2013 - My year in review

Haven't posted in ages, why not?

Often I don't like to review the past, I can be far too self critical and it drives me mad. 

However this year I've had a lot of good times and it would be a shame to forget them.

From a national point of view, despite popular media, I think things are looking better. Economy is growing, and I'm definitely noticing an improved optimism for the economic future.

What did *I* do this year? Forgive my self indulgence, but this is my blog. My time to talk about me.

I started the year in uncertain terms. I'd been in my current job for just over a year and was starting to get itchy feet. To cut a long story short, after many negotiations I staid put and joined the board of my current company. I have no doubt I made the right choice and I am very excited about the future. I also rejoined the IoD and joined the DMA's Mailing House council.

Ok, that's the work bit done. 

I've had a lot of fun this year. A lot.

In February, after the government decided that my relationship was a valid as most people's, I proposed to David and he said yes! We have yet to set a date for our wedding, but it's likely to be a fairly low key affair so don't be upset if you don't get an invite.

So what did I do for fun this year?

As you probably already know I have a little bit of a thing for Bon Jovi.

In 2013 I was lucky enough to see them play 3 times.

Once in Stockholm (Stadion) in May, once in Birmingham (Villa Park, yuk) in June and in July at Hyde Park.

One of my favourite Bon Jovi songs is Dry County, I'd only ever seen them play it live twice before.. they played it all 3 times this year. Win. Although in Stockholm the vocals weren't great it has to be said.

Bon Jovi aside, I also got to see David Guetta

Plus Rihanna, Elvis Costello, Ray Davies and few others.

A few foreign trips, Stockholm in May (see above) and again in November, and Dave took me to Berlin for my birthday in April.

We also had Luisa and Teseo over from Stockholm for a few days!

I did a few things for the first time (ever!) this year...

Segway Ralley with Dave and Claire

Day in the royal enclosure at Ascot (thanks Asendia)

Day at Old Trafford for the Ashes Test (thanks Virgin Trains)

Ran my first ever competitive race. Followed that up with 2 more by the end of the year, achieving a PB of 56 minutes for 10km in one of them and was privileged to run around the olympic stadium in one of the others.

Other things of note that happened this year:

We were lucky enough to witness the wedding of a friends Zak and Salma

We took Steve to the beach!

I went to the Theatre a total of 8 times, 3 of which were on my own (never done that before) - Rock of Ages twice, and The Bodyguard once.

These are just a few highlights that I can remember. There are others than I can't, or don't want to, share.

Overall 2013 was a pretty good year!

New lifestyle...

Not really had time/inclination to blog recently, but thought I'd write an update on the whole health/weight thing.

My last blog on the subject was at the start of July, when I'd lost a total of 5 stone.

About a month ago that became 7 stone, last time I checked (Monday) I was down by 7 stone and 3 pounds from my starting weight.

I started at 17 stone 10, I'm now 10 stone 7. (I'm just over 5ft 9 for all you BMI checkers..)

I'm happy to say I'm now "off diet" but that doesn't mean it is back to old ways. I've changed my eating habits (I hope) for good, I eat healthier and at the right times, and I am keeping the exercise going.

Most people are telling me I've now lost too much weight (guess I can't win) but I'm happy with the level I'm at now and want to maintain it.

I've got a bit (a lot) of work to do with toning and shaping, but that is not going to happen quickly and I'll probably put a bit of weight on when I build up a bit of muscle.I'm happy with my weight now, but not the shape. Many years of being very overweight has stretched my skin a bit, put it that way!

I never dreamt I'd lose 7 stone, I never intended to, but as the weight kept falling off I carried on with it.

My blood pressure is normal, my BMI is spot on, my resting and active pulse rates are very good. I'm, dare I say it, very fit!

Now, I just need to get rid of the cigarettes...

It will hurt, but we'll be better for it.

Finally there appears to be signs that there is an opposition to government. This country always needs an effective opposition, regardless of your party loyalties.

But (as often happens) how easily this opposition forgets.

Banks are starting to announce profits. This is a good thing. If a bank can't make money in this country they will cease to operate in this country.

Banks are being taxed (they always have been) - there are some who would like to see banks stripped of all their profits. That is just plain wrong, and would be illegal. A bank has just as much right to make a profit as any other business.

The more profit a bank makes, the more tax they pay. Same with any business. The country needs companies/banks making large profits.

Yes, we bailed some of them out - yes, some of them acted irresponsibly.

Do not forget that we still own the shares of the banks we bailed out, we will get our money back - plus, hopefully, a tidy profit - but only if those banks are successful. Tax them to obliteration and we lose our money, plus future revenues.

What is important is further regulation of banks, but it is a balancing act. Regulate too much and they move overseas. Regulate too little and you risk a repeat of the banking collapse.

