Just who makes these rules up I wonder. I heard tonight that in an extension to a listed building some of the work in some categories can be VAT exempt, but not others in no logical order with a similar silly set of rules for VAT on fees (and not the reduction on VAT is not going to make much difference). I light-heartedly suggested that a lady who is going to be laid up after an operation and...
Isn't life just great when the perpetrator of a multi-billion pound finance fraud is called 'Madoff', pronounced on most of the news services 'made off'. Fabulous!
Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority Women Councillors Taskforce Outreach Event Friday 12th December 2008 The Guildhall, George Hall, South Road, Swansea, SA1 4PE We are looking for black and ethnic minority women who may be interested in standing for their local council to attend this event in Swansea. A flyer can be found at by clicking here. This is an exciting opportunity to hear from Baroness Gale, the Wales Commissioner for the Women's National Commission and Yvonne Jardine, Government Taskforce member, about how they got involved in public life and what it means to them. Participants will be given the ...
Like around 99% of the world's population, I'm no fan of the current US President but I don't wish him any personal harm. I threfore would not support or defend the actions of the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at the American President as a 'farewell kiss' from the Iraqi people. However, there is something rather poetic about this attack. This is a traditional Arab insult, as witnessed by the images after the fall of Saddam of an Iraqi rubbing a picture of the dictator with his sandal and then, in an image the BBC later cut out, rubbing ...
I attended the public meeting over the future of St Mary in the Castle this evening. There is a great deal of concern about the way that Hastings Council are handling this much loved and beautiful asset in the centre of the town. Many different organisations were represented and the general view seems to be that it [...]
It was brilliant to be able to catch up today with Sue Middlehurst, the Prinicpal of Hastings College, and to learn a bit more about the work of the College, their plans for the future, and where they are with the developments at the Plaza site in the centre of Hastings and the site up [...]
Well done to the all the runners who started the Hastings 100th Anniversary marathon on Sunday morning. My daughter and I went down to see the action, and our MP and his wife Rosemary in their 1908 fancy dress starting the race from the Town Hall balcony - all good fun! I am sure that the [...]
In case some people have forgotten, Strictly Come Dancing is an entertainment show with no prize money or million pound contract at state, it is simply an entertainment show. Yet to hear the fuss on TV and radio today, anyone would think that it is more significant than the credit crunch. To top it all off, the BBC had some woman on TV and radio this morning who was one of those who complained. She said that she didn't usually ever vote, but this week she had but "she probably wouldn't watch the final next week because it had spoilt ...
Last month you elected me to succeed Simon Hughes as President of the Party. It's an enormous honour to follow in his footsteps, as well as those of his predecessors, Navnit Dholakia, Diana Maddock, Charles Kennedy, Bob Maclennan and Ian Wrigglesworth. The job of the President is a serious one, and perhaps not as well understood within the Party as it might be. One of the advantages of fighting a long campaign is that it has given me the chance to talk about what the job entails and how I plan to do it. Constitutionally, the primary role is to ...
Meanwhile, a certain cat in our house seems to think it's time for a bit of Christmas shopping... ...
Nick Clegg gave a speech to the think tank Demos earlier today. You can read the whole thing on the party website or enjoy the edited higlights at Lib Dem Voice: A liberal believes in the raucous, unpredictable capacity of people to take decisions about their own lives. A Socialist believes in the ordered, controlled capacity of the state to take the right decisions about other peoples' lives.A liberal believes a progressive society is distinguished by aspiration, creativity and non conformity. A Socialist believes a progressive society is characterised by enlightened top-down Government.
For those who read Voice on their mobile or Blackberry, we've recently created a special theme. This is a very stripped down version of the site with less colours and no sidebar. It should increase the speed in which the LibDemVoice loads and cost you less in data downloads. If you prefer the original theme, scroll to the bottom and click the link. {LibDemVoice on your Mobile} LibDemVoice on your Mobile
In a speech today Nick Clegg warned against how politicians are using the fear of horrific crimes for politics. He referred to cases such as the murder of Jamie Bulger and the kidnapping of Sharon Matthews and said: "Evil may be the right word to describe what some individuals have done to others, especially their own children. "But our outrage as a people, our fury, our determination to stamp out these crimes wherever we can, shows that, as a society, we are moral, we are decent." He added: "It is disaster politics to assume otherwise." David Cameron's use of the ...
