On a cold day with some rain in the evening, there was some good news today about the next HDC Environmental Services Committee as the agenda has lots of plans and proposals following my recent criticism and threats of an external management audit. Some chores and purchases of tools in St Neots and a trial drive in the Rolls-Royce to collect Debbie from Kimbolton for horse riding (which caused a stir) and a St Neots Museum Trust meeting this evening.
Thatcher is selling off the water industry using taxpayers money for incentives, a police killer has shot himself and ambulanceman are an overtime ban.
A brief night sleep which was not enough. I received the papers for the next Environmental Services Committee this morning and in them were two of my agenda items for discussion. I had led criticism of the performance of the Technical Services Department and proposed by means of an internal management audit or external management consulting to investigate the incidents of staff turnover and vacancies. Since then, they have filled the key positions, started to produce better work and some good results and now we have a meeting agenda with lots of plans and proposals. Amazing what threatening such a spectre can produce!
I took Di out this morning, dropped off the car full of rubbish at the St Neots Civic Amenity Tip and the lawnmower to Ibbetts for repair and then we had coffee and a look around the market in St Neots. I went to The Handyman and bought a whole lot of hand tools and a small toolbox so that I can divide my tools into one large and one small toolbox for convenience. Home for lunch and then I checked over the Rolls-Royce so that we could use it for our trip to the Southampton Boat Show tomorrow. I tried it out by driving over to Kimbolton to collect Deborah from school and take her horse riding. Arriving in the Rolls-Royce caused quite a stir amongst those toffee-nosed Kimbolton mums. After tea, I wrote up these last two days’ journal before setting off to collect Deborah and attend the St Neots Museum Trust meeting.
The Democrats have had a successful conference week in Brighton and have overtaken the Greens in the opinion polls again. The main news has been about the Thatcher government’s disposal of the water industry by using tax-payers money and share discounts to sell the public on the idea. A police officer has been shot dead by a man who then shot and killed himself when cornered; somewhat snookering the right-wing Tories baying for the return of the death penalty. The ambulance drivers are on an overtime ban now that the government is only offering them 6.5% (versus 8%+ inflation) and have refused arbitration with ACAS. Outpatient appointments have had to be cancelled which is bad news, but they are coping with emergencies. Today stayed dull and we had some rain this evening, which development has cast doubt on our using the Roller tomorrow.