With any luck and a following wind, US Health Care Reform will sonn be a reality – a signed bill. Thank goodness for that. There have been so many twists and turns in the debate/legislative process that it is very easy to be "punch-drunk" and confused as to what is actually being passed through congress. An email from President Obama sets the scene: Last Thursday's first-of-its-kind summit capped off a debate that has lasted nearly a year. Every idea has now been put on the table. Every argument has been made. Both parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable ...
Flicking through my Lib Dem Spring Conference agenda and directory, I was dismayed to spot the following exhibitor: Stand B9 Citizens' Commission on Human Rights CCHR: international watchdog in the mental health field since it was co-founded in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and Professor of Psychiatry Dr Thomas Szasz to investigate and expose psychiatric violations of ...
Yesterday evening, I was on cloud nine. I passed my belt assessment at karate Monday night, and got elected to the exec of the karate club to boot; I did really well at climbing Tuesday afternoon, beating my dad up the big 6a overhang AND the 15 foot ropeless "bouldering" wall - although I did have to sit down and have a good shake when I got to the top of the bouldering wall LOL - and did a lot of good work in the garden too. I had set up and set going They Really Do Exist, and was ...
The decision taken last year to let Rwanda join the Commonwealth means that Rwandan citizens living in the UK acquire the right to vote, including in Parliamentary elections. This change will (thanks to an amendment to the British Nationality Act 1981, adding Rwanda to the list of Commonwealth countries) come in to force for elections from 10 March. The Electoral Commission has told me they are about to send a circular out to electoral administrators informing them of the change.
Steve Guy has announced plans to consult fans of Wycombe Wanderers over proposed stadium move. [IMG: Steve Guy consults fans] Steve Guy said "As I am no doubt you are aware Wycombe District Council has put aside half a million pounds of local taxpayers money to look into the feasibility of a new stadium for Wasps and Wycombe Wanderers to share in Booker. As part of the Liberal Democrat opposition on the Council it is our duty to question, probe and examine the plans being made by the ruling Conservative group and the owners of the club. This is a ...
To see part 1, press here. It is pleasing to see the EU taking women's representation more seriously, especially when considering: "in the 2009 European elections women made up 35% of candidates, 34% in the top 3rd of party lists (Greece and Denmark being the exception), 34% of MEPs elected, but got 19% of media coverage, ...
Why was Ashcroft so interested in becoming a peer and furthermore why did Hague try so hard for him to become a peer? It wouldn't be money would it? Furthermore, in `Ashcroft Constituencies` there must be many people the literature is targeted at who are tonight looking at Tory literature thinking `ugh, tax exiles money`. ...
It's been a while since I promised a demolition of libertarianism in a handful of blog posts. Sorry about that. I hesitate a little now because, as it stands, the homestead principle (wiki) - that ownership of unowned land is properly initiated by working that land - is probably the best and most honest way ever of initiating ownership of something previously unowned. Yet this is only because all the other ways are crimes against humanity. Proudhon had a point when he said that "property is theft". Whoever first owned or enclosed a piece of land arbitrarily restricted the right ...
For the first time tonight my dad is worried about crime. To be precise he is afraid of being burgled. He wasn't this morning in fact it hasn't crossed his mind once in the nine years he has lived in the house that someone could lift the windows out to get in.So what has changed well this morning he got a leaflet inviting him to meet a double glazing salesman.The first I knew was mid afternoon
[IMG: POWER2010 Logo] As I've previously discussed, a campaign called POWER2010 has been deciding a manifesto for the next election, by consulting widely with people. After over 100,000 people voted in their poll, they've decided on their five priorities: Introduce a proportional voting system Scrap ID cards and roll back the Database State Replace the House of Lords with an elected chamber Allow only English MPs to vote on English laws Draw up a written constitution Now, most of these things are Liberal Democrat policy already, so I was happy to sign the POWER Pledge. This is what I said ...
Being preoccupied at this moment, I've no time or inclination to construct my usual verbose postings, I'll pose a couple of points which perhaps someone could expand on. Firstly on page 7 of this weeks Thanet Times, Tory boy, Cllr Simon Moores who apparently speaks on computers for TDC is giving some excuse about dodgy microphones as a reason for the council not being exposed to webcasting, which to my mind is a bit of a relief since I thought, third rate, none to bright, posturing politicians from both Labour and Tory might have been the reason the council chamber ...
