The vet said it was gastro-intestinal, gave her an injection, and we have some medicine to give her with meals for a bit. She's not allowed to exert herself for a few days because apparently these things can affect respiratory function in dogs and it's best not to chance it - so no chasing ball, which she was a bit miffed about tonight - and she needs to be kept a close eye on and lots of pampering, basically. Thanks to all those of you who sent good wishes. And thanks to Dad for helping out.
The former Executive Director of Libertas, Naoise Nunn, who managed the successful 'No' campaign in Ireland's referendum on the EU Lisbon Treaty last year, tonight declared in a BBC Newsnight interview that circumstances have changed, and that he now thinks Ireland should and probably will vote 'yes' when there is a rerun of the referendum, probably [...]
For the record, it's in a purely platonic way, lest people get ideas, but the Cleggmeister has given me every reason to think even more highly of him after this article and accompanying comment piece for tomorrow's Guardian. I'll be honest – I'm a bit of a constitutional geek. I love constitutional reform, to the extent [...]
The Guardian splashes with the story: Britain's politicians should be barred from taking their summer holidays until the constitutional crisis sparked by the expenses row is resolved and "every nook and cranny" of the political system is reformed, Nick Clegg declares today. ... Clegg, who regards the proposals floated by the two main parties as too timid, attempts to assume the mantle of Britain's boldest reformer when he sets out a week-by-week, 100-day plan to achieve the "total reinvention of British politics". In the first two weeks parliament would agree to accept the recommendations of the review into MPs' expenses ...
MP's should be allowed no summer holiday until they have driven through a radical program of reform Nick Clegg says in The Guardian. Nothing surprising or necessarily that controversial (at least from a Liberal Democrat angle) but nonetheless a bold attempt to put Cameron in the shade; His proposals on party funding are that there both be [...]
I thought I'd give a plug to a few community events that will be taking place in Whitefoot over the next few weeks. On Saturday 30th May, there will be a summer fete at St Mark's Church on Baudwin Road from 11am, just opposite the Excalibur Estate. I'll be popping in for cake and a cup of tea, in between leaflet delivery! On Sunday, there will be the usual monthly workday in the Woodland Walk - meet at the Haddington Road gate at 2pm. Tools and refreshment provided - please bring enthusiasm! And on Saturday 20th June the St John's ...
We need parliamentary reform, we need it now, we shouldn't leave for holidays until it is sorted that is what Nick Clegg is saying in the Guardian. While David Cameron is outlining what he would do if he was elected as Prime Minister and Alan Johnson is saying what he would do possibly to set out his leadership challenge the Lib Dem leader is saying to his fellow MPs we need to get this done before we can move on. Setting out his vision for a new politics setting out a hundred day plan that will give the people the ...
This will induce the nearest thing LibDem nerds get to a simultaneous orgasm over politics. In tomorrow's Guardian, Nick Clegg proposes a breathtaking 100 day plan to reform British politics. He says that MPs should not go on holiday until their wholesale reinvention of the whole system. His article is entitled "Bar the gates. No summer holiday before the overhaul". This is great stuff! Nick Clegg knocks Cameron's timid muttering about 'nip and tuck' reforms into a cocked hat. Brilliantly, he describes Cameron's statement thus: "Open source software, new select committee chairs and legislative text messages will not rescue British ...
May 27, 2009 SOURCE men HAZEL Blears could face a vote of no confidence from her own constituency party in the wake of the MPs expenses storm. The Salford Constituency Labour Party is due to meet next month and opposition to Communities Minister Ms Blears is growing. MPs' expenses latest Gordon Brown has openly criticised the Salford MP, [...]
I did want to give CoverItLive a chance to shine on this blog and post all the tweets for today's Apprentice in one place but I have realised that it isn't as easy as that and the experiment failed. I removed the CoverItLive in the middle on the Apprentice because it had stopped working and since then I am a little cheesed off with it. Many people sing and dance about CoverItLive and personally I haven't liked it so the next time I will cover something I will use the comment section of the blog or twitter and will stay ...
I suspect that the intended victory parade is now off. The road closures on Thursday probably won't happen. {:(} Although at 22:07 I've had an email telling me about the road closures if Manchester United win. Obviously from somebody without a telly!
So - good! The Attorney General, Baroness Scotland, is going to take a look at the sentencing for the Baby P case - and may then lodge an appeal over them being too lenient. With an 'indeterminate' sentence - it does mean that it could be forever. But with the minimum sentence length given out, it could mean - say - that the mother would be out in five years - which would be a travesty of justice. Once she or the others have served their minimum sentence, it's up to the Parole Board to decide whether to release any ...
Well just when you thought it was safe to put down your roots Wirral Partnershi*e Homes decommissions the block and we all have to up sticks and go. I shall be offline for a couple of weeks, by the time I return the European Elections will be over, and no doubt the inquests will begin. [...]
Councillors get a lot of information. I got some today and pass it straight on. Apparently it's supposed to tell me who is getting the green kerbit bin (garden and kitchen waste etc. recycled). The map sort of makes sense, in that the pink bits with a red outline seem to correspond to people with gardens for whom an extra bin for gardening waste makes sense and who might have somewhere to store it. However, nowhere do they give me a clue about what the tags mean. Those living on cal_7, Cal_5 or Cal_6 can take a guess as to ...
I'm very glad that Nadine Dorries' blog is back up. She should never have been taken down in the first place. But, my, what a pile of self pitying drivel.
