#Brexit an update. Horizon.

I post this as a firm supporter of Brexit. Remember Project Fear - how it was all going to collapse. Remainers blame Brexit for a drop in GDP etc and try to pretend any subsequent economic down turns were/are being suffered by the UK alone. Of course this is a complete fallacy. Covid has had a massive economic impact across the world and especially in the EU. There is also the damage caused by the war in the Ukraine and the impact that has had on power costs particularly. UK is now doing better than much of the EU and also the EU is more and more (as predicted) realizing that trying to cut the UK out (for voting to have democratic autonomy again) - it is cutting off its EU nose to spite its EU face (so to speak). Unnecessary trade barriers are reducing. See Horizon below :

The UK is to rejoin the EU's flagship scientific research scheme, Horizon, the government has announced.

UK-based scientists and institutions will be able to apply for money from the £81bn (€95bn) fund from today.

Associate membership had been agreed as part of the Brexit trade deal when the UK formally left the EU in 2020.

However, the UK has been excluded from the scheme for the past three years because of a disagreement over the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: "With a wealth of expertise and experience to bring to the global stage, we have delivered a deal that enables UK scientists to confidently take part in the world's largest research collaboration programme.

"We have worked with our EU partners to make sure that this is the right deal for the UK, unlocking unparalleled research opportunities, and also the right deal for British taxpayers."

Thursday's announcement also states that the UK will associate to Copernicus, the EU's £8bn (€9bn) Earth observation programme. Britain will not, however, be rejoining a nuclear research alliance known as Euratom R&D, although there is an agreement to cooperate specifically on nuclear fusion.

In a press release, the European Commission said that the decision would be "beneficial to both" and stated that "overall, it is estimated that the UK will contribute almost €2.6bn (£2.2bn) per year on average for its participation to both Horizon and Copernicus.

A Twitter (X) post from Andrew Neil today (29/09/2023) :

Apologies for spoiling the morning for so many on Twitter. BUT:

UK economy is now bigger than before the Covid-19 crisis. Indeed UK growth higher than Germany and France, new revisions to official data reveal.

GDP 1.8% per cent larger than final months of 2019 (ONS). Britain’s GDP reached its pre-Covid size way back in the final months of 2021.

So much for being worst performing economy in the G7, which is actually Germany, whose economy is about the same size as before the pandemic. UK has also outpaced France, post-pandemic.

UK growth still nothing to write home about. But that's true of almost every major economy post-pandemic.

As I say -- apologies. I know how much this will upset so many of you. But cheer up. The weekend beckons . 

#LibDems an article by Madeline Grant

I have been wanting to write a blog about the danger of voting Lib Dem. They are an appalling bunch. Their main characteristic is they will do or say anything to get a vote. The sad thing is some people fall for it. Now and again when the ballot box falls right for them they can hold a balance of power. - a hopeless outcome in every respect for our nation.

I came across this article today written by Madeline Grant (in the Telegraph).

The article says everything I want to say about Ed Davey and his party. As such I have copied and pasted it as a short cut : 

The Lib Dems are an increasingly unfunny joke

The party could again be political kingmakers, but they’ve given up on their true liberal traditions

Politics, it was once said, is showbiz for ugly people. I’ve always thought that wasn’t quite right: politics is more accurately a sort of holding pen for the deeply weird. Socialising for people without social skills. And even by the standards of us dweebs and nerds who follow politics closely, the Lib Dems must take the palm for lameness.

They are like a party made up entirely of odd uncles. There are the excruciating by-election stunts, whose cringe factor has to be sent to Cern for calculation; running into a stack of blue hay bales with a big orange tractor, smashing a blue wall with an orange hammer, popping a “Boris Bubble” with a giant needle.

This year’s party conference in Bournemouth has been no exception. Ed Davey thrashed gamely around in his kayak. The conference “Glee Club” rewrote the football anthem Three Lions with pro-EU lyrics (“Gold stars on the flag, four freedoms still gleaming, glory years of peace, kept us all campaigning”). Carol Vorderman and Steve Coogan appeared via videolink to demand electoral reform.

