Latest news with #HarryEnfield
Yahoo
04-08-2025
- General
- Yahoo
If you say ‘pardon' to sound posh, you're wrong on two counts
What do you say if you mishear someone? 'I'm sorry?' or 'what?', perhaps? Or maybe you're a 'pardon?' person. One of those silly surveys has just come out, declaring that Gen Z have given up saying 'polite' words such as 'pardon' and 'excuse me' in favour of 'what?' or 'come again?' Three quarters of young Britons deem 'pardon' too formal, says the survey, so they reply 'huh?' or 'you what?' instead. Is 'you what?' better than saying nothing at all, which is what half of the survey's respondents claimed to do? Instead, apparently, the youth nod along and pretend to have understood. Though we've all been there, haven't we, at a noisy drinks party, for example. You're desperately trying to understand the other person, but you don't want to stick your ear any closer to their face because they've just eaten a salmon canapé, so you smile broadly, nod and maybe let out a little laugh, only to realise with horror that they were telling you their mother had just died. Unfortunately, however, this survey has got it all wrong. Look, I try not to be a word snob (all the time), but I can't let this one slide. 'Pardon' is an abysmal word, not polite, and certainly not a word anyone posh would use. It is a Hyacinth Bucket word – one that people may use because they think it sounds grand, and better than 'what', but which actually marks them out as deeply middle class. Sorry, don't blame me. I'm only passing on the facts, and the fact is, 'pardon' is awful. When I once came home from school and reported to my mother that I'd been told off for saying 'what' to my teacher one day, and told to use 'pardon' instead, my mother called up the school to complain. Because 'pardon' is ever so slightly common, and 'what' is, honestly, more acceptable. It depends how you say it, of course. You can't blurt it out in the manner of Harry Enfield's Kevin – 'Wot?' Try to be more gentle. I'm a fan of 'What was that?' if I miss whatever I've just been asked. Somewhat contradictorily, 'I beg your pardon?' is also tolerable. But just never, ever 'pardon'. So, for today's lesson, we're going to have a quick trot through a few other words that people believe are polite, but which are, in fact, infra dig. Again, it gives me no pleasure to pass these on. I merely offer them up so you don't embarrass yourselves. A final note about the word 'posh', because it's a controversial one. People often grumble to me about this. 'I do wish you wouldn't use the word posh so much.' Because some people consider it embarrassing, a common word the lower classes would have once used about those considered above them. 'Smart' or 'grand' are used as synonyms. But happily, these days, most decent people don't consider themselves 'above' or 'below' anybody else, and posh can be used ironically and liberally. 'Dead posh floor tiles,' I might say to a friend who's recently had her kitchen done. So a bit of a minefield all this, I appreciate, but please do try to remember the 'pardon' thing. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Never kissed a Tory? What about a Farage fan?
A friend of mine in her mid-30s always declares her dating motto is, 'Vote Labour, sleep Tory!' When asked why, she says that all the Left-wing men she's been intimate with pretend to be feminists until faced with real-life dilemmas, like division of housework or whose career to prioritise. She feels that if she'd boarded the Titanic with any of these covert chauvinist pigs, 'they'd have shoved you overboard and leapt into the lifeboats.' By contrast, all the Right-leaning men she's romanced have been honest about residual sexism – 'you can't possibly carry that vast suitcase yourself' – with the added bonus of chivalry. But my friend appears to be in the minority, according to the latest research on lonely hearts. Researchers from Harvard and the University of Southampton found that Labour, Liberal and Green voters attract more 'likes' on dating apps than conservative ones. Within the Right-leaning subset, Reform voters meet with more swipe-rights than Tories. Which may be due to the lingering influence of Harry Enfield's 'Tory boy' sketches involving a pimply, bespectacled youth, who would now be highly eligible for Channel 4's The Undateables. It's worth noting that the demographic polled were aged 18-40, a group where voting tends to skew left. Those of us with a decade-or-two's more lived experience might try to persuade these romance-seekers to crank open their restricted mindsets. Or even to point out that they might be single for a reason. As I approach my 30th wedding anniversary, I can firmly state that the least of your worries, when it comes to wedded compatibility, is your beloved's voting intentions. My husband and I can shake the foundations of the house with our disagreements over such trifles as inheritance tax, the wisdom of lockdowns and the Assisted Dying Bill. Which is as you might expect when a girl from Sevenoaks shacks up with a former CND spokesman. I view this as a good thing: a partisan opinion isn't worth a bean until rigorously cross-examined by a skilled opponent. Is there anything smugger than those couples who share every last view on global affairs, like they're running their own mini politburo? These people, I tend to find, are the ones who can't risk anyone seeing what's happening under the domestic bonnet, for fear everything will swiftly implode. It's long been clear to me that the differences that will break a couple concern money, sex, children and ethics. If one person in a relationship is stingy, selfish, bad in bed and a rubbish parent, their diatribes on the wrongness of Donald Trump will feel far less convincing. My favourite dating expert Gillian