Statement?
We have been told that a distinction will be drawn between skilled and low-skilled workers, and that points will be awarded only if a laid-down salary level, skill level and level of ability in speaking English are achieved. The idea is apparently to keep out those whom the Government deem to be low-skilled workers, who appear to include most of those working in care services, retail and hospitality, construction and agriculture, for example. What percentage of jobs in the UK do the Government consider fall into the low-skilled category referred to in the policy statement? Perhaps the Government could tell us in their response.
The Government do not really believe that the jobs they deem to be low-skilled can be filled from people already in the UK, particularly since their claim that 20% of people aged between 18 and 65, who are not in full-time work, are currently available to do these jobs has been somewhat demolished by the facts. Presumably this is why in the Statement there are significant loopholes, such as declaring shortage occupations, to get around the criteria referred to for when the Government inevitably find that labour shortages are damaging the economy and they still need those so-called low-skilled workers, just as we have up to now.
The Statement is less than clear on, for example, the detailed application of the salary thresholds, the position of the families of those coming into the country, the position of those who wish to be self-employed and the criteria for acceptance of degrees under the points system. Presumably, these are issues on which the Government intend to say more later. What is clear, though, is that this points system does not have as its primary objective bringing into the country the people needed to fill the vacancies and shortages that we need to address, as should be the case. Instead, in order to draw this distinction between skilled and low-skilled, an elaborate admissions system will be created in a short time to be administered by a resource-stripped Home Office—a recipe for error, confusion and unfairness, while many people feel somewhat dismayed by the Government's view of the lack of importance or necessity of the much-needed jobs that they currently undertake.
I suspect the Government will soon learn that posturing with their changed immigration policy will no more work than their earlier posturing over getting net migration down to the tens of thousands. Even this Government will eventually have to recognise that the economic and social needs of the country must take priority in immigration policy. It is for that reason that the evidence suggests that a declared objective of reducing net migration by amounts as yet unstated and unknown will not be achieved by the Government's intended points-based immigration system, any more than was the commitment to reduce net migration to the tens of thousands. Only a reduction in the necessity of recruiting people from outside the UK will do that—something that I have no doubt the Government, in their heart of hearts, already know.
Baroness Hamwee
My Lords, I too thank the Minister for repeating the Statement, which included the claim that the points-based system will provide "simple and flexible arrangements". Can they be both? To me, "flexible" suggests some sort of discretion. Or is that about the tradability of points—something on which I for one reserve judgment?
We may understand just how workable this will be when we have details, so I would like to check with the Minister whether the new arrangements will be incorporated in primary legislation, or will they be part of rules? In other words, will Parliament be able to have a good say on them? Indeed, will it mean primary legislation with wide ministerial powers to make changes? I am just checking; your Lordships understand.
Yesterday in the Commons, the Home Secretary said the Government
"will look at the labour market as a whole across key sectors."—[Official Report, Commons, 24/2/20; col. 44.]
Was that not done before arriving at the points-based system?
What assumptions have been made about emigration? Can the Minister confirm that there is not a pool of economically inactive people available to take up the low-skilled jobs, about which there has been much discussion? Employers have been told they will have to adjust how they operate. How have they responded?
Much has been and will be said about carers. One of those who have spoken is my noble friend Lady Thomas of Winchester, who is in hospital at the moment but emailed me this morning saying that she is "absolutely incandescent", so I said I would quote her email. She says:
"I am absolutely incandescent about the stupid lack of flexibility for care workers … What may not be realised is the extent to which refugee families settled here (for example from war-torn Somalia) have family members scattered all over Europe who now can travel freely here. They are hard-working carers and often regard those they care for as part of their own family. It is just so shaming that we are turning our back on such caring people, labelling them as 'low-skilled'."
I am sure she could have gone on, and I am sure other noble Lords can and will.
It is not possible, obviously, to mention today all the sectors that will be affected, but I want to mention the creative industries—performers and so on—because we are told there will be no change to existing routes. However, many agents and promoters have previously engaged EU performers only. They will need to get into the bureaucratic world of certificates, sponsorship and so on, and they are asking: what will be the "right talent"? I put that term in quotes, as it is the term the Government use and want to encourage. All this and more is very relevant to our economy. How easy will it be for UK creatives to work elsewhere? It will be quite reasonable for there to be reciprocity between nations; if we are negative about people coming in, it will not be surprising if others are too.
There has been much discussion about the lack of time to get the new arrangements in place. Is there any confidence, outside Government, that the changes can be coped with by the end of the year?
Finally, the Migration Advisory Committee has been very forceful about the need for good data. Its recent report says:
"Good data and evaluation are vital to ensure that effective monitoring is in place and necessary adjustments are made in a timely fashion. Without it, there is a danger that the UK, unable to learn from the past, continues to lurch between an overly open and overly closed work migration policy without ever being able to steer a steady path."
Can the Minister comment? Good evaluation is certainly needed if the Government are to begin to counter the criticisms of what I saw yesterday in the press described as the Government's
"self-defeating tunnel-vision, exceptionalism and xenophobia."
Baroness Williams of Trafford
My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Rosser, and the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, for the points they have raised. The noble Lord, Lord Rosser, started off by talking about our aspiration, or rather our intention, to reduce overall numbers but not having any idea of what those numbers will be. We have been quite clear that we are not getting into a numbers game, but what we are getting into is a new immigration system where the British people know that the numbers coming in are under democratic control. That is the important thing here.
Both the noble Lord and the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, talked about low-skilled workers and, more particularly, care workers. We have been clear—and I was clear in the Statement—that we will not implement a dedicated route for low-skilled workers and that UK businesses will have to adapt, upskill workers and not rely on cheap labour from the EU. Care workers can, with an A-level, or the equivalent, be able to come to the UK under our new skilled worker route. The salary levels have reduced as well.
The noble Lord, Lord Rosser, talked about loopholes through the shortage occupation list. We have recognised that there is a high demand for certain skills, both in the regions of the UK and in the UK as a whole. I think it is a very sensible suggestion to create that list so that those people can come quickly and efficiently to fill those skill gaps.
The noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, talked about creatives. The system will not change for the creative sector as it is as present. It will be exactly the same system, but she makes the point that EU versus non-EU will now be one and the same: it will just be non-UK.
The noble Baroness also made a good point about the MAC having access to good data. It will give regular opinions, behind which will have to be good data on what it proposes next. I take her point that the effective monitoring of data will be important in informing our future thinking. She also asked whether the new system will be in legislation or rules: it will be both. I hope that answers the question.
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
My Lords—
Lord Green of Deddington
(CB)
Noble Lords
Cross Bench!
My Lords, the Minister will be well aware that this is a massive reform of the immigration system. Does she recall that the Migration Advisory Committee has reported that 16 million UK jobs will be open to new or increased international competition from the whole world? There must therefore be a risk of an enormous inflow of workers, well beyond anything that the Government are expecting. What precautions are the Government going to take against such an event happening, as we saw in the Blair years and when we opened our borders to eastern Europe? It could well happen; precautions must be taken.
The noble Lord is correct to raise this. We have to be careful of the unintended consequences of any new system. In my response to the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, I said that there would be regular reviews and advice to the Government from the MAC. As with any new system, it will be under regular review. At the heart of what the Government want to do is taking control of our borders and immigration system.
My Lords, the noble Lord is right to suggest that the Government's policy will not hold. It will certainly not hold in the health and social care sector; it is only a question of when they will be forced to reverse their policy. Does the Minister acknowledge that health and social care has relied on migration ever since it started? The 50,000 nurse target that the Government are committed to depends on thousands of nurses coming to this country. I accept that they can come under this new policy, but what about the care sector? According to the Minister yesterday, in 2018 the ludicrous MAC said that the problems of the care sector should be solved by the sector itself investing in,
"making jobs in social care worthwhile".—[Official Report, 24/2/20; col. 9.]
Have noble Lords ever heard such nonsense? The care sector is collapsing. There is no resource there—no funding for training and recruitment. The Government are saying that they are prepared to see the whole sector collapse as a result of this ludicrous policy. It is only a question of time before the Minister comes back to tell the House that she will reverse this policy; she will have to.
I am not sure whether or not the noble Lord is agreeing that we should allow more migrant workers in health and social care. He will know that we have had a 150% increase in migration from non-EU countries to health and social care. I am well aware that we have relied on migration for health and social care for many years. It is the reason I am in this country; both my parents are migrant doctors. We are lucky indeed to have them, generally, in this country. I agree with the noble Lord that we have to have the funding to underpin making extra places for doctors and nurses in this country. The Government have announced a huge increase in funding for the healthcare sector. It has always been our intention that, when we leave the EU, EU and non-EU migrants will be treated exactly the same. The competition will be there to get the best and brightest people, from all parts of the world, for our NHS.
Lord Lang of Monkton
