The first 100 days.

Second cabinet meeting AM

I am about to reduce the hospital waiting list by one. I have been given two seperate appointments - only days apart - to see the same doctor about the same problem.

However, someone has now cancelled the tests I was told needed to be done first and I fail to see how my case can be considered without them, so I wait for the specialist at my first appoinment to realise that he has not got any test results and will end the appointment telling ,e to make a new appointment once the tests have taken place.

keepingquiet

I like this idea but fear we are in for a very long thread!
It has already veered off into critiques of the civil service (note the word service here- we are going to hear this word a lot) and football!

I just hope we don't descend into posts about what people are wearing and keep it focussed on what the new government is actually doing to make this country more stable and more successful.

Glad you mentioned about what people were wearing. Wasn't Rishi Sunak's wife's dress awful? If she has a stylist, that person needs to be fired. Proves that money doesn't buy class. I couldn't take my eyes off that horrible dress. Very distracting or perhaps that was the intention.

Dare I mention Sue Grey's pyjama outfit? (hides behind parapet)

For dress critique - go here.
www.gransnet.com/forums/chat/1338034-Angela-Rayner-ghastly-trouser-suit

I saw this this morning on BBC online, which I think should be welcomed by all of us, regardless of political allegiance.

‘The "propriety and ethics" phone call ministers receive after being appointed to government is getting longer.
One new appointee has said the call from the cabinet office's propriety and ethics team (once run by Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff Sue Gray) now runs to 15 minutes.
Successive ministerial scandals are thought to have resulted in extra questions being added to the list, which include queries about family financial interests and the jobs of ministers' partners.’

If it stops even a percentage of news stories about MPs behaving inappropriately in whatever way, that would be fantastic.

Whitewavemark2

GrannyGravy13

The Rwandan President Paul Kagame is on record (18/01/24 BBC) saying that the UK could get some of the £240(£290 if second amount sent) if no asylum seekers are sent to Rwanda.

I think that he has rowed back on that recently.

Am I right in thinking that the government said it wouldn’t renege on agreements or treaties etc ( I don’t really know the right terminologies) because we must be a country that stands by it’s word if we want people to invest with us. Therefore I think it would be difficult to claw back any money from the disastrous Rwanda scheme.

Yes I think you are probably right.

It sounds exactly the sort of think Starmer would say.

Sir Keir Starmer and Lady Starmer are to fly to Washington this evening.

They are to attend a banquet at The White House and Sir Keir has been granted a private audience with Biden.

The Prime Minister will be accompanied by the foreign secretary as well as the Defence Minister. Lammy has family in the USA, where he has lived, worked and studied. His father is buried in Texas.

Streeting

Did anybody see the session this afternoon? I warmed to Colum Eastwood the SDLP leader, who gave a very humorous welcome to the speaker, no digs or point scoring, just genuinely nice.

Casdon

Did anybody see the session this afternoon? I warmed to Colum Eastwood the SDLP leader, who gave a very humorous welcome to the speaker, no digs or point scoring, just genuinely nice.

No I was pottering around Canterbury cathedral.

I would like to have seen it though.

Did they all swear in using different versions? I think Starmer did a non-religious one didn’t he?

I was pleased to see Nandy say that there will be no more culture wars from government.

Grown up politics.👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Whitewavemark2

Casdon

Did anybody see the session this afternoon? I warmed to Colum Eastwood the SDLP leader, who gave a very humorous welcome to the speaker, no digs or point scoring, just genuinely nice.

No I was pottering around Canterbury cathedral.

I would like to have seen it though.

Did they all swear in using different versions? I think Starmer did a non-religious one didn’t he?

Yes, Starmer did do a non religious affirmation. Here is the ceremony.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HWBP0jKFLI

Thank you

Thankyou for sharing Casdon

Washington

The Prime Minister is calling on NATO to step up its spending in order to respond to increased global threat, from Putin, the Middle East and authoritarian governments.

The Prime Minister is holding talks with Zelensky as well as our European allies.

“The first duty of any government is to keep the nation safe and protect our citizens, and the defence of the UK starts in Ukraine.”

The foreign secretary, the defence secretary and the minister for European affairs have accompanied the prime minister on the visit.

Healey has started detailed planning for a strategic defence review which “will consider the shape of the armed forces and their readiness to fight, capabilities needed to tackle growing threats, reforms to secure faster procurement and better value for money, as well as the roadmap to hitting the 2.5% target.”t

Treasury

The chancellor has launched a £7.3bn National Wealth Fund.

This investment vehicle (NWF) is designed to help projects such as ports, gigafactories, hydrogen and steel projects to attract a mix of investment, aiming for roughly £3 of private funds for every £1 of taxpayer cash.

The NWF is essentially a “concierge service for investors and businesses that want to invest in Britain, so they know where to go”.

The investments will then be managed by the existing UK Infrastructure Bank, headed by the former HSBC chief executive John Flint,

investment made via the NWF will seek to deploy £1.8bn to ports, £1.5bn for gigafactories including for electric vehicles, £2.5bn to clean steel, (this is what we have been reading about for Tata) £1bn for carbon capture and £500m to green hydrogen.

It is distinct from GB Energy, and will soon be appointed formally in law, and become a permanent institution at the heart of the country’s long term growth and prosperity.

Transport

Louise Haigh - Transport secretary is preparing the rail reform bill - paving the way for full nationalisation of the Railway.

This will form part of the Kings speech.

Nationalisation will occur as each regional contract expires, although this eill be hastened if a company fails to deliver the agreed contract.

It is also expected that the strikes will be resolved and the misery these have caused -ended.

The thatcher-era of deregulation of buses is being reversed. We need joined up transport, and buses to be put back where at present many routes have been taken away.

Devolved powers over transport is expected to make franchising easier and specific to particular regions needs.

Energy

At least 6 wind farm developers have begun plans to develop new wind farms across England since Labour raised the restriction this week.

Investment in renewables had been prevented by the previous government, resulting in England now becoming a core market for many renewable companies with restrictions being lifted.

Health

Junior doctors have said that they are now confident that no more strikes will go ahead after talks with the Health Secretary.

Streeting has warned that he will not be able to meet the 35% demand, because we can’t afford to do so, but beyond pay, Streeting has said he is genuinely angry at the treatment of junior doctors by their employers - at their placement and rotation.

Whatever….

Whitewavemark2

Energy

At least 6 wind farm developers have begun plans to develop new wind farms across England since Labour raised the restriction this week.

Investment in renewables had been prevented by the previous government, resulting in England now becoming a core market for many renewable companies with restrictions being lifted.

Personally I don’t have any objection to wing turbines but there are a lot of residents who will fight them tooth and nail, so I hope changes in the planning process speed up delivery of green energy.

David49 wind energy is unreliable and unpredictable. It causes harm to wildlife. 24 per cent of electricity generated from wind power at present. As wind can’t be controlled I am guessing that wind combined with other sources is where we should be.

David49

Whitewavemark2

Energy

At least 6 wind farm developers have begun plans to develop new wind farms across England since Labour raised the restriction this week.

Investment in renewables had been prevented by the previous government, resulting in England now becoming a core market for many renewable companies with restrictions being lifted.

Personally I don’t have any objection to wing turbines but there are a lot of residents who will fight them tooth and nail, so I hope changes in the planning process speed up delivery of green energy.

Apparently because of the progress in technology since we last built a wind farm on land, we need far fewer now to produce the same level of energy.

Personally I have always loved them. My “home” village was the first in the whole country to have a wind farm built. It has now stood there for decades quietly going about producing energy without ounce of carbon. Sheep graze underneath.