You're not fit to referee !
I've sung this before at a match, but its never been so true as in THIS CASE. Friday 11th July 2008
11:40 pm
I've sung this before at a match, but its never been so true as in THIS CASE. 
11:37 pm
IslamExpo
This evening I was at the Opening Ceremony and pre-reception of IslamExpo at London's Olympia, which proclaims itself to be Europe's largest celebration of Islamic heritage, culture and traditions under one roof. It's certainly an impressive operation, running until Monday, with hundreds of stalls, exhibits, gardens and cafés, as well as a rich and eclectic [...] 11:22 pm
The Peter Cullum Conundrum
Norwich fans have been getting rather excited recently about the prospect of a takeover by Peter Cullum, Britain's 40th richest man. He told the local press in Norwich that he wanted to take over as majority shareholder from Delia Smith and her husband Michael Wynn Jones, in return for sticking £20million in cash in to the club. Today, the whole deal fell through, no doubt with lots of gnashing teeth and people complaining about Delia for good measure. But there is a really big question mark over what Mr Cullum wanted and what he actually was prepared to do. In ... 11:04 pm
'e' matters
We never get bored as Councillors (except when reading those strategy documents which are sleep inducing!) and there is no end to the range of problems we deal with. Today there has been the level of Direct payments which are apparently lower than other Councils nearby for people with Special Needs, and my first job is to establish the facts. Planning issues abound still, but at least the... 10:30 pm
Call to give Zimbabwean exiles work
When Nick Clegg visited Malvern yesterday, he spoke about how Asylum Seekers should be given the right to work if no decision is made within 12 weeks. This means less cost to the taxpayer, and means they can't fall into illegal work. Dr. Sentamu, the Archbishop of York has led protests calling for the Government to give failed Asylum Seekers the right to work. Brown has already stopped deportations, but it is rediculous to hold Zimbabweans here at the expense of the tax payer when they can get into work. 10:23 pm
Who are these tits who complain about Marks and Spencer ?
I am really confused why people are complaining about paying extra for larger bras at Marks and Spencer. Surely bigger bras require more work on the stitching and more material. In addition they require more packaging and no doubt have a higher transportation cost due to the fact they take up more space. Nobody complain at paying more for an extra large drink or an extra large bar of chocolate, so why do people feel that their extra large bras should be less ? I know I have had to pay more for larger shoes in the past, surely this ... 10:20 pm
Our first MP scandal and it was only £1500
Paul Burstow a LibDem whip used pre-paid Commons envelopes for newsletters attacking a tory candidate. He did this against Parliamentary regulations. This BBC report shows the conservatives have been trying to make a huge deal out of it, hopefully without much success. The reality is Mr. Burstow explained it was, 'a simple administrative error which shouldn't have happened and won't happen again'. He said he stopped it as soon as he found out about it and he has offered to pay the £1,500, from taxpayers money back. Well in comparison with the scandals from the labour and tories benches I'd ... 9:58 pm
Early indications from Whickham South byelection
The by-election in my ward of Whickham South and Sunniside in Gateshead is now underway. Polling day is 31st July. Early indications from our canvassing are encouraging. I guess that with the way people feel about Labour, they will want to deliver their leaflets in the middle of the night, probably wearing dark glasses in the process!People are also giving us their email addresses so they can get 9:54 pm
Haltemprice and Howden by-election
The turnout was halved from 64% to 34%. And David Davis won 71% of the vote with 17,113 votes, compared with 22,792 votes in 2005. So too be honest for a pointless by-election he did well at getting the majority of conservative voters to come out and vote him back in. I of course was very unhappy about not standing against David Davis. And I have to admit had I been a voter in Haltemprice and Howden I would have voted for the Green Party (who came second with 7.4% of the vote). 9:53 pm
Small by-election, not many hurt
To no one's great surprise David Davis regained his seat at Haltemprice & Howden. Liberal Democrats will be relieved that, though the Greens came second, they obviously did not pick up our habitual voters by the handful. And it was reassuring to see Jill Saward, who supported the Labour/Daily Mail anti-liberty line, do badly. The 110 votes David Icke won suggest he finds it easier to win votes in cyberspace than he does in prosperous parts of rural Yorkshire. When it was first announced that the Liberal Democrats would not stand against David Davis, people queued up to praise Nick ... 9:08 pm
House Points: Have environmentalists made us terrified of the natural world?
