If you like The X Factor. Which I do. Then you might be interested in Aiden Grimshaw’s release. “Is this Love”. You know what? It’s a superb track. Picking up the vulnerable tones in his voice with a gritty dance vibe. Nice work.

Everyone likes Rihanna. Right? Hmmm. “Where have you Been” is her latest.

Cher Lloyd has managed to release another track. “Want U Back”. Not sure what I think of this. Not a lot really but it will probably do quite well.

Stooshe is a new British pop band. “Black Heart” is a retro soul track in pop stylee. Whoever did their styling is blind. Or I am just getting old.

To be fair, I much prefer this effort from the girls. “Things That Make You Go Mmm”. Two reasons. 1) it uses a refrain from one of my fav 90’s dance classics by Dee-Lite 2) They don’t appear in the video. It’s all animated. Enjoy!

There’s a lot of fuss about The Wanted. “Chasing The Sun” is a rather mature pop track. It’s catchy and cool. I think they are here for the duration.

Sam Sparro has a new one out. “I wish I never Met You”. Nice. I like.

And here’s the dance version of Maroon 5’s forthcoming release “Payphone”

Spotted Conor Maynard a while back. “Drowning” is new

I do love The Piano Guys. This is their latest. Just brilliantly filmed, edited and scored. Enjoy.

The Loveable Rogues are my favourites so far in this year’s BGT. They are really great. Here’s their piece. So good. And very funny!

I love these two. Jack and his twin brother Finn. Opening mail. Yeah. I know but they are funny. This whole send mail to the people you like on YouTube is quite a thing these days.

Phil and Holly always make me laugh. 12 Funniest moments.

With news that Duran Duran are to headline the London pre-Olympics gig in Hyde Park. How about a mash? “Notorious Dinosaur”!

Not one of their best known tracks “The Chauffeur”. Such an iconic b&w video though. I still love it.

And yes. I have featured it before. This is one of my favourite pop videos of the past decade.

Do you enjoy a cover version? Me too. Particularly when it’s a classical version of a pop track. How about a quartet playing Michael Buble’s “Haven’t Met You Yet”

Muppets always make me smile. As does Beaker. Here he s going all European on us!

This month I’ll leave you with some beatboxing and drumming.

Is this Norwegian kid just amazing or what?

and is this the same fella again?

And here he is having been spotted on the streets appearing on telly!

And he’s even got his own YouTube channel now. Fabulous!

Bye for now. Until next month!

Let’s kick off with Carly Rae Jepsen to bring you up to speed with the latest pop trash. “Call Me Maybe”.

Fresh from her debut on The Voice and her recent live performances, Jessie J is one of the faces of 2012. Here’s her new release. “Laserlight” which features David Guetta.

Everyone seems to like Nicki Minaj. Not quite sure why. Here’s her new one which isn’t a patch on starships. “Beez In The Trap”.

Scissor Sisters are back. Calvin Harris has stuck his oar in. “Only The Horses”. Here’s the official lyric video.

Here’s Rufus Wainwright with “Out of the Game”. The video features Helena Bonham Carter. It’s good. Nice video too.

Lot’s of people seem to be getting excited by Conor Maynard. So you’d better see what all the fuss is about. Here’s “Can’t Say No”

Despite the somewhat low rent sex tape that appeared, albeit briefly, on YouTube, Tulisa has released her debut single “We Are Young”. It’s not bad. It’s not that great either, mostly because she can’t sing very well. She has some great producers behind her. It will do well, I am sure.

Here’s Florrie Arnold. “Make Your Own Rhythm”. The video is better than the track.

Lana Del Rey keeps kicking off the tracks from her album. Diminishing quality. It’s inoffensive. “Blue Jeans”. Filmed in black and white. That works. Not.

Katy Perry “Part of Me”. Sigh.

As you know I love The Pianoguys. Here’s their latest “Happy Together”. As usual a lot of funny stunts and humour in the video. Nice work!

We all know One Direction have recently taken their UK success to the US. Of course there are a load of covers. Most of them are terrible. This one isn’t. It’s by Before You Exit.

Time for a mashup? Cee-Lo Green vs Lady Gaga. OK then. Here you are. Enjoy!