Should you find yourself travelling on East Midlands Trains, why not pick up a copy of their free magazine Journeys? The Winter 2008 issue contains a short article by (hem, hem) me on the Robin Hood Line (that's Nottingham to Worksop). It mostly looks at Newstead Abbey (where Lord Byron lived) and Creswell Crags.
Nick Clegg delivered a heavily trailed major speech to the think-tank Demos today on the subject 'Why I Am A Liberal' - you can read it in full on the party website here. The part that's making the headlines is Nick's warning to his fellow politicians not to impose panic measures in the wake of high-profile cases, such as the kidnap of Shannon Mathews or the killing of Baby P. We know that it was the disaster politics response to the killing of Jamie Bulger that led to a massive upswing in the number of children in prison or prison-like ...
In the Seven Sisters by election, news reaches me of an awful leaflet from the Tories - but with rather unpleasant ethnic undertones about the Lib Dem candidate, David Schmitz (see image). This won't offend David in the least. David has dual nationality. His parents, originally Austrian, fled from Nazi persecution in the Second World War. They initially fled to England, but ended up in the States. David, who has dual citizenship, began his career in New York, but has lived in the UK for most of his working life, having left America in his twenties to become a barrister ...
Before reading this you need to know that a couple of weeks ago the standards committee suspended Tory Cllr Richards for a month following a bullying allegation by different member of staff. Sin...
Browsing the net, I chanced upon something called The Conservative Wall. I pondered as to what this might be: a planned barrier around the coast of the UK to prevent asylum seekers gaining entry or a relocated glass ceiling? If you visit the site, be prepared. There are over 150 photographs of Conservatives telling the passing [...]
Well the Fire Brigade have come to my rescue for a second time. It's not surprising that they are angry with Brian Coleman given he is supposed to set an example - not undermine all their good work on getting the message across that if you believe you are in danger get out the house: London Fire Chief Under Fire for "Time Wasting" Jibe LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM--(Dec. 15, 2008) - Fire Brigades Union (FBU) leaders in London have called on the chairman of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) to consider his position, after he labelled as "dizzy" ...
Say what you like about George Bush, but there's nothing wrong with his reflexes. Enjoy the slow motion remix version:
I have a new article on the New Statesman website about Camley Street Natural Park:Into two acres beside the Regent's Canal are packed ponds, wetlands, woodland and open grassed areas. Within them you will find kingfishers, reed warblers, reed buntings, rare fungi and a teeming variety of insect life. Geese, mallards, coots and herons make regular visits, while the cutting of the grass is subcontracted to the park's resident rabbits Coco, Patch and Merlin.
Good thing that I decided not to buy it.
Earlier today I wrote about how we might see a February general election, but now Iain Dale and many other bloggers have wrote about the rumour. This rumour is really starting to kick off with suggestions that Labour are buying Advertisement space! Maybe February will see a general election?
According to a post on Hot UK Deals, if you buy Cristmas cards from Krispy Kreme Donuts then each card contains a voucher for a dozen free donuts. £5.95 for five Xmas cards is a horrendous price, but under £6 for 60 donuts is a bargain. Shame is that the nearest store is 131.5 miles from me. And that I'm on a donut denying self-ordinance. (No guarantee is given for the validity of this offer - I just read it here)
Apparently this is possible thanks to someone who works for the Euro lottery and has emailed me to say that he can fix the draw in my favour in return for 35% of the take. How very generous of him
George Bush a man of high power and one of the worlds most powerful men given a good bye present by the people of Iraq in the form of a shoe. When the President of the USA went into Iraq he entered a illegal war in which the people of America weren't happy and still aren't and the people of Iraq still hate him for it. The only group that have benefited from Iraq was the Shia minority of Iraq. I do not support what the reporter did as violence doesn't solve anything, but I have to say he did ...
Iain Dale reports that the Labour Party is booking up advertising hoardings for January and February. He speculates that this is one more sign of a possible snap election. I blogged previously about the reason why Brown will favour an early poll: - Cameron may be the darling of the media and the punters but he still has no policies and it is difficult to fight an election without them; - Gordon proved he can win in Glenrothes and will think he can do it again - The economy might be down the tubes but it will only get worse ...
Bath & North East Somerset Councils conservatives must be running scarred as the only response that we see from them these days to controversial issues is a statement from a council spokesman. We have yet to ascertain who the council spokesman is but it seems to be a very convenient smoke screen for the Conservative administration to hide behind as it means that they do not have...
