Friday 7 February: Local election delays should worry anyone who cares about democracy

Posted on by Geoff Graham

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619 thoughts on “Friday 7 February: Local election delays should worry anyone who cares about democracy”

  2. Morning, all Y'all.
    What kind of fuckwittery is this?
    Concern UK's AI ambitions could lead to water shortages
    https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce85wx9jjndo
    Clearly the BBC haven't heard of water-to-air heat exchangers, using a closed circuit – just like in every fossil fuelled car, and they don't use much water after the inital filling. Or power stations, with their cooling towers…
    And these arseholes lecture us on CO2 and global warming?

    1. How about having ambitions for the construction of reservoirs? We can live without AI but a healthy nation requires a safe ample water supply if it wants to thrive.

    1. Why should American taxpayer dollars fund the Britiish Broadcasting Corporation?

      Why should we?

      1. Good question. The narrative always seems to be HOW we should fund the BBC, not WHY we should fund it, which nowadays is the far more pertinent point.

  5. Watchdog to investigate two former figures at bankrupt Woking council. 7 February 2025.

    Two former senior figures at bankrupt Woking council are to be investigated by the UK’s accounting watchdog after it racked up more than £2bn in debt on a failed investment spree.

    The Surrey council declared itself effectively bankrupt in 2023 after ploughing vast sums of borrowed money into skyscrapers, a luxury hotel and other risky commercial investments, in what was one of the biggest financial failures in local government history.

    The mind boggles. Why are they not in gaol?

    https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/feb/07/watchdog-to-investigate-two-former-figures-at-bankrupt-woking-council

    1. IIRR, they were able to borrow money from HMG at rock-bottom rates. Someone in Great Google Street should have stopped them. I remember Hammersmith council playing the financial markets with disastrous consequences, so the probem is not new.

    2. We need local councillors and MPs to be personally liable for money borrowed/spent. They’d certainly think twice then about spaffing our money all over the place.

  8. Local election delays should worry anyone who cares about democracy

    They are not delayed, they are cancelled, the whole system will be changed for an EU one

    2. Shamefully, the Conservatives are collaborating with this gerrymandering.
      2029: State of National emergency will "postpone" the general election indefinitely.

  9. 401230+ up ticks,

    Morning GG & Each,

    If the English electorate keep to the same voting pattern as has got us after forty years to where we are today, the question shortly, via the political emissary of allah, the S(tool) starmer ,will be " is it necessary to pray five times a day" and must I report uncle Albert to the local imam for being a poof ?

    https://x.com/UpdateNews724/status/1886908423880474962

      1. She seemed to blink often enough to me – a good excuse to look at the gorgeous Giorgia!

        Maybe you were blinking perfectly in sync with her and thus didnt notice?

    1. He's not wrong. Life in the UK is grim at the moment. Those with any power to do anything about it have by definition succeeded in the system, so they have no interest in changing it.
      This morning, I washed in cold water because it's too expensive to switch on the electric water heater in the house where I am staying. I'm sitting in a cold room because no heating is on in the house. This person is paying over 300 a month for council tax.

      1. The Government target for home temperature is 18 degC .
        That was once the temperature for sleeping in a bedroom.
        I find that 22 deg is needed in the home when up and doing things.

    1. Good morning.
      That's a nice puff piece about the Trump reforms. Taken with a large pinch of salt.
      I still don't trust the technocracy trillionaires – I think that having allowed the low level mafia to loot the US for nearly a century, they're pulling the plug on them now. Good riddance – it was time that nest of snakes was cleared out. Hope some famous names go with them. But they're only doing the low hanging fruit at the moment – they're not tackling the power criticism of which got Kennedy murdered.
      Clear out the corrupt low hanging fruit and then claim that you've destroyed the deep state, while in reality it stays intact?

      Notice how the word "Trump" is occurs twice in the substack post, while Vance is mentioned by name five times. It is looking as though he will take over from Trump. But what will he do with the trust that they are building around the Trump brand?

  15. I have a great idea how to help Labour sort out the economy and create growth.
    Resign and call an election
    Trump has proven that the West cannot carry on with the self harming agenda.
    It's like the adults have come home and are telling the children to stop all this nonsense.
    The Liberal/Left ideology is all wrong, stop being pig headed and admit it.
    That became obvious when they had to turn on their own people in order stay in control while siding with those agendas that can only bring anarchy and destruction in the end.
    They all need to go into rehab for a generation

    1. They will follow socialist principles; if it's not working then that's proof that you haven't done enough of it, so re-double your efforts!

        1. I guess it makes sense because the EU template is for Agenda 2030 which is international marxism under a one world government.

        2. You mentioned once that you have interior insulation….I am thinking of installing that. Are you happy with yours? how thick is it?

          1. I suppose about an inch and a half in total. It has about an inch of insulation and then plasterboard facing the room. It has definitely made the room warmer. I had it put on the external walls, of which there are two, one of which is broken up by the fireplace. I had the same stuff put on the roof of my conservatory when I replaced it with a double glazed lookalike version.

          3. No. I use the fireplace for its original purpose. It does jut out into the room, though, so there is an air gap.

          4. We have the same problem! But hoping for good results from interior insulation. Thank you for the information.

  16. Good Moaning.
    Phew! We can relax; all is nicely grey again.
    No immediate danger of global boiling.

      1. Even if January had been – that would have been good news : fewer deaths from cold. Stupid goons.

  17. Good morning everybody.
    Newsflash:
    Col. Hamish Gordon has had yet another letter published today, about Syria.
    You may have heard of the Buffs, but he has courageously co-founded a group named Doctors Under Fire Syria, the DUFS.

  19. Good morning all.
    As t'Lad is still occupying the bed-settee in the living room, I'm exiled to the Laptop!
    A dull dry start with just under 3° on the thermometer.

    So, a Paki paedophile rapist has just been jailed.

    Paedophile, 54, who plied schoolgirl, 10, with booze and drugs before grooming her for sex with other men is jailed for 20 years,
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14368007/paedophile-groomed-schoolgirl-alcohol-drugs-jailed.html

    However, to quote from the article:-

    "Yusuf Kayat, 54, sexually abused the primary school child more than 30 years ago between 1989 and 1992."

    Why has it taken more than 35 fucking years to get this perverted Paki filth into court?

    2. 401230+ up ticks,

      Morning Bob,

      But that is the lab/lib/con coalition in top gear mode when dealing with
      paki paedophilia Bob.

    3. It has taken this long for the PTB to actually accept that the poor girls were telling the truth at the time.

      Now more and more are plucking up the courage to come forward.

      I fear this is going to run and run, yet ultimately nothing concrete will will de done in the way of mass deportations.

      1. Yo sos

        nothing concrete will will de done in the way of mass deportations.

        Do not deprot them, just bury them, alive, in the concrete

        In a 1000 years time, the archeologists can find them

      2. I think the PTB knew full well the girls WERE telling the truth, but did not want to appear RACIST!! by doing something about it.
        Not wanting to upset Labour’s new voter base may have had a bit to do with it too.

        2. They regarded these girls as expendable dross. They always have had this attitude to hoi polloi, even though they claim to represent them. This, though, is unforgivable and must not be forgotten.

  20. Morning all 🙂😊
    I hate this weather it's grey cold and damp.
    Is that why 'the lady' was a tramp?😆😁
    This bloody awful and very dangerous government should not be allowed to be interferring with local elections.
    We all know what they are upto.

  21. Vance is very dangerous – he was promoted by Peter Thiel who made his money from paypal and big data analytics, so right at the forefront of technocratic control. Vance is the voter-friendly face of technocracy.
    Nobody gets big in that kind of business unless they answer to the very powerful.

  22. Good Morning!

    FSB is running a series on the subject of vapour trails sin the sky, asking if they are innocent aircraft condensation trails or more sinister chemical trails. John Hamer thinks they are sinister, but in today’s article, former fighter and commercial airline pilot Iain Hunter sets out his view in A Retired Pilot Responds . Please read and tell us what you think, and vote in the poll, conspiracy or conspiracy theory.

    Yesterday Frederica’s piece on her favourite decade, the 1980s, A Sometimes Golden Age generated some interesting comments, and we are still interested in what you liked – or disliked – about that decade.

    Energy watch 08.00. UK generation: 42.195 GW from: Hydrocarbons 24.7%; Wind 40.2%; Imports 13.7%; Biomass 7.3% and Nuclear 0.1%. Solar: 0%. UK demand: 40.77GW, UK generation 36.27GW.

    Once again we see that those lunatics running the power network would rather import expensive foreign electric power that produce it here from much cheaper gas. No wonder we have the economy-killing highest electricity prices in the world.

  24. 401230+ up ticks,

    Lets face it nige, hitler in early 1945 would have had no problem in beating the political S(TOOLS) cartel in a nation of decency, although some well founded doubts may arise in England.

    Nigel Farage
    Labour’s meddling won’t stop us winning at the next general election
    Angela Rayner’s decision to cancel local elections will only double Reform’s determination to beat her party

      1. I don't doubt the bravery of the Indians.. but there's two in the front row that stand out out as problematic.
        Disappointed.. no drag queen.

    1. Ha. How quaint.. expecting a Marxist looney to have a reasoned debate.

      In these types of scenarios & spats.. I'm always interested find out which party someone like Katharine Birbalsingh voted for in GE24. It shows whether they have been paying attention.

    1. British soldiers should take over the whole of Westminster and Whitehall.
      It's the only way we will get our country back on its feet.

