Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
None of these countries has attempted to apply Passivhaus standards to all new build housing, to the best of my knowledge and google research - which is what the Scottish Government seem to be planning on doing; according the post above. It has all the hallmarks of an irresponsible legislature that has departed completely from economic reality. As all the 'grand designs' episodes reveal, it is an extremely detailed technical standard that requires many compromises in other areas of a building project, and adds considerably to build costs. As it is something that has only emerged in the past two decades, there is little research on the longevity of these buildings and the technical measures employed to meet the standard.
Surely the Scottish govt will have some level of consultation with the housbuilders on the feasibility of this before deciding to implement it. They wouldn’t implement it if it simply meant the supply of new homes would grind to a halt.
Don't bet on that Taz, they are putting self-Id through and evryone is against that but they don't give a shit.
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
House prices being low is evidently a terrible thing.
Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
None of these countries has attempted to apply Passivhaus standards to all new build housing, to the best of my knowledge and google research - which is what the Scottish Government seem to be planning on doing; according the post above. It has all the hallmarks of an irresponsible legislature that has departed completely from economic reality. As all the 'grand designs' episodes reveal, it is an extremely detailed technical standard that requires many compromises in other areas of a building project, and adds considerably to build costs. As it is something that has only emerged in the past two decades, there is little research on the longevity of these buildings and the technical measures employed to meet the standard.
Surely the Scottish govt will have some level of consultation with the housbuilders on the feasibility of this before deciding to implement it. They wouldn’t implement it if it simply meant the supply of new homes would grind to a halt.
Don't bet on that Taz, they are putting self-Id through and evryone is against that but they don't give a shit.
Good morning Malc. Hope all is well up in your lovely part of Scotland.
Self ID is extremely contentious and there is a lot of opposition to it. I don’t know what the solution is. But the advocates of it are a powerful lobby and well funded and government today seems to be driven by the demands of single issue lobbyists.
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Tunbridge Wells voted Remain unlike Sevenoaks and has a LD led not Tory led Council unlike Sevenoaks too yes.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
An 'audit' does seem like the making of an excuse. Like him or loathe him, Boris did show leadership back in February. He did not wait weeks or months to make a decision: he made a decision (and IMO the correct one).
From the article: "This is about looking at what we have put in, what we have got out." There's another angle that needs to be factored in: the cost of *not* supporting Ukraine; of a world where Russia wins and exerts its malign influence over Eastern Europe. And a Russia that apparently hates the UK.
It could be a classic case of saving a penny today to lose a pound in a year.
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
Even with Yougov just 26% of Leave voters back Starmer Labour while 61% of Remain voters support Labour
Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
None of these countries has attempted to apply Passivhaus standards to all new build housing, to the best of my knowledge and google research - which is what the Scottish Government seem to be planning on doing; according the post above. It has all the hallmarks of an irresponsible legislature that has departed completely from economic reality. As all the 'grand designs' episodes reveal, it is an extremely detailed technical standard that requires many compromises in other areas of a building project, and adds considerably to build costs. As it is something that has only emerged in the past two decades, there is little research on the longevity of these buildings and the technical measures employed to meet the standard.
Surely the Scottish govt will have some level of consultation with the housbuilders on the feasibility of this before deciding to implement it. They wouldn’t implement it if it simply meant the supply of new homes would grind to a halt.
Don't bet on that Taz, they are putting self-Id through and evryone is against that but they don't give a shit.
Good morning Malc. Hope all is well up in your lovely part of Scotland.
Self ID is extremely contentious and there is a lot of opposition to it. I don’t know what the solution is. But the advocates of it are a powerful lobby and well funded and government today seems to be driven by the demands of single issue lobbyists.
But why though? Politicians should be intelligent enough to resist such pressures.
An 'audit' does seem like the making of an excuse. Like him or loathe him, Boris did show leadership back in February. He did not wait weeks or months to make a decision: he made a decision (and IMO the correct one).
From the article: "This is about looking at what we have put in, what we have got out." There's another angle that needs to be factored in: the cost of *not* supporting Ukraine; of a world where Russia wins and exerts its malign influence over Eastern Europe. And a Russia that apparently hates the UK.
It could be a classic case of saving a penny today to lose a pound in a year.
Sunak is more Macron like on Ukraine than Boris and Truss were, he would probably accept a deal which sees Russia get some part of the Crimea or Donbass as long as the rest of Ukraine is free.
Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
None of these countries has attempted to apply Passivhaus standards to all new build housing, to the best of my knowledge and google research - which is what the Scottish Government seem to be planning on doing; according the post above. It has all the hallmarks of an irresponsible legislature that has departed completely from economic reality. As all the 'grand designs' episodes reveal, it is an extremely detailed technical standard that requires many compromises in other areas of a building project, and adds considerably to build costs. As it is something that has only emerged in the past two decades, there is little research on the longevity of these buildings and the technical measures employed to meet the standard.
Surely the Scottish govt will have some level of consultation with the housbuilders on the feasibility of this before deciding to implement it. They wouldn’t implement it if it simply meant the supply of new homes would grind to a halt.