My House Points column from Liberal Democrat News. This week's issue is a special on the environment. I am not sure whether I was fitting in with that or acting as a devil's advocate, but this is an unusually heartfelt column. I wrote at greater length about the beneficial effects of exposure to the natural world for Openmind a few years ago. Fresh air A survey for the National Trust has found half the children questioned cannot tell bees from wasps. A similar percentage cannot recognise a barn owl or oak leaf, and one in three cannot identify a magpie. ... 8:54 pm
Brian Paddick for President
After reading the post above it got me thinking that the people of London didn't elect Brian Paddick as Mayor which was a big mistake they made in my eyes and they will learn as time goes by. But the fact that Brian Paddick could be President of the Liberal Democrats is something different. The ex Police officer is a great candidate for the President of the Liberal Democrats and if he was to become a candidate i definitely would vote him as President. So could Brian Paddick actually become the President of the Liberal Democrats? 7:02 pm
Strike action to take place on July 16 and 17
Following the recent national ballot in respect of the 2008/9 pay offer for Council staff, UNISON and Unite (formerly T & G) have voted for strike action. Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 July 2008 have been selected as national days of strike action. GMB members will be working normally. Liz Jones, interim head of paid services, said: "The council will do all it can to ensure the effects on our customers from these days of action are kept to an absolute minimum. Managers will therefore take appropriate action to seek minimum disruption to services. The council will be working with ... 6:42 pm
Save our blogs
A government website that allows Councillors to blog to constituents, Bloginabox, may be on the verge of being closed down by ministers. My friend Councillor Suzanne Fletcher from Stockton is keen to keep it going and wants people to sign the on line petition calling for the funding of the site to continue. You can read Suzanne's post about it and follow the link to the petition on: http:// 6:10 pm
Why didn't Clegg visit H&H?
Please disregard the football-related metaphor in the heading (not my choice of words), but here is my CiF piece on the Haltemprice and Howden by-election. It would appear that my analysis is pretty much the same as Stephen Tall's - i.e. Clegg was right to back Davis but failed to press his advantage home: However unjustified, the sad fact of the matter is that by not ensuring a platform alongside Davis's other supporters, including Tony Benn and Bob Marshall-Andrews, Clegg has left the party vulnerable to this line of attack. He put principle before party, but we should be mindful ... 6:09 pm
Scrutiny continues: stray dogs, local democracy and supporting carers
Although I am no longer on the Council's Overview & Scrutiny Committee, I will be taking part in not one but two scrutiny reviews this year - so it's not going to be an immediate break from routine. This weekend I need to take another look over and sign off the report for the last scrutiny review I chaired, on the Council's neighbourhood management function, which I will present to the Committee on July 28. I'll blog about some of the review recommendations nearer the time. The two reviews that I am signed up for this year are one on ... 5:53 pm
You can't trust the Tories with your local police stations
My Lib Dem colleague Ed Fordham, who I've known for years, has been blogging about the Tories' hollow commitment to community policing. It seems that although the Tories in London have been getting better at talking the talk, they're still a long way from walking the walk. Given the opportunity to question the Mayor and his representative on a 'strategy' proposing the closure of 60 police stations across London, not one single Conservative member of the GLA even managed to ask just one question. In contrast, you can see some of the work that Ed (who is the Liberal Democrat ... 5:40 pm
