This quite frankly one of the most disturbing things I have ever seen. Christopher Hitchens agreed to be waterboarded in a demonstration of the technique for Vanity Fair magazine. I defy anyone to watch this video and tell me that ... Continue reading →
A coupe of days ago I blogged about a Financial Times report that the current G20 summit in Seoul is likely to see the end of the Washington consensus that untrammelled markets are the best way to secure development in poor countries. I have since heard similar reports from other sources in the development field. The case to this move was provided by the Korean-born economist Ha-Joon Chang in a Guardian article earlier this week: In my lifetime Korea has lived through one of the greatest development miracles - half a century ago, its annual per capita income was around ...
[IMG: Winning elections: Lynne Featherstone and David Winskill put up a poster] On Saturday you can catch me at the Watford AGM talking about electoral reform - why the AV referendum is a good thing and how to win it (tip number one - don't give it a name with an acronym). I'm then doing a repeat performance at the Hammersmith & Fulham Liberal Democrats on Wednesday (17 November). That is open to Liberal Democrat members and supporters from outside Hammersmith & Fulham too. Details are over on Facebook. Then on Saturday (20 November) I'm off to Hillingdon, talking about ...
A constant reminder that we are in coalition with the Conservatives is the ability of the Coalition to combine sensible reform with some hysterical, sub-Daily Vile headline-grabbing irrelevancy. And, in the proposals for welfare reform published today, we see that trend repeated. The proposal for a 'Universal Benefit' is an eminently sensible one, reducing bureaucracy, eliminating duplication and good for the environment (all those trees saved!). And yet the headline is 'three strikes and you're out', the frankly absurd notion that benefits will be withdrawn from those who persistently refuse job opportunities. Really? Has this been thought through any further ...
The welfare right paper is radical, liberal, and has the potential to herald big improvements in welfare and work. The idea of a Universal Credit will simplify an incredibly complex system by amalgamating the main welfare benefits into one single system. The aim is to ensure that work always pays, and by achieving this and thus boosting take-up and encouraging people into work, it has the potential to free many people trapped on benefits. It is exactly the kind of change we should be making. The current welfare system sees some people losing almost 90p of every £1 they earn ...
Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of the contest for the party presidency, the Comprehensive Spending Review, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Almost 600 party members have responded, and we're publishing the full results over the next few days. First, we asked what party members thought of the campaigns of the two presidential candidates, Tim Farron and Susan Kramer: Regardless of how you intend to vote, which of the two candidates do you think has run the best campaign to become party president? 50% – Tim Farron ...
As if it wasn't bad enough that funding from central government for the Citizens Advice Bureau has been slashed, I now read that Woking Borough Council (which is controlled by the Conservatives) is now selling Provincial House in the Town ... Continue reading →
A defeated candidate from the May 2010 general election is facing court action following claims he made false statements during the election. The Portsmouth News reports: Les Cummings, who stood as the city's Justice and Anti-Corruption Party will appear at Portsmouth Magistrates' Court on Friday, charged with breaching the Representation of the People Act. Police at Fareham Police Station charged Mr Cummings on Thursday afternoon, with having made, on April 22, before an election, for the purpose of affecting candidate Mike Hancock, false statements that he knew to be untrue. Meanwhile in other election law news, Nick Clegg has rejected ...
First mystery - Spotted this lunch time, something not often seen on main lines these days, a steam train (60163) on the North London line, 19th century technology in the 21st century. What's that all about I'm fifty four and have never travelled by steam, so where do these enthusiast get the urge. [IMG: where's margate] Second mystery - Having travelled on the Hi Speed train down from London recently I just wonder why it is necessary for the train to stop so flipping far up the platform, saving all of about 15 minutes or thereabouts on the journey time ...
I was at the tuition fees protest as one of the Lib Dems who had agreed via Facebook to march together at the demonstration. Amongst the (inevitably violence dominated) coverage of the protests, I decided that I would like to give my impression of what occurred for the benefit of those who did not attend. For me the protest began at 9.30am by boarding a Student Union organised coach to London from the University of Surrey. There were about 100 of us in total from Surrey and the general feeling on the coaches was upbeat as we gave our names ...
