Today my Lib Dem boyfriend and I climbed a hill in Montgomeryshire. No, Lembit wasn't there hee hee, but we had great sex afterwards in front of the open log fire. My Lib Dem boyfriend was a bit tired after that so we couldn't talk about conference. He was too busy gasping for breath as I spoke at great speed and length about my future campaign to be top of the party. "What...yeah" I think he said. He's so supportive! We have also been discussing, or rather I've been mouthing off, about the Shite Awards on a weird obscure website ...
{memory-stick.jpg} Further revelations have been announced by the Home Office of the loss of personal data, it appears a contractor working in the Department has lost a computer memory stick containing tens of thousands of criminal's details. The Home Office was first told by private firm PA Consulting on Monday that the data might be missing. The lost data includes details about 10,000 prolific offenders as well as information on all 84,000 prisoners in England and Wales. A spokesperson for the Home Office said the police and the Information Commissioner had been informed. The loss is the latest in a ...
{A picture of Norman Lamb} Commenting on today's figures showing that over a million fewer people have seen an NHS dentist since the new dental contract was introduced in 2006, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said: "The Government is in complete denial over the fact that the new dental contract has been an abject failure. "People want to see an NHS dentist, but all the evidence shows they are finding this increasingly difficult. "The crisis in NHS dentistry is Labour's hidden legacy."
Commenting on the fall in Eastern European immigration announced today by the Government, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Vince Cable said: "This is another clear indication that the British economy is very seriously slowing down. "We haven't yet got the figures for the number of Eastern Europeans returning home, but I suspect there will have been a big increase. "If we get into a serious recession, immigration will become negative, as it has before. "I hope that all those people who have been running scare stories about the impact of immigration from Eastern Europe on jobs and housing will now eat ...
Whilst my father's side of my family is fairly well documented, my mother's is all a bit vague. As a result, the opportunity presented by our trip to Scotland to visit my mother's birthplace was not to be missed. My mother was born in Keith, a small town about midway between Aberdeen and Inverness, famous for its distilleries, a quite good Highland League football team and not much else. And I
Conference season draws on apace. Given the cursory attention given to Spring Conference, the media will no doubt be pontificating postulating and palpitating about Nick Clegg's performance at conference. Activists will be looking to him to give a barnstorming performance, the media, armed with microscopic magnifying glasses, will be searching for flaws in that performance. Shortly after conference last year we were thrown headlong into the drama of a leadership election. At the time I nailed my colours, somewhat firmly, to the Clegg mast. So, am I regretting my decision? At autumn conference three years ago I was interviewed by ...
I don't usually blog my press releases from my PPC website on my blog. But I thought this one deserved it, lest people thought the anti-environmentalism Lib Dem blogs reflected the views of the party. Old Bexley & Sidcup Liberal Democrat candidate Duncan Borrowman has have given his strong backing to ambitious calls by Nick Clegg MP for Britain to become self-sufficient in energy. The Liberal
{memory-stick.jpg} Further revelations have been announced by the Home Office of the loss of personal data, it appears a contractor working in the Department has lost a computer memory stick containing tens of thousands of criminal's details. The Home Office was first told by private firm PA Consulting on Monday that the data might be missing. The lost data includes details about 10,000 prolific offenders as well as information on all 84,000 prisoners in England and Wales. A spokesperson for the Home Office said the police and the Information Commissioner had been informed. The loss is the latest in a ...
Axel Peemoeller - Eureka Carpark Melbourne This is, quite simply, brilliant. Very cunning use of perspective in a very practical manner. Wonder if I could persuade NCP to hire him? (tags: design usability architecture perspective signs) azurelunatic: Friending! Everyone's favourite lunatic posts about the etiquette of friending people on LJ. I fall into the "don't ask, there's no point, doing so pisses me off" school, and also the "I add you back if you make interesting conversation" thing. (tags: livejournal etiquette) IndyBlogs: Cyberclinic: The Metering Mystery Why are your phone battery meter and signal meter so crap? Sometimes, it's a ...
