The government has produced a list of schools throughout England that have registered an interest in becoming Academies. Three of them are in County Durham, though none is in the old Derwentside area, and all have been judged as "outstanding" by Ofsted. The schools in Crook (a primary School), Shotton Hall (secondary) and Chester-le-Street (secondary) are all listed on the Department for Education's website: here
I know it is de rigeur among people on the Left to be terribly shocked at Prince Charles' 'interference' in the Chelsea Barracks issue. I don't see it like that. For one thing, look who he was up against. One of the equally unelected demi-gods of architecture, some of whose projects are wonderful, and some of which are concrete modern bastilles that dehumanise us all. Then there are the developers, packed also with unelected power, riding roughshod over local opinion. For another thing, he is right. Much of what gets erected in central London are phallic monuments to concrete and ...
Sat 26th
21:53
'Labour and LibDem angrily blame each other - but beneath it the political culture is starting to ch...
There was a bit of tweetycuffs on the #blognation front earlier today when James Graham made an excellent point: Sorry ppl were offended by me pointing that LDs form the fulcrum of politics atm, but its a fact ppl we all have to deal with We always have to deal with the centre of gravity in politics – for years LDs had to put up with the fact it lay in Labour In a funny sort of way, that point – that the LibDems are very much forming the fulcium of British politics at the moment, is underlined by Martin ...
Eight blogs have recently joined my Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator: Bolivia Newton-John – http://bolivianewtonjohn.wordpress.com/ Mike Pitt – http://oolonrantingintospace.blogspot.com/ Nick Hollinghurst – http://nickhollinghurst.mycouncillor.org.uk/ Chris Mills – http://www.chrismills.me.uk/ Claire Thomas – http://clairethomas1.blogspot.com/ Robin Crookshank Hilton – http://liberateddemocrat.wordpress.com/ James Barber – http://jamesbarber.mycouncillor.org.uk/ Matthew Gibson – http://solutionfocusedpolitics.wordpress.com/feed/ Good luck to all the new bloggers, and why not take a moment to pop over to their blogs, take a read and post a comment? Whether you are a new or experience blogger yourself, you may also find our compilation of "how to blog" posts useful:
Kavita Mohan took a break from door knocking today to attend the Rose Carnival in Marlow Bottom. The weather was fantastic and there was a real sense of the community coming together. The organisers can rightly feel proud of staging such a successful event. What a shame then if this is the last ever Rose Carnival. The organisers need more volunteers who can give just a small amount of time to help plan and stage this event. If you can help then let Kavita know and she will forward your details to the organisers. Email kavita.mohan@wycombelibdems.org.uk Thank you to the ...
Sat 26th
21:23'Cameron could speak at LibDem conference' - No! No! No! Haven't we done enough? Do we now have to p...
I mean. We've bitten our pride and gone into this coalition for the good of the country. We've put up with a budget which made pillocks like Redwood gleam and kicked the poor. Do we now have to have the Prat from Peasemore – Mr Cameron - turning up at our conference and patronising us?! It's adding insult to injury! No! No! No! No! Allow us some dignity – pul-lease!
It has been a long time in the building, but today saw the 'official' opening of our new office. All of my stuff arrived from storage yesterday morning, and Ros and I have spent two days unpacking and putting away a whole bunch of stuff. I've reassembled the PC, printer and other stuff, and I am now sitting on our new office chair (built by my own fair hands), at our desk, looking out across our garden (the less said about that, the better, I'd say). We have bookshelves to keep our papers and books organised, a CD rack (my ...
As reported in today's Courier, I have raised constituents' concerns about the changes to bus services covering parts of the West End Ward from tomorrow. These affect the 9/10/11/12 "Outer Circle" service and I have received numerous representations from residents in the Ancrum, Tullideph and Pentland areas, who feel that the removal of that service is detrimental particularly for elderly residents who used it and that the revised 11/12 service not adequate. Across the West End, the bus changes are a mixed bag in that, in all fairness to National Express Dundee, there is an improvement in part of the ...
Earlier this year, I updated residents that work had started to demolish the fire-damaged form er garage in Benvie Road. Although the work has taken some time to finish, I was pleased to note, on a visit to the site today, that the work is now largely completed (see photo - right) The derelict garage was a fire hazard and a worry to residents in the adjacent flats, so its demolition is to be welcomed.