I always enjoyed Simon’s Cat.

BertieBertG has made a lot of videos for YouTube. In less than 24 hours nearly 20,000 people have watched his latest effort.

I can’t remember if I have shown you this before. If not? Enjoy. If I have? Enjoy again!

I have kept the BEST until LAST!!! THIS IS AMAZING! Very funny, brilliantly edited. There are just lots of cows. What else can I say?

I shall leave you with Jeremy Clarkson in a microwave.

So what I thought I would do is deal with the gaffes by proposing what he and his team should have done instead.

Pasty-gate
I don’t like pasties. I don’t eat pasties. I have never eaten pasties and nor am I likely to. I won’t pretend that I am a fan of Gregg’s the Bakers either. Personally, it all went wrong on the high street when we abandoned our local bakers and other purveyors of fine foods and ended up in the retail chains and supermarkets because we could not be bothered. Anyway. Each year Treasury officials try to do this hot VAT food wheeze. Normally it’s pushed back. Nigel Lawson let us into that secret. What George Osborne should have done is to simplify VAT on hot food and at the same time reduce the VAT to 10% if you take-away. We all know the VAT laws are a mess but we also know how many businesses and jobs depend on the food industry and how our lives have changed. Simple.

Stamp-Duty
What an utter fiasco. Oh. Let’s bash the rich shall we? That will sound good when we remove the 50 pence tax rate. I never agreed with the 50 p tax rate. I will never understand how anyone can justify taking away more money from those who earn it and giving it to those who don’t over and above 40%. What I do understand is reducing the loopholes. Making sure people pay the appropriate rates and cutting the dodges that are legitimate right now. What some seem to confuse is that a rate cut doesn’t mean someone pays less tax. They just pay a lower percentage of their income in tax. In fact that is a good thing for the economy. However, let’s not get into the maths just now.

Repairing the housing market is a priority. You don’t fix it by stopping people from moving. You don’t fix it by taxing it and you don’t fix it by doing nothing to help the market operate efficiently. Stamp Duty is a vile tax. Whilst I can understand why you may impose a tax on second homes, overseas purchasers and on those who seek to make a living from buy-to-let, regardless of the value of the house it is pernicious to make the assumption that someone who lives in an expensive house or wants to buy one should pay more tax. I would assume that if you are buying a house over £2 million, the chances are that you already paid the top rate of tax on your income, that you are paying national insurance and so on and if you are looking for somewhere to live, why should you have to pay even more for the pleasure?

Worse than that, anyone who owns an expensive house is even less likely to move. That creates a shortage of supply and pushes up prices. Not just at the top end. So everyone pays. It’s ludicrous.

What George Osborne should have done is cut Stamp Duty. If more people move, supply eases, people buy stuff for new homes and fees are earned on trading. Mortgages are taken out, furniture and soft furnishings are bought, estate agents are used, removal companies, lawyers, builders, and retailers… everyone benefits. The loss in stamp duty will be more than compensated for in VAT and other economic growth.

Petrol
You could not make it up. So a group of disgruntled workers threatens to strike. As a government it’s your job to help employers and workers come to some agreement. Particularly if it relates to something as important as fuel for the nation. What you don’t do is to fuel (see what I did there?) the panic and create a fuel shortage before a strike has even begun. What were Mr Cameron and his colleagues thinking? Are they really that stupid… or did they want to deflect from the other PR gaffe of the week?

Cam Dine With Me
We all know political parties have to raise money. Giving them state funding is utterly ridiculous. If someone or a grouping is more popular then let them raise their funds. If someone thinks they will benefit so be it. It’s no different from someone popping into his or her church and giving large amounts of money because they think it will help their relationship with God. Some may say how terrible it is that you can buy access. Some may argue that it’s awful that the Prime Minister should actually meet with the people who provide his funding. Or that he meets people from large companies. Or that he meets people from self interested groups. Well, actually I don’t have a problem with this. It is the case with every political party.