It's quite sad to see the passing now of people who were at the top of the political game as I got involved in politics. My first election was that one in 1983, when Michael Foot was leader of the Labour Party. I was campaigning for Bob MacLennan, whose principles weren't compatible with Michael Foot's Labour Party and who was standing for the first time as an SDP candidate. My teenage self found him quite scary to be honest. His oratorical style, where he'd suddenly shout in the middle of a sentence freaked me out. I do remember being really ...
Updates for Wednesday: * I managed to attend most of today's workshop on Improving Children's Services in Dundee. I asked a question of the City Council's Assistant Chief Executive about aligned/shared budgets. You can read more on Dundee children's services at http://www.everybodysjob.co.uk/. * Later, I attended a briefing on Fairtrade in Dundee. I am raising Fairtrade issues with the City Council's Chief Executive. * I attended a site visit with residents, Scottish Water representatives and the City Council's engineers, about damaged and noisy manhole covers on Perth Road. This was a very productive meeting and repairs are promised. * I ...
Liberal England highlights how following the death of Michael Foot there is now only one surviving member of the 1945 post-war parliament.Iain Dale has some personal reminiscences of his encounters with Michael Foot.Aberystwyth Uni Lib Dems think Plaid and the SNP should shut up.Mr Eugenides thinks that the TV debates won't make any difference.Lib Dem Voice asks if it matters how old or young an MP is.
It's fashionable in some circles to think William Hague has redeemed himself over the past 9 years since he resigned as Tory Leader in the wake of a hefty defeat after he led a narrow minded, bigoted campaign. Since then, he's become a funny, cuddly national treasure, the doyen of the Have I Got News for You circuit and is a million miles from his earlier persona. His change mirrors the metamorphosis of the Tories to an inclusive party which embraces equality. Aye, right. Today at PMQs, or perhaps it should have been renamed the Ashcroft Debate, Hague made a ...
Having just watch 'FTVGT' I feel ashamed to be a young person. One audience member said that politicians don't talk about anything that affects her as a young person. Well, that really got my goat. Surely everything effects everyone. Whether its Health, Education (including Universities), Crime, Defence or Care of the Elderly, it applies to all of us. Maybe at different points any in different ways, but it touches us all. Health matters because it's likely ourselves or someone close to us uses it at some point (and it's likely if we have children they'll be brought into the world ...
There has been so much written and said about Michael Foot today that I hesitate to add more, but a couple of things stick in my mind. They are not particularly profound but for what they are worth here they are: I recall Foot being interviewed late one night. I think it was one of those long drawn out 'by election watch' programmes. Having exhausted every possible topic the interviewer turned to the panel and asked which was their favourite or best politic song. Michael Foot was first in and declared that the Land Song had his vote. Some long ...
At St Mary's Church in Finedon you can look down into the Mackworth Dolben family crypt. Outside there are two tablets remembering, among others, two sons of the family who died young. One is Digby Augustus Stewart Mackworth Dolben, a Uranian poet who was a cousin of Robert Bridges and with whom Gerard Manley Hopkins was infatuated. Digby was drowned in the Welland at South Luffenham, aged 19, in 1867 while bathing with the 10-year-old son of the rector. I am saying nothing. South Luffenham, incidentally, is the Rutland village which at different times played host to Matt Monro and, ...
Of course, whilst one might argue that Lord Ashcroft has merely taken advantage of the loophole left for him, there is one person who can provide a clearer idea of what was intended. And, dear reader, that person would be William Hague. Yes, you remember, the Conservative leader who pushed hard for a peerage for his biggest donor, the man who now allows said donor to accompany him on foreign trips. It was he would claimed that the then Michael Ashcroft would pay tens of millions in additional tax in fulfilling his obligations under the agreement. It was he whose ...
For the third day, the revelation that Lord Ashcroft has dodged paying full UK taxes for a decade with the complicit knowledge of the Tory leadership has been dominating the serious news media. And congratulations are due here to Chris Huhne and his research team for unearthing the estimate that the Tory deputy chairman has saved himself £127m in tax by maintaining his non-dom status despite promising to live in the UK as an ordinary resident. It's not been a pretty couple of days for the Tories. Here are three points which have struck me: 1. What does this episode ...
So far, it would appear I'm the only person in the world to have used the word "imagulator", save for a couple of hardy souls who replied to a tweet of mine on the subject. Which all makes how Google sorts the search results for this word rather interesting... Lessons so far: The order of the results changes fairly frequently, even if there are no new ones for Google to find. Google loves tweets and collections of tweets. A photo with "imagulator" in the title usually appears lower down the search results than a brief tweet mentioning the photo or ...
