Sir Peter Viggers, M.P. - the floating duck house on expenses - I've seen another one at Wicken!

Sir Peter Viggers, MP, was one of those 'exposed' for allegedly abusing the system of MPs' expenses. He only bought a floating duck house for his ducks. Surely that was a reasonable thing to do? After all, if one has a few ducks, one needs a floating duck house. In Sir Peter's case, of course, it was an expensive-looking floating duck house and I do wonder how this 'Knight of the Shires' thought that his expensive-looking floating duck house - reported to have had a price tag of £1,645 - should be paid for from the public purse. But that was the system. Sir Peter bought his floating duck house and the rest of us paid for it.

Amazing, isn't it?                                                         

Here is a floating duck house that is believed to be of the type that Sir Peter bought at our expense.

Splendid, isn't it?

Sir Peter Viggers is retiring from Parliament and has five weeks left to him as an MP if the election date of the 6th of May is confirmed.

Here is Sir Peter Viggers, MP. I guess he will be missed - by some.

Bit of a chump, eh?

As it happens, I was canvassing in Wicken (the home base of the National Trust's so-called 'Wicken Vision') today and I met many friends - as one would hope for and expect as the village is very close to where we live - and just two people who showed some favour towards the scheme. I would have thought that the Trust would be picking up more support than this on its 'home ground', but, no, many of the local people are as antipathetic as I am to what is evidently regarded as a bad plan. The old Wicken Fen was accepted as part of old Cambridgeshire and annoyed very few people, but the Trust's aim to buy up and ruin thousands of acres of fine food-growing Fen land is madness. They and it must be stopped. And their tatty sign needs a paint job, too.

It was bitterly cold but I had a splendid surprise in that I saw for the first time what I think is another floating duck house on the village pond. I guess that this was not the product of MPs' expenses for an individual MP's private enjoyment at public expense. It appears to be a public floating duck house and I guess that it was provided and paid for by a generous individual or, perhaps, by the Parish Council. Anyway, it's obviously a public floating duck house for public ducks. It is not as grand as Sir Peter Viggers's private floating duck house but it has a look of honesty about it. I lke it. I approve of it. I guess that nobody need resign about the Wicken floating duck house and I wish it and the village ducks of Wicken well.

The modest floating duck house, the village pond, and the village scene make a pleasant picture and I offer it to my readers for their enjoyment, at no public expense. People with an interest in and love for Wicken may copy it from my blog as often as they want. There is no charge. I do these things for free because I enjoy it.

Late news (Thursday): I now have up-to-date information on the Wicken pond public duck house. According to my very good friend, the great Fen artist Mr Tony Day, the duck house was provided by Mr John Woodroffe. A good and generous gentleman, that Mr Woodroffe: thank you, sir!