We took a couple of days off recently and ambled up the northern French coast to stay for a long weekend at Nieuwpoort in Belgium a the Cosmospolite Hotel which is situated right next to the promenade, beach, harbour and main shopping street. And do you know we were the only English people around. Lots of French visitors one town away at De Panne where the Belgium army aided the evacuation of our troops from the beaches during WW 2. One evening we had dinner in the old city where we were came across a visiting group of Irish folk dancers strutting their stuff and thoroughly entertaining the crowd. When you cross the French/Belgium border its like a car parking curtain descends. The free and easy French way goes by the board and the Belgium’s have parking meters. In some places they mark off free spaces with white lines and other colours for residents and businesses. If you are lucky enough to find a white space you park and don’t move, It’s an interesting way of keeping traffic stationary!

Having lost the use of the car while we in Nieuwpoort we bought two day tickets for the tram which travels from the French border to Ostend stopping every ten minutes or so so you can hop off, investigate, have coffee then continue your excursion. It’s quite comfortable and a super way of seeing all the sights.

On Sunday we took the opportunity of visiting a few of the first World War graveyards which are carefully kept. So many of the gravestones simply stated an unknown soldier. The occupations of the dead also emphasised the type of war it was with a heavy concentration of artillery soldiers and infantry. Youngsters today might be surprised to learn we actually ruled an empire then as the gravestones reveal the country of origin of the dead soldiers. 

Cats

Because we own a dovecote we are a little wary of cats in the garden but recently whilst typing away in the office I felt something snaking around my ankles. Yes, it was a neighbours cat which had wandered in through the open front door. In minutes it had worked its way around eleven offices pausing to be photographed before making its way around the back garden. A welcome visitor.

Business tax

The more I hear about London Councils the less I like them. They were responsible for putting through recommendations about increasing fines for parking recently and for charging for plastic bags. Now they are supporting the call for councils to introduce a local business tax at a suggested starting level of 10%.

So far as I know London Councils consists of councillors from the 33 London boroughs. It’s a quango of an unelected body of opinion that affects us all and you pay a small fortune every year keeping them afloat.

Few councillors I know have much experience owning and running their own business. Most are employees working in paper pushing occupations. Look at what they are collectively not doing to our High Streets! Charging 10% tax to retailers will just about help to kill off those that are hanging in hoping business might improve. Others will simply say enough is enough and close down - they really do not need more hassle.

It would appear business people aren’t encouraged to become councillors because most of them have minds of their own and couldn’t follow the party political line. Let’s hope someone makes a sensible decision! I for one, am not going to hold my breath.

Planning

I heard on the grapevine that all the tenants in the building beside Sidcup station have been asked to leave by November which means, I guess, that a new planning application to develop the site will be back on the table shortly. Let’s hope it’s not as ambitious as the first one.

Radio Caroline

When I heard it was the 40th anniversary of the first active pirate radio station to operate in the UK with the unofficial blessing of the then Tory government. It took my mind back to another time when Jocelyn Stevens and myself wrote the first advertising time sheet for Radio Caroline from his Fetter Lane offices of Queen magazine. Those were the days!