funinhounslow

I gave up on a TV licence years ago and haven't missed it. I do have Netflix though... I do think the proposed Britbox looks interested and if it is £5/month I could well be tempted. Due later this year apparently... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/entertainment-arts-47394510/what-is-britbox

In all fairness I don't think anyone saw HTB coming...

That eBrompton has the potential to be a game changer by raising awareness of ebikes. I have a Gocycle. Like the Brompton it has an upright stance which makes filtering through traffic a doodle. Small wheels also make it very nippy. It's great fun! People wince when I tell them the price but then I tell them it paid for itself after a year (public transport savings). Also my humble 1 litre city car cost my the best part of a grand earlier this year - insurance, service and cam belt. Of course bikes and ebikes can't replace the car. But they have a valuable role in reducing car use in cities and easing pressure on public transport. But the infrastructure needs to come first...

I think this casual dismissal of the potential of the bike is an example of the sort of thinking that has got us into our present mess. A 5 mile journey is nothing on a bike. A 10 mile journey is nothing on an ebike (I have one). OK some patients will need to be transported to hospital, but what about hospital workers and visitors? How many of those who drive to the hospital live locally and could have used a bike for that trip? Putting segregated bike lanes around hospitals would encourage those who can do so to ride rather than drive - good for their health and easing congestion making it easier for ambulances to get around. I regularly see my local gyms/sports centres with full car parks and empty bike racks, which is absurd when you think about it. No-one is suggesting the bike can replace all car journeys, but short intra-city hops with one person in a car (whether ICE or EV) is an incredibly wasteful use of precious roadspace. There are countless examples in European cities that show if you build segregated cycling infrastructure, people will use it. Instead (in London at least) we are installing bulky EV chargers on the pavement, robbing pedestrians of their space, and creating trip hazards. I don’t follow the logic of giving a £4,000 bung to someone buying an electric car but buyers of ebikes get nothing. It just shows the bike is still seen as a recreational instrument rather than a serious mode of transport. An ebike is an EV just as much as a Tesla is...

??? Bloke finds himself at a loose end after retiring so gets himself a dog and finds walking it in the park has given him a new lease of life. Osterley Park is wonderful btw... Trivia: The "breakout" photo from Band on the Run album cover was taken as Osterley Park.

There was this odd sentence at the end of the article: "Most economists may not be predicting a house price collapse just yet, but nervous homebuyers may have reason to be fearful." Surely "hopeful"?!

Being discussed on LBC now... "prices are not affordable " "sellers have to be realistic "

I would have thought so. Especially as they have the heading "house prices fall 3 months in a row" above a chart that shows the exact opposite. Still that's two very bearish articles out this weekend. Add in increased talk of interest rate rises, and hopefully the " prices only go up" mantra will be seen for what it is. Could we see an early 90s style crash begin this year?

Yes but when the FT is saying "the value of the capital’s market is very difficult to rationalise" it must surely have a significant effect on overall sentiment? This isn't some click bait article in the Mail, it's a serious article from a credible source.

Logged into FT.com for the first time in years and was greeted with this... https://www.ft.com/content/922574d8-5cc4-11e7-b553-e2df1b0c3220 Making arguments we're all familiar with, but interesting that the FT is now saying that London property is overpriced and not to be touched with a bargepole Significantly the comments seem in the main to be in agreement which is interesting. One more straw onto the camel's back...

Am I reading this right? That bloke has spent £460,000 on a flat in Stoke Newington and is wondering if he's made a mistake?!

Plus the extra security you get with a credit card compared to a debit card. And it is more convenient than cash. I don't end the day with a pocket of change. Since contactless I use my CC for almost all my purchases. I would imagine that the majority of Londoners use their contactless credit cards rather than Oyster cards, maybe explaining the presence of Clapham Junction and Liverpool Street in that list

Was wondering the exact same thing - if it's "rent" then surely the person you pay "rent" to picks up the bill when the boiler goes pop or the roof starts leaking... ETA sorry just seen it's called a "monthly sum"

Yes I heard that and just repeated in the chancellor interview. Both times it was put down to the Brexit referendum....

If we vote to leave doesn't that mean TTIP won't apply to the UK?