It seems almost churlish to mention it at this precise moment in time. England have, after all, just recorded what is probably their finest ever result.
But while the performances of the England team at this tournament have been obviously impressive, questions have been asked about the ethnic make-up of this team. The England team that started the Norway match was entirely white. This was the same against Austria, with all three of the substitutes introduced during that match also Caucasian. But why should this be, and what can be done about it?
One problem that has been identified for young players in the women’s game has been the relocation of training facilities in recent years, increasingly to suburban or rural areas. This makes access difficult for players from less well-off areas, where families might not have the capacity to make either time or financial commitments to get girls training and playing in the first place. In the men’s game, the overwhelming majority of black players have come from urban areas, particularly in big cities. Women’s football has become a ‘middle-class’ sport, and that demographic is, well, whiter.
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
Winston Churchill truly loved the House of Commons. Boris Johnson? Not so much.
Quite appropriate - given WSC's origins - it takes an American to remind us .
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
I would have thought he'd be a bit too busy on the speeches and books front to regularly speak in the Commons.
If Truss was in the Final she could not win as either Sunak or Mordaunt would beat her very easily amongst MPs.
So Truss will have the support of well under 50% of MPs - which means MPs can remove her by no confidencing her.
OK, they will have to give her a reasonable chance but there is time. They give her 12 months - she'll be miles behind in the polls - and then they no confidence her - which will be certain to succeed.
A new leader is then elected this time next year.
Yes, that is Boris's dream comeback scenario. After a year of chaos under its new leader, a desperate party reaches out to its saviour.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
I would have thought he'd be a bit too busy on the speeches and books front to regularly speak in the Commons.
Chiltern Hundreds for sure.
Boris will hang around for £80,000 a year plus expenses, and to see if he is called back. I doubt he will contest the next general election, but then I always thought Boris planned to retire before then anyway, which might explain his apparently calm reaction; disappointed but not depressed to be out a year or so earlier than planned.
If Truss was in the Final she could not win as either Sunak or Mordaunt would beat her very easily amongst MPs.
So Truss will have the support of well under 50% of MPs - which means MPs can remove her by no confidencing her.
OK, they will have to give her a reasonable chance but there is time. They give her 12 months - she'll be miles behind in the polls - and then they no confidence her - which will be certain to succeed.
A new leader is then elected this time next year.
Yes, that is Boris's dream comeback scenario. After a year of chaos under its new leader, a desperate party reaches out to its saviour.
Its likely all down to the flavour of Kemis backers.if they break for Truss heavily Mordaunt could get squeezed out here. Jesus, anyone but Truss from that 5
PM Truss will make Boris look like a bleeding heart liberal, it would be a Cabinet dominated by the ERG, she would be the puppet of Francois, IDS and Rees Mogg and Steve Baker as they would be the ones who got her the leadership
Absolutely right which is why I’m terrified that she might win. The Tories would deserve annihilation at the election.
She's the female IDS.
She’d get to fight an election though. She’d utterly flame out but she’d fight it.
Nah, she's get VONCed next autumn.
Anyone know what the rules are there?
In practice, any party VOMCing a newly-elected leader would look pretty desperate.
But is there any formal equivalent of the 12 month immunity (unless you really hack off the '22) a leader gets from winning a VONC?
They could always save time on an election by simply VONCing the candidates before they start.
Perfect. All we need now is for Sir Arthur Sullivan to set it to music.
It seems almost churlish to mention it at this precise moment in time. England have, after all, just recorded what is probably their finest ever result.
But while the performances of the England team at this tournament have been obviously impressive, questions have been asked about the ethnic make-up of this team. The England team that started the Norway match was entirely white. This was the same against Austria, with all three of the substitutes introduced during that match also Caucasian. But why should this be, and what can be done about it?