Total Politics are on a run of really good events lately and this one caught my eye on their website straight away. I've already registered for my place and get the feeling that this one is going to be a ... Continue reading →
Crazy moves are afoot by Kate Hoey MP - Mayor Boris Johnson's sports czar - to ban people cycling responsibly along the River Thames between Lambeth Bridge and Waterloo Bridge. She has stated in a letter to local residents "There is of course an excellent cycling route on the main road along past Lambeth Palace and the hospital". The alternative, which in her opinion is ok for unescorted children, can be seen in these pictures. [IMG: photo1978.jpg] [IMG: photo1970.jpg] I always thought her love of fox hunting from an inner London MP bizarre but this takes the biscuit.
Ever wondered what mutualism was all about? Here is Jock Coats on the topic... laconf2010, Jock Coats, On Mutualism from Sean Gabb on Vimeo.
I'm sick and tired of some on the left of my party and those in Labour/new labour/old Labour/Trotskyists etc moaning and groaning about the Coalition Government. Over on Nick the Norfolk Blogger's page he's prattling on about Nick Clegg this Nick Clegg that. Others on other social network forums are gnashing their urban vested-interest left-wing ...
[IMG: image334561551.jpg] One of the highlights of last week was attending the launch of the new exhibition at Luton's Wardown Park Museum. The exhibition is about the history and culture of ancient Greeks and it includes some stunning artefacts of great age and beauty. There is a range of decorated pottery, statues and other objects. These objects are on loan to Luton from the British Museum. Luton museums have been developing strong links with the British Museum in London over the past few years. Something which I think is of great value. This exhibition builds on the similar ancient Greeks ...
One of the ideas in liberal philosophy is the notion that no one individual can have a complete view of something. This is why Adam Smith made the case for a free market: in an open and free market people send signals through prices and the wisdom of the crowd informs decisions about the cost, and need, for products and services. As we know from the Soviet experiment, one individual, or committee of individuals, cannot provide that level of collective insight. It is partly why John Stuart Mill argued for free speech. Through debate and argument we refine our view ...
A crucial meeting between Corus buyers Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI) and the Government has been secured by local MP Ian Swales. Ian was concerned by a report from the Energy Intensive Users Group that suggested that green taxes could force industries that use a lot of energy - such as steel production - to move abroad. In the House of Commons today Ian Swales asked Climate Change Minister Gregory Barker to consider the international competitiveness of UK-based energy intensive industries. He also asked if the Minister would meet with SSI to discuss future carbon and energy policy and its impact ...
Too tired and migrainey for a proper post today, so here's some links. Caron looks at all the changes in the benefit system. Heresy Corner says that the Paul Chambers trial has made being English illegal. Abhay, under the guise of a review of the comic Moving Pictures, talks about the representation of the Nazis ...
You may not have heard of Paul Chambers, but you should. Back in January, he made a comment on Twitter that any sane person would have realised was a joke made in a moment of frustration. Unfortunately, it seems that there are many people around who aren't that sane, who instead thought he was seriously ...
Ian Swales MP commemorates our veterans and Armed Forces in a series of events over the next few days On Friday Mr Swales will be attending an event at Redcar and Cleveland College as part of a series of Remembrance Day activities occurring in the area. Ian will be talking to students at the College about the significance of the day before taking part in a wreath laying ceremony in honour of all those serving in our Armed Forces, past and present. Ian said "Remembrance Day is a great opportunity for us to pay our respects to those who have ...
We have asked the Council Tree officer to look at some of the Silver Birch Trees in Southdown Road with a view to pruning them to improve the health of a few of them. Many thanks to residents for bringing this to our attention and sending us the picture. At the bottom of the road two Plane Trees will be pollarded during the next few weeks.
A few months ago, in the wake of the coalition agreement with the Tories, I said in an interview with Gavin Esler on the the Today programme on Radio 4 that "Nick Clegg has made us look like liars and fools". At that time I felt it to be true, and I still do because within days of telling people that the Tories would be a disaster, how only the Lib Dems would oppose a rise in VAT, how only the Lib Dems would oppose further nuclear power, how only the Lib Dems would oppose a rise in tuition fees, ...
Thanks to Steve from the South Lancashire Bat Group for a fascinating talk to a packed room at Gatley Hill House yesterday. An audience of all ages came along to the event, organised by the Gatley Carrs Conservation Group, and just about managed to squeeze into the room. As well as finding out all about bats from the smallest (the bumblebee bat, about the size of an adult thumbnail) to the largest (don't remember, but wingspan of a few week), the quietest and loudest (both British bats), we were introduced to a pipistrelle bat and I had to turn down ...