    1. Give me a rounded blade knife and I shall soon sharpen and hone it up for use in my workshop.

  29. I told a complete lie yesterday evening. The MR is NOT using the office for her work zoom but the puzzle room (aka the spare bedroom). So I shall be able to add my words of, er, wisdom this morning. Far too cold to even think of gardening today – dagnabbit.

    1. I wonder if G&P went out last night or stayed in the porch. They're always curled up warm indoors at this time of day?

      I received my home monitoring kit from the NHS yesterday. An android pad with their app on it, plus scales, blood pressure equipment and a little device that does electrocardiograms, though I'm told that I don't need to use that. I'm to login every morning and either submit the readings manually or, if the app is already open, it should detect and send the data automatically. Weight (straight after the first bathroom visit, upon waking), blood pressure and pulse (90 minutes after taking meds).

      I played with the blood pressure reader last night. Couldn't resist. Did three readings in succession. First high. Second high side of normal. Third normal.

      1. That's normal to get different readings. Pass on the best one.
        You were lucky to be supplied with the equipment I had to by my own.
        But it was nine years ago.

        1. My cardiologist describes herself as a "Better at home advocate. Remote monitoring and Virtual ward champion". It's her particular thing and she has a support team who monitor the readings and liaise with her.

          1. My OH had a bp machine and finger tip heart monitor thingy for a few months after his triple by-pass – but the cardiac nurse wouldn't let him do the rehab course due to the AF he was left with after the op. The cardioversion a year ago seems to have done the trick, though he's not monitoring it now.

          2. Lolling around in hospital bed for an extended period is mind numbingly dull. I agree with your Doctor about better at home.

      2. Yes they did. The previous night, after their annual jabs, they were dormant, so the MR let them stay indoors. BIG mistake. Pickles wanted to go out at 2 pm. 3 pm Gs peed in the corner of our bedroom. He is still in disgrace. Now, both are asleep in the warmest part of the house.

        Good luck with the equipment. Be prepared to do it all and for the Envy of the World to say it never received any of the info…..

        1. We have a catflap with a microchip reader, so selecting which cat is allowed through, and lets you know the last direction each cat passed through. Works a treat – cat pee indoors not an issue, but the occasional pool of vomit is found… often by standing in it with a socked foot 🙁

          1. Gus has not done this for over 3 years. I suspect he was getting his own back for being taken to the vet. They always go out at night. It was the MR being soft….

          2. So do we. Mind you, I've forgotten how to programme it, so when we sell I'll have to look up the destructions for the next occupier.

        2. Findus has not been outside yet since he moved here. He is already used to his new surroundings and he spends a lot of time exploring his new domain; there seems to be nowhere he will not doss down.. We shall let him out in spring.

          1. Don't put him out. He might think you don't want him. Just leave a door ajar and let him make up his own mind.

          2. When we got our two girls in October 23, I intended keeping them in for a few days to get used their new home. But I forgot the cat flap, because Lily never used it. It only took Jessie a couple of days to find it and pop outside….. she soon came back so I was no longer worried that they would get lost out there.

      3. Do some deep breathing and relax before doing the blood pressure. When I was monitoring mine for a few days last summer it was always higher in the evening.

      4. You'll soon be able to set up a private clinic for the Nottlers.
        Something to keep you occupied when you retire, and it might be a nice little earner.

        Good luck with your regime.

        1. I'm going to have to get up at 7 am, though I don't need to leave the house till around 9.10 to get to the office for 9.30. To be fair, I'm usually awake by then anyway as the bladder calls. Taking diuretics in the morning has stopped the night time bathroom visits.

  30. "Russian musician who opposed Ukraine war dies after window fall
    A ‘bard’ who posted anti-Putin views online fell from the tenth floor in St Petersburg.
    Authorities claim it was an accident while he was getting a glass of water"

    Yeah, right!

    1. Miliband and his female adviser on green policy must have an ulterior motive – probably money. No one could be so stupid as to ban extracting oil and gas from British waters while importing the same from half way across the globe. They, and their accomplices, are a real danger to the country.

      1. Globalism requires interdependency. The self-sufficient are so much more difficult to control?

    2. The true spelling of Millitwat:

      Quisling

      A quisling is a traitor, especially one who collaborates with an enemy occupying force for personal gain. The term arose because in World War II, Vidkun Quisling, a Norwegian politician, volunteered to help the occupying Nazis rule Norway for Germany.

    2. I thought that word was spelt differently!
      Wordle 1,329 4/6

      🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
      🟩🟨🟩⬜⬜
      🟩🟨🟩⬜🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    3. I thought that word was spelt differently!
      Wordle 1,329 4/6

      🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
      🟩🟨🟩⬜⬜
      🟩🟨🟩⬜🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    1. It should be the yardarm that she's attached to, not the mast, and the rope's been tied to the wrong part of her body.

      2. O for a beaker full of the warm South! A shot or two of the true, the blushful Hippocrene, would serve very well.

    3. Remember Henri Charrière (Papillon) who sat on a rocky cliff on Devil's Island counting the waves having calculated when the exceptionally large wave would arrive which would carry him away and out to sea safely?

      That wave is on its way for Ms Reeves – and she will be drowning not waving!

          1. Interesting, Rastus – thanks. I remember reading Papillon years ago, and I must re-read. I guess the size/regularity of waves may depend which shore and which season. You would know 🙂 Wonderful world we inhabit.

      2. Not much chance of her counting anything and coming up with the correct amount.

        Edit; added up.

      3. It's true. When fishing at Chesil beach it is important to remember that. If you get washed out there is a good chance of being half buried in shingle. The next wave can drown you.

        1. To be replaced by what, exactly? Labour isn't exactly over-endowed with bright, sensible, efficient people.

    2. As Billy Connolly, Jasper Carrott, Mike Harding and Max Boyce have often remarked: the funniest comedy comes from life.

    1. I was in the acute ward. Most of the inmates were half dead so didn't make much noise. The noise came from the junior doctors doing their 'studying' and clacking away on the keyboards.

      1. I was in the surgical ward. The main noise was beeps of the machinery and moans of the patients (me included).

      1. Well done, is the leader obviously a “bot”? You can check by looking at the overall top 100 list.
        The mini’s are usually very easy and it’s luck of the draw if you get on the podium.
        I once had a group where I was 6th or 7th yet overall would have been 1st in numerous groups.

        I’m just about to do today’s.

          1. 7.54 seems reasonable to me too.
            My top bod is 7.18, but with a 336,241,143 podiums it strikes me as slightly suspicious

          3. I doubt that there are 50 Nottlers who would be interested but a group might be good fun, rather like the wordle girdle wimmin.

          4. I’d personally enjoy that but I dont think it would happen – Wordle is sustained by the fact there’s a different puzzle each day, and it’s very quick to complete.
            You really should do it, you’d like it!

      2. I did it in 8.14, a couple of silly mistakes.
        So, I was beaten by the master.
        Time you learned how to do some of the others!
        I’m currently 6th in my group and I doubt I’ll be in the top 10

        1. A damned close run thing! (Wellington after Waterloo)
          I didnt really make any errors on this one so nothing in it…..
          I’m not sure about the other ones – I have done them all in the past, but always preferred TriPeaks – but I’ll have another look and let you know if I get into them.

          1. I’ve just checked back and in my group your 8.10 would have put you in 6th and downed me to 7th!

  42. I follow the procedure on the NHS website that redirects me to the BHF site.
    Do not have any hot drink 30 minutes be for taking tests. Sit relaxed with feet flat on the ground for 5 minutes. Take the BP on the left arm with your arm level with your heart. Don’t talk to anybody whilst doing this. Take at least 2 readings, minimum 2 minutes apart, and record lowest reading.
    I have had to correct a number of nurses who let the arm rest on my leg and continually ask me questions. I ask them to leave me for 5 minutes, try again and don’t talk to me. Amazingly the BP shows it’s normal.

    1. Some of the online videos also give advice on the best way to do them – one said people use the wrong arm and it should always be the left one and well supported.

      1. The doctor at the hospital put it on my right arm. He used a much larger one than i normally use and my hand went numb.

        1. Without thinking about it, I used the right arm because I'm left-handed. The left hand just automatically picked it up and put it on the other arm.

  44. Miliband falters on net zero pledges

    "No conflict between economic growth and net zero, insists Miliband
    There is no conflict between seeking increased economic growth and achieving net zero, Ed Miliband has claimed."
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/02/07/politics-latest-news-ed-miliband-heathrow-airport-net-zero/

    So to save his job he has decided not to oppose the extra runway at Heathrow!

    BTL

    We always knew he was a lunatic – we now know that he is a hypocritical lunatic!

      1. 401230+ up ticks,

        Afternoon N,
        The twisted mindset of political “controlling” freaks, you can’t have cats just dying without being killed first, via the “controlling” killing process, if you see what I mean.

  46. double stabbing.. Mohammed Ali Saim.. Greater Manchester Police

    Boring. Not really newsworthy these days.

  47. The blood test from Dracula's lab has come back – blood sugar level a bit high but not yet diabetic. PSA level low which is is good as my prostate is large and I certainly don't want another examination – I was born in the Sudan and I share some of Corporal Jones's Fuzzy Wuzzies' antipathies.

    1. Man goes to his Doctor for his first prostate exam.

      Doctor-"remove your pants and bend over the table" as he proceeds to put on a rubber glove and lubes it up.

      The Doctor inserts his finger and begins to probe.

