Andrew Stunell, Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (and LibDem MP for Hazel Grove), returned to his South-West London roots this evening when he spoke to a Richmond Liberal Democrats Potato and Politics in the Vestry Hall in Paradise Road. He laid out the achievements that the Liberal Democrat partners in the Coaliti0n ...
The Defend Council Housing people have issued the following media release: The Neath Port Talbot Defend Council Housing Campaign has welcomed today's ruling from the Freedom Of Information Commissioner that the Neath Port Talbot [council] was wrong to withhold vital information from the campaign which was trying to halt the transfer of thousands of council homes to NPT Homes Ltd. According to Huw Pudner of the Defend Council Housing Campaign ' The legal ruling by the Information Commissioner has revealed serious shortcomings in the upper reaches of the Neath Port Talbot Council. Time and time again the Council delayed and ...
So, having sat and watched the world go by in the impressive Central Lobby of Parliament, I waited for Baroness Hussein-Ece to arrive so that we could go and have coffee together. It was Meral that kindly arranged all of ... Continue reading →
Losing the ability to write a cheque is something that is worrying a lot of people from charities, very small businesses, those who write cheques as presents, and many more. That is why Cllr Alan Lewis put a formal motion to tonight's Council meeting. We were pleased that he got all party support, what he said is printed below, followed by the actual motion. Making the point that it was the only way that we could give to support the Mayor's Charity - here he is (cannot think why it insists on being sideeways - picture is right way up ...
I haven't seen the text of this as 10-minute bills don't get printed until their second reading, but from the title and debate alone it seems to me like Labour's Keith Vaz is on to a good thing with this, the "Succession to the Crown Bill". Although the debate is available online, there don't seem to be any nice soundbites in it. Instead, I'll just give you the bill summary that I believe says all that's needed:" A Bill to remove any distinction between the sexes in determining the succession to the Crown." Hopefully the idea will go somewhere. Get ...
Council tonight passed our motion calling on our MPs to lobby for and support David Ward's bill in Parliament to stop the abolition of cheques. Until this issue came up I didn't even know there was such a thing as The Payments Council, but it seems to be a kind of union of big banks which has decided that we shouldn't use cheques any more as they cause too much work or they're inconvenient or
This evening there was a consultation event for young people and Cornwall Councillors held at Jericho's in Launceston. The participants came from our town, Callington and Bude areas and ranged in age from 14-18. The evening split into three parts. There were some presentations from young people on the sort of projects they are involved in, a 'speed dating' session for young people to chat with the councillors about different issues and a discussion about the best and worst aspects of each town. During the speed dating session I was discussing how best to communicate with young people. We chatted ...
Over in The Guardian, David Laws yesterday has this piece: Of all the challenges which confront the coalition in 2011, none is more important than the economy. This is also the issue where the biggest political dividing lines are drawn. Ed Miliband is betting that economic recovery will be derailed, and while trying to reconcile many divergent views in his party, he has generally taken the position that cuts should be delayed and that high tax rates (including the 50% tax rate) should be retained. Ed is getting all the big economic decisions wrong, and leading his party into an ...
There I was in Christine's Book Cabin. They had a book on Rothwell Congregational Church, so I had to buy it. When I was there a couple of weeks ago I was taken by the Sunday school that stands next to the church, though I felt there was something a little home-made about it. I may have been on to something. For the book, Memorials of the Independent Chapel at Rothwell by G.T. Streather, says: After all the heartaches and attendant problems which had led the way, a new block of buildings for use as a Sunday School and general ...
Am still too tired and burned out for proper blogging, which will resume towards the end of the week, but I finally got the draft of Sci-Ence! Justice Leak! sent to my crack proofreading team last night, and so my slow plugging of this book continues. Today, the chapter headers. Every chapter in the book ...
I've been avoiding this subject for a while. That's mostly because it's a huge and incredibly complicated subject. For that reason, I will refrain from commenting on the minutiae and focus on the big picture - the political side, if you like, as opposed to the medical side. The reason I have decided to post on the subject at all is that I saw this BBC News article on the changes. As far as I can tell it's a fairly good article: it gives both sides of the argument (albeit not in huge detail). I highly recommend the video clip ...
It doesn't matter how many times you see the place or how often you watch it on television, nothing quite prepares you for the feeling you get when you walk into the Houses of Parliament for the first time. I'd enjoyed my leisurely walk ... Continue reading →
I've just caught up with Robert Peston's 'Too Big to Save' that can be viewed, for now, on BBC iPlayer. It is a fascinating account of the banking crisis that examines how regulation and banking practice led to the near collapse of our banking system. It doesn't look at every element such as the mortgage market or the way interest rates influenced decision-making. The programme does how policy intentions can be distorted by perverse incentives that are at the heart of the policy. For instance, when Basel 1 came into being the aim was to ensure the banks had sufficient ...
