How Europe chooses its President: The Council, meeting in the composition of Heads of State or Government and acting by a qualified majority, shall nominate the person it intends to appoints as President of the Commission; the nomination shall be approved by the European Parliament. The Council, acting by a qualified majority and by common accord with the nominee for President, shall adopt the list of the other persons whom it intends to appoints as Members of the Commission, drawn up in accordance with the proposals made by each Member State. The President and the other Members of the Commission ...
I recieved a Liberal Democrat leaflet through my door in the last few days promising * Ending jail sentances for drug possession and legalising the growth and sale of cannabis * Refusing to rule out cuts to the NHS * Cutting tax credits and abolishing the Child Trust Fund and a number of other policies all aimed at restoring a sense of personal responsibility for the individuals actions and ending the draconian punishment of victimless crimes. I was impressed with this because I thought that we might have a leaflet proposing a consistent set of policies. The professionally produced effort ...
{gordon-brown} Surely, this really is the end for the hapless Brown. The betting must be he will no longer be Prime Minister by this time next week. Today's shambolic string of resignations shows no one is steering the ship of state anymore. Labour's perfomance at the polls on Thursday will be somewhere between derisory and catastrophic. If senior Labour figures have not prised his fingers from the Downing Street door frame by Monday, then they may have sentenced their party to death. Tomorrow's Guardian leader calls for Brown to be forced from office. Is there anyone who now thinks he ...
Just over one day to go before the East Sussex County Council and European elections. Will you be voting? I hope so. It's a key step towards resolving the political crisis we are in at the moment. The number of people that have opened their door over the past few weeks to tell me that they are utterly disgusted [...]
From tomorrow's Guardian: Labour has a year left before an election; its current leader would waste it. It is time to cut him loose.
Tue 2nd
23:33
Busy day again today both myself and mole junior have been working hard at the grindstone.
We are waiting for the legal eagles to come back tomorrow over Parking updates, We have set up a new advice center, and printed our first Major news leaflets any one who wishes to receive it in electronic format just ask. We have just received the second case this week related to environmental damage and [...]
Those of you enjoying this supposedly "glorious" weather? Spare a thought for those of us that just cannot function in this heat. At all. Notwithstanding the photic sneeze reflex making going outside (and even driving) a little annoying, the massively high risk of skin cancer groups I'm in from both sides of my family, my brain just seizes up when it's this hot. I moved to the North to get away from this sort of weather damnit! I have 7 tabs open for a post about the elections coming up on Thursday. It would be a glorious, erudite marvel of ...
Tue 2nd
23:19Well residents Group two should be up and running by wednesday, we belive this is the way forward fo...
Over the past three months we have been talking to residents who had a wish to start their own community groups. We fully support this, we firmly believe this is the best way to achieve community cohesion.we are meeting with police and niegbourhood management to achieve our goals and we thank all for the excellent [...]
... In case you didn't see it on Andy Ducker's LJ. Other dinosaur geeks may also find this amusing: I show you comforting dinosaurs (and spend time in the garden) because politics is just too weird and scary to contemplate right now. I mean, rumour has it that Gordo the Magnificent is actually thinking of Mandy for foreign secretary... Is he actually TRYING to scupper the ship before he's forced to walk the plank? But I'm not despairing. I'm going to go and talk to George and make him grow up big and strong and give me lots of nice ...
It is always fun peeking at other people's gardens. It is even more fun when you are licensed to peer. So I really enjoyed the opportunity given to me by last Sunday's National Gardens Scheme to see just what creative people with genuinely green fingers can do. Here are two gardens in St Stephen's Avenue - two oases of suburban bliss, where the gardeners started with standard slices of lawn and trees and created paradise:
I was out delivering our final leaflet and letter in Loughton Roding this evening and the response has been very positive. Residents who I met were very friendly and were eager to read the leaflet once I had handed it over. But the real 'test' came afterwards. Our excellent candidate Ann Haigh has already been contacted by 4 residents who received the leaflet I had delivered. With so much trust
We have now had three weeks of the Parliamentary expenses scandal. Making sense of the whole thing and its implications is not easy for those who have better things to think about than the details of the UK political system ! Two other factors puzzle the general voting public. Why so difficult to sort out ? One is [...]
For a bit of pre bed-time amusement, have a look at this. Very strange, but it will keep you amused for ages. LibDig This!
Basically our system of government is so undermined and the problems facing the country so great that I do not any longer believe that parliament can fix this on its own. As regular readers will know I'd personally prefer to do without them entirely. Their infantilizing tendency is a drain on the country and their propensity to claim to be able to act on almost any issue in all our names is repugnant to me. Putting this right cannot be the work of a general election process, as parliamentary reform will be subsumed within a mish-mash of policies covering every ...
Rita Egan tells me that the signatures on our handwritten petition (click for online version) are stacking up. Meanwhile, East of England "Consultation on Gypsy and Traveller Policy Proposed Changes" ended on 22 May 2009. You can download the report and read comments made by others here: It is also interesting to read through comments made on the same page by clicking on the "View Comments" tab. Also interesting to see the response of Central Bedfordshire Council to the consultation, this was debated at the Executive Committee meeting held on 12th May, and may be found here: Cllr ...
