People are continuing to be angry about the Vodaphone mast erected on Darlington Lane, and understandably so. The application was approved, under all of the rules there are, by officers not planning committee. In doing so they had to abide by the rules set by the Government which more or less says the masts can go where to mast companies want to put them with very few exceptions. One...
{Generic glenn photo} Well, it would seem that my humble little blog has been noticed by the guys at ADLC. As a result it has been hailed as the featured site for March 2009. This may all seem a bit of an arbitrary honour, but it does mean I have to sort out my poor spelling and grammar! lol
Does the Tory front bench resemble a government in waiting? There are certainly some positive signs. The return of Ken Clarke has made a significant difference. William Hague has successfully reinvented himself since the debacle of the baseball cap days and is a truly brilliant parliamentary performer, while figures like Michael Gove and Chris Grayling will surely be effective Ministers. There are quite a few that continue to have a low profile and remain publicly untested, such as Greg Clark and Grant Shapps, but even here there are positive signs. I saw Grant Shapps speak a few days ago. It ...
· Someone who lives in the ward · Someone who cares about our local area · Someone who works hard all year round · Someone who keeps in touch · Someone who takes action on local problems Chris Hall and the FOCUS Team... ..A record of action, a promise of more!
The results are in: and there's no prize from Boris for Islington. Of the ten parks getting extra money from Boris, two are in north London: Dollis Valley Green Walk in Barnet, and Lordship Park in Haringey. It's a real shame that the Mayor of London has no extra money for Barnard Park, Elthorne Park or [...]
I was thirteen years old when the miners strikes started 25 years ago. I was not, perhaps, th best placed person to make judgments on the strike, but neither was I your typically stereotypical ignorant teenager. Yes, even then I was interested in politics. So what do I remember of that time ? Most abiding memory was that the NUM and Arthur Scargill refused to allow a vote by members of the union on whether they should strike which for me was the key reason why I could not, back then, support the actions of miners. And as I recall ...
We all have our little pleasures. One of mine that has developed over the past few years is to watch my favourite television series from start to finish.Of course the pleasure of watching The West Wing from start to finish over and over again never wains. But without looking too 'geekish' I also have little pleasures like watching Tenko, Hi-de-hi and Prisoner:Cell Block H.During the recent snow
I am being contacted by increasing number of residents from streets like Ferme Park Road and Mount View Road about the worsening parking situation. On 9 March, the Council will begin enforcing a new Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) on roads in the centre of Crouch End to the west of Ferme Park Road - more details here. The expansion of the Finsbury Park CPZ to the south has already displaced vehicles onto these streets, and residents fear that this new CPZ will make the problem even worse. Therefore, I've contacted the council to find out how local residents can trigger ...
The inaugural Prestwich Festival has been officially launched! The festival, which will run from 17th May - 21st June this year, will bring thousands of people and thousands of pounds into Prestwich, showcasing everything the area has to offer, and raising lots of money for local charities in the process. It is hoped that the Festival will become an annual event, helping local businesses, clubs and societies, and making the most of Prestwich's fantastic amenities. Staging a series of events to highlight all that is good about Prestwich is a key promise made in the Prestwich Plan, and now we ...
Today's cut in base rate to just 0.5% is horrible (though not unexpected) news for savers. Anyone who has been prudent and saved to build a nest egg for their retirement or against a rainy day is getting hammered by the loss of income; many retirees will be forced to dip into capital to survive. But, apart [...]
I used to like Anatole Kaletsky. His reassuring economic analysis convinced you that we really were living through a period that had seen the end to boom and bust. Not that Gordon Brown was to thank. Oh no...., that was communist China. So long as China pumped out more and more consumer goods at lower and lower prices, the world (particularly the western world) could go on enjoying the good times with no apparent threat of inflation returning. Oh well, so much for that theory. We should have listened to the economic historians who warned that we were living through ...
