Newcastle's appointment of Joe Kinnear as manager, albeit on an interim basis, defies belief, as does the list of names that continue to be associated with the post on a longer-term basis. Kinnear has been out of football management since 2004, and doesn't have the most inspiring record having managed Wimbledon and Luton. This smacks of desperation in the extreme, and was a decision very much out of the blue. Other names that have been linked with the vacancy include Terry Venables, Glenn Hoddle, David O'Leary and George Graham. All are yesterday's men, and have been out of management for ...
Not in a good headspace tonight. dmatthewman: I do intend to reply to your comments. But not right now. And yes, I'm aware I still owe Nich Starling a post too. Really, not right now. I have a bottle of brandy and a box of Star Trek films. I'm going to kill some braincells in the hopes that they'll stop thinking. Thinking is not good at the moment. Oh yeah. Because I'm a masochist I posted to LC asking Labour voters why the hell they vote Labour. Go me.
I read with interest today's announcement of the publication of the "No Choice but Change" report of the Lib Dems Defence Review led by Sir Menzies Campbell. I couldn't agree more with its general arguments. The current situation our military faces is unsustainable. It is ridiculous that we are attempting to fight two conflicts, and can't afford to provide our troops with the equipment they need in the field, nor the care they need when they return, nor the housing they need to live in. Although I have yet to read the full report, the points highlighted by the media ...
I am on the train heading home, having just left Kings Cross. No quibbles tonight about National Express!Anyway, back to the Labour conference and The Rebellion That Never Hapened. It is unwise in politics to expect an opponent to self destruct and disappear. Generally, in politics, opponents do not do your work for you though there are some interesting exceptions to that rule, one of whom I
This morning I gratefully received a copy of the Cardi Bach from Councillor Roy Llewelyn. Free of Charge. The Cardi Bach is a monthly newspaper Bro Dyffryn Taf or the Land and Valley of the River Taf. It serves rural West Carmarthenshire, North Pembrokeshire and South Ceredigion. If there is ever a truly Welsh newspaper this is it. Its 100% Welsh language. I would like to say its a great read but i do not read Welsh very well at all. I'm sure it is! The photos in it are really great which make up for my lack of Cwmraig. ...
The Western Area Partnership Board doesn't usually have money to spend because that's not how things work. However, a new government initiative to focus funding on getting more people into work will mean a small amount of money targeted at our area. We're not talking about major projects here, but finding ways to help those who need a helping hand - maybe because they've been made redundant,
I've just listened to Chris Huhne's slightly intemperate demolition of Chris Grayling on Any Questions. It was good to listen to, and I hope the Lib Dems have grasped that the Conservative vulnerability on the issue of the global financial meltdown is something that needs to be exploited. But not just exploited. We need to build a philosophy on it which embraces the other issues as well. That's what you might call a narrative. David Cameron's embrace of the hedge funds is a major Achilles Heel. Not just because they have been his funders but because, overwhelmingly, they are his ...
Another irrelevant blog entry ... but an all time classic, from the late Patsy Cline.
Have you noticed The Avengers is back on, late on Friday nights on BBC4? If not, consider this a Christmas present. A Christmas present? Well, it's September, so what could be more natural than shops stuffed with Advent Calendars and stockings full of chocolate, and The Avengers' Christmas special showing at 12.40 in the morning? And it's (forgive me) a cracker, too, plunging Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg into a Dickensian nightmare that's one of the very best of the series. What's in Steed's Christmas stocking? Is he really losing his mind? Is telepathy real? Tune in and find out. ...
I doubt you have. The hedge funds have come under a lot of criticism recently. The latest has come from the Church of England. And in case you didn't know it, the hedge funds are the ones selling short. During the last two weeks, the media and political narrative is that short selling has undermined our financial system. I am not an economist and certainly no financial expert. I have never worked in the City. I can't, and am not trying to, defend hedge funds for those very reasons. In fact, I struggle somewhat to stay on top of the ...
Not for wasps or social butterflies but for people from overseas working in the UK. This Independent article today describes how Mrs Smith is making overseas workers carry these plastic I.D. cards. A waist of money? Or an attempt to alienate immigrants further? Or a way for police officers to routinely question non-wasp looking people about there status? As a student a decade and a half ago I did some nightshifts in a factory. In brought me into contact with Czech fellas who worked this factory. This Industrial Unit would not have run without them. 6pm-6am in the morning. All ...