My Lords, while I welcome this new development in immigration policy from my noble friend, in particular the flexibility to which she referred, which creates huge opportunities, I believe that this is an important policy that must be controlled and delivered from the centre, from the United Kingdom Government. Nevertheless, there are so many wide variations in different parts of the United Kingdom of a social, economic and demographic nature that it is very important to take this new opportunity that we have with the flexibility the policy allows to take account of these circumstances and to try as fully as we can to meet them. Therefore, will my noble friend consult with the Governments of the devolved parliaments and assemblies to find out the facts that they able to provide and also to test their opinions as to how the Government can best help them in getting a policy that will bind the United Kingdom together?
I thank my noble friend for raising that question. He is absolutely right that we should be mindful of regional variation, regional demand and regional supply. In fact, the shortage occupation list that was drawn up does not look much different in Scotland than it does in the UK as a whole. But he is right to make the point that, in terms of engagement, we should listen to the devolved Administrations and be mindful of what they say. We would not want them to be unable to have the workforce that they need in their areas.
The Earl of Clancarty
My Lords, I do not understand when the Minister says that musicians, for example, will be treated exactly the same. If they are going to be treated as though they are from non-EEA countries, it will be a massive change; it will not be the same at all. The noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, was absolutely right to mention reciprocity. Of course, what we will do to the EU will be done to us. From the point of view of the creative industries, which are so important culturally and economically, it is hugely disappointing to see in paragraph 25 of the policy statement:
"We will not be creating a dedicated route for self-employed people."
The effect on our own UK workers will be devastating if there is not a dedicated route, unencumbered by the need for sponsorship and allowing onward movement, among many other things, not only in the arts and the creative industries but in the UK services sector more widely, for which Europe is the major market.
I take the noble Earl's point on board and I will try to get a fuller answer on the creative industries, because I recognise the point that both he and the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, make. As I was on my feet, I was thinking that maybe it was because of the short time for which performers might want to come to the UK. But I will get a fuller answer for the two noble Lords and put a copy in the Library.
Lord Dholakia
My Lords, it is estimated that there are more than 10,000 Indian restaurants in this country, and between them they employ more people than the British coal, steel or shipbuilding industries. During the referendum campaign, Priti Patel launched an appeal urging voters to save our curry houses by leaving the European Union. She then said that it was "manifestly unfair and unjust" that south Asian chefs should have to deal with a "second-class immigration system". Can the Minister explain how the proposed points system will assist in recruiting chefs from the Indian subcontinent?
I think the point that my right honourable friend was making was that people from the Indian subcontinent were less advantaged when wanting to come to this country than those from the EU, and this now levels out the playing field. Indeed, in this country we have some world-class chefs and people with fantastic skills, who, on the points-based system, I am sure would not only command decent salaries but have the requisite skills to come to this country.
Baroness Lister of Burtersett
My Lords, most carers are women, which is one reason their work is undervalued and treated as not skilled. According to the Women's Budget Group, the proposals will discriminate against migrant women generally, because women are underrepresented in privileged occupations and therefore less likely to reach the points threshold. I am sure the Minister will agree that women are just as likely as men to be among the Government's beloved "brightest and best". Given that the Government are obliged to have due regard to the impact of their policies on equality, when will they publish an equality impact assessment? If these proposals, as seems likely, demonstrate an adverse gender impact, will they rethink them?
Of course, the Government, in whatever legislation they bring forward, publish an equality impact assessment, as the noble Baroness knows. But I have to agree with her point about how women are adversely affected by policy. Immigration alone will not be the solution to some of the problems that women in the care sector face. The point I made about employers upskilling workers and not relying on cheap labour—I think that would be to the benefit of women in the care sector. I want women to be more valued in the work they do.
Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
My Lords, my noble friend the Minister made reference to the uncapped and fast-tracked global talent visa. It has been widely welcomed by the science and innovation sector, which will be critical for our post-Brexit success. Will she also undertake to look into the problems faced by world-leading experts who are seeking to come to speak at academic conferences and universities in the UK? Such short-term collaborations are critical to scientific knowledge exchange and the UK's reputation as an innovation nation, and any immigration form that seeks to attract the brightest and the best will have to get this right.
I totally concur with my noble friend. On 20 February—only a few days ago—we launched the new fast-track arrangements, managed by UK Research and Innovation, which enable UK-based research projects that have received recognised prestigious grants and awards to recruit that top global talent. However, as she also says, we want those experts to be able to come and furnish us with the benefit of their knowledge: I will most certainly take that back.
Lord Hannay of Chiswick
My Lords, will the Minister answer a couple of questions about the impact of this points-based system on the higher education sector? First, she said in the Statement that there would be an English test: is that test to be carried out by the Home Office or by the higher education establishments, which are required to offer a place to a student before they can get a visa? Secondly, I think she said, but perhaps she can confirm this, that the points-based system will not apply to higher education. However, my reading of the Statement is that it will apply. What I cannot understand, for the life of me, is how on earth students coming to our universities can acquire the points that are required. They certainly cannot state that they are going to get a particular income. They are not getting an income at all: they are coming with a large amount of money in their hands to pay to us. Will she answer those two points about higher education, and also perhaps say how we are going to test whether they have enough funds to see them through a three- or four-year course?
A student coming to this country will have to demonstrate that they have the funds to pay for the course and be sponsored by the relevant university or higher education establishment. I think that point has long been clear. As for a student coming to this country having the English language, I have a feeling it depends on the course, but I will check that for the noble Lord and return to him on that point. Of course, the student can now stay for an additional two years after they have qualified in order to find work, which obviously makes the system far more generous than it was before.
Lord Haselhurst
My Lords, given that, for more than a century, our catering and hospitality services have been heavily staffed by young Europeans, to the apparent satisfaction of our own people and tourist visitors to the United Kingdom alike, are the Government absolutely confident that the importance of this sector to our economy will in no way be impaired by the new system?
My Lords, we have made it clear that it is incumbent on UK businesses to start to upskill the people who work for them and not to rely on cheap labour from the EU and beyond, as they did before. That is the challenge to businesses, but I take my noble friend's point—I can hear the tutting—and obviously we will keep the system under review. It is a brand new system and the MAC will, of course, be advising us on it as we proceed.
Lord Dubs
My Lords, does the Minister accept that the words that she has uttered today will have given little comfort to the many employers in this country who are worried about having enough people to work and do the necessary jobs that they have? The Statement referred to talented employees and she talked about people with A-levels and so on. Is there not a danger that we will simply be denuding key industries of the people we need? Is there not a terrible danger to the health service, particularly in social care? I am not aware of anything in what the Minister suggested that would make us feel that social care is going to work. It is on the point of collapsing anyway, and it will collapse even further if there are no people willing to do the job. Of course, the answer is to have a whacking big pay increase for people in social care, but that is not for this afternoon: it is for another occasion. I implore the Minister to understand that employers are desperately worried about what is going to happen, and they have not had any assurances in what she said.
My Lords, in the coming months, we will engage widely with different sectors and, I hope, allay their fears. It is important to say, though, that employers should be moving away from reliance on the UK's immigration system as an alternative to investment in staff retention, particularly in areas such as technology and innovation. There are two things that run alongside each other: immigration must be considered alongside investment in, and development of, the UK's domestic workforce. That includes—and this relates to the noble Lord's point—valuing care staff and paying them a decent wage.
Lord Shipley
My Lords, will the changes being made result in good-quality fruit and vegetables rotting in the ground because they cannot be picked? What assessment have the Government made of that?
My Lords, on 19 February, the Government published a new policy statement, to which noble Lords have referred. As part of this, we announced the expansion of the seasonal workers' pilot, which raised the quota for this year from 2,500 to 10,000 places. It is not designed to meet the full labour needs of the horticultural industry; it is designed to test the effectiveness of our immigration system and to support UK growers during peak production periods, while retaining robust immigration control and ensuring that the impact on local communities and public services is kept to a minimum. It must be said that seasonal workers can stay in the UK for up to six months in any 12-month period.
My Lords, I have made the point before, and the Government have recognised, that our science and innovation sector is world-class. That cannot be achieved without a team, and that includes a lab technician. Yet the Government, through their immigration policy, do not recognise that, although they are skilled workers, they are not paid up to £20,000. Is it not bizarre that we train our own people as lab technicians and pay them less £20,000 but we cannot accept through our immigration system somebody who is paid the same amount of money because it is less than £20,000? The same applies to computer scientists: we have a great shortage in cybersecurity of low-level, trained, skilled people who will, in due course, move up, but initially they do not earn £20,000.
New entrants will receive a 30% reduction on the salary threshold that would otherwise be required for their occupation. Given that the skills level has come down to A-level, I think a new technician entrant would meet the salary threshold.
Baroness Masham of Ilton
My Lords, does the Minister agree that only very rich disabled people will be able to afford help? What will happen to all the thousands of disabled people who are not super-rich? Does it not mean that disabled people will be discriminated against?
My Lords, the care system in this country ensures that people on low incomes have access to the care that they need. I do not know whether the noble Baroness is referring to immigrants to this country—
I am asking about disabled people living in the community.
Disabled people living in the community have access to a means-tested care system which has long been established in this country.