We had an unexpectedly good night of comedy at the Kings Head (Crouch End) last night. Stewart Lee was the headline act. He delivered exactly what we had come to see, however a few of the support acts were unexpectedly good. Henning Wehn was a treat and the compare Henry Paker really held the event together. Unusually for a Sunday the event was sold outaccutane timeline? Buying Clomid Online symptoms of zoloft working; lipitor drug cost Vet Dog Care Lasix Medication prednisone stopped taking side effects difference between lexapro and celexa Zithromax Antibiotics Online accutane timeline? symptoms of zoloft working; ...
Government's management of data is a hot topic at the moment. That's why I was concerned when I noticed that Durham County Council's entry in the register appeared not to have been updated since its change of status to a unitary council. Worse still, Durham County Council's Electoral Registration Officer did not seem to be registered under the Data Protection Act - but was in the middle of running a European Election. A bit of further research showed that most of the District Councils are still registered, though they ceased to exist two months ago - and they are still ...
Last month, while answering Iain Dale's 20 firsts meme, I said that the first famous person I had met was Danny La Rue, when I was aged about 8. I was one of the children asked up on to the stage halfway through one of his pantomimes - Queen Passionella and the Sleeping Beauty, to be precise. We sang "Doe, a Deer", as it happens, and having a deep voice I was given the first line. Anyway, my strongest memory of the evening, apart from my own performance, is of Danny La Rue coming out in front of the curtain, ...
Well could be the nearest we get to a landslide but with the Conservatives offering seat to everyone and labour on a Nose dive i think we could be in for a few surprises. What do you think readers..
Nick Clegg's Sutton Town Hall Meeting Nick Clegg the Liberal Democrat Party Leader has been touring the country making himself available to members of the public through local town hall meetings. Today he came to Sutton and I went along to see how it went. The room was packed, some people I recognised as Liberal Democrat supporters [...]
The donation figures have just come out today for the first quarter of this year. If anyone was in any doubt about the lib dems being 'down with the kids' then check out the donation to Bermondsey and Southwark Lib Dems on the 31st of March this year. Yes thats right. £10,000 from the Ministry of Sound! (Just choose 'Liberal Democrats as the party and it's right down near the bottom)
This is a great scheme being introduced in Woodhouse that will see local residents help to improve the community in which they live. It would be great to see more schemes like this in other areas.
Wed 27th
19:28
LOST your job? Depressed on the dole? No prospects on the horizon? Then the Tories want you!
According to David Cameron, ordinary people – that's you and I – will be able to apply to be Conservative candidates at the next General Election even if we have no past involvement with the party. It's all about giving power back to the people, but not in a socialist sort of way, more a damage [...]
Without a doubt, Barack Obama's first days in office have been relatively placid. Questionable decisions surrounding the reform of Guantanamo Bay and the publication of further photos of Iraqi detainees have not left any significant cracks in the veneer he carefully crafted during his campaign. Every word he has uttered has been meticulously thought through and he is still seen as a placater (especially internationally), his rhetoric always calming and measured. However, rumblings have recently started to grow louder voicing concerns over Obama's "buy American" message. Among the latest to hit out at President Obama's stimulus package are the Financial ...
Top Labour Party officials are meeting today to decide whether disgraced Labour MP for Bury North David Chaytor will be allowed to stand again at the next election. Since allegations emerged about a £13,000 payment which the Daily Telegraph claim Mr Chaytor received for a "phantom mortgage", the MP's fate has been in the balance. Now, almost two weeks after the allegations emerged, and with no public word from Mr Chaytor in almost as long, it is the Labour Party and not local people who have their say over his future. I repeat my demand that Mr Chaytor should face ...
Further to my previous posts from a week and a half ago here and here which looked at the MPs who had been implicated in the expenses scandal by the Telegraph and seemed to find a correlation between the safety of the seat the MP held and the likelihood of being involved, I have gone through the data again using the latest available list from the Telegraph. The link to this is here although it changes daily and may well be out of date by the time you read this (although I have saved it locally myself). The source data ...
I have been reminded of many old proverbs during my time as a Councillor: "Too many cooks spoil the broth" is one I often think about when wading through the treacle of a meeting agenda with two dozen other people round the table wittering on for hours. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" is another which lolls about my brain when I'm yearning to go home during epic committee meetings. Today I am reminded that good things come to those who wait, because after a Lib Dem campaign lasting more than two years, the Council and the Greater Manchester Urban ...
Over the last few years I have been walking, running and cycling around and through Bracknell. One thing that has really struck me is how good the parks in Bracknell are. Bracknell is unfortunately far from perfect but it does have new town planning to thank for the green spaces, parks and pedestrian paths and cycle ways in every estate. One of my favourite routes is along the paths between Lily Hill Park and Coral Reef. Its goes through the back of Harmans Water estate, then through Forest Park estate over a bridge (A322) then continues beside coral reef and ...
The Electoral Commission has published the latest donation and borrowing figures for the political parties this week, and LDV's own Mark Pack has already blogged his success in getting the Commission to report the figures accurately. The Commission's website does allow us, though, to gain a picture of the Lib Dems' fundraising efforts over the years. Below is the full breakdown of cash and non-cash donations received by quarter since 2005, and annually between 2001 and 2004. Overall, the figures show that the party's efforts have stepped up a level during this time. Since 2004 - and most notably in ...
