Mailwatch(ed) Forum

Bobbies on the beat sets my teeth on edge.

You don't want to see yobbos get a clip round the ear?

Most of the responses BTL are saying so, you want to create a British-style ICE.

The Weeping Angel wrote: ↑Sun Jan 25, 2026 10:41 am

Most of the responses BTL are saying so, you want to create a British-style ICE.

Well, if the media gets its wet dream of a Reform government with Grifter Nigel in charge, I suspect a British ICE will be high on their agenda.

Anyway, don't we have something similar already?

National Crime Agency is supposed to be something similar. You can always make it bigger, move other bodies into it. The Serious Fraud Office isn't yet part of it, I presume it will be. The NCA and predecessors have never got close to the status of the FBI with the public, nor (I suspect) among serious criminals. There's something to be said for having something that does have more of that status.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sat Jan 24, 2026 10:40 am Go for the bureaucratic one. Bobbies on the beat sets my teeth on edge.

As I approach 70 years on this rock, I still do not have a recollection of a "bobby on every street corner"

Watchman wrote: ↑Sun Jan 25, 2026 6:05 pm

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Sat Jan 24, 2026 10:40 am Go for the bureaucratic one. Bobbies on the beat sets my teeth on edge.

As I approach 70 years on this rock, I still do not have a recollection of a "bobby on every street corner"

And the ones who were on the beat were often the most corrupt bigots in town.

Meanwhile, in other news.

Its a discussion for another day but the developed world shouldn't expect anything more than modest blips and be happy their economies aren't shrinking. See Japan.

Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said the figures showed economic growth was "still flatlining".

The UK economy grew by a faster-than-expected 0.3% in November after car production rebounded and the services sector got a boost.

Growth was driven by an increase in industrial output, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, helped by the return to production at Jaguar Land Rover's facilities following the cyber-attack at the carmaker.

With the Budget on 26 November, there was also an increase in services, particularly in activities such as accounting and tax consultancy.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8d041pp85mo

Especially when business is getting quite a lot of extra costs, with the minimum wage, workers rights and tax.

My feeling has been that it’ll struggle to adapt to all three. But it would be great news if it can. So far it’s going ok.

Tax rises fuel growth in accountancy services might not be a big win. What is music to business's ears is political stability.

The business confidence rise was in services more generally, wasn't it?

In other news, more of that "Reform Lite" stuff.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... -north-sea

UK among 10 countries to build 100GW wind power grid in North Sea
Energy secretary Ed Miliband says clean energy project is part of efforts to leave ‘the fossil fuel rollercoaster’

The UK and nine other European countries have agreed to accelerate the rollout of offshore windfarms in the 2030s and build a power grid in the North Sea, in a landmark pact to turn the ageing oil basin into a “clean energy reservoir”.

They will build windfarms at sea that directly connect to various countries through high-voltage subsea cables, under plans that are expected to provide 100 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power, or enough electricity capacity to power 143m homes.

The commitment, which will be set out in the “Hamburg declaration”, is expected to be signed on Monday by energy ministers from the UK, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Norway.

What does Andy Burnham add to this? Or Zack Polanski, come to think of it?

Anyone else get the feeling that this news was rushed out in response to Trump's thing about Europe failing because of 'windmills' the other day?

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Mon Jan 26, 2026 1:26 pm The business confidence rise was in services more generally, wasn't it?

In other news, more of that "Reform Lite" stuff.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... -north-sea

UK among 10 countries to build 100GW wind power grid in North Sea
Energy secretary Ed Miliband says clean energy project is part of efforts to leave ‘the fossil fuel rollercoaster’

The UK and nine other European countries have agreed to accelerate the rollout of offshore windfarms in the 2030s and build a power grid in the North Sea, in a landmark pact to turn the ageing oil basin into a “clean energy reservoir”.

They will build windfarms at sea that directly connect to various countries through high-voltage subsea cables, under plans that are expected to provide 100 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power, or enough electricity capacity to power 143m homes.

The commitment, which will be set out in the “Hamburg declaration”, is expected to be signed on Monday by energy ministers from the UK, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Norway.

What does Andy Burnham add to this? Or Zack Polanski, come to think of it?

I've never heard Polanski really talk about climate change.

He thinks it's already in the bank, and he's probably right.

I keep hoping he'll come out against net zero.

Zack’s views on immigration appear to endorse infinite exponential population expansion which is a peculiar position for an ecologist.

One assumes he's fine with them sleeping in shop doorways, or is he going to change his tune about house building?

This is what pisses me off about the Farage of the Left that is Polanski: he'll split the Labour vote by appealing to Guardianistas and the disenfranchised Corbynites whilst spouting simplistic, easily digested soundbites.

I mean, this is kind of what populism is...

You can’t really blame them for contesting by-elections. Labour will still have a massive majority.