Guavanaut posted:

Why did they even pick DRC? It's not like there's a shortage of English speaking countries in Africa, for some reason

Completely unrelated:
https://twitter.com/3stHoerinthians/status/1183778146375606272

CancerCakes posted:

I don't know what field you are in but -

1. Traditional route - direct to private practice as graduate or PhD
Apply to all the firms

2. Industrial route - join a large company in a field that you are experienced in that has an in house patent department, then transfer into it after a couple of years

3. Tech transfer route - work for a university tech transfer department for a couple of years then apply to 1 or 2

Try to talk to people from your department who have gone into it. They general advice is that getting into a job is hard and very competitive, and that is true in my experience.

For interviews be prepared to give a potted explanation of your thesis. Learn what novelty, inventive step and priority are read the epo how to get a patent guide and the equivalent one from the ukipo. Some interviewers can ask slightly confrontational questions just to see how you deal with them, just stay calm! if interviewers ask closed questions (yes/no) expand on your answers to a reasonable level.

In any case be aware that you might still be sitting exams 5-8 years after entering the profession. the exams are genuinely difficult and can be a crap shoot, and training is not at a uniform standard across employers. If you can, go for a larger firm as these are able to offer more support and having other trainees around makes a big difference.

It is a great job, and the people who work in it are in general not arseholes in my experience!

Good luck

Braggart posted:

The Home Office is literally just trawling for people they could theoretically deport and giving it a go, aren't they?

Flayer posted:

Probably given some ridiculous target by the government and this is the only way they have any hope of getting close to it.

CancerCakes posted:

I don't know what field you are in but - IP routes...

Demiurge4 posted:

Deportation quotas deserve at least three whole guillotines on its own.

quote:

Alister Jack, the Scottish secretary, told Good Morning Scotland earlier that the EU27 might refuse to grant a Brexit extension out of sympathy for Boris Johnson. Referring to the Benn Act, which says the PM has to ask for an extension if no Brexit deal has been agreed by 19 October, Jack said:

"[Johnson] can make it very clear that he doesn’t want to ask for that extension, that he’s being forced to ask for that extension and some European leaders may sympathise with him on that and feel that it’s unfair that he should have to do something he doesn’t want to do.
If one of our European partners decides - and it could well be the French president - to use his veto and decides enough is enough, in that situation we would be leaving."

Asked if Johnson should resign if he has to delay Brexit, having promised repeatedly that the UK would leave the EU on 31 October, Jack replied:

"He absolutely should not resign. The prime minister fully intends for us to leave by October 31, he will stand by that."

Pesky Splinter posted:

Pathetic.

Pesmerga posted:

Yeah, if there's one thing the various people involved with the EU have for Johnson, it's definitely sympathy, and not contempt or outright hatred.

jabby posted:

Seriously though, this is a troubling step. Once this is the new normal then it'll pretty rapidly become 'no anti-government protest anywhere in London' on the grounds of it being 'too disruptive'.

quote:

it’s unfair that he should have to do something he doesn’t want to do.

Pesky Splinter posted:

Pathetic.

Pesmerga posted:

Merkel's repeating her warnings about the UK being a direct competitor on the doorstep again. There's a line about 'there is the US, there is China and Russia, and there will be the UK too' that was used yesterday. That's a really interesting one. It could refer to the idea of the UK as being a big power like the others, but I think the implicit statement there is that it constitutes yet another unreliable and contentious actor at the international level that should be regarded with extreme caution. If that's not me just reading too much into it, the UK's screwed.

CGI Stardust posted:

Would that be in relation to the Johnson government in particular, or the entire British governing process-media axis along with the contentious part of the population, and how we're seemingly incapable of avoiding instability as a result?

Former is fixable (possibly), latter isn't fixable at all without at least change of government. I'm guessing that'd mean no re-entry to the EU either.

jabby posted:

Oh look, the Section 14 powers we were promised would only be used to limit the number of people in a certain place at a certain time are being misused to ban all protest. Who would've thought.

Seriously though, this is a troubling step. Once this is the new normal then it'll pretty rapidly become 'no anti-government protest anywhere in London' on the grounds of it being 'too disruptive'.

Pesmerga posted:

It's elements of both, but probably more the latter. The UK is increasingly seen as ungovernable, with a government in particular that is dishonest, flouts convention and is completely untrustworthy. Hostile environment, 'accidentally' selling weapons to Saudia Arabia, refusing to stop sales to Turkey, threats of 'Singapore-on-Thames' and seeming to ape every single Trumpian act of idiocy is making a lot of states perceive the UK as an unstable and destabilising force. And an incompetent one. It's difficult to overstate just how much the past three years have absolutely trashed the (undeserved) British reputation for 'pragmatism' and effective governance.