Roberta Blackman-Woods is the barely known Labour MP for Durham City where she is defending a majority of around 3,000 over the Lib Dems. Hopefully, she will be one of those swept out at the general election when a bit of serious sweeping-out-of-the-contents-of-the-political-stable action by the electorate will reduce Labour's ranks to a rump.She is a mega-super-loyalist backer of the Labour
This Press Release from Open Europe contains the heartening news that Liberal Democrat MEPs beat both Labour and the Conservatives in their league table of UK MEPs' "openness" voting record. We are beaten into 3rd place by both the Greens and the SNP who only have 2 MEPs apiece. The other important point to take from this (bearing in mind Nigel Farage is on tomorrow's Question Time) is that UKIP are way down this league. We should be shouting this from the rooftops! Their league table looks like this: Party Number of MEPs Average score per MEP 1. Green Party ...
Earlier today the Scotsman's David Maddox posted on the Steamie the paper's blog an article which included unfounded allegations about Jo Swinson's expenses. Indeed this was the same day that the Grauniad had to apologise for printing those falsehoods. Caron's article alerted me to the latest bit of sloppy and lazy journalism over this whole affair. After correcting the blog a David, possibly Maddox himself, left an apology on Caron's blog stating he had 'checked with the Telegraph who said they had not retracted anything on the original story'. Herein lies the rub, the Telegraph, as James Graham pointed out, ...
Ahh, the European elections - those of you who've been paying especially close attention to the news in recent weeks may have caught a nano-second of coverage of the issues which will be decided by voters across the EU next week. If so, you might have come across an analysis by the Open Europe think-tank - more about whom here - who this week published a ranking of all 785 Members of the European Parliament, scoring their record on promoting transparency and reform in the EU over the last five-year term. The criteria Open Europe used for their scoring system ...
If you live in south east London and rely on the overland train to get into central London you won't need telling how annoying and expensive not being able to use the Oystercard system is. One of Boris' major promises was to just sort it out. Sort it out within the year! That means by now. But if you live in south east London, can you use your oystercard on the Train? No - neither can I! In true Boris style (i.e. the bit where he thinks he can just waive a magic wand to get things done) he has ...
Update: I have given up with Cover it Live as it wasn't bloody working. I rather stick with twitter. If you want to follow my tweets on twitter of this weeks show follow the link!
The expenses scandal that has rocked the country in the past few weeks is just the tip of an iceberg of problems with Britain's political system. The exploitation of the House of Commons expenses rules has exposed a culture of arrogance and secrecy right at the heart of our democracy, protected for decades by the vested interests of those in charge. Finally, the...
Reaction to the Network Rail's announcement that 90% of trains were 'punctual' in the last year, Norman Baker warned passengers not to be hoodwinked. Reaction to the Network Rail's announcement that 90% of trains were 'punctual' in the last year, Norman Baker warned passengers not to be hoodwinked. "Any improvement in punctuality is to be welcomed but...
Paul Waugh has wrote a blog post about how the Labour party are using TNT to post their leaflets, SHOCK, HORROR I knew about this about a month ago and even wrote in a letter to my local paper but no one published it but you readers can read it below: The Tory candidate Andrew Stephenson is boasting that he uses the Royal Mail to deliver his leaflets (letters last week). He attacks the Labour Party for using a private firm (TNT) to post their leaflets. They may be right that Gordon Prentice is hypocritical in standing up for Royal ...
If you are asking that question after reading any of Lord Greedy's Diary entries then you have come to the right place. Ever since I started blogging using my own name I always believed that I made the wrong decision and should have used a character and wrote the blog from that prospect but I didn't so here is a step towards writing from a characteristic point of view. I got the name Lord Greedy after reading the term being used to describe Lord Greaves in the comment section of the Lancashire Telegraph and personally it made me giggle so ...
Few tales have humbled me as an elected politician more than the curious case of Leo Blair's MMR jab. As we are reminded by the ever-excellent Dr Ben Goldacre in his book, Bad Science (accompanying his weekly column in The Grauniad and his blog) the MMR scare did not begin with Andrew Wakefield's study in The Lancet in 1998; it had just gotten going in 2001 when Tony and Cherie were asked whether baby Leo had had the jab. Somewhere between their refusal to confirm or deny and Sylvia and Carole Caplin's perceived influence and vocal opposition to MMR, 2002 ...
Since I posted this yesterday I have been further deliberating on the merits of just focusing on debating the principle of proportional representation as opposed to specifically pushing for Single Transferable Vote (STV). There have been others posting about this subject and I had a lively debate with Jennie Rigg on her blog yesterday too. I seem to be in a minority in what I suggested yesterday and most Lib Dem bloggers seem to think that it is vitally important to push for STV. As I mentioned previously my problem is that I have a lot of trouble trying to ...
The University of Wales in Aberystwyth have put a Lib Dem bar chart in a statistics exam. There are 8 marks available for commenting on it. Give it a go!
The Council has published the 'Acolaid' statistics for May 08 to Apr 09, which details individual items of casework raised by councillors in Reading either on behalf of constituents or about local issues in the ward from pot holes to parking: Councillor Party Totals BENSON, Daisy Lib Dem 228 PAGE, Tony (Deputy Leader) Labour 204 ORTON, Mike Labour 148 EPPS, Gareth Lib Dem 143 GOODALL, Glenn Lib Dem 127 BAYES, Kirsten Lib Dem 108 LOVELOCK, Jo (Leader) Labour 94 STEELE, Tom Conservative 87 RALPH, Mark Conservative 85 BALLSDON, Isobel Conservative 80 SWAINE, Warren Lib Dem 77 STANWAY, Tom Conservative 76 ...