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INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana Pacers hit 19-three-point shots and never trailed as they pummeled the Los Angeles Lakers 136-94 Tuesday night. At a deficit of 42-points it's the worst loss Lakers' forward Lebron James has ever suffered in his NBA career. Bojan Bogdonovic led seven...
New England Patriots Continue Dynasty With Sixth Super Bowl Win
ATLANTA -- The dynasty continues for the New England Patriots. It was the lowest-scoring Super Bowl ever with the defense coming up big as they edged the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 at Super Bowl 53 in Atlanta. Stephon Gilmore intercepted Rams quarterback Jared Goff with 4:17 left to...
Conor Daly Lands Ride With Andretti Autosport For Indianapolis 500
INDIANAPOLIS -- IndyCar journeyman driver Conor Daly will have a ride and a shot to make the field of 33 for the Indianapolis 500 this year. On Wednesday, Andretti Autopsort confirmed that Daly will drive the team's fifth entry for the big race coming up in May. "It's a...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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This obscure London memorial is filled with heart-wrenching tales of everyday heroism.
Michael Calcagno
Tucked away in a small park in London is a wall of plaques dedicated to acts of everyday heroism.
In Postman's Park, nestled among Japanese musa basjoos and dove trees, is a gallery with many small tiles lining a 50-foot brick wall.
It's called the Memorial to Heroic Self-Sacrifice, and the 54 plaques each commemorate the brave acts of men, women, and children who perished trying to save others' lives.
Victorian sculptor George Frederic Watts first proposed the idea for the memorial in a letter to The Times for Queen Victoria's Jubilee in 1887.
"The character of a nation as a people of great deeds is one, it appears to me, that should never be lost sight of," Watts wrote in his letter.
George Frederic Watts. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
According to the Everyday Heroes of Postmans' Park, Watts combed through newspapers for decades searching for small stories about ordinary people who sacrificed their own lives to save others.
Plaques are displayed along a memorial wall in Postman's Park. Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.
Eventually, the wall came to life in 1900 in a stunning and emotional display of selfless acts.
A general view of Postman's Park. Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.
The memorial was designed to be as simple as possible so as not to detract from the great deeds recorded upon it.
The austere wooden gallery was designed by Sir Ernest George.
And some of the beautiful blue-and-white tile plaques were designed by famed tile designer William de Morgan.
Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.
In his letter, Watts said he was partly inspired by the story of Alice Ayres, who saved three children's lives by pushing a feather bed out a second floor window of a home that was on fire and tossing the children to safety. Tragically, she fell during her escape and died at the hospital.
Ayres' story became the first plaque of the memorial.
Photo by Jez Nicholson/Flickr.
The ages of those memorialized range from 8 to 61 years old.
Henry Bristow, the youngest person on wall, died saving his sister's life from a fire in 1890.
And each story is astonishing.
Like Mary Rogers, a stewardess who gave up her life belt to save another person when her ship, the Stella, sank.
In 1884, Samuel Rabbeth, a doctor, willingly risked his life to try and save a child from diphtheria. Ultimately, he succumbed to the disease along with the boy.
In total, the wall commemorates 61 lives lost during the Victorian era.
They are a humbling reminder of the risks, perils, and dangers society faces everyday and the people who bravely step up to protect others.
We need these shining examples of selflessness, heroism, and self-sacrifice to remind us of the humanity in the world.
Watts wrote in his 1887 letter that "the material prosperity of a nation is not an abiding possession; the deeds of its people are."
After Watts death in 1904, his wife Mary continued the project until 1929 when interest in the memorial subsided.
A new plaque was installed in 2009, though, to honor Leigh Pitt, a man who drowned in 2007 while saving 9-year-old Harley Bagnall-Taylor in Gallions Lake.
It was the first plaque to be added in over 80 years.
Though society, culture, and technology has changed significantly since Watts proposed the idea for this memorial 129 years ago, the need for shining examples of everyday heroism has not.
In recent years, there has been no shortage of heroic deeds performed by the average person across the globe. We are constantly reminded through the news, our Facebook feeds, and through Twitter that people are sacrificing their lives to help others.
But where is their memorial?
Who do you know who deserves to be memorialized in a public monument for the sacrifice to save innocent lives?
community heroes helping others sacrifice memorial sbuxsafe everyday heroes saving others memorial of heroic self-sacrifice


