Scotland moves forward on tobacco display ban

It was a couple of months ago on the 24th March that I wrote an angry piece about a proposal to ban open display of tobacco products in shops. I made clear at the time that I've always been a non smoker but that the suggestion that cigarettes should be kept under the counter was totally wrong. The reason put forward for this draconian measure was to stop young people being tempted to take up smoking - what a load of rubbish that is.

Putting it simply there are two options here. Either manufacture and sale of tobacco products should stop or if they are to remain legal then the retailers should make the decision as to where they go in their shops. Above a minimum age it is quite legal to buy them so why should shops be pressured into the expense and no little inconvenience of hiding them from view? I had thought that commonsense might prevail but it now looks as if the display ban is going to be implemented in Scotland. It strikes me that our decision makers haven't the first idea how shops work in this country, the small newsagent/tobacconist will be particularly affected where business depends on a large number of very small sales and fumbling under the counter to find the right fags for the customer will be a time consuming operation.

Exceesive alcohol drunk by young people can also be adictive and with the capacity to damage one's health ultimately. Perhaps the Scottish Parliament should tell Tesco and the rest to make sure that no alcoholic products are in view in their stores. The other point to stress is that it is extremely dubious that such a ban on tobacco will have much of a desired effect, it would be much better to continue with educating people not to get hooked on the dreaded weed.

Gordon Brown's agony

There have been may column inches written of late about Gordon Brown. Whereas most commentators seem to be concentrating on his present problems I want to first go back to last summer because it's easy to forget just how good his ratings were back then.

I don't consider myself to be particularly left wing or right wing in my political outlook and in truth I don't see a lot of difference between the philosophies of the two major parties today. So I think I can look at things with a fair degree of objectivity in a way that many political bloggers can't. Turn the clock back to last summer and to many Gordon Brown could do no wrong. In fact he was getting approval from some of the right of centre press as he broadened his government to include advisers outside the labour party and tackled the various crises that arose: terrorist attacks, flooding and foot and mouth. Now I've stated in an earlier blog entry that these crises of last summer did not really extend him, yes he appeared calm and resolute and I wouldn't want to minimize the seriousness of these events, but I'm sure many others would have been equally proficient in their response. Take the failed terrorist attacks for instance, they can't be compared with the IRA bombing in Brighton during the Tory party conference. Nor with John Major and his cabinet under mortar attack in 10 Downing Street, again that was the IRA if I remember correctly. What I'm saying is that events were giving Brown more of a gloss than was justified.

Of course Brown also gained popularity in the early days of his premiership by not being Blair and unlike the Blairs didn't seem to love celebrity culture or be in adoration of personal wealth. In fact the high standing of both he and his party were strong contributory factors to the plight he is in today. If you think this is an odd thing to say let me put it this way. Part way through a parliament we have a change of prime minister without reference to the electorate, somewhat controversial but I don't have too much of a problem with this. OK there is an argument that says with narrowing differences between the parties we are increasingly voting for the person who would be prime minister and yes Blair had said he would see through his third term but not do a fourth. But in theory we are voting for a party with a published manifesto, not a president. It was because Brown's position appeared to be so strong that he was egged on by some of his supporters to get a personal mandate from the country. But after the Tories had an inspired annual conference support for Labour ebbed away to the extent that Cameron felt able to taunt Brown about the latter bottling out (I think it may well have been Osborne who first talked about "bottling out"). Future events were to lead to accusations of dithering and lacking courage and it is abundantly clear that whereas Brown wants to restrict PMQs and other forums to discussions on policy Cameron wants to keep the spotlight on Brown the person.

It might seem unduly harsh but the personality of a premier and his or her perception in the media has become increasingly important. I dare say Gordon Brown has personal qualities to admire but in today's world he just isn't the right person for the job. Contrast him with Tony Blair who had faults aplenty but at least was the right person if anyone was to be prime minister. Having said this Gordon needs to be his own person, I don't know who told him to smile but there have been times when he has suddenly grinned in the most unnatural way and at the oddest moments. Blair on the other hand could look reasonably normal with his particular smile.

I want to briefly mention the 10p tax rate business, a problem solely created by Brown it has to be said. Let's remember that it was over 5 million who were finding themselves worse off with the abolition of that rate. The population of the whole country, men, women and children is I think about 60 million. So the number of people being disadvantaged would have been very very significant - not just a few thousand at the margins. Put it another way the 5 million plus is something like the city of Plymouth multiplied by 20. Even now I believe that the best part of a million folk are still going to lose out as a result of the Chancellor's panicky correction measure.