One problem that has been identified for young players in the women’s game has been the relocation of training facilities in recent years, increasingly to suburban or rural areas. This makes access difficult for players from less well-off areas, where families might not have the capacity to make either time or financial commitments to get girls training and playing in the first place. In the men’s game, the overwhelming majority of black players have come from urban areas, particularly in big cities. Women’s football has become a ‘middle-class’ sport, and that demographic is, well, whiter.
I'm watching the France Belgium match at the momnet (it's half time). The France team is alost the opposite. All but a few players have black/brown skin and come from a variety of backgrounds.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
Its likely all down to the flavour of Kemis backers.if they break for Truss heavily Mordaunt could get squeezed out here. Jesus, anyone but Truss from that 5
PM Truss will make Boris look like a bleeding heart liberal, it would be a Cabinet dominated by the ERG, she would be the puppet of Francois, IDS and Rees Mogg and Steve Baker as they would be the ones who got her the leadership
Absolutely right which is why I’m terrified that she might win. The Tories would deserve annihilation at the election.
She's the female IDS.
She’d get to fight an election though. She’d utterly flame out but she’d fight it.
Nah, she's get VONCed next autumn.
Anyone know what the rules are there?
In practice, any party VOMCing a newly-elected leader would look pretty desperate.
But is there any formal equivalent of the 12 month immunity (unless you really hack off the '22) a leader gets from winning a VONC?
They could always save time on an election by simply VONCing the candidates before they start.
That does raise a question of whether they are using the right voting system to select candidates to put before the members. The present system means that an MP with one-third support among MPs is guaranteed to reach the membership, even if strongly opposed by the other two-thirds of their Parliamentary colleagues. Perhaps it's more important that the candidates who make the final two are tolerated by a majority of their colleagues, then that they have a smaller core of more fervent support?
Perhaps if the voting was done in reality TV show style - vote for the candidate you want to evict from the contest - in each round, then you'd end up with the final two candidates having the best chance of having wide support amongst their colleagues.
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
I would have thought he'd be a bit too busy on the speeches and books front to regularly speak in the Commons.
It seems almost churlish to mention it at this precise moment in time. England have, after all, just recorded what is probably their finest ever result.
But while the performances of the England team at this tournament have been obviously impressive, questions have been asked about the ethnic make-up of this team. The England team that started the Norway match was entirely white. This was the same against Austria, with all three of the substitutes introduced during that match also Caucasian. But why should this be, and what can be done about it?
One problem that has been identified for young players in the women’s game has been the relocation of training facilities in recent years, increasingly to suburban or rural areas. This makes access difficult for players from less well-off areas, where families might not have the capacity to make either time or financial commitments to get girls training and playing in the first place. In the men’s game, the overwhelming majority of black players have come from urban areas, particularly in big cities. Women’s football has become a ‘middle-class’ sport, and that demographic is, well, whiter.
I'm watching the France Belgium match at the momnet (it's half time). The France team is alost the opposite. All but a few players have black/brown skin and come from a variety of backgrounds.
Yes, the piece mentions that, but Belgium - which has a lot of non-white male footballers like England - doesn’t have many non-white women in their squad. Same for Germany apparently.
It seems almost churlish to mention it at this precise moment in time. England have, after all, just recorded what is probably their finest ever result.
But while the performances of the England team at this tournament have been obviously impressive, questions have been asked about the ethnic make-up of this team. The England team that started the Norway match was entirely white. This was the same against Austria, with all three of the substitutes introduced during that match also Caucasian. But why should this be, and what can be done about it?
One problem that has been identified for young players in the women’s game has been the relocation of training facilities in recent years, increasingly to suburban or rural areas. This makes access difficult for players from less well-off areas, where families might not have the capacity to make either time or financial commitments to get girls training and playing in the first place. In the men’s game, the overwhelming majority of black players have come from urban areas, particularly in big cities. Women’s football has become a ‘middle-class’ sport, and that demographic is, well, whiter.
Wiegman is the brutally efficient and ruthless manager that they needed. In naming her squad she dropped Houghton despite 8 years as captain.
There are plenty of black players in the Women's premiership, so I am not convinced by the argument.
