It is now an archive for my newspaper and magazine pieces. My blog can now be read at: www.spectator.co.uk/stephenpollard
Politics, economics and culture from the master. Unmissable.
Melanie Phillips home page
Melanie Phillips' peerless blog. Read, and learn.
Daniel Finkelstein's Times Comment Central
A daily must-read.
Tim Worstall
Lots of interesting nibbles - and a ruthless swatter of economic gibberish.
Harry's Place
Must-read left of centre blog from writers who understand the threat to the West.
Clive Davis
Always interesting selection of culture and politics, from an Anglo-American bent.
Samizdata
Libertarian blog, packed every day.
Norm's blog
The thoroughly sensible thoughts of renowned left-wing academic Norman Geras, Professor of Government at Manchester. And cricket, too.
Public Interest
Peter Briffa's inimitable take on The Yazzmonster and other assorted demons.
Reform
The public sector reform group; their website is an invaluable source of data and ideas.
Centre for the New Europe
The leading European public policy think tank.
Developed by:
| October | 12 |
| 2003 |
Having already managed the glorious triumph that was the Dome, you might have thought that the latest giant waste of government time and our money, the Olympics bid (which stands not the slightest chance of success) would be enough to satisfy this government’s urge to squander other people's money on frivolities which don't even work properly.
As if! It takes a special kind of genius to be able to come up with a way of ensuring that the bid is even more of a waste but, yes, they've managed it. Congratulations on a remarkable piece of lateral thinking. Having already wasted £9.6 billion "tackling obesity" (yes, really. NINE POINT SIX BILLION POUNDS. You'd scarcely think it possible, would you?) they've come up with a plan of genius: linking the two.
Well, it's certainnly got logic to it. If you've got one ludicrous waste of money - the Olympic bid - then why not combine it with another?
Tony Blair has apparently decided he wants “an ambitious delivery strategy, using the Olympic bid as a catalyst, to develop more innovative and interventionist policies across the public, private and voluntary sectors in both health and sport.”So there will now be a “£1 million publicity campaign showing how gardening, walking to work and even housework can help to make you fit.”
That's a bit limited. Best to add the information that breathing in and out keeps you alive.
The war on obesity is the archetypal government programme. Its failure means not that it will be scrapped, but that more money will be spent.
And here, right on time, is the Olympics bid.
Well here's a radical idea, The solution isn’t government initiatives or
programmes. It’s fat people going on diets and taking excercise because they realise they need to.
Cue self-congratulatory drum roll…I’ve lost 27 pounds so far. And that’s because I looked in the mirror, not because a civil servant told me to diet.
MessageSpace
Government subsidies on all reflective surfaces! It's the only way.
That's socialism for you. There is no social ill that some new rule or law or initiative can't fix. It'll probably lead to another 20 pages of non-job adverts in the Guardian for personal trainers for fat kids.
Well, the next big waste of money might be identity cards, which would involve colossal expenditure without any real benefits at all.
Here's an interesting exercise for you: tally up all the pointless government initiatives that should never have been started in the first place, and see just how much government spending could (should!) be cut by.
Two stone? Blimey. Maybe there is something to this Atkins lark, after all...
Having said that, I lost 5" off my waistline just by partially switching from beer to G&T.
I saw a headline in a paper over the weekend "No 10 orders flabbies to get fit" If I'd been the editor of the paper, my headline the next day would have been "Flabbies order No. 10 to get f****d" excuse mu language.
Makes me so angry that I want to vote them out - now.
Who have you upset Mr Pollard? With your contacts you should be Minister for Slim by now,or then again, perhaps not,having the qualifications probably disbars you.Twenty seven pounds, most admirable.
Outing the lardbuckets in this government might do what family values did for the Conservatives,show them to be hypocrites.
Is there any non-Telegraph source for the 9.6bn pounds? I think they might have misread million for billion, or they're adding up some rather tenous programmes.
See my site for a somewhat sceptical look at the £9.6billion claim.
It's garbage.
Keep the good work.
There's nothing to gain and nothing to lose.
aventureux amateur dildo II aventureux amateur ejaculation II aventureux amateur fist II plus froid roue II filles sequence II plus froid mere photo II hantres mpompina II hantres kinimatographos II hantres tenia II pio kryo koutos mama II to pio kryo koutos mama II drosero koutos mama II codardo giovane masturbate II codardo giovane pompino II codardo giovane spogliarello II
dildo anal* dildo assplay* big granny* big granny gray* password bigtitsroundasses* password bigtitsroundasses* allinternal patricia* allinternal peaches* isabella ass parade* assparade anal* brutal gangbang* brutal gangbang action*