Governments never implement policies without proper knowledge of the consequences or adequate preparation!
Yep - esp since he's no 'never right if he can help it' Meeksadamus.
I think he is wrong on inflation. It will be falling fairly soon, if it isn’t already. The huge shocks of the war etc will be dropping out of the 12 month cycle.
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Tunbridge Wells voted Remain unlike Sevenoaks and has a LD led not Tory led Council unlike Sevenoaks too yes.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
It’s the Lib Dem personality that makes this one interesting. Plus Greg Clark is rumoured to be eying up one of the new neighbouring constituencies (high Weald I think). So possibly no incumbency. And Sussex / west Kent has been trending away from the Tories.
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Tunbridge Wells voted Remain unlike Sevenoaks and has a LD led not Tory led Council unlike Sevenoaks too yes.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
It’s the Lib Dem personality that makes this one interesting. Plus Greg Clark is rumoured to be eying up one of the new neighbouring constituencies (high Weald I think). So possibly no incumbency. And Sussex / west Kent has been trending away from the Tories.
Perhaps but the LDs still need a 13% swing to take the seat and I think with Sunak now PM the Tories will scrape home, even if it would have gone LD if Truss was still PM or maybe even under Boris
An 'audit' does seem like the making of an excuse. Like him or loathe him, Boris did show leadership back in February. He did not wait weeks or months to make a decision: he made a decision (and IMO the correct one).
From the article: "This is about looking at what we have put in, what we have got out." There's another angle that needs to be factored in: the cost of *not* supporting Ukraine; of a world where Russia wins and exerts its malign influence over Eastern Europe. And a Russia that apparently hates the UK.
It could be a classic case of saving a penny today to lose a pound in a year.
Sunak is more Macron like on Ukraine than Boris and Truss were, he would probably accept a deal which sees Russia get some part of the Crimea or Donbass as long as the rest of Ukraine is free.
Ah, so he's in the "saving a penny today to lose a pound in a year" category.
It’s easy to mock this, but actually at heart there is a serious question. It seems the NHS has been transformed into an organisation that is meant to be as efficient as possible. No one wants unused capacity, so it tries to run as close to 100% full as possible all the time. But this fails to account for surges of demand. I am aware of work ongoing at predicting surges, events such as cold weather incoming and upswings in respiratory diseases being examples.
However it’s not just beds. Staff are needed to look after the patients. Heating and other resources are needed. And if a hospital runs with empty space you can see the argument coming…
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
It’s easy to mock this, but actually at heart there is a serious question. It seems the NHS has been transformed into an organisation that is meant to be as efficient as possible. No one wants unused capacity, so it tries to run as close to 100% full as possible all the time. But this fails to account for surges of demand. I am aware of work ongoing at predicting surges, events such as cold weather incoming and upswings in respiratory diseases being examples.
However it’s not just beds. Staff are needed to look after the patients. Heating and other resources are needed. And if a hospital runs with empty space you can see the argument coming…
Forgive me if I suspect Redwood has not put his mind to the question that deeply.
I wonder if different degrees of defeat have a meaningful effect on the complexion of the Conservative party in 2025.
Guessing, a moderate defeat preferentially takes out the Red Wall Boris'n'Brexit types, a bigger swing eats into the more traditional Tories and a really bad swing leaves them largely a regional party of the English east coast, really cross about immigration.
Assuming they don't lose those to the latest batch of Faragists
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Tunbridge Wells voted Remain unlike Sevenoaks and has a LD led not Tory led Council unlike Sevenoaks too yes.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
It’s the Lib Dem personality that makes this one interesting. Plus Greg Clark is rumoured to be eying up one of the new neighbouring constituencies (high Weald I think). So possibly no incumbency. And Sussex / west Kent has been trending away from the Tories.
Perhaps but the LDs still need a 13% swing to take the seat and I think with Sunak now PM the Tories will scrape home, even if it would have gone LD if Truss was still PM or maybe even under Boris
This is one I’d be tempted to put a bit of money on. The Lib Dem candidate is almost the perfect stereotype for a blue wall loss. Ex military, public school, pro EU, very visible in TW, very online and big name recognition. Possibly up against a new Tory candidate who nobody knows.
And the area saw a big city exodus during Covid.
The opportunity for TW residents to put themselves at the centre of the story.
"When it comes to 2023, particular attention is being paid to the European Research Group". But he has tricky balancing act with Braverman, One Nation Group + China hawks too
Great to see a Scottish Labour legislator being constructive:
Delighted @scotgov have accepted my Members’ Bill proposal to introduce a Scottish equivalent of passivhaus standards for all new build housing in Scotland. This will help future proof housing stock, save people money and tackle our climate emergency - a very welcome move!
The passivhaus standard originated from a conversation in 1988 between Bo Adamson of Lund University, in Sweden, and Wolfgang Feist of the Institut für Wohnen und Umwelt, in Darmstadt, Germany. Later, their concept was further developed through a number of research projects, aided by financial assistance from the German state of Hessen.