Seems to be Stop Penny time. If they want a clean break then stopping the candidate whose first instinct isn't to be truthful makes some sense, I guess. Don't really get the visceral anti-Truss sentiment tbh. Sure she's a poor speaker.
For me it is partly the individual but partly the circumstances of this election.
If Truss was winning the same proportion of MPs as May or Boris were in their elections, demonstrating that she had the party behind her, then I may have been prepared to give her a fair hearing. She is a bad public speaker and has an awkward presence but I do think a lot of the criticism of her is overblown re her performance in government.
The problem comes from the fact that she is essentially now running as the candidate of the ERG and the Boris die hards. If she wins she will owe her position to a deeply unpleasant set of individuals who will extract their pieces of silver and will dominate her government. We have to hope that does not happen.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
You're right. We should call it Kick Frog Arse Station.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
I would have thought he'd be a bit too busy on the speeches and books front to regularly speak in the Commons.
Chiltern Hundreds for sure.
Boris will hang around for £80,000 a year plus expenses, and to see if he is called back. I doubt he will contest the next general election, but then I always thought Boris planned to retire before then anyway, which might explain his apparently calm reaction; disappointed but not depressed to be out a year or so earlier than planned.
Of course he's now free to rake in a huge Spectator/Telegraph fees for dashing out regular bullshit.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
It would be a bit of a snub to the Belgians to change the name from Waterloo now.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
So Suella is out and the momentum continues to be with Mordaunt who picked up the most extra support in terms of new MPs backing since the first round.
However some suspicion she is too woke, not only from Cyclefree it seems but also Toby Young
If only Cyclefree and Toby Young were at the leading edge of the zeitgeist?
It's her honesty I have a major issue with. Not her "wokeness" whatever the hell that means. I regard myself as socially liberal.
But lying and untrustworthiness: no - that's not on for me. Also I dislike PR bullshit and spin. The city is full of bullshit merchants. Some solid quiet achievement beats that any day of the week.
Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot · 2h Boris Johnson is planning a farewell party at Chequers this weekend - but he wants to stick on the backbenches for now.
Allies suggest he will ask tricky questions on Ukraine, levelling up and NI protocol bill, the three things he fears could slip
Oh please. The idea he will even bother turning up regularly is for the birds.
I don't see why not. He'd see it as his Churchill in the wilderness period and find some issue to give portentous speeches about from the backbenches.
I would have thought he'd be a bit too busy on the speeches and books front to regularly speak in the Commons.
Chiltern Hundreds for sure.
BJ also has option of retaining his seat, but almost never showing up. Except when it suits him.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
So Suella is out and the momentum continues to be with Mordaunt who picked up the most extra support in terms of new MPs backing since the first round.
However some suspicion she is too woke, not only from Cyclefree it seems but also Toby Young
If only Cyclefree and Toby Young were at the leading edge of the zeitgeist?
It's her honesty I have a major issue with. Not her "wokeness" whatever the hell that means. I regard myself as socially liberal.
But lying and untrustworthiness: no - that's not on for me. Also I dislike PR bullshit and spin. The city is full of bullshit merchants. Some solid quiet achievement beats that any day of the week.
If it's down to Sunak or Truss (which could be likely if the ERG/right of the party is starting to unite behind Truss) then we will have a Labour government in 2024. I don't see the Conservatives staying in power.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
You're right. We should call it Kick Frog Arse Station.
Belle Alliance Station would be more historically accurate than current moniker.
As was pointed out to the Duke of Wellington at the time, by some pesky foreigner?
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Yes, the system of telephone triage works well for urgent things.
Also yesterday's GDP figures* included a significant increase in GP visits, so clearly some people are being seen.
*I am not sure how this affects GDP. GP pay is a complex package but pay per visit isn't part of it.
The UK, as a new experiment, tries to measure the public sector's contribution to GDP by output (work done), rather than input (salaries paid). Almost every other country just measures the input. This is supposedly the explanation for our covid GDP fall-and-rise being steeper than other countries (though healthcare output in particular would have been high during the pandemic, other things would have been much, much lower).
