Does your local council's website have a link to the council leader's blog on it's home page?Which council websites do you know of that do have a link to their leader's blog on the council home page?
Tonight in BBC NI Spotlight are looking at the Robinson families sway over Castlereagh Borough Council. Slugger O'Toole has a live blog which you can review of the events as they unfolded between the Tweeters and the participants. Between them Peter and Iris have both served on the council, there are a number of public buildings in the area the last one of which I was in was the Dundonald Ice Bowl. Peter served from 1977-2007, Alderman Iris since 1989. There is one other important building in Castlereagh Borough Council. It sits on a hill. It is the seat if ...
Whilst the Shropshire Star is undoubtedly a thrilling read, and I am perpetually grateful to Jonathan Calder for bringing us the highlights, I am moved to bring you the story of a man who arrived at his local casualty department with his penis stuck in a steel pipe. The East Anglian Daily Times has the story here... I am intrigued to know why the solution required seven firefighters...
Oh the delicious karmic irony. Although I have no desire to gloat over someone who tried to commit suicide or has depression (I only too well remember my own when I was about 18) there comes a time when you sit back and wonder at the whole neatness of it all. Let's get this `straight` – Iris ...
The Social Liberal Forum's website has not been updated since November 10th which is a somewhat worrying development. This is a time when the Liberal Democrats social liberal wing should be alive and kicking with plenty to discuss and debate; not least the prospect of a hung-parliament and all the implications that has for the ...
So, was David Cameron airbrushed for the Conservatives' new poster campaign? I certainly think he was. And you know what, if the Real Women campaign looked at the airbrushing of men too, then I would send it off to the Liberal Democrats as an example of the engrained level of airbrushing in society! So much for ...
A quick pointer to the district council's snow update page, which is now being updated pretty regularly. [IMG: Recycling blue box covered in snow] Waste and recycling collections The bad news is that waste and recycling collections were suspended completely today because of accidents. (I dread to think how long it will now take to get back to normal. There are roads in Buckhurst Hill that haven't received a wheelie bin collection since early December.) Pavements However as a result our pavements are finally receiving some attention as waste collection staff have been made available to grit shopping centres and ...
When Jo Swinson launched her campaign against the airbrushing of models in adverts I never thought that it could possibly be so relevant to a political campaign poster as has proved to be the case. Does it matter? Yes. It matters because politicians should present the truth about themselves. I don't care what a politician looks like but if they cannot tell the truth about that, then what can we trust them to tell the truth about? Cameron himself is trying to (air)brush the story under the carpet by claiming that he doesn't know if it was airbrushed but 'hopes ...
A late change in the rota means that I shall be hosting the Britblog Roundup on Sunday. If you have seen a posting on a British blog over the past week that you think particularly fine, please send the URL to britblog [AT] gmail [DOT] com and I shall include it. Nominating a posting for the Britblog Roundup is a good way of promoting a blog that you think deserves more readers. And you are welcome to nominate a posting on your own blog too. All nominations by Sunday lunchtime please. Incidentally, for the first time I can remember I ...
West Lothian Council issued the following statement today via their website. "We are currently at critical levels in terms of our salt supplies and must conserve these for our main routes. For example, during the recent snow conditions we have regularly treated our major routes five or six times in a single 24-hour period. "We are actively pursuing additional salt supplies. However we are aware that every other council in the UK is in a similar position. We are also sourcing whindust and ash, which will be used in residential areas. We recognise that this is not as effective than ...
The BBC have this pic from NASA showing us today. I notice bits of Ireland are still living up to the name the Emerald Isle.
An email arrives from the editor of YourThurrock.com pointing us to a YouTube interview they've done with local PPC Carys Davies. You can see the interview here, as well as register to leave comments. Thurrock, if you didn't already know, is in Essex. Gotta love a place whose Wikipedia History section begins "Mammoths once grazed in the Thurrock area[citation needed]." Is it the WP equivalent of "First the earth cooled. And then the dinosaurs came..." ? At the end of January, the LDV team will be meeting to discuss how we cover the general election. As a site launched in ...
Last night I got an unexpected phone call from a young man I worked with a good few years ago - let's call him Sam. During the time I was working with him he turned up at my office with rope marks on his neck - he had tried to hang himself. I took him straight down to A&E and given there was no specialist unit for young people we were sent to the adult psychiatric unit. Last night he reminded me of what happened, an inpatient, an older woman, coming up and asking him for sex. The whole environment ...
In lieu of some proper posting - which should follow tomorrow - I'll leave you with some picspam in the manner of those altered posters I used to see around Leeds in the '80s. Cruel, but true. Major hat tip to Simon srk1; good to see him back.
A number of people have tried to suggest that this week's snowy weather is proof that global warming is a myth. The Conservative MP Ann Winterton was rightly jeered when she said this in the House of Commons. She's quite wrong, as are those at the other end of the belief spectrum who claim the cold snap is evidence that the Gulf Stream has suddenly stopped (and that Hollywood is better at predictions than weather forecasters!). Here's what the Met Office has to say about the current snowfalls: "In most winters, and certainly those in the last 20 years or ...
So people are saying that Spotlight are going to exclusively reveal the indentity of the young man with whom Iris Robinson had an affair. Let's look at what we have heard in the last 24 hours. He was a businessman and he was under 21. So I thought why wait, did a little digging around and can now reveal a whole 3 hours and 15 minutes earlier just who Mrs Robinson was having it off with. This young man is in 'plastics' and is known to Mrs Robinson as you can see. Updatee 22:44 Looks likeI was wrong BBC name ...
I'm getting a bit annoyed by all this snow malarkey now, which is worrying given that it shwos no signs of going anywhere. For anyone else similarly irritated, my advice would be to avoid both the Conservative Party and the BBC News website "Have Your Say" forums, both of which do for scaremongering what Royal weddings do for sales of bunting. I heard one Tory MP on the radio today suggesting that a sensible way to deal with the current cold snap would be to "invest in more nuclear power stations," which may well be a reasonable idea in theory ...
