The latest in bad science comes from the pages of? ........ Ok you guessed, the Daily Mail. In his article on the Birkenhead Labour MP Frank Field, Andrew Pierce attributes this gem of scientific hypothesis from Frank Field. Field is a serial rebel in the Commons. 'On issues I really know about, I sadly usually disagree ...
The Liberal Democrats are the only truly internationalist party in Britain — as well as being the only committed Europeans — according to the party's Foreign Affairs spokesman, Ed Davey MP, who gave a brief address at the annual reception for London's diplomatic corps hosted by the British Group of Liberal International (LIBG) at the ...
I spent the weekend in Birmingham at Lib Dem Spring Conference. My partner's originally from Moseley, so no opportunity is ever missed to take a trip up to England's second city (more trees than Paris, more canals than Venice, I'm reliably informed). However, lovely as the canals and trees are, the highlight of the weekend was Nick Clegg's speech. See for yourself:
168 viruses and a broken computer screen later, I am finally able to do a blog. In other words, sorry about the infrequently of my blogs lately. Anyway, onto the blog. Brown's hopes of staying on as leader after the election illustrates a very ignorant and undemocratic perspective of Labour's future. It is almost childlike, refusing to back ...
News of two deaths today overshadowed all the good work going on. Ashok Kumar, MP for nearby Middlesbrough East and East Cleveland, was found dead today at his constituency home. Although a staunch Labour man he was by all accounts a good constituency MP and a good man. He'll be missed not only by his own constituency but by a number of people in the Tees Valley of all parties and none who
We have had my article on 20 years of Lord Bonkers (part 1 and part 2). Now it is time to pass another week at the Hall. Monday As a responsible landlord here on the Bonkers' Hall Estate I never cease to be appalled by the low standards that pertain in the public sector. Yesterday evening I watched a documentary on the electric television about a family with six children living in a tower block in Barking, and watched it with manly tears in my eyes because those poor people had to contend with poverty, damp and a violent neighbourhood. ...
Following concerns I have received about the "green man" time for pedestrians crossing Blackness Avenue from the library to Hawkhill, I have again raised the matter with the City Council. I have received the following feedback from the City Development Department : "The lights at Blackness Library have been modernised and are now of the 'Puffin' type. The flashing green man appears for 4 seconds with buzzer sounding. It may appear to the pedestrian that it has stopped but traffic will not move until the far footway is reached and that sensor triggered. The inter-green period ie the period when ...
"Unjustified and deplorable" is how Gordon Brown has described the impending strike by British Airways workers. The strike comes at "the wrong time", he told BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour. Oh really Gordon? Are we concerned that it might mess up your shaky chances of re-election? I suspect thats the real worry here and dont be ...
Gordon Brown simply doesn't get it. Todays announcement that he intends to remain in power even if Labour lose the general Election, or fail to obtain a majority is yet further proof that he is living in a bubble of fantasy that is going to burst spectacularly around his head come May the 6th. To think ...
It's Zom's fault. In the comments to my Doctor Who Pop-Drama post he wrote: Andrew, I've been thinking about heroic hyping the X-Men pretty much all year, but have been put off by the horrible facts of Morrison's experience on the book. In conversation with Amy yesterday it occurred to me that, fuck it, we should go ...
Liberal Democrats in south east Oxfordshire have backed the protest against County Council cuts to local fire services which could threaten lives across the area. Fire fighters from Abingdon and Didcot will protest against proposed cuts to their service outside County Hall on Tuesday. The County cabinet will meet on Tuesday 16th March to discuss changes to fire cover in the county which would mean that villages in south Oxfordshire would only have cover from a retained crew at evenings and weekends. This would result in a longer wait for a crew to arrive at emergencies. The proposed cuts will ...
Lancaster's indoor market has been hitting the headlines recently. This is because its future is in danger due to rent increases from its private landlord, making the market financially unsustainable in its current form. On Saturday, 6th March 2010 I helped survey shoppers with some Lib Dem colleagues to establish people's preferences concerning the future of Lancaster's indoor Market. Although the findings were only a snap-shot of opinion in comparison to the number of signatories on the market petition, I would like to think that this survey could offer a greater insight into how to find a solution to this ...
Some bad old secrecy habits clearly still linger on in parts of the Conservative Party. Step forward: Christopher Chope MP and his veto of a Bill to aid developing countries. The Bill was at a stage where any one MP objecting to it would kill it off, and that's what he did. In itself, of course it's perfectly fair for an MP to view a Bill as being wrong. Myself, I'd change the weird way Parliamentary rules work to produce this power of veto, but given it's there I don't hold it too much against an MP for using it. ...
In an interview with The Guardian newspaper, Electoral Commission chair Jenny Watson repeated the Commission's interest in seeing a switch to weekend voting: Flexible election schedules, including opening the polls for entire weekends, should be considered to make the system more relevant to 21st century life, she said. These comments echo strong public support for weekend voting, support from a Liberal Democrat front bencher, Lord (Chris) Rennard, and previous Electoral Commission statements. In the interview, Jenny Watson also gave her support to the much more controversial issue of looking again at online voting, expressed doubts about how many general election ...
