Some shopping for Diana and a haircut for me in St Neots this morning whilst also buying Di her portable modern HiFi/compact disc player for her birthday present from A & N Audio. I went on afterwards went on afterwards to Southoe and Diddington to deliver FOCUS to the outlying houses and then stayed this afternoon to work on my speech.
I spoke third in the evening at the Commemoration Hall, mainly to Labour supporters, be-rating the Poll Tax and then seeking to present the most coherent alternative proposals with which to replace both the Poll Tax and the Uniform Business Rate. The Liberal Democrat proposals being for a Local Income Tax and a Land Value Tax. My throat and chest were becoming quite sore by the end of the evening.
Diana was wanting to do some shopping at some time and so I decided to take her this morning to St Neots as I was also in some need of a haircut for my public appearance tonight. Me to the barbers, Di to her supermarket; and then we met up to buy her Christmas present which was to be a portable modern HiFi with a compact disc player built in. This we bought from A & N Audio, taking their advice as usual and getting a Panasonic model. We also bought a tool kit for Daniel and so did well in our shopping. I dropped Di off at home to unpack and prepare the lunch and went on afterwards to Southoe and Diddington to deliver FOCUS to the outlying houses. It was quite bitter and cold today and so uncomfortable weather in which to be out. I was short twenty leaflets or so for Diddington and will have to return to do them when I get the spare leaflets returned from the other rounds. This afternoon, I stayed in and worked on my speech which was barely finished before tea but I was very pleased with the result. I felt my cough coming back on this afternoon and regretted going out in the cold so much these last two days.
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I travelled to Huntingdon after tea and prepared myself to speak at the Commemoration Hall, parking in the Pathfinder House Car Park and walking along the High Street to arrive quite early. I was a bit alarmed at the appointed hour to find no audience except Derek Holley, the Tory District Council Leader! Happily, the hall was part-full within five or ten minutes and then filled completely as the Labour meeting (taking place coincidentally upstairs) emptied for the duration of this one. I spoke third and started by be-rating the Poll Tax and then seeking to present the most coherent alternative proposals with which to replace both the Poll Tax and the Uniform Business Rate. The Liberal Democrat proposals are the Local Income Tax and the Land Value Tax.
My throat and chest were becoming quite sore by the end of the evening with all of the loud speaking and voice projection; even though I was consuming plenty of throat lozenges. I had only a couple of supporters there, and none of them for the entire evening and, apart from the one Tory and a very few Greens (who help organise the Anti-Poll Tax Union), the rest were Labour members from the other meeting who would not be easily convinced of the error of their own policies! At least they were all tied up for a few hours whilst my colleagues were spending their time more valuably elsewhere. I stayed a while after for a cup of tea etc and then came home and to bed.