Flames and petrol don't mix
Spotted this sign at a petrol station in Bournemouth... Not sure it's the best advice, Health & Safety wise: Thursday 29th March 2007
11:47 pm
Spotted this sign at a petrol station in Bournemouth... Not sure it's the best advice, Health & Safety wise: 11:36 pm
Home Secretary to be split into two
Today the government announced that the John Reid is to be divided into two. Whitehall sources say that it has been recognised for some time that Mr Reid is "dysfunctional" and that his sprawling career is too complex to have belonged to just one man. In future there will be two John Reids. One will concentrate on being the unctuous defender of the realm against terrorism. The other will be the erstwhile drunken brawler who used to admire the Soviet Union and hang out with Radovan Karadzic. 11:33 pm
Tonight's council by-elections
Only got one of the three results so far: a Conservative hold in Basingstoke, but with their majority cut from 99 to 34 and an 8% swing to the Liberal Democrats. The result in Rooksdown ward, Basingstoke & Deane Council, was: Conservative 156 (53%, -11%) Liberal Democrat 122 (41%, +5%) Labour 18 (6%, +6%) Conservative hold 8% swing from Conservative to [...] 11:19 pm
Coldplay and Paddy Ashdown
Yes, its trivia time again. David Martin, who was the Tory MP for Portsmouth South between 1987 and 1997, has been beaten by the Liberals in three different constituencies. He was the unsuccesful Tory candidate against Paddy Ashdown in Yeovil in 1983, lost his seat to Mike Hancock in 1997 and was beaten by Stephen Williams in Bristol West in 2005. He also lost to Labour in Rugby & Kenilworth in 2001. It may be of some consolation to him that he is the uncle of Coldplay's Chris Martin. 11:07 pm
For Fawkes's sake
So you missed Guido Fawkes's less than impressive performance on Newsnight last night? Don't despair. Chicken Yoghurt has the video and Gudio Fawkes 2.0 has a transcript. 10:57 pm
New to Surbiton
Meet Rev'd David Houghton, the new Priest in charge of the parish of St Andrew and St Mark in Surbiton. He was licensed by the Bishop of Southwark this evening in a church packed with members of the two congregations at St Marks and St Andrews. David has worked in a number of parishes and chaplaincies in the UK and across Europe, and he comes to Surbiton from the Anglican... 10:41 pm
Celebrating Easter
It's nearly the end of term, and Our Lady Immaculate Primary decided to celebrate Easter. All the Key Stage 2 pupils crowded into the sanctuary in the church and told us the stories of Holy Week in songs and drama. I was so impressed by how clearly they spoke and the enthusiasm of their singing. It was all obviously well-rehearsed. I thanked them afterwards and... 10:39 pm
More budget blues
I am grateful for Stephen Tall who has drawn our attention to this piece from today's Financial Times report of the evidence given by Treasury officials to MPs on the Treasury committee examining the 2007 budget: Officials were also willing to concede … that 5.3m families would lose from the budget changes; that government spending plans did not forsee the take-up rate of working tax credit rising from its current dismal 25 per cent; and that there would be no money in the autumn comprehensive spending review dedicated to fighting child poverty. Not a good start to a ... 10:27 pm
Advice on anything - and free broadband as a bonus!
