Burnham

[AuroraSaab]

I agree (edit: re emphasis on pubs vs other businesses) but they're big employers too and there's been thousands of pubs closing in recent years so it's more newsworthy, though I think the closures are down to a cultural shift as well as rising costs.

The review of the prison early release scheme is sensible.

 

[UglyWithaSidePart]

Pubs are important to British life. It's emotive.
Noticed how we navigate by pubs when giving directions?
They've also been very hard hit over the years and everyone knows of an abusive pub leasehold big business owner.

 

[Pross]

Pubs are important to British life. It's emotive.
Noticed how we navigate by pubs when giving directions?
They've also been very hard hit over the years and everyone knows of an abusive pub leasehold big business owner.

And yet the biggest decline is simply that so many people have stopped going to them. My dad used to go to the local a few nights a weeks for 2 or 3 pints. Not many people of my generation or younger seem to do that anymore.

A lot around me haven't helped themselves by closing on a whim or by stopping serving food at 9pm. We do a monthly birthday night with my running club, we used to have a good selection of pubs on rotation where we could go for a run then go for a meal afterwards. Now wwe've had to ditch the usual run as we couldn't find places serving food late enough.

 

[Pblakeney]

Pubs are important to British life. It's emotive.
Noticed how we navigate by pubs when giving directions?
They've also been very hard hit over the years and everyone knows of an abusive pub leasehold big business owner.

I’m going to say *were* important to British life. They were in decline well before the pandemic and this is sticking a plaster on an avulsion.

 

[UglyWithaSidePart]

Fair enough, they are in decline, changing habits by younger people as well as having been hit hard financially by policy and the aforementioned abusive breweries/landlords.
Worth trying to save in my opinion, even if it's not alcohol consumption.

 

[Pblakeney]

Fair enough, they are in decline, changing habits by younger people as well as having been hit hard financially by policy and the aforementioned abusive breweries/landlords.
Worth trying to save in my opinion, even if it's not alcohol consumption.

The only way that they can be saved is by increasing the amount of spending regulars.
Over to you...

 

[UglyWithaSidePart]

The only way that they can be saved is by increasing the amount of spending regulars.
Over to you...

That's a bit pompous. I'm a regular at pubs anyway.

 

[briantrumpet]

Sorry it's Dan Neidle, but that poll about a wealth tax... absolutely shamelessly leading questions to get the result the commissioners of the poll wanted.

https://skywriter.blue/@danneidle.bsky.social/3mrcsjoa3ft2m

 

[Pblakeney]

That's a bit pompous. I'm a regular at pubs anyway.

Okay, over to all those bemoaning pubs closing while not regularly spending money in pubs.
Same goes for churches, or high street shops, or...

 

[BoldonLad]

And yet the biggest decline is simply that so many people have stopped going to them. My dad used to go to the local a few nights a weeks for 2 or 3 pints. Not many people of my generation or younger seem to do that anymore.

A lot around me haven't helped themselves by closing on a whim or by stopping serving food at 9pm. We do a monthly birthday night with my running club, we used to have a good selection of pubs on rotation where we could go for a run then go for a meal afterwards. Now wwe've had to ditch the usual run as we couldn't find places serving food late enough.

Exactly this, IMHO. It is like the High Street conversation, it is gone, it is not coming back. Get over it.

Personally, I go to the pub at least once per week, to drink and "socialise" with my pals. The place is populated by elderly people, very few young people.

I go to a different pub, perhaps once per week, with my wife, sometimes in company with an other couple, we go to eat and chat. There is little or no drinking, in my case, usually Guinness zero, because I am the driver. There are younger people present at this pub, but, really, it is not a "pub" in the usually accepted meaning of "pub", I would not choose to go there with my "drinking pals", except, perhaps, for a Christmas Lunch.

Yes, I am a sample size of 1, not statistically significant, but, the fact is, pubs are in decline. The usual thing is to blame the increasing business costs, but, personally I think more significant reasons are:

1. Changing lifestyles, most have comfortable, warm homes, with entertainment, and drink, if you want it, why go out?
2. Changing attitudes in the workplace to lunch time drinking
3. Government health warnings re: alcohol and smoking
4. Alternative "recreational" drugs are available, and, I am told, are cheaper. (I think this is more applicable to "the young").
5. Today's wives/partners are (rightly) not inclined to accept their husband/partner rolling in two or three hours late from work, and falling asleep on a chair.
6. the perceived lack of safety in town and city centres
7. drink driving laws (quite rightly) mean, walk, bus or taxi just another little inconvenience

 

[spen666]

I see apparently Burnham allowed the US to use Fairford Air Base to launch planes to attack Iran

Interesting that he has made the opposite decision to Starmer on this, given its the one think most people agreed Starmer was right about

Got no strong views either way about the decision, just interested he called it the opposite of Starmer

 

[BoldonLad]

I see apparently Burnham allowed the US to use Fairford Air Base to launch planes to attack Iran

Interesting that he has made the opposite decision to Starmer on this, given its the one think most people agreed Starmer was right about

Got no strong views either way about the decision, just interested he called it the opposite of Starmer

Has he actually made a decision to change the "rules"?

BBC News, this evening, implied that the "for defence" decision had not actually been changed, and that bombers have been taking off from there since the start of hostilities. The line was that the rising tensions have caused to Iranians to take a less generous view of the situation. Bowen suggested that the Iranians had no means of attacking Fairford, personally, I would not be so sure.

 

[C R]

I see apparently Burnham allowed the US to use Fairford Air Base to launch planes to attack Iran

Interesting that he has made the opposite decision to Starmer on this, given its the one think most people agreed Starmer was right about

Got no strong views either way about the decision, just interested he called it the opposite of Starmer

The way I have seen it reported is that Starmer made the decision on Friday (poisoning the chalice, perhaps) and Burnham decided not to change it.

 

[secretsqirrel]

According to BBC nothing has changed but the original agreement was extended last week. Iran has claimed that Fairford has been used to launch attacks..

UK 'ready to defend itself' after Iran says bases are 'legitimate targets'

In March, days into the US-Israel led war, permission was given to the US for it to use British bases including RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to target Iranian military infrastructure used to attack Gulf countries and vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

That policy has not been altered by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who was notified last week that a decision had been taken to extend the agreement with the US.

In a statement published on the IRGC-linked Tasnim News Agency on 23 July, the group said American bombing missions had been launched from RAF Fairford two days earlier.

 

[Pblakeney]

According to BBC nothing has changed but the original agreement was extended last week. Iran has claimed that Fairford has been used to launch attacks..

UK 'ready to defend itself' after Iran says bases are 'legitimate targets'

In March, days into the US-Israel led war, permission was given to the US for it to use British bases including RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to target Iranian military infrastructure used to attack Gulf countries and vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

That policy has not been altered by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who was notified last week that a decision had been taken to extend the agreement with the US.

In a statement published on the IRGC-linked Tasnim News Agency on 23 July, the group said American bombing missions had been launched from RAF Fairford two days earlier.

Meanwhile, the buffoon is landing new further tariffs on the UK. What will it take for it to sink in? We are not allies.