The simple way Mr Cameron should have dealt with this is by simply stating how policy is formulated and being robust in his views. For example the Prime Minister and others have been influenced by colleagues who have ideological views, lobbying happens every day of the week. What we have is a governance problem at the very top of government. Indeed it’s a problem that affects all parties and indeed the whole of politics given the House of Lords which still exists and indeed the potential for internal issues within the civil service, the lack of accountability for taxpayers’ funds and also the merry-go-round that we have for people who are booted out of office who end up in all manner of unelected yet appointed positions.

The Solution?
The biggest problem is that Mr Cameron and his team have a massive communication problem. For someone who was involved with PR for his career at Carlton Communications, this is surprising. If there was one lesson learnt from Mr Blair is that coordinated PR works. Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne can be as clever and tactical as they like. However they are going to have to do a far better job selling their ideas, convincing the British electorate that they are right for the job and that their plans are the right ones for the country.

They have made so many strategic errors both in PR terms and indeed in policy over recent months that I suggest they use this latest parliamentary recess for a serious strategy session. Our country has suffered from too much incompetence in the past decade. From the invasion of Iraq to the erosion of our key industries, the undermining of the nation’s strengths and the integrity of its reputation abroad. The strength of our borders to the ability to educate, govern and provide healthcare. Perhaps this PR disaster is more symptomatic of a bigger problem. Our politicians, because they are so short sighted in their objectives have failed to grasp that the real problem we face is that we are tackling symptoms and not causes and pandering to the worst invention of all time, namely the court of public opinion.

Of course I understand that if you can afford to buy a house or flat worth that much money then you are hardly on the breadline. But that is to miss the point. When you buy a house not only are you expecting to live in it and therefore it is a home as well as being an investment but also it’s also quite a driver for the economy. In effect the chancellor has put the brakes on people trading their properties at the upper end of the market. There are some other impacts too.

Fees
If you have lower volumes in the market, so estate agent fees will remain high.

Values
This measure will create inflation at the top of the market. Partly because anyone buying or selling will wish to see their tax returned but also anyone who does own a house in that bracket will be disincentivised from selling if they wanted to move simply because of the tax they’d have to pay. After all why spend £140,000 in tax when you can spend it on your home? Less supply, will force more demand and homes just under the threshold will become more desirable and so on.

Tax Avoidance
Although the chancellor would like to think he is clamping down on avoidance, he isn’t. We will have to wait until the detail comes to the fore but if there is to be a tax on transferring properties into companies then we will have a two tier market for those already in a tax friendly structure. Not his intention, perhaps, but an unfortunate outcome.

Pernicious Tax
It’s a dangerous road we are going down. The idea of taxing someone’s principal residence should not be acceptable. Especially if they have bought it with money that has already been taxed. In effect, you just pushed up the personal tax rate from 45% to over 50% should that person buy a house. Except many people will be paying with equity and debt (a mortgage). So the effective tax rate is higher if you aren’t buying with equity. Buy a £2 million house. You get a £1 million mortgage. And you still have £140,000 of tax to pay. To earn the million in cash, you already had to earn over £1.8 million (plus national insurance). Of course there will be a cumulative effect because if you buy and sell later on, so you will be paying even more tax on money that you have already paid tax on and stamp duty you have already paid. I am sure you get the idea.

The other tax measures…
Whilst we are here, we might as well look at the other measures. The big complaints appear to be about the reduction in the top rate of tax from 50 pence to 45 pence. I don’t think this will actually have much effect and we have a system that promotes the corporate set-up for anyone who is self employed, freelance or has their own business. The people who have picked up the bill are those who work for big companies where there is no alternative but to pay PAYE. With corporation tax falling to 22% by 2014, expect to see more people set up their tax affairs in a different way. It’s not the big handout that the opposition say it is. Partly because the 50 pence tax rate was only supposed to be temporary and mostly because we are talking about taking money off people as opposed to given them state handouts.

As for the continued attack on the motorist, there are some who argue that it’s not the government’s fault that oil prices rise. It is the vagaries of the international oil markets. That is, to an extent true expect we all know that 65%+ of the price of a litre of fuel is tax. We’d all be assisted if this were cut, yet the government continues to raise tax from the motorist without investing the money they raise in better infrastructure.

A government U-turn appears to be in the wings on airport capacity. I don’t mind whether they create “Boris Island” to the east or an extra runway at Heathrow to the west. Personally I’d do both. I just wish they’d get on with it and stop throwing it out into the long grass.

