Councillor Dave Palethorpe Teignbridge District Council

21/04/2026

Flag this week is New Zealand in what is ANZUK week remembering all of the KIWIS and AUSTRALIANS who fought alongside the UK.

06/04/2026

We’re told Kanye West isn’t welcome in the UK because of his “values” and “expressed opinions”, and yes I absolutely agree in my view he shouldn’t be welcome here.

Yet Keir Starmer is happy to send King Charles to cosy up to Donald Trump.

Whether you believe in the monarchy or not, why an earth, after the foul mouthed rant from Donald Trump threatening to commit what are in fact war crimes would we want to ask the King or go and meet him.

It seems we are now at the stage when you can pick and choose when values matter and who they apply to.

That’s not leadership Sir Keir Starmer

That’s hypocrisy,

16/03/2026

Summer is on its way

16/03/2026

How to Become Wealthy on £100,000 a Year

How to Become Wealthy on £100,000 a Year by David Palethorpe A Helpful Starter Guide for Newly Elected MPs Every election cycle brings with it a small moment of public curiosity. Voters — a few of them at least — glance at the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and ask a rather innocent question: How do so many MPs end up so well off?...

How to Become Wealthy on £100,000 a Year by David Palethorpe A Helpful Starter Guide for Newly Elected MPs Every election cycle brings with it a small moment of public curiosity. Voters — a few of …

02/03/2026

Taking it all in and appreciating Orley Common

01/03/2026

Militarism, Rhetoric, and the Fragility of Alliances

Militarism, Rhetoric, and the Fragility of Alliances What I Feared in 2017 — And What Actually Happened by David Palethorpe In March 2017, early into the presidency of Donald Trump, I wrote an article asking whether he might start a third world war. It was a stark question, but not a sensational one. I did not believe tanks would march across Europe overnight....

Militarism, Rhetoric, and the Fragility of Alliances What I Feared in 2017 — And What Actually Happened by David Palethorpe In March 2017, early into the presidency of Donald Trump, I wrote an arti…

23/02/2026

Mandates Myths and the Curious World of Local Democracy

Mandates Myths and the Curious World of Local Democracy by David Palethorpe Let me begin by disarming the obvious line of attack. Yes, I have been a councillor on two different local authorities in two different parts of the country. Yes, I have stood in five elections and somehow managed to be successful five times. And yes, I have been elected under the banner of three different political parties....

Mandates Myths and the Curious World of Local Democracy by David Palethorpe Let me begin by disarming the obvious line of attack. Yes, I have been a councillor on two different local authorities in…

16/02/2026

Mr & Mrs Middle England: Grave Matters and Hounds

Mr & Mrs Middle England: Grave Matters and Hounds Another week in Ipplepen, and in true British fashion we begin with the weather. It has rained — heavily, lightly, sideways — with the very rare occasional burst of sunshine just to confuse us further. February like January has been unusually warm too, nudging into double digits on some occasions, leaving everyone dithering between the safety of a winter coat or the reckless gamble of a jumper and hypothermia....

Mr & Mrs Middle England: Grave Matters and Hounds Another week in Ipplepen, and in true British fashion we begin with the weather. It has rained — heavily, lightly, sideways — with the very rar…

14/02/2026

BALDERDASH PERFECTIONIST

An ode to all of those in political life who have the joy of waking every morning in the full knowledge that they not only have the solution to every issue but are committed to sharing it on social media. BALDERDASH PERFECTIONISTBy David Palethorpe Oh what a load of balderdashThe self-proclaimed perfectionists talkWho do they think they really are…...

An ode to all of those in political life who have the joy of waking every morning in the full knowledge that they not only have the solution to every issue but are committed to sharing it on social…

12/02/2026

“Blow-in”: A Reflection from Ipplepen

"Blow-in": A Reflection from Ipplepen By David Palethorpe I live in a fantastic part of the world—South Devon—in a little village called Ipplepen. And yes, there are those wags who, every now and then, amend the name at the beginning of the village name with a "N", and occasionally the end with an "is", Oh what wags they are!!!! You can probably work out what that spell....

“Blow-in”: A Reflection from Ipplepen By David Palethorpe I live in a fantastic part of the world—South Devon—in a little village called Ipplepen. And yes, there are those wags who, eve…