Sunday, August 06, 2023

The Joy of Six 1151

Peter Oborne reminds us that British Muslims were the first to suffer from bank account closures, but nobody protested.

The Pipeline looks at the decision by Shropshire Council to grant planning consent to a local housing development in the near setting of the nationally important Old Oswestry hillfort.  It fears that by raising the bar on what constitutes “harm” to the setting of a heritage site, the decision puts every such site in England at risk from insensitive developers.

"Why should Dartmoor remain the only place in England where wild camping is (lawfully) possible? If we accept that being able to rest in modest comfort is an essential feature of open-air recreation, then that implies that this right should apply to all our national parks (whose statutory purpose is partly to provide exactly that) – at bare minimum." Jon Moses says we need a national right to roam.

The late Dorothy Rowe chooses five books on lying and dispenses much wisdom in the process: "If you understand that all you ever see or know is the constructions of your brain and that everything is a guess, then you can’t escape uncertainty. You could be wrong and that is frightening."

Simon Perks has finished c

"It wasn’t just about the liquid itself, but the experience. The feeling of being in the presence of someone who really cared about the heritage, the orchards, the fruit and the story the drink told. It was utterly magical." Gabe Cook celebrates role in the revival of traditional cider and perry.

2 comments:

nigel hunter said...

The right to roam 8% of the land is pathetic.Pressure should be put on all the landowners that hold private land.

Matt Pennell said...

Further to Peter Oborne's piece about members of ethnic and religious minorities who aren't famous racists being debanked:

For a few years I worked for an Asian publishing house and I spoke to dozens of Indian & Chinese restaurateurs and convenience store retailers as part of my job. It was common for people from the professional classes with no foodservice experience whatsoever to save up for several years then launch an Indian restaurant 100% with their own money because banks wouldn't lend to them. Similar experience with corner shops too. The Asian business community isn't 'debanked' exactly, they can have accounts but as start up businesses the major banks wouldn't support them with major lines or credit or finance expansion. This is why a lot of Asian businesses are family firms that don't expand beyond a certain point. Ever wondered why there aren't Chinese or Indian restaurant chains like McDonalds or Cafe Rouge and the Asian restaurant sector stays small and independent? They can't get the finance. While I appreciate 'debanking' is a hot topic, it's not the only problem for individuals/businesses at the margins of society.