Of all the unlikely and unpleasant people claiming attention in the wake of royal butler Paul Burrell’s revelations, who would have thought Mohamed Al Fayed might emerge as vaguely plausible? But his conspiracy theories have certainly received a boost.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/nov/08/monarchy.comment
While housebuilders circle the greenbelt like sharks, vast tracts of urban land lie derelict
It is fortunate that tomorrow’s urban summit, evaluating “urban renaissance” in the UK, will be held in Birmingham. Because the city, along with Manchester and Newcastle, is one of the few places in the country where there are any signs of urban renewal at all. Most other cities are still in crisis. In the north-west, vast tracts of urban land lie derelict, while in the south-east the failure to transform cities, especially London, into places worth living in means our countryside is under ever-increasing threat. Housebuilders catering for city escapees are grabbing ever-larger chunks of countryside.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2002/oct/30/communities.roscoward
Those who thought the main interest of Ulrika Jonsson’s autobiography would be Sven-Goran Eriksson’s tangled love life were in for a surprise. Sven isn’t the only famous man whose career is being shaken by her revelations. Indeed he must be sighing with relief now attention has shifted to her accusation of rape against a television personality. Everyone in the media knows this man’s identity. His career “is now over”, one senior executive is quoted as saying, “whether his name is out or not”.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2002/oct/23/broadcasting.pressandpublishing
Along with grief about the death of Milly Dowler has come anger. Anger that any family has to go through such suffering, and especially that such an ordinary loving family should be robbed in this terrible way. There’s another anger too, expressed by residents of Milly’s home town, that a young girl was not safe walking home from school in broad daylight.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/sep/25/gender.comment
Like Christmas and most other anniversaries these days, the fifth anniversary of Diana’s death came early. Tabloids have been full of Diana pictures and there have been desperate attempts to stimulate interest in new old gossip. Even erstwhile Diana fans like myself are thinking perhaps it’s time to let go.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/aug/30/monarchy.comment
The EU has ruined the west’s environment. Now it’s moving east
On environmental matters, most of us believe, the European Union is a progressive force. We think of it as an environmental version of the international court of justice, a place of appeal where higher standards of protection are applied. Yet the EU is also implicated in some of Europe’s worse acts of environmental vandalism, in pristine areas of eastern Europe as well as the west.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/jul/29/eu.politics
Hard-pressed schools should be helped to detect ill-treatment of children, not punished for failing to report it
It’s easy to understand why politicians wanted action in the wake of Lauren Wright’s death. The six year old was, in effect, tortured by her stepmother and finally killed without her suffering being recognised.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2002/jul/02/schools.uk4
It’s a haven for elk, wolf, bears, lynx and bird life. But it’s about to be destroyed by a motorway. Ros Coward reports from Biebrza in Poland on the threat to one of Europe’s last wild places
May in the Biebrza marshes of north-east Poland is as near to a nature lover’s paradise as Europe has to offer. It’s an immense, complex area with 250 kilometres of river, rare raised bogs, and water meadows surrounded by the remnants of ancient forests which provide cover for migrating bears, wolves and lynxes.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/may/19/highereducation.biologicalscience
The government’s proposed relaxation of planning controls will spell environmental disaster
Anyone under the illusion that the British countryside is in safe hands had better think again, and fast. The developers are on the offensive, claiming they need to build on more greenfield sites. The government has bowed to the pressure and is proposing an ill-thought-out reform of planning controls, which would guarantee that the south-east would be concreted over. Behind these so-called reforms is the architect of another fiasco, Lord Falconer of the Dome. He is currently appearing before a House of Commons select committee, protesting that of course the government wants sustainability. Look, he says, the green paper mentions it on the first page. That is practically the only mention – but “business” appears 50 times.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2002/may/08/greenpolitics.housing
Cynics have found the Queen Mother’s death and funeral baffling. Why devote so much pomp and ceremony to someone who lived such a long and full life and died peacefully? For me it’s the reverse. I wish that all those I have ever loved and lost could have been sent off in such style, with a hundred pipers, a fly-past and the streets emptied of cars. This was a rare public display of mourning that allowed us to symbolise our own private emotions about bereavement.
Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/apr/10/queenmother.monarchy9