The England one-day side has tried, tested and (mostly) rejected no fewer than 36 players since its tour of Pakistan in 2005-6. On the Cricinfo site Andrew Miller looks at eleven recent caps who will not be going to the World Cup.
Craig Murray's book is now out in paperback. He also has a blog.
My attempts at a political detox are failing miserably. Last night I went to the launch of the Kick Racism out of Israeli Football campaign. It was held in the plush surroundings of the Clifford Chance offices in Canary Wharf, so easy enough for me to pop in on the way home from work and also devour the delicious, but gnat size “canapés” (you know the sort where you really need to stuff at least half a dozen into your mouth to taste anything, but you are far too ladylike to do so……usually). After watching a disturbing film of Israeli ...
You would have thought with the government's obsession with big databases, cameras, and being superficially 'tough on crime' that uninsured drivers would be a thing of the past. It's a criminal offence to drive without insurance, and with good reason. Apart from the financial cost to honest drivers and taxpayers, uninsured drivers kill 180 people a year, cause 36,000 accidents and 27,000 injuries. The table below from the South London Press though makes it clear that there are postcodes in Lambeth and Southwark where the number of uninsured vehicles are as high as 44% of all cars! ...
One of those rare situations tonight. Through the week I drafted the Parliamentary Campaigner, which goes to Parliamentary Candidates Assn members. Normally it needs big changes before we feel it is ready to send out. But tonight the changes took just a few minutes. Members should get it tonight or tomorrow.As for myself, I am heading up to Gateshead now. I got the 9pm train out of KX. Not having 
You may have seen the posters springing up this week to advertise the second series of last year’s surprise hit Life On Mars. They’re difficult to miss, as even I spotted them with my glasses off. I have to admit they made me smile, cheesily punning slogan and all. There’s sensitive modern police officer Sam Tyler, scene-stealing ’70s copper Gene Hunt and their Ford Cortina, along with the famous old ‘globe’ logo for the show that’s returning to ‘BBC1 in Colour’ on February 13th. Is Sam insane, in a coma, or really back policing in 1973 after his car accident? ...
The SLP added to Labour's woes today with a report that highlights that their proposed pollution-based parking permit charges are high, even when compared to similar inner-London schemes in Camden and Haringey. The Lambeth Liberal Democrats have already highlighted that the charges, however laudable the environmental motive behind them, disguise a less laudable stealth tax on tenant car owners by doubling average charges from £60 to between £115 and £130. Lambeth Labour have introduced a range of stealth charges this year on top of a Council Tax rise that averages an inflation busting rate of 5-7% for ...
Perhaps it was the fact that we held Plenary on a Thursday, but as other bloggers have already pointed out there was definitely something in the air. I am not convinced like Glyn Davies that Andrew Davies' sustained assault on Plaid Cymru was a calculated leadership bid, but it certainly will do him no harm in the future. That after all was the intention when Leighton Andrews planted the question: Leighton Andrews: I congratulate the Minister on his role, along with the First Minister and colleagues at Westminster, in helping to bring that development to south Wales. Does ...
My glasses dropped in two last week. There were no suspicious circumstances: they were several years old, so it was probably just metal fatigue. It does, however, mean I’ve been awkwardly squinting at things to get them into even partial resolution. Peering closely at the computer enables me to read but gives me headaches, so perhaps I’ve been more grumpy. Out and about in the last couple of days, though, I’ve seen London through new eyes (with an effect almost the opposite of that cliché). I’ve experienced frustration, flirting, and a Doctor Who-related trick of perception, while feeling strangely insecure… ...
Tonight’s episode of The Avengers (11.30, BBC4) is the last they made in black and white. Next week they’re back to showing the colour Mrs Peel episodes – let’s hope for Tara King eventually – but while the monochrome stories were generally more ‘realistic’, this one has the party atmosphere of an Arabian Nights-themed end-of-season panto. It’s a Cold War assassination plot in the style of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. Peering at it last night was very enjoyable (plus they had the Move singing their groovy Fire Brigade on first), though it does cheerfully employ every cliché going. ...
The ex Labour MP for Newark, better known for her conviction for overspending at the 1997 election, which was later quashed, has been found dead. There are no suspicious circumstances. Read about it HERE.
Celebrating SLP Editor's Hannah Walker's decision to start blogging I decided to post the comment below to her new blog today at lunchtime. Oddly though, it doesn't seem to have appeared yet, through the moderation screen, must be a busy news day... :-) "Hannah, good issue today. Liked the Lambeth TMOs story, Labour clearly don't give a fig about empowering tenants to run their own services. One negative though, The comment in the page 2 article about naming and shaming claims that "teenage killer Diamond Babamuboni, 17, who had been banned from Southwark and Lambeth by an Asbo ...