The Gimmick of Lembit "Primary colours, not pastel shades"
Hubris is a terrible thing. One minute you are celebrating how clever you are for predicting the narrative of Gordon Brown's speech and the next minute you are asked by Charlotte Gore what do you think Cameron will say. As I have built myself up as an expert on narrative, I have no choice but to make a prediction. Inevitably, I will get it wrong. But here goes. Cameron is in the best of worlds and the worst of worlds. Labour is significantly behind in the polls. Brown built his reputation as the man of prudence and now we have ...
Welsh Liberal Democrats today branded a Plaid Cymru-inspired attempt to allow flags on license plates as "stupid" and "wasteful" - but said they won't block the extra powers for Wales. Janet Ryder intends to use one of the few opportunities AMs have to change Welsh law. Of all the possibilities to change the nation, Ms Ryder wants the Assembly to have the powers to legislate to allow Wales' national flag "y draig goch" to appear on vehicle number plates. Transport spokesperson Kirsty Williams said: "AMs who aren't in the government have just a few opportunities each Assembly term to put ...
The Crossrail Act received Royal Assent on 22 July, and soon construction works will start, including big changes at Farringdon. Cross London Rail Links (CLRL), Crossrail's promoter, has organised a series of Information Centres along the route. The next one for the Farringdon area will be at Alan Baxter & Assocs LLP, 77 Cowcross Street, EC1M [...]
After the closure of Burnley A&E Someone Started a Petition on the Downing Street Website that I signed and now the Government have give us this shoddy Reply: Although the Department of Health provides strategic leadership to the NHS, it is for local NHS organisations to plan, develop and improve services for local people. Decisions about the reconfigurations of local NHS services are the responsibility of the local NHS and are driven by local clinical need. The decision to approve the reconfiguration of services across East Lancashire was made by Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale Primary Care Trust (PCT), Hyndburn and ...
The Church of England has published a prayer for these turbulent financial times: Prayer for the current financial situation Lord God, we live in disturbing days: across the world, prices rise, debts increase, banks collapse, jobs are [...]
Empire Magazine has published its Top 500 all time greatest films. Some surprises, and there are inevitable problems with popular polls purporting to list timeless classics - The Dark Knight is ranked surprisingly highly for example. But as with all of these polls, I thought I'd go down the list and see which films I haven't seen. I actually do quite well, having seen 41 out of the top 50 and 69 of the top 100 (I gave up after that), but there are some embarrassing gaps in my film knowledge. The problem is time - I can only see ...
The New Statesman website has an article on the Lib Dem robocalling debacle:The worry for ambitious Liberal Democrats is not just that the plan Clegg announced to cold call 250,000 people turned out to be an embarrassment: it is that those around him were so besotted with the idea.I wonder who wrote it? Upon studying the site, I find it was me.
...can be found on Comment is Free: These questions, for the Lib Dems at least, are important. The party president is not a figurehead but an executive role. I happen to think that the more focused Lembit who ran a highly organised campaign four years ago would have done a much better job than Simon Hughes. But now? He says he wants the role but all his actions suggest that his campaign is little more than an afterthought. Whether that is complacency or apathy, it is the last thing the party needs right now.
Yes, isn't that great to know? John McCain has apparently won the first Presidential debate even before he has arrived in the town where it will be held in eight hours time! Well, so says internet advertising already being shown - see screenshot above. It reminds me of "DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN".
The five yearly elections for the European Parliament usually bring the Liberal Democrats a few headaches. We now have 11 MEPs and they make a real difference. (Take just one example: Chris Davies's high-profile work on carbon capture and storage and cutting vehicle emissions.) But many Liberal Democrat supporters simply don't turn out to vote for the party at the Euro-elections; they are even less inclined to vote than other parties' supporters. After every European election, we hear claims that the party hierarchy didn't take the election seriously enough. There's also the perennial tussle over whether to fight the elections ...
I have today been exploring what came before the welfare state that we currently enjoy, and discovered, unsurprisingly, that there have always been a proportion of the population unable to support themselves. I am ashamed at my lack of attention to this until now, however better late than never. The poor laws date back to the 1500's, where distinctions were drawn between the various types of poor people: Can't find work, won't work and can't work. 'Won't Work' types appear to have been a universal bogeyman for humanity presumably before this date. The emphasis in handling the poor was 'punishment' ...
