Like you, we get lots of "charity bags" through the door but a recent one led Mrs T and me to look a bit further into the issue, and what we found out was quite illuminating. The latest bag appeared to be from a Children's Charity, but on closer inspection it was clear that it was actually from a textile recyling firm which would pay a minimum of £60 per tonne to the charity on what was collected. That actually means that if you put out a bag weighing 3 kilos (6lbs) it will raise just 18p. That's a bit ...
The latest addition to the extended family arrived yesterday morning, in the lift en route to the maternity ward of their local hospital. Father has now recovered from the shock of being the emergency midwife and mother & son are doing fine!Hearing that story reminded me that every work of fiction has a grain of truth in it somewhere!
The Independent on Sunday reported this morning that: Nick Clegg has told his ministers to "mingle" at the Liberal Democrat conference next week, to avoid the impression that being in government has gone to their heads.Paddy Ashdown was the great mingler among senior Lib Dems. At Conference you would often find him in the bars in the evening with his jacket slung casually over his shoulder, chatting with delegates. This made a hugely favourable impression because of the approach of Paddy's predecessor, the last Liberal leader David Steel. Steel did not mingle at all. You only ever saw him at ...
Last week saw the US enjoy Labor Day - their spelling not mine. As Churchill once said two nations separated by a common language. Labor Day is usually the day that the US elections campaigns start in earnest. Thought politicians are always campaigning in the US this is the date that they rack it up and the public starts to take things seriously. There are no presidential polls this year but there are mid term elections and the common feeling is that the Democrats are going to get tanned. Not that the Republicans are without their problems either. They have ...
The ice hockey season has started again so I have another non political hobby to concentrate on for a change. So, this evening I went to Murrayfield ice rink to support the Edinburgh Capitals, they were playing a challenge match against the Newcastle Vipers. The rink needs money spending on it, especially on the decorating such as the ceiling but I am happy to support the Capitals, it's great now that we have a dedicated Coach in Brad Gratton. It was a great game this evening and I am looking forward to the rest of the season and hopefully an ...
Part 20 of blogging my way through my first reading of Atlas Shrugged. You can find the first part here. Chapter 20: The Sign of the Dollar Dagny is on her way to Colorado, attempting to beat The Destroyer (chap who's been convincing all these businessmen to give up and take a holiday) to the ...
Nick Thornsby's Blog reports exciting news: Oldham Council has given him media access to the special election court that is sitting in the Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency this week. Nick writes: "This is the first time for nearly 100 years that a case of this sort has been brought about with relation to a Parliamentary election. It is set to be fantastically interesting, and the outcome will almost certainly have consequences for the conduct of future general elections. My reporting will obviously be subject to the usual restrictions and rules placed on any reporting of court cases, but I ...
The website for the yes campaign in the AV referendum is finally up and running, so you can now get along there and sign up to support and help out in whatever way you wish. There's also the Take Back Parliament campaign – at the moment, I'm not sure how much overlap there is between ...
The Proposal: To make the retirement idea new and fresh for centuries to come This policy can be tied in with equality legislation and anti ageism statutes. To remove the enforced retirement age and enable older workers to retire in a manner they chose; working hours they want and providing for their own livehoods. A tapering exercise based on age starting in 2015, would see results produced quickly, accompanied by a fall in state expenditure on pensions and an increase in economic activity by workers over 65. The idea is to persuade stakeholders to see working for much longer, as ...
This is the presentation I gave for OpenTech 2010 If you're on mobile, you can view the mobile friendly version of the slides. Here's the audio of the talk. Listen! The gist of the talk is – more people have mobile web enabled phones than have iPhones or Androids. Open Data requires open access. If you are trying to create a service to serve people – make it work on all phones. Not just phones owned by a minority of rich people. Share This [IMG: Add 'Why Doesn't Your Site Work On My Mobile?' to Del.icio.us] [IMG: Add 'Why Doesn't ...
I went to St Andrew's this afternoon to see Birmingham City take on Liverpool. The game ended in a 0-0 draw, but Liverpool had Pepe Reina to thank for coming away with a point, after the Spanish goalkeeper pulled of a couple of top class saves in the first half. Its a measure of how far the Blues have come under Alex McLeish, that the result almost feels like two points dropped. I was also left thinking just how much the team in red have spent - and wasted - in the past few years. As a result their finances ...