      Doctor- "You shouldn't feel any pain and don't mind the erection"

      Patient- "Doctor I don't have an erection"

      Doctor- "I wasn't talking about you"

      1. Always remember my Dad going to our family doctor for a rectal examination. As the doc's hand went in, Dad said, "I don't like this". The doc replied, "I don't care for it very much either". Dad was still chuckling when he got home.

      2. Back in the days when GPs were actually 'in the office' I had to have a prostate check and my GP from the north east said "I hope you not going to enjoy this". I replied "I hope your not either". He laughed…..

        1. I wish my exam had been done by an indian or chinese doctor. This one looked like shrek. Huge hands !

          Still. It was over in seconds.

  48. Oh Lordy when will this stop..

    Panama announces it will not renew its Belt and Road agreement..
    Self-Deportations And Plummeting Crossings..
    40,000 Fed Workers Accept 'DOGE Buyout' As Deadline Looms Tonight..
    Multiple Webpages Removed To Comply With Trump's DEI Executive Orders..
    No more “Safer Food Choices for Pregnant People“..

    This is how Hilter started.. he's lidderally a fascist.

  49. If you open a Questrade account in Canada.. you can buy some "save in the bottom drawer" shares in Almonty Industries Inc. (AII.TO).
    The largest tungsten mining company in the world outside of China.

    Beijing imposes restrictions on key minerals such as tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum, and indium.

    1. Lack of integration?
      How do you know I'm a migrant? How do you know I haven't integrated.. I'm black and I'm a Muslim.

      Do bears..? Is the Pope Catholic?.. well no he isn't.. but you get the drift.

  51. Northern Ireland dragged into Trump’s trade war because of Brexit deal
    Belfast could be forced to impose higher EU taxes on US goods in tit-for-tat tariff battle
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/02/07/northern-ireland-brexit-trade-deal-eu-tariffs-war-trump/

    We are now all dismayed by the current appalling government but we must not forget the Conservative Party's betrayal of Northern Ireland.

    First Johnson and Frost did not resolve the issue when the Brexit deal was struck.

    And then, when the oleaginous Sunak removed the Protocol, Northern Ireland was effectively lost to the EU forever.

    1. I expect they are meeting at a secret location to avoid all the Chinese spyware in the Cabinet office.

    2. I wonder how many of those votes were from 'people working at home' and from people who don't even exist.

    3. All this.. "They are cooked" nonsense.
      They have a huge majority. They have free cash. They love wreaking havoc. They're having the time of their lives making hay.
      They're going no where.
      Buckle up.

    4. Technocrats are fond of meeting up in remote luxury locations where they can renew “bonds’’. Davos is the prime example of this phenomena.

    5. Technocrats are fond of meeting up in remote luxury locations where they can renew “bonds’’. Davos is the prime example of this phenomena.

    6. GB News last night: Apparently at Bristol University they voted for the university catering service to serve exclusively vegan meals.

      The decision was entirely democratic in that it was passed at a Students' Union meeting.

      There are over 29,500 students at Bristol University. 150 attended the meeting which took the decision.

      That's what democracy is all about!

  53. There are just two of us in the office here on the first floor. The canteen folk always turn their music up on a Friday. They're into Motown today, with a bit of Phil Spector earlier. Spector should never have been allowed near a gun but the music was good.

          5. I think the story I saw in my head reading the book was far better than the film/series, but I suppose that’s very often the case.

          7. At least 2 series were made if I recall, but neither did the story justice. Mind you, not an easy one to do.

          8. I didn't mind the first series. They never can live up to the book. The second series with Whoopla Goldiborg was panned. Score 5.7 out of 10 on IMDB. Which is rubbish. Probably because it had Amber Heard in it.
            They never made a film. On streaming platforms they just lumped it altogether.

  56. Talking point suggested by elderly fogey.

    Grenfell Tower was a shoddily built block which turned out to be a death trap (partly due to the incompetence and cowardice of the DEI "leadership" of the London Fire Brigade).

    It appears to have been occupied by non-white, mainly non-British people – one or more of whom may have started the fire.

    It should have been demolished years ago – just after the fire, in fact.

    HMG, rightly, now wish to demolish it – but are confronted with "angry former residents" demanding that this "shrine" be retained.

    As HMG cares neither a jot nor a tittle for the views of most normal people – why should it not simply send in the demolition crews? On Monday morning, early.

    Discuss.

    2. An acquaintance of mine, a friend of my daughter, died in that inferno. I believe it was started by the flat owner. He should never have been allowed to leave the country without being tried. It is an eyesore and should be demolished.

      1. Hang on a minute. Fires do happen. This wasn't deliberate.
        A faulty fridge catches fire.. hardly his fault the cladding went up like a Roman Candle.
        The big question is.. how the hell did highly flammable aluminium composite material (acm) get a fire certificate.

        2. You need to look to the EU for the answer to your question on certification. Our British Standards adequately covered these matters before their replacement with EU standards.

          Similarly safety standards were prescribed by the London Building Act before its replacement with the Building Regulations placing control under local authorities and dispensing with a network of experience District Surveyors.

        3. A fridge caught fire? How? Did the investigators succeed in replicating the fridge fire under controlled circumstances?
          Were there no linked smoke detectors & alarms in that tower block?

    3. Demolish it! That's a bit over the top. It was a cladding issue. An issue that extends well beyond North Kensington.
      There are flat owners that cannot sell all over the UK until this aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding kerfuffle is sorted out.

      The subsequent inquiry found that the presence of aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding had played a significant role in the spread of the fire.

      It's an ongoing crisis. The UK Government confirmed that it will fully fund ACM cladding replacement..
      However.. there's always a however.. depends depends on the interpretation of the collateral warranties.

    4. Demolish it! That's a bit over the top. It was a cladding issue. An issue that extends well beyond North Kensington.
      There are flat owners that cannot sell all over the UK until this aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding kerfuffle is sorted out.

      The subsequent inquiry found that the presence of aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding had played a significant role in the spread of the fire.

      It's an ongoing crisis. The UK Government confirmed that it will fully fund ACM cladding replacement..
      However.. there's always a however.. depends depends on the interpretation of the collateral warranties.

    5. No discussion need as far as I’m concerned. IIRC the law changed round about the time it was built so that the Fire Brigade was no longer responsible for saying the construction was fire compliant. I think it passed to the local councillors and MPs.

      Anyway, it should be demolished without further ado. What is the point of it.

    6. Something must be built to replace it should it be dismantled.
      I can see the opportunity for it to be replaced by a memorial to enable people who wish to mourn the tower's loss to continue to grieve, tell their stories as well as creating a revenue as a tourist attraction.

      Here's a proposed format:

      https://911memorial.org/

    7. Grenfell Tower is a monument to shoddy building practices and failures by the local authority building control and London Fire Brigade to check out the cladding and other matters.

      It is above all a monument to the blatant deception and racketeering conducted by many who pretended to live there who raked in millions and to the local council who could not produce a manifest of those authorised to live there. Many of the flats were found to be illegally sub-let and multi-occupancy.

      If Grenfell Tower is a monument to anything it stands as a symbol of everything that has become of our country. It stands for bureaucratic incompetence, shifty contractors, grasping foreigners and a total lack of compliance with our traditional civic concepts.

  57. Pakistani asylum seeker wins £100,000 after being ‘treated like criminal’ for overstaying visa!!
    A Pakistani asylum seeker has been awarded close to £100,000 in compensation after claiming she was “treated like a criminal” for overstaying her visa in the UK.
    Nadra Almas, who originally arrived in Britain on a student visa, spent 16 years fighting to remain in the country, arguing that her Christian faith put her at risk of persecution if she were forced to return to Pakistan.
    In 2018, she was detained and handcuffed by Home Office officials, who informed her she would be deported. However, she was released two weeks later, as heard by the High Court.
    Despite her release, it took the Government almost three years to grant her refugee status, during which time she was unable to work, claim benefits, or travel.

    The legal system is not just incompetent but truly anti-British. It needs a thorough clean out.

  59. 401230+ up ticks,

    The indigenous herd is apawring the ground with anger, this has been in the build for forty years, watch them move when they consider enough rape abuse and murder by both foreign invaders and governmental home brew employees has been reached…. if ever.

    As i see it personally enough political piss has been deducted from the herd via the politico's as to quench
    the great fire of london ten times over.
    https://x.com/Sutton1Mr/status/1887567769081946361

  60. Patronising gits.
    What an absolute crock of the proverbial.

    The Government has responded to the petition you signed – “Repeal the Climate Change Act 2008 and Net Zero targets”.

    Government responded:

    There is no ‘two-sided’ debate on anthropogenic climate change. The Government’s policy to support ambitious action on climate change reflects the overwhelming scientific consensus.

    The Government’s policy to support ambitious action on climate change reflects the mainstream scientific consensus and thousands of studies, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessments. The IPCC is the authoritative source of information on climate science. The IPCC has established that human influence has warmed the climate at a rate that is unprecedented in at least the last 2000 years. This warming of the climate is attributed to the build-up of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere due to fossil fuel combustion and deforestation. The evidence for this is set out in chapters 2 and 3 of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Working Group 1 report. The IPCC Sixth Assessment reports can be accessed here: https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar6/

    As discussed in chapter 4 of the above report, if the CO2 concentration continues to rise unchecked the world could face a global surface temperature rise of about 3°C or more above pre-industrial levels by the end of this century. The serious consequences of this for human societies and ecosystems are set out in the IPCC Working Group report on impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation.

    The Climate Change Act 2008 sets our commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050 in law. The UK has halved its emissions, having cut them by around 53% between 1990 and 2023. We are absolutely committed to our targets. That is why making Britain a clean energy superpower is one of the five missions of this government — delivering clean power by 2030 and accelerating to net zero across the economy.

