Grrr, don't get me started on this. It is yet another version of convoluted and confusing phraseology that only seems to happen at Manchester. You may also be surprised to know that controllers can't use the phrase "give way" as apparently no one knows its meaning???????
So we have controllers saying "hold short of B, after the Dash 8 taxi to etc etc" and the often foreign crew reply "roger, give way". I thought no one knew what it meant.
With regards to the push back direction nonsense, controllers can no longer issue a compass point because of a couple of incorrect pushbacks. So instead of picking up individual push back crews we now must confuse Air China and everybody else.
I issued a push back recently, "push back approved, non standard to face err, errr, errrrrrr (trying to think of something to face other than the very dangerous north), errrr to face the other aircraft that is pushing" How very professional.