Tue 2nd
21:43
"Taunton Conservative Candidate Forced To Apologise For Slurs Following Police Investigation"
From AboutMyArea: Taunton Conservative Candidate Forced To Apologise For Slurs Following Police Investigation The Somerset County Council election took a step into the gutter today when Conservative candidate in West Taunton, Nick James, was forced to issue a public apology for personal attacks on his Lib Dem opponent, Alan Paul, and non-political officers of the Council. The apology came after Police had warned the Conservative agent that a last-minute Conservative leaflet was illegal. Hat-tip: Liberal England
{blackhill-improvement-no-small-3.jpg} Focus readers will know that there is a meeting tomorrow night (Weds June 3rd.) at Blackhill Community Centre to discuss the county's plans for some environmental improvements in the area of Durham Road and Derwent Street. It will be run in a workshop style and starts at 6.00 p.m. Everyone is welcome to attend and put in their ideas. It's important that as many people as possible are there. The county planners can only know what you would like to see if you are there to tell them.
Have a good read of this interview in yesterday's Guardian. No wonder they had nice things to say about us in their editorial today. For me the best thing is the way in which interviewer Decca Aikenhead spelled out absolutely that Nick Clegg and David Cameron are completely different, because I'm sick to death of people who should know better trying to cast them in the same light: "In all our conversations, Clegg says nothing that could have come from Cameron's mouth. There is little discernible similarity as a character either; any confusion between the two men would require, for ...
One of the things we get at the Berry Edge Residents meeting is a regular report from the police, keeping us in touch with what's going on locally. Read the rest of this entry. Read the rest of this entry.
Having written my own tribute to Ray Wilkins last year, I was pleased to see one by Richard Williams in the Guardian today. And surprised, because he seldom has a good word to say about the modern-day Chelsea. Anyway, Williams writes: Ray Wilkins was 18 years old when Eddie McCreadie gave him the captaincy of Chelsea back in 1975, with the team newly relegated to the old Second Division. The fresh-faced teenager was succeeding Ron "Chopper" Harris, the most gnarled of veterans.To outsiders it seemed as though McCreadie was taking an outrageous chance. But Wilkins's precocious calmness and football intelligence ...
During today's campaigning (before the scalding brass letterbox incident), I met a constituent who was jogging along wearing a running vest with Mencap written on it. We got chatting about charity running because the charity I work for had 46 runners in the recent Plymouth Half Marathon and the constituent had run the course during his marathon career. He told me a bit about how he got into marathons and mentioned that he had written a book about the experience. Quick as a flash he was off to his flat and he returned with a copy of the book (called ...
A great new website has been launched where visitors can upload leaflets they receive through the door from political parties. As a political junkie I noticed that an Essex Conservative leaflet used the Liberal Democrat 'We can cut crime' logo.
Today's leafleting injury (I'm going to spell leafleting right today) comes courtesy of the hot weather. It was well over 30 degrees today in Launceston and the sun was beating down without a break. I came across a nice brass letterbox and opened it with one hand while putting the leaflet in with the other. At which point my brain registered that the temperature of the letterbox was significantly higher than human skin can handle. So I instinctively whipped away the first hand... thus trapping the second hand in the scalding letterbox. Ow
We have, at long last, had some good press this week. The Guardian Editorial today reported "The case for supporting the Liberal Democrats is now very strong." Polly Toynbee came out in support today too writing: "On the economy or crime co-operation, "stronger together, poorer apart" is a good Lib Dem pro-EU slogan. They best deserve the vote of every pro-European on Thursday." The Observer extolled the virtues of the Lib Dems on Sunday: "This Thursday's vote is being held in a uniquely febrile climate. It should be about Europe; it will be about the expenses scandal. On both counts, ...
I ask the previous question after talking to a Lib Dem member in Langworthy who was scathing about the state of Salford Lib Dems. Could it be that more of the Lib Dem Tory rump are ready to follow Geoff Ainsworth & become independent, unhappy @ Owen's leadership? Comment don't believe all you read or what [...]
Cut-price gym membership and special activity sessions are being offered to Manchester people between 16 and 22 to help them get fitter and the pilot scheme can be taken up at Chorlton Leisure Centre. The normal £37.50 per month cost will be slashed to just £5 per month and I hope local teenagers take the scheme up. Log on to Get Manchester Moving's website or call Jane Parker on 232 3126 to apply.
As residents of Abbey Hey well know, the state of this building has been a disgrace for the last few years. The building is now sufficiently dangerous that the Council is able to take legal steps to get it demolished. Although this would be a sad end for a long-standing landmark, with the condition of the building as it is now, this would be the best solution.
Often the tribal nature of party politics means one is blind to the talent that exists in other parties. Therefore I thought it might be interesting to consider who I admire in other parties. This is off the top of my head so I'll probably miss some obvious choices. Labour : Tony Benn - a great public speaker and debater. I loved his line upon leaving parliament when he said something akin to I'm leaving Westminster so he could get more involved in politics. A real democrat too. Alan Simpson - one of the more thoughtful (and Green) figures on ...
AboutMyArea reports: The Somerset County Council election took a step into the gutter today when Conservative candidate in West Taunton, Nick James, was forced to issue a public apology for personal attacks on his Lib Dem opponent, Alan Paul, and non-political officers of the Council.The apology came after Police had warned the Conservative agent that a last-minute Conservative leaflet was illegal.Impressively, the website even has a copy of the letter of apology.
