Representatives of Wycombe Liberal Democrats attended a meeting tonight at Cressex Community School. Chair of Governors, Dr Katy Simmons announced the news that £20 million had been secured from Central Government for the rebuilding of a school in Bucks, and that the County Council had agreed to use this money to rebuild Cressex Community School. [...]
We were all shocked to hear of the death of former Councillor, Dilys Coy, following a short illness. Dilys was elected elected to Kingston Council in 2002 for Old Malden ward. She was the headteacher of Abbotsbury Primary school in Merton, and took a keen interest in children's issues on Kingston Council, serving on the Children, Youth and Culture Overview Panel. She did not seek...
Tuesday 12th September 2006 - A busy day in Brussels with the visit of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to the European Parliament to attend several meetings. After discussions on Kashmir in the morning where I gave a speech, President Musharraf attended a meeting of the Foreign Affairs committee where he fielded some probing questions on a variety of issues. A meeting with
...(A) we don't like (D) Guantanamo Bay (A). (D) Guantanamo (E min)-oh bay (A). We don't like like (D) Guantana (E min) mo Bay (A). Porcine government lawyer Lord Falconer cometh slowly upon the hour. Some years after the world was outraged by news of Guantanamo human rights abuses, the hack government lawyer has stumbled upon the same conclusion. There's spine with a brain on top for you.
You've got to feel sorry for President Bush:"You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." (Interview with CBS News, 6th Sept, 2006. Hat-tip: Jacob Weisberg.)I guess it must have got him beat if last night’s admission is anything to go by:"I am often asked why we are in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was not responsible for the 9/11 attacks."Not that Mr Bush
I love Naples - I've visited many times and have many happy memories. But I find myself wondering what sort of idiot walks around the city with a genuine Rolex on their wrist. Actually you probably guessed what kind...
Another Assembly Member has joined the ranks of bloggers in Cardiff Bay. Glyn Davies, the alternative leader of the Tory Group here has finally taken the plunge. Whether he will allow himself the luxury of refecting on-line the dissent he so clearly shows in the tearoom has yet to be seen.
A very nice day as the day job meeting I was at during the day was hosted by the Highland Council in Kingussie. Leaving aside the Council's excellent hospitality, as you can see below the drive passes beautiful scenery - and also the Clan Macpherson museum in Newtonmore! Click on headline above for more information about the museum. West End Community Council had a very interesting meeting earlier tonight with Professor El-Awaisi, Principal of the Al-Maktoum Institute giving a presentation on the detail of the Al-Maktoum Multicultural Centre. ...
One of the more depressing aspects of this blog has been the lack of comments. Or so it seemed. I was just fiddling with things trying to allow non bloggers to post comments and lo and behold! 23 unmoderated comments have been stored for me! Its like one of those moments when you find a tenner down the back of the sofa and decide to spend it in the pub. My two favourite commenters are Merrick ( fellow Hyde Park resident who thinks the things I would think if I hadn't sold out) and former Labour Council collegue Stuart ...
Mr McConnell has responded in typically muddled fashion to the recent poll on Scottish independence. Maybe he was rattled by my report yesterday...
Ian Bell has an article in The Herald today in response to yesterday's publication of the Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Bill, which: aims to ensure that only healthy, nutritious meals and snacks are served in schools.Bell's considered opinion is that the restriction on what can be sold in schools should be radically extended: Ban a few disgusting things. At least we might
Captain Docherty's article has caused ripples in and beyond the this blog, and especially amongst those in positions of authority, some of whom have been quick to dismiss it as publicity stunt by someone freshly out of the Armed Forces.This may be true, but even if Docherty is not motivated by perfectly altruistic motives, his testimony is nevertheless compelling evidence because he was actually there and in a position of authority high enough gain a good overall picture. The failure to engage directly with Docherty's case indicates how badly he has stung officialdom over the failures in the Helmand mission. ...
Frankie has a new essay on the Spiked website: The loss of any sense of restraint when it comes to intervening in people’s private lives is one of the most significant developments in public policy over the past two decades. Governments that have become uncertain of their values and purpose have refocused their energies on the management of individual behaviour and the regulation of informal relationships. And: The representation of state policy as an instrument of ‘empowerment’ institutionalises that relationship of dependence between patient and therapist in a disturbing new way. It is difficult to reconcile the view of ...
Alright, yes I did support Simon for the party Leadership earlier in the year and Yes I'm, also grateful for all he has done for Leeds over the years, particularly when we were black whole for the party. Nevertheless I'm bemused by the level of animosity he now seems to be generating and the apparently urgent desire to prevent him having a second term as Party President. He's a gut liberal, the definning constituency MP of his generation, a consummate media performer and probabley in the twilight of his career. Presidential terms are only two years and hes term ...