A selection of other peoples thoughts that have caught my eye and made me think today. Peter Black and the hitchhikers guide to the DALEKS Tom Harris on backing real books over i-books The Daily (Maybe) on why we need Health and Safety Freedom 2 choose on how the Germans see us (It is well worth listening to the audio clip on this) Liberal England talking blogging
Today I went to the Lowdham Book Festival in Nottinghamshire. I took part in a panel discussion on "Getting Published" with other members of Leicester Writers Club: Chris D'Lacey, Siobhan Logan and Mary Essinger. I encouraged the audience to take up blogging, not just for its inherent pleasures but also because it has many advantages for writers. A blog can build a following for your writing, act as a shop window to editors you want to commission you, act as an online store of your writing (magazines get lost; your own laptop can blow up when you have not backed ...
After the longest and deepest recession since the Second World War, last week's Budget has set out a five year plan to rebuild the British economy based on the Government's values of responsibility, freedom and fairness. It shows how the Government will make the tough choices required to carry out Britain's deficit reduction plan in a fair way that strengthens and unites the country. It is a decisive budget that deals with the record deficit the Coalition Government inherited from Labour. It is tough but fair. Everyone will contribute, but the Coalition Government's plans will ensure that those with the ...
The Echoes on stage at Kingsgate Park The Festival was packed out today, with everyone enjoying the music and the sunshine. A big thanks to the performers and to everyone involved in putting it on. Don't forget, there's more tomorrow (Sunday) starting with Praise in the Park at 10.30am, organised by local Churches. Then finally there's 'Picnic in the Park' from 3pm to 5pm featuring the Apollo Big Band. So please come along, relax with a picnic and chill out to the big band sound.
Saturday I am often surprised at our tabloid press. After an enjoyable day watching my own XI defeat the Scottish Nationalists, I repair to the Library to read tomorrows newspapers - I have them brought to the Hall by fast bicycle as soon as they are published in Fleet Street. The News of the World splashes (as I believe the word is) on the intelligence that the erstwhile Duchess of York taken money in return for promising to introduce a journalist to her former husband. But her willingness to do this has been an open secret for years! I have ...
I enjoyed Nick Clegg's efforts on BBC News the other day. He was trying to defend the government's 20% VAT proposal, increasing it from today's 17.5%. And, of course, he did very well. But the truth he couldn't say, was that the VAT increase would not have been his choice. It cannot be right, in my opinion, to raise sales taxes that affect everyone, when there are income taxes that could be amended to affect only those able to pay. From a personal point of view, a local income tax in place of Council Tax, set at a level that ...
Earlier this month I blogged about the Conservative MP David Tredinnick and his continued attempts to undermine rationalist and evidence-based policy. Mr. Tredinnick's insistence on the validity of a host of alternative therapies, despite there being - to coin a phrase - not a jot of evidence to justify his claims, could until recently have been regarded as a minor irritation, Tredinnick himself
Julian Astle, a Director of CentreForum, has an op-ed in the Daily Telegraph about the party's attitude towards the state and cuts: There aren't many Liberal Democrats who went into politics to shrink the state. It is true that many Liberals, like Conservatives, are sceptical about the ability of big, centralised bureaucracies even to function efficiently, let alone bring about social and economic change. But this scepticism leads them to policy conclusions quite distinct from those advocated by small-government Tories. The primary goal for Liberals is not to reduce public spending per se, but to devolve public spending and other ...
Sat 26th
16:13
Kent Leader Paul Carter ought to explain £365K payment or go! (it is our money after all)
Last week after all that malarkey with Kent council paying out big sums to former employee Adam Wilkinson, the thought occurred even in the somewhat exceptional world of Kent council paying out all large sums of dosh, for the sheer hell of it, this was nothing if not improbable. Then I got to thinking the rather bland, none to conclusive statement from Kent Councillor, Roger Gough Cabinet Member, quoted by km online in this article was interesting for the part in which he mentioned the onerous legislation but did not detail exactly why it was necessary to hand out large ...
[IMG: The Key To Time] To warm up before the current season's finale, I've just finished watched The Pirate Planet, from the Tom Baker years and available as part of The Key To Time box set. It's one of Douglas Adams's stories and flashes of his comedic genius come through often enough to entertain but not so frequently as to take away from the show being a drama, not a comedy. It's a story that also displays some of the shows less positive aspects: the special effects and the flip-side of Tom Baker. What the Doctor Who team achieved with ...
In the 1960′s we were all told that we would soon be entering the 'leisure generation' and as someone who seems to sit between Generation X & Y I often wonder what happened to this promise. Our parents were baby boomers, the children of joyful post-war reunions who are responsible for some of the greatest ...