Just how did the banks manage to loose so much money? Could it involve fraud, massive fraud a la Enron? Its beginning to look very much as if it does. Within days of the Lehman bankruptcy the market price of its bonds collapsed revealing a whopping $110bn black hole in its balance sheet just days after they were saying that a mere $10bn would fix their problem. As a posting on the Naked Capitalism blog earlier today puts it: Now is there a precedent in this history of bankruptcy–excluding cases of accounting fraud–where bonds collapsed like this once a bankruptcy ...
MEP's who backed the Campaign to censor blogs, I have one thing to say to you and one thing only HA HA! In the European Parliament MEP's voted about the issue of Censoring Blogging and the group of MEP's who backed the case for censoring Blogs got their ass's kicked Left Right and Centre and the Campaign was thrown out of Parliament. You Can read more about this HERE. I don't know how our good friend Karim Voted but if anyone knows Please leave a comment!
52) Henry George, Progress and Poverty (London: Hogarth 1979, ISBN not given). This was recommended to me by a chap on the ALTER stand at Conference. I had asked for something that might explain why they think land value tax would be a good idea for residential properties as well as commercial ones, since my personal, albeit relatively uninformed view is that there would be very serious unintended consequences. I did enquire whether they had something more up-to-date (this is the centenary edition, so the book was first published in 1879), but was told this was really the clearest account. ...
So Somali pirates have seized 33 tanks and associated spare parts with the capture of an Ukrainian ship off the Somali coast.. And Russia is apparently considering sending warships to the Arabian and Red seas to carry out anti-Piracy patrols. This would be alongside the existing international 'Combined Task Force 150' (which includes Royal Navy vessels) which undertakes anti-piracy operations in the region. Things seem to be hotting up at sea. Piracy is no joke in today's world as noted before here and here.. What I do hope is an amusing misunderstanding is this report in Lloyds List "British Foreign ...
A report from international aid agencies has said that the 'Quartet' of the USA, EU, Russia and the UN is failing in its attempt to bring a settlement to the Israel/Palestine problem. Perhaps the headline should be that anyone is in any way surprised that this is the case, given its membership. The USA has done more than most to destabilise the Middle East through its shoring up of Israel without using any of its considerable leverage to force that country's government to do anything to resolve the regional situation, not to mention the various notorious forays into the region ...
Or how to torpedo your own campaign in one easy lesson. John McCain is doing his best to avoid looking presidential in the debate over the Wall Street bailout plan. He's getting blamed for putting a spanner in the works of the proposed deal on the subject. I particularly liked this quote, comparing McCain to Dubya: "Bush is no diplomat," said a Democratic staffer, "but he's Cardinal freaking Richelieu compared to McCain. McCain couldn't negotiate an agreement on dinner among a family of four without making a big drama with himself at the heroic center of it. And then they'd ...
I've decided to use this blog for my eco musings from now on - hence the name change to www.ecocouncillor.org.uk. After all, the main reason I went into active politics was climate change, and I am Chair of Camden Council's Sustainability Task Force, so it seems reasonable to concentratrate my fire on environmental issues. But I can't resist a quick comment on yesterday's by-election in Hampstead Town which the Conservatives lost to the Lib Dems despite starting as overwhelming favourites to hold the seat. That's the second Tory loss since the local elections in 2006. They lost the other seat ...
Greenwich BNP are claiming that Richard Barnbrook made the complaint about the employment of Henry Conway. Saying "Although the media are loathe to say so, the original complaint was made by our very own BNP Sleazebuster, Michael Barnbrook." Two things: 1. Mr Barnbrook made the complaint about Freddie Conway. I made the complaint about Henry. 2. He was actually a UKIP member, not a BNP member,
Jack Allen holdings have put in a planning applicaton to build a resource recovery park to deal with waste - including storage tanks, a gas holder, a processing building and other buildings on land next to Stalbridge Dock in Garston. The Council has sent letters out to a wide area about this, but there will always be residents who live just beyond this area. And its important that everyone who wants to know about this, does. The plans can be seen at the planning office in Millennium House on Victoria Street. They'll also be available on line shortly at www.liverpool.gov.uk/Environment/Planning. ...
