K5 CONSULTING

WIKILEAKS boss Julian Assange appeared in court today to fight his extradition over sexual assault claims.

Lawyers for the 40-year-old argued the bid to turn him over to Sweden was “legally flawed”.

They said the European arrest warrant on which he was being held failed to give a “fair, accurate and proper” description of the alleged sexual misconduct.

Ben Emmerson QC, defending, also told two judges at the High Court in London that Assange was a victim of a “philosophical and judicial mismatch” between English and Swedish law on what makes up a sex crime.

Australian Assange, who is accused of sexually assaulting two women in Stockholm last August, claims the allegations are politically motivated after his website published reams of leaked US diplomatic cables.

He has expressed fears that an extradition would bring him closer to also being sent to the US to stand trial on charges relating to the website.

He says he could even face the death penalty.

Assange, who celebrated turning 40 with a lavish star-studded birthday party at the weekend, was greeted by supporters as he arrived at court.

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MORE than £30BILLION was wiped off the value of Britain’s biggest firms this morning as markets tumbled in the wake of the European crisis.
The FTSE 100 plunged over fears the debt nightmare sweeping the continent will drown Italy and Spain.

The sell-off slashes the value of Brits’ savings and pensions, given the huge amount invested in shares across the City.

EVERY company in the top 100 fell — with LLOYDS down 4 per cent, BARCLAYS 3.7 per cent and Costa Coffee owner WHITBREAD sliding 3.5 per cent.

Among smaller stocks, THOMAS COOK crashed almost 30 per cent following a huge profit warning.

The package holiday giant slashed profit forecasts — blaming nervy Brits cutting back on their summer breaks.

David Buik, of BGC PARTNERS, warned the sell-off would continue until Europe fixed the debt crisis once and for all. EU ministers have still to agree a solution for Greece.

He said: “The only way to fix this is for Europe to grow up, smell the coffee and get to grips with this crisis.

“At the moment it’s like sitting in the Doctor’s waiting room, everyone’s catching the pox.”

Borrowing costs for Italy and Spain soared yesterday amid fears they will join Greece, Ireland and Portugal on the sick list.

Italy has to repay — or refinance — 26 per cent of its mammoth debts by the end of next year.

Greece’s PM George Papandreou last night became the first to admit the Euro may break up.

In a stinging letter he said money markets increasingly doubted the Eurozone’s ability to solve the crisis.

He told Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker: “There is no room for indecision and mistakes such as allowing a cacophony to substitute for a common agenda and create more panic than security.”

He added Greece was paying the price for the EU’s “experimentation and confusion”.

Meanwhile, sources claimed six Spanish banks would fail key EU financial tests on the strength of their balance sheet on Friday.

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The singer, currently touring with Take That, has been criticised for using bad language on stage and recently upset his friend Jonathan Wilkes after teaching his son a rude word while babysitting.

The singer has confessed to having had his knuckles rapped by his wife Ayda Field, who – along with Wilkes – was less than impressed with his antics.

‘They weren’t happy. I wonder what I’ll think when my little ones ask to watch Dora The f****** Explorer and Ayda looks at me shaking her head?’ said Robbie.

Thinking back to his childhood, Robbie has said that where he grew up has had an effect on his vocabulary.

‘I was born and raised [for the first three years of my life] in a pub. One of my first words was f***,’ he claimed.

Fans attacked the singer last week – saying his language was unsuitable for families attending the Take That shows.

The potty-mouthed performer responded to the complaints in the solo part of the show by saying there was a helpline people could call if they had been offended: ‘0800 Go F*** Yourself’.

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My Italian neighbours can’t contain themselves and the cauliflower-shaped surreal underworld is echoing with jocular whispers.

Padding around these 34C hot caves (pictured right), where ‘silence’ is pinned to the dripping walls, the white-cloaked visitors resemble members of a cult.

This place, Grotta Giusti, or ‘Monsummano Terme’ to locals, is a one-off. .

