Hello folks I'm back again having visited Plym's neck of the woods for my annual look around. This Brexit thing is a funny old thing and certainly was brought into sharp focus with what I saw and heard in that region. Whilst I don't know for sure I would guess that the Kent region voted quite overwhelmingly for Out.
My visit was to Folkstone for a bout of cross channel shopping. The Hotel I stay in is a pretty big one and normally there are loads of coach parties staying there from around the Country all doing much the same as why I go there. In a normal week there are usually up to 20 coaches there and if you average out that each coach has around 40 people on it that works out to 800 people a week for 52 weeks a year. This time there were around 5 coaches in the Hotel and speaking to folk it appears that is becoming the norm rather than as previous. The shopping people go for is an obvious one which is alcohol and tobacco products across the Channel. My experience with the Customs people this time was rediculous. We were taken off the coach 4 times in the day. Twice on the way out of the Country and twice on the way back. Nobody had loads of stuff and it was plainly obvious they didn't. The interigation was well OTT. Where had we been, what was in the bag, how much was it, did we have a receipt, when did we last go abroad, was the stuff for ourselves and finally, did anyone else pack the bag. Remember this was a carrier bag not a suitcase. There were 3 coach loads of children who were aged 8 or 9 years old. We knew that because we were talking to their teacher on the ferry coming back to England. They had been to Calaise for the day on a field trip. They had them off their coach as well and would you believe questioned them about where they had been and why. I am not kidding with that and it is true I promise you. Basically they made it as difficult as they could and quite deliberately in my opinion. Passports have a chip in them these days and they know exactly when somebody has been abroad and where. They scan them whilst talking to you so the info is already on the screen. It is just pure intimidation because this Government doesn't want people to get any benefit from the good parts of being in Europe. These are the reasons people are not going to places like Folkestone anymore. The result will be when the shoppinng ends altogether once we have left the Union will be that 40,000 people less will visit that region from one single hotel. No doubt that hotel will close because there is no way it can be sustained by casual visitors. It's too big and it needs the coach tours. The revenue these people alone spend in Folkestone must be considerable and will be lost to the area. Jobs will go as a knock on. The European funding the area gets, and it is obvious it does get quite a bit, will also be gone. Obvious result will be a run down **** tip of a place which will die on it's feet. And the lemmings voted for it.
I should add that the figures above are for Monday to Friday and don't include another 15 coaches for the weekends. The sadest thing of all is when you speak to people none of them seem to get it. I cannot see the point in anyone voting for the least Out parties now. WE are leaving and it is not going to change. I cannot see there being another vote. Pity but it's fact.
My visit was to Folkstone for a bout of cross channel shopping. The Hotel I stay in is a pretty big one and normally there are loads of coach parties staying there from around the Country all doing much the same as why I go there. In a normal week there are usually up to 20 coaches there and if you average out that each coach has around 40 people on it that works out to 800 people a week for 52 weeks a year. This time there were around 5 coaches in the Hotel and speaking to folk it appears that is becoming the norm rather than as previous. The shopping people go for is an obvious one which is alcohol and tobacco products across the Channel. My experience with the Customs people this time was rediculous. We were taken off the coach 4 times in the day. Twice on the way out of the Country and twice on the way back. Nobody had loads of stuff and it was plainly obvious they didn't. The interigation was well OTT. Where had we been, what was in the bag, how much was it, did we have a receipt, when did we last go abroad, was the stuff for ourselves and finally, did anyone else pack the bag. Remember this was a carrier bag not a suitcase. There were 3 coach loads of children who were aged 8 or 9 years old. We knew that because we were talking to their teacher on the ferry coming back to England. They had been to Calaise for the day on a field trip. They had them off their coach as well and would you believe questioned them about where they had been and why. I am not kidding with that and it is true I promise you. Basically they made it as difficult as they could and quite deliberately in my opinion. Passports have a chip in them these days and they know exactly when somebody has been abroad and where. They scan them whilst talking to you so the info is already on the screen. It is just pure intimidation because this Government doesn't want people to get any benefit from the good parts of being in Europe. These are the reasons people are not going to places like Folkestone anymore. The result will be when the shoppinng ends altogether once we have left the Union will be that 40,000 people less will visit that region from one single hotel. No doubt that hotel will close because there is no way it can be sustained by casual visitors. It's too big and it needs the coach tours. The revenue these people alone spend in Folkestone must be considerable and will be lost to the area. Jobs will go as a knock on. The European funding the area gets, and it is obvious it does get quite a bit, will also be gone. Obvious result will be a run down **** tip of a place which will die on it's feet. And the lemmings voted for it.
I should add that the figures above are for Monday to Friday and don't include another 15 coaches for the weekends. The sadest thing of all is when you speak to people none of them seem to get it. I cannot see the point in anyone voting for the least Out parties now. WE are leaving and it is not going to change. I cannot see there being another vote. Pity but it's fact.
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