Commenting on the Home Secretary's announcement that stop and search powers will be subject to stricter conditions, Tom Brake MP (Co-Chair of the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Committee for Home Affairs, Justice and Equality) said: This is a very welcome announcement. Section 44 was an unreasonable power, applied in an indiscriminate way. This change strengthens our civil liberties, building on a longstanding commitment from Liberal Democrats. When the Labour benches attacked the coalition for what they described as an obsession with defending civil liberties, it just highlighted their dangerous obsession with eroding them. Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty has also welcomed ...
Today's Darlington Borough Council Cockerton West by-election, caused by the election of a former Labour Councillor to be our new MP, resulted in a hold for Labour, though a spirited Lib Dem showing squeezed the Conservative vote right down and resulted in a much closer result than most people expected.The result, with the 2007 result in brackets:Labour 388; 45% (515; 41%),Lib Dem 347; 40%
Your browser does not support iframes. The long, hot summer of 1947 is remembered for the batting feats of the Middlesex and England batsmen Denis Compton and Bill Edrich. Compton scored 3816 runs at an average of 90.85 with 18 centuries. Edrich scored 3539 runs at an average of 80.43 with 12 centuries. These are the highest and second highest aggregates for an English season. Not surprisingly, Middlesex won the county championship. The summer of 1947 was remembered in a famous passage by Neville Cardus: Never have I been so deeply touched on a cricket ground, as I was in ...
There was a shocking front page on today's Leicester Mercury: More than 10,000 babies in Leicestershire had their DNA stored on an NHS database last year without the proper consent of their parents, it has been claimed. Blood samples are taken from newborn infants around the country in routine heel prick tests to screen for serious health problems. But it has emerged they are banked in databases for years by hospitals, and could be accessed by police looking to identify criminal suspects.As the newspaper goes on to say, this looks very like the creation of a national DNA database via ...
When the original Lidl application was turned down many of you contacted us to complain about the decision. Many people in Southdown tell us that they think there is one rule for Sainsburys and one rule for everyone else. In fact all the local Councillors from Southdown and Westmoreland ward supported the application. Unfortuneately the Conservative chair of planning decided not to...
We met with YMCA today to discuss developments at the centre. Whilst they are not able to proceed with the planning application to redevelop the building that was granted last year they are now planning how to improve the outside of the building in the interim. We hope to be able to launch a community action weekend in September with the YMCA to remove the plaster on the outside, weatherproof the...
I was delighted to hear that Saughton Prison Library has won an important award for its work with inmates. The prison library won top prize in the Libraries Change Lives Award. Wearing my Criminal Justice hat I was delighted to speak at the launch of the library extension in December 2008 and now it has become the only library in Scotland with a waiting list! More than 12,500 prisoners used it in its first year. We know that a massive number of prisoners have serious problems with literacy and anything we can do to help will assist in cutting re-offending ...
Changes is the name chosen by the new community group that has come out of the ReGenerate work in the Whiteway area. Today was the third meeting of the new committee and already lots of good ideas and plans are being drawn up. More litter picks, Proud of Doorstep progressing well and a community funday in the Rosewarn Park on August 30. The committee has met with the Council...
It seems that no sooner do we fend off one application than another comes in - this time from Vodafone. Please log onto the Council web site and register your views. Link here at PLANNING COMMENTS and type in application number 10/02595/FUL press click to view and you can submit comments. The application details and other comments are under the tab Associated...
Got to love Newark Hut on Twitter Filed under: Spidey Says
Well it's come to an end, we had some good times didn't we like when I talked about if Christians made good Liberal Democrats, or Kelvin McKenzies appearance on BBCQT or that how posh are you quiz and then there were the two that were on the Lib Dem Voice Golden doze for why are Labour targeting the Lib ...
I was sick of the contempt Labour showed for parliament. They did nothing to reform it in any meaningful way in 13 years, hired hordes of spin doctors to speak in behalf of ministers and "brief" the press, and in general, treated parliament with disdain. So I had hoped things would change under the coalition. Sadly, I have seen no evidence of this. Every day we hear the headlines "Ministers are expected to announce in parliament today that ...", with in recent days news of election referendums, withdrawals of troops from parts of Afghanistan and and ending of the school ...
[IMG: image] We read daily hysterical reports and critiques by Labour leaders and supporters, clearly disturbed by the publics rejection, Labour politicians are insisting on and foisting their own judgements on a government which has been in office less than three months. It really is too early to judge the coalitions economic performance, Labour having made a pigs breakfast of the economy. Many commentators go on about Lib Dems and how could they work with the Conservatives and here is still one aspect of government we can judge thus far, the morality of this government, handling right and wrong, well ...