And finally
There is a lot in the Budget that affects the property industry. As someone who spent 15 years of my life working in it, it is shameful that there appears to be little or no single voice. The CBI is out there as are the major business commentators, economists and think tanks. Aside from a few perky estate agents? Nothing. No formal comment. This is shameful. It’s no wonder that our industry has been hit by the stupidity that is Stamp Duty alongside a very poor understanding as to how to fix high streets or the planning system. The industry isn’t engaging. As a result George Osborne isn’t listening and in the end, the property sector (and its clients, investors and customers) are picking up a disproportionate bill for clearing up the legacy of debt.

Perhaps that is the lesson to learn from all of this. The property industry needs to stop itstalking shops and disparate organisations and speak with a credible voice to the government, to the public and to the media.

Wages have not increased to take account of the rises in taxation that we have seen. One of the ways in which a government can get away with a tax cut is if the economy grows significantly after that cut comes into play. We saw it in the early 1980’s, the mid 1980’s and again in the early 1990’s. Higher tax was followed by inflationary periods that were reflected in wage inflation. This time around, that hasn’t happened. Wages are flat and should the government cut tax the increase in receipts simply wouldn’t match the cost of reducing the rate. It goes against most economic theory (particularly peddled by the cutting too far too fast brigade) but that’s the reality.

Which is why there is talk of reducing corporation tax. If you increase the profitability of companies, they in turn can invest and ultimately pay their staff more. As and when wage inflation comes back into the market so spending increases. When that finally occurs, the economic cycle begins. If you then cut government spending and bring in tax cuts a glut of money becomes available and you really kick-start the economy. We simply aren’t at that point yet.

There are many arguments raging about tax at the moment. Perhaps the most important thing for government to do is to simplify the system. At over 11,500 pages the UK tax code handbook is not only one of the longest in the world it’s also one of the most complex. You can thank Gordon Brown for that. He did it because he wanted you not to notice he was doing. New Labour had promised not to raise the income tax rates. And indeed they didn’t. To fund their massive increases in public spending and employment they had to do something. And they did. They burdened the taxpayer with salami slicing of every kind of earning, investment, saving, travel and other taxes so perhaps you would not notice what they were doing. And for a while you didn’t.

However what we have now are a range of taxes that are storing up problems for the future. Setting aside the high level of VAT which should only be there if you reduce income tax or the 50 pence tax rate which when combined with National Insurance (income tax with another name) makes for a self defeating tax in many ways… there are a number of taxes that should go.

Stamp Duty on your main home is one of the reasons the housing market is stuttering. Some may say that if you own an expensive house, so you should pay tax on its purchase. Yet with a market that is sluggish it means every time you move, you lose capital. Do that too many times and unless you are earning a lot or the market is rising, the tax reduces your capital. The upshot of that is that people are not moving. Fine, you might say. If people don’t move, supply constrains and the market becomes clogged. Worse than that when people move they spend. That just isn’t happening at the moment.

The opposition wants to maintain tax credits and cut various forms of tax for the lowest paid in society. Laudable but funded by what exactly? Another attack on pensions? Believe it or not, that would hit middle income people. Again. Why? As you all know just because you have a lot of money it doesn’t mean you will live any longer. The pension system works on the basis that some will overpay which funds those who underpay. It’s quite a neat system as it levels out the laws of averages and helps sustain a system for paying people when they stop working. Yet if you drain from the very top by reducing tax concession you take away the ability to fund pensions. Take too much out of the pot and the system will fail. In the past 20 years the UK’s pension system has been systematically raided. As it is money in the future and people don’t tend to worry too much about things that are far away, no one noticed. It’s a national scandal that savings have been plundered in this way. It’s also a time bomb waiting to go off. We are living longer and that extra cost hasn’t been factored into the system.

As a result of the complexity of our tax system and the multiple pieces of tax you pay in different forms, the UK is over taxed. It’s expensive and redistributing wealth in a way we have never seen before. Part of the way we get out of this is to improve financial literacy to ensure that you know what the government is doing. The other aspect is having a greater understanding about those who earn the most paying the most. The more money you have the more ability you have to shift yourself, your family and your business elsewhere. Whilst that may not be “fair” it’s reality. After all if you could reduce your tax bill you would.