Camden LBC, Hampstead Town LD Linda Chung 1242 (44.1; +11.5) Con 1114 (39.6; -6.9) Lab 289 (10.3; -1.0) Green 140 (5.0; -3.3) BNP 29 (1.0; +1.0) [Ind (0.0; -1.3)] Majority 128 Turnout 36.7% LD gain from Con Percentage change is since May 2006 Chiltern DC, Chalfont St Giles Con 927 (68.1; +0.6) LD Paul Meakin 434 (31.9; -0.6) Majority 493 Turnout 25.4% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2007
I discovered many joys when I moved house this year. I no longer had to wade through piles of boxes every time I moved from one room to the next, because we lived in a dwelling larger than a postbox. I could sit outside without being leered at from a looming block of flats overhead. And I could sit in the bathroom without feeling like I was inside the world's biggest petri dish. Perhaps the biggest joy of all though was discovering that Drinkwater Park was on my doorstep. This unsung green corner of the Borough is an absolute gem, ...
Carshalton and Wallington Labour Party has lost a case over the suttonlibdems.org.uk domain name, which it had registered. Gerry Jerome from Sutton Liberal Democrats took the case through Nominet's Dispute Resolution Service, which concluded that Labour's action in registering the domain name and using it to urge people to vote Labour amounted to an "abusive registration". Unless [...]
Having spent the morning doing multiple tasks concurrently I decided to look at the focus of one task that Senator John McCain seems to want to have today. When he suspended his campaign on Wednesday he said: "I am calling on the President to convene a meeting with the leadership from both houses of Congress, including Senator Obama and myself. It is time for both parties to come together to solve this problem. " However, that's all well and good but when the President is on your side but it's your own party that is the stumbling block you're supposed ...
I see the Tories at Suffolk County Council are putting saving money ahead of our local children's education. Uproar (quite rightly) about plans to merge Houldsworth Valley with my old school of Paddocks and create a mega primary on the Houldsworth Valley site. The probable disappearance of the play areas except a concrete playground for 420 kids to exercise and play in. As well as a school where kids as young as five can fall out of the system. I do hope we get a chance to vote next year for the Suffolk County Council elections and give the Tories ...
The Project manager has resigned, not a problem we are told on a project alrady millions of pounds over budget. Councillors are to get another tour next week to see the project.
So Whitehall is quietly trying to undermine EU green targets by opposing the inclusion of aviation? Spread the word. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7636780.stm
I haven't had much time to blog, look forward to a belated conference round up sometime this millenium........but having now returned from Labour Party Conference and a couple of days in Belfast a quick personal update. On Wednesday I went with my mum to my sister's case conference. Before the meeting she was worrying about staying in the unit, she hated it, she found it frightening. But as we sat there nearly everyone in the room came up to tell us how special she was, how she looked after everyone, especially moving was hearing from a woman who never had ...
In this country, there can be few worse affronts to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, than the practice of imprisoning innocent children. Yet that is what is happening, here and now, just a few miles from where I sit, in Yarlswood Detention Centre. The New Statesman has some powerful articles and a petition, which I hope you will join me in signing, calling on the Home Secretary to honour our commitments, to quote: "The government's stated policy has been to detain children "only when absolutely necessary and for the shortest possible time". In reality, however, children ...
Calls in the European Parliament for bloggers to be registered by government received a lot of coverage in a recent Britblog Roundup here. EU Observer reports that the idea has died a death:MEPs passed a resolution with 307 votes to 262 calling on the European Commission and member states to safeguard pluralism amongst newspapers, television programmes, radio and on the internet in an era of ever-concentrating media ownership.The resolution also called for "an open discussion on all issues relating to the status of weblogs" - much softer language regarding blogs than had earlier appeared in the report on which the ...
Now that nominations have closed for Liberal Democrat Party President I have launched a poll at www.colin-ross.org.uk
It's quite sad to see the Tories crushed by fear of a foaming left wing electorate that they feel that they have to publish this sort of complete twaddle: "In a world where our economy is richer but our society is poorer, we must recognise that we're all in this together and not allow anyone to be left behind. The speed at which the modern world changes can be exhilarating, but also disconcerting. So it's more important than ever to strengthen the ties that bind society together and provide reassurance and stability: Family; Community; A Sense of Responsibility." Economy richer ...