I stood, as always at 11am this morning at Cardigan's Cenotaph, in memory of the those that have given their lives for mine. I am a very enthusiastic member of the Royal British Legion. I'm a paid-up member and have been selling poppies both last year and this, to help raise funds for their poppy appeal. Cardigan RemembersCardigan does Remembrance Week particularly well I feel. We have a brief ceremony at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month each year at the Cenotaph. Today, despite the blustery conditions, I joined fellow Town Council colleagues and the ...
Terrorism works by spreading fear among the population, forcing us to live diminished lives. The security precautions we have to undergo at airports and the screen that divides MPs from the public gallery at Westminster are both victories for the terrorists. They were handed another one today by the confirmation of Paul Chambers' conviction in Doncaster today. At a magistrates court hearing in May he was found guilty of sending a menacing electronic communication after posting a joke about blowing up the local airport on Twitter. According to BBC News, he was originally was fined £385 and ordered to pay ...
This made me smile: Letter sent to the Daily Express, 10 November 2010 re your article "Cameron must say no to votes for prisoners" Dear Sir The EU is always interested in what one of its leading members has to say, but if David Cameron takes Ann Widdecombe's advice, it won't get him very far. It is the Council of Europe, a completely separate organisation, that is responsible for the ruling on prisoners' votes. Yours faithfully Antonia Mochan Head of Media European Commission Representation, London
A Crown Court hearing at Doncaster has today dismissed the appeal of Paul Chambers against his conviction for 'menace'. In a moment of frustration when his flight was held up in January, he had posted on Twitter a message saying "Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!!" Since his arrest, he has been convicted, fined and lost his job as a financial manager. The costs of this ludicrous and disproportionate case have escalated with his latest bid to have the verdict overturned. ...
Now this is a headline Lord Bonkers would be proud of: Porpoises rescue Dick Van Dyke Disappointingly, the report says "The porpoises were unavailable for comment."
The Yorkshire Regional Lib Dem Conference on Saturday will be hosted by Bradford Lib Dems.
I have been following what has probably been one of the highest trending topics on twitter today, relating to the trial of Paul Chambers, for what was a light hearted voicing of frustration over delays to his flight earlier in the year. Paul twitted "Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a ...
A meeting tomorrow evening at Keighley Town Hall of the Worth Valley Joint Transport Committee at 7:30 p.m. On the agenda is the final report from ARUP about the possibility of using the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway as a weekday commuter ...
One of the few things me and Albert agree on is that you can't beat the satisfaction of a good morning-visit to the loo. If you've got a good, healthy routine it feels like your guts congratulating you every day. Unless ... Continue reading →
[IMG: Cprl Barnsdale's Coffin Tring Funeral] Despite the wet and blustery weather a sorrowful crowd of six to seven hundred people gathered to honour and pay tribute to the bravery of the popular young 24-year old Corporal David Barnsfield who lived in Tring. David was a former pupil of Tring School and member of Tring Corinthians Football Club. He served in 33 Engineer Regiment and was killed on October 19th while attempting to make safe a roadside bomb. David was good at his job - one of the most dangerous in the army - and his ability and leadership qualities ...
Why the housing benefit changes are not about social cleansing, but instead about getting rents reduced for all tenants. In New York there is a political party named "The Rent's too damn high", founded by Jimmy McMillan. What he argues is that life is difficult in New York because rents are too high. It is important to recognise that private sector rents are also an issue in the UK as well as those funded by the state. Since November 2008 private rents have gone down by 5% and private rents funded by Local Housing Allowance (LHA) have gone up by ...
[IMG: The Parkland Walk] My colleague Ed Butcher has been lobbying the Council to do a clean up blitz on Stroud Green Road and the surrounding area for a good while. The pavements have got very grubby and there has been lots of complaints of fly-tipping on the side roads. Thanks to this lobbying, and the work of our local Neighbourhood Manager, there will be a programme of activity to clean up the area – and to get volunteers helping out on the nearby Parkland Walk nature area. This Saturday (13th) residents are being urged to help out with conservation ...
Yesterday the counts took place for the English party elections. The Acting Returning Officer, David Allworthy, reported the results as follows: At the close of nominations on 29 September 2010 the following were declared duly elected, unopposed: Chair of English Party: Jonathan Davies Chair of English Candidates' Committee: Margaret Joachim English representative to Federal Conference Committee (1 place): Geoff Payne English Candidates Committee (5 places): Dawn Davidson Sal Jarvis Brian Orrell The following were elected: English representative to Federal Executive: Brian Orrell: 46 Michael Wheatley: 32 English representative to Federal Policy Committee: Dirk Hazell: 10 Geoff Payne: 68 English Executive ...