Monday sees the start of a court case against Labour MP Phil Woolas alleging false statements were made about his Liberal Democrat opponent, Elwyn Watkins, during the general election earlier this year. The case will involve a court judging on how far it is acceptable to go in very robust election literature and involves the rarely used provision in Section 106 of the 1983 Representation of the People Act which covers false statements about candidates: (1) A person who, or any director of any body or association corporate which— (a) before or during an election, (b) for the purpose of ...
Planning Advisory Group First the group considered the results of the consultation on additional sites for the Draft Joint Waste Site Plan. All of the additional sites suggested in Sutton had received objections, in particular from the GLA & Environment agency. Whilst the PAG endorsed the objections Cllr. Whitham highlighted that waste had to go somewhere and ...
In a further development over controversial proposals to build on the town centre car park, the Council are to consider relocation business parking into residential street around Eastrop. This is hideous. We know residents are struggling to find parking for themselves and guests. The Council solution is to encourage businesses to park there as well. When I asked the Officer presenting the report she admitted that residents parking permits had not been considered. Residential streets are just that - for residents. A lot of effort has been taken in recent years in both Riverdene and the Penrith Road area to ...
This could be your chance... Landshare brings together people who have a passion for home-grown food.It's for people who: · Want to grow veg but don't have anywhere to do it · Have a spare bit of land they're prepared to share · Can help in some way - from sharing knowledge and lending tools to helping out on the plot itself · Support the idea of freeing up more land for growing · Are already growing and want to join in the community Landshare came out of TV's River Cottage. It began when Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall helped some Bristol families ...
Gorgeous George hacks away the elderly, poor and infirm. There is no point getting all steamed up with outrage and clouded by judgement before the announced spending review. Nevertheless, there are many reasons to feel worried. As far as this Lib Dem is concerned, the coalition has failed. It has failed to stem the free market orientated small statist, "I'm all right Jack" Tory party of the 1980s - 90s. The forthcoming cuts, we are led to believe are necessary, they are inevitable and what is more they will make public services and the welfare state more efficient. Is this ...
All, Just a quick one tonight, Stratford DC is having an open day on the 23rd September, so come along. I'll be there for the last couple of hours if you'd like to see me. The press release is below. Regards, Philip Stratford-on-Avon District Council is inviting residents to a Council Open Day on Thursday 23 September at Elizabeth House, Church Street, Stratford-upon-Avon from 1pm to 8pm. This is the perfect opportunity for residents to come into the offices and find out directly for themselves what the District Council does, see displays and demonstrations and receive free advice. As well ...
Ten years ago, I knew the phone number of most of my close friends and family, backwards. Now, if it's not programmed in my phone, it might as well not exist. 5 Years ago, I could, at a pinch, remember the birthdays of close friends and family. Now, if I don't get an online prompt, it might as well not happen. I still remember lots of stuff, but now it's weird stuff, not mundane everyday stuff. Is this good or bad?
As in many other parts of the country Wolverhampton has been having lots of events, tours and open doors at many buildings. I was fortunate enough to go to six events.
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. So when I heard Caroline Lucas trumpet MP job-shares on Friday morning, part of me was delighted. But the suggestion that political job-shares are a radical new idea from the Greens had me spluttering into my Lady Grey. For the record, here's a brief history of Liberal Democrats advocating MP job-shares: Nick Clegg on Mumsnet in January Baronesses Ros Scott and Kate Parminter in a Lords debate on 21 July ...and yours truly in a speech to party Conference 2009, on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour in February, on Lib Dem ...