Andover's Lib Dem councillors are backing calls for Twinings to reconsider its plans to implement redundancies and transfer production to Poland. In a motion to be submitted to January's full council meeting we call for the council to back a parliamentary early day motion deploring the decision. The motion states that the proposals will be bad for Twinings and the local economy and calls on the borough's two MPs to support the parliamentary motion. Andover LibDems have had a number of meetings with Twinings union members and agree with them that there is a very strong case for the company ...
A number of people, from Plymouth and elsewhere, contacted me after I blogged back in November about home education (take a look HERE). They wanted to know how Liberal Democrat MPs would vote on the Government's proposed education bill. This bill would bring in sweeping (as well as ill-thought out and heavy-handed) changes to home education. I am pleased to report that Lib Dem MPs will vote against this bill when it comes to the vote in the Commons.
From today's paper comes one of the more unusual stories about a councillor misbehaving: A former lord mayor has been suspended from serving as a [Conservative] city councillor for three months after repeatedly asking a female guest at an official ball if he could have sex with her. Married Andy Matchet, 57, also questioned the middle-aged chief executive about her orgasms and told her about losing his virginity as they spoke at the Lord Mayor's Ball in Coventry. As the city's lord mayor at the time, father-of-two Mr Matchet was wearing his ceremonial gold chain and was accompanied by his ...
My campaign on the doorstep to persuade people to vote for me has been put on ice in the last few days - literally! The terrible weather has bought out the best in many people. People have rallied round and helped out elderly neighbours and dug themselves out of the snow. This cold snap will go on for many more days so please, if you have an elderly neighbour, call on them and check they are OK for supplies etc. It has also revealed some naivety amongst drivers. I really think the government should consider putting more emphasis in driving ...
A new year but the mood is not changing on the doorstep. I have lost count of the number of people who have voted Labour for years who now want nothing to do with their traditional party. In Blaydon, people are fed up with this failed Prime Minister. They are fed up with a Labour Party that is more interested in fighting itself rather than getting on with the task of sorting out the economic mess. They are fed up to the back teeth with Gordon Brown and his squabbling party. So am I! People want a government that is ...
Thu 7th
19:41
Where are the "it's health and safety gone mad"/"we're living in a nanny state" brigade when you nee...
In their absence, I will step up to the mark and do my best to fill the gap in our media commentary: <start rant> What is our country coming to when just about everyone expects the state to sort out everything for them and is happy to use the flimsiest of health and safety excuses to stop behaving sensibly? It's the nanny state gone mad, that's what it is. Millions of people in other countries quite happily clear the snow from outside their own homes and shops at winter time. But in Britain, supposedly the liberal home of the free? ...
Channel 4 News reports that that Steve Hilton, David Cameron's director of strategy, was arrested after a dispute with a ticket collector at Birmingham New Street in October 2008. This follows recent press stories saying that Hilton's regular email bulletins from California have upset some shadow cabinet ministers. I have a certain sympathy for anyone who falls foul off railway officialdom, but more importantly the sudden appearance of this ticket story suggests that there are elements in the Conservative Party who are determined to bring Hilton down. I wish them well. For all his love of jargon (and resemblance to ...
I've just received the latest severe weather update from Sally Swift at Reading Borough Council. Days into this period of extreme weather It's clear that staff from across the Council have really risen to the challenge that the elements have thrown at them, working hard to get the Town moving again. Hundreds of Council workers have worked through some incredibly tough conditions to keep vital services going during this period: we are indebted to them. I've posted the update below as it includes some key information which our local readers might find useful: Highways and Transport Gritters have been out throughout the ...
In recent days the national press has been more interested in the news that David Ross - the owner of Nevill Holt, which most literary scholars now accept was the model for Bonkers Hall - has been questioned by police over an escort girl's claims that she was assaulted outside his London house. But the Harborough Mail has picked up the story about his business troubles. This is of particular interest here in Market Harborough, because there has been much gossip about the amount of commercial property he has been buying in the town. The Mail story fills in some ...
Will Howells over at LibDem Voice reminds us that today is Distaff Day when housework traditionally resumes after 12th night marks the end of the Christmas break. For me it's the other way round: the end of a more domestic time and back to the full-on focus on campaigning – and this blog. ...
In response to the atrocious weather conditions, Bath & North East Somerset Council has issued extensive updates about the local weather, road conditions, and services information. This evening's full update can be accessed on the Council homepage - www.bathnes.gov.uk . See below for a services summary and the main sections that have changed since our morning Big Freeze update. Schools Update
After the announcement that a second gas balancing alert went out today, the demand by John Hemming for more gas storage capacity to be provided, and, in the mean time, for imports to be increased, has become more urgent. Mr Hemming has been concerned about UK's gas supply situation for many years.
Situations at South Glos schools will vary tomorrow (Friday) - some are open, some are closed and some are only open for certain year groups. Full details are on a special South Glos schools web page - most schools don't have details yet, but the website will be continuously updated from 7.00 am tomorrow. Photo: The newest member of staff at The Fox
My automatic Dale-o-matic confidently told me to expect the following post, but it hasn't appeared (yet): ------------ Snow gives lie to climate change fanatics I've got loads of snow in my garden. How do the climate change fascists explain this one? The global climate conspiracy have been suspiciously quiet on this! Enough said. ------------ Come on Dale don't let your regular readers down!
Anyone who has got to the stage of trying to take their own life deserves total sympathy for having gone through such hell. Notwithstanding my past political criticism of the lady, I wish Iris Robinson a speedy recovery from her "physical and mental...medical problems". Her statement yesterday showed commendable humility and candour. It is searingly honest. ...Not sure about Peter Robinson's statement though. He's reading it from a carefully written and highlighted script (a point 14 font by the look of it – at least) and it's very full of "me, me, me, I , I , I". ..."I've asked ...
