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New Statesman
6 days ago
- Politics
- New Statesman
Why can't we give our prime ministers a break?
The sun is beating down. The sweaty pack of lobby journalists is ill-dressed for the occasion. Ties loosened. Brows mopped. Suede shoes slowly ruined by the saltwater. They yell questions. One is about the economy. The prime minister crosses one sunburnt leg over another and surveys a patch of blue sky. And so, exactly 60 years ago, the holidaying PM photo opp was born. Harold Wilson reclining in the dunes, a Labour prime minister at leisure, king of his sandcastle and all that he surveyed. Over the following decades, the most powerful men and women in the land have been forced to subject their most precious moments of peace and relaxation to public scrutiny. When Keir Starmer pulls on his trunks this summer, he will follow in the sandy-toed footsteps of his dozen tired, weary predecessors who could not get a break even when taking a break. He will, though, no doubt relish the chance to travel with his patient wife and two children, getting away from his MPs who have spent the past few weeks wailing: 'Are we nearly there yet?' On Tuesday 10 August 1965, some 40 reporters stormed the beaches of Samson, an uninhabited collection of dunes and coves about 15 minutes by boat from the main Scilly island of St Mary. And it was here, in-between questions about wages, defence and the prospect of a Labour-Liberal pact, that Wilson became the first prime minister to show his knees in public – and for the benefit of the cameras too – changing forever the idea of our political leaders at rest. Wilson knew the power of the image that awaited the cameramen and photographers on that beach: father with pipe in hand, wife Mary in a swimsuit handing out cups of tea, son Giles playing with an inflatable dinghy. And the PM's shorts: grey, pulled up high to tuck in an open-necked blue shirt, his sandy, sockless feet in sandals. Wilson himself suggested to the gathering photographers that they might take a 'contemplative shot', and headed off to a rocky outcrop where he could be snapped from all angles, still clutching his pipe. That was the picture he wanted. One of the photographers then suggested he might take a quick dip. Some light frolicking in the waves. 'I'm not going in,' Wilson insisted, wagging a finger, before casting doubt on his swimming prowess. 'My style is about as good as the local seals.' Even for a prime minister on holiday, style still matters. After that, the press left Wilson alone for the rest of his break. It is an agreement that most prime ministers since have reluctantly entered into: one posed snap and then clear off. David Cameron is perhaps the finest practitioner of the staged snap. Wear the same outfit: navy polo shirt, navy trousers. Do the same thing: point at fish. Always fish. Fish in Cornwall in 2011, fish in Devon in 2012, fish in a Portuguese market in 2013, and again fish at a different Portuguese fish market in 2014. 'It's almost like he was doing something for the Angling Times,' says Andrew Parsons, who was personal photographer to four Tory PMs. He says the perfect political holiday photo needs to look like someone is relaxing, not on a campaign visit. He has a particular loathing of politicians posing over a cuppa in a café. Too boring, and snappers from local picture agencies will try to catch you out. 'If you're gonna do it, go bold. Don't do it like you're canvassing and walking towards a camera with an ice cream or sunglasses on and sun cream in your hand or whatever. People are allowed a holiday, and when we go on holiday, we all do things that we don't get time to do when we're working. So let's show that visually.' Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe Starmer has waited longer than most for a proper summer break. Unlike Wilson, there was no getaway after entering No 10 last year. A planned family break was cancelled when the summer riots erupted. Seven in ten voters said it was the right thing to do, while presumably tutting at the telly: 'Ooh, he looks tired.' When Starmer did finally get time off with his family in January, he was instantly shamed on TikTok for jumping a three-hour wait for a toboggan ride in Madeira. One person was heard shouting, 'Get to the back of the queue,' as the PM's security detail ushered him and his family to the front. We want our politicians to be just like us, enduring the injustices and inconveniences we all face. But they are not like us: for the most part nobody is going to try to assault, abuse or kill us while we're waiting for a Mr Whippy. No wonder No 10 won't telll me where he is going until after he is back. For any prime minister looking to make a break for it, there are major considerations to be made about the style, duration and location of a holiday. The Isles of Scilly are perfect: still part of the UK but feel more abroad than home. Failing that, there's Cornwall, where they treat you like you're foreign. Even that can be risky: I once almost ran over David Cameron in a vintage VW camper van. I was trying to navigate a narrow road through Polzeath when a man clutching a boogieboard suddenly stepped out in front of me, and I hit the brakes. Only I seemed to notice that the sun-kissed prime minister was there; everyone else was absorbed in their ice pops. It was during that same holiday, in 2013, that Cameron was spotted performing the age-old dad routine of awkwardly wriggling his way out of damp swimming shorts with a Mickey Mouse towel tied around his waist to protect his modesty. He also had to cut his Cornish jaunts short because of the terrible phone signal. He once told me that he had to go to the top of the nearest hill to take calls from President Obama. Cornwall was the location of one of Margaret Thatcher's rare attempts at taking time off. The Iron Lady posed on a beach and played golf with Denis for the benefit of the cameras in 1981. She was no fan of a holiday, though. As education secretary, she went on a ten-day break. On day four she called her private ministerial office: 'Hello dear, we're at Heathrow.' Had something dreadful happened? 