Cambon

The key to hospitality is continual change. You have to appeal to your customers. If you have a great product, people will pay for it. Look at McDonalds, for example. Compared with when they opened over here, there are a few things on the menu that are stalwarts, like the Big Mac. Most other things have changed. New, lighter options offered. Unpopular items removed. New specials being offered and changed regularly. Love it or hate it, it is a brilliant format that works. Several other places such as JAKS and 1886 offer great food and are successful. There are loads of other great places to eat. The ones whinging are the ones who need to change. 

26 minutes ago, CATHYJAY said:

The problem I have with road tax here is that in the UK if you get higher rate mobility you are exempt from road tax even if you are not the registered keeper, so in the UK because my husband drives me around he used to get the exemption, here you have to be the registered keeper! Which mad considering many disabled including myself don't drive. I suppose asking for parity with the UK is too much to ask. 

Change the car into your name. Your husband can still insure and drive it.
Problem solved.

1 hour ago, newaccount said:

went in a few months ago. queued for 40 minutes.

 

prices have to match uk since they get done in the uk by the uk

Why? Postage doesn’t. 

33 minutes ago, Non-Believer said:

The problem is that for years the IoM lived in a VAT-funded bubble that was largely removed from the real world and  far too much of Govt and its employees are now overtly reluctant to, or incapable of realising and letting go of the pink, fluffy, puffed-up, surreal existence they lived during these times.

They simply expect everybody else to endlessly stump up in their febrile attempts to maintain this position, despite it being completely unsustainable.

The VAT debacle was overcome around 10 years ago and we were pretty much back on an even keel. Covid was the killer. The ease of dipping into reserves has lead to the current situation. 
 

However, the bigger problem is the civil service. They are like an AI computer that has learned to control its leaders. Either by ousting them from position when the questions get to difficult or the leader learns too much, or, by purposely overspending knowing that those supposedly in charge have no option but to pay for the over spend. The CS position is win, win. We lose.

8 hours ago, Kopek said:

OK, so you notice that your neighbour is mowing his lawn for the third time this week, you catch him by the lawn clippings, he's tearful, his wife is studiously ignoring him, the Kids look the other way when he tries to engage with them!

He's obviously devastated, explains that he has lost his job in the CS., 20 years service, he doesn't know what he will do, he feels that he is not a proper husband and father as he cannot provide for his Family!

....but he was just a drain on the public purse, he deserves what he got and to hell with him and his sensitivities!!!!

Tell him there are plenty of jobs around, but he may have to work to earn a living. 

I.o.M. Records wettest April 24 hour period on  record. Previous record, just a little less, was over 50 years ago. 

7 hours ago, Dirty Buggane said:

My argument still stands, if they knew silting was a problem why purchase a deeper draught boat. That is presuming the silting is not something that has occurred just in the last 24 months. Same goes for restricted maneuvering space. I know how to solve that ! Buy a bigger boat.  

Silting is an artificial problem. Peel Ports, whom own Heysham Port, are dragging their feet in dredging. You know, the same people who own the £75 million dock In Liverpool. Nothing to do with the Manxman. Blame the MHK who pissed Peel Ports off. 

21 hours ago, wrighty said:

If I was in charge I’d make prescriptions free, but have a limited formulary of things that are prescribable - nothing you can buy over the counter, mainly generic rather than branded drugs, and nothing that doesn’t work. 

Agreed. Plus taking into account the administration costs (banking, admin and issuing exemptions, pre-payment, etc.), it would probably save money making prescriptions free. 

16 minutes ago, Happier diner said:

Here's another for any numpty who doesnt get the first one.

The other thing that has had a vary similar trend is world population, which has just about doubled since 1960. In addition, nearly half the human population was born this century. That is the problem, not CO2. 

1 hour ago, Manxweegie said:

I was posting from Glasgow to the Isle of Man. 

 

It will be the Scotland/ England boarder control.  

16 hours ago, Kopek said:

I think McArds built most of it but the Chinese T/A is not theirs now I believe? So Shoprite could have bought their shop?

There was Hanna Bananas on the hill to the beach and a short lived restaurant at the top of the hill, name??? I don't remember the Gutless Gourmet tho' I can think of some customers who would fit the description!!!