I have faced a number of phone calls from journos today. Asking for replies to Richard Spring's outburst in effect saying I am solely responsible for delaying the dualling of the A11. I have placed no formal objection to it. A couple of points:- 1 It's interesting to see that Mr Spring appears to say I have more power as a local councillor than Mr Spring has sway at Westminster at the moment. 2 My primary concern is the safety of residents and the daily hazard they face in crossing the A11 and the congestion they face at Fiveways on ...
If we could get the agreement of the other parties I would be happy to cancel my plans for the Summer Recess.From The Guardian 27/5/09Britain's politicians should be barred from taking their summer ho...
Boris Johnson's recent near collision with a truck is a powerful reminder, as he himself said, that cycling needs to be made safer in London. The Mayor is planning to put in a Paris-style free bike system. I'm a big fan, but my worry is that in London we won't study the French lesson closely enough. The Mayor of Paris installed not just free bikes, but also properly separated cycle lanes, either by moving out a line of parking to put the cycle lane between the pavement and the cars, or by getting rid of a line of cars altogether. ...
It's ironic that the man who presides over TfL, Boris Johnson, uses public transport so little. Perhaps that's why so many of his election promises on transport are running even later than the number 4 bus. The latest example, highlighted by my colleague Caroline Pidgeon, is the rollout of Oyster cards to overground train services. The [...]
Liberal Democrat barcharts are of course legitimate ways of getting a message across but they can sometimes be controversial, especially with other parties. I was surprised therefore to have a question in a Statistics for Economics examination at University of Wales, Aberystwyth drawn to my attention by the creator of the barcharts used in the Welsh Liberal Democrats General Election campaign in Ceredigion in 2005. The exam in question, which took place only a few weeks after Mark Williams famously won the seat from Plaid Cymru, reproduces one of these barcharts and asks the students to comment on it. A ...
It would be easy to think that light is being shed on MPs' expenses. But secrecy is still the big problem. I have been out talking to residents almost every day for the last month. They are seething about the MPs' claims for expenses. They need to know exactly what is being claimed for - not just for second homes, but also staff and office expenses. The sooner the detailed claims are available on the internet, the better. If I am elected I pledge ï‚· Not to employ any member of my family at public expense ï‚· Only to claim ...
Let me just start off by saying that I am completely pro-European. The EU and its predecessors have ensured peace in Europe for around 50 years, have allowed trade to flourish within Europe, increased human rights and worker protection in almost every EU country, has allowed international issues like climate change to be tackled and given Europe and European countries a strong voice in the world. However this does not mean that there are not deep problems with the way that the EU is run. It is one of the most undemocratic and unaccountable forms of government. No wonder people ...
The Guardian's Media Monkey has the story. Apparently in a BBC webcast, Alex Salmond was asked by a member of the public what 24 divided by zero (24/0) is. He, not unreasonably, said "infinity" (the proper answer is "undefined" but I'd give him that). The BBC presenter said this was wrong and the right answer was zero (sigh, this is the total opposite of being right!). Funnily enough a newspaper then picked up this story and repeated the unfounded allegations (now where has this happened before?) about Mr Salmond's maths ability. After a complaint to the PPC, the Scotsman had ...
Wright Robinson Sports College is one of the City Council's flagship Private Finance Initiative (PFI) schools. Using private finance, the old 1960s building, which had all of the usual defects of 1960s public buildings was torn down and a brand new school and sports facility built. The new building effectively is owned by the PFI backers and the sports facilities, which are excellent, are made available for public use for a contracted period of time. As a local Councillor, I fully supported this as it had been clear for years that the previous building, which had not a single classroom ...
Community groups and residents across Bath and North East Somerset are being encouraged by the Council to apply for a one-off Recession Grant of up to £20,000. Last week, the Council Cabinet made £100,000 available for grants to the voluntary sector help organisations mitigate the impact of the recession in their communities immediately. The Council is joining...
The Lord doesn't know a lot about technology but has just realised that you have to have some sort of RSS Feed for your Diary so others can see it. So Lord Greedy has been talking to his assistant and has asked him to sort something out for the Lord and he has, here it is. You can now follow Lord Greedy's Diary via RSS so you won't miss anything that the Lord has written. The power of technology is taking a liking for the Lord especially with Lord Greedy being able to make his Diary read more!
I have received to following from the Better Bath team please contact them for more information. Night life in Bath - what do you want to raise?Dear Supporter, The next BetterBath meeting on 10 June will be discussing Night life in Bath - how can we make it better? Please tell us what issues you'd like to raise, so that we can work out an agenda to cover them....
Hello readers, Lord Greedy has finally found out how to work this blogging thing and will be writing about the business of Parliament here on this web log or as most call it a blog. Lord Greedy gave himself the name Lord Greedy after reading it in the comments section of a newspaper where the Lord used to lurk. Lord Greedy will write about issues and topics that interest him and the Lord might even give you inside information to what is going on in Parliament and especially the Upper House.