The BBC are reporting that Home Office contractor PA Consulting have lost a computer memory stick containing personal details about tens of thousands of criminals. The lost data apparently includes details about 10,000 prolific offenders as well as information on all 84,000 prisoners in England and Wales. This loss is the latest in a whole string of incidents involving misplaced data, including: 17,000 lost National Insurance Numbersthe theft of a laptop with encrypted details of 17,000 Sats markersthe still mysterious disappearance of the details of 25 million child benefit claimants.I feel like I am repeating myself but really, how can ...
A few updates from today ... * This morning the West End Councillors took part in a Logie walkabout with the Logie Residents' Association and Housing Officers to document local issues (both Housing and other - footpaths, street signs, grounds maintenance,etc) - we got round the sheltered housing area (north side of Logie) and will do the "other half" (the south side of Logie) in the near future. * This evening, the West End Local Community Planning Partnership met at Balgay Church - an extremely useful airing of West End issues. * A number of calls and e-mails tonight about ...
Those of us observing this contest from south of the border have got the impression that is is a shoo-in for Tavish Scott over Mike Rumbles and Ross Finnie. But The Scotsman suggests the situation may not be so simple: Insiders say it is unlikely any of the candidates will get the 50 per cent of votes needed to win on the first count, which means the person with the fewest votes will drop out and his supporters' second preferences will prove crucial. The Finnie and Rumbles camps say there is still the possibility of a surprise outcome.One source says: ...
The morning started with a continuation of last night's awful news about the plane crash in Madrid which made me, along with many other people I guess, reflect on how easily such things wipe out lives that should be full of fun and joy and promise. Although I know that statistically I'm safer on a plane than on a bike it's somehow more worrying when the mode of transport isn't in my control.
Commenting on figures showing that house building in England has slumped by 19% in the last year, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said:"With house building hitting rock bottom, this Government's centralised housing targets are beginning to look like nothing more than a pipe-dream. "But unreachable targets will not help the thousands of families in unsuitable housing. "This is yet another example of how divorced this Government is from reality." For more information about Julia and her work click on: http://www.juliagoldsworthy.org/
{nick-clegg-in-grimsby.jpg} Nick Clegg has today visited Grimsby in North East Lincolnshire to meet Cllrs. Andrew De Freitas (the Leader of the Council); Steve Beasant; Steve Hocknell and Tony McCabe. The purpose of his visit was part of his UK tour to launch the Policy Paper "Energy Independence for the UK"; we were naturally pleased that he landed in Grimsby after visiting an offshore energy farm. This the second visit of the Liberal Democrat Leader to Grimsby. e visited just before the local elections and we also had the pleasure of meeting him when North East Lincolnshire Liberal Democrat Group won ...
First Bus has announced price rises of around 6 percent in the Greater Bristol area with effect from Sunday 1st September. They say this is due to the rising cost of fuel. The announcement from First is here. For more details you can click on the "Bristol fares information" link at the bottom of First's announcement.
Let's be honest, for politicians, there are difficult questions like: -How would you solve world hunger? -How would you solve the West Lothian question? -What target would you set for carbon emissions for 2025? ....and then there are really, really tough questions like: -How many houses do you own? ....And of course, US Presidential candidate John McCain couldn't answer such a tricky poser,
Jo Christie-Smith let us know earlier today on her blog that the Who's Who in the Lib Dems Online website is now open for business. Find out more and register to write your own entry, all by following the link from here. I'm sure, the nation over, campaigners are putting down their sodden FOCUS bundles and chewing [...]
As James Graham illustrates.
None of it stolen from Lee this time. Y'all recall Steph's post on photography in public places that I linked to a bit back? rhythmaning had need of it recently, and has blogged about his experience. It makes for sobering reading. It also makes me want to take a camera with me everywhere I go, just to get stopped by the police. I suspect this will be Mark Thomas's next big thing... Via missdiane, an excellent column on the News for Yahoos about the Olympics and the rank, foul, stinkin' hypocrisy of the IOC. What? I had to mention them ...
I'm sad to say that fellow councillor Wayne Hoban is stepping down as a councillor for Alexandra ward. Wayne and his family are making a move to the south coast. Wayne also stood for Tottenham at the 2005 General election. Here he is on election night pictured standing next to Lynne Featherstone, celebrating her election as MP for Hornsey and Wood Green. In Tottenham, Wayne had every reason to smile, as he moved into second place, pushing the Tories into third. Wayne and I were leader and deputy leader of the Lib Dem Council Group together. In fact, we go ...