Government is ignoring young campaigns
Vote at 16 is a very big campaign that has been started but are MP's and the Government taking this campaign into account. The campaign to give 16 year olds the Vote is a very large campaign but the Government are not taking all these campaign's and matter's that are being raised by people into account and actually passing the legislation through Parliament. 16 Year olds should not just get the Vote they should also be able to be candidates at elections at the age of 16. People may say 16 year olds are not mature enough but what do ... 5:40 pm
Brown:tackle stabbings
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7502569.stm Brown has made a pledge that he is going to tackle knife crime in the UK. in this Last week Knife Crime in the UK has just shot up and now the Prime Minister is determined to do something about it. Well Brown if you had thought about this before then we would have already had measures in place to tackle in increase in Knife Crime. Please leave comments below on what you think needs to be done about this very sharp increase in knife crime and i will email comments and suggestions to my Local MP. 5:40 pm
Peer's apology over racism
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7497097.stm The Conservative Peer that made racist comments in the Lords has apologised in the website above. The Conservative in my view should have been sacked from the houses of Lord's and the Lord's selection committee should have chosen another Peer to take his position in the Lords. Letting this slip through hasn't sent a tough enough message to Peer's and MP's that if you are racist or if you commit any money related crimes (a lot are being committed by MP's) then you will get sacked. Please let me know what you think about the fact that Peer's are ... 5:40 pm
Are 'religious rights' special?
Today's Wail contains a typically sensational report on the case of Lillian Ladele, a bigot whose sky-fairy told her to do it. So many points to be made here that I don't quite know where to start. Perhaps a quick rewrite is in order. The following should strike everyone the way a story like this strikes me: Victory for Pastafarian registrar bullied for refusing to perform 'sinful' inter-racial 5:37 pm
Council leader backs free street party plan!
Last year, Upland Road residents held a street party in September. Everything was paid for by the residents and by all accounts a great time was had by all. The highest cost of the event was the price tag charged by Southwark Council for carrying out the consultation for a temporary road closure. This year, [...] 5:23 pm
Graham's blog Friday 11 July 2008
My major initiative this week was the launch of a new pamphlet called 'The Lisbon strategy - mode d'emploi' in which I argue, together with two MEPs from the European People's party, two from the Socialists, one other Liberal Democrat and one Green, that economic reform in the EU is urgently needed. Though from different political parties and different countries, there is a broad measure of agreement between us: we all argue that we need to be investing more in innovative processes and people and that we can ignore neither environmental sustainability nor social cohesion. You will shortly be able ... 5:20 pm
£200k for Lib Dem Chief Whip Paul Burstow
I've been tagged to come up with the best waste of £200,000 of taxpayers' money* by Matt Wardman. I think it's going to have to be a donation to Liberal Democrat Chief Whip, Paul Burstow, and his office, to stop him stealing claiming communications expenses he shouldn't. The greedy pig has been using prepaid Commons envelopes [...] 4:44 pm
Reassuring words to find in a government consultation paper
"The consultation paper considers several questions but in particular looks at: Pertinent issues..." Phew, that's a relief. (Page 3 of the Election Day - Weekend Voting consultation paper if the knowledge that it contains content relevant to its subject hasn't put you off.) 4:08 pm
The best waste of £200,000 of public money?
