Chris Whiteside's Blog

 

No apologies for posting again the so-called "Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor for Strings" as I do like this performance of it. As I have previously posted, 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 he 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 library which was destroyed in the 1945 Dresden bombing raids did indeed contain a substantial and irreplaceable collection of Albinoni's work and it is, sadly, almost certainly true 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 claim...

Kemi Badenoch posted today: " While the Press will be focused on the battle for the Labour leadership and Conservatives celebrating our win in Aberdeen, there are two people I want to pay tribute to. The first is Michael Winstanley @Winstamike who was an excellent candidate for us in Makerfield. He represented our party with grace, dignity and competence. The result was no reflection on him but on the circumstances of a peculiar by-election where the question was not “who would be the best representative?” but “should Andy Burnham challenge Keir Starmer for the Labour leadership?” The second is Jack Cruickshanks @j_cruickshanks whose valiant efforts in Arbroath and Broughty Ferry took us from 3rd behind Labour to 2nd place, increasing the Conservative vote share. By-elections can be more intense than general elections because of the focus and scrutiny.  I am proud of all our Conservative candidates this morning.  Part of a strong, united team. " Kemi also published this let...

 Kemi Badenoch has been asked again if a post-election deal with Reform UK is possible… Her response is clear to anyone with two or more working brain cells: “No, no, no, no, no, no… I don’t know what people don’t understand about the word NO.”

Britain needs an economic revolution. This is the Conservative plan

Congratulations to Douglas Lumsden, the new Conservative MP for Aberdeen South, who gained that seat from the SNP yesterday by 6,000 votes. This is a massive result. In  MAKERFIELD RESULT In a by-election dominated by tactical voting, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham held the seat for Labour and contrary to expectations, it wasn't close. Makerfield by-election vote shares result: LAB: 54.8% (+9.6) REF: 34.5% (+2.7) RST: 6.8% (+6.8) CON: 2.2% (-8.7) GRN: 0.7% (-3.7) LDEM: 0.4% (-6.4) I will confess to being disappointed that the excellent Conservative candidate and my good riend Michael Winstanley didn't do better. I campaigned in Makerfield for Michael more than once, and a very high proportion of the local residents I to whom I spoke had a high opinion of Michael - many of them referring to him unprompted by his first name - but he was hit by two diametrically opposed forms of tactical voting. Many of those who would normally have backed Michael Winstanley either said the...

"You cannot regulate your way to growth. You cannot tax your way to prosperity. And you cannot build a stronger economy by making life harder for the people who create jobs." Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch

Polls have now closed in the three parliamentary by-elections, in Makerfield, Aberdeen South and Arbroath. A big thank you to everyone who voted, especially those who voted for Michael Winstanley, Douglas Lumsden, or Jack Cruickshanks

Polls are now open in three by-elections, in Makerfield, Aberdeen South and Arbroath In the Makerfield by-election the Conservative candidate is Michael Winstanley. This is an exceptionally unusual by election. Having been to canvass for Michael, I can say only two things about the election with total confidence. The first is that of all the candidates, Michael Winstanley would make far and away the best MP for Makerfield and is by a country mile the candidate with the strongest commitment to the Makerfield area where he lives and has been a councillor. The second is that if anyone attempts to extrapolate any implications at all about any other election from whatever is the result of this one, their conclusions should be taken with a bucketful of salt.   In Aberdeen South, which is a seat won at the last election by the SNP, the Conservative candidate is Douglas Lumsden, who is the pro-Union candidate with the best chance of defeating the SNP. For any  voter in Aberdeen S...

Robbie Lammas serves as a Councillor in Medway, Kent. He worked for Conservative MPs for over eight years and served as a Special Adviser to the Chairman of the Conservative Party. He wrote on Conservative Home at Robbie Lammas: I made a mistake defecting to Reform. They are not a serious party | Conservative Home that his decision last year to defect to Reform was an enormous mistake which he now regrets. Here are some extracts from his article. "I made a huge mistake leaving the Conservatives last year. I was wrong and I apologise. Here’s what happened and why I changed my mind. Following the worst defeat in its history in 2024, the Conservative Party faced a clear choice: to change radically or to sit back. Many senior Conservative voices urged immediate renewal, but the choice was made and Farage filled that vacuum. I was very concerned. I too shared a concern that the breadth of the Tory church was too broad and lacked the will to drive through the constitutional restoration ...

"Anyone who still downplays Russia’s attacks is one of two things: wilfully ignorant or complicit.  There is no third category. The Kremlin is not ambiguous about its intent. Nor should we be. Those who bend the knee to Moscow are traitors." Rt Hon Tom Tugendhat MP

Congratulations to the Scottish men's football team on winning their first World Cup match! This is a proud moment for everyone involved, a win in their first World Cup in 28 years is a historic moment and is something to celebrate.  Wishing the players, coaches, and supporters every success for the rest of the tournament.

