> >Yeeees, but my point is that once we allow ourselves to be moved away >from simple words with simple meanings, then centuries of our history as >a nation, with all of its ancient legal documents - such as Magna Carta, >with all of the rights and responsibilities it laid down on our country >- may as well be hauled to the city dump and burnt :(
OK How about 'ship' then? The tax office used to accept that you were entitled to the seafarer's deduction if you were employed aboard a vessel which had a mode of propulsion other than muscles, and which visited a foreign port. Then along came the Health and safety executive, who, for H&S purposes ruled that ships exploiting or exploring for oil and gas would be treated as 'offshore installations' as that meant stricter H&S rules. This legislation meant to ensure better working conditiions for employees on North Sea oil vessels has now been used to deny the seafarers deduction to people who navigate across the Atlantic in what to everyone else but the H&S are obviously 'ships' to service oilfields in brazil! Anne C