This is the type of initiative that will completely ruin the construction industry in Scotland, where house prices are already low compared with the rest of the UK and there are relatively few problems of undersupply.
Please explain your thinking. That it would “completely ruin” an entire industry seems unlikely. Has it done so in Germany, Ireland or the United States?
None of these countries has attempted to apply Passivhaus standards to all new build housing, to the best of my knowledge and google research - which is what the Scottish Government seem to be planning on doing; according the post above. It has all the hallmarks of an irresponsible legislature that has departed completely from economic reality. As all the 'grand designs' episodes reveal, it is an extremely detailed technical standard that requires many compromises in other areas of a building project, and adds considerably to build costs. As it is something that has only emerged in the past two decades, there is little research on the longevity of these buildings and the technical measures employed to meet the standard.
Surely the Scottish govt will have some level of consultation with the housbuilders on the feasibility of this before deciding to implement it. They wouldn’t implement it if it simply meant the supply of new homes would grind to a halt.
Governments never implement policies without proper knowledge of the consequences or adequate preparation!
Off-topic: what is Elon Musk up to? Those journalists from the NYT, CNN, the Washington Post, etc., didn't doxx him. He's got both the UN and EU against him now. When has that ever happened before in the whole history of the media? Talk about a provocation job. The Elon Prize Committee are seeking nominations for Musk's "Worst Groveller". There's been a lot of Musk-praise at the Daily Sceptic. It all adds up, but I'm not sure their guys have yet plumbed the same embarrassing depths as US senator John Neely Kennedy who expressed his admiration for the size of Musk's testicles.
If we were being generous, one could see it as perhaps an ongoing plan to keep stirring up controversy which we know fuels the twitterati. Basically rehash of the Orange man approach to social media. Keep driving the traffic by saying or doing something outrageous.
Or he is just a massive bellend, suffering under the new mid-life crisis that turns middle classed men into people who get a hard-on for social media "engagement"...see Lineker, Morgan, Brand, Fox....
It’s easy to mock this, but actually at heart there is a serious question. It seems the NHS has been transformed into an organisation that is meant to be as efficient as possible. No one wants unused capacity, so it tries to run as close to 100% full as possible all the time. But this fails to account for surges of demand. I am aware of work ongoing at predicting surges, events such as cold weather incoming and upswings in respiratory diseases being examples.
However it’s not just beds. Staff are needed to look after the patients. Heating and other resources are needed. And if a hospital runs with empty space you can see the argument coming…
Forgive me if I suspect Redwood has not put his mind to the question that deeply.
John Redwood has been covering the issue of the NHS quite extensively on his blog.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
I love the game, but people just don't go along to watch it, that's inescapable.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
It’s easy to mock this, but actually at heart there is a serious question. It seems the NHS has been transformed into an organisation that is meant to be as efficient as possible. No one wants unused capacity, so it tries to run as close to 100% full as possible all the time. But this fails to account for surges of demand. I am aware of work ongoing at predicting surges, events such as cold weather incoming and upswings in respiratory diseases being examples.
However it’s not just beds. Staff are needed to look after the patients. Heating and other resources are needed. And if a hospital runs with empty space you can see the argument coming…
From memory they aim to run at about 80% occupancy, pushing towards 100% in the winter. As you say, it’s not really the physical beds, it’s the rest that goes around sustaining the person in the bed.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
I’ve watched them all and they’ve been brilliant. I love what Stokes and England are doing with Test cricket
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
YouGov, the only pollster to correctly weigh geographical sub-samples:
London Lab 57% Con 19% Ref 7% LD 7% Grn 4%
Rest of South Lab 42% Con 26% LD 12% Ref 10% Grn 9%
Midlands and Wales Lab 52% Con 29% Ref 8% LD 5% Grn 3% PC 2%
North Lab 57% Con 20% Ref 11% Grn 6% LD 5%
Scotland SNP 46% Lab 27% Con 12% LD 7% Ref 5%
(YouGov / The Times; sample size: 1,690; fieldwork: 14-15 December 2022)
The Tories at just 26% in southern England. Never mind the Red Wall, the story of the next GE looks like being the collapse of the Blue Wall. The extinction of the Scottish Tories, again, won’t even make page 10.
I know, I was looking at the Savanta MRP for my old home seat of Sevenoaks, rock solid safe Tory for generations, and it has the Tories just squeaking home there.
Not very realistic. The Tories will win Sevenoaks with a huge majority when the election arrives.
I tend to agree - tempered a little by the recollection that when the YGMRP came out, everyone used its prediction of a Labour win in Canterbury to rubbish the model, then Labour won Canterbury….and Kensington.
Canterbury is full of students now, Kensington voted overwhelmingly Remain.
Sevenoaks has no university and voted Leave
1. What proportion of those Sevenoaks Leave voters have passed away since 2016? 2. Why would Leave voters fear voting for Labour?