The way we get out of this mess is to reconsider what tax is there to do. It is there to pay for the services we need. It isn’t and shouldn’t be there to give money to the have not’s willy-nilly. We also should be far more protective of our investments and savings allowing individuals to become more self-sufficient so reducing the requirements and burdens on the state. In addition to that we should stop assuming that because the demand for fuel is inelastic that you can simply tax it some more. And finally it’s about time companies stopped taking advantage of their workers. I am all for big rewards for people who succeed. However I am also a big supporter of ensuring that those who really do the work get rewarded too. It should not just be for the people at the top to take unless they are prepared to reward the people who helped them perform.

In the meantime let’s hope that we can really cut the burden of too much tax. Encourage and reward investment and hard work and once and for all remove the scourge of taxation that feeds the venomous beast that is envy.

Anyway, I have scoured the net once again to bring you some new music, current hits, great mashes and a few oldies and oddities. Do enjoy and if you find something YOU like and think I should see it? EMAIL ME! Or use the comments box at the bottom of this blog.

Let’s kick off with Havana Brown “We Run The Night”. This has anthem stamped all over it.

Dev is making quite a splash. Here’s “Take Her From You”

LMFAO are getting a real reputation for dropping some great tracks with some very entertaining videos to go with them. “Sorry For Party Rocking” is their latest.

No vid yet..this is Calvin Harris’s new track “Let’s Go”. Love it.

Usher has his new release “Climax” but it’s crap. So I won’t bother with it.

Carly Rae Jepsen. I have no idea who she is. But she’s done a song which isn’t bad (sugary pop really) and the video is rather fun and zillions of people have viewed it.

Oh. Keane are back. Here’s their trailer for their new album expected in May 2012.

Gotye have stolen the top spot in the charts with “Somebody That I Used to Know” with this rather artistic video to accompany the track. Bit odd. Not an oil painting are they? Even if they are.

And here’s a mash with Robert Miles “Children”. It’s pretty cool

I do rather like Starships by Nicki Minaj but the internet seems to be awash with teenagers making their own videos whilst the official one appears to have done a disappearing act.

In this track Ed Sheeran is ”Drunk”

They really were good, weren’t they? Here’s the Beatles “I Want To Hold Your Hand”

It was with a sense of shock and sadness that I read that Davy Jones of The Monkees had passed away. It was only last year that I went to their concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall. They really were a wonderful band and whenever Davy was interviewed his infectious personality always shone through. Here’s “Daydream Believer”

And here’s the opening and closing credits for “The Monkees”

Let’s MASH! ManduDeeJay has done his stuff.

And here’s a multitrack mash…

and this one is a bit Eurotrash!

Always keen to find new talent… if you missed my blog on new talent..then take a look. Anyway. Here’s Jack and Oli playing Chubby Bunny.

Two dogs dining. Funny? I think so.

And let’s finish this time with (yet) another wonderful video from ThePianoGuys. I love their incredibly inventive and beautifully filmed videos.

Until next time, cheerio!

We have become used to the talent show format. It almost seems tired now. Yet we still like the familiarity of the judges, the hype, the glamour and the importance of national exposure on national television. Yet the world is changing. Even our talent shows are scanning the internet for new prospects. New talent and new ideas.

I thought you might like to see my favourites of the younger generation of new talent on the web. However this isn’t a one way process! I’d like you to forward links to the people YOU like on YouTube. Who makes you laugh? Who has incredible talent? Who is very entertaining? And most crucially who do YOU think are the stars of the future?

Of course we must start with the king. Charlie McDonnell aka Charlieissocoollike is the most subscribed YouTuber in the UK. 1.4 million subscribers. And counting. A mix of self-deprecating humour, self-written songs, collaborations and challenge vlogs. With over 6 million views, this is his most viewed video. But there’s a lot of fun stuff on his site. Personal favourites are some of the early challenges, music videos, fun science features.

And here’s his latest “The Other Charlie”

I was first attracted to YouTube by the collaboration that is Smosh. 4.3 million subscribers. And goodness knows how many views on their channel. This is their latest comedy sketch.

