LibDem Blogs - Archived!

An interesting article in today's Financial Times from Derek Wood, Tony Blair's former economic adviser, analysing Britain's private and public sector productivity. Addressing the question of what governments can do to improve productivity, he pinpoints the three key aims that should be Gordon Brown's if and when he's promoted to the Premiership: Gordon Brown can take credit for setting up a

I attended one tonight. The usual band of hardy volunteers working to put on Hyde Parks premier social event ( Saturday August 5th 2006, Woodhouse Moor) I decided a while ago that I'm just so stretched as a Councillor that I wouldn't get involved with the day to day planning again but I offer moral support and advice on fundraising. Came away with several things to follow up but the good news is we were able to secure a £3000 area committee grant for them a few weeks ago. As ever went to the pub afterwoods for a drink ( ...

Last night local Councillor Ben Abbots was selected as the candidate to fight the forthcoming Bromley & Chislehurst parliamentary by-election. Ben right with Dr Ian Magrath. Photo taken today specially to post on my blog. Today as planned set out for the campaign HQ. Arrived at Victoria Station only to find everywhere in chaos. People packed everywhere. All the trains were either delayed or cancelled due to a breakdown at one station and a signal failure at another. It was on one train then get off again, go ...

Well I am back again. May has been a month of manic travelling, and not forgetting the Local Elections at the start of the month. First Pakistan and then Japan and lots of travelling in those countries too.

Many of us would have given our back teeth to have been a fly on the wall at 10 Downing Street on 5th May 2006 during Tony Blair's cabinet reshuffle. Simon Hoggart commented that John Prescott was in there for ages: What had he done in there for over three hours? Does Blair say, "Look, John, the bad news is I have to sack you. The good news is that Cherie has made some of her delicious brownies,

Someone from Pendle is not happy with their party leadership. "People based in London have this very strange idea of people in the north" is the message coming from the millstone grit of Pendle Hill. According to the FT The Tories in Pendle will not feel duty bound to use the A-list in choosing a candidate to try to overturn Labour's majority of more than 2,000 at the next general election, Ms Barton said. "All we want is a candidate who can beat the Labour MP." ... "We will pick the best person for the job, regardless of who, what ...

Pictured: Rowan Atkinson as "Mr Bean" at Gare du Nord station, Paris, at 4.30pm today It may have been fluke, but, judging from our visit, Paris has more than its fair share of major film crews milling around. As we glided along the Seine on a boat, we noticed a bloodied body lying on the bank, attended by police. After a while, I noticed that the lights were probably a bit strange for the

Just heard this on Sky News. So a house and a few croquet mallets have been thrown to the circling pack. What remains to be seen is whether this will be enough for the parliamentary party to call off the dogs.

Farewell then Tim Razzall - moving on from the Campaigns and Communications Committee to advising Ming. I have little idea whether this is a good thing or a bad thing really. But if he says that it is time for a change, I imagine he knows. But I am struck by this snippet from the BBC Sir Menzies has asked trade spokesman Mr Davey to look at the issue of campaigning. He has just returned from a fact-finding trip to North America to look at the techniques of US Democrats and Canadian Liberals. Factfinding before taking on the ...

Tim Razzall has resigned as chairman of the Liberal Democrats' Campaigns and Communications Committee. ePolitix reports: A party spokesman said Lord Razzall, the man behind the Lib Dems' election strategy for the past two general elections, was standing down because he felt it was "time for a change". The spokesman said the peer had decided to step down now in order to give his replacement time to settle into the role before a possible snap election. He said Lord Razzall would continue to advise party leader Sir Menzies Campbell, and nominations for his replacement will close on June 22. ...

It seems that Brian Haw has been permitted to continue his protest outside the House of Commons until 11 July. That is the date when he must return to court to answer charges of exercising his democratic right to protest. Honestly, are we living in a free country or a South American dictatorship? The Metropolitan Police has wasted over £27,000 on its clamp down on Mr Haw's five year Parliament Square protest. This is hardly money well spent. Liberal Democrat MP, Nick Harvey is spot on when he says: "It is shocking to see the Government so fearful of criticism ...

We all get them, often on a weekly basis, the e-mails from the "accountant" or "lawyer" or even "widow" of a deceased Nigerian/ Zimbabwean/ Sierra Leonian* businessman/ government minister/ general rich bloke asking for your bank account details so they can siphon money through it (with the obligatory "reward" for your help). Now, I want to know, has anyone actually ever fallen for one of these

Spotted in today's Independent TV listings: "9.00 Big Brother. Edited shouting from the past 24 hours"

Spectacular. I blame global warming. And the government, of course. At the going down of the sun Roofs and balconies of our flats silhouetted against the sunset. Not 10 minutes later a neighbour was going over that balcony railing in the top right on a ladder, then through a window, having presumably locked herself out. It's a conspiracy Our local vicar, swivel-eyed though he is, never misses a trick...