Another 10cc video as part of this week's series!
Wed 3rd
20:04
Michael Foot's death means John Freeman is the last member of 1945 parliament left alive
Michael Foot died today, aged 96. As a tribute, the New Statesman site has published his last interview, which he gave recently to Mark Seddon. There was also a nice piece about him by Craig Murray last year. Everyone is paying tribute to Foot as a scholar, yet the clips of his speeches being played on the news make it clear that he had a weakness for the slighly paranoid style of oratory that comes naturally to Labour. All that talk of "betrayal", for instance. My mother described his politics to me as "joyless" on the phone, which again is ...
Wed 3rd
19:45
What links Colin Firth, Ken Macdonald, Brian Eno, Gurkha veteran Madan Kumar Gurung, Pam Giddy, Floe...
Well, all six of them have contributed to the soon-to-be-published opus, Why Vote Liberal Democrat?, published this Thursday. To pre-order your copy from Amazon, please click here. Here's the party press release blurb: Actor Colin Firth, former Director of Public Prosecutions Sir Ken Macdonald QC and musician Brian Eno have all contributed to a book entitled 'Why Vote Liberal Democrat'. The book, which goes on sale on Thursday, covers topics as varied as fair taxes, gay rights, looking after our armed forces, political reform and the fight against climate change. Other contributors include Gurkha veteran Madan Kumar Gurung, political reform ...
From the Shropshire Star comes news of Mabel, the hen who has adopted a litter of puppies: "Unfortunately, she got into an accident with a horse, which accidentally trod on her foot. Because of that, she gets terribly cold during the winter so we decided to bring her into the house. "We have a dog, Nettle, which has just given birth to a litter of pups. Within a few days of giving birth, Nettle was up and about, prowling in the yard. "Mabel observed Nettle's behaviour and, as soon as there was a chance, she hoped into the dog basket ...
Yesterday it was announced that the Leaders of the three main parties had decided the format for the Prime Ministerial debates; so began another round of howling complaints from both Plaid Cymru and the Scottish National Party. Both parties now howl that the debates are unfairly excluding them from the political limelight during one of ...
I've decided to clear out my blog and start again! The local election campaign in Lincoln will be getting going very soon. However, our general election campaign is already underway with Focus leaflet going out to every single house in the constituency. We have been going now for about 4 weeks and we are very nearly done with just a few areas still left to do. I have been out today along Skellingthorpe Road and the Almond Avenue area of Boultham Ward. There was one house that had a sign on the front reading, 'If you can read this please ...
Another day, another Pizza Express. It's a tough life you know... This time it was the Pizza Express in Great Portland Street, which has one of the nicest layouts I've comes across in a Pizza Express. Perhaps due to the shape of the site it is located on, it's not a bog standard oblong room and the long expanse of windows along Great Portland Street, combined with the restaurant's relative narrowness, means there's plenty of natural light to go with the decent space around the tables. Of course, none of that is captured in my photograph: [IMG: Pizza Express, Great ...
Over at The Guardian's Comment Is Free website, Lib Dem blogger Giles Wilkes – liberal think-tank Centre Forum's award-winning chief economist – argues that though quantitative easing was needed to prevent financial collapse, it has made the rich richer, and taxpayers will foot the bill for growing inequality. Here's an excerpt (but NewsHound does recommend you read the full article to enjoy Giles's imagined budget speech of a year ago): QE was the right thing to do: it may become the most significant step that Labour took to fight recession. ... [it] quite possibly averted an outcome far worse: an ...
First posted at 14:06 and updated at 18:20 I learn that Michael Foot the Labour leader from 1980-1983 has died. As promised here is more to add to this the article I wrote in 2003 about the Leaders of the Labour Party who never became Prime Ministerfor H2G2 (The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy). Michael Foot is the first leader of the Labour party I have clear memories of from his time as leader. He became leader slightly after I turned 11 at the time that I started to actually pay attention to the news rather than try and ...
Chaired this yesterday - it brings Durham and all other NE fire services together to work together this is very successful and we are bidding for millions to build new stations throughout the north east, amongst many other things
As a Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Aberconwy, I believe I am the only candidate so far who is writing their own blog. I also believe a blog should belong to the person (a few comments will be made about this statement no doubt!!) Up for debate today is the Liberal Democrats Fair Taxes Policy. I truly believe in this policy which will put money back in the pocket for thousands of people in the constituency. People earning £10,000 or under will pay no taxes whatsoever - cutting most tax bills by £700 per year. This £700 would most probably be ...
