Artist's impression of the metal tree

I have heard some crazy ideas, but this one takes the biscuit.

In Stoke-on-Trent they are cutting down live growing trees and erecting a metal one in a paved area cleared from the woodland.

Read on:

As a symbol of a council's green credentials, a tree, no doubt, seemed the natural choice.

It was reported earlier this month that local authorities were spending more than £100 million a year to hire 3,500 "carbon-reduction advisers" and other workers charged with combating climate change.

P.S. If you would like to read more about Carbon Offsetting, go to:

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/carbon_offset.html

NHS MANAGERS BLOCKED 75% OF GP REFERRALS

Three quarters of GPs who referred patients to hospital have had their decisions blocked, a poll for The Sunday Telegraph reveals.

Family doctors say that new "referral management" systems, set up to allow primary care trusts (PCTs) to overrule decisions taken in the surgery, are being used to delay and cancel hospital care, and to divert patients referred to a hospital consultant to cheaper clinics in the community.

Other schemes run by PCTs have offered GPs payments if they reduce the number of patients sent to hospital.

Of 750 doctors polled across Britain, 75 per cent said they had referred patients to hospital only to have their decision overruled, with 40 per cent saying that it happened regularly. Dr Laurence Buckman, the chairman of the British Medical Association's GP committee, himself a London family doctor, said such schemes were a short-sighted attempt to save money by delaying hospital care.

"If I think my patient needs to see an orthopaedic surgeon, the chances are they do," he said. "These kinds of schemes just set up an extra layer, which delays the patient getting to see the right person."

Dr Buckman said he believed the schemes were "simply about saving money" by delaying hospital bills. "Most PCTs are on the verge of bankruptcy and if they can find a way to defer payment until the next quarter, or next financial year, they will," he added.

Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrat health spokesman, said that GPs in his North Norfolk constituency had complained to him after referrals for teenagers requiring psychiatric help were delayed, while local PCTs had introduced "minimum waits" for surgery in order to push hospital bills into the next financial year.

He warned: "Patients will be confused. They will trust their GP to make the right judgment and when their referral comes back, they can only assume it was for financial reasons."

Katherine Murphy, from the Patients' Association, said her group was hearing a growing number of complaints from orthopaedic patients who believed their health had worsened after they were diverted for treatment by a physiotherapist when their GP had intended them to see a surgeon. She described the policy as "a prime example of deficits putting lives at risk".

Paul Rybinski, a GP in Croydon, Surrey, said doctors were under increasing pressure to reduce hospital referrals to save NHS funds. His own practice has a referral cuts target of 5 per cent.

Dr Rybinksi said he feared "referral centres" would make decisions based on very partial knowledge of the patient. "When I make a referral it is based on a complex decision relating to the individual in front of me. It is very difficult for a panel at a PCT to second-guess what I was thinking, and the factors I was taking into account, based on a reading of a basic referral letter."

The poll, by Pearl Medical, which provides mobile communications to GPs, also found that doctors strongly opposed Government plans to create networks of "polyclinics", replacing individual GP surgeries with huge group practices, serving populations of 50,000.

Earlier this month, a blueprint was announced for 150 such clinics across London, in a model expected to become more widespread. Only 12 per cent of GPs polled thought this would improve patient care.

Asked whether the NHS would be better off under Prime Minister Gordon Brown or a government led by David Cameron, the Tory leader nudged ahead among GPs, by 4 per cent. While most family doctors were unconvinced of the merits of either, 23 per cent rated a Cameron government as good for the NHS, compared with 19 per cent who preferred Mr Brown.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said referral management centres should only be set up where they would benefit patients, by ensuring they saw the most appropriate health professional.

He added: "Such centres must not lengthen the patient journey or create 'hidden' waiting times. If a patient needs to be referred to hospital then, clearly, they should be referred. However, dealing with some referrals outside of large hospitals can relieve pressure on the NHS, provide more convenient care for patients, and deliver better value for money for the taxpayer."

CIVIL SERVICE PENSIONS - THE AMOUNT WE PAY

The cost of paying for inflation-linked pensions for civil servants has soared by £27 billion over the past year, according to figures slipped out by the Government as Parliament rose for the summer holiday.

The total cost faced by the taxpayer has risen to £128 billion - equivalent to £5,000 for every household in Britain, the Conservatives said yesterday.