Yes, good folks of Westminster, we're back on camera! After last year's fiasco when our beloved council spent £850,000 on illegal CCTV cameras which had to be taken down again because they didn't comply with government rules, the new ones are up and on a street corner near you. But what are they pointing at this ...
North Durham Lib Dems Campaign song: Wasted Youth by CPB Together we can make a difference
Here's the link sports fans: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xgGZHHDVKI
Twelve years on from his character Ross's fateful marriage to Emily in London, former Friends Star David Schwimmer is to marry a British photographer Zoe Buckman. The Ross and Emily wedding scene was one of the most iconic from the 10 years of the hit comedy series. I'm sure he'll get the bride's name right at his own nuptials. Good luck to the happy couple! By the way, just in case this passed you by, if, like me, you often want something to make you smile in the evening and switch over to Friends on E4 at 8pm, that joy ...
... a Liberal party has proposed a new set of taxes aimed at certain 'rich' activities that will raise billions of pounds. Dubbed the "Make 'em squeal tax", it includes: a levy on monocles, classic cars and children called Tristan A polo tax stamp duty to be extended to transactions involving the exchange of eligible daughters for land ...
"Vote for what you believe in... or you will wake up on May 7th facing another five years of more of the same," said the Liberal Democrat Leader.
The wall at Noad's Corner next to the Telewest Chapel is to be repaired.
Whatever you think of Gordon Brown's character, one point about him on which we can all agree is that he won't give up his position as Prime Minister and Labour leader without one hell of a fight. As the winner of all the battles to get rid of him since he was crowned Labur's king, he has proved he has some degree of staying power.I did speculate recently in this blog that were Labour to lose
Read this if you are interested in our country's well being www.libdems.org.uk/Conference_News.aspx
Slightly more political post than usual ... but it is an election year ;-) I'm sure you'll have seen Nick Clegg and Vince Cable's speeches mentioned in the papers but if you'd like to view them yourselves (and make up your own mind) then I've embedded the two videos from YouTube below. Enjoy.
James Graham writing on the Social Liberal Forum takes Left Foot Forward and The Fabians to task for their report on the Lib Dems' taxation policy.Carl Minns has a tribute to Labour MP Ashok Kumar who sadly died today.Hopi Sen hates pre-election jousting.Max Atkinson on political misquoting.Liberal Conspiracy identify Christopher Chope as the Tory MP who killed the debt relief bill.
Yesterday, LDVideo brought you some of the media reportage from the party's spring conference. Today, for those of you who want to re-live it all unexpurgated, here are Nick and Vince's conference speeches in full ... First, here's Nick: (Also available on YouTube here). And here's the 3-minute video which introduced Nick: (Also available on YouTube here). And finally, here's Vince: (Also available on YouTube here).
George Kiloh is not a name I have come across before, but Birkdale Focus tells us all about him and the Liberal History Group's fringe meeting on the Young Liberal "Red Guard" of the 1960s. Has Obama's presidency reached a turning point? Writing on Huffington Post, Robert Kuttner thinks so: "when the other party is out to destroy you, the search for common ground is a fool's errand." Bignews Margate catches Bob Geldof "going off on one" over BBC coverage of allegations that some of the money raised by LiveAid may have gone astray when it reached Africa. The best ...
I wonder if Flintshire councillor Matt Wright could clarify his position on efforts to tackle climate change, his parties policies state; "A Conservative Government will make developing renewable and low carbon energy sources a priority. We will Expand offshore wind and marine power and provide government backing for a network of large-scale Marine Energy Parks." Yet he has signed an on-line petition campaigning against renewable energy sources at saveourscenery.com stating; "My family and I have very happy memories of our times spent on holiday in Llandudno! We were both shocked and horrified to find out about the proposed windfarms. Please ...
Over at the BBC News website, Lib Dem shadow schools spokesman David Laws "reveals the most important things he has learned in his life." Here's one of them ... 5. Sometimes it is easier to achieve your goals in a roundabout way than by a full-frontal assault. When I was in the City you were taught to be very blunt, straight forward and direct. There was a premium on clarity of thought and expression, whereas sometimes in politics to achieve your goals or to persuade other people, you need to be less direct than you might otherwise want to be. ...
Once again there are reports that the Government is considering moving to double summer time - in other words, not moving the clocks back in the winter and moving them an extra hour forward in the summer. The idea is that this will create extra daylight hours at times when people are up and about to make the best of them. Certainly it would help the tourist industry with summer evenings staying light until as late as 11pm. The downside is that it would get light later in the morning (particularly in the winter) and this might be a drawback ...
Following the public enquiry, it has been decided by the Government that the cost of crossing the Tamar Bridge (or using the Torpoint Ferries) will rise from £1 to £1.50. It is, of course, unfortunate that costs have to rise, but this is the first rise since 1994.
There were few more marginal Labour seats than the 405 seat majority that I felt gutted by in 2005 in Edinburgh South. But at a majority of 37 Laura Moffatt had one of them in Crawley. Now we learn that the former Nurse who was one of the new Blair Babes in 1997 is not seeking re-election. Sadly it another female member who is saying that despite the changes in recent years it is the 'toll on her family life' that is the reason why she is stepping down. Laura took her narrow win in good spirit, allegedly she has ...