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
The Tory leadership election is going to get blown away, as a news item, by the hot air of the scorchio weather
We are now firmly into plausible prediction territory - Monday is 4 days away and some models are predicting 40C in.... MANCHESTER
The overnight minima are equally amazing - 26C in some places. If you don't have aircon that is going to be horrid/dangerous
There is still a reasonable chance the worst won't happen. But with each hour that passes and no substantial variation in the predictions, that becomes less likely. Brace
You should come up to the Lakes my darling. The weather is gloriously pleasant: sunny but comfortable.
I did not realise that the TiT slogan was a spoof. Apologies. I wrote this at 5 am as I did not sleep last night and only updated this evening. Have been out all day.
I am allergic to liars, I'm afraid. Penny did not impress me during the referendum campaign and nothing I have seen since has changed my mind.
But, tbh, none of them are really talking about the stuff that matters to voters.
Is that because you would prefer a Starmer administration?
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
I had a similar experience to @theProle last year, for a lump on my tongue - superb, rapid treatment, right in the middle of covid. Can't fault it.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
I had a similar experience to @theProle last year, for a lump on my tongue - superb, rapid treatment, right in the middle of covid. Can't fault it.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
You're right. We should call it Kick Frog Arse Station.
Belle Alliance Station would be more historically accurate than current moniker.
As was pointed out to the Duke of Wellington at the time, by some pesky foreigner?
You cannot have a terminus station with 'Belle' in it.
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
Same from me. Had surgery in December and still getting great, regular physiotherapy on the NHS. Back swimming, and up to 5 press ups now! (from a pre-op 40ish).
Police spotted a close pass on my bike outside Holyrood Palace. Driver pulled over, cops phoned me up afterwards informing me the driver had been fined and given 6 points. Lovely stuff.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
You're right. We should call it Kick Frog Arse Station.
Belle Alliance Station would be more historically accurate than current moniker.
As was pointed out to the Duke of Wellington at the time, by some pesky foreigner?
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Yes, the system of telephone triage works well for urgent things.
Also yesterday's GDP figures* included a significant increase in GP visits, so clearly some people are being seen.
*I am not sure how this affects GDP. GP pay is a complex package but pay per visit isn't part of it.
It's quite random based on local anecdata. Guy I work with who stays in the posh bit of town - phoned his GP three times over the past few months for just general 'feeling a bit funny' stuff and got an in-person appointment within 24hrs each time.
I had to phone my GP to sort a repeat prescription in a very much not-posh part of town and after three days of engaged-tone/no-tone/nothing (roughly 30 calls) got through to a receptionist who told me they only do same-day appointments and I had to call back the next day at 8.30am. Which was another 10 calls in the morning before I got through.
My GP was very helpful when I got eventually got an appointment (over the phone) but it was also very clear that it would be really helpful if I just got off the call ASAP.
Clearly demand-led pressure. But possibly another indicator of the increase of the increase that covid-times is bringing to inequalities in health outcomes between rich and poor.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
More precisely Battle, no?
Well, there's a Battle station too but, no, it wasn't the Battle of Battle.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
More precisely Battle, no?
Well, there's a Battle station too but, no, it wasn't the Battle of Battle.
It was *the* Battle. Don't need any further qualification. If you trhink how many of the current aristocracy and royalty claim their legitimacy, not to mention the C of E, directly or indirectly ...
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
As for Poitiers...
I guess renaming Gare du Nord "When I am dead and opened, you shall find Calais lying in my heart" is out of the question.