We all knew there would be cuts and some have recently received rather a high profile (and yes - I do condemn the outcome of the tuition fees march). Local government rarely gets sympathetic headlines at the best of times but it has done extraordinarily badly in the Comprehensive Spending Review - and without much media interest. Local government will receive cuts in grant of 28%, compared with the 19% in other 'unprotected' departments (ie departments other than education and health). Local communities will also see 20% cuts in police funding and 25% cuts in fire and rescue. On top ...
Paul Nash and Vaughan Williams recall WW1
From AsianImage: Conservative Birmingham City councillor Gareth Compton has been arrested and bailed over allegations he called on Twitter for female writer Yasmin Alibhai-Brown to be stoned to death, West Midlands Police have said. Earlier Cllr Compton was suspended from the Conservative party. You can the Tweet in question here on PoliticsHome and here on Twitpic. It's clear it was a disastrously misjudged attempt at a joke - and an extremely dodgy one at that. The man has deleted the remark and apologised: I apologize for any offence caused. It was wholly unintentional. Cllr Compton is a barrister.
During one episode of The New Statesman (the funny one, not the silly one), Conservative MP Alan B'Stard's car alarm goes off while he is in a building. Rushing to the window, he sees youths beside his car. Immediately pulling out his (excellently 80s) mobile phone, he dials 999 and says "Help! Police! Tory MP in distress!!" I was put in mind of this today as I read The Guardian's account of yesterday's student riot at the Conservative headquarters at 30 Millbank. According to the Guardian While Tory headquarters suffered the brunt of the violence, Liberal Democrat headquarters in nearby ...
As I write, Iain Duncan Smith is on his feet in the House of Commons announcing his package of welfare reforms. IDS was a rubbish leader of the Conservative Party, but I have more confidence in the welfare reforms he is announcing than I would if any other Tory were in charge. Partly because he's been working with the Liberal Democrats on this - in fact Nick Clegg has been doing the rounds in support of the proposals - and partly because I do believe that he's been trying to properly understand the issues involved over many years. I do ...
Contrary to what many believe, the Lib Dems were right to choose coalition, and can remain a distinctive force. Julian Glover writes for The Guardian. Liberal Democrats are not short of advice. Mostly from outsiders. Mostly from people who find it odd that anyone should choose to be a Lib Dem activist and who never expected to see the party in power. Naturally, they see the coalition as an aberration and many expect it to fail. Here, in no particular order, are 10 thoughts as to how Lib Dems might prove the doubters wrong, as they consider their identity and ...
It was entirely predictable. The opening moves in a game that could see another hard-won component of the welfare state undermined have now been played. It may have been predictable, but it is no less distasteful for all that. The Coalition's proposals for restricting housing benefit in the private rented sector have been greeted with a chorus of disapproval from informed commentators and the housing policy and practice community. Many grassroots LibDem members are equally concerned. Dire consequences are forecast. The Government believes that landlords will happily adjust their rent downwards to reflect benefit cuts. Informed opinion says otherwise. (I ...
For anyone who has watched the video I posted today or read anything on the solution focused approach will know that focusing on problems makes you an expert in problems but not necessarily in making things better. So in this age of 'new politics' reading this makes me think people do not understand this simple ...
I've previously told you about the Press Release last week in which the county council accepted that it would need to re-consider its decision to close Consett's two secondary schools if it remained unsure whether there would be enough money to build a new single site Academy. The Cabinet Report which you can read here , as well as showing that the previous government's agreement to provide money for a new build school was only forthcoming in the week of the General Election, also confirmed the fact that what had previously been described as the "preferred option" - starting the ...
The Western Mail speculates that a decision is now expected in the next 10 days on the electrification of the Great Western Line between London and Swansea. They say that the project was announced with much fanfare by Gordon Brown in 2009, when he promised that "work will begin immediately". But that was yet another broken promise by the previous Labour Prime Minister. Transport expert Prof Stuart Cole, of Glamorgan Business School, said the Government's own analysis suggested electrification to Swansea had a greater cost-benefit ratio than the Crossrail scheme in London, which is going ahead. "We will lose out ...
'It's a sin that people fail to take up work'. So says Work and Pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith in today's Guardian. While I think that language is not helpful and simplifies a complicated area I do agree that work should always pay and that you should be better off in work than out of ...
