A most interesting meeting about what is planned for Preston Hall Museum. Much will be closed for some time starting in November, with different exhibitions in the hall and period street in that time. I was glad of the chance to pass on views of family and visitors to make the whole experience of visiting better, and so pleased that the ultimate plan will be to have a museum that is lively,...
All, Shipston library is no longer going to contain mainly books but instead, staff from Police, County and District Councils. The latest proposal, according to a report going to the District Council Cabinet on September 6th, is that they should all move into Shipston library and operate a face to face service from there. District Councillors Richard Cheney and I are concerned that the consequence of this plan is that the services in the library would be severely reduced. The Conservative-run District Council have already closed their office in Telegraph Street, of course. Richard Cheney said 'We are opposed to ...
I hadn't realised that Helium supplies come from natural gas supplies in Western America supplying 80% of world needs. Extracting Helium from the atmosphere is 10,000 more expensive. America has built up big supplies over the years and has decided to eliminate it strategic stock by 2015. So currently a 'fire sale' is taking place making Helium prices very low. Once these stocks have gone the real underlying prices have been suggested will be 10,000 times higher! Helium is a key in making fibre optics and super cooled magnets used in things like MRI scanners. So no more Helium balloons ...
The Sunday Herald once again carries the story about David Mundell MP heading to the courts regarding the mistake in his election expenses. The Scotland Office Minister, who is in charge of election conduct north of the Border, is preparing to petition the Court of Session after filing a misleading account of how much he spent on the campaign trail earlier this year.David Mundell, is expected to ask the courts permission to make retrospective changes to his official spending returns, which he previously signed off as "complete and accurate". However, even if successful, he still faces a possible legal sanction ...
Compilation of two books originally published separately. The Knight and The Wizard, which rather seem to have sunk without trace since publication. I'm not wild about sword & sorcery as a sub-genre anyway, so couldn't get vastly interested in whatever it was Wolfe was trying to do to it. Then I put the book aside for a few days, and coming back to it realised that I really didn't care what happened after page 380. If I have missed something really special in the remaining 540 pages, feel free to notify me, with spoilers, in comments.
David Mundell MP (Conservative) is taking to the courts to apply for official relief for breaking his election expense limit during the general election. The relief process is designed to allow people who make innocent and inconsequential mistakes to admit to their mistake and avoid prosecution. A typical example is if a candidate by mistake leaves a small bill off their expenses return. However, David Mundell's case is slightly more complicated as although he too left a bill out of his short campaign expense return, adding it in takes him over the limit. The Herald explains: The Scotland Office Minister, ...
On my way to my holiday I stopped off at the Ryton Organic Gardens run by the HDRA. I first joined this organisation when it had their HQ in Bocking in the south.They moved to Warwickshire and set up some demonstration gardens, which in my memory, were a lot better in the early days. Anyway they have an excellent cafe , the sort of place you get a weeks supply of your 'five a day' in one sitting.
Yes, you read that right. In an article advocating the use of anti smoking tactics on people who like the 'wrong' food Dennis Gottfried, M.D* writes.... There is no question that secondhand smoke can be unpleasant; few nonsmokers want to sit in a cloud of tobacco dust or have tobacco smell on their clothing or hair. But is it dangerous to your health? A study of 35,561 spouses of smokers followed for 38 years published in the British Medical Journal in 2003 showed that second-hand smoke is an irritant, but does not cause life-threatening disease. Actually, "secondhand eating" may be ...
Right, dinner is cooking, tomorrows lunch is cooked and ready, I am aching in places I forgot existed and I have drunk 500ml of water. To most of you sat reading this, nothing in the sentence above is particularly extraordinary, I know, but for me today was a big step. I know most of you are aware that along with (an ever expanding group) Beverley Hope, Elspeth Finlay, Fiona Lang and Jamie McHale am doing a sponsored 10k run on Sunday 17th October. So, after weeks of dabbling at the gym and running last week I took the plunge and ...
This post has been inspired by a Facebook conversation following a status update by a former colleague who is now an SNP councillor. It all started innocuously enough with the following comment:Interlocutor 1: So Nick Cleg [sic] has been left in charge... Does anybody else feel just that little bit scared!No, I thought to myself, no I don't. In fact, I'm rather pleased at the plans to raise the profile of Liberal Democrat principles and policies, something I specifically mentioned a new members survey I completed at the weekend. So I responded in kind: Me: Not as scared as when ...
