John Wright

Wrong end of wrong stick. What has compliance with the Statute of Frauds, that contracts for the sale of land ( and of guarantee, or surety, or marriage or which cannot be performed within 12 months ) must be evidenced in writing signed by the person to be bound or someone authorised by the person to be bound, got to do with filling in your tax return several months later? Note, the contract for sale of land does not have to be in writing, but evidenced in writing. That’s actually very different. We are talking about £1500 worth of CGT here, not hundreds of thousands. I sit down with my accountant, give them the figures, they fill out my tax form, explain verbally what I owe, and I check it and sign. The transaction that’s alleged to have gone wrong is a tax return. Do you get written legal, and accountancy advice on your tax return?

But that’s only because the privatised British letter deliverer has cancelled, without consultation, the Mail plane. On the grounds of efficiency savings.

Improved “efficiency” often comes at the price of poorer service standards. Bank call centres, especially “offshored” to the sub continent, spring to mind. Anyway, Sunday I ordered something on line from Germany. This morning I got an e-Mail saying it had been despatched via Deutsche Post. I’ve just had a Royal Mail tracking e-Mail. It left Düsseldorf at 02.19 this morning, it’s now passed through the Heathrow letter centre. I’m interested to see how long it’ll take for the final 426km.

Yep, but they don’t speak Iroquois, not even in Lezayre! Im not sure the Ohio name for the plantation predates its planting in 1954. No idea when it became a “Forest”.

The way that goods are displayed, priced, advertised and marketed for sale in any shop is manipulative

What, you weren’t down on the beach on Good Friday prising the flitters off the rocks, cooking them and eating them, ensuring no metal was used. Good Manx tradition! They’re tough and tasteless. ( limpets ) Does your antipathy run to prawns, shrimp, crab, lobster?

Do you have the same aversion to cockles mussels razor clams flitters whelks sea urchins sea cucumbers queenies/scallops jellyfish snails?

+1

Our prescription regulations are completely out of date and out of synch. Yes, the per item cost is much lower than England, but the range of exemptions is much less. I was often given prescriptions in Liverpool which I had dispensed in the private pharmacy in the hospital foyer. To start I tried to pay the prescription charge. But was told as I was an oncology patient all drugs, dispensed during cancer treatment, follow up, until discharge from follow up clinic, were exempt from charge in England.

Definitely, oysters were a poor persons food until the 1920’s

OK, which of the haters set the fire at Onchan Shoprite?

And Scotland, and Wales.

It’s my understanding, from a social conversation with an IoM Post employee, that outgoing post is collected from post boxes in the morning, sorted and goes off Island the same day. However it may have been in box for up to 23 hours before collection. So it may not get off Island until late on day 2 after posting. it arrives at the UK post office sorting office in the morning of what can be either day 2 or 3. It’s then shunted around to the UK to delivery centres. Delivery, all things being equal, will be on day 3 or 4, at best if everything goes without a hitch. incoming post is collected, sorted and goes to the sorting centre from which it is despatched to the Island. It’s scanned there and the programme shows it having left the UK post office even although it may be 24/36 hours minimum, and longer with weekends and public holidays, before the trailer gets taken to Heysham. So the info on tracking isn’t actually accurate. It measures a point in time seriously before it reaches Cooil Road

Go back and read the post again. That first para is very clever and funny.

Yes! ( not really )

You mean like you, who won’t accept the findings of anyone, including @woolley and myself, that the price differential is much less than 5%.

My grandmother came from a family that ran bakeries, bread and cake. My mother taught domestic science. I was taught cooking and baking from an early age.

Already linked to. Keep up at the back. But not wise to speculate on things like causation now it’s live in court.

How very dare you!

Have you never made your own victoria sponge, apricot jam and marzipan? But then there’s @Gladys’s view

you’re starting to come over very brined hind leg of pork obsessed, and totally lacking a sense of humour.

1. Of course I don’t expect that everyone buys the same. I’ve never said they did. But they buy regular items. Your random items weren’t all what I’d call regular. And given they stock 15,000-18,000 items some lines will sell thousands a week, some only ten. If the price differential is on the line that sells ten it doesn’t make a 5% price increase overall. 2. I think it’s been me consistently pointing out we can’t judge until the conversion is completed. Glad you’ve finally grasped the point. 3. I don’t get why you don’t understand that it’s actually shopping baskets that count, not random items. Not you, so don’t take even more offence, but a few pages back there was debate about Battenberg cake. It’s years since I’ve bought one of those because commercial Battenberg is dry and tasteless in my opinion. Of course, the price difference is vitally important if you’re Battenberg addicted.

Because on my shopping, when I check, it isn’t there. I don’t understand why you don’t seem to grasp that fact, at direct variance/contradiction of what you say. Because it is relevant. Directly relevant. For me it’s the only thing that’s relevant. Same, I suspect, for other shoppers. For me the price differences are demonstrably insignificant in my practical experience.

The problem is you say you’ve checked random items from the huge number stocked at Tesco and found this 5% discrepancy. There’s always been a differential on some items, but not 5%. Some offers don’t apply here, or in Northern Ireland, and some items have different pricing in Wales or Scotland due to differences in legislation. You don’t appear to have been bothered before the takeover. Of course I’m concerned if prices go up. But when I’ve price checked, with either Lancaster or Barrow, on my weekly shop basket, so not a random selection, but what I actually purchase, the difference on a £60 to £120 shop, depending whether I’m on my own or not, restocking dry goods etc, the difference on 40-60 items has been less than £1. And, no, I don’t deliberately search for Aldi Price Match or 3 for 2 or other club card deals. Although I might buy a months worth of dry goods if I see a special on something I use regularly, like £11.00 reduced to £7, that I saw this week. Mind you it was £8 reduced to £6 2 years ago, and £7 reduced to £5 before covid. I’d shop in exactly the same way if I was in shop. I do check prices, offers, but understand I am in a lucky position to be able buy things I want without having to penny pinch. Ive no loyalty to Tesco. If M&S did home food delivery, or we had a Booths, I’d use them in preference.

I’m going by what they announced 4 months ago and what was said to me when I had dinner with a visiting executive from Hemel head office about a month ago. Someone I’ve known for many years and who I’ve no reason to disbelieve.