The proposed Youth Cafe in Yate has now received planning permission. The £1.3 million complex, which will be built between the leisure centre and the roundabout, will be jointly funded by Yate Town Council and South Gloucestershire Council.
I couldn't let the last few days go by without a few photos.This one's a bit fuzzy as I took it from the train on the way home from London on Tuesday. It's the Team Valley with Lobley Hill in the background.A bird in the hand is worth two in the snow! Our bird table in our back garden in Sunniside, feeling the weight of all the snow.Our back garden yesterday morning. A bit more snow has arrived
David Cameron has said in response to questions about whether his photo was airbrushed that "he hopes it wasn't". I don't think that he answered the question though. He claims he was not responsibly for the photo so does not know about it. However, as leader of the Tory Party, surely he would know this or he would know who to ask ? The fact is that if it had not been airbrushed, he would have answered immediately "no". As Stephen Glenn points out, the evidence of airbrushing does seem pretty clear. I'm sure I would know if a picture ...
Victoria Park, Newbury 7th Jan 2009 Well I never thought I'd see a weather forecast for Newbury for the next 5 days with temperatures anywhere between zero (maximum) and minus seven degrees! It looks like the five to twelve inches of snow we've got isn't going anywhere fast! So drastic measures may be needed. Probably full mountaineering crampons are a bit OTT, but these YakTrax look enticing, after a few near misses with slips despite wearing my expensively procured full-on country boots. I've already been in porridge and honey mode for a few days. But today I tried something which ...
Jonathan Ross is leaving the BBC 'nuff said
18 months ago while fuming at yet another Today prog debate which was devoid of a Liberal Democrat representative I thought `little ol' me – complain about it – I wouldn't know where to start`. Little did I know how easy it was to do. First, you have to believe that what you heard missed a compelling ...
This weekend I'm attending an event in London hosted by power 2010. Here's a bit of background about them. They asked why I was participating and here's what I sent them: I'm participating in the power 2010 event because I believe there's something wrong with our democracy and the expenses scandal is just a symptom of this. We must change the system of allowing many of our politicians to have jobs for life in safe seats. We must not allow a party that gets a third of the vote to form our government. We must renew our democracy so more ...
Here are extracts from press releases from Liverpool City Council and Knowsley MBC about refuse collections and the effects of the snow. In both cases the collections are suspended but start again on Monday 11th Liverpool Liverpool City Council would like to apologise to all residents for any inconvenience the disruption to the bin service may have caused. Severe weather conditions have made side roads dangerous, making it impossible for refuse vehicles to safely collect your rubbish. Liverpool's bin collections have been postponed until next week. If the weather improves and the roads are clear enough to allow safe access, ...
On their website, the Cornish and Devon Post are running a poll on whether the Council is right to look at reducing the opening hours of One Stop Shops such as Bude and Launceston. The poll follows my report to last month's Town Council meeting where I said that the Council was conducting a review of One Stop Shop opening hours and was looking to cut some OSS from 5 day opening to 3. Since that time we have now learned that the most likely OSS to see cutbacks are those which are least used - Fowey, Camelford and one ...
I really don't know what to make of the attempt by Patricia Hewitt and Geoff (Buff) Hoon to unseat Gordon Brown. Both Hewitt and Hoon are former senior Cabinet members, and if their latest coup attempt is a reflection of the caliber and quality of Labour MP's and Government Ministers then Labour (and the rest ...
The following notice is in this week's "Advertiser". Any objections or comments must be in by February 19th. Notice is given in accordance with section 15(1) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 that Durham County Council as the Local Authority (LA), County Hall, Durham DH1 5UJ intends: To discontinue Moorside Community Technology College, Dunelm Road, Moorside, Consett, DH8 8EG and Consett Community Sports College, Durham Road, Blackhill, Consett, DH8 5TW. The closing date will be 31 August, 2011. It is intended that all students on roll at Moorside Community Technology College and Consett Community Sports College will be transferred ...
Thu 7th
16:35
Lets use the snow to spell out the message of the sort of Britain the Lib Dems would like to see
The Lib Dems are all about empowering people to take action and make a difference, yet the law of the law really does seem to stand in the way of this. Just look at this article about clearing snow from your path or road. The truth is the law in this country prevents people from taking action themselves, puts artificial barriers in the way of people and communities taking independent effective actions themselves, and makes people even more dependent on and expectant of a nanny state that will do everything for them. Why doesn't Nick Clegg take the snow as ...
I have just come across this consultation about MPs expenses. Anyone can comment and responses have to be in by 11th February. Given the various scandals on this, including some affecting local MPs, its important that people have their say so we get a system that's transparent and fair.
This piece is by Ewan Hoyle, founder and head of Liberal Democrats for Drug Policy Reform and is cross-posted from his blog Ewan's Liberal Musings: It's motion submission season for the Spring conferences and this year the conference committee will have the opportunity to allow conference to debate drug policy reform for the first time since 2002. In the last decade the drug-related death rate has doubled in Scotland, while in countries like Switzerland and Portugal death rates have fallen by half since they had the bravery to adopt heroin prescription and decriminalisation policies respectively. It is perfectly reasonable to ...
Our 'Britain's Best MP' competition has come to a close with Douglas Carswell, Conservative MP for Harwich, a clear winner. The final results are: Douglas Carswell 47% Gisela Stuart 16% Tom Harris 12% Lynne Featherstone 9% Bob Russell 6% Jo Swinson 6% David Howarth 2% Chris Mullin 2% I appreciate that the results do not make happy reading for visitors to this site and the results of online polls cannot be taken too seriously, but please don't dismiss this competition just yet. Whilst acknowledging that our hope of getting people to listen to the MPs answers and then vote for ...
