Best Of

PB legal brains: a family member has fallen victim to fraud. Their email was hacked and the fraudsters used it to make a last minute change in banking instructions to their conveyancing solicitor. The solicitors failed to check these instructions with a phone call, and sent the proceeds of their home sale to fraudsters.
To my mind, the solicitors failed to spot a blatant red flag for fraud and were grossly negligent in their treatment of the money. The funds are now overdue and they need to make our family member good immediately.
However, the solicitors are claiming that they can't do anything until they hear from their liability insurers, which might take weeks/months. My fear is that the insurers will try to find some means of avoiding reimbursing the lost money.
There is no onward chain so there isn't a critical urgency here, but we are concerned about the anxiety this is creating for elderly family members. What should we do? Do we have any mechanism to force the payment? They are just stonewalling us.

UK suffers "unprecedented" slump in productivity: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/britain-suffers-unprecedented-fall-in-productivity/ar-AA1CuEjn?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d06ef92cf67d40fe83f42058c08e0692&ei=14

When are we going to stop pretending that those working from home are actually working?

The article suggests the problems are falling oil extraction, lack of investment, and unreliable economic statistics.

Meanwhile, pro-ID card Labour MPs think the productivity problem is not enough ID cards:-

The letter calls on the government to revive the idea of ID cards – a hugely controversial policy proposal during Tony Blair’s era – but said digital IDs were the right route for the modern economy. It said it would mean that citizens could “engage with the state more seamlessly”, including booking GP appointments, renewing passports or paying tax.

It said it would meet the government’s objections of making the state more efficient and crack down on “off-the-books employment, boost lagging public sector productivity, and provide faster, more efficient access to healthcare, welfare and public services”.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/apr/08/labour-mps-launch-campaign-to-introduce-digital-ids

UK suffers "unprecedented" slump in productivity: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/britain-suffers-unprecedented-fall-in-productivity/ar-AA1CuEjn?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d06ef92cf67d40fe83f42058c08e0692&ei=14

When are we going to stop pretending that those working from home are actually working?

The article suggests the problems are falling oil extraction, lack of investment, and unreliable economic statistics.

Meanwhile, pro-ID card Labour MPs think the productivity problem is not enough ID cards:-

The letter calls on the government to revive the idea of ID cards – a hugely controversial policy proposal during Tony Blair’s era – but said digital IDs were the right route for the modern economy. It said it would mean that citizens could “engage with the state more seamlessly”, including booking GP appointments, renewing passports or paying tax.

It said it would meet the government’s objections of making the state more efficient and crack down on “off-the-books employment, boost lagging public sector productivity, and provide faster, more efficient access to healthcare, welfare and public services”.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/apr/08/labour-mps-launch-campaign-to-introduce-digital-ids

It might also flush out the hundred of thousands (millions?) who are working illegally.

Indeed, but we could eliminate that problem by becoming a cashless society rather than having draconian ID cards.

ID cards are not really draconian. Its only the potential application by the state that makes it so. For instance you have to show ID such as a passport when being employed at my Uni - an ID card would do that. You could show it at the GP or hospital. Lots of benefits to it.

Could would rapidly become must in lots of other life situations.

Good morning, everyone.

Only because it would make life easier - reality is no one is going to create extra work here because there is no money involved.

What's involved is power. Power exerted by authority over individuals.

Unless there ends up being a law that says no ID card no treatment, anyone playing games like that is going to end up on a disciplinary at some level or other.

power only works if people are given it

Unfortunately Trump is giving us an object lesson in how power works. You take it and you smash people's face in and the others are too frightened to stop you. A 21st century hyperpower is turning itself into a medieval state and people are...doing podcasts. Please do not believe that decency prevents evil.

On topic. "Hey, we have the World's reserve currency. Let's torch it !"

@faisalislam

Author of Mar A Lago accord concept that US tariff agenda is basically designed to cause negotiated dollar weakening, (now WH chief economist), gave speech yday which basically suggested that reserve status for dollar was a burden which others might need to “write checks” for

turns on its head the famous description of ex French President then fin minister Valéry Giscard d'Estaing the US enjoyed an “exorbitant privilege” with $ reserve status…

Instead Administration appears to believe this is an exorbitant burden for which US should be remunerated.

It’s part of a narrative that seeks to paint new tariffs (accepted without retaliation) as justifiable payment for burden of strong dollar (eg on US manufacturing exports and jobs)… this new mindset is extremely consequential. The tariffs aren’t going.

https://x.com/faisalislam/status/1909513038341799937

Dunning and Kruger would have a field day analysing the current US administration. But there must be some people in the US Cabinet who realise that we are seeing Orwell's "doublethink" applied to governance to a degree not seen before in an advanced economy. That we need to point to places like Cambodia or North Korea for comparisons with other governments pursuing the preposterous is telling.

The US is simultaneously the strongest but most attacked, the richest but most ripped-off, wants to trade with everyone and no-one, it's enemies are now allies, and it's allies now enemies. Up is down, black is white, etc.

Four years of this nonsense will end in calamity.