The Liberal Democrats have published their Freedom Bill, detailing how the party plans to roll back the authoritarian laws passed by both Labour and Conservative governments which have undermined civil liberties. Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords protest the restrictions on demonstrating outside Parliament during the passage of the Serious and Organised Crime Act. The legislation is the first time a major political party has collated all of the laws which have undermined civil liberties into one Bill, so that they can be easily repealed. By axing expensive and ineffective measures that hinder and keep tabs on innocent people, ...
Last Thursday, Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council set its budget. These are astonishingly difficult times in which to construct a sensible budget - not just because of a poor economic outlook per se, but because of the volatility that poor outlook is causing. In light of that, great credit is due to our Finance portfolio holder, Keith Lynch, for putting such a good budget together with the assistance of our fantastic finance officers. The Conservatives voted against the budget, though predictably they did not produce an alternative budget of their own, they just sniped from the sides. We have kept ...
Who says being a tabloid editor is hard. Any time there's a murder or a major crime, you say it's yet another example of "broken Britain". No-one talked about "Broken Britain" twenty years ago, and it was never mentioned back in the halcyon days of the 1950s so everything must be getting much worse, right? We convince ourselves that the country is in crisis. Desperate times need desperate measures; the firm hand of strong government. So let's have some nice authoritarians in charge to give all those chavs, hoodies and dodgy foreigners a good slap to bring them into line. ...
Last time there was an autumn Lib Dem Conference in Harrogate, Liberator raffled tea with Lord Bonkers at Betty's to raise funds. But visit Betty's website today and you read: Our Veranda and Spindler Cafés at Bettys in Harrogate will be closed temporarily, from 5th January until Easter. Our Imperial Room menu is available during this time. Or for our full café menu please visit Bettys at RHS Gardens Harlow Carr.So I am afraid I shall not be there this weekend. But do carry on without me.
The Liberal Democrats have published their Freedom Bill, detailing how the party plans to roll back the authoritarian laws passed by both Labour and Conservative governments which have undermined civil liberties. Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords protest the restrictions on demonstrating outside Parliament during the passage of the Serious and Organised Crime Act. The legislation is the first time a major political party has collated all of the laws which have undermined civil liberties into one Bill, so that they can be easily repealed. By axing expensive and ineffective measures that hinder and keep tabs on innocent people, ...
I just heard Ed Balls on PM on Radio 4 talking about social workers and bemoaning the fact that the turnover rate is very high and the retention rate is very low. Apparently people go into the profession, stay for a few years and then leave. Balls apparently wants to know why this is an has set up a commission to report on it. Later in the interview he pointed out that social work is a thankless, dangerous job and whereas fire and police officers may end up on the front cover of the paper for having sone something good ...
There have been horror stories on this site about councils suffering political disasters after introducing fortnightly bin collections. In 2005, Lib Dem-run Cambridge City Council made just such a change, and did so without any apparent political damage. At the time, I was the Executive Councillor responsible for the bins. Here's how we did it. In 2004, our doorstep waste and recycling service consisted of a black box for dry recyclables (paper, aluminium cans and so forth), a green bin for compostable waste (garden waste, vegetable peelings and the like) and a black bin for everything else. The black box ...
On Tuesday 10 March the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights will discuss whether or not to hear my evidence on the UK government's policy of using intelligence from torture. They discussed whether to hear my evidence on 3 March but failed to reach a conclusion.The government is lobbying hard for my exclusion. I need everybody to send an email to jchr@parliament.uk to urge that I should be allowed to give evidence. Just a one-liner would be fine. If you are able to add some comment on the import of my evidence, or indicate that you have heard me speak ...
It's not all negative, Tavish Scott tells it as it is, Lib Dem proposes are about tacking the tough issues facing us all. More power to enable Scotland to face difficult financial times. The latest from Tavish TV.
You can use this interactive map to see where Hillary Clinton is at any given moment, and see where's she been. Given that she is US Secretary of State, this map is going to have a fair few zig-zags on it in months to come.
