House Prices Down in April

On a macro level it appears rather robust with growth at 2.1%.

BUT for medium and small businesses costs are escalating. This is a major worry as these sectors are the most economically robust and provide the greatest employment.
Contrary to all government propaganda- small and medium sioze businesses employ far more people than corporations, contribute far more revenue and are not subsidised anywhere near as heavily

Furthermore, CPI and RPI indexes are higher than the EU, wages are Negative in real growth so far this year (4.0%well below retail price inflation of 4.5%+ in April) + rising food prices reducing income for mortgage. Annual food price inflation reached 6.0% in April, highest in 6 years."

HPI has it 10%, slightly down and we have a new national historic house price high, most especially when expressed as a ration of real earnings.
Interest rates are predicted to rise 0.25% in 2007.

Thus- very unhealthy prospects for all consumer based economy.

Your thoughts?

When Pakistan's North West Frontier Province government ceded authority to the Taliban under a peace deal, giving them almost a free hand to impose their puritan Islamic rule on the around 600,000 people of Swat and its seven neighbouring districts, why didn't they stop to realise that innocent people like this young girl would be paying the price??

London, April 3 (IANS) A 17-year-old screaming, burqa-clad girl was whipped by Taliban fighters in Pakistan's restive Swat Valley for coming 'out of her house with another guy who was not her husband', a two-minute video shot through a mobile phone showed.

The video showed the girl face down on the ground. Two men held her arms and feet while a third, a black-turbaned fighter with a flowing beard, whipped her repeatedly, the Guardian reported.

The newspaper said it received the video through Samar Minallah, a Pashtun documentary maker.

'Please stop it,' the girl begged repeatedly. 'Either kill me or stop it now.'

After 34 lashes the punishment stopped and the wailing girl was led into a stone building.

'She came out of her house with another guy who was not her husband, so we must punish her. There are boundaries you cannot cross,' the Guardian quoted Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan as saying.

The punishment was meted out within last 10 days, Minallah said.

'This video is being widely circulated because the Taliban want people to see it. They want to give the message that this is taking place after the peace deal because this is something they ideologically believe in,' the newspaper quoted her as saying.

The girl's brother is among the men who pinned her down, she added. 'It's symbolic that he does it with his own hands. It gives him honour in local society, that he has done it for the sake of religion.'

The peace accord signed with pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Sufi Mohammad includes measures to establish Islamic courts, a ban on music, expulsion of prostitutes and pimps from the area, closure of businesses during prayer times, and a campaign against what they call obscenity.

A year and a half ago I had a good job and so did my boyfriend we decided to move in together when my boyfriends mother decided to downsize and the tenancy of my flat expired. We looked around and decided to privately rent a 3 bed home (2 beds and a box room) for 825 a month (my flat was 725) it was outside town and considering most rental prices of 3 beds are over 1000 a month it was very reasonable so we took it. It was close to a good school for my 5 year old and life was good we paid the bills, we were not well off but we were managing.

Then I fell pregnant I took maternity leave in april 08 and had a baby boy in may 08 I went down to statutory maternity pay after 6 weeks and as I was the main earner it really effected us. (I earned 20,000 a year and my boyfriend 15,000 per year before tax) I took home about 1200 a month but to be reduced to about 500 a month was crippling us . We applied for housing benefit and undated our tax credits we were getting 41 a week tax credits it was upped to 70 a week. Housing benefit was awarded to us of 125 a month so we were missing about 450 a month from our previous income.

We found ourselves getting deeper and deeper in debt as each month went by, our bills went up as our income was going down. (my gas and electric alone went from 40 a month to 135!) we started missing payments on loans we had, and previous debt and our credit rating was getting worse and worse.

Then the unthinkable happened the other day I received notice from my landlady that she requires possession of our home in two months. I phoned some letting agents and because our income is so low we cant afford anything in the area without a guarantor (we don't know anyone who owns their own home or who has the income to do that) Plus because our credit rating is so bad we wouldn't pass the credit reference.

So I phoned the council (as we are already on the waiting list) They didn't seem to understand we are going to be homeless in two months with a 6 year old and a 6 month old, and we cant afford where we are living now even though apparently we can afford an 800 a month according to what the housing benefit say????

So I phoned Shelter and in so may words they informed me that the council will put me through hell and back in the hope I find my own way out of the situation. I may have to wait in my home for the court and bailiffs to throw me out (and I have to pay for the privilege of this) I will then be homed in temporary accommodation which does not have to even be in the town it can be miles away. So how my boyfriend can get to work and how I can get my son to school I don't know (We don't drive) and this can be for as long as they want, as long as it takes for us to prove we cant get out of it ourselves.

I am not an asylum seeker, I was born in this country and so were my family and my boyfriends family, I am not a single mother, My boyfriend works and until i had a baby so did I. I have worked and paid taxes the past 12 years, I...