Today’s newspaper (1)
Today’s newspaper (2):
cav551:
I watched Question time last night, the panel was Luke Johnson, Bridget Phillipson MP, Mick Cash and Steve Barclay MP and Devi Sridar . Apart from Fiona Bruce trying repeatedly to stir up the Labour lady into making out that the government is incompetent it was a balanced programme. However Johnson and Barclay came out of it poorly.Johnson as an “entrepreneur” was clearly only interested in his financial investments, coming out with the most objectionable assertion that only 350 people who mattered (to him and the economy) had died from Covid - all the rest were over 60 or suffering from some other underlying symptoms so could be discounted as irrelevant. There must be many thousands of people in the country who would dearly like to meet the man.
Barclay came across as might have been predicted, towing the Government script, determined to spout some inaccurate figures - he looked very sheepish when Bruce challenged him for the third or fourth time, finally merely nodding in agreement. Again as expected he came across as arrogant and condescending towards Mich Cash and anxious to shift any possible criticism of policy onto The Science.
Phillipson was only briefly consulted to begin with but made valid points in criticism of the Government particularly about care homes, but without doing so just to take an opposite view.
Devi Sridar, the scientist, was as balanced in her views as is Dr Hilary on the ITV Morning programme, with both support and criticism of the government and comparison to elsewhere.
Mick Cash, who no doubt many despise simply because he is a Union leader, appeared a bit tongue tied and flustered at times, but did himself a power of good not just with the revelation that the train operators, unions and Government had been in the middle of discussions on how to resume a fuller public transport service, only for Sunday night’s bomshell announcement to make the whole process pointless; but with an excellent put down of Barclay: " the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing".
How did I rate their performance? Sridar just ahead of Cash, then Phillipson way ahead of Barclay and the other side of the Ocean - Johnson.
Have you seen PMQs since lockdown?
Starmer, not Corbyn doing the questioning of course, but for me the lack of the baying crowd (both sides) makes a difference.
Previously any reply by Johnson however vague or off topic would be accompanied by cheers of approval. Now they just fall flat, and he doesn`t look comfortable having even a couple of minutes to answer questions without waving of arms and grand-standing.
As I have been travelling home from the depot each afternoon this week it has been apparent that traffic volumes are steadily increasing daily. Today the M60 was almost back to pre-lock down traffic volumes, so it seems that the population is now taking matters into its own hands and is travelling again. Lorry numbers have also greatly increased this week.
After a dip in fridge load volumes for a couple of weeks they have come back up again this week, so it will be interesting to watch what happens next week. My flour tankers have also been busier this week, and I’ve had to fire up all the parked-up units I had “stored”, they are going back on the road in other divisions within the company.
A catering butcher local to the depot and where we deliver frozen meat to has been quite innovative, he has put together barbecue assortment packs and offered them to the public for retail selling at £15 per pack… excellent value, and he did a roaring trade last weekend, long queues of customers so I’m informed. It all goes to show there are opportunities in times of adversity.
gingerfold:
As I have been travelling home from the depot each afternoon this week it has been apparent that traffic volumes are steadily increasing daily. Today the M60 was almost back to pre-lock down traffic volumes, so it seems that the population is now taking matters into its own hands and is travelling again. Lorry numbers have also greatly increased this week.After a dip in fridge load volumes for a couple of weeks they have come back up again this week, so it will be interesting to watch what happens next week. My flour tankers have also been busier this week, and I’ve had to fire up all the parked-up units I had “stored”, they are going back on the road in other divisions within the company.
A catering butcher local to the depot and where we deliver frozen meat to has been quite innovative, he has put together barbecue assortment packs and offered them to the public for retail selling at £15 per pack… excellent value, and he did a roaring trade last weekend, long queues of customers so I’m informed. It all goes to show there are opportunities in times of adversity.
Always good to get your bulletins gingerfold, a good measure of what’s going on 
.
