IntenseDebate - Fernando

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 1 reply · +1 points

Cut her some slack. She, no doubt, is now in receipt of a handsome fee after a hard life. Hopefully, she is not on the internet and thus free of the trolls who would otherwise make her life a misery.

surely, no one follows her advice.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 1 reply · +1 points

I do wonder what will happen in the future. Imagine that the Welsh lockdown is a success: infections fall and restrictions are lifted. To prevent the disease reviving because of cases coming over the border from England, won't they need to keep the border restrictions. Are we seeing the creation of a celtic Tibet.

Also, I think the Glos police are advising motorists not to go into Wales. They are not turning cars back.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 5 replies · +1 points

David, most diseases, apart significantly from smallpox, were only curable postwar with the development of penicillin and the development of vaccines for illnesses like polio.

Before then we lived with endemic TB and needed isolation hospitals for infectious illnesses like diptheria.
Life expectancy was much lower. But life went on.

Hopefully, we don't revert to that situation.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 1 reply · +1 points

You need a sense of proportion. This is not a matter regarding the number of toilets or the state of the car parks. This is about livelihoods and a sense of fairness. Areas with large numbers of secure jobs in the public sector and which receive more funding because of an out-dated formula shouldn't be given "carte blanche" to introduce measures that areas with more precarious economies have to finance.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - David Gauke: With a po... · 0 replies · +1 points

Regarding the substance of what he achieved, the outcome was - very little.

Regarding public relations he had much going for himself. He is photogenic, in a chubby way, unlike the poor old bruiser from Merseyside. The press concentrates on what the national government is doing, on what they are offering, not the inconsistent statements of a mayor. Boris, Hancock, Vallence and Whitty are old hat, now. They have endured a baptism of fire over the last nine months. A fresh face is always going to make the front pages.

The BBC has a large presence in Salford and Burnham would be unique in politics if he hadn't made allies among the journalists.

We were also in negotiations and didn't want to antagonise the situation, which is the only reason I can think for our not going harder against Burnham. After all he has "previous" when it comes to ignoring health warnings - over Mid Staffs.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 3 replies · +1 points

The middle of a pandemic is no time to start altering the financial settlement between the central government and the devolved assemblies. So I would be amazed if we saw a sudden change.

However, within Wales I am surprised there haven't been legal challenges.I accept that health is a devolved matter but how is public health defined. Is restricting supermarkets a health matter? What are the limits. Could Drakeford ban smoking in Wales or forbid the use of electricity not from renewal sources? A health reason could always be claimed for these.

6 days ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Drakeford's assault on... · 6 replies · +1 points

This virus has certainly exacerbated regional grievances. The most secure jobs at the moment are in the public sector. The overall percentage of public sector employment in the UK is around 16-17% but in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland it is well over 20%.
When you realise this it helps explain the sense of grievance In the south-west where at least part of the income in many households is seasonal and dependent on attracting visitors

1 week ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Graham Gudgin: It must... · 0 replies · +1 points

Quite right. Indeed, there was another personal union later in the eighteenth century when the British king was also elector (later king) of Hanover. This lasted until 1831 and the accession of a woman in Britain.

I don't think the point alters Gudgin's main argument, however.

1 week ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Iain Dale: The way the... · 0 replies · +1 points

Please, Anne, spare us reports of what is happening elsewhere. News bulletins are full of what is happening in Wales and Scotland, which are of no relevance to us in the south-west, unless we live near the Welsh border, in which case the local news is the appropriate medium. There is far too much about coronavirus. It leads to confected disputes like the recent spat on meals during the school holidays or the absurd stand off between Burnham and Jenrick.

Most of us just get on with our lives. Indeed, the message we had at the start is still the only message which has stood the test of time. Stay 2 metres apart and wash your hands regularly.

1 week ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Iain Dale: The way the... · 0 replies · +1 points

I read the reports of the debate in Parliament and no-one seemed to blame feckless parents. Indeed, if feckless parents were to blame the state would have a responsibility to intervene to ensure the children weren't malnourished.
The only argument is over the best way to ensure children are brought up.well. The consensus has long been that parents have that responsibility and the state helps out with child benefit and, if the family is in need, provision is made in universal credit. Children need a meal while at school and one is provided for a small charge, and where necessary for free.

I can't see any good reason to depart from this well-established policy.

IntenseDebate Comment System

Connect with Fernando_Hobbs

People I'm following

Last 5 visitors

Fernando_Hobbs