Silvio Berlusconi Turns Popstar

It didn't take Silvio Berlusconi long to find an outlet for his boundless energy and occupy himself. Barely a fortnight after stepping down from his position I hear he has released an album of love songs. Well, according to reports the ex Italian Prime Minister penned the lyrics to the songs sang by Mariano Apicella , a popular Italian singer and a friend of his. I haven't heard the songs yet, but anyone who has heard the songs should please let me know if I they are worth adding to my iPod playlist.

What next to expect from Silvio then? Judge on Italian  ex-factor?  A contestant on Italy`s Got Talent? Big Brother? The world is his oyster in this regard actually. Given that he owns a large swathe of the Italian media that should not be hard to arrange. Im not a great fan on reality television shows but one along the lines of Im An ex Prime Minister Get me Out of Here would be great to watch. There is no shortage of  possible contetants for such a show these days due to the wind of change blowing all over Europe and beyond. The spectre of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown jostling for our votes to win the contset is quite an appealing if not interesting one.

Moment Of Truth Near For David Cameron?

The opinion polls have David Cameron dead and buried if Gordon Brown were to call the general election. Seems a lightyear away from the situation a couple of weeks ago when the Brown bounce lost considerable ounces and Cameron went on the rise. The Conservative leader sounded hollow yesterday delivering his speech at the party conference. Looking a bit worse for wear he revealed a raft of new policies. Now we know the conservatives would abolish stamp duty for first time buyers and raise the threshold for inheritance tax. Good. But would these new sweeteners be enough to stem the slide of support for Cameron and the conservatives?

Like someone remarked Cameron calling on the prime minister to bring the electoral fight on now is akin to a deathrow detainee clamouring for the executioner. That is a strong way of puttting it. Thought the Blair knockout prediction was scary enough. Only a divine intervention can save the Tory leader from this fate. Going by recent polls that is.

Gordon Brown`s Cabinet

Nice guy Gordon eh? We now know our Prime Minister-in-waiting has been busy putting a team together for his government.What with the Northern Ireland job being offered to old Paddy. Shame though that he had to turn it down. I do comprehend why such a cross-party alliance(for that is what essentialy it is) would at best be cumbersome and at worst unworkable. Given for example the fundamental differences between Labour and the Liberals on matters such as the iraqi conflict. Not to mention the potential intra party rancour such appointments might bring about.

Cynics already point to Brown's broad based inclusive approach as just a masterstroke to weaken or break opposition when he eventually takes over in No10.I do not subscribe to that view at all. This is just the Chancellor trying to put together a team he believes he can work with and more relevantly up to the task.Not even the most cynical of cynics would question Ashdowns`s pedigree for such a position as he was offered.

Property Millionaires

It's official London now has 46,668 millionaires.Thanks to the exponential increase in property prices over the decade. London is not the only area where many people have been rocketed into the millionaires` league.It`s a country-wide phenomenon.

This has serious implications though. Not least the issue of inheritance tax and capital gains tax.The former being the major thorn in the flesh of most home owners.The Inheritance Tax was designed to re- distribute wealth- basic argument for most taxes,whereby the Treasury creams off the estates of deceased wealthy people.Now that is not the case any more because more and more of us now fall in the `wealthy` category based on the threshold where the tax sets in.Presently,an estate(read property,since that is the single most valuable asset most of us have) worth less than £285k does not incur Inheritance tax,but go any higher than that and the taxman hits you with a whopping 40% charge. And there is the rub of the whole matter. Why should people work all their lives to pay the mortgage,renovate and maintain their properties then forfeit most of the accrued equity on such holdings to the government after their demise. The irony is the superbly wealthy for whom the tax was designed do not always pay.Why? How?

They have experienced professional tax advisers who handle their financial affairs. Chief of this is how to minimise their tax liabilities or even to pay nil tax where possible.Tax avoidance is not illegal.Tax evasion is! So get planning how to keep that profit from the taxman.

London2012 Olympics Budget Muddle

What is it with us and planning a project, delivering it on time and on budget?.Cue The Millenium dome,Wembley Stadium,NHS Information Technology infrastructure and many others.Now a week barely passes without ramblings from the seemingly clueless people charged with delivering such showcase event as the Olympics. No one seems to know what exactly is happening regarding a host of issues connected to the project.The Olympics Minister Tessa Jowel admitted that she has no idea.The certainty is that the Games would cost Londoners more. Considerably more! The original budget for the extravanga was something like £2.4b but now a sum of £3.3b is being mouthed. Analysts reckon we should make that £5b.Sighs.

Highly commendable of Vince Cable,Liberal Democrats Shadow Chancellor to put down a list of parliamentary questions regarding the issue.