I never thought I'd have to give out another Misogynist of the Week award so quickly - 2 in 4 days is quite something - but Tom Harris is a very deserving winner. Tom wrote a blog post yesterday, entitled "The Return of Morality" which was basically a rant against teenage mothers on benefits. Oh my, where do we start with this? "Teenage girls should not be having underage sex." He doesn't seem to be acknowledge the fact that teenage girls generally don't have sex alone, or certainly not the sort that results in pregnancy. How come it's the girls' ...
Mike Smithson wrote a blog post that I agree with, he writes about how politics isn't the same for him with David Cameron taking time out after the dead of his son Ivan Cameron and I cant disagree with him at all. What ever you think of David Cameron is something that needs to be put aside and if you think about it David is someone who has brought a shine to British politics but will he be the same when he returns? David Cameron has lost a child which affects any parent largely when it happeneds, and personally I ...
I'm very late on this one, I know. But I have just read Lord Guthrie's Times article against torture. Coming from a military man, it is a extremely forecful and passionate rejection of torture in any form:Torture is wrong. People are ends in themselves, never merely means. Absolute human rights represent a limit to utilitarian calculations and speculations on national interest. They are the
The Monkey has an excellent blog post about the child of a Journalist who is currently a Tory candidate sending out a letter to potential voters that was copied from The Sun newspaper. Tory candidate Jacob Rees-Mogg made the mistake of copying and pasting out of a Sun article and now is in trouble with the newspaper. I am amused but puzzled by this whole drama, why did the silly Tory not ask his flaming father or his campaign agent to write him a letter that he could send out? I am amused that the son of a Journalist cant ...
xdawnfirex posted an extract from a Q&A with Thich Nhat Hanh, in which (if I am understanding the context correctly) a lesbian asked him what Buddhism has to say about homosexuality. I really liked these parts: The creature is something created by God. When I look at a rose, a tulip, or a chrysanthemum, I know, I see, I think, that this flower is a creation of God. Because I have been practicing as a Buddhist, I know that between the creator and the created there must be some kind of link, otherwise creation would not be possible. So the ...
The Conservatives have launched a Sorry From Gordon website which is designed to attack the Prime Minister for not apologising to Congress yesterday, personally I don't think they is anything that Brown has to apologise for to Congress. This is a childish campaign if you ask me and all the Tories are doing with this is showing that they are still political novices and are not ready for government. Its times like this that make people like me wish and pray that the Tories don't get in at the next general election and they are put in their place which ...
Nick Clegg's office has asked us to pass on the following message from Nick to Lib Dem Voice readers: A big, big thank you from Miriam and myself to everyone who sent such generous messages to us when Miguel was born. As he sleeps through each day, and keeps his parents wide awake by night, he seems blissfully unaware of all the goodwill from so many Liberal Democrats. But we'll be sure to remind him when he's old enough to appreciate it! Many, many thanks again. Nick and Miriam
Welcome to the thirteenth edition of Lib Dig Pig, being a roundup of non-Lib Dem oriented gems on the internet, as voted by Lib Dem members using Lib Dig (if you aren't one, and are a Lib Dem member, sign up here: http://libdig.co.uk). You can now get twitter updates of stories which appear on libdig - simply "follow libdig" to sign up. This week has a very clear theme - and I don't mean Tony Hart: 1. ID cards database breached by nosey council staff (Computer Weekly). Submitted by me: '"They haven't even fully launched it yet, but our worst ...
Well, thanks to the Welsh Lib Dems, we have a bit of an idea. But I would add one thing to this campaign: * Call for a less crippling cost for an entertainment licence. Many pub landlords in Newport (where I'm from!) and I'm sure it's the same across Wales, say that their big "pull" days are match days. Football, rugby, the pubs are full. When you're in a pub on match days, you feel that there's some hope for pubs after all. Unfortunately, the cost of paying for a licence for Sky coverage of matches is absolutely, terribly crippling. ...