Today was a very special day for the Community Action Partnership on the Cambridge Road Estates in Norbiton. If you haven't heard of the CAP then you don't live on the estates, because anyone who lives there will be very aware of all the ideas that it has nurtured and schemes it has developed. So the latest initiative is the Community Advice Shop which I opened at... 10:22 pm
Sexy Green Car Show at Eden
I was invited to attend the launch of the Sexy Green Car Show at the Eden Project, St Austell this evening. I went along with William. It was fantastic to see more being promoted about alternative fuels and more ecologically sound forms of travel ... if only things could move quicker to making the green car industry more accessible and widely available to all people. It is crazy that this technology exists in so many different forms yet it is all still in a very early stage of production. ... 10:05 pm
Honorary Alderman Jim Daly
Jim Daly, who died last week, was a Conservative councillor for Surbiton Hill from 1971 to 1990, and served as Deputy Leader of the Council. He was later installed as an Honorary Alderman of the Borough. Jim was one of those people who was deeply respected by politicians of all parties, reknowned for his integrity and for his twinkly sense of humour. I also knew him as a keen supporter... 9:42 pm
24 and the re-occuring plot lines
Watching Season 6, I’m beginning to wonder if the script writers for 24 have finally run out of plots. Every episode seems to be a repeat of a previous season. Yet for some reason I keep watching. - - - Note possible spoiler alert if you have yet to watch any 24 or West Wing - [...] 9:20 pm
The story Iain Dale won't tell you
It’s here, here, here, here, here and even self-referentially here. It’s got politics. It’s got David Cameron. And it’s on a topic that features regularly on Iain’s blog. But he’s not written a blog posting about it. How curious. 9:14 pm
Left or Right? Cameron doesn't know
Bad news for David Cameron again today, with it reported that he has had take down the (in)famous wind turbine on his house because it was on the wrong side of his chimney. It seems that he put it up on the right side of his chimney, whilst his planning permission specified it had to be on the left (joking aside why are K&C being so pedantic as to specify which side of the chimney it has to be 8:47 pm
Why the rush?
So finally, the Home Office is to be split into two. Great news; we’ve been calling for it for years, and though we’d prefer the Cabinet Office to co-ordinate counter-terrorism efforts, the Ministry of Justice is welcome. One big caveat, though: why the rush? The whole thing is to be completed by May 9th - just [...] 
8:34 pm
The ignorance of Radio Five Live
BBC Radio Five Live's "Drive" show seemed to be giving an object lesson in ignorance today when within the space of 10 minutes today they claimed two things that were not true. Firstly they claimed that MP's were set to get an extra £10,000 a year, then they stated "on top of their wages". Now I am on record as being no fan of this £10,000 a year allowance for MP's to keep in touch with constituents, but what it most certainly isn't is a £10,000 bonus to MP's wages, which is what Radio Five Live were implying. ... 7:44 pm
Budget, fudget
After Gordon Brown’s botched budget last week, many Labour MPs and activists were mustard-keen to point out that poorer people - those earning less than £18.5k - would be better off in the round, once tax credits were taken into account.* So I was interested to read this snippet in today’s Financial Times, reporting the evidence given by Treasury officials to MPs on the Treasury committee 7:13 pm
Compare and contrast
The Electoral Commission on the Lib Dems and that £2.4m donation from Michael Brown: “The Electoral Commission has previously made clear its view that it was reasonable for the Liberal Democrats - based on the information available to them at the time - to regard the donations they received from 5th Avenue Partners Ltd in 2005, totalling just over £2.4m, as permissible. “It remains the 7:01 pm
Liberal leadership for Labour?
Peter Riddell in today's Times ponders why the election contest for Labour's deputy leader is so unedifying. ("Reinventing new Labour is essential but it will not be easy")As if answering his call, David Miliband has ridden to the rescue with an interesting piece carried in both today's The Telegraph and The New Statesman.Judging by the comments on the bottom of the Telegraph blog Mstr Miliband has a long way to go before he endears himself to much to the Telegraph readership. One also has to question his judgement about putting out such a piece this week. After all, it began ... 7:00 pm
A not terribly well strung together rant about the budget
If you take straight forward cash handouts out of the equation, child poverty has actually got far worse in the last ten years. That is disgusting for any government but surprising too for a Labour one, or at least it... 6:49 pm
The Papers are in