It had become a quarterly habit of mine, pointing out how the Electoral Commission's quarterly reports mixed up actual loans taken out by political parties with unused credit facilities, providing an inaccurate impression of parties being much more in debt than they really are. Last quarter I noted that the reporting was clearer, and it's good to see that with this quarter's figures and news release the two different issues have been fully separated out, with only the actual borrowing in the headline debt figures the media are reporting. Success at last {:-)}
Yesterday, my LDV colleague Mark Pack blogged of Labour-to-Lib Dem defector in Merseyside. Alas, this week's defection news isn't all cheery for the party: A Liberal Democrat councillor defected to the Conservatives saying his dedication to his town was not recognised by his old party. Robbie Robertson, who represents Newhaven Valley on Lewes District Council, announced his decision to cross the floor after his party raised council tax by 16% in Newhaven. He said: "I am a dedicated and hard working councillor but sadly in my present position my skills are not utilised. "Becoming a councillor was for me driven ...
Few tales have humbled me as an elected politician more than the curious case of Leo Blair's MMR jab.As we are reminded by the ever-excellent Dr Ben Goldacre in his book, Bad Science (accompanying his weekly column in The Grauniad and his blog) the MMR scare did not begin with Andrew Wakefield's study in The Lancet in 1998; it had just gotten going in 2001 when Tony and Cherie were asked whether
I ought to relieve anyone who is in suspense over my nostalgic trivia question the other day. The connection between The Third Man film and the novel A Frenchman's Creek is that the novel's author Daphne Du Maurier and the film's director Carol Reed had an affair in their twenties. And in case you are wondering, Carol Reed was definitely a man (and, coincidentally, the uncle of Oliver Reed).
It is good to see that the Liberal Democrat's are taking UKIP on directly about their expenses hypocrisy but conventional wisdom is that they will do well at the polls on June 4th. UKIP traditionally poll strongly in European polls which they use as a lightening rod for anti-EU feeling and they are obviously more [...]
Mea culpa, gentle reader, this is definitely not breaking news... After a bank holiday of back-breaking gardening and a Tuesday of work-fuelled meetings (my colleagues can add their own excuses), LDV failed to bring you news of Nick Clegg's plans to clamp down on allowances claimed by members of the House of Lords - an issue of more-than-passing-interest to Lib Dems following the resignation of party chief executive Lord (Chris) Rennard amid allegations that he had profited personally from the scheme by designating his Eastbourne flat (rather than his London house) as his main residence. This from Sunday night's Guardian ...
I note that on day 20 of the Daily Telegraph dissecting the MPs expenses that even they appear to have run out of patience. They near the back of the paper have started with the As of every MP that has not yet featured in their own designated article. They are merely printing the ACA or London Allowance it would seem. Now all of these figures are publicly available on a number of websites however it is the Telegraph trying to cram everyone in over the next few days that is the issue. Today we only get as far as ...
{Blue Badge} I have pledged my support to Scope's "Time to get equal week" from June 8th to 14th. Scope's Time to Get Equal Week is a celebration of disabled people's contribution to society and a chance to raise public awareness of the barriers disabled people face in their day-to-day lives. Their campaign covers four main themes: Beating disabilism, freedom of expression, independent living and making rights a reality. If you would like to pledge your support or get involved with their campaign go to www.timetogetequal.org.uk
When the UK needed them after the second world war they invited them to come and work in the mills and they came and worked hard to save this countries economy. Last year they complained that the migrants were taking all the jobs and now they aren't coming and the economy is threatened. Can't the papers and the general public not make their mind up, do they want migrants here or not? I myself come from a family that came here to save the economy after the second world war and personally I think that the BNP and other parties ...
David Cameron yesterday called for a 'massive, sweeping, radical redistribution of power' in the country, arguing that it was time for citizens and parliament to claw back some control from the state, but in a new poll even Conservative voters do not believe that he will carry out his commitments if given power. The new poll is at Politics home...
The news isn't all doom 'n' gloom, y'know - even in the Telegraph: Trains are more punctual than ever, Network Rail has claimed, with more than nine out of 10 arriving on time over the past year. The figures are the best since the industry started collating punctuality statistics in 1992. Last month the performance was even better than the yearly average, with 93.5 per cent of services classed as running on time. The industry's definition of punctuality is based on commuter services operating within five minutes of the timetable and for longer distance trains, 10 minutes. However, Lib Dem ...
Whilst I was at Birmingham Pride at the weekend a Green activist tried to persuade me to vote Green.
{Ming Campbell MP} Sir Menzies Campbell has expressed his concern at the developments in North Korea with regard to their recent nuclear testing. Speaking on his return from a NATO conference in Oslo where this was discussed, Sir Menzies said: "There was much concern at the NATO conference this weekend over North Korea's belligerence and provocation. For once China and Russia, who have been reluctant to be critical of the regime in the past, expressed themselves in the strongest possible terms after what was thought to be an underground nuclear explosion. The subsequent launches are deeply disturbing. This will be ...
I don't normally do movie reviews but I will make an exception. I have recently watched Fired Up a comedy that I personally think is worth watching. To view the website of the movie follow the link. I will keep this review short and sweet all I can say is its fu**ing funny! If I had to rate it between 1 and 10 then it would be a 7/10 for this movie!
Selflessness Honesty and Integrity Objectivity Accountibility Openness Personal Judgment Respect for others As a councillor i try maintain this code, it's a simple way of conducting business, not hard to keep. What i would like to ask is what happened to our MP'S perhaps if Hazel will send the cost of a stamp i will forward her a copy. [...]