The most interesting constituency in that area is going to be Tunbridge wells. The Lib Dems have taken the council and their PPC is Mike Martin, ex-military, lecturer in war studies, author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
Tunbridge Wells voted Remain unlike Sevenoaks and has a LD led not Tory led Council unlike Sevenoaks too yes.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
It’s the Lib Dem personality that makes this one interesting. Plus Greg Clark is rumoured to be eying up one of the new neighbouring constituencies (high Weald I think). So possibly no incumbency. And Sussex / west Kent has been trending away from the Tories.
Perhaps but the LDs still need a 13% swing to take the seat and I think with Sunak now PM the Tories will scrape home, even if it would have gone LD if Truss was still PM or maybe even under Boris
This is one I’d be tempted to put a bit of money on. The Lib Dem candidate is almost the perfect stereotype for a blue wall loss. Ex military, public school, pro EU, very visible in TW, very online and big name recognition. Possibly up against a new Tory candidate who nobody knows.
And the area saw a big city exodus during Covid.
The opportunity for TW residents to put themselves at the centre of the story.
Against Truss probably, against Boris maybe, against Sunak I doubt it. The polling shows Sunak is preferred as PM in the bluewall seats to Starmer but not in the redwall seats.
Removing Boris and Truss and replacing them with Sunak probably ensured the LDs don't get more than a dozen bluewall seats at most.
However it still won't save the redwall seats from going back to Labour (indeed Boris might have saved a few Rishi won't) and Labour will also likely make further gains in London now Corbyn has gone eg in Barnet and Chingford and Westminster
"When it comes to 2023, particular attention is being paid to the European Research Group". But he has tricky balancing act with Braverman, One Nation Group + China hawks too
Given that we are still going to be entering into long term contracts with the US and Norway, it seems like this is just the blob taking over again - obviously didn't like the idea of a task force doing an actual good job.
Given that we are still going to be entering into long term contracts with the US and Norway, it seems like this is just the blob taking over again - obviously didn't like the idea of a task force doing an actual good job.
Not Norway, only the US and that deal is pretty good value for money. The Norway deal was going to lock in current prices for 5 years. Stupid.
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
I’ve watched them all and they’ve been brilliant. I love what Stokes and England are doing with Test cricket
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
Test cricket is safe according to the oracle:
"Test cricket is the highest and most traditional form of cricket, and it has a long and rich history dating back to the late 19th century. It is considered the ultimate test of a cricketer's skills and endurance, and it is played by the top international teams around the world. While the popularity of other forms of cricket, such as Twenty20 (T20), has increased in recent years, Test cricket remains an important and integral part of the sport.
There are many factors that suggest that Test cricket has a bright future. One of the main reasons is that it continues to attract a large and passionate fan base around the world, with many people enjoying the longer format of the game and the opportunity to see their favorite players and teams compete in a more challenging and nuanced environment. In addition, Test cricket is an important part of the cricketing calendar for many countries, and it is often used as a platform for developing the skills and talents of young cricketers.
However, it is also true that Test cricket faces some challenges in the modern era. The rise of T20 cricket has led to a proliferation of shorter, more fast-paced forms of the game, which have attracted younger audiences and bigger sponsorships. This has led to concerns about the future of Test cricket, with some suggesting that it may struggle to compete for attention and resources.
Overall, while Test cricket may face some challenges in the modern era, it remains an important and beloved part of the sport, and it is likely to continue to be enjoyed by fans and players around the world for many years to come."
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
I’ve watched them all and they’ve been brilliant. I love what Stokes and England are doing with Test cricket
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
I partly agree with you, in that Test Cricket will change to be supported by the big countries for mostly prestige reasons - except for England when it still sells out.
[Edit - and therefore will be less frequent as suggested above].
They need to be careful next year mind. We usually go to three or four days over the year but the prices around the Ashes are silly and we may just not. They might find they have gaps in the crowd.
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
In reassuring sticking-it-to-Putin news the thaw has, and I believe this is the correct expression, set in. That and a week of strong winds in the right places equals good news.
Over a week of >£30 per day on the smart meter here. The sooner that ends the better.
In reassuring sticking-it-to-Putin news the thaw has, and I believe this is the correct expression, set in. That and a week of strong winds in the right places equals good news.
Over a week of >£30 per day on the smart meter here. The sooner that ends the better.
This is why I have never let them fit a smart meter. I am blissfully unaware of what it’s costing.
Have young people ever been wildly into test cricket? It’s something you mature into.
Yes, like voting Tory and attending 8am BCP service or joining the Rotary club, watching Test cricket is something normally done most often by over 50s
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Utterly dead. Not long enough for a story to unravel or the game to turn around, like in Test Matches; but the best bit (the last ten overs of each innings) has been subsumed by T20. It will leave the international schedule as a regular fixture to save Test Cricket.
Also, with the death of the 50 over cup at county level no Englishman is going to be experienced in it.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Utterly dead. Not long enough for a sorry to unravel or the game to turn around, like in Test Matches; but the best bit (the last ten overs of each innings) has been subsumed by T20.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
Everyone was saying this about 10 years ago but ODIs have remained fairly popular.