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
Sadly not always the case. On Tuesday I noticed an old lady had collapsed on the street. She was being looked after by four or five people while they waited for the ambulance. Four hours later she was still there, now with an umbrella providing shade, and a blanket and pillows. I think it is shameful that we have reached this situation. I know it’s been tough the last couple of years, and I’m sure Covid is responsible for a lot of the issues but still. I think the issue ultimately is about efficiency. Works well until there is a surge, when it breaks down. Hospital beds is the classic. If you always run at say 95% occupancy or more, when the pressure comes there is nowhere to go.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
Rename stations at random. Penge East could be 'Siege of Rouen Halt' 'Culloden' would be nice for Euston or King's Cross, and help make our Scots friends feel at home. South Greenford could be 'Brunanburh'.
The Tory leadership election is going to get blown away, as a news item, by the hot air of the scorchio weather
We are now firmly into plausible prediction territory - Monday is 4 days away and some models are predicting 40C in.... MANCHESTER
The overnight minima are equally amazing - 26C in some places. If you don't have aircon that is going to be horrid/dangerous
There is still a reasonable chance the worst won't happen. But with each hour that passes and no substantial variation in the predictions, that becomes less likely. Brace
You should come up to the Lakes my darling. The weather is gloriously pleasant: sunny but comfortable.
I did not realise that the TiT slogan was a spoof. Apologies. I wrote this at 5 am as I did not sleep last night and only updated this evening. Have been out all day.
I am allergic to liars, I'm afraid. Penny did not impress me during the referendum campaign and nothing I have seen since has changed my mind.
But, tbh, none of them are really talking about the stuff that matters to voters.
Is that because you would prefer a Starmer administration?
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
You're right. We should call it Kick Frog Arse Station.
Belle Alliance Station would be more historically accurate than current moniker.
As was pointed out to the Duke of Wellington at the time, by some pesky foreigner?
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
Sadly not always the case. On Tuesday I noticed an old lady had collapsed on the street. She was being looked after by four or five people while they waited for the ambulance. Four hours later she was still there, now with an umbrella providing shade, and a blanket and pillows. I think it is shameful that we have reached this situation. I know it’s been tough the last couple of years, and I’m sure Covid is responsible for a lot of the issues but still. I think the issue ultimately is about efficiency. Works well until there is a surge, when it breaks down. Hospital beds is the classic. If you always run at say 95% occupancy or more, when the pressure comes there is nowhere to go.
There was someone on Radio 4 earlier today talking about their elderly mother who tripped and fell on their patio, and waiting 8 hours for an ambulance, then having to spend over 10 hours waiting in the ambulance at the hospital. Insane.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
I always enjoy a piece by Cyclefree, even more so when it comes from the high ground and we should always expect better of our politicians.
The reality is that few will cast their ballot in the expectation that their candidate is a paragon of virtue, more that we chose the least worst and hope for more.
Competence would be a start, let alone virtue. As mentioned on Spectator TV and elsewhere, whoever wins will be leading a country where prices are rocketing, there may be fuel shortages, no-one can see their doctor and muggers and murderers roam our streets untroubled by the constabulary. The government will need to establish it can get things done, now that firefighting Covid has disappeared as an excuse.
None of the candidates so far seems to be addressing this, aside from fairytale tax cuts.
On the "no-one can see a doctor" thing... A couple of weeks ago I felt a lump on one of my testicles. Rang my GP's surgery about 3pm. Could I come in for 4pm that afternoon? I did. Doctor saw me on time, pronounced it was probably a cyst rather than anything more serious, but wanted to get the ultrasound people to take a quick look just in case, also wanted to do some blood tests. Blood tests booked for the following Monday (this was a Thursday), Ultrasound booked for today (I.e. two weeks).
Upshot is that two weeks from the initial phone call I've had a consultation, tests and an all clear. (I'll probably have a phone call with the doctor when he gets the results back, but the ultrasound operator was pretty clear it is just a cyst). Oh, and all done in my local town (pop approx 25k).
Now, clearly my experiences aren't universal, but as someone who hadn't seen a doctor for years, and had got the impression from the media that the whole system was on the brink of collapse, I was quite pleasantly surprised by how uncollapsed at least my local bit of it seems to be.
