Thursday 4 March 2021

Thursday

Budget week - out comes the little red case - really tatty, old and scratched when the television cameras get up close on number eleven's steps on Budget Morning ( still probably valued at thousands on Antiques Road Show).   How times have changed.   I know this year has been an exceptional year (apart from the fact that they are extending the Furlough scheme I really didn't understand a word) but I thought back to the old days.   I remember my father listening seriously from start to finish - twopence on a pint of beer, a penny on a packet of cigarettes, petrol going up - and then a 'sop' as my father would call it when they took two twopence off income tax.

And I thought of all those Cabinet Ministers in their offices in the Houses of Parliament, concentrating on their own little area of 'importance' - housing, health, employment and the like - working away (one hopes) with their so called 'underlings' and being expected to know everything about their 'area' of responsibility and then suddenly the P M has a big cabinet reshuffle and in the flash of an eye  expected know know everything there is to know about a completely different area of expertise.   At least Rishi Sunak (who is a very nice chap and also happens to be my MP) was in Finance . before he became an MP.   What brought on my thinking - a combination of the Budget and watching an old episode of 'Yes Minister' (they don't make 'em like that any more do they?)

Any other thoughts to share with you today?   Well the weather was still chilly and dull but reasonable enough to walk round the block with Priscilla and stop and have a chat with M my neighbour for a while - any chat with a friend breaks the day up nicely.  I got back just in time to answer the phone to a member of the Falls Team who told me that she will come at two tomorrow afternoon and walk round the block with me to assess how well (or otherwise) I am walking.   I was relieved she wasn't intending to come this afternoon as once round the block is as much as I can manage in one day.

See you tomorrow....

 

 

15 comments:

wherethejourneytakesme2 said...

I am sure she will be pleasantly surprised at your progress as you seem to be doing very well to me.
Perhaps you can enlighten us (as Richi Sunak is your local MP) why Richmond, which I thought was quite a prosperous area in North Yorkshire, is receiving a share of the money allotted to the levelling up of the north rather than deprived areas like Barnsley with high unemployment - it doesn't make sense to me but maybe you know more?

The bike shed said...

Is there really such a thing as the 'Falls Team' - of course, it's avoiding them that matters. My mother is very frail in her body - sharp as a tack in her mind - her frailty frustrates her for she wants to do so much more.
Interesting that Rishi Sunak is your MP - my son works at the treasury! He rates him too!

JayCee said...

A minister who knows what he is doing is a bonus!
Good luck with your walk tomorrow.

Bonnie said...

I hope you enjoyed your walk today. I'm sure it was nice to visit with a neighbor. I imagine when the lady from the "Falls Team" comes tomorrow she will be pleasantly surprised at your progress!

Heather said...

How nice that you will have company on your walk tomorrow, even if it is the lady from the Falls Team. Perhaps she will be as nice as your carer.
This year's budget must have been a nightmare to organise. So many demands on the Exchequer for funds. What ever Rishi Sunak (he seems a very nice man) decided on, there will be people who complain.

CharlotteP said...

Yes Minister, Yes Prime Minister , with the wonderful Nigel Hawthorne as Sir Humphrey...they certainly don't make them like that anymore. In fact, I ordered the complete series a few weeks ago from Amazon!

The Weaver of Grass said...

The Falls Team are brilliant. Oncw you have been hospitalised with a fall they keep tabs on you - giving you an exercise programme and checking on your progress regularly.

Terra said...

The Falls Team sounds like a good idea, especially that they come over to your home and walk with you, to assess how you are progressing. It sounds like you are doing very well, walking outside.

Joanne Noragon said...

Strange weather here today. It even snowed a bit. You go and impress that falls team tomorrow.

Cro Magnon said...

I think the ministers are simply in charge of a bunch of civil-servants who do know their subject. When the ministers are 'shuffled' they just have a new bunch of civil-servants to deal with.

Librarian said...

I doubt anything like the Falls Team exists over here; my Dad has had more than his fair share of falls, and if my Mum does not organise things, no doctor or anyone else ever even rings to ask how he is doing. Or maybe the Falls Team operates only on people who live on their own?
Ministers who have true expertise in their area are rare gems! We have about a handful of them in our entire government, and you can always tell the difference.

Carruthers said...

I think one of the problems we have as a society is that we elevate the idea of 'niceness' over that 'goodness'.

Did Rishi Sunak tell the Prime Minister that something had to be done to feed poor children? No. It was left to a celebrity footballer to shame the government into doing the right thing.

Did he listen to the scientists and do his best to protect the vulnerable? No. He introduced 'eat out to help out' which, it has been estimated, caused a rise in covid infections of between 8 and 17%. Along with the Prime Minister, he is responsible for policies which have led to tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths. It wasn't even good economics. Countries that came down harder on covid at the start are now doing economically better than Britain.

People have short memories. The vaccine program is rolling. It's Budget day. The BBC give the Chancellor largely uncritical -almost adulatory- coverage. More money for the NHS? A payrise for the nurses? No. Most people caught up in it all will simply shrug that off and call me cynical for pointing it out.

It's scary that to see the world as it actually is is considered cynical. I'm not in the least bit cynical. And despite everything I'm an optimist. I saw a great quote from the anthropologist David Graeber today: "The ultimate hidden truth of the world is that it is something we make and could just as easily make differently."

Much of what Rishi Sunak and his colleagues do is done to ensure that that truth remains hidden.

Sadly, Graeber died of covid. It's a shame, because -although I can't say for sure as I didn't know him personally- he came across as a really nice guy. More importantly, he cared about the planet and cared about people.

Sue in Suffolk said...

Hope your walk with the lady from The Falls Team goes well today.

Rachel Phillips said...

The Budget was, as with every Budget, best likened to the curate's egg.

The Weaver of Grass said...

So right Rachel - perfect explanation.



Thanks all.