Well, there’s no turning back now. My nomination papers have been submitted, and the Council is now as aware as I am that I am the Liberal democrat candidate for St Mary’s Ward. With that in mind, tonight sees a return to the leafleting trail after my night off last night watching the Andorran dirge. Much of the latest St Mary’s Focus and Annual Report has now been delivered, so we have the 6:21 pm
The Living Dead
Having been all too distracted by the exciting new world of Doctor Who, I’m not ready in advance for this evening’s episode of The Avengers, which you can find at 7.10 on BBC4 (and 11pm tomorrow). It’s a ghostly episode that may seem like a shade of the first black and white Mrs Peel story, though replacing wistful Second World War iconography with picture-book Britain and spooky dukes suggests a tilt towards American consumption. But with the marvellous Julian Glover among the guest stars, who could complain? Come back after 7 as I unwisely aim to liveblog The Living Dead… ... 5:59 pm
Brown's shabby deal for 1,400 Army Privates in Wales - Williams
Fair green future Dyfodol teg, dyfodol gwyrdd Research by the Welsh Liberal Democrats released today reveals that Gordon Brown’s budget means around 1,400 Armed Forces personnel in Wales will see less money in their pay packets when the abolition of the 10p tax rate takes effect in 2008. Armed Forces personnel of private rank up to level 4 who get a starting salary of just £14,323 (effective from April 2007) will see an income tax hike from April 2008. They are among the ‘low paid losers’ of Brown’s budget. The MoD recently announced pay ... 5:59 pm
Brown's shabby deal for 1,400 Army Privates in Wales - Williams
Fair green future Dyfodol teg, dyfodol gwyrdd Research by the Welsh Liberal Democrats released today reveals that Gordon Brown’s budget means around 1,400 Armed Forces personnel in Wales will see less money in their pay packets when the abolition of the 10p tax rate takes effect in 2008. Armed Forces personnel of private rank up to level 4 who get a starting salary of just £14,323 (effective from April 2007) will see an income tax hike from April 2008. They are among the ‘low paid losers’ of Brown’s budget. The MoD recently announced pay ... 5:56 pm
Labour's failure to close inequality gap is leaving Wales falling behind - Opik
Fair green future Dyfodol teg, dyfodol gwyrdd Today, the Office of National Statistics released new figures showing that household disposable incomes in Wales are the second lowest across the UK and that disposable income in West Wales and the Valleys still lags behind the rest of Wales. Commenting, Lembit Opik, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats and MP for Montgomeryshire, said: “Not only is the gap between rich and poor people widening, the Government is also failing to shrink the gap between rich and poor areas. People in Wales have among the lowest amount of disposable ... 5:54 pm
Mick Bates is first AM to sign up to NFU's 'Why Farming Matters'
Fair green future Dyfodol teg, dyfodol gwyrdd Welsh Liberal Democrat AM has become the first Assembly Member to add his name to the NFU's Why Farming Matters campaign, joining personalities such as Lib Dem leader Ming Campbell MP, Forum for the Future's Jonathan Porritt and former Olympian Sally Gunnell OBE. The campaign was launched to explain why farming is becoming more, not less, important to 21st century Britain and intends to challenge the notion that mainstream food production can safely be allowed to migrate to other parts of the world, leaving a dwindling number of British ... 5:42 pm
Miliband says 'I can'
While the blogosphere finds itself absorbed in the Fawkes-White grudgematch, I’ve been musing this much-trailed piece by David Miliband in The Telegraph. In it, the Environment Secretary sets out his political philosophy. And what is that philosophy? He talks about how we’ve moved from ‘I need’ and ‘I want’ phases of British politics to an ‘I [...] 5:35 pm
She’s underneath you
From the BBC News website. ’tis genius! 4:52 pm
Kingston resident to be released from Guantánamo Bay
It’s always nice to report a good news story, and this press release from the Lib Dems is good news at the end of a campaign that has lasted years. Congrats to Ed Davey and everyone involved in seeing Bishar al-Rawi freed. By all accounts his experience has left Bishar traumatised, and it’s good that [...] 4:39 pm
Admit the truth: We need Iran more than its leaders need us
The Have Your Say section of BBC Online can be a depressing place to spend one’s lunchtime, but rarely more so than when foreign affairs are in the news. Statements condemning the 15 British naval personnel recently seized by Iran for not fighting to the death suggest a view of soldiers that bears no relation to the facts. Rather than being required to fight and die, they are bound by strict rules of engagement saying when they should and should not shoot, and anyway are entitled to surrender if heavily out-numbered. They may even have received orders to surrender. ... 