We will finally be given our say in the referendum on 5th May 2011. The proposed Alternative Vote ("AV") method of electing MPs builds on the strengths of the current system while eliminating many of its weaknesses. The official YES campaign (with supporters from all parties and none)is very much up and running-visit the website at: www.yestofairervotes.org to find out more and to register your interest. The circumstances may not be ideal but this referendum is a chance to move forwards towards much needed comprehensive political reform. IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE-BE A PART OF IT
We will finally be given our say in the referendum on 5th May 2011. The proposed Alternative Vote ("AV") method of electing MPs builds on the strengths of the current system while eliminating many of its weaknesses. The official YES campaign (with supporters from all parties and none)is very much up and running-visit the website at: www.yestofairervotes.org to find out more and to register your interest. The circumstances may not be ideal but this referendum is a chance to move forwards towards much needed comprehensive political reform. IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE-BE A PART OF IT
I can't quite make up my mind which is the bigger irony over the aircraft carriers, so I'll let you decide. I don't remember all these Labour MPs and MSPs taking such an interest in the issue when they were in Government. In fact it was Willie Rennie as MP for Dunfermline (and therefore Rosyth dockyard) who was trying to hold Labour to account for their dithering and delays to the project. And then there's Alex Salmond, trying to get all the Scottish political parties to work together to save the carriers. How many carriers, exactly, to the nearest 0, ...
Here on Liberal Democrat Voice we've often covered the work of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), including the motion being proposed at party conference on it and a response to motion piece from the PCC itself. It isn't only on Liberal Democrat Voice that the PCC has been given a full column to express its views. Last week's edition of the party's newspaper, Liberal Democrat News, also contained a column from the Press Complaints Commission, this time in the form of its chair Baroness Buscombe. On reading it I was moved to pen the following letter, which appears in the ...
A source close to the court case about to start in Oldham has passed on this fascinating story. Apparently, Phil Woolas has requested extra police protection for his Election Court trial which begins tomorrow. My source tells me that an official ... Continue reading →
With a headline like that I can imagine James MacKenzie writing a press release before he goes to bed this evening. Go ahead James I don't mind. Earlier today at the Green Party conference, they passed a motion supporting the AV referendum. This Tweet from Patrick Harvey is one I and many other Lib Dems will agree with. That is just the point we have needed to get a party that believes in proportional representation into Government at Westminster to make even this baby step toward fairer voting. It should not be the end goal as we should represent the ...
A quick report on OpenTech 2010 – the London event for geeks interested in Government data, openness and generally doing good things with tech and data. [IMG: Get Excited And Make Things] Copyright Matt Jones used under a Creative Commons non-commercial, attribution, share-alike licence. I attended last year's event which inspired me to create my "VoteUK" service for the 2010 general election. I had considered doing a talk about the trials and tribulations of using open – and not so open – data. Instead, I gave a more general talk about how to harness the power of the mobile web ...
Oldham Council, to their considerable credit, have given me – a mere blogger – media access to the special election court that is sitting in the Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency this week. In case you're not familiar with the ... Continue reading →
Sun 12th
15:45
Bloglines to close: will this mark the death of RSS? And of Murdoch's paywall experiment?
The company behind Bloglines.com posted the following announcement this week: Today, Ask.com let our users know that we will shut down Bloglines on October 1. Not an easy decision, especially considering our loyal and supportive (not to mention patient) user base, but, ultimately, the right one given business reasons simply too hard to ignore. ... ... when we originally acquired Bloglines in 2005, RSS was in its infancy. The concept of "push" versus "search" around information consumption had become very real, and we were bullish about the opportunity Bloglines presented for our users. Flash forward to 2010. The Internet has ...
So here is the first of what will be probably several Sunday video choices inspired by the book Electric Eden. Mr Fox was a short-lived but distinctive folk rock group centred on Bob Pegg and Carole Pegg. Its fame rests upon two LPs - Mr Fox (1970) and The Gipsy (1971) - but if you follow those links you will see that both the Peggs have enjoyed interesting musical careers since the group broke up in 1972. In Electric Eden Rob Young writes: Bob and Carole modelled the group's instrumental palette on the combinations of strings, woodwinds and wind organs ...
Cheadle Area Committee is this Tuesday at 6pm, at the Ladybridge Park Residents Club, Edenbridge Road, Cheadle Hulme. As always, the meetings are open to all members of the public. In addition to the usual business (public question time, report from the police, report from the Area Conditions Officer, receiving any petitions) there are a few other issues, including: Development application DC044595 - single storey rear extension and erection of 1.8m fence to enclose side garden at 23 Crescent Grove, Cheadle. 11 objections have been received, according to the papers, on the grounds that the resident could then more easily ...