Monikered ‘the eighth wonder of the world’ by Italian composer Verdi, the kilometre of caves meander blindly under the town of Monsummano, near Pisa.

They contain the largest underground hot water lake in Europe and are said to detoxify and soothe ailments ranging from arthritis to allergies.

Thankfully, I am not here for my health but to try the latest craze gripping Italian tourists – hot spring hopping.

They drive – on what I discovered are heart-thumpingly narrow, often pot-holed roads – around the region of Tuscany, seeking out nature’s wild waters and spas.

These are numerous: Bagni di Petriolo has hot, fizzing pools in the shrubs, bustling with Italians and completely free to visit; San Casciano dei Bagni, a less busy series of baths, is also gratis; there’s the less impressive Casciana Terme in the north; Bagni di Lucca, for the fashionable elite; Terme di Saturnia, a cascading plumage of waterfalls; the steaming Bagno Vignoni and San Filippo in close proximity – the list goes on.

Heading along a second track at Grotta Giusti, while nearly knocking myself out on some protruding stalactites, I stumble across a warm, azure pool, ‘lago del limbo’.

Starting here, scuba divers can flipper along the fault line in the vodka-clear waters.

When I return overground to the hotel’s brightly lit changing rooms, I meet Margherita from Florence, staying in the hotel next door with her boyfriend.

‘Check the waters in Saturnia,’ she says, a little covertly.

You often meet kindred hot-spring spirits on this kind of pilgrimage, when destinations are shared and word spreads fast.

From where I’m staying – a farmhouse on an estate, Barbialla Nuevo, in northern Tuscany – Saturnia is 100 miles away. But it’s a must-visit.

After a long drive in the trusty Volvo I’ve borrowed through a blur of woods, winding roads and lost Italians (all heading to Saturnia, it emerges), I stop to feast on a five-course, white-truffle menu before donning a bikini.

Unsightly girth aside, to my surprise Saturnia is as spectacular as Grotta Giusti; park by a field, amble along a path and you’ll find fizzing blue pools in the natural formations of the rocks filled by cascading waterfalls.

Bombastic shouts from small, brassy women in Gucci sunglasses and couture costumes sing over the whoosh of the water.

With the trees blowing above – and it’s raining when I visit – steam billows from the pools, making it feel like we’re bathing in the clouds.

Getting out into the cold autumn air isn’t an option until your fingers and toes are wrinkled, although spring visitors, I’m sure, will have an altogether different experience.

For a grand finale, most hot-spring hoppers head north to Bagni di San Filippo, at the foot of Monte Amiata.

The clement stream spills down through trees like an elephantine snowdrift. Magical is an understatement.

Mineral deposits, from four 52C springs (cold water flows from a fifth, said to aid intestine and liver problems) bloom into clouds in the greenery.

There are less people here, possibly because it’s midweek.

The contrast between the primping and pruning signore and signori, sunglasses sitting miraculously on their heads, and the wilderness makes the more scruffy Briton gape enviously.

How do they do that? As much as their arts and gastronomy, these sanctuaries of sulphur and subterranean saunas are an Italian cultural experience.

Chloe travelled by road from London to Italy in an XC60 Volvo. For more information, call 01628 422522 or visit www.volvocars.com. Most of the waters are free. However, Grotta Giusti is run as a spa; €50 included the cave saunas and hot pool above ground; www.grottagiustispa.com; info@grottagiustiispa.com

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The disgraced Duchess of York told how she was plagued with regrets about her divorce and wants to find love again.

‘I need a boyfriend,’ she declared while preparing for a 41km (26-mile) trek through the Canadian Arctic.

Asked if she has a Hollywood crush, she told trainer Aaron Ferguson: ‘I married a prince. England’s best looking prince. I hope one day there will be somebody lovely who will be with me.

‘I don’t know who it’s going to be but who knows, it could even be Andrew,’ she said on Sunday night’s episode of her Oprah Winfrey Network documentary Finding Sarah.