J J Mundys, Gatley's greengrocer, sadly closed its doors on Saturday. I knew it was on the cards, but I didn't know when. I'd like to thank Pete and everyone who's worked there over the years. A sad loss for the village.
Here's an artistic puzzle for you.One of my favourite videos on the net is this cute one of a Mum showing her very young daughter how to dance - the music is Nouvelle Vague's version of "Ever Fallen In Love With Someone You Shouldn't Have Fallen In Love With". Apart from being fun to watch, it's a scene of a parent enjoying life with their child (two children, actually) in the security of their
[IMG: council anti-litter campaign] As part of its drive to "improve the cleaness of your streets and help make the area an even better place to live work and visit for everyone" the council has asked me to display the above poster. This draws attention to a new publicity campaign against littering. The fine has been increased to £75 and this is being backed up by posters, fliers and radio adverts. There don't appear to be any extra resources for actual street cleaning however. To report litter, fly-tipping or grafitti email councilconnect@bathnes.gov.uk or call 394041.
Following on from my review of the Iraq war film 'The Hurt Locker' I thought it would only be fair to also review the other big Iraq film the Green Zone recently released on DVD. This film is much more political than the later as it covers the claim that the Pentagon made up the intelligence for the WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction). The main protagonist is Roy Miller played by Matt Damon. This makes perfect sense as the final stages of the film are fast placed and very similar in feel to a Jason Bourne film. This makes even ...
Last year I wrote about Reading Festival. I admit that it's always been my favourite festival and that was before I moved to Reading. I was on standby to do some humping for the 1986 festival, but in the end they had enough stage crew so I missed the cut. My first Festival was in 1987 which started with the Friday night goth fest of which a few bootleg tapes may exist. Okay, one set of bootleg tapes exist. Okay, I admit it. I taped: The Mission, Zodiac Mindwarp, Fields of the Nephilim and The Bolshoi. That's when I learned ...
Oh dear! It's becoming increasingly apparent that the Coalition government has no idea how to go about its central task of cost cutting. They are resorting to the one thing we know for certain doesn't work - recruiting a top businessman to head a review of government spending - in this case Sir Philip Green the ...
It's been a long time since anyone has been able to call Alan Milburn a leading left winger. In the 80s, he was known in Newcastle as the leading light of many left wing and trade union causes. When speaking to others he used the term "Comrade" quite freely. I met him a couple of times when doing Tyne Tees TV local election results programmes in 1990 and 1991. He was candidate for the then Tory
That phrase I've used a million times before. My children hear it often enough, but we are nearly there now. After months of upheaval and rumours of rival Sunday markets in close proximity, the new market place is nearly there. On Tuesday 24th August, the new market place is officially opened. We've all been here over the hard times of the last few months, but now we can finally see why it's all be done. Since the Liberal Democrats put forward, and then acted upon, the regeneration of Gainsborough, there has been a lot of talk. The new town centre ...
I love numbers, in fact I can't get enough of them. I can sit for hours playing number puzzles and I will often do budget maths in my head ( which is always double checked by the Councils CFO!)In this context one of my pet hates is people uneccessarilly using calculators and people putting unquestioning trust in this sort of technology. Soooo, I have just come back from the shop where the following took place. Shop person: that will be £10:03 I hand over £10:05 Shop person: here's your change (£1:17) Me: Sorry, you've given me too much money, 2p ...
While I still think of myself as nominally left-wing (although my despair at the insanities perpetrated by both sides of the political spectrum is pushing me into being an avowed centrist), I am nonetheless taken aback by the sheer scale of the vitriol that has been visited on the coalition government by the likes of ...
Many Lib Dems are angry: at Labour popularism on immigration and law and order to wrong-foot their opponents . That they've left the country in such a terrible financial mess. And that as we engage in the awful process of cuts, they jeer from the sidelines, making political capital out of their own mistakes. But we need to temper our anger. Labour lost their way, but they may find their way back. And for all their faults, they have qualities we share. A desire to help the unfortunate. A commitment to the welfare state. A belief in internationalism. At the ...
