Will Mooney, Carter Jonas partner and head of commercial and professional services in the eastern region “There is nothing permanent except change”, Heraclitus of Ephesus 535BC-475BC
I guess the works of the ancient philosophers have endured because they always seem to have a really good handle on modern life, don’t they? In mixing my ancient civilisations here, as the two-faced month named after the Roman god Janus ends, it seems to have rung in a mood of change – the mood which will surely go on to charactertise the rest of the year, as it does any year.
Divorce lawyers will confirm that January is good for business. It’s a month in which couples whose relationship has been rocky appear ready enough to confront the reality and initiate a change, whether permanent or temporary.
January this year saw Hollywood actor Gwyneth Paltrow admitting she regrets having used the phrase ‘conscious uncoupling’ when, last year, she announced that her and pop-star husband Chris Martin were divorcing. Yet, it’s an eloquent phrase impying, as it does, a grown up approach to unhitching in the way that ‘divorce’ has come to suggest something a bit more acrimonious.
In early January, the Swiss National Bank unhitched the Swiss Franc from the Euro. The following week Denmark was tipped to do the same with its Krone in anticipation of the European Central Bank (ECB) announcing a programme of Euro quantitative easing (QE) to alleviate the debts of certain Eurozone countries. The ECB having finally convinced Germany of the advisability of QE in the face of mounting disquiet and political unrest, particularly in those bailed-out Eurozone countries.
It’s been the month in which the battle of the supermarkets played out badly for two grocers occupying the middle ground. A pincer movement from food retailers at the premium and budget ends of the trolley park saw Dalton Philips step down as chief executive of Morrisons. In the same month, the last boss but two of Tesco came out in public to criticise his own immediate successor who, himself, had already resigned in July 2014.
In an interesting aside, on the theme of coupling and uncoupling, I read that a Cambridgeshire couple are planning to have their wedding reception in the café of their local branch of Morrisons in Cambourne - circumstances meant it was a frequent venue during their courtship.
In the week leading up to Burns Night on 25 January, proposals which could ramp-up the next phase of Scotland’s devolved powers were published for consultation. This is part of the phased fallout from Scotland rejecting to consciously uncouple itself from the Union in September last year.
Surely the most frenzied activity to couple or uncouple on the UK dating scene this year will be pre and post-General Election on May 07th. The blue and yellow members of the coalition have already embarked upon a fast track separation in talking about the differences in the coalition in party terms where once it was the coalition consensus that mattered above all else. Let’s hope any powerbroking in the absence of a workable majority administration will once more see peace and harmony in the Rose Garden of Number 10 soon after polling day.
With polling pundits calling a hung parliament, it’s been over 40 years – 1974 - since there have been two General Elections in one year here. How the times have changed since then.
I guess the works of the ancient philosophers have endured because they always seem to have a really good handle on modern life, don’t they? In mixing my ancient civilisations here, as the two-faced month named after the Roman god Janus ends, it seems to have rung in a mood of change – the mood which will surely go on to charactertise the rest of the year, as it does any year.
Divorce lawyers will confirm that January is good for business. It’s a month in which couples whose relationship has been rocky appear ready enough to confront the reality and initiate a change, whether permanent or temporary.
January this year saw Hollywood actor Gwyneth Paltrow admitting she regrets having used the phrase ‘conscious uncoupling’ when, last year, she announced that her and pop-star husband Chris Martin were divorcing. Yet, it’s an eloquent phrase impying, as it does, a grown up approach to unhitching in the way that ‘divorce’ has come to suggest something a bit more acrimonious.
In early January, the Swiss National Bank unhitched the Swiss Franc from the Euro. The following week Denmark was tipped to do the same with its Krone in anticipation of the European Central Bank (ECB) announcing a programme of Euro quantitative easing (QE) to alleviate the debts of certain Eurozone countries. The ECB having finally convinced Germany of the advisability of QE in the face of mounting disquiet and political unrest, particularly in those bailed-out Eurozone countries.
It’s been the month in which the battle of the supermarkets played out badly for two grocers occupying the middle ground. A pincer movement from food retailers at the premium and budget ends of the trolley park saw Dalton Philips step down as chief executive of Morrisons. In the same month, the last boss but two of Tesco came out in public to criticise his own immediate successor who, himself, had already resigned in July 2014.
In an interesting aside, on the theme of coupling and uncoupling, I read that a Cambridgeshire couple are planning to have their wedding reception in the café of their local branch of Morrisons in Cambourne - circumstances meant it was a frequent venue during their courtship.
In the week leading up to Burns Night on 25 January, proposals which could ramp-up the next phase of Scotland’s devolved powers were published for consultation. This is part of the phased fallout from Scotland rejecting to consciously uncouple itself from the Union in September last year.
Surely the most frenzied activity to couple or uncouple on the UK dating scene this year will be pre and post-General Election on May 07th. The blue and yellow members of the coalition have already embarked upon a fast track separation in talking about the differences in the coalition in party terms where once it was the coalition consensus that mattered above all else. Let’s hope any powerbroking in the absence of a workable majority administration will once more see peace and harmony in the Rose Garden of Number 10 soon after polling day.
With polling pundits calling a hung parliament, it’s been over 40 years – 1974 - since there have been two General Elections in one year here. How the times have changed since then.
Will Mooney MRICS
Partner
Commercial, Cambridge
No comments:
Post a Comment