The 51-year-old was busted trying to sell access to her influential ex-husband in an undercover sting last year.

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The News International chairman has revealed the News Of The World will cease publication on Sunday. Read James Murdoch’s statement below.

I have important things to say about the News of the World and the steps we are taking to address the very serious problems that have occurred.

It is only right that you as colleagues at News International are first to hear what I have to say and that you hear it directly from me.

You do not need to be told that the News of the World is 168 years old. That it is read by more people than any other English language newspaper. That it has enjoyed support from Britain’s largest advertisers. And that it has a proud history of fighting crime, exposing wrong-doing and regularly setting the news agenda for the nation.

When I tell people why I am proud to be part of News Corporation, I say that our commitment to journalism and a free press is one of the things that sets us apart. Your work is a credit to this.

The good things the News of the World does, however, have been sullied by behaviour that was wrong. Indeed, if recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our Company.

The News of the World is in the business of holding others to account. But it failed when it came to itself.

In 2006, the police focused their investigations on two men. Both went to jail. But the News of the World and News International failed to get to the bottom of repeated wrongdoing that occurred without conscience or legitimate purpose. Wrongdoers turned a good newsroom bad and this was not fully understood or adequately pursued.

As a result, the News of the World and News International wrongly maintained that these issues were confined to one reporter. We now have voluntarily given evidence to the police that I believe will prove that this was untrue and those who acted wrongly will have to face the consequences.

This was not the only fault.

The paper made statements to Parliament without being in the full possession of the facts. This was wrong.

The Company paid out-of-court settlements approved by me. I now know that I did not have a complete picture when I did so. This was wrong and is a matter of serious regret.

Currently, there are two major and ongoing police investigations. We are cooperating fully and actively with both. You know that it was News International who voluntarily brought evidence that led to opening Operation Weeting and Operation Elveden. This full cooperation will continue until the Police’s work is done.

We have also admitted liability in civil cases. Already, we have settled a number of prominent cases and set up a Compensation Scheme, with cases to be adjudicated by former High Court judge Sir Charles Gray. Apologising and making amends is the right thing to do.

Inside the Company, we set up a management and standards committee that is working on these issues and that has hired Olswang to examine past failings and recommend systems and practices that over time should become standards for the industry. We have committed to publishing Olswang’s terms of reference and eventual recommendations in a way that is open and transparent.

We have welcomed broad public inquiries into press standards and police practices and will cooperate with them fully.

So, just as I acknowledge we have made mistakes, I hope you and everyone inside and outside the Company will acknowledge that we are doing our utmost to fix them, atone for them, and make sure they never happen again.

Having consulted senior colleagues, I have decided that we must take further decisive action with respect to the paper.

This Sunday will be the last issue of the News of the World.

Colin Myler will edit the final edition of the paper.

In addition, I have decided that all of the News of the World’s revenue this weekend will go to good causes.

While we may never be able to make up for distress that has been caused, the right thing to do is for every penny of the circulation revenue we receive this weekend to go to organisations – many of whom are long-term friends and partners – that improve life in Britain and are devoted to treating others with dignity.

We will run no commercial advertisements this weekend. Any advertising space in this last edition will be donated to causes and charities that wish to expose their good works to our millions of readers.

These are strong measures. They are made humbly and out of respect. I am convinced they are the right thing to do.

Many of you, if not the vast majority of you, are either new to the Company or have had no connection to the News of the World during the years when egregious behaviour occurred.

I can understand how unfair these decisions may feel. Particularly, for colleagues who will leave the Company. Of course, we will communicate next steps in detail and begin appropriate consultations.

You may see these changes as a price loyal staff at the News of the World are paying for the transgressions of others. So please hear me when I say that your good work is a credit to journalism. I do not want the legitimacy of what you do to be compromised by acts of others. I want all journalism at News International to be beyond reproach. I insist that this organisation lives up to the standard of behaviour we expect of others.