Similar story last month when I got knocked off my bike. One of the bystanders called 999 and the paramedic arrived within three minutes and the ambulance five minutes after that. I felt like a bit of a fraud since I was pretty sure I was fine but they weren't having any of my "I'm pretty sure I can get myself to A&E" shtick. Amazingly, two traffic coppers turned up within 20 minutes of the crash to take my statement from the back of the ambulance, and I got a call back within a couple of days from one of them ("I would have called you yesterday if your injuries had been more serious" suggested they were considering further action against the driver which I really didn't want).
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
Same from me. Had surgery in December and still getting great, regular physiotherapy on the NHS. Back swimming, and up to 5 press ups now! (from a pre-op 40ish).
Police spotted a close pass on my bike outside Holyrood Palace. Driver pulled over, cops phoned me up afterwards informing me the driver had been fined and given 6 points. Lovely stuff.
Otoh, my GP de-registered me after I got my clips out back home in the Highlands over Christmas. This was despite numerous calls trying to make sure this wouldn't happen.
Apparently I have to book a 3 hour slot to re-register in person. Don't really understand how someone on shift work deals with that. I can't be fucked, I'll just turn up if I need an appointment and point out the mistake they made.
I think actual front line services (GPs, ambulance, A & E) are where the real issues are. Pharmacies are much better for sorting out quick issues (especially skin stuff).
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
More precisely Battle, no?
It might rattle the people of Battle, but it's not known exactly where the Battle of Battle was battled. Battle claims the mantle, but the geography around Battle doesn't quite match descriptions of the battle. Battles over the proper title of Battle's battle have rattled on and the knotty matter will not be settled.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
Rename stations at random. Penge East could be 'Siege of Rouen Halt' 'Culloden' would be nice for Euston or King's Cross, and help make our Scots friends feel at home. South Greenford could be 'Brunanburh'.
Little known fact about Mordaunt, she was George W Bush's head of foreign press in the 2000 presidential election and also worked for the Bush campaign in 2004. She was also John Major's Head of Youth
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
And Blenheim.
Tbf there's a Hastings Station, and we lost that one.
More precisely Battle, no?
It might rattle the people of Battle, but it's not know precisely where the Battle of Battle was battled. Battle claims the mantle, but the geography around Battle doesn't quite match descriptions of the battle. Battles over the proper title of Battle's battle have rattled on and the knotty matter will not be settled.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
Rename stations at random. Penge East could be 'Siege of Rouen Halt' 'Culloden' would be nice for Euston or King's Cross, and help make our Scots friends feel at home. South Greenford could be 'Brunanburh'.
I am so sorry for all those offended by adverts at Waterloo Station that Kemi won’t be winning
Yet they are quite happy to cause permanent offence to our second closest international neighbours by continuing to call it Waterloo. Bit selective on the offence front methinks.
We should rename all our terminals: Waterloo, Agincourt, Crecy, and Treaty of Troyes.
How could you forget Picquigny and Trafalgar?
Rename stations at random. Penge East could be 'Siege of Rouen Halt' 'Culloden' would be nice for Euston or King's Cross, and help make our Scots friends feel at home. South Greenford could be 'Brunanburh'.
If we named one Blucher do you think it would make the trains turn up unexpectedly in the nick of time?
Comments
https://www.football365.com/news/opinion-england-are-superb-all-white-reasons-why-should-fixed
It seems almost churlish to mention it at this precise moment in time. England have, after all, just recorded what is probably their finest ever result.
But while the performances of the England team at this tournament have been obviously impressive, questions have been asked about the ethnic make-up of this team. The England team that started the Norway match was entirely white. This was the same against Austria, with all three of the substitutes introduced during that match also Caucasian. But why should this be, and what can be done about it?
One problem that has been identified for young players in the women’s game has been the relocation of training facilities in recent years, increasingly to suburban or rural areas. This makes access difficult for players from less well-off areas, where families might not have the capacity to make either time or financial commitments to get girls training and playing in the first place. In the men’s game, the overwhelming majority of black players have come from urban areas, particularly in big cities. Women’s football has become a ‘middle-class’ sport, and that demographic is, well, whiter.
