(1609) Late afternoon greetings all.

 

11. RAF Fairford

This will need to be mentioned although possibly you already know from the MSM. In no particular order, with some of these being Steve’s … see his links in comments:

10. Moo corner

9. Pat Condell had this up at X

8. James Wilson posted this at Jstack

7. DAD has this up at NOWP

6. A suggestion if you’re feelin’ a bit peaky

The long and the short is that the ole ticker is not quite right today … not too bad but I’m aware of it, which is no real news since 2017 and I have the meds … what I do is take a break, usually a lie down but it’s the lying down which seems the issue. In fact, on that day in 2017, it was not the moving about which brought it on but the lying down … must have been wicked in a former life.

Anyway, when I do rest up, one of the things is to choose a Temple:

A Geneva tale

You might like to bookmark that page as it has several Temples embedded. The advantage there is no ads. The one I’m on is The Jonathan Mystery. In it, a character called Ferguson has just had heart palpatations … charming. I don’t but it’s still not a 30 year old’s heart.

By the way, did you see one of the contra-indications of folic acid is those with a stent. Hmmmm. The upside is the brain’s still functioning and I do know what to do if … if.

Not much in the way of politics in the queue but plenty already on the site in its various outhouses. Plus OoL.

Torquaymada left a comment … you might like to check out his link (comments thread). The issue with Sundance is he’s asking for readers to buy him a coffee. In my case, firstly, I have plenty until the bank or gummint take it … and secondly, I absolutely must not have anything to do with payments, money, either outward to subscriptions or political memberships … and equally, nothing incoming. Some have suggested it and it’s very kind but it’s a most delicate situation I’m in. Best keep things as they are.

 

 

Seems there are three versions of this … one is 1981 (mini series it seems), one is 2009 and one is the proper one from 1962. The 2009 one I opened and some nun was telling the triffid keeper that it was God’s vengeance, in such a way as to mock God. I’d expect that in godless 2026, so I ditched it.

The 1962 was the real film but terrible screen quality, so it was a case of searching for other postings … this below is not bad.

(1234) Afternoon all … where did the morning go? Laze & Gem, going to take a bit of downtime now, run the bath, Sunday lunch etc. Putting up a film, shall return after that. (1234)

 

5. Yorkshire Lass does not hold back

4. Steve at 1502

• DeSantis and Florida AG Uthmeier Charge 20 Ineligible Voters — Including 16 Non-Citizens Who Cast Ballots in the 2024 Election
• Trump’s H-1B Visa Crackdown and How Legal and Illegal Aliens Suppress Wages
• Pete Hegseth Sounds the Alarm — Urges Troops to Vote After 300,000 Were Not Registered in 2024: “Keep Our Nation the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave””
• Royal Insiders Suggest Harry and Meghan Already Threatening to Return to California and Leave UK For Good Unless They Be Granted Taxpayer-Funded Security
• Trump Eyes Return To War On Iran After US Elections
• Charon Has a Quota: Kiev’s Recruiters Wait at the Water’s Edge (recommended) 
• Your kidneys need these drinks: What science says about hydration and organ health
• Vaccines have never been safe and effective: A century of documented failures of smallpox vaccination
• Greenland Deal: After The Party Comes The Hangover
• Much, much more.

JH: The smallpox vaxx … think I wrote it up some days ago here … drunk surgeon etc. well, I had a look with the one and only handmirror here and it was far worse than I thought … the scar is about 4 cm long and not pretty. No pic because it’s your Sunday lunchtime. When was that though? When were we given those as kids? Best just not to think about it.

 

Somehow appropriate for a Sunday.

(1111 … I swear that’s a true time but when I went to screenshoot, it clicked over to 1112) (1131)

 

3. TPA news

This did catch me offguard after a rough night but it certainly deserves at least reading through.

Welfare Hotspots

We kicked things off on Monday with the news that 2.4 million working age Brits (6.5 per cent) were, as of March 2026, receiving universal credit (UC) with no requirement to work, entitling them to an additional UC payment worth up to £429.80 per month, on top of any other benefits they receive. 

In 25 council areas, at least one in ten working age adults hold limited capability for work and work-related activity (LCWRA) status. Blackpool had the highest proportion of their population with LCWRA at 14.1 per cent, compared to an average of 8.3 per cent across the North West.

Our findings showed a big regional divide with Wales, the North East, and North West making up 9 of the top 10 local authorities with the highest rates of LCWRA. By contrast, 8 out of the 10 council areas with the lowest rates are in the South East.