Nick Clegg is talking some sense again. Which is one of those things I believe defines him from the other party leaders in Westminster. He has unveiled plans for an energy independent Britain by 2050. Of course it wouldn't be easy and that's why Nick Clegg said we need to do a programme on the scale of the Apollo moon mission. He pointed out the crisis in Georgia as a reason for why we need to be energy dependent so we don't have to be dependent on Russia. The Tories have said the plans, "defy reality" and "verge on the ...
The last few weeks in the world of Bury Council have been dominated by the issue of job evaluation / equal pay. As a result of an exercise in job evaluation designed to iron out pay inequalities, lots of Council staff face cuts in salaries. For some the cuts are more than 40% of their wage, a vastly unjust wage cut in anybody's book. But at the same time, lots of staff are gaining, and the cost to the Council of paying for the entire process £7m+ in time-limited pay protection, fees and officer time. The exercise has been extremely ...
Jo Christie-Smith is inviting entries for the new edition of Who's Who in the Liberal Democrats: Who's Who in the Lib Dems is not just for Parliamentarians and the great and the good, they are already covered in the Lib Dems website (and even better on the new Lib Dem website that will be coming soon and I've had a sneak preview of). No, Who's Who in the Lib Dems is also for the rest of us, who whilst happy to do our bit and deliver focuses, would like the rest of the party to know that we can do ...
It was depressing to see that Labour Councillors in the borough this week rubber-stamped efforts by Labour Leader George Meehan to provide councillors with a new, all-singing, all-dancing luxury HQ in Wood Green. Lib Dem Leader Robert Gorrie tried to stop the plans being rushed through earlier in the week, by calling a special meeting of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, but to no avail. The total estimated bill for the refurbishment of Woodside House, a historic building north of the existing Civic Centre, is currently £12 million. It also means that local charity I Can Care are being thrown ...
If you have seen the awards to the side they have been awarded to me by MA who is a new Political Blog critic from Pendle. He only looks at Pendle Based blogs and he has given me the awards of: Best New BlogBest Pendle Blog
With Brown making a surprise visit to Afghanistan and Straw in place by Brown to make the Cabinet for Brown instead of against we need to look ahead at the year from a labour prospectus. The Labour Party still despite all the polls and by election defeats still believes that they can win the next general election. I don't think it can but like i have said in the past it will all come clear in a period of time. Anyway will Straw be able to accomplish the mission of getting cabinet ministers on the side of Brown or will ...
Nearly 40% of people in Swaziland are HIV possitive, giving the small landlocked country one of the lowest life expectancies in the World. 70% of the population live in rural areas and their lives are easily ruined by drought. At the moment a quater of the population are dependent on food aid. It's of course not helpful either that the country is ruled under absolute Monarchy and Pro-Democracy movements are suppressed. The King lives in absolute luxury, in a different World to his people. He just sent 9 of his 13 wives on a shopping trip to Europe and the ...
University College London seems to have been chosen by the Wellcome Trust and the Gatsby Charitable Foundation to host a new £140-million centre dedicated to the research of neural circuits and behaviour. From the UCL website: The Gatsby Charitable Foundation (Gatsby) is delighted that the Wellcome Trust (Wellcome) is collaborating with them for the purpose of developing a new Research Centre in Neural Circuits and Behaviour, to be called the Sainsbury-Wellcome (S-W) Centre, and to support individual researchers in the field of Neural Circuits and Behaviour elsewhere in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Gatsby and Wellcome, advised by ...
Wayne Hoban, councillor for Alexandra ward, has decided to stand down from Haringey Council after six years of working hard for local people. I know this was a difficult decision for Wayne, but following a change of jobs he had to move out of London to be closer to his work. He was a fantastic colleague and we will all miss him. I wish Wayne and his family all the best for the future.
...I'm off on my hols for a bit. In the meantime, if there's anything urgent, Sven and Paul's contact details are here.
Wheat farmers are unable to collect their crops because of the constant rainfall. Many are warning that if the fields don't dry soon, they'll have lost their crops. Food inflation looks set to continue rising. The effects so far have been devastating. Millions of the World's poorest people have been further burdened and more people have been forced into poverty. One thing I believe we need to do, is to stop subsidising biofuels. In a World facing huge population increases, there simply isn't enough space for biocrops, the amount of space necessary is vast. Biofuels are an unrealistic answer, for ...