It looks like the snow settled on the ground across the country will last longer than the 'SnowStorm' plot to oust Gordon Brown. Ministers have all rallied to the cause; admittedly belatedly and in the case of David Miliband especially with little conviction but still nonetheless it has been enough to deny the coup attempt ...
Remember the other day when the poster of David Cameron led to claims of Airbrushing. Well the Mirror have issued a side by side comparison. What do you think? Tut tut Dave. No airbrushing you say. Time to fess up. READ ALSO: If you think this sample of airbrushing is bad take a look at the original airbrushed version curtesy of Olly's Onions before Dave decided that was going too far. UPDATE: I did an edit and saved as draft rather than publishing. Sorry to all who visited once already.
David Cameron recently admitted that he "messed up" after his blunder on Monday where he said that tax benefits for being married could not be guaranteed. Cameron told BBC Radio 4's Today programme "The truth is I give dozens of interviews every week and on Monday I messed up, and there is no other way of putting it. I was thinking about all sorts of different things. I misdescribed our policy. I immediately corrected that". I think this is fair enough and I for one am not going to have a go at David Cameron or any other MP who ...
With the news that the National Rail website has fallen over in the snow, I thought I'd articulate a problem I have with the websties revamp. A month or so back, they revamped the website to make it prettier. However before when you would search for a journey and you clicked on "details" next to any resultant journey, you would get a page of the details of the 5 or so consecutive journeys after the time you wanted. This made it easy to compare the details of the journeys leaving at different times. Now, on the new pretty site when ...
Stockport school open/closed status for 7th and 8th January, copied from Stockport Council website. Updated 7.29pm Education Establishment Status for Thursday 7th Jan Status for Friday 8th Jan Abingdon Primary Closed Adswood Primary Closed Open Adswood Nursery School Open Closed Alexandra Park Primary Closed Open All Saints CE Primary (Marple) Closed Open All Saints CE Primary (Stockport) Closed Closed Arden Primary Closed Open Banks Lane Infant Open Open Banks Lane Junior Open Open Belmont Nursery Closed Closed Bolshaw Primary Closed Open Bradshaw Hall Primary Open Open Bramhall High School Open to Years 9, 10 & 11 Open to Years 9, ...
Well, it has been snowing, but not exceptionally, nothing like it was forecast, and yet South East London commuters are faced with trains that are few and far between and so overcrowded that you can't get on. The theory that's been going around is that Southeastern is advertising an emergency timetable to avoid being liable to ...
The new year has begun with the major parties starting their election campaigns in earnest, even though Prime Minister Brown has hinted that we should discount a March election.
As predicted, the latest Labour leadership crisis didn't even melt any ice, never mind put the skids under Brown. A short fizz and then nothing. So the latest bout of infighting has simply damaged Labour. Quite what Hoon and Hewitt were thinking when they went off half cock is difficult to work out. Perhaps the cold has affected their ability to think sensibly (as far as Labour are concerned.)
CONDITIONS UPDATE 7TH JANUARY 2010 With the children back at school I was able to go for a walkabout around Wallington to check on the effects of the seasonal weather locally. ROADS The main roads: Stafford Road, Woodcote Road, Stanley Park Road, Boundary Road and Foresters Drive are all clear of snow and ice, and traffic is flowing ...
There are some clear cut issues in here (yes, stop paying for mortgages and just pay rent, don't pay it if the constituency is in London, etc) but there are a couple of other issues. MP's Staffers, Publishing Receipts, and Diversity cross my mind. You have until February to influence the constitution (link included). GO!
Over at Wales Home the new Minister for Social Justice and Local Government tells us he is getting to grips with his new portfolio. He correctly identifies the difficult financial climate as the biggest challenge facing local councils but at the same time places himself firmly on the side of public service provision rather than outsourcing. As a philosophy that is fine but it does not take account of some of the difficult decisions that Councils may have to make to deal with the situation they find themselves in. Nor does it fit with his own government's policy of promoting ...
John Prescott has this post claiming victory in his battle with the BBC over their representation of the Taxpayers Alliance. What planet is he living on!? Now I'm not a great fan of the TPA but it's quite clear Prescott has lost this one. Guido has a pretty good post pointing out why. Why can't Prescott just be a bit honest? He normally is and people respect him for it. C'mon John, admit you've lost and move on.
Well not if this comment from Dr Helen Evans on Nurse's for Reform Website is anything to go by: I had been invited by him to discuss NFR's ideas on the future of health policy and presented a range of ideas. Amongst others, these included the end of national collective pay bargaining for nurses and doctors, the view that the state should not own or have any of its agents manage hospitals, a world of widespread health advertising (to overcome problems of patient ignorance through trusted brands) and a dramatic liberalisation of hospital planning laws. On this latter point, central ...
Thanks to the marvelous Michael Meadowcroft this delightful article found its way into my inbox [click to enlarge]: This article was written by Arthur Seldon, a member of the Liberal Party and Co-founder of the IEA, in 1949. It completely corroborates the ideas I floated October last year and in the November 2009 Issue of The Liberator. That, in essence, is "why the fuck is the Co-operative Party in a coalition with the Labour Party???!!!" Now, to all the bright young things in Nick Clegg office (who I know read this blog) please wake up to the fact that if ...
The agenda for the Council meeting on Tuesday 12 January 2010 has been published and items include: the annual report of the Council's Deputy Leader (pdf, 255KB) - Cllr Paul Tilsley (Lib Dem, Sheldon Ward);the annual report of the Lead Member on the West Midlands Fire & Rescue Authority;a Scrutiny Report on Reducing the Impact of Drugs and Alcohol in Birmingham (pdf, 598KB).
Between the Mount of Olives and the Old City of Jerusalem - near the Dung Gate is the Kidron Valley. It's quite dramatic and quite steep - at least to walk into and out of and makes traversing from the two locations quite hard. But in the Kidron Valley is some ancient rocks out of which have been carved memorials - semi-mausoleums. One is known at the Pillar of Absolom and the other is the Tomb of Zechariah - between them are the Cave of Bene Hazir - none of the three: pillar, tomb or cave are in fact of ...