Having been tagged in this meme, which so far has featured Ann Winteron, Henry VIII and helicopters, I fear my contribution is rather dull: it's the £200,000 the United Kingdom Passport Agency had to spend to make its old computer system millenium compliant because of big problems with its new one (remember the huge passport [...] 3:49 pm
Who does these weather forecasts
Just taking a five minute break from our after school fete today, I have to wonder whether the people who do our weather forecasts live in the real world. All day the weather maps on the BBC weather pages have shown us to be having rain, with the latest pictures showing torrential rain across Norfolk for the last two hours and no sunshine at all. In reality, I've got burnt in the sun, the weather has been superb and there has been no rain (not yet). Who does these forecasts ? 3:45 pm
Clegg banned from Pershore
LIBERAL Democrat leader Nick Clegg has been blocked from holding a meeting at Pershore Care Centre The Evesham Journal has all the details. It seems the case that councils are all to ready to overlook their rules on political meetings when its ministerial visits to highlight achievements, and much less forgiving when it's opposition parliamentarians visiting to [...] 3:17 pm
Politics and Spammer's
Don't you not just hate it when people spam your inbox with email's that are from two diff rent companies asking you to validate your bank details and then the email address being the same. I received some spam from a want to be 'Paypal' and a want to be 'Natwest' asking me to verify my bank details with them and the bogus email address that sent me the two email's is new at menara dot ma Now this is something that politicians and the police need to really target these online fraudsters who are always trying to rob you. ... 3:17 pm
A short Book about the deflector
Tony Greaves has left a comment on this page saying that he could probably write a short book on Jamil Munir and he probably isn't the only person that could write a book about Mr Munir. Mr Munir had faced Mr Iqbal in many elections and at the time they used to mock each other and really use foul language against each other when speaking in Large Groups of people and now Mr Iqbal is welcoming Mr Munir into his Party. In my Eyes Mr Iqbal and Mr Munir both are hypocrites but Mr Munir will learn as time ... 
3:17 pm
The Power of the Blog
A Blog is a very powerfull weapon to have if you are a politician as you can write to your constitiuents through it and they can comment on what they think about what you have written. A blog makes politicians more transparent which is a very positive thing as i believe all politicians should have blogs on which they can write about the decisions they have had to take or they can ask the public for thier opinion. The problem is that not a lot of Politicians in Pendle have set up blogs. Most Councillor's in Pendle dont have a ... 2:35 pm
Sarko and the Generals
Confused about Sarko's assault on the French military? Then have a read of Judah's article. 2:31 pm
ID Cards - what do young people think?
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has launched a site for young people to let her know their thoughts on ID cards. As you'd expect from any government website, the site is neutral, presents the arguments for and against in a balanced and responsible way, and allows young people themselves to do most of the talking. Erm... well, it's [...] 2:29 pm
I bow to eat my crunchie...
A couple of years ago I had an article published in Prospect (they had a space to fill...) about changing the national anthem to the beautiful, uplifting but non-triumphalist 'I vow to thee, my country'. The BBC's Mark Easton recently commented on the website about how naff 'God save the Queen' is and asked for suggestions for a new national anthem. Today he published the results and it seems that 'I vow to thee...' came out fourth, although with 'God save Betty' first. This is nonetheless heartening as the original idea - which I wouldn't claim as uniquely mine - ... 2:20 pm
How much did the Haltemprice and Howden byelection cost?
I've got a new post up on the Total Politics blogs examining how much the Haltemprice and Howden byelection cost. It's considerably less than the £207,000 the Daily Telegraph's James Kirkup is quoting. 
2:14 pm
What's interesting about Haltemprice and Howden
When I heard on the radio this morning that David Davis had easily won back his Haltemprice and Howden seat in a by-election, I yawned and went back to sleep. I'm with Martin Kettle of The Guardian here. I doubt very much that Davis's decision to resign his seat and trigger a by-election will make a huge difference to what happens to government proposals to allow terrorist suspects to be detained without trial for 42 days. Some of the most telling arguments against "42 days" tend to come from the likes of the Crown Prosecution Service and now, Lady Manningham-Buller, ... 2:10 pm
The Economist on Nick Clegg
There's an interesting article in this week's Economist about Nick Clegg and the way he is shaping the Liberal Democrats. For those who say that Nick has had little impact since becoming leader it is useful in showing how he is actually trying to shape the party's policies and political platform. It also gives a good [...] 2:07 pm
