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With Bio-Waste Spreader: "It's time the National Farmers' Union lobbied the government for policies to help family farms that a Labour government might actually listen to, rather than banging its head against a wall over the government's proposal to impose 20 percent inheritance tax (IHT) on farmland (Eyes passim ad nauseam). It could start by borrowing a policy from across the Channel…"
With M.D.: "Amanda Pritchard, chief executive of NHS England (NHSE), quit her impossible job last week after three and a half years, two critical select committee reports and an assurance from health secretary Wes Streeting that he had 'full confidence in her'. Under her leadership, NHSE has sacked thousands of staff. And at the end of January it was announced that another 2,000 jobs would go as Streeting takes back control of NHS England…"
With Dr B Ching: "The government promises that train fares will be 'kept' affordable but does not understand that prices like £369.40 Manchester-London return (standard class) are too dear for most people. Whoops! That was last week. It's now £386. Labour's new plan for creating Great British Railways as the network's 'directing mind' says the reformed system will be 'affordable – so that prices are kept, wherever possible, at a point that works for both passengers and taxpayers'…"
With Remote Controller: "For drama commissioners these days, familiarity breeds, in both pronunciations of the word, content. Networks prefer series in which either the star or the story are extremely well-known. Last week brought another of each. In Zero Day, Robert De Niro plays the lead for the first time in an American TV series (having weirdly used the Argentine drama Nada as a gateway), proving that Netflix and others have the money and creative energy to tempt any talent…"
With Old Sparky: "News of BP's and Shell's pivot away from renewable energy projects, back to their traditional roots in oil and gas, will have come as no surprise to Eye readers. In late 2023, Eye 1613 identified the first signs of what is now a clear trend among all the international oil and gas giants that, having looked long and hard at the demand for energy worldwide, they are now excusing themselves from renewables opportunities…"
With Lunchtime O'Boulez: "Just as well one-time culture minister Baroness (Margaret) Hodge is stepping down from chairing Stratford East arts centre to focus on her new role leading the independent review into Arts Council England. The long overdue investigation continues to drag its feet while the shambles that is ACE gets worse. The review, announced a year ago with Dame Mary Archer in the chair, was sidelined by a change of government and chair…"
With Slicker: "Three years after Russia invaded Ukraine, London's legal finest are enjoying their best ever fee bonanza from representing sanctioned Russian clients. The six months to last October saw Treasury approval for a record £13.9m in 'reasonable' fees and expenses shared between 41 law firms, including barristers. This data was provided by the Treasury's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation in response to a freedom of information request from Private Eye…"
Letter from Tbilisi
From Our Own Correspondent: "It's an unsettling thing to look on as your country, once a beacon of democracy and committed to Euro-Atlantic unity, is taken over by autocrats who want to suck up to Vladimir Putin. The speed at which norms and values are torn up by oligarchs with agendas and axes to grind can make your head spin. No, not America, but Georgia…"