I’m urgently trying to get conference representatives to propose the following amendment to the Diversity and Equality motion being debated on Monday at Conference: Insert between lines 15 and 16: “Conference reaffirms existing policy on gender balance, in particular its call for ‘The Federal Executive to ensure that the Campaign for Gender Balance is adequately funded in [...]
To complete my mission to offend half the party, here are a few more examples of remarkable rhetoric from the conference motions. Rhetorical facts i) There are an estimated 10 million disabled people in Britain This stopped me in my tracks. One in six of the population is disabled? The clue to the answer is in the second half of the phrase ("protected under the Disability Discrimination Act"). A bit of googling revealed that the DDA is fairly widely drawn - which is quite right (one wouldn't want to make it illegal to discriminate against severely disabled ...
It is a matter of taste perhaps, but I wondered what these words in the Rural Communities motion really mean Recognition of the importance of visible policing in rural communities through recruiting extra police nationally. It is hard enough to have visible police presence in urban areas. It is practically impossible in real rural areas. Elsewhere (just a few lines after calling for "Red tape to be slashed" the motion calls for Creation (in consultation with the devolved administrations) of a legally binding supermarket code effective for the whole food chain to ensure that supermarkets do not ...
It is always very difficult trying to get a system which works and deals with identifying people who have committed crimes properly. I have always felt that there is a difference in the evidential requirements for sanctions that involve long term imprisonment from those that say involve a small fine. What has happened is that the evidential reguirements for everything have shifted. These result
Rhetorical policies It is a matter of taste perhaps, but I wondered what these words in the Rural Communities motion really mean Recognition of the importance of visible policing in rural communities through recruiting extra police nationally. It is hard enough to have visible police presence in urban areas. It is practically impossible in real rural areas. Elsewhere (just a few lines after calling for "Red tape to be slashed" the motion calls for Creation (in consultation with the devolved administrations) of a legally binding supermarket code effective for the whole food chain to ensure that supermarkets do not exploit ...
If the comments on other websites and blogs is anything to go by, next week’s debate on equality and diversity at Lib Dem conference looks set to be a bit of a row. Up to this point I had expected the row to be the debate on taxation, but as the party in its [...]
Back at work with classes of students and meetings - far too much stimulation! CVS and Racial Equality Board meetings are much more interesting now I understand what's going on - I must have spent so many meetings getting my head around things and fancy phrases, buzz words and acronyms! What ever happened to PLAIN ENGLISH and 12 to 14 worded sentences? Youth Cabinet was my last meeting today -
To complete my mission to offend half the party, here are a few more examples of remarkable rhetoric from the conference motions. Rhetorical facts i) There are an estimated 10 million disabled people in Britain This stopped me in my tracks. One in six of the population is disabled? The clue to the answer is in the second half of the phrase ("protected under the Disability Discrimination Act"). A bit of googling revealed that the DDA is fairly widely drawn - which is quite right (one wouldn't want to make it illegal to discriminate against severely disabled people but ...
If you are at the Brighton Conference, why not amble along to the Liberator stall to buy a copy of this book? It costs a mere £5. Liberalism: Something to Shout About Beyond incrementalism: Can the Liberal Democrats "meet the challenge"? Edited by Graham Watson MEP and Simon Titley Contents Introduction: The Liberal Democrats and Liberal Values Graham Watson Stormy weather: The Liberal Democrats and climate change Simon Bryceson The problem with children today: The Liberal Democrats and children Jonathan Calder Age concern: The Liberal Democrats and ...
Dont just take my word on the Bath Spa - check out this article from the New York Times.
Bath & NE Somerset UA is due for its Comprehensive Perfomance Inspection from the Audit Commission in 2008. However to help us prepare and to have an independent assessment of the services we deliver to citizens we have commissioned the IDeA to give us a performance check this week. It is a high powered team they have assembled and they arrived on Monday. I had my first interview from the...
This morning's Guardian reports that Tony Blair's farewell speech to the TUC was met with a walkout today by disaffected union members, some carrying placards calling for the prime minister to 'go now'. Delegates from two Unions not affiliated to the Labour Party, the FBU and the RMT have been blamed for the demonstration. As if to show that these delegates are representative the reporter records that Mr Blair received 23 seconds of polite applause from delegates when he finished his speech. I never cease to be amazed that people actually time these segments of applause after major ...
I spent Sunday afternoon at the St Michaels, Headingley flower festival and then the "Flowers of Praise" hymn service that followed. I had gone with a fair few preconceptions which were blown away by the display. They held it in the Church not the hall and tuned the thing into a sophisticated meditation on the seasons beautifully linking in the English Hymnal and the Christian calendar. The Hymn service that followed featured songs on a flower theme with readings not from the bible but poetry, scientific readings and some mystical work. This may sound like the hippy Church of ...
