Their comment that people vite conservative for lower taxes may be true for the circles they move in, for the rest of us (I have never ever voted for the bastards), I assume it was for economic competence, between them Johnson, Truss and Sunak have blown that fallacy out of the water. I have always disagreed with the fundamental tennants of conservatism, but the present government has been particularly notable for a couple of things. Their abject incompetence at every turn and perhaps even more damningly their refusal to accept that their extreme rhetoric may not be welcome by the majority of the public. People switched their votes to Labour, LibDems and Greens for myriad reasons – lower tax was not one of them! Dothey think they can con the British Public for a Third time?
AROUND THE WORLD
UK to send long range missiles to Ukraine, Russia says it will respond. I cannot comment objectively on this as I am not au fait with the situation – I just hope they know what they are doing! Truss off to stir the hornets nest in Taiwan. UK has launched a proposed ‘Pioneer Programme’ should talks with the EU fail – is this a bit like setting up your own football team after being expelled from the main leagues (pointless!).
PLANTING
I just put in 3 “Flame Lilies” – I hope they will end up in the porch. Tomato plants look to be doing ok – 6 transplanted so far – at least 4 more before I start giving them away. Seeds for latest tomatoes are looking good. Rosemary also planted out, marigolds tomorrow in the long trays. Sage still looks sad, thyme – some are doing ok though so fingers crossed. Basil amnd greek basil moved to kitchen.
Jam strawberries bought and I am just deciding how much lemon to put in! And may be some lemon balm?
MIGRATION
I just went to buy strawberries for jam making. Talking to the farmer he told me that he had sent his labour requirements to the agency as usual, but then the government shut the agency down. Having spent £££’s on plants he is unsure how the produce will be picked. No alternative has been offered.
Basically it comes down to the governments policy of halting immigration despite the shortage of workers. Apparently there are no English Turnips on the market this year. All this whilst the government is paying for a huge barge to house male migrants at great expense and prevent them form working. All because being anti-migrant is seen as a vote winner (not sure about that – local election results did not look good for the government – which also brings into doubt Bravermans plea to send through the illegal Illegal ‘Immigrants Bill’ as being the will of the people).
TOMATOES
6 potted up and 2 to go when they.get bigger. I might put another 4 in? Chillies looking good. Just planted out 2 rosemary in front of the ailing sage! I might get some more rosemary for along the road – smells good and looks good. I am waiting to see if lemon verbena survived. Left hand bed is – wait and see what comes up! Last year evening primrose and chickory were nice – I will keep the comfrey under control, and the garden mint night have seen off the oregano. I have marigolds to put out – in trays I think, and greek basil and ordinary to bring up to the kitchen window for the summer. Maybe a tray of dill in the greenhouse too?
I think I will plant some parsley and some nasturtium seeds and see what happens.
TRUMP
Found guilty of sexual abuse, fined $5 million and of course he denies it. Well he would because he has already boasted about grabbing a ladies fanny (I think that was the word housed). Like Johnson he does not think he lives in a world where laws apply to him. No doubt many Republicans will support his lies as he is well funded by the looney right wing, but surely his place in running for president is over? For the Republicans the problem is who to replace him with as he has slagged off most of his main contenders like DiSantis.
EL NINO
The science is not strong but it looks like El Nino will form. later this year and thus cause extreme weather events next year. Already we have seen drought in the Mediterranean area and record temperatures in Vietnam this week. These events have global impacts in a globalised world. Sensible governments would be prioritising local food production.
Related topic – Turkmenistan has methane emissions that impact on global warming greater than the whole of the UK (17th in the world rankings). these come from gas fields that are used to export the gas to China. More globalisation negative side effects. What is needed is the development of sustainable growth strategies rather than the growth at all costs strategy beloved by both left and right.
POLICE
With the coronation arrests the police seem to have hit a new low. A journalist arrested for filming soeone holding a stop oil banner. We know the police are institutionally racist and misogynistic, they have now shown themselves to be anti-democratic and a tool of the establishment. No wonder they do not catch criminals nowadays! Presumably the orders came from above? The Home Secretary of the Mayor of London. I know who i suspect!
In my local shop the manager was asked if the police could review his CCTV as there had been a break in recently, he asked why they were following up on this when they did nothing when his shop was broken into – the reply was basically that they have had bad publicity recently and need to look. like they are doing something! They issued 95093 speeding tickets in 2022 – How many were actually speeding, as opposed to exceeding the speed limit (by this I mean doing 40mph on a straight road at 3am with no traffic around in a 30mph area – do they get bored avoiding proper policing?
Did they arrest anyone for littering? I suspect not, but it is an offence?
ELECTION THOUGHTS
It would seem that the anti-tory vote is coalescing into unofficial compacts. This is not good news for either of the 2 main parties. It does mean that the resurgance of the LDems may put then back into a strong place in Parliament. Scotland did not vote but I wonder of Labour will regain its position there? The SNP are reorganising and a fresh approach may well see them do better than some are predicting. In Wales it is likely that Labour will regain some of the areas it lost, Plaid Cymru do not seem to be catching the imagination of the Welsh.
ELECTION ANALYSIS BY ME
The basics are: a disaster for the Cons; good for Lab; very good for LDems and Greens.
But how does this equate to a General Election? And how will it affect the Government?
The GE is still presumably a year or more away. Projections suggest that Labour will not get a clear majority so Starmer has work to do. His attempts to appease the centre ground of the public do not seem to be working in the “blue” areas – Lib Dem and Greens may be able to consoldidate a local election triumph and gain seats here. Whilst there is some progress in the “Red wall” seats, it was not great, there is a great deal of fudge arouhnd Starmer (what exactly is his stance on Europe, on tuition fees, on migration, etc.). The time has come for Labour to set out their agenda (and LibD and Green). I suspect the Greens will take many of the ideological left which he purged and which leaves him with a problem – how to get them back! Local votes do not equate perfectly into GE results with. many reverting to their traditional vote when the media get to work! However we should see the Tories lose power, albeit to a coalition. Coalitions may become a thing of the future as factions of both the left and right polarise. Would the greens and LibDems enter into a coalition without PR? I guess that depends on the relative strength of the parties. Would it need a referendum? Could it be roled out piecemeal i.e. If Scotland or the South-West voted for it they could have it?