Oily
The large forecourt of the Jaguar Land Rover dealership in Bolton has a few cars on it since Friday. It was completely cleared at the start of lock down, so they must be thinking of opening up again soon. What the car market will be like is a great unknown, especially the more expensive types.
On the subject of cars Motor Trader magazine reports a lot of interest in cheaper used cars and even real basement bargain stuff. Their take on it is that with public transport being subject to strict social distancing rules commuters are having to buy a cheap car to travel to work. So with narrower roads in towns and cities to encourage people to cycle to work once they have claimed a £50 voucher to repair an old bike, and a lot of old bangers on the road breaking down, congestion in towns and cities will be horrendous if people have any jobs to go back to.
But the above might help the vehicle recovery industry to get back on its feet. A report in the Sunday Telegraph says that as many as 70% of the independent recovery firms could close in the next month because of lack of work. Those such as the AA are surviving because members pay monthly subscription. Independents are paid by the job. As I write this, and thinking about it, I haven’t seen an AA recovery truck for weeks.
To quote Gingerfold - “As I write this, and thinking about it, I haven’t seen an AA recovery truck for weeks.”
Over the last year or so, well before this outbreak, I’ve noticed a distinct lack of AA representatives trying to sell membership in supermarket foyers, shopping malls and precincts. They seemed to be everywhere - have they changed their marketing strategy?
fodenway:
To quote Gingerfold - “As I write this, and thinking about it, I haven’t seen an AA recovery truck for weeks.”Over the last year or so, well before this outbreak, I’ve noticed a distinct lack of AA representatives trying to sell membership in supermarket foyers, shopping malls and precincts. They seemed to be everywhere - have they changed their marketing strategy?
My campervan insurance cover is with Safeguard and includes AA call out assistance and recovery.
Oily
BOZO MUST GO along with the rest of the members of the cabinet and ministers who continue to insult the population with their ridiculous and offensive excuses for ■■■■■■■■ actions. As for ■■■■■■■■ I really don’t care whether he stays or goes, I have some sympathy for him but since Bozo has taken the line that none of his upper class public school bumchums can do any wrong and simply refuses to apologise about this or anything, then it is time for the Queen to sack him and all his arrogant incompetent lying ministers.
cav551:
BOZO MUST GO along with the rest of the members of the cabinet and ministers who continue to insult the population with their ridiculous and offensive excuses for ■■■■■■■■ actions. As for ■■■■■■■■ I really don’t care whether he stays or goes, I have some sympathy for him but since Bozo has taken the line that none of his upper class public school bumchums can do any wrong and simply refuses to apologise about this or anything, then it is time for the Queen to sack him and all his arrogant incompetent lying ministers.
Your opinion of course to which you are entitled but I think many would disagree with your statement and should your wishes be granted just what do you suggest should be the replacements, these are difficult times but there are also some Labour MP’s who have done exactly the same as DC has and no fuss or action for them.
IMHO this has just turned into a witch hunt by the media to remove Boris’s advisor with about twenty journalist’s shoulder to shoulder outside the mans house baying for his head yet they themselves are committing the self same act or worse that he is accused of & no social distancing there at all, personally I could not give a flying f–k as there should be far more important issues to be getting on with right now like getting this country back to work before everyone forgets that is what we need to do, Buzzer
Buzzer:
cav551:
BOZO MUST GO along with the rest of the members of the cabinet and ministers who continue to insult the population with their ridiculous and offensive excuses for ■■■■■■■■ actions. As for ■■■■■■■■ I really don’t care whether he stays or goes, I have some sympathy for him but since Bozo has taken the line that none of his upper class public school bumchums can do any wrong and simply refuses to apologise about this or anything, then it is time for the Queen to sack him and all his arrogant incompetent lying ministers.Your opinion of course to which you are entitled but I think many would disagree with your statement and should your wishes be granted just what do you suggest should be the replacements, these are difficult times but there are also some Labour MP’s who have done exactly the same as DC has and no fuss or action for them.
