Chris Whiteside's Blog

 

 

I attended the first hour of the public consultation event this afternoon about Belltown Power's proposal for an enormous Solar Farm east of Egremont at Dent Fell. A large number of members of the public attended, and it would be fair to say, indeed putting it very mildly, that there is a lot of public concern and opposition. It will be interesting to see whether Belltown take this feedback away and rethink their proposals. It is pretty clear that a complete rethink, at the very least, is what residents of Egremont would like them to do.

Donald Trump calls his decision to impose massive tariffs on almost all the USA's main trade partners "liberation day." Some might argue that the impact on the economy, both for America and it's trading partners, if everyone engages in a round of tit-for-tat trade barriers is less like liberation and more like an economic version of Mutually Assured Destruction. There is a small kernel of truth at the centre of the huge poisonous plant which is protectionist trade policies. The first part of that kernel of truth is that some countries - the most egregious example being, certainly not Canada, but China - have been taking advantage of the free trade policies of other nations to pursue economic imperialism. There is a case for measures to counterbalance this - though there is no earthly reason to apply those counterbalancing measures to trade partners which have not behaved in that way. The second part of that kernel of truth is that the enormous benefits of trade have n...

"The notion that somehow through a trade war or protectionism or magical thinking that we're going to return to a romanticized economic past is, in the end, going to be an illusion. And a severe disappointment to millions of decent, hard-working people." David Remnick

Proposals are likely to come before Cumberland Council planners at some point this year for an enormous Solar farm east of Egremont at Dent Fell. The plans have not yet formally been submitted but Belltown power, the company which is planning to apply for the solar farm, have published their current proposals on their website where they can be seen by following the link below: Belltown Power proposals for a Solar farm at Dent Fell to be called Cobra Castle Solar Farm . About 120 acres of the 200-acre site would be covered with large solar panels which would be 80 cm off the ground at their South ends and three metres – ten feet – off the ground at their North ends. The proposed solar farm would be in operation for 40 years. There will be a public exhibition and consultation on the proposals tomorrow,  Thursday 3rd April, 3 - 7pm, at Egremont Market Hall, Market Street, Egremont CA22 2D

The latest More in Common Opinion poll has the Conservatives leading on 26%, Reform UK second on 25%, and Labour third on 21%. Like almost all opinion polls over the last six months the first three parties are the Conservatives, Labour and Reform, all of which are polling in the twenties. All three parties have come everywhere from first to third, but the margins are usually mostly within margin or error. In other words there is everything to play for any any of these parties could win, or lose, the next election which is still probably more than four years away. I am posting this poll because the left-wing media always reports on polls which have Labour winning, and another section of the media always posts polls which have Reform UK winning; but polls which have the Conservatives ahead, or which there have been a fair number, only seem to get publicised if Conservative activists post and share them.   

 

I did consider posting an "April Fool" gag this morning. The trouble is, we're living in a world where Rachel Reeves is still chancellor, and is still insisting that despite having imposed the biggest tax hike on business in history on top of a position where due to the pandemic we already had the highest peacetime tax burden in history, she's committed to getting Economic Growth Vladimir Putin still claims he invaded Ukraine because a county which had never attacked Russia and has elected a Jewish President has a Nazi regime and is a threat to Russia And don't get me started on some of the things happening on the other side of the Atlantic. Just at the moment I don't see how anyone could come up with an "April Fool" crazier than half the real news.

I've previously posted about the history of this lovely Adagio for strins.. As I wrote then, most if not all of this piece was actually composed by 20th century Italian composer and biographer Remo Giazotto who claimed to have based it on a fragment allegedly found in the ruins of a library wrecked during the RAF and USAF bombing of Dresden, of a piece he thought had been composed by the the 18th-century Venetian master Tomaso Albinoni.  The Saxon State Library which was destroyed in the 1945 Dresden bombing raids did indeed contain a substantial and irreplaceable collection of Albinoni's work sadly, it is almost certain that much of the composer's work was lost forever to allied bombs.  However, it is more than a little suspicious that neither Giazotto (who died in 1998) or his heirs have ever produced the manuscript fragment supposedly recovered from the museum, and sceptics have described the attribution of the Adagio to Albinoni as arguably " the biggest fraud in m...

