Peter Rhodes on the bloom of youth, the plague of potholes and the promise of an end to speeding

AS you know, I sometimes scoff at advice from medical experts. However, one new tip should remain unscoffed. At present, kids are weighed at five and 11 to detect the ones likely to slip into obesity. Researchers at Manchester and Oxford suggest the first official weighing should be at age two. I bet there's not a single nursery or play-school assistant in Britain who would argue with that.

VETERAN reporter Michael Buerk says today's BBC has a "small-tent" view based on the views of its overwhelmingly middle-class, urban, well-educated employees who have little sympathy or understanding of business, industry, the countryside and traditions. He's right. There is a political and media elite in this country, produced by well-connected families and selective education. They speak foreign languages and have friends from all over the world but would never dream of mixing with the English working class.

"THERE is something about the assuredness and life experience of the older woman that trumps the bloom of youth," declares columnist Sarah Vine, aged 51. The curious thing is that while women spend billions of pounds a year trying to regain the bloom of youth, nobody has yet marketed a face cream promising "life experience."

SIX little words have grated on the ears of many Brits for the past 40-odd years. They usually accompany some official announcement on a new rule or regulation which is to "bring us into line with Europe."In what may be the dying days of our EU membership, along comes yet another Euro-rule, the fitting of speed limiters to new cars to prevent speeding. Actually, I'm all in favour of that. The vast and growing "driver awareness" racket has grown fat on providing £100 courses for drivers who have strayed a few mph over the limit, often as a result of poor road signage. A technology-aided end to speeding means an end to speed traps and no more wasted days being lectured by retired cops on a nice little earner. It will bring us into line with sanity.

JUST let's hope the speed-limit technology is fit for purpose. If new cars have speed limiters and old cars don't, how many new cars will get shunted by old cars?

SHED no tears for the Brexiteer campaigner jailed for striking Jeremy Corbyn while holding an egg. The egging of politicians is assault, plain and simple. I always admired John Prescott who, when egged by a man half his age in 2001, fought back with a couple of well-placed punches. Back then, Prescott was widely condemned. But if the same happened today, at a time when anti-Brexit politicians are enduring death threats and abuse in the streets, I bet a politician who decked an egger would be cheered.

FOLLOWING a £4 million increase in spending, 1.86 million potholes in England and Wales were repaired last year. I dare say we're all thinking the same. Not round our way.