Earlier I posted on Wrexham's Labour MP Ian Lucas highlighting the high rate of re-offending with short sentences. I had assumed that there was some mistake and the answer was not what he would like to hear. However I now see that Mr Lucas' preferred candidate Ed Miliband ("Candidate of Change") is, in a welcome development, giving qualified backing to the coalition's stance on sentencing. Mr Lucas has been a very loyal Labour MP, even going so far as to vote to welcome the Government's Post Offices closures while campaigning against them locally. Many of the "rebellions" were on such ...
Ed Miliband's decided that Jack Straw's decision to outflank Ken Clarke on the right on prisons policy is a bad idea. Good for him. Unfortunately, in the same article, he reveals the noble aim of his campaign to lead his party. Labour's objective was "to make sure this is not a five-year coalition". Given the current popularity of the Coalition and the widely held view that both governing parties are working 'for the good of the country' - however accurate you feel that phrase is - is it really wise for a possible Leader of the Opposition to be so ...
The Liberal Democrats on the City Council have put in a request for a special Council meeting to discuss and agree actions on Building Schools for the Future. We've written a motion, and collected signatures (you need five but obviously we have more) We don't think the reaction to this announcement should be an administration thing alone. It's important that all councillors can play a part and that there is a genuine cross party lobbying attempt to get either a change of mind or an arrangement that delivers what we need for the schools in Liverpool. Obviously a special council ...
Read this BBC article on the Supreme Court ruling on the abuse of anti-terrorism law by the police. Good news (well a start anyway). Then I get to Alan Johnson's bit. Alan Johnson shows Blair and Brown's Labour's attitude to Civil Liberties. They still don't understand why people got annoyed with police abusing powers. The BBC gives two of Johnson's arguments against the Court ruling and May's position on asking for reasonable suspicion. These need to be looked at, as they are... interesting. "The number of stop and searches under Section 44 has reduced considerably over the last two years" ...
The Big Lunch is a great concept for encouraging street parties and is an eden project. Ten streets are taking part in Southwark on Sunday 18 July: Beckwich Road, Bellenden Road, Colwell Road, Cornflower Terrace, Crystal Palace Road, Denman Road, Hollingbourne Road, Ivanhoe Road, Pickwick Road and Sansom Street. I hope all the parties go really well and everyone has a great time. I'll have to work on my neighbours for next year....
From the BBC: A penguin has been found wandering the streets of Dublin after she was stolen from the zoo in a suspected prank. The big story in the news today just leaves one question: did the penguin enjoy it's trip? Actually two questions: if it was wandering the streets, was it wearing a hoody? OK Three questions: has the local council done nothing to keep penguins off the street? Where is the Penguin outreach worker? (OK four.) I'm done. Honest. Penguin pic taken from Wikimedia Commons.
I've grown tired of anonymous comments, particularly the abusive ones which have appeared on recent posts that have been more overtly Christian in their stance. As such, you will now need to have some 'name', whether real or made up, to comment here. I'll consider putting it back to how it was in a couple of weeks.
This is ace! Come to Britain all ye gays, we like you! Can we just be this nice to ALL persecuted peoples now, please? That would be fab. PS: Gove is a pipsqueak, ner nerner ner ner nah
BBC Radio Cornwall's Graham Smith has been doing some research on the amount spent by various candidates in Cornwall in the recent General Election. One candidate in St Ives - Jonathan Rogers (Cornish Democrats) - spent £7,175.65 for 396 votes which is equivalent to £18.12 each. that figure doesn't include the £500 for a lost deposit. I wonder if any candidate in the general election has a higher 'cost per vote'?
I find it pretty hard to get hot under the collar about the 2.5% increase in VAT. When Labour decided to reduce VAT from 17.5% to 15% a year or so ago, many bloggers pointed out that it wouldn't really affect poor people's spending habits, and that it was only rich people who would benefit. Why? Because a 2.5% change in VAT makes very little difference to price: a £500 TV costs between £575 and £600. I doubt anyone makes a decision on whether to purchase such a luxury based on a £25 spread. Moreover, look at the stuff that's ...
It's #bbcqt day again and the Live Chat starts on this blog from 10:30pm as normal. David Dimbleby will be joined by the Conservative peer Lord Forsyth, shadow International Development secretary Douglas Alexander, Lib Dem MP and Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore, the Deputy First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon, and Irish comedian Ed Byrne. Join us below from 10:30pm: BBC Question Time - 8th July 2010
Here is our new loading bay in action. After a long wait the telephone boxes were moved out of the way and the work completed. The next stage is for the bus stop outside Tesco Express to be made a clearway to stop any delivery drivers who still expect to park right in front of their delivery ...