Obama is not un-american
I don't like Barrack Obama. There. I said it. I saw his speech at the 2004 Democratic convention and thought he was wonderful. His acceptance speech on being elected senator in 2004 was a corker too. His movement is impressive and I spent a good few months (if not longer) as a cheerleader. I have said nice things about him on my blog (here and here and here) and on other fora. In the last three months or so I have switched entirely. I now am rather anti-Obama (more here and here). I'll be explaining way many times between now ... 2:05 pm
Open letter to leader of Sutton's Tory Opposition
I have just posted this letter on the website of the local paper in response to a recent story published there recording that Cllr. Paul Scully, leader of the opposition, has submitted a vote of no confidence in Cllr. Hall's position as Lead Member for Environment & Leisure. I can also advise that the local paper's [...] 1:55 pm
LG By-Election Results, Thursday 10th July 2008
Caerphilly UA, Risca West Lab 636 (56.0 +5.6) PC 315 (27.8 +0.3) Con 137 (12.1 -10.0) LD Mark Maguire 47 (4.1 +4.1) Majority 321 Turnout 27.9 Lab hold Percentage change is from 2008 Canterbury DC, Barton LD Michael Steed 993 (51.8 +9.3) Con 701 (36.6 +2.7) Green 121 (6.3 +6.3) Ind 102 (5.3 -0.7) Lab [0.0 -8.9] Ind [0.0 -8.7] Majority 292 Turnout 33.0 LD hold Percentage change is from 2007 1:53 pm
Freedom is worth dying for
Great speech by Rachel of North London, which encapsulates my own view pretty well. 1:32 pm
Facebook and Leadership II
Further ot my previous I see that Ross Finnie now has a Facebook profile and also has an facebook group intersting called Ross Finnie Stands for Leadership of Scottish Liberal Democrats as opposed to the I'm supporting Mike/Tavish for Scottish Lib Dem Leader apporach of his rivals. Ross has also set up a limited leadership part to his website here. for the record the size of the respected 12:53 pm
King of Bling Leaves The Ring
'We should back the workers, not the shirkers!' declared Maggie T many years ago, 'round about the time when Julian H was getting more into football and less into cartoons and The A-Team. All well and good, yet it now seems as if self-styled Thatcherite Brian Coleman has been indulging in a spot of shirking himself. Up and coming Liberal Ed Fordham today reports that Coleman (his and my own GLA representative) has taken to walking out of rather important GLA meetings. Ed's example is of a Plenary Session on policing from earlier this week. Apparently Coleman walked out the ... 12:52 pm
That Cheeky Girls documentary
I missed Wednesday night's TV documentary on the 'Living' Channel, Living with the Cheeky Girls. However, a member of my household saw 15 minutes and summarised it thus: the one who isn't engaged to Lembit complained that she wasn't getting any sex while the other one complained that she was getting too much. Still, at least it means a Lib Dem MP on TV, no publicity is bad publicity and all that. For those eager to find out more, there was a review in the London Paper here. 12:25 pm
How has your MP been voting over detention without charge?
The good folks over at Public Whip have a new service that lets you select your own view on how long people should be held without charge and then see how your MP's record matches up. The service is at www.publicwhip.org.uk/fortytwodays 12:18 pm
Femme de Resistance better than the BBC
It took me until lunchtime to remember that there had been a parliamentary by-election yesterday - you know, that pointless and expensive one in Haltemprice & Howden. No big surprises that David Davis has his seat back in Parliament. I was surprised to see the Greens poll so poorly and I expect they will be disappointed to have only just beat the English Democrats. But it doesn't mean much - a low turn out in a pointless election with no Lib Dem or Labour candidates, it will be interesting to see if Davis faces any backlash over the stunt at ... 12:15 pm
Empty chair politics from our elected representative
So what is the role of the elected representative in Hampstead, for Camden and across London? I don't take that close or especially active role towards the Greater London Assembly: I vote, I campaign in the run-up, I know the result, I know who my representative is, I look at the website occasionally. So I'm active but not obsessive. I would rather hope that my elected representatives were a little more engaged. So, on Wednesday I went to see the GLA in Plenary Session for the session of Questions to Deputy Mayor and Assembly Member Kit Malthouse on policing and ... 11:49 am
Bury trams not running on Sunday
Trams will not run on the Bury Metrolink line on Sunday because of engineering work. A replacement bus service will run between Bury and Victoria, calling at all tram stops along the route, according to the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive. Passengers will need to buy their tickets at the tram stop before getting on a bus. Tram services will continue to run as normal between Altrincham and Piccadilly, Eccles and Piccadilly, and Victoria and Piccadilly. Information about public transport services in Greater Manchester is available at www.gmpte.com. 11:48 am