IMHO this has just turned into a witch hunt by the media to remove Boris’s advisor with about twenty journalist’s shoulder to shoulder outside the mans house baying for his head yet they themselves are committing the self same act or worse that he is accused of & no social distancing there at all, personally I could not give a flying [zb] as there should be far more important issues to be getting on with right now like getting this country back to work before everyone forgets that is what we need to do, Buzzer
I think you’re missing at least one point here: ■■■■■■■■ believed his wife was actually infected with COVID. Those reporters don’t believe they are infected.
At the time of the trip to his parents, there was no child care emergency. Ho was worried that one develop if both parents became sick. And to imagine that ■■■■■■■■■ a top Gov fixer, couldn’t find child care in London seems far fetched to me. May be he preferred the idea of family helping, who wouldn’t? But that is a preference not a need. Many others gave up their first choice, when he didn’t.
Taking a test drive to check ones eyesight?
Would you take a wife and child if you thought you might not be up to it?
Collecting her from hospital when taxis and ambulances were available, was again his choice, rather than necessity.
.
Have others broken the rules?
Yes.
Labour’s Stephen Kinnock drove to his father’s where he stayed in the garden.
Tory Rob Roberts had guests inside his house.
Various other officials too.
But none (I think) having the virus, and moving around.
.
And you’re right, Buzzer: this shouldn’t be an issue. But if Johnson wants or needs ■■■■■■■■ more than he cares about the country, we’re stuck here.
Franglais:
Buzzer:
cav551:
BOZO MUST GO along with the rest of the members of the cabinet and ministers who continue to insult the population with their ridiculous and offensive excuses for ■■■■■■■■ actions. As for ■■■■■■■■ I really don’t care whether he stays or goes, I have some sympathy for him but since Bozo has taken the line that none of his upper class public school bumchums can do any wrong and simply refuses to apologise about this or anything, then it is time for the Queen to sack him and all his arrogant incompetent lying ministers.Your opinion of course to which you are entitled but I think many would disagree with your statement and should your wishes be granted just what do you suggest should be the replacements, these are difficult times but there are also some Labour MP’s who have done exactly the same as DC has and no fuss or action for them.
IMHO this has just turned into a witch hunt by the media to remove Boris’s advisor with about twenty journalist’s shoulder to shoulder outside the mans house baying for his head yet they themselves are committing the self same act or worse that he is accused of & no social distancing there at all, personally I could not give a flying [zb] as there should be far more important issues to be getting on with right now like getting this country back to work before everyone forgets that is what we need to do, BuzzerI think you’re missing at least one point here: ■■■■■■■■ believed his wife was actually infected with COVID. Those reporters don’t believe they are infected.
At the time of the trip to his parents, there was no child care emergency. Ho was worried that one develop if both parents became sick. And to imagine that ■■■■■■■■■ a top Gov fixer, couldn’t find child care in London seems far fetched to me. May be he preferred the idea of family helping, who wouldn’t? But that is a preference not a need. Many others gave up their first choice, when he didn’t.
Taking a test drive to check ones eyesight?
Would you take a wife and child if you thought you might not be up to it?
Collecting her from hospital when taxis and ambulances were available, was again his choice, rather than necessity.
.
Have others broken the rules?
Yes.
Labour’s Stephen Kinnock drove to his father’s where he stayed in the garden.
Tory Rob Roberts had guests inside his house.
Various other officials too.
But none (I think) having the virus, and moving around.
.
And you’re right, Buzzer: this shouldn’t be an issue. But if Johnson wants or needs ■■■■■■■■ more than he cares about the country, we’re stuck here.
I would refer to another previous post that I made wherein i outlined my thoughts on the whole bunch of them. As you rightly say we are stuck here with these fools doing all they can to save face and their jobs first. Then yours… Maybe. All so sad when you think what Britain was and will be soon.