Philip Hammond, the Conservative Treasury spokesman, said the total liabilities for civil service pensions had risen 50 per cent in two years.

According to a Cabinet Office report, the total liability of the civil service pension scheme in 2006-07 was £128.7 billion - compared to £101.3 billion for 2005-06.

The figures do not include separate liabilities for index-linked final salary pensions for teachers, NHS staff, the Armed Forces and local government workers.

Mr Hammond said an actuarial assessment earlier this year estimated the total public sector pensions liability at £1 trillion - a thousand billion - equivalent to £39,000 for each of the 25.6 million households in Britain.

The Tories had been pressing the Government since April to provide figures for the total cost of public sector pensions.

"These figures were sneaked out on Thursday," Mr Hammond said. "Gordon Brown's Government obviously thinks the day Parliament rises for the summer recess is a 'good day to bury bad news'."

Other written statements issued by ministers showed the cost of ministerial cars, that the Child Support Agency has outstanding claims of £3.5 billion, that a landmine destroyed an RAF Hercules in Afghanistan, and that Tony Blair's "farewell tour'' cost taxpayers more than £1.5 million.

Those of you who read this blog regularly know that I have a bee in my bonnet about taking statins.

I don't approve, at least for me, as they caused severe side effects,

You can read more of my views on the subject if you enter 'statins' in the search box on this page.

I believe that levels of harmful cholesterol can be reduced in other ways, principally by exercise and diet.

Now a Government health adviser has said that statins should be given to all men over 50 to cut their chances of developing serious heart disease.

Prof Roger Boyle said prescribing statins to those most at risk of a major heart attack or stroke would save thousands of lives every year.

But he said the public was not yet ready for a mass programme, in which millions of people would become dependent on drugs.

"Such a blanket approach would lead to accusations of a "nanny state", he said.

Cardiovascular disease, which includes heart attacks and strokes, is Britain's biggest killer, claiming about 208,000 lives in 2005.

The number of statins prescriptions in England has soared from eight million in 2000 to 40 million today. About three million people take the drug.

There are about eight million men over 50 in England. Giving them statins would cost as much as £158 million a year.

Prof Peter Weissberg, the medical director of the British Heart Foundation, said he was NOT in favour of prescribing statins to all men over 50.

"There are always side effects," he said.

Side effects associated with statins include muscle ache, pins and needles, nausea, fatigue and stiff joints.

"Muscle ache" is a complete understatement. I expereienced severe pain and cramping.

Another effect from taking statins is premature ageing, with increased memory loss and slowing down generally, which most people put down to just 'growing old'.

However, many who have taken a 'statin holiday' report a dramatic change in their feeling of well-being.

P.S. Research published this week suggested that people taking statins had a slightly higher risk of developing cancer.

Maybe it's not - but how dangerous IS it?

A single joint of cannabis raises the risk of schizophrenia by more than 40 per cent, a disturbing study warns.

The Government-commissioned report has also found that taking the drug regularly more than doubles the risk of serious mental illness.

Overall, cannabis could be to blame for one in seven cases of schizophrenia and other life-shattering mental illness, the Lancet reports.

In the public debate, cannabis has been considered a more or less harmless drug compared with alcohol, central stimulants and opioids.

'However, the potential long-term hazardous effects of cannabis with regard to psychosis seem to have been overlooked, and there is a need to warn the public of these dangers, as well as to establish a treatment to help young frequent cannabis users.'

Here is a news story from yesterday's Daily Mail:

RICK STEIN RESTAURANT WORKER COMMITS SUICIDE BY SLASHING THROAT AFTER MIND 'WARPED' BY CANNABIS

A young porter at one of celebrity chef Rick Stein's restaurants died after slashing his own throat when his mental health deteriorated after getting hooked on cannabis an inquest heard.

The former kitchen porter at Rick Stein's seafood restaurant in Padstow had stab and knife wounds to his abdomen, throat and wrists.

THAT'S NICE!

Drug addicts should be given shopping vouchers worth up to £10 to encourage them to quit their habit, a Government body ruled yesterday.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), which is responsible for rationing medical treatment, said that rewarding addicts for attending treatment programmes would significantly increase the number of users who stayed clean.