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An Interview with Jim Webber, Chief Scientist at Neo Technology
08th July, 2019: Interview
eSynergy Solution's Community Manager, Adele Green talks with Jim Webber, Chief Scientist at Neo Technology about graph databases, community and the future of Neo4J.
Tell us about yourself?
I'm Neo4j's Chief Scientist. Previously I was a Director at ThoughtWorks where I worked a lot on RESTful systems and large-scale distributed systems. In the old days I worked with marvellous Geordie startup Arjuna Technologies just after I was sprung from a wonderful life as an academic.
Why Graph databases?
For two reasons. Firstly they are powerful. The first time I happened to bump into graphs (an early version of Neo4j in fact), it allowed me to solve a problem (upsell and recommendations for Telco) in a matter of hours when we thought it would have taken months with traditional tech. Secondly, it really irritated the old skool' types who had planned to take months to deliver that functionality. What's not to like?
Why did you join Neo4j?
That was a tough call. Prior to Neo4j I was working with ThoughtWorks, a rather splendid IT consultancy and I felt pretty much at home there.
But I had started to see the potential for graphs and had used Neo4j in several substantial PoCs. I'd also been a contributor to Neo4j during that time. The Neo4j founders raised a bit of capital, and asked me if I'd like to switch to full time contributions. Oh, and with a massive pay cut :-/ I accepted, and 4.5 years later the rest is history.
What makes Neo4j's offering to the market so special?
From a business point of view, it's the first, most mature only enterprise-grade (ACID transactional) graph database out there now. From a technical point of view, the Cypher query language opens up graph theory to a wide range of developers and analysts. That's truly powerful. SQL never lived up to its promise in that respect, and the other NoSQL languages – despite being competent – really only give you key-value interactions. But by opening up graphs through the humane Cypher language something extraordinary has happened: a stampede of people wanting to make sense of their connected data.
Could you give us the best example you have seen of Neo4j benefit a business?
Anywhere that you have connected data, which is pretty much everywhere. For example you could use Neo4j to provide an MDM-style meta-index over your existing systems, bringing all the disparate data together under one umbrella. Or you could tackle something domain specific: fraud detection, recommendations, routing, and their equivalent algorithms in many domains are easily expressed and exploited as graph problems.
When would you not use Neo4j?
Graph databases depend on structure. While that structure can be as uniform or irregular as you like, structure is what makes them powerful and fast. In a totally unstructured domain (of which there are very few), graphs aren't all that useful. But once you have learned, inferred, or extracted structure from that domain then it's graphs all the way.
What's the best way for an organisation or individuals to get involved?
Neo4j has an enormous community worldwide. Here in London where I'm based our meetup group is in excess of 2,000 people. We meet several times per month. There are two sessions at the Neo4j office in Bankside where we do smaller hands-on workshops (e.g. language specific things or domain specific things) and we do a large meetup on the last Wednesday of every month at SkillsMatter where our community members tell their stories.
If you're local that's an easy way to get stuck in. We also buy the beers afterwards 🙂
There are lots of these meetups around the world, there's likely to be one near you. If not, then we have a very active community on StackOverflow and a lively and friendly Google group too.
What's the best piece of advice you can give a company who are looking to utilise a graph database in order to make their project successful?
Talk to us! Graph tech is still relatively new, and we've a lot of experience to share. Don't wait until you're confused or stuck, talk to us early on and let us help you. Neo4j is awesome stuff and you can be very successful with it, but learn from our mistakes, don't make your own.
Oh, and read the book that Ian Robinson and I wrote with Emil Eifrem. It's called Graph Databases, published by O'Reilly. You can get a free, full ebook version at http://graphdatabases.com
Where do see the future of graph databases and Neo4j?
We're going big. The analysts are saying that within two years a quarter of large enterprises will have deployed Graph Databases, and since Neo4j is 80+% of that market it means a lot of people will be using Neo4j. The category itself is expanding enormously both in Neo4j's space (graph storage and query) and in the graph processing space (think: Hadoop for graphs). This is a massive growth area for data in the coming decade.
As a science-bod in Neo4j, this means we're going to be doing some amazing and challenging R&D work to keep up with the ambition of our users!
What are your hobbies and interests?
I think I used to have some of those. But as a dad to a 2 year-old, mostly I like mucking about with my little fella. In the past I liked snowboarding and paragliding but I don't think the little guy's quite ready for that yet!
If you are looking for a new opportunity or looking to hire the best talent for your team get in touch:
Adele Green, Community and Partner Manager @ eSynergy Solutions
Tel: 0207 444 4085 Email: adele.green@esynergy-solutions.co.uk
Tags: neo4j, jim webber, interview
21 August, 2020 in Blog
Developing a Robust Data Strategy
The Biggest Misconception in Application Security