Jo Swinson MP has contributed to an article on politics.co.uk about why there aren't more women in politics. What I found particularly interesting though is that it doesn't go over the same ground about whether or not there should be positive discrimination to ensure parliament is representative, (perhaps not that much of a surprise given [...]
{A bandaged finger} Liberal Democrat research has revealed that the Home Office exaggerated the extent of police injuries at last summer's Kingsnorth Climate Camp. Home Office minister Vernon Coaker had originally described the £5.9 million police operation as appropriate and proportionate. Now, in response to a Parliamentary Question by Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice spokesperson David Howarth, Coaker has admitted that, "there were no recorded injuries sustained as a result of direct contact with the protesters." From the Telegraph: "Kent police were criticised for being "heavy handed" and for using aggressive tactics during the Camp for Climate Action protests in August. ...
Earlier in the year, we carried a piece raising concerns with the policing at the Kingsnorth climate camp. It's not just our own councillors concerned with the conduct of the police at that event. A report in the Guardian suggests that people at all levels of governance from councillor to MEP have raised concerns. Norman Baker MP said, "I personally witnessed unnecessarily aggressive policing, unprovoked violence against peaceful protesters, an extraordinary number of police on site, and tactics such as confiscating toilet rolls, board games and clown costumes from what I saw to be peaceful demonstrators." Now, according to a ...
Redcar and Cleveland Council is reminding residents of changes to its normal refuse and recycling collections over the Christmas and New Year period. There will be normal collections up to and including Christmas Eve, Wednesday, December 24, before the revised schedule comes into operation, returning to normal on Tuesday, January 6. Check your normal collection, with the revised date in brackets: Thursday, December 25 (Monday, December 29) Friday, December 26 (Tuesday, December 30) Tuesday, December 30 (Wednesday, December 31) Wednesday, December 31 (Friday, January 2) Thursday, January 1 (Saturday, January 3) Friday, January 2 (Monday, January 5) Tuesday, January 6 ...
Here at Oval News, we are only just setting up our Christmas trees, but being keen on recycling are already planning on how they can be recycled. Once the festive season is over, the council will collect Christmas trees. We understand that the resulting wood chip will be used in the borough's parks. Depending on the type of property you live in, they will either collect it from your home or from a local drop site. If you live in a kerbside property, all you need to do is leave your real Christmas tree next to your refuse bin on ...
So, many bloggers use pen-names, and I can see the logic in it. Today, for example, I went to have a chat with a potential future employer and was somewhat alarmed to see the CEO reading this blog. Well, there's no point being sneaky about it - cyber stalking potential employees - and potential employers - is defacto the way we do business these days. With my time with HBOS rapidly coming to an end, my online presence is suddenly an actual issue. But quickly scanning through my blog - "Ice Queen Hell Bitch of Death" sticks out and I ...
Bath MP Don Foster is calling on Post Office Ltd to restore post offices services in Twerton. The branch contained in the Nisa store has been closed following the firm's problems. Don said, "Post Offices are a very important part of the local community. Local residents in Twerton will now have to walk to Lower Weston or Moorland Road. This trip...
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; } .flickr-yourcomment { } .flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; } .flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } CCTV Tower, originally uploaded by salimfadhley. This rather sinister looking observation post is in a park in North London not far from my home.
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; } .flickr-yourcomment { } .flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; } .flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Bach "Rescue Remedy", originally uploaded by salimfadhley. Bach allegedly discovered the healing power of the ultra-dilute flower-essences in his products via some kind of telepathic study of the medicinal affinities of the plants he studied. What I find astonishing is not the that Mr. Bach was a blatant charlatan but that people continue to buy his worthless product. Bach's "Rescue Remedy" consists of 50% brandy dissolved in distilled water. Other compounds may be present in negligible ...
Quoting regular Lib Dem commentator Oranjepan: "Ideology is death". Apply that to political parties and that's certainly true. I read the manifesto of the Socialist Party of Great Britain and was struck by the proposition they offered to prospective members: This is our manifesto. It will never change. To join us, you must have memorised this manifesto and both agree with it and promise never to attempt to change it.The result is inevitable. Absolute failure. Just as any organisation or organism needs to adapt to changing environments to survive and thrive, so this is true of political parties. In this ...