4:33 pm
Campbell calls for more police for Capital of Culture
Visiting Liverpool today, Liberal Democrat Leader Menzies Campbell called for the Government to stop wasting money on ID Cards and instead invest in more police. He highlighted the fact that Liverpool has now been turned down twice by the Government for 200 extra police officers during its year as the European Capital of Culture. Commenting, [...] 4:31 pm
Day 2278: DOCTOR WHO: The Price of Paradise
Wednesday: I am actually QUITE IMPRESSED: Daddy Richard has managed to finish all of the Doctor Who books that I gave him to read! To be fair, I DID have to lock him in the bathroom and feed him slices of cheese pushed under the door. Still that gave me and Daddy Alex time to watch the new series of THE APPRENTICE, with Mr Sir Alan and a new tribe of alien space lizards. I think one of them might have been a SLITHEEN! Here are Daddy Richard’s thoughts on the final print adventure of Dr Who ... 4:07 pm
Doctor Who: Time to get excited
Alex has spotted that there’s a red button preview currently running on Freeview channel 302, with clips from throughout the new series of Doctor Who. My digital reception is rather poor at present (cable coming in two weeks!), so I’m delighted to see (thanks to Jim) that the whole marvellous clip is on the Freema Agyeman [...] 3:26 pm
New Conservatives, Same Old Tories
It would emerge that the aforementioned Cllr Brian Gordon has got into trouble before for comparing immigrants to garbage. Meanwhile, Davey Cameron himself is in hot water for breaching Parliamentary Standards. Presumably heads will roll in his office? Don’t hold your breath. That non-partisan Guido Fawkes, who fearlessly attacks all political sleaze and flummery, has [...] 3:17 pm
Official: Cameron broke party fundraising rules
The verdict’s in, and it’s a grim one for David Cameron: he broke Parliament’s rules, he raised money wrongly, he’s had to apologise “unreservedly” and he has had to make multiple promises about his future behaviour. If a Labour minister had been so severely rebuked, do you think Conservative bloggers and MPs would by any chance [...] 3:12 pm
…The Adventure Begins
Here am I, innocently writing a piece about tonight’s Avengers (BBC4, 7.10), when I idly change channels only to find something even more exciting than Julian Glover. Never mind those 40-second trailers: a minute-and-a-half-long Doctor Who preview montage is currently playing on a continuous loop on TV. Turn now to Freeview Channel 302, and doubtless on other digital platforms too (and, all right, I didn’t tune in entirely by accident. After last year, I’ve been checking daily. Blush). It contains… Not quite spoilers, but tantalisingly heavy hints. Here are some tantalisingly lighter hints about those hints: ... 3:12 pm
Not voting for Christmas to come early
Yesterday, the House of Commons debated the ‘Communications Allowance’, a £10,000 a year public subsidy to be given to MPs to help them hold on to their seats improve their dialogue with their constituents. Lib Dem MP Jo Swinson summed the arguments against the measure succinctly and well: As a Member of Parliament, I believe that communication is incredibly important. As a former marketing 2:54 pm
A strange musical day
I’m having an interesting musical day today. I rediscovered my love of Gong and have been listening to as much of the Radio Gnome Invisible series as have have at the moment (all except Part III (You)). In honour of the Pot Head Pixies I’m also drinking lots of tea. I’ve also just been directed to Sad Kermit. [...] 2:48 pm
How Much Irony Can One Take?