Particularly alarming was that 804,476 people in their 20s and 30s were holding LCWRA status, 4.2 per cent and 5.5 per cent respectively. Indeed, in seven local authorities, the share of 20 to 29 year olds on LCWRA was higher than 60 to 64 year olds, places like West Devon, North Norfolk, Monmouthshire, and Wealden. Check out the full briefing paper here. 

As John O’Connell told the Sun: “These welfare hotspots underline just how severe Britain’s benefits crisis has become. The health element of universal credit is supposed to be for special cases, but now it means millions of working age people are given extra money to sit at home without any requirement to look for work.”

One-in-Five Receiving UC

Of course this was just the tip of the iceberg. On Tuesday, we revealed that one-in-five working age people are now claiming universal credit.

Of those aged between 20 and 64 in England and Wales, 20.3 per cent were receiving universal credit as of May 2026. Again, there were particularly worrying figures for younger age groups as 1.3 million (17 per cent) of those in their 20s and 2 million (23 per cent) in their 30s claimed UC. Together this was 3.3 million people under the age of 40. 

Among those in their 20s, claims for UC reached 33.9 per cent in Blackpool followed by Thanet at 31.6 per cent, and Great Yarmouth and Hartlepool at 30.8 per cent. The picture was even bleaker for those in their 30s as it hit 40.6 per cent in Blackpool, 38.4 per cent in Great Yarmouth, and 38 per cent in Hartlepool. At the other end of the spectrum, council areas in London occupied 8 out of the top ten spots for claims among people aged 60 to 64, with 51 per cent in Tower Hamlets.

In 15 council areas, at least 30 per cent of the working age population received UC while in 54 local authorities, the figures showed that a quarter are claiming. Blackpool topped this list too with 35.2 per cent in receipt in May 2026. 

Speaking to journalists, William Yarwood said: “In some places, dependency on universal credit has become endemic. Generations are being dumped on benefits: written off and condemned to a life of dependency as ministers make it harder for them to find a job. If Andy Burnham was serious about growth in every postcode, he would be making it more affordable to hire young people.” Soon enough he followed up on Talk explaining to Julia Hartley-Brewer which you can watch here.

While some of those who are receiving universal credit are in work, having 20 per cent of the population reliant on benefits is clearly unsustainable.

Young People PIP Surge in Home Counties

Universal credit claims are just part of the problem. 

On Wednesday, more headline-setting analysis from the TPA wonks found a 17.1 per cent increase in working age personal independence payment (PIP) claims between April 2024 and April 2026, with the largest percentage increases among younger claimants. 

The number of 16 to 19-year-olds receiving PIP rose by 22.8 per cent, equivalent to an additional 37,957 claimants, while the number in their twenties increased by 23.6 per cent, or 87,919, the highest rate amongst working age groups. Nigel Farage’s Clacton constituency had the highest proportion of 16 to 19 year olds at 16.3 per cent, while 6 of the top 10 are found in the North West, including Liverpool Walton (15.6 per cent), Wallasey (15.5 per cent), Birkenhead (14.9 per cent), and Bootle (14.8 per cent). For those in their 20s, Isle of Wight East had the highest proportion at 13.4 per cent.

Four of the ten constituencies recording the fastest increases for 16 to 19 year olds were in the South East, despite enjoying some of the strongest educational, earnings and employment prospects in Britain. Another three could be found in the East of England. Kemi Badenoch’s North West Essex came out top (54.7 per cent), along with places like Sussex Weald (54.4 per cent), Chichester (51.2 per cent), and Canterbury (50.8 per cent). See the full findings here.

Shimeon Lee was absolutely right when he spoke to the Daily Mail, questioning whether we’re really witnessing such a substantial deterioration in health or if the criteria for claiming PIP, changes in diagnosis, and the benefits system itself are driving younger people in affluent areas to claim state support: “The explosion of PIP claims in leafy parts of the Home Counties begs the question of whether there are people with sharp elbows gaming the system. Ministers must urgently review eligibility for PIP, ensure support only goes to those truly in need by means-testing, and ease the burden on hard-working taxpayers.”

What’s being claimed for?

A key issue here is what people are being able to claim for. Diving into the data, the TPA team uncovered a massive explosion in claims for autism, mixed anxiety and depressive disorder (MADD), and ADHD. Across parliamentary constituencies in England and Wales, PIP claims for MADD increased by an average of 108.5 per cent between April 2021 and April 2026, while autism claims rose by 136.6 per cent.

Overall, psychiatric disorders accounted for an average of 39 per cent of PIP claims across constituencies, rising to 51.7 per cent in Bristol Central. ADHD, autism and MADD together accounted for more than half of all PIP claims attributed to psychiatric conditions.