Somehow we've managed to just stay on the right side of the weather again. At the Gatley Fun Day last Sunday the rain and wind held off enough for everyone to have a great time and, despite a few moments of drizzle, it managed it again this evening at Gatley Primary for the Family Fun Picnic. You know the sort of thing: BBQ, smoothies, face painting, fire engine, games, raffle... Here are a couple of photos. [IMG: Gatley Primary family fun picnic 1] [IMG: Gatley Primary family fun picnic 2]
I got home this evening to find an Unexpected Parcel waiting for me, full of books. I have no idea who it's from, but I'm guessing that it's from someone who finds CPANdeps useful. Thank you, Anonymous Benefactor! Your generosity is much appreciated!
Sasha Gillard-Loft, my fellow Launceston councillor, and I have criticised Cornwall Council for demanding that car parks raise more and more money. We believe that the high costs could drive away visitors and threaten town centre shops and businesses. We have also attacked the proposal to kill off the old North Cornwall rover parking ticket once and for all. The ticket allows local residents and businesses to use long stay car parks across the area and was widely used. It's replacement will cost at least four times as much. Cornwall Council has increased the income they are demanding from car ...
I'll admit that when Boris Johnson was quoted making positive remarks at the start of pride, I quickly warmed to him. Unfortunately, it would seem, his exchange with Peter Tatchell was doomed from the start as the two of them were coming from different assumptions. Tatchell is very clearly a campaigner for reform. He wants marriage equality (and, like me, a little bit more!). Boris Johnson is sadly ill-informed and was of the opinion that civil partnerships were "gay marriage" and so when he answered the question, he saw no problem saying he supported it thinking that it's hardly controversial ...
With genuine reluctance, I find myself obliged to ban Larry from St Louis from commenting on this blog. I am extremely happy for people to comment on this blog who disagree with my views. It makes it much more interesting for everybody. I wish more people who disagree would comment. But Larry has a different agenda. His technique is continually to accuse me of holding opinions which I do not in fact hold, and which he thinks will call my judgement into doubt. Take this comment posted by Larry at 9.35 am today: I've re-read your post on the Russian ...
One of the more worrying front-bench appointments in the Coalition government was always going to be the choice of fat professional Yorkshireman Eric Pickles as local government's asset-stripping commissar, presumably working along the same lines that he bled Bradford dry in the late '80s. What he did not do in Bradford back then, thank ${deity}, was bring the Big Imaginary Guy In The Sky into the equation, which is indeed a wise thing to do given that city's demographic. Things have changed since then, and it's entirely possible that somewhere along the line while he was on the "chicken run", ...
* Well I got on the bus earlier and opened Tweetdeck to some very good news. The picture to the left is a clue. Yeah earlier today I did ask 'where had the sprinting legs of Britain's Mark Cavendish go to?' well it seems we now know. The answer is simple they were waiting for him in Montargis which is where today's stage ended. For the second day the three man escape was caught in the closing stages on this occasion with 4km to the finish, with Cavendish's HTC team heading the peleton as the last man ahead of the ...
For the second year running the Commons has beaten the Lords in the annual parliamentary boat race. The victorious crew was captained by Don Foster and also included Duncan Hames.
Michael Gove made an awful mess of the announcement that some the construction of some new schools under the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme would not go ahead, but I find it hard to get indignant about the substance of his decision. And the fact that some of the less bright Tory MPs are up in arms does nothing to convince me I am wrong. Private Eye has long been a convincing critic of this programme. Its current issue says that Gove's departmenthas finally acknowledged what the Eye has been saying for several years: that BSF is far ...
Acocks Green Ward Committee met last night in the Baptist Church. The one substantive agenda item was the approval of the following items to be funded by the Ward's Community Chest funds: £7,000 to the Gospel Oak Community Centre £2,691 to the Acocks Green Silver Surfers £3,500 as a top up for the Ward's Security Gating budget £1,900 to the Pitmaston 10-13's Youth Club (jointly funded with Hall Green and serving both the Pitmaston and Gospel estates) This leaves £15,490, from the 2010/11 budget of £100,000, still to be allocated. The next meeting of the Ward Committee will be at ...
This morning, a consultation with Mr R, the vascular surgeon at King's, who explained the three alternatives. The first is to do nothing, but this would probably be unwise, because there is already a risk of the aneurysm bursting (at 5.8 cm, the size at the last MRI scan on June 1, the risk is one in ten per year, increasing to 1.5 in ten when it exceeds 6.0, according to www.patient.co.uk/health/Aortic-Aneurysm-(Abdominal).htm). Then there is the traditional method of opening a large incision in the stomach, cutting out the section of the aorta with the aneurysm, and replacing it with ...