It also revealed a house divided. The liberal youth wing struck at the party’s beating Nimbyist heart by proposing to re-adopt national house-building targets. Tim Farron condemned the motion as “pure Thatcherism” and “the most Right-wing thing at party conference since we sent Liz Truss off to go and work undercover”. It passed anyway. 

Telling young activists that wanting to own their own home is the height of selfish individualism isn’t perhaps the wisest move within sniffing distance of a general election. Whether this morphs into actual policy is another question. Voltaire’s joke about the Holy Roman Empire – being neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire – could equally apply to the Liberal Democrats.

The Lib Dems are certainly the jokers of politics, but they may still hold the balance of power at the next election. Incumbent governments suffering crushing by-election defeats is, on its own, no barometer of future Lib Dem success. But there are plenty of constituencies, especially in rural areas, where voters will never vote Labour, but long to stick it to the Tories. 

Unlike the Messianic excesses of the last election, when Jo Swinson told everyone who’d listen that she was en route to No 10 and ended up losing her seat, this time the Lib Dems also appear to be running a targeted campaign, with resources and manpower directed only at winnable seats.

The party’s particular gift is being all things to all voters, harvesting local grievance and extrapolating it at a national level. Which is why the Lib Dems are so often a mass of contradictions; lofty parliamentary aims, relentless local obstruction; calls for uncontrolled migration but no housebuilding. In a masterclass of the genre, Sarah Green won Chesham and Amersham on an anti-HS2, anti-Planning Bill ticket, despite the Lib Dems’ national policy to support HS2 and build more houses.

They generally fare better alongside a Labour Party that people do not dread. Horror of “PM Corbyn” prompted disgruntled Remain-voting Conservatives to hold their noses and back Boris Johnson in 2019; Keir Starmer doesn’t spark the same visceral fear. Even if Starmer won an outright majority, he might still struggle to marshal his MPs, so Lib Dem support could sometimes remain necessary. Ed Davey might prove more amenable to a new-New Labour agenda than the John McDonnells and Dawn Butlers of Labour’s restive socialist wing.

But it is increasingly difficult to say what the Lib Dems are for. You might not have always agreed with the former big beasts of Liberal Democrat thought – Paddy Ashdown, Vince Cable, David Laws – but these were serious people with a hinterland. They boasted a distinct set of ideological traditions; Orange Book liberals vs Cableite social democrats. They were the party of freedom, civil liberties, anti-surveillance, the inheritors of Gladstonian liberalism. 

Sadly that intellectual heft has disappeared, especially since Brexit. The Lib Dems, to put it mildly, had a bit of a mad one in 2019, running Steve Bray – the megaphone-wielding eccentric who stands outside Parliament yelling “Stop Brexit” – as a candidate. They out-spent Labour yet finished one seat down. Now they appear a wholly incoherent group; a rainbow coalition of social democrats, classical liberals, student activists, #FBPE pensioners with a penchant for interpretive dance, people who are absolutely livid about dog poo.

There’s nothing wrong with protest votes; in fact, there’s a vital place for them. Charles Kennedy’s principled stand against the Iraq war laid the groundwork for the party’s 2005 election successes. I’ve protest-voted for them myself – most recently in 2021, when they, alone among the bigger parties, opposed vaccine passports. 

In an ideal world the Lib Dems would make a sensible addition to a coalition government; an Orange Book faction might inject a sense of economic prudence into a spendthrift Labour administration. Inevitably, though, they won’t demand sensible liberal things. Stand by for stubborn obstructionism; Nimbyish opposition to house-building. Their presence will amount to yet another cause of the national sclerosis that prevents us building, or doing, anything. 

#womeninmenssport - (warning this posting could cause offence !) For discussion !!!!

I just came across this comment below in response to a headline about the BBC's Football Focus viewing figures.

I hasten to add it is not my comment.

Why am I posting it ?

I think because I am so conflicted by it.

As the writer says many will not like it - refuse to accept it - call it sexist or misogynistic. It certainly isn't a progressive view.

Maybe responses will change over time - but for the time being I think the writers explanation and conclusion is a stark reality and men are quietly voting with their feet so to speak.

The BBC are very concerned because Football Focus, a programme that has run for 49 years has recently lost a third of its viewers since long running and very popular host Dan Walker left the programme to be replaced by Alex Scott.