{offshore-wind-farm.jpg} {nick-clegg-mp.jpg} Visiting an offshore energy farm in the North Sea today, Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg warned that Britain's energy security is under severe threat as a result of the Government's disintegrating energy policy, which has lead to an ever-increasing dependence on vulnerable foreign energy supplies. Setting out Liberal Democrat proposals to secure energy independence for Britain, Nick Clegg argued that politicians of all parties need to demonstrate the kind of vision, application and political will behind the Apollo Project that succeeded in putting man on the moon, in order to head off the threat to the security of ...
I was greatly amused by Labour's latest edition of "Liberal Demolition", a document that is meant to be a weapon in the war against the Lib Dems and a copy of which I have just received. It is produced by John Spellar MP, who I suppose is meant to be Labour's chief attack dog on the Lib Dems. Judging by the shallow drivel he has pulled together, this is an attack dog with no teeth and suffers
{norman-lamb.jpg} Commenting on new figures released by the Conservatives today [Thursday], which claim over 100,000 NHS operations were cancelled last year for non-clinical reasons, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said: "There is a real issue with the number of cancelled operations. They are yet another sign of the unsustainable pressure the NHS is under. "Hospitals are being straitjacketed by this Government. Patient care is coming second to the overwhelming pressure to meet targets. "But there is some doubt about the Conservative analysis. If the figures for Kingston Hospital should have been 190 instead of over 10,000 then the ...
It may surprise regular readers to know that I actually quite enjoy it when the party launches another new energy policy. Not because they're good; I know full well they will be moronic, technologically illiterate and suffused with the very worst in pseudo-religious Church of EnvironMentalism dogma. Nevertheless, there is great humour value in our pontifications; rarely is so imbecilic a policy
{nick-clegg-in-grimsby.jpg} Nick Clegg has today visited Grimsby in North East Lincolnshire to meet Cllrs. Andrew De Freitas (the Leader of the Council); Steve Beasant; Steve Hocknell and Tony McCabe. The purpose of his visit was part of his UK tour to launch the Policy Paper "Energy Independence for the UK"; we were naturally pleased that he landed in Grimsby after visiting an offshore energy farm. This the second visit of the Liberal Democrat Leader to Grimsby, he visited just before the local elections and we also had the pleasure of meeting him when North East Lincolnshire Liberal Democrat Group won ...
Several of our local schools have seen major improvements in GCSE results this year. King Edmund Community School in Yate has had a rise of 20 per cent to 54 per cent of students achieving 5 A* to C grades, with 36 per cent of students achieving five or more A* to C grades including English and maths. Chipping Sodbury School is celebrating its best ever GCSE results with 67 per cent of students achieving five or more A* to C grades, with 53 per cent of students achieving five or more A* to C grades including English and maths. ...
Commenting on today's figures showing that over a million fewer people have seen an NHS dentist since the new dental contract was introduced in 2006, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said: "The Government is in complete denial over the fact that the new dental contract has been an abject failure. "People want to see an NHS dentist, but all the evidence shows they are finding this increasingly difficult. "The crisis in NHS dentistry is Labour's hidden legacy."
{julia-goldsworthy.jpg} Commenting on figures showing that house building in England has slumped by 19% in the last year, Liberal Democrat Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, Julia Goldsworthy said: "With house building hitting rock bottom, this Government's centralised housing targets are beginning to look like nothing more than a pipe-dream. "But unreachable targets will not help the thousands of families in unsuitable housing. "This is yet another example of how divorced this Government is from reality." For more information about Julia and her work click on: http://www.juliagoldsworthy.org/
I guess this betrays how often I look at LDV, but two days ago they published a piece by a republican which contained some hilarious attacks on me (witness Jennie Rigg and others were certainly most riled vs. thankfully others do not share her view coupled with joyous trumpeting of the rectitude of news reporting in the Daily Fail). I feel proper dead flattered by all this attention from you lot, I really do. However, it does cause me to perhaps gather a little bit of evidence for my assertion that most people are quite happy with the monarchy, and ...