Actor Colin Firth, former Director of Public Prosecutions Sir Ken Macdonald QC and musician Brian Eno have all contributed to a book entitled 'Why Vote Liberal Democrat'.
What a shame, although not a surprise to read that millions of pounds raised to help save lives during the Ethiopian famine ended up being spend on weapons to destroy lives. Read the story at the BBC here. There is always a worry of corruption when payments are made for disasters. This kind of story will put people of giving to international emergencies. However modern relief agencies are very well organised today compared to the 1980's. Therefore it's safer to give to a well known agency because these days criminals even setup fake websites to steal your money. Worldwide Corruption ...
I wrote a letter to the Bracknell Standard (see Political Letters in the Press) which was published on the 18th February 2010. I received many replies to my letter in the paper. So I wrote a reply; Here it is; I appear to of hit a nerve with my letter on 18th Feb as there were many responses, all of which made some great points and all agree that we do need effective opposition in Bracknell. I don't believe the opposition parties are not sitting on there Loral's I just think they are finding it hard to increase there votes ...
The CDS market is not the reason Greece is suffering.
That's the question posed by a request HarperCollins are making of Parliamentary candidates. In the name of putting together a book aimed at encouraging first time voters to vote , the book publishers are asking for year of birth. Now, for most candidates that's not exactly a secret and is already in plenty of places. But it does prompt the question: does it matter when an MP or candidate was born? Is age a useful indicator of experience or how good an MP would be at representing people of different ages? Over to you...
I defended myself recently on a couple of blogs that seemed to imply I may be rather too into spending cuts (as if the fiscal situation gives us buckets of choice). I mentioned the fact that my initial attempt to launch A Balancing Act was all about "this is not just about spending cuts, it ...
The Digital Economy Bill, currently at the report stage in the Lords has caused concern, as Lib Dem peers Lord Razzall and Lord Clement-Jones are seeking an amendment to allow site blocking for copyright infringement. Earlier this week, Open Rights Group posted an appeal for people to write to the peers, asking them to drop the amendment. Here, Lord Tim Clement-Jones sets out his response: The Digital Economy Bill, as currently drafted, only deals with a certain type of copyright infringement, namely peer-to-peer file sharing. Around 35% of all online copyright infringement takes place on non peer-to-peer sites and services. ...
Cllr Richard Kemp, Liberal Democrat leader in Local Government, has congratulated Liberal Democrat led Northumberland Council on picking up four key awards last night. The awards ceremony, jointly designed by the LGA and held at 11 Downing Street, recognised the country's most innovative councils who work with other parts of the public sector. Each winner will share in a £3 million pot to spread their pioneering ideas and best practice around the country. Northumberland won in the following categories: Keeping children and young people safe in the community - for engaging with children and young people, understanding the risks they ...
Great sadness has been expressed from across the political spectrum at the news that the Labour politician, peace campaigner and life-long Plymouth Argyle fan Michael Foot has died at the great age of 96. He had been ill for some time. For me Michael Foot was an emblem of the time when I first began to ...
Better late than never, today's Daily View finally arrives. The miners' strike ended on this day in 1985, and Switzerland voted to join the United Nations in this day in 2002. 2 Big Stories Life found on Mars Yes, news reaches us that if you're both a Sun reader and exceptionally gullible, you might believe that a gorilla has been found on Mars. To the rest of us it's no more a gorilla than that funny-shaped cloud is really a dragon, but it takes all sorts. COULD this be a giant silverback gorilla... on MARS? Some space buffs reckon it ...
At yestersday's Luton Cultural Services event I also met Jim who runs the 'The Best of Luton' website. This resource aims to be a directory of best businesses in the town. So I thought I'd give him a bit of a plug.
I was devastated to hear of the death of Michael Foot earlier today. The man was a giant of a figure for those of us in the peace movement and his opposition to nuclear weapons never wavered. He was a brilliant orator, and an even better author and journalist. One of my most prized possessions is a signed copy of two volume life of Nye Bevan. Although I profoundly disagreed with his position on the "Common Market", I respected him on so many different things that I believe one of the most principled and progressive voices on the radical left ...
