UK XI: I Want To Ride My Diecycle

[Yakumo]

Wow!

The difference with Japan summer to the British summer I've found myself talking about recently is related, namely the night-time temperature. In the UK, we've had some good summers (and individual summer days in bad ones) in recent years that have been fantastic, getting up to the mid-30s in a manner not disimilar to a coastal resort in Spain.

But the difference in the UK is that as soon as the sun is three-quarters of the way across the sky, the heat dissipates. True, we occasionally have a period where it might be a bit warmer at night, but it's uncommon.

In Japan, at least in central Kanto, obviously it gets cooler when the sun goes down but sometimes you barely notice, especially with the humidity. It's kinda nice in one way; in that while there, I thought nothing of going out at 10:30pm and going to the supermarket to do my weekly shop. You'd happily walk out in shorts and t-shirt because you knew it was going to be comparably warm to the day-time.

You're 100% right. Even at 2am it's still about 30 degrees Celsius. We go to bed with the air-conditioning on and no blankets. UK summers are lovely compared to Japan. Here is hot all the bloody time and humid too. 27 years in the country and I still hate summer here.

[Neon Ignition]

Legal reprieve for asylum seekers ordered to live on Dorset barge | Immigration and asylum | The Guardian
Has a Government ever failed so badly at failing as the Tories have. Like the Rhwanda plan, the barge plan spirals apart

England has lost at least 1,500 bus routes since 2021, figures show | Transport policy | The Guardian
On yer bike! For lack of alternatives

Activists drill holes in tyres of more than 60 SUVs at Exeter car dealership | Environmental activism | The Guardian
Just... almost migraine inducingly off the mark

[CMcK]

England has lost at least 1,500 bus routes since 2021, figures show | Transport policy | The Guardian
On yer bike! For lack of alternatives

I have a friend that works with his local council in active travel and the situation with buses isn’t unexpected. The numbers using buses have declined sharply and a lot of people that use them have free passes such as pensioners or Young Scot card owners. It’s effectively government paying to run these services now. People just like the convenience of cars. I don’t use buses often but I will praise them for being punctual and clean. Kind of expensive especially if you’re used to paying BEV running costs.

[Protocol Penguin]

It’s a ****ing nightmare using public transport outside major cities. The main local bus service collapsed where I live last August and has never been properly replaced, so lots of places are inaccessible. Totally the opposite of how things need to be given the state of the economy and the environment.

[Neon Ignition]

Millions of UK voters’ data accessible in cyber-attack, says Electoral Commission | Hacking | The Guardian


I have been sexually assaulted by five MPs, says Labour’s Chris Bryant | Chris Bryant | The Guardian


England to deny Covid and flu jabs to under-65s despite fears for NHS this winter | Vaccines and immunisation | The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2023/aug/08/suella-braverman-immigration-lawyers-asylum-bibby-stockholm-uk-politics-live?page=with:block-64d22a338f083b553df02956#block-64d22a338f083b553df02956

No.10's official stance on immigrants changes from not welcome to **** Off

[Protocol Penguin]

The BNPisation of the Tory party is almost at its end stages, I see.

[Asura]

I have a friend that works with his local council in active travel and the situation with buses isn’t unexpected. The numbers using buses have declined sharply and a lot of people that use them have free passes such as pensioners or Young Scot card owners. It’s effectively government paying to run these services now. People just like the convenience of cars. I don’t use buses often but I will praise them for being punctual and clean. Kind of expensive especially if you’re used to paying BEV running costs.

A lot of this comes down to quality. I've lived in parts of the UK where I've never gotten a bus, because they're crap. I've lived in parts where I actively leave the car to take the bus, because they're so good.

Admittedly, sometimes you're driving to a DIY shop or IKEA and a bus just isn't an option, regardless of quality, but I think a large part of the problem is buses in many parts of the UK are bad.

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/aug/10/wilko-collapses-into-administration-after-rescue-talks-fail

Wilko's troubles deepen

[Anpanman]

I don’t use buses often but I will praise them for being punctual and clean. Kind of expensive especially if you’re used to paying BEV running costs.

...you obviously don't use them in Manchester. Filthy and no punctuality at all, though some of that is down to the clientele.

Of course our airport isn't any better.

[CMcK]

...you obviously don't use them in Manchester. Filthy and no punctuality at all, though some of that is down to the clientele.

Of course our airport isn't any better.

I’ll take note. I am in Manchester later this year for a music festival and was counting on using the buses to get to and from the hotel.

[Neon Ignition]

Change planning laws to protect historic pub buildings, campaigners say | Planning policy | The Guardian
There's a conversation to be had with this one on several fronts but this building was coming down one way or another. Looking into the financial black hole that pub has been it was one to let go of before it collapsed on someone eventually

[endo]

Maybe, but the way it was burned down and demolished was openly very cynical and there should be consequences. Dumping a load of earth in front of the only access point, meaning the fire brigade couldn't get equipment near it? That alone needs investigating and prosecuting for being wantonly dangerous. It's sad when pubs have to close because the business just isn't there any more, but the current practice that sees them simply burned down by developers needs stamping on. It's just not right but it's apparently tolerated.

[Neon Ignition]

Yep, it should be straight to a cell for anyone found to be purposefully burning one down. Just that in this case spending millions to rebuild a pub that was financially unviable seems daft. I wouldn't be surprised if health and safety rules prohibited it too, presumably the only reason the original was allowed to stand was because it was already in place and had people willing to spend millions preventing its collapse. They need to spend as much effort on investigation, prosection and prevention as they are pushing for a destined to close knock off to be built

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/aug/11/legionella-discovery-forces-asylum-seekers-off-bibby-stockholm-just-days-after-arrival

Legionella's discovery on the Bibby Stockholm barge whilst it still only has 15 people on it

[Hirst]

The rules regarding building planning and demolition have been inadequate for years - there's very little scope to prosecute people beyond fines/penalties which are completely buried in profit anyway. There are some specific things where you can end up in prison, but I can't think of a single time it's happened even for really egregious breaches of code. I feel this is because we have a government of landlords and property developers who like it this way.

I work in the council and I've seen it loads of times - some guy from 200 miles away will buy a property and put in a planning application to knock it down and turn it into something unpopular or clearly unsuitable for the area. It will get rejected (rightly), so they'll just sit on it and leave it obviously abandoned-looking and let nature run its course. It will be noticed quite soon that it's abandoned and scrotes will break in and smash it to bits, take drugs or try to set it on fire. If the council are really on the ball at that stage, they might issue notice on the owner to secure the property (usually this will be ignored and the council will do it and bill them). But it's only ever extending the inevitable, you have a property that is boarded up and scrotes will just turn up with crowbars. And even if it's "secure", it will still have people dumping rubbish in the garden and things like that, so anyone nearby is ringing the council constantly to complain.

Meanwhile, the owner will keep submitting similar plans over and over - at this point the building is a magnet for anti-social behaviour or a burnt-out husk and eventually the councillors will be absolutely sick of having their ears bent over it and they'll just roll over and approve it. It might have cost the owner a few grand in penalties and works in default charges, but nothing they'll lose sleep over. And they won't even live anywhere near it so nobody will personally confront them about it, it'll just be some other bit of the portfolio that some other guy manages for them. Total scumbags.