1. Size – mine is a bit smaller.
2. I used sand instead of polyester fiberfill inside. I like the feel of sand and supposedly it keeps your pins sharp! This did make attaching the buttons on the front and back to one another kind of funky because the "fill" does not stay in one place.
3. I free motion stitched a design on fabric rather than stamping.
It's cute but not as cute as the chicken pincushions I made a few weeks ago!


We had quite a crowd for the April Kokomo support group. With this great turnout, I asked myself, "What makes a meeting worth attending?" When it comes to this group, I think I know the answer—the people. First off, the group couldn't ask for better leaders. Laura and Woody Duncan care about people, something that is evident if you spend just a few minutes with them. They truly represent the concept of "paying it forward" when it comes to learning from personal experiences and helping others. The attendees were also kind and cohesive. It was clear that many felt connected to each other. If you are new to the group, I encourage you to keep coming and seek out those connections. Thanks to Laura and Woody for all you have done and continue to do for St.Vincent patients. And thanks to all of those who attended the meeting and participated in our discussion.
Before surgery, patients fear complications and failure. After surgery the fear of weight regain and failure often persists.
Letting go of fear is sometimes scary. That sounds odd, huh? But it's true. We're often afraid to let go of fear because if we do we might become lackadaisical, overconfident, or lose sight of our goals. But think about it. Is a nervous, fearful driver a good driver? Absolutely not. It's also true that a distracted, careless or overconfident driver is dangerous on the roads. Likewise, the secret to doing well after bariatric surgery is to be mindful and conscientious, not scared. You can let go of fear by being prepared, developing daily disciplines, and surrounding yourself with people that hold you accountable and encourage you. If you have the tools, a plan to use them, and people around who will help, there is no need to fear.
The longer I am in this field the more I appreciate our need for support. Doing something as difficult as weight management is almost impossible without the help of others. This group reminded me that going solo makes the weight loss journey difficult and sometimes lonely. Working alongside others helps us laugh more often, makes the tears dry faster, and allows us to sometimes walk a path previously paved by others.
One person who was on the fence about having surgery attended group. I loved her honesty--she told everyone she wasn't ready for surgery yet. Several group members eloquently communicated that we shouldn't have to be "convinced" that surgery is right for us. Others can inform us of the potential benefits, but in the end it's a commitment that each person needs to make. You decide if it's worth it. Don't be strong armed by physicians, family members or anyone else.
Lastly, a soft-spoken man, who has overcome a major life hardship, informed me that sometimes new habits are easier than we think. For people who have battled their weight for many years, confidence can be quite low. However, bariatric surgery is a powerful tool. If you consistently "work the program" habits are formed. Once we form good habits some behaviors become somewhat automatic. Be patient. Stay persistent.


As an individual, the first thing I'd suggest doing is protecting yourself and your family. What I mean by that is don't let your kids or yourself share too much on social media. Be careful about what you post and be mindful of how much information you and your family are sharing.
Parents might want to consider monitoring their children. Terrorist groups usually prey on teenagers, especially males from the age of 16 and above. They take interest in teens that may have a social disorder such as: fitting in, being bullied at school, etc.
Another precaution you can take is, if you're military, do not post valuable information about military deployments or your military occupation.
I also suggest not dressing out your car, your spouse's car, or your children's car with your military job. For example, if you're infantry, don't put cross-rifles all over your car or your truck. That could potentially put your family in danger. Then there are the license plates. Yes, I'm a purple heart recipient but I don't have it on my plates, and I suggest others leave it off too. And also, don't put your MOS on either.
When you're dealing with terrorism, you're not just dealing one person. Terrorists are backed by people with big bank accounts. For example, Osama Bin Laden had deep pockets from being a very successful businessman in Sudan, and he bought his way back into Afghanistan through the Taliban.
Terrorists get money from many different sources. Look at ISIS for example. They've been on the radar since the 90s but they weren't as big of a threat until Al Qaeda was defeated in 2003.
The Al Qaeda higher-ups joined with ISIS because they had money and were then accepted by ISIS leaders. One of the best ways to defeat terrorist organizations is to keep them from getting money.
As a country, we need to take the necessary precautions to prevent terrorist attacks. We need to not be complacent and we need to be aware of our surroundings.
We need to protect our kids online and watch what they are doing because there's always a story about a teenager being recruited by ISIS or another terrorist organization. Keep in mind, one person's freedom fighter is another person's terrorist.
We also need to take action against people who commit terrorism in the United States. We can only hope that our new presidency takes different measures to fight it than the ones before.


How to say "All you have to do is sign your name here" in German?
1. Sie brauchen weiter nichts zu tun als hier zu Unterschreiben.
Q: How to say I'd like a hotel reservation. in German?
Q: How to say I prefer a hotel by the airport. in German?
Q: How to say Sir, you are not allowed to park your car here. in German?


When Sue Jin Kang walks into the dance studio at Stuttgart Ballet there is a ripple of attention. The younger dancers stretch further, reach harder and find that special place within that allows them to be more than they already are. The more experienced principal stars of the company allow their eyes to waft over this elegant creature swathed in lavender.
These are the final, precious years of Kang's career as a dancer. At 47, she has continued beyond the place most ballerinas find a comfort zone. Slim and elegant, Kang has the strength of a panther and the fragility of a butterfly. Watch her at the barre — you see intense concentration. From the moment she enters the studio to warm up for class, Kang's love of ballet takes over, the struggle for physical perfection hidden behind those deep, dark eyes. The way she approaches class offers insight into the power of her dance. Every move is finished to the fingertips. There is nothing false.
Stuttgart Ballet's artistic director Reid Anderson and former artistic director Marcia Haydée have been huge influences. "I was privileged to work with them both as my directors. They have been my role models and mentors, Marcia especially as a dancer and Reid who has helped me so much to enter this new role of leadership." She also mentions Georgette Tsinguirides, John Cranko's choreologist and the keeper of his legacy, who taught Kang his ballets.
Kang has danced most of the major roles associated with Stuttgart. Her Tatiana in John Cranko's Onegin is a deeply etched portrait of a woman tormented by what might have been. When she renounces her lover, Onegin, in the ballet's final scene, she not only tears his missive of love in tatters, she rips her heart open with grief. In John Neumeier's Die Kameliendame (Lady of the Camellias), when she lies back on the chaise longue, life ebbing from her fragile body, there is such regret, such sorrow, it breaks your heart. When she dances the dark heart of Kenneth MacMillan's Song of the Earth, you understand what happens when a brilliant ballerina collides with a visceral dance role.
In 2016, Sue Jin Kang will give her farewell performances in Stuttgart. She accepted the directorship of the Korean National Ballet, a company of 65 dancers (80 if you include trainees and associates), in 2014, and since then has been dividing her time between Seoul and Stuttgart.
The Korean National Ballet has an extensive repertoire that includes everything from Rudolf Nureyev's The Sleeping Beauty to Mats Ek's Carmen, to works by Balanchine and Grigorovich. With her many ballet connections, Kang will also have access to new and notable works.
Kang notes that the world of ballet has changed since she first began dancing.