While listening to radio 5 live earlier this evening they ran a piece on a BBC Scotland investigation into the counterfeit tobacco trade. More details about it here. The documentary will also be available on i-player from Thursday. But the salient points are that 80% of the cost of tobacco is tax and duty, so the incentives for criminal gangs to bypass the taxman are huge. As a result half of all handrolling tobacco is now illegitimate and 20% of cigarettes. This costs the Exchequer £4 billion a year in lost revenue. It seems to me a clear example of ...
Was going to master the intricacies of Twitter tonight, having managed apparently to have sent a message to myself earlier in the day. Then I thought bollix, how about posting on the state of Margate on the run up to the big Turner Contemporary opening, and then how about recycling some old posts and bunging up a new blog. We'll you can enjoy my account, objectively told of the last four years or so of the Turner Contemporary, from the view point of one of Margate's alienated residents side-lined by politicians, quangocrats and the like (please note this is work ...
In the week that peers are being made to stay up all night to block a Labour party filibuster and the health secretary has block-booked the Today programme in order to explain his NHS reforms he is rushing through it occurs to me that perhaps we should be asking "is this really necessary?" And, just as the conservative right have given up on conservative values, perhaps it is time for Liberal radicals to suggest that no, it isn't. Its not that the reforms are all bad reforms, many of them are eminently sensible, but given that we are legislating to ...
There must have been something different about today. I jumped out of bed with real genuine enthusiasm for once and found myself, when the time came sat in carpet class talking to fellow commuters. Basically this doesn't happen. Ever. I'm ... Continue reading →
Liberal Democrat campaigner Chris Wiggin has announced that he will not seek the party's nomination for the forthcoming parliamentary by-election in Barnsley Central, to be triggered shortly by the announced resignation of the sitting MP Eric Illsley. Chris, who stood as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Barnsley Central in the May 2010 General Election and came second with 6,394 votes, indicated that he will concentrate his efforts on standing in Heslington ward in this year's City of York Council elections. Chris said: It was an honour standing for Parliament last year in Barnsley Central for the first time. I was ...
I have said this repeatedly on other social media, but feel it's time to point out a certain amount of opportunism from a Labour Party devoid of ideas and direction. And yes before anyone else says it I am even out of step with many in my own party. But let's set the record straight by covering 2 areas. 1. What was EMA (Educational Maintenance Allowance) for ? Basically, EMA is cash in your hands to help you carry on learning. If you're 16, 17 or 18 and have left, or are about to leave, compulsory education 2. Did Labour, ...
We have received this press release, we are pleased about the outcome expecting ill patients to go to the BRI is too much, parking is awful as well as the extra distance to travel. Parking there is far worse than the RUH.Surgical treatment for complex gynaecological cancers will continue to be provided at the RUH following new government guidance on "service reconfiguration" a B&NES Council panel
I have been challenged by Nick Thornsby to take part in a discussion about how the Coalition is doing and how I'd reshuffle the Government. I agree with Nick that I think on day to day business, at least from what we see, the Coalition is working well. I do hear hints, however, that our Ministers do have to work very hard on issues that are important to us. Sometimes an argument thought won can break out somewhere else. That's part of the nature of any government, though. This one is a very grown up sort of Government, with disagreements ...
Shame about this I was looking forward to high speed broadband... ------------------- Bournemouth Borough Council has called a meeting with Fibrecity to discuss serious concerns surrounding the firm's work. The meeting with Fibrecity's Directors this Friday (January 21) has been called by Cllr Michael Filer (portfolio holder for Environment and Transport) and Leader of Bournemouth Borough Council Cllr Peter Charon and will demand action to repair damage caused to the town's infrastructure during the work. Councillor Peter Charon said: "We have been concerned over the project since the work ceased in October 2010, leaving a number of roads and pavements ...
Back in October, I commented here on the on-going middle-eastern impasse in Israel. Well, things have this week got that bit gloomier still. Former Labor Leader and Israeli Prime Miniter, Ehud Barak Ehud Barak, the former Israeli Prime Minister, abruptly resigned both the leadership and his membership of the Labour Party on Monday to set up yet another new Israeli political party. The new party will be names Atzmaut (or Independence) and will be 'centrist, Zionist and democratic. He has been joined by 3 fellow Labour ministers from Benjamin Netanyahu's coaltion government and also by an additional Labour MP from ...
The issue of EMA has been debated today in the House of Commons. No-one is saying that the system should not change.The difficulty is working out what proportion of EMA is spent on unnecessary things. It is clear that many students rely on it for transport, but not all of them.What I have been doing is working with the 6th form Colleges in Birmingham to try to find out what is essential.Only
Today I went for a walk around the mendips west of cheddar. I passed the oddly named Totty Pot through Bradley Cross and Draycott. Taking in the fantastic views from Draycott Speights. On my travels I came across an array of dead animals. A sheep carcass. A squirrel on the road and massres of sheep skulls and bones. What is going on? They were not great veggie moments. What did frustrate me - when landowners construct great swathes of fencing - which is not marked on the map. I spent a long while on cheddar head wondering if I was ...