MPs will vote tomorrow on an amendment to the Government's resolutions on the reform of Parliament, put forward by Evan Harris MP on behalf of the Wright Committee. (Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons.) The Wright Committee was set up as a response to the expenses scandal in 2009 to make recommendations on how Parliament could be reformed to carry out its functions better. The reforms being put to a vote tomorrow will include the amendment approving the establishment of a House Business Committee. This committee would decide the scheduling of all business before the House, including ...
Spring is on it's way and I was checking my chitting potatoes the other day. I'm very pleased with my Shetland Black which I have brought on from micrco plants. These are very 'different' spuds which come with fanciful stories of their origins. Allegedly they were carried on board the ships of the Spanish Armada which were wrecked on Shetland in 1588. Waitrose stock them around Christmas in their Formby store and for several years they have been part of our Christmas shopping and served up -baked- on Christmas Eve. I stopped off at a nursery in Ince Blundell on ...
The Register has the worrying story here. Apparently our shadow culture minister in the Lords, Lord Howard has tabled an amendment to the Copyright Bill giving grerater powers to the courts to grant takedown injunctions to ISPs. To be fair, The Register admits the move is "well-intentioned" and it seems that this is to replace the current proposal to give unlimited power to Lord Mandelson but shouldn't we be fighting against any such powers that are open to abuse by big players (witness DMCA-takedowns in America)? Having said all this, maybe I'm missing a subtlety? UPDATE: Apparently I'm missing a ...
Although I was never a fan of his politics it is a sad day as we hear that Michael Foot the donkey jacket wearing former Labour leader has died.Jack Straw announced in the House of Commons that Michael Foot, aged 96 had passed away today.Michael Foot succeeded James Callaghan in 1980 but stood down after losing the 1983 election to Margaret Thatcher.Mr Foot served in both the Callaghan and Harold Wilson governments as Minister for Employment and Commons leader.Jack Straw said of him, " He was held in very great affection in all sections of the House and the country."House ...
Farewell, then, to Michael Foot - a genuinely principled man who deserved much better than the cruel, sneering way he was treated by the media at the time, and, if it hadn't been for a little altercation about a couple of big rocks in the remote South Atlantic, came closer than many think to becoming PM, despite revisionism and the "suicide note" that was Labour's manifesto the following year. Even at 96 one got the feeling he'd be around forever. And as a, er, Foot-note, let's not forget he holds the record for the oldest ever registered player at a ...
With the confirmation today of the BBC's decision to close two radio stations and realign towards provision of higher quality programs, it is tempting to bemoan the loss of jobs that will result. One union - Bectu - reported that this realignment will cost something in the region of six hundred jobs. In tandem with ...
The BBC is reporting the death of former Labour Leader Michael Foot at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8547228.stm
Heaven is Whenever has been set up by myself (with help from Bella Gerens and Left Outside) as an escape for political bloggers where we want everyone - regardless of party or ideology - to write about the music they enjoy; favourite albums, overlooked artists, memorable gigs or cherished experiences. We are in the midst of an election campaign which would try the patience of a saint. Though blogging is necessarily combative one of its joys is the space it creates to interact with opposing points of view. This is a place not to write as esteemed political bloggers with ...
I am very saddened to learn of the death of Michael Foot. He was a son of Plymouth, representing Devonport in Parliament between 1945 and 1955, and also a passionate supporter and advocate for the city. A lifelong fan of Plymouth Argyle, I still remember him being named in the Argyle squad to mark his 90th birthday a few years ago. He was a man with deeply held political views about social justice and fighting poverty. A politician of great conviction and principle. A great man and a good man, certainly a great Plymothian. He will be missed by a great ...
The death of Michael Foot marks the end of a generation of politicians who were great platform performers. As an historian, I came across Foot's family when I was doing research for my PhD. A great Liberal tradition was what he came from, though it was Labour's ranks into which he entered and eventually led. He will be a loss for two reasons. He was greatly educated and widely read, a type of
Wed 3rd
12:52
A very Good Reason why the General Elections should be held on the Same Day as Local Elections
While the rest of us wait to see which date Gordon Brown decides to hold the General Election, as if Britain were his private feifdom, I should like to point out an excellent reason why this year's General Election ought to be held on the same day as the Local Elections, 6 May. I believe there should be a fixed four year term with the elections for our parliaments taking place on the same day as the local elections. We can't afford not to. Elections are very pricey things. If the General Election is held a month earlier or a ...
