You couldn't make it up ...
The Spectator magazine reports here that Labour's shadow communities minister Andy Sawford has written to every MP with a local Waitrose asking them to campaign against the offer by Waitrose of free coffee to members of their myWaitrose loyalty scheme, something many people didn’t know about until Labour helpfully pointed it out.
My nearest Waitrose is in the Hexham area, some 77 miles away, or I would be tempted to join the scheme.
Labour's argument is that a few cups of free coffee will supposedly destroy the British High street.
With the country still stuggling to start clearing the mountain of debt they left us when last in power, huge challenges facing the NHS, large chunks of the country suffering from flooding, relations with Russia going to hell in a handcart thanks to the situation in Ukraine which has the potential to turn very nasty, have Labour really nothing more important to complain about than a few cups of free coffee.
I don't even accept the basic argument - the main threats to the High Street are the internet and the recession. Offering customers a cup of coffee might even help the high street if it makes shopping in person a better experience.
All too often Labour does things so daft you couldn't make them up if you were trying to imagine the most ridiculous policies for a party to adopt - and when they're not doing that, they're bankrupting the country so that whatever government is unlucky enough to have to clear up the mess Labour leaves behind is forced to do things nobody in their right mind would want to do in order to balance the books.
My nearest Waitrose is in the Hexham area, some 77 miles away, or I would be tempted to join the scheme.
Labour's argument is that a few cups of free coffee will supposedly destroy the British High street.
With the country still stuggling to start clearing the mountain of debt they left us when last in power, huge challenges facing the NHS, large chunks of the country suffering from flooding, relations with Russia going to hell in a handcart thanks to the situation in Ukraine which has the potential to turn very nasty, have Labour really nothing more important to complain about than a few cups of free coffee.
I don't even accept the basic argument - the main threats to the High Street are the internet and the recession. Offering customers a cup of coffee might even help the high street if it makes shopping in person a better experience.
All too often Labour does things so daft you couldn't make them up if you were trying to imagine the most ridiculous policies for a party to adopt - and when they're not doing that, they're bankrupting the country so that whatever government is unlucky enough to have to clear up the mess Labour leaves behind is forced to do things nobody in their right mind would want to do in order to balance the books.
Comments
Though to save you some fuel, I think that since sainsburys built the new supermarket in carlise, where the old sainsburys was is now a Waitrose so there you go, i just saved you 37 miles for your coffee.
though locally if you look at whitehaven. Is My* street empty because people are at waitrose carlisle drinking free coffee, or is it because the local concil have decimated the town so all the shops left.
* My street is the pedestrian only (ironic) street, which they cleverly named after me before i was even born yet
Just a thought
My statement that my nearest Waitrose is in Hexham was based on looking at Waitrose's official website, going to the branch finder application, and typing my postcode in.
It also has an alphabetical branch finder which does not include a Carlisle branch or anything else I recognise as being near. Will have to ask my Carlisle colleagues.
On the second point - absolutely.
Funnily enough, at the function I attended this evening one of my friends who also lives in Whitehaven and is a big Waitrose fan was saying that he does sometimes make the journey to Hexham to shop at Waitrose!
I really will have to ask my Carlisle colleagues about this because if you are right he could shorten his journey considerably.