Tesseraction posted:

Not replying to you in particular but this just reminds me how I wish our ruling classes could all be burned at the stake.

The Guardian posted:

Revealed: Cameron and May lobbied Bahrain royals for Tory donor's oil firm

Two former Conservative prime ministers lobbied a Middle Eastern royal family to award a multi-billion dollar oil contract to a company headed by a major Tory donor, the Guardian has established.

In March 2017, while in Downing Street, Theresa May wrote to the Bahraini prime minister to support the oil firm Petrofac while it was bidding to win the contract from the Gulf state.

Two months earlier, and just six months after stepping down as prime minister, David Cameron promoted the company during a two-day visit to Bahrain where he met the state’s crown prince.

Cameron was flown back to Britain on a plane belonging to Ayman Asfari, Petrofac’s co-founder, chief executive and largest shareholder. Petrofac did not ultimately win the contract.

Asfari and his wife, Sawsan, have donated almost £800,000 to the Conservative party since 2009. The donations were made in a personal capacity.

Documents obtained by the Guardian raise questions about how governments should best manage the perceived potential conflicts of interest generated by donations from business figures to political parties.

The government said it was routine for ministers to support British businesses bidding for major foreign contracts. Petrofac said official support had been obtained through entirely proper channels.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has been investigating Petrofac over suspected bribery, corruption and money laundering for at least two years.

May’s support for Petrofac’s bid is detailed in documents released under the Freedom of Information Act.

In 2017, Petrofac requested a meeting with Liam Fox, then international trade secretary, “as part of their ongoing relationship” with the British government, according to the documents.

On 8 March, Fox wrote to May telling her that Asfari had “requested government support for a bid he is making together with a US-based company. The bid is for a major expansion of the Bahraini national oil company, Bapco refinery. The overall project is one of the largest ever in Bahrain at approximately $5bn.”

Fox said four consortiums were bidding for the contract and those bids were soon to be evaluated. “Mr Asfari believes that high level government support could make a substantial difference.”

He asked May to send a letter to the Bahraini prime minister, Prince Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa. Six days later, after Asfari met Fox in his Whitehall office, May wrote to Prince Khalifa “in support of” Petrofac’s bid.

“I am certain that Petrofac will do everything possible to deliver the most attractive techno-commercial offer for the project,” the prime minister wrote.

She said that “given the strategic importance of this project for Bahrain and for the economic relationship between our two countries”, Fox “has committed to follow and support this project to ensure that it receives the fullest commitment” of the British government.

Petrofac said it sought British government support for landing the contract through Britain’s ambassador in Bahrain, in line with common practice.

The Department for International Trade, speaking on behalf of May and Fox, said: “The support Petrofac received from the then prime minister and the then trade secretary followed the correct process, and was carried out with due propriety throughout. Government supports British business at home and abroad, including backing companies when they bid for international opportunities.”

Cameron visited Bahrain on 10 and 11 January 2017 on his way back from China. His office said it was an opportunity to visit Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa after the cancellation of a scheduled visit while he had been prime minister.

His office said he carried out a “wide-ranging schedule of engagements and visits organised with the support of the UK’s ambassador to Bahrain, who accompanied Mr Cameron for part of the programme”.

“While visiting the country, Mr Cameron took the opportunity to help promote the interests of a British-based company. This was done in coordination with the UK government at the time.

“Mr Cameron, both as prime minister and subsequently, has been an enthusiastic advocate for British businesses around the world. He was not paid anything for this engagement and his support for the company had nothing whatsoever to do with donations made to the Conservative party.” Asfari did not accompany Cameron on the trip.

Foreign Office memos record that Cameron visited the headquarters of the Bahrain Economic Development Board. May’s letter outlined how Petrofac proposed to work with the board to help train Bahraini engineers.

A spokesperson for Petrofac said the firm “does not make political donations. Any donations by Ayman Asfari and his family are made in a strictly personal capacity.” The spokesperson stressed that no preferential treatment was given by the government to the company as a result of his personal donations.

Asfari, who reportedly has a fortune of around $1bn, co-founded Petrofac and has headed the multinational company for more than two decades. It designs and builds facilities for the oil and gas industry, employing 11,500 people in 24 countries.

Cameron appointed Asfari in 2014 as one of 43 prime minister’s business ambassadors, working with the British government to promote trade and investment.

A Whitehall memo prepared for Fox in 2017 described Asfari as being “very active as a business ambassador which is greatly appreciated”. The business ambassadors scheme was closed by the government earlier this year.

In May 2017, the SFO announced it was investigating Petrofac. During its investigation the SFO arrested and interviewed Asfari under caution, among others. He was released without charge.