Early this morning Linda Chung was elected as the Liberal Democrat councillor for Hampstead Town. Linda won the seat from the Conservatives with a massive swing and overturned a Tory majority of 549 votes to secure her own majority of 128. The figures in full: HAMPSTEAD TOWN WARD (Camden Council) Liberal Democrat 1242 (44%, +11.5%) Conservative 1114 (39%, -6.9%) Labour 289 (10%, -1%) Green 140 (5%, -3.3%) BNP 29 (1%, +1%) Liberal Democrat gain from Conservatives The result is a huge personal tribute to Linda and I'd like to take this chance to express our sincere gratitude to the voters ...
Not exactly suprisingly, the talks in the US have stalled. Somehow I doubt whether the Democrats and Republicans can bring themselves to agree on the sky's colour, let alone an economic plan that will put huge strain on whatever government follows Bush's rule. Impasse is an ugly word, but there is a little part of my head that is urging this great spiderous catastophe on. A crunch on a scale like this is bad - imagine the damage to the American economy if it continued for two or three years. It might finally persuade more Americans to get up and ...
This is an entertaining way to spend a minute or two: The Tory Waffle Wall, where lots of ordinary, down to earth posh people from London tell us why they're Conservatives. The variety of answers is remarkable, and demonstrates, I think, the power of saying nothing and letting people just make it up themselves. But, if there's a theme, it's "I'm a Conservative because they will end the nanny state and they'll make us healthier and safer." This I'm looking foward to seeing.
No Mottram Bypass has the story, all of which reminds me of this YouTube clip of James Purnell being interviewed. Very much one from the "how not to handle a difficult question" pile. Hat tip: Dizzy Thinks: Is Purnell clearing out his skeletons?
My latest Guardian blog, looking at pensions, fairness, and Labour's prospects, is now online.
In addition to the gain off the Conservatives in Hampstead Town (Hampstead and Kilburn constituency), there were three other excellent Liberal Democrat results last night in key Parliamentary constituencies: on Truro City Council, the Liberal Democrats took a seat off Mebyon Kernow (Truro and Falmouth constituency), in Alfriston ward, Wealden District Council, the Liberal Democrats [...]
Mark Pack has produced a reasoned defence of his readership of the Daily Mail over on Liberal Democrat Voice. Now, far be it from me to tell people which newspaper they like their dog or pet rabbit to savage before they settle down to toast and coffee but since Mark has bravely made an entire article out of his reading habits there can be no complaint if a reply is written. There is no doubt the Mail has a large readership but I see that as no reason to add to it. His second point is totally flawed; "Very large ...
From her manifesto Ros Scott seems like a deep-thinking completer-finisher. I like that. She's answered the questions I have about the Presidency and I look forward to enthusiastically voting for her!
It is now nine months since my complaint to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner about Derek Conway's employment of his son Henry. politics.co.uk report that the Commissioners office say that: ...the complaint [is] the subject of a current on-going investigation. But they would not comment on the specifics of the case or length of the investigation.As they say, I have written to Norman Baker
It's been a pretty hectic week, what with nominations closing, the election address artwork to submit and the manifesto to finalise. Visits to local parties continue apace. On Monday I made the short trip (compared to some of my recent visits anyway) to Wokingham, at the invitation of PPC Prue Bray. My daughter worked with Prue in the run up to the 2005 General Election, so this is the area where I'm known as Sally's mum. It works for me. Prue took the opportunity to report back to members on conference, to talk about the "Million Door"challenge and to answer ...
Last night I was watching the mildly interesting Cutting Edge programme "The Virgin Daughters" on Channel 4. It's all about girls pledging to abstain from sex, or even kissing, until they're married and follows the slightly-disturbing "my heart belongs to daddy" line of thinking. Seemed to work out fine for some and less so for others. Although this movement is pretty small, I was struck by the double standards we still have towards the sexuality of young people, and the assumption that all fathers want to protect their daughters from the evils of sex and the horror of having some ...
From yesterday's Guardian: ID cards for foreign nationals are the thin end of the wedge, whatever they look like - and the home secretary, who unveiled their design today, knows it. Here's how it goes: Step 1: Target a weak group who have no political voice in the UK and who benefit from little public backing or [...]
