LibDem Blogs - Archived!

Bruce McDonald, Kingston's Chief Executive, has been presented with the Diversity Executive Trendsetter Award (run by Diversity Leaders UK). We heard about it at Executive last night, and once we had stopped teasing him about his fashion credentials, we offered genuine congratulations. The award acknowledges the Council's initiatives in promoting diversity in the workplace and across the borough. People don't often realise that Kingston has quite a diverse population. Amongst others, the largest Korean community outside Korea is based in the New Malden area. I've remarked before on the significant contribution made by pupils from ...

Blogger has recently added an image upload facility. To ensure that everybody's blogs didn't fall apart, they've added this line of code before the text of each post. Which in turn has made most peoples blogs fall apart. Blogger claim to be looking into the issue. Surely the answer is just to remove that line of code.

Today I signed the tenancy agreement for my first house under my own name (instead of being shared accommodation). I've also been shopping with a credit card in Ikea and should have something to sleep on tomorrow. Just need to wait for a phone line, broadband, a TV aerial before it will really feel like home.

A few highlights from the past couple of days...John Hemming points out that Labour's identity card bill appears to make it an offence to shave off your beard without informing the government. The maximum penalty is a fine of £1,000.As John says:it is very clear that the legislation has been written for the convenience of the government and not the private individuals. Furthermore it will not be criminals who will first register for these cards hence it will be an expensive and unnecessary burden on private individuals whilst not making any difference to those breaking the law.And if the government ...

I'm now safely in Berlin, and have just finished an evening wander around the Alexanderplatz area - perhaps my favourite square in Europe. Certainly from a modern historian's viewpoint, it is fascinating. Centre of the 1989 protests against the East German regime, it has a lot of aspects which very clearly date from the Communist era - especially the TV-Tower (Fernsehturm) which dominates the entireity of the Berlin skyline east and west, and is perhaps the most recognisable landmark. Very useful for getting your bearings! However, it is also taking on a new vitality. Berlin is in many ways the ...

Was intrigued by a conversation I couldn't help overhearing last night during the vote. Justine Greening was talking to one of the new Tory men (doesn't matter who but he was clearly young and ambitious). "So how come you're on Question Time on Thursday? " sez Tory Boy in sulky tone My ears pricked up and I was half hoping she might say something like, "Well, I have obviously impressed them in

The arguments for and against these are well rehearsed and I have received quite a large volume of mail on the subject - I don't need to go into all of it here. Best bit was when Diane Abbott's opening remarks were interrupted by an almighty clap of thunder. As one of the diary columnists remarked today - it was about the only time in living history that anything has stopped her talking. The

The Tory AM for Mid and West Wales, Glyn Davies, often finds himself out of sorts with the political world he inhabits. Well that is what he tells us anyway. His usually erudite speeches are packed full of phrases such as "I was deeply disappointed", "I was shocked" and "this is utterly incomprehensible". Yesterday was no different, however, unusually for Glyn, his outrage spilled over into a series of cliches: The purpose of our motion is to stop the Assembly Government wielding its incorporation agenda as an ideological sledgehammer to inflict seriously damaging consequences on a ...

One of the biggest problems for politicians is communicating complex ideas in a way that is easily understood and media friendly. Thus, when Peter Hain announced his plans for giving the Welsh Assembly more powers the Liberal Democrats Leader, Mike German, found angle and found a way to explain it. He suggested that if the Assembly is to accumulate responsibilities then there will come a time when there will be only a few powers that it does not have. Would a referendum then be needed to acquire those last few powers? At what level would a referendum be ...

The ID card scheme reminds me of the rules at the third rate grammar school I was oh so lucky to attend in the 1960s. To cover up for poor facilities, a limited curriculum and poor exam results, the headmistress went overboard apeing the public schools. Among other ridiculous and inappropriate rules she inflicted on us, we had to wear straw boaters and white gloves to school. This was in Catford, Sarf London. Even more ridiculous: the prefects were posted along the bus routes to the school to watch for girls who'd taken off their gloves and ...