Clitheroe Town Council has said no to the planning application for 270 houses off Henthorn Road behind Fairfield Drive. Their objection says: The Town council objects to this plan on the following grounds: 1) It contradicts policy G2 which says that: a) Within the plan area developments will be mainly directed towards land within the main settlement boundaries (as defined on the proposals map). b) Clitheroe - consolidation and expansion of development and rounding off development. In all cases this must be on sites wholly within the settlement boundary and must be appropriate to the town's size and form. c) ...
Not knowing many people out here in the Ukraine and there being a lack of the typical ways to meet people that I have been use to from growing up in England can make weekends occasionally repetitive and boring, leading to the anticipation of returning to work and having lessons to teach being greater than it might otherwise be. However this weekend was different as for the first time in my life,
I have never been as angry at the Pope as I am now. He says that the child abuse commited by Catholic Priests was a 'grave crime'. This is very true but then he said that whoever ordains a woman would be excommunicated as they would be commiting a 'grave crime'. To put these two actions on the same level is absoloutley shocking to me. From a child's point of view when I go to church and am given communion by a woman I hardly notice and if I do it doesn't matter. However, if I was abused I would ...
International Development must surely be a Ministry which any aspiring cabinet member would view positively. A Department where there are plenty of opportunities for easy publicity and there is money to be disbursed, with fewer of the potential banana skins of the other departments. But the announcement that the coalition are to 'ring fence' spending on this department should not prevent Liberals from questioning the current minister, Andrew Mitchell, and the orthodoxy concerning how the budget is spent. One thing which unites Lib Dems of all stripes is a commitment to decentralisation, yet the framework for distributing the International Development ...
One of the anti-marriage equality types favourite "throw a spanner in the works" moves is to point out, rightly, there are more important things to be fighting for. No we're not talking jobs, peace and helping those in need (all of which I would personally state are more important) but we're talking on an LGBT rights front. What about homophobic bullying?, they cry. Don't you think overturning the blood donation ban is more important?, some do indeed scream. We need to get our priorities straight, they lament. Of course I think this is all ridiculous, for various reasons. 1) Many ...
At Haig Ave this afternoon to see Southport play another former League side, Mansfield Town. Deservedly Mansfield won although the Sandgrounders had plenty of opportunities to score, Blakeman in particular was guilty of squandering chances. At this level of football segregation of the crowd is not as strict as it is (and needs to be) at higher level. We sat in the stand at the Blowick End and met many Mansfield supporters. Two couples who sat in front of us were making a weekend of it and it was interesting to hear the impressions of Southport. They were full of ...
After pausing to have a take away from the Curry House-I recommend the Lamb Sagwalla-it was off the the Beer Festival. This year it was held in the Scarisbrick Hotel as the Arts Centre is under going major renovations. The new venue certainly attracted more younger folk and offered a much improved seating area. There were some excellent local beers on offer and given the smaller venue the organisers had concentrated on NW brews. I sampled the Thirstquencher Bitter from the Spitting Feather brewery in Chester which at 3.9% demonstrates that it is possible to produce a really flavoursome session ...
I've been an elected public representative for 8 years now and am relaxed when it comes to speaking in public... But if there's anyone out there looking for pointers as to how to speak in public, then take it from Ohio's Republican Councilman of Minerva, Phil Davison, a Masters in Communcation is clearly over-rated! This fiery speech was made at last Wednesday evening's Stark County Republican Party's executive committee meeting to select a nominee to run for Stark County treasurer. No matter what you may think of the Republican Party, it hopefully goes without saying that even they decided against ...
I'm not going back to full-time posting just yet, but I had something to say – something just clicked in my head, and the right wording for something I've always thought arrived, so I'm just going to say it. Many people argue that gay marriage would, if legalised, destroy or harm the institution of marriage. ...
Now that the debate has moved on to "Who next?", perhaps some information about what the job entails/requires might be helpful. And given that I've had a ringside seat for the past two years, and that the information might inform anyone seeking to fill the vacancy, here goes... Role The President has three primary roles; chairing Federal Executive - which is rather more than just turning up and doing the job. The agenda has to be agreed, papers commissioned, debate managed so as to ensure that all of the business is given a proper airing. The President is also a ...