Well done to Norman for now doing video casts. I have to ask if this is the same man I once taught to programme numbers in to his mobile phone as he didn't know how to do it. I also remember him triumphantly texting me with the message "I know how to send texts now". It's a shame the video is missing the last two or three seconds of the message as he appears to be part of the way though his last sentence, but well done, and what he says about community hospitals and how Labour have lied ...
The weekend is upon us once again. It seems only a week ago I was making a similar lame joke to this one about how it was the weekend again. I will be out leafletting on Saturday and Sunday, so look out for us on the streets of Prestwich. I am also going to see the Noel Coward play "The Vortex" starring Will Young, at the Royal Exchange. And that's what I have planned. I also need to repent
The news cycle is very predictable. First the storm in the front reports section; then the stern comment in the leader columns; then, if the story is deemed to have particularly strong legs, a columnist or two will pick up on the same story a day or two afterwards. The overcrowded prison's story clearly has legs like Darren Campbells as it just carries on running. You know a story is getting a little old when the Church of England starts addressing it, and the Guardian's report about the Archbishop of Canterbury's interjection adds little new apart from silly hats. The ...
Tony McNulty has given BBC's Panorama program the most extra-ordinary advice on how to deal with criminals. Distract them. When I read the headline, I thought it was odd, but if you read the extract of the exchange between Jeremy Vine and Tony McNulty, the Home Office Minister, on the BBC website, it is just incredible. Jeremy Vine: You see something happening in the street. Do you step in? Tony McNulty: I think the general line must be to get in touch with the authorities straight and make sure that if things are as bad as you paint ...
Time is an unforgivingly impudent little monkey… Neil Kinnock led Her Majesty’s Official Opposition for nine years, fought two general elections, and delivered two of the best platform speeches of modern times: “If Margaret Thatcher wins on Thursday: I warn you not to be ordinary; I warn you not to be young; I warn you not to fall ill; and I warn you not to get old.” (7 June 1983).“I'll tell you
A good story in today's South London Press, highlights how Labour are under-mining tenant managed housing organisations (TMOs) in Lambeth, by trying to slash their maintenance allowances by £3.5m over the next 3 years. "TMO bosses fear the cuts could see a number of tenant-managed estates forced back into council control" says the article. The Lambeth Liberal Democrats have 'called in' the cuts to Lambeth's overview and scrutiny committee to see if they can be over-turned. I've noted my support for TMOs several times before in this journal, and I'm a Director of one in Bermondsey, the Leathermarket ...
As I got in my car tonight and turned on Radio 4, my ears were treated to the most awful display of hero worshipping toadying crap I think I have ever hear. In the interview with Eddie Mair, Tony Blairs personal pollster Philip Gould just defied every statistic and fact that Eddie could chuck at him to repeat the line over and over again that Tony Blair is a great man, is not a liability and Labour would win the next election. What was funny as though that Eddie Mair kept on at him in such a way that ...
As part of the 'Faith in Civic Life' initiative we arranged a civic visit to Kingston Mosque to coincide with Friday Prayers. A good number of people attended, between them representing the civic life of the borough and all the main faith groups. Here are just a few of the early arrivals ... You'll have to excuse two of my associate chaplains, Imam Shahid...
Swindon hits the headlines again as it trials e-voting for elections this May 2007. So this year Swindon residents will be able to vote for a whole week on-line, from April 26th right through to 9pm on May 3rd. In another pioneering step, alongside the ability to vote by phone people will also be able to vote in any poling booth throughout the whole borough. So a resident in North Swindon will be able to pop out of their town-centre based workplace on May 3rd and vote from a polling station in the town-centre using a touch screen monitor. ...
Congratulations to two candidates selected in interesting, winnable seats. Cllr Chris Maines has been selected to fight Lewisham East, and Ed Fordham has been selected to fight Hampstead & Kilburn. The Westminster List is being dropped from this site as the party’s website is now listing selected candidates - however,I will continue to flag up candidates as [...]
Tu B'Shevet is the start of spring and is marked by planting a tree. Traditionally the fruit from all trees older than four years by this date could be eaten, but were also subject to tithes for the support of the rabbis and the poor. Today we planted an apple tree at one of the residential homes, Murray House, and it was dedicated to friends and families of the residents....