Buzzer:
there are also some Labour MP’s who have done exactly the same as DC has and no fuss or action for them.
IMHO this has just turned into a witch hunt by the media to remove Boris’s advisor …there should be far more important issues to be getting on with right now like getting this country back to work before everyone forgets that is what we need to do, Buzzer
This really is the telling sign of, in this case Tory, desperation when faced with an embarrassing, uncomfortable truth, to start trotting out this na na na na " he did it as well look at him" which is about all you get out of that Horwood ■■■■ who among others seems to think that the public are gullible enough to swallow the mantra that two wrongs will put it right. What really makes me want to kill is this pompous, arrogant, superior, my ■■■■ doesn’t stink attitude that ONE simple word is taboo …SORRY
All the media with balls are doing is asking the awkward questions… the ones the man on the Clapham omnibus wants answered… that the government doesn’t want to answer. The ones the government has chickened out of answering.The more the media keep repeating them the better. Shut the buggers up when they start waffling or inventing the question. “Straight forward simple answer Minister, Yes or No, Yes or No, Yes or No…Yes or No, Yes or No?”
NO getting the country back to work in a tearing hurry isn’t the no 1 priority. That is just a little bit more wait and see what happens when the other countires who were 3 or 4 weeks ahead of us with the infection have been back at work for 3 or 4 weeks without a resurgeance.
We hear mutterings about our children or grandchildren having to pay for this for some years. WTF do they think happened after WW2 ? we didn’t ask the returning servicemen to pay off the country’s war debts over the next 18 months, we took decades to pay it off the same will happen. What we will find hard to do is actually produce anything any othe country wants to buy off us because these toffs only want to sit on their backsides shuffling money around trying to make a killing for number one.
So all DC has to do is says that word SORRY and all the media go back in there boxes and we carry on as normal, its a bit like a spot when you are a juvenile it causes some embarrassment short term but it eventually it goes away, simples Buzzer
Footnote. The Conservatives did not just sneak in to power at the last general election with a narrow margin but then IMHO there are far too many politicians and most could not lay straight in bed so who ever we have in power we are stuffed.
Buzzer:
So all DC has to do is says that word SORRY and all the media go back in there boxes and we carry on as normal, its a bit like a spot when you are a juvenile it causes some embarrassment short term but it eventually it goes away, simples BuzzerFootnote. The Conservatives did not just sneak in to power at the last general election with a narrow margin but then IMHO there are far too many politicians and most could not lay straight in bed so who ever we have in power we are stuffed.
Buzzer , the media have tried every trick in the book to stop Boris being leader of the Tories and leader of the country. Are you surprised that DC is now in the firing line. If everyone who had broken rules in lockdown resigned there would be a bigger crisis here. We have experts all over the place criticising everything the government do but nobody seems to have any worthwhile answers. As for our WW11 debt didn’t we write off Germanys but carried on paying the US.
ramone:
Buzzer:
So all DC has to do is says that word SORRY and all the media go back in there boxes and we carry on as normal, its a bit like a spot when you are a juvenile it causes some embarrassment short term but it eventually it goes away, simples BuzzerFootnote. The Conservatives did not just sneak in to power at the last general election with a narrow margin but then IMHO there are far too many politicians and most could not lay straight in bed so who ever we have in power we are stuffed.
Buzzer , the media have tried every trick in the book to stop Boris being leader of the Tories and leader of the country. Are you surprised that DC is now in the firing line. If everyone who had broken rules in lockdown resigned there would be a bigger crisis here. We have experts all over the place criticising everything the government do but nobody seems to have any worthwhile answers. As for our WW11 debt didn’t we write off Germanys but carried on paying the US.
Concerning our debt to the US I do not think the US government ever considered for one instant writing that off. The US government are always happy to see other governments in a weakened position and our WW2 debt certainly caused us an extra burden.
And now our children/grandchildren can spend the next 75 years paying the debt back to CHINA!!!