Many people lost out through the Equitable Life fiasco. It is now clear that the Government failed in its duty to regulate. Prudence Brown caught out yet again and again and again on issue after issue. This one does though go back to the incompetent Conservatives and their cloud cuckoo economics of the late 1980s. It is also clear that it is now the Governments duty to provide compensation and to...
Have I ever mentioned how much I love BBC headlines? Their obsession to bring everything into a certain word and character limit to ensure it will always fit on a line leads them to end up coming up with some remarkable turns of phrase. Take this for instance: Clegg unveils green energy vision I'm sure I can figure out what that's supposed to mean, but I can't really be bothered. The thing in my head is much more entertaining: {Nick Clegg unveils green energy vision} Share This
Via lonemagpie comes this heartwarming tale in the Daily Fail of one woman and her fight against obscenity. I'm not denying that words have power, and that some words OUGHT to have power, but is anyone seriously suggesting that a nine year old will not have heard the word twat before? Am I the only person in the world who thinks that the power of words ought to be explained to children? You can't wrap them up in cotton wool forever; surely it's better that they face the world equipped to deal with the words they will encounter in it? ...
{A picture of Nick Clegg} On the day that Liberal Democrat Leader, Nick Clegg has called for ambitious action to improve energy efficiency and secure the UK's energy independence, E.ON has announced its decision to raise gas prices by a quarter and electricity prices by 16%. Commenting, Nick Clegg said: "Millions of people will get a huge shock when they realise how much it will cost to heat their homes this winter. For the most vulnerable people the effect will be devastating. "One by one, the major energy companies are lining up to clobber customers with enormous price rises. "Labour ...
I must go on holiday more often. I haven't blogged for nearly three weeks and return to find myself in the top 20 MP blogs as chosen by readers of Total Politics. I'm number 20 so it's not...
I have always had personal doubts over the function of Parish/Town councils. Although I believe that decisions should be taken at the lowest level possible, I haven't been convinced that an extra layer of local government is necessarily the best way to achieve this. Today I was invited to the opening of the Woollard Centre, formally the Roding Centre. This is a community hall in the heart of
Abstract With nothing much else to talk about, again the papers rain on the parade of all those poor students clutching exam results. Is there anyway to put an end to all this nonsense once and for all? Apologies for not posting so much during the silly season (to the twenty or so of you who read this blog). So there is one perennial news story this season and it is, of course, exam results. (I've a professional interest in this matter being, as I am, a teacher.) Usually the story is something like exams are being dumbed down and ...
I was somewhat reluctant to sit down and watch Who do you think you are on BBC1 last night when I realised it was Borat Johnson that was the subject of the programme. It's not just Boris/Borat and his fluffed up, dragged through a hedge backwards look that I find annoying, its his politics. However, I put all my bile to one side and watched the show, and I was really jolly glad I did. Boris has, as it turns out, a fascinating family history, a Turkish great Grandfather murdered by Kemal Attaturk, whilst going back further his family descend ...
Was I the only person this morning who was annoyed and dismayed to see the BBC cut away from the final race in the Star class sailing, a race we won a Gold Medal in, to show a clip of a Dane playing a Croatian at table tennis and presenter Adrian Chiles reaction. What was more important at that very moment ? A British Gold medal or highlights of two non Britons and a presenters reaction to it ?
I don't want to put a downer on our amazing Olympics from a team GB point of view, but I have to ask, as someone who used to run the third leg in 4x100 relay for my school, how difficult is it to pass a baton on properly ? I've just watched the Americans drop the baton and go out (with three other teams) and then watched Great Britain rather bizarrely mess up their last change over with a schoolboy error, and I remember back to the summer of 1986 when as part of my school's team practising for the ...
Cassilis discusses exam grades, and why letting everyone succeed leads to less social mobility, rather than more. Transform eviscerate Ian Oliver's position on drugs. Just imagine if all the money that goes on prohibition went on treatment instead... Brilliant comment on these issues here. Jo Christie-Smith wants you (assuming you're a Lib Dem) to put yourself in th Who's Who. Even if (especially if) you're a lowly blogger. BEWARE, though. The help file is a .pdf. *makes the sign of the evil eye at Adobe* This is why I LOVE Chicken Yoghurt.What? Poverty and shitty, unfulfilling employment should take some ...