Mind, Tug-End should withdraw before Monday. Yes, he wants to be in the TV debates, but that shouldn't stop him pulling out ahead of the vote.
Badenough needed the endorsement from Ravingmad to stand a chance, but now she is nailed on for fourth.
She isn't going to make it. It's a massive mistake by the Tories, but she isn't.
Perhaps if the voting was done in reality TV show style - vote for the candidate you want to evict from the contest - in each round, then you'd end up with the final two candidates having the best chance of having wide support amongst their colleagues.
BREAKING NEWS: Ivana Trump dies aged 73 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11015223/Ivana-Trump-dies-aged-73.html?ito=native_share_article-top
There are plenty of black players in the Women's premiership, so I am not convinced by the argument.
If Truss was winning the same proportion of MPs as May or Boris were in their elections, demonstrating that she had the party behind her, then I may have been prepared to give her a fair hearing. She is a bad public speaker and has an awkward presence but I do think a lot of the criticism of her is overblown re her performance in government.
The problem comes from the fact that she is essentially now running as the candidate of the ERG and the Boris die hards. If she wins she will owe her position to a deeply unpleasant set of individuals who will extract their pieces of silver and will dominate her government. We have to hope that does not happen.
I know the system is strained as hell but I got really lucky.
But lying and untrustworthiness: no - that's not on for me. Also I dislike PR bullshit and spin. The city is full of bullshit merchants. Some solid quiet achievement beats that any day of the week.
By the way, here's a tough cookie:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5IXIYuHobk
As was pointed out to the Duke of Wellington at the time, by some pesky foreigner?
"No to Truss", they exclaimed in unison.
https://youtu.be/2wxf-bXqS5s
I am politically homeless.
Otherwise everyone gets off at Belle's End.
Police spotted a close pass on my bike outside Holyrood Palace. Driver pulled over, cops phoned me up afterwards informing me the driver had been fined and given 6 points. Lovely stuff.
I had to phone my GP to sort a repeat prescription in a very much not-posh part of town and after three days of engaged-tone/no-tone/nothing (roughly 30 calls) got through to a receptionist who told me they only do same-day appointments and I had to call back the next day at 8.30am. Which was another 10 calls in the morning before I got through.
My GP was very helpful when I got eventually got an appointment (over the phone) but it was also very clear that it would be really helpful if I just got off the call ASAP.
Clearly demand-led pressure. But possibly another indicator of the increase of the increase that covid-times is bringing to inequalities in health outcomes between rich and poor.
I think it is shameful that we have reached this situation. I know it’s been tough the last couple of years, and I’m sure Covid is responsible for a lot of the issues but still.
I think the issue ultimately is about efficiency. Works well until there is a surge, when it breaks down. Hospital beds is the classic. If you always run at say 95% occupancy or more, when the pressure comes there is nowhere to go.
'Culloden' would be nice for Euston or King's Cross, and help make our Scots friends feel at home. South Greenford could be 'Brunanburh'.
https://twitter.com/jolenebuntinguk/status/1547608121136140292?s=20&t=pzxfdkBCyo8O51w9OKLDzw
He tells The Daily Telegraph: “Suella has my complete loyalty. What she has decided, I will support."
#ToryLeadershipRace
https://twitter.com/christopherhope/status/1547678893691113474
https://twitter.com/Benlunn/status/1547142175066046466
Apparently I have to book a 3 hour slot to re-register in person. Don't really understand how someone on shift work deals with that. I can't be fucked, I'll just turn up if I need an appointment and point out the mistake they made.
I think actual front line services (GPs, ambulance, A & E) are where the real issues are. Pharmacies are much better for sorting out quick issues (especially skin stuff).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2TCNLtLItk
I probably don’t want to know.
Just imagine if he comes out and torpedoes Rishi as as a Putin appeaser.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Mordaunt
I just wonder what tasty scandal is being held back for the right moment.