Hi all, just to throw my two peneth in, i don’t think it makes any difference which party is in power leading the country all any politician want’s to do i line there own pockets. But if you look back to the debt that labour left us in and you have to agree the torie’s got us out of it and Boris i still think is the right man to get the Brexit saga finnished when he took the PM job he didn’t know this lot was coming or i am pretty sure he would not off put himself forward.As for ■■■■■■■■■ he is just another slipper eel in the bucket full from right across all the political parties who as i already said don’'t really give a flying f— about you they are only interested in themselves. Happy day’s chin up. 
Hi Kev apparently the waters of the Solent and the South coast have amazing healing powers judging by the number of lemmings that are flocking to its shores, what ever happened to the social distancing thing they all seem to forget that don’t they. The main cause of this is the furlough system IMHO it would have been far better to have given that money to the companies to put in place some distancing measures so as production could carry on even if in some depleted fashion after all it worked in the food and Pharma sections did it not, every one is treating this as a massive extended holiday as the weather is so nice, we need it to pee down for a month and watch them want to go back to work, they will get to used to this easy street especially as they are at home getting the same money as if at work, its like the dole system has exploded into massive proportions when will this end, it needs to be sooner than later, Buzzer.
Buzzer:
Hi Kev apparently the waters of the Solent and the South coast have amazing healing powers judging by the number of lemmings that are flocking to its shores, what ever happened to the social distancing thing they all seem to forget that don’t they. The main cause of this is the furlough system IMHO it would have been far better to have given that money to the companies to put in place some distancing measures so as production could carry on even if in some depleted fashion after all it worked in the food and Pharma sections did it not, every one is treating this as a massive extended holiday as the weather is so nice, we need it to pee down for a month and watch them want to go back to work, they will get to used to this easy street especially as they are at home getting the same money as if at work, its like the dole system has exploded into massive proportions when will this end, it needs to be sooner than later, Buzzer.
I`ve been thinking this for a while Buzzer , i spoke to someone the other day who said he could live off 80% of his wages and was quite happy to sit it out. I work in the waste industry where we carry raw bin waste from residential houses , processed waste which can range from scrap metal , to fines to landfill. Without this virus we are open to disease and we get a pair of inadequate gloves (i buy my own ) hard hat and a high vis vest. I buy my own boots because the ones we are supplied with are a bad fit. Since the corona virus we have been supplied with 1 pack of wet wipes. The usual suspects are on furlough at our place the ones that never complete a month without goung on sick. I’ve has 4 days off since the start of this on annual leave
ramone:
Buzzer:
Hi Kev apparently the waters of the Solent and the South coast have amazing healing powers judging by the number of lemmings that are flocking to its shores, what ever happened to the social distancing thing they all seem to forget that don’t they. The main cause of this is the furlough system IMHO it would have been far better to have given that money to the companies to put in place some distancing measures so as production could carry on even if in some depleted fashion after all it worked in the food and Pharma sections did it not, every one is treating this as a massive extended holiday as the weather is so nice, we need it to pee down for a month and watch them want to go back to work, they will get to used to this easy street especially as they are at home getting the same money as if at work, its like the dole system has exploded into massive proportions when will this end, it needs to be sooner than later, Buzzer.I`ve been thinking this for a while Buzzer , i spoke to someone the other day who said he could live off 80% of his wages and was quite happy to sit it out. I work in the waste industry where we carry raw bin waste from residential houses , processed waste which can range from scrap metal , to fines to landfill. **Without this virus we are open to disease and we get a pair of inadequate gloves (i buy my own ) hard hat and a high vis vest. I buy my own boots because the ones we are supplied with are a bad fit. Since the corona virus we have been supplied with 1 pack of wet wipes.**The usual suspects are on furlough at our place the ones that never complete a month without goung on sick. I’ve has 4 days off since the start of this on annual leave
That answers exactly why we do NOT give the money to the companies. It would end up being used to buy a new Porsche.