Recently I swapped emails with a first class Labour councillor, someone of integrity, values and purpose. In it I asked : Can you tell me of ANY progressive achievement from the Government since the last election ? The reply below is very revealing : A few new nurseries have opened, a little more money has gone into schools and hospitals and, er.. that's about it. The PLP has shown no vision whatsoever (except, it seems, when submitting allowance claims...). It's been too often sidetracked into areas like Immigration and "welfare reform" instead of the radical policies which would have transformed ...
Now, who did you think this was going to be about? Gordon Brown? Well it could be, but it isn't. I'm having a wee Formula One moment of outrage at two things FIA President Max Mosley has said over the last few days. Yesterday it was this. It wasn't so much his saying that new teams are needed in F1 - anybody can see that the sport is crying out for new blood - it was more his comment, delivered without a trace of irony, that "You can't have just a lot of old men running it (the sport)". Now, ...
Over at ConservativeHome they've got an interview with William Hague, in which he makes this comment about Have I Got News For You: I took the view that appearing on it is not compatible with being on the Front Bench. Now, who's recently appeared on that show? His fellow Conservative front bencher, Alan Duncan. Oops. Or maybe not so oops, given the frequent political chatter that Alan Duncan won't make it into any future Conservative Cabinet, his little expenses problem, his forgetfulness when it comes to policy ideas, his secret funding controversy and his donation from a highly controversial source. ...
From the Coffee House blog: The SNP and Plaid Cymru are tabling a motion calling for the dissolution of Parliament, and it will get debated in the House next Wednesday afternoon. The Lib Dems have come out in support of it, and William Hague has said that the Tories will too.
Well, of course I'm going to recommend that you vote Lib Dem - my viewpoint is not what you would call objective given that I've been involved in Liberal politics for over quarter of a century. You might want to listen to these people, though. That's a fair amount of praise for the Party won not only because of things Nick and Vince has said in the past few days - but because of things they and their predecessors have been saying for years about economic responsility, the environment, open government and empowering people for decades. I'll give the last ...
Today is day 2 of Nick Clegg's 100 days to reform Parliament but the Nats, both the SNP and Plaid Cymru, are going to turn this over to a vote next week, pre-reformation of any substantive kind. Advanced Media Watch an SNP blog is saying that the Lib Dems 'have signalled that they intend to back it' and that William Hague is making promising noises from the Conservative benches. It is not however a vote of no confidence in the Government but a more substantial motion that would none the less trigger a general election if passed. Of course we ...
I have just signed this, the petition on the "Vote for a Change" website. They are campaigning for a binding referendum at the next General Election on proportional representation and already have considerable backing from people including Stephen Fry, Damon Albarn and Philip Pullman (incidentally, if you haven't seen his barnstorming speech at the Convention on Modern Liberty earlier this year then you can do so here). Here is what I submitted as my comment to the petition: This latest scandal has demonstrated how woefully out of touch our political classes are with ordinary people. One of the reasons I ...
BBC Look East are reporting that Dr Ian Gibson, the Labour MP for Norwich North has been deselected by Labour after appearing before the Labour star chamber to answer question about allegations made in the Daily Telegraph. Many in his constituency will, like me, feel that Ian Gibson has been singled out by the Labour Party because he is a maverick and rebel prepared to criticise this god awful government when they are wrong whilst other more loyal MPs who have flipped their second homes and "played the system" remorselessly are allowed to get away with their crimes with no ...
{telephone-scam.jpg} A pensioner has been conned into giving his credit card details over the phone by a man pretending to be from Virgin Media. Of course he could have been ringing from anywhere, but chances are it is a local crime. Often for every case reported, there are other victims too ashamed to come forward. Keep vigliant.
So Jacqui Smith had decided to resign. She joins a growing list of MPs and cabinet members who have said they will 'stand down' at the next general election. A few people have asked why the Home Secretary, along with the dozen or so others who have made similar announcements, won't go now instead of waiting for a general election to be called. The answer is, of course, the resettlement grant that all MPs are entitled to receive, but only if they leave at a general election. The resettlement grant is not to be sniffed at. It can be worth ...
Well done to the Shropshire Star for: Mystery over fish in lake
The Conservative's attitude to the European Arrest Warrant, and to the interchangeability of criminal records within the EU, would threaten the safety of UK citizens, according to Chris Huhne. Chris writes: "Conservative MEPs voted against the establishment of the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS), which standardises the format of criminal records in Europe and allows them to be exchanged quickly between police forces and high risk employers, such as airports. "It beggars belief that anyone would want to make it more difficult for us to check whether people coming to this country are dangerous criminals."In South-West Wales we have ...
We have persuaded the council to come up with some funding to demolish a tall wall on the Mawbey Brough Estate, near the Mawbey Arms pub. Residents had told us the alleyway just didn't feel safe, especially in the evenings. We hope that the lower wall will make sure the alleyway feels safer and helps reduce the fear of crime. We are now calling on the council to find the funding for railings on top of the wall.