Take a quick look at the graph on the blog on Lib Dem Voice: The graph shows a worrying trend for the Liberal Democrats. Young voters are most likely to vote for them yet aren't going out to vote. The answer? Encourage young people to use their vote. How? As a Students' Union President, ...
Lembit Opik is interested in becoming Mayor of London, while The Guardian has a round-up of comments from backbenchers about the Budget. Although all are anxious about one aspect or another, notably they all overall support is as with Annette Brooke: I don't like the budget but I dislike the economic situation we find ourselves in even more. The Lib Dems have done their utmost to address the fairness issue. In an ideal word I would not choose to put up VAT. But I was convinced, even at the hustings meeting, that the books were much worse than we thought ...
St Albans City and District Council's Overview and Scrutiny (Public Services) Committee is to put commuters' concerns about the performance of the Thameslink service to the managing director of the rail operating company, First Capital Connect (FCC), at its next meeting on 30 June. Neal Lawson, FCC's managing director, has agreed to address a number of issues that have been raised by commuters following delays to the service between November 2009 and January 2010, including a lack of communication with passengers and capacity and technical problems.
Hat Tip: miss_s_b
In government, Ed Balls was always one of my least favourite ministers. He was patronising, dictatorial and a little bit shifty. In Opposition, Ed Balls seems to have found his perfect niche. That's the thing about a lot of these Labour figures we've known and loved for many years now. A lot of them have ...
... and frankly today I can't think about anything else. If you're in a similar boat you will undoubtedly be familiar with the BBC's official website, but you may not be following Who Daily, which collects and collates everything to do with Doctor Who on the internet and serves it up for your easy digestion. I'll be compiling two special editions next week, so if you do post about the finale and think I might miss it, leave me a comment here, and I promise you linky love. If you can't wait for tonight, watch this, which is the best ...
If there is one thing that Lembit Öpik is good at it is getting publicity. He has proved this again with his announcement that he will run for the job of London mayor if he wins the party's blessing: "If there's enough interest in London to do it, I'll stand," he told the Guardian today as he prepared to join Billy Bragg on stage at Glastonbury. "I've had a conversation with the leadership and they say they won't take a final position. I'm not narcissistic or precious about it. If the party doesn't want me to stand then I'll respect ...
[IMG: doune.jpg] Jamie is co-organising a music festival at Dounce Castle, largely I think because this is the kind of music he likes, and it sounded fun. Makes me wish I were young again. Acts confirmed so far include Francois and The Atlas Mountains Glider Les Bof! The Junipers Adam Stearns My Old Blue Terraplane The Fast Camels The Koolaid Electric Company Punch and the Apostles The Higher State Paul Messis The One Ensemble The Wise Guys Sunken, Drunken, and the Broken Boat While the pitch is enticing: Doune the rabbit hole is a two day tea party situated in ...
From the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs comes this news: Six British companies have won support for carrying out technical feasibility studies in the first phase of a major initiative to develop more energy efficient lighting for our homes. The £1.2m research fund, from the Technology Strategy Board and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), will help the companies to become market leaders in the best ultra energy-efficient lighting, which will contribute to reduced energy consumption in our homes. The companies have been awarded up to £40,000 each to carry out work, over the next ...
Cornwall Council has admitted that six of the marked registers from the General Election are missing. Marked registers are created in polling stations. When an elector turns up to vote, they are checked against the copy of the electoral register held in the polling station to make sure that they are entitled to vote. A mark is made against their name to show that they have been given a ballot paper. Whilst the obvious reason for doing this is to make sure that nobody can vote twice, the marked registers are also used after the election for a number of ...
One of the reasons I think as to why there has not been too much fuss about the decision to cut £2 million from S4C's budget is the lack of information about what they actually spend their £100m plus grant on. This article in today's Western Mail will not help their cause. They report that the TV channel has come under fire after a Welsh language countryside programme took out a £1,000-a-month lease on a Land Rover: S4C presenter Dai Jones - known as Dai Jones Llanilar after the village near Aberystwyth where he farms Welsh Black cattle and sheep ...
This morning's Western Mail reports the full extent of the war that is to be waged on Wales' knotweed problem. They say that a team at the University of Glamorgan are to use a satellite imaging system to identify the precise locations of the plant. The paper confirms that a Japanese insect which is a natural predator of knotweed is due to be introduced to Wales next month. The scientists are also exploring the potential of a British fungus to destroy knotweed. In the Swansea area alone, one of the worst affected regions of the UK, it is thought to ...