Jane & Henry Brown have again organised a Better Bath meeting that will take place on Saturday 18 April at the Building of Bath Collection, Countess of Huntingdon's Chapel, The Vineyards, the Paragon, Bath BA1 5NA, at 10.30 for 11.00. Please note the change from our normal time and venue. This meeting is being organised in association with the Bath Preservation Trust as part of a wider programme...
BBC Wales has commissioned an opinion poll from ICM, which contains this: Who do you think forms the current Welsh Assembly Government? Labour and Plaid Cymru 48% Labour 21% Plaid Cymru 6% Labour and the Liberal Democrats 5% Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats 3% Liberal Democrats 2% Conservatives 2% Other 2% Don't know 11%
Strange political times indeed in Lewisham where the Socialist councillors backed a Liberal Democrat proposal to freeze Council Tax, but Labour's proposal to raise Council Tax got through on the casting vote of the Conservative chair of the council (even though the Conservatives had previously backed a freeze*). Local councillor Brian Robson has the story. * You may wish to insert some foaming at the mouth indignation in the style of Conservative blog commenters at this point along the lines of inconsistency, outrage, a disgrace to politics and eating babies.
Today is World Book Day and so this morning my son trotted off to school dressed as a character from a book he likes - Tintin in this case. He took with him his toy Jollop (the dog from Engie Bengy for those who don't watch children's TV). Of course Jollop was also in fancy [...]
News of Kirsty Williams' latest accolade is at Freedom Central.
Scrutiny Overview Committee The main business of this meeting was to receive an update on the progress of the Stanley Park High School: One School Pathfinder Programme. We were advised that agreement of terms for the sale of the Orchard Hill site from the Primary Care Trust to London Borough of Sutton were falling behind schedule, and [...]
John Warman, councillor for Cimla, welcomed the efforts of Neath Port Talbot CBC leader, Derek Vaughan, and the council's officers in restricting the rise in council tax in 2009/10 to 3.9%. He agreed with Cllr Vaughan that the county borough had been handicapped by the initial apportionment of central support on set-up, and by below-inflation raises by the Welsh Assembly Government since. He said that parents, as well as head and other teachers, would welcome the aim of protecting front-line education services. John took the opportunity to point out the unfairness of the method of paying for local council services, ...
And that candidate was a Rees-Mogg, educated at Eton. Not exactly someone you would expect to need to crib from Trevor Kavanagh.He is the son of one of the finest journalists of the 20th century, a man with a decade of experience of his own in the City.So when Jacob Rees-Mogg wrote to prospective voters in North East Somerset to wax lyrical about Gordon Brown's failings over the economy, they
I'm a bit shocked ~ just discovered I'm at number 3 in the Liberal Democrat Voice Top of the Blogs List. So if you're reading this you're not alone!
{Sir Ming at the St Andrews Hospital site} North East Fife's MP and MSP Sir Menzies Campbell and Iain Smith have welcomed the good progress being made on the under construction St Andrews Hospital and have given the project a "clean bill of health". Sir Menzies and Mr Smith who visited the site recently were given a tour by NHS Fife's Chairman Professor James McGoldrick, Chair of the Glenrothes and North East Fife CHP Graham Watson, Managing Director of Morrison Construction Scotland David Downey, Project Manager Jim Stewart and Clinical Lead Andy Kilpatrick. Commenting on the visit Sir Menzies said: ...
Just busy making flyers for the raffle we're holding jointly with the Liberal Democrat Disability Association at the Lib Dem Spring Conference. Going to Harrogate tomorrow. Nick Clegg will be drawing the raffle ~ and one of our members has ...
Gerald says he thinks it's going too far having free prescriptions for whales. He can't quite see the ...
Welsh Liberal Democrats have today launched their "Save Welsh Pubs" campaign, after new figures showed that 1 in 20 Welsh pubs have closed since June 2007.Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Wales Roger Williams MP is calling for the duty on beer to be cut and to limit the restrictive practices operated by PubCos, which are damaging many pubs across the country.Figures compiled
Craig Murray, former UK ambassador to Uzbekistan, wants to give evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights on the British Government's complicity in torture as part of their ongoing investigation into that sordid topic. The Committee seems to be having difficulty deciding whether or not to allow him to do so, and he thinks the Government are lobbying them to exclude him. He would like as many people as possible to e-mail the Committee urging them to hear the evidence. Details here. I have heard Craig Murray speak at a Lib Dem Conference Fringe, and I have followed ...
