Apr 03 2007
Chickens Coming Home?
I had viewed the prospect of Llanelli Scarlets v Munster with some trepidation, so imagine my delight at the Scarlets’ convincing victory on Friday last, setting up a re-run of the 2002 semi-final against Leicester Tigers. On that occasion, we faced a long and dispiriting journey home from the Nottingham Forest football ground after a freak Tim Stimpson penalty put Tigers a point ahead at the end of a game in which Llanelli had been in the lead throughout.
In a masterpiece of planning, the Heineken Cup organisers have ensured that Leicester get a de facto home advantage by staging the semi-final in the Walkers Stadium, home of Leicester City FC on Saturday 21st April. More problematic will be Leicester’s formidable pack. Something tells me, however, that Llanelli will do it.
As we near the Local Elections, I remind myself that the General Election is likely to be some time off, and that much can happen between now and then. It is unlikely that the Labour Party will upset Mr. Brown by refusing to choose him as leader, but his stock is now in freefall, it would seem.
Should we be surprised by Ed Balls’ antics over alleged CBI support for the aboilition of pension dividend tax credits? Probably not. We should all be extremely angry, however, that despite civil service advice as to the risks, Gordon Brown played fast and loose with our pensions by deciding to do things in one fell swoop. 1997 was “Year Zero”, of course, when New Labour knew better than anyone else. The pensions fiasco is only one of a number of disasters bred as a result of New Labour’s arrogance. Instead of spin, what about an apology from Messrs. Brown/Balls? A laughable notion, you may think.
TV footage of his first Budget reveals a much more youthful Mr. Brown, unencumbered by the political baggage that tends to accumulate through years of government. The Prime Minister Apparent has more than his share of baggage. The pensions black hole is a particularly large portmanteau. Are the chickens coming home to roost, or are the vultures circling?
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