The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write; they will be those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. Alvin Toffler Thirty six year ago Alvin Toffler wrote "Future Shock" - His idea being that human beings are not well suited to handling a rapid pace of change. He coined the term "informational overload" to describe the key root of future shock. It is one of the themes of this blog that our knowledge of the future is imperfect and our skills of prediction are poor. Yet as Nassim Nicholas Taleb argues human ...
Warning - post contains swearing, so if you are of a sensitive disposition, or you are my mother, look away now and *do not click*. The word “shit” is not in the Nokia Predictive Text dictionary, but the word “firmament” is. Which do you use most often? nokia, shit
Yesterday I expressed some doubts about the gap between the hetoric and the proposed action in the Diversity and Equality Motion due to be debated in Brighton. I’m not the only one. James Graham recommends outright opposition rather than scepticism, while Peter on Apollo at the Liberal Review today points out the perils of overly emphatic wording. James was also single-handedly responsible for the Reflecting Britain pressure site about diversity in the party’s representation, which he’s now updated with an appeal for ways in which to take it forward and his own assessment of the party’s ‘Diversity and Equality Review’. ... 
Gladwell´s Tipping Point was a bit of let dwon in my view. Started well (presumably the original magazine article and then faded out in a lot of padding. But over at Pickled Politics Sunny is applying it to the phenomenen of terrorism to good effect. Since 9/11 we have been provided with many explanations that purport to deal with terrorism. These have been theological (”Islam is the problem”), political (”foreign policy is the problem”), psychological (”these kids are mentally imbalanced”), sexual (”they’re not getting any, and there’s the 72 virgin thing”) and more. I have a slightly different take, but ...
I have an article about compulsory voting up on the newly launched Liberal Democrat Voice. It's based on what I wrote on this site a few months ago, just a lot less rambling, to mark the launch of the Hansard Society's latest Democracy Series booklet on compulsory voting. And if you really want a reason to check out the article, I'll let you into a secret - I'm wearing a Donkey Thong in that
This isn't it.
Last March, Southwark’s Planning Committee rejected an application for a phone mast on Dunstan’s Road, near Dawson’s Hill. The Dunstan’s Road proposal has reared its head again because the matter has now been referred to the Government’s Planning Inspectorate. They have the power to over-rule Southwark’s decision. Communities have often found it very difficult to defeat [...]
Over on the Taking Power website, they’re now taking questions for Billy Bragg. This follows their podcast interview with Michael Meacher. If you’ve got any questions for Billy Bragg, just pop them in the post to questions@takingpower.org.
Reading Alex's piece on Equality and Diversity reminded me of some misgivings of my own. Like a few of the motions on the agenda, one seems to see the hands of the committee designing the camel behind it. Not that I want to argue against the motion as such. I would like to see us have more female and BEM candidates, I do welcome the involvement of Steve Hitchins, and I don´t want us to go down the route of restricted shortlists, so I suppose I will go along with it. (OTOH I continue to worry that economic equality ...
After 11 months of waiting, I've finally got myself a P990i. I've been watching the stock levels everyday for a month and when I saw that Vodafone had got their first shipment of 700 yesterday morning I was on the phone straight away. So far so good, just need to get Blackberry Connect downloaded and installed. {My P990i}
A blog thus far unknown to me, The Daily, claims Short will not run again, and will use her new found independence to urge a coalition government with the aim of delivering Proportional Representation. I haven’t seen this picked up by any of the conventional media, and it strikes me she’s not the sort to announce her [...]
Some of Mr Blair’s most devoted and, indeed, deluded acolytes have started up a new site to keep the sacred flame alive. Somehow I can’t see the same transubstantiation of Blairism into a holy cult that happened when the Conservatives raised Thatcherism to Thatchianity to atone for the sin of slaying their god-empress, but those behind Keeping the Faith evidently differ with me on that (as on so many, many things). You’d think it was the quintessence of the self-parodying site, but I tip my hat to The Sandals Are Off for pointing out that it has indeed been parodied. ...
At last, he admits it: Star Wars really is called ‘Star Wars’. Early in 1978, my Dad, my brother and I queued literally round the block to see a new film which, as I and every six-year-old knew, was called Star Wars. It’s the only time I’ve ever queued for a film and still not got in to see it – in fact, the only three times. On the third occasion, having left early to go into central Manchester to make certain we got to see Star Wars, we’d reached the doorway of the cinema when we were turned away. ...
Looking at the results of this YouGov poll, I realise I’ve not blogged about YouGov before. They’re an online polling company who reward you for taking part in surveys on their website. These usually take about five minutes and you receive credit for taking part (usually 50p, but sometimes more and sometimes a prize draw [...]