Among the Stricty Come Dancing banter on Twitter yesterday evening, I picked up some Labour activists attacking the Lib Dems. Nothing new there, you might think. The attack was that the Lib Dems had betrayed our principles, done a u-turn and were privitising the Post Office. I think we're all familiar enough with Labour attacks by now to check those facts before jumping to any conclusions. And it turns out that the attack is wrong in every single respect. The Government is not proposing to privatise the Post Office. And what's being proposed, far from being a u-turn, is Lib ...
An interesting posting yesterday evening from Katie Snape on the Boulton & Co blog: It's 7pm on Saturday, I'm late for a friend's wedding and I'm still waiting to find out whether I can send a satellite truck to Wiltshire for an interview with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander. How hard can it be? His special adviser says he wants to do it but apparently I'm waiting for clearance from Downing Street. I've left a message for No 10′s Head of Broadcast, he texted back and two hours later, I'm still waiting. I started the week bidding ...
An interesting posting yesterday evening from Katie Snape on the Boulton & Co blog: It's 7pm on Saturday, I'm late for a friend's wedding and I'm still waiting to find out whether I can send a satellite truck to Wiltshire for an interview with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander. How hard can it be? His special adviser says he wants to do it but apparently I'm waiting for clearance from Downing Street. I've left a message for No 10′s Head of Broadcast, he texted back and two hours later, I'm still waiting. I started the week bidding ...
Last but one of the series. I can't believe how quickly this has come around - it seems like only yesterday but in fact it was the 30th May when I started my very own weblog. Admittedly, it's not been a very long run (May to September) but I wanted to see if I could do this, not only arranging and styling a blog but in articulating (or at least trying to) my values and opinions on current affairs and our party's situation. I guess over the years I've been a signed-up supporter. An activist for a while but mostly ...
There is some pressure on Nick Clegg to deliver a speech in Liverpool next week that sets out what it is that defines the Liberal Democrats as an independent force in British Politics. Co-incident with that there is a party-led 'strategic-review' that attempts to either help him do that or remind him that some Liberal Democrats find the idea of their Leader actually leading somewhat troubling. Within that debate there will be a raft of suggestions about philosophy, policy, and tactics ranging from what community politics means, to our view of the EU, and electoral pacts. I have one small ...
So, Aston Villa have a new manager. To be precise, their 24th manager and only the second (we don't mention Jozef Venglos's name if we can avoid it) in the club's history to come from outside of the UK and Ireland. I say 'their' when of course what I mean is 'our'. For I have have been a long-suffering 'Villain' since September 1st 1992. Why so precise a date? Because (and I whisper this very quietely), until then, I was a *cough splutter* Liverpool fan. It goes without saying that I knew nothing of football at the time. Indeed, I ...
My wife and I spent the night with friends in Deganwy last night, we started off with a drink in The Deganwy Quay Hotel and then enjoyed a fantastic meal at Paysanne restaurant. We felt the service was great, the atmosphere was relaxing and the food was excellent.This restaurant really is a little French gem. www.paysannedeganwy.co.uk Paysanne Country Restaurant 147 Station Road Deganwy Conwy LL31 9EJ
As I wrote yesterday Total Place has been an initiative to look again at how public services are delivered. Birmingham was a pilot area and have taken the idea one step further to what they called Total Community. They understood the limitations of Total Place in collaborating with the public so when it came to ...
Today's Independent reports under the headline Nick Clegg orders ministers: 'Mingle with the troops at conference': Nick Clegg has told his ministers to "mingle" at the Liberal Democrat conference next week, to avoid the impression that being in government has gone to their heads. On Friday, the Deputy Prime Minister hosted a meeting of all Lib Dem members of government at Chevening, his official residence. Mr Clegg cautioned his colleagues against being seen as "too distant" since moving seamlessly into government. For some of the grass roots, working with the Tories has been a little too seamless, some complaining that ...