Thu 11th
12:35
Conservative Councillor Gareth Compton calls for stoning of Yasmin Alibhai-Brown on twitter
Another example of alleged wry humour gone wrong on twitter. This is an awful tweet to have sent out. Gareth claims it was a humorous response to something on Radio 5, the problem is if you don't explain the connection the tweet comes over as nothing more than a disgusting personal attack on someone. When will elected representatives realise that whether in jest or not their words are a matter of public record. I have had the great privilege of meeting Yasmin Alibhai-Brown and was truly impressed. Although Yasmin will often offend with her words, she fights racism hard and ...
Its fascinating to see the ideas from Ian Duncan-Smith about welfare reforms. Generally they're a good idea and its amazing that the shiny new Labour Party of Ed Miliband can't even rouse itself to oppose the changes, having failed so utterly to reform benefits for 13 years, instead presiding over a burgeoning bill throughout that period. It really is remarkable to consider what Labour didn't do in 13 years: they didn't abolish the hated Council Tax and replace it with fair local taxation; they didn't reform benefits, instead hobbling us with the ridiculously bureaucratic tax credits system; they failed to ...
The Coalition Government's detailed planning to destroy most of the IT infrastructure and data for ID cards, following the decision to axe Labour's ID cards plans, has revealed disturbing news about how data was mishandled. As the BBC reports, equipment is having to be destroyed because it looks like data was wrongly stored on it: Destruction of [some] equipment might have been avoided if the data it collected had been stored centrally as it was meant to be. But there is evidence that some was accidentally stored locally, the document reveals, so off to the dump it must go... However, ...
The Manchester Derby took centre stage at Eastlands last night, for what had been built up as one of the most intense and pressurised games between the two sides for many years. Perhaps then it should not have surprised many that the game finished goalless, with few attempts on goal in what turned out to be a classic example of both sides cancelling each other out. City were without the suspended Mario Balotelli, while Ryan Giggs missed his first Manchester Derby in nineteen years. Had these two creative players been involved then who knows we may have actually seen a ...
I'd booked a meeting with my line manager at Party HQ for 3pm yesterday, but by the time I'd got to London KX at 2:30pm the building was effectively in lockdown mode. When I got to Westminster, I walked through the demonstration as far as the Abbey, then round to Great Smith Street, where I got a message (BlackBerry battery almost dead by this point) saying my meeting had been moved, so I cut through to the Abingdon Street car park and back through the demo again. Between the Houses of Parliament and the Abbey it all looked fairly good ...
Britain's Trillion Pound Horror Story airs tonight at 9pm on Channel 4. The film explains the full extent of the financial mess this country is in - an estimated £4.8 trillion of national debt and counting. It argues that the recent spending review hasn't gone far enough, and to put Britain back on track we need to radically rethink the role of the state, stop politicians spending money in our name and drastically lower taxes to make Britain's economy boom again. The programme includes interviews with academics, economic experts, entrepreneurs and four ex-Chancellors of the Exchequer. With its prescient message ...
This morning's Independent reports on an admittance by Nick Clegg that he "should have been more careful" when he signed a pre-election pledge to oppose a rise in tuition fees. The Deputy Prime Minister goes on to say that he will not ignore the problem by putting his "head in the sand", and that the Government's policy will help generations of poor people go to university. In many ways the solution that the Government have come up with on tuition fees has a lot to offer. By raising the threshold at which students need to repay the loans and making ...
Many people will have observed two minutes silence today to commemorate Armistice Day. This Sunday is Remembrance Sunday and I will be joining other local Councillors, representatives of the armed forces and emergency services, community and youth groups in the Remembrance Sunday church service prior to the parade, laying of wreaths and observing two minutes of silence at 11am. You can join us at the war memorial outside PADOS House on St Mary's Road on Sunday morning. It is always gratifying to see so many local people paying their respects to those who've made the ultimate sacrifice for the country. ...
Friends of Magdalen Green have a new and well-designed website at www.magdalengreen.org.uk. It has also got a great gallery and is well worth a visit!
Dear pretentious student, A rant aimed at majority of those protesting yesterday. To those of you that have been campaigning genuinely, apologies and ignore the following - but you are in the minority. One. Dont tell me that because I wasn't there I don't care about the future of higher education funding. I've been fighting for it long before you have,, as have most Liberal Democrats, and I'm damn sure I'll be fighting a lot longer for it. One over-energetic march that was probably more fun than anything else does not give you the right to take a higher ground. ...