Today, I have been to the dentist and faced tortures so terrible and despicable that I dare not detail them here. I have been feeling very sorry for myself. Thus, I present a list of lovely things which have cheered me up. innerbrat and davegodfrey's comment-sparring ihavecake's very lovely not-christmas-honest card. shrublette getting a good girl sticker from school matgb giving me Horlicks (because I'm not allowed solid food) and hugs Mitch Benn's Christmas present to his fans. The prospect of going to visit burlesque_bunny in her new house so that shrublette can help her put up the Christmas tree ...
If a week is a long time in politics, the first year of Nick Clegg's leadership has the feel of several lifetimes. Even without yet another change in the captaincy of the ship, there would have been a number challenges facing the Liberal Democrats. The main internal challenge was perhaps the process of taking command of the ship itself. Mutinies notwithstanding, taking over any vessel is complex. There are the strengths and foibles of the crew to get to grips with - and while perhaps these are best not discussed in public, it would be foolish of any leader not ...
Have those Somali pirates been at it again? No. This is a story about the more prosaic form of piracy - people who get hold of films and music online without paying for them. The Guardian is reporting that The figure [of 30,000 jobs] is based on research commissioned by the Entertainment Retailers Association, which represents businesses that sell DVDs, CDs and computer games, and carried out by consultancy Europe Economics. It found that the creative industries employ 400,000 people, and estimated that piracy costs up to £1.5bn in lost revenue each year.Does anyone really fall for this stuff (apart, ...
Dear authoritarians, Greek rioters, and vulgar libertarians, All three of you have misunderstood anarchism. This causes great problems. You authoritarians believe that with out the power of your Power, the would would become like Somalia. You Greek rioters think that nihilism and violence represents a genuine new order. It is not. The order against which you struggle perpetuates some form of violence against you. You are doing the same to others. Vulgar libertarians - you, who value property over life - view true Liberty, true Freedom from everything, the ultimate state of anarchy, as your own individualism. You wish to ...
Regular readers may remember this posting about Laurence Williams - the ex-continuing SDP, ex-UKIP, ex-continuing Liberal, ex-Loony, ex-Lib Dem, ex-Independent man from Sidcup. In October he emailed the Lib Dems saying: "So,somewhat reluctantly,I 'got in touch' and after a shambolic application period,became an Old Bexley & Sidcup Tory affiliate! I have done some telling for them at The Mayoral
The weekend just gone saw a host of Christmas parties. Work's was on Friday, followed by a gathering of former work colleagues on Saturday. I had enjoyed a lot of merriment and not a lot of sleep by Sunday, but still had the main event to come - the Bury Liberal Democrat Christmas party which was last night. There was a great turnout and it was lovely to mix with faces old and new at the home of my fellow ward Councillor Mary D'Albert (and her husband, the Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Bury South, Vic D'Albert). The trifle was ...
Although I stepped down as the local government spokesman back in May, I like to keep an eye on what's going on. So just to show that it's not all beer and skittles on the backbenches, I took some time over the weekend to look at the latest legislative offering from HMG in the form of the snappily titled "Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill". If it is possible, it's even more dull than it sounds. The first chapter sets out, in mind numbing detail, the procedures for citizens to present a petition to their council, and how the ...
Today the electoral college will meet to vote for President and Vice President. Hopefully they will elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
Federal Policy Committee have put out a call for Party members to get involved with policy making. They are recruiting members onto a policy panel which will be kept up to date with the latest policy developments, and which will form a pool of people to serve on policy working groups. If you're interested, please send an application form in my January 19th - it can be downloaded or completed online on consult.libdems.org.uk. Please don't leave it other people to do this important work. If you have skill, expertise and knowledge in particular fields you could play an important part ...
I just noticed this on he BBC feed - Suffolk police have been carrying out an operation targeting "illegal activity" on the roads of the county. More than two dozen officers were involved and out of 200 stops they fined a few people for this and that - speeding, not wearing a seatbelt and so on. But they breathalyzed 134 drivers and every test was negative. I wonder what else they were stopped for? Do we have "random" stops now in the UK? If there was nothing else to charge them with, dangerous driving or whatever, why were they stopped? ...
Christmas really is a time for families and I really am looking forward to spending time with my nephews. However, the BBC have published a map of the 70+ victims aged 10-19 of murder or manslaughter in 2008. Sadly those families will be missing a youthful cog in their celebrations this year.