People wonder why the House of Commons Chamber isn't always full. Well apart from the fact MPs might be working in committee, debating in Westminster Hall (another chamber in Parliament), attend... 2:44 pm
I've had better offers
Amazon.co.uk keep offering me an intriguing product promotion: “Save £0.02 when you spend £100,000.00 or more on Qualifying Items offered by Amazon.co.uk.”It hasn’t tempted me… yet. 2:42 pm
Today’s most emailed article
From the BBC News web site is this. Unsurprisingly 1:20 pm
If only everbody thought like an FT reader
The Financial Times is running an online poll on whether Gordon Brown would make a good Prime Minister. So far the results are Yes 17.8% No 82.2% Now, I know not everybody thinks like the readers of the FT, but I do wonder how many people nationally really do think that Gordon's fit for the job. It seems we're getting a PM by default, because of his ability to bully his colleagues rather than woo the voters. I can only think it'll end in tears. A site for political analysis and opinion of an avowedly ... 1:08 pm
New Sixth Form Centre in Haringey
First visit of the day was to the new Sixth Form Centre in Haringey - which will open for business in September. It is a fantastic building and will deliver top class facilities for students. The Minister Jim Knight was coming to see the building. The new Head seems fantastic - and she will be inspirational for the new students; I wish her well. Whilst most of the probable feeder schools are on 12:56 pm
Cameron found guilty over illegal fundraising
We have been waiting for the Tories to be reprimanded for misusing the Palace of Westminster dinig rooms for fundraising. Cameron was involved in that. But in the event he has also been singled out by a separate report. 12:32 pm
10 Years
I have blogged about this before (see Do not insult the King of Thailand). At the time I thought that the Swiss man who insulted the king by defacing his picture could face up to 15 years in jail. It transpires that the maximum sentence is in fact 75 years. He has just been sentenced to 20 years in prison reduced to 10 for confessing. A very high price to pay for something which I guess we would assume one could do without it being an imprisonable offence. The only problem is that he had ... 12:06 pm
Justice for Families - MP Lobby 28th March 2007
The following 5 videos cover the whole of the event. No 1 No 2 No 3 No 4 No 5 11:45 am
At last, some good news from Brussels
I have just transferred some money between two bank accounts, without leaving my desk, with just a few clicks of my mouse. It is called eBanking. It is not very exciting; indeed, it seems too prosaic to mention. Certainly, it should go without saying that it cost nothing to make the transfer. Why should it? It is just one computer telling another computer that it has reduced a number by a certain amount, and the other computer can add that amount to a number it stores. There is no marginal cost. Add one more calculation, however, and ... 10:50 am
All White
A lot of unkind words are spoken about Michael White, associate editor of the Guardian, especially in the rightist blogosphere. Following his fairly assured (yes, perhaps a little self-satisfied) performance against a wrong-footed Guido Fawkes on Newsnight last night, there is a predictable outpouring of bile on the comments threads at order-order.com, one or two rather peculiarly accusing him of being “too aggressive”! The problem with the angry man right-wing blogosphere is that they always conflate everything in the world that they don’t like into one giant conspiracy aimed at them, so it’s little wonder their blood is always boiling. ... 10:33 am
From Adam Curtis to the Beveridge Group: negative freedom and economic liberalism are not dirty words
I see that it is almost a month since the last post on this blog. In the meantime I have been tied up variously with local politics in Watford and researching Liberal party temperance policy in Edwardian Britain. Various posts have been planned but somehow never written up. The first of these was going to have been about the re-launch of the Beveridge Group at the Liberal Democrat conference in Harrogate in early March, the most recent about the final part of Adam Curtis’s documentary on BBC 2, The Trap - whatever happened to our dreams of freedom?. Perhaps ... 10:27 am
Guido Fawkes a hypocrite?
The whole thrust of Guido Fawkes' Newsnight piece last night was that lobby journo's require "access" and suck up to the great and good in order to get it. He's right here, as Nick Robinson admitted, its part of the job (as they see it). However, has Guido, in a quite beautiful bit of irony, done the same thing? During Newsnight he engaged in an argument with Micheal White regarding the "second email system" inside Downing Street, which may or may not have been used by Labour staff involved in the cash for honours issue. Guido ... 9:45 am
Launch of Angela Cannings Foundation Video
The following is the first video following the launch of the Angela Cannings Foundation at the Justice for Families Parliamentary Lobby yesterday. 9:37 am
West Midlands Police is stop and search row
I wrote last week about Ming Campbell's visit to the West Midlands and his attack on the stop and search laws. Well it now turns out the West Midlands Police are being investigated after an Asian man claimed he was stopped and searched because of his ethnicity. 9:32 am
Ministry of Justice!
