This is Northumberland Calling 16.5.25

The 'bopping' right along edition

Hello America (particularly Central Ohio) this is Northumberland calling.

To understand the nature of ‘bopping’ not a term I normally use, see the bit about my writing as a lovely thing did happen this week.

The police have arrested a 21 year Ukrainian for the fire bombing of properties related to Kier Starmer. Earlier the counter -terrorism revealed a certain sophistication to the bombs. This has spy-tainment plot written all over it as I have read Charles Beaumont’s Spy At War. Not all Ukrainians support Ukraine. The suspect is appearing in court today. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/15/starmer-house-car-fire-charge/ or https://archive.ph/Y9QLS

The government released its white paper on immigration. They are seeking to reform not just the way the government deal with illegal immigration but the way it handles legal immigration. It is a tacit admission (yet again) that multiculturalism has failed. The Life in the UK test has existed since 2005 and does cover a broad range of topics. Since 2013, all immigrants have also had to pass a language test in order to be able to settle in this country. You want you can take the test in Welsh or Scottish Gaelic (because of the diaspora there are Canadian Scottish Gaelic and Argentinian Welsh Gaelic native speakers). In general most people take the English test.

The white paper proposes the tightening of the tests and a few other safeguards. Mainly it proposes turning off the tap which Johnson turned on re low skilled employees. Labour wants to create an incentive for companies to invest in apprenticeships and the like in order to benefit people born in this country where there is a potentially wide pool of workers. The biggest sector which will take a hit is higher education as they do have a significant foreign population who have been allowed to bring in dependants and who have been a certain leeway to ‘overstay’ their student visas. Starmer has not suddenly become Enoch Powell. There are huge pressures on the infrastructure as successive governments did not invest in such things as prison, schools and hospitals in keeping with the growth in population. You can read the white paper here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/immigration-white-paper-to-reduce-migration-and-strengthen-border

This op-ed explains that Starmer’s staff had to have known that the squeals and accusations would come from the Left and planned for it. Indeed they possibly welcomed it, considering the drubbing they had over immigration issues at the local elections. It also gives a brief explanation of who Enoch Powell was and why his 1968 speech still casts such a long shadow. https://www.thetimes.com/comment/columnists/article/enoch-powells-shadow-is-troubling-labour-kmr5kxsfx or https://archive.ph/N5VPF

The overcrowding in prisons is real. It is why they are trying to release more prisoners early. Earl release will now include sex offenders. The thing about early release is that the prisoner can get ‘recalled’ if they break the terms of parole. But this is a consequence of the failure to invest in infrastructure by successive governments and the growing population putting pressures on the finite numbers. They tried to deal with this through creating backlogs in the criminal justice system but that isn’t justice for any one – neither the accused, the complainant or the general public. Mostly the public don’t want to know what is going on the criminal justice system because it is only a small percentage of the population who misbehave. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/half-recalled-prisoners-unsafe-release-l8sqcr85f or https://archive.ph/WJWZz

The journalist, Andrew Norfolk, who brought the grooming gang scandal to the public’s attention has died six months after retiring. His was a lonely path when he was fighting to get the scale of the problem acknowledged. His story shows why good investigative journalism remains desperately needed. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/obituaries/article/andrew-norfolk-obituary-times-reporter-who-exposed-grooming-gangs-95qb636sb or https://archive.ph/Gyg3A

The Times did an in depth report on the on-going scandal and the fact that it is widening. A National Inquiry does need to take place. It is a very sobering read about the current failures and why 20 years on, it is possibly worse. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/on-these-streets-we-fear-grooming-gangs-never-went-away-7mnr20bm3 or https://archive.ph/RrnyL

The Royal College of Nursing wrote to the Darlington NHS in March asking them to stop their unlawful policy of mixed communal changing rooms. They refused to and republished their trans-inclusive policy. The tribunal is due to take place in October 2025. It will be interesting to see what their defence is. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/law/article/nhs-trust-policy-allowed-biological-men-to-use-womens-changing-room-0stmt9wmb or https://archive.ph/rvFkM