Newbury railway station is festooned with red "Home of Vodafone" signs and Vodafone advertising hoardings. This morning I noticed this posterboard (below) just outside the station. I haven't got a clue what it is about. Well, I understand the individual words but I am not quite sure what I am supposed to do about it. I am not aware of any Siemens Nokia Network products I can buy as a consumer. Perhaps I should be. You need, I suspect, to be a communications industry insider to understand it. Is there some sort of subliminal message contained within it?
It is interesting to see the flurry of proposals for constitutional reform cropping up now. I have been part of discussions in parliament about how to reduce the power of the executive/government/king and increase the ability of the representatives of the people to hold the executive to account.We may end up with some important improvements to the machinery of government through this process. I
You have to hand it to those Tory bosses. They certainly have a sense of humour in a masochistic sort of way. After sending Andrew MacKay to his political death at the hands of the baying mob at a public meeting in Bracknell, they have now told Julie Kirbride to hold a similar meeting. Well, that's their story anyway. Other reports say that "Julie must go" campaigners have invited her to address a public meeting. Meanwhile, David Cameron deserves some sort of award for "Smokescreen of the century" as he goes round talking about "radical reform" and criticising Ministers' accountants ...
When STV voting was brought in the 2007 Scottish council elections it largely brought about an end of the Labour fiefdoms in the Central Belt at local level. However, the domination of their MPs was only broken from North Berwick to Falkirk by John Barrett for the Lib Dems in Edinburgh West. Is that about to change with almost all of their 11 MPs in the region implicated in some way or other in the expenses scandal? The former leader of Edinburgh City Council Donald Anderson who stood unsuccessfully for Holyrood in Edinburgh South last time says he is worried. ...
I am currently engulfed in a fury unrivalled in its intensity at the Scotsman's political blog, The Steamie, for its shameless referral to the Telegraph's inaccurate claims that Jo Swinson claimed for make up on her expenses. This comes on the day that the Guardian, albeit rather grudgingly, corrected their reporting of this complete non-story. I can't find a way to link directly to the Steamie's article, but it's entitled "David Maddox - Don't Tell the Candidate". I've already left a comment there but don't let that stop you from adding your own thoughts. You can also complain to the ...
Before local Labour activists complain too loudly about their opponents making use of World Wide Web pages to attack them, they should consider the activities of David Boothroyd, a Labour councillor in London, who has been using various aliases in a deception aimed at Wikipedia among others. He has now been found out and action taken by Wikipedia. Mark Pack has the story and links.
Don't expect much from me today (hush with those sighs of relief at the back, there). One of my doggies is poorly, and I have spent most of the morning nursing her. The vet can't get her in before 2, and I have to be at work for 12. Joy.
I have just put the final touches to our last leaflet and been looking at what the opposition has been saying in their leaflets.The one that really makes me laugh is from the Green party who have found a candidate for the first time in Buckhurst Hill. Almost everything they are campaigning has been picked up from either the Conservative leaflet or ours.Getting the potholes fixed- we have been
The above email was just sent to me due to some "green" scheme or other I signed up to (must review that!). Firstly, I wonder how this will be reflected in their election expenses and secondly, should we be doing something like this? :) Should be using existing non-political networks like this? Also why not say things like "Clean up MPs, Vote LibDem"? I know we've been shying away from it but we can justify it and think we should welcome the questioning on such a provocative and non-establishment stance (the answer being our extensive reforms that the others wouldn't ...
Residents of Cambridge Road in Hardwick probably didn't realise that the lady with a twinkle in her eye, canvassing them with me last night, was none other than Baroness Ros Scott of Needham Market, Party President of the Lib Dems. For all Lib Dems it's a case of mucking in if something needs doing. Just ask my saintly mother who will tell you all about stuffing envelopes to the wee small hours of the morning during an election campaign! At the moment with all the press attention on the expenses MPs are claiming, it's easy to forget that the vast ...
Haringey Council (in north London) started using Twitter in the guise of @LBHaringey on 21 March. Between then and 27 March, 15 tweets were sent, albeit mostly simply news feed updates regarding the council website. And in the two months since then? Nothing. Perhaps Haringey has experimented and decided not to continue? But in that case, you should either remove it from public view or post a final "thanks and this is why we're stopping" message. As it is, what's left up there just looks bad, giving the impression of tried something out, got bored, given up. I doubt that's ...
{mc-anstruther-1} Sir Menzies Campbell was recently elected as the Honorary President of the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther. Commenting on this honor, Sir Menzies said: "I am honored and delighted to have been elected as Honorary President of the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther in my constituency. "The museum has gone from strength to strength and not only provides an important understanding of the fishing tradition in the East Neuk of Fife but has a wider national significance and a role to play in the local tourist industry." You can find out about the Scottish Fisheries Museum here.
Suffolk County Council will be going through difficult times, so we must make sure that the organisation runs as efficiently as possible: reducing red tape, but protecting front line services. We will; Tightly control top salaries - under the Conservatives the number of employees earning more than £50,000 has mushroomed, costing the taxpayer an additional £10m in the last three years. There must be a freeze on salaries over £50,000.Consult HONESTLY with you - many people feel that the Conservatives are ignoring the results of consultations if it doesn't suit them. We promise to listen to the public and take ...
On Monday, the Lib Dem's chair of Communications Edward Davey wrote to the leader of UKIP Nigel Farage MEP to challenge him on failing to publish his own expenses, on the disgraceful voting record of his European Parliamentary Party, and on the shameful track record of his fellow parliamentarians. "UKIP MEPs have attacked others over their expenses while living the high life in Brussels, charging the taxpayer, and hiding the true cost from voters. "One in six UKIP MEPs elected in 2004 has since faced criminal charges over their creative accounting. Meanwhile, UKIP turned up in the European Parliament to ...