Under the guidelines, which would cost taxpayers in England up to £5 million a year, an estimated 36,000 addicts would be given vouchers worth between £70 and £150 a year.

Patients would be eligible only if they completed a treatment programme or if urine tests showed that they were clear of illegal drugs.

The first clear sample would earn a £2 voucher, with the value rising each time the user tested negative. Details have not been finalised but Nice said the vouchers would be aimed at encouraging addicts to join a gym or buy clothes for their children.

Privileges would also be offered, including allowing addicts to take home methadone, the heroin substitute, instead of having to take it under supervision.

But in a reversal of its draft recommendations, it said that users would not be offered prizes, including televisions, stereos and MP3 players, in return for staying clean.

Critics said there was a risk that the scheme would be abused by people who were more interested in the financial reward than in overcoming their addiction.

Vanessa Bourne, of the Patients Association, said the scheme would be "abused beyond belief".

"The scheme doesn't address the reasons why people become addicted," she said.

But NICE said that trials in America had shown that offering addicts small financial incentives dramatically increased the success of treatment programmes.

Steve Pilling, a consultant clinical psychologist who helped to draw up the guidelines, said: "We've studied the results from trials involving more than 5,000 participants from all over the world, which clearly show that substance misusers are much more likely to succeed in treatment if they are given encouragement for the effort they are making."

ARMBAND BAN FOR YOUNG SWIMMERS

A council has banned its swimming pool staff from lending out inflatables unless they can guarantee they are bacteria-free.

Letting parents blow up arm bands and rubber rings by mouth is too likely to spread germs, while unseen punctures may lead to accidents, Bournemouth borough council has decided.

But the decision has been ridiculed by swimmers at the town's three pools.

Lindon Fielding, 32, who was taking his young son swimming, said: "This is the nanny state gone mad. They would rather have children drown than have them catch someone's cold.

"The fact this ban was put into place because of a bean counter just beggars belief. These decisions ought to be made by pool staff. They know what they're doing, after all."

Another father said: "Mums and dads have been blowing up arm bands and rubber rings for decades without people keeling over from contagious illnesses."

But Geoff Messanger, the leisure manager for the swimming pools, claimed the ban had to be introduced after it was noticed that lending armbands and inflatables was against the rules of the Institute of Sport and Recreation Management, the national body for sport centre operators.

"It was just about being nice to customers who had forgotten to bring arm bands for their children. We wanted to help them out, rather than make them buy a new pair, but the regulations make it too difficult for us to do it."

Last night Ralph Riley, the chief executive of the institute, defended its guidelines.

He said: "I don't think it's health and safety gone mad to say that something should be clean and safe.

"If you have a young child or baby you do not expect to be given something dirty. We know for a fact that children chew on inflatables, so they have to be clean.

"We are talking about them possibly getting a type of bacteria called Pseudomonas, which can be quite harmful.

"If you give inflatables out as part of your service then you have responsibilities for that part of the service."

Mr Riley denied that the institute had issued the advice to protect itself against the possibility of being sued.

What do you think?

ESCAPING THE FLOODS

Holidaymakers are fleeing the rains in their millions in search of sunnier climes, travel agents said yesterday.

The number of those heading abroad this month is expected to rise by around 30 to 40 per cent compared with July last year.

Industry bosses said the exodus was likely to top 10 million as bargain hunters sought out late deals, with much of the increase coinciding with the worst of the recent downpours.

Prescription of behaviour-altering drugs to under-16s has soared ten-fold in the last decade.

New figures show that GPs are prescribing pills in record numbers for children, to combat stress, violent behaviour and even tiredness.

Under-16s were given drugs for mental health problems more than 631,000 times last year, compared to just 146,000 in the mid-Nineties.

The huge increase has been blamed on a rise in childhood mental illness sparked by family breakdown and high-stakes school exams.

But there are fears that family doctors are coming under pressure to prescribe drugs such as Prozac as a "quick fix" solution, when counselling would be better.

The findings come despite the publication of research showing that children given antidepressants run a higher risk of self-harm and are more likely to attempt suicide.

We've gone from a period when it was almost unthinkable to prescribe drugs to a child to amend their behaviour to a time when it is quite the norm.

What has happened?

Are children nowadays under more stress than we were?

Why instead of trying to treat the causes and create a more stable and supportive environment for young people, do we think we can solve these problems by prescribing a pill?

