Peter Bowden 🇬🇧

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧

@b31bowden.bsky.social

Proud Brummie. Sceptic, pedant and is frequently sarcastic, but tries to be polite. Retired. ex Local Authority Childcare, ex D.W.P. Fraud, ex I.P.C.C. Investigator. Assume nothing, Believe nobody. Check everything.

411 followers1K following3.6K posts

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

A point to note.

Cory Tunts.@thecorytunts.bsky.social

All we can do is vote out politicians who pander to them & boycott companies. Don't let them push AI results on you when searching, just type “-AI” at the end of every search string & you won't get any of the bollocks coming up. If everyone does it, then a lot of data centres become redundant.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

This. Did we learn nothing from Covid about who our society actually depends on. (Hint, it isn't bankers, tech bro's, A.I. or wealthy arseholes). If citizenship is earned, the timescale must be the same for all.

Jonathan Portes@jdportes.bsky.social

"The Home Office has identified a new problem with migrant care workers. The people presented as a burden on Britain because they earn too little have become so indispensable that they must be prevented from finding a better or higher-paid job." ukandeu.ac.uk/unaffordable...

ukandeu.ac.ukUnaffordable? No, indispensable. The government tries to move the goalposts for care workers - UK in a changing EuropeJonathan Portes argues that the government has flipped from treating migrant care workers as a problem to presenting them as a necessity,...
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

It's interesting that the 1st option is 'tip it somewhere else' instead of íncrease treatment provision to make it unnecessary to tip anywhere'. It also underlines why utilities should be run in the public interest. Pouring shit in the Irish Sea benefits nobody. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

theguardian.comGiant tunnel proposed to tackle Windermere sewage dischargesUnited Utilities, Environment Agency and local campaigners say 12-mile tunnel could take sewage away from England’s largest lake
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

This is a crazy situation. Allow gullies like dropped kerbs, cost paid by householder, installed by council. Maintenance costs are the same (zero) & a future problem (dozens of cables obstructing the pavement) avoided. Authorities don't stop cars parking on kerbs! www.theguardian.com/money/2026/o...

theguardian.com‘I can charge my car for £6’: could new rules cut costs for EV drivers?Owners in England with no driveway can now slash their costs by installing a cross-pavement gully – but it’s a postcode lottery
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

This is fabulous! International joy!

Massimo (mirror)@rainmaker1973-m.bsky.social

Edouard Jacqmin is a viral Belgian content creator who travels globally, asking strangers, "What is your favorite dance move?" to connect cultures through joyful street dances. [📹 Ed People] Original post

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

In what world, when a government has a choice between taxing company profits and taxing pensioners and benefit recipients, do you propose the latter? 'The banks might issue fewer loans & mortgages (the thing they make most profit from) says disinterested banker'. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

theguardian.comTarget pensions or welfare, not banks, IMF tells John HealeySupporters of planned tax, however, say banks were bailed out by taxpayers during the financial crisis and can afford to pay more now
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Given that driver wages make up the majority of taxi fare costs, how much cheaper will autonomous taxis be? (I'm pretty sure the answer is 'bugger all, the taxi companies will just make more profit'.) www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

theguardian.com‘We should all be worried’: calls grow to limit London rollout of robotaxisProtest planned at Wayve HQ as Uber drivers fear for their future and city’s politicians demand TfL should have power over licences
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

As an ex-public sector manager, I'm horrified that nobody appears to have even been disciplined for what is (IMO) gross misconduct, both in terms of abuse of the disciplinary process and failures in the duty of care all managers have to subordinates. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

theguardian.comParents of Chloe Moffat want Treasury staff held to account over her deathExclusive: David and Anne Moffat to meet permanent secretary after coroner found Treasury ‘materially contributed’ to employee taking her own life
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

This just a stupid headline. Trump cannot announce any form of ceasefire in a war he isn't fighting. Journalists should be amongst our most expert wordsmiths; why do they insist on mangling the truth like this? www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...

theguardian.comTrump announces partial ceasefire in Ukraine war as Zelenskyy says deal is ‘news to me’Ukrainian president earlier rejected US call for Kyiv to stop bombing oil refineries, saying Moscow must first end attacks on energy infrastructure
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

I rarely agree with Simon Jenkins, but today is the exception. If a private company (Heathrow) wants a new runway, it should pay for it in full. Heathrow and Gatwick are around 38 miles apart. There is no direct rail service that connects them. Build one? www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

theguardian.comHeathrow’s third runway is a bottomless money pit. Stop it now | Simon JenkinsIt won’t promote growth, will take decades and will swallow up billions of taxpayers’ money, says Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Isn't it past time when people assaulting staff can be banned as passengers/service users/customers? Even the NHS could set up clinics for those with life-threatening need, who have assaulted staff in the past, with additional security? The technology exists. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

theguardian.com‘The violence is off the scale’: staff and passengers at risk as assaults on UK trains soar to record highCases of abuse, spitting, head-butting and sexual harassment, have spiked as transport police numbers have dwindled
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Please read and repost. Bees are so important.