"There has clearly been a fundamental breakdown in relationships between a school and parents that shouldn’t have become a police matter. I will look at what more can be done with mediation services in Hertfordshire to help amicably resolve disputes without police involvement. While people should be courteous and go through the proper channels when raising concerns about a public service, the public should be able to express their views without worrying they’ll get a knock at the door from the police. The public want the police on patrol in communities, fighting crime, catching criminals and keeping people safe. That is my priority and the focus of the new Chief Constable. My new Police & Crime Plan asks the Constabulary to prioritise tackling neighbourhood crime, anti-social behaviour and violent and sexual offences. Following The Times’ story, I have been in contact with the Chief Constable to ask for an explanation. The Chief Constable is undertaking a rapid and thorough re...

It is 48 years ago today that Airey Neave was assassinated by Irish republican terrorists. During World War II, Airey Neave fought against the Nazis, was decorated for bravery, and escaped from Colditz. As a statesman he was one of the first to spot the potential of Margaret Thatcher, did a great deal to help her become Prime Minister and was tragically and foully murdered a few days before he would have seen her elected to that office. Rest in Peace.

 

At the conclusion of the month of Ramadan, which is holy to Muslims, this is to wish Muslims celebrating in the UK and around the world a blessed and joyful Eid-al-Fitr. 

Today is Mothering Sunday: time for us all to say a big thank you to all mothers everywhere who are still with us, and remember with thanks those who are not. A mother's love is something very special. The following quote expressing this could be seen as a bit unkind to fathers. I quote it because it is funny and because I agree that it is not easy being a mother, not because I am having a go at fathers!   

It is often said that the month of March "Comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb:"

  Clocks go forward an hour in the UK this evening at 1 am GMT which becomes 2 am British Summer Time. So please do not forget we lose an hour!

I managed to complete the Swimathon today in two hours and ten minutes (to swim 200 lengths of Copeland pool in Hensingham.) Quite tired but very pleased! Thank you to those who have already sponsored me. Not too late to sponsor me at  Swimathon 2025 - Please support these life-changing causes

"The more industries you have in the hands of government, the more the bureaucrats run things...Bureaucrats on the whole are not good at business, they're not good at industry. They shouldn't have the running of it. The more powers you put into the hands of government, the less the powers of the people. The more in the hands of the bureaucrats, the less in the hands of the electors. So of course we reduced that. It not only puts the industries back to people who know how to run them but it extends share ownership. We've extended capital ownership far wider than ever before. Capital ownership should be something that every single person feels that as they begin to prosper, they can put money aside and build up capital; build their own security. It makes them much more powerful against a government." Margaret Thatcher

 

Britain's largest charity swim, the Swimathon, returns this weekend and starting today, thousands of swimmers will head to hundreds of pools around Britain to raise money for three great causes. These causes are Cancer Research UK, Marie Curie Cancer Care, and the Swimathon Foundation. Each of these organizations plays a vital role in improving lives and advancing research. Tomorrow, Saturday 29th March 2025 I plan to complete the Swimathon 5000 metres challenge, swimming 200 lengths of Hensingham pool to raise money for these excellent causes. I have been taking part in Swimathon for thirty years. Thank you if you have supported me before. Please join me in backing these excellent causes. Your support makes all the difference! You can sponsor me online on my Givengain page, which you can find by clicking on the following link: Swimathon 2025 - Please support these life-changing causes

Three candidates have come forward for the vacant seat on Egremont Town council, so there IS going to be a contested election on 24th April. Here are the candidate details: It will probably not surprise readers of this blog to learn that I will be supporting Jeff Hailes , who has lived in the area for many years and is involved with a number of local activities and causes including the Rugby club and Credit Union. Jeff was an excellent Borough Councillor for St Bees. What probably will, and should, surprise both readers of this blog and residents of Egremont South is that there will not be polling cards sent out for this election.  As per my previous post and link, The Cumbria Chronic has published a piece on the decision of Egremont Town Council not to send out these cards, which you can read by clicking on the link immediately below: SHHH! ELECTION TAKING PLACE… – The Cumbria Chronic Most of the time Egremont Town council works together pretty well in a constructive and not-parti...

 

"Thou Knowest, Lord, The Secrets Of Our Hearts" which is from Purcell's music for the funeral of Queen Mary, was expertly performed by the Choir of Selby Abbey at their communion anthem this morning. (It was, of course, also sung at the funeral of her late majesty Queen Elizabeth II.)

"Ed Miliband is so far out of his depth he needs a dredging vessel to rescue him." James Melville on X, formerly Twitter, yesterday.,

  "Economic Policies need to be analysed in terms of the incentives they create, rather than the hopes that inspired them." ( Thomas Sowell )