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Utterly dead. Not long enough for a sorry to unravel or the game to turn around, like in Test Matches; but the best bit (the last ten overs of each innings) has been subsumed by T20.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
Everyone was saying this about 10 years ago but ODIs have remained fairly popular.
True, but I think it’s the fixture congestion that will finally kill it. Much like the one day cup domestically.
Hang on a minute — we were able, as a country, to construct Nightingale Hospitals in about 5 minutes (even though they were hardly used). If we could do that, why can't we install more beds in hospitals?
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Utterly dead. Not long enough for a story to unravel or the game to turn around, like in Test Matches; but the best bit (the last ten overs of each innings) has been subsumed by T20. It will leave the international schedule as a regular fixture to save Test Cricket.
Also, with the death of the 50 over cup at county level no Englishman is going to be experienced in it.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
Yes that’s what I foresee. A lot of T20 and some high value prestige Test matches in iconic spots where people want to go - Lords, MCG, Cape Town, somewhere posh in the Windies
T20 is going to be huge - or even huger. I can see it expanding worldwide through the massive south Asian diaspora. It’s like football in its beguiling simplicity. And, like football, any size of person can aspire to play it quite well - a tubby small boy can be a brilliant spinner
Test cricket will always be with us because nobody’s going to abolish it. I could imagine a time when the tests become more and more few and far between, and perhaps that’s a good thing, to keep the sense of special importance.
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
Marathons is pretty good
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Utterly dead. Not long enough for a story to unravel or the game to turn around, like in Test Matches; but the best bit (the last ten overs of each innings) has been subsumed by T20. It will leave the international schedule as a regular fixture to save Test Cricket.
Also, with the death of the 50 over cup at county level no Englishman is going to be experienced in it.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
Yes that’s what I foresee. A lot of T20 and some high value prestige Test matches in iconic spots where people want to go - Lords, MCG, Cape Town, somewhere posh in the Windies
T20 is going to be huge - or even huger. I can see it expanding worldwide through the massive south Asian diaspora. It’s like football in its beguiling simplicity. And, like football, any size of person can aspire to play it quite well - a tubby small boy can be a brilliant spinner
County cricket still gets over 50s and pensioners along, Test cricket still gets them plus the corporates who are willing to pay for boxes at prestige venues as you say.
Though it is T20 that is most attractive to young people and families (including family zones) and in the subcontinent now yes
Hang on a minute — we were able, as a country, to construct Nightingale Hospitals in about 5 minutes (even though they were hardly used). If we could do that, why can't we install more beds in hospitals?
FFS. Are the beds going to care for the patients on their own? If it were that easy we’d all chip in to let NHS managers do a run to IKEA. A hospital “bed” is not the same thing as something you pick up in a DFS sale otherwise people wouldn’t have to go to hospital. It’s a dedicated workspace that happens to have an ill person on it.
If Labour do win I really do hope they deliver for young people, and force the Conservatives to pivot over to do the same.
The last thing I want is for them to abjectly fail to and to face an ultra-radical insurgent left-wing party in the offing that threatens to blow up everyone's assets (homes/pensions) and the economic foundations of the country.
Hang on a minute — we were able, as a country, to construct Nightingale Hospitals in about 5 minutes (even though they were hardly used). If we could do that, why can't we install more beds in hospitals?
FFS. Are the beds going to care for the patients on their own? If it were that easy we’d all chip in to let NHS managers do a run to IKEA. A hospital “bed” is not the same thing as something you pick up in a DFS sale otherwise people wouldn’t have to go to hospital. It’s a dedicated workspace that happens to have an ill person on it.
Also - space.
I assume he was being ironic. Redwood on the other hand - not so sure.
Just send the patients to Bensons for Beds. Problem solved.
Underneath this nonsense is an interesting question. On the whole 'The government' gets the blame for the ills of the the NHS, while the 'NHS' is mostly sanctified.
I have no dog in this fight, but notice that there is quite a lot of public funding for health care in this country. Is it conceivable that the NHS in its many branches runs some of it less well than it should?
It seems to me that funding should be a matter for the voter and tax payer (ie elected government) and the rest should be a matter for medical judgement without political help. What do politicians know about sore throats and complex cancers?
Maybe we should ask whether the Department of Health should be the same size as the Department of Supermarkets.
Hang on a minute — we were able, as a country, to construct Nightingale Hospitals in about 5 minutes (even though they were hardly used). If we could do that, why can't we install more beds in hospitals?
I think that required the cancellation of a lot of other NHS activities.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
I’ve watched them all and they’ve been brilliant. I love what Stokes and England are doing with Test cricket
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
Test cricket is safe according to the oracle:
"Test cricket is the highest and most traditional form of cricket, and it has a long and rich history dating back to the late 19th century. It is considered the ultimate test of a cricketer's skills and endurance, and it is played by the top international teams around the world. While the popularity of other forms of cricket, such as Twenty20 (T20), has increased in recent years, Test cricket remains an important and integral part of the sport.