And here is the very first success they had. It looks somewhat basic now. But it took the world by storm… over 5 years ago… interestingly they had to remove the original for copyright reasons. But it still remains! Lipsync. Still funny!

Then there was the UK version of the syncing vids from Syncsta..aka Jake and Chris.

This was their first effort “NumaNuma” that went ballistic for them;

And here’s another.

However they had a bit of a bust-up and although friends now, it just shows how an interruption in the provision of content can destroy your following and audience.

So, who’s cutting it now?

Here’s Marcus Butler TV with his friend Alfie Aka PointlessBlog. In this episode they make pizza. Not sure I want to eat it to be honest.

For those of you old enough to remember… it’s a bit John Noakes. Maybe that’s why I find it so funny.

Anyway. In another escapade, Marcus and Alfie decide to go to McDonald’s.

It’s funnier than it sounds.

Marcus has 23,000 subscribers..andAlfie has just nudged ahead with 24,000.

Worth a look at Pointlessblog’s recent post. It’s time to flip pancakes.

Whilst I wipe the tears of laughter off my face and get a little sentimental. Here’s a short little film about Valentaine’s Day.

And often a successful YouTuber will have a second channel to put other stuff. Here’s Marcus and Alfie doing a bit of One Direction LipSyncing. It’s very funny.

It’s worth popping over to those who have made it in TV land who have turned to YouTube to capitalise on their popularity.

Sam Pepper. He became famous from appearing on Big Brother. But has managed to get a truck load of followers to his YouTube channel.

And here’s Harry “H” from the Young Apprentice

Younger talent? BertieBertG is rather amusing. He has 36,000 subscribers. One wonders where he gets the time for this since I presume he has to go to school. He’ll be 15 on the first of May.

And in the style of YouTube. Nothing like a collaboration. So here’s Bertie and Harrison. Were they were bored on holiday or something? But this is quite a fun little film.

And here’s Harrison Webb. In this challenge his younger brother joins in to do the salt and ice challenge that is doing the rounds at the moment.

Which has then been emulated here by Jack and Ollie

Time for another challenge (which are very popular on YouTube btw). Chubby Bunny!!

And here’s Jack and his twin brother Finn. Three challenges back to back. It’s hilarious. And really well edited!

Of course, YouTube doesn’t just focus on people or youngsters. This is one of my favourites. 98 million views. Wow!

Please do get in touch with your suggestions and I’ll do a follow-up with some talent you’ve spotted!

You could be forgiven for thinking we are back in the 1980’s. A new Royal couple is very popular. The Falklands is all over the headlines, the Pet Shop Boys are off to LA to record a new album and the economy is a bit crispy.

And Madonna has a new single out. From herprovocatively titled album MDNA, here’s “Give Me All Your Luvin’”. It’s brilliant.

Welcome Sam Sparro. A poppy, quirky little number entitled “The Shallow End”

Everyone loves Glee. Even if they say they don’t they are lying. And although I feel a little dirty by posting this, it’s rather good. “Smooth Criminal”.

Emile Sandé. She’s done it again. Produced another catchy track. “Next To Me”. Yes please and thank you.

I think we all need a cup of tea and a biscuit. And what better to relax than Gotye “Somebody that I used to Know”

Here’s David Guetta “Titanium”. There’s an argument that it sounds like all his other stuff. Well. It does.

You know I love a mash-up. And so it would seem do you. DJ Earthworm has been mashing and chopping again. Here’s “United State of Pop 2012”

OMG. This is AMAZING! Robbie Williams “Feel” vs Adele “Fire to The Rain”

And how about Lana Del Ray vs Avril Lavigne vs Queen

No moving pix… but a Pet Shop Boys Mash HAS to be heard. It’s 80’s tastic!

Hello! Culshaw and Stephenson “Hello!”

And Holly and Phil get the giggles over a shi* a shi* ohhhh shitake!

And here’s some classic Phil with Fern getting in a real mess with some muffins. I defy you not to get an attack of the giggles!

Let’s go kitten bowling!!

Always a fan of new talent.. here’s Marcus and his friend Alfie as they try to eat 120 chicken McNuggets in 20 minutes to celebrate getting lots of subscribers on YouTube.

