New Agenda on Sunday is out! Edition of 02 July 2017

https://paper.li/f-1346065353#/

Good morning everyone

The Public Sector pay cap remains.

The vote on an amendment to the Queen's Speech calling for the end to the Public sector pay cap, was defeated by 323 votes to 309, a government majority of 14. Public Sector pay increase have been frozen at 1% for the past 7 years which has resulted in a cut in income of 14% in real terms.

Over recent months particularly, in Manchester or London whether through acts of terrorism or through man made tragedies such as Grenfell Tower, our emergency services have been magnificent regardless of cuts to their budgets or reductions in staff or restrictions on their resources. Yet we, though the actions of 323 MP's, deny these workers a decent living wage and conservative 

Read more at: No change on Public sector pay cap.

http://new-agenda2012.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/no-change-on-public-sector-pay-cap.html

The 65,000 ton HMS Queen Elizabeth slipped out of Rosyth dockyard and into open water for her sea trials this week. We spend £3.5 billion on an aircraft carrier which has no aircraft and with a computer system which is run on Windows XP! The ship has already been described as a "vast folly" and warned to be vulnerable to cyber attack.

Is there anyone actually in control of this country or are we living in a pseudo 'Casey's Court', with the Marx Brothers at the helm of State?

It is July. Six months of this year of 2017 have already passed in what seems to be less than a blink of the eye. Wimbledon 2017 opens the gates tomorrow with play starting on the outside courts at 11:30 am.

According to the official Wimbledon website, there are FREE strawberries and cream for HSBC customers! It is surprising that the bank can afford this give away, as their profits fell by 19% in the first quarter of 2017 to only £3.8 billion.(The speculation that senior executives are foregoing their annual bonuses and salaries is a little premature).

I could perhaps be forgiven for being unable to resist commenting on the squalid "deal" with a big price tag, to keep Theresa May in Downing Street. It is rather bizarre, that in the midst of continuing austerity on mainland United Kingdom, the "magic money tree", has been discovered in the Rose Garden of 10 Downing Street, and has produced £1.5 billion to be put into brown paper bags and dispatched to DUP headquarters in Belfast for the purpose of improving NHS services and educational facilities in Northern Ireland. Many conservative MP's are very unhappy with this bribe and Heidi Allen said, during a debate said, "I can barely put into words my anger at the deal my party has done with the DUP" adding that, "I must put on record my distaste at the use of public funds to garner political control".

Some MP's are already demanding answers to the question "If you can find money for the DUP in Ireland, what about my constituency too?"

Seems a very good question to me.

Read more at: "Conservatives agree pact with DUP to support May government."

http://new-agenda2012.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/a-sordid-deal-with-big-price-tag-to.html

Another well remembered figure from my younger years passed away on Saturday. Barry Norman film critic, journalist and television presenter was probably best known for presenting BBC televisions "Film (enter year)". He became Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1998.

Barry Leslie Norman, CBE. August 1933- June 2017 R I P

"Brexit" continues to create divisions within the country and within the government. Philip Hammond, David Davis and Boris Johnson (as usual) are at odds with each other and with Theresa May, each having a different understanding of what was, or was not said. Complete chaos.

Read more at: A government at war with itself.

http://new-agenda2012.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/a-government-at-war-with-itself.html

"Meanwhile, back in Jersey", returns with the news that B&Q have resolved the confusion regarding opening on Sundays. Only on this little island of some 45 square miles, could supposedly intelligent people create such confusion over something that seems so simple. I quote from the Jersey Evening Post.

"DIY store B&Q is aiming to start trading again on a Sunday from next weekend after securing approval from the Planning Committee".
"Although the store on Queen’s Road had received permission several years ago to open on nine Sundays a year, it was discovered that the owners had not applied for planning permission to make the temporary arrangement permanent".

"The store opened on five Sundays last year but was not allowed to do so in the run-up to Christmas after Planning turned down an application in October 2016 to formalise trading hours.The store’s manager attended a meeting of the Planning Committee at St Paul’s Centre to support a second application".

The weather for the first week of Wimbledon is forecast to be changeable, which is about the norm for July in this country. Showers may interrupt play occasionally but there will be sunny spells. It will be turning colder and then warmer during the week, with cloud sometimes.

So take a mac and umbrella and keep your FREE strawberries and cream covered up. If you are not an HSBC customer and therefore have to pay the exorbitant prices for the punnet of fruit, keep it covered anyway. A soggy, sour strawberry is not at all pleasant.

Have a nice week