Sun 12th
10:35
Reduction in numbers of 16 to 18 year olds Not in Education, Employment and Training (NEET)
From Stockport Council: Services for Young People - Connexions, has been able to report a welcome reduction in the numbers of 16-18 year olds NEET in July 2010 (626) compared with July 2009 (766), with a significant reduction of 24% of 17 year olds who are NEET. The 12% reduction in NEET young people aged 18, is consistent with data from Job Centre Plus, which is showing a reduction in 18-24 year old Job Seeker Allowance claimants in Stockport. Additionally, we have more young people in learning than this time last year: · 83.0% of 16-18 year olds were reported ...
Following on from today's news release from the Scottish Liberal Democrats about vandalism to police and fire equipment across Scotland (published below), I was interviewed on Radio Tay News this morning about the matter. Click 'play' above to listen. LIBDEMS REVEAL VANDAL TOLL ON POLICE AND FIRE EQUIPMENT Liberal Democrat Justice spokesperson Robert Brown has revealed that police boards and fire boards across the country continue to be plagued by vandals. Using Freedom of Information requests to Police Boards and Fire Boards across the country, the Liberal Democrats have discovered worrying Commenting, Mr Brown said, "We depend on our emergency ...
Changing the town's name is one thing, but it appears that history may be repeating itself. Four years ago, I led a campaign to stop gas being pumped into the empty oil wells below the town, this was successful, but the company exploring the idea never really shelved it. Today it has been announced on the BBC that the government has given the gas storage facility at Saltfleetby the go ahead. Full story here. Whilst this is a different company, it could signal the start of renewed interest in storing gas under Gainsborough. I hope this isn't the case.
With my impending trip to New York, it is timely that a new policy document on overseas development - Accountability to the Poor - will be debated at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Liverpool: We see the problem of poverty as fundamentally political. Barriers to the poor's development are political and social as much as economic. Sustainable development and poverty reduction can ultimately only be achieved through political empowerment in and for developing countries. We will take a political approach to development processes at all levels. A Liberal Democrat Department for International Development (DfID) will remain independent but be better ...
Whatever my political differences with Plaid Cymru MP, Elfyn Llwyd he got somethings right with his speech to the nationalists' party conference yesterday: He said: "I have been astonished, as I'm sure have people across Wales, by the bare-faced hypocrisy we have seen of Welsh Labour since the general election. "We've seen a string of Damascene conversions in the Labour ranks in Westminster. "Barely a week after the election, the referendum on greater powers for Wales, which many Labour MPs fought hard against, was suddenly a hot topic among previously sceptical MPs. "'When can we have it?' they pleaded with ...
It's the easy availability of guns which leads to this sort of crazy tragedy. That, and the stupidity of their owners: A US man has killed himself after shooting dead five people, including his wife and stepdaughter, in an argument about his breakfast. Stanley Neace, 47, went on the killing spree in a trailer park in Jackson, rural Breathitt County, Kentucky. He chased his wife into a neighbouring trailer where he shot her, her daughter and three witnesses, reports say. State troopers found Mr Neace dead at the porch of his trailer, slumped over his own gun. Mr Neace flew ...
And so we reach 1995 in my tour of Stockport's local election results from 1974 onwards. Colin Macalister won over 87% of the vote standing for Labour in Brinnington, my namesake Ian Roberts held his seat for the Conservatives in Cheadle (the Lib Dems had snatched one seat in 1994). The East Bramhall election was notable: three of the candidates went on to be councillors (two still are, and neither of them won that year). Ken Holt won the seat for the Conservatives and represented Bramhall until 2008. Pam King came second for the Lib Dems and is now my ...
The acting leader of the Labour Party, Harriet Harman has just told Andrew Marr on his BBC Sunday show that 32,000 people have joined Labour since the General Election, one third of them ex-Liberal Democrat. This may sound plausible to Labour activists but it is easy to check. Firstly, the Labour membership form does not ask you to provide information about previous political affiliations, so how can Harman know what they were? Secondly, the Liberal Democrats have not lost anything like 1,000 members in that period, never mind 10,000. In fact we have had a net membership increase of around ...
A YouGov poll commissioned by The Sun and carried out over Monday / Tuesday finds: The editor of the News of the World at the time, Andy Coulson, denied knowledge of the phone tapping operation, but accepted the "ultimate responsibility" as editor and resigned. He has since taken a job as David Cameron's Director of Communications. There have recently been allegations from former employees of the News of the World that phone tapping was more widespread at the News of the World and that Andy Coulson was personally aware of the tapping. Mr Coulson has denied allegations that he was ...