My goodness, has it been over two months? You must be chomping at the bit for more Dewey Decimal updates. A bumper selection is only fair recompense. These numbers come from various sets of subject mappings. “Ample size” says the estate agent: Advertising–Dollhouses - 659.197455923 For Peter Jackson: King Kong films - 791.4375 For Dario Argento: Blood in [...]

Good to see that Labour are returning to their working class roots and are orgnainsing a political rally. It seems too long since Neil Kinnock joined Billy Bragg for Red Wedge. Also good to see they are deserting the coffee houses of the M25 set to take the rally north to Lancashire. Sadly however, it appears that the rally is not to be arranged around the Lancastrian town of Prescott but the

Bromley LibDems have selected local councillor Ben Abbotts as their candidate for the pending Bromley & Chis by-election. I recall delivering leaflets with Ben in Orpington prior to the general election and he seemed a thoroughly nice chap - best of luck to him. He was our PPC in Sevenoaks at the last election and [...]

Great piece in todays Guardian about the continued presence of British troops in Iraq. Leaving aside the question of whether or not we ever had a right to be there in the first place this piece makes it absolutely clear that we will have no right to remain there beyond the end of 2006. I must admit I had missed the news that we had been asked to leave last week by the new Prime Minister of Iraq. However, it is incomprehensible that Blair has decided to reject an exit strategy when he has been offered one on a plate. ...

Spent Monday at the European Molecular Biology Lab in Heidelberg, meeting people with brains almost as big as Marvin the Paranoid Android, but a lot more cheerful. Like many scientists they are worried at the Europe-wide decline in public understanding and interest in science and want to do something about it and feel that 2009 (the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth) is the right time.

I found the following interesting letter in the Glasgow Herald on Monday: I find myself in a quandary as to whom to support in the forthcoming World Cup. Last week in a sweep run by the Federation of (Scottish) Nationalist Students, I drew out both Paraguay and England. One of these countries is a right-wing junta, currently involved in suppressing human rights and kow-towing to US foreign policy at the expense of its own people. Should I therefore be cheering on Paraguay instead? On the same day The Scotsman had a more laid back contributor.

Ok my understanding of Dave's A-List was that these people would have to apply for the party deemed to be their top target seats. However, in today there is a report that the uptake is slow for the first 35 seats. The article says that the target seats for priority candidates will in future include only those constituencies that the party has a realistic chance of winning. Apparently the first trance of 35 seats are mainly Lib Dem held and the Times says we will hard to shift or else have a sizeable Labour majority. Hardly the talk of ...

Do not read this if you do not want to know what happens in series seven of the West Wing! All the signs are that I have chosen the wrong days to go to the Hay Festival. The Al Gore event looks like it was even more unmissable than Clinton (yes, I missed that one as well). His analysis of the Bush administration is spot on even though it is both obvious and a teensy-weensy bit cursory: Al Gore has made his sharpest attack yet on the George Bush presidency, describing the current US administration as "a renegade ...

In my household we tend towards the view that Douglas Adams wasn't, in fact, a novellist but instead a philosopher and a researcher of the infinite who chose to present his theories and conclusions in the form of radio scripts and sci-fi novels. He was also - despite most of his work being set on other planets - one of the most observant chroniclers of London since Dickens.Just after six he returned to Fenchurch's house in the alleyway, clutching a bottle of champagne."Hold this," she said, shoved a stout rope into his hand and disappeared inside through the large, white ...

Yesterday evening we held a dinner in honour of the retiring Mayor, Cllr Yogan Yoganathan. Seven other past Mayors turned up for the event. In my tribute I said that Yogan was the smiliest Mayor I had ever met; even when he appeared serious it was usually a wind-up. He brought warmth and happiness with him wherever he went. But when he did need to be serious, such as when promoting...

Watched a BBC World report on the emerging details of the Haditha massacre. It made me ashamed to be human. Though on a different scale, it is sickeningly reminiscent of Vitenam and My Lai, even to the extent that there appears to have been a cover-up, as there was at My Lai. It is shameful that this is coming to light not because of a prompt military inquiry, not because of a US or UK media

Today I got the technical assessments of proposed camera sites for Hyde Park. The good news is they agree with me! I've been pushing hard for (a) the Woodsley Road shopping centre (b) the Royal Park Road/Moorland Rd junction. These both have strong pedestrian foot fall, high levels of crime and good lines of sight. As we only have funding for two these are the best sites in my view and have been a bit irritated at several late "runners and riders" which were put forward as alternatives. In the end it will be a collective decision at a sub ...

Apologies if you’re somewhat disconcerted by the appearance of this blog. The white background has disappeared for some reason. When I get a spare moment, I’ll wander through the code and see what might have happened. Perhaps it’s time to widgetise my sidebar? Later: And widgetise it, I did.

I’m on two scrutiny committees on the Council this year, Regneration, Infrastructure and Sustainability and Serving the Adult Community. Anyone who reads B3ta will know that RIS is funny.  It’s b3tan slang for people who just don’t get it. A guy posted a picture of his local Morrisons supermarket which had had a lightbulb failure so [...]