A mere two weeks after I got in touch with Elan Homes to complain about their lack of salting and gritting for the Kensey Valley Meadow estate they have replied. Unfortunately, they are denying any responsibility for treating the roads and pavements and even claim that if they did then they might lay themselves open to legal action. In their response, Elan claim that they are in the same position as local councils - not responsible for treating anythingother than major routes. I have pointed out that in areas where the council does not salt or grit, they do provide ...
Gordon Brown insists yesterdays leadership "coup" attempt was nothing more than a storm in a tea cup. Well he may well say that publicly but surely he cannot be so thick skinned and out of touch to realise that a letter to all Labour MP's calling for a leadership election because the party is so divided, so close to a general election can only mean further damage. The fact of the matter is that as confirmed by Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt, the Labour party is very much divided and has lost direction. After nearly 13 years in power it's ...
The Guardian reports that the running joke in Dr. Who about him wanting to regenerate as ginger has been misunderstood and led to a number of complaints: The BBC received 143 complaints from viewers after Smith, newly regenerated from David Tennant in the New Year's Day edition of the show, looked at his new head of hair and said: "Still not ginger". But the BBC today said those viewers who thought the remark was anti-ginger and might encourage playground bullying have got the wrong end of the stick. You see, the Doctor wants to be ginger. "We would like to ...
We'll shortly be kicking off an on line forum for residents in Cressington ward and partners (like Councillors, police etc). It's a bit of an experiment, partly based on the ward based meetings but taking a broader approach so that people who can't get out to a particular meeting on a particular day still have a chance to take part. Depending on whether this approach works, other wards may try this as a project which can be added in to existing programmes (particularly good during dark winter days I would have said) It's not quite ready yet but it will ...
Severe Weather Conditions - Waste and Recycling (info from Council officers, with some bolding by me and a brief comment at the end) Rubbish Collections The rubbish bin collection service is running today (Thursday 7 January) and the collection crews will empty the normal Thursday collection rounds from accessible roads where bins are moveable (many bins are frozen to the floor). The crews will also remove any bagged side waste that is presented. If your rubbish bin collection was missed on either Tuesday or Wednesday and you require a collection, please present your rubbish bin on Saturday if your usual ...
I've been contacted about the 495 bus (Village to Simister). According to operator Bluebird they're not running this today, or the 154 (Prestwich to North Manchester Hospital) because some of the routes are unsafe due to ice. They do check every morning, but said it was looking more like Monday for a return to service, fingers crossed... tim
Bury Council has issued the following statement: Disruption to rubbish and recycling collections Please be aware that due to continued severe weather conditions rubbish and recycling collections are being disrupted again this week. Waste and recycling collections are currently suspended Reluctantly, due to the continuing bad weather we have been forced to take the decision to suspend rubbish and recycling collections. This decision was taken after consulting the latest advice from the Met Office about weather conditions over the next few days. The depth of snow still on the ground, predicted heavy frosts and the very slow thaw of the ...
So - another coup bites the dust. Hoon and Hewitt have egg, no - a whole omelette on their faces. So what happened? I assume that H & H had reason to believe that the six cabinet members named on the news last night had indicated that they would jump if the water looked inviting. Clearly - within an hour of their letter/text to colleagues - the water was icy and none of them jumped. And not jumping - the lukewarm messages of support for Brown dribbled out in an untimely and limp-wristed way. So - Brown is damaged. Labour ...
It seems that today's refuse collections are going ahead as normal (though if you're bin's stuck to the pavement, they won't be able to take it, for obvious reasons). Those of us who missed out on Tuesday and Wednesday should have a normal collection on Saturday (or Sunday), but it seems that the Council isn't going to bother collecting any paper recycling which we left out until the next scheduled collection. This isn't helpful to those of us who diligently recycled over Christmas and have full recycling bins, caused in part because the Council were six days late on the ...
A continuing series of spelling out Conservative plans part 9. Today Danny Alexander MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey and Nick Clegg's chief of staff highlights how unfair David Cameron's marriage tax breaks will be by highlighting a few examples that we are all aware of that shows it inherent unfairness. I've emboldened some of the key phrases within his statement. "David Cameron didn't just mess up because he blundered in an interview, he messed up because his policy is incoherent and fundamentally unfair."It is unfair because it gives tax breaks to married couples where one person can afford ...
The post box in Robin Hood Lane looks lovely, but conditions are really treacherous out. What I know so far about travel conditions follows. [IMG: snow January 2010] Reading Road appears to have been gritted. Gritting has been cut back because of salt stocks running low - we told the Tories as long ago as last Februaray this was likely to happen - plus the difficult conditions (not their fault I suppose). Complicated by the fact that grit has no effect if temperatures are below -6°C. Robin Hood Lane and King Street Lane are usually on the list to be ...
Some schools are already announcing that they are closed on Friday 8 January 2010 - I'll update this as more information is available: Cloughside closed until Monday 11 January. Prestwich High School closed until Monday 11 January. Radcliffe Riverside - East Campus closed until Monday 11 January. Radcliffe Riverside - West Campus - Closed until Monday 11 January. Cams Lane closed until Monday 11 January. Cloughside closed until Monday 11 January. Greenhill Primary closed until Monday 11 January. Higher Lane Primary closed until Monday 11 January. Prestwich High closed until Monday 11 January. St Mary's, Prestwich closed until Monday 11 ...
The latest revelation from the Cornwall Council budget papers is that the Conservatives are planning to cut staff from the Records Office and the Cornish Studies library in Redruth. The specialist library is an incredibly valuable resource and an expert source of information for anyone interested in the history and culture of Cornwall. Not surprisingly, with old papers and manuscripts, non-expert users of the library tend to need the help of the staff there to find what they want and, in my experience, the staff are fantastically knowledgeable and always keen to help. So cutting back on staff will mean ...