Nick Clegg on ID Cards
Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg MP on our opposition to the Government's ID Card Scheme 11:44 am
Sharia law, the BNP, and Irfan Ahmed
Yesterday I read a post by Irfan Ahmed, which as then published argued that not wanting Sharia law in Britain demonstrated that the BNP were racist and fascist. I highlighted this on my blog, as there is no comment section on Irfan's. He has now changed the post, but not really the content. He still juxtaposes racist with disagreeing with Rowan Williams' comments about the inevitability of Sharia Law in the UK. I think Irfan is trying to make two unconnected points which have unfortunately got blurred. One, the BNP is a racist party which displays many facets of fascism; ... 11:33 am
Brown answers YouTube users
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7498931.stm A few Months ago the Prime Minister Gordon Brown started a competition on You tube to answer a question for one you tube user. Well now he has actually done it the prime Minister has answered the question for one Young man. Please watch the video on the link above and decide for yourself is the Prime Minister really ready for the digital age or is it not for him? 11:33 am
Voters should not be Sold!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7500826.stm Councils should not be allowed to sell Voters information. The fact is that i didn't and probably a lot of people are still not aware that Council's are allowed to do this. Council's shouldn't in my point of view be allowed to sell our details of the companies who can then target us using them. The Government better sort this out or people wont Vote thinking that they details will be sold on and that wouldn't show that we are that a democratic believing country if the number of Voting Turnouts dropped! 11:33 am
Question Time
The Liberal Democrat on the Panel on yesterdays Question time said something that i believe in a lot. She said that Last year David Cameron was saying to the people that we need to hug hoddies and now he wants to lock up people who are caught carrying a knife. That is something that i think is of great importance the fact that the Conservative Leader cant make his mind up of what his party stands for. He talks about a good family life most of the time despite the country being in a financial break down because Brown hadn't ... 11:20 am
Why can't politics be more like the church?
Less than 15 years since the introduction of women priests, 1 in 4 vicars are now women. At that rate in less than 15 years 50% of vicars will be women. A statistic that was a total surprise to me as I listened to Woman's Hour, on the way to the office this morning. They will reflect the community that they work in. Why, therefore, have women found it so hard to make a breakthrough in politics? In 90 years we have only managed to ensure 19% of MPs are women, we have plateaued for the last 11 years, and ... 11:17 am
theyorkshergob @ 2008-07-11T10:54:00
- RIP Elizabeth Spriggs. :( Like most people my age, I first came across her in Simon and The Witch, and when I discovered as an adult how broad her range of roles was I was amazed and pleased that this stalwart of my childhood had had so much influence. A more versatile and talented actress would be difficult indeed to find. (hat-tip: {[info]} addyit) - Via {[info]} captainlucy, This is IMDb's top 25 all-time box office hits. Bold the ones you saw in the cinema, italicize the ones you saw some other way instead, and leave the unseen ones ... 11:03 am
Beer we go again
What is it about booze that causes so many otherwise rational people to lose their critical faculties completely? I'm not talking about drinking the stuff, but people's reactions to news stories about booze, as I see that some people are getting themselves worked up about the introduction of what is claimed to be the UK's strongest ever beer. For a start, at 12% ABV it's nowhere near the strongest beer ever launched in the UK. A quick Google search brought up this item about a beer launched a few years ago which was 23%. I also have memories of trying ... 10:30 am
Reflections on Haltemprice & Howden
Well what a waste of time that was. David Davis is claiming it as a great victory thanks to his 72% of the vote, but as he had no serious challengers then what did he expect. I also remain unconvinced that he has changed anyone's mind about the 42 day issue or made it significantly [...] 10:08 am
Save our Parks Police
Well - Haringey Council's plans for our parks and open spaces - which include a proposal to disband the Haringey Parks Constabulary - are in full swing. This is despite the massive concerns about young people and knife crime and Met Police statistics that indicate there were over 700 offences in parks and open spaces in Haringey over a one-year period. Ten dedicated Constables are to be made redundant. My local Liberal Democrat councillor colleagues have proposed a fully costed, practical alternative to these cuts, which instead builds on the work of the Parks Constabulary, meets the needs of residents ... 10:07 am
Haltemprice and Howden: what lessons to be learned?