[IMG: Qantas logo] In many respects, Qantas's handling of the explosion in an A380's engine last week has been exemplary. Passengers have commended the way their staff behaved, Qantas has been in regular and clear contact with the media and the wider possible responsibilities for the problem (such as possibly a problem with the engine's design) have been explained without it sounding like Qantas trying to shift the buck. In many respects, but not quite all. Because, as ABC's Dale Roberts has pointed out, when it comes to social media Qantas has fallen into the same problems that hit Eurostar ...
[IMG: iraq-memorial.jpg]
I have received complaints recently from some residents in the Blackness Avenue area about the reliability of the Stagecoach Strathtay 73 service - the following is an example of the concern from one resident : "On the last three occasions that I have waited at the seagate bus stop for the 3.03pm and the 3.11pm 73 bus they have not turned. Two buses then turned up at 3.23pm arrived. When we reached Whitehall Street the passengers were unload onto one bus and then the empty on proceeded to go back to the Arbroath route thus not completing its run to ...
A recent debate at Cambridge Union debating society had the proposition "Israel is a rogue state". Arguing in favour was Gabriel Latner, who is a law student at Cambridge. Although he tecnically argued in favour of the proposition, he provided a definition of 'rogue' to suit a rather pro-Israel stance. Here you can find his argument.Gabriel calls himself a 'sophist', but I'm not sure his 'trick'
What does an election agent get for his pains? The joke (well, election candidates regard it as a joke) is that he goes to jail if the election rules get broken. This is the usual practice anyway. In the case of most election offences it is the agent who is liable for failure to observe the law. But not, it seems, in the case of Section 106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983. By declaring that the result of the May 2010 election in Oldham East and Saddleworth was null and void it seems to be only the ...
My weekly surgery at Blackness Primary School will not take place tonight as the school is closed due to in-service days today and tomorrow. My next surgeries are on Monday - see details at http://tinyurl.com/frasersurgeries. Meantime I can be contacted as follows : By phone : You can contact me at home on 01382 459378 at any time. My office at Dundee City Council is also open during office hours on 01382 434985. By e-mail : You can contact me at fraser@frasermacpherson.org.uk at any time.
The days of student protest ain't what they used to be. I'm no stranger to direct action. In 1984 I took an active part in the occupation of Portsmouth Polytechnic (I was also in Trafalgar Square during the Poll Tax Riots, but that's another story!) The action was over the introduction of non-refundable deposit for breakages, charging for coursework notes and an above inflation increase in accommodation charges. You may laugh at it now, but it was a big deal then and we occupied key Polytechnic buildings as part of our campaign. Not to close them but to keep them ...
Following popular demand Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council is holding another big heap, soil conditioner give away to any residents who would like to come along, bag it up and take it away. The giveaway is being held at Redcar Racecourse, in the car park at the Redcar Lane main entrance, on Saturday, November 20 between 10am and 12noon. There will be a three bag limit to each vehicle, given on a first come, first served basis. Shovels will be available, but you will need to provide your own bags. The soil conditioner has been collected through the Council's green ...
There has been a garbled article published in The Times today about the mortgage on my london flat.It is based mainly on what I put on my weblog in May 2009 hereIt gets a bit complex with me having a mortgage on Fletcher Buildings then clearing it and then getting another one.It remains my view that what I did was not only within the rules and cleared by the authorities at the time, but also
As the nights draw one can become a bit miserable. So here is my list of reasons to be cheerful (Part V): Tax: people earning less than £10,000 pay no income tax Banking levy: the people responsible for the financial mess being made to help with the clear up Social Care: £2 billion to fund long term care Green Investment Bank: £1 billion in cash plus the proceeds of future asset sales to fund investment in offshore wind farms and other projects Carbon Capture Storage: A £1 billion investment in a 'carbon capture' scheme, to take the carbon emissions from ...
Like, say, signing the anti-tuition fees pledge. The loss of seats in the election. Discussing his sex life. Axing the Sheffield Forgemasters loan. And, although I can't find the link, slapping Osborne on the back after the Spending Review. Regretting something implies you wish you didn't do it. I'm sure Clegg wishes all of the ...
recent issues reported by police to Neighbourhood Watch If you can help in anyway resolve these problems please call numbers provided. Blagdon Park, Bath.Between 1930 and 2245 hours on Monday 8th November 2010, unknown person(s) gained entry to a property by forcing open the front door. Items were removed from within. Haycombe Drive,...