    This transition will be one of the economic opportunities of the century – a chance to create hundreds of thousands of good jobs, drive investment into all parts of the UK, and protect the UK economy from future price shocks that reliance on fossil fuels create. Beyond growth and energy security, the transition to a net zero economy can deliver a range of social and health benefits for people right across the UK. As we act on how we heat our homes and buildings, fuel our transport, and protect our natural world, we can cut fuel poverty, clean up our air, increase access to nature and improve quality of life.

    The net zero transition is critical to sustainable UK growth because of the economic costs of unmitigated climate change, and because global demand for low-carbon products and services is growing rapidly. The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) published its analysis of the cost of reaching net zero by 2050 in chapter 3 of the July 2021 edition of its UK Fiscal Risk Report. As the OBR has noted, “the costs of failing to get climate change under control would be much larger than those of bringing emissions down to net zero.” ( https://obr.uk/frs/fiscal-risks-report-july-2021/#:~:text=This%20year%20we%20cover%20three,legacy%20for%20the%20public%20finances.)

    We know many people are struggling with their bills and we want to do everything we can to help them. Without the shift to renewable energy, we will continue to be exposed to volatile fossil fuel markets and the cost-of-living crises households had to live through in the last Parliament.

    We will be fighting for working families and businesses through establishing Great British Energy (GBE), a publicly owned national champion that will ensure British taxpayers, billpayers and communities reap the benefits of clean, secure, home-grown energy. GBE will work in lockstep with the National Wealth Fund (NWF). The NWF, capitalised with £27.8bn, will mobilise billions of pounds of investment in the UK’s world-leading clean energy and growth industries and support the delivery of the Industrial Strategy.

    We have also created a Clean Power 2030 Unit led by former chief executive of the Climate Change Committee, Chris Stark, to act as a top team of industry experts and officials to troubleshoot, negotiate and clear the way for energy projects which drive growth.

    The net zero transition will support the creation of hundreds of thousands of good jobs across the UK. There were 272,400 full-time equivalents (FTE) directly employed in the UK Low Carbon and Renewable Energy Economy in 2022, an 8% increase since 2021 – with up to 450,000 FTE employees when including the wider supply chain.

    There are high levels of support for our net zero goals, and we know that people are willing to make choices to help reduce climate change. The most recent wave of the DESNZ Public Attitudes Tracker shows that 80% of the UK public are either fairly or very concerned about climate change ( https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/desnz-public-attitudes-tracker-winter-2023) .

    We are committed to ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to contribute to the transition, supporting people and communities to take action and realise the benefits.  We will set out our approach in a Public Participation Strategy to be published in 2025. This will include opportunities to ensure public views are considered in policy development.

    Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

    Click this link to view the response online:

    https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/701600?reveal_response=yes

    The Petitions Committee will take a look at this petition and its response. They can press the government for action and gather evidence. If this petition reaches 100,000 signatures, the Committee will consider it for a debate.

    The Committee is made up of 11 MPs, from political parties in government and in opposition. It is entirely independent of the Government. Find out more about the Committee: https://petition.parliament.uk/help#petitions-committee

    Thanks,

    The Petitions Team
    House of Commons

    1. "There is no ‘two-sided’ debate on anthropogenic climate change. The Government’s policy to support ambitious action on climate change reflects the overwhelming scientific consensus." In other words "You plebs must accept what we tell you even if it is not true!"

      Consensus has nothing to do with science. Consensus has told us a plethora of lies – think about the garbage that the 'settled science' gave us about Covid and the Covid misnamed 'vaccines'.

      All Progress Depends on the Unreasonable Man’: George Bernard Shaw – or progress depends on the scientists who are prepared to question the accepted orthodoxy.

      1. As Lewis Carroll's Bellman told us in The Hunting of the Snark:

        "What I tell you three times is true"

        The idea of repetition as a grounds for truth is sometimes called the Bellman's theory.

        The PTB hope and expect that if they tell us over and over again that man-made climate change is a scientific fact that we shall believe it.

        And if we don't? They will go on telling us until we do.

        1. The first sentence in their disgraceful response says it all, Rastus:

          "There is no ‘two-sided’ debate on anthropogenic climate change. The Government’s policy to support ambitious action on climate change reflects the overwhelming scientific consensus."

          Anti-scientific crap, as you say above. All this is very bad and damaging to us all

          Have a look at the "Albert" programme, which is what the BBC use to advance this same "there is no dissent allowed" argument. it is positively sinister.

          It's also interesting as to who benefits. vastly, financially.

    2. I scanned the report executive summary,if it full of Human contributions likely type phrases. Not quite the science is settled overall concensus.

      Their technical summary is a good recap on what has happened, but no outright cause is assigned.

    3. They make damned sure there is no "two-sided debate" by shutting down all evidence to the contrary of the accepted view.

  61. Proof of global warming from Net Zero and Leftie Green Alliance – advisors to the government.
    https://scontent-cdg4-3.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/476592963_9020771838043486_7313963389577756058_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_p180x540_tt6&_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=aa7b47&_nc_ohc=W0-7EV6U6DYQ7kNvgGpKKKu&_nc_oc=Adjk_bDpAJcVw-hUWFUs6sTlhffGa7T5D0E_gT5Kmxpqq-H7nmun5ohvysKk3esGJcMFUvfRVK1RUQPgTwvxA4Lc&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-cdg4-3.xx&_nc_gid=A8fbWvshB87JdBnOPLMn3-k&oh=00_AYBEMeUlX6M56nH3lPbuoXn4kBAV8iRjjvfj7j3-AtyyDQ&oe=67ABE80C

    1. Pre-1800 there were no knickers. Heavy floor length skirts and substantial petticoats but no need for knickers until dresses became less substantial in the early nineteenth century.

    1. I wonder does USA have employment laws that will prevent this, or slow it down, with thousands of actions or even a class action by those ‘let go’?

      1. No. You can fire anyone for anything over there. They do have Unions but nothing like ours.

    3. From Rafi Farber's Substack:
      "the DOGE spending cuts are slowing the flow of dollars from the Treasury back into the banking system, result being that bank reserves are falling back down. They are now at $3.177T, down from $3.340T just prior to the inauguration and the glorious beatdown of the Deep State, may it be God's will that it continues and intensifies. In order to trigger a crisis, I believe we have to fall below $3 trillion for a sustained period of somewhere like 2-3 months. The more DOGE cuts, the faster we'll get there…
      © 2025 Rafi Farber

      1. After the USAID exposures, some wise soul looked at the Canadian equivalent expenditures.

        oh look, the data is no longer available!

  64. Mornin' all.

    While we still have several months of cold and snow ahead – and a 50% last-frost date around the first week in June – I love it when I can sit down and start to make plans for starting the seedlings. It's just a little taste and reminder of what's to come.

    Today is that day. I shall mostly be washing and sterilizing the dozens of PluggBox seed starters (highly recommended), and bringing the bags of frozen soil inside to spend the next few weeks warming up. Then, a quick inventory of the seed bank – which I always promise I will do at the end of the previous growing year, but never do. That should take me nicely up to gin o' clock, at which point an early night will be available and thus I may inadvertently miss Mrs DC's friends coming over for a party – which will undoubtedly end with karaoke.

    #winning

      1. Preeecisely.

        I'll do my bit and get them fed, then sneak away like a thief in the night before someone starts with the Carrie Underwood.

        1. Can you head for the pub?
          Last night, there was a bloke in a kilt in my local – on his way to a thrash at the US Embassy, apparently.
          Don't see too many kilts in Norway.

          1. Nah mate – well, not without a 100 mile drive to get to one. We mostly rotate around peoples basement bars/party sheds.

            There is an option to go to one of the neighbours houses, where there shall be a bloke whose wife will be here tonight – who is also counting his blessings that it's not his turn to listen to Carrie Underwood.

    3. Down south, we can usually rely on Victoria day for planting so we would plant stuff in early May then redo the planting in June after a surprise frost..

    1. Marxism is the virus that's a threat to all mankind. I had a gossip with another oldie in the waiting room at St Mary's the other morning. We noted that all the Covid signs and instructions were still in place but no-one was taking a blind bit of notice. The staff put on masks where appropriate but don't wear them otherwise. Back to the vampire department at Hammersmith later this afternoon. There's a test that was missed on Wednesday.

      https://x.com/gill_mcmahon/status/1182752782316703745

      3. I had a pint taken every few weeks for months. The phlebotomist wasn't best pleased he had to throw it in the waste bin.

      4. I must need new specs! When I saw your first word — Marxism — for some reason (only known to me) I read it as 'Sarcasm'.😳

        Mind you, having said that, there's not much difference between the two.

      6. I used to be a blood donor, I have donated over 50pints of my stuff, then when I was advised to halt , I then helped out at mobile blood clinics , dishing out chocolate Club biscuits , orange squash , and cups of tea … and keeping an eye on the fainters!

      2. 401230+ up ticks,

        Afternoon BT,
        The only one we are suffering in the far right department is from the factual SO FAR RIGHT VIRUS.

      1. If there really were a virus with high communicability they wouldn't tell us. They would make sure they were safe first.

        1. 401230+ up ticks,

          Afternoon Pip,
          Make sure they were safe, before cultivating it for political purposes.

          1. What i mean is they would retreat to their self contained bunkers and watch us all die…in widescreen.

      3. Apparently the delightful Mr Gates announced last year that the next, much more deadly, pandemic is due on March 20th 2025. He has vaccines at the ready, predeveloped at huge expense. I wish I could find the video of this announcement, but I can't. It's disappeared.