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An unnamed marketing manager from Bukit Mertajam, Malaysia has been able to upgrade to a new Apple iPhone each year since 2013 without having to pay a penny for the latest model. However, we wouldn't recommend the method used by this gentleman because it involves illegal insurance fraud. Apparently, the 34 year old would file a fraudulent claim with his insurance firm every year.
According to a story published the other day, the scheme unraveled after the man alleged that two robbers on a motorcycle had stolen his Apple iPhone XS Max, an Apple iPad Pro and an Apple MacBook Pro along with other valuables. The U.S. dollar equivalent of his losses came to approximately $2,618. But when the cops investigated further, they found a pattern. The police chief of Central Seberang Perai said that he discovered that every police report filed by the "victim" showed the loss of an iPhone.
After interrogating the man, he finally confessed to his annual iPhone upgrade plan. He would sell his iPhone and other Apple devices on the lowyat.net forum and then claim that the iPhone he just sold, along with the other products, had been stolen or lost. After receiving money from his insurance company for these items, he would use the cash to buy the latest iPhone and other new Apple devices. The man told police that he sold the iPhone XS Max for the equivalent of $1,196 USD.
We wonder about this man's insurance company. After all, what are the odds that an iPhone owner would have his phone lost or stolen for so many years in a row.
Yep, plenty of them in forums and these comments sections. Insurance companies need to do further investigations on Phone losses along with police departments. Treat them like car losses.
There are rich people who do these kind of malpractice. I also know coworkers that have their iphones "broken" or "accidentally slipped" from their pockets when they hear a new iphone news. It's not about rich or poor, it's about gadget addiction.
Apple is known to steal, so they say the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.
Samsung (or any android oem) would kill to have this much lust for their products.
You're still reaching I see lol.
What kind of insurance company doesn't blacklist the IMEI? His biggest mistake was being greedy and selling his old phone. He would have been better off tossing it in the river.
He sold the XS max, while still collecting insurance for it. Essentially double dipping. At least that's what I gather he did.
Well good for him. He wanted something and he did what it took to get it. Isn't that what they teach us? Work for what you want?


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Supreme Ruler 2020
a game by BattleGoat Studios
See also: Strategy
How Did We allow the country to get like this? Skyrocketing food prices, you can't walk down a street for getting stabbed, we live under an unjust system of double and triple taxation, CCTV cameras ask us to moderate our language if there are ladies present, and 42 days is deemed an acceptable amount of time to lock someone up without telling them why -perhaps their ID card didn't have the correct "Not A Terrorist" stamp on it.
Clearly, this government's arsed it all up beyond hope and everyone's doomed, but could you do any better? Well, that's what Supreme Ruler 2020, a hardcore government sim, lets you discover. You start out by taking control of any country in the world in the aftermath of global financial meltdown (a tad prescient), each with an exhaustive array of well-researched statistics that provide the game with an early twang of believability.
I'm In Charge
Once you've waded through the somewhat inadequate tutorials, it's time to start presiding. As leader of your nation, you must deal with matters both foreign and domestic to ensure your country's prosperity. The action takes place in real time, but thankfully you can pause the game to issue orders.
The sheer wealth of options is either impressive or terrifying, depending on how hardcore you like your strategy games. If you're a control freak, you can make every single decision yourself, be it raising taxes or launching a nuclear strike against another nation. You can also delegate all or some responsibilities to ministers, who will then consult you before executing new policies.
Despite your ministers' assistance, Supreme Ruler 2020 remains a highly challenging experience, at times taxing your grey matter to melting point; a situation not helped by an ugly and unwieldy world map that lacks detail, even when zoomed in. Do you choose to focus on building cities, industrial complexes or military installations? What type of helicopter gunship is best to research next, or would you be better off channelling your military budget into missile defence satellites? Are you producing, exporting and importing enough of the game's 11 resources to ensure your country continues to function and grow? Is your reputation high enough in the United Nations? And most importantly, are your people happy? These are just some of the conundrums you face. You also have to keep an eye on your finances, as falling into debt can be catastrophic to your country's growth prospects.
Without question, Supreme Ruler 2020 is an impressively detailed strategy game, which admirably captures the wealth of obstacles and tough decisions that the ruler of any nation in the world inevitably faces.
That said, it's also rather inaccessible unless you're an ultra-hardcore strategist with more time on his hands than Hiro Nakamura. There's also a distinct lack of quality feedback relating to your decisions and the progress of your negotiations, which can be a little frustrating. But with patience and perseverance there's plenty of reward, and if you can dedicate enough time to it, you'll discover a highly immersive management experience that allows you to lead your chosen country to a brighter future than the one England seems to be heading for.
Download Supreme Ruler 2020
Crusaders Kings 2
Europa Universalis II
Rise Of Prussia