The 10p debacle has upset a lot of people, not only I think those who were due to be financially penalised. I may be naive but I do think others want to see justice and fair play and Brown's political ploy on this one has done him no favours. Doing something about the 10p mess became an absolute imperative when the government realised Frank Field and the rebels could vote down the finance bill. There's no other reason for the change of tack by Brown, nothing to do with listening to people's concerns, it was purely and simply about survival.

There seems to be a division of opinion about whether Brown will soldier on until the next General Election, assumed to be in 2010, or whether he will be eased aside. He is in an incredibly weak position that's for sure. Time will tell what happens next.

Bank holiday weather

Here we have had a very mixed bag of weather over the bank holiday weekend. Today has been overcast and windy but relatively dry. Yesterday turned out to be warm and sunny especially in the afternoon and it was a good opportunity to play catch up in the garden. I'm always amazed at just how quickly everything grows at this time of year, in fact I wish I could slow the clock down because in the local lanes the bluebells are fading and the tall fronds of bracken together with cleavers (or goose grass) are starting to dominate. That lovely soft green on our deciduous trees has already darkened to the more sombre shade of summer. It's nice to note that the irises in my pond have started to flower and I'm hoping once again to see some dragonflies emerge before too long.

I have never felt an overwhelming desire to travel much on a bank holiday and am therefore lucky not to be so bothered by the vagaries of the weather as some folk are.

Calstock singers on top form again

This is the weekend of the Calstock Festival and, as happened last year, one event has been a top rate concert by the Calstock Singers and 'Under the Fingers' . They performed yesterday evening at the 'Peterloo Poets' venue, one of the village's former Methodist Churches. I was with three friends from my village together with a friend of one of these, on holiday from Buckinghamshire.

The only problem I have in reviewing these concerts is that it is easy to run out of superlatives; it has to be stated though that this isn't just a case of supporting local performers, many of whom I know, and as a result letting personal bias cloud my judgment. No this was absolutely top quality accessible entertainment all for the princely sum of £5 that included a complimentary glass of wine. As usual there was that easy informality and gentle humour that adds so much to such an event. The theme this time was a 'World Tour' including music and song from such diverse locations as France, Spain, Russia, Africa, Australia and America! It's a given I suppose that one's appreciation of so much music can be very dependant on how it's arranged and then presented on the day. Well last night they really excelled in that department as the arrangements certainly matched the enormous abilities of the performers.

Thinking back it's quite difficult to find a favourite out of the 28 items on the programme but if I have to single out one in particular it would be 'Tico Tico' led by Nicola on the xylophone. No professionals could have done it better and certainly it drew enormous applause. Nicola, I think you might be getting requests to play it again in the local pub sessions! But all the others were excellent. Mention must be made of Pauline, Rosie and Richard who between them did most of the talking bits introducing the different items.

Ladies and Gentlemen it was once again a fabulous evening! Thank you very much! I think we have to wait now till Christmas for the next concert from these remarkably talented people.

One injured in Exeter bombing

Unsurprisingly the bomb incident in Exeter's Princesshay yesterday lunchtime is the lead item of news here at the moment. In fact the first five pages of today's Western Morning News is devoted to it. So what do we know so far? An explosion happened in the toilet at 'The Giraffe' cafe at 12.50. One person received non life threatening facial injuries as a result of the blast, he is under police guard in hospital and I understand it will be next week before the police can talk to him in detail. He has been named as Nicky Reilly, a young man living in Plymouth and recently converted to Islam.

Not only is he being held by the police but they have unusually released information about him at a very early stage. They state that he has a history of mental illness and has been "radicalised". That this information was known by them at this point in time suggests they might have already had intelligence information about this chap. Praise has been heaped on the police for the quick and calm way they evacuated the immediate area; it seems that another explosive device was found nearby and subsequently made safe. We now learn that the bomb that went off consisted of chemicals and nails but apart from Mr Reilly no-one was injured.

Other information released relates to Reilly being seen with a rucksack on the bus from Plymouth to Exeter yesterday morning and a visit by the bomb squad to his home in Plymouth.

Finding the people behind this bombing attempt is evidently now a priority for the police.

5 o'clock UPDATE:
In connection with the Exeter incident police have now arrested a couple of men in the Old Town Street area of Plymouth.