And, finally, I want you all to know that it is critical that the integrity of every journalist who has played fairly is restored.

Thank you.

Families of war dead added to reported hacking victims as Prime Minister bows to pressure for public inquiry

Rupert Murdoch’s planned takeover of Britain’s biggest commercial broadcaster was cast into doubt last night as his newspaper empire faced fresh allegations that it hacked the families of dead British servicemen and a dozen blue-chip companies withdrew advertising from its best-selling paper.

In another damaging day for Mr Murdoch in the deepening phone-hacking scandal, the communications regulator Ofcom revealed that it was “closely monitoring” allegations of widespread criminality at News International and said it had a duty to be satisfied that Mr Murdoch and his top executives were “fit and proper persons” to control BSkyB.

Amid continuing claims that the News of the World had accessed the voicemails of child murder victims, Mr Murdoch’s embattled top-selling British title last night faced grave new claims that relatives of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan may have been victims of voicemail eavesdropping.

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The Royal British Legion dropped the News of the World as its campaigning partner today after allegations that the paper hacked the phones of bereaved military families.   The charity said it had been “shocked to the core” by claims that a private investigator working for the tabloid illegally intercepted the voicemails of relatives of troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

It announced that it had suspended all relations with the News of the World and was reviewing its advertising budget with News International, which also publishes The Sun and The Times.   The latest allegations came after Prime Minister David Cameron ordered a public inquiry into the scandal and Rupert Murdoch described phone hacking at the News of the World as “deplorable and unacceptable”. News International said it would be “absolutely appalled and horrified” if there was any truth to the claims that bereaved military families’ phones were hacked.  MPH Solicitors – whose clients include Samantha Roberts, widow of Sgt Steven Roberts, the first British soldier killed in combat in Iraq in 2003 – called for clarity from authorities over the allegations.  Solicitor Geraldine McCool said the firm had been contacted by press yesterday over the allegations surrounding high-profile military inquests in 2006 and 2007.  Ms McCool, a senior lawyer who represented Mrs Roberts, said there was no evidence to show confidential information was obtained through hacking.  She added: “I sincerely hope that any future revelations do not involve our clients and that full disclosure of the extent of this diabolical practice is now made.”  And a lawyer for Rose Gentle, whose son Fusilier Gordon Gentle was killed in Iraq in 2004, said he had contacted police to find out if the phones of Ms Gentle and other families were targeted.  In response to the latest claims, a spokesman for the newspaper company said: “News International’s record as a friend of the armed services and of our servicemen and servicewomen is impeccable.  ”Our titles have campaigned in support of the military over many years and will continue to do so. If these allegations are true we are absolutely appalled and horrified. We will be contacting the MoD immediately to try and verify the situation.”  A spokesman for the MoD, which is understood to be working closely with Scotland Yard on the issue, said: “This is a matter for the Metropolitan Police who are investigating these allegations. It would be inappropriate for us to comment whilst this investigation is ongoing.”  Mr Murdoch yesterday backed Rebekah Brooks to continue as chief executive of News International despite claims that the News of the World hacked murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler’s phone while she was editor.  It has also emerged that George Osborne’s private home phone number appeared in records kept by the two men at the centre of the original hacking furore.  The Chancellor’s name and details were discovered among the thousands of pages of notes kept by private investigator Glenn Mulcaire and former News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman, his spokesman said.  The pair were jailed in 2007 after plotting to intercept voicemail messages left for royal aides.  There is no suggestion the Chancellor’s phone was hacked by the men, the spokesman stressed.  Families of 7/7 bombing victims and the parents of murdered Soham schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman have also been told by police they may have been targeted.  Political and commercial pressure mounted on News International as more companies pulled adverts from the News of the World and MPs, including Labour leader Ed Miliband, called for Ms Brooks to go.  Supermarket Sainsbury’s became the latest firm to suspend its advertising in the paper, joining Npower, Halifax, the Co-operative Group, Ford, Vauxhall, Mitsubishi, Butlins and Virgin Holidays.     