Sadly, not all in the same story, but here are three worth a look: Labour plans online rapid rebuttal unit - Liberal England has the story. Conservative MP Richard Benyon confirms he pulled his blog due to the rules over what his MP allowances can be spent on - Liberal Burblings has the story. Car lobby loses fight [...]
I am being spoilt at the moment. My nearest and dearest has given me tickets for Newbury Corn Exchange to see several of my heroes in quick sucession. Coming up are Ed Byrne and Barry Cryer. Last night I had the great pleasure to be entertained, together with 200 other West Berkshire folk, by Rabbi Lionel Blue. At the venerable age of 78 he stood in the middle of the stage for two hours and
Over the past couple of years I have had a steady stream of emails from US Democrat worthies, including Barack Obama, Jo Biden and Howard Dean, but that's not particularly surprising as I actually signed up to receive regular postings from their party. But this morning, out of the blue (or maybe I should say [...]
Last month, I blogged about the latest report on child poverty. For all Labour's rhetoric, the reality is that 3.9 million children - one in three - are currently living in poverty in the UK. As the End Child Poverty campaign points out, this is one of the highest child poverty rates in the industrialised [...]
A pastiche after Tom Harris MP GORDON Brown really hasn't been very lucky in his short time as Labour leader, has he? First there was his anointed to the leadership as nobody then wished to stand against him which hardly gives him a mandate. Then there was the Miliband article which ended up with the clarion call to make our case afresh and a will he/won't he challenge suspense ever since. Then there was the sudden reappearance of the tax he'd taken away in his last budget as chancellor in September pay packets. Then he couldn't quite remember who was ...
If you go down to Kingston today or tomorrow, you're sure of a big surprise. Except you won't be surprised now, because I've told you what is happening. From dusk (ie about 7.30pm) to 10pm there will be projections all around the Market Place and Guildhall, with film, images and sound. They will include original photos from the Muybridge collection; Eadweard Muybridge, who came from...
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has said the Liberal Democrats have broken privacy rules by using automated phone calls to voters.
Of course having endorsed Lembit, I suppose I had to expect the inevitable string of emails. There is a certain tendency in the party; it's the 'I'm an Activist, so I know best.' Tendency. Their Liberalism is usually preached rather than practiced. It's probably best summed up by someone who should know better telling me that Lembit is just like Boris Johnson, so I should support Ros because she is 'one of us'. Who are what 'us' are is not clear to me, but whatever or whoever 'us' is, please include me out. But the reference to Boris Johnson puzzles ...
I joined the party in 1991. But I only really got involved at grassroots level after I started working in the party in 2000. And like many other enthusiastic people who start helping at local level I rapidly found myself as chair of my local party. And like many other people in my position I had [...]
Lembit has put a video up on YouTube (hat-tip: jamesgraham_rss): It's... interesting. Perhaps it's because it's a walk and talk, but (as James says) he does seem almost angry in it, and there is an ordering, rather than asking, quality to his appeal for our votes. Even in the music. And yet, because it's Lembit he's not threatening when he issues orders, he's almost endearing. Almost. I defy you to watch that video and not think of Mr Motivator. And then there's the little digs at the opposition. Always been a Lib Dem Loyalist is obviously a dig at Chandila, ...
Following on the two LibDem Voice posts on this subject, the Newbury Weekly News this week carries the following article: Blog bogged down by political comment NEWBURY MP Richard Benyon has been forced to take his blog offline less than a week after its launch. Parliamentary authorities told Mr Benyon that it could break strict rules about MP's communications expenses, because it contained
Have received the following update from the City Council about this long-standing issue; good to see it finally resolved : Station Overbridge The first phase of work on the Central Waterfront re-aligned South and West Marketgait in 2005. As part of this phase the pedestrian bridge that ran from the station to the Nethergate Centre was removed on16 & 17 Aug 2005. The pedestrian crossing at road level that is now located at the south end of Union St replaced it. This works well, is more convenient and is far better for disabled people or those with pushchairs and luggage ...
Many thanks to all those who took part in my quick quiz. Most people got the right answer, but quite a few got wrong answers. Here's the full SP. The question was: Which of the following has nothing to do with the US Presidential election? The correct answer was 519, which was a random number I thought of, and then checked on Google to confirm it had nothing to do with the election. (Although
The European Parliament met in full sitting this week for our formal debates and votes. Again we were in Brussels instead of Strasbourg, though our Strasbourg chamber has been repaired and we'll be back there next month (despite the best efforts of many Liberal Democrats to keep us permanently in Brussels from now on). We gave a first reading to Bills on telecommunications (reinforcement of consumers' rights, better co-ordination of radio frequencies, co-ordination at EU level of the work of national regulatory bodies); and a second reading approval to a package of maritime measures (a draft directive on flag states ...