But, I digress, back to my point, the opposition forgetting...

The banks were PARTLY to blame for the current crisis. A large part, yes, but still just a part.

Nobody should forget the outrageous "credit card" spending of the last government. This is what has really led to our massive deficit. No country/person/organisation can operate this, and it must be reigned in.

This is the number one priority for our country. We cannot carry on with these ridiculous levels of debt.

Gordon Brown gambled on economic success by spending money he hoped would be generated from future taxes. The actions of the banks may have led to his gamble failing, but that doesn't take away the blame from him in placing that bet. You gamble, you stand to lose. He did.

A swift return to these policies will be a disaster. The cutbacks will be hard, they are already starting to bite in some areas - but it's a price that has to be paid. We have no choice. Carrying on with these levels of debt is unsustainable. 

Before and after pictures

The obligatory before and after pictures.

The before picture was taken June 09, the after picture June 10.

Even I am shocked at the difference!

I Did It!

Today Is a very good day.

On April 21st I blogged that I was on a lose weight effort.

This all started back in February, I was feeling quite unwell and so decided to go to my doctor.

The truth of the matter is I hadn't been looking after myself at all well for many years, it caught up with me.

The doctor ran every kind of test imaginable to see if there was any underlying illness or condition, he tested for so many different things including some I'd never heard of before.

Happily every came back fine, my problem was my weight and fitness. Prior to seeing the doctor I had already decided it was time to do something about it, he just gave me the kick to do it.

So, Mid-February I set myself a target of getting fit and losing 5 stone.

I am delighted to say that as of today (July 7th) I have reached that target. I have lost the 5 stone.

I am now within the "normal" range on the BMI chart - I was well in the "Obese" range when I started.

It has taken just over 20 weeks, so on average I've lost 3.5lbs a week.

My method has been fairly simple. "Eat Less, Move More"

Restricting the number of calories I consume per day to a maximum of 1,500 and going to the gym every day whenever I can (I'm averaging 5-6 times per week)

In addition I'm walking wherever I can and I've bought a bike for longer distances.

Coventry taxi firms are suffering as a result of my lack of trade, as are pubs and restaurants.

I'm still allowing myself alcohol at weekends and the occasional meal out, but going to the pub 3-4 times a week and eating out or getting takeaways 3-4 times a week have stopped.

I now feel fantastic, my fitness has improved massively. I have energy, I feel revitalised - I'm a new man.

When I was in London for a few days recently, I went running down the Embankment. I never thought I'd be doing that.

I have now set a new target of losing a further 1 and a half stone. This will put me well below mid-way on the "normal" range on the BMI chart.

I should hopefully achieve this by the end of August, then we're going to go on a beach holiday in September to celebrate and I will no longer feel like the fattest person who has ever been on a beach.

So today I am feeling very good about myself, lots of self congratulation - the work is not done though, the hardest part will be sustainment - not allowing myself to get back into bad habits and putting the weight back on.

Now I just need to give up smoking....

My post election thoughts

Well, it was certainly an eventful election.

A few months ago, did anyone seriously see the possibility of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats forming a government together? I doubt it.

During the course of the election campaigns the parties did demonstrate that their policies were a lot closer than people realised.

There were a few differences of opinion, but that's what forming a coalition is all about. Finding things you agree on, making compromises or finding the best fair solution to things you don't agree on.

I'm generally enthusiastic that this government will work, I think a strong team has been assembled from the best of the 2 parties.

Hopefully it isn't too late to avoid a double dip recession - something I firmly believe we were heading for under the policies of the previous government.

As unpopular as they are with public sector workers (I should know, my partner is one of them) drastic cuts in spending ARE necessary and are the ONLY way to repair the damage already done by Labour's "buy now pay later" policies.

I also believe that some form of privatisation of Royal Mail is a sensible move. Mandelson lost his bottle due to union pressure, I don't think Cable will. It will raise much needed cash for public funds, and hopefully install a bit of private sector work ethic. I know at least one of my friends reading this will shake their head, but as a large customer of Royal Mail I believe it is badly needed. Royal Mail as an organisation has little respect for customers. It treats its business customers badly. It delivers mail too late in the day for many consumers. It needs to change, it needs to learn to be more customer focused. There are some great, passionate and loyal people working for Royal Mail - there are also some militants intent on causing trouble for whoever is running it. Something needs to change - private sector values might just do that.

Running a country on tick is asking for trouble, during boom you can get away with it due to higher tax revenues.... but then when something goes wrong it comes back to bite you.

This must never be allowed to happen again.

Why I'm voting Conservative

I am not a loyal voter, I don't have a single party who I always voted for.

I voted for Labour in 97 and still believe this was the right thing to do. There was no alternative at the time; Major's government was weak.

