[Osem]

Originally Posted by slug

You used the word "shambles" of which the Oxford Dictionary definition is "complete disorder".

So what? Get out your Oxford University thesaurus and check its exhaustive list of alternatives listed to the word 'shambles' all of which are appropriate to this discussion and don't convey a total degree of anything. If I'd used one of those, would it alter the argument one jot? You acknowledge my use of the phrase 'varying degrees of chaos' so you clearly understand my meaning and are now arguing about simply about a choice of word. Frankly I'd rather we were debating HMG's ability to deal with a flu pandemic.

---------- Post added at 13:10 ---------- Previous post was at 13:05 ----------

Originally Posted by slug

".....almost running out of salt...." so we didnt run out of salt and ".......virtually no gas reserves......." cant remember the last time my gas cooker failed to cook for me. Seems we coped OK.

There were widespread reports of salt stocks being either low or unavailable during the snow.

We coped with gas shortages so well that the prices went up 40% and, in the wake of Russia turning off the taps, had our Eurpoean suppliers decided to divert gas for their own needs your gas cooker would soon have gone out.

http://www.politics.co.uk/news/energy/tories-worried-by-low-gas-storage-levels-$1274998.htm

Britain had just four days of natural gas in storage during the recent cold weather, it has been revealed

I'd say 4 days supply left is pretty appalling. National strategic planning clearly isn't HMG's forte is it.....