Birmingham's Highways Maintenance and Management Private Finance Initiative (PFI) scheme got underway last month. The scheme, delivered by Amey, who won the contract after a protracted bidding competition, will see major investment in Birmingham's roads, footways, kerbs, street lights, traffic signals, bridges, tunnels, highway trees, road signs and subway pumping stations over the next 5 years. For most of us the most noticeable part of this will be the investment in the roads, all of which will be brought up to a good standard with the priority given to those in the worst condition. As part of the scheme, Amey ...
Aislinn Lee, Liberal Democrat County Councillor for the area of the proposed Freight Terminal has welcomed the decision by the Secretary of State to refuse planning permission for the Freight Terminal. Aislinn commented on the decision: 'This is absolutely brilliant news for Park Street, St Albans City, and surrounding areas. After years and years of dedicated hard work from individual residents, STRIFE, local Councillors and St Albans District Council finally we have the result we all so rightly deserve. When the community comes together with such a united front against this abominable proposal it is indeed gratifying to see that ...
It appears that a verbal punch up has broken out amongst Labour leadership contenders. Andy Burnham, according to The Independent, is having a bit of a spat with unnamed members of an equally unnamed rival leadership team (ie Ed Balls) over some poisonous media briefings. Startled bunny lookalike Andy Burnham is objecting to briefings which claim he will quit the leadership campaign shortly to
I have noticed recently that the Speaker, John Bercow has been going further and further in trying to control the baying mob at PMQs. There is still barracking and heckling but when it gets too much he is more frequently stepping in and embarrassing individual members who are behaving badly even threatening to sin-bin them. He also keeps pointing out how most people watching outside the chamber find this sort of behaviour very off-putting. Mike Smithson now thinks that Bercow is being high-handed and that PMQs is in danger of becoming a bore. I'm afraid I totally disagree. If anything ...
It seems that the battiest idea the Conservatives have come up with might be going to the top of the queue for legislation - so-called "Free Schools". These proposed schools may be going to be free from local authority control but they will be spending public money, that is, money provided by us. They therefore will have to be controlled by some section of government. So they must be going to be controlled by central government then. The only other alternative is that these proposed schools will be free to spend our money as they wish without any control at ...
Parking and garage colonies top the agenda at the next Prestwich Local Area Partnership meeting. [IMG: Screen shot 2010-07-07 at 16.07.59] Residents are invited to come along and air their views when the LAP meets on Thursday July 15 at Maccabi Sports & Social Club in Bury Old Road, starting at 6.30pm. Ian Crook from Bury Council's environmental and development services department will be outlining policies to help manage parking in Prestwich. Six Town Housing will be outlining proposals arising from a review of garage colonies and seeking the views of the partnership and local residents. There will be details ...
Not that long ago I turned on BBC Parliament to watch Nick Clegg's first time at the dispatch box as Deputy Prime Minister and thought the BBC had mixed up the sound with that of a football match. That's right, the House of Commons at times can often sound uncivilised and childish. Now, for someone like myself who follows British Politics with a close eye, I occasionally get annoyed by it. Imagine a member of the public, someone not interested in the finer elements of the political system, seeing and hearing an exchange of boos and yells and insults directed ...
Thu 8th
14:45
Hughes welcome Supreme Court ruling securing freedom from persecution for gay asylum seekers
Lib Dem deputy leader Simon Hughes has welcomed the Supreme Court's ruling that two gay men who said they faced persecution in their home countries of Cameron and Iran have the right to asylum in the UK. I am delighted this ruling recognises the rights of gay asylum seekers, ensuring their freedom from persecution around the world. "This plight is one that my Liberal Democrat colleagues and I have campaigned on for years. It is an issue that the Coalition Government is committed to addressing as we seek to restore Britain's reputation around the world as a leader in the ...
The Daily Star is up in arms. "No room for gays" it trumpets, in a bizarre throw-back to the worst aspects of 1950s society. What's the problem? Two men – from Cameroon and Iran – had applied for asylum on the grounds that, as homosexuals, they would be in danger if they returned home. Same sex acts are illegal in Cameroon – with prison sentences of up to five years. In Iran, homosexual acts are punishable by up to 100 lashes or death. There's no doubt that homosexuals from those countries face a real, genuine and serious prospect of losing ...
[IMG: midnightfugue] Midnight Fugue (Reginald Hill) If you know of Reginald Hill's Dalziel & Pascoe novels only through the BBC series then you're missing out – for though Warren Clarke and Colin Buchanan were made for the parts, the subtlety, humour and pathos of the books was wholly absent. The latest volume is an exemplar of the Dalziel & Pascoe series: fleshed-out, humourously drawn characters, pin-sharp dialogue, and a craggy, looming Yorkshire setting. The storyline is engrossing, but the real fascination is derived from witnessing Fat Andy's battle to reclaim top dog status following his brush with death. The denouement ...
