Friday, September 26, 2008

Spanish Report - No 3. A ray of 'sunshine'.

After four days hacking my way around the South course at El Rompido Golf, we're intent on tackling the less forgiving North Course this afternoon. In order to acquire the right degree of relaxation and mansuetude, I've bought yesterday's Telegraph, in search of something to blog about.

Much interested in the article about the UK Government's decision to sell our nuclear generation capacity to the French private sector. Oh, the irony of it. I wonder what assurances have been given about delivering speedy planning approvals. The dependence on French capitalists to fill our 'energy gap' is a direct consequence of the failure of the UK Government to face up to difficult decisions until its too late.

In another article we read of the same sort of failure in respect of how we are going to deal with waste. Some years ago, I came to the decision that there needed to be huge investment in incineration. A few years ago I used my annual 'overseas trip' allowance when I was an Assembly Member to go to Vienna, where all waste is incinerated - within the city. No-one bats an eyelid. But as with nuclear, the nettle will not be grasped until panic sets in. Perhaps it will be foreign capitalists that will come to our rescue again. Its all a bit like credit cards. If you spend the money, use the energy, create the waste, the bill will eventually have to be paid.

Anyway, the article that caught my eye most was in the business section - Laura Ashley reporting its half year profits - £4.5 million. This may not sound much, but its pretty damn good for LA. The shares increased by 24% to 18p. I remember when the shares where heading for 300p, and the company was taking over the world. Laura Ashley, will forever be associated with the little village of Carno, in the heart of Montgomeryshire, where the fairy story began. It was a very sad for the village when the factory was closed. Lying there, empty and desolated, it remains a constant reminder of good times gone. But LA is still hugely important to Montgomeryshire, with its huge Texplan opereation and mail order business located in Newtown. The sun is shining here in Spain. The financial gloom is something I observe in a detached sort of way on the television. Within this gloom its nice to read about a ray of business sunshine beaming down on Montgomeryshire.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sun is shining here too!

Your opponent has once again excelled himself in twitdom in th Count Times this week! Several pics of him of course, and one particularly looking a complete idiot - and he wants to be president of the Lib Dems! - Dream on Lemsip

Anonymous said...

Glyn, our energy crisis can indeed be laid at the labour door or dithering, but many of the issues hark mback to conservative glory days of the 80's and the foolish wasting of our north sea energy reserves - arguably the reason France now leads the nuclear world and we don't.
You really are becoming a very typical westminster tory whcih is a shame as you had at one point secured my vote - ebbing away now.

Glyn Davies said...

Anon - but how true is the maxim that no publicity is bad publicity?

Anon 2 - Sorry to read of your disillusionment. But you will have to explain a little more about what is partisan about this post, before I can respond properly to you. I do not think that I absolved any past Governmnet from blame. I can only say that the inevitability of more nuclear generating capacity and a move to incineration only became obvious to me around 4/5 years ago.

Dr. Christopher Wood said...

OK ... an 'aside' but a pretty BIG one 'actually'. What's your take on the failed 'bailout vote" (re: House of Representatives)?

It seemed to me that in some extreme left-wing quarters that there was much anticipated glee, even frothing at the mouth, at the demise of the financial sector in the USA - never mind that it will likely (has already) rebound all over the shop including main-street Wales.

Anonymous said...

Have not seen the County Times this week because I now refuse to buy it, such is their insistence on printing pictures of that awful Lembit man. And going way OTT with him. You could argue that they are harming LO's cause ( if he has one, apart from promoting his own monstrous ego) for a couple of reasons: the first being that the more he appears, the more fed up we locals become, Let's face it, more often than not, he's so blatantly pushing himself and just looking like an idiot in doing so. The second being that a lot of local people are now refusing to buy the County Times paper because of their partisan attitude towards the Lib Dums. I know for a fact that this is the case. So whilst you might be fed up that they don't give you the coverage you deserve, Glyn, in a roundabout way they might well be doing you a favour. People are not stupid. No one here has an ounce of respect for this excuse for an MP. The more the local paper pretends he's a person of substance, the more cynical we become and the more determined to vote for you.

Glyn Davies said...

Christopher - Not equipped to answer that one - but it looks as if it will be signed in some form. In passing, I've not seen a President so weakened since Carter at the end of his term.

anon - My local paper does give a huge amount of publicity to the local MP, but I've never had any complaint about that. Like you I'm not sure that it does him much good. And I've always felt that the County Times has been fair to me.
Because of the approach to politics taken by our MP, I'm reluctant to go down the same road, and try to keep a balance between publicity and being seen as too pushy. My campaign is essentially going direct to the people. Biggest problem I have is keeping up with the issues that people are bringing to my office. I feel a bit like a 'voluntary' MP at the moment.