Bilbo the lifeguard dog - Sennen Cove

Bilbo banned from the beach

Beautiful Sennen Cove which is just about as far west in Cornwall you can go before falling into the Atlantic is one of many beaches which is subjected to a dog ban. However until recently one canine was (sort of) allowed to be there. Penwith District Council were responsible for lifeguard provision and Britain's one and only lifeguard dog, Bilbo, a Newfoundland weighing in at 14 stone was effectively a member of the team. Newfoundlands, with their powerful swimming ability and webbed feet, have been recognised as being useful lifesavers and five year old Bilbo was a familiar sight on the beach or more correctly sitting on the back of a quad bike if he wasn't in the sea.

Lifeguard patrols in Sennen and at some other beaches have been taken over by the RNLI and it is they who have taken him off the 'front line'. To be fair to them they are between a rock and a hard place because of their concern about such a massive dog being on the back of a quad bike, it's the old Health and Safety thing again. I'm not sure how this can all be resolved but it seems odd that the local council were relaxed about Bilbo being on the quad bike whilst the RNLI are concerned.

For a picture of Bilbo it's worth clicking here.

Success for our sports teams

OK, sport isn't my thing exactly. But it would be wrong not to congratulate Exeter City on getting back into the Football League as a result of their 1-0 victory over Cambridge at Wembley yesterday. By all accounts 'The Grecians' were good value for their win. This is after just five seasons in the 'Conference' and following their near miss in getting promotion last year. Commiserations to Torquay United who have had a good season but failed to beat Exeter in the two leg play-off. Plymouth Argyle performed creditably in the Championship finishing 10th after the turbulence of losing their then manager and a number of key players earlier in the season. I have even less interest in rugby than soccer but do know that both the Cornish and Devon sides had wins in their respective competitions this weekend and hence are both destined to go to the finals at Twickenham. So well done to both of them.

Gordon Brown visits the two counties

I know that this is slightly stale news now but the event was so unexpected that it's worth recording on this blog. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has visited Cornwall and Devon! It happened toward the end of last week, part of Mr Brown's attempt to connect with the electorate it would seem. First he went to the Eden Project - he said he had always wanted to do this. H'm the sceptic in me says I don't really believe him, more a case of trying to look interested in the environment I would have thought. Then he moved on to visit Plymouth and Exeter. My guess is he wants to appear the statesman by going to one or two of the regions and escape from the hothouse of the Westminster Village; he has had quite a mauling from the media and local government electors of late and perhaps his minders felt that some Westcountry air would be the perfect tonic!

But was it anymore than a photo-op I wonder. Has he gone back with any real sense of the problems faced by the two counties? Doubtful I would have thought.

Rain causes change of plan

For my sins I am the programme secretary for our local history group. During the summer we have three outdoor events instead of the monthly talks that take place for the rest of the year. Now as anyone who has experience of organising anything outside during a British summer will know you are very much at the mercy of the elements. There was a time when I always seemed to be fortunate with the weather but that luck seems to be deserting me! The intention today was for a walk from Minions on Bodmin Moor led by Dave from English Heritage looking at some of the amazing historical and archaeological remains in the area. We were aiming to head west from Minions on this walkabout and if you know the area then you will realise that the opportunity for shelter is absolutely zero! Throw in an absolutely foul weather forecast and there was no sensible option other than to postpone this visit to another day. This particular walk had already been put off from last summer as a result of that season's sogginess, so it's third time lucky maybe in 2009! One bonus I suppose of this inclement weather is that I can now catch up with some blogging.

Thunderstorm brings dry spell to end

The last few days have been warm, dry and sunny but as so often happens a thundery low pressure has moved north from France to spoil things. So yesterday the weather started going downhill and in the evening lightning lit up the sky, thunder rolled and there were some heavy downpours. Although we have had severe thunderstorms in the past it very often seems to be worse to the east and south of us and so it was last night. Certainly there was a reasonable gap between flash and thunder - I think a 5 second time gap between the two is equivalent to about a mile away in distance and this seemed to be as near as it got.

I have to say that I'm not too enthusiastic about thunderstorms but nevertheless am in awe of the power of natural phenomena. What happens in Britain of course pales into insignificance compared with recent events in SE Asia. First there was the cyclone in Burma and now the devastating earthquake in China. Another 1000 shelterboxes left East Midlands airport for Burma this week and I think I heard that the Charity are now gearing up to send supplies to China. Another Westcountry based Charity, RAPID UK, whose office is at Jacobstowe near Okehampton in Devon, has a team on standby to be deployed to China if needed. RAPID is an acronym for "Rescue and Preparedness in Disasters" and their well trained volunteers are always ready to assist when an earthquake or similar disaster occurs anywhere in the World. Much more about them can be found at their website here.