Alongside the rise in psychiatric disorders, we found 52,210 are now getting PIP for non-specific back pain, where no specific underlying cause has been identified making symptoms harder to verify independently. The number of claimants with non-specific back pain as their main disabling condition increased by 58.9 per cent in five years.

London had the highest rate in England and Wales, with 2.2 per cent of PIP claimants, or 10,966, compared with 1.3 per cent nationally. Indeed, all ten constituencies with the highest rates were in London. Queen’s Park and Maida Vale topped the table at 4.2 per cent, more than three times the England and Wales average.

Perhaps most shockingly, areas with the greatest concentrations of physically demanding employment actually had lower rates of non-specific back pain claims. Among the quarter of constituencies with the lowest levels of manual and industrial employment, non-specific back pain accounted for 1.55 per cent of PIP claimants compared to 1.17 per cent with the highest.

Anne Strickland was bang on in her assessment that the findings should “set alarm bells ringing about how easily hard-to-verify conditions can qualify for Pip. When claims are highest in areas with the least manual and industrial work, taxpayers are entitled to ask whether the system is being gamed.”

Taking to Talk, John told listeners: “The concerning thing is actually the growth since 2021… it is that rise that’s giving people a sense of ‘hang on, are we really on top of this? Are we really making sure that the eligibility criteria are stringent enough to make sure that people aren’t gaming the system?’”

A nation of taxpayers

Of course, there was only one topic of conversation for this week’s episode of a nation of taxpayers. Shimeon and William joined Duncan Barkes in the TPA studio to discuss the growing cost of Britain’s welfare state, examining the rise in working-age benefit claims, the sharp growth in PIP claims linked to mental health conditions, the parts of the country where dependency is most concentrated, and what these trends mean for taxpayers.

Catch the latest episode of a nation of taxpayers on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or watch now on YouTube.

Not forgetting the cars

Rounding off the week, yesterday we revealed the shocking 79.9 per cent average rise in enhanced mobility PIP claims, giving those who qualify access to the Motability scheme. Over 2 million people.

In case you were wondering, the Motability scheme allows the extra benefit to be exchanged for a far more generous package including a new car on a rolling three year lease, multiple driver insurance, breakdown cover, servicing & MOT, a home charging point for electric vehicles, and an exemption from vehicle excise duty.

And now for something completely different

This week’s blog comes to us from former TPA chairman and ex-treasury economist, Mike Denham. Mike takes a look at recent productivity data from the Office for National Statistics and whether it means good news for taxpayers. Spoiler: not likely.

……

JH: Phew, I was not expecting that much in the TPA newsletter but obviously we must run it … going to put it at OoL and Jstack as well, plus hopefully Julia will link to it later on X. Hoping that makes up for reprinting 90% of today’s newsletter.

2. DAD at 1502

a) France. Pope Leo XIV tells Macron right to life is foundation of all other rights.

In his first speech on French soil, the Pontiff condemned surrogacy and assisted death in the palace where France’s end-of-life law was signed in August.#

b) In media terms, there are two entirely different worlds out there, so separate that they might as well occupy parallel dimensions. In the first is the legacy media, while the second is the increasingly influential social media, with each reporting related issues in remarkably different ways.

c) The UK. Jailed hate preacher Abu Hamza’s £1.7m family home set for ‘£70k taxpayer-funded makeover’.

New windows, doors and solar panels will be installed at the five-bedroom Edwardian property.

d) Hungary. Whilst the Tisza Party retains an enormous lead in Hungary, Medián’s latest poll puts it at 54 per cent, down three points, and Fidesz at 22 per cent, up three. The shift follows Orbán’s return to frontline politics and predates a turbulent week for Péter Magyar that has tested the credibility of Tisza’s promises, while leaving open the question of how many disillusioned voters Orbán can attract.

e) Spain. ‘Migrants have taken over!’ MP infiltrates camp as government ‘colludes’ to keep migrants in Ceuta.

And also from DAD:

Men held in major incident near RAF base as homes evacuated.

Residents in Whelford, near RAF Fairford, have been taken to a leisure centre while investigations continue, police said. A cordon is currently in place in the area and officers say they believe the incident is contained.

The base has been recently used to deploy American bombers since the country’s conflict in Iran began on 28 February.

 

Thing is, good reader … what he says, his five points, are actually quite nail on the head … I did sit through it and they’re definitely points you might consider if planning to take on this ageing process.

What concerned me, and I don’t wish to inflame the Brit or youtube thought police, let alone that youtube doc … was that he hardly followed his own advice, looking at those shoulders and listening to that soft beta voice … I mean, it was hardly like these chaps below, was it?