Longford Park Update:- Older Children's Play Area - The first phase of this playbuilder funded project has now been completed and the new zip wire slide has proved very popular. There is more good news in that we have also succeeded in our application for £49,000+ for a climbing boulder to be placed as Phase 2 of the Older Children's play area!! New Sustrans Path and Edge Lane Entrance improvements. Recent visitors to the park will have seen the excellent new path in the north of the park. This additional section of path means we now have the 'Longford Loop', ...
As both Liberal Democrats and SNP candidates nervously await the results of their list selections in Scotland, I am certain that none of them will have made a speech quite like this. ## This guy has a Masters in Communication. You can tell.
The GMB has given me a vote for Ed Miliband in the Labour leadership election; and some other candidates. My initial reaction was similar to that of the annual Nationwide Building Society vote where I'm typically told who I should, and should not, vote for - of looking favourably at the alternatives (in the widest sense)! The ballot paper asks me to agree with the statement: 'I support the polices and principles of the Labour Party, and am not a supporter of any organization opposed to it and pay a political subscription to the body that issued this ballot paper.' ...
i) births and deaths 12th September 2005: death of Ronald Leigh-Hunt, who played Commander Julian Radnor in The Seeds of Death (1969) and Commander Stevenson in Revenge of the Cybermen (1975). ii) broadcast anniversary 12th September 1964: broadcast of "Prisoners of the Conciergerie", sixth and final episode of the story we now call The Reign of Terror, ending the original first season of Doctor Who. Ian and Barbara encounter Napoleon; Robespierre is overthrown; the Tardis crew escape, musing on destiny and history.
Nick Clegg has quite right raised the issue of party funding. Clearly, along with the raising of funds, the issue of expenditure should also be reviewed. It is a nonsense that the likes of Lord Ashcroft should be able to pour vast funds into marginal seats between elections (it will be interesting to see some research on how effective this was) and that rich individuals can buy influence by making huge donations to the party of their choice. State funding, along with strict limits on individual donations and expenditure between and during elections, is clearly required. The great problem with ...
In addition to the vote on Friday condemning Ieuan Air, it seems that the Plaid Cymru Conference also reaffirmed the party's opposition to top-up student tuition fees - even though their own Ministers and most of their AMs backed the introduction of such charges for Welsh-domiciled students. As the paper reminds us this issue was a major cause of dissension in the party last year when most members of the Plaid group at the National Assembly were persuaded their longstanding policy of resisting the introduction of top-up fees was no longer affordable: At the time, former MP Adam Price and ...
Deep in the archive of my blog, a Simon Ramsden commented on a story from March or April. His comment came this week, but may not be seen by anyone but me. I thought it was illuminating enough on so many issues that it should be given some prominence. I don't pretend to have all the answers, but it does suggest to me that many of the systems we have in the NHS were at breaking point. Simon Writes: I have a number of concerns with regard to the cuts in the NHS and other cuts that this government intends ...
My inner Green who wishes to consume less and my inner Nerd fascinated by gadgets are in frequent conflict, and currently the Nerd is winning. A while ago this was not the case. Nerd wanted to buy an all American coffee maker that actually ground the beans as well as filtering the coffee. Nerd almost won on the basis that the device was space saving, but then Green noticed the machine also had a programmable clock. Green drew the line at coffee makers that tell the time. However Nerd learned from that experience and now realises that if she wants ...
When the redevelopment of Edinburgh House, the old Golden Wonder headquarters in Market Harborough, was approved by the local council I wondered if it would really go ahead, given the current economic situation. I need not have worried. I was in town this morning and work is in full swing.
Dave Hartnett is the country's top tax collector. As such he decided to tell us that there was no need for an apology for the six million errors in tax calculations. He was quite clear on the matter. He "saw no need" to apologise as tax reconciliation was a routine measure.There were no blunders and no IT failure. It seems it was just one of those things, or should I say 5.7 million of those things where "reconciliation" is needed. I pay PAYE and I also pay as someone who is self-employed. I write down all my income and expenditure, ...