To end this Max MixTape? Harry Potter in 60 seconds. This is genius. Don’t tell me that it isn’t. Because. Well, just because it is. Enjoy!

I am all for Twitter and Facebook and have thoroughly engaged with the social media revolution. Our politicians have devalued themselves because of the row over their pay and their personal conduct. As a result their comments and leadership has been undermined. No one outside of the Westminster “bubble” cares much for the arguments they have. There is very little engagement in the processes of democracy. It seems to take too long. Is too complex. Too driven by ego and as a result of lack of any experience outside politics often the decisions taken aren’t good.

If you have a look at how government is constructed, it’s not particularly democratic either. The selections process for MP’s, the party system and how it’s funded, the House of Lords, which has no elected element or accountability. Politicians more interested in their ego than of doing a good job often populate Select Committees. The scrutiny they provide is either partisan or flawed by their own lack of expertise. The machinations of government, operating through a faceless group of civil servants and quangos is both expensive and wasteful.

Even when democracy does work and someone is unseated from power they end up being parachuted into the House of Lords, sent to Europe to join the EU gravy train or end up on the consultancy and after dinner circuit earning vast sums.

Meanwhile, you are paying for this. Through an increasing tax burden which some seem to argue isn’t enough.

Personally I am delighted that Mr Goodwin is no longer a Sir. However that is a decision that should have taken place two years ago. Indeed there are many other people who no longer deserve the honours bestowed upon them. The court of public opinion hasn’t been goaded to kick up a stink, so the system continues to fail.

I am less pleased about the continued row over pay. There is absolutely no role for government in this arena. Other than to collect tax and encourage business to set up in this country and to assist our overall economic trajectory. This continued interference is unwelcome. However what we do need to do is have a democratic system that is both accountable and forward thinking. Whilst the court of public opinion has got itself worked up over Fred the Shred and his replacement’s pay, we haven’t tackled any of the problems that really affect us.

Politicians have allowed the court of public opinion to mix their banking metaphors. Investment banks make big profits and pay big bonuses. Retail banks tried to emulate them. There is a difference and the public facing retail banks have not had to change their dreadful approach to lending or their contemptible treatment of customers one jot. Meanwhile investment banks, which do a very different job, have been the focus. This is madness.

It’s still too expensive to borrow money. Retail banks have not been made to be answerable to their customers. Credit card companies are charging too much for their services. Layered charges and extra fees by various organisations remain in place. Complaints take too long and are often ineffective. Mortgages are hard to come by and again layered with fees. Rewards for failure are rife. However rewards for success are targeted. Have our politicians dealt with any of the issues that really affect people? No. It’s too difficult and so the simpler option of sticking plasters to cover gaping wounds continues.

Indeed it is the politicians and their tinkering that has led us to inflate pay at the top. Why? Disclosure requirements and a politically driven tax structure. The real issue for most people is that they have no knowledge of how their colleagues are paid. Processes are mired in secrecy. Since we have begun to open Pandora’s box, there’s an argument to say that there should be complete disclosure from top to bottom of all pay and remuneration to eradicate the scourge of discrimination and of large companies taking advantage of their workers.

The court of public opinion won’t often be right. Not because I don’t have faith in people but because it will inevitably pick on a quick solution rather than dealing with the cause. It will also pick up on wherever the light is being shone (often brightly by an unelected and motivated media organisations!) and it leaves many others unaffected. Unless we improve the quality of our political system and the processes by which they operate we will sink ever further into a society that takes its decisions based on jealousy, envy and hunches rather than being driven by hard work, reward and enterprise.

How could I not immediately post the new One Direction video for their next release “One Thing”?

So. Here it is…

More new music. Here’s Dev with “Dancing Shoes”.

And Steve Aoki feat.Wynter Gordon with “LadiDadi”, quite cool I think.

And here’s Lana Del Ray with “Born to Die”

And here’s “Video Games”

Dunproofin – a splendid mash-up mix!

How about “Starry Eyed Surprise” with a Lion King music video? Why not I say!

And finally in homage to the new presenter of Countdown, Nick Hewer… how about a Kraftwerkremix of that famous theme tune? It’s proper!