Intriguing news from the latest Liberal Democrats Lords team newsletter: November was the month of the missing Conservatives. In vote after vote they didn't show up. We could have defeated the Government time after time if only they had bothered to walk down the division lobby. The Conservatives have not managed a turnout to match ours in any vote since October. On 18th November there were 4 divisions - in three of them there were more Liberal Democrats than Conservatives voting despite there being over twice as many Conservative peers. Eric Avebury took steps to halt changes in immigration rules ...
I recently drafted a letter to the local newspaper on behalf of a councillor and the letter, concerning Icelandic investments, included the word 'schadenfreude'. A resident complained that we were using foreign words in our letters, which may or may not be valid, depending on your point of view. I discussed this with colleagues and one of them pointed out that the Icelandic for 'schadenfreude' is 'thodargledi', which is fun. However, infinitely more fun is the fact that 'economic crisis' in Icelandic is 'efnakreppuna'. So, as well as the gorgeous blondes - of both sexes, Bjork, the fascinating scenery and ...
We shouldn't be surprised that the police massively over-reacted to the week-long Kingsnorth power station camp in the summer. Police are human too and, without strong leadership, the crowd mentality takes over. People start acting in ways they never would if they were on their own. In this case, the 1,500 police officers treated peaceful protestors like terror suspects. We're told that, at a cost to the taxpayer of nearly six million pounds, police confiscated everything from toilet rolls to generators, board games to gaffer tape. That's what happens - it's human nature. You set up an "us and them" ...
Thinking of buying online with Amazon think again I've given up on etailing which i think is eating itself.
The issues of faith bschools is a complex one which raises difficult question for all Liberal/liberal people. The recent report from the Runneymede Trust, "Right to Divide" (available at: www.runnymedetrust.org) is this:"Faith schools should be for the benefit of all in society rather than just some. If faith schools are convinced of their relevance for society, then that should apply equally for all children. With state funding comes an obligation to be relevant and open to all citizens." Some faith schools are very good, inclusive institutions which play an important part in promoting community cohesion. In Oldham, there is a ...
According to this article we may see a general election hit us in February 2009! Now I don't know if it will happened or not but I just wish the Prime Minister calls a general election as soon as possible. We might not be prepared for a general election but the problem that faces the country is the recession. The Conservatives think they can win the next general election, Brown should go to the polls in 2009 and get the election over and done with. The party that wins that election can then at least work towards getting us out ...
I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the Conservatives' indecision on a third runway at Heathrow. Now the Environment Secretary Hilary Benn has revealed the rift within the Government on the issue. In an interview with the Sunday Times, Benn "said that Britain's biggest airport had a 'problem' with air quality even before the construction of the proposed third runway." Earlier this month Geoff Hoon, the transport secretary, reluctantly postponed the runway decision until the new year after some ministers expressed private doubts. Critics say the plan to increase aircraft capacity by almost 50% would boost emissions of harmful ...
You will recall I mentioned last week that I had published a book. Of the many, many things that had concerned me when I was helping choose the articles was representation. The book contains barely 4% of the articles from LibDemVoice from last year. I'm reasonably sure the blog is reasonably balanced by dint of the sheer volume of articles. We have theists and atheists. Men and women. Gays and nongays. All sorts of people with non-vanilla sexual proclivities inhabit the comments (and are welcome to submit articles). Lib Dems and non -Lib Dems. Over time, the balance of articles ...
Barely a mention of us dogs in this book. Even worse, the few mentions the book does deign to make are full of negative dog cliches - dog mess, attack dog - and nothing about how lovely us dogs are. And pink. And wagging tails. Do not buy the book!
Nick Clegg is due to speak to the think-tank Demos today and he is expected to tackle the issues of youth crime and the economy. Full story here.... "Politicians who impose "disaster" measures after crimes like the killing of Baby P or kidnap of Shannon Matthews damage society, Nick Clegg will say. The Lib Dem leader will say that the reaction to the murder of two-year-old Jamie Bulger in 1993 led to a "massive upswing" of young people in custody. Mr Clegg will tell the think-tank Demos that it is important to have "an optimistic attitude towards people". He will ...
