Catching up with paperwork after a rather restless night due to the bedroom being very warm and stuffy. After yesterday at home, Debbie was back at school being demanding again but had to miss horse-riding later though Della still went for a tricky session after Percy had beaten Fiona’s Dad Roland Smith in the election! Once home, some work in the garden before it was time to rush off to a meeting of the Liberal Democrats in St Neots to discuss our election strategy for next year.
The UK Stock Exchange has had its biggest daily rise today for more than two years, optimistically believing that Thatcher would allow Britain into the ERM of the EMS so that inflation could be controlled without high interest rates just as the unemployment total has risen for the first time for nearly four years to 1,605,600, or 5.6%.. The Scottish Tory MP's have joined Labours call to keep Ravenscraig steel strip mill open which has bolstered Scottish Secretary Malcolm Rifkind against hard-right colleagues. South African President F.W. de Klerk has arrived in Britain for talks with Thatcher in a bid to get sanctions lifted
I was slow to rise today after a rather restless night. The room was very warm and stuffy - even with the windows open at both ends - and I had difficulty in sleeping. I still made breakfast of cereal with the others. Yesterday, Deborah had to stay at home with a cold on top of her hay fever; but she was back at school today. She was soon on the telephone from school, having forgotten to take her bicycle that was needed for her cycling proficiency test today. Di had to rush over with it on what was supposed to be her day at home but at least she could take Debbie's glasses that she had also forgotten as well. Deborah is still not well enough to go horse riding today and so it has not really been a good day for her. I tended my conservatory, plants and animals and then spent all of this morning and most of this afternoon updating my journal but at least the job is finished, and I could get on with other work. I was also supervising the water sprinkler in the garden as the grass is gradually drying up due to this rainless spell.
** PRESS "Read More" BELOW for the complete story **
I had a few telephone calls from Ross McKay, Celia Chignell and others. Later this afternoon I had to go with Diana to Offord to help give Della a riding lesson at Fitz Farm. It was the first time that I had been there after Percy had beaten Roland Smith in the election and so it was a bit of an awkward occasion. As usual, his daughter Fiona had messed up the arrangements for Della's lesson and had forgotten all about it. In fact, she has got rid of the old pony, Muffin, that Della used to ride because of it having broken down with its leg and was dubious about Della riding Minty. Eventually, she allowed Della to ride and we had a lesson that went very well. Minty was quiet with me leading and trotted round quite happily. Della enjoyed the ride that started in the riding school and ended up in the field, but Fiona gave us a couple of names and addresses for Della to try to get in with for the future. One of them, in Gidding, had a cancellation for Sunday and so she will try a lesson there then. Once I got home and had tea, I did some work in the garden before it was time to rush off to a meeting of the Liberal Democrats in St Neots. We were discussing our strategy for next year and will seek the same type of electoral arrangement with the other opposition parties that stood us in such good stead this year. I got home fairly late and went to bed after having a night-time drink of Bournvita.
The UK Stock Exchange has had its biggest daily rise today for more than two years. It leapt 63.3 or 2.8% to 2284.4. It was because the market believed that Thatcher would allow Britain into the ERM of the EMS so that inflation could be controlled without such high interest rates but it all seems very optimistic to me. It comes in the same day that the unemployment total has risen for the first time for nearly four years to 1,605,600, or 5.6%. The Scottish Tory MP's have joined Labours call to keep Ravenscraig steel strip mill open which has bolstered Scottish Secretary Malcolm Rifkind against the sniping from the free-market English Tories who want to see him go. A flurry of international diplomacy saw Gorbachev meeting Lithuanian Prime Minister, Kazimierz Prunskiene, which was an encouraging sign that they might reach a compromise. However, it seems that Gorbachev is still insisting that the independence declaration is either suspended or withdrawn. South African President F.W. de Klerk has arrived in Britain for talks with Thatcher in a bid to improve his European relations and get sanctions lifted but he has a way to go until his country's reforms become "irreversible". Today was markedly cooler than of late but it was still dry and now we have a drought to cope with.