Lib Dem Voice mentioned here on Monday the Financial Times's report on the political pitfalls of waste and recycling collections, highlighting the electoral troubles it caused the Lib Dem group in Waverley in 2007. In today's paper, Waverely Lib Dem councillor Celia Savage, has a letter published in today's paper, noting: Collecting waste on alternate weeks increases recycling in a cost-effective way because the materials for recycling are collected on the other alternate weeks. One or the other is collected every week. This was introduced in Waverley by the Liberal Democrats in response to the government-imposed recycling target of 40 ...
5th-Mar-2009 10:08 am - Darwin worship bbc_scitech http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/sci/tech/7924423.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7924423.stm Andrew Marr on why Darwin should not become a deityMan, I'm glad I'm not allergic to straw. I happen to think that Darwin was a pretty canny fellow, and admire a lot of his personal stances. But even if I didn't? Even if I thought he was a complete arsehole? That does not change the fact that he was right. nobody with sense deifies Darwin - they just acknowledge that he discovered some interesting facts, with help from previous and contemporary scientists, and refinements by scientists after him. If you don't ...
There is a euphoric report on the success of Southend Council on the Echo website. Beneath a headline "Southend Council is rated as one of the best in the country" a group of ecstatic council officers wave and smile for the camera. It seems a bit churlish to question this, but something didn´t seem to add up. Southend has been rated as a 3 star authority - not 4 star. And as recently as December, Southend rated just 1 star on an assessment of Supporting People. So what do the figures really show? The Audit Commission gives the star ratings ...
Having been somewhat MIA over recent weeks, herewith a quick post to let you know where I've been. Hospital! Two of them, in fact. On the 20th of last month — after all the trials of getting into town discussed in my preceding post — I managed to slip on the stairs in the ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts) in The Mall. Instead of being content with a sprain and a few bruises I landed badly on my foot and broke my ankle. Only the second time I've ever broken a bone in my life (the first being some 27 ...
Let's hope that the campaign for a Cornish Bank Holiday really takes off. So aside from Cornish ancestry why does this concern us here in sunny St Neots (and it's very sunny here today!). Elsewhere in Europe many towns and cities, counties or regions have their own Bank Holiday. So next time the government start to speculate about an additional Bank holiday for the calendar, let's have the courage to go for a little localism! So, I put my bid in for St Neots now. I'd like the July 19th, which Parliament already once declared as a Bank Holiday to ...
Today marks the 25th anniversary of the start of the miners' strike. Whilst I remember the strike (although I was only eleven at the time) it does seem like a world away now. I suppose I particularly remember the strike because it affected Sheffield. Sheffield itself was not a mining city, but the surrounding areas like [...]
Baroness Warsi is someone who follows the religion of Islam and my prediction is that she is a follower of the either Sunni or Wahabi sects among Islam but she has made a speech at a Ahmadiyya conference which is interesting. Wahabi and Sunni Muslims believe that the Ahmadiyya are not Muslims because of their change to the teachings of Islam and them believing their leader is the last Prophet where Sunni's and Wahabi's argue it was Muhammed (Peace be Upon him). So the women has gone against her teachings to make a speech to a group of Ahmadiyya's and ...
I am someone who has always said that all Labour need is a touch of the Lib Dems and they are on their way to becoming a party that can really turn this country around. In the past I have argued that a hung parliament is going to lead to a Lib-Lab coalition, but honourably others like Lord Greaves have argued it wont happened. A article from the Times shows how the writer thinks Brown needs to discuss a deal with the Lib Dems about a possible coalition, when Parliament becomes hung after the next general election. Many will say ...