We went to B&Q this afternoon, for some curtain hooks. We bought the Oregano plant for the spare pot (Country Cream Variegated) and we also ended up with an extra basil (because we use LOTS of basil) some coriander, a grow-your-own propagator kit with Rocket and Coriander seeds (because Mat loves rocket), and, because I couldn't resist it, a baby orange habanero chilli plant. I have bookmarked the Royal Horticultural society website, and a couple of chilli grower websites, and I listen to Gardeners Question Time on the radio obsessively anyway, so I should be cool LOL. I now have ...
On Friday I was doing some daytime door-knocking around the Angel with Caroline Pidgeon. We were also getting signatures for the One Hour Bus Ticket campaign, on which more later. Seeing Islington through a visitor's eyes, one thing that struck me was that on quite a short stretch, we passed 3 blue plaques – as well [...]
The date of our next AGM has been set for June 25th, from 7-9pm. This will take place at Prestatyn Community Centre, which is located next to the Cross Foxes pub at the end of the High Street. The meeting is open to all party members and the public, however if you are planning to attend, we would appreciate an e-mail confirming your planned attendance just so we will have an idea of how many people to expect. If you need any special arrangements, or need help getting to the venue, please state your requirements in your e-mail. Karen Roberts ...
The European elections are fast approaching with polling day on Thursday, June 4th. The Welsh Liberal Democrat have chosen an excellent lead candidate for the forthcoming elections. Alan Butt Philip is a lecturer in European politics and has previously been a special adviser for both the UK and European Parliaments on such matters as the European Single Market and European Regional Funding. Alan's wealth of knowledge and experience on European matters is without question. The European Union should matter to us all. The European Parliament bears its influence on such diverse matters as the environment, the workplace and cross border ...
Feeling tired as we near the end of a hectic campaign? Well, here's something to bring a smile to your face. Quite simply, one of the very best Conservative leaflets ever (though it's headline isn't in this class). It's from 2000 I believe: {Conservative leaflet} (Click on thumbnail for larger version.)
The BBC and several media sources are reporting that a motion will be tabled next week calling for the dissolution of Parliament; "The SNP and Plaid Cymru have joined forces in an effort to try and force a general election. The two parties are to table a motion next week calling for the dissolution of Parliament." There has [...]
The term 'hospital pass' is used in rugby for occasions when a colleague gives you the ball in circumstances where the opposition are immediately going to hit you hard. As we hear of more MPs wanting to stand down from Gordon Brown's Ministerial team the term seems apt for those who will be offered the chance to replace them.
It's a very eerie "calm before the storm" sort of feeling today. All my leaflets have been delivered. Most of the doors have been knocked on. No sign of any Blues, Greens or Reds out there - or anywhere else ..... very strange! The tellers' rota is organised and the army of those "knocking up" on the day are ready to roll. So for now we just keep plodding on, knocking on the last few doors and waiting for the count of the votes - which will take place on Friday. Sons No 1 and 2 are miffed that I ...
As a visitor to LibDemVoice you may or may not be aware of the work of Compass - the influential pressure group that campaigns for a more democratic, equal and sustainable world. Compass is about building a broadly based Liberal Left politics and as a Liberal Democrat activist we wanted to introduce you to our important work and to invite you to attend our National Conference on Saturday 13 June. We believe that both the Tory and Labour leaderships want to turn back as soon as possible to the failed politics of the pre-crash - both in terms of the ...
You can now search for any stories on this blog (or on pages linked from it) by using the Search This Blog box in the sidebar on the right.
I have been reading about how a Lib Dem in Cornwall wrote a leaflet and posted it to a small number of homes and it contained the word "twat" in it. If you want to read the BBC report follow the link. First of all I think Nick Clegg should get that member kicked out of the party if he is just a supporter then Nick needs to order local Lib Dems to never use him again at election time. Secondly Nick needs to get the ALDC and any other organisation to go around training activists how to write Focus ...
There's a meeting organised by the South Liverpool Residents Group (the group among others campaigning against the Jack Allen Plans) tomorrow (Wednesday) night. Its at 7pm at the Garston Village Hall (Banks Road). Quite a few people have already been signing petitions or writing letters but some research has gone into producing some suggested material, which I was up earlier than usual this morning to get copied I'll be the one at the meeting with the huge box! The residents group has a website - www.southliverpoolresidents.org.uk which is a source of information about the campaign. Alternatively please feel free to ...
The Observer this past Sunday published an article about the upcoming elections, which will take place in a "uniquely Fabrile climate." The paper's editorial, which discusses the current political climate and elections ahead, says, "This Thursday's vote is being held in a uniquely febrile climate. It should be about Europe; it will be about the expenses scandal. On both counts, it is...
What's your view are the people who rule a bunch of crooks? Where do we go to regain credibility? Do we need people to Stand outside the Main stream parties? Is this why groups like the BNP gaining ground? Answers on a postcard.
Aaaaaaagggrrrhhhh! I'm really busy today but David Cameron has forced me to take time out in order to address a bunch of canards he has come up with in a column for the London Evening Standard about proportional representation. I was going to do a full on fisk but I don't have time so just to address his main canards: "Canard number one please!" Proportional representation may sound like a fair and effective system but it's anything but. Let me explain. First it removes the link between one MP and one constituency. PR comes in many forms but more often ...
HOME Secretary Jacqui Smith is to resign from her post in the wake of the MPs' expenses scandal, it was reported today. The news comes on a tumultuous day for Gordon Brown's Labour government after Children's Minister Beverley Hughes and Bury North MP David Chaytor announced plans to quit Parliament. David Chaytor to quit Beverley Hughes to quit Humpty dumpty [...]