What brilliant organisations these two are! More power to their elbow!

How far east does the Westcountry go

How far east does 'The Westcountry' go? That's a question I've been musing about today. It's not the first time I've wondered about it but it was a photo in today's Western Morning News that has given rise to the query now. For some time the WMN has included a half page picture of somewhere within its circulation area that resonates with readers, somewhere that showcases what is so special about the Westcountry. This has proved to be a very popular feature but there is a problem - how far north and east should they go beyond the core area of Devon and Cornwall.

Now I love peninsulas, one reason being that they help to define a locality in terms of geography, history and tradition. This helps Cornwall and Devon to be particularly special for me. But what about Dorset and Somerset? Inevitably there has to be an area which is not quite Westcountry and perhaps not quite Middle England. So I was intrigued to see that today's 'Western Morning View' in the paper was looking north west across the river at Wareham, well in the eastern half of Dorset. I have no problem with Wareham itself, an interesting old town which I would happily revisit. But is it representative of my Westcountry? H'm, I'm not too sure about that. I would happily stretch things a bit by going as far east as Bridport, in fact I recently wrote a piece about the substantial landslip east of Lyme Regis which is (just) in Dorset. Similar reasoning would allow me to include Taunton in Somerset I suppose. Exmoor is something of a geographical anomaly because whereas the greater part is in Somerset there is a significant bit of it in Devon.

Wareham though is pushing the envelope a little too far for me.

Cherie Blair needs to shut up

So Cherie Blair has been scribbling her memoirs. As indeed have both John Prescott and Lord Levy with theirs. These people just cannot wait can they. The embattled Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, is in the firing line from all three of them in different ways and for once I almost feel sorry for him. It is a sign of the times I am afraid that money is all and it doesn't matter to these authors that damaging revelations can make the position of a weak Premier even more intolerable. But it's not the Brown thing that's really getting my goat. No it's the revelation that you can read here about the accidental conception of the Blair's youngest child Leo. Will Leo thank his Catholic mother that his arrival wasn't planned (and the World knows all about it) all because Cherie didn't have contraceptives with her when the Blairs were staying with the Queen at Balmoral?

Being discreet about certain matters appears to be an old fashioned concept. Sadly the Cherie Blairs of this world are seen to be lacking in this virtue.

Glorious weekend for Ten Tors and Transat

How incredibly different successive years can be! In 2007 the country enjoyed one of its best Aprils ever weather wise. Then in May it all started going downhill with the Ten Tors Trek on Dartmoor being (wisely) abandoned. Fast forward to this year to a cool dampish April but then a much improved early May. Last month was a little depressing because once the clocks change to British Summer Time I think in terms of turning the heating off and spending more time outside. However on reflection I'm pleased that April wasn't particularly warm because it's just possible that the disappointing weather may have inhibited the development of the midges that spread the devastating bluetongue disease. The good news here is that the vaccine is now available to combat it. Hopefully our farmers will win the race against time to protect their stock.

It has been a nice warm weekend here and I've been able to do some catch up on the garden I'm pleased to say. Although we didn't have any of the threatened thundery showers I gather that there was one such in the Fowey area yesterday afternoon. This year's 'Ten Tors' was highly successful and the weather was kind for spectators in the Plymouth area to watch the 'Transat', the once every four years single handed yacht race across the Atlantic.

At the moment it looks as if there will be a thundery breakdown of this pleasing weather during the second half of the week. Let's hope that it just a temporary blip. Surely this summer can't be as bad as the last!

Shelterboxes arrive in Burma

Following on from the devastating impact of Cyclone Nargis in Burma at the end of last week relief agencies are trying to help. The storm tracked across the Irrawaddy Delta leaving anything from 20,000 up to 100,000 or more dead in its wake. Unfortunately the military junta who have ruled the oppressed Burmese for well over forty years are making things difficult for would be helpers. The latest I've heard is that they are prepared to take relief supplies from other parts of the World providing they can distribute it themselves. It's become abundantly clear that the clique who run this country cannot adequately do the job and need western expertise. I also read that Burma's government had been given a couple of days warning by India's Met Office of the likely track of the storm but really didn't help their people prepare for this calamity. It would be absolutely fair to say that thousands more have lost their lives because of the neglect of this deplorable regime.