But not far off. Called Denmark over Japan. Denmark looked better until the first amazing goal (and the first superb free kick of the tournament), then collapsed and the Japanese looked so much better. The second free kick was superb (the better of the two), and the final goal was a good well worked chance. Got Netherlands correct, but hardly a difficult shout. 1 out of 2. As for group F, and I quote "Italy can't be as bad as they were against New Zealand again." Well I was right, but they were worse until the last few minutes, and ...
The picture speaks a thousands words... Filed under: Spidey Says
"The stronger one is the one who can absorb the violence and the anger from the other and change it to love and understanding...This is the real jihad." - Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bukhari Sheikh Bukhari died last week, and is much mourned by religious Uzbeks, and especially the exiled opposition leadership, to whom he was close. Bukhari was a direct descendent of Imam Muhammad Ismail al-Bukhari of Bukhara, the ninth-century author of the Hadith al-Bukhari. Sheikh Bukhari led a colony of Palestinians of Uzbek descent, mostly now in Gaza, who have maintained their Uzbek identity for generations. http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=177302 He died ...
It's been no secret that I have been prepared, as a LibDem, to give the coalition government a chance. Labour had 13 years to make this country financially stable and failed on a epic scale. The level of debt and deficit has been debated by far more knowledgable people than I, but needless to say ...
From the Council: Stockport Council, on behalf of the Stockport Partnership, has commissioned a research and engagement project, to review employment and skills issues, and improve awareness of support services in the Town Centre residential area. The Neighbourhood Renewal Team will be carrying out this work. They have extensive knowledge and experience of worklessness and a proven track record in engaging with local communities and stakeholders. The work will include consultation with local residents and employers in these areas. It is anticipated this piece of work will provide a blue print for future consultation and engagement on economic drivers in ...
The Treasury has launched a website asking for evidence from the frontline about how public spending can be saved: This week's Budget set out a 25 per cent cut in spending for most departments over four years. Now, we want you to help us find those savings so we can cut public spending in a way that is fair and responsible. You work on the frontline of public services. You know where things are working well, where the waste is, and where we can re-think things so that we get better services for less money. Share your idea with us. ...
It it with some interest that I noticed in The Times this week that Alex Salmond confirmed rumours that first came to light last month about the SNP's stance on Scottish Independence. Following the poor results for the SNP at the Westminster election they are clearly rattled and Salmond has put Independence on ice in ...
It's being reported this morning that there are plans for David Cameron to come to Lib Dem Conference and Nick Clegg to go to the Tory event. Hopefully this is a piece of misreporting. I fully accept that there are some good things coming out of the Coalition agreement. The abolition of ID cards and roll back of the database state are two examples and are both things Lib Dems have campaigned for. I also have very real concerns about some of the other decisions being made and am working with others on lobbying within the party on some of ...
Sat 26th
10:05Beer, Spotify friends, saving lives, a heart-warming film and looking for £3.5million to buy a...
...A bit of a cultural diary for the week. * Our local Sainsburys are now stocking a wonderful selection of bottled beer. To go with the hot weather, I bought a few bottles of Bath Ales' Golden Hare. I must say it is a superb beer for the summer. A light, golden brew but with a full slate of flavours. I notice that this particular brewery has set a number of hares running. As well as the Golden one, they have Dark, Wild and Rare Hares as well. * I have belatedly realised that I can hook up with friends ...
Around the time of most major international tournaments where the component nations of the UK compete; a debate ignites around the use of god save the Queen as the English national anthem. Lib Dem MP Greg Mulholland kicked this off in Parliament last week when he called for a full debate on this issue. I agree with Greg on this issue. God save the Queen is the anthem of Great Britain, and whilst we still have a union it should not be land grabbed by the English. The Scots, and Welsh have their own anthems ( do the Northern Irish?) ...
From the Guardian: Support for Nick Clegg is holding up among Liberal Democrat MPs at the end of the most difficult week for the coalition after the budget heralded a freeze in child benefit and a VAT increase from next year. A Guardian survey of Lib Dem MPs found unease about some of the harsh measures, but also consensus that tough action needs to be taken to tackle the record fiscal deficit and agreement that Labour is in no position to offer lectures.
Like many here, the idea of a coalition with the Tories goes rather against the grain for me. What convinced me to at least give the 'new politics' a chance was not the thought of David Cameron in Number 10 (and certainly not the idea of Boy George in Number 11), but the amount of positive inclusions in the coalition agreement. Mark Pack has done a good job, here on LDV, of going through the agreement line by line. There is much for us to be happy about. What still causes me concern, however, is the amount that is not ...