A pleasant weekend of tea and cakes in the genteel Yorkshire town of Harrogate beckons - only the second federal conference I've attended in the last 15 years, so it had better be damn good or I'll be demanding my money back. What's the plan? Drink. Food. Fringey fun. Training. Hopefully meeting some old friends and paying homage to some of my favourite bloggers. If I get really desperate, I might even have to listen to a policy debate, but let's hope not. Do say hello if you see me (the horns are a dead giveaway). I'm hoping to manage ...
Lib Dem Twitterers unite #ldconf on 12seconds.tv You can get your Spring Conference news here on this site, but did you know that Lib Dem Voice has its own boutique version for the time-pressed delegate, on microblogging site Twitter? As well as tweeting when we've published a new post, there'll also be exclusive photos and videos from Harrogate! The first video on our new 12seconds.tv channel is a reminder of the conference hashtag - that's a way of labelling tweets, blog posts, Flickr photos, etc, to make it easier to search for them. #ldconf is the hashtag we've adopted for ...
{A sewer cover} A Manchester man was arrested, held for two days, had his DNA taken and stored and was then released without charge. His alleged offence? Taking photos of a sewer cover! From boingboing.net (including video report): "Though the police couldn't find any photos of sewer-gratings on his phone (and even though "what a sewer grating looks like" isn't a piece of specialized terrorist intelligence), he was held on suspicion of planning an act of terror, imprisoned for two days while the police searched his home, his phone and his computer. "When they couldn't find anything suspicious, they released ...
A meeting was held for MPs researchers and Advisors to discuss how to progress on Family Court issues.
"How can Redcar and Cleveland Council be an 'improving Council' when it has gone from four to two stars?" asks Liberal Democrat Councillor Glyn Nightingale, former Cabinet Member for Corporate Resources. "The Liberal Democrat-led Coalition in 2007 achieved a Four-Star Excellent rating from Government inspectors. Now the Labour Rulling Group has relegated the Council down to Two Stars. It's only adequate - that's one step away from inadequate. "What a difference 22 months of Labour rule makes. Labour is quite good at talking, but fails to do what needs doing. People want a cleaner, tidier borough where they are safe ...
Thu 5th
10:41
Bury Council is "Excellent," but service cuts and pay fiasco mean all isn't quite that great
I am still struggling with my man flu, which has mutated into a cold. I am reluctant to call it a "common" cold, because people seem to get through so-called common colds without making half as much fuss as I am making. So this one must be uncommonly severe. Life-threatening, even. But one piece of news has cheered me today. The Audit Commission, the people who monitor Councils, have announced the results of the latest Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) of Local Authorities. And they have said that Bury Council is a 4-star Council, which means that the Council has been ...
"I want us to do even more to encourage the risk takers" Mansion House speech to the City of London, 17 June 2004 (It's a close run thing between this one from a few years back, directed at Paddy Ashdown about Labour and Liberal Democrat economic policies: "You lot were right.")
The news today that Labour and the Tories will both be supporting a Lib Dem amendment in the Scottish Parliament to prevent any referendum on independence before the next Holyrood elections in 2011 is somewhat worrying. Now, I'm not one of those, such as Lib Dem MSP John Farquhar Munro, who think that a referendum should be held immediately to 'clear the air'. But I think it is futile not to recognise that a referendum probably does need to be held at some stage. Saying that a referendum can't happen in this parliament seems somewhat arbitrary. It's also of concern ...
Almost exactly a year ago I blogged about the dire shortage of good secondary school places for children in South Reading. Reading's Labour-run Council have had years to sort this problem out. My colleague Kirsten Bayes highlights in the Evening Post today that things are little better this year. 23 children who applied to go to the popular John Madjeski Academy failed to get in. Kirsten also highlights the awful situation whereby some children in the Borough are being forced to travel long distances to school - bad for them and bad for the local environment. Providing a bus between Whitley and ...
Now if this isn't a reason for helping to clear out ponds, I don't know what is!