McCallum, head honcho at Britain's oldest matchmaking bureau, Drawing Down the Moon, advises clients to throw away prescriptive lists of what they're seeking in an ideal other. Physical chemistry won't be achieved by shared views on immigration policy and a GSOH all too often means 'laughs at my jokes'. She also observed, during the sharply-polarised years following the Brexit vote that while people who voted Leave tended to be openminded about romancing Remainers, the favour wasn't often returned by the 'stay' camp. You don't need the wisdom of Solomon to see a person's romantic options are restricted if they're incapable of believing a kind, sexy person could spurn the EU's bureaucrats. Many of the things I enjoy most about my spouse, such as his keen interest in esoteric jazz, dreadnoughts, local planning regs and French politics. But they're now part of the glue that keeps us together, in sickness and dispute. Vive la différence! Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Angela Rayner risks writing a charter for youth unemployment
Harry Enfield's grumpy character Kevin, a floppy haired parody of youth who graced our TV screens in the 1990s, depicted a rebellious teenager who was stepping into adulthood with great suspicion and even greater lethargy. The stereotype of a moody teen wanting to spend all day in bed might be 'so unfair', as Kevin would say, but there is something in this tongue-in-cheek portrayal which endures to this day. Gags aside, official figures suggest that even part-time Saturday jobs are on the out. Behind the cliches about workshy teens, a worrying trend has bedded in that we all need to pay attention to. Britain now has almost a million 16 to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (known as Neet), according to the latest Office for National Statistics numbers. That's the highest level since 2013, when the economy was still reeling from the financial crisis. A big difference is that in 2013, most people in that group were looking for a job but struggling to find one. Today, that has flipped and the majority – some 595,000 of the 987,000 Neets are classed as economically inactive, meaning they are not hunting for a job nor hoping to apply for an educational course. Young men are more likely than women to be a Neet (14.4pc compared with 12.3pc), a phenomenon that headteacher Caroline Barlow last year said was partly down to a culture of low expectations for male students. This is not a footloose and fancy-free cohort living for the next party or beach holiday. Nor are they simply lazy. The rise in inactivity is linked to a post-pandemic mental health crisis. A survey of 500 Neets by the King's Trust charity last week found that almost one in three would like to work but said their poor mental health prevented it. Half of respondents said they felt hopeless about their future because they were unemployed. The Prince's Trust has said that this group is more likely than their peers to feel as if they have failed in life. Getting this group into work would give them a sense of purpose, life skills and confidence. Instead, Neets are stepping into adulthood feeling lost and adrift, and so a vicious cycle begins. The Government has outlined plans for a benefits crackdown and a 'youth guarantee' to ensure all those who are able to can access either work or training. But to be a success this plan needs bosses who are willing to hire. Instead, the managers who have traditionally given these school leavers their first jobs are now reluctant. They blame the £25bn increase in employers' National Insurance contributions (NIC) coming into force in April, which disproportionately affects people on low wages and in part-time work. They also point to Angela Rayner's looming Employment Rights Bill, which they fear could make hiring someone who is inexperienced more trouble than it is worth. Under the reforms, employees will be able to claim full sick pay and take employers to tribunal from day one on a job. The Treasury is already said to be concerned that the employment tribunal system could become clogged with claims. If the final package is considered too inflexible or too employee-centric, why take a chance on a risky hire? 'I've not been in a meeting [with ministers] where this point hasn't been made,' one senior executive tells me. The NIC raid already means that the cost of employing a worker on 15 hours a week will rise by 73pc, according to UKHospitality. As employing staff gets more costly, it is completely understandable that companies will start turning away less experienced candidates, particularly if Labour's workers' rights overhaul means they cannot easily get rid of someone if they hire a dud candidate. Rayner's workers rights revolution risks becoming a charter for youth unemployment. Warnings about this have been reverberating for months - and not just the tribunal aspect. Lord Wolfson, the chief executive of FTSE 100 retail giant Next, has expressed concerns about plan to ban 'exploitative' zero hour contracts as part of the overhaul. 'We offer staff extra hours in the run-up to Christmas. If the legislation is going to mean that those hours have to be contractually binding forever then we just won't be able to do it at all, it would be impossible,' he told the BBC this year. Nobody is saying that Rayner's workers rights overhaul isn't needed. There is a general consensus that workplace rules need to be modernised – the business and trade committee argues in a report today that there is clear evidence of worker exploitation across different sectors. Official checks on areas such as forced labour in a company's supply chain are so weak that the UK is at 'serious risk of becoming a dumping ground' if it does not align with tougher laws amongst allies, MPs warn. Liam Byrne said the committee heard evidence about the abuse of workers in this country which 'frankly horrified us'. It is clear that there is a serious problem that needs addressing. Yet as the number of Neets rises, bosses' warnings about unintended side effects need to be heard. The point of this package of reforms is to fight nasty bosses who are exploiting staff – it would be a disaster if it accidentally ended up stopping the lost and lonely from getting their first job. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