HULL COUNCIL - "WE DID NOT INSURE AGAINST FLOOD"

Taxpayers face a massive bill to repair flood damage in Hull after the local council admitted that its properties were not insured.

Officials at Kingston-upon-Hull City Council revealed that most of the city's 28,500 council houses, schools and other public buildings were not covered for water damage.

They took the decision not to insure the properties because the excess of £250,000 was considered too high. Instead they opted for a self-insurance scheme where £9 million was set aside to cover damage and repairs.

But Hull now faces a £200 million repair bill following the devastating flooding that hit Yorkshire last month.

The decision not to insure council buildings goes against government policy. Campaigners called the move "folly", pointing out that Hull is sited on a known flood plain. But Michael Hudson, the council's director of finance, said that there had been less than £1,000 of "wet perils" damage to council-owned properties in the past 10 years. He said that the council took the decision that it was better value to self-insure.

"We annually carry out risk assessments on all council buildings to allocate appropriate insurance cover," he said. "In relation to serious storm and flood damage, each building insured would carry an excess of £250,000, and with the information we receive about the unlikely nature of serious storm and flood damage, we have chosen for a number of years not to insure every council building and house against wet perils."

He added that about 60 per cent of councils in the UK self-fund against storm and flood damage. Yet Sheffield City Council, which was also hit by flooding last month, insured all of their council housing and public buildings against flood damage despite a £500,000 excess on houses.

Hull was one of the worst-hit areas in the June floods, which left more than 37,000 homes and businesses damaged. It was called the "forgotten city" after council leaders appealed for aid to help the recovery process.

The government awarded Hull £2.15 million in emergency aid, but officials say far more is needed; 3,500 council homes in Hull have suffered water damage, together with a dozen schools.

The nationwide bill for flooding this summer is likely to be more than £2.5 billion, with many homeowners picking up the tab in rising insurance premiums.

A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government said the council should have had its buildings insured.

She said: "The Government's view is that local authorities should insure buildings where they can, but it is up to them to determine if they are getting value for money."

Mary Dhonau, from the National Flood Forum, which gives advice about flooding, said: "I would have thought that the council should have had insurance. It is well known that Hull is on a flood plain, so I am shocked that they did not have insurance on their buildings.

"While it may have been difficult to get insurance for some of the buildings, I would imagine they are regretting the decision not to insure now."

PARENTS MAY BE PROSECUTED FOR INSULTS

Mothers and fathers who insult each other in front of their children may now find themselves on the wrong side of the law.

Australian courts have begun ordering parents to refrain from making offensive remarks, claiming that constant carping between couples can damage young minds.

The orders relate not only to expletive-laden abuse, but to any remark that might be used by one parent to turn a child against the other. The type of comments that have attracted judges' opprobrium include many seemingly innocuous ones, such as references to "Your silly mother", or asking "Has your father got a job yet?".

The new judicial approach came to light after a ruling by a federal magistrate, which was later backed by the Australian family court, in which an estranged couple in dispute over custody arrangements were told to stop backbiting in front of their three-year-old daughter.

The mother breached the order by insulting her former boyfriend during a telephone conversation in the child's earshot. That breach, with other contraventions, was used against her, leading to the father being awarded primary custody of the girl.

A court official said: "They may say it's just playful banter, but it's not banter from the point of view of children.

Derogatory comments really do have a harmful impact."

"I think we underestimate how traumatic it is for children to be in a constant war zone, with their mother and father lobbing verbal grenades at each other."

"We now have enough knowledge and research to know that this isn't good for kids. Parents need to back off and not slag each other off every time they see each other or when they pick up the phone."

Did your parents argue in front of you when your were young?

Or do you do the same in front of your kids?

BINMAN'S ST GEORGE BANDANA IS 'RACIST'

A black dustman has been banned from wearing a St George's Cross bandana because council officials say it could be regarded as racist.

Matthew Carter, 35, who was born in Barbados, used the headgear to keep his dreadlocks out of the way while he was on his rounds in Burnley, Lancs. He had done so for seven months before his photograph appeared in a local newspaper. A number of local people complained, and his superiors called him.

"I received a verbal warning," Mr Carter said yesterday. "They told me the St George's Cross was not allowed to be seen on any clothing we wear because it could be considered offensive and racist."

