Quite frankly, good. If one positive thing comes out of this crisis it might be the cleaning up of corrosive Russian money, and by extension influence, in the UK.
>Brad, one of six fluorescent jacket-wearing security guards who prevented the Guardian from entering St George’s Hill, said there were more Russians living on the estate now than at any time in his six years working at the gate.
>“I imagine they are getting a bit nervous now about what Boris [Johnson] might do now that Putin has invaded Ukraine,” he said. “But, there’s one thing I can tell you for sure, they won’t want to talk to you and we are calling the police unless you leave now.”
I know a good location for some pro-Ukraine protests.
Why sending them home? Just send them to the Ukraine…
It’s going to be a big puzzle for the Conservative Party as to how they do nothing about mega-rich Russians in the UK while appearing to do something…
I look at places like this and I’m just amazed they exist in the UK. It’s like another world. I’d love to visit/meet some of the people to understand why they want to live in such a community.
i’ve been there a few times, it’s nuts. every house is utterly gigantic.
Well they payed the price supporting Putin, no sympathy
Ringo, John, and George bought homes there in the 60s..
It was and always will be a gated secure zone that’s full of the mega rich
Putin in a couple of months time:
*“the Nazi regime of the United Kingdom is persecuting peaceful Russians just trying to live their lives by outlawing the Russian language, beating their children and forcing them to live in windowless basements. We have sent peacekeeping forces in to Surrey to protect our people, by landing our forces at the closest possible points of Grimsby, St Ives and Liverpool.”*
It’s where Putin’s daughter Maria lives in the UK.
I actually knew a (wealthy, obviously) person who seriously considered living there.
He said that you would think it would feel like a safe place to live, but the oligarchs mean half the houses have bodyguards standing outside, and everyone swoops around the place in armoured motorcades.
He said that despite the gates and exclusivity, you feel like its actually less safe than just living on a public street in nice part of town, and decided not to live there.
*Johnson has also ordered the creation of a new dedicated “Kleptocracy Cell” within the National Crime Agency to “target sanctions evasion and corrupt Russian assets hidden in the UK and that means oligarchs in London who have nowhere to hide”*
This will have an annual budget of £11.50p.
>St George’s Hill
That’s where Gerrard Winstanley and The Diggers (True Levellers) in the 17th Century attempted to establish a farming commune on *enclosed* Common Land but were brutally kicked off.
Brad and anyone else who is supporting these people, take off the hi-vis jacket and walk away.
You’re being paid blood money to protect these bastards. Why do they deserve you? Working for them gives them power.
Abandon them. Stop helping them feel secure when their buddies are murdering people. Make them feel alone and insecure in their palaces paid with corruption and blood.
Well, who cares who’s dirty and who’s clean in this issue. All that extra cash will come in handy to help pay for covid and brexit !
I used to work near here. A man was killed in broad daylight while out jogging – connected to the Magnitsky thing.
The truly mad thing is this was the site of arguably the first socialist uprising in the world. ‘The Diggers’ were a radical communitarian movement in the 1600s who were an influence on The Quakers, Gandhi and many others. They tried to claim St George’s Hill four hundred years ago as a ‘common treasury for all’, and were ruthlessly run off.
How things change.
Do they? Have “tensions” *really* risen? Or is it perhaps just a stupid piece of journalism where somebody went down to a council estate near a rich Russian enclave and walked around until they finally found Doreen in the hairdresser’s who would say what they wanted them to say? “Oh, er…yeah, we’re all really angry and their big houses should be confiscated and given to us”. Or, lazy journalist was even more lazy, saved on the train fare down there, and made the whole encounter up. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe the stout yeomen of Surrey really are all thronging the streets with their pitchforks and burning barrels of tar.
18 comments
Quite frankly, good. If one positive thing comes out of this crisis it might be the cleaning up of corrosive Russian money, and by extension influence, in the UK.
>Brad, one of six fluorescent jacket-wearing security guards who prevented the Guardian from entering St George’s Hill, said there were more Russians living on the estate now than at any time in his six years working at the gate.
>“I imagine they are getting a bit nervous now about what Boris [Johnson] might do now that Putin has invaded Ukraine,” he said. “But, there’s one thing I can tell you for sure, they won’t want to talk to you and we are calling the police unless you leave now.”
I know a good location for some pro-Ukraine protests.
Why sending them home? Just send them to the Ukraine…
It’s going to be a big puzzle for the Conservative Party as to how they do nothing about mega-rich Russians in the UK while appearing to do something…
I look at places like this and I’m just amazed they exist in the UK. It’s like another world. I’d love to visit/meet some of the people to understand why they want to live in such a community.
i’ve been there a few times, it’s nuts. every house is utterly gigantic.
Well they payed the price supporting Putin, no sympathy
Ringo, John, and George bought homes there in the 60s..
It was and always will be a gated secure zone that’s full of the mega rich
Putin in a couple of months time:
*“the Nazi regime of the United Kingdom is persecuting peaceful Russians just trying to live their lives by outlawing the Russian language, beating their children and forcing them to live in windowless basements. We have sent peacekeeping forces in to Surrey to protect our people, by landing our forces at the closest possible points of Grimsby, St Ives and Liverpool.”*
It’s where Putin’s daughter Maria lives in the UK.
I actually knew a (wealthy, obviously) person who seriously considered living there.
He said that you would think it would feel like a safe place to live, but the oligarchs mean half the houses have bodyguards standing outside, and everyone swoops around the place in armoured motorcades.
He said that despite the gates and exclusivity, you feel like its actually less safe than just living on a public street in nice part of town, and decided not to live there.
*Johnson has also ordered the creation of a new dedicated “Kleptocracy Cell” within the National Crime Agency to “target sanctions evasion and corrupt Russian assets hidden in the UK and that means oligarchs in London who have nowhere to hide”*
This will have an annual budget of £11.50p.
>St George’s Hill
That’s where Gerrard Winstanley and The Diggers (True Levellers) in the 17th Century attempted to establish a farming commune on *enclosed* Common Land but were brutally kicked off.
Brad and anyone else who is supporting these people, take off the hi-vis jacket and walk away.
You’re being paid blood money to protect these bastards. Why do they deserve you? Working for them gives them power.
Abandon them. Stop helping them feel secure when their buddies are murdering people. Make them feel alone and insecure in their palaces paid with corruption and blood.
Well, who cares who’s dirty and who’s clean in this issue. All that extra cash will come in handy to help pay for covid and brexit !
I used to work near here. A man was killed in broad daylight while out jogging – connected to the Magnitsky thing.
The truly mad thing is this was the site of arguably the first socialist uprising in the world. ‘The Diggers’ were a radical communitarian movement in the 1600s who were an influence on The Quakers, Gandhi and many others. They tried to claim St George’s Hill four hundred years ago as a ‘common treasury for all’, and were ruthlessly run off.
How things change.
Do they? Have “tensions” *really* risen? Or is it perhaps just a stupid piece of journalism where somebody went down to a council estate near a rich Russian enclave and walked around until they finally found Doreen in the hairdresser’s who would say what they wanted them to say? “Oh, er…yeah, we’re all really angry and their big houses should be confiscated and given to us”. Or, lazy journalist was even more lazy, saved on the train fare down there, and made the whole encounter up. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe the stout yeomen of Surrey really are all thronging the streets with their pitchforks and burning barrels of tar.