The Beeb are coming up with all sorts of theories as to why this has happened but of course they attach no blame to Scott.

I can save them a lot of money and soul searching and can categorically give them the answer and that is.

Men do not like being lectured about football by women!

You may not like it, refuse to accept it, call it sexist or whatever you like but its true, and the comment was passed by my wife who had a season ticket at Hillsborough with me and our sons, for years, so she knows her football.

The answer is very simple, remove all men from women's sport programmes and give them all the jobs commentating,pundits on women's football,rugby,golf,cricket and leave men's football etc to male commentators, pundits etc.

The BBC wouldn't do it but I suggest any sports channel who wants to increase their viewing figures and therefore advertising, should follow my suggestion, I'm sure it would work.

Improvingourlife with Nation radio

I am mega behind with my blogs but it has been a busy time.

This is just a quick one prompted by Nation radio.

Years ago I read an article or perhaps it was my daughter who consolidated a thought in my mind - a coping strategy - a life enhancer - ha!

It is very simple. The idea is you try and do something every day - however small - to enhance your life going forward.

The sort of thing - sort out that app that is not working - review your spice rack - sort out how you store your socks etc etc

Small things - reoccurring things can be a pain - create negativity - you never get round to dealing with them even though they would probably not take very long to do. 

Well gradually knock them off - one a day. It doesn't have to be prescriptive - but it works. It works because there is an immediate positive from sorting whatever it was that was niggling you - a satisfaction - a smile and of course the irritant has gone going forward.

However care - I suspect we will never get to the state where all the low level niggles and irritants are removed from our existence - especially as they tend to go out at one end and come in another. I have a new one - self inflicted. I bought something wrong from the builders merchants. I need to take it back. I have to find the receipt - hopefully I will have it somewhere! And then it will be a pain going back to change it - a niggle until I sort it. I shall do it today as it has been hanging around for nearly 2 weeks!

But this is one side of the coin - sorting negatives. Perhaps as valuable - more valuable is introducing new positives to your life - however small.

Recently I found a new granola and I love it - ha!

But what prompted me to write this was finding Nation Radio. It is a commercial radio station based somewhere on the south. I found it twiddling the knobs on my car radio as our local radio station was sounding so repetitive. I love music in the car - on long journeys listen to my Spotify - but short journeys radio is easier. Without sounding like Victor Meldrew I don't really want to be listening to DJ's prattling on. I don't like rap. Nation radio specializes in 70s/80 and 90's. music. The reception is excellent and the DJ's do not seem to think they are more important than the music. The only downside is the adverts. I play a game - I turn the volume down when they start and up when I think they will have ended. Like chicken. I am getting better at it. But the music is great. They come up with some great stuff - tracks I haven't heard for a longtime. Finding Nation Radio has been a real positive - life enhancing sing alongs in the car even though I don't know many of the words - ha ha! Just a thought. xx

Ps so back blogging - some heavy political stuff in the pipeline!

 

#Glastonbury23 and a bit of the IOW - how it was for me.

Living on the IOW it is hard to pass up the prospect of attending the IOW festival. I always buy an early bird ticket long before the Glasto ticket lottery becomes available. Amazingly we got Glasto tickets again this year but the two festivals were scheduled for a week apart. For those that of you that do not know Glastonbury it is an epic week both physically and emotionally so to do both festivals for someone of my years is probably pushing it - ha!. The only issue for me was I really really wanted to see Courteeners and they were playing IOW on the Friday. So the solution - my youngest son Richard and I went on Thursday night to get our IOW entry bands. The Big Top was functioning. We saw Lottery Winners who put a lot into their set and were very entertaining - and then Oh My God Its the Church who in my opinion were all concept and crapo sound. Friday was great. Sun out - a few beers. Sophie Ellis Bextor was easy fun and went down a bomb. Sugarbabes were bland but Courteeners were brilliant. Rich and I know their stuff - we were in a perfect spot - pretty close to the stage. It would be fair to say we had a festival moment. One of those occasions where your emotions overspill with the joy of it. A fantastic memory. After that it was Pulp. Jarvis Cocker is an acquired taste. Some memorable songs and some torture too. For the rest of the festival I happily passed my band over to my son James and he had an epic time with his brother and friends.