It's called "I've Never Seen Star Wars". In it he finds a celebrity and gets them to try perfectly ordinary things that they have never done before. If you listen to the first episode, you can hear Paul Daniel's laying landmines under my assertion that not all Northern men are misogynistic arseholes (Oi, shut it females, I'm from the North!)... It is quite amusing, but I do find myself laughing at Daniels, rather than with him. This is a shame because when I was seven I was a huge fan, and wrote him a letter, and got a postcard back ...
It is laughable that McCain has "suspended his campaign" to solve the financial crisis. He has admitted, as at Tuesday, that he had not read the draft bail-out plan. He didn't fly to Washington until 24 hours after his announcement of "suspension". And several observers say that he was very quiet in the "High Noon" meeting chaired by Bush yesterday, and, indeed, didn't speak until 43 minutes into
Posted by Chris: I was interested to read the posting by Mark Pack on Liberal Democrat Voice about why he reads the Daily Mail. I was surprised to learn that 980,000 Lib Dem voters read the paper. I thought I was the only one. My reasons for reading the Mail are nothing to do with the political coverage, though I do wish they gave more balanced coverage to the Lib Dems. I like the Coffee Break pages with a choice of eight Sudoku puzzles and a crossword that I can actually do. I always go straight to the Questions page ...
A couple of things that have amused me this morning: The questioner on Radio Wales asking an interviewer if what he would say if he had George Bushes' ear? My first thought was "go to hospital and get that sewn back on." Other (more serious) answers in the comments. The interview with the scientist working on the Cern Hadron Collider which revealed that one of the delays in resuming their work is the cost of electricity over the winter months. Yes, we know what you mean! A poster advertising a lecture in the Assembly on Tuesday entittled 'Alcohol and Violence: ...
The Forestry Commission is finding out what local people think about the LIVIA Community Woodland in Prestwich. This is a new series of parkland areas in the Irwelll Valley. They are holding a community consultation on Saturday 27th of September to discuss the LIVIA project with local residents and community organisations. The event will be from 1-5pm at The Phoenix Centre St. Mary's Park, St. Mary's Rd, Prestwich M25 1GG. {Livea Consultation} There will be a light lunch, a site visit, afternoon tea and a lively discussion. For more information please call Paul or Charlotte at Pathways on 0161 273 ...
Fri 26th
07:45
LDV post-conference members' survey (4): what you thought of Make It Happen's tax-cuts
Over the weekend, Lib Dem Voice emailed the members of our private forum (open to all Lib Dem members) inviting them to take part in a survey, conducted via Liberty Research, asking a number of questions arising from last week's party conference in Bournemouth. Many thanks to the 187 of you who completed it; we're [...]
cc: OFCOM, Stephen's Linlithgow Journal Dear Sirs, My understanding of election coverage is that the media has to maintain balance in its coverage. 6.2 Due weight must be given to the coverage of major parties during the election period. Broadcasters must also consider giving appropriate coverage to other parties and independent candidates with significant views and perspectives. Last night on STV's Politics Now show you featured the Glenrothes by election and had the Labour and SNP candidates only. Are you deciding who the people of Glenrothes should be voting for and excluding Harry Wills, Liberal Democrat and Maurice Golden, Conservative ...
Lembit's Presidential Campaign Video. The Ordinary guy for the Ordinary Party...
From PR Week: the Labour Party is exploring plans for an online rapid rebuttal unit, designed to kill off damaging stories circulating in the blogosphere.Former lobbyist Derek Draper will oversee the initiative, having recently been called in by Labour's general secretary to advise on how the party can communicate its message.Labour strategists are keen to respond to the growing influence of right-wing blogs. The eventual system could resemble a modern-day version of Labour's famous Excalibur unit, which was successfully used to kill negative stories by Tory-supporting newspapers in the run-up to the 1997 general election.Draper will meet sympathetic bloggers and ...
