Chris Whiteside for the North

 A healthy, happy and prosperous New Year 2024 to everyone reading this.

  For anyone reading this who is of the Jewish, Christian, Muslim or Bahai faiths , May the God of Abraham be with you and all who you love at this time, guard, guide and protect you. For anyone reading this who loves the Christmas story: May the Joy of the Angels, The Eagerness of the Shepherds The Wisdom of the Magi The Patience of Joseph The Love of Mary and the Hope represented by the baby Jesus be with you this Christmas season and throughout the year For anyone reading this of any other faith , may your God be with you at this time. And for everyone reading this , I with you and your family good health and happiness at this time and a peaceful, happy, healthy and prosperous New Year 2024. In other words:  HAPPY CHRISTMAS! 

 The UK has announced a humanitarian response package for Ukraine. This will include £37 million which will support the UN and Red Cross to give vital help to Ukrainian people through winter, as well as partners focusing on the most vulnerable: women, girls, older people and people with disabilities.

This lovely Sinfonia from the start of Act III of Handel's oratorio "Solomon," immediately precedes the story of the visit to King Solomon of the Queen of Sheba and has long been nicknamed "The arrival of the Queen of Sheba." Today is Advent Sunday, the first day in the Christian Church's year, and the official start of the lead-in to Christmas. Advent means arrival, and the Rector of St James' church in Whitehaven had this piece played at the start of her sermon this morning, to use the arrival of the Queen of Sheba as a metaphor for the arrival of the baby Jesus at Christmas, to which we look forward at Christmas.

 

Celebrating Small Business Saturday  Small and medium businesses make up 99.9 per cent of the 5.6 million businesses in the UK – they employ almost 17 million people and contribute £2.4 trillion to the economy.  That is why the Conservativves are helping small businesses succeed by cutting their businesses rates, cutting the cost of employing staff and keeping corporation tax low. We are also freeing up billions of pounds of Start Up Loans so new businesses are created every day.  By taking the long-term decisions to support these businesses we are supporting local jobs and helping to secure economic growth to fund public services.   We are doing this by: Cutting tax for small and medium businesses , allowing them to focus on their priorities. We have raised the employment allowance to £5,000 which delivers a £1,000 tax cut for small businesses – and we have secured a lower rate of corporation tax for smaller businesses through the Small Profits Rate, meaning sm...