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the opposition and of the Conservatives, writes: " Our Armed Forces cannot defend Britain on empty promises and delayed plans.  Keir Starmer’s Defence Ministers resigned as his plan falls short. Their warnings are extremely serious.  I’ve written to the PM offering the support of my MPs to vote to cut welfare to fund defence. " Here is her letter

"A number of far left politicians, commentators & other useful idiots seem to have a very hard time understanding that fracturing a policewoman’s spine with a sledgehammer isn’t magically transformed into some beautiful act of protest because it was done for the Palestinian cause." Daniel Sugarman on X

The Green party leader posted that it was "gut wrenching" to see four "Palestine Action" activists who broke into a Filton factory with sledgehammers and did more than a million pounds of damage, sent to prison. One of them was convicted of grievous bodily harm after he hit a policewoman in the back, twice, with his sledgehammer. Kemi Badenoch replied as follows: "These thugs fractured the spine of Sgt Kate Evans, who spoke in court of the medical and emotional trauma she still lives with. Prison is where they belong. Unlike Zack Polanski, I want serious consequences for anyone who attacks police officers risking their lives to protect us." Quite.

From one of the defence ministers who resigned on Thursday. I don't often praise or agree with Labour MPs, but John Healey and Al Carns behaved with honour and put their principles and the needs of the country before their own careers when they resigned, and we would be wise to listen to them.    

Congratulations to Councillor Stephen Mosley, who increased the Conservative share of the vote by 8.1% to see off a strong Green challenge and hold the Christleton and Huntingdom council seat on the Cheshire West unitary authority.  Christleton and Huntington (Cheshire West and Chester) council by-election result: CON: 32.9% (+8.1) GRN: 30.4% (+8.2) REF: 17.2% (+17.2) LAB: 10.5% (-8.1) LDEM: 9.0% (-8.0) No Ind (-17.4) as previously

"First the Defence Secretary resigned saying the government is making the country and our troops less safe. Then the Veterans Minister went, saying the government is abandoning our veterans and it’s harming our national defence. It’s clear the armed forces have lost all faith in Keir Starmer. A Prime Minister who cannot command the respect of our military cannot continue in office.  Britain’s national security must come before Keir Starmer’s ego. The Prime Minister’s time is up." Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch MP, Leader of the Conservative party and leader of the opposition.

"John Healey, the former Defence Secretary, has acted honourably by resigning.  Keir Starmer is too weak to cut welfare and fund defence - as I told him yesterday at PMQs. Only the Conservatives have a plan to put our national security first." Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch , Conservative leader. See tweet at  Kemi Badenoch on X: "John Healey, the former Defence Secretary, has acted honourably by resigning. Keir Starmer is too weak to cut welfare and fund defence - as I told him yesterday at PMQs. Only the Conservatives have a plan to put our national security first. https://t.co/vGaOyasRy4" / X

In what certainly ought to be a devastating blow to the Prime Minister, the Defence Secretary, John Healey, and Minister of State for the Armed forces Al Carns, have resigned, on the basis that the PM is unable, and the treasury unwilling, to commit the resources needed for Britain's defence. Mr Healey said funding for the long-delayed Defence Investment Plan (DIP) “ falls well short of what is required ”, with extra support not coming until after 2030 even though the “imperative to speed up readiness to fight is in the first two years”. I regarded John Healey as one of the few Labour ministers competent to find his own backside with both hands and approach radar. He also deserves credit for putting his support for defending Britain above his career and position. Mr Carns, who was a colonel in the marines before becoming an MP, said the government was “ failing Britain’s armed forces. ” This is John Healy's resignation letter And this is Al Carns' resignation letter Ouch....

"The Public Sector Equality Duty has allowed identity politics, DEI bureaucracy and ideological box-ticking to take over our public services. Enough is enough. It's time to scrap it. The Conservatives will." (CCHQ statement yesterday)

There are two versions of this, the one I first heard (and sang) was "Miss Hoolihan's Christmas Cake" But apart from the names it's the same. For some reason the memory came into my head this afternoon, so I thought I would put this Irish Rovers version up as today's music spot.

No party leaves government and thinks, " Yup, mission accomplished – we did everything we wanted and we did it perfectly. "  We need political leaders to confront mistakes they made in office and explain how they'll do better next time. This is normal and healthy.  " Why didn't you do it while you were in office? " is an intellectual cul-de-sac. Tom Harris (former Labour MP) on X yesterday.

Today Kemi Badenoch will set out the next steps in our plan to root out identity politics from our public services. Live on X from 10:30am. Don’t miss it! Kemi Badenoch (@KemiBadenoch) / X

"Another sunny day on the doors of Aberdeen South. It’s clear voters are sick of the SNP. The best way to beat the SNP and stand up for our North Sea oil and gas industry is to vote Douglas Lumsden on June 18." Douglas Lumsden MSP , Conservative candidate for the Aberdeen South by-election