In February this year, David Lufkin, 51, a former Petrofac executive, pleaded guilty to 11 counts of offering bribes between 2011 and 2016 in an attempt to secure contracts in Saudi Arabia and Iraq. He has yet to be sentenced.

That Italian Guy posted:

Poor PM, forced to do something by the bully Parliament. He should be able to do whatever he wants, otherwise it's just browbeating, really.

Pesmerga posted:

Then get ready for this!


https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/oct/15/revealed-cameron-and-may-lobbied-bahrain-royals-for-tory-donors-oil-firm

To be honest I could've just bolded the whole thing.

crispix posted:

Job seekers to face losing organs under DWP's tough new sanctions regime.

quote:

Documents obtained by the Guardian raise questions about how governments should best manage the perceived potential conflicts of interest generated by donations from business figures to political parties.

Braggart posted:

Well, the Tory answer to that question is "don't"

BBC posted:

Conservative Party election leaflets suggest Brexit delay

Conservative Party leaflets obtained by the BBC suggest the party is preparing for a delay to Brexit.

The leaked leaflets, made available to agents and activists last week, also reveal some of the arguments the party may use against their opponents in a general election.

One says voting for The Brexit Party would mean "more delay" because Nigel Farage's party "can't deliver Brexit".

Boris Johnson has insisted the UK will leave the EU at the end of October.

The Conservative Party has been quiet on this front recently, posting no new Facebook adverts for several weeks after a flurry in August and September.

But new leaflets were made available to agents and activists last week, which suggest the party is preparing for Brexit to be delayed beyond October.

They also shed light on how the Tories might attack their opponents in a campaign - and seek to win over voters depending on their EU stance.

For example, one leaflet is aimed at people who voted Leave and are now deciding between the Conservatives and The Brexit Party.


Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Tories will argue that voting for The Brexit Party could mean further uncertainty by helping Remain candidates win.

But more intriguingly, the language in the leaflets clearly suggests the party is expecting the UK not to have left the EU by the time of a general election, saying: "Without a strong majority government, we can't deliver Brexit," and "Nigel Farage can't deliver Brexit but he could yet block it."

Adverts with these messages have not yet appeared in Facebook's political ad archive, which these days is usually the first place we spot a campaign slogan.

What about other parties?

Another leaflet is aimed at people who voted Leave in 2016 who are now tempted to vote for the Liberal Democrats.

This leaflet says "without a strong majority government Brexit won't get delivered", again suggesting the party intends on sending this leaflet out after the UK's departure has been delayed.


Another one is aimed at people who voted Remain and are now deciding between the Conservatives and the Lib Dems.

Boris Johnson's party holds lots of Remain-leaning seats which the Lib Dems are now eyeing up, like Richmond Park, Cheltenham and St Albans.

This leaflet says voting Lib Dem would mean "more delay" and "more of the endless arguments about Brexit", again suggesting the UK won't have left the EU when the leaflet lands on the doormat.


People who voted Leave and are now deciding between the Conservatives and Labour will be targeted with the following leaflet.

It says "Labour's Brexit policy is more delay", once more suggesting that the UK will not have left the EU at the time of a general election.


The BBC approached the Conservative Party for comment.

Failed Imagineer posted:

(The negative emoji is a crisp)

Luxury Tent Carpet posted:

:UKMT:

Luxury Tent Carpet posted:

:UKMT:

Luxury Tent Carpet posted:

:UKMT:

quote:

Michel Barnier has set Boris Johnson a midnight deadline to concede to EU demands and agree to a customs border in the Irish Sea or be left with nothing to take to the Commons.

According to sources, the EU’s chief negotiator told ministers that, as it stood, there was no prospect of a deal being signed off by leaders at a summit on Thursday, before a special sitting of the UK parliament on Saturday.

Legal text had yet to be tabled by the British negotiators, Barnier told ministers in Luxembourg. He advised the EU capitals he would announce on Wednesday whether negotiations on an agreement would have to continue into next week.

Barnier warned that the starting point for a deal had to be the Northern Ireland-only backstop, keeping it in the EU’s single market for goods and erecting a customs border in the Irish Sea, a proposal previously rejected by Theresa May.

After the meeting, Belgium’s deputy prime minister, Didier Reynders, told reporters: “If we have an agreement tonight it will be possible to go to the [European] council and then again to the British parliament. But it’s not easy, we have some red lines, they are well known by all the partners. I’m hoping it will be possible today to make some progress.”

Pesky Splinter posted:

If authentic, not a good look for Johnson.

Luxury Tent Carpet posted:

:UKMT:

Luxury Tent Carpet posted:

:UKMT:

Pesky Splinter posted: