I have a sense of déjà vu. I run a charity that helps young jobless people and there are already similar incentives available via local councils . The problem is that these headline grabber rarely translate into anything meaningful and long term . Anybody remember the YTS of the 1980s ? Nicknamed the Yobs Training Scheme it had scallies running around performing menial tasks. It certainly taught them something – that you can manipulate the figures with duff schemes. Most disaffected youth are not going to change simply because they have a shiny hi-vis jacket and are in a dead end job picking up litter that they themselves discarded the night before as they staggered back from a late night party. Enough of the cynicism – what do I suggest ? Simple – let’s have a meaningful education system with decent discipline and ethical values. Enjoy the challenge.

Lots of builders and subcontractors will be happy. And so will company registration agents. It all filters down through the funnel and hopefully the site subcontractors will require companies. It doesn’t cost to dream. Well, not until the government find a way of taxing people’s thoughts.

I still have to pinch myself to make sure I am actually doing this but we’re offering discounts on company formation to new and existing clients. By the way the code is TENX and it’s valid to 31^stDecember. The market is cut-throat and the problem is that everybody is fighting over the same cake. The trouble with the company formation business is that you cannot persuade people to register a company unless they need it. It’s not like selling chocolates – if only life was so sweet.

Once upon a time professional firms such as company registration agents battled it out on the printed page and differentiated themselves on price and service. Now the marketing men are paying people to form companies using referral commissions to underwrite the process. To compound matters we find ourselves spending more time working out how to gain the coveted top spot on Google than we do actually running our businesses. Is this a good thing? It is if you are hogging the first place in organic search results.

Italy is in the firing line because of its high debt. To be more accurate it isn’t the debt per se that is the problem as they have had it for a long time but and are servicing it nicely , it is more a case of what happens when it falls for renewal next year – who is going to lend Italy. See the comparison with many householders whose fixed term mortgages need renewed soon. Surely their current lender will roll over the loan , I hear you say . Perhaps , but at what rate of interest ? Get the idea ? – start to worry!

So the private lenders have agreed to accept a 50% haircut. Seems to have been agreed nicely behind the scenes. Why should a private lender agree to shoulder the brunt of the pain? Is there a secret agenda here? Sweeteners and incentives behind the scenes from governments to certain individuals who represent the lenders or is this sounding like a conspiracy theory….