The last week has seen me out and about. As a result, I’ve been unable to post any blogs and have actually missed the experience. I don’t know if anybody else finds it a cathartic process to ‘get things out of the system’, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they do.
Three personal events that have taken place over the last week may be of little interest to the wider public, than other things going on in the world, but demonstrate what things I tend to get involved in.
Firstly, I had to regretfully resign my position as a Portland Town Councillor, of which I have been for just under a year. Having been unable to find suitable work in the area, I now have to prepare myself for employment elsewhere on the impending completion of my Taxation Masters. However, I intend to keep my interest and voter registration in this constituency as South Dorset will always remain home.
Secondly, I had the opportunity to meet the new Conservative candidate for South Dorset. It is a shame, of the Conservative Party, that this rural coastal area is represented by a New Labour ‘yes boy’ in Jim Knight. No doubt, Tony Blair’s imminent demise will also bring down those most closely associated with having pushed through his iniquitous legislation. Our next Member of Parliament – Richard Drax – is an ex-Guards’ officer and journalist. The fact that he is local, and had made it clear that he won’t be subservient to the current Conservative Party ‘urban regime’, will no doubt win back the seat at the next election.
Oh for the days when Viscount Cranbourne had a majority of over 15,000, and we were considered one of the safest Conservative seats in the country! It just goes to show that a party can never take the support of the public for granted, and should never force local constituency parties to accept party yes-men from outside. This time, the Conservative South Dorset Constituency Party has taken the bold step of ignoring pressure from outside and selecting someone who should be considered electable by the majority of voters.
Finally, I spent a few pleasant days in Belgium. I have travelled through
Belgium on a number of occasions, not having had any reason to stop there. However, I had the opportunity to visit the European Commission and European Parliament buildings in Brussels, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
The time spent in Brussels gave me a chance to use some long forgotten French, although the locals seemed to have a far greater command of my language than I of theirs. I also had the opportunity to visit Bruge, which is in the non-French speaking part of Belgium. Like the vast majority of Europeans, I have no command of Flemish but was once again saved by their ability to speak English, and their refusal to speak French. It seems that the Flemish peoples are very keen on separation from their neighbours, and dislike the French far greater than the English could ever do. Maybe the English have more in common with our fellow Europeans than I thought!!!
Taxing Times 