I'm John Batchew with my good colleagues, Jim McHagg, in the Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and

Simon Constable in Alby, a medieval farming village in the south of France. But back home in England,

and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland, the country has been addressed by the Prime Minister, Mr. Starrmer,

about what he's expecting to be a price spike across the board and rough times ahead for the economy.

Simon, the president here in his address was not certain as to when the war in the Middle East will end.

Shortly was the adverb he used.

He was also not certain about the Strait of Hormuz reopening it anytime soon.

Naturally, is the adverb he used.

I believe that the address by Akir Starmer was discouraging.

How did you find it, Simon?

Well, I generally find Kier Stahmer discouraging after the couple of years of Britain's had to deal with his regime.

And I would expect that this is even worse that people are commenting on it in the way that you've described.

It isn't a surprise that he is not uplifting. He is not a Winston Churchill substitute by a long,

long way. People will expect to this. They won't be happy, and it will almost guarantee that

the Labour Party will not be reelected

in the next general election, which is only in a couple of years now. It's not very good. He's done a lot of

strange things. He appears to not know what he wants to happen in anything. And I'm not just

talking about the war situation, but it's in anything. And I'm not just talking about the war situation,

but it's in anything.

He doesn't seem to have a conviction,

and that's a really bad situation.

Jimmy, I have a question for Simon.

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