Tittle, tattle I know but I couldn’t resist it.

Apparently Gordon Brown is a fan of the Bee Gees, the BBC reports HERE as does Sky News. Media bloggers have responded with jokey references to some of the Bee Gee’s song titles; this one amused me:

“I’ve gotta get a message to Crewe”, by Andrew Porter in the Daily Telegraph

The first photo quiz was a tough one. I guess most readers will have answered correctly about the what it is, but doubt many will have known the where it is.

What is it: It’s a military boundary marker, used to define the limits of military land. This type of marker is made of concrete, cast in moulds, allowing each to be impressed with its own unique number, as well as the letters W and D, for War Department, flanking an upward pointing arrow.

A brief history of the War Department; in February 1855 the offices of the Secretary of State for War, and Secretary at War were merged and became the War Department until in 1857 when it became the War Office. The use of WD signified that the War Office was a Department of State. In 1964 it joined the other military departments and was renamed as the Ministry of Defence.

Where is it:It’s at the side of the path at the junction of Colony Bog and Brentmoor Heath near the cattle grid and gate adjacent to the fence of the Bisley Ranges. It can be approached by turning left at the kissing gate on Red Road just up from the junction with Briar Avenue.

Happy? The next one will be easier.

Surrey Heath MP, Michael Gove’s, article Opportunity should knock, not be blocked in today’s Daily Telegraph is a good read.

Not only does it reference the current woes of Gordon Brown and Labour, but more importantly points up some of the Conservative policy directions, and surprising they are. For example, near the end of his excellent article, Michael says:

“There are any number of reasons why I believe the sooner we have a Conservative government the better - from ensuring proper economic management, to protecting NHS professionals from meddling - but the most crucial is the need to restore dynamic, reforming, energy to the drive for greater social justice.”

Did you spot it? Yes, of course you did. It’s the reference to “the drive for greater social justice”. This is Labour territory that I’d surmised a while back, HERE and HERE, that had been vacated by Labour and now taken over by Tories.

For any party to lose their strongest message and supposed core value to the political opposition spells ruin and damnation.

This Tory attack spells the end of Labour. Who’d have thought it, when not so long ago Labour ministers were openly saying the wanted to “kill off of the Conservatives”.

A new feature for this blog is a Photo Quiz to test your knowledge of Lightwater and Surrey Heath. It’ll hopefully provide amusement, entertainment, and information.

The first one comes into the information category. Though tempted to give a clue, I’ve decided against it to make especially taxing. This one’s a two-part question. What is it, and impossibly difficult, where can it be seen?

Answer after 5.0pm today.

 

“Changing places” is the title of an article by Professors Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher, in the First* monthly magazine, on the changes to the balance of power in local councils following May’s local government elections.

This revealing table appeared in the article:

The article contains other election results facts, but none as succinct as this table.

*First is published by the Local Government Association and sent to every councillor.

Last night, at our Annual Council Meeting, Bagshot Parish Councillors invited me to attend the festival in Bagshot Village centre on Saturday 17th May. Of course I’ll be there, especially as they said they’d be holding an exhibition on the Bagshot Village Plan, which has cross-party support, in Brook Church.

The Courier  this week carries an article on the event, including comments from local councillors. I particularly noticed this from Cllr Alastair Graham,

“We are really trying to make Bagshot a bit more vibrant. At the moment it really is very sad that there just aren’t enough shops here. We have had one scare with the post office, no doubt there’ll be another one if we are not careful.”

“We are going to try to do what they do on the continent where every village has their own festival.”

“My fear is that Bagshot has been losing out to Lightwater for many years. With the new houses that are going in at Notcutts ….. there’ll be more people who’ll be need to do their shopping locally. It’s important we plan for it.”

Well done Alastair, I know you’ll be putting your energy into bringing back a buzz to Bagshot. You’ve said to me previously that as a Bagshot resident for 50 years you’ve seen a lot of change in Bagshot, and have seen the relative strenghts of Lightwater and Bagshot cahnge over the years.

I’m pleased that Lightwater’s efforts at making itself attractive for shoppers is the standard to which you’d like to aspire.

Lightwater is lucky to have the excellent Lightwater Village website and an active Lightwater Business Association, whose activities provide the hanging flower baskets in the village that are appreciated by Lightwater residents.

I’ll have to re-double my efforts now on my Ten Ideas to Make Lightwater a Better Place.

The political campaign run by Labour at the Crewe and Nantwich byelection seems driven by desperation. I call it the politics of perdition; when you’re facing political ruin then political integrity is jettisoned to keep the party afloat.