There's been an interesting discussion over on Lib Dem Voice today where Stephen Tall took Tom Harris to task for a post he wrote criticising Nick Clegg in general and what he thinks the Lib Dems would do in a hung parliament in particular. To be honest, I'd be surprised if Tom Harris were to say anything nice about us. That, surely, could only take place in a some sort of surreal parallel universe where daleks were compassionate, caring and kind to animals. Tom was good enough to join in the debate on Lib Dem Voice and I thought that ...
A meeting has been set to go through the details of Sulis Meadows adoption and to look at the way forward, getting residents views on what should be done. This has been set as St Gregory's Hall on 20th May 4-7pm The 6th July 4-7pm has been set aside to hear how the Council is going to do things, having heard what residents have saidPlease contact us if you have any questions
Most of the council tax bills have been dispatched, there is much cheer in the bills, one of the smallest increases for the council, but services will be getting worse
The Labour-supporting Left Foot Forward blog prides itself on being evidence-based. But not, it seems, when the evidence doesn't support the conclusion they've already written. That seems to be the only explanation for their slanted weekend posting that Lib Dem tax policy "fails the fairness test", which appears to rest on two points: 1) that people who don't pay tax won't benefit from tax-cuts, and 2) ignoring completely the redistributive wealth tax rises that Vince Cable and the Lib Dems are proposing. Perhaps the authors, Tim Horton and Howard Reed, hoped nobody would notice the sleight-of-hand; or at least that ...
A number of primary schools in the borough are being expanded to meet the increased numbers of young children. In South of the Borough there are proposals to expand both Ellingham Primary and Lovelace Primary, each by one form of entry. If you'd like to find out more, the Council is holding consultation meetings as follows: Lovelace Primary, 27th April, 7pm at the school Ellingham Primary, 29th April, 7pm at the school You can find more infromation about the plans on the Council's website.
Sorry - not Fortune Green but couldn't resist blogging this. Spent Sunday lunchtime outside the Swiss Cottage Library where Camden Parks and Libraries were putting on an event which involved giving away free trees (one of my favourite annual events) The trees are about 18inches high come with growing instructions and this year were all fruit- producing so they also came with recipes (crab apple jelly etc). There were also story telling sessions for younger children, someone to talk about recycling and give out shopping bags, and the highlight "Zoofari". They are an animal rescue and wildlife sanctuary from Hertfordshire ...
The sun has an exclusive story 'And it's Kauto Star, Denman..and Nick Clegg's fading ' But this is such a non story. The article states that 'Nick Clegg was left long-faced yesterday as bookies revealed a QUARTER of voters have never even heard of the Lib Dem leader.' But when you read on you discover that this was not a survey of the voting public but a Ladbrokes poll of 1,000 of their own punters. Not a surprised then that more know which horse is favourite to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Personally I have never heard of Kauto Star ...
Good god! Gordon Brown has announced that even if Labour lose the election he will remain party leader. He's like The Terminator towards the end of the original film. Bits falling off him. Half a carcass still dragging himself along unable to quit because his programming won't let him. He said: I think I owe it to people to continue and complete the work that we've started of taking this country out of the most difficult global financial recession. And to be honest, going around the country, I feel there's more to do to improve the health service, more to ...
While I've been working this afternoon I've been listening to Nick's speech to Lib Dem Spring Conference in Birmingham. I think it's always best to actually listen to these things, although if you want to read it, you can do so here. I am going to be critical - but only about the quality of the video. Dark suit and black backdrop do kind of make him look a bit strange. It really must be a nightmare to wake up on the morning of a keynote speech with a bad throat, but despite that Nick did really well. It had ...
Just back from the Merseytravel Advisory Panel which is a committee which brings together community reps, people from Merseytravel, people from the bus companies and Councillors. I represent Liverpool City Council on the committee. I took the opportunity to raise the issue of bus drivers not having a float and so not giving change. When people try to pay and the driver has no change one of two things are likely to happen (and I have seen this). The first is that the driver makes you pay too much for your ticket. The second is that you get thrown off. ...
Someone uploaded a begging letter from David Cameron to the `straight choice` website. It's utterly breathtaking. On the one hand they say they're going to change Britain – on the other they ask for: £167 a month – to become a `team 2000` donor – for this you receive the opportunity to hear the policies for Government ...
March 11th is better known as 'Johnny Appleseed Day' on the other side of the Atlantic, a celebration of the well-loved nineteenth-century nurseryman who first introduced apple orchards to vast swathes of the American mid-west. On this side of the pond it was a relatively tranquil by-election Thursday, with only two principal council by-elections and a pair of Parish Council results to digest. The two principals resulted in Conservative holds, whilst in the two parish elections reported to ALDC we held one seat and gained the second from Labour. The by-election in Adeyfield West ward of Dacorum Borough Council in ...
