Two examples below – neither perfect, but will give
you a style idea. All these quotes were about a 30-40
words too long.
It's been three weeks since the Daily Mail first described
Ed Miliband's father as 'The man who hated Britain' in a
headline on November 27 The headline was supported by
an article reporting Ralph Miliband's early years in Britain
as a young Jewish immigrant who would soon turn into a
Marxist academic. Ed Miliband, or 'Red Ed' according to
the Mail, replied with a letter entitled 'The man who loved
Britain', in which he defends his father's commitment to
the Royal Navy as a proof of his patriotism. Since then,
the row between Miliband and the Daily Mail has caused a
big fuss and has been widely covered in the media. In the
streets of Clapham the feelings of the people towards the
dispute are quite controversial.
Chiara Raine, 26, a copywriter from Clapham said:
“Whatever the issue, you cannot control what the media
do and publish. They have a right to publish it, if the
information they are sharing is truthful. I have to say that if
you look at it from a personal perspective, it is actually
really offensive. And the Daily Mail clearly has a hidden
agenda: they are trying to distort Ed Miliband's public
image using a very simple equation between his father's
view and his view. But if you dig deep, you realise it does
not make any sense. It is a very controversial issue”.
George Vas, 71, an retired architect from India said: “I
think that the Daily Mail should apologise to Miliband, but I
don't think they will ever do that. British people are very
arrogant, especially when there is an institution like the
Mail to cover their backs. To be honest, I think that the
Mail and the Sun are trash. Maybe they will apologise if
they think they will get some kind of financial gain from it.
But I'm quite sure that the journalist who wrote that
headline on Miliband didn't even mean it They just do it to
sell more papers, there are no heartfelt views. So why
would they apologise?”
Saskia Hansma, 52, a writer from Clapham said: “We are
talking about the Daily Mail. Is there anything else to say
about it? I think that explains everything. It is a
sensationalist newspaper. I do not read it because I just
cannot trust it and, what's more, I cannot stand it. But my
opinion has no relevance, because they will still go and
publish all this stuff and pretend they are interesting
stories. For me it's very simple: you should not be judged
by what your parents did and thought. It really is not fair to
Ed Miliband”.
Joy Ebea, 35, a nurse from Nigeria said: “I wonder how
can the Daily Mail talk about the dead like that. It is a very
sensitive issue. Nobody wants their father to be publicly
ridiculed on a national newspaper. And they used material
from the diaries Ralph Miliband wrote when he was
seventeen... People's view change during life, and he was
very young. It shouldn't be Ed Miliband's problem whether
his father hated England or not, it shouldn't affect him.
He's been provoked, and he shouldn't have responded”.
Risto Vitanov, 35, a barista from Macedonia currently
living in Earlsfield, said: “I didn't know about this row and I
don't know what to say now... I don't think Ed Miliband is
responsible, but he can't ignore or deny what his father
said, right? And if he was raised by his father with those
views he might as well support them, who knows? The
problem is just that his father is dead, so he can't answer
to any of the accusations. But I think the Mail has a right to
opinion”.
The Government claimed on Friday that most British
workers have seen their take-home pay rise in real terms
in the past year. It has produced figures showing that
take-home wages rose by 2.5% for all except the richest
10%, and with the government promising more cuts in the
coming years, the topic of how Britain manages its
economy is set to become an essential debate in the next
election. To find out if the public were feeling the benefits
of an improving economy, we went out onto the streets of
London and asked people whether they believed life was
getting better for them
Tao Emodi, 29, a fundraiser from New Cross, in
Lewisham said: “To tell you the truth - people are telling
me that they can't afford to live. There are more people
living on the streets now - many women and that worries
me. I used to invest in property - but I can't afford to now property prices are getting higher and higher. The
government had to make cuts to pay for the mistakes of
before - but I personally don't feel any of the benefits of
that.”
Shamima Hussain, 22, a sales assistant from Westbourne
Park said “The way I see it, I work full time - when it gets
to the end of the month, I have literally no money because
it all goes on the necessities. 5 years ago I was a student
therefore I wasn’t earning any money, everything I got was
from my parents, so I guess I’m wealthier because I’m
earning my own money, but I’m also not wealthy because
all my money is spent on necessities. I think the
government’s policies are working in the sense they have
reduced government debt, but it’s not really working in
favour of the public.”
Adam Salah, 24, an optometry graduate from Coventry,
said, “It’s getting better but I think that’s because
minimum wage is increasing so people are able to spend
more money. For me it’s not getting better as I’m still
unemployed but when I look at my parents nothing has
really changed. I think the austerity measures are working
because they have created apprenticeships, which help
people get into work rather than living on job seekers.”
Oukesh Patel, 34, an IT technician from Kent said: “It
seems like it’s getting better, there are a lot more people
out shopping – compared to two years ago. I would say
that people have more money then before. The
government’s austerity measures may be working, but I
think they’re affecting a lot of people – mainly the elderly.
Whether it’s the right way to do it, I’m not sure. But I could
do with some more money to be honest, with mortgage
payments going up. I’m putting stuff on credit cards to
keep my family fed and housed.”
John Wilkinson, 69, a retired banker from Brighton said: “I
think the government’s austerity measures are working
slowly because of the European and global problems.
Though - things are getting better because there are more
jobs, which means less financial strain on the government
– but personally I don’t feel any richer as I’m just a poor
pensioner.”
Steve Cranswick, 41, a business development Manager
from Yorkshire said: “I don't think the economy is getting
better, I think it's fairly static. I don't see any improvement
anywhere really. I don't feel wealthier than I did 5 years
ago, 'cause even if you get your 3% pay rise the cost of
living keeps going up. Even though the economy is getting
better, you don't feel the benefits of that.”