A training course run by North Yorkshire Council has taught staff that the Virgin Mary, the mother of Christ, “wore a hijab,” a claim described as a profound insult to Christianity and historically inaccurate, as Mary lived more than six centuries before Islam was established.
Council course under fire
The course was part of a programme called Project Unity, run by the charity Better Communities Bradford, which has received £525,000 in public funding since 2019.
Showing photos from the early 20th century of women in shawls, the course also asserts that the “the hijab was prevalent in the UK only 100 years ago,” a claim described as a complete lie.
Hollywood icon dies at 102
Hollywood icon Eva Marie Saint has died at the age of 102. Her greatest film was the pacey thriller North by Northwest, a masterpiece directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
True to his obsession with striking blondes, Hitchcock was mesmerised by her, though she said he always treated her respectfully. Others were not so lucky. The actress Tippi Hendren, star of The Birds, described his sexual harassment of her as “ugly, brutal and relentless”.
Election anniversaries and political lessons
It is exactly 75 years since the General Election of October 1951, one of the most intriguing contests in British history. Just like today, key issues in the campaign included unrest in the Middle East, Britain’s relations with Europe, defence spending and housebuilding.
It was also the first General Election that had televised party political broadcasts. The new format was launched by the Liberal elder statesman Viscount Samuel who spoke live to the camera from a script for 15 minutes but so badly mistimed his contribution that he was cut off before he had finished.
Labour won almost a quarter of a million more votes than Conservatives and their allies. Yet Attlee’s party gained only 295 seats compared to 321 for the Tories.
Tobacco tax concerns
According to Jack Rankin, the MP for Windsor, the war on tobacco is becoming counter-productive, as sky-high tax rates are now fuelling a huge black market, while revenues to the Treasury now plummet by perhaps as much as £4.7billion-a-year. But there will be no change in strategy. Savage cigarette taxation is an article of faith in the blinkered political establishment.