I am currently trying to organise local representatives (so far the Chairman of the District Council has accepted) to come and speak with the children at school as part of Local Democracy Week. Lucikly we are in area where there is three tear local government. So I am hoping to get a representative from each council to speak with a year group and then hopefully the local MP will be able to
Clare Short, Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood, has announced that she will be standing down at the next election. Birmingham Ladywood saw a massive swing (over 20%) to the Liberal Democrats at the last election and must be viewed as someone the Liberal Democrats should be looking to win, particularly due to Short's announcement she will be advocating not a Labour victory but a hung Parliament and Ladywood's Labour selection will use an all-women shortlist.
When the laws of physics come up against the laws of economics the laws of physics always win. The Oil Depletion Protocol - see link - is designed to handle the real consequences of the limits of the availability of Oil. Conventional oil production has already peaked, but gas and other types of oil will probably peak in production in about 2010. There is no technological quick fix that resolves this issue. Historically energy supplies came mainly from wood, charcoal, coal, oil, gas with some nuclear and hydroelectric etc. Until the point at which ...
Well I have now been back to work for over a week. Last night I had my tea, feel to sleep on the sofa about 7:30.. woke up and moved my self into bed (sorry cannot tell you at what time) and woke up this morning at 7:15 am. After nearly 12 hours of sleep, I have come to the decision work (and life) is just too hard!
Printed below is a report issued to members of Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council by the Council's Chief Executive, Colin Moore. It is in response to the seriously exaggerated claims about contamination made by objectors to the Council's proposed leisure and housing development at Coatham Enclosure: "Persimmon is being advised by experts in these fields and the advice they have received has been submitted to the Council as part of their planning application. "Two separate but related issues need to be addressed here. There is the issue of contamination of the site as a whole and then ...
Today’s Times reports that UK soldiers in Afghanistan are paid just £2.45 an hour in return for putting their life on the line in the name of Tony Blair’s vanity and stupidity. I’ve commented before on the lack of real support this Government gives our troops and it’s an issue which makes my blood boil. [...]
Speaking yesterday David Cameron described America’s view of the world “unrealistic and simplistic” and flatly contradicted many in the UK and US by insisting “we are not engaged in a clash of civilisations.” Cameron’s words don’t signal a ‘Love Actually moment’ but they may well appeal to those who believe Tony Blair has been too ready [...]
It’s quite fun to wake up to John Humphrys saying: “It’s 8 O’clock. You’re listening to Today on… I have lost the news headlines. Today is panic day because I’ve lost the news headlines. Ah, there we are, I’ve found them.” bbc
I would say that this comes into the category of a good start to the season for Premiership new boys Reading. They beat Manchester City 1-0 last night at the Madejski Stadium. They now have 6 points from their first four games and sit in eigth place. They travel to Sheffield United on Saturday and will be hopeful of getting at least a point. City may be a little disappointed to leave with nothing to show for their efforts but they just did not have their shooting boots on. Meanwhile Reading battled hard and fought together a unit without ...
Faced with the problem of an historically low turnout, Gavin Whenman asks what we can do about it. Is compulsory voting the answer? And / or an extra bank holiday? Turnout in the 2005 UK General Election was 61.4% of the electorate, up on the 2001 figure (by 2%) but still historically speaking very low. Such [...]
Monday: TARDIS as almost everyone knows nowadays stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space. Or sometimes DimensionS in Space if the script editor isn't watching. In the VERY FIRST episode of Doctor Who, called "An Unearthly Child", Dr Who's granddaughter Susan who is the unearthly child of the title, tries to explain his time machine, inside of which they are, to her BEWILDERED teachers, Ian and Barbara: "I made up the name from the initials… I thought you would understand when you saw the different dimensions inside from outside." You can see why they ...
Monday 11th September 2006 - After a busy weekend of meetings and events in the Constituency its back to Brussels on the 5th anniversary of 9/11 and time to prepare for a very busy week. Kashmir is high on the agenda this week with a series of events and meetings many of which will be attended by Pakistan President Musharraf who is also visiting Brussels. As the inaugural Chair of the all party
The last few weeks have been exceptionally tiring for me - not enough hours for sleeping adequately, let alone blogging. But hopefully things are improving a little bit now. August is traditionally a quiet month here for councillors. However some interesting things have been going on in the ward I help represent: First of all Asda and Henry Davidson have withdrawn their appeal on their first
The latest opinion poll published in The Herald and The Scotsman today shows a much greater than usual level of support for independence. Even allowing for disgust with the Tony & Gordon show over the past week, it makes grim reading for Labour ahead of the Scottish elections next year. | < | September 2006 | > | ||||
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