'Oh no, dear. We've done Corsica.' Once prime minister, she was still unable to relax. There is an oft-told (if varying) account of how she went on holiday to Salzburg but became bored and set up a meeting nearby with Helmut Kohl. The German got fed up and cut the chat short, citing illness or a crisis or some other reason to get away from Thatcher. So she took herself off for a walk, only to then see him tucking in to an ice cream, or a double helping of gateaux or a cream cake, depending on the version of the anecdote. On another holiday to Austria, she soon tired of relaxing and took a 90-minute visit to a chipboard factory in Klessheim. John Major kept his holidays low key, annually heading to the Spanish town of Candeleda. Years later they repaid his loyalty by naming the incongruously named road 'Avenida de John Major'. Tony Blair's jaunts were altogether more showy, relaxing in the gold-tapped villas of tan-tastic celebs such as Cliff Richard, and famously staying as the guest of Silvio Berlusconi, the baddie in a bandana. In 2004, during a five-a-side 'friendly' kickabout, Blair clattered into his host, leaving him hobbling and in need of medical attention. Gordon Brown's holidays were far less glamorous and not as lengthy. Weeks after becoming PM, he took the family to Dorset in the summer of 2007, only to announce he was returning to Downing Street the next day to deal with an outbreak of foot and mouth disease. A year later, he remained defiantly in work mode during a break in Southwold, Suffolk, parading about in a jacket and dark trousers. Friends later claimed that he hated every minute of it. It looked like it. [See also: Disdain and apathy in Washington DC] Then there are those who, perhaps with hindsight, might wish they had cut the holiday short. In August 2021, Dominic Raab was holidaying in Crete when Kabul fell to the Taliban. As foreign secretary, he angrily dismissed claims that he had been paddleboarding instead of focusing on the crisis as 'nonsense'. He famously explained: 'The sea was actually closed,' suggesting he might have had one eye on the cool blue Greek waters. Dashing back from a holiday to deal with a crisis is only possible if you know there is a crisis unfolding. 'London was literally burning,' Guto Harri recalls of the summer of 2011, when his boss, London mayor Boris Johnson, was out of the country. 'Terrible riots, looting, flames being projected around the world on TV screens, a major, major crisis. And the mayor – who had been at a desk almost non-stop since being elected – is in the middle of the Canadian Rockies in a sort of glorified camper van with his family, none of whom could actually drive the camper van, and about 300 miles from the nearest airport. So not an ideal situation.' The question of when to cut a trip early is a delicate one. Harri adds: 'On this occasion Boris and Theresa May did a sort of deal: 'If I go back, I'll let you know so that I don't show you up.' And they both agreed to that. But, of course, she rang him from an airport in Switzerland, and an hour and a half later, she was on the ground in London, and Boris was 300 miles from the nearest airport halfway around the world in Canada.' Sometimes a holiday can be the root cause of a disaster. In April 2017, May checked into the Penmaenuchaf Hall Hotel, Snowdonia. But she was not thinking about relaxing; she was thinking about gambling on a snap election. She lost her majority, and had an even bigger mountain to climb to try to deliver on whatever Brexit means Brexit meant. Holidays are good. Everyone needs them. In politics, though, they are frowned upon. How dare these people be enjoying a break with their families when I'm not. In part, politicians themselves are to blame: Cameron donned the hairshirt in opposition, promising to cut the cost of politics, before discovering it is quite hard for a cabinet minister to work on the bus. Starmer did it too, berating Sunak's helicopter use before realising that sitting in a traffic jam might not be the best use of time for a prime minister. The public want their politicians to do better, while treating them worse and worse. No perks, just purgatory. Yet consider this: Blair and Cameron, perhaps No 10's most assiduous holidaymakers this century were also its longest occupants. Cameron was furious when a friend told his biographers, Francis Elliott and James Hanning: 'If there was an Olympic gold medal for 'chillaxing', he would win it. He is capable of switching off in a way that almost no other politician I know of can.' Might that be preferable to the round-the-clock micro-managing of the Brown administration, early morning emails and late-night messages being fired out on the most obscure issues? None of us make good decisions when we're knackered, and most of us aren't making decisions on war and peace, life and death. As 'office holders' rather than employees, MPs have no annual leave entitlement. They get paid whether they work 365 days a year or zero. But as one in five now enjoy tiny majorities of under 5 per cent, many will probably feel