Throughout this week we have seen what is wrong regarding politics / political reporting in this country. At the start of a year that will include local and national elections this week has been dominated by leadership speculation challenges, hearsay, rumour and personality politics. I am not denying that the Labour leadership issue is not a story. Two ex members of the Cabinet effectively organising a coup against a sitting Prime Minister clearly warrants comment and reporting. My problem is not the reporting of the story but the style and the over the top nature of it. There are 29, ...
Just a note that has been distributed from the council this morning: The refuse teams are making collections from streets where it is safe for them to do so, though they are having to make these risk assessments as they go. They are keeping a full map of any areas that they are unable to collect from. The council advice is for residents to leave refuse and recycling out as normal, but if it has not been collected by 5pm on the day it normally is collected, then it will be collected in the next cycle. The council apologises for ...
After it has appeared on LibCon, my previous thoughts on government spending need some elucidation.
David Cameron's heavily computer enhanced poster with slimmed nose, more hair and plumped up pouting lips that's plastered around the Vale is indicative of the Tories 'Wizard of Oz' strategy. At a cost (Nationally) of £500'000 it makes one wonder how much they're planning to pump into their full scale campaign. They obviously have money to burn, I wonder how much it cost them to decide whether Dave should wear a tie a not. Does Flintshire County Councillor, Matt Wright, plan a similarly beautified picture campaign I wonder alongside Margaret Thatchers old quotes? The phrase 'We can't go on like ...
To be fair to the Beeb they obviously respond quickly to delayed responses! Here is the belated response to my Question Time complaint (it's basically an amalgam of responses others have had): "Thanks for your e-mail regarding 'Question Time' broadcast on 26 November. Please accept our apologies for the long delay in replying. We know our correspondents appreciate a quick response and we're sorry you've had to wait on this occasion. I understand you'd like to know why there wasn't any Liberal Democrat representation on the panel during a discussion about the Iraq war. I note you felt that as ...
I have, in the past, remarked on the relative lack of women in the blogosphere. Of course, there are a number of potential solutions, and Labour have contributed LabourWomen, which is: "A space for Labour women to blog to their hearts' content and increase women's representation on the internet." Unfortunately, it appears to have failed, in that there hasn't been an entry from any of its purported fifty-seven contributors since 19 November. Now I sense that, whilst some of the contributors enjoy blogging, and I note that two of them (Antonia Bance and Kezia Dugdale) have impinged on my consciousness ...
As Britain slowly emerges from recession policymakers are faced with the challenge of maintaining a recovery while addressing a deficit that could damage the long-term interests of the country. After the collapse of Lehman Brothers it was clear that nothing was going to be the same again. Government spending and procurement models such as PFI were all going to be rigorously questioned for their cost-effectiveness and value for money. In the last year, ACE had been giving careful thought to these issues. Clearly, it is in the public interest to have robust infrastructure. Given the climate change targets that Britain ...
[IMG: aristotle] Aristotle is one of the main thinkers in world history. Together with his teacher Plato, he established the main outlines of the philosophical tradition, and many other areas of human knowledge. He was a tutor to the young Alexander the Great at the court of King Philip II of Macedon, and also an enthusiast for the self-governing institutions of the city-state of Athens where he studied, taught and wrote. As a Macedonian born outside Athens, he was often an object of suspicion to the Athenians, because he was a foreigner and because the Macedonian monarchy had destroyed the ...
After all the shenanigans of yesterday, David Cameron has clearly decided that Gordon Brown has survived the botched coup attempt by Hoon and Hewitt. If the Conservatives felt that the Labour chaos had legs then he would be leaving the airwaves to the various factions. There is nothing better for the Tories than Labour tearing itself apart. But instead, Cameron is wading into the mess and declaring the PM to be 'in deep trouble'. Labour MPs may hate each other, but they will unite in hating Conservatives more. I can only assume that Cameron is saying this in the hope ...
Its always a sobering experience when you find yourself agreeing with a Tory leader so I will instead quote my wife, whose interest in politics can best be described as politely hostile. On hearing a report on the radio yesterday about the abortive coup against Gordon Brown she said simply 'they must be stupid'. Really that's all that can be said. Sadly this pointless little spat is likely to have holed the Labour tub below the water line once and for all. As Nick Robinson points out on the BBC, the failure of most ministers to offer Brown the ringing ...
The GLA have released lots of data for people to mash up and use as they please. http://data.london.gov.uk/ From first look there's interesting data on alcohol related admissions to hospital, fires and lots of useful crime data. Posted via email from Rob's posterous
I hope you've all taken heed of this cry for help with media monitoring. To this end I have just sent this complaint off to the BBC about today's Today programme: "In David Cameron's full interview on the Today Programme he was not asked once about a hung parliament and was allowed to talk relatively unhindered about his policies. Whenever Nick Clegg is on for the Liberal Democrats, the interview is dominated by obsessive questions about hung parliaments to the detriment of anything else. In not asking the same to David Cameron, the BBC are showing double standards as this ...
Interesting debate in today's Independent on the future of science funding in England in which a number of prominent academics are protesting about plans to change the rules on scientific funding. They are concerned that making university research more accountable to the wider economy will stifle the sort of curiosity-driven research that has led to groundbreaking discoveries and Nobel prizes: More than 18,000 academics have signed a petition condemning the proposed changes. They include Nobel prize winners Sir Tim Hunt, Sir John Walker, Sir Harold Kroto and Professor Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, as well as leading scientists such as Professor Richard Dawkins, ...
Wednesday: Sometimes that Mr Balloon has all the luck. He's all ready to launch the Conservatory election campaign when he falls flat on his airbrushed face because he forgets his own Party's policy on tax and marriage (it's one of, what, four that he has to remember?). And no one's going to notice because the very next day two of the so-called Big Beasts of Hard Labour decide to shoot the Prime Monster in the foot. Again. And you've got to ask how badly off ARE Hard Labour if their "Big Beasts" are Mr Buff Hoon and Ms Patricia Blewitt? ...
