Date
The views expressed in this Blog are mine and do not necessarily represent County Council policy or Conservative Party policy
Enoch Powell I recently met the literary executor of the late Enoch Powell MP at a City of London luncheon.
This reminded me that I once hosted a luncheon for Enoch Powell in my youth. I was a member of a ginger group called the Young Chartered Accountants Group. This was always something of an oxymoron because the typical image of a chartered accountant was of someone in middle age or more! However, our Group thrived and we invited speakers to address us at Chartered Accountants' Hall. A few of the committee then entertained the speaker to luncheon in the restaurant. I drew the lot to chair the meeting and to host the luncheon, much to the envy of colleagues! Enoch was a hugely impressive speaker and drew a large crowd.
After he had spoken and taken questions, we adjourned for luncheon in the bowels of Chartered Accountants Hall. He proved to be lively and entertaining. He regaled us with a series of stories and jokes that required better understanding of Greek mythology than most of us possessed! He was hugely patient and explained each punch line or philosophical point so that we could grasp it. This was at least 35 years ago but I have not forgotten the experience.
My recent luncheon as guest of the Sheriffs of the City of London rekindled this memory. Another guest was Lord Howard of Rising, who is Enoch Powell's executor and literary executor. He was a most engaging man. He is a member of the ancient and influential Howard family. He was educated at Eton but never went to university, a characteristic I share. He described to me how he went to work as Enoch Powell's private secretary. He said it was the most wonderful education he could have had and he learned so much by listening to and debating with Enoch Powell. He thought it was every bit as effective as reading classics at Oxford!
William Hague has had a pretty tough time recently. He is apparently being criticised for making his personal statement after accusations of a homosexual relationship with a political adviser he had appointed to his staff. Media advisers apparently advised him to sit quiet and say nothing.
He made a detailed and full refutation and I think he was right to do so. I can hear the media advisers but I can understand how William Hague must have felt. There are times when anger needs assuaging and truth needs to come out. I have no doubt the gutter press are searching desperately for the slightest shred of a story to disprove what William has said and to keep their tawdry story running.
He is a first class politician and I am sure he is also a decent human being. I wish him well.
William Hague and yours truly in Abingdon
Banbury Guardian parroting Labour spin The Banbury Guardian editorial this week was penned by Roseanne Edwards who stood as a Parliamentary candidate in the recent General Election. I think she is parroting Labour's spin and have written a letter to say so. I am not convinced newspapers like printing letters that are critical of their stated position so I am publishing it here in case it otherwise does not see the light of day!
Sir
I am afraid Roseanne Edwards’ editorial (2 September) is wrong on two counts.
Firstly, much of the trillion pounds of debt built up by the last government was the result of their spending more than they earned in every year since 2001. The Treasury’s Spending Review document (available on the Treasury web site) makes this abundantly clear. The recession saw government tax revenues fall and the banking crisis added to spending through quantitative easing but the yawning gap was there long before Lehman Brothers went spectacularly bust. Had Labour not been spending four pounds for every three they received, we might have been better prepared to withstand the financial crisis that almost engulfed us. Blaming the bankers for our dire financial position is Labour spin and Mrs Edwards has been taken in by it.
Secondly, there are no cuts to county council spending on carers. We are changing the way we support carers to try to reach more of them and to provide a uniform and high quality service across the whole county. We recognise and greatly value the contribution carers make in the community and will continue to support them.
Given the parlous state of our national finances and the inevitable need to restrain public spending substantially, we need to have an adult conversation about what this country can afford and what it cannot and how we are going to priorities increasingly scarce public resources.
As ever
Keith
Keith R Mitchell CBE
Leader of the Council
County Hall, Oxford OX1 1ND