The Bee Guy@thebeeguy.bsky.social

You’ve been seeing very large #bumblebees on the wing for the past while. Why? Okay I’ll tell you why in this quick thread if you promise to #repost as the more people who know that these are queens the more likely that someone will help some out meaning more colonies next year. Deal? 1/15 #bees

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Anything privatised involves profit. Any private monopoly has no barrier to the poorest service it can provide & get away with it. I don't want profit in my health, social care or the essentials like water. Where things are privatised/privately provided, I want a choice or the option to go without.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

What is the point of fining monopoly water companies? They will simply raise prices to cover it. Fine individuals, fire them, put them in jail if necessary, but do something effective rather that what demonstrably has never worked, nor prevented further failings.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

It would appear that, not satisfied with excluding ourselves from our biggest export market and reducing our GDP by leaving the EU, the UK has now successfully made matters worse by clamping down on immigration to the point that tax receipts are plummeting. Economic idiocy.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Can you take 2 mins to respond to Ofwat's consultation to demand they BLOCK the water bill hike. If water companies can't survive without hiking our bills, let them go bust and bring them into public ownership. Deadline: midnight Thurs 24th Sept weownit.org.uk/NoBillHike

weownit.org.ukOfwat: No to water bills hike, let them go bust - Respond by midnight on Thursday 24th SeptemberDemand that Ofwat says no to bill hikes. Let water companies go bust and bring them into public ownership for nothing.
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

I'm struggling to keep up now. So these immigrants are taking our jobs whilst claiming all the benefits, but are also so wealthy that they don't need to work or claim benefits. Is that what Reform expect us to believe today? www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

theguardian.comSmall boat arrivals are ‘wealthy men’ who do not deserve help, says Reform’s Danny KrugerThe fact that some migrants pay people smugglers thousands of pounds makes them well off, MP claims
Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

So, the free and independent press in the USA have accepted some of their colleagues being banned from the White House? I had hoped after showing some spirit with Hegseth & the Pentagon, they would have wal;ked out & reported why. But no. A(nother) sad day for democracy & free speech.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Frankly, who cares about the delusions of a minor party leader who the main parties have refused to work with & who's mired in personal and professional scandals over corruption and illegal money? If only similar coverage was given to the Lib Dems & Greens, both of whom are much bigger & mainstream.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Wouldn't it be awful if non-RefUK-minded people took on these jobs, then took Nigel's attitude to work in Clacton, when it came to work for Reform, and did chuff all? I suppose they'd be weeded out by the world-class vetting programme though. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

theguardian.comReform UK activists squabble over Farage’s plan for £72m donationsCrypto billionaires’ £72m will be used to hire campaign managers and professional staff in target constituencies

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧 reposted

Emathion 📯
@emathion.bsky.social

The French made a short film about what could happen after all immigrants would follow the ‘white, angry old man’s’ advice to go back where they came from.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Given the importance of knowing what they are doing, can we have a new offence for any elected official, plus any public servant in the UK, using official electronic devices, to auto OR manually delete any text, WhatsApp, Signal, email etc. before a copy is archived? 6 months + £5,000 fine for each.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Who but a fool would vote for an anti-immigrant party funded entirely by people who don't live in the UK? When seeking a motive for almost any action, a useful start is a) look at who benefits most and b) if money is involved, follow it - where did it come from (& why)? = how is it spent (& why)?

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Labour - mostly unions, fairly transparent Tories - mostly wealthy Britons, fairly transparent Reform - people they claim to be opposed to, who can't vote for them & entirely secretive. Or am I missing something?

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧 reposted

It's Pipes, Mum! Pipes is here!
@scriblit.bsky.social

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband; son of a man who had to flee the Nazis: I'm Jewish BBC News: 😠 are you, though? You're doing it wrong Fascist Daniel Thomas, in between attacking teenage cricketers and rnli volunteers: I'm Christian BBC News: 😊

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Please repost, everyone needs to see this to demonstrate the stupidity of Reform, Restore & (god help us) the Tories as well as THE GOVERNMENT! We cannot survive without immigrants, who make our lives so much better.

Quiet Majority@majorityquiet.bsky.social

We loved this so much we just had to put English subtitles on it, apologies to the French speakers for our translation. But this is what it would look like here in the UK if Farage or Lowe or another of their ilk got their own way.

Peter Bowden 🇬🇧
@b31bowden.bsky.social

Is anyone else completely fed up with this bollocks that there is a legitimate debate to be had over immigration? The UK has prospered, because of immigration, for centuries. Without continued immigration, the UK population will become smaller, older, and more highly taxed. Not opinion, fact.