There are many factors that suggest that Test cricket has a bright future. One of the main reasons is that it continues to attract a large and passionate fan base around the world, with many people enjoying the longer format of the game and the opportunity to see their favorite players and teams compete in a more challenging and nuanced environment. In addition, Test cricket is an important part of the cricketing calendar for many countries, and it is often used as a platform for developing the skills and talents of young cricketers.
However, it is also true that Test cricket faces some challenges in the modern era. The rise of T20 cricket has led to a proliferation of shorter, more fast-paced forms of the game, which have attracted younger audiences and bigger sponsorships. This has led to concerns about the future of Test cricket, with some suggesting that it may struggle to compete for attention and resources.
Overall, while Test cricket may face some challenges in the modern era, it remains an important and beloved part of the sport, and it is likely to continue to be enjoyed by fans and players around the world for many years to come."
Problem is the costs associated with it for smaller test nations like Zim and Ireland. Both nations have had to reschedule series in the last couple of years to remove scheduled tests due to the costs associated against a lack of revenue. Test cricket surely has no future if it’s just a handful of teams who can participate.
I'm pleased to see Foakes back, but you have to wonder if England are a bowler light. Pakistan are all over them like a cheap suit at the moment.
I'm a lot more excited by the Battle of Brisbane. No. 1 and No. 2 test teams in the world already locked in a duel on what started out as an 'interesting' pitch. Should be a great series.
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
They were pretty good for the first test. Less so for the last two.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
The crowds are still dismal. It’s a rare home Test against England. It’s sunny
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
Have you watched England’s last nine Test Matches? Far more interesting, exciting, and tense than T20 could ever be. Tension means more when I can build.
I’ve watched them all and they’ve been brilliant. I love what Stokes and England are doing with Test cricket
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
Test cricket is safe according to the oracle:
"Test cricket is the highest and most traditional form of cricket, and it has a long and rich history dating back to the late 19th century. It is considered the ultimate test of a cricketer's skills and endurance, and it is played by the top international teams around the world. While the popularity of other forms of cricket, such as Twenty20 (T20), has increased in recent years, Test cricket remains an important and integral part of the sport.
There are many factors that suggest that Test cricket has a bright future. One of the main reasons is that it continues to attract a large and passionate fan base around the world, with many people enjoying the longer format of the game and the opportunity to see their favorite players and teams compete in a more challenging and nuanced environment. In addition, Test cricket is an important part of the cricketing calendar for many countries, and it is often used as a platform for developing the skills and talents of young cricketers.
However, it is also true that Test cricket faces some challenges in the modern era. The rise of T20 cricket has led to a proliferation of shorter, more fast-paced forms of the game, which have attracted younger audiences and bigger sponsorships. This has led to concerns about the future of Test cricket, with some suggesting that it may struggle to compete for attention and resources.
Overall, while Test cricket may face some challenges in the modern era, it remains an important and beloved part of the sport, and it is likely to continue to be enjoyed by fans and players around the world for many years to come."
Problem is the costs associated with it for smaller test nations like Zim and Ireland. Both nations have had to reschedule series in the last couple of years to remove scheduled tests due to the costs associated against a lack of revenue. Test cricket surely has no future if it’s just a handful of teams who can participate.
If Labour do win I really do hope they deliver for young people, and force the Conservatives to pivot over to do the same.
The last thing I want is for them to abjectly fail to and to face an ultra-radical insurgent left-wing party in the offing that threatens to blow up everyone's assets (homes/pensions) and the economic foundations of the country.
Why? We had that in 2019 and it produced a Tory landslide.
Even if Labour fails to get most 25 to 40 year olds on the property ladder, most over 40s still own property and voted Conservative in 2019 to keep out Corbyn.
In any case the cycle means it is more likely the Conservatives move to the populist nationalist right in opposition if Sunak leads the Tories to defeat given Labour under Starmer will be a relatively centrist government than the reverse.
Labour and the left have had their populist fun under Corbyn, Abbott and McConnell now it is rightwingers turn with Badenoch, Braverman and Rees Mogg
If Labour do win I really do hope they deliver for young people, and force the Conservatives to pivot over to do the same.
The last thing I want is for them to abjectly fail to and to face an ultra-radical insurgent left-wing party in the offing that threatens to blow up everyone's assets (homes/pensions) and the economic foundations of the country.
You're on a hiding to nothing with that one, I fear. I shall be thrilled to be proven wrong, BUT... the only way to fund the state's colossal spending and debt servicing commitments without completely taxing earned incomes into the ground is to go after assets - that means, first and foremost, substantial increases in taxation of property wealth and of inheritances. Which most likely ain't happening; we need only look at the example of Theresa May's dementia tax to see what happens when ministers try to solve funding problems by going after the gargantuan store of wealth that's sunk into bricks and mortar.
Monied OAPs and their expectant heirs are an enormous constituency that also shows a greater tendency to bother to vote than the young. In all likelihood, Labour will kneel and suck pensioner dick just like the Tories, which means property gets left well alone, the triple lock remains in place to boot, and workers are bled dry to pay for everything. It's called a gerontocracy, and it's why this country is completely and irretrievably fucked.