Like most Epping Forest residents I don't have a £1m second home (or first home!) so I have never had to deal with a possible capital gains tax bill of £180,000. When the Daily Telegraph first revealed how our MP told the parliamentary authorities that her second home was in London but told the tax authorities that her second home was in Theydon Bois I was prepared to wait for a full explanation. But all we have had instead is a legalistic statement which avoids the main issue. I suggested on Saturday that Mrs Laing would be asked to pay ...
Jacqui Smith is to resign his seat as the Home Secretary in the next week and personally I am a little worried to the effect this might have on Brown. Why is Jacqui actually resigning as the Home Secretary is the question that many will be asking including myself I think its not because of the porn movies instead I think its because the PM is not very popular and she is making an escape. This resignation is going to have a massive blow on the Prime Minister and you never know this resignation, the results of the Thursday's polls ...
"There seems to be far less kind and neighbourly co-operation than there was a few years ago...People are harder, more selfish, more intent upon looking after Number One. They are more likely to snatch, grab, lose their temper...Now why is this? What has gone wrong?"Ah yes, the Daily Mail's at it again, harking back to the happier times of the 1940s and 50s, before all this liberalism stuff broke society. Er...no. Actually it's socialist presenter and author J.B. Priestley speaking on the radio in 1947. The funny thing is that, when we look at what people said at the time ...
LibDem President Ros Scott has announced that she has ended her blog: Recent events have caused me to reflect on the best way to communicate with the Party. Blogging is a great medium for recording instantaneous reaction to events, but there are times when the constraints of the Party Constitution, the legal framework and political sensibilities mean that instantaneous comment on my part is inappropriate and potentially dangerous. However, the existence of my blog seems to have led some people into thinking that it is possible to keep up a running commentary on what is going on. I wish to ...
The latest poll for the European elections has put the Conservatives at the top with over 29% and the British National Party (BNP) at the bottom with just 5%. Yet following a recent call from the Archbishops Sentamu and Williams of York and Canterbury respectively to boycott the BNP, you'd think they were up there with the Conservatives. Consequently, much has been said of whether the nationalists are actually a threat to our democracy, but very little about what kind of threat is posed by the Church telling people who to vote for two weeks before an election. It is ...
Reports of the president's assasination have been greatly exagerated. Not dead just gone into hiding. Why? we are told on Lib Dem Voice today its because "...the existence of my blog seems to have led some people into thinking that it is possible to keep up a running commentary on what is going on" . Well hell yes! We need a running comentary on what is going on. Now more than ever. The reasons why have been lain before our eyes over the last couple of weeks. And the idea that by closing down her blog she will somehow stop ...
Just two days left 'til polling day in what for many will be a double-election, with local elections taking place in much of England, and European elections being held across the UK. So what better time than now to launch our election prediction competition? First let's remind ourselves of the current state of play. Local elections: Anders Hanson here on LDV has given a very useful synopsis of what to look out for, and which councils/mayors are up for re-election this Thursday. The last time local elections were held in most of these areas was on the same days the ...
Jacqui Smith has just announced her resignation. Hoorah! That must surely see the end of the ID cards project . Well she was going to get sacked by Brown on Friday . So she walked before she was pushed. Perhaps Brown could learn something from her after all. More to follow.....
Well since I made my European Elections predictions by region the Westminster expenses scandal really kicked off and this sent the polls crazy, the latest showing the Conservatives down 10%.
{ I'm voting Liberal Democrat in the European Elections on 4th June }
Richard Allan has written a good post on his blog about why voting for an anti-EU party in the European Elections is the wrong move. Not as you would expect because he is a pro-European, but more because the European Parliament doesn't actually decide whether the UK signs up to any EU treaties or constitutions [...]
After plodding the streets delivering leaflets on Sunday morning, I carried on walking on Sunday afternoon, though sans leaflets. Inspired by a tv documentary during the week about Hadrian's Wall, I took myself up there for the first time since the kids were small and could be easily amused by a 1900 year old pile of stones.Chesters Roman Fort was built to guard a bridge over the North Tyne. It
{asylum} A bloody good post on Liz Williams' blog yesterday, so I'm going to shamelessly link to it. HERE On "Singing my Song" she draws attention to the detention of asylum seekers and often abysmal conditions they are kept in, including the plight of children. Do the LDs have a specific position on this? asks Liz - to which no one seems to have responded. Come on people, one of you wonks out there must be in the know.
What ever happened to the 'Vision' that Brown so urgently needed to communicate that he had no choice but to abandon General Election plans? He never did explain what it was that he so desperately needed the Premiership for in the first place. You spend 10 years plotting and scheming to get the job and you realise, once you've got it, you don't know what to do next? It seems unthinkable but that's exactly what's happened. Brown's vision these days is 'fighting the recession' and 'cleaning up politics' - both issues on the agenda due to events out of his ...