I duly addressed conference on melting polar ice caps and considering that it was the graveyard slot of 0915 on Sunday morning the turnout in the hall was admirable. I was one of those who put in a card in the debate on the Make it Happen document. I am one of the 16 reps who had proposed the amendment. I was not called = no surprise or complaint about that, but what I would have said, if called, was that the amendment should be passed because of the bit that most speakers ignored, except for Richard Grayson, mover of ...
Just what was new Nu-Labour Scottish MSPs leader Iain Gray implying when he said that a Scottish Local Income Tax would affect Scottish jobs with HBOS? Surely the man who is leader of only 45 other people isn't implying that a bank should be setting policy in Scotland? Last time I checked the board of Lloyds-TSB were not members of the Scottish Parliament. Also last time I checked Gordon Brown wasn't chief executive of Lloyds-TSB-Halifax-Bank of Scotland. So just what is Gray up to? Is he using a crisis for political gain? Scaremongering on a new tack with the same ...
More than half of US school kids support a ban on ubiquitous pollutant" dihydrogen monoxide, according to research published by the Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division. Full story in New Scientist.
With Bonfire night approaching, the police, fire, transport, youth and local authority services are each considering how they can ensure that Bonfire night is as safe and enjoyable as possible for everyone. In order to ensure effective patrolling of the Borough during the Bonfire period, the team at "Bury Safe" (Police, Council etc) hope to put together a comprehensive list of organized events across the Borough, so that resources can be used efficiently. If you are involved with organising a council run or private Bonfire or firework event or know of any in the immediate vicinity, please send in the ...
As one might expect Bethan Jenkins' new website has attracted the attention of her local newspaper, the weekly Neath Guardian. The paper glories in the bright shiny-ness of the site and the opportunities it offers for interaction with the Plaid Cymru Regional Assembly Member. Unfortunately, despite the fact that Bethan has a column later on in the same newspaper complete with portrait photo, the Neath Guardian's sub-editors still seem confused as to who exactly she is. I cannot say who the person in the photo illustrating the website story is but it is certainly not Bethan as the caption suggests. ...
At Liberal Democrats Conference they was one Political Commentator by the name of Sir Michael White who really enjoyed himself. This is a Pic from the Blog of Guido showing how interested he was to be outside a Labour Lunatic Free Zone.
I've resisted requests to set up a post Where's Lemby? Lembit watch, but this strange video can't go unmentioned: Is it me or does he come across as rather aggressive, roaming his "ordinary street" and emphasising how he goes "ROUND... THIS... COUNTRY!" The overall effect is rather reminiscent of a certain Verve video: Don't you think it would have been so much better if he'd careered into a few innocent bystanders a la Richard Ashcroft? At least this video doesn't feature a riverboat steamer.
Apparently McCain has put a spanner in the works regarding the bailout - and has lined up against the Republican House and Senate members. I thought there was something fishy going on when i saw the smirk on that snake's face when he was seated around the table. He's betting on the Dems agreeing with the bailout [...]
For the last few weeks along with many colleagues I've been working to ensure a Liberal Democrat victory in the Winchester City Council byelection in Colden Common & Twyford. We had an excellent candidate in Daryl Henry but a very strong challenge from the Conservatives. The byelection was today and this was the result: Liberal Democrat (Daryl Henry) 1180 54.1% Conservative 935 43% Labour 64
Continuing the party's excellent run of by-election results in Camden (and more generally in North London), Linda Chung is the new councillor for Hampstead Town ward: Liberal Democrat 1,242 (44.1%, +11.5%) Conservative 1,114 (39.6%, -6.9%) Labour 289 (10.3%, -1.0%) Green 140 (5.0%, -3.3%) BNP 29 (1.0%, +1.0%) Majority: 128 (4.5%) Swing: 9.2% Conservative to Liberal Democrat Congratulations Linda, and a good sign for [...]
Wednesday: In a DRAMATIC development in the election in Americaland, Senator Oven-Chip has announced that since he's dropped ten points in the polls he's taking his ball and going home. So nyer! Does this indicate that Senator Oven-Chip is uncertain of his ability to WALK and CHEW GUM at the same time? Or is he trying to distract attention from the discovery that his campaign manager was getting $15,000 a month from Freddie Big-Mac right up until the Monkey-in-Chief nationalised it, something that the Senator had specifically denied? Or is it just another stunt like choosing "Caribou Barbie*" for Veep, ...