MPs used a three-hour emergency Commons debate on the revelations yesterday to condemn journalistic practices at the News of the World. Labour MP Tom Watson used parliamentary privilege to allege that James Murdoch, Mr Murdoch’s son and the chairman of News International, attempted to pervert the course of justice.  Mr Miliband said today he was “disgusted” by the allegations that the families of dead soldiers were hacked by the paper.  News International executives said they were “very close” to discovering who commissioned Mulcaire to allegedly hack Milly’s phone after she went missing in 2002.  Simon Greenberg, the company’s director of corporate affairs, said he was “clear” that the individual was not Ms Brooks.  The Times reported that five journalists and newspaper executives suspected of involvement in the scandal were expected to be arrested within days.  Former Scotland Yard deputy assistant commissioner Brian Paddick said he understood that News International was handing over details about several corrupt police officers who had been paid in exchange for tip-offs about stories.  He told BBC Breakfast that some officers had received up to £30,000 for giving information to journalists.  Mr Paddick said: “Rebekah Brooks had told the House of Commons committee back in 2003 that they were paying police officers for information.  ”Yesterday I met a journalist who said he was paying sometimes £20,000 to £30,000 to police officers for information.  ”All of this is done in a very clandestine way. You know the stories about a drive-through fast food restaurant near the News International headquarters – that’s where police officers used to go to collect envelopes. It was all done very discreetly. I personally never came across it during my career.”  He added that a judge-led inquiry needed to be conducted into the allegations so witnesses could be compelled to give evidence on oath.  Sara Payne, the mother of murdered schoolgirl Sarah Payne, denied suggestions that she may have had her phone hacked, saying she has not been contacted by police.  Cabinet minister Chris Huhne insisted it was “absolutely crucial” that the inquiry into the relationship between police and the media was led by a judge.  He told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme the “key thing” was for the police to bring criminal charges “where those criminal charges need to be brought”.  Asked whether Ms Brooks should resign, Mr Huhne said it was up to News International, but added: “Either they know what’s going on, in which case the editor of the News of the World was complicit in some criminal activity, or they were extremely incompetent.”  Labour MP Chris Bryant, who secured yesterday’s parliamentary debate into the scandal, called for the police inquiry to be handled by a police force other than the Met.  When asked whether he was confident that a police investigation into police activities would uncover the facts, he said: “I think it is good that the inquiry is happening. I think it should be done by a separate police force, not by the Metropolitan Police.”  He also told BBC Breakfast that if Ms Brooks had a “shred of decency” she would resign.  Mr Bryant said the Prime Minister should set the wheels in motion for a statutory inquiry to be set up.  ”Everything that is coming out now, the police had in their files in 2006 and they did nothing about it. Why?” he asked.  ”A lot of us think that this stinks and that is why we need a statutory inquiry to be set up now. It probably wouldn’t meet in public now, but it could be set up now with its terms of reference.  ”It could have the power to summon evidence before somebody starts shredding it, either at the News of the World or at the Metropolitan Police or whatever, to make sure that this does happen.  ”The Prime Minister should be acting on this in the next few days.”    The head of the armed forces, General Sir David Richards, condemned the allegations that bereaved military families’ phones were hacked. “If these actions are proved to have been verified, I am appalled. I find it quite disgusting,” he told Sky News.  ”The Prime Minister, I, everyone across Whitehall in Government, feel very, very strongly about this.”  Baroness Buscombe, chairwoman of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), which regulates most British newspapers and magazines, said it was “extraordinary” that Ms Brooks was leading the internal inquiry at News International and said all executives at the company needed to examine their consciences.  ”The corporate culture was clearly there to mislead us. We were misled by commission or omission,” she told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme.    Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox said: “If these claims prove to be true then the intrusion into the private lives of bereaved families would be an outrageous breach of trust and I would strongly condemn anyone involved. “Our Armed Forces and their families rightly deserve the respect and support of the nation particularly when their loved ones have made the ultimate sacrifice.”