Last night, Kensington and Chelsea's Major Planning Development Committee passed - but only just - a controversial development plan to demolish the Wornington Green estate in North Kensington in order to replace it with a an estate with almost double the number of residents. This is to be funded by adding top market accomodation to the site, changing the demographics over night without providing any extra open space, play space or community facilities. In addition, the basement flat bedrooms with poor access to sunlight are going to be disproportionately allocated to social rented housing and the total number of bedrooms ...
I've just watched PMQs and it looked more like a back street boxing match than ever before. The health warning on this blog post is that I am biased but even taking that into account, the calm and dry presentation of Vince Cable was head and shoulders above the shrill Lady Harriet. Given a choice between listening to nails being scratched down a blackboard and the voice of Labour's deputy leader,
Changes in position and score are since February's figures, and the same caveats apply as before to these numbers from TweetLevel (i.e. Twitter isn't the only thing in the world, and this isn't the only way of measuring people's influence on / use of Twitter): 1. (nc) nick_clegg 55 (-4) 2. (nc) joswinson 52 (nc) 3. (+3) SandraGidley 46 (+6) 4=. (-1) lfeatherstone 44 (-2) 4=. (+1) philwillismp 44 (+2) 6. (-2) vincecable 42 (-2) 7. (+1) normanlamb 40 (+4) 8. (+1) willie_rennie 37 (+4) 9. (-2) acarmichaelmp 33 (-4) 10=. (nc). GregMulholland1 32 (nc) 10=. (+6) jgoldsworthy 32 (+6) ...
Here's a duplicate of my post on my BrookesBlog: Rumour reaches me that our big planning application for the new library and teaching building has been, as it is termed, "called in" so that the decision will be made once again by all 48 city councillors. So the decision of the Strategic Development Control Committee, whom council elect to make large planning decision on their behalf, is for the second time being challenged and could yet be overturned and the application refused permission. I have to admit that my own record on this sort of thing is hardly blemish-free - ...
David Cameron tries to make political capital out of his imagined 'broken society' and 'broken Britain', whilst saying nothing about our very real broken politics. The single thing that we have to get fixed as soon as possible, is the unelected nature and, in particular, the unaccountability of the House of Lords. Nothing brings this more clearly to light than the Ashcroft affair. The idea that this man can avoid paying tax for over 10 years whilst enjoying a position in Parliament, supposedly representing us, is beyond farce—it is insult. The fact that leading Tories who are accountable to us—such ...
UKIP MEP Nigel Farage has been docked some allowances, 'fined' £2,700, for the attack he launched against Herman van Rompuy in the European Parliament last week. He described the President of the European Council as having the appearance of a "low grade bank clerk" and claimed that his nation, Belgium, was "pretty much a non-country." Farage's rudeness diminished himself. He portrayed the people of the United Kingdom as arrogant bullies. But should he have been penalised? What about freedom of speech in a parliamentary chamber? For a moment I was tempted to support his 'rights' by sending him a compensatory ...
Yesterday I attended a wonderful event to celebrate the second anniversary of the formation of the Luton Cultural Services Trust. This independent charitable organisation was formed by Luton Borough Council to run Luton's libraries, museums, and arts service and to promote the cultural life of the town. Tuesday's event – ably hosted by the Trust's Chair, Nick Gibson, and Chief Executive, Maggie Appleton – showcased the work that the Trust has been doing across the town over the past two years and gave partners an opportunity to talk about their experiences of working with the Trust. We had a very ...
Daniel Finkelstein has a post on his Times blog regarding the top 5 political books ever. Actually, it's not really a top 5 list but 1 book from 5 times writers and columnists. The question is what would your top 5 be? Mine are: 1. 1984 - George Orwell. Political satire at its best although the lessons and language do tend to be overused in modern politics! 2. Yes Minister / Yes Prime Minister. Exceptionally funny account of the life and times of Jim Hacker. What is scary is the contemporary nature of many of the story lines. ID cards, ...
So, the BBC, ITV and Sky will be holding live televised debates in the run up to the General Election, and they are only inviting Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg to take part. This news has left Plaid Cymru (and the SNP) very cross and frustrated and you can kind of understand why.. they don't want voters in Wales and Scotland to be misled into thinking that the three main parties in the UK are the only one they have an option to vote for at a Westminster level. Peter Black AM has already blogged about this today, ...
The Liberal Democrats have called on the Revenue and Customs to assess Lord Ashcroft's back tax payments as his commitment to permanent residence conflicts with non-dom status. Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Huhne has written to the Chief Executive of HM Revenue and Customs to ask for an investigation of Lord Ashcroft's back taxes for the ten years since he made his undertakings. Lord Ashcroft is estimated to have a personal fortune of £1.1bn. His annual tax saving is conservatively estimated to be £12.76m and he has been a member of the House of Lords for a decade. Commenting, ...