Charlotte's Web is a super film with some astonishing animation - and I really enjoyed it even though I hadn't got the excuse of accompanying children. You may have noticed that the film isn't being released until 9th Feb. So we were very fortunate to be offered a preview as a charity performance at the Rotunda yesterday. Before the film there was a kid's disco next door in Oceana,...
TheBBC reports that: Global climate change is "very likely" to have a human cause, an influential group of scientists has concluded...The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said temperatures were probably going to increase by 1.8-4C (3.2-7.2F) by the end of the century. It also projected that sea levels were most likely to rise by 
I have recently been spurred to research some of the history of immigration into this country. I found a superb timeline at the website of the Commission for Racial Equality. The first thing this timeline reminded me of, is this: People often make a sweeping assumption that "British" people are "Anglo-Saxon". This is wrong for a whole host of reasons. One of those reasons is me, and millions
There was a fascinating piece on BBC1's Breakfast this morning. It was called "The Changing Face of Britain" with Mark Easton, the BBC's Home Affairs editor. They showed a composite picture representing the "face of Britain" in the 1960s. It was a white bloke. This was based on extensive research based on population figures. As we all breathed in deeply, they then showed the composite "face of
I received an e-mail today with the predictions of this year's local council elections, as extrapolated by David Boothroyd, a psephologist of some note in usenet circles. Unusually for David, he has actually included the Liberal Democrats in his calculations. David Boothroyd was famous on the old uk.politics.electoral usenet group for never including the Liberal Democrats on any swing calculations. This mean that in by-elections like Christchurch, where the Labour vote dropped by 10% but the Tory vote dropped by 30%, he would calculate this as a swing to Labour. If you want to look at the predictions, ...
Cllr James Barber took me and Jonathan out this week to witness the installation of a second round of ‘Alert Boxes’ in stores on Lordship Lane and Northcross Road thanks to Cleaner, Greener, Safer money from the Dulwich Community Council Alert Boxes are a simple means of helping local stores to warn each other about [...]
At the risk of sounding a bit obsessive (which I am), I return to the topic of the TV show '24' and its depictions of torture. I really love the show, and have just been watching some more of series 4 on DVD (it's nowhere near as good as 1 and 2, but entertaining nonetheless). How the use of torture is portrayed on the show is interesting, though a little troubling (if you are opposed to the
Classes teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages are under threat. This will affect newly arrived people, resident diverse communities, those seeking asylum, migrant workers, employers (who may be asked to pay for their workers to attend classes) and teachers. There will be nation-wide protests against these cuts, and there will be local action. To hear about what is happening and what you can do to help protest, there will be a: PUBLIC MEETING February 6th 7.30 – 9.00pm Trades Union Centre, 119-121 Marton Road, Middlesbrough (Opposite St John’s Church) With guest speakers and entertainment All welcome!! ...
It has been a week since the following emails were exchanged and I've heard nothing back from Junction11, the student radio station I used to have a show on. To refresh your memory, here's the original email from Junction11 and my reply. For the sake of posterity, here's the short and less than sweet email I received from the head of Junction11 last Friday: Following your decision to publish
My beloved Irvine Meadow XI FC are in a replay of their Scottish Junior Cup 4th round match tomorrow. They came back from 3-0 down away to Lochee Harp last Saturday to rescue a 3-3 draw, playing on a pitch which one of the lads described as "like playing on porridge". So good luck to the lads for tomorrow especially since they have the potential to go all the way in the Cup this season. The only downside is that I won't be at the game because I've got a meeting of the Scottish Lib Dem's Executive Committee at 10.30 ...
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Some months ago Ryanair launched a new route from Prestwick International to Riga. Well, I'm on a bit of a Eastern Europe discovery time at the moment (Poland twice last year and plans for Prague, Gdansk & St Petersburg this year) so I was a happy bunny indeed with this news, went and bought the Rough Guide to The Baltic States and started planning a pre-election weekend break. All was fine and well until Ryanair decided they were going to sue the Government over extra security costs. Well that did it! The Lady who lives in Kinross-shire took one ...
Working in a Parliamentary office we regularly get complaints about airlines from constituents. In the case of Ryanair it's often difficult to get through to someone directly. Sharon Hodgson (Labour MP for Gateshead East) wrote to the Guardian the other day with contact details, which I'm delighted to circulate further: Caroline Green is Head of Customer Services (sic) and her direct email address is: greenc@ryanair.com (Please don't send mindless abuse). The direct dial number for their head office is +353 1 812 1212 Hope it's useful.