From TheyWorkForYou:Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners who had served a sentence of six months or less re-offended within 12 months of discharge in (a) 2006, (b) 2007 and (c) 2008. [6105]Mr Blunt: The available data on reoffending following a custodial sentence of six months or less is provided the following table-please note that this breakdown is based on custodial sentences awarded by the court.Number and proportion of adult offenders reoffending after release from custody in the first quarter of 2006, 2007 and 2008 having been awarded a sentence of six months or ...
I was half asleep as usual when the Today programme was mumbling on at me out of my radio alarm clock today... they were talking about food labelling. I'm quite sure I wasn't dreaming when I heard someone try to make a case for a traffic light food labelling protocol by saying that tables of nutritional information are too hard for 'housewives' to understand. What? I'm sorry... what century is this? So we're still giving airtime to ultra-patriarchal, out-of-touch misogynists are we? Oh. And here was me thinking Radio 4 was some bastion of intellectual decency as far as media ...
A final reminder that the WestFest photo competition is about to close, so get your entries in to Blackness Library as soon as possible! More details are available at http://tinyurl.com/westfestphoto.
I have always been a worrier. When I was a kid I worried myself to tears over ridiculous things like forgetting my PE kit and eating apples with bruises on them. Now I worry about slightly more weighty matters, like how on earth my party manages to exist as one sixth of a Conservative-dominated coalition government whilst still keeping its own identity and giving its members and supporters a reason to continue to exist. I think we did the right thing in creating the coalition. If the country needed one thing it was strong government and a clear programme for ...
This morning's Western Mail offers us a leaked report of a private meeting between the Welsh Local Government Minister and Labour councillors at the Welsh Local Government Association conference in Llandudno last month, where Carl Sargeant hinted that wholesale reorganisation was on the cards by 2016. Up until now it has been the official position of the Welsh Government that it is against local government reorganisation. Instead it has encouraged councils to work together. Last week Carl Sargeant said he expected local authorities to cut costs by sharing top officers when existing post-holders retire or leave. He now appears to ...
Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member, Peter Black has questioned why the Welsh Ambulance Services Trust has spent more than £3.4m on taxis in the past five years, blowing its own budget by almost £1m. The trust paid out more than £517,507 on cabs in the last financial year alone to ferry non-emergency patients to their hospital appointments. Last year's taxi bill - £1,417 a day on average - was just £120,000 less than it spent buying 27 new ambulances and patient transport vehicles. Peter Black called for an urgent review of spending on taxis fares: "I am obviously concerned that ...
I can't say that Eric Pickle has ever been my favourite politician, nevertheless when he turned up at the LGA conference in Bournemouth yesterday I was prepared to be impressed. I thought we'd get a battling wise-cracking performance. We did not. It was lacklustre, disjointed and in places incoherent. Quite a few Tories I spoke to afterwards were surprised at how poor the delivery was and frankly annoyed at the wasted opportunity. He looked shattered. He delivered his lines poorly and his jokes fell flat. A delta minus performance.Enough about his poor delivery, what about the content. Well that was ...
From a resident : "There is an old street sign on a wooden pole at the bottom of Glamis Place - it is rotten. As the pavements in both Glamis Terrance and Glamis Place are to be tarred and adopted in this fiscal year, I wonder if this old sign can be removed? Also the sign at the bottom of Glamis Terrace has been defaced. Can this be replaced as well?" I raised this matter with the City Council and have received the following response : "The upgrading of the unadopted footways in Glamis Place and Glamis Terrace is programmed ...
The Bank of England interest rate has been held again at the record low of 0.5% by the Monetary Policy Committee. This may continue for some time yet, despite the growing threat of inflation. The current inflation rate is significantly above the target set by the last government, a target which is continued by the Coalition. At some point, the ultra-low level of interest rates will not be able to
THIRTY DAYS OF DC: Your Favourite Family Considering I came up with this damn list, you'd think these things'd be easier for me. I had honestly no idea what to put for this as I debated over what counted as a 'family' in the DC verse, even though on the surface it's pretty obvious. I settled on the Arrows, though. I have a big soft spot for the Bats, and I've read more Bat books, but that's because the Bats get more books. The Arrows are a tighter, closely knit family that are completely disfunctional, yes, but are tied together ...
The Great Britain Olympic team blazer and running vest worn by Sir Menzies Campbell when he competed in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games have gone on display in a new exhibition at the House of Commons. Sir Menzies ran in the 200m and the 4×100m relay final at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. He also held the British 100 metres record between 1967 and 1974. Ming Campbell comments on his own website:"Seeing my running vest in a historical exhibition made me feel every one of the 46 years since I'd worn it, but I felt a lot happier when I ...