Ian McInery, the operational services manager for Pendle council, defended the decision to discipline Mr Carter. He said: "We have made it clear to staff that they are not allowed to put stickers or flags on bin wagons or wear clothing which shows support for a particular team, group or country.

"We can't make one rule for one person and one for another. It's just a common-sense approach that we are sticking to."

Mr Carter still wears a bandana but one that bears the image of a skull and crossbones.

Daily Telegraph

History is becoming an endangered subject as growing numbers of children drop the subject at 14, according to Ofsted, the education watchdog.

Less than a third of pupils study GCSE history, meaning few learn about important historical themes when they are "mature enough" to do so.

In a critical report published today, inspectors said pupils were being driven away because of overloaded timetables and lessons that were often dumbed down.

"Ofsted insisted the curriculum focused on a "relatively small number of issues with pupils failing to make connections between different periods or answering the "big questions" thrown up by the past.

The report also said the Government's drive to promote so-called "Britishness" was being undermined by lessons that focus too strongly on England while shunning Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

It comes just days after a report commissioned by the Tories called for history to be made compulsory up to the age of 16 to give pupils a better sense of British identity. Christine Gilbert, the chief inspector of schools, said more emphasis was needed on "chronology and themes".

"A history curriculum that is inclusive and truly reflects the unity and diversity of the United Kingdom and respects the stories of different people is a desirable aim," she said.

History is compulsory up to the age of 14. When Labour came to power in 1997, 35 per cent of teenagers took it at GCSE. Just over 30 per cent studied it last year. Inspectors said the subject was being undermined because "a substantial number never consider important historical issues when they are mature enough to do so".

Lessons are often fragmented and children are rarely required to investigate the "overarching story" or "broader themes and issues".

Some dates are taught in depth - such as the First World War and the Holocaust - but are not "set in broader contexts", often painting negative stereotypes of other nations.

Inspectors said history was not being used well enough as a tool to break down barriers between racial and religious groups, or promote Britishness. Some teachers are concerned about "overt political interference" in the curriculum by the Government.

According to the report, a shake-up of the curriculum is needed to focus lessons on the positive aspects of Scotland, Ireland and Wales, alongside European nations and the study of ethnic minorities. The move would help pupils "understand the contemporary world and counter prejudice", it said.

The Government insisted it was addressing the concerns. Last week it published plans for its own overhaul of lesson content, while revised citizenship lessons will focus on cultural diversity in the UK.

Jim Knight, the schools minister, said: "The new elements in citizenship classes will help children learn about identity and Britishness. Looking at our shared British identity through the lens of history will strengthen links between citizenship and history."

The Daily Telegraph

THE chief medical officer wants everyone to be treated as organ donors after death unless they explicitly opt out of the scheme.

Sir Liam Donaldson believes the shortage of kidneys, livers and hearts is so acute that the country needs a donation system that will presume patients have given consent for their body parts to be transplanted.

Those who wanted to opt out would have to register in a similar way to those who now carry organ donor cards. This could be done through a central NHS database or through other documentation, such as driving licences.

Such a fundamental change is likely to prove controversial as critics claim it gives the state new powers over people’s bodies.

The proposal has already provoked extreme reactions, like this:

"New powers over people's bodies.... that's the thing....

At present they have to put their stupid names on a waiting list like everyone else, or fly off to China, and wait for some poor sod over there to be hung to death for their organs. Whipping the bloody things out and sold off in minutes."

Well! Well!

Calm down dear.

Almost a third of UK householders keep items like golf clubs, cricket bats and heavy torches in case intruders enter their homes, a survey has suggested.

And more than half of them said they were prepared to use these objects, the poll of 4,000 people for the insurance company Cornhill Direct said.

It also reported that only one in five feels safe in their own homes at night.

But the most recent British Crime Survey found that burglaries had fallen by 3% in England and Wales.

The number which had been reported to police fell by 7% in the year to 2005-6.
Violence justified

The Cornhill survey found that 30% of householders keep heavy items for use in self-defence.

It suggested that people in Liverpool are most likely to keep potential weapons.

Only 7% of Liverpudlians said they felt safe at home at night - well below the national average.

BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said that it is not illegal to keep such items - but if they were used against an intruder, the householder would have to show the force used was reasonable and the violence justified.