Why on earth do the folk who own Prestwick Airport & certain budget airlines insist on calling the damn place "Glasgow Prestwick International"? The place is 50 minutes by rail from Glasgow and is in the middle of God's Own County (Ayrshire). It's typical of some airlines to try and make the punter think that they are flying into the centre of their destination when they are actually landing a fair old distance away. Another fine example of this cobblers is calling Charleroi by the name of Brussels South. I've suffered that overpriced and monotonous coach journey into Brussels ...
We’ve now had two Bank of England rates rises, and I’ve now had two emails from ING telling me that they aren’t following. So that’s 0.5% that they are currently keeping from me. If I can manage to get Heather on to my current Egg account I’m moving as Egg are offering 5.25% for exactly the [...]
Did Dr Reid use Wednesday's arrests to launch his new bid to do away with any maximum length of detention? As he is continually finding new problems that out bid the previous problems in his department, he is clearly finding it difficult to make positive headlines, so appearing to be fully in the loop on Wednesday's operations, and then leading a cabinet discussion on detention without trial was his chance to make waves. Dr Reid's arguments for unlimited detention, seem to stem from the reportedly huge number of possible threats that currently exist. Therefore to cope with all of them ...
The unflagging devotion of The Daily Telegraph to the Tory Party is surely worthy by now of some form of recognition better than a wry smile, but some of their articles go so far beyond irony that they are practically self parody. If there was an epitome of this style, it would be Boris Johnson. Last week he was ranting about the Labour Party and the chaotic state of the nation's rail network. Quite understandable really, but evidently he did not feel the slight dry cough of his own memory reminding him of which Party, against a plethora of contrary ...
Got a chance to ask the Shipping Minister a question yesterday when he made a statement in the House of Commons about the MSC Napoli - the ship that has been beached off the East Devon coast leaking o...
Senator Joe Biden launched his bid for the Democratic Presidential nomination on Wednesday. Unfortunately, it was accompanied by the most awful series of gaffes about his Democratic opponents, in particular a few very badly chosen words that were meant to compliment Barack Obama. You can see more below in what has now become the de rigeur 'Daily Show' interview that accompanies any figure in
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OK- lets not get too worked up- so the British Police are sniffing around the cash for honours allegations. So The British Prime Minister has been questioned twice. So several close associates and members of his staff have been arrested, and subsequently released without charge. So the circumstantial evidence points quite strongly to honours having been offered in exchange for cash support of various New Labour causes. So too circumstances seem to show that several people have given contradictory accounts to the Police, to the point that the arrests have been more on conspiracy to pervert ...
In listing some of my Lib Dem committments I forgot the two most important. The lady from Kinross-shire, who brings sunshine into my life, happens to be a Lib Dem activist and Council candidate & I work as Liaison Officer to Elspeth, our Scottish MEP. That'll be me in the doghouse then.
I’ve added some more variables for Flock Together feeds… The basic feed remains, as before: http://www.flocktogether.org.uk/userrss.php?id=yourusername Instead of your user name, it’s now possible to reference by membership number or postcode. For example: ?pc=RG14+1PJ&range=50 does the postcode and range (if you leave out range, it uses 50 miles). And: &mn=1234567 does the Liberal Democrat membership number (although this only works for [...]
When all this Libdemmery (Regional Party Convener, Local Party Convener, Council Candidate, Holyrood PPC, Scottish Conference Committee Vice Convener etc.) gets too much I repair to a legendry Glasgow drinking emporium in Drury Street by the name of the Horseshoe Bar. This establishment is a magnificent example of the so-called "gin palace" style of pub and is one of the few pubs I know where "aw Jock Tamson's bairns" can happily rub shoulders. A fine example is my own little group; a ship yard draughtsman/project manager, a kitchen porter, a bank manager, a butcher, a pub manager and a pol ...
Three months tomorrow there will be important elections in Scotland, Wales and local government. This week, Liberal Democrat spirits have been raised by several opinion polls showing a sharp rise in support for the party. I don’t set much store by opinion polls, good or bad, but there’s been one consistent element in them for several months now that should concentrate Lib Dem minds. Labour increasingly reviled; the Tories off the bottom of the pit but stuck far from victory; yet much of the ‘sod ’em all’ vote going elsewhere than to us. How can we get more of it? ...
Latest information from City Council on roads situation in the City Centre: The gas main replacement works in Nethergate are on schedule for completion by Sunday 4 February followed by the next phase which requires the closure of Union Street from Monday 5 February for 8 weeks.
The military appointed government has now gone on record to say that they are unhappy about the fact that what they term “Political undercurrents” are using the Internet to attack the government via websites. Apparently they believe that the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology should take action against these websites. Although no specifics were given as to what action should be taken against such websites it is not unreasonable to assume that they may wish to track down the creators of such material and presumably that they will wish to take the sites down and / or block ...
