Poor start to the day with the children complaining about not feeling well as I then reviewed my intended candidature for the Huntingdonshire District Council elections and with it my choice of standing for the SDP/Liberal Alliance rather than as an Independent as their national negotiations have proved disastrous so far. Also reviewing my taxation affairs with my accountant as 1,000 angry health workers demonstrated in Scotland and nurses were striking there. The Un Security Council votes 14 to 0 to insist that Israel repatriates Palestinians illegally expelled from their country.
Slept well enough, but was tired this morning. Late to breakfast again and there then started rather a poor day. Daniel was still unwell and complaining of a sore throat and we also had to hunt high and low for his nasal spray to prevent his catarrh getting worse. Debbie was also still upset about the Kimbolton Prep School lunches and also, with Della, said she had a sore throat as well! I took the kids to the bus stop myself and noticed that we had started a fashion of the children wearing blue coats, as Jason Chambers was thus clad as well! I dropped in on the newsagents and bought an Independent and Exchange and Mart, then came home to read them. No Corniche convertibles in the E&M unfortunately. Both editions in the FT and Independent confirmed my worse beliefs on the Alliance merger debacle and, after spending the morning reading this and a mountain of mail, I decided that I could not stand as a candidate for a party with undecided name, which had confused policies! I therefore composed a letter to the joint SDP/Liberal Chairman for St Neots, outlined my feelings and resigned the candidacy. I suggested standing as an Independent and then considering affiliation when I knew what they had in mind!
By lunchtime, Di’s mother had arrived and we sat down to a salad lunch. I kept scanning the TV news and saw that Des Wilson, the Liberal President, was succeeding in getting the leaders together for more talks and pushing the controversial document into the background, but I fear the damage is done already, with credibility at an all-time low. This afternoon I finished this and a few other letters, phoned for Hunts DC candidature information and then cleared my desk. I also spoke to my accountant about the ever more complex affairs of my Income and Capital Gains taxes. Out to feed the ducks and doves late. Pete is spending even more hours achieving even less results on the games lawn, which makes me despair! Tea with the children. Debbie actually ate fish fingers today, but Diana’s call to the school to get her off of school dinners was less than successful. Daniel survived the day at least. Tonight I took Debbie to her horse riding. She was very nervous today on Dylon and had an absolutely hopeless teacher – alternately scathing and insecure, which made things worse. Debs would not try simple jumping, but she says that she will try next week. Delivered the letter copies by hand to Percy Meyer and Michael Pope and posted a whole batch of others. This evening I managed a fraction more of the tape translation, but I must work at it all day tomorrow. The news broadcasts this evening were all about the Alliance crisis. Robert Maclennan has agreed to drop the policy declaration and new teams will now try to negotiate a new statement, briefer in nature, but more general in nature. Separatist, Dr David Owen, is basking in the situation and saying that we are all a laughing stock. Nurses are on strike in Scotland and attracted the wrath of the Prime Minister. Over 1000 angry health workers demonstrated outside the Health Authority in Lothian Scotland in protests over ancillary services being put out to tender. Only emergency operations were done, but the action was ‘only’ for 24 hours. However, other walkouts are expected in Scotland. Talks are still going on over the blood transfusion staff and dragged on as workers throughout the country took fresh action. The UN Security Council voted 14 to 0 to call on Israel to repatriate the Palestinians illegally expelled from the Gaza Strip. Israel reject the call and respond by arresting Palestinian journalists and also using arms and brute force to try to get shopkeepers to open and cease a strike. The hole-in-the-heart boy, Matthew Collier, is still critical in condition, though stable, a day after his operation.