In my maiden speech I referred to three issues:The 99 bus, which is being replaced.The proposed splitting of the communities of Yardley by the Boundaries commission which I am pleased to say today that the Boundary Commission have revised.The blight on Sheldon caused by the proposals for the Second Runway - which I am working on. It is good news that the revised proposals for Yardley Constituency

John Hemming identifies clauses in the Identity Cards Bill governing the information that must be kept up-to-date on penalty of £1,000 fine: (a) his full name; (b) other names by which he is or has previously been known; (c) his gender; (d) his date and place of birth and, if he has died, the date of his death; and (e) [...]

So, the Identity Cards Bill was given a Second Reading last night. This comes as no surprise really as Labour 'rebels' will be negotiating behind the scenes rather than wanting to derail the Government so soon. They may be asking for concessions on this Bill or on entirely different issues. The top amendment that [...]

I'm currently in the departure lounge at Newcastle airport waiting for a flight to Berlin. So, the next few days may be a touch light on the blogging side, although I'm hoping I will get sufficient net access to be able to give some thoughts on my travels. With any luck, Richard will pick up the political slack if that's your thing. And who knows - I may even have some sufficiently interesting conversations to put them up here too! Travel notes - it never ceases to amaze me just how friendly most people are when you're travelling. The airport ...

Seems perfectly reasonable. Naturally, Bush's two daughters, Jenna and Barbara, will be serving in Iraq soon.

So I was looking at the Star Wars lego in the flat last night and thinking “I wonder if I could make an animation with this stuff.” Not having a film studio to hand, I grabbed my digital camera and took some fuzzy shots which I then knocked up into a short movie file while Gordon [...]

Last Friday went to the my local party's (Islington) election helpers thank you party - the notice said Everyone who helped in any way is welcome - whether you put up a poster, took numbers outside a polling station, delivered leaflets, stuffed envelopes or knocked on doors. It all helped to persuade thousands of voters to desert the Labour party and vote for Bridget and Laura. Well I can honestly say I put up a 'Vote for Laura Willoughby' poster - Islington North (there's always a Lib Dem poster in my window during ...

It may sound superfically odd, but there is a provision in Section 12 of the ID Card/Database bill which means that people could be fined up to £1,000 if they shave without telling the government.Considering the bill which is on the net at ID Cards bill at HansardSee the following sections:Section 12 Notification of changes affecting accuracy of Register(1) An individual to whom an ID card has been issued must notify the Secretaryof State about—(a) every prescribed change of circumstances affecting the informationrecorded about him in the Register; and(4) The things that an individual may be required to do under ...

At the IT conference I am attending, the organisers conducted a straw poll of who opposed the impending Euro-software patent legislation. Everybody I saw was against it; The unambiguous conclusion is that software patents are harmful and the ‘economic majority’ of Europe’s IT industry who oppose software patenting. In essence, a patent grants a monopoly on [...]

Am I the only Liberal Democrat to feel somewhat queasy about the party's enthusiasm for smoking bans? I regularly visit smoky pubs and cafes with no ill effects, yet the sharp decline in air quality over the past ten days due to the heatwave has made me ill (hence the lack of postings lately). I'm not the only one to suffer, yet there remains far more political enthusiasm for banning smoking than

It seems to me the biggest losers, if ID cards are compulsory, will be people with chaotic lives: people who have a substance abuse problem, or mental illness, or a learning difficulty, or just can't get their act together for some other reason. They will not apply for a card, or not renew it, or not notify their change of address and run up fines, then imprisonment for non payment of fines. It will provide the police with an easy way of getting a conviction: just pick up the local down-and-out and charge him with an ID ...

On Saturday evening, we were watching a fisherman landing his line-caught mackeral onto the harbour at St Ives, and this seal was hopefully circling the boat just below us. A pod of dolphins had entertained us morning and evening from our hotel window. The view from our hotel window at night across St Ives harbour. It was a perfect short holiday to celebrate my birthday - mooching around the art galleries, taking in the wonderful Richard Deacon exhibition at Tate St Ives, seeing a play at the clifftop Minack Theatre, and eating very well ...