Readers in search of interesting audio material will find two excellent interviews with Chris Davies MEP on Andy Carling's blog, firstly on the situation in Gaza, and secondly on the forthcoming Euro elections. Chris has been blogging about his visits to Gaza, and speaks about it in the interview. He sees Gaza City as a potential conference city - so perhaps we can schedule that into the currently empty slot for Lib Dem conference in 2011?
There's going to be real anger out there - house prices have dropped quite considerably and there are many in negative equity. The blame must be put at Brown's door - this isn't global. Many bought through simply having enough of waiting or because at the height of the boom that's when a relationship broke [...]
Vernon Bogdanor suggests in today's Times that Gordon Brown, if he is to avoid a "new Conservative century" should now reopen the discussions with the Liberal Democrats that were terminated after Tony Blair decided to ignore the Jenkins Commission. Bogdanor, who was David Cameron's tutor at Oxford, argues that the recession, although underlining the validity of Social Democratic ideology is in fact undermining Labour, the Social Democratic Party. Bogdanor's solution is to "reunite the left" and that the Prime Minister should talk to the Liberal Democrats. Well sorry Vernon, the Liberal Democrats won't get fooled again. The Labour Party has ...
You may remember me, and many others, enjoying Charlie Brooker's column about how he's just HAD IT with this government. Well, everyone's favourite fluffy grey elephant enjoyed it too. But doesn't think rants, even excellent ones, are enough. And you know what? He's right. Especially when he says: If you say all politicians are the same, that ANYONE who goes into politics is therefore the same... then no one is going to go into politics to CHANGE things. And that only helps the BAD ones.I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again: we Brits are RUBBISH at violent ...
My birthday was just last month, reaching the ripe old age of 41. My Sister and Mum sent me those electronic gift cards, so off to M&S and Next I went. While in Next a young gentleman sidled up to me and asked if I wanted to win a sports car, why not, so in for a penny, in for a pound as they say so I signed the postcard and put my address. Imagine my surprise a week later when a letter arrived from Next Directory saying they needed more information before they could send me the Directory. Strange, ...
File under "you couldn't make it up". The BNP's 09 election campaign, which they presumably regard as the first step to the road to their promised land of racial purity, is clearly setting out to target migrant workers.Never ones to worry about a hackneyed image they use that iconic image of a Spitfire to illustrate "the Battle for Britain". Just one slight problem. The Spitfire they used is one from 303 squadron. Which was made up of Polish airmen who escaped from Nazi occupied France. John Hemming MP pointed out the lunacy of the BNPs position: They have a policy ...
Looking forward to heading off to Harrogate this weekend for the spring Liberal Democrat conference - though not quite sure when I'll have time to finish preparing! We've got a special meeting with Howard Dean on the Saturday for everyone who responded for my call for volunteers to help with software coding etc. If you haven't had an invite by email and think you should have, drop a line to ecampaignteam@libdems.org.uk.
This really does take the custard cream. Phil Woolas, probably the most political person in the history of mankind, accusing the National Office for Statistics of "playing politics" because they......er...........wait for it...........hold on to your hats.....gird your loins...........issued some statistics.If I could think of a white thing in a traditional kitchen environment, I would have
In a triumph of optimism over reality, the Archbishop of Modena in Italy has urged youngsters to give up texting, social networks and computer games for Lent. Monsignor Benito Cocchi hopes it will help the young folk "cleanse themselves from the virtual world and get back into touch with themselves". I thought it was the getting in touch with themselves that was half the problem to be honest. At least it shows a bit of imagination over the usual admonitions for us to give up booze, fags, excess calories and acts of self-abuse. Although I'll hold off until after conference ...
When the Planet Organic store first opened on Essex Road last year, I was quite excited. It's not somewhere I'd shop every day, but it's nice to know it's there. But as I pass it every time I go to the Angel or beyond, I've got increasingly irritated by the display of bottled water in [...]
