With Bio-Waste Spreader: "Since 18 March, laws safeguarding farm livestock from attack by dogs have been strengthened through the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Act 2025. Given news of numerous dog attacks on farm livestock across Britain in recent weeks, though, what chance is there that this legislation can reverse the rising financial losses (nearly £200m in 2025 – up 10 percent on the year before) and distress such incidents cause?…"
With MD: "MD despairs at the latest round of resident doctor strikes in England (the 15th since 2023), but not as much as a resident doctor and BMA member, who told me: 'I won't bother voting on the strikes any more, and I'm not sure if I'll be striking. I have no idea which side to trust and who is telling the truth. I have no faith they will ever reach an agreement. Decent pay matters a lot to me, with all the costs, trauma and responsibility we bear, but the BMA has some weird obsession…'"
With Dr B Ching: "The government's New Homes Accelerator has accelerated Beam Park station in east London to the point of having 'a clearer path forward'. But when it will open remains unknown. The Eye has previously highlighted the station (originally meant to open in 2022) as an example of Labour blocking new homes while claiming to be sidelining the blockers: thanks to a planning restriction, 1,500 homes at Beam Park can't be built until the station opens…"
With Remote Controller: "The age of maxi-platform TV gives British viewers some sense of what it must be like to live without universal healthcare, constantly worrying if your existing deal provides enough coverage for each new viral event. So it's appropriate that the latest breakout to have people examining their contracts is a drama about American healthcare, The Pitt, which is transmitted by a streamer new to here, requiring subscription jugglers to top up provision already made by Sky or Amazon Prime…"
With Old Sparky: "The first global energy crisis of the modern era came in 1973-74 with an oil export embargo by the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) in retaliation for, er, US support for Israel's military actions. The price of oil quadrupled and never fell back to pre-crisis levels, with severe short and long term consequences. A surprising degree of international coordination was soon achieved by oil importing nations under the auspices of the OECD..."
With Lunchtime O'Boulez: "Built in 1951 to cheer a post-war nation, the Royal Festival Hall this year marks its 75th anniversary. On 3 May, the Southbank site will erupt in an 'immersive fusion' of music, dance and theatre organised by Danny Boyle, the director behind the 2012 Olympics opening ceremony. Boyle's musical agenda promises a day of 'punk, grime, northern soul, acid house, dance hall and disco'. So, nothing classical? Apparently not…"
Letter from Tokyo
From Our Own Correspondent: "Sanae Takaichi is Japan's first female prime minister, deeply conservative and – as her comms people delight in reminding us – the drummer in a heavy metal band at college. She does not hail from a political family and is hugely popular with voters who handed her a landslide victory for the perma-ruling but then wobbling Liberal Democratic Party in February. She eschews formal dinners with business and political leaders…"
With Gold Digger: "When a financial arrangement between the government and millions of citizens has to be altered because of events thousands of miles away – as occurred last week with the capping of interest rates on certain student loans because of Iran war-related inflation fears – it's surely time to rethink the whole thing. The case for student loans – that graduates earn more and should pay for it – has been weakening in areas outside the professions for some time..."