O/T STATEOF OUR NATION

[mrpotatohead]

Head of social services on the baby p case in line for a million quid payout, bloke from round here stabs 2 and gets 2 and a a half years, out in 14 months, this country is a very unfunny joke.

[Plain Peter]

But was the Social Services woman an easy 'scapegoat' for Ed Balls?

[Keith]

But was the Social Services woman an easy 'scapegoat' for Ed Balls?

Yup. I don't know what the payout will be but it is the correct decision. People shouldn't be scapegoated by headline chasing politicians. I said at the time, there are (sadly) 50 Baby P's every year. The difference is that the other 49 don't become a banner case for the Daily Mail. If the head of social services got sacked for every one, there would be no heads of social services in post. It was a bit like the Soham murders, where we had a minutes silence 'in their memory' at all football matches, including the Telford match. There had been a child of a similar age murdered in Telford that week which didn't warrant a minute silence even at the Telford match. The press decided Shoesmith should be sacked and Balls wanted to look strong so he decided to remove her from post. I would rather the law be followed than the headlines.

[shrimper]

Head of social services on the baby p case in line for a million quid payout, bloke from round here stabs 2 and gets 2 and a a half years, out in 14 months, this country is a very unfunny joke.

I'm with you on too lenient prison sentences but with the other one - yes it is an indication of what our country is like. It's a democracy where people have a right to appeal decisions they consider to have been improperly made.