In the Budget of 2007, the Chancellor Gordon Brown announced to much fanfare that the basic rate of tax would be cut by 2p from 22% to 20%. This policy was great news for taxpayers! Earners received a tax cut of up to £647. This tax cut was largely paid for by scrapping the 10p tax rate, which hit the lowest earners. But this is immaterial - since the 2p tax cut is worth £8bn, the policy should be looked at on its own merits. We can therefore conclude that the 2007 Budget was hugely beneficial for the majority of ...
I am currently in Stockton on a photo shoot and the news of the death of Ashok Kumar, MP for nearby Middlesbrough South arrived by email. I announced it to the Lib Dems for whom I was doing the photos and there was general, all round sadness. He was genuinely liked across all parties. I remember the Langbaugh by-election in November 1991 when he was first elected, winning his seat from the
Commenting on the news of Ashop Kumar's 'sudden accidental' death, Sir Alan Beith says: "I was shocked to learn of Ashok Kumar's death. He was a much liked and respected MP with whom I worked on a number of national and regional issues and he will be greatly missed."
The first two stem from Chris' excellent recent post about the fiscal deficit. Not just because it links to me, but for the almost zen-like calm about deficits that it imparts. You can't do anything about them with fiscal policy – they just reflect the mirror image of the private sector lending decisions, which are ...
Transport has been a big issue in the news over recent weeks, both on a local and a national level, with the difficulties in the North-South Air Link's operation, then the ORR's decision to scrap the planned direct service from Aberystwyth to London and lastly the announcement by the government of High Speed Rail plans ...
Around 5 years ago to this day I received a call from the North East Regional candidates chair asking me if I would consider putting my name forward for Middlesbrough South and Cleveland East. I reiterated my stance that I have no desire to an MP at the moment ( I am not standing in this general election at all) and that I wasn't sure if I could do it justice being the then Deputy Leader of the Lib Dem group in Hull. One look at the impossibility of my task in the election convinced me that I was 'safe' ...
The Porter Parry Tory leaderenes on Sefton Council are at it again. What was it that Lord Acton said about power. Like some dragon in a tale from the dark ages the Tory Leadership is being placated by sacrifices. Cllr Roberts has the 'blackspot' and is standing down and it is being whispered that a former Tory Leader-Eric Storey-is also in line for a visit. Cllr Roberts is not a man I cannot recall ever having ever heard speak on the council-not even to ask to have the window open. He has done sterling work for the Tories propping up ...
Owing to my own good fortune, I have some experience of the advantages that the wealthy get, over the poor. From an email sent to me giving investment advice: "Consider Capital Gains at 0/18% rather than Income tax at up to 50%" Oh, you think. – but people getting involved in Capital gains take a risk, don't ...
I noticed yesterday when Cleggy was giving his speech he was all husky-voiced so obviously going for the Annie Nightingale/Mariella Frostrup sound, quite fetching actually. As well as the blindingly obvious pledge to clean up politics, the measures that most struck me was the Green Jobs Stimulus, a package designed to rebalance the economy and create thousands of new green jobs. I believe that the plans will play a vital part in a fair recovery that locks in investment and ensures a path of low-carbon growth. The plans include: * Immediate investment to expand our green energy infrastructure * Bringing ...
Fresh Squeezings From the Veins of the InternetThe Last word on the selection of Anna Arrowsmith as a Lib Dem Candidate goes to XKDC: [IMG: [livejournal.com profile] ] andrewducker) Academic reviews of Mr Men books. They are all excellent, but I think my favourite is If '1984' or 'The Trial' had been a children's book, Mr Messy would be it. No literary character has ever been so fully and categorically obliterated by the forces of social control. Hargreaves may well pay homage to Kafka and Orwell in this work, but he also goes beyond them.Just... genius. Lib Dems Save the ...
It is being reported that the Labour MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland Dr Ashok Kumar has been found dead in his constituency home this afternoon. When he staff failed to contact him on the phone a workman was sent around to his house. He was one of the 1997 intake was a fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, a Chartered Engineer and a Member of the Energy Institute. Born in India he was far from being a career politician but someone who was an expert in his field before taking to a career in politics.Having been a ...
Saturday Folk are clearly in good heart here in Birmingham. I cannot claim that this is my favourite venue, I still hanker after the seaside-maybe it is just nostalgia on my part. Talking of which The Liberal History Group held a meeting last night on the Red Guard Young Liberals. Sadly I couldn't get along but I'm told that it was well attended. Anthony Hill was our special correspondent and marked Bernard Greaves's contribution very highly. The star turn was billed to be George Kiloh who was chair of NLYL. Tony Greaves who chaired the meeting confirmed my memory that ...
Have just received this letter from the Chair of Emmanuel Governors, John ward. Come along if you are interested! Dear Parents, Neighbours and Friends Development project - open space As part of our school development project, we will be spending some money improving the public open space at 160 Mill Lane. The Governors would like to invite you to a public meeting on Tuesday 30 March 2010 from 7-9pm in the school hall to discuss how we should spend this money. We would very much like to hear the views of the local community as the public open space belongs ...
I caught a bit of Womens Hour this morning when Gordon Brown was being interviewed and asserted that he would go on even if he didn't get a majority on May 6th. I guess the Tories will get very annoyed at that but it is exactly what Baldwin did in 1923 (I think it was 1923) when having not secured an overall majority he went to the House of Commons to be defeated on a vote of confidence. He did so to force Asquith's Liberals to vote to put in the first Labour Government-which he and his supporters thought would ...
