Employers will commonly include terms in their contracts of employment to stop employees working for a competitor.
they do
they don’t always stand up in court, though
courts can hold them to be void, on grounds of public policy, because they’re “in restraint of trade”
it’s a real tightrope for employers, and their lawyers who draft the contracts
if they try to go over the top they can get the whole clause struck out by a court, so they often really limit it to try to avoid this, and only get people to commit to not working for a direct competitor in the same local area for a short period of time
there’s endless case-law on the subject, quite interesting, actually
Poppies from France
In the UK we commonly wear a poppy in November to commemorate the country’s fallen war dead. Interesting to note that this custom was started here at the suggestion of a French lady in 1921, Madame Anna Guérin.
She was able to convince the British Legion that this would be a very suitable emblem for an annual fund-raising campaign and in fact she paid for the first campaign’s poppies out of her own pocket. The first poppies were made in France by the widows and orphans of French soldiers killed in the First World War.
Madame Guérin’s charitable efforts in many countries are worthy of remembrance.
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Its hard to get agitated about this.
The NHS is always facing its worst year, its worst crisis, its most appalling scandal, its worst treatment results, its worst waiting time averages…
This is to be expected with a national health service consistently in the lower third of those in developed countries in terms of performance and resources.
Basically, we had a crap health service before the pandemic and lo and behold its even worse now.
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Protest or take direct action?
Protest is a legitimate input into the democratic decision-making process. It raises an issue for greater debate in Parliament and literally demonstrates the breadth of feeling on one side or the other.
Direct action ignores the democratic process and places the feelings of activists above Parliament and by extension above the general mass of voters. It seeks to forcibly eliminate an activity on the threat of physical or financial disruption, damage to property and by implication, personal injury.
Can direct action ever be justified?
Not in the democracy which is the UK.
Take it you didn’t watch Dispatches C4 Monday night past 
They didn’t mention that exports from NI to EU (RoI) is up by 77% 1st 6 months this year - they just concentrated on how much exports are down from GB.
Have to say the picture on that front is slowly improving but it’s the SME’s that are getting hit hardest with customs costs.
SME’s in GB cannot access this site to make life easy when exporting instead must go thru Customs but maybe that too will change - who knows.:
The Shell movement will add very little to tax take (HQ movement) - and it’s still not a done deal - and it’s zilch re Brexit and all about where the lr tax regime is located - money money money. I see the Dutch are thinking of removing their extra tax on Shell.
Strange how Guardian-readers boycott coffee shops owing to their tax avoidance measures and treatment of employees, but they they still go to Cuba for their holidays.
Interesting how some Guardian-readers boycott coffee shops owing to their alleged tax avoidance measures and treatment of employees, but they still meet a dealer from a gang on a Friday night to buy some cannabis for the weekend…
Here’s a wee thing I find funny about GB politcs.
Vast majority of politicians who are termed ‘brexiteer’ very forcefully condemn the notion of unelected bureaucrats (generally diplomats or civil servants who have not faced election) from EU dictating policy - and they have a valid point since in a democracy there are surely plenty of elected personnel.
Then the UK PM appointed an unelected bureaucrat, made him a lord and put him into government as ‘Brexit Minister’ - and not a single protest.
One lord Frost - a cabinet minister who has never faced an election.
Another interesting story concerning the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. As an atheist, I never thought I’d be so interested in what he has to say.
The Archbishop is apologising again, this time for blaming without any reasonable grounds, one of his own Bishops for sexual abuse of a female child. Adding even more distaste is the fact the at the Bishop had been dead since 1958 and obviously had no opportunity to speak in his own defence.
Ministers don’t have to be either MP’s or Lords. The right to appoint ministers is devolved to the democratically elected government.
Parliament has the right to change the law on this if they wish.
I didn’t know that 
But since it does at least give the opportunity to appoint at least SOME “persons of competence” in managerial positions - in the face of the dismal choices put forward by the “Selection Commitees” of All the Major parties - it does sound as though that particular option should be more often exercised !
I have to think ministers are appointed for their political philosophy and loyalty plus their leadership abilities, rather than competence in the specific field they are appointed to. The specific competence and skills come from the civil servants.
There is something to be said for this. I think we would all readily see which way the NHS would go if only a doctor could be appointed health minister, or a teacher education minister. Even more so than at present they would be highly suspect to be “captured” by their own lobbies and stakeholders, and probably very loath to shake up their own sectors.
According to the Peel Convention they do - only one I can think of was back in 1964, Gordon Walker - although he had been an MP from 1945 he lost his seat 1964 and stood again in 1965.
What is unusual in Frost’s case is that he has never faced an election to date.
Former father of the House and Conservative grandee is reported less than an hour ago that the UK is ‘dangerously close to elected dictatorship’ - he is referring to the current PM and the perceived disregard for Parliament by the current Govt.
He is calling for a written constitution - “We have relied for too long on a Victorian ideal of what we used to call decent chaps doing the right thing to keep our constitutional principles intact." reports the Independent.
Interesting Conservative of the past was one lord Hailsham, former lord Chancellor (Quintin Hogg)
Elective dictatorship - Wikipedia
Edit: It was to comply with Peel that Frost was appointed to the HoL by the PM
Conventions relating to constitutional matters are not legally binding. As the name states.
HS2 rail extension to Leeds scrapped
Surprised?
The pandemic was unforeseen and its economic damage serious, but I don’t think I would have been surprised by this announcement even if we hadn’t had a pandemic.
Can’t say I’m desperately disappointed.
Constitutional Conventions which are not covered by an Act are not legally enforceable but yet very seldom are they contravened.
E.g. there is no legal redress if the Speaker continues to act in a political partisan manner - but he doesn’t do so by convention - the constitution has no legal document - thus any Govt can refuse to resign when defeated by a no confidence vote or the Monarch could choose a politician as PM even though he/she cannot command a majority in HoC and ignore one who has such a majority.
But the reality is that these constitutional conventions are very seldom broken.
The breaking of a constitutional convention has never been tested in a court where the law of custom or customary law would likely be tested.
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What does the new year’s line-up of top TV journalists look like at the BBC?
We don’t yet have full details but of course it won’t include -
Andrew Neil
Andrew Marr
Laura Kuenssberg
Huw Edwards
Jon Sopel
John Kay
Katty Kay
Simon McCoy
Fran Unsworth
Martin Bashir
Rory Cellan-Jones
Nick Bryant
Dino Sofos
Adam Cumiskey
Rebecca Kesey
Norman Smith
John Pienaar
etc.
Not to mention sweet Louise Minchin. Though she was perhaps fed up being used to promote future BBC programmes like Panorama and Strictly.
Martin Bashir will be no great loss.
So many people have left, perhaps the BBC news division is quietly closing down?
Here in NI the best known is Donna Traynor - a news anchor for over 30 years at BBC NI.
Seems it’s a young person’s game - or so they think. They’ll only learn when they become older: Donna is currently taking an ‘age bias case’ against the BBC according to local news agencies.
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