Liberal Democrat Shadow Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, Don Foster, echoed the views of Cerys Matthews on BBC Radio Wales this morning, in his comments on the Corporation's intention to close radio station 6 Music. The BBC's strategy, published today, also includes proposals to scale back its website and close Asian Network. Don said: "Today's report signals the end of the BBC roaming wherever it fancied. The decision to focus on high quality UK content is welcome. "However, I am not convinced that using 6 Music and the Asian Network as sacrificial lambs to pay for it is the right ...
'The hidden cost of quantitative easing' QE has been the right thing to do. Despite the sluggish recovery, things could be far worse. But it has probably increased inequality, which lumps the government with a future bill – if you believe that inequality is something that comes with real social costs, upon which there is fairly ...
In the late 1980s and 1990s Clifford Stoll was a best-selling author, recounting tales of tracking down hackers and with an impressive technical knowledge of how to find out who was doing what online. As a pundit though he's turned out to be rather less good and in particular a 1995 piece of his often does the rounds online because its errors have turned out to be rather amusing: Visionaries see a future of telecommuting workers, interactive libraries and multimedia classrooms. They speak of electronic town meetings and virtual communities. Commerce and business will shift from offices and malls to ...
In our last Focus Newsletter we told you about our concerns following plans submitted by the Greater London Authority to host a 20,000 capacity football 'fanzone' in Regent's Park for the upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup. We are pleased to let you know that following objections raised by us your Camden Town and Primrose Hill Lib ...
At its budget setting meeting on 25th March, Blaby District Council took the courageous step of limiting the mileage rate for Councillors using their cars on Council business to 40p/mile. This compares with the agreed national rates for Council staff of 42.9p for engines up to 999cc, 47.7p for engines up to 1199cc and 60.1p for engines above 1200cc. The amazing think was that the the new rates were proposed by the Conservative cabinet as part of their cost saving initiatives for the new financial year. The proposal was enthusiastically supported by the Liberal Democrat Group on the Council. Blaby ...
I undertand there is absolutely no connection between the rare appearance in the town centre today of cleaners wielding high pressure hoses and the visit to the town tomorrow of John Denham, Secretary of State for Communities, Local Government and Chewing Gum Removal.
Now that the unthinkable has happened, and the three main party leaders have agreed not just the principle but the detail of the forthcoming leaders' debates, we really are in uncharted territory for British politics. What's going to make it so interesting is that front and centre of this campaign is going to be the concept ...
Despite some alarms along the way, the rules are now set for the first-ever head-to-head general election debates in the UK a mere 46 years after the first suggestion. (And no, yawn yawn, it isn't only in the US that such debates take place: the US wasn't first and the US isn't a particularly good place to look for lessons, what with not being a Parliamentary democracy unlike many of the other countries which also have TV debates.) Now the rules are set, what do they tell us about how the debates may play out? As expected, there will be ...
Naturally, both Plaid Cymru and the SNP are upset over the decision to exclude them from debates between the Prime Ministerial candidates in the forthcoming General Election. But what did they expect? Neither Alec Salmond nor Ieuan Wyn Jones are potential Prime Ministers of Great Britain and nor, I believe would they want to have that job. The argument that they have a reasonable amount of support in a small part of the UK and a few MPs could just as easily apply to the Unionist parties in Northern Ireland, and that does not convince either. By far the most ...
The Primrose Hill Community Centre is running a short Beginners Course on Food Growing on Wednesday afternoons (2pm-2.30pm). The dates are: 24, 31 Mar, 21, 28 Apr, 5 May. The cost for all five workshops is just £15. If you're interested, then please contact them at: primrose_hill[at]btopenworld.com There are still a few places left for the Transition Belsize Low Carbon Eating Workshop on Sat 6 Mar from 10.45am to 12.45pm upstairs at the Sir Richard Steele pub on Haverstock Hill. This event will look at what food means (culturally and emotionally), and how the food we eat has changed in ...
Work by local residents on and around Coniston Road, Gatley, has resulted in the police taking action to reduce parking problems. Yeshurun Synagogue, which has always been supportive of efforts to reduce illegal parking, is also spreading the message. Here's what the police are saying: Following numerous and significant complaints from residents living on Coniston Road and surrounding roads we, the Neighbourhood Policing Team, are undertaking positive action with respect to parking problems occurring on Saturday mornings. The public footpath does form part of the highway and as such can be obstructed by the parking of vehicles on the pavement. ...