OK so when I read the BBC News story that says the Hom Office is going to be split into two (something that’s been talked about for a while) I thought - potentially a good idea as long as the two departments actually talk to each other. If we just get a case of it being [...] 8:43 am
Michael White destroys Guido
I have an interest to declare. I am the Number One Fan of Michael White, the Guardian's Political Editor. Not because of his superb political journalism skills, but because he is a St Austell boy and very funny. Normally, Michael is quite affable and laid back during his television appearances. Last night he was on Newsnight with Paxo and Guido (the latter via a link and ridiculously blacked out 7:39 am
Tories disappoint on PR
It is not my intention to spend all my time on this blog talking about fair voting for local government, but it is worth noting that the promised damoscene conversion of the Welsh Conservatives on this issue appears not to have happened. I only have reports in the Western Mail to go on of course, so it is possible that a closer reading of the actual Tory manifesto might produce a different answer, but I think that is unlikely. The newspaper tells us that the Tories are open to changes in electoral arrangements but only if a local referendum ... 2:35 am
Haringey Pizza and Politics
Haringey Pizza and Politics tonight at the home of David Schmitz. Very good presentation by Edward Pursell - a local member, and King's College Medical School lecturer (where eldest daughter Jessica is set to go in the Autumn. Rekindled my thoughts on the conflict between the changing demands of healthcare, and the continued demands by the public to protect hospitals and beds. There clearly 1:16 am
Day 2277: Toff of the Pots
Tuesday: Last night, Mr Peter Chickens, fish-faced editor of "Ten things I Hate about Dave" and brother of Mr Christopher Chickens, was on the telly having a go about Mr Balloon on Channel Furore. His programme was called "Toff at the Top", which is a PUN – because Mr Balloon is not REALLY at the TOP! In his programme, Mr Chickens broke the complete non-news that Mr Balloon probably does not believe in anything except valet-driven shoes, which way the wind is blowing and the divine right of the Notting Hill set. Well DUH! ... 12:44 am
Guido on Newsnight - A Review
Earlier on today I voted that Guido should take part in a Newsnight panel discussion. Well, I'm glad I did. I'm a fan of Guido, I enjoy his blog and I'm glad he does what he does. However, his appearance on Newsnight was piss poor. Ok, so Micheal White was amazingly smug (more than he needed to be), but Guido was nervy and struggled to get his words out. Not the demeanor of a revolutionary. It probably shows why the web is his best medium, to be honest, or as my mate Jason says, "Austin, you have a ... 12:31 am
Caldon Canal under threat?
I have written before about the way that agricultural subsidies monopolise government spending on the countryside - and our canal system in particular. Things may be even worse than I realised. On Tuesday Charlotte Atkins, the Labour MP for Staffordshire Moorlands, initiated a Westminster Hall debate on inland waterways in the West Midlands. In her speech she talked about the plight of the Caldon Canal: In reality, however, the future of the Caldon canal is far more dismal. As a cul-de-sac, it does not have the same status as the canals on the north-south through route on the ... 12:22 am
Kinks campaign update
As I previously blogged on March 8th, I wrote to the new owners of the Clissold Arms to urge them to retain the Kinks connection in their plans for reopening the pub. Since then, I also highlighted the petition that has been set up by Kinks fans and is gathering signatures fast. I also asked the Leader and Deputy Leader of the Council to add their support to the campaign with a letter, as well as emailing all the councillors to ask them to sign the petition. I know a number of council colleagues have signed the ... 12:18 am
The Blogosphere Cookie Monster, Politics and Slavery.
Last night, after a hard day's work, I applied myself dutifully to updating the scintillating details of my weekend adventures..............after hours slaving over a hot keyboard, what happened??? Someone in cyberspace ate my post. Yes honestly. So, now here ich bin, trying again. Saturday consisted of a morning wasted on the phone trying to sort out arrangements for my impending house move, though I redeemed myself with an afternoon delivering in the biting cold and driving rain (noble or what) and an evening spent at Yasmin's palatial pile with a selection of her journo/writer friends, one of whom ... 