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If you crave the adrenaline rush of a tricky red or a challenging black run, but yearn for the comfort of familiar greens and gentle blues at the end of the day, intermediate ski resorts are your best choice. From French and Austrian intermediate ski resorts with superb après ski to Italian and Swiss ski resorts with incredible scenery. Finding a ski resort that's just right for your skiing skills can make all the difference to your trip. Here's our pick of the best ski resorts for intermediates in Europe.
Best French Ski Resorts for Intermediates
La Plagne, France
Located in the Alpine valley of Tarentaise, France, La Plagne is a family-friendly ski resort that offers lots of après-ski activities and accommodation. La Plagne is one of the world's largest ski resorts and with over 200 intermediate runs together with the Paradiski ski area – which includes Les Arcs and Peisey-Vallandry – it's one of the best ski resorts for intermediates. For accommodation, choose between self-catering chalets and apartments or three and four-star hotels.
View La Plagne ski resort here
Portes du Soleil, France
The Portes du Soleil ski area is composed of 12 resorts over two countries, France and Switzerland, with over 250 slopes and 30 snow parks. Conveniently, you can access all of the resorts with just one pass. There are some excellent intermediate trails that run near Avoriaz, Châtel, Les Gets, and Morzine on the French side, and Les Crosets, Champoussin, and Morgins on the Swiss side. Les Gets is also a great place for the kids – it's an accredited 'Famille Plus Montagne' resort. The first and only national tourism label to approve the facilities and services available to families with children staying in French tourist destinations.
View Portes Du Soleil ski resorts here
Méribel, France
One of the best French ski resorts for intermediates, Méribel is part of the Three Valleys ski area – the largest ski area in the world. With over 300 runs, 132 of which are blue, this is one of the best ski resorts for intermediates who'll find there's more than enough snow to sink their skis into. The main valleys are Méribel, home to the soaring Mont Du Vallon; Courchevel, where you'll find stunning Mont Blanc; and Val Thorens, which usually has near-perfect snow conditions thanks to its height. Méribel also has two snow parks if you're in the mood for freestyle frolics. Accommodation wise, it's equipped with apartments, chalets and hotel options – many with ski-in, ski-out access.
View Méribel ski resort here
Morzine, France
Morzine is a brilliant skiing commune and part of the grand Portes du Soleil ski area, just over an hour from Geneva airport. Out of the rest of the Portes du Soleil ski resorts, Morzine is one of the best French ski resorts for intermediate skiers. There are brilliant modern chairlifts and plenty of wide cruisey slopes to keep you busy over a weekend of skiing.
View Morzine ski resort here
Courchevel, France
An excellent intermediate resort, Courchevel is part of the massive Three Valleys ski area and a popular spot for a ski weekend. The ski resort is filled with blues and reds. The best intermediate slopes can be found around Saulaire and Courchevel 1650. With access to the Three Valleys, skiers can also take advantage of the entire 600km of great skiing terrain.
View Courchevel ski resort here
Megève, France
Megève is an intermediate skiers dream and one of the best ski resorts for intermediates in France. The slopes are made up of gentle, wide blues and a few tricky reds. They are also tree-lined and extremely scenic. The areas around The Rochebrune and Mont d'Arbois are the best for intermediate skiers. Megève is only an hour from Geneva airport making it a prime short break destination.
View Megeve ski resort here
Chamonix, France
Chamonix is one of Europe's skiing capitals and the area is well suited to intermediates. Almost 50% of Chamonix's slopes are blues, with the best areas being around Flégère and Brévent. Chamonix is also in a prime location, only an hour from Geneva airport, making it a popular destination for those looking for a ski weekend.
View Chamonix ski resort here
Peisey-Vallandry, France
Peisey-Vallandry is an ideal ski resort for intermediates because of the vast amount of red runs to progress on. There is 425km of slopes to explore in the area, with 170km of blues and 166km of reds. Part of the Paradiski area, it has great links to neighbouring ski resorts La Plagne and Les Arcs. There is great access to the lifts from the main village so you don't have to travel far to ski from your accommodation.
View Peisey-Vallandry ski resort here
Best Austrian ski resorts for intermediates
Lech, Austria
One of the best Austrian ski resorts for intermediates, Lech is luxurious, exclusive, and packed with powder. Its 'White Ring' ski area is composed of a balanced mix of red and blue runs. It's perfect for intermediate skiers looking for a more leisurely pace. The focus here is on taking in the sights. You can stop off at one of the many cosy Alpine huts for a bubbling beer and wood-fired pizza. Skiing isn't the only attraction here – food is a major draw for Lech, and for good reason. Some of Austria's finest cuisine can be sampled at restaurants such as Aurelio's, which offers mouth-watering modern and traditional dishes and an impressive range of aged brandies.
View Lech ski resort here
St Anton, Austria
St. Anton is one of the best ski resorts in Austria for intermediates. The ski resort is part of the incredibly varied Arlberg ski area, which is perfect for both intermediate and advanced skiers. St. Anton is also located on a train line and only 90 minutes from Innsbruck airport; making it very convenient for a ski weekend.
View St. Anton ski resort
Best Italian ski resorts for intermediates
Dolomites, Italy
Italy's appropriately named 'Pale Mountains', the Dolomites ski area, has over 1,200km of gleaming, snowy pistes. The best Italian ski resorts for intermediates in the Dolomites are Cortina d'Ampezzo and Alta Badia. All in all, you'll find a good mix of runs all over the range. The whole of the Dolomite mountain area is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. There's no better way to experience the sheer beauty of this area than on a pair of skis.
View the Dolomites ski resorts here
Courmayeur, Italy
Only an hour and a half from Geneva airport, Courmayeur is the perfect Italian ski resort for intermediate skiers. The ski area has a well-balanced level of difficulty with plenty of blue and red runs. You can look forward to weaving through tree-lined runs and enjoying the spectacular views of Mont Blanc.
View Courmayeur ski resort here
Monterosa, Italy
Named after the second tallest mountain in the Alps, the Monterosa ski area links three valleys: Champoluc, Gressoney and Alagna. Home to off-piste skiing, it is popular with both weekenders and powder hounds looking for challenging terrain and fresh lines. The ski area covers 180km of scenic pistes that are usually quiet during the week. Heli-skiing is available for intermediates and experts, which unlocks plenty of terrain further afield. A rustic trio of Italian ski resorts, they have a friendly, unspoilt village feel that awakens on the weekends.
View Champoluc ski resort here
View Gressoney ski resort here
Skiing in Gressoney © Marco Spataro
Pila, Italy
Above the old Roman town of Aosta, you can take the 20-minute gondola to the slopes. The tree-lined pistes offer pretty runs and powder opportunities within the trees, perfect for intermediates. Those looking for some competition could race their friends against the clock on the timed slalom run. The majority of the slopes are north-facing, and as a result, the snow quality doesn't deteriorate. Après ski is family-friendly in Pila, and if you are staying in Aosta you have a wealth of restaurants and bars available. Image source: Skiing through the trees in Pila © Paillex
View Pila ski resort here
Best Swiss ski resorts for intermediates
Engelberg, Switzerland
Engelberg is a jewel in the Swiss Alps. It is just over an hour from Zurich airport and is a perfect Swiss ski resort for intermediates. There are 82km of slopes with the majority blues and reds. The best runs for intermediates are around Jochstock. Engelberg also has great off-piste areas and is perfect for intermediates wanting to improve their off-piste skiing.
View Engelberg ski resort here
Verbier, Switzerland
Part of the massive 4 Valleys ski area, Verbier is a brilliant Swiss ski resort with over 300km of blue and red runs to keep intermediate skiers occupied. The slopes are extremely diverse and impeccably maintained. They will keep even the most seasoned skiers entertained. Verbier is also only a short transfer from Sion, making it great for short breaks.
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Healthy, Fit, and Focused: Flourless Blondie Cookies - Delish!!
Flourless Blondie Cookies - Delish!!
Well, ever since I made the Dark Chocolate Flourless Brownie Muffins last week, it got me wondering what else could I find to add to my book of healthy desserts!! Let's face it, the holidays are coming up and we all love to enjoy some sweets during that time, so why not find some healthy recipes that are super yummy and aren't going to bust a belt!!
Success...I found a recipe! It was exactly what I hoped it would be...a keeper!! And yes, they are made with chickpeas!!!
Mine weren't as pretty so I used pic from site!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray 8x8 inch pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a food processor, add all ingredients except chocolate chips and process until batter is smooth. Fold in 1/3 cup of chocolate chips, I like to use dark chocolate (because they're the best!!). Note: Batter will be thick and super delicious, so you could actually just eat it on it's own!
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan then sprinkle 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips on top. (The batter may stick to your spatula, so I like to spray my spatula with nonstick cooking spray first.) Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and edges are a tiny bit brown. The batter may look underdone, but you don't want them to dry out!
Cool pan for 20 minutes on wire rack. Sprinkle with sea salt then cut into squares. Makes 16 blondes.
I'd love to know how your Blondies turned out. After you make these go to my Facebook page www.facebook.com/HealthyFitFocused, take a picture of them and tell me how they turned out.
Halloween Candy DETOX & The 3 Day Refresh!!
A Soccer Mom Kind of Day!!