There's been a few accusations of the proposed electoral reforms as being blatant gerrymandering. To be fair to Labour, the government has announced (subject to referendum) that it will make large scale changes to the electoral map. Gerrymandering should always be considered a valid concern. I would expect no less of an opposition party, or indeed any member of the public who has absolutely no reason to view politicians as a trust worthy bunch. Supporters of electoral reform can quite rightly point out that changing the size and boundaries of the constituencies so that everyone's vote carries equal weight is ...
A ban on councils selling green electricity into the national grid is to be overturned, Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne said today as the carbon footprint of every local council in England was published. In a speech to today's Local Government Association annual conference, Mr Huhne will say that he wants local councils to be allowed to sell electricity they produce from renewables to the national electricity grid. Mr Huhne said: "It's ridiculous that the 1976 Local Government Act prevents councils from selling electricity from local wind turbines, or from anaerobic digestion. "I want to see this repealed and by ...
BT in a joint move with fellow phone company TalkTalk, has therefore filed papers in the High Court asking for a judicial review of the Digital Economy Act. The Digital Economy Act was passed by the Labour Government during the period known as 'wash-up'. The Act covers many areas, but one of the key sections ...
Bury Ranger Service in conjunction with The Friends of Prestwich Forest Park are organising a Action/Clean up day on July 18th. See below for more details and contact Bury Ranger, Ian Rogers, for more information. What; Working in the clough stream to improve stream flow involving moving stones and re-channelling. (Please note, it will be quite physical at times) When; Sunday 18th July 9.30am. Where; Prestwich Clough, Prestwich. Meet at Clough entrance on St Anns rd, opposite Lowther Rd at 9.30 or come and find us in the Clough. Bury Ranger service will provide gloves and tools but would recommended ...
The Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidates Association annual reception took place on Monday in Westminster with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg as guest speaker. I was asked to do the photos so here are a handful. I've put a larger number in a group on my Flickr site: with members of the PCA exec who were at the event. This one
Although (as I have blogged about before) I think that the broad thrust of the direction the government is moving in in terms of adjusting the public finances is the right one I have to say that they could be a bit smarter about how they release the information. It continues to come out in dribs and drabs. There was Danny Alexander's statement about cuts a couple of weeks ago. Then the budget. Then another statement from Danny. And in between and since there have been other announcements about cuts. It plays into this idea that the government keeps deciding ...
Eurovision 1972 and the New Seekers sing the UK entry - "Beg Steal or Borrow"
A four page leaflet has come through my door - Stockport health profile 2010. There's a lot in there - so I've scanned it in and you can click on the four links below for more detail. Some points I took from it: Stockport, as we know, is a borough of great contrasts, from the wealthier areas like Bramhall to the more deprived such as Brinnington (these most deprived areas are ones you'll sometimes hear referred to as "priority 1"). Men in the least deprived areas can expect to live almost 10 years longer than those in the most deprived ...
Hastings' Lib Dem Euro MP Catherine Bearder will take a delegation from Hastings to meet with the European Fisheries Commissioner, Maria Damanaki, to explain to her the problems faced by the traditional fishing communities across South East England. Mrs Bearder had invited the Commissioner to visit Hastings to see the problems caused by British mismanagement ...
On 30th June, Ken Clarke announced a big re-think of prisons policy. He argued that locking more and more people up isn't working, that short sentences do nothing to rehabilitate offenders, and that more use should be made of community penalties. This is music to Lib Dem ears and a welcome change from the macho posturing of recent Home Secretaries – but has he got his facts right? Whilst a clear majority of those sentenced are given sentences of less than 12 months, short-term prisoners make up less than 10% of the prison population for the simple reason that they ...
The Conservative MSP for the South of Scotland, Derek Brownlee had recently thrown his hat in the ring to become the Conservative Party candidate for the Holyrood seat of Dumfries, currently held by Elaine Murray MSP of the Labour Party. This seat at the next election will be a top target for the Conservatives so selecting the right candidate is key. [IMG: article_mpuAdvertisement] "She is part of the administration that wanted to close ARCs and had to be shamed into dropping the proposal by the scale of outrage they caused. "She introduced a hurtful disabled tax that is now being ...
Yesterday I blogged about Cornwall Council spending and the fact that after two months of the financial year, the Conservative led authority is already predicting budget over-spends of almost £4 million by year end. Cornwall Council's new Corporate Support Director has responded in the press to say that the report indicates the exact opposite - that the fact that the council has identified the overspending shows good budget management and allows the problems to be addressed. Of course I agree. Cornwall Council has a good system for monitoring the budget and officers regularly present reports to Cabinet showing where services ...
North East Fife MP Sir Menzies Campbell has added his support to a campaign demanding calls to mobile phones be made much cheaper. When a call is made to a different mobile network or from a landline the network which is called makes a charge for carrying the call. This is called the Mobile Termination Rate (MTR) and is currently charged at 4p or more for every minute of the call. The 'Terminate the Rate' campaign argues this is excessive and distorts competition. The industry regulator Ofcom is proposing to bring in changes to lower the MTR gradually over the ...