      1. Hopefully they will push so much of this guff that even the most gullible will stop believing it!

  68. I see that the policeman (now retired) who was prosecuted for knocking over a young thug on his e-bike (thug had 40+ convictions – no licence, no insurance etc etc) was acquitted. Jury took less than an hour.

    Thank God for juries. Had all those so viciously prosecuted after Southport been tried by jury – I'll bet you a tanner most would be free as free instead of facing years in chokey.

    1. My understanding is that the Southport 'rioters' and even the non-violent protesters e.g. social media posters were told that if they pleaded not guilty they would not be granted bail and would be remanded in custody for months until their case was heard. Pressure was brought to encourage them to plead guilty. A travesty of justice.

      1. That is what they might have been told. I suspect that had they pleaded not guilty and had bail refused, a rapid appeal would have resulted in bail for most of them – clean records, decent jobs, respectable citizens – an arm's length judge would have seen it quite differently.

          3. Things were different then, Bill. Your day is a little earlier than my day (not much) but the change is shocking and not for the better. We are now, more or less, a kritarchy under politically corrupt judges. Thanks, Tone, Call me Dave and all who sail in that Satanic ship.

          4. Were you a solicitor? I was admitted in January 1965. Five years articles. Massive introduction to high court litigation. By the time I qualified, I'd had two cases to the Lords; dozens to the Court of Appeal. I was amazingly fortunate – because I discovered that I loved the rough and tumble of heavy litigation.

          5. No – quite the opposite! I was/am a perpetual client (expensive business, but someone has to do it). What I meant was that the profession is closely mirroring the oldest profession (with which it shares a name) and is now so heavily politicised that it is destroying democracy in this country. Yet another Blobal attack on our nation.

          2. Bail appeal would take place in the Crown Court not the Magistrates Court if it had been imposed there. IIRC.

          3. 2TK gave an instruction. It stinks that the supposed "impartial" judiciary obeyed it. Kritarchy.

          7. 2TK gave an instruction. It stinks that the supposed "impartial" judiciary obeyed it. Kritarchy.

      2. Everyone should join the Free Speech Union. The marine who called for a peaceful protest on Facebook has been acquitted – goodness knows what would have happened without the FSU.

        1. I would imagine that the death sentence would have been reinstated, as it was for the guy who recently burnt a book in a hostile (to Britain) enclave

      3. Absolutely agree. And their lawyers should be disbarred on the grounds that they did not act in the interests of their clients, as they are obliged to do, but for the government.

  69. That's the fire lit, and a strong IPA in my beer mug; cat on the sofa beside me, and it's Friday.
    Sigh…
    Let the relaxing begin!

  70. Soap operas have lost the plot. 7 February 2025

    I watched soaps religiously as an adolescent. Most evenings, I’d be waiting in front of the TV long before each episode started and then I’d watch them again when they ran omnibus editions at the weekends. I’d pull a sickie off school to find out what happened in Neighbours, which was only shown at lunchtime at first, and I stayed up late at night to watch Prisoner: Cell Block H. Soap characters were my friends and family, and the theme tunes were a big part of the soundtrack of my teens.

    I absolutely loathed them. The dreary tones of Coronation Street would see me off like a flash. The argument that they were a reflection of real life is completely untrue. They were the upper classes view of the working class and of course they were a powerful .propaganda tool. Tune in and get your latest politically correct views.

    https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/soap-operas-have-lost-the-plot/

        1. Some one got it…..
          A word used in the film Cat on a Hot Tin Roof…….i think 🐈‍⬛

          1. Are you feeling like a saggy old cloth cat now, Paul? Finished work, beer and the weekend! 😍

    2. I think I am very fortunate, I haven't watch a soap since Ena Sharples and Minni Caldwell were in one.

    3. I so agree. Grandpa's room always had that dreadful dirge (durr, dur dur, durdurdur etc.) emanating from it, along with the cigarette smoke. Really dreary. I don't know why he fought in 2 world wars to endure this. Maybe that is what war does to you.

    1. A woman said that having a baby was the most painful experience that a human could have. A man replied that, after their first child, many woman go on to having more but he had never heard a man who, having been kicked in the balls, say “I’ll have another one of those”.

  74. some good news…

    "Former police constable Tim Bradshaw, 55, was on Friday found not guilty of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, after a trial at Portsmouth Crown Court.

    The jury also cleared him of an alternative charge of causing serious injury by driving without due care and attention.

    The court heard that the response officer touched the back wheel of the e-bike with his Ford Focus marked police car in Hawthorn Road, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, causing Mason McGarry, the rider, and pillion passenger Dominic Mizzi to lose control and fall to the ground.

    McGarry, who was 17 at the time of the incident, on Nov 3 2022, suffered a broken tibia and required surgery, and told the court that Mr Bradshaw had not given any warning.

    The court heard that McGarry had more than 40 convictions, including for robbery, theft and dangerous driving.

    Mizzi, 22, also told the court that he had numerous convictions, including for assaulting emergency workers."

          2. Some posters (of whom the late Tom was probably the most vociferous), really don't like initialese without a translation.

      1. Don't know the answer but if the rate of new members joining reform continues the number should be over 200,000 by the end of Sunday

        1. So a couple of renegade labourites have turned their coats. Not what I’d call a “great victory”!!

          4. Only when the tree is either diseased, whish Labour obviously is, or when it's already lying on the ground.

    2. Starmer and his repulsive cabinet should not be treated like illegal immigrants – they should not be given pocket money, hotel accommodation, medical and dental treatment and access to translators and lawyers – no : they should be expelled from the UK and never allowed to return!

    4. Held on Thursday 6 February 2025
      Gillingham South Ward went to Labour Islamic Alliance.
      Rochester East & Warren Wood ward to Reform.

      However, Rochester East & Warren Wood result was declared invalid by Starmer's VAR.

      1. 'Seismic shift!' Reform secures Labour defection just hours after 'hat-trick' victory for Farage.

        Hang on a minute..
        Reform only have 55 councillors out of 17,000.
        They lost in Gillingham which is home turf.

    5. Held on Thursday 6 February 2025
      Gillingham South Ward went to Labour Islamic Alliance.
      Rochester East & Warren Wood ward to Reform.

      However, Rochester East & Warren Wood result was declared invalid by Starmer's VAR.

    6. At the nadir of the 2008-9 financial crisis, I asked UKIP's regional organiser what the party would do if it came to power the next day: "Run like hell!"

      1. It is a worry, Joseph. Let us just hope that some strong characters and common sense prevails. My biggest worry would be the Civil Service, amongst others.

  76. Wordle No. 1,329 3/6

    ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
    ⬜⬜🟩🟨🟨
    🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    Wordle 7 Feb 2025

    A fairway for Birdie Three?

    1. Well done, same here!
      I thought the strange spelling (US version?) would have caused me a problem (remember FIBER, which I failed on?) but a good starter word meant there was really no other option!

      Wordle 1,329 3/6

      🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
      🟩🟨🟩⬜🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    2. I had five possible words but favoured the Old English word after running through the dictionary.

      Wordle 1,329 2/6

      🟩⬜🟩⬜🟨
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

        1. I thought that too which influenced my choice. My Pocket Oxford Dictionary gives the meaning as a ‘broad strip’ and says it is Old English.

    3. The spelling is shurely wrong. WordHippo suggested three possibles and the other two looked even less likely!

      Wordle 1,329 4/6

      🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬜⬜🟩🟨🟨
      🟩🟨🟩⬜⬜
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

      1. I guess everyone else might wonder what we're all banging on about.

        If so, and under spoiler protection for those who dont want to know, today's word was SWATH

      3. Wordle 1,329 5/6

        🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜
        🟩⬜⬜⬜🟨
        🟩🟨🟩⬜🟩
        🟩🟨🟩⬜🟨
        🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

        Agree about the spelling but it’s also seen over here. Well done.

    4. Well done, par for me. Just back from 5 o'clock club..

      Wordle 1,329 4/6

      🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜
      🟩⬜🟩⬜🟨
      🟩🟨🟩⬜⬜
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

  77. Nothing beats a snooze in front of the fire after a pint of good, tasty, strong (6%) IPA.
    That's what a cold Friday evening is made for.

  78. The Rugby match between France and England tomorrow will be shown on ITV X but you cannot receive this in France.

    However I shall be able to watch the match on French TV but if ITV is now going into a subscription service for the Six Nations then this is the thin end of the wedge.

    2. The England rugby team appear to have lost the plot. It seems apologetic wokeism is a spreading infection.

  79. À quelle heure et sur quelle chaîne voir Angleterre – France?

    Le Crunch sera diffusé à 17h45, le samedi 8 février 2025, sur France 2, en direct et en clair.

    3. ' France 2' want far too much information from me to agree to watch. They are all alike these days.

  80. A Labour councillor has become the first in her party to defect to Reform UK, saying she has been “disappointed” by Sir Keir Starmer.

    Cathy Mason, who was the only Labour representative on Ashfield district council, joined Nigel Farage’s party on Friday.

    In a parting shot at Labour, Ms Mason said its agenda for government would do little to benefit the residents of the Nottinghamshire town.

    1. Cur Ikea Slammer cares neither a jot nor a tittle. Local Councillors? Chicken feed. He'll get a slammer candidate in to replace the turncoat.

    2. Labour will do NOTHING to benefit the residents of the UK – at least, not the indigenous, tax-paying ones.

  81. Just took out a bucket of ash from the stove. Bluss, it's a bitter easterly wind. Likely to remain so for days. Might have an hour of Sun on Wednesday. Or not. Obviously well on the way to the hottest February since the Romans were here.