Well in Amazon book charts they do. A book called 'Why vote Lib Dem' has been produced and appears to be getting a lot of interest. It is ranked 967th in Amazon's book charts, unusually high for a book of this type. You can order a copy by clicking here Similar books are available for the Conservatives (ranked 46,329th) and Labour (ranked 18,080th).
The 2010 edition of the Electoral Commission's "Handbook for polling station staff" contains this welcome advice for those staff: Most electors bring their poll card with them to show to the Poll Clerk even though this is not a requirement for most voters. Offer this poll card back to the elector. It will help them to give information to tellers outside if this is their wish. It's a small, but very welcome, recognition of the usefulness of tellers to the health of our electoral system. Tellers are party volunteers who gather information about who has voted. They therefore bring two ...
After months of speculation we finally have a date for the big event: 3rd April 2010. See here for more details.
I was delighted that the Liberal Democrat Spring Conference yesterday backed plans to rebalance the economy and create thousands of new green jobs. The plans will play a vital part in a fair recovery that locks in investment and ensures a path of low-carbon growth.I am particularly delighted that this green economic stimulus package will be a core part of the Liberal Democrat election manifesto. It is important that Sutainable energy,Climate change and green policies remain at the heart of policy as the need for a radical green public policy agenda will become more pressing with time and we should ...
Over the weekend, Left Foot Forward released a critique of the Lib Dem plan to give taxpayers a £700 income tax cut by raising the personal allowance to £10,000. Here is the chart they used to demonstrate the allegedly regressive impact of the tax cut: However, this chart can't be telling the full story. The Lib Dems have always made it clear that the policy is revenue neutral. This means that the policy won't cost the Treasury anything, because the tax cut has been paid for by tax rises in other areas: raising the tax on capital gains, and the ...
In March, the House of Commons voted in favour of reforming the House of Lords making it either wholly or 80% elected. In March too, Justice Secretary Jack Straw announced the a draft bill to reform the Lords would be published within weeks. Only one problem. The first March was in 2007 and the second 2010. Three wasted years when that terribly modern and cutting edge idea of electing the people who sit in our Parliament could have been introduced. But instead we're left with this political cynicism: Although the plan is unlikely to become law before parliament is dissolved, ...
Nick Clegg and the Lib Dems were all over yesterday's news broadcasts and feature in today's newspapers. Of course there are some with vested interets who say people have never heard of Nick Clegg. Really??? Could these newspapers have been doing their job properly then? For a viewpoint free from the vested interests of Mr Murdoch and his cronies see today's report of Nick Clegg's speech at the Lib Dem conference in The Independent: The Independent's report on Nick Clegg's conference speech yesterday
I'm not the kingmaker. 45 million voters are the kingmakers. Today I've used my keynote speech to our Spring Conference in Birmingham to make that one very simple, very important point. Some days the papers say our party is doing a deal with Labour. Some days the Conservatives. But they can't predict the future. I can't predict the future. Voters should give politicians their marching orders - not the other way around. We've made it clear how our Party will change Britain. Under the Liberal Democrats, no-one will pay tax on the first £10,000 they earn. That's the most fundamental ...
Weasel words in the FT. Try to guess: what do you think wealth managers reckon on the Non Dom tax policy? Yup, you guessed it: Andrew Rodger, Stonehage executive director, said: "The stated intention of the government was to increase tax from resident non-doms and simplify the regime. Our survey shows that the rules are ...
Three application on the weekly planning list in the ward this week. Firstly King's Hedges Primary school on Northfield Avenue are applying for a single storey extension. This is application 10/0173/FUL. I ought to point out that I am a Governor of the school on this one. Number 412 Milton Road have applied to build "one 3-bed dwelling at rear of site". This is application number 10/0155/FUL. Finally 36 Minerva Way has applied for a two storey extension to the rear of the building. As always more details from the City Council website, or by contacting the team.
Mon 15th
12:10
Mark Pack, Alex Foster and Sara Bedford on House of Comments Podcast - Lib Dem Spring Conference Spe...
The latest "House of Comments" podcast with myself and Stuart Sharpe of the Sharpe's Opinion political blog is now live. The website for the podcasts is here and the special episode that we recorded on Saturday 13th Feb from the Lib Dem spring conference in Birmingham is available to download via this page here (raw mp3 file here if you prefer). You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes here. Or you can listen to it right now here: The format is to invite political bloggers on each week to discuss a few of the stories that are making waves ...
HAT TIP : The Drinkers Alliance have put together this very nifty little video, made in response to the fear that alcohol taxes are going to Sky Rocket at the upcoming budget. Yes we know this Government has spent money like a man with no arms, brought the country to its knees and we've got to find the money from somewhere. But taking away the anaesthetic, (or at least making it so damned expensive we can't afford it) while our arms and legs are being chopped off, is downright insulting. It's less than a minute long and jolly well made.....definitely ...