The union for the civil service is threatening to strike if the government upholds the law on single sex spaces. It is also very unhappy with women’s sports being made female only. They are also suggesting that sexual orientation should be by certificate rather than biology which is a very homophobic stance to my mind. Unions have been captured by this ideology. Their liability insurance underwriters might like a word in the activists’ shell like ears though… https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/05/16/civil-servants-threaten-strike-action-trans-toilets/ or https://archive.ph/zSTkm

This is the Daily Mail on the same subject. It points out the motion has been tabled by the Sheffield branch which is led by a noted transactivists who believes women’s groups are part of the far right. <eyeroll> A friend who is involved with union work suspects the union management may be waiting until just before the conference to pull the motion ‘on legal grounds’ as they don’t want the screaming and screaming of certain activists. The comments are not taking any nonsense. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14717831/Civil-servants-threaten-strikes-transgender-toilets.html?s=08

Harvard discovered that its fake copy of the Magna Carta is on balance of probabilities the real deal. Which just goes to show what some institutions have tucked away in their archives. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm23zjknre7o

They mystery of why most ginger cats are male has been solved – it has to do with a recessive gene. One of the first cats we had after we were married was Marmalade who happened to be female and ginger. She was a lovely cat who went far too soon as cars and cats do not mix. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwywdjjgvqqo

Glasgow and Edinburgh continues to be engulfed in the ‘Godfather’ gang wars and has to do with the control of the Scottish drug trade. I had vaguely heard about this at the beginning of last month as my youngest was moving out of Edinburgh and the gang war erupted on the street near his old flat. He is now on the much more peaceful island of Oronsay working for the RSPB. Apparently the mayhem continues on the streets of Glasgow and Edinburgh. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/16/the-godfather-gang-wars-tearing-scotland-apart/ or https://archive.ph/qXvxH

The great British pubic tend to think of charities as the Victorian ideal where people volunteer their time and donate their treasure to worthy causes. The Third Sector as Blair renamed it actually pays its executives very well while expecting its low level employees to work for a pittance. The same is true in the US. The real change happened in WW2 and it was Natalie Wales Latham of Bundles for Britain who first took paying staff in order to ensure the administration was done. The charities argue that they are now multi-million pound operations and thus must pay the same as the private sector. The sector is actually very barbell shaped with the lanyard class rising to the top. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/15/the-controversial-row-over-charity-ceos-six-figure-salaries/ or https://archive.ph/IGMtj

Here:

It is all change with my writing in some ways as my editor has decided to change jobs. Not an ideal time for me as I loved her as a supportive editor. As the line has been cut to four books, the senior editor (now my new editor) is looking to ensure the quality of the read is sky high. I am looking on this as a challenge as I do think I write a credible Regency with engaging characters. In fact I have a proven track record for doing so. I am having fun with the new project though which is the main thing.

My confidence took a boost when a high-profile romance book podcast ‘Fated Mates’ decided to review a book Taming His Viking Woman I wrote a decade ago. They were following the recommendation of the late doyenne of the romance genre Madeline Kearns who included the book in a column about spinsters when it first came out. Luckily Sarah and Jen loved the book – calling it a bop or just a really fun read. I had to laugh at the description of the plot which after a decade I barely remembered. If you like romance books and heroines who are on the shelf, the episode is a fun one. The bit about my book is 7 minutes at the end. This is the podcast:

My daughter discovered it when they used the cover of my book to illustrate the episode and she was like – I know that cover. I have trained my children well. And yes, I did let my new editor and indeed the entire marketing team know about it.

Paddy and the sitoutery where I was doing some writing

Paddy is less well trained and went rushing off into someone’s garden on a walk as he was chasing a rabbit. He is now being kept on the lead passed that particular garden. Spaniels!

The bees are building nicely. The first super over both hives is nearly full of honey so there is obviously a honey flow on. They have not started making queen cups or queen cells (yet) so no swarming is imminent. It is that time of year.

It has failed to rain in May thus far. Northumberland has a good system of reservoirs but other areas in the British Isles don’t. Ireland already hose pipe bans in three areas and Oronosay which is in the Hebrides is desperate.

I have no plans to put a paywall on, so please subscribe. If you want to reward me, consider buying one of my books. My latest Secret Princess for the Warrior is currently out and in places like Barnes and Noble. I suspect it is also a ‘bop’ of a read but then I might be a tad prejudiced.