03-03-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Angela Rayner risks writing a charter for youth unemployment
Harry Enfield's grumpy character Kevin, a floppy haired parody of youth who graced our TV screens in the 1990s, depicted a rebellious teenager who was stepping into adulthood with great suspicion and even greater lethargy. The stereotype of a moody teen wanting to spend all day in bed might be 'so unfair', as Kevin would say, but there is something in this tongue-in-cheek portrayal which endures to this day. Gags aside, official figures suggest that even part-time Saturday jobs are on the out. Behind the cliches about workshy teens, a worrying trend has bedded in that we all need to pay attention to. Britain now has almost a million 16 to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (known as Neet), according to the latest Office for National Statistics numbers. That's the highest level since 2013, when the economy was still reeling from the financial crisis. A big difference is that in 2013, most people in that group were looking for a job but struggling to find one. Today, that has flipped and the majority – some 595,000 of the 987,000 Neets are classed as economically inactive, meaning they are not hunting for a job nor hoping to apply for an educational course. Young men are more likely than women to be a Neet (14.4pc compared with 12.3pc), a phenomenon that headteacher Caroline Barlow last year said was partly down to a culture of low expectations for male students. This is not a footloose and fancy-free cohort living for the next party or beach holiday. Nor are they simply lazy. The rise in inactivity is linked to a post-pandemic mental health crisis. A survey of 500 Neets by the King's Trust charity last week found that almost one in three would like to work but said their poor mental health prevented it. Half of respondents said they felt hopeless about their future because they were unemployed. The Prince's Trust has said that this group is more likely than their peers to feel as if they have failed in life. Getting this group into work would give them a sense of purpose, life skills and confidence. Instead, Neets are stepping into adulthood feeling lost and adrift, and so a vicious cycle begins. The Government has outlined plans for a benefits crackdown and a ' youth guarantee ' to ensure all those who are able to can access either work or training. But to be a success this plan needs bosses who are willing to hire. Instead, the managers who have traditionally given these school leavers their first jobs are now reluctant. They blame the £25bn increase in employers' National Insurance contributions (NIC) coming into force in April, which disproportionately affects people on low wages and in part-time work. They also point to Angela Rayner's looming Employment Rights Bill, which they fear could make hiring someone who is inexperienced more trouble than it is worth. Under the reforms, employees will be able to claim full sick pay and take employers to tribunal from day one on a job. The Treasury is already said to be concerned that the employment tribunal system could become clogged with claims. If the final package is considered too inflexible or too employee-centric, why take a chance on a risky hire? 'I've not been in a meeting [with ministers] where this point hasn't been made,' one senior executive tells me. The NIC raid already means that the cost of employing a worker on 15 hours a week will rise by 73pc, according to UKHospitality. As employing staff gets more costly, it is completely understandable that companies will start turning away less experienced candidates, particularly if Labour's workers' rights overhaul means they cannot easily get rid of someone if they hire a dud candidate. Rayner's workers rights revolution risks becoming a charter for youth unemployment. Warnings about this have been reverberating for months – and not just the tribunal aspect. Lord Wolfson, the chief executive of FTSE 100 retail giant Next, has expressed concerns about plan to ban 'exploitative' zero hour contracts as part of the overhaul. 'We offer staff extra hours in the run-up to Christmas. If the legislation is going to mean that those hours have to be contractually binding forever then we just won't be able to do it at all, it would be impossible,' he told the BBC this year. Nobody is saying that Rayner's workers rights overhaul isn't needed. There is a general consensus that workplace rules need to be modernised – the business and trade committee argues in a report today that there is clear evidence of worker exploitation across different sectors. Official checks on areas such as forced labour in a company's supply chain are so weak that the UK is at 'serious risk of becoming a dumping ground' if it does not align with tougher laws amongst allies, MPs warn. Liam Byrne said the committee heard evidence about the abuse of workers in this country which 'frankly horrified us'. It is clear that there is a serious problem that needs addressing. Yet as the number of Neets rises, bosses' warnings about unintended side effects need to be heard. The point of this package of reforms is to fight nasty bosses who are exploiting staff – it would be a disaster if it accidentally ended up stopping the lost and lonely from getting their first job.