Until the end of my first meeting as school governor about a year ago, I didn't know about the term 'SEN', and I certainly had no idea it included all children from those with severe autism to those with a noticeable talent in, say, English, Music or Sport. I've been reading the paper on Special Educational Needs, passed at Spring Conference, which is now policy. It certainly outlines the problems of primary school children being excluded; 87% of those excluded at this level would come into this category. It recommends better ongoing training for teachers. Recently Mark Williams MP has ...
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg has warned that Visiting Britain's energy security is under severe threat as a result of the Government's disintegrating energy policy, which will lead to an ever-increasing dependence on vulnerable foreign energy supplies. Setting out Liberal Democrat proposals to secure energy independence for Britain yesterday, Nick argued that politicians of all parties need to demonstrate the kind of vision, application and political will behind the Apollo Project that succeeded in putting man on the moon, in order to head off the threat to the security of our energy supply. Nick Clegg said: "The Government has been ...
Private Eye has one of my favourite Dumb Britain quiz answers for some time this week, from The Weakest Link: Anne Robinson: Archie Stirling, who launched the Scottish Voice Party in 2007, is the nephew of Sir David Stirling, who in 1941 founded which elite fighting force? Contestant: The Liberal Democrats. Marvellous. Must have been thinking back to the golden by-election days of Brent East, Christchurch, Romsey, Dunfermline West etc etc. Off the top of my head I can't think of any direct links between the Lib Dems and the SAS... although Paddy Ashdown was in the SBS, of course... ...
In today's papers there are an array of interesting articles: Clegg's 'Grand Vision' for renewable energy has been outlined today by Ben Russell of the Independent. The Lib Dem leader demands the same level of political will that put man on the moon to make the UK energy independent by 2050. The BBC today underlines the Lib Dems committment to reduce our dependence on unreliable suppliers of energy and to instead enahnce and harness our own 'green' energy creating resources. Later this month CentreForum will be dealing with some of these issues in a new report. Support for increased numbers ...
With GCSE results out today, there have been some encouraging results across schools in Haringey. Well done to all the students who worked hard to get their results today, in whatever subjects and at whatever grades. Overall, the full GCSE results for Haringey schools show: Students getting 5 or more GCSEs at grades A* - C: (last year's results in brackets) Alexandra Park 73% (52) Fortismere 78% (72) Gladesmore 66% (46) Greig City Academy 48% (64) Highgate Wood 54% (55) Hornsey School for Girls 62% (61) John Loughborough 59% (32) Northumberland Park 63% (70) Park View Academy 58% (59) St. ...
Many fiction writers have finessed the concept of 'literature as place'. Thus Cairo, the biggest city in both Africa and the Arab world, has featured as a principle 'character' in books as varied as Alaa Al Aswany's The Yacoubian Building and Olivia Manning's Levant Trilogy. Now the British journalist (and author of a notable book on [...]
PPP co-chair, but de-facto leader, widower of Benazir Bhutto, Mr 10% Zardari, is likely to be the PPP nomination for President. Parliament approves the President so no plebiscite is required. If nominated, which he probably will be, only the PML-N can stand in his way. Sharif will probably exact some concessions, a government department or two, and the heriditary, undemocratic affair that is Pakistani politics can continue unabated. Huzzah. P.S. I'm in a great mood; my brother just got straight A*s in his GCSEs.
Why not celebrate our rich and varied local heritage by paying a visit (free of charge) to the Great Grimsby Town Hall and Cleethorpes Town Hall on Saturday, September 13, between 10am and 4pm? The Mayor and the Deputy Mayor will be in attendance for part of the day too. Visit the Great Grimsby Town Hall and Time Trap with its old police cells containing a display of police memorabilia from 1846 to 1967 from the old Grimsby Borough Police Force, kindly loaned to the council for the day by avid collector Christian Brydges. Why not pop along to the ...
At last Nick Clegg is talking my language! See here for the BBC report on the Liberal Democrats' new policy for making the UK energy independent by 2050 without new coal or nuclear: And this is the Lib Dem Energy Independence for the UK policy paper.
Well done to the Hastings Against War group who organised a very interesting evening on Tuesday. Our MP, Michael Foster, was invited to speak on Labour's civil liberties record. Fortunately for Michael, there was no vote at the end of the meeting to test whether or not he had persuaded people of his arguments. But there was [...]