If you're young and ambitious, your best option is to emigrate as soon as possible.
Hang on a minute — we were able, as a country, to construct Nightingale Hospitals in about 5 minutes (even though they were hardly used). If we could do that, why can't we install more beds in hospitals?
I think that required the cancellation of a lot of other NHS activities.
The Nightingale Hospitals were just an improvement over piling people up in the street (as happened in some countries) or military tent hospitals in public parks.
They had had little or no serious medical facilities, and would have been manned by anyone they could find with first aid knowledge.
Better that the alternatives - but not by an enormous margin
If Labour do win I really do hope they deliver for young people, and force the Conservatives to pivot over to do the same.
The last thing I want is for them to abjectly fail to and to face an ultra-radical insurgent left-wing party in the offing that threatens to blow up everyone's assets (homes/pensions) and the economic foundations of the country.
You're on a hiding to nothing with that one, I fear. I shall be thrilled to be proven wrong, BUT... the only way to fund the state's colossal spending and debt servicing commitments without completely taxing earned incomes into the ground is to go after assets - that means, first and foremost, substantial increases in taxation of property wealth and of inheritances. Which most likely ain't happening; we need only look at the example of Theresa May's dementia tax to see what happens when ministers try to solve funding problems by going after the gargantuan store of wealth that's sunk into bricks and mortar.
Monied OAPs and their expectant heirs are an enormous constituency that also shows a greater tendency to bother to vote than the young. In all likelihood, Labour will kneel and suck pensioner dick just like the Tories, which means property gets left well alone, the triple lock remains in place to boot, and workers are bled dry to pay for everything. It's called a gerontocracy, and it's why this country is completely and irretrievably fucked.
If you're young and ambitious, your best option is to emigrate as soon as possible.
Average wages are not rising much higher anywhere in the western world and inflation is also high across the western world.
Property ownership is still the key asset for most Europeans, Americans, Canadians, Australians and Kiwis.
That is just western capitalism, it delivers big incomes for the elite 1%, slightly smaller rises for the top 10%, barely above inflation rises, now below inflation rises, for everyone else. With a few exceptions like BT and Rolls Royce
It's striking that while the pitches have been rubbish the matches themselves have actually been pretty entertaining.
I have a suspicion this pitch will turn a lot as the game goes on (assuming it goes beyond tomorrow…) I think England need to get as close as possible on first innings.
Comments
Every time I say something about Babar, somebody else gets out.
Nice defensive shot there by Salman to a very fine ball from Wood.
Edit - bugger, didn't work.
author and well-followed Ukraine blogger. Very much a Lib Dem Rory Stewart type.
😂😂😂😂😂
I didn’t see his first spell but this young lad from Leicestershire bowled some nice deliveries in his second stint.
Self ID is extremely contentious and there is a lot of opposition to it. I don’t know what the solution is. But the advocates of it are a powerful lobby and well funded and government today seems to be driven by the demands of single issue lobbyists.
It is also 44th on the LD target list.
However I think it will stay Tory under Rishi, though it would probably have gone LD under Truss.
It also will be the rural villages in the constituency which could save Greg Clark, Tunbridge Wells town itself may well go LD
https://twitter.com/alastairmeeks/status/1603752353802362883?s=61&t=iPpFcO7Lg2WDfEV6PDYukw
From the article: "This is about looking at what we have put in, what we have got out." There's another angle that needs to be factored in: the cost of *not* supporting Ukraine; of a world where Russia wins and exerts its malign influence over Eastern Europe. And a Russia that apparently hates the UK.
It could be a classic case of saving a penny today to lose a pound in a year.
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2022/12/16/voting-intention-con-23-lab-48-14-15-dec-2022
(Redwood's, not yours TUD!)
However it’s not just beds. Staff are needed to look after the patients. Heating and other resources are needed. And if a hospital runs with empty space you can see the argument coming…
I will now give my powers a run out on the other batsmen...
Also lovely to see a packed Gabba. The crowds in Pakistan have been bitterly disappointing.
I suspect if Pakistan were still in the series there would be more in today.
Avanti West Coast rewarded with £6.5m in bonuses
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64006885
Have I got that right?
Test cricket is over (even as England manfully strive to recreate it). I regret that, but we have to face it
eg Just now I tuned in and thought Wait, it’s a Test, I’ll come back when it’s more interesting
If it was a T20 game it would have immediately captured me. Because T20 is always interesting and tense
And the area saw a big city exodus during Covid.
The opportunity for TW residents to put themselves at the centre of the story.
"When it comes to 2023, particular attention is being paid to the European Research Group". But he has tricky balancing act with Braverman, One Nation Group + China hawks too
https://inews.co.uk/opinion/rishi-sunak-walks-a-tightrope-2034972
But I’m afraid it feels like a last hurrah. I try to put myself in the position of a 17 or 27 year old, coming to the sport for the first time. From that perspective Test cricket is bewilderingly dull and slow - even with Stokes. An emotionally satisfying result is 3-5 days away, in an age of limited attention spans
The future of the sport is in South Asia and looking at these Test crowds the future is T20
Removing Boris and Truss and replacing them with Sunak probably ensured the LDs don't get more than a dozen bluewall seats at most.