It was packed weekend here at Lib Dem Voice, just as it was for conference delegates – so if you missed our coverage because you were in Birmingham, or simply want to re-live it all again, here's the Voice's handy guide to the conference-related posts published this past weekend ... Nick at conference: Nick Clegg's conference speech: what does it need to do? (Mark Pack) The Clegg coalition line emerges (Iain Roberts) Teachers, Thatcher, tax and troops: Nick Clegg Q&A (Helen Duffett) The Indy on Nick: 'Clegg the Credible' (NewsHound) Nick Clegg's #ldconf speech: read it in full here (15) ...
Following a request by the local Prospective Labour Council Candidates for Goodmayes to speak to the congregation at Seven Kings Methodist Church, the offer was very kindly extended to all candidates for Goodmayes ward. However, when it came down to it, only the Liberal Democrats turned up, the Labour candidates, having requested the opportunity to speak, chose for whatever reason to give it a body swerve, but why? The people who had arrived for the hustings were very disappointed not to be able to grill all the candidates, maybe next time we will get to hear what they have to ...
Merton, Sutton and Surrey Joint Health Scrutiny Committee The main agenda items for this meeting were the Sutton & Merton Primary Care Trust's Operating Plan, an update on the Explosion at St Helier Hospital and 'Better Healthcare Closer to Home - Taking Stock.' As a matter arising from the previous meeting we had Sue Walker from the ...
[IMG: Sanjay with Fraser Ogston in front of Ogstons in Arbroath] The issues with business rates go further than the hotel industry and transitional relief, however. In particular, business rates are discouraging investment to tackle climate change, as any savings made on energy bills are swallowed up in increased rates. I talked to a shipyard owner, Harry Simpson of Mackay Boat Builders, again in Arbroath, where they rebuilt a workshop building, with one with an insulated roof, motion sensitive lights and taps, and a better working environment for staff. With little warning their rates were doubled, not least because they ...
Last month I blogged about damage to verges and problems on Upper Redlands Road connected with the redevelopment of the University's Halls. I raised this with the Council and via the University's Community Relations Manager and as a result a site visit was arrangd.The issue also cropped up at the recent Redlands & University Neighbourhood Action Group annual public meeting via a resident from Avebury Square . Today I received this response from RBC: 'I met with Site Agent on Friday afternoon and walked front of site in Upper Redlands Road and there is not an issue with sweeping they employ ...
You can now watch Nick Clegg's speech to the Liberal Democrat spring conference here: (In advance of the speech I wrote this setting out what the speech needed to achieve, and afterwards Stephen Tall wrote this assessing the speech.)
[IMG: Sanjay with Hillside farmer, Alex Sanger]
Our local MP Mike Gapes (Labour) claims to be fighting on behalf of local interests, particularly in relation to stopping the closure of local A&E services at King Georges Hospital. However, while he is able to march and speak at events aimed to highlight the plight of our local hospital the reality is that in last Tuesday's vote in Parliament he failed to support a Tory motion that could possibly have halted the closure of the Hospital in it's tracks, then abstained from voting on a Labour amendment in protest and then found his own amendment proposal thrown out. The ...
George Osborne continues the sense of strategic confusion about Conservative fiscal policy with a column in the Financial Times today, in which he argues for – surprise surprise – early cuts to the deficit. Although the conclusions at the end are mild ('a medium-term fiscal framework, with the first steps starting this year'), the rhetoric ...
Cancer patients in Cornwall are failing to claim around £1.3 million in payments to which they are entitled according to Macmillan Cancer Support. The money is due in disability benefits. Part of the problem is that a lot of the forms that people are required to fill in to claim the money are ludicrously long and complicated. To some they are incomprehensible. To others, they are something they put aside to fill in on a 'good day'. One of the very valuable services that Macmillan provide are benefits advisors - experts who work with potential claimants to help them fill ...
[IMG: whoupsetgeldof] Well for me its difficult to be objective about Bob Geldof particularly since one of his companies wrote to me about my opinions over KCC's Kent TV, in rather er robust terms. Anyway Guardian readers will be aware that last week he went off on one, re the BBC world service, now since he seemed to be threatening legal action, I'll keep my opinions to myself. Still Rod Liddle a favourite of mine in the Sunday Times has considered the matter and written on the subject, I particularly enjoyed this "He has been bombarding The Guardian's online site ...
Following last week's meeting with Shadow Fisheries Minister Andrew George MP at Westminster, Nick Perry, the Lib Dem parliamentary candidate for Hastings & Rye, has spoken out against the unfair quotas that are putting the livelihoods of our local fishermen at risk. At Lib Dem Spring Conference in Birmingham, during the party's policy debate Growth that ...
Yesterday's Observer carried a story about Conservative candidates who have links to lobbying firms which they don't fully disclose to their would be electorates. Among the candidates to be named is Camborne, Redruth and Hayle Tory George Eustice. Here's what they said about him: "George Eustice, Cameron's former press secretary, fighting the three-way marginal in Camborne and Redruth, Cornwall, has failed to disclose on his campaign site that he works for powerful Westminster lobby firm Portland, which acts for Google, Tesco and McDonald's."