text:
New Editor Announced for German Studies Review
The German Studies Association is pleased to announce that Professor Sabine Hake has agreed to serve as editor of the German Studies Review beginning with the February 2012 issue. Professor Hake (pictured at right with GSA Executive Director Prof. David E. Barclay) is a truly distinguished scholar of German Studies with wide-ranging, interdisciplinary interests and a deservedly international reputation. She will bring exceptional credentials to her new task.
She is Texas Chair of German Literature and Culture in the Department of Germanic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin and is the author of five monographs, including German National Cinema (2008, second revised edition) and Topographies of Class: Modern Architecture and Mass Society in Weimar Berlin (2008). She has also published numerous articles and edited volumes on German film and Weimar culture. Her current book project is titled Political Affects and deals with the fascist imaginary in postfascist cinema.
GSR also has new book review editors: Professor Carl Niekerk, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Professor Andrew I. Port, Department of History, Wayne State University. Special thanks goes to outgoing Book Review Editor Liz Ametsbichler, Department of Modern and Classical Languages, University of Montana.
Professor Hake's selection as editor was the result of a long and careful process. We were gratified that the number of candidates for this position was so large, and their qualifications so extraordinary. It is a testimony to the professional commitment of our members and to the quality of their scholarship that we had so many excellent candidates.
The GSA is grateful to the search committee for its many months of hard and focused work. Chaired by Professor Sara Lennox (University of Massachusetts, Amherst), it included Professors Celia Applegate (University of Rochester), David E. Barclay (Kalamazoo College), Kathleen Canning (University of Michigan), Kenneth Ledford (Case Western Reserve University), Frank Trommler (University of Pennsylvania), and Helga Welsh (Wake Forest University).
Finally, we wish to thank the retiring editor of the German Studies Review, Professor Diethelm Prowe of Carleton College, for his years of outstanding service to the journal, the German Studies Association, and the German Studies profession in general. His work has been exemplary, and his devotion to scholarship and to the profession has been outstanding. He has set very high standards of stewardship and dedication, and we are all in his debt.


text:
Room Service Tour è il tour musicale a supporto dell'album Room Service, pubblicato nel settembre 2004, dal cantante rock canadese Bryan Adams.

Nel corso del Tour, iniziato nel settembre del 2004 a Dornbirn in Austria, si sono svolti concerti in diverse nazioni fra le quali: Belgio, Germania, Regno Unito, Spagna, Portogallo, Australia, Giappone, Italia, Canada e Stati Uniti d'America.

Nel gennaio 2005 un concerto sold out con circa 20.000 persone presso il Pavilhão Atlântico di Lisbona viene registrato in video per celebrare i 25 anni di carriera dell'artista; Bryan Adams Live In Lisbon viene pubblicato nel dicembre 2005.

In Italia si tengono 3 concerti nel settembre 2005, a Milano, Torino e Genova.

Nel corso del tour nel 2005 si sono svolti 26 concerti negli Stati Uniti d'America insieme ai Def Leppard.

Con il concerto del 2006 a Karachi, Adams è diventato il primo artista occidentale ad esibirsi in Pakistan dopo gli Attentati dell'11 settembre 2001.

Room Service Tour 2004/2005 - (date)

Room Service Tour 2006 (date)

Band di supporto
Bryan Adams - Chitarra, Cantante
 Keith Scott - Chitarra solista
 Mickey Curry - Batteria
 Gary Breit - Tastiere
 Norm Fisher - Basso

Lista delle canzoni
La setlist di Bryan Adams in concerto presso la Cardiff International Arena a Cardiff nel quale celebra il 20º anniversario dalla pubblicazione dell'album Reckless :

 Room Service
 Open Road
 18 til I Die

'Reckless' 20th Anniversary Celebration

 One Night Love Affair
 She's Only Happy When She's Dancin'
 Run to You
 Heaven
 Somebody
 Summer of '69
 Kids Wanna Rock
 It's Only Love
 Long Gone
 Ain't Gonna Cry

Encore:

 Let's Make a Night to Remember
 Can't Stop This Thing We Started
 Back to You
 (Everything I Do) I Do It for You
 Cuts Like a Knife
 When You're Gone
 Not Romeo Not Juliet
 The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You
 Cloud #9
 Blessing in Disguise
The Best of Me

Acoustic:

 Flying
 All for Love
 Straight from the Heart

Lista delle canzoni - Bryan Adams at Pavilhão Atlântico, Lisbon
La setlist di Bryan Adams in concerto presso il Pavilhão Atlântico di Lisbona :

 Room Service
 Open Road
 18 til I Die
 Let's Make a Night to Remember
 Can't Stop This Thing We Started
 Kids Wanna Rock
 Back to You
 (Everything I Do) I Do It for You
 Summer of '69
 Cuts Like a Knife
 When You're Gone
 Not Romeo Not Juliet
 Heaven
 It's Only Love
 The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You
 Cloud #9
 Run to You
 The Best of Me
 Flying
 All for Love
 Straight from the Heart
 Room Service (acustica)

Note

Collegamenti esterni

Tour di Bryan Adams
Tour musicali del 2004
Tour musicali del 2005
Tour musicali del 2006

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Environmentalists are revolutionaries
Larry Tuttle April 18, 1994 From the print edition
As an environmentalist, I was surprised at Ed Marston's conclusion in his recent HCN, essay (-How to turn lemonade into lemons," March 21) that "the goal of environmentalism was never to achieve a cultural revolution." Silly me. I thought I was part of a social movement with a goal of enacting fundamental social and economic changes - changes that are necessary to break the historical cycle of abuse of public lands and resources.
Revolutionary? Decide for yourself. It means changing the assumption that people's lives, natural resources, and virtually everything else exist exclusively for the purpose of making money. It means changing the assumption that if nature is killed off in the process of making money, too bad. If it costs too much to alleviate destruction, that's too bad also. It means changing the assumptions of Interior Secretary Babbitt and Mr. Marston that if it has become custom and culture to kill off nature or despoil the land, water and air, these customs and culture are off limits to anything but the most limited, incremental change. Be thankful this consensus, custom-and-culture crowd wasn't leading the movement for safe work places or civil rights legislation.
Larry Tuttle
The writer is executive director of the Oregon Natural Resources Council, 522 SW Fifth Ave., Portland, OR 97204.