compelled to spend the summer nursing their constituencies rather than a pina colada. Timing your break is crucial. The pros make a big show of constituency activity as soon as the Commons rises, then duck out for a fortnight, before returning to another round of local visits before anyone notices they were gone. Nigel Farage thought it safe to head abroad during parliamentary term-time this May, only to miss one of his biggest Commons opportunities when MPs debated the government's new deal with the EU, while he fired off posts on X, calling it little more than 'a surrender agreement'. It gave Starmer a chance to joke: 'There was no sign of him at the EU statement – he was the first through the e-gates somewhere in the south of France.' The following week, when it actually was half-term, Kemi Badenoch headed to Ibiza, only for Farage to make headlines on being the real opposition. The Tory leader had to interrupt her break to write an op-ed for the Mail from the White Island. (It's not known if she went the full Angela Rayner, who was filmed dancing by TV presenter Denise van Outen in the DJ box at the Hi nightclub while back home the PM was warning of tough times. Van Outen later apologised to 'Angela Raver'.) Lib Dem leader Ed Davey, meanwhile, spends so much time zipwiring, paddleboarding and building sandcastles in his day job that he will be looking forward to a quiet sitdown at home. For years Labour's Jess Phillips boasted about going to 'a Eurocamp in France with 24 other Brummies'. Her boss, Yvette Cooper, once joined her husband, Ed Balls, on a Sound of Music tour of Salzburg wearing lederhosen made from curtain material. Today's crop of politicians would be wise to learn from Winston Churchill. Holidaying on the French Riviera in 1934, he hurtled down a bright blue water slide on his back, head first, splashing with such ferocity that he lost his trunks. And it was all caught on camera, revealing rather more than his knees. [See also: Are emojis killing language?] Related
Scotsman
28-06-2025
- General
- Scotsman
Cormorant population growth causes concern
There are estimated to be over two million cormorants now, compared to around 50,000 in the 1970's, and that growth is causing concern among fishery owners and impacting on your fishing. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Fishing lawmakers appear to have taken note as the hungry birds hit local coastal and inland waters hard, and the growth has been noted across Europe. Currently, cormorants are estimated to cost aquaculture and fisheries more than E350m a year, according to a report in the Angling Times, and indications are that the birds consume more than 274,000 tons of fish every year. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Behind the scenes, organisations like the Angling Trust have been compiling data. Their head, Jamie Cook, revealed new proposals are set to be presented at a high level meeting later this year. They are, he said, a 'hard-won step forward' and are 'balanced, sensible and long overdue'. A section of the Almond near Cramond Cook told the newspaper that it has taken a great deal of work, including commissioning experts, to push this issue onto the agenda of key policy makers and a draft plan is due to be presented to the European Commission and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation in October. If successful, it will be rolled out to European Governments for adoption and, basically, it recommends control to reduce cormorant numbers to sustainable levels to protect fish and biodiversity. The draft was recently endorsed at a special conference in Brussels, attended by delegates from around 30 countries. Another step forward and good news for fishery owners and local anglers. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Elsewhere, Fraser Thomson, chairman of West Lothian Angling Association, attended a meeting on the future of The Almond and said all relevant organisations were there. He added: 'Rome was not built in a day, but I am satisfied that the future of our river is being taken seriously.' Thomson urged his members, and those who regularly fish the Almond, to follow the River Almond Action Group (RAAG) on social media and he aims to explore ideas with them for the potential of the water which flows from near Breich in West Lothian into the River Forth at Cramond. Meanwhile, officials of Cramond Angling Club, who administer the lower stretch of the Almond from Newbridge downstream, urge anglers to give fish more time to recover before they are released in low water levels and warm weather. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A spokesman also revealed that during the recent warm weather, green weed built up on rocks because of the lack of water flushing the river, and this has made rocks extremely slippery. Anglers should therefore take care entering the water to prevent falls and potential injuries. Bosses remind anglers that there is no Sunday fishing on Beat One, from the breakwater at Cramond Beach upstream to the Cramond Old Bridge. This includes the tidal area at Cramond and features mature woodland, fast funs and pools with salmon, sea trout/finnock and brown trout available. The club also remind anglers that a catch and release police operates for all species. Allandale Tarn are now open from 9am until 10.30pm Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday with Sunday hours from 9am to 8pm. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad David Walker had a good day at Morton Fishings near Livingston with eight. His friend had seven and they were tempted by yellow owl and jelly tot FAB. Bowden Springs near Linlithgow report that Gregor Crookston had three, best 3.5lb, on dries and J Cowan had one of 4lb in the bait pond on Powerbait. Kevin McCabe had over 20 to the boat at Glencorse in The Pentland Hills on buzzer and orange daddy and, in East Lothian, Frazer Kerr (Kinross) had 11 on foam daddy and Ron McDonald (Haddington) also had 11 on grunter. Chris Kerr (Tranent) eight on hopper and buzzer. Sea fishing now and Aquamarine Charters report 'huge' mackerel are being caught in the Berwick area and they have regular trips out of Eyemouth. Ring 07860 804316 for updates. Leanne Taylor of Forth Sea Safaris is regular testing. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad She confirmed that the popular fish have not yet arrived in numbers around their Burntisland base, but keen anglers can now book a slot for trips in July and August on their website or by ringing 01592 747280. George Harris continued his run of form, winning the midweek retired members match run by St Serfs on Balmerino beach at a canter. He totalled 167 points with the runner-up on 79 points. Frank McFarlane had the longest fish at 35cm. The Scottish Federation for Coarse Angling (SFCA) confirm that the Scottish Canal Championship is scheduled for Sunday, June 29 on the Forth and Clyde Canal between Wyndford and Dullatur. Fishing is between 11am and 4pm and, if you want to take part, see the SFCA Facebook page or ring organiser, Gus Brindle, on 07812 241816. Meanwhile, Dougie Campbell won March Day 4 of the summer league organised by the Edinburgh and Lothians Coarse Angling Club at Orchill near Auchterarder with Shug Smith second with 23lb 3oz. Elsewhere, Brian Dudgeon had over 40, small perch and roach and F1, plus a crucian and mirror carp, at Drumtassie Coarse Fishery near Blackridge.
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Giant carp angler spent 18 months preparing for 'surreal' catch
An angler who caught a massive 105lb (47.5kg) common carp said 18 months of preparation went into the "surreal" Knock, an insurance broker from Billericay, Essex, was on holiday with friends at Euro Aqua carp farm in Hungary when he made the heavyweight catch, which has been described as a world record."You couldn't dream it, it was unbelievable," he told the Knock said he had trained in local fields near his home and practised long-range fishing using new reels, new rods and a corner flag "from the old football days", to develop his technique for "hours and hours". The carp, which weighed the equivalent of a 13-year-old child, is said by fishing publication Angling Times to have beaten the previous world record by 1lb (450g).Mr Knock said it was 1.2m (47in) in length and 42cm (17in) wide."It was a proper effort it took to get it up to the cameras and I only held it for a few seconds initially, because the actual shock of holding it was immense," he added."I've never felt anything like it. It's like holding up a 50kg bag of cement - you can't hold it at arm's length. "I cuddled that carp." Mr Knock said his son had remarked: "Well you've completed carp fishing now, what are you going to do?""I said to him, 'I absolutely haven't'. Some are lovely looking, some are harder to catch," Mr Knock laughed."There's still room for improvement, albeit very unlikely." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
The Sun
07-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Angler catches world's biggest carp weighing almost EIGHT STONE and is left ‘in total disbelief'
AN ANGLER was left in "total disbelief" after he caught the world's biggest carp. The massive fish weighed an astonishing EIGHT STONE and was reeled in by Brit David Knock. 3 3 Knock was fishing in Euro Aqua in Hungary when he pulled off the monstrous catch. The fishing club is located on Lake Balaton near Nemesvita and is renowned for its big fish. Knock arrived with the aim of beating his previous record of a 56lb fish that he caught at Brittany Mills in France. He was left shocked when he managed to reel in the 105.4lb carp. A post about the catch was shared on Facebook, which Knock reacted to. He wrote: "It really was a dream come true, best moment in all my many years fishing." The giant fish came after he had already managed to catch an 80lb carp during the trip with his pal Russ Bryant. Speaking to the Angling Times, he said: "The trip was planned 18 months previously and I had been excited to visit the venue. "There's really nowhere else that compares when it comes to big carp fishing. "The anticipation that the next fish to take your bait could be over 100lb is hard to explain." Question of Sport's Phil Tufnell backs new wellbeing campaign to get people fishing 3 Knock also admitted that he had a "meltdown" when he realised the size of the carp. He was also left in "total disbelief" that he had caught it and that he had set a record. He added: "It was absolutely massive, and I just went into meltdown. "I'm so glad Russ was on hand to keep me composed. "'It won't go in the net,' were the words I heard Russ mutter, but thankfully, we managed to shuffle it in. "As per protocol, we called the owner, and thankfully, they came round quickly to help with the weighing. "By this point, I was in complete shock, with everything that followed becoming a bit of a blur. "We weighed the fish, and read out 47.8kg, exclaiming it was a record. I was in total disbelief that I'd actually caught it." Knock was sent many congratulatory messages on the catch as it was released back into the water. The average common carp usually weighs between 0.5 stone and 4.5 stone and can measure between 40 and 80cm.