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Childcare costs are rising at an alarming rate, and the coming six-week break means additional strain on incomes. But, Chiara Cavaglieri reports, there are ways of making the time off affordable

We may envy school children their six-week summer holiday.

But for the parents it is a trying time with rising childcare costs and, more often than not, simply no idea how to keep their offspring busy without paying through the nose.

The 2011 childcare costs survey from the national charity Daycare Trust shows that parents face an increasingly difficult challenge. In England, the cost of a nursery place for a child at least two years old is up 4.8 per cent, and for a child under two, parents are paying £5,028 for 25 hours’ nursery care per week.

The most expensive nursery in this year’s survey, located in the West Midlands, costs £11 per hour, equating to a staggering annual bill of £14,300 for the same amount of care.

To cut costs, first of all, use up any entitlement to free childcare. In England, every three and four-year-old is eligible for at least 15 hours per week with a registered childcare provider, whether it’s a playgroup, nursery or childminder. Then scout around for free or subsidised summer clubs offered by local schools, even the ones your child doesn’t attend, churches, leisure centres and, crucially, your local council.

“Our advice to parents is be organised and plan your holiday childcare as early as possible, as good services will fill up quickly. Local authorities can also help you find suitable local holiday childcare, so contact your family information service for more information,” says Anand Shukla, chief executive at Daycare Trust.

You may be surprised by what you find. For example, the Summer in the City 2011 programme in Kensington and Chelsea for under 19-year-olds features events such as archery for beginners, a carnival arts course, digital video making and football for girls to name just a few, all either heavily subsidised or free.

This summer, National Citizen Service (NCS) is offering 11,000 places for Year 11s in England for a three-week residential course costing only £50, which includes two weeks away from home and the chance to work with your local community and take part in outdoor activities such as mountaineering, canoeing and abseiling. Details of the NCS projects in different areas are available on Direct Gov (direct.gov.uk).

YHA England and Wales also runs Do It 4 Real camps (doit4real.co.uk) across England for 10 to 19-year-olds which used to be subsidised by the Department for Education. This funding has now been withdrawn but prices are still competitive, costing from £99 for a two-night stay, up to £349 for seven nights which includes all activities, food, snacks, transport and entertainment. There are camps of all different types and prices all over the UK so it is well worth investigating.

In 2009 Richard Dawkins, author of The God Delusion, hit the headlines when he subsidised the opening of Camp Quest UK, a summer camp for atheists. Located in Essex, Malvern and Somerset, the camps cost from £250 but reduced rates are available to parents who would otherwise struggle and all parents are free to pay in instalments.

Also, if you have more than one child you may be eligible for a discount if you send them together. Just make sure the camp you pick is licensed by the British Activity Holiday Association and that any activities are licensed by the Adventure Activity Licensing Authority.

When it comes to paying for childcare, check your entitlement to any benefits or tax credits and then see if you can sign up for the Government’s childcare voucher scheme. This allows you to pay for childcare from pre-tax earnings, so you don’t pay tax or national insurance on these fees.

The scheme works by salary sacrifice, so you give up £1,000 of your salary for vouchers, but for a basic-rate taxpayer it would really costs only £700 when you consider the tax saving. This isn’t open to every working parent – you must be paid via the PAYE system and your employer needs to be registered for the scheme – and if you are on lower income it could cut the tax credits you are eligible for so it may not always be worthwhile.

For many parents, however, these vouchers are of huge benefit and the great news is that they are far more versatile than you might think. They can be used to pay not only for traditional nursery childcare but also for other childcare providers as long as they are registered with Ofsted.

“Many parents do not realise they can use them towards the cost of a range of activities for the kids, including holiday and adventure camps, activity clubs and after school clubs.