The findings indicate that even though burglary rates have gone down considerably in the past 15 years, the fear of an intruder remains high, he added.

David Keel, of Cornhill Direct, said there were easier ways of keeping intruders at bay.

He added: "Taking simple and relatively inexpensive steps to make your home more secure, like fitting good door and window locks as well as motion sensitive security lights, are proven deterrents."

What weapon(s) do you keep in your bedroom?

"People should automatically have their organs removed for transplant after they die unless they opted out while alive", Britain's most senior doctor is expected to say today in his annual report.

Sir Liam Donaldson, the Chief Medical Officer, is expected to call for a change in the law amid fears that people are dying needlessly due to a shortage of donors.

Latest figures show that more than 7,300 Britons are on the waiting list for a life-saving transplant, a rise of about 30 per cent in the past 10 years.

Britain operates a system where organs can be removed only from people who have joined the donor register or carried a donor card.

Under a new system of presumed consent, which is supported by the British Medical Association, everyone would be treated as an organ donor unless they explicitly opted-out of the scheme while alive.

It is understood that Sir Liam will call for a "soft" system of presumed consent which takes into account the views of relatives.

Dr Evan Harris, the Liberal Democrat health spokesman, who tried to introduce presumed consent in 2004, said: "Bodies are buried or cremated complete with organs that could have been used to save lives, not because the deceased objected to organ donation but simply because they never got round to signing up to the NHS Organ Donation register or informing their relatives of their wishes," he said.

Dr Vivienne Nathanson, the BMA's head of science and ethics, said: "We are now getting closer to a system of presumed consent. We have exhausted all other ways of increasing the number of organs available."

Surveys have shown 80 per cent of people are willing to donate organs after they die, but only a quarter register.

If someone wanted to take my heart, or any other organ, I hope that there would be sufficient checks to confirm that I was really dead!

WOULD YOU WATCH IT?

A round-the-clock television channel devoted exclusively to ageing, death and dying will be launched in Germany this autumn.

Viewers will be served up documentaries about cemeteries, shows about changing funeral culture, and helpful tips about finding a retirement home or nursing care.

Should you be looking to install a stair lift in your home, EosTV will be the place to find information about that too.

Death and dying, in other words, right in your living room.

A mainstay of the channel will be televised obituaries.

For a fee that has yet to be set, viewers will be able to have a "This Was Your Life" video made about their late relatives, featuring interviews with family and friends.

It all sounds a bit morbid to me.

Will it get good ratings?

Who has the most stressful job?

Perhaps policemen, firemen, train drivers or even schoolteachers?

No - a new study by the British Psychological Society says that working in a library is the most stressful job of all.

They say that Librarians are the most unhappy with their workplace, often finding their job repetitive and unchallenging.

The study surveyed nearly 300 people drawn from five occupations.

They were firefighters, police officers, train operators, teachers and librarians and were intended to cover the spectrum, with the librarians first-thought to be the least stressful occupation.

The research, being presented at a society conference in Glasgow, looked at nine "stressors", such as how much control workers thought they had over their working day, their workload and how much they earned.

Stress is about control. The less control you have over your workload the more stressed you will become

It also looked at absenteeism, job satisfaction and whether work stress spilled over into their private life.

Librarians complained about their physical environment, saying they were sick of being stuck between book shelves all day, as well as claiming their skills were not used and how little control they felt they had over their career.

They were also more likely than other professions to be absent from work.

"Although these findings seem strange at first, they actually show how insidious stress can be, and how it can have an unhealthy impact in any organisation,"

"Firefighters and police are trained to deal with the stresses that their jobs undoubtedly entail; librarians and school teachers are less likely to have these support systems in place.

"In addition, stress impacts different personalities in different ways, and different personalities may be drawn to different roles."

Producers of an off-Brfoadway show are offering free admission to anyone who is a virgin.

A hypnotist will test the truthfulness of the claims before they tickets for the 90-minute comedy "My First Time."

Producer Ken Davenport said there were still tickets available, adding:

"There are not that many virgins in New York City."

I wonder whether applicants can be male as well as female?

I am taking a short break and there will be no further posts to this blog until Saturday July 14.

Please come back then.

'Throwing Muddy Water'

Richard Long (born June 2, 1945) is an English sculptor, photographer and painter.