At the south end of Seymour Street, there is an area of grass on the south side down which water constantly flows, and then across the pavement of Perth Road. Needless to say, in winter, the water freezes, meaning that the pavement becomes a sheet of ice. It is just as well there's the grit bin nearby (see right)! I met with a local resident on-site last week and we agreed that, given there's a street drain to the immediate west, simply providing a channel to let the water flow into the drain, rather than across the pavement, would be ...
Just heard that Somaliland has just elected its first LGBT President – `Mr Ahmed Mohamud Silanyo has never shied away from, nor made an issue of, his sexual orientation. He has been with his partner for 27 years and they have three adopted children.` Click here
Earlier today, I attended a briefing for councillors by the Housing Department on progress towards the city meeting the Scottish Housing Quality Standard by 2015. This is in advance of a report going to committee next Monday. There has been significant progress - for example, in the provision of bathrooms and kitchens - but there are some areas of concern. I asked questions about the provision of controlled entry systems in blocks of flats - something that is a boon to residents in terms of safety and tackling anti-social behaviour. Progress with this is well short of target and in ...
One for Laurence Boyce: [IMG: godvsatan] Hat-tip: ChartPorn.org
As you may be aware the County Council have announced a review of the Library service. They seemed to be surprised at the outcry this provoked and have started holding some public meetings on the plans. The next one in Cambridge is 9th September, from 7pm to 9pm at the Central Library. The County Council report makes it clear that they are considering closing local libraries, and it is vital to show the support and need for both Arbury Court and Milton Road libraries. There is a recently set up Friends of Arbury Court Library who are keen to get ...
The future of the Press Complaints Commission is up for debate at the party's autumn conference in Liverpool. A motion from Truro & Falmouth echoes many of the criticisms made of the PCC by the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee in its recent report. The motion calls for a fully independent regulator to take the place of the current structure which is heavily staffed by people holding current senior newspaper roles. The motion also supports a shift in the PCC's role from handling individual complaints towards upholding and improving press standards more generally. That's a question I wrote about ...
I was a guest – together with Conservative blogger Iain Dale and Labour blogger Hopi Sen – on last night's BBC Radio 4's The Westminster Hour with the lovely Carolyn Quinn. In the highly unlikely event that you missed listening to it live, gathered with your nearest and dearest around the wireless, then the following link should take you directly there: [IMG: wminster hour] (Also available here.) The first part of the programme looked at the appointment of Alan Milburn to the role of so-called social mobility czar by the Coalition – if you want my views on that, here's ...
From the Council: Some months ago the AGMA local authorities jointly agreed with the Homes & Communities Agency a £30M programme of new housing across Greater Manchester. While the Government reviewed the capital programme the allocation of this funding was put on hold. This week, despite the reduction in the overall Homes and Communities Agency budget, it was announced that three Stockport schemes have been given the go ahead and the fourth will be approved once certain conditions are met. This is great news for residents in need of affordable housing in the Borough. Stockport Homes Limited have been given ...
The Coalition Government has reached (survived?) 100 days and not even our fiercest critics could argue that we haven't got stuck in to the business of government. I think it's also worth recalling that during the election campaign those opposed to coalition government were claiming that nothing would get done, it would take weeks to agree anything! Interestingly if anything rather than failing to get anything done some people are now asking us to slow down and are accusing us of being too radical. The fact of the matter is that a coalition born of necessity from a score draw ...
OK, maybe it is a sign of encroaching Coalition think but... (The symptoms are similar to those members of the Labour party who'd defend everything the last Labour government do, and now accuse LibDems of betraying "progressive" politics.) Various places ran stories like this one about Dominic Raab. The claim is that he is refusing to take emails from constituents. The tone is outraged, and they provide his email address as a link to encourage you to share your outrage with him. You are meant to think "how dare he hide from his constituents". I think I would have ignored ...
A great afternoon was had yesterday, but it was somewhat spoiled by constantly having to be aware of cars driving through the crowds, how long before a serious accident? Do we really need to have cars on the Quay? Similar events have road closures, why not this event? I will take this issue to the relevant officers to be addressed. The new river taxi service seemed to be doing well, which was good to see.
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a letter to the Salford Advertiser's "readers' viewpoint" page in reponse to Blackley & Broughton MP Graham Stringer's column. It was printed in this week's edition (albeit edited down to the required 300 words), but unfortunately the Editor has decided not to attribute the letter to me, even though I provided my name, address and permission to print both. Here is the complete unexpurgated response to Graham Stringer's column on the Alternative Vote: I was astonished to read Graham Stringer's column in last week's Advertiser (Thursday 29th July) where he announced he would ...