I was pushed by my then gf in Russia to train at a gym … her notion was to get the paunch down to a six pack, whereas mine, and those of all the gym rats I met, was to beef up legs and upper body … a very useful thing as it turned out because decades later, losing muscle mass, circulation and overall functionality … it meant I had twenty years head start. So I thank my erstwhile darling for that, plus the new gf after the old left me and she was just as “with the plan”.

I am thinking, dear atheist readers, that maybe I was being kept alive by Someone Above. ✝️ian readers already know it was so.

Anyway, I digress. Were I to be asked what you should build up first, I instantly say quads and calves. Through biking, walking or training … do it! Talking chaps here … chapesses have a different regime to a fair extent.

The second is upper body … bis, tris, shoulders, neck. I’m well aware that there are other body parts but those are the ones to constantly hit.

All right, a trade secret … remember that, like Simon, I’m quite mad. I have no washing machine and want none either … they break, plus it involves dumping the old, broken ones … no thanks in 2026 Britain. So I handwash, even sheets, other bedding. In the bathtub sit two builders’ black buckets full of water and after each visit to the loo, one arm lifts a bucket out and it’s tipped in … much better than the (many times) breakable handle on the cistern. Then the other hand lifts out the other bucket.

That’s a useful number of lbs in each bucket … that’s ongoing biceps toning and it’s mightily useful for the upper body. As much done manually as possible, dear reader. Thinking no woman would put up with such eccentricities but the bod likes it and it means I can keep this blog up for our readers.

Last thing for now on’t … if you test those things the good youtube doc suggested and are found wanting … it’s not too late … also check out Steve at NOWP in his daily health advice. It really does help, reader, it really does. Also Sama Hoole screenshots now and then. Plus the X docs.

(0546) Not much sleep, sleeping in, dear reader, back around 0900 BST. (0929) Well half an hour late anyway. Explanation in Sun 1 below, chaps and chapesses. (0952)

 

Sunday morning ravings

Well well well … broken night which included Simon Templar saying to a lady who was reporting some dastardliness and for him to be careful, “Never mind, I’m really quite mad you know.” It also included my getting out of bed, no hands, and standing on one foot for over ten seconds (which I failed on the first attempt by the way but was ok on the second). 0320 that one was in the night.

It came from a suggestion by a youtube doc … you could tell he was a doc coz he had a beard, was wearing a regulation blue tunic and he spoke all doctorish. Going to run that YT between Sun 1 this morn and Sun 2 to 5, inc. DAD and Steve.

One other thing I failed to mention in my Sat 1 rant was “sense of humour” or at least of irony. Got up now to stumble about, opened this ipad and what do you know …

How ’bout that eh? Dearly beloved, an explanation I think I was in the process of giving you. Every so often, the heart decides to shut down operations … not at the heart itself but at various old, historical weak spots, e.g. that point in the throat which was hit during Covid or flu in Jan 2020, or in the left ear, the eyes, the gut etc. … the bod has its own sense of sick humour and hits each in turn … quite a familiar experience … sorted by moving about the place on my pins.

Plus a new one … sharp pain in right and left upper arms. Wonder if that could be my excessive consumption of folic acid cookies.

Anyway, up and about now, bod falls in line again, here I am writing at you and the sky looks bleah from here (he’s a poet and don’t know it … or sommit.) All of which is to say … welcome to Sunday, foljs … normal operations are on their way by elevenses.

Hope y’all having a wunnerful Sunday so far. “Foljs”? I thought you were “folks”, not foljs” but let it be that, good foljs … which incidentally is another post item later, about typo mistales (sic) all seem to be making these days.

(1632) Almost evening all.

 

16. DAD at 1501

Wreck and salvage law, 2012.

Definition of wreck

According to section 255 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, the definition of wreck includes “jetsam, flotsam, lagan and derelict found in or on the shores of the sea or any tidal water”.

Derelict describes property, whether vessel or cargo, which has been abandoned and deserted at sea by those who were in charge of it without any hope of recovering it.

The charge against Danny Tommo mentioned damage to a SHIP; and since the RIB had been abandoned, it becomes a Derelict Wreck.

The Defence have a week to study this aspect of Marine Law.

15. Breitbart

14. Monsters

13. Sounds a bit fishy

12. Food for thought

11. Failure to read the room

 

Still too early to do the final posting, also the vault is a bit empty just now … now I could run a film … too long, or a Templar … or these two episodes to see what you think. We’ve had the second already I think.

There’s just something about those early TV 26 min programs … a lot of fun do you think?