Finally I might be able to watch a film review show or a Friday night chat show on the BBC again (without cringing and feeling wholly unsatisfied)! The news that Jonathan Ross is leaving the BBC is being greeted with universal acclaim in our house!
Guido has an interesting post on the influence that bloggers will have in the run up to the next election. I don't think that bloggers will be able to influence the opinion of the public during an election campaign but they can influence the media, often as important as they are not seen as so partisan. Commentators in the mainstream media are often bloggers and stories are increasingly influenced by the opinions of bloggers. This is partly due to the ease at which journalists can access a range of opinions from both from within and from outside the parties on ...
[IMG: 014.JPG] I meant to blog on this ludicrous news from John Leech MP's website. He has been pursuing cycle training for bus drivers. There are a number of promising and successful schemes in other parts of the country, but nothing in Manchester. Local bus companies wont put their drivers through a cycle proficiency training scheme because it is too dangerous. True, but dripping in irony... John Leech said, ""We're just going round in circles - if even the bus companies think that the roads are too dangerous for their own drivers to cycle around, how are standards going to ...
7th January, 2005, was the day I started blogging. It was all a bit different in my young days, of course. Initially, I blogged through my then website (stephentall.org.uk – now gone to meet its webmaster in heaven), which was a Prater Raines Foci site. Here's what it looked like: [IMG: Homepage] To be fair, it did everything that I wanted of it back in those days ... Council news for my residents in Headington, opinion articles for me to let off steam, a campaigning photo gallery, online (well, PDF) Focus archive, topical polls, 'contact me' section, etc. What it ...
Earlier last year I sent a complaint to Woman's Hour via BBC website when a discussion with only Lab and Con representatives became a ding-dong party political battle. Just listening I have sent another complaint: `On Woman's Hour there were two political party representatives (Iain Dale (Conservative member) and a Fabian Society representative Kerry Goddard (Labour member) ...
Recognise this man? As you may have guessed from the title of this post, he's Edward Everett. That's the man who gave a two hour speech on November 19, 1863. He was followed by a fellow American who gave a mere two and a bit minute speech – otherwise known as Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Lincoln's brevity (and without PowerPoint) shows how it is possible to communicate major, thoughtful political points whilst being brief. At the more mundane level of your local leaflets and letters, you don't have to knock the font size down to 9 points and axe the ...
South Glos schools are all closedFilton College is closedAlmost all our local bus routes are running, but with some route variationsPlease see South Glos website for latest updates
· There is likely to be further snow today but we do not yet have an idea of exactly how much · There is no refuse and recycling service today, but public asked to put their bins out on time and leave out so that we can get to them easily · Salt for footpaths is low/ non existent, also grit bin stocks low and not able to be replenished at present, we are waiting deliveries, but know that the Government implementing national mutual aid scheme for salt which will affect deliveries · The market has been left erected to ...
Jack Straw: `The failed coup will probably strengthen Gordon Brown`!
Once again the refuse collections have been stopped. This is due to "reports from across the district of freezing temperatures overnight and some snow. At present it is snowing heavily in Market Rasen and further snow is forecast across the district." I'm understanding of the concerns about the build up of refuse, this is the problem with fortnightly collections, but the Operation Services
Apparently the refuse collectors managed to get to most of the homes in the area that were due for collection yesterday, but the conditions defeated them in the end. The Council has issued this statement: "We are sorry that all collections were not completed as scheduled yesterday due to the weather conditions. Please leave your waste out and it will be collected as soon as is possible. That may be later today, or later in the week. The collection could be as late as Sunday. If your garden waste collection was missed it will not be collected again until the ...
... with a whimper is how the Labour government's spell in office is going to end. Following the failure of the so-called "Snow-plot" yesterday it is now clear that the Labour Party does not have the collective will to get rid of Gordon Brown despite how disastrous he has been as a leader and how he is taking them to defeat. BBC political editor Nick Robinson did something quite surprising last night in that he named six cabinet ministers who he says believe that a change of party leader was needed and would act accordingly in the right circumstances. Apparently ...
As the UK descends into the frozen wastes of a minor Siberian winter, events over at Westminster reached boiling point yesterday as the man himself, none other than Geoff Hoon, attempted to plunge the knife into Gordon Brown. But Brownfink's wings were like a shield of steel, and they easily deflected the mincing blow of The ...
Councillors have just received this update about how the council is responding to the snow. Do get in touch if there's any particular areas you think we can help chase up. More updates can be found from the front page of the Camden website - http://www.camden.gov.uk/ Dear Councillor, Due to freezing overnight temperatures, ice in London and the surrounding counties is the main issue today. More snow may come today. Roads Principle routes in Camden were gritted last night and are passable with caution. Most main roads remain open with some closed due to burst water mains which includes York ...
Late yesterday, I received assurances from the City Engineer regarding winter maintenance grit stocks across the city. I had sought assurances on behalf of constituents to get clarification that the council has sufficient levels of salt to undertake much-needed gritting over the next few days and was also making sufficient effort to fill the many empty grit bins in the West End and across the city. The City Engineer updated me as follows : "As you will no doubt be appreciate, considerable salt and sand grit has been used over this severe winter spell and salt stock levels have reduced. ...
School Closures for Thursday 7 January (from Bury Council) Radcliffe Primary Elms Bank Specialist Arts College The Elton High School Park View Primary Prestwich High School closed until Monday 10th Ribble Drive Primary St Gabriel's RC High School St Luke's CEP Whitefield Primary Cloughside closed until Monday 10th St Joseph's & St Bede's RCP Tottington Primary St Margaret's CEP Heaton Park Primary Millwood Primary Special St Mary's RCP, Radcliffe Broad Oak High School Fairfield Primary St Mary's Primary, Prestwich Butterstile Primary St Joseph's Ramsbottom Castlebrook High St Andrews Primary Ramsbottom Wesley Methodist Primary Tottington High St Andrews Primary, Radcliffe Chantlers ...