STARS from across the region have joined together against the British National Party. The extremist right-wing group is targeting the north west region at the European Parliament elections on June 4. It needs 8 per cent of the vote to win one of the eight seats in Brussels. BNP – the truth Churchill family denounces BNP If [...]
Is Nick Clegg a good Lib Dem leader?(poll)
From Dizzy Thinks: David Boothroyd has had to resign from the "Wikipedia Supreme Court". David Boothroyd is a Labour councillor in Westminster who comments on a number of right wing blogs including this one. He has an anally retentive insistent on this blog of referring to me by my full name for some reason. I mentioned this simply because he's had to resign after admitting to have multiple identities on Wikipedia and spending most of his time editing David Cameron's page. He also used his multiple identities to get himself elected to the Wikipedia Arbitration Committee it seems. With more ...
A so called "Islamic" preacher from Luton has been ran out of the town after he caused troubles between the white and Muslim community leading to a mosque being bombed and to read more about the story follow the link to the Daily Star's website. Personally I am against extremism but this man is a tw** and the other Muslims of Luton did the right thing by running this man out of town. Its men like this clown that are destroying the image of Islam and they deserve everything they get. I don't understand why this man went to a ...
I have to confess that I did do a bit of a tut tut when I first heard that Ming Campbell had had a designer sort out his London flat on expenses. It was only a very small tut tut, because it sounded reasonable that work should be carried out on a flat for the first time in almost 20 years and there was no way that he should be expected to do the work himself. Also, his immediate decision to repay the money claimed for the designer, which was a relatively small sum in the scheme of things, was ...
From today's Corrections and Clarifications column in the Guardian: A further correction to our graphic surveying the expenses of certain MPs: In the category Cheapest claims, we stated without qualification that cosmetics were included in receipts submitted by Jo Swinson, Liberal Democrat MP for East Dunbartonshire (23 May, page 6). Jo Swinson has denied claiming for these makeup items, telling the Telegraph, which originally reproduced one of her receipts, that the cosmetics appeared on a Boots receipt for other items she was claiming. (More on this story in James Graham's weekend post - including his request that you send an ...
A couple of weeks ago, I blogged in anger about Ming's apperance on Question Time in the wake of the Expensegate scandal breaking. I may have misdirected some of that anger towards the party (although not all of it by a long chalk I'd venture!) and was verily slapped down by the great and the good. (although I note with interest that Alex Wilcox had also posed the same question) It was pointed out to me that we have to work within the establishment straight-jacket of Question Time (and I suppose just sit idly by whilst David Dimbleby mocks and ...
{mc-fishing-boat} Sir Menzies Campbell MP has welcomed the news that there is to be a review of the Common Fisheries Policy and has called for "particular care" to be given to the village based fishing industry in places such as North East Fife. Sir Menzies said: "There will be a universal welcome to a fundamental review of the Common Fisheries Policy. In truth, the best way to proceed is to start with a blank sheet of paper and to construct a policy which reflects reality. But particular care must be paid to the village based fishing industry in places like ...
Sad to say i am a Liberal but my concerns still reign over European union, what concerns me are what i felt were beneficial is now being overshadowed with rules and laws that are starting to effect our way of life. little men jumping on the gravy train of brussels. Right or wrong it's only [...]
{Ming Campbell} Further to the interest in my Parliamentary allowances I have written to my local members to explain my own circumstances. I have attached the text of this letter below. Dear member, I wanted to write to you in the light of recent press coverage about MPs expenses, and tell you of my own circumstances. There were a number of inaccuracies in some of the reports about my expenses and these had been taken up with the respective media outlets. But throughout I have responded fully and promptly with any press enquiry about my expenses. I have never had ...
2 big stories Much of today's coverage is summed up perfectly by the Independent's headline Brown v Cameron v Clegg, under which all three leaders set out their visions for the rebuilding of Britain's broken politics. They are due to take party in cross-party talks according to the Guardian, talks to be led by that famed bastion of reform, Jack Straw. Perhaps that's who Nick Clegg was thinking of when he said (to the Times): "There are prominent people in government who recognise that the game's up." Our friends in the Lords are stepping up the pressure as well, as ...
Jo over at A Week is a Long Time asks Where is the SW LibDem Euro Leaftlet? so in that vain, I shall ask where is the East of England one? I've had leaflets from , Labour, Tory, BNP, UKIP, Greens and assorted minor parties but nothing from us. It's possible it has been shoved in with takeaway menus inside the free paper which could lead to it going unnoticed between the letter box and the recycling bin but I do usually check (sometime they slip in windowed enveloped to catch you out!). Anyone had theirs?
Let me make no bones about this before I start - I loathe the British National Party. They are the wolves of Nazism in the pseudo-respectable clothing of all the other political psychopaths; trying to be honey tongued while hiding an agenda dripping with hate. I don't believe most of the people who may vote for them in just over a week appreciate their background or would want to see most of their policies even remotely implemented. And they should remember when they stand in the polling booth that it took just four years for the BNP's historical inspiration, the ...
Wed 27th
09:11
Whensoever therefore the legislative (or the House of Common Thieves and Accomplices) shall transgre...