Does anyone know whether there is precedent for changing Chancellor of the Exchequer between the budget and the Finance Bill passing all its parliamentary stages? This year's hasn't made it through the legislature yet has it? <!-- google_ad_client = "pub-8502734622986536"; /* 468x15 */ google_ad_slot = "9254756953"; google_ad_width = 468; google_ad_height = 15; //-->
It has, to say the least, been one heck of month. At the start of May, I was in Vancouver, attending the Executive meeting of Liberal International where I gave a speech on the topic of The challenges facing Liberalism over the next decade. We also met up with the Canadian Liberal Party Convention where they celebrated the election of Michael Ignatieff as their Leader. The international theme continued later in the month with the launch of the Liberal Democrat Friends of Poland. Back home, the Telegraph expenses story broke and, with events moving along with amazing rapidity, led to ...
The news this morning is that Jim Devine who replaced Robin Cook in the October 2005 Livingston By Election may become infamous as the MP who never faced a General Election vote. Labour's National Executive's special endorsements panel is to 'urgently' review the former constituency agents expenses following the emergence of his submission of a claim to pay for work for a company that never existed. The £2,157 rewiring bill for his London address had an invalid postcode and VAT number. The Devine comedy defence was: "As an MP do I have to check the VAT numbers of every company ...
One of my many sources has emailed me to inform me about how Baroness Ros Scott's blog has disappeared of the Internet and personally I am a little shocked. The disappearing has been reported by Agent Orange and here comes my conspiracy... Baroness Ros Scott was only blogging to become a President upon becoming one she had planned to get rid of the blog and the best way to do that was to just remove it in hope that people would realise it had gone and never bother with it again. But then again Baroness Ros Scott was enjoying blogging ...
Watching Newsnight yesterday where they interviewed a panel of voters in Watford about the MP's expenses scandal it was telling to me how the questions seemed to focus on Brown and Cameron. Clegg wasn't even mentioned but Brown and Cameron were both prompted for by the questioner. In fact the only reference to the Lib Dems came as an aside from the questioner "What about the Lib Dems" and there seemed to be murmurs of approval but the audience really got animated when one of the mentioned Vince Cable. He was described as "always talking sense" and several people were ...
Cross-posted from The Wardman Wire: A few weeks ago, Justice Eady (he of News of the World vs Max Mosley) ruled in a legal action taken by a defeated Conservative councillor, Christopher Quinton, against his Liberal Democrat opponent and agent following the 2007 South Oxfordshire elections. The case arose from comments made in leaflets about local planning and development issues and Christopher Quinton lost the case. He had alleged malicious falsehood against Robin Pierce (the winning candidate) and David Cooper (the agent) over the Liberal Democrat leaflets and also tried an unusual argument under data protection law. The data protection ...
Stanwell Road Footpath I have now had confirmation that Highway Works team have supplied estimates for the scheme and are awaiting confirmation to go ahead with the resurfacing and installation of bollards. Brilliant news - it's taken several months to get this far. I've fought, with residents for tree lopping, improved lighting, bins and resurfacing, as [...]
This is not an exhaustive list by any manner of means - but they have seriously annoyed me with the leaflet they put through my door this morning because it's just basically complete nonsense. Here's some reasons why they aren't worth voting for on Thursday: 1. Their leaflets hurt my eyes - they think pink goes with yellow - enough reason for them to go straight in the recycling. 2. They tell huge great enormous lies. And they can't even get those lies straight. Nigel Farage said on Question Time the other night that EU membership cost us £40 million ...
How on earth can Gordon Brown think that Ed Balls is the answer? Do not Ed and Yvette have equally damaging question marks over their housing arrangements? And does he really think that re-ordering the deckchairs on the Titanic would have helped? I suppose reading The Observer's praise for the Liberal Democrats as "consistent and principled" and it being time to give us our due together with Polly Toynbee's suggestion that people should vote Lib Dem in the Euro elections on Thursday may feed his mania. The pressure to come up with an answer is unbearable - but there are ...
'Protest parties' area in vogue; I have already commented on the lamentable Jury Team but yesterdays Yorkshire Evening Post brings us the story of a worse idea for a political party. It tells the story of Anne Bateson who is the managing director of a gym in Leeds who has formed the 'None Of The Above' [...]
'I am fed up and have no interest in any of you and you can tell your leaders that I won't be voting because I am disgusted with the lot of you.' Slam! This was a highlight of an eventful Friday afternoon around Newington. After a lot of knocking on doors to be greeted by some don't knows, it was nice to put someone down on the sheet as a definite 'not voting'. So we won't be calling there on Thursday. Despite the recent negative publicity though, nearly everyone greeted me with courtesy and politeness. After all, if we were ...
A woman's baby was put into foster care because she wasn't considered intelligent or competent enough to look after her premature baby. Three years later, the baby is now well enough to be looked after by any normal person, and so she wants the child back. The local council is fighting to stop her, so the woman is going to the European Human Rights court. In all this there's people who've been forgotten. Possibly. You see, we don't know if the foster parents and the would-be adoptive parents are, in fact, the same people. Let's, for the sake of hypothetical ...
David Chaytor, Bury North's MP who has admitted to claiming £13,000 of taxpayers' money for a mortgage which didn't exist, has decided to stand down as an MP at the next general election. This is a sad end to a career in public service that goes back over 12 years in Bury, and many more years further back as a Councillor in Yorkshire. Mr Chaytor's current predicament is a personal tragedy. I strongly suspect, and I really do hope, that his mistake was nothing more sinister than that. Justifiable criticism of his conduct on this occasion should not outweigh the ...