“It is always advisable to ask if vouchers are accepted, to ensure you are not missing out financially,” says Julian Foster, managing director of childcare voucher provider Computershare Voucher Services (CVS).

In fact, recently CVS quizzed 1,000 parents about vouchers and the results showed surprising levels of ignorance. More than half of the parents said they didn’t know they could use vouchers for these types of activity, assuming they were for traditional daycar. In addition, the survey also showed that only 1 per cent of all childcare vouchers used by parents in the past year were put towards summer holiday clubs and activities; and only 9 per cent for after-school clubs.

Expert View

Anand Shukla, Daycare Trust

“For many parents, the cost of childcare over the summer holidays is the equivalent of paying for a family holiday abroad. It’s important that parents ensure they access any financial assistance that they are entitled to, such as working tax credits if they are using a registered childcare provider.”

Allowances: Ease the pressure on your bank balance

First of all, use up any entitlement to free childcare. In England, every three- and four-year old is eligible for at least 15 hours per week with a registered childcare provider, whether it’s a playgroup, nursery or childminder.

If you are not yet claiming for child benefit, request a claim pack from HM Revenue & Customs. This is worth £20.30 for the eldest child and £13.40 for any subsequent children until they reach 16, or 20 if they are in full-time education.

You can claim for child tax credit for a new baby, any child living with you until age 16, or 20 if they are in full-time education. The amount you receive is based on separate elements and depends on your income, but the maximum family element is worth £545 a year and the child element is worth up to £2,555 per child. If your family income is more than £15,860, the child element will be reduced at a rate of 41 per cent, but you can earn up to £40,000 before the family element is reduced at the same rate.

If you and your partner work at least 16 hours or more per week, you may also be able to claim for help paying childcare (known as the childcare element of working tax credit). You can get help for up to 70 per cent of your childcare costs, up to a maximum limit of £122.50 per week for one child and £210 per week for two or more children.

Childcare vouchers allow you to pay for childcare directly from your gross salary. Each parent can claim a maximum of £243 of vouchers a month which can be used to pay for any Ofsted-registered provider. Be warned that childcare vouchers can impact on your eligibility for tax credits so use the HM Revenue & Customs calculator first (hmrc.gov.uk/calcs/ccin.htm).

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The government should encourage small business by doing absolutely nothing.

That’s right — nothing …

It should stop altogether making up incentive/punishment programs to get businesses to do what the government wants them to do. And it should stop trying to “level the playing field”; which, of course, is just another way to intervene on behalf of their political allies.

As a small business owner all you want is predictability and stability from your government — not more carrots to chase or sticks to avoid. The more small business “incentives” they legislate, the more chaos and distortion they inject into the business environment.

You want to encourage small business growth? It’s simple. Stop trying to “help” us with elaborate schemes. You want more competition? Stop fooling around with basic market dynamics to protect your political allies.

Do that, and everything will work out fine.

I would never solely trust the “invisible hand” to manage a just and fair marketplace. A certain amount of regulation is required to protect consumers. That I accept, completely understand, and support.

However, when government picks and chooses which industries and businesses it will promote and support, and develops “programs” to appease special interests and manipulate outcomes under the guise of “helping small business,” then it has crossed a not-so-fine line. So this is not about regulation. It’s about unnecessary, unproductive, meddling for purely political reasons.

Every new business incentive/punishment program the government creates automatically spawns people intent on “gaming” the system, and builds entirely new — otherwise useless — entities designed to help more people participate in that gaming.

Then more legislation is passed to address the problems government just created, more gamers are generated, and so on and so on. You almost have to play — at least defense — to survive, and that just shouldn’t be the case, especially if you are playing by the established rules.

So just tell us what the deal is. Not what it might be or could be. Then stick with the deal for a reasonable period of time so we can plan. Remove the gamesmanship. All we’re looking for is stability.