Today's Telegraph has a piece looking at the large sums being spent by many councils on new or revamped websites. In itself, an expensive website is not necessarily a poor use of funds as good, popular sites often also save costs (e.g. by reducing the number of phonecalls the council has to handle). As a result, Medway Council – one of those picked out in the article – may have a good case for spending £250,000 in revamping its site given that the last major revamp was in 2003. In the last seven years the internet has changed significantly as ...
Throughout the Labour leadership contest, Andy Burnham has positioned himself to the left. He probably should have done that when posing for this photo:
Sky1 have joined the reality-tv-music-extravaganza-competition market with 'Must be the music'. Now hold back your cynicism, it's actually quite good. Yes, it succumbed to a few of the same cliches with big panning shots across London, and a few good sob stories, but the original songs and live instruments gave an interesting new slant. Another new element is that the judges verdicts' are delivered via the press of a button, before they have conferred, which adds some drama to the proceedings. The programme is presented by Fearne Cotton, and the panel of judges comprises of Jamie Callum, Dizzee Rascal and ...
Jonathan Calder has rightly protested the use, yet again, of "Tsar" to describe a new government appointment - in this case Alan Milburn on social mobility. It's particularly daft in the case of social mobility because the Tsars were just about the exact opposite of social mobility in action: hereditary roles which brought huge political power and mammoth financial wealth. That's about as far away from social mobility as you can imagine. The equivalent in other areas would be a crime-fighting appointment where the poster is called 'gangster' or an NHS 'Poisoner'. So as Jonathan says, it's about time the ...
[IMG: gedc0204.JPG] This was another successful street party in Chorlton, following the one at Nicolas Rd that I didn't attend. A number of neighbours met each other for the first time, but it was also a great party. We, as Councillors, supported it with CASH grants and if you want to get a street party or community project off the ground, contact us or our ward co-ordinator Katrina Keane on 234 4373.
1 p.m. today marks the 190th anniversary of the Peterloo Massacre. Thousands of people from Manchester and surrounding areas met at St. Peter's Fields to hear speeches about widening the franchise to ordinary people and the need for reform. The people present were enjoying a day out with their families. The authorities saw a dangerous, radical mob. In the days before loudhailers, a quick garbling of the Riot Act was unheard and the first the crowd knew about that was when the cavalry charged, sabres drawn. 15 people died, the youngest a baby trampled by a cavalry horse. Deaths were ...
Yesterday we learned that former Labour minister Alan Milburn is probably going to be announced later this week as the government's social mobility czar. I have two problems with this. Firstly I wish we could just have news, not announcements of things that are going to be announced at a later date. Secondly I hate ...
The Office of the Public Guardian should be a wonderful public service, helping people have more control over how their lives are sorted out if they get to a point where they can't make decisions for themselves. That's the theory anyway. The reality is somewhat different, as I've chronicled with their long and complicated paperwork: It is voluminous with people being told to read 88 pages of guidance booklets before even starting on filling in the paperwork for Lasting Powers of Attorney: [IMG: Paperwork for a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)] Once the paperwork is completed, there is a charge ...
This morning's Western Mail reveals the existence of a secret Welsh Government document that planned to bury up to 40,000 Welshmen and women in mass graves. Fortunately, it is a contingency plan in the event that swine flu had got out of hand last year and it was never needed. The report estimated that in a worst-case scenario the Welsh death toll from pandemic swine flu could be close to 40,000. It envisaged mass graves, round-the-clock cremations and express funerals all being be used if required: The plan was drawn up last year by the Wales Resilience Forum, which exists ...
Here is our summary of the composition of councillors, by authority-type and party, facing election in May 2011. This list represents the best of ALDC's knowledge at time of publication but may be subject to change, for example due to by-elections and defections prior to the election. If you would like to report any amendments to the figures presented here, please let us know by emailing elections2011@aldc.org. Councillors up in 2011 - At a Glance   Councillors up in 2011 - In Detail
The secret is out. My better half Alison has been announced as the Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Dundee West. Alison was born and brought up in Dundee and anyone that has ever met her knows how passionate she is ... Continue reading →
This morning's Telegraph outlines some of the stark choices facing government over the next few years as they seek to curb growing spending pressures and cut back on the £800 billion debt inherited from Labour. A Pensions Policy Institute report has concluded that the pension age will have to rise from 65 to 72 in order to keep Government costs at levels experienced a generation ago. The think tank believe that it is unfair and expensive for workers to retire at the same age as those born decades before them, as life expectancy is increasing substantially. But it also warns ...