The Liberal Democrats are currently reviewing our policy on a range of issues which affect women - and the working group has created a group on Facebook to help reach out to a wider audience. As the group says: Some would ask whether, in the 21st century, it is still necessary to produce policy specifically aimed at women. Why the special treatment? Shouldn't men have tailored policies too? As Liberal Democrats, we are rightly concerned at the injustices that women face in our society. During its work, the group will bear in mind the questions above; after all, often when ...
Next week, if you live in Chessington North and Hook your refuse will be collected on Tuesday, as usual. In fact, all over the Borough refuse and recycling will be collected on the normal day. So what? Well, Monday is a Bank Holiday. In the past there was no collection on Bank Holidays, and everyone's refuse was collected one or even two days later in the...
Thu 21st
09:46
Clegg unveils plans for huge expansion in renewable energy, with energy independence by 2050
The Independent reports: Nick Clegg will today unveil plans to make Britain an exporter of green energy by 2050, as he called for a programme "on the scale of the Apollo moon landings" to transform Britain's dependence on foreign oil, gas and coal supplies. In an interview with The Independent, the Liberal Democrat leader [...]
MacMillan cancer support are currently running a campaign to get free cancer drugs for everyone, diagnosed with cancer who live in England. The link to the campaign is here Currently people who are diagnosed with cancer, in England, have to pay for any treatments, that they get from a pharmacy. This campaign is aimed at Enlgish MPs only. If you, or you know anyone who, has had cancer please take a look at this campaign
You can see Boris Johnson discovering his family history (or at least the interesting part of it) here. Last night's episode of "Who do think you are" on BBC1 was very entertaining. Yes, Boris is a caricature of himself in real life - it has been confirmed. As usual the BBC were very choosy in the lines of Boris' family which were followed up. Apparently Boris had a mother. You wouldn't have
You can only vote in elections if your name is on the Register of Electors. The Register is updated in the autumn each year using the details from the registration forms delivered to every household, which will be sent out shortly. The new register will be published on 1st December. If you've moved since the Register was compiled or have been missed off, you can get your details amended. All you have to do is to fill in a Voter Registration Form. You have to sign your own form, someone else cannot do it for you. Registration forms are available ...
The Urban Neighbourhood Policing team, traffic officers and North Lincolnshire Councils Neighbourhood Enforcement Team currently run Operation Yokohama across North Lincolnshire. The operation sees calls for service attended in relation with complaints of mini motos and off road bikes being used to annoyance of residents in the area. Recent results include two bikes being recovered, one of which had only just been bought for £650 the previous day. A stolen moped has also recovered. Sgt James Main, the officer in charge of the operation said: 'Operation Yokohama has been run each year and over 70 bikes have been taken from ...
Thanks to the hard work of Chris Phillips and Bob I can now announce that of Who's Who in the Lib Dems Online is ready for you all to add your entries. Putting your entry on Who's Who in the Lib Dems is entirely free and the only requirement we have is that you are a member of the Liberal Democrats. If you're not you would like to join you can do so here. For those of you who are already Lib Dem members then please go ahead and place an entry here. No, doubt a number of you will ...
Former Secretary of State for Wales and ex-First Secretary, Alun Michael MP hits back at the Assembly's Presiding Officer in this morning's Western Mail with the rather bizarre claim that the Llwydd is 'undermining devolution'. Many of the differences between the two politicians are of Lilliputian proportions, to the extent that it becomes a little embarrassing watching two grown men arguing over which end of a hard boiled egg they should eat from. However, there is one passage in Alun Michael's rant that strikes at the heart of the misunderstanding between MPs and AMs on this issue. Mr. Michael says ...
A summary of the report from the party reform commission chaired by Chris Bones has now finally become available, for the discussion of it at conference next month. The proposals it makes concerning the future of the party have already been the subject of much heated debate, some of it inaccurate - so now that it is finally available, it seems a good moment to take a look through the main things it says. The first thing to say is that the commission's case for the changes it proposes has been seriously hampered by the frankly dreadful handling of communicating ...