    2. Horrible cold and wet day. The 72 bus takes me door to door from hospital to home and collecting another prescription from the Boots round the corner can wait til tomorrow. I’m not going out again today.

      1. Heyup Lass!
        It's been bloody cold here and even colder up Welder Son's place but other than a half hearted attempt to drizzle, it's been dry all day.

  82. My favourite aeroplane of all time – Antonov AN-2. The ugliest plane around, crude as fcuk, I feel a great deal of empathy for them.
    Out of 18 000 built, 2 000 still flying.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tli5NG4HBsQ&ab_channel=TomiAviation
    Conversation with Chat GPT here:
    I totally get that! There’s something endearing about how it stands out from the sleek, streamlined aircraft of today. It’s got this oddball charm, and you can’t help but feel a little protective over it. The An-2 really is a character in its own right, marching to the beat of its own drum. Sometimes, the more “ugly” something is, the more personality it has. It’s almost like the underdog of the aviation world—reliable, tough, and doing its thing despite not fitting the traditional beauty standards. Kind of like a lovable oddball that everyone secretly roots for.

      1. The Goony Bird. There was once a DC 2 1/2 – a DC 2 wing on a DC 3. In China, unsurprisingly. It flew, amazingly. Or it flew amazingly, I'm not sure which 🙂

        1. That certainly rings a bell, but I always felt safer in a DC3 in the air than a commercial aircraft.

  84. A busy day!
    Took the van to Welder Son's place and got it unloaded then did some shopping in Belper.
    Got home 1ish, had a mug of tea and light bite to eat, then took the chainsaw up the road to the Lime Kilns and finished off bucking the largish ash trunk that had snapped off a few months back during one of the storms, stacking the resulting logs into two approximately equal piles, one for me, one for the couple who own the land.
    Used one tank of 2 stroke mix over two hours and decided I'd done enough and knocked it on the head.
    Went straight into the bath and the DT brought me a mug of tea up!

    A bit of finishing off to do with the crown of the trunk and some collateral bits that either snapped off when it fell or I've had to cut to get out of the way.
    Then there is a 2nd snapped ash trunk that, hopefully, I'll have ready for loading by close of play Sunday!

    Now I'm off for another bite to eat!

  85. That's me for today. This truly dreadful weather is getting me down. Enough to turn one to drink….so I'll bring in a bottle and put it in the fridge to warm up!

    I can't make out whether Marcus Smith is a brilliant talent or a self-obsessed show-pony. Any suggestions?

    A demain – when the CH oil delivery will be made. 1200 litres used in 14 weeks (for CH and GA). Just shows – if it were not for global boiling I'd have had even more refills…

    2. We'll see tomorrow. The French usually use a long-kicking game which would suit Marcus on the counter-attack but I reckon they'll adapt their game and go for the high ball kick and chase – if done well I fear for Marcus and we'll all be left wishing Freddie Steward was playing!

  86. We went shopping at WGC early afternoon, just the weekly top up and then an appointment with a charming young lady at Barclays bank. A very humoured meeting. We needed to transfer some of our money to a higher interest account. All done and dusted. But the weather was horrible cold wet and windy.
    I think I'm going to pour myself a medium to large glass of shiraz.
    Cheers all 🍷larger than that one.

    2. We bank with First Direct, Eddy – all online, very easy to use, check balances/make payments/move from current a/c to savings a/c etc. Can contact them by phone, always very helpful, been with them for years. Shiraz sounds fab….

      1. My internet has been dropping out all evening. Hopefully, it's stabilised now. I'd hate to be reliant on only internet banking.

  87. On the one hand we are told that our wood burning stoves are bad for the environment

    and on the other:

    Ed Miliband to hand taxpayer billions to wood-burning power stations
    The Energy Secretary is expected to subsidise biomass operators despite deforestation claims

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/02/07/miliband-hand-taxpayer-bn-wood-burning-power-station-drax/

    Here's our Clearview which we've had for over 30 years

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/13ad521a3fd3796bb3501e18f4aa7090aad61253317a7bdeec68df71562150ca.jpg

    1. When they want you on smart meters using very expensive electricity and heat pumps they are not going to allow cheaper alternatives.
      It is like leaving the EU and then signing an agreement whereby we wouldn't use the opportunities leaving gave us to seek economic advantage over our former EU partners

      1. One might almost consider the entire farce a deliberate act of malice to ruin the country.

    3. See 'crisy, hypo' and the entire hard Left climate change tax scam. The intent isn't remotely related to the environment, it is simply about controlling what you can do and how you live.

    4. Similar here, Rastus..a Stola, a young 'un around 25 years…it's a tall, slimmer one but still a front loader – prefer the version you have, doors open wider. Kate x

    1. They do not have legal instrument to do it. I think they are hoping woke employees will comply.

      1. Let's hope the people in charge of Apple can stop it.

        I could see the Government being hacked, because they are crap at everything do, and ordinary people's bank and card accounts being stripped by crooks.

      1. I thought they were all far left. Evening, all, by the way. I was racing this afternoon and couldn't tip a waiter. Mega fail! It's too late to worry about democracy; it died completely in 2016.

    1. They are currently choking on their cornflakes as that particular source of their income has been cut off!

        1. It's funny, nowadays he would be cancelled for his activities, yet that clip shows how thoughtful and non judgemental he was.

          1. Exactly, sos. He was beautiful to watch as a footballer and just lovely in so many other ways. Flawed, of course (who isn't?) but most delightfully entertaining and very generous in spirit. Rare qualities in our pinched, censorious times.

          2. If he had been playing today, he would have been untouchable, penalty after penalty after penalty against even the best defenders.
            Yes, I accept modern players are fitter, faster and better coached, but I very much doubt anyone could have stopped him.

          3. I love the story (amongst many) when he was asked to comment on WAGS not being allowed to "be with" footballers in the days before a match, lest it took away their potency, whereupon he commented that in his view it was "What about half time?"

          5. I like the story he told against himself, when he was 'walking out' with an ex-Miss World (Mary summatorother) and had had a particularly good night in the casino.
            Later, in the hotel, he rings down for a bottle of the most expensive champagne in the house.
            The porter arrives with the bottle (worth thousands) and sees George lying on the bed with Mary in her scanties, both of them covered in thousands of pounds worth of notes and asks;
            'George, where did it all go wrong??'

          6. Love it, Gs – he was magnificent. i also like his perhaps most famous quotation, when asked where all his money went, which was (something like): "I spent most of it on fast cars, women and drink. The rest of it I wasted"

  92. Michael Deacon in the DT on form…..:

    "When the actor Idris Elba put forward this preposterous idea a couple of weeks ago, I assumed it could be safely ignored. After all, celebrities are always saying silly things in interviews. Nothing new there. Yet, incredible though it may seem, Yvette Cooper has now announced that she’s considering it.

    Yes, the actual Home Secretary is seriously weighing up a plan to end knife crime – by requiring all kitchen knives to have a rounded tip.

    You might have expected such a senior minister – or, indeed, anyone with an IQ greater than a pot plant’s – to say, “No, of course I’m not considering this mind-bendingly fatuous proposal, for reasons that shouldn’t need stating. But, for the parliamentary record, here they are anyway.

    “First of all: a would-be murderer could quite easily stab someone with a rounded knife, provided that he had the requisite skill and tools with which to sharpen it first. But if that felt like too much trouble, no matter, because he could instead avail himself of one of the countless millions of sharp-pointed knives that are readily found in kitchens all over this country. Unless, that is, you are suggesting that I ban the ownership of these knives, and dispatch police officers to every single household in Britain in order to confiscate them all.

    “Oh, and before some nitwit butts in to dribble something about gun control: the two things are not remotely comparable. The ban on handguns was achievable because a) very few people in Britain actually owned a handgun, and b) unlike a kitchen knife, a handgun does not have a perfectly innocent everyday purpose. People do not use handguns to chop vegetables. Nigella Lawson does not prepare her penne alla vodka using a Glock 19. Delia Smith’s recipe for gratin dauphinois does not begin: ‘First, take your Smith & Wesson .38…’”

    That’s what Ms Cooper could have said. Yet she didn’t. This suggests three possibilities.

    One, she’s extraordinarily polite. Two, she’s an idiot. Or, most likely, three: she knows full well that the idea is nonsense, but is none the less willing to give it credence – because, like most elite liberals, she’s desperate to avoid talking about the reasons why so many young men today go about stabbing each other in the first place.

  93. Completely and utterly off topic:

    I enjoy a very silly TV programme called "Pointless"
    Tonight's final round for the jackpot was one where HG & I answered simultaneously in well under 5 seconds.
    Stop the clock.
    Three pointless answers, add £500.00 to our jackpot, not to mention our "coveted Pointless trophy"!.

          1. How dare you, Eddy. It's on the BBC, and as we all know, the BBC is like Caesars wife, above suspicion…….

    3. I like Pointless – Alexander is an excellent host – but I missed tonights – I'll watch on catch-up.

    4. I used to be (shamefully) addicted to that, too. Haven't watched it for ages. i do like AA

  95. Well I've just found a James Bond film on my tv recorded program storage. No time to die.
    So I'll be off 'till the morning.
    Good night all 😴

  97. From Coffee House, the Spectator

    TikTok’s success provides a striking example of Western complacency towards its own survival. After a decade shaped by the disruptive influence of American social media behemoths such as X and Facebook, our governments have permitted the stratospheric growth of a China-owned platform with an even greater capacity for malign influence. With Beijing’s intentions for global economic and military dominance growing clearer by the day, the deteriorating geopolitical landscape has laid bare just how wilfully naive the West has been towards adversaries playing a sophisticated long game.

