Afternoon:
10°c
The Tories new proposals for a "swing" duty on fuel leave me feeling a little sceptical. Shadow Chancellor George Osborne says that under a Conservative government, if the price of oil goes up, the tax will go down - and vice versa. According to him, it's a green idea and everyone benefits; in short, it's the philosopher's stone of energy policy, turning carbon dross into the pure gold of good governance and a revitalised economy.
What tosh! Only far-reaching changes in behaviour will really reduce our ever-increasing energy consumption. As for the price of oil going down at all - well, George, I wouldn't bank on it. No, I won't believe the Tories' touchy-feely green credentials are anything but a fig leaf until Osborne and his leader propose some policies that necessitate people getting out of their cars and - gulp! - walking.
I know I often write shamelessly about my own walking but since getting rid of my car at the beginning of this year I've been walking even more. Take this Saturday, for example. I wanted to exercise the dog, accompany my nephew to meet his father in the West End, meet up with my older children and return some rental DVDs.
If I'd had a car, I might simply have set off blithely to do all four - only to get snarled up hopelessly in traffic as I ran into the Gay Pride march, and then the all-day concert in Hyde Park. In the process I would have emitted plenty of exhaust, become stressed out and improved my fitness not one jot.
As it was, my nephew and I set out on foot, trusting to public transport if we needed it. We took 45 minutes to stroll into Pall Mall from Stockwell, where we met my brother. I then remembered that there was an exhibition nearby that they might both enjoy, so I walked with them round to the White Cube Gallery in Duke Street. I went on via Green Park to Hyde Park, where I was able to enjoy a little of the popular beat music wafting over the high fence from the Wireless arena.
Then, at the Serpentine Gallery, I came by chance on the new Frank Gehry pavilion in the process of being completed. I dallied for a while, then walked on across the park to Notting Hill Gate, where I saw my kids and returned my films. Job done, including exercising the dog and myself; although he, being a dumb beast, knows no better than to walk in public.
The point about all this was that it was unpremeditated: I simply got up and went. I didn't need to think about routes, parking restrictions or fuel costs. Perhaps it's the very liberalityof walking that so scares politicians - I mean, if they were positively to encourage it, who knows where it might stop? They'd have nothing to tax at all - and all those nice parking contractors and oil company executives would be out of work.
Reader views (5)
I absolutely agree with the unpremeditated stitching-together of loci. Although I live in central London, I can also understand the point of view of people who don't, but what about the bicycle? London is a great place to cycle. It is (mostly) flat and (perhaps beyond popular belief) no problem to get through. Do you ever cycle, Mr Self?
- Miles Lang, London, UK, 08/07/2008 14:23
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What a bunch of mean-minded grinches these people who have added comments are. First they assume Self is rich (for most people journalism and publishing are about the worst paying industries - I can earn more money in building) secondly they compare their situations to his as through its a fair like-to-like comparison. As long as you're not old and doddery walking in London (er... the column did refer to London didn't it?) is the most sensible thing to do. It beats the horrible bullying aggression of traffic and yup, you get to see things you might not typically notice. Hell, you may even end talking to people.
- Morley, London, 08/07/2008 14:14
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After watching Will Self in Have I got news for you, and also reading his insipid column, its become obvious to me that he is barking mad.
- Jacob, Canterbury England, 08/07/2008 13:23
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Hmmm. It's a bit Marie Antoinette. "Let them use their pieds". It's all very well for the well off and young living in central London who can walk to all these lovely places on a sunny early summer day. But you are in a minority. If that was not your nephew but your gran or auntie, I'm not sure you could have "strolled to Pall Mall" from Stockwell...transport issues affect more than the young urban and wealthy.
- Damian Hockney, London, UK, 08/07/2008 13:17
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Hi Will how many times do we hear of people saying we must walk or catch the bus? Well I do, I get soaking wet walking 5 miles home at 10pm after doing a 8hour shift through a town of teenagers and policemen that are no where to be seen.
Other than that I have parents in their eighties who live in a village without a bus service and would take me 3 bus's and a good walk to get there, I also have a aunt in a home in a nearby town and it would take me an hour each way to do ten miles.
People need personal transport to live their lives to the full and fulfil their responsibilities to their families.
I do think you might have forgotten what it is like to live at this end of the social scale.
- Peter Palmer, leicestershire, 08/07/2008 12:46
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