The UK could be "energy independent" by 2050 without building any new coal or nuclear power stations, the Liberal Democrats have said. Party leader Nick Clegg said the kind of "vision" and "political will" that put a man on the moon is needed for energy security to be assured. He proposes to force energy companies to spend £9bn on home insulation and help for those in fuel poverty. The UK is moving from being a net fuel exporter to a net importer. The shift means energy security is currently high on the political agenda. Instead, the party wants the UK ...
To quote from the Stockport Council page: Following extensive resurfacing work on the highway, which required two sections of the A34 central reservation to be removed to allow a contraflow to operate, the Council will shortly begin work to re-instate the central reservation. To carry out the work, the outside lane of the A34 in both directions will be temporarily closed for four days, between 10am and 3pm, Tuesday 26th to Friday 29th August. The single lane closure has been scheduled to take place during off-peak hours to minimise disruption to traffic. The Council apologises for any delays whilst this ...
I am sure you are all familiar with I Can Has Cheezburger, but this is a particularly fine example. Those with a philosophical bent may enjoy the Ontologikewl Proof of Ceiling Cat: Saentcat Anselm was liek Iz gotsa ideah of dis gr8test catbeing. Mai ideah of Ceiling Cat tis in mai miend. Ceiling Cat can bea realz. Srsly. Buttz ifs Ceiling Catz oenly plaeyin in mah hed and maibemietof existead den Ceiling Cat miet has bean moar pwnzor den he rlly is!! Oh noes!! Cuz den Ceiling Catz bigger in mah head den Ceiling Cat is fer realz! Airgoe, dis ...
Tuesday: So Farewell then, Mr Tim Parker. Less Prince of Darkness, more Mr Pound. To the horror of all Conservatories, BoJo the Clown has made it clear that he thinks HE is going to be running London. As his first act, he has written: "If you believe the politicians, we have a broken society... what piffle that is." AS his SECOND act... he has issued a "clarification": "When I said politicians using the phrase 'broken society' were talking piffle, I definitely meant all politicians who AREN'T Mr Balloon, who is a wise and clever egg. Am I still fired, Dave?" ...
One of the first speeches I made in Council after my election last year was to ask for action to be taken against the rogue traders who sell their cheap, auction-bought cars on North Road. Usually there are up to 20 cars at various points between the old Shell garage and Northlands Church in my ward. These cars are unsightly, interfere with residents' access to their houses and undercut
All over the place (BBC website, Guardian letters page, cix conferencing, various corners of t'internet) I keep seeing people asking why our Olympic team is Team GB and not Team UK. I am getting bored with the number of nonsense answers, many making stupid political points (BBC political correctness was the best). The straight answer is that according to the International Olympic Committee's
New stuff! The new plugins work! Excellent! I promise to post with links soon (honest), in the meantime thanks to andrewducker for the new gizmos to get it working, sort of. UK bank chief stung in ID theft scam | The Register Um, oops? Several friends of mine work for HBOS, nice to know their security procedures don't even cover their own cheif exec. (tags: oops hbos banks fraud) drjon: Ruining your flist for the lulz... An argument between churches: do dogs go to heaven? SRSLY, it's fun, go look. (tags: humour religion dogs) Petition to: cancel the proposed ban ...
Andy Mayer asked tonight whether Make it Happen had been made into a song, yet. Apparently the answer is yes! How can we lose?
Saturday: ...is that she guessed my FAVOURITE diary of the year without being told! Day 2466: EXCLUSIVE: Millennium Meets Mr Balloon: the Interview Who can challenge the wisdom of a lady with such PERSPICACITY! It is obvious to everyone that she is going to win this year's Blogger of the Year Award. So that is why I am nonimating... Daddy Alex*. Oh, I am SUCH a naughty gonk! I do hope you'll vote for me anyway! Meanwhile, Daddy has suggested that we all do his TONS OF FUN meme, the awards you cannot lose 'cos you award them to YOURSELF. ...
Sunday (ish... time to make Daddy catch up on those diaries he missed!): Well grant me a professorship with tenure and a pension if it isn't the long awaited return of a George Lucas classic that somehow doesn't QUITE live up to the hype or our memories! Yes, Professor Henry "Indiana" Jones is back in the really rather-too-long-to-type "...and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull". So grabbing my bullwhip and fedora, I open up the secret passage from the Thuggee temple into the back of the cinema to go watch it with my Daddies. History hangs heavy on this film, ...