There is a great interview with Clegg in the G2 section of the Guardian today. Once again proving that, far from being Cameron-lite, Clegg and the Lib Dems are in fact the new progressive alternative in the UK.
All, You can see the latest Liberal Democrat Focus here. Remember, the race in Shipston and the surrounding villages is between Philip Vial and the Conservatives. Regards, Philip
Following the endorsement of its sister paper the Observer and its leading columnist Polly Toynbee, the Guardian editorial today all-but formally recommends its readers vote for the Lib Dems in this Thursday's Euro polls: The case for supporting the Liberal Democrats is now very strong. Anyone who believes Britain should be an engaged member of the European Union - who does not believe scare stories about the Lisbon treaty and who wants to back a party that campaigns on this - should vote Lib Dem. So should anyone who cares about constitutional renewal. Nick Clegg's party has ancestral roots in ...
It's just been announced that David Chaytor will not be seeking re-election at the next election following the revelations over his expense claims in the Telegraph. So Mr Chaytor is the latest to be forced out over the expenses scandal and whilst I for one recognise his contribution and his past committment to Bury North over the past 12 years, sadly, with failing confidence amongst the general public he had no alternative but to go. Of course Mr Chaytor's case is similar to many other MP's, who were "following the rules" etc and so we shouldn't be turning into a ...
I see that my trip to London is set to be disrupted by "industrial action", namely a strike by the RMT Union on the London Underground. Relevant Information: the General Secretary of the RMT Union, Bob Crow , is an unrepentant Communist. The only difference between Soviet Socialism and National Socialism is the death toll: Stalin alone killed more people than Hitler, and that is before we even get to Pol Pot, Castro, Hoxha, Tito, Ceausescu and the rest. Mind you Mao is probably the genocidal maniac to end all genocidal maniacs: a reasonable educated guess would be 100,000,000 dead. ...
With all the focus on MPs in the last three weeks it has been forgotten just how bad members of the European Parliament have been at keeping themselves in check. The goings on in Brussels make Westminster appear a paragon of transparency and accountability. This morning's Times makes the point for me very well with an item reporting that three politicians accused of misusing public money will receive hundreds of thousands of pounds in pensions and benefits as part of a £20 million payoff for British MEPs who retire this week. Ironically, given the fact that they appear to be ...
The Western Mail has more evidence this morning about Plaid Cymru Leader and Economy and Transport Minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones aversion to effective scrutiny. The Assembly's cross-party Finance Committee are conducting an inquiry into the funding of Wales' road infrastructure but are disappointed and concerned that Mr Jones has failed to provide important information that is crucial to their investigation. They want to see a report by his ministerial advisory group which would shed light on his strategy and are considering using Freedom of Information legislation to compel him to provide the details. If the words of the Plaid Cymru ...
Oh dear: Liberal Democrats have apologised after a campaign leaflet was sent out which uses a swear word to describe a Cornish nationalist candidate. The paperwork was distributed on behalf of Anna Pascoe, Lib Dem candidate for Cornwall Council elections on 4 June. It calls Mebyon Kernow candidate Stuart Cullimore a "greasy-haired twat". He is considering what action to take. The Lib Dems are investigating how about 40 of the leaflets were printed and distributed around Camborne. ... Ms Pascoe's agent, Joe Taylor, said it was not an authorised leaflet, but "some kind of prank that's back-fired". He said: "I ...
Tue 2nd
09:19Newsflash Salford Labour website do not censor comment, well done so i suggest people read the comme...
It seems like Slaford Lbour Party is preparing itself to back Hazel Blears in any future re-selction process thus demonstrating that it is itself part of the morally corrupt political system. Your statement says, 'Where it is admitted or proven that a member has broken the rules...' that is the rules set up by themselves. [...]
It looks like, as promised, Obama is going to work on the Israeli/Palestinian peace process. I was very heartened at the end of last week, when I did my newspaper review on the Sky News Sunrise programme that Hillary Clinton had been quite clear that any peace process had to involve no more settling on the west bank - this means no more settlements, no more outposts (which are the settlements that even the Israeli's think are illegal) and no more 'natural settlement' which is the building of new houses for the children of the original settlers. For sure, Netanyahu ...
You have seen your MP waving £13.000 in our faces but she as done nothing wrong? You have seen the support from the Likes of One ex Swinton South Labour Councillor. Salford Labour still say she as their baking.. QUESTION Someone once said to me put a red rosette on anyone and they will still vote Labour,i don't think [...]
Last night's "Evening Telegraph" covered my comments welcoming the newly introduced reduced speed limit on the furthest west part of Perth Road and two immediately adjacent streets, pointing out that it provides for a more appropriate speed limit in a residential area. The westmost part of Perth Road - west of the Invercarse Hotel - plus a short section of Riverside Drive adjacent to the Botanic Garden and a stretch of Ninewells Avenue - has had a 40mph speed limit for over 40 years and residents have pointed out that this was inappropriate as all the adjacent residential streets have ...
After all, they've been stimulating the economy haven't they?
Tue 2nd
08:40We all want the best for our kids, but what about many who slip through the net and will never make ...