The time has come to pass as it was written in the year of our lord Sixteen hundred and ninety, and in the second year of the reign of our glorious sovereign majesty William, Stadtholder of Holland, Prince of Orange and Count of Nassau-Dillenburg and his Queen, Mary; King and Queen of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, Defenders of the Faith, etc. by Mr John Locke: 222. The reason why men enter into society, is the preservation of their property; and the end why they chuse and authorize a legislative, is, that there may be laws made, and rules set, ...
Wed 27th
09:02Well was it a skip or was it the 8 wheel truck with ton's of dirt that smashed 30 pavement stones.
I think i will have to give this one a miss! on site again yesterday thank you Balfour beaty and your sub contractors for ruining my day.How would you feel if you were told the that gas mains where being laid but not to worry outside your home would be re laid like for like.No problems, [...]
{Energy Performance Certificates} Quite shockingly, Government buildings, including the Department for Energy and Climate Change are not meeting green standards! Out of 267 buildings which were tested some 98 scored G and 34 score F - the lowest grade possible. Just to put this into perspective the RBC Civic building is graded F and requires a lot of energy to heat in winter and equally to cool in summer. As a nation we currently waste a lot of energy which equates to needless emission of extra carbon dioxide - how can other property owners possible be expected to green-up their ...
A quick and easy way to see what the Liberal Democrats are standing for in the European elections — as the only mainstream party that is genuinely constructively engaged with the European Union — is to log on to the party's European election website: http://europe.libdems.org.uk . Amongst other things, this gives access to the manifesto [...]
Wed 27th
08:35Today i have recived by post a letter relating to an incident out side one Brothel in swinton
I have just received through my door a letter from a resident based within Salford who is running a campaign to force the closure of one Brothel sited within Swinton South. It is not in my power to say how he precedes with is campaign as long as it is legal. But when this man [...]
We have already seen controversy over the use of a picture of Sir Winston Churchill by the UK Independence Party, now the BNP are to follow suit. In their search for respectability they intend to use an image of the wartime leader and quote one of his most famous speeches in their Election broadcast tonight. It is a move that has attracted protests from Sir Winston Churchill's family. They say that the BNP is trying to hijack his legacy. His grandson, Nicholas Soames, said it was "offensive and disgusting," and he has consulted lawyers in an attempt to force the ...
This is one side of the many railway bridges that straddle the Kilburn High Road - it taken looking south from the footfalls of Shoot-Up-Hill. This is the main railway bridge of the Metropolitan Line and is gloriously impressive in both it's scale, decor and condition. One of the crucial elements with this bridge is it is the only one that has beendesigned to be painted and then by reflection has been painted - and though this angle doesn't show it off at it's best the painting is crucial. Yet the other bridges of Kilburn High Road lays dirty and ...
I was outside the building where a certain D Cameron gave his so-called Power speech - this was in the Open University Library and I turned up in all innocence to access the Library not knowing it had been privately booked*. With car parks taped off, OU security everywhere and a fairly substantial police presence I knew something was up but my first thought was of a violent emergency, an impression not lessened as the Conservative audience was pouring out of the building like it was being evacuated. They looked a bit grim to me, worried rather than excited. Not ...
The application from Jack Allen Holdings for planning permission to build a waste plant at Garston Docks is now valid (all the paperwork is in). That means the plan will have to be discussed at the City Council planning committee later this year. First there is a chance for people to send in objections. The three Lib Dem Councilors for Cressington will, as before, be fighting this application. We believe that this site is completely wrong for this idea. What's more when there was a neutral investigation of a whole load of potential sites across Merseyside, this one scored below ...
Not exactly a complete apology for the Guardian's cock-up, but something. The Guardian apology reads "A further correction to our graphic surveying the expenses of certain MPs: In the category Cheapest claims, we stated without qualification that cosmetics were included in receipts submitted by Jo Swinson, Liberal Democrat MP for East Dunbartonshire (23 May, page 6). Jo Swinson has denied claiming for these makeup items, telling the Telegraph, which originally reproduced one of her receipts, that the cosmetics appeared on a Boots receipt for other items she was claiming."All true, but an apology for the Guardian making fun of Jo ...
And so 0ur week with Rutland's most popular fictional peer draws to a close. Sunday One can take this ecumenical business too far. Upon arriving at St Asquith's, I find that the Revd Hughes, perhaps tired after his exertions in the outfield yesterday (which included a fine running catch to dismiss Baroness Thomas), has elected to put his feet up and invite Father Alton to preach the sermon. I am not sure that giving it both barrels against birth control and self-abuse is quite the right idea and he has rather lost his audience long before he reached his peroration. ...
Oasis will be playing three concerts on the 4, 6 and 7 June and on each day there will be a series of road closures in place in and around the concert venue at Heaton Park. Road closures will come in to place on the evening of each concert from 9.30pm onwards until the audience has dispersed and the roads can safely be opened, which is anticipated to be around 1am. The road closures will affect: • Bury Old Road between Heywood Road and Scholes Lane/Sheepfoot Lane; • Sheepfoot Lane, between Bury Old Road and Middleton Road. Read the rest ...
is off to London for training seminar later. Hopeful of good stuff but West End agencies - bah. Black holes for clients to pour money into. # doesn't like London and doesn't want to go back. It's crowded and too full of people and smells. Can't we just wall it off, be done with it? # Ended up by Soho Sq. Found Kirsty MacColl's bench http://bit.ly/glZxP Must admit to tears. Two German teens sat there, didn't have a clue. #
Dear Mr Khalid Mahmood MP,
