Kmflett's Blog

Source: Nathan Oswin on Twitter

Its difficult to start a culture war over the Bank of England (class war is another matter) but the right have managed it as the current TUC GS Paul Nowak joins the BofE Court.

Institutional capitalism is not averse to having union representatives on its leading bodies- think pension funds- perhaps because as E P Thompson noted of the labour movement from the 1860s that having failed to get rid of capitalism it proceeded to warren it from end to end.

Those complaining often claim to be defenders of British history but are often, as here, ignorant of it.

On a parochial note the quality of union representation seems to have gone up considerably from 1998 onwards.

One can only hope that Paul Nowak doesnt try to persuade the Bank that Everton FC is the model of how the country’s finances should be run.

Zack Polanski has said that if he wins the Holborn & St Pancras By-Election he will bike over from Walthamstow where he resides. He did underline however that his barber is in the Constituency. That is one thing he has in common with Keir Starmer whose barber was (and presumably still is) in Kentish Town.

His support for Arsenal aside Starmer had one obsession. Not socialism of course but his hairstyle.

Polanski goes where Starmer never went. He has a designer beard that says clearly ‘I am a North Londoner’.

It might even be an award winning beard a modern successor to Starmer’s predecessor and former Beard of the Year Frank Dobson

Financial Times 16th September 2026

Using Cask Marque scoring based on postcodes the best locations for good cask beer in the UK are as follows:

Nottingham

Swindon

Oxford

Its surprising that, for example, Manchester and Sheffield don’t make the top three and of course any statistical exercise will be subject to qualification. Perhaps these locations have more Cask Marque surveyed pubs for example.

Even so its invitation in Cask Ale Week, or ten days, to try some cask beer and see what you think. Indy pubs are of course the ideal place but beyond that my tip would be Wetherspoons. Given their, how shall we say, competitive pricing beer doesn’t often hang around on the Spoons pumps. Its likely to be fresh so if the cellar person is up to the mark a good pint should be available.

(5) Nottingham is the cask beer champ – British Beer Breaks

Telegraph 14th September 2026

It’s right that to undercut support for racism (Editorial, 7 September), an end to 15-plus years of austerity must be called not just in theory but in practice. That means spending on public services and infrastructure, not cuts, and wages at least keeping pace with inflation.

There is also an immediate task. The far-right mobilisations in Dover and Portsmouth represent an attempt to build a fascist street force fuelled by the words of Reform UK and Restore Britain. As we approach the 90th anniversary of the battle of Cable Street, the lesson remains clear. They must not pass.
Keith Flett
Tottenham, London

Guardian 8^th September 2026

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/sep/08/black-clad-mobs-and-the-puzzle-of-two-tier-justice?CMP=share_btn_url

Reform gets the thumbs down from Times letter writers (14th September) not the most revolutionary cohort. An accompanying Times Editorial concludes that Farage is going nowhere until he can prove that he is not dodgy