The Blair decade was supposed to see the end of ideology in British politics. Socialism was dead, and what mattered was what works: managerialism pure and simple. The electorate was invited to choose the party that looked like the most credible management for the country. After all, the cold war - and even the economic cycle of boom and bust- was over and therefore it was simply a question of administration. As we approach the 2010 election, the Conservatives too seem to be approaching the electorate with the same message: "after the disaster of Brown, you need to change to ...
The other day I wrote about the Richard Jefferies Museum at Coate in Swindon. If you fancy exploring the area and finding more about Jefferies, you may be interested in a guided walk that is taking place on Sunday 9 May. The Swindon Advertiser says: Participants should gather at the museum, next to Coate Water, for a 10.30am start. The walk will start, alongside readings, led by Andrew Rossabi, along the east side of Coate Water, over Cicely's Bridge, to the Gamekeeper's Cottage at Hodson. Here walkers will look around the garden and view the old thatched cottage and the ...
Today is the Council's budget day. The Liberal Democrats will be putting our costed amendment to the Council for investing in better local services and for reducing the burden on the Council Tax Payers. The whole event should be on the Manchester Evening News website live via Twitter.
You pick up the phone and dial 999 you expect to have an emergency service that will do whatever it can to help you from that emergency. So your mother falls down a 60 foot mineshaft* in Ayrshire who you going call? Well you'll need the Ambulance Service to treat the injuries but you need to get her out first, so surely the local Fire Brigade will be the people to assist the ambulance crew in getting their patient to where she can be treated? Not so. In July 2008 Alison Hume had done just that and her daughter Jane ...
Welsh Liberal Democrats have reacted with anger after revealing that the Labour-Plaid Government is sitting on school re-organisation proposals for an average of 32 weeks, and in one case, for nearly a year. The revelations may raise suspicions that the Government is holding up proposals for political reasons, and ensuring that any political pressure over school closures remains on local authorities rather than the Assembly Government for as long as possible. The details come on the day when the First Minister, during exchanges with Jenny Randerson in the Assembly, blamed growing class sizes on LEAs failing to act quickly enough ...
I've blogged a few times about electoral registration - this is a key issue for us at a ward level as we have a highly-mobile electorate. Turnover is something like 50% annually - a lot of this is down to the fact we have a large student population - but there are other factors too including increasing numbers of HMOs, and flats in the ward. This can make it tricky for us to keep track of our electorate, but more importantly it means we have to work hard to engage with voters to find out what issues matter to them and to keep ...
Concerns are again being expressed about the effect of First Capital Connect's charges on local streets. Until FCC loses its franchise, exorbitant car parking charges are making commuters park in streets around the station (and sometimes some distance from the station), causing inconvenience or worse to local residents. Local councillors have decided to launch an on-line and written survey of the views of local people. Click here to take survey
Given my previous postings on 6 Music it would be mad of me not to comment on the announcement from the BBC. The BBC was my first bproper full time employer. They trained me and set me up for 18 yeras of working in broadcasting plus a some of the work I do now. I always have belived in the public service of the BBC. It is right for people to question what they spend their indirect taxation on,
I am sure that David Cameron must be wondering just what it was that encouraged him to bring Ken Clarke back into the shadow cabinet. According to The Guardian Ken has publicly highlighted the inexperience of the Tory leadership. "Appearing before a City audience with 43-year-old Cameron, and 38-year-old Osborne, Clarke, 69, and now the shadow ...
I have never thought that it was the role of government to make the rich richer and the poor poorer. I am not keen on tax loopholes because, as the name suggests, it is an anomaly in the system that allows the rich to get richer and loopholes need closing. However if there is a method to avoid tax then I don't blame individuals for doing so. If you have enough money accountants may advise you to live abroad. The Rolling Stones are famous for paying little tax. Jack Walker is famous for making millions and avoiding the tax man ...
I'm out in the morning, attending a coffee morning at an old people's home. This is very good especially the stories of ong ago Liberal councillors. After this a brief visit to the hospital for a quick meeting. In the afternoon a biggish group depart to talk to residents. We get an excellent response - very good indeed. But we are in an area where I would expect us to get a very good response, so it not reasonable to read too much into it. Early evening I get some jobs and correspondence out of the way. After this I ...
