Utility Week

Community observe sni ly that it does jus- tice to the phrase "taking back control" – if by that you mean handing control over to Messrs Johnson and Cummings. Turn on, tune in, drop out "Control" seems to be an over- riding concern to the current administration, which given the chaos of Theresa May's tenure in o ce, you can understand. May was beset by rebellion and humiliation throughout her premiership and Boris will know all about that – he was one of the chief instigators. Hence Cummings has gone the full George Orwell on civil servants' use of language, while his boss – despite a long if not illustrious career as a journalist – is doing his best to cut the main- stream media out of the loop and go straight to "the people". Thus his government's ‚ rst party political broadcast last week eschewed the usual broad- cast media and went out direct to the public courtesy of the Conservatives' YouTube channel. Perhaps inspired by his hero Winston Churchill, who held the nation enrapt with his wartime radio broadcasts, Boris hopes the un‚ ltered truth (as he sees it) delivered with passion and enthusiasm (as he sees it) will inspire the lumpen proletariat. Maybe, although Disconnec- tor can't help but observe that Disconnector Publishing director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Content director: Jane Gray, janegray@fav-house.com, t: 01342 333004; Editor: Suzanne Heneghan, t: 01342 332106, e: suzanneheneghan@fav-house.com Digital editor: James Wallin, 01342 332015, jameswallin@fav-house.com; Intelligence editor: Denise Chevin, 01342 332087, denisechevin@fav-house.com Energy correspondent: Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@fav-house.com; Policy correspondent: David Blackman, e: davidblackman@ fav-house.com; Reporter: Adam John, t: 01342 332069, e: adamjohn@fav-house.com; Water correspondent: Ruth Williams, e: ruthwilliams@fav-house.com, t: 01342 332069 Production editor: Paul Newton, t: 01342 332085, e: paulnewton@fav-house.com; Business development manager: Ben Hammond, e: benhammond@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332116; Business development executive: Sarah Wood, e: sarahwood@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332117 Conference sponsorship manager: Sophie Abbott, t: 01342 332062, e: sophieabbott@fav-house.com; General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332057, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. 2,500 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2018 Membership subscriptions: UK £950+VAT per year. Contact Jo Nikiforov on: 01342 332077 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), the regulator of the UK's magazine and newspaper industry. We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact the Editor. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you want more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk. pointer to‰a wider problem with the UK's ability to tell "our friends and partners" overseas to take a hike. A rose by any other name… Given prime minister Boris Johnson's injudicious use of lan- guage, it is somewhat ironic that No 10 has issued strict guide- lines to civil servants on banned words when they are called to talk or write about anything Brexity. The ‚ rst casualty is the word "Brexit" itself. O cials are forbidden from using the word unless it refers to his- torical events, since Brexit has now been accomplished. Following that logic, the term "implementation period" has also been banned – since Brexit has already been implemented. Instead they've got to say "transition period". Other banned phrases include "level playing ‚ eld" and "no deal", although not, strangely enough, the phrases "utterly preposterous" or "who are you kidding?". The diktat has Dominic Cum- mings' ‚ ngerprints all over it and appears to demonstrate where our avuncular PM and his far-from- avuncular special adviser plan on taking the country. The great man can only First fi sh war ofBrexit Whether or not it was the result of an unfortunate bureaucratic error – as the authorities in Guernsey claim – last week there was a little-reported and short-lived trade war between the crown dependency and France. A— er the UK formally le— the European Union on 31 Jan- uary, Guernsey banned French ‚ shing boats from its waters, claiming that it was legally compelled to do so because the proper treaty paperwork is no longer in place. The French were not impressed and immediately banned Guernsey ‚ shermen from landing their catches in France. The result was that Guern- sey's ‚ shermen had to leave their catches to rot on board their boats. Several furious rounds of negotiations between the authorities in Guernsey and France's agriculture ministry ensued and a solution was found. French boats have been allowed back into the island's waters. Proponents of a hard Brexit at the end of the year must be hoping the outcome of the ‚ rst ‚ shing skirmish is not in any way‰a UTILITY WEEK | 14TH - 20TH FEBRUARY 2020 | 31 the great British public, apart from being the best on Earth, also has an attention span that even a celeb like Boris will ‚ nd hard to engage for long. Thus far, the Conservatives' YouTube channel has just 61,000 subscribers – even though the Tory party itself boasts 180,000. Which seems to imply that even paid-up party members are not hanging on Boris's every utterance. Don't try this athome If you want a measure for where the public is viz a viz entertaining itself, be aware that ‚ re chiefs last week felt obliged to issue a warning to teenagers about not attempting the "Penny Challenge", a craze sweeping the internet via the social media platform TikTok. The challenge involves inserting a phone charger part way in the mains in the wall and then using a coin to arc two of the blades in an attempt to get a spark. The winner gets to keep their lives and maybe not burn their parents' house down. Mr Clusker, station manager in Carlisle, Cumbria, said: "The outcome from this is that some- one will get seriously hurt." Other challenges may or may not include sticking forks in toasters and drying your hair in the bath. mings' ‚ ngerprints all over it and appears to demonstrate where our avuncular PM and his far-from- avuncular special adviser plan on taking the country. The great man can only Proponents of a hard Brexit at the end of the year must be hoping the outcome of the ‚ rst ‚ shing skirmish is not in any way‰a

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