A MAN OF FEW WORDS

Radio 5 finally caught up with the “trashed party house” story this morning and give it a national airing. In true Noel Edmonds style, teenager Rachael Bell (17) from Chester Le Street organised a house party while Mam and Dad were away for a few days. The conversation before they went must have gone something like this;

Rachael: Is it OK if I have a few friends over for supper and scrabble while you are away?
Mam and Dad: Of course you can Rachel, we trust you emphatically.

And Rachel did just that. 200 yobs descended on the house after an internet advert went the rounds, creating over £20,000 worth of damage and occupying the local constabulary for some time. I bet Mam and Dad can’t wait for Rachel’s 18^th birthday bash. May I recommend a marquee?

The Shields Gazette carries a David MacLean full pager on David Miliband and the soap opera that is the Labour Party leadership story. The article, basically a rehash of what’s gone on over the last two weeks or so, does make a couple of good points on “Will he, wont he” Miliband. Firstly MacLean states that;

“To some, a David Miliband challenge would represent the polished smile of New labour going against the “clunking fist” of Gordon Brown”

and later on in the article

“It’s often hard to get a handle on Mr Miliband and his ideology, he’s a man more well known for his intellectual abilities than political vision”

And there in lies the rub for most Labour MP’s. Do they want Blair replaced by a man created in his own image (Miliband) or a Scottish tub thumper (Brown)?

On a less than political note, the picture the Gazette has used of David Miliband does him no favours. The hint of a moustache makes him look like a young George Cole in the “St Trinians” films. As us older bloggers know, George played a “spiv” who was not adverse to the odd dodgy deal. Perfect for the job of P.M. then.

The new Tyne Tunnel campaign kicked of in earnest today with the appointment of Bouygues Travaux Publics as the preferred bidder for the project. Whilst the environmental argument will gain pace as the weeks go on, I do have other concerns. Firstly why give the contract to a firm whose name you can’t pronounce (is this a clever council ploy to stifle debate; if you can’t say the name you can’t talk about it) but secondly and more importantly, while give the contract to a foreign owned company? If you are hell bent on building a new tunnel, then at least keep the money in this country. There are many civil engineering concerns in this country that are more than capable of building this new link, and they should have been awarded the contract!

Lastly, whilst I don’t have a crystal ball, I would still like to make a prediction. The new tunnel link is priced at a staggering £185 million. Using Wembley Stadium, the Olympic Games, the Channel Tunnel, the Dome etc as guidelines, may I be the first to put an actual figure of £300 million on the final project. You heard it here first!

Finally, tucked away at the bottom of page 7 of the Gazette is a little piece on Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Bolam. Mr Bolam, after a career of over thirty years, is retiring. The article covers his illustrious progression from a Constable in Newcastle, a Detective in Walsend, a sergeant in Shields, an inspector in Newcastle, a Chief Inspector in both Shields and Newcastle, a Detective Superintendent re intelligence and finally Chief Superintendent and head of a major murder crime department. Wow, the only job he never did was the cleaner. Now I don’t know Steve, I have never met him but with such a C.V. he’s obviously a clever and sound guy. However, it’s the last line which makes me heartily laugh. Asked by the Gazette for a comment Mr Bolam said “I’ve enjoyed my career”. After thirty years as a policeman, many of them at the top of his profession and his employment spanning a time of great change in both the police force and its terms of reference and all he could say was “I’ve enjoyed my career”!. Clearly, Mr Bolam is a man of few words or he views brevity as a religion. Either way I wish him a happy retirement, but wouldn’t recommend that he supplement his pension by hosting a talk show!

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