On a more positive note it is good to hear that Cornish based charity 'ShelterBox' is on the scene with hundreds of their boxes either arrived or in transit to Burma. Four of their response team are over there and have secured visas so hopefully things will now kick on. A reminder that the ShelterBox Trust was set up by the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard and has helped about half a million people in 70 plus disaster areas. At the time of the Asian Tsunami 'ShelterBox' really caught the imagination of the public and in a way, I think, no other relief organisation has done before. Interestingly as a charity it seems to be able to gain access to certain semi closed societies - witness the fact that it helped North Korea in its hour of need not so long ago.

It's possible to read a lot more about 'Shelterbox' by going to their website here. The average all in cost of one box is £490 and this is for a family of 10. I like the way the site breaks this down to some of its elements, for example £8 buys a pair of mosquito nets. So it's possible to get a real sense of what your donation can do. Yes it's a truly fantastic charity.

Landslip site still dangerous

During last Tuesday night there was a very substantial landslip on the notoriously unstable coast between Lyme Regis and Charmouth in Dorset. Described as "the worst for 100 years" the slip extended over a length of about a quarter of a mile, clearly a significant event. The immediate problem is that rocks up to the size of cars are still liable to come crashing down to the beach; it's no wonder then that the authorities have issued a stern warning to fossil hunters and curiosity seekers to keep well clear of the area until some sort of stability returns. One has to be thankful that the landslide occurred when it did and not during the daytime on bank holiday Monday. I have a very healthy respect for the forces of nature be they originating from the geology or weather and would not risk walking beneath those cliffs at anytime!

For more information together with a video it's worth clicking here.

Revelling in the May Revels at Calstock

On Monday we went to the Calstock May Revels. Centrepiece of the activities is the procession through the village led by a very friendly giant with children dancing and musicians playing. Later in the evening the giant boards a boat to sail down the Tamar to we know not where. In front of the village hall some of the village's children performed a mummers play and a little later in the evening it was into the Tamar Inn to enjoy Cornish music and songs led by the Rubber Band and friends. There was also some Cornish dancing and non Cornish music as well. One of the highlights for us was Jack's impeccable rendition of "Here's to the Barley Mow" after a drink or two!

I have to say that for someone such as myself very sensitive to traditional events in local communities paid entertainment provided by highly rated professionals just doesn't compare to what we enjoyed. Although rain had threatened the weather was good for the procession and play and with the tide right in Calstock was looking at its very best.

Annual events like this one and Obby Oss day at Padstow strike a strong emotional chord with me. Next year I must try and get some photos, words simply can't describe the fantastic atmosphere that evening.

A birthday invitation leads to a wonderful day

Nearly a week ago, last Friday to be precise, was the date of my 65th birthday. This was celebrated very quietly with my best friend inviting me round for a meal in her cottage. I've never been one for splashing out on a do for my own special day - I shared number sixty with my family it's true but this is the exception to prove the rule. Besides I've seen garages with more floor area than my tiny Cornish cottage and anymore than two guests would constitute overcrowding! In a nutshell I would have to hire the Public Hall in our village or some such venue but I'm not sufficiently extrovert anyway to want this for myself.

However ... when someone you particularly like kindly invites you to celebrate their birthday with them (and it was one of the significant ones) then yes I would be very happy indeed to join in. So on Sunday we met up with about 60 people for Lorna's special day. I should explain that there weren't 60 people all in one place at the same time because Lorna had spread the celebration through the day starting with a mid morning to mid afternoon visit to the wonderful attraction of Morwellham Quay on the banks of the Tamar. This was a very relaxing few hours and included time in the reconstructed Victorian school which was both entertaining and thought provoking as the school's mistress explained how harsh things were back then.

In the evening it was round to Ted and Lorna's home for an informal get-together with some wonderful food, enjoyable conversation and live music (!) courtesy of 'Doc 'n' Ted'. This very congenial gathering coupled with the walk earlier in the day at Morwellham was a super way to share a special day. As I said before it's not the sort of event I would want for myself but we both felt very privileged to be invited and then to have had such an enjoyable time. Our hosts had gone to great trouble to ensure the day would be a great one for everybody, they even arranged for the threatened rain to stay away at the critical time!

Thanks Ted and Lorna for a really memorable day.