Was it the Model Shop at one point? The other shops seem to change frequently, tho' not the Iceland since closing? Of course, Shoprite could have kept paying rent to avoid the competition!

PE shops seem to be a 'daily needs', not a destination?

Restaurant on the corner at the top of the hill was called Trader Jacks, I think.

The Tool Box moved from the corner where the shoe shop is now, to where Liptons was. At the time, it was a father and son outfit. The son started selling radio controlled models and accessories from there. Tool Box then moved to Orchard Walk where the restaurant/ grill is now. The son later opened a model shop in Orchard Walk. He later moved it to Strand in Douglas. 

17 minutes ago, Moghrey Mie said:

Maybe they could build a bus station on the site.

Or, stick a few pay and display meters.

1 hour ago, John Wright said:

From the incident until the full press release took 15 hours. I can’t see how that could have been bettered.

Fast moving crime scene. 

999 call. Police and paramedics get to Palace. Paramedics attempt to save life, stabilise and get victim to hospital.

Police secure area, search for and preserve evidence, identify and speak to witness. Other police set up diversion and liaise with IoM Transport. A brief statement about closure of the prom gets issued.

Suspect is detained. Transported to HQ. Serious Crimes will have been called in. Scenes of Crimes officers. Custody will have had to call out FME, possibly forensic team for search and preservation of clothing.

Detained person is allowed rest period, sleep, under PPP codes.

in meantime there’ll have been at least one officer at hospital reporting back into the investigation and preserving evidence.

Not much time to get a full statement out.

The problem is that we expect rolling news 24/7 because we live in the media age.

In the meantime, the general public didn’t know if they were in danger.
It would only take a simple statement. 

22 minutes ago, Gladys said:

So why couldn't the Press release say 'a serious incident occurred at around 10 pm last night on Central Prom outside the Palace Hotel.  A female sustained serious injuries and is in hospital receiving treatment.  A man has been arrested. There is no danger to the public and we ask that you do not speculate.' ?

 

Another case of WOKE. 

People are too fragile to be told the truth. The police would have to set up a mental health hotline to give counseling and probably pay compensation if they told the truth 

2 hours ago, Exocet said:

Unsurprising if true. What have locate.im actually got to sell now after the budget unless people are UHNW? An island that is more expensive to live in than the UK. Which has a huge cost to get on and off attached to it and a crap health service. And where we’ve now even put up taxes so if you earn less than £50K a year it’s actually worse than the UK and that’s without the cost of living differential. That budget would have seen me off too if I’d have had that job. 

Expensive to get on and off. Have you ever travelled within the uk? Cost of a return train from Liverpool to London, for example. If you choose your travel off island carefully, fast craft to Liverpool return is cheaper than a Liverpool to London return on the train. 
How is the health service crap? It can be slow at times getting referrals. However, A&E are brilliant whenever I have needed them. Doctors are quick to respond to emails with advice and appointments when necessary. Chemists deal with minor issues quickly and efficiently. Compared to the uk, it is brilliant. 
 

16 hours ago, woolley said:

Not much in it with utilities. Electricity the same when you take in the lower standing charge. Generally water much cheaper here for now. Gas and telecoms, yes, granted.

Rates a bit cheaper still than UK though catching up fast, and no single occupancy discount here. Groceries and motoring similar cost (+ about 3% at Tesco!), but eating out and housing more expensive.

The roads, I tend to see the opposite. The potholes here seem to be huge bloody craters over there, but I accept it varies area to area. Also, I know where they are here and they often come as a shock elsewhere.

Don't think it's at all realistic to expect the govt to buy the SPCo and not take a profit, although the way they are going they might just achieve it as an unlikely own goal. Certainly wouldn't surprise me if they took over a £10 million pound a year profitable monopoly and turned it into a basket case in a couple of years even when owning it at arms length. They seem to have the reverse Midas touch to an extent you couldn't make up. Anyway, don't expect discounts for sure! I think the Manxman will be fine. She's great to sail on.

Banking, shopping choices, yep, but we are a small jurisdiction of 85,000 on a remote island, so it is what it is.