It is not for me to criticize Nick Bourne for buying an electronic device to enable his learning of the Welsh language. If it helps him communicate with his electorate a significant proportion of whom speak Welsh as their first language then his actions are to be applauded. However his choice of player leaves a lot to be desired and his justification opens up significant questions of his approach
And so, replete with porky goodness, it is time to gather my belongings before fighting my way on to the Underground for the short journey to Euston Square and my office. I'll shortly say goodbye to the staff of the restaurant car for the last time. And, whilst Richard Bowker, the head guy at National Express, carries on running his trains and coaches, doubtless upsetting Jonathan Wallace whilst
I know I was blogging light last week what with a busy Monday and days off on Thursday and Friday so I didn't expect to see much traffic when I hit the stat meters today. I looked at the graphs for weekly traffic this morning in disbelief as even I recalled not being that bad when I last checked on Wednesday. Then I realised that the daily chart was measuring in ks rather than hundreds. Gulped on my tea to realise that Wednesday produced 1,314 unique visitors. Sadly as I tweeted on the day most of these seemed to have ...
Speaking in the House of Lords on the debate on the Queens Speech, Lord Tony Greaves called for the reopening of the railway line between Colne and Skipton. The Pendle based Liberal Democrat peer said he was a keen supporter of the campaign to reintroduce the missing rail link on the north of England trans-Pennine route between Colne and Skipton—and praised the "very active group called SELRAP". He told the Lords that he had the great pleasure of being on Colne railway station to meet a train from Skipton. Lord Greaves said: "But instead of coming 15 miles along what ...
A vast breakfast successfully consumed, time to lean back in my comfy first class seat - breakfast is wonderfully egalitarian and open to all, regardless of fare paid and class of ticket held - and reflect. The loss of the restaurant car on National Express East Anglia is, in itself, not a huge thing. From a personal perspective, it will be better for both my waistline and my pocket (breakfast
I do think that Monday mornings are made so much more bearable by a good breakfast, and one supposes that bacon, sausages, black pudding, a fried egg, fried bread, baked beans, mushrooms, grilled tomato and a hash brown meets the criteria. Very good it was too. My fellow travellers are grumbling about the loss of their morning routine too, and one is moved to suggest that one of the MPs on the
All the best of this blog from the last year. In a book. The perfect match of 21st century content with 15th century technology. You can buy it online right now at Lulu.com.
It may just be another social networking site but as the Guardian reveals, if used properly Facebook can be very useful indeed: Campaigns launched on the site have inspired thousands of people to join groups urging them to become members of tissue transplant registers. Joining the registers helps widen the pool of bone marrow and blood donors available and increases the chance of a match being found for patients. The parents of 23-month-old Iona Stratton, who fell ill with leukaemia when she was 13 weeks old, launched a Facebook appeal in October to find a bone marrow donor. The appeal ...
I like Bob Russell. There, I've said it. Fortified by another slice of buttered toast, we plough on into Essex and on towards Bob's seat of Colchester. There are those who would disparage Bob, but he is true to the finest traditions of the Party, and is a fine constituency MP. He reminds me of a proper full English breakfast - and guess what just turned up in front of me?
Today's Guardian reports that last summer's week-long climate camp protest against the proposed Kingsnorth power station was not as traumatic for the police as was reported at the time: Police were accused of using aggressive tactics, confiscating everything from toilet rolls and board games to generators and hammers. But ministers justified what they called the "proportionate" £5.9m cost of the operation, pointing out that 70 officers had been injured in the course of their duties. But data obtained under the Freedom of Information Act puts a rather different slant on the nature of those injuries, disclosing that not one was ...
Ros will testify that her efforts to persuade me to get my 'five a day' have settled on a more realistic 'five a week'. However, as part of my breakfast on the move, I get a glass of orange juice and a bowl of assorted citrus fruit. Very nice, gets the digestion moving a little in anticipation of the treat to follow. The approach to the Stour Valley is usually one of the prettier parts of the
Well, I've caught the train and taken a seat in the restaurant car. Today sees my last breakfast on my regular Monday morning train from the country seat, as National Express East Anglia withdraw their restaurant car service when the new timetable comes in on Saturday. It's a sad day for those of us who have a romantic view of the railways, so I thought that I should mark the occasion. I've got
Reuters have produced another list of losers from Madoff. What is interesting is the large exposure from banks who lent money to Hedge Funds to invest with Madoff. Some reports indicate that he started to go wrong in 2005. It strikes me as unlikely that $50bn of losses could build up in such a short period. Still this has quite a bit of unravelling to do.