With the end of the school holidays, my weekly surgeries start again tonight at 6.15pm sharp in the staff room at Blackness Primary School. My other surgeries for the West End are at Harris Academy and the Mitchell Street Centre from next Monday. Full details are available at http://tinyurl.com/frasersurgeries.
As Islam4UK carries on its recruitment campaign for the BNP it is difficult to spot the difference. Could it be the colour of the skin? It's enough to give religion and politics a bad name.....
Sunday saw Celebrity Big Brother 2010 kick off, although less than half of them can be classed as celebrities. The 'celebrities' are:
Well It appears that the Firth of Forth was a scene of interest yesterday. No not because rampaging masses (or just Hoonitt) were able to skate across from Queensferry to his North Queensferry home and demand a secret ballot. Not there were two 600ft high water spouts spotted by the coastguard. Meanwhile British Waterways Scotland has warned people to keep of the ice covered Union Canal. The canal which runs from Edinburgh to Falkirk via Broxburn and Linlithgow is currently very tempting seeming covered in ice and in some places there are footprints in the snow. However, it is dangerous ...
Sent today: `In the current election time I think it would have been fair to have had a Liberal Democrat giving a reaction also stating policies. There was only David Cameron and Labour supporters. As one of the parties have `triggered the starting gun` are we in an official election time or not?` Why not complain – ...
Yet another "plot" to unseat Gordon Brown before the Labour Party's date with destiny at the next general election appears to have fizzled out before even getting started. It is not hard to see why. Despite his obvious failings, both personal and political, Gordon Brown does not actually have an obvious rival. After 10 years as heir apparent to Tony Blair, Brown was elected as leader by the Labour Party unopposed. One can argue whether the coronation of Mr. Brown ought not to have been contested, but in the end not one individual was even prepared to act as a ...
I was, in the course of last year, a bit unpleasant to a few people. Some of them were rather undeserving, some of them got away with a light singeing. One of them was Aaron Murin-Heath, the then (and maybe now), acting Editor of 'Liberal Conspiracy' - no link, I'm afraid, until they accept that they aren't actually liberals for the most part. He made the astonishingly gauche mistake of attacking everyone's favourite elephant, and took what I can only describe as a thorough kicking. Most of us tempered our attacks at one point or another but, having started a ...
Good morning and welcome to Daily View on 7th January. Waking up to a cold frosty reception this morning are Prime Minister Gordon Brown, former Labour ministers and fellow East Midlanders Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt – and, well, pretty much the rest of us as temperatures are set to stay below freezing for most of the country for most of the day. The 7th January in history saw a trio of firsts: Galileo Galilei first observed the largest moon of Jupiter; the first use of the modern Italian flag; and the first transatlantic telephone call. A trio of Nicks ...
Eric Joyce MP on the Labour debacle: `The attempted coup happened because there's a sense that Labour can win`!
Remember all the fear about this generation growing up irradiated by our mobile phone usage. Well new scientific findings suggest that is just the right amount to offset Alzheimer's. Now if only we could remember where we'd left the mobile.
I was saddened to hear of the death of Tsutomu Yamaguchi the only man to have survived not one but two atom bombs. In 1945, on a business trip to Hiroshima, he was temporarily blinded and deafened, as well as being horrifically burnt. Three days later, back home at work in Nagasaki, 300kms away, the same white light filled the room. "I thought the mushroom cloud had followed me from Hiroshima", he later explained. The atom bombs were the greatest single attacks on civilian life ever, causing nearly quarter-of-a-million people in a matter of moments in those two Japanese cities. ...
What a waste [IMG: Eco Park] A hotly anticipated announcement on the new waste strategy was expected at this Full Council meeting in December . Although it had been clear since June that the new administration had abandoned plans for its mass burn incinerator at Capel, only the Cabinet were privy to the proposed alternative until now. I was shocked to learn that an announcement was to be made to the press before the meeting and therefore before any opposition councillors were aware of the plans, a fact Hazel objected to in the meeting but was rebuffed with the comment ...
Merry Christmas to all my Ukrainian friends. No, I'm not being my usual tardy self, it's just that the Ukrainian community uses the Gregorian calendar as in most other Orthodox countries. So, z Rizdvom Hrystovym, and a Happy New ...
Note from Herts Highways ADVANCE NOTIFICATION OF CARRIAGEWAY WIDENING WORKS INFORMATION BULLETIN No.1 Issued on 06-01-10 Stonecross/ Harpenden Road, St Albans Stonecross Junction is to be widened as part of Hertfordshire Highway's programme for improvement of the road network in January this year. The works will commence on the 18th January 2010 and will last for approximately 6 days. However, it is possible the works could be delayed if the weather is poor during this time. The work will involve the relocation of an existing tele-communications cable, re-aligning the existing kerb line and re-surfacing the widened section of carriageway. New signposts ...
I received the following message today from the Director of Neighbourhood Services. Having just driven the length of the country today (Wednesday) I sympathise with the Durham team as nowhere I passed has the snow been as deep as here. We are now advising the public that due to current under supply and future uncertainty of supply of salt, it is necessary to prioritise gritting to all A and B category roads throughout the county. This covers the vast majority of bus routes. Every effort will also be made to maintain main thoroughfares where there are significant gradients. The Council ...
Who would have Gordon's job? I heard Patricia Hewitt on the radio and she wants to "get this matter sorted out once and for all" or at least until the next time the Labour Party are not happy with their leader. I don't mind politicians calling for a new leader, after all it is a sign of democracy. It does seem strange however that these calls should come within six months of a general election. I don't think it takes much political knowledge to realise that a leadership challenge will damage the Labour Party. I will mention it anyway because ...