I have no problem with Alan Milburn acting as an adviser on social mobility to the Coalition government. What I do have a problem with is the continued use of the term "tsar" or "czar" for this sort of role. It is redolent of the worst of Blairism. Discussion and honest disagreement are seen as weakeness or expensive luxuries: solutions must be forced through from the centre. Critics must be trodden under the hooves of Cossack cavalry, sent for the knout... or at least not listened to. If there is a justification for this sort of role it is that ...
James Barber is delighted by the demise of the Audit Commission. Peter Black highlights a report in the Western Mail: "The NHS in England faces a total bill of £65bn for new hospitals built under the private finance initiative (PFI). It seems that some NHS trusts have been left with annual 'mortgage' repayments accounting for more than 10% of their turnover." The Italian MEP Mario Borghezio has called on the EU to fund and establish a "European UFO centre" and demanded the backing of the European Parliament for the plan, according to the Aberavon & Neath Liberal Democrats blog. Why ...
In just one month voters in Norwich will be going to the polls again Here in Norwich, we're fighting not 1, not 2, not even 10 council by-elections this summer. We've got 13. We won Norwich South at the General Election by just 310 votes. These elections are set to be just as close. Many people came to help us in May, and we're appealing for even more people to come and help us now. We're especially looking for people to make a few phone calls from home. Back in December, following a drawn-out and bitter process that split political ...
Im writing this from my iphone so excuse the typos. My laptop has been hacked by a random virus called Security Suite Virus which tries to convince you that your laptop security is breached and to buy a piece of ... Continue reading →
The wonderful Helen Duffett is again in charge of the Liberal Democrat Voice Blog of the Year Awards, affectionately known as the BOTYs. Time is running out to nominate your favourite blogs - the deadline is next Friday, 27th August. They are looking for nominations in the following categories: Best new Liberal Democrat blog (started since 1st September 2009) Best blog from a Liberal Democrat holding public office (The Tim Garden Award) Best use of blogging / social networking / e-campaigning by a Liberal Democrat Best posting on a Liberal Democrat blog (since 1st September 2009) Best non-Liberal Democrat politics ...
In September 2008, as part of the Government's economic 'stimulus' package, Alistair Darling announced that the threshold at which stamp duty was paid on a house purchase was to be raised by £50,000 to £175,000. This morning I happened to ... Continue reading →
As a vegetarian, this story got me rather interested this morning... Artificial meat grown in vats may be needed if the 9 billion people expected to be alive in 2050 are to be adequately fed without destroying the earth, some of the world's leading scientists report today. Erm. Yes. The thought of growing cow or ...
Monday, 20th September: nuclear power, free schools and Nick Clegg's conference speech. Drama, protest and dissension or quiet compromise, careful management and enthusiastic standing ovation? It's no coincidence that both potential controversies are scheduled for the same day as Clegg's speech: in the worst case situation, all the bad news would be be concentrated on the one day and Clegg will still get the final word (or rather, many words) on the day with his speech coming after the possible flashpoints*. However, it's unlikely to come to that as the two motions are carefully worded. Nuclear power gets a mention ...
One you may have missed from November 8th 2007 Original title: Boris talks rowlocks on de Menezes Boris Johnson argues in the Telegraph that "too much" concern for health and safety "did for" Jean Charles de Menezes. Johnson argues that, instead of waiting for the firearms officers, the unarmed police surveillance team should have approached de Menezes: ...so why in the name of all that's holy did the officers not just tap him on the shoulder - especially as doubts grew about this identification - and ask him quickly to clear the matter up? It may have had something to ...
The weekend media was full of the news of Alan Milburn's putative return to front-line politics with his appointment to a role advising the Coalition Government on policies to promote social mobility. Reaction to the news has been mixed. John Prescott, never one to mince his words when he can mangle them instead, spat out that Mr Milburn was a "collaborator". Conservative blogger Iain Dale was disappointed to see the Coalition's big tent expanding to include a former New Labour cabinet minister: "One day they might actually appoint a Conservative." For the Lib Dems, Simon Hughes was more amenable to ...