For anyone interested in a simple way to understand the solution focused approach this video outlines it well. However, this is focused on working with individuals and not groups and organisations which solution focused politics is about. I will try to work on a video for this in the future
I am on a very quick trip to the UK, and wandering around Central London yesterday, I espied the gathering demonstration "against the cuts" by some students. As demonstrations go it was not a particularly big one. There have been far bigger demonstrations which have not been reported at all in the national media. This relatively small demo has attracted media attention pretty much because a bunch of fringe nutters- Socialists, Anarchists etc.- decided that it would be fun to have a bit of a barney at the Milbank tower. Unfortunately the Police were not prepared, and there were not ...
Just a quick reminder to Swinton South residents - if you have an issue you'd like to raise, or a problem you need help with, why not come alone to my councillor's surgery tonight. Surgery Details: Location: Worsley Road Methodist Church (entrance from Harrowby Road) Time: 6.30pm - 7.30pm No appointment needed. See you there!
It's always good to see a vibrant comments response to my PMQs review on Liberal Democrat Voice. As has become usual with the tuition fees debate, I was berated for not proposing that Nick Clegg be hung, drawn and quartered on live TV. I genuinely thought he did well yesterday, based on my view of the video. But I brought in the Albatross reference after much consideration because, if you follow the metaphor, it suggests a terminal issue. The original (pre-Python) Albatross reference comes from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner", a poem by Samuel Coleridge written in 1798. Wikipedia ...
I am sitting here at my desk on the 11th floor of Millbank Tower where I work each day - except yesterday when, in my absence, my workplace became the subject of headline news. I refer of course to yesterday's riots following the student demonstration against tuition fees in the Millbank concourse where there are two main buildings. One is Millbank Tower, which is 32 floors high. Next door is 30 Millbank which is six or seven floors and is where the students got on the roof. This building suffered the most damage. Although not at work, I managed to ...
There are two simple tests I have for books that recount events I was in some way involved in: do they accurately retell events that I have direct first-hand knowledge of and do they tell me something new about events I was one step removed from? If a book pasts both those tests, chances are the rest of the book is interesting and well-informed too – and The British General Election of 2010 by Dennis Kavanagh and Philip Cowley passes both tests with near flying colours (the description of Guildford as a "top" Liberal Democrat target betraying an over-attention to ...
A by-election has been called for 16 December in Spitalfields and Banglatown ward, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The seat became vacant after the election last month of Lutfur Rahman as the borough's first Mayor. He had been one of the ward's three Labour councillors, until his removal from the party by its National Executive Committee in the run-up to the mayoral election. Rahman went on to stand as an Independent, beating the Labour candidate by more than 11,000 votes. Dave Hill reports on his London Blog that there is already infighting within the local Labour party over ...
Cross-posted from Liberal Democrat Voice Rarely, both the Prime Minister and the Opposition leader had reason to be absent from Prime Minister's Questions today. So it was dear Harriet versus the Cleggster. As an added twist, it turned into a "Higher Education Special", in part spurred by the student demonstrations outside parliament as the session was unfolding. There were no less than ten questions on higher education. My, the Labour whips had been busy. Sadly this meant less time for the constituency issues often raised by MPs. I witnessed the session live via Twitter, where Nick Clegg received a rather ...
A 17-minute tutorial with the chief economist at the Department for International Development.
Just hours after bloggers united to urge their readers to sign up to the Libel Reform Campaign's petition*, news reaches us via Sense about Science of yet another chilling deployment of libel law to silence the discussion of evidence in the public interest - and as I write this post, I've learned of another libel case attempting to settle matters of scientific interest through the High Court. More on that story later - first, boobies. It appears that Dr. Dalia Nield, a consultant plastic surgeon at The London Clinic, has been threatened with legal action by the cosmetics manufacturer Rodial; ...
i) births and deaths I considered commemorating the births of Stubby Kaye (1918) and June Whitfield (1925) but since neither appeared in more than one Doctor Who story - respectively Delta and the Bannermen (1987) and The End of Time I (2009) - I decided I wouldn't mention them. ii) broadcast anniversaries 11 November 1967: broadcast of first episode of The Ice Warriors. Britannica base, fighting a new Ice Age enveloping Britain (and the whole planet) finds a frozen humanoid and three people arriving from the Tardis. 11 November 1978: broadcast of third episode of The Stones of Blood. The ...
Baroness Scott of Needham Market: My Lords, perhaps I should start in the spirit of the confessional, because I am a reformed quangocrat. It was a habit that started innocently enough with the occasional meeting of a small regulator. Then I went on to the Commission for Integrated Transport and, hopelessly hooked, went on to the hard stuff and became a member of the board of the Audit Commission. I have to say that everyone I worked with in those bodies—the staff and non-executives alike—was extremely committed to their tasks and genuinely cared about serving the public, so I am ...