At Boxmoor County Primary School we had only two pieces of music: Morning by Grieg and Vaughan Williams' Tallis Fantasia. And, as far as I recall, the headmaster, Mr Standen, had only two stories. One involved two frogs who fell into a pail of cream. One swam around for a bit, but then gave up the struggle and drowned. The second frog swam and swan until his strength was almost exhausted. Just when he thought he could swim no more, he found that the cream had turned to butter and he climbed out. That is the kind of story that ...
I attended a public meeting in Swansea last night that was convened to discuss the setting up of a 'Yes' campaign in the City in preparation for the promised referendum on primary law making powers for the Welsh Assembly. My view is that we are approaching this referendum from the wrong perspective. It is a belief that has just been reinforced by a Radio Wales item that talked about people voting for an Assembly with equivalent powers to the Scottish Parliament. That is not what we will be asked to vote on. Nor should we be arguing for 'more' powers ...
Just a reminder that the Redlands and University Area Neighbourhood Action Group is holding a public meeting tonight. It will be at Alfred Sutton School, starting 7pm and will discuss the key priorities being worked on by NAG which are: anti-social behaviour, fear of violence, and the local environment.See you there!
This is a plaque on the wall of a lovely house in Pilgim's Lane and unusually topped by a ships figurehead. William Johnson Cory was a poet from the victorian era and his principle poem was Ionicus. Cory is really a person of the victorian era - when classics was a valued form of respect in society - when education was a key part of social standing - when latin verse, indeed verse itself, was currency. Cory retired to London in the mid 1870's, having left Eton in a bit of a cloud, but he set up home and married ...
Well obviously it was not performed in Welsh, but judging by this reaction from the Guardian Arts Correspondent, Charlotte Higgins, it might as well have been. She left her cosy London office last week and bravely endured the hazardous crossing of the Bristol Channel in pursuit of high art. Arriving at the iconic Senedd building for a pre-performance reception it seems that she was taken aback at having to listen to Wales' Heritage Minister through the medium of a set of headphones. Shock, horror, he spoke Welsh! Her comment that this 'may be pushing the point about Britain's linguistic diversity ...
Managed to get to the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Cyprus chaired by Peter Droussiotis - my former colleague (albeit Labour) on Haringey Council. MPs turned up to say their few words to the assembled audience - and it is great to have the opportunity to show those who care so passionately about Cyprus and its prospects for prosperity and re-unification that as an MP with lots of Greek and Turkish Cypriots that it matters. What I tried to put across in my few words is the frustration when the motions which are part of the democratic process (lobbying ...
For the last year I have been fighting a battle with the Conservatives who accused me of calling them "all Corrupt". As usual they weren't listening. In fact I had said the "system of democracy was corrupt". The incident in question at the Council meeting on the 17th of January 2008 was unreported yet the Conservatives demanded I make a full and humble public apology. I believe I always apologise for my mistakes but there was no way I was going to apologise for something I didn't say. The Conservatives persisted which led to the employment of an investigator. He ...
Now I have no issue the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague wanting to hold Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir to account for the atrocities in Darfur. However, this issuing of this warrant yesterday when a sitting President has immediate ramifications, which is probably why no reigning head of state has previously be called a war criminal. The fact is that his response was to expel 10 Aid Agencies (Médecins Sans Frontières, Oxfam, CARE, Mercy Corps, Save the Children, the Norweigan Refugee Council, the International Rescue Committee, Action Contre la Faim, Solidarites, and CHF International) should hardly come as a ...
Wednesday: So, it was Mr Frown's big day. He got to address a joint session of both houses of Americaland's congress. This is, apparently, an honour previously only bestowed on two MANIACS, a NOTORIOUS DRUNK and the man who managed to lose a general election despite polling the most votes Hard Labour has ever won. So he was understandably PEEVED that Chancellor Sooty had another of his inconvenient bouts of HONESTY and said that maybe a little HUMILITY was called for, and maybe the Government should admit to getting a few things WRONG. "Will I ARSE!" was Mr Frown's reply. ...