The Labour campaign appears disasteful from all accounts.

Here are some of the things being said and being reported upon.

• John Harris in today’s Guardian takes a very dim view of Labour’s tactics.
• If you want to know about what John Harris is talking about, take a look HERE.
• A local blogger - Crewe.tv - provides interesting commentary from a local perspective.
• The ever excellent Sky News is teaming up with the Crewe blog to cover the election.
• Greg Hands MP sees Gordon Brown’s fingerprints in the grubby campaign.
• Benedict Brogan reckons that Tory MP Eric Pickles has the better byelection strategy.
• Even Iain Dale is keen to visit and share in the byelection fever.

 

Not long to wait now. I think I said earlier HERE, that the Tory would be a shoe-in. The reality is I’m not so sure, maybe I should join in those going up there to canvass.

Question Time tonight should be fun, though I’ll be trying to give This Week, that follows, a miss as Portaloo is out of favour with me big time.

UPDATE: Reporting on this byelection is hot, hot, hot. See here also:

• Daily Telegraph  byelection coverage and MP’s struggle to get to Crewe.

 

UPDATE 2: THE REASON FOR THE PANIC: This quote, in The Times from a former Labour minister and friend of Gordon Brown, gives the reason for the desperation in Labour’s tactics.

“If we lose Crewe then I think a few of us will be telling him to think about quitting,”

Appearing on the breakfast table is a new jar of honey, and surprise, surprise, yet again it’s local Lightwater honey.

Not Ian Davidson’s Surrey Honey this time, but Hill’s Honey from Broadway Road, Lightwater. My wife says she knows the maker and confirms that the hives are in Lightwater and Windlesham.

With pressure on us all, as consumers, to think about the localness of the food we buy, it’s terrific to know that some of our food is quite so local as Lightwater.

 

Readers will know of my fondness for chains of office, described HERE and HERE. They’re the embodiment of civic duty and continuity.

So it was a pleasure to attend my second of Surrey Heath Borough Council’s Annual Meeting of the Council.

There’s not a lot of business to transact at the meeting. It’s all about the formalities of electing a Mayor, Deputy Mayor, chairmen and vice-chairmen of the Council’s commitee’s.

Lot’s of nice things were said about our past Mayor - Cllr Mrs Pat Pearce, new Mayor - Cllr Alan Whittart and Deputy Mayor - Cllr Craig Fennell, all in front of friends, family and interested borough residents. Plenty of smiling faces.

My phone camera was used to take the following pictures, but failed to capture one’s of me with the Deputy Mayor. Grrrr! Time for a new phone. The pictures are of me with our new Mayor before his election and one of his being enrobed with the civic regalia.

 

 

Others wiser than I have and will comment in full about todays’ PMQ’s and the Queen’s Speech proposals. Try Fraser Nelson and Benedict Brogan.

There’s one point that came early on in the Queens Speech proposals that surprises. It’s the one on housing - so spectacularly exposed in part yesterday by the Housing Minister. It follows what Gordon Brown said here in answer to David Cameron in the preceding PMQ’s:

“Mr. David Cameron(Witney) (Con): Yesterday, it was revealed that in private the Housing Minister told the Cabinet that house prices would fall by up to 10 per cent. this year, house building was stalling and further falls were predicted. Yet in public the same Minister said the housing market was strong. Does the Prime Minister agree that she was not being straight with people?”

The Prime Minister: It is because of the condition of the housing market that I will be announcing new measures in my statement after Question Time. The housing situation has deteriorated in the last few weeks, and we will be taking measures to protect first-time buyers and give them new opportunities, to take out stock that is not being bought so that housing associations and other authorities can buy it, and to help people who are facing repossession.”

Here are the PM’s words in his proposals for the Queens Speech:

“The Housing Minister is today announcing a £200 million fund, re-allocating money to purchase unsold new homes and then rent them to social tenants or make them available on a shared ownership basis; £100 million pounds for shared equity schemes to allow more first-time buyers to purchase newly built homes on the open market; and for the first time an offer of shared equity housing open to applications from all first-time buyers, subject to a household income limit.”

Now, given the average house price in the UK is £218,000; dividing that sum into the £200 million equals 917.

So much for government intervention. Labour help 917 people to buy a home.

Bloomberg have commented on this too.

In the Daily Politics programme, Ken Clarke made a telling comment about what first time buyers should do. Namely, wait 12 months before buying a home. Especially as the government, in the words of their Housing Minister, reckon house prices will fall by up to 10% in the coming year.

What a disaster.