A few updates on the Video Recording Sunglasses I blogged about earlier in the week. [IMG: Me wearing the spec - photo by James Body] I stuck in an 8GB microSD card and let the glasses record indefinitely. I was curious what would happen when the size of the video went over the 4GB limit imposed by FAT32 – and what happened when the memory card ran out of space. File SizesThe glasses, it turns out, record in 1.1GB chunks. [IMG: Max File Size] If you really want to know the details, the videos are 1,231,771,216 bytes 1,233,678,696 bytesEach file ...
The guns fell silent as the First World War, supposedly the war to end all wars, ended. Unfortunately war goes on. So today on Armistice Day, at 11:00 during the two minutes silence, remember those who have fallen from all sides in all wars.
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children, England mourns for her dead across the sea. Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit, Fallen in the cause of the free. Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres. There is music in the midst of desolation And a glory that shines upon our tears. They went with songs to the battle, they were young, Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow. They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted, They fell with their faces to the foe. They ...
Within hours of my petition, Lib Dems Against Tuition Fees, receiving enough support to send a letter to Lorely Burt MP, it received enough support (over 183 signitories) to send to newly-elected Lib Dem MP, David Ward.David represents a city that the ONS Report on Regional Trends in June 2009 showed suffers from the greatest deprivation in the country. An increase in tuition fees will price our
In the past few months I've read both volunes of Chris Mullin's diaries - both a very good read and highly recommended. One gem - Tony Benn on Neil Kinnock: "A vacuum surrounded by charisma." Unkind, and not really apt, but funny. Quoi qu'il en soit (French for "Be that as it may" which contains a subjunctive and can be popped into an essay at almost any point and earn an extra mark at A level)the diaries prompted me to read Mullin's novel, "A very British coup." This, also highly recommended, tells a fictional story of how a combination of ...
It is that time of the year when we as a nation remember. I suspect that by the time you read this blog, it will nearly be time for the two minutes' silence at 11 a.m. GMT, that is the eleventh hour of the eleventh day, of the eleventh month, remembering the time when the ...
With all the news of "The Seige of Millbank" today... important news north of the border may go unreported... Today the Scottish Parliament voted against the SNPs last gasp attempt to introduce minimum pricing of alcohol. In a rare (and much welcomed) show of unity Labour, the Lib Dems and Conservatives stood together in determining that a minimum price was potentially illegal (probably), could lead to cross-border "booze runs" (almost certainly) and would unfairly penalise responsible drinkers (definitely). MSPs also voted down proposals to stop retailers giving loyalty points for alcohol, and offering discount vouchers or "meal deals" including alcohol. ...
I was in Paris on business today so missed the student demonstration, but I didn't miss the one in 1984. I even kept some press cuttings of it. Here's the report of the Cambridge Evening News on Friday November 30th, 1984: Students join protest rally NINE coaches of Cambridge students joined a rally in London in protest at Government proposals to cut student grants. Students from both the university and the Cambridgeshire College of Arts and Technology joined the rally outside Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, which was organised by the National Union of Students. They were protesting against the ...
I'm a little late to writing about Neonomicon 2 – and Jog and the Mindless Ones have said a lot of what needs to be said here. But I felt the need to put my oar in... Taken as part of a larger work, Neonomicon 2 may turn out to be worthwhile. However, as a ...
[IMG: durkin] Tonight on Channel 4 watch "Britain's Trillion pound Horror". I have seen a rough cut and it is truly excellent. Astonishingly the Mirror seems to endorse this programme (go figure)... "If you were to throw Britain's national debt out of a window, one £50 note at a time, how long would it take? That's one of the images film maker Martin Durkin employs to help us visualise Britain's mind-boggling national debt - estimated at £4.8 trillion. The answer, in case you're wondering, is more than 3,000 years. If you think George Osborne's cuts will make a shred of ...
On Tuesday it was really nice to hear Andy Gray talking about two decisions that the referee made during the Stoke versus Birmigham game. He said they were not easy decisions for the referee to make. Compare this with the usual comments I hear when the man in black is mistaken. They are usually along the lines of how could the referee not see the correct decision. The fans response is less polite. They question the eyesight of the referee and for some reason they tell us that his parents aren't married. In this particular case twice in the space ...