Glasto. I think this is the 5th time - but the last was pre covid. Same formula every time. 5 mates - we have a big tent that sleeps 4 plus 2 little tents and we take 40 litres or real cider. We travel up from Exeter with our cars stuffed with gear - including 4 sets of sack trucks to get our gear into the site from the carpark. We always go on Wednesday. It is amazing when you walk in. Thousands doing the same thing. Over the years we have learned how to be reasonably efficient. Some haven't. Broken gear a common sight and some definitely over burdened.

For me Glasto is possibly only 50% about the actual music. The rest is a combination of being with my mates in a crazy camping environment - the general feel good factor from 250000 souls with pretty much a common festival ethos and objective - be nice - be tolerant and have a good time.and the unpredictability of 4 or 5 days in such an eccentric and extraordinary Glasto mix.

We get into the site relatively trouble free and start assembling our tent around lunchtime - timely for a heavy shower of gloriously warm tropical rain. It was a longtime ago we set up this tent ! Poles in the wrong place - an impatient headstrong team. Lesson learned - don't booze before you have got your tent up properly - ha!

Thereafter the brilliant Glasto is open to us. Wednesday - what did we do? Go for a walk - not many changes in the layout. We head for our fav spot - Avalon. The sun is out - a great atmosphere. We sit and chat and reminisce and people watch. Some extraordinary sights!

Thursday is always a fun day. Totally relaxed - no big stages - just the sun - great little venues to be found like Bimble, and in Shangri-La and Strummerville. Amazingly I bump in to my youngest son Rich and partner Andy who only arrived on the day. Rich is a hardcore festival goer - it is Andy's first time. I think they felt a measure of amusement and maybe a touch pride that old dad is still giving it a go with his equally senior mates - ha! Later we had a brilliant night watching Mik Artistic and I had a bizarre and fun chat with a Cornish lass born in our favorite holiday village - St Buryan in Cornwall! (We will be down there again for our annual family Sennen pilgrimage in a couple of weeks time.)

I love the mornings at Glasto. Wake up early. Ablutions before most have stirred - there are advantages to that - ha! The weather is great. I sit outside usually with the other early bird Rog. Gradually the lads emerge. Banter from the off. So many laughs - my tent Crocs for a reason I do not understand get relentless mocking. My plea - practicality over fashion only digs a bigger hole. We each have a different approach to preparing for the day. It is so funny. I am barracked for my "sensible" choice of food - ha! (it is Glasto - anything goes !).For me survival is key. You have to line your stomach for the gut rot cider we will be drinking from mid morning !.

It has arrived. Friday. The festival starts proper. We are pretty unanimous for the start. We head for The Other Stage. The weather is great. The opening act was a let down for me.We wanted something uplifting. Ben Howard missed a trick and you could feel it in the big crowd. What a contrast - The Hives next and then the classic Lightening Seeds. Great stuff. Off to the Pyramid stage. Brilliant Texas - the Churnups - no secret it was Dave Grohl - Foo Fighters. I had one of those Festival moments. Let me explain. We were in the main Pyramid crowd for Texas. It was hot. At the end of Texas I needed the loo and Geoff and I felt like something other than cider. I said I would go down to the Mandela Bar and bring him a lager back in time for the Foos. The bar is busy. I order a lager for Geoff and 2 real ales for me. (£6 + per pt). The barman comes back and says the real ale is off and he sees my disappointment. I agree to have 2 lagers instead. He is a nice guy - apologises and gives me an extra pint gratis in sympathy! I now have 4 pints of lager in cardboard cups and cardboard tray. No great hardship - ha! I decide I have no choice but to drink 2 (I was always going to drink one). (I couldn't carry 4 very far in the crowd) and then hopefully make my way back. But the crowd going in for the Foos was big. I decided to hold on and watch the first part of their set on the big screen - especially as I am in perfect earshot and on a comfortable bench - ha!. Eventually I try to get back but it was a squeeze. I had to drink some of the beer to stop it spilling. Commonsense - I give up getting back to the lads - and stand and watch the Foos and might as well finish off the beer. The Foos sounded tremendous. I was in a great spot. The sun was out. I am at Glasto. I am suddenly feeling emotional in a happy way (ok the beer ha!). And then the crowd go bonkers. We are all singing Everlong. Fantastic. It was a great.moment. I eventually get back to the boys with less than a half pint for Geoff after he had been waiting over an hour !! I told them what happened. Hilarious!! Later we see Sparks and The Damned. I think it was the Friday night Crabbers and I went to see Sound of the 90's. 1am start - in bed by 3am. What a day!