The close-of-poll predictions last night proved to be pretty accurate: David Davis easily won in yesterday's Haltemprice and Howden by-election, with a solid 72% of the vote. The turnout was 34%, and the Greens pipped the English Democrats to second place by 44 votes, both polling 7%. No other candidates retained their deposits. • David Michael [...] 10:01 am
Same-sex partners have no right to respect for family life, says the Government
One of the things the Labour Government is rightly often given credit for is the introduction of civil partnerships, but does their commitment go more than skin-deep? From a parliamentary question asked by the Lib Dem peer Lord Lester, it turns out that they are currently intervening in an Austrian case before the European Court of Human Rights (Schalk and Kopf -v- Austria, in case anyone wants to look it up) to argue that same-sex couples have no right to respect for their family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Where is the difference between ... 9:51 am
Lib Dems join coalition
Highland Council has a new ruling administration, following agreement between the Independents, the Lib Dems and the Labour party to form a new coalition. I have to say I have some mixed feelings about this. I'm glad that the Lib Dems now have the opportunity to put their ideas into effect on the council and I'm delighted that we are at least making noises about decentralising the way the council operates. It was overly centralised when I was on the council and things have got far worse since then. However, I do wonder about how exactly the coalition will work ... 9:39 am
Good news for someone on government funding
BBC headline no.1 Funding rules 'unfair to England' BBC headline no.2 Funding system for Wales 'unfair' Somewhere I don't think there's going to be a headline no.3 Scots think funding system is too fair to them... 8:56 am
Prestwich Community Plan Agreed
{Love Prestwich Logo} Prestwich Local Area Partnership, which brings together your nine Liberal Democrat Councillors, together with representatives of partner bodies and community groups, have agreed a "Prestwich Community Plan" for 2008-2011. The plan sets out what the Partnership aims to achieve over the next three years to make Prestwich a better place to live and work. There are three overall themes, and within this ten priority areas: GREEN PRESTWICH 1 - Improve Parks and Leisure Facilities (play areas, parks, green spaces - including the Phillips Park development) 2 - Achieve a reduction in car useage in Prestwich (walk to ... 8:42 am
Peter Black slams unrealistic housing targets
The letter in today's Western Mail by South Wales West AM, Liberal Democrat Peter Black, not only exposes divisions in Plaid, but also criticises the Plaid/Labour coalition plan for 6,500 new affordable homes by 2011 as unrealistic. He concludes: 'It demonstrates the danger of setting arbitrary targets when a measurable and precise action plan would be far more efficacious.' 8:28 am
Davis holds in Haltemprice and Howden
Unsurprisingly David Davis has held his seat in Haltemprice and Howden in what was a much lower key by-election than anticipated. Thankfully the Greens beat the English Democrats (following them beating the BNP in Henley the other week) 8:22 am
Olympic legacy - even English tourism will suffer
Last Thursday, the House of Commons Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport reported on tourism. Our shadow minister, Don Foster, said: 'This is a damning indictment of the Government's approach to tourism since 1997. 'Lack of investment in the industry has led to Britain's share of the global tourism market falling. 'Ministers have got to support the industry with more than just words if they are serious about making tourism a key part of the 2012 Olympic legacy.' Wales has its own tourist organisation, which is now an arm of government after the 'bonfire of the quangos'. There was ... 7:58 am
'Childish' political restriction on Clegg's intended visit to care centre
A political party leader wants to meet disabled service users and their carers at a care centre which is under threat of closure. Problem? One would have thought not. Happens all the time. But not according to Conservative controlled Worcestershire County Council. They have banned the meeting with Nick Clegg at the care centre in Pershore, quoting the issue of 'political neutrality'. So it 7:50 am