However it still won't save the redwall seats from going back to Labour (indeed Boris might have saved a few Rishi won't) and Labour will also likely make further gains in London now Corbyn has gone eg in Barnet and Chingford and Westminster
Trying to think of an equivalent in another sport. Marathons perhaps?
"Test cricket is the highest and most traditional form of cricket, and it has a long and rich history dating back to the late 19th century. It is considered the ultimate test of a cricketer's skills and endurance, and it is played by the top international teams around the world. While the popularity of other forms of cricket, such as Twenty20 (T20), has increased in recent years, Test cricket remains an important and integral part of the sport.
There are many factors that suggest that Test cricket has a bright future. One of the main reasons is that it continues to attract a large and passionate fan base around the world, with many people enjoying the longer format of the game and the opportunity to see their favorite players and teams compete in a more challenging and nuanced environment. In addition, Test cricket is an important part of the cricketing calendar for many countries, and it is often used as a platform for developing the skills and talents of young cricketers.
However, it is also true that Test cricket faces some challenges in the modern era. The rise of T20 cricket has led to a proliferation of shorter, more fast-paced forms of the game, which have attracted younger audiences and bigger sponsorships. This has led to concerns about the future of Test cricket, with some suggesting that it may struggle to compete for attention and resources.
Overall, while Test cricket may face some challenges in the modern era, it remains an important and beloved part of the sport, and it is likely to continue to be enjoyed by fans and players around the world for many years to come."
[Edit - and therefore will be less frequent as suggested above].
They need to be careful next year mind. We usually go to three or four days over the year but the prices around the Ashes are silly and we may just not. They might find they have gaps in the crowd.
Over a week of >£30 per day on the smart meter here. The sooner that ends the better.
Tapestry is a decent analogy in the arts. Once a primary means of visual display - elaborate, expensive, beautiful, a bit boring, time consuming. Now almost obsolete - but not quite
https://www.hinesofoxford.com/custom-tapestries-from-hines-of-oxford
In the future Tests will be rare, cherished, bespoke events. The Ashes will survive and maybe thrive. The branding is too good
T20 will become the default version of the sport. I dunno about ODIs
Also, with the death of the 50 over cup at county level no Englishman is going to be experienced in it.
I think of it this way. T20 you can make no mistakes. 50 overs you can recover one mistake. In the five day game, you can recover from being destroyed on day one if you’re good.
T20 is going to be huge - or even huger. I can see it expanding worldwide through the massive south Asian diaspora. It’s like football in its beguiling simplicity. And, like football, any size of person can aspire to play it quite well - a tubby small boy can be a brilliant spinner
Though it is T20 that is most attractive to young people and families (including family zones) and in the subcontinent now yes
Also - space.
England to be five down by the close?
The last thing I want is for them to abjectly fail to and to face an ultra-radical insurgent left-wing party in the offing that threatens to blow up everyone's assets (homes/pensions) and the economic foundations of the country.
I have no dog in this fight, but notice that there is quite a lot of public funding for health care in this country. Is it conceivable that the NHS in its many branches runs some of it less well than it should?
It seems to me that funding should be a matter for the voter and tax payer (ie elected government) and the rest should be a matter for medical judgement without political help. What do politicians know about sore throats and complex cancers?
Maybe we should ask whether the Department of Health should be the same size as the Department of Supermarkets.
It's striking that while the pitches have been rubbish the matches themselves have actually been pretty entertaining.
Chat G.P.T. c Taz b Pointer 0
Even if Labour fails to get most 25 to 40 year olds on the property ladder, most over 40s still own property and voted Conservative in 2019 to keep out Corbyn.
In any case the cycle means it is more likely the Conservatives move to the populist nationalist right in opposition if Sunak leads the Tories to defeat given Labour under Starmer will be a relatively centrist government than the reverse.
Labour and the left have had their populist fun under Corbyn, Abbott and McConnell now it is rightwingers turn with Badenoch, Braverman and Rees Mogg
Monied OAPs and their expectant heirs are an enormous constituency that also shows a greater tendency to bother to vote than the young. In all likelihood, Labour will kneel and suck pensioner dick just like the Tories, which means property gets left well alone, the triple lock remains in place to boot, and workers are bled dry to pay for everything. It's called a gerontocracy, and it's why this country is completely and irretrievably fucked.
If you're young and ambitious, your best option is to emigrate as soon as possible.
They had had little or no serious medical facilities, and would have been manned by anyone they could find with first aid knowledge.
Better that the alternatives - but not by an enormous margin
Property ownership is still the key asset for most Europeans, Americans, Canadians, Australians and Kiwis.
That is just western capitalism, it delivers big incomes for the elite 1%, slightly smaller rises for the top 10%, barely above inflation rises, now below inflation rises, for everyone else. With a few exceptions like BT and Rolls Royce