David Hall-Matthews' speech on Motion "Growth that lasts: A fair, green and sustainable economy." Conference, I am speaking in favour of lines 22-23: "a fair and sustainable economy means delivering growth that lasts, through... honesty about the tough choices needed to cut the deficit and put the public finances back in order without damaging vital public services." I couldn't agree more. This is at the heart of how will distinguish ourselves from Labour and the Conservatives during the election. What I would ask for though, is a little more clarity and demonstration of honesty about what those tough choices will ...
The Daily Telegraph has a piece this morning that defies belief. They report that Michael Pownall, the Clerk of the Parliaments, signed a legal gagging order to block the release of his memo explaining his controversial definition of a main home for the purposes of the House of Lords overnight stay allowances. They say that Mr Pownall certified that the memo was subject to parliamentary privilege and therefore exempt from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Apparently, Section 34 of the Act states information should not be released if this would infringe on Parliament's "privilege" to "control its own affairs ...
The parking restrictions around the new Badminton Road Council Offices will come into force on 6 April, in time for people moving into the offices. The scheme will be monitored for three months and changes made if necessary. You can read the report on the decision on the South Glos website.
Wow! The nasty party really can't hide their true nature for long! I followed the iPlayer link in Liberal England's posting pointing us towards an interview with our new defector and Nick on the Yorkshire and Lincolnshre Politics Show. It was a good interview but can we not brief our defectors a bit better (if they are amenable) so instead of: Q: Which LibDem policy are you proud to have on the doorstep that you didn't have in your previous party A: Well, it's all about Europe really... It should have more like: A: Well, under the LibDems no-one will ...
Interesting article by Michael White in today's Guardian following Nick Clegg's excellent speech to Conference yesterday (see below). Mr. White believes that Clegg has left all his options open but ultimately there will be no coalition, just ad hoc support for a minority government. We will see. This is just one of many options and as Clegg said, it is not up to us but the voters: Little wonder that Lib Dem activists who packed Birmingham's conference centre were in upbeat mood. When the old Liberals merged with the ex-Labour SDP in 1988 they touched bottom at 6% compared with ...
Welsh Government claims that hospital waiting times in Wales are now as good as - if not better than - in England have been challenged by the chairman of the British Medical Association's Welsh Council. Dr Andrew Dearden said: "I am afraid to say that this is very much not the experience on the ground, day to day in GP surgeries. "I have often communications from general practitioners, consultants, other hospital doctors and patients, all telling me that the waiting lists, though improving, are nowhere near English levels. "England has thrown millions of pounds in reducing waiting lists, Wales has ...
Happy Monday morning, everyone, and welcome to the Ides of March edition of the Daily View. (I hope David Cameron is watching his back: the Tories don't do loyalty). Alongside the assasination of Julius Caesar today marks the anniversary of the first Test cricket match between England and Australia (1877); the registration of the first internet domain name, symbolics.com, 25 years ago; and the 70th birthday of Frank Dobson. O frabjous day! 2 Must-Read Blog Posts What are other Liberal Democrat bloggers saying? Here are two posts that have caught the eye from the Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator: Steps to ...
"Vote for what you believe in or you will wake up on May 7th facing another five years of more of the same," said the Liberal Democrat Leader.
[IMG: project-radio-3web.JPG] I was delighted to join my colleague Richard Baum (Bury North PPC) for a live Radio interview and phone-in at Bury's Project Radio on sunday. As part of their General Election coverage, project Radio are interviewing local parliamentary candidates and we of course were delighted to do our bit. Anwar (pictured) put a variety of questions to the two of us on subjects ranging from Iraq and Afghanistan to the economy and the expenses scandal. Project Radio is currently operating on a 28 day pilot licence from Knowsley Street and is hoping ultimately to become Bury's first community ...
Last month I wrote about my discovery that Thor nuclear missiles had been stationed at Harrington Airfield, only five miles from Market Harborough. Yesterday I bought a booklet on the airfield. It deals mainly with its career during World War II, when it was the home of "carpetbagger" operations. These dropped men and supplies behind enemy lines in occupied Europe. But it also gives more information on the Thor missiles: In 1958, work began on building the Missile site at Harrington ... In late 1959 there was a demonstration by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND). The protesters met in ...
It was always the case in the past. Spring conferences of all the parties were covered by tv news in a rather minimalist way. Normally for Lib Dem spring conference minimalist coverage amounted to zero airtime. So, as I sat down to my dinner last night of homegrown potatoes and sprouts with lashings of liver casserole (homemade but not homegrown) I was amazed that we were the lead story on BBC
Yesterday morning's Andrew Marr Show was both amusing and a stark warning to the upper echelons of the Lib Dem Party. Nick Clegg, or one of his associates, managed to spot the same thing that I did yesterday morning... that both the Tories and the Labour party were trying to claim the Lib Dems as ...
Am I really the only one that doesn't understand the mentality of the Unions and their relationship with the Labour Party? British Airways are currently dealing with Unite on trying to negotiate a pay deal between BA and their staff, Unite have today criticised Labour Minister, Lord Adonis but then, send out letters, such as this one below all over the place persuading people to vote Labour! I don't understand how unions can be so bloody hypocritical and claim to stand up for the people who work in the industries that Labour clash with, then they give millions of pounds ...