He was born in Bristol, and studied art there at the West of England College of Art from 1962 to 1965, and graduated from St Martin's School of Art in London in 1968.

The making of each piece is the result of one action and not, as with most artists, a series of steps or stages of creation.

To make the 'picture' shown above the artist climbed a scaffold with three bucketfuls of muddy water, then flung the contents at three different places high up on a white wall. The whole process took less than 10 minutes.

Even if you didn't know that, you'd quickly figure it out because where the muddy water first hit the wall the surface is saturated, but as it streamed downward, the rivulets began to separate and then slow down to become erratic dribbles near the floor.

An art reviewer has said: "Richard Long's mucky, hands-on encounters with nature are a thrilling, elemental revelation."

Do you agree?

P.S. Richard Long is the only artist to be shortlisted for the Turner Prize four times. He was nominated in 1984, 1987, 1988 and he then won the award in 1989 for 'White Water Line' (below).

It was ever so - you choose the 'experts' that support your view.

SANDWICHES 'RIVAL CRISPS ON SALT'

Pre-packed sandwiches may contain as much salt as several bags of crisps, a study carried out for the BBC suggests.

The health lobby group Cash looked at 140 sandwiches on sale and found over 40% had 2g or more of salt - or a third of an adult's recommended daily intake.

The "All Day Breakfast" variety were the worst offenders, but cheese and ham as well as chicken salad also featured.

The British Sandwich Association said it had been working hard to reduce salt levels and the study was misleading.

Asda's Extra Special Yorkshire Ham and Hawes Wensleydale sandwich topped the list, with nearly 4g or 65% of the recommended daily salt intake, according to the Consumer Action on Salt and Health survey.

It was followed by Pret a Manger's All Day Breakfast sandwich with 3.54g of salt and the Tesco's Finest version of the same with 3.5g.

Cash noted that as a standard bag of Walkers Ready Salted Crisps contains 0.5g of salt, these sandwiches contain the equivalent of seven bags of crisps.

The lowest salt sandwiches in the survey were Co-op Healthy Living Tuna and Cucumber and Tesco Healthy Living Chicken Salad, with 0.6g or 10% of the recommended daily amount.

The British Sandwich Association was critical of the findings.

"Sandwiches involve the assembly of ingredients," said Jim Winship, director of the organisation.

"The fact is that the salt is already in the ingredients - e.g. bacon or ham - so if consumers choose a sandwich containing these they are bound to have a higher salt content."

But he stressed that on average, the sandwiches surveyed had 2g of salt - or a third of the recommended daily intake - and that these levels were not unreasonable.

Cash admitted that, given a sandwich was often the main constituent of one of three meals in the day, containing a third of the recommended daily intake of salt was not necessarily a problem.

"But it's often combined with other things," says Jo Butten, the group's nutritionist.

"Once you have had a packet of crisps with your sandwich and finished off with some biscuits, you may well have gone over your limit."

For instance, Somerfield's Prawn Mayonnaise sandwich contained 43% of the daily intake of salt, while Morrison's version had 22%.

"One of the easiest way to reduce the salt content would probably be to use a different sort of bread, as that can be a significant factor," said Ms Butten.

Cash singled out Pret a Manger for particular criticism, noting that two of its sandwiches had a very high salt content but that it did not spell out nutritional details on its boxes.

The sandwich chain rejected the criticism outright, saying it saw itself as a deli not a "factory" as the products were made on site, and that in a deli such details would not be available.

But all customers who were interested could ask at the tills for nutritional information, said Simon Hargraves, commercial director.

"In any event, people know that when they buy an All Day Breakfast sandwich it's not the healthiest option," he said.

"It's just not the kind of sandwich you'd eat all the time."

The British Sandwich Association also stressed that it was "it is not the sandwich industry's job to dictate to consumers what they choose to eat".

The government recommends that adults should eat 6g of salt a day. However, the average intake of salt is between 9g and 10g a day.

Some experts estimate that if average consumption was cut to 6g a day it would prevent 70,000 heart attacks and strokes a year.

But not all scientists sign up to those estimates, and some suggest salt does not play a significant role in those conditions.

P.S. You will find another interesting article on the subject at:

www.telegraph.co.uk/.../ 2006/11/13/hsalt13.xml