The Great Britain Olympic Team blazer and running vest worn by Sir Menzies Campbell MP when he competed in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games have gone on display in a new exhibition in the House of Commons. The 'Parliament and the Games' exhibition charts Parliament's contribution to the Olympic and Paralympic Games and celebrates the Olympic achievements of MPs and Peers. Sir Menzies' vest and blazer go on display alongside Lord Coe's running shoes, Lord Glentoran's bobsleigh runner blade and a 1948 Olympic Torch. Sir Menzies, who held the British 100 metres record from 1967 to 1974, ran in the ...
The latest "House of Comments" podcast with myself and Stuart Sharpe of the Sharpe's Opinion blog is now live. The 33nd episode which we recorded on Tuesday 6th July is available to download raw mp3 file here or you can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes here. The format is to invite political bloggers on each week to discuss a few of the stories that are making waves in the blogosphere. This week we were joined by David Allen Green, convenor of Westminster Skeptics who also blogs at "Jack of Kent" largely on legal issues and Dave Osler, journalist and ...
In this Mobile Badvertising series, I regularly pick on the Guardian. I don't have anything against them – they're my favourite mobile news resource. It's such a shame that the advertising they have on the site is atrocious. Samsung Galaxy S The Galaxy S is Samsung's latest Android handset. There are so many Android phones out there that you need a really great advertising campaign (or a really great product) to stand out from the competition. Let's take a look at the Samsung campaign. Small Isn't Beautiful [IMG: Advert for GalaxyS on Guardian Mobile site] Advert for GalaxyS on Guardian ...
Join Ian - Ranger for Prestwich and the Friends of Prestwich Forest Park on a Prestwich Clough action day. Anyone welcome! What; Working in the clough stream to improve stream flow involving moving stones and re-channelling. (Please note, it will be quite physical at times) When; Sunday 18th July 9.30am. Where; Prestwich Clough, Prestwich. Meet at Clough entrance on St Anns rd, opposite Lowther Rd at 9.30 or come and find us in the Clough. Bury Ranger service will provide gloves and tools but would recommended wearing clothing that can be messed up and safety boots and wellington boots. Any ...
When I switched on my computer to find that this had been written for the Daily Express. In particular, the comments of Lord Rodger, a Justice of the Supreme Court, were dismaying: Just as male heterosexuals are free to enjoy themselves playing rugby, drinking beer and talking about girls with their mates, so male homosexuals are to be free to enjoy themselves going to Kylie concerts, drinking exotically-coloured cocktails and talking about boys with their straight female mates. This is, of course, an unfair stereotyope and something I fundamentally disagree with. People should not use stereotypes because they perpetuate myths ...
After yesterday's rather embarrassing fiasco regarding the Building Schools for the Future programme (see Hansard) and this little gem... Mr Tom Watson (West Bromwich East) (Lab): ... they have seen the Secretary of State come here humiliated for the second time this week to apologise to them. He can embarrass himself; he can disgrace his ...
Today is the 50th anniversary of Gary Powers being charged with espionage. Powers U2 bomber what shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission over the USSR. That is to say he was spying! Duly convicted he was eventually exchanged in 1962 for a Soviet spy. Move on 50 years and, some 20 years after the Berlin Wall came down and the Cold War finished, we have another likely exchange of spies. The Keystone Cops of the spying world, the ten Russians arrested in June, are due in court but are according the the BBC they are likely to be swapped ...
Conversation reported on Twitter by juleske (who is Dutch and working in Belgium): Collega 1: Wel spijtig dat jullie nu op zondag moeten zingen dat jullie de prinsen van hispanje altijd geëerd hebben. Collega 2: Ja, maar anders hadden ze moeten zingen dat ze van Duitsen bloed waren. This is not worth translating, but if you know the Dutch national anthem and have been following the World Cup (and I know that some readers do fall into both categories) you may find it quite funny. (As long as you hadn't already heard it.)
For those who are interested, my firm's press release is here. I supervised the team that acted for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and I'm very proud of them. This entry was cross-posted from Dreamwidth, where there are currently [IMG: comment count unavailable] comment(s). View DW comment(s).
Third Sector reports the news that the Coalition Government has more or less ruled out changes to the Gift Aid scheme which some charity sector organisations had called for: The government is unlikely to increase the rate of Gift Aid for charities, civil society minister Nick Hurd told delegates at the Institute of Fundraising's National Convention yesterday. Hurd's comments will come as a blow to sector umbrella organisations, including the IoF, which have been lobbying the Treasury for a composite rate of Gift Aid. A composite rate would mean all donations would receive a higher rate of relief but donors ...