Driving is dire everywhere, and getting worse. I honestly don't think it's any worse here than in the UK. Try Spain!

Tax increase. Yes, but we all know which nettle needs to be firmly grasped there.

Lack of various activities. Again, small remote population. At one time it was ameliorated by a busy summer season that kept leisure facilities going all year. Now not so much, and businesses are reliant on the residents in hard times. It's tough, but leisure and hospitality outlets are closing every day in the UK too. Cinema patronage is down by a third since Covid. A brave investor it would be to put money into anything hospitality sector in the 2020s.

There are other things to take into account, though. In the uk, the mare desirable places to live also tend to be expensive for housing. House and car insurance in those areas tend to be a lot more than here. Rates, a lot more. However, amenities are nearby. If you get a cheapish house in the sticks, you will save on insurance, but spend a great deal on petrol to get to amenities. In general, iom motorists travel 8000 miles a year. Uk 12,000+ a year. 50% more in day yo day running costs. Also, don’t forget the cost of commuting. Horrendous in some areas, and the time it takes. These all add up. The uk is far from being a cheap place to live. The reality is that it is not dissimilar cost wise to here. 

2 hours ago, Albert Tatlock said:

I can't see the Tories doing that...it'll lead straight to another Liz Truss type collapse. Labour might increase NI after a couple of years under the excuse that they'll ring-fence it, but I could see Labour extending the NI threshold of £44k ish to maybe £50k or £60k.

Already doing it. On CNBC this morning they said the tax cuts announced in the spring budget amounted to an unbalanced funding cut greater than the Liz Truss debacle. 

26 minutes ago, code99 said:

OK, but our ‘economic climate’ is highly influenced by the 'economic climate' in UK, e.g. from April the UK’s NI Employee Contribution Rate will be 8% vs. the IOM’s 11%, so how/ where do we compete?

I am pretty certain the uk NI position is temporary. Tories know how bad the financial situation in uk is. They also know they will not be returned to power next time. The next election is likely to be after the autumn budget. Expect more tax cuts and £100+ billion tax deficit to pass on to labour. Don’t forget the note labour’s treasury minister left the tories when they lost power. “There is no money. We spent it all!”

@code99 £20m can easily be raised by increasing employee NI by 1%. Previous DHSS minister said each additional 1% adds £25m to the pot. But why do something simple when an entire new division of government can be created to administer this? 

22 minutes ago, Venus said:

100%. We need more BTL investors if anything. There are very valid reasons why people want to rent and it is virtually impossible at the moment, probably not helped by the landlord bill that came in a few years ago and resulted in many landlords giving up.

This is correct. Many potential landlords now just purchase property and just leave it as an asset. If nobody lives there, no rates to pay, no standards to maintain, no tenants to cause damage. With the current situation, it is almost a win, win for them. 

17 hours ago, Moghrey Mie said:

Since 2014 there has been plans for this area of Douglas but they are only aspirational.

https://www.gov.im/media/1357109/central-douglas-masterplan-2014.pdf

A “Dreamworks” production? 

44 minutes ago, code99 said:

You're correct. The 2% tax increase is not a temporary measure - in 2025/26 financial year we will be required to pay the NHS Levy, presumably on every pound earned. Dr Allinson says the NHS Levy will be "ringfenced" for Manx Care...

NHS Levy on wages of working people is a complete con. Just another tax. 
They should introduce a GST style additional levy on sales, where everybody contributes, including tourists, pensioners, and other non-tax payers who can potentially benefit from our health service, 

42 minutes ago, Happier diner said:

Yes but that's because the mooring in Douglas harbour is too small. That will not happen once it's modified. 

It’s not too small. The damage and danger within the harbour will all depend on the severity of the storm, the time of high tide and any additional tidal heave. Safest place is at sea either far away, or in the lee of the storm. 

£1,000,000+ for a scoreboard that will be obsolete by the time it is built! 
idiots! 
Big TV is the way to go. Just display what is available on live timing. 

16 hours ago, Passing Time said:

In some cases, parents lack the basic social skills to pass on to their offspring - there lies a major problem

Worse than that, 5 year olds whom are not toilet trained, being sent to school. The teachers are then meant to do the parent’s job for them!