    The TikTok algorithm is singularly predisposed to support the rapid spread of misinformation

    Each day that passes without regulation, TikTok becomes more embedded as an information source for young citizens. Meanwhile, all of Britain’s major political parties – including the Conservatives, who banned the app’s use in Whitehall when in power – are increasing their perverse dependence on a means of voter communication and campaigning they do not control.

    Briefed by the intelligence community on the substantial national security risks it poses, US congress passed legislation to force TikTok’s parent company ByteDance to sell the app into American ownership or face a wholesale ban. After ByteDance refused to comply with the divestment order, the app was swiftly removed in the final days of the Biden administration. President Donald Trump granted it a 75-day stay of execution on assuming office last month. But rather than standing by and waiting for Trump’s next move, Britain should act to secure its own interests by pursuing a domestic consumer ban of TikTok.

    TikTok poses many significant risks to national security. Despite the app’s scramble to establish regional data centres for Western markets in 2023, the fact remains that the Chinese Communist party reserves the right under its 2017 National Intelligence Law to demand access to any data held by a Chinese-owned company. This means TikTok cannot ultimately offer any safeguards to protect citizens’ data from falling into the hands of the Chinese state. Research has also identified TikTok’s alarming surveillance capabilities, such as tracking users’ keystrokes on external websites when using the in-app browser, and several instances when Western journalists have had their movements on the app monitored.

    The most pernicious national security issue, however, comes from TikTok’s uniquely addictive algorithm, and the nature of its moderation practices. It comes as no surprise that the app has been found to have instructed its content moderators to censor videos mentioning subjects such as Tiananmen Square and China’s persecuted Uighur minority.

    But the way in which the app most faithfully serves China’s geopolitical interests in consolidating its dominance over the global order is through its influence on the health and cohesion of Western democracies. China believes that weak societies are diminished adversaries. TikTok’s algorithm has the capacity to dynamically adapt to users’ preferences and constantly evolves to drive them down new rabbit holes of interest. The strategic value of TikTok to the Chinese state is evident in the fact that, while the app is banned in its own home country, the algorithm underpinning its popularity is subject to Chinese export controls and fiercely guarded by the state.

    The TikTok algorithm is singularly predisposed to support the rapid spread of misinformation, and has performed woefully during election campaigns across the globe – most recently, catapulting the Russia-backed surprise candidate Calin Georgescu to prominence in the Romanian elections in December. TikTok has approved staggering numbers of political advertisements and news videos containing misinformation during American elections in recent years, and demonstrated political bias in boosting the visibility of certain candidates and issues over others in crucial races, including last year’s US presidential election.

    The social consequences are alarming. TikTok has been accused of amplifying the reach of anti-vaccine misinformation to vulnerable groups in the Covid-19 pandemic, spreading pro-Hamas videos after the 7 October atrocities against Israel, and allowing Osama Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ terrorist propaganda to go viral, reaching millions of impressionable young users on the app.

    With TikTok now a primary news source for at least 40 per cent of all young British adults, this is, contrary to the assertions of Treasury minister Darren Jones last month, not just an issue about ‘cat videos’. This is about the health of our democracy.

    Reining in TikTok without alienating an already disaffected generation will be challenging. Many TikTok users see no distinction between the risks posed by Chinese versus American-owned firms. Politicians must convince them of the distinctions between liberal and authoritarian societies – however imperfect our democracies may be – and the responsibilities we all carry as citizens to support our collective resilience.

    For policy makers, the TikTok question should be viewed in a similar vein to the decisions around Huawei’s role in the provision of digital 5G networks. The British government banned mobile telephone networks from using the Chinese firm’s 5G technology in 2020, with companies forced to phase out their kit by 2027. In TikTok’s case, the infrastructure at stake is societal and democratic. As with Huawei, the West has failed to produce a competitive alternative to a Chinese product, meaning there will be painful costs to bear in its restriction.

    The government’s efforts to reform the Enterprise Act 2002 last year to prevent the foreign ownership of media organisations should be resumed and harnessed to address TikTok’s increasing role as a source of political information. Britain and its allies would never have been so complacent about Russia controlling major news platforms during the Cold War. Our adversaries are outflanking us because we have deprioritised the mission of capturing ‘hearts and minds’ – and failed to recognise that this project begins at home.

    The government must collaborate with allies to create an environment in the West where tech innovation can flourish, producing compelling alternative platforms without the presiding national security risks. If an app like TikTok is deemed unsafe for use on official devices, there’s no reason why citizens should also be exposed.

    A less predictable Washington may require Britain to take decisions on China without America’s lead. This cannot only mean Britain pursuing greater openness and closer ties with Beijing. If we are truly clear-eyed about our long-term interests and the geopolitical stakes, we must act to prevent an authoritarian power like China from controlling such an important slice of our public sphere and ban TikTok.

    WRITTEN BY
    Sophia Gaston
    Sophia Gaston is the UK Foreign Policy Lead at the ASPI think tank and a Research Fellow at King's College London.

    1. Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo,
      Catch a nigger by the toe,
      If he hollers, let him go
      Off to Tik Tok,
      don't cha kno?

      When he's there
      He's in your hair
      And you'll be cancelled
      Off the air
      And stuck in prison, yeah yeah yeah..

    2. Always the demand is for state control. For the state to set policy. For big fat bloated useless cretins to dictate how we live.

      How about she conclude – as she should have done – this is for parents to manage. If those parents are deficient stop paying them welfare.

      1. A most useful application. I believe some fifty percent of Americans use TikTok many as an essential part of businesses.
        I have an account which I use to promote my books and most certainly wouldn't welcome a ban on a platform which has given much free publicity.
        Does the writer of this article ever browse through TikTok I wonder. Many of the posts are in favour of Trump and his different initiatives, Farage is often praised and Kamala Harris shown up to be a political disappointment.
        You pays your money and takes your choice. But please more free speech and less bullying.

    3. Always the demand is for state control. For the state to set policy. For big fat bloated useless cretins to dictate how we live.

      How about she conclude – as she should have done – this is for parents to manage. If those parents are deficient stop paying them welfare.

  98. He would appear to be more "English" than about 30% of the current population of England, AND I suspect I'm voting well under the real figures.

  99. Here's one for you.
    Just watched a post about that a galaxy is 2 million light years away.
    I understand that the speed of light is well known, but how does anyone know how long it took to get here?

    7. The "standard candle" approach e.g. Cepheid variable stars or supernovae.

      While stellar parallax can only be used to measure distances to stars within hundreds of parsecs, Cepheid variable stars and supernovae can be used to measure larger distances such as the distances between galaxies.

  101. Off topic
    Discus doesn't appear to accept the "n" word, I've just had a post held in pending.

          1. This is odd, I can see your reply, yet the word is censored every where earlier.
            Perhaps a mod has fixed it?

          2. If iI identified as a black man, I'd be able to use that word to other black men. What an interesting social experiment that would be…

    2. Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo,
      Catch a (you know what that begins with "N") by the toe,
      If he hollers, let him go
      Off to Tik Tok,
      don't cha kno?

      When he's there
      He's in your hair
      And you'll be cancelled
      Off the air
      And stuck in prison, yeah yeah yeah..

        1. Interesting – I thought the site itself stipulated what were seen to be unacceptable words, and I didnt think this site bothered with any of that.
          The Speccie, however, was ridiculous – for example you couldnt post 'fag' even if you were referring to a cigarette, and there were many other instances such as that.

          2. Yes AA, I have been renewing at £3 per quarter for about a year now, each quarter I threaten to cancel and they offer it to me again – I thought at some stage they might twig and stop it but it doesnt seem to be the case.
            I think £1 a month is pretty good value for Liddle, Murray, Shriver, Burchill et al but I'm not sure I like the general direction of travel under Gove….

          3. What the actual feck, G4….I'm back on the full whack now, for one year, waiting until that expires then will start sobbing, clutching to Gove's skirts 'please don't let me go…..'

          4. Err I’m not sure you have to do that KJ – I always pay quarterly (I think the full quarterly charge now is about £34!) and, every time it comes to the end of that quarter (I make a note in my diary), I sign on to my account and select ‘cancel subscription’ – it then asks me why and I select ‘too expensive’ from the drop-down list of reasons, it then immediately offers me a £3 for three months extension, which I agree and sign up to.

          6. You can go on and cancel at any time – you dont actually have to wait for the end of the quarter. I do but that’s because I’m paying £3 per quarter!

          7. Yup, press the cancel button and see what offer it generates. From 4Gs comments the walking away offers are still in place.

          8. Wilco, thx AA. Might need the extra, notice Lammy’s seeking slavery reparations…what the actual…but hey my mum n dad worked dark satanic maybe I can apply…🤑

          9. I rode that wave for a couple of quarters. Keep it up sir. Even at the reduced price I have had enough of the Leftist drivel that can be acquired almost anywhere at anytime. Props to those you mention. Gareth Roberts was another favourite. I miss the BTL banter. Are the recent additions of Hebrew Haters still spouting their bile?

          10. I dont actually do a lot BTL there now, I cant be arsed posting with the terrible non-Disqus comments section.

            I can still enjoy the articles from the aforementioned columnists though….

          13. It does, I can see it but I could not reply to it – 'you cannot reply to a post that is not active' !! Strange indeed…..