Have I been taking poison? I've been taking bisphosphonate (alendronic acid/Fosamax) with calcium tablets for treating osteoporosis and I've suddenly developed a very painful condition. I've discovered bisphosphonate can actually CAUSE terrible damage to the jaw. Now taking much better quality calcium tablets than you get on the NHS with proper balance of vitamins and minerals to enable the calcium to be absorbed - and I've dropped the alendronic acid. Several women have mentioned to me that they did not trust it or had researched it and believed it was dangerous. I've been a bit quiet lately, not like me, ...
Just before we went on holiday, Anna did Firefly Art's Play in a Week course. In just 24 hours across 4 days, her group of 14 children wrote, produced and rehearsed a 20 minute play. Then, on the Friday, they met with 2 other groups from West Lothian and all 3 plays were performed at Howden Park Centre in Livingston. The 3 plays were all completely different. The Livingston group portrayed a young girl whose parents were going through a divorce. She found her friends' obsessions with boys, diet and clothes vacuous in comparison to her traumas and ran away, ...
Yesterday, I took a boat trip down the River Thames with my parents from Greenwich to Westminster and back.
Homer Simpson is..... Darth Vader
David Cameron is on holiday so Nick Clegg, as Deputy Prime Minister, is minding the shop. Most of the papers want to find an angle that rains on the Lib Dem parade and does Nick down. The problem is, none of them can agree on which invented line to take. The Guardian wants to portray Nick Clegg as about to actually become Prime Minister and snubbed that he isn't. It is the most power a liberal politician has had since the 1920s, although Nick Clegg's hopes of becoming only the second liberal politician in almost a century to run the ...
No I am not being derogatory in the title, because if you were to Google my name you'd also find a lot of mentions to a 65 -year-old from Waco, Texas who was the star of The Jerk (1979). Indeed it was the first starring role for the stand up and writer that people know as Steve Martin. So why you are asking am I wishing Mr Martin a happy birthday as a namesake? Well his given names are Stephen Glenn Martin, the second name after his father. He started out doing stand up but also ended up writing for ...
i) births and deaths None that caught my eye ii) broadcast anniversaries 16th August 2002: webcast of episode 3 of Real Time. More messing around the time portal with Six, Evelyn and the Cybermen. Turns out the Tardis won't fit through it. iii) dates specified in canon and spinoff fiction 16th August 1978: birth of Gwen Cooper, who grows up to be a Cardiff policewoman who joins Torchwood. (cf birth of Eve Myles on 8 July 1978; as I said before, mmmmmmm.) 16th August 1979: The First Doctor and Susan encounter the snail-like Slarvians who are planning to take over ...
Just to let those of you in Colchester know, the next meeting of the Castle Neighbourhood Action Panel will be on Monday 23rd August, starting at 9.30am in the Town Hall. Any residents can come along and raise issues that they want the NAP to deal with, or if you can't make it to the meeting, ...
As most people know, I'm a bit of a fan of reality TV shows, although I don't watch them indiscriminately. With most, a healthy dose of cynicism is required. There's always an element of pantomime in such shows, and hyperbole is rife. Last night, Sky's new talent show "Must be the Music" started. Heavily billed (as was Five's lacklustre "Don't Stop Believing") as being a different type of talent show which was less about the judges and all about the acts, it had a lot of it's own hype to live up to. Did it succeed? Yes, I think it ...
In the last session of the European Parliament, a member of UKIP's political grouping, Mario Borghezio MEP, called on the EU to fund and establish a "European UFO centre". He demanded the backing of the European Parliament for the plan. The scheme caused surprise among other MEPs as European nations grappled with a continuing financial crisis and record deficits. Euro MP Graham Watson said: "Liberal Democrats have always supported greater transparency but what can I say about this? Its out of this world. "MEPs have just voted on important issues - from cracking down on bankers' bonuses to ensuring the ...
Over the years I have written many times to the local newspapers. A couple of years ago I wrote in reply to a Green Party member who had written to oppose a link road from Morecambe to the M6. He had suggested that Kendal's traffic system was terrible and they had a link road. I believe the Morecambe link is vital to the local economy and it would help anyone who wanted to travel through Lancaster from the Heysham peninsula. I wrote this and I also thanked him for reminding me that I am passing a traffic jam every time ...