Jesse Jackson: American broadcasting standards
Nuts N_ts Confused? 7:26 am
And then there were two
So we now have two inquiries into the Barnett formula. Earlier this week the Welsh Government announced that their investigation will be chaired by the former head of the IPPR, Gerald Holtham. Today, the Western Mail reveals that Lord Barnett, who initiated the controversial formula on a temporary basis, has persuaded the House of Lords to hold its own inquiry. A report by the IPPR think-tank published this week suggested the Assembly Government could be getting as much as £2bn a year less than it needs to invest in public services under the current arrangements. The question now is whether ... 7:05 am
Religion Versus Orientation Freedom
'Freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order.' Robert H. Jackson - Former US Attorney General After a few days of the internet cafe at work blocking facebook I got on this morning to see an invite to a group calling on 6:33 am
Prestwich Local Area Partnership 10 July 2008
Last night was the regular meeting of Prestwich Local Area Partnership, this brings together your nine local Liberal Democrat Councillors together with representatives of partner agencies like the Police and NHS, and community group representatives. The main issues that came up were: Area Manager's Report Included in the report of the Area Manager was news of Prestwich's bid to the £1 million that Bury has been awarded for play facilities. These are: - Ballzone at St Josephs Playing Field - Improvements to the Kersal Road playside - Natural play area behind the existing childrens play area on Kings Road. (I ... 6:12 am
Carpenter and kingly candidate gets 25 votes
Slightly late, but here is the final installment of the Haltemprice and Howden by-election leaflets. Thomas Darwood (25 votes) Both my mum (who lives in the constituency) and I were flummoxed by this leaflet which is sub-headed: 'Carpenter from Essex claims he has CV to become future King through political and constitutional reforms' He continues: 'A carpenter from Essex has astonished the 4:29 am
The untidy and expensive message from Haltemprice and Howden
I don't think you can ever discount or ignore people getting off their bottoms and walking to the polling station (or posting their ballot). So 17,113 people voting for David Davis is a fairly powerful message. Having said that, the turnout was 34.5% (Yorkshire Post) which looks fairly ropey when compared to the 50.32 turnout at the Henley by-election just 14 days earlier and the 58.2% turnout at 1:07 am
Davis wins by-election with 75% vote on a 35% turnout
Well, that's what the Yorkshire Post is saying, anyway, as of 12.30 am: David Davis was tonight expected to easily win the Haltemprice and Howden by-election, with supporters predicting he would pick up at least 75 percent of the vote. ... Turnout was annouced officially as 34.5 percent - less than half that at the 2005 General [...] 12:04 am
Now parents need police checks to be with their own children
The other day I quoted a posting from the Civitas blog about a new report Frank Furedi has written for that think tank: The dramatic escalation of child protection measures has succeeded in poisoning the relationship between the generations and creating an atmosphere of suspicion that actually increases the risks to children, according to a new study released today by Civitas.Overstated? You don't know the half of it. Today's papers have been full of reports that a mother has been denied permission to travel to school with her own son because she has not had a Criminal Records Bureau check. ... 12:03 am
An evening at Reading University
A useful evening spent viewing the University of Reading's Halls redevelopment plans. My Lib Dem Council colleagues and I quizzed architects and planners about various issues including the design, sustainability and affordability of the new halls. Overall the approach taken by the University seems sensible, but it will obviously be important that students and local residents are listened to. The exhibition will be running on Friday and Saturday so do take a look. Given the number of private halls springing up all over the place (including the Unite proposal at former UoR property, Mansfield Hall, London Road), it is good ... 