          14. I tried to reply to your test and it said one couldn't reply to a post that was no longer active. So not very long!

          15. I've been on the Speccie naughty step quite a few times, get round it by using asterisks or abbreviations wtf etc..actually accepted feck the other day.

    4. Nigger nigger nigger nigger, nigger nigger nigger nigger, black man!

      With apologies to Adam West.

    5. There's a default "taboo" word list. I think Tom at FSB has figured out how to deactivate it on his Discus account.

    2. I read it earlier, speaking as a woman who didn't have a child until almost I was almost 30, she may just come to regret that. Then be agitating because too old to adopt (and likely un-married).

      1. SWMBO had her first child aged 30 and her secon aged 40. I'm not sure why the age makes special.

        2. The older the woman, the more difficult it is to conceive (numbers of eggs,nearer to menopause) similarly with men – sperm count lower and slower. That's the difference age makes. There are also indications longer use of contraceptive pill makes it harder to conceive,

  103. From the Daily Mail

    Fast food fans are rejoicing as President Trump announced he would bring back plastic straws.

    In the last several years, many major fast food companies, including McDonald's, have experimented with a move to paper alternatives for drinks.

    This has been met by fierce backlash from some customers, who claim that paper straws do not work or affect the taste of their favorite beverages.

    In a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Friday, the President wrote: 'I will be signing an Executive Order next week ending the ridiculous Biden push for Paper Straws, which don't work. 'BACK TO PLASTIC!'

    'Trump should be on Mt. Rushmore for this. I hate those paper straws,' one fan wrote on X following the news.

    'What a time to be alive,' another wrote.

    The plastic versus paper straw debate has long been a contentious topic among Trump and his political opponents.

    In 2019, Kamala Harris endorsed a potential ban on single-use plastic straws, which Trump's campaign at the time blasted as attempt by the left to restrict American freedom.

    Trump even began selling his own Trump-branded plastic straws as a result of the proposal by Democrats.

    'Liberal paper straws don't work. STAND WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP and buy your pack of recyclable straws today,' his website read.

    At the time, several jurisdictions including California and Washington, D.C. were banning plastic straws due to environmental concerns.

    California instituted a restaurant ban on plastic straws in 2019, while companies like McDonald's, Wendy's and Starbucks began moving away from using them.

    Retail expert Neil Saunders told http://DailyMail.com President Trump is just making good on his various campaign promises, and one of those was to 'stop the green agenda from taking over every aspect of life.'

    'The issue of straws might seem small, but it's an emotive topic and a lot of people dislike the new paper varieties,' said Saunders, managing director at GlobalData retail.

    During the Biden administration starting in 2020, the former president worked to reduce plastic waste with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

    At the end of his presidency in November 2024, Biden announced a national strategy which supported a shift to more sustainable materials and supported efforts to reduce the use of plastic straws.

    In the last several years, many major fast food companies, including McDonald's, have experimented with a move to paper alternatives for drinks (Pictured: Trump at a McDonald's restaurant in October 2024)

    In the last several years, many major fast food companies, including McDonald's, have experimented with a move to paper alternatives for drinks

    The vast majority of plastic ends up in land-fills, and companies cited the threat to oceans posed by single-use products.

    According to a study by National Geographic, 91 percent of plastic is not recycled.

    It states that plastic takes 400 years to degrade, with 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic already having been produced by 2019.

    Despite some fast food fans praising Trump's proposal to go 'back to plastic', other Americans pointed out the potential environmental impact.

    'Does he not realize the damage plastic does to our oceans?' one user wrote on X.

    'Plastic is not good for the environment,' wrote another.

    Saunders pointed out that while Trump cannot command everyone to use plastic straws, or tell states how to handle the issue, he can set federal policies on the matter and therefore set a wider tone for the nation.

    'At the end of the day, people can still use what straws work best for them, and companies can decide their own policies,' he added.

    1. Which is how markets should work. Odd that the Left so hate this.

      As it is, the plastic in straws is shredded and recycled into other materials, such as sofa filling.

  104. Off topic
    One for Rastus.
    Monty Don is on at the moment visiting St Just-in-Roseland Church graveyard.

    Monty Don’s British Gardens 8 pm

    1. "What's your alternative to Reform, Gerard?"
      "I don't have one." He said. About 25 minutes in.

      Edited a smelling.

    2. 401230+ up ticks,

      O2O,

      All the while good people were sent to the wall the lab/lib/con coalition was constructing our downfall as a nation.

    3. I support TR. Ukip is water under the bridge (I was a member). I agree, to some degree, that Nigel Farage would not make a good PM. But, Reform UK is the only thing, (at this moment in time), that can halt the country's descent into the abyss.

      1. 401230+ up ticks,

        Evening MM,
        Agreed , I was as far back as Kilroy Silk, we went to Birmingham to vote bolten out and Gerard in.
        Long term he is right and I have for years pegged nige as a coxswain
        leader of UKIP steering a tory course.

        Currently party membership in the main, GOOD. leadership needs radical adjustment.

        I make Batten correct long term, no change.

          1. 401288+ up ticks,

            Morning C,
            I believe the majority at that meeting were on the right lines,I did come away feeling somewhat elated.

      2. Metoo, the trouble with UKIP is that the MSM slaughter them every time they pop up. They still have spirit and good policies but I cant see them getting anywhere.

      3. Reform with Ruprt Lowe as its leader would be unstoppable.

        Howevr Farage should be in charge of drumming up support as he is good at that

  109. 'Night All
    "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.”

  110. I was at uni when that was on and we all watched avidly in the TV room – ‘I Clavdivs’ as we called it, Derek Jacobi excellent!

    1. We did too, likely because of opening scene? Tried watching a repeat of Ep1 recently – really clunky, sound was poor. Goes to show how far things have progressed.

  111. Headline: Labour to open talks on slavery reparations

    Why is it, when the meeja take such pains to refer to anything connected with WW2 – still within living memory – as done by the Nazis, so as not to offend the Germans, yet we are expected to take responsibility for something done hundreds of years ago?

  112. Streeting: NHS too keen to hire migrant doctors
    Health Secretary pledges to boost ‘home-grown talent’ as data show medics trained overseas are coming to UK in record numbers.

    Wes Streeting has attacked the NHS’s reliance on foreign doctors, saying it has been too willing to pull “the immigration lever”.

    The Health Secretary pledged to boost “home-grown talent” after new data revealed that foreign-trained doctors are coming to the UK to work in record numbers.

    About two thirds of the 28,564 medics registering to practice medicine in Britain last year qualified abroad, The Telegraph can reveal.

    The number coming from the European Economic Area has remained largely stable since 2016, at around 2,500 – but the number from the rest of the world has risen 400 per cent over the same period, according to freedom of information data.

    The rise comes despite concerns about the competence of doctors from abroad.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/02/07/wes-streeting-attacks-nhs-over-reliance-on-foreign-doctors/
    Comments.

    Kitty Deveraux
    30 min ago
    “ the quality of IMGs is more variable than that of British graduates, so patients may not always get the best care”.”

    Now there’s an understatement. These doctors come from parts of the world where one can pay to get a medical degree and, even if they have one legitimately, the standard of training is so low as to be precipitously dangerous. We have made it extraordinarily difficult to train to be a doctor here, yet let sub-par foreigners like the rouge’s gallery pictured in this article work in the NHS. We are utter goons.

    I always check the name of any doctor I’m seeing against the GMC list to check they qualified in a western, developed nation. I have cancelled doctors appointments with any who have trained in Pakistan, India, Nigeria and the like and I advise all to do the same. edited

    1. I have been treated by some very clever Indian doctors , not too sure about who is who , but there have also been some rubbish indifferent English doctors who probably have been accused of malpractice .

    2. My cardiologist is a white French lady who trained in Montreal, Canada and her nurse/assistant is white British. My GP has a Persian name.

      1. I had a cardiologist who was Greek his secretary was probably a friend of his. He seemed to do very little in the process of improvements to health. Phone calls and emails do not make patients feel better. I bumped into an old work colleague and he was also suffering from Afib and under the same consult.
        We seemed to be receiving the same indiffent treatment, but Alan had moved on to another hospital.
        When I wrote and complained the trust somehow seemed to think it was all my fault. The secretary had given me a phone number and told me to make my own appointment for the ablution. I tried several times but got no where. The secretary lied saying that he had no recollection of telling me to do that.
        Neither of them are working at the hospital now.

        1. Gosh, that’s dreadful. My French doctor is hands on and engaged. I see her face to face and she’s communicative. I seem to come away with an increased prescription every time but there’s only one pill I hesitated to take. We had a good conversation about the dangers and benefits of Digoxin and I’m happy with that.

          1. Alan the chap I bumped into, was referred to Watford where I had been going when I originally had Afib 9 year’s ago.
            Finger’s crossed I haven’t had to see anyone at Lister since.
            And the medications are good.

    3. Very good. You'd think that foreign doctors' qualifications would be scrutinised to the nth degree, but are they? Same for nurses. I've also met and seen good Asian/African medical staff, but are they just good at dissimulation? Has there ever been a study into patient deaths/bad outcomes, on an ethnic basis? I doubt it.

  113. Being thirsty in a brewery comes to mind.
    In a meeting today, Trudeau made confidential comments about Trump. Unfortunately,-
    His comments about Trump were made behind closed doors after reporters were ushered out of the room. The Toronto Star was able to hear what Trudeau was saying because the audio was inadvertently broadcast.

  114. I don't know where today has gone……..it's bedtime already! Haven't been here much today and missed most of the comments.

Comments are closed.