As MP for the West Cornwall and Isles of Scilly constituency of St Ives, I am fortunate to represent one of the most spectacular and attractive parts of the UK. However, it is also the poorest region in the country. So Budget proposals are critical to many of my constituents who exist with the reality of low incomes and relatively high living costs. On a positive note, the Budget put forward by the Coalition Government has much to commend it and for the Liberal Democrats, in particular, to be proud of. It contains policies the party campaigned for, including: an ...
Anyone with the slightest interest in comedy can't help but suppress a laugh at the thought of men dressed as women pretending to be men shouting and baying 'Stone Her, Stone Her'. It is funny because of the absurdity, a parody of a time that modern society forgot. Except for Ayatollahs in Iran, who seemed ...
Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of the Coalition Government's budget, and what you make of the Lib Dems' and Government's performance to date. Over 350 party members have responded, and we've been publishing the full results of our survey this week. In the penultimate part of the survey today, we take a look at the performance of the Lib Dems and our leader. First we asked: Do you think, as a whole, the Liberal Democrats are on the right course or on the wrong track? Here's what our sample of ...
Yesterday's stage left a lot of questions for Mark Cavendish and the HTC-Columbia team. His team took control of the race 5km from the finish, last year that would have been enough. His big powerful train would have propelled him towards the front of the peleton ready to launch him towards the line with a couple of hundred metres to go. Sure there were roundabouts in the lead up to the finish but the HTC boys were grouped at the front and looking out for their man. Then it came Mark Renshaw was at the head with Cavendish in his ...
i) births and deaths 8 July 1978: birth of the very watchable Eve Myles, who plays Gwen Cooper in Torchwood (and also appeared in The Unquiet Dead with the Ninth Doctor in 2005). Mmmmmm. 8th July 2006: death of Peter Hawkins, who did the voices of the Daleks, the Cybermen, Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men, Captain Pugwash, and Zippy in the first season of Rainbow. ii) broadcast anniversary also 8 July 2006: broadcast of Doomsday, the last episode of Season 2 of New Who, with Daleks vs Cybermen, and Rose Tyler swept off to a parallel universe; RTD's last ...
The Consett Green Spaces Group have launched a new You Tube Channel. You can view it here
But somehow I don't think its going to happen any time soon. Today's Guardian gives further revelations that Tony Blair over exaggerated the roles that Iran played in supporting Al Qaeda and its operatives. Why should we in any way be that surprised? Tony Blair consistently lied to the people of this country with every ...
life and opinions of andrew rilstone: Fish Custard [15] Why "The Lodger" is the best Doctor Who story evar. (I wish AR didn't use that white-on-black layout; I find it unreadable.) (tags: doctorwho) Internship auctions and a lost generation Unpaid internships are bad enough; selling them to rich kids is worse! (tags: work interns) The jihadists next door The election in Somaliland (tags: somaliland) Iran: "President unveils second Iranian robot man" - Boing Boing Ahmedinejad's alliance with the Cybermen (tags: iran) inuit panda scarlet carwash: The Worst Comedian In The World My research suggests that this joke was already old ...
Norwich South MP Simon Wright will today (Thursday) call on the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable, to state his plans for the future of the Post Office network.
Just arrived back at the house in Ghana after a tiring day travelling. Good news is Ghana Telecom/Vodafone seem to be delivering a much better internet connection than we've had before, so hopefully blogging tomorrow.
So I'm a couple of weeks behind in my blogging now, thanks to some rather bad health problems due to stress, and I'm aware I've got quite a bit of stuff to write about. So I hereby declare the next seven days to be Doctor Who And Batman week, with the plan being to do ...
I'm wondering how much it would cost to organise a speaking tour of Australian republicans who voted 'no' in their 1999 referendum on establishing a republic, on the grounds that it wasn't quite the sort of republic they wanted? (The possible audience being those who are preparing to vote against AV in a referendum on ...
Which career is the least popular? I haven't seen any popularity charts but I think the tax man would rank high in this poll. I don't think that many of us say thank you for having tax taken off us. However I would also guess that much less popular is a career in politics. Politicians never had good publicitiy and it hasn't improved in recent years. So one popular move is to vote for less MPs which would save the country money and give us fewer numbers of these unpopluar people. This was put forward by Nick Clegg a couple ...
Unbelievably, it's a year since I started this blog. To still be making regular contributions is something of an achievement, given my past record of starting things only to let them fall by the wayside after a few weeks. To celebrate the first anniversary, here are links to some of my favourite posts from the past year: Last Post - On the deaths of Henry Allingham and Harry Patch A Measure of our Humanuty? - On the release of Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi Guest Blog by Stephen - Because it's not all about me! Transition - My first Book Review The ...