We all love our kids, nothing is to good for them, as parents we help if they need us, we advise, we watch them grow. But many suffer all sorts of problems along that path we have all tread , they are all not going to be Doctors and computer wizards so what can we do [...]
This has been bugging me for two days now so I thought I had better blog about it! Tom Harris, the Labour MP wrote a blog post on Sunday entitled "If it's a Labour policy, put it in the manifesto" where he bemoans the fact that the political agenda is currently dominated by talk of electoral reform. He thinks this is an issue that non-political people are not interested in and he suggests that it should be put in the manifesto for the next election instead of talking about it now. In order to counter the obvious rejoinder to this ...
Another successful campaign day yesterday. The weather was gorgeous and it was a joy to be out delivering leaflets before work. In the evening, I was out with Cllr Emily Fieran-Reed and our St Mary's ward team, plus Euro candidate Chris le Breton, calling on voters and giving out posters ahead of Thursday's poll. Islington Council [...]
Tue 2nd
08:11Shamed MEPs take share of £20m 'farewell' payout source the Times and you wonder why i worry a...
it's the same every where, they all seem to have their nose in the bucket <!– Remove following to not show photographer information –><!– Remove following to not show image description –><!– Remove following to not show enlarge option –> David Brown, Fran Yeoman and David Charter div#related-article-links p a, div#related-article-links p a:visited { color:#06c; } Three politicians accused [...]
The disgraced Southport man elected as a Tory MEP is in the news again. The Times this morning reports: • Den Dover, who was expelled from the Conservative Party for gross misconduct after claiming £500,000 in "unjustified expenses", has a pension valued at £235,000 and will receive a "transitional allowance" of £59,367. All this shows the failure of Cameron's approach. The total disputed claim from the Southport Tory was over £700 000. Cameron took the whip from him. He has not repaid a penny. Now he is retiring with a platanum nest egg. I guess that other Tories will do ...
if(typeof rand == "undefined") rand = Math.floor(Math.random()*10000000); document.write('\x3Cscript + segQS + 'ord=' + rand + '?" type="text/javascript">\x3C\/script>'); IF there is one thing the scandal over MPs expenses has confirmed it is that the class system in Britain is alive and well. And nowhere is that better illustrated than in the make-up of our [...]
2 Big Stories Expenses 'mistake' hangs over Darling The Financial Times reports that not even the Chancellor himself is blameless in the MPs' expenses controversy: Alistair Darling's future as chancellor was looking precarious on Monday after he admitted making "a mistake" over his expenses and Gordon Brown refused to say whether he would be in his job in 10 days' time. Mr Darling yesterday paid back £668 he wrongly claimed and apologised "unreservedly" but speculation was growing at Westminster that he could become the first chancellor in postwar Britain to be demoted in the middle of a recession. Three things ...
As well as East Langton, where J.W. "Paddy" Logan lived, on Saturday I visited Church Langton, where he is buried. This photograph shows Logan's grave in the churchyard there. After taking it, I did a little weeding. The grave in the background belongs to one of Logan's sons, who died in infancy. Inside the church - scene of a famous performance of Handel's Messiah in 1759 - there are memorial tablets to Logan and his two other sons.
Local Community Groups are all invited to take part in The Big Lunch on Sunday 19th July. The idea is that communities sit down and have lunch together. A great way to meet the neighbours and share. If people are interested in getting involved, there's more information on http://www.thebiglunch.com/
{EU flag} Only a few days until the UK goes to the polls to elect its MEPs - So I thought I'd highlight a couple of issues which have concerned me... Right-wing shenanigans and weasel actions. Despite riding high in the opinion polls: The rightwing Tory and UKIP MEPs are, apparently, the worst UK MEPs for voting for EU transparency and reform. So if you'd like a closed off and insular EU - why not vote for them, they'll even abstain on almost every vote in the European parliament. Interestingly, anti-EU donor - Stuart Wheeler - has dropped the Tories ...
On Thursday night I was part of a posse of 16 Lib Dems out canvassing in Islington with our #1 Euro candidate, Sarah Ludford. Sarah's not only our MEP but an Islington resident and former local councillor for Clerkenwell, so she was very much on home ground. It was inspiring to see her in action, connecting [...]
Two additional statements have been released from Bury Council regarding the Oasis Concerts in Heaton Park on Thursday 4th, Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th June 2009. This statement is on the proposed street cleaning operation, and this statement deals with road and metrolink closures. The main factheet is here.
Bloody tortoises. One came into the house when we weren't looking, crapped on the carpet, and toddled merrily off into the garden again. #
All, I've been maintaining (well, tidying up really) the site tonight and Vince Cable's economic recovery plan can now be found here. Our policy documents can now all be found in the Liberal Democrat downloads section, and, as ever, editions of Focus can be found in the Focus archive section. I've also spent some time in the Local information section - so check out the new contacts. Regards, Philip Something more interesting (I promise) later in the day.
Saturday: Big Ben is a hundred and fifty, and in all that time it has never been hit by a crash-landing alien spacecraft. Well, except once... It is considered to be a universal truism of Sci-Fi two-parters that the second part is never as good as the first. And in this regard, "World War Three" does not disappoint: it isn't as good as "Aliens of London". It doesn't have the frenetic fizzing energy of the first part; it doesn't have the super-abundance of ideas; it doesn't have - being mostly set during the night and inside Downing Street - the ...
