Blogging.

Time flies. It is over two years since I blogged last. Maybe it is time to revisit the activity particularly as another trip to Hong King is scheduled from 9 January 2012. This time we are on a 38 day cruise from Southampton to Hong Kong on Arcadia and then a few weeks with our daughter Suzi in HK. We fly back to UK on Virgin Arriving about mid March 2012. I was given an IPad 2 for Xmas and already I wonder how I managed to get through life previously without what my wife Maura calls "The Machine". It is truly an amazing piece of technology.

It has emerged that Mr Blair is running up a bill of at least £2million a year for a police protection team larger than the Prime Minister's. He is of course not paying the bill. The rest of us are.

The former Premier, who is estimated to have earned £15 million on leaving office and hopes to be appointed first president of Europe has a 16-strong Scotland Yard close protection team which follows him around the world. This is a disgraceful waste of public money at a time when the less well off are asked to make sacrifices.

Police protection is a benefit enjoyed by politicians, members of the Royal family and others. As a benefit it should be treated like other benefits and be means tested.

Given the level of incomes and assets of those receiving protection there would be a considerable saving for the public purse.

A lovely story going the rounds is about a young attractive lady who attended last year's Tory Conference in Birmingham.

Ms Squire (for that was her name) of the Taxpayers Alliance was enjoying a round of evening receptions. At one, she was approached by a middle-aged delegate who told her: ‘You must come back to my room.’ Despite Ms Squire’s refusal, the man continued to press his case, eventually thrusting one of his room cards for the Birmingham Hyatt into her hand and saying: ‘Come to my room at 3.30am, when the parties are over, and I will give you the time of your life.’ Ms Squire accepted the key – but with no intention of taking him up on his offer.

She then went to another reception, where she was pestered by a second, younger man in similarly persistent terms. Exasperated, she eventually reached for the first man’s room card and smiled: ‘OK. Here is the key to my room. Come up at 3.30am and I’ll give you the time of your life.’

She was left in little doubt that her ploy to bring the two ardent men together had succeeded. She encountered one of them the following morning. He expressed his fury about his early-hours meeting. So Ms Squire might expect to be given a wide berth by her male fan club as the Tories meet in Manchester this week.

Last night Ms Squire refused to identify the delegates concerned or to comment on the story. A friend said: ‘A lady never tells.’

On the BBC Radio 4 program PM there has been a minor controversy involving Boris Johnson the London Mayor and the question of drinking and riding a bicycle.

On Lantau Island in Hong Kong private cars are banned and the usual method of conveyance on Lantau is by cycle, bus, taxi or golf buggy. A friend of a friend of mine allegedly has a conviction for being drunk in charge of one of the latter.

On Sunday we went to the Farmers Market at Winchester on the No 1 Bus Service from Southampton to Winchester courtesy of the free travel scheme offered to Pensioners. It is amazing how different the view sitting upstairs on a bus is to sitting in a car. When we arrived at the market there was no sign of a recession.

I had intended offering Maura lunch at a Winchester Restaurant. Instead we had a burger from the stand offering Water Buffalo Burgers and it was delicious. Subsequently we bought a special bread and some local cheese and enjoyed that at home.

There used to be a Farmers Market in Southampton but that seems to have disappeared. Pity.

I do like a good put down. For anyone who did not catch a recent letter in The Times I offer the following extract without comment.


"Sir, I was astounded to hear that Lord Myners is seeking God (report, Times Online, July 19). All the time I knew him at Marks & Spencer he seemed to think he was God.

Kevin Lomax
Former senior independent director of Marks & Spencer"