No time to be putting the green agenda on the backburner

One of the more alarming elements of the ongoing insular process to select a new leader of the Conservative Party has been the rush of most the candidates to ditch green policies. Whilst, it seems that most will say anything, no matter how nonsensical eg pledges to cut taxes whilst committing to spend more, the attack on green issues betrays a climate sceptic mindset. Nothing new with the Conservatives ofcourse, former Prime Minister David Cameron famously boosting his green credentials, with stunts involving huskies, pre-election, only to later talk of ditching the green crap, once in power. The attitude of the present candidates seems to be that the planet can wait, put the problem on the back burner until the country can afford to deal with climate and biodiversity disasters. Extraordinary, given the recent heatwave that saw infrastructure crumbling and much of the country on fire. Already, the shift is beginning from stopping climate change to dealing with the consequences There is a remarkable lack of political will to act on the environmental crisis. Nationally, the present Prime Minister talks the talk but what about delivery? Local authorities declare climate emergencies, draw up policy responses but then struggle to fund them - often due to financial restraint from central government. As people have sweltered in near 40 degree heat, one does have to wonder what is needed for the penny to drop. The climate and biodiversity crisis are here and now. Heatwaves, wild fires and floods are spreading across the planet. The rich world can no longer takes its immoral stance that it is not really happening to them. It is now four years since the International Climate Committee's report declared that there were 12 years to address the problems or it would be too late. Over those four years there has been much hot air expended, committing to targets but a universal failure to deliver. Now is the time for action, not more vacuous talk. The general public recognise the need for action, though are sometimes less happy to accept the changes this will mean in their own personal lives. What no one should accept is a head in the sand approach as the fires come closer and the waters rise higher. Something that the new Conservative leader and others would do well to heed.

Football is about entertainment - time wasting and gamesmanship is killing the game

The new football season is set to kick off in a couple of weeks - some will think it has never been away. There is the usual buzz of anticipation from the fans, as clubs recruit new players and let others go. Who will be the winners and losers? This will be a different season, starting earlier, then breaking for a month in November, while the World Cup is being played. Whenever, the World Cup comes round, the old newsreels comes out from when England last won it in 1966. The iconic moment when Geoff Hurst blasted home the fourth goal from 25 yards in injury time. It was a long time ago, with the game changing much over the ensuing years. If the game were played today, Hurst would not have been in that position to fire home but down by the corner flag, holding the ball up, whilst running down the clock. There were no substitutes in 1966, teams will be able to use five (up from three) in the coming season. Dare I say it, more opportunities for managers to run down the clock with needless substitutions in the final minutes. Deliberate time wasting is becoming a real problem in the professional game. Watching West Ham last year, it was incredible to see some teams starting to time waste, after just 10 minutes. The goalkeepers regularly taking as long as they could with goal kicks. The only time things changed was when the away side went a goal behind, then there was a rapid reversal of tactics. Arsenal and Brentford were two of the prime time wasting offenders last year. Another, discouraging development in the game is faking injury or maybe call it what it is cheating. Players going down all over the place to try to gain an advantage by getting the game stopped. Some of the play acting would have embarrassed players of yesteryear. These methods of cheating have to stop. Fans pay in excess of £60 to watch a Premiership football match. They pay to be entertained, not witness some sort of of attritional battle between teams using underhand tactics. The cheating can be stopped. Referees need to be less easily take in by the fake injuries. They need to book more players for such behaviour and the time wasting. The time wasted also has to be clearly added on. These are not huge issues but they need addressing The Premier League is probably the best competition in the world Many of the finest players take part, the skill level is incredible, compared to past eras. But the game has also become commodified, everything from the players to franchises. The lifeblood of football is the fans and the bond they have with their clubs. Football administrators need to remember that football first and foremost is an entertainment. There are some growing tendencies in the game at the moment that threaten that entertainment value. The time has come to address these issues - no more blatant time wasting or fake injuries to stop the game. The fans deserve better.

Pay frontline workers what they deserve

The ongoing rail strikes herald a new era of industrial unrest in the UK. Rail workers are opposing efforts to make them work more for less. Longer hours, less pay and worse terms and conditions. Others are set to follow, with unrest growing amongst teachers, health workers, airline staff and barristers - the list seems to grow by the day. The soaring rate of inflation and so the cost of living are no doubt driving these demands. The Covid pandemic seems to be being used as a convenient excuse by some to enforce hardship on many. Those who risked their lives on the front line, whilst others worked from home are now being vilified and told to take derisory pay settlements. Meanwhile, the government seeks to remove limits on bonuses for City bosses. So, they can have unlimited remuneration, whilst others fall further behind in the struggle to survive. It seems, with hindsight, the government was happy at the depth of the pandemic for people to clap front line workers but now, when they should be rewarded, a different tone is being struck The general secretary of the rail union the RMT, Mick Lynch, got it right when he said there is money available, it is just in the wrong people's hands. There are hundreds of billionaires in the UK, no doubt some of those city bosses count among their number. The government has behaved in a reckless, out of touch way toward working people. It seems to have returned to the rhetoric of the 1980s, attacking trade unions and seemingly seeking conflict rather than resolution of disputes. The rail strikes are a case in point. In Wales, there have been no strikes because the Welsh government has talked with the unions and operates a true partnership approach. The government needs to start treating the mass of people with basic decency. Stop the divide and rule rhetoric of trade union members versus the public, as though the two groups are mutually exclusive. Government needs to tackle the cost of living crisis. This may mean taking from the rich to give to the poor. It certainly demands a genuine levelling up across the country, halting the flow of wealth to the very few, at the cost of the many. Failure to act will bring more hardship and disruption for everyone.

Celebrating the life of Bruce Kent

A sad day but a great celebration at the funeral today of peace activist Bruce Kent. Bruce died last month at the age of 92. His life was one of witness and activism in the cause of justice and peace People came from far and wide to his parish church of At Melitus in Haringey to say goodbye. (Westminster Cathedral had been offered but Bruce was essentially a man of the parish). He was a Catholic priest for many years before leaving to pursue his work outside. He then married Valerie Flessati - his wife and collaborator for more than 30 years. Bruce was deeply involved in the peace movement, becoming secretary general and later chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. He was also vice president of the Catholic peace organisation Pax Christi. Among his many actions, Bruce spoke out against the siting of nuclear missiles on Greenham Common in the 1980s. In 1983, the BBC Radio 4 Today program named him the man of the year. Margaret Thatcher was the woman of the year. (That old BBC balance never fails). Bruce was steadfast over decades in opposing nuclear weapons and war. The early noughties were a busy time, which saw him constantly speaking out against wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was a regular at Glastonbury. Bruce was also active in support of prisoners, pursuing the cause of many who had been wrongly incarcerated. He also supported a man, who was put under a control order in the days of the war on terror. A Labour Party supporter, Bruce stood for the Parliamentary seat of Oxford West and Abingdon - he unfortunately lost He was also a strong supporter of his constituency MP Jeremy Corbyn. Jeremy was among those attending the funeral. The funeral was a joyous celebration of a great life of advocacy. Friends and family came together to celebrate a life well lived. Bruce will be missed but his legacy will live on with the peace movement