I'm using this month to draw together threads from having done this blog over a sustained period of time (a year) and really getting into the habit of seeing things and taking the pictures necessary. However, it is clear to me that this has become more then just a photo insight into the local area. What I have tried to convey and distill into this webpage is a sense of the area. It has been described as quirky, interesting, historical and indeed boring. I hope it covers all of those things - some of it is superficial in as far ...
Saturday saw the 90th anniversary of the first general election at which some women were able to vote. Politics.co.uk marked the occasion with a feature on women in politics. In it Jo Swinson made a good point about the effect that the male dominance of Westminster has on debate there: Swinson cites the response to Nick Clegg's performance during this week's prime minister's questions as an example. Clegg got up to ask about a single mother who came to his surgery as an example of lower-income groups facing criminal penalties for being unable to pay back money given to them ...
As I sit here in the waiting room at Newcastle Central Station for my delayed train to London, I thought I would use the opportunity to catch up with my own events of the weekend. It is not unusual for people to be given a job to do when they do not turn up for a Lib Dem meeting. Giving me a job to do when I did turn up for a meeting seems to be taking things to an extreme! I went to the Blaydon
John Lennon may one have been derided for claiming the Beatles were "bigger than Jesus" well it appears that Simon Cowell actually is more famous that God or the Queen. However the caveat must be added that this is only with the under tens, coming top in a poll pushing God and the Queen into second and third place. Jesus about whom X Factor winner Alexandra Burke sang on Saturday night came a lowly sixth behind also Father Christmas and Harry Potter. Of course Alexandra did fail to make the live stages of the X Factor 3 years ago. But ...
At the LI/FNS conference in Bangkok over the weekend, our Thai hosts were confident that recent events will not have a lasting knock-on effect on the country's economy and international reputation, but as I made clear in my own presentation to the gathering, I am not so sure. The televised scenes of the airport occupation [...]
Back in September I went to a Fringe at conference called Democracy Dragon's Den. Richard Reeves was there, and he quoted John Stuart Mill. It was something about the truth being forged in the fires of heated debate or something, and it made lots of sense to me, such that I assumed it was a famous quote, and didn't bother noting it down. And now I can't find it. The actual quote with where it's from would be lovely, if any of you have it to hand. Thanks in advance.
I've long been wanting to try and address an issue which appears to be a fairly significant point of conflict between various people who would otherwise all call themselves libertarians. A post by our good Devil and the comments that follow it provide a good opportunity. Some there and elsewhere in libertarian groups would even suggest that those of us who subscribe to the opinion that land values are somehow not legitimate private property cannot really be libertarians at all. On the contrary, some would say even that we are crypto-communists for wanting to rob people of the yields from ...
Some feminists. But this time, MALE ONES. I'm not the type of feminist who thinks that men can only be allies; if you're pushing for equality then, in my book, you're a feminist no matter what lies between your legs. After all, isn't feminism all about saying that we are not defined by our genitals, but by our brains? Thus, firstly, the ever-so-lovely James Graham has posted not one, not two, but three impeccably feminist posts today. Secondly, my dear beloved fiancé has gone on the attack against Brian Coleman, a man who thinks it is appropriate to call one ...
Over the last week or so I have been having a conversation over email with the very lovely alex_wilcock. It's ranged over many topics, but as you would possibly expect between he and I, a lot of it has been about Doctor Who (Alex is, of course, the author of the much-vaunted "How Doctor Who Made Me a Liberal"). A lot of the discussion has ranged around liberalism and sex and money, as well, but mainly, it's been Who. A large part of what we've talked about is which is our favourite incarnation of the Doctor and why, and which ...
Today, I are mostly been sleeping. Then I did a lot of digging and wrote a post at Liberal Conspiracy about a certain Brian Coleman, London Assembly member and sexist git. I first heard about the tedious cock in that post of liadnan's, a long time before I moved up to London, and he's done nothing to impress me since. For quite awhile, my old post about him was top Google result for his name, it's fallen now to seventh. But I think he's more than a cock now, he's an expensive ignorant sexist git who deserves as much opprobrium ...
Mon 15th
00:01
The Last Word on Damian Green, the economic & environmental crisis & the Queen's Speech
Just over a week ago, I took a break from our one week holiday and went to the ITV Millbank studios to record an episode of 'The Last Word' for ITV Meridian. The whole thing was shot in half an hour - we discussed Damian Green, the economy and the Queen's Speech - and the attached is the result! [See post to watch Flash video]
