Peter Hill
IWONDER how former chancellor George Osborne and Remainers who plugged the fear factor felt when they saw the latest financial news last week. Foreign investment in Britain is soaring: up from £33billion last year to a whopping £196billion, the biggest inflow since 2005.
Did they feel guilty about running down their country, now Europe’s number one destination for foreign direct investment, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development?
Did they hang their heads in shame on reading the OECD’s verdict that the increase was “a sign of confidence in the economy” and that the UK “remains attractive”?
True, they might console themselves with the fact that the falling value of the pound makes Britain better value for money and that the figures were boosted by a couple of very big deals but even excluding these factors the UK is still the top place in which to invest in the EU.
On top of this good news a raft of big companies say they plan to invest in Britain.
Perhaps the fear mongers are angry that their warnings were ignored by the men and women who decide where to place the big money. It must be harrowing indeed to realise that your opinions are rightly regarded as drivel. q ONE increase that is not welcome is in knife crime. Six people were stabbed to death in London in one week including one man found murdered on a bus as it was revealed that such crimes are up 14 per cent to a total 32,448 year on year.
“Perpetrators think they have a relatively high chance of getting away with it,” says one expert.
Young men are especially vulnerable to knife attacks. All that has to happen is to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some years ago my son was mugged by three thugs on his way home from school.
He had the sense to hand over his phone and the £3 in his pocket and they let him go. But every time he is late back I can’t help worrying until I hear his key in the lock.
And the trouble is that even if police make more arrests and courts impose stiffer sentences there are too many mindless idiots ready to lash out with knives and who don’t care about the consequences either to the victims or themselves. q STUDENTS have been warned against cheering and clapping because they are excluding the deaf (whether there are any deaf people in the vicinity or not). Instead they are advised to use “jazz hands” – waving hands silently in front of them, palms out. A motion put to the National Union of Students conference threatened “consequences” for those who disregard the instruction.
I wonder if any deaf people were consulted about this because I doubt if most have ever given a thought to traditional ways of applauding let alone been offended. It is another example of the ludicrous over-sensitivity sweeping through universities.
Meanwhile Oxford University has been forced to apologise for saying students who avoid eye contact could well be guilty of racism. Apparently the warning discriminated against people with autism. Do you ever think there are too many people out there who need to get a proper job? q QUESTIONS are being asked how rogue surgeon Ian Paterson was allowed to mutilate a number of women with unnecessary breast operations, despite warnings from colleagues. I put it down to one word: deference. Patients and health workers have always treated surgeons like gods so it is no wonder that some behave like them.
And why was Paterson released on bail pending sentence after being found guilty of assaults? Your ordinary criminal convicted of such serious offences would have been banged up but he is a surgeon, see. If he gets less than 20 years it will be a travesty. q PRIME Minister Theresa May says she will walk away from Brexit negotiations if we get a bad deal. Why wait? Hands up anyone who thinks the EU elite are falling over themselves to give us a good deal. Because if you do you must be living in another galaxy, to paraphrase EU Commission President JeanClaude Juncker.
Eurocrats intend to punish Britain severely partly to discourage other “exiteers” but mainly because of their fury that anyone might question their European “Project”.
Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis suggests that Mrs May should not even enter negotiations because “it will end in capitulation” as it did for Greece. He is right. Tell them our terms and let them stew. Don’t give them the satisfaction of humiliating us. q FEEDING seagulls is to become an offence punishable with fines after a spate of attacks. I would extend the ban to feeding pigeons, ducks, geese and swans. It might seem like a harmless activity but the result is a menace and a mess. Public parks and pavements are filthy with droppings where thoughtless people scatter food.
Parents smile and take snaps as their children dole out bread but it is not even good for birds. No one approves of dog mess so why tolerate bird nuisance? q WHILE on the subject of nuisances, it is reported that Britain is in the midst of a moth infestation. Tell me about it. Not a week goes by when I don’t find yet another garment riddled with holes.
I have moth traps all over the house. I put vulnerable clothing in the freezer and store more in vacuum bags. But the critters keep coming. They would survive a nuclear attack.