We do live in a lovely part of the country, with a fair smattering of outdoor water to enjoy sports such as rowing (two rowing clubs on the river Ouse at Bedford), kayaking (one club on the Ouse at Bedford), windsurfing (on the lake towards Wootton), the lido at Hitchin. And I just recently learned of a lake near Clophill where people go on a hot summer day to swim: fantastic. Now Bedford is hosting a consultation for building around Willington lake just outside Bedford to enable use and enjoyment by a wide range of activities and people (care homes, ...
World Cup 2010 enters the knock out stages. The lasts of first round matches were a mixed bag with a some matches being tense, nervous, affairs others being free flowing and exciting. The last 16 is all about winning so we should see much more fluidity. The ties of this round will be Spain vs Portugal , Brazil vs a terrific Chile side - and Argentina vs Mexico. In each of these ties both teams will be major contenders if they win. Chile have suspended players and so are likely to be nudged out by Brazil - a pity as ...
A big thank you to the kind helpers who deliver Focus leaflets for us (more always welcome!). We've recently been busy on these lovely summer nights delivering a thank you Focus from Linda Jack, another nice touch from a woman of high emotional intelligence. Linda may not have won, but she takes the time to thank people. Don't worry folks, Bedfordshire Mid may have got it wrong overall this time, but we can get it right next time.
Younger readers may not recognise the design being copied here in which case - count yourself lucky. Very lucky.
As explained by Helge von Niswandt and colleaguies; non-German-speakers will appreciate the tone of the Terribly Serious Explanation even if you can't understand it. (From here via Graham.)
There aren't many people who don't love a pavlova for dessert. Whenever I make it for a LibDem social, it's always the first to go. To get a really crisp pavlova, make the day before and then whip the cream and add the fruit at the last minute. 6 egg whites 350g golden caster sugar 1 tsp cornflour 1 tsp white ...
The Scottish Conservatives are going through a real internal struggle at the moment, during the general election they made a huge issue of targeting eleven seats, despite only starting with one. They spent huge amounts of money on advertising vans as their daily photo props including a garage and container lorry one day, but what did these achieve? Very little in reality other than a few spots on the election gaffes video done during the final week of the campaign. So, what was the effect of their targeting strategy, erm, well, nothing, not one seat changed hands in Scotland, the ...
The area of child protection practice highlights how the UK government's culture is to focus on the problem and then provide solutions from there. However, the results show that it does not work. But not all governments are problem focused. In the 1990's in search of a different approach to child protection Andrew Turnell and ...
In the name of fitness, I have been vaguely wondering if I should consider getting a bit more use out of my bicycle. (Young F has recently cracked the art of cycling, and now confidently bikes the 5 km to school and back daily.) One rather audacious plan that crossed my mind was to try and cycle to work. There is a whole blog dedicated to the different routes between Leuven and Brussels, but it didn't quite inspire me - Leuven is already some way north of us, and most of the routes recommended seemed to go further north before ...
I have received the following letter and would welcome feedback from the public: Dear County Councillors, Folly Lane, St Albans - Proposed Pedestrian Crossings As part of measures to improve conditions for road users, especially pedestrians, Hertfordshire Highways has been investigating the possibility of providing a pedestrian crossing on Folly Lane between the junctions with Church Crescent and Verulam Road. Following a feasibility assessment, two sites have been identified as potential locations for new pedestrian crossings. The site positions are illustrated on the location plan enclosed with each site option shown in further detail on the two respective design drawings ...
As a licensee and a former committee member of Camborne Pubwatch, when thinking about which shop to feature this week, it struck me that it was probably about time I gave this slot to one of Camborne's pubs for a change. Dotted around the urban street scene of Camborne, whilst I appreciate not everyone's cup of tea, licensed premises form an important part of our economy, with well-managed places causing minimal, if any, disruption. I've signed up to the Back the Pub campaign - which you can too, by following this link www.backthepub.com One of my favourite pubs in Camborne ...
Abortion has made the news recently because a report came out in support of not lowering the 24-week legal time limit for abortion because pain cannot be felt by the foetus. It seems the highly complex neural network does not connect to the pain centres in the brain. Of course there are exceptions that allow for abortion up to birth, e.g. if the child is disabled. If you believe that life begins at conception then the debate is fairly simple. Abortion is taking a life. If you believe that the debate relates to whether the child could live an independent ...