BBC headline: Blame for warming pinned on man. Alas, the article doesn’t continue thus: Climate change scientists have identified the cause of global warming, a 44-year-old man from Grimsby. Steven Waters, a council worker, said he was “stunned” to learn that he was responsible but would be taking the news on board and switching to energy-saving [...]
The statement by British Medical Association today that one of the biggest obstacles to structural reform of the Welsh NHS is the growing mountain of debt within the service certainly accords with what I am being told by health and social care professionals. Official figures have estimated that the NHS will be £36.4m in debt by the end of this financial year. This is in addition to its historical accumulated deficit of £101m, which dates back to at least 2000. The Assembly Government has agreed that it will write off some £16m of this debt which was ...
Once again, listening to the morning news headlines on Today gives that Alice in Wonderland feeling. “Senior Labour figures says that the police investigation into Tony Blair is ‘having a corrosive effect’.” They want to see a speedy end to it (‘How dare they have the temerity to investigate us! Let’s close our eyes and wish it all away’). “The Prime Minister is determined to stay on until his legacy is secure – almost certainly past May.” “Almost certainly past hope,” observes Richard. Mr Blair is starting now on a much-trailed interview. I’m posting before I inevitably start swearing. ...
I certainly hope that the navigator on our trip has a better sense of direction than my researcher. Omar took me from Islington to Epping forest via Stansted airport! We were going to Epping so that I could practice sledding with dogs. All seemed a bit surreal I must say. After we had been careering up and down the M11 for some time- well as much as a Prius ever careers- Omar was finally persuaded to ring for directions. He spoke to Richard, who with the others, had been waiting for us for some time. “I can hear an ...
Wednesday: In the light of recent events, the Security Service have made it known that there is to be a new measure of the danger to the Prime Minister’s personal position. The level of threat will be measured on a scale as follows: Jowell – liable to make a clean getawayBernie – least said soonest mendedMandelson – sacrifices have to be madeDouble Mandelson – major fall guy called forFull Hutton – armed forces on standby, attack the BBC.For general information, we are currently at Double Mandleson with Balloon rising. Storms later. Visibility Poor backing going south. ...
Friday 2nd February 2007 - To many people, diamonds symbolize love, happiness or wealth, but for many others, they mean conflict, misery and poverty. In some African countries, profits from the unregulated diamond trade are used to fund armed conflicts. A new film, "Blood Diamond" starring Leonardo Di Caprio, aims to make people aware of the link between the world's most glamorous commodity and
Thursday 1st February 2007 - A busy morning with voting in the Parliament during the mini Plenary and a variety of meetings including coffee with Robert Church-Taylor who has spent the week in my office here in Brussels on work experience. After lunch its back to the airport to catch my flight back to Manchester in time to go to Burnley to help out on the ground with some canvassing for the two
It is always happy hour in the Cardinal on Francis Street, because it’s incredibly cheap. If you’re sticking with the lager, it’s actually fractionally cheaper than the bars in Parliament or some civil service boozers. Which is presumably why John Bercow sometimes likes to hang around there on the weekends, dressed as a tramp and reading a scruffy paperback. My friend was feeling brave and approached him a few months back, asking “excuse me, are you a Tory MP?,” to which he replied “yes,” before returning to his book. An old-fashioned sort of gent.
Another good letter in the Southwark News comes from John Lynch of the Crosby, Lockyer & Hamilton Tenants and Resident's Association. It highlights the work the Leathermarket JMB, the Tenant Managed Organisation of which I am also a Director. The JMB helped, outside their remit, to help provide bottled water to tenants after an electric company made an error that cut off the water supply and then, rather than deal with it, buck-passed responsibility around other agencies, who did likewise. Now if the 100 days of change can make any of the Council's Housing service providers behave ...
The Council's change programme for Housing services began today with a launch campaign entitled "100 days of Change". Every day a new initiative will be launched that will add up to a sweeping range of improvements that will hopefully begin to deliver for residents and encourage the new departments to continue to make improvements for them after the campaign has ended. Typically, Labour's gloomy spokesperson for Milton Keynes North, Andrew Pakes, is in the papers moaning about "glossy PR campaigns". Odd from the same man that was complaining that residents were not being informed about the changes only ...
And once again the so-called “Official Opposition” leave it to the Liberal Democrats to do all the running in taking Labour to task for being soft on crime when it suits. (The Conservatives, of course, have a rather dodgy link to the BAe corruption allegations themselves). British Aerospace | < | February 2007 | > | ||||
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