I believe Blair's record is a good one, he did a lot of good (including the Iraq war) - I blogged a couple of years ago about his record when he resigned listing why I thought his legacy was a good one.

However, Blair and Brown did have a distinct advantage. The strong financial policies put in place by Brown's predecessor Ken Clarke meant the economy was about to boom - that would have happened anyway. It meant that tax revenues were increasing so the government could afford to put massive investment in health, schools and create a massively bloated civil service. They rode the good times; they didn't create them.

Brown's poor management of the economy meant that even in boom times they started to struggle, so he had  to steal money out of public service pension funds. He was a weak chancellor, never forget that. How anyone who works in the public sector can support him astounds me.

After becoming disillusioned with Labour, and with the Conservatives still not able to mount an effective opposition (Remember Iain Duncan Smith? Didn't think so) I shifted to the Liberal Democrats for a while.

I think this was more out of ideological human rights reasons than anything else, they were leading the way in equality rights and that appealed to me at the time.

So now, here we are in 2010 in the middle of an economic crisis. This crisis is not yet over, not by a long shot, so we need a government who is best placed to deal with the immediate pressing issues of public finance, and lead a sustained recovery.

Having studied in great depth all the manifestos, having been fortunate enough to speak with and hear from some major players from the worlds of politics and business I have firmly decided that only one party has the policies, appetite and priorities to lead us through this. David Cameron's Conservative Party.

Now, don't get me wrong, they are not perfect. The lowering of top rate inheritance tax is an odd move for starters but they have one major, fundamental thing right. The way to lead an effective recovery and deal with the public debt is not to increase taxation and increase public spending. That doesn't work any more.

The recovery will be led by the businesses of this country, not the government. The government's role is to help those businesses grow, thrive, prosper - not to hinder them with higher corporation tax, higher National Insurance and increased regulation.

This country's businesses will lead us out of this crisis, but only with the support of a government who understand this.

Oddly, the one person I have been most impressed with recently isn't a Tory, it's Lord Mandelson . He seems to really understand the role of business in this country, and he seems to understand that it's business who will get us out of this.

I even get the impression he is not 100% behind the NI rise, but has to tow the party line.

Seeing someone speak in the flesh is far more insightful than any TV or newspaper interview.

Labour want to increase taxation to maintain public spending levels and to chip away at the hideous national debt. This will not work. Starve business of money and they go (close, or move abroad) or they stay still with no growth. Businesses need finance to grow and expand, they need certainty of what is around the corner, they need security.

You cannot plan expansion and growth effectively without knowing what new tax is around the corner to hammer your profits.

I believe the Conservatives understand this which is why they plan to lower corporation tax and scrap the ludicrously timed NI rise.

Now, on to the Liberal Democrats - we are all aware that Nick Clegg gained a lot of support after the 1st debate. He slipped away in the 2nd and was virtually a spectator in the 3rd - he had nothing to say apart from again reminding us that his constituency is in Sheffield, and insisting on making a point of using audience members names.

Liberal Democrat financial policies would drive businesses away. Increase capital gains tax to income tax levels? Ridiculous proposal. A bad, bad idea. It would reduce the overall tax revenue as more people would decide to locate overseas to avoid it.

As for their policies on immigration and Europe - don't get me started. We should never, never adopt the Euro. We'd be in a much much worse position now if we had of done.

So, that's some of my reasons. There is no getting away from the parts of the Conservative Party I do not approve of (Daily Mail readers) but overall for me they are the only party capable, willing and able to lead this country to a sustained and effective recovery.

IoD Annual Convention 2010 - The Politics

Yesterday I attended the IoD Annual Convention for the first time.

What a great day, stunning venue and fantastic line-up of speakers.

Due to great timing the 3 main parties were keen to have their voice at the conference so we were treating to 3 of the leading members of each.

Here's my own very quick summary of how they did;

Vince Cable (Lib Dems)

Seems a nice guy, I couldn't help but get the impression that he was out of his depth and knew it. He really said nothing that inspired me.

His plan to raise capital gains tax to the level of income tax is poorly considered and would lead to more people locating overseas, thus reducing the overall tax revenue.

He did promise to be tough and not "pull any punches" over decisions that need to be made. Well, yes, I'd expect that from any chancellor.

George Osborne (Conservatives)

Very polished performance, seemed at ease and comfortable in the surroundings.

I liked his stance on the source of job creation - the state can no longer do this, the private sector needs to take over.

Lord Mandelson (Labour)

Another polished performance, he's a very good speaker indeed. Liked a lot of what he said, but his insistance that the NI rise is necessary to reduce debt is a bad argument.

Debt should be reduced by reducing public spending, not increasing tax.

In terms of delivery Mandelson was the most impressive. In terms of content, Osborne.