Is Andrew Gimson of the Telegraph, for this line: The only reason we have become interested in Mr Clegg is that, in the event of a hung Parliament, he could become the kingmaker. The 'we' in that sentence refers, of course, to lazy, party-political journalists who think that politics begins and ends in SW1A. Idiot. ...
Yesterday I made my first speech to Lib Dem Conference. It was on the Digital Economy Bill emergency motion which was being debated in the early slot of 9:15am. I had decided on Saturday that I would like to speak on it after it had won the vote for which EM to be debated. Freedom of use of the internet is a very important issue to me. At first I was unsure however what I should say about it. I could have stood up there for an hour talking about all the reasons why the motion should pass but of ...
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Mon 15th
07:45
A reply to Tom Harris: Lib Dems wait for the voters to speak. (It's called democracy, and we kind of...
Labour MP Tom Harris, bless him, is clearly feeling a little bit insecure, as the Lib Dems enjoy a successful conference with a spring in their step and the full glare of the media spotlight. Tom's blog is a good, fun read – but like his Tory equivalent Iain Dale, he has a bit of a tribal blind spot when it comes to the Lib Dems. Here's what Tom has to say about Lib Dem shadow schools secretary David Laws declining to take the media bait asking whether the party would back Labour or the Tories in the event of ...
Michael's story: A couple of years ago, actually late in the evening walking home to Avenue Road N6 from the Annual Meeting of the local residents' association CASCH, I tripped over a raised manhole cover in the pavement at the Coolhurst Road end of Avenue Road and fell flat on my face. Not a good thing to do at age (as I was then) nearly 70, and I split my chin open right to the bone and did various other forms of no good to my face. My wife drove me straight to A&E at the Whittington, where fortunately it ...
Well, this woolly old LibDem can't remember when it happened before. A full suite of activist rave reviews for a leader's speech. And wall-to-wall leading on all the weekend TV bulletins for a positive LibDem story. And what's more it was the Spring conference! And Nick Clegg had a sore throat! Am I dreaming? James Mcintyre put it very well in the New Statesman in an article titled "A Good weekend for the LibDems": I cannot remember so much publicity for what has traditionally been known as the "third" party since the ugly removal of Charles Kennedy as leader in ...
Solar photovoltaic panels installed on the roof of St Albans City and District Council's offices in St Peter's Street last year have produced 9.416MWh of electricity, saving the Council more than £560 in fuel costs. Since their installation in March last year, the 75 polycrystalline panels have produced energy equating to a saving of 5.348 tonnes in CO2 emissions. The Council is also expecting to receive an annual payment of around £1,000 through the government's Renewable Obligation Certificates incentive scheme, which rewards microgeneration schemes with cash. Real-time information about the amount of electricity being produced by the panels and the ...
Campaigns volunteer working forAdrian Sanders MP (Torbay) salaryAccommodation (if needed) plus reasonable food and travel expenses detailsTorbay Liberal Democrats are seeking a number of campaign vo...
It was thirteen years ago that they brushed into power telling us that 'Things Can Only Get Better' to the words of D:Ream's anthem. The fact that the band's keyboard player Prof. Brain Cox has now said he's backing the Lib Dems must be an omen that they haven't. But according to the leader in The Times this morning even the Labour manifesto is going to ignore the last 13 years. Was it really that long ago that John Prescott was encouraging Labour activists to Go Fourth, and now the voters aren't apparently being asked to give Labour a fourth ...
God know's why I'm still up at 3am. Still a bit wired after conference I guess. I'm not staying up much longer but I wanted to write that I thought it was an excellent weekend both for the party generally, the Social Liberal Forum in particular and me personally. A few random ...
The Social Liberal Forum had another successful conference, with two fringe meetings that were standing room only. This was perhaps not surprising for our joint fringe with the One Society campaign on equality, but our evening session was an ostensibly much drier affair, to adopt a constitution so that the SLF can become a membership organisation. It was surprising – and very encouraging – that so many people turned up to give us such a flying start. We'll have more up about conference and where the organisation goes from here soon but in the meantime I just wanted to write ...
Not having decent internet access over the weekend at Lib Dem conference, I've been itching to get my paws on the latest Left Foot Forward report on the Lib Dem proposal to raise the income tax threshold to £10,000. "Think Again, Nick!" (pdf) purports to show that, far from being the most redistributive policy on offer in this general election, it is in fact deeply regressive and a hallmark of the Lib Dems' rightward shift. I've been reading the headlines on both Left Foot Forward and Next Left over the weekend, thinking, "They're not going to take the personal allowance ...
Shall I tell you the one phrase that bothers me more than any other? It's this. "That's just the way things are". No. The way things are is not the way they have to be. We do not have to live in a country where the poorest pay the biggest chunk of their income in tax. We ...
What is your view of an ideal democracy? One definition is government by the people which is direct democracy but you are more likely to get an indirect democracy in which representatives are elected. So the best indirect democracies are those that reflect the views of the people. Now think of any domestic decision that you have to make. It might be buying a tin of beans , choosing a holiday or picking a colour to paint the house. It really doesn't matter what you choose. The point is that it is very rare to have a question with only ...