One little bit of advice about Glasto - you go through Clashfinder and work out the bands you want to see / can see. Sometimes it works out - other times it doesn't. Be relaxed about it. The stages are a fair way apart - a lot of walking - and especially if you are going against a moving crowd. Sometimes the practical thing to do - the sensible thing to do is not give yourself a hard time. The advantage of this is sometimes you see acts you didn't plan to see and they can be memorable. That is Glasto. For instance I was certain I wanted to see The Editors and also Courteeners again but it didn't work out - getting out and back into The Pyramid was too much at the time.

Anyway a brilliant Saturday - The Unthanks - nice - The Lathums - up and coming. Tom Grennan was unexpected - didn't plan top see. He put on a fantastic show. Totally engaged with the crowd which makes a massive difference. A surprising highlight for me in the sun. Generation Sex followed. The old punks - Billy Idol still giving it large - ha! Lizzo was larger than life on the Pyramid. We passed on Guns and Roses - just too knackered.

Sunday is our quiet day - and take chairs into the Pyramid and set up base camp. First on the lovely Sophie Ellis Bextor - so seen her twice in a week. She engages great with the huge crowd. It is all lighthearted dance fun. Big smiles. Rich Andy and Kim find us and we have a nice time in the sun chatting about the festival. Rich was very partial to our cider - ha! The Chicks were a great example. Country Music - not normally for me - but they are top drawer. Really glad I saw them. Next I go down to find Crabbers and meet some of his friends from Geordie land. They have a spot near the front.They were funny - a big family group - very hospitable. Mark said to me - you remind me of my wife's first husband. I said so he was a handsome chap. Mark said not really - he had a bloody great nose. We cracked up laughing!

While I am down close to the front Cat Stevens is appearing. I have to own up - I was disappointed when he got the "Legends" spot because there are so many others I would have preferred to have seen. How wrong I was. He started with a medley of all his famous old hits and then proceeded to play his new stuff which I and probably the majority had never heard. Each song was set up with Cat's gentle thoughtful introduction. He was totally engaging. At one point he stopped and asked the audience to clap the wonderful doctors and nurses of the the NHS. I was a touch anxious about how people would react given recent strike action. But the people are on their side. They understand their skills and their commitment. They was a tremendous response. I was moved. My daughter Vicky is a dedicated nurse and my son Richard and his partner are both Junior Doctors. I know their journey and how much they have put into their education and careers. I was moved big time. and so pleased for them even if they didn't hear it - ha! Back to Cat. A wonderful voice a performance full of simple dignity - emotion - poignancy - just class. A standout. An unexpected highlight for me.

Next it was Blondie. Ok Debbie Harry has lost the strength in her voice but she is still doing it in her late 70's. If I hadn't seen them before it would have been worth it - ha! No be fair - I enjoyed it. At this point my plan was to go over to Woodsies to see Editors again. I didn't make it. We were set up in the Pyramid crowd and it was going to be huge for Elton's alleged last UK show. We sat through Lil Nas X. I think I would have been onside if it wasn't for the rapping - ha! And then it was Elton. An epic show that not only ended with fireworks but started with them too. Everybody knew every song. His back catalogue is immense. The huge crowd - totally with him. It was great to be there. A massive banked memory for sure.

So another Glastonbury is over. It has been a privilege. Will there be another one for us? We are up to try. Cheers Crabbers, Rog, Geoff, Kev and Steve. Here's hoping because while Glasto is challenging it is also completely unique and wonderful.

Here are a few mob photos :- 

with Geordie Mark

L to R Steve, Geoff Crabbers Me and Rog. Kev at the front !

Me with Rich and Andy.

 

    

 

 

#Brittany with the Three Tenners

I am just back from a weeks cycling and camping in Brittany with my two brothers Rob and Mike. We had a great time and so many laughs. It was the same format we have done before on other occasions - but this time we made it to France. This is the format :

• occasional cyclists only - on over laden bikes each with panniers - self contained with tent, cooking equipment etc - everything we would need if the weather was terrible and there were no shops open - ha!
• a loose plan - on this occasion to follow a largely off road route from Roscoff to Quiberon and back.
• navigation using Komoot and a guide book.
• find campsites en route.
• purpose - 3 brothers - having some fun together - doing something different - getting a bit of exercise and I suppose you would say having a bit of an adventure.

We had a great week although we didn't get to Quiberon - only 2/3rds of the way. This is unusual for us - we usually do what we set out to do - but our reasons were as follows :

• As we have found before it is lovely cycling on quiet paths but actually they are relatively slow compared to road cycling and distances take longer. They were also a bit rougher in parts than we had anticipated. Robs bike especially was not beefy enough for the terrain and what he was carrying. The result was some punctures etc and this delayed us. I have to say my two brothers are so different. Mike phlegmatic, practical - organised - logical. Rob ?? Chaotic !!!. His set up often looks like a jumble sale - ha! Don't mention differences in food tastes - ha! One marvelous thing we have in common. We love a beer - we love a pint - we love a pub ha!
• The countryside was beautiful and it was no hardship stopping and smelling the roses so to speak rather than always pushing on - which would have been necessary to get to Quiberon and back in the the time we had.
• It was mid May and while we had little rain - there was a heavy dew most mornings. It was just easier - seemed more appropriate to let the sun come up a bit and dry things. This is why I love this format and have done it many times. Inevitably cycling and camping means an early night each cosy in our little tents. I always sleep well and wake early. I can then make some coffee in the little porch and improvise some breakfast while still basically in my sleeping bag and let the day slowly begin / emerge. Just such simple pleasures - ha!

A bit about Brittany :

• We crossed overnight from Plymouth to Roscoff. Brittany Ferries were very accommodating to cyclists (no project fear Brexit issues either!)
• Brittany (Bretagne) is a peninsula in North West France. (it has been referred to as little Britain).

I have got behind with this blog ( we have been back for weeks - ha! Consequently I am going to round it off quickly now and post a few photos for our record.

Two points I want to make before I go :

1) Brittany is beautiful. It is amazingly well kept. No litter - hedges and road sides well maintained. I made some inquiries about how this is achieved. The explanation - each village or parish is clearly defined. Each employs the people necessary - say 3 or 4 people to get things done. This is a great example of civic pride. I think civic pride is much more likely to be achieved in a defined area. The problem we have is ribbon development and towns and villages merging - areas of responsibility muddled. Civic pride diminished. Years ago I went to Japan. No litter. If there is no litter people are much more mindful about dropping litter. By contrast - if there is litter around - the opposite effect.

2) Population density. When we first arrived in Brittany we were so impressed by the rural scenery. Bucolic. No one around - roads without traffic. Quiet. Idyllic. We also spoke to a few Brits who have moved to Brittany. There main motivation seemed to be they got a lot more property for their money and the prospect of a much better lifestyle especially in retirement. They said however they have found cost of living is not cheap. Also Brittany is becoming increasingly depopulated as rural areas offer so little in the way of facilities. We were told Brits are welcome - very important to Brittany to help keep it going. (Brexit did create some problems but gradually they are being overcome now everything is calming down). One of our little frustrations was it was hard to find anything open. Very few villages had a functioning shop or bar. In the end our conclusion was it would be a difficult setting to live in despite its natural beauty and desirability at first sight.

But here is a much more worrying statistic. The UK population is growing faster than France's. The UK population is now about 67m - France about 65m. However 55m of the UK population live in England. France is almost 2.5 times the size of the UK. France is over 4 times the size of England. Just think about that! We are desperately overcrowded in England - our land is full. The quality of our life is being diminished. We are killing the countryside. Population growth is the opposite of "green". Those supporting mass and uncontrolled immigration need to think about that. They are irresponsible. They are stupid. 

Here are a few photos of the 3 of us on our little adventure :-