It's now six weeks since I asked Bury South Labour MP Ivan Lewis for his proposal to solve the university funding conundrum. Seven weeks ago he wrote to me and sent a copy of the letter to the Bury Times criticising Lib Dems for breaking their promise not to raise tuition fees. I agree with him that ...
Some drivers using Dutson Road in Launceston are travelling at more than 60mph and around one in four break the 30mph speed limit according to a survey carried out by Cornwall Council. The road has been described as one of the most dangerous in Cornwall as it is used by many schoolchildren and families despite having no pavement for much of its length. Many residents have been asking for action to be taken to slow traffic down and the recent SpeedVisor survey was the first step in making that happen. The results show that, although most drivers obey the law, ...
[IMG: Palin Redux Hi res Downloadable] [IMG: Creative Commons License] photo credit: *eddie Very bad news for Sarah Palin. Her Tucson "blood libel" video dive-bombed with the American public. Only 30% approved versus 46% who disapproved of the video. In contrast, Obama got a 78% approval/12% disapproval for his Memorial Service speech the next day. Also, her general disapproval numbers have shot up to an all-time high for her – 56%. I'll repeat what I wrote the other day. She's hasn't got a cat in hell's chance of being selected as Republican 2012 Presidential nominee. I think she'll run, and ...
Wed 19th
16:45
Hero of the Day: Bob Russell MP lambasts "callous cretins" who took away constituent's DLA
Paul Walter will no doubt write up his usual fantastic report of PMQs for Lib Dem Voice later and I don't want to take away from that, but I thought it was worth highlighting that the toughest questions David Cameron faced came, not from the opposition, but from the Liberal Democrat benches. I absolutely cannot stand it when Government backbenchers demean themselves by asking obviously planted questions. The snivelling toady look is really not edifying. It makes the MP appear like they don't have a mind of their own and they are entirely in the Whip's thrall. Liberal Democrats don't ...
Wed 19th
16:43
Nick Clegg welcomes New Proposals to help Children, Young Parents and Families with Difficulties.
[IMG: Nick Clegg, Early Years: The Next Steps] Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today welcomed Graham Allen's report Early Intervention: The Next Steps. Speaking at the launch of the report at the Swiss Re tower in the City of London, Nick emphasised the importance of investment in the early years of life and looked forward to Mr Allen's further report on how early intervention might be funded from the private sector through social finance. Read the rest of this entry.
1851 saw The Great Exhibition. 1896 heralded the beginnings of the modern Olympic Games, and in 1969 Man landed on the Moon. And now, tomorrow night at Butterstile Primary School, something new can be added to that list of historic moments in the shape of the latest meeting of Prestwich Local Area Partnership. I am guessing most ...
I don't normally read the national press but after my last posting about the menace for vunerable people I was posted this good link which is the one I was helping an older lady deal with as well.Well done to Andrew Penman and Nick Sommerlad for this campaign. Scam awareness month is in February and hopefully the practice well get a lot of public airing and we can stop some of this nonsense.
100% organic and cruelty free links, these: Campaign for the Abolition of Parliament – Richard Kemp questions just what the point of some of the activity within Parliament is Pish to Progressivism! – "Nowadays politicians are more keen to dub themselves "progressives" than they'd be to assure the world they're not murderers." What I learned in the Arid Zone – An interesting look at Phoenix, Arizona, that poses the question of what might happen to it when the water supply starts drying up? The terror time machine – Wow, it's like being back in the early days of blogging as ...
Two young gay men have been sentenced to death by stoning in Iran. Protest to the Iranian Ambassador to express your major concern. LGBT people must have the same rights across the world.
Cornwall Council's Tory Leader Alec Robertson missed last Tuesday's Full Council meeting because he had 'flu according to the apology which was read out to members at the time. His absence meant that members could not question him on the running of the council which is currently making huge cuts to frontline services. Yet the evening before he had been at a reception at 10 Downing Street given by the Prime Minister for Conservative council leaders. I have checked with the Downing St press office who have confirmed that the event took place on Monday evening and was attended by ...
It's unusual for my morning radio alarm to bring me to wakefulness quite so abruptly as it did today with the coverage of MP Graham Allen's report on giving disadvantaged children the best start in life. Something so important being given leading coverage is good news. Although it probably isn't news to most working the sector, nor many Liberal Democrats I suspect, it is very welcome that high-profile, cross party attention is now being given to idea that early intervention to improve social and emotional development will yield great dividends for the child and society later in its life. The ...
Wycombe can be a curious and puzzling place at times. The District Council upon which I serve is heavily dominated by Tories (48 out of 60), so clearly they have a lot of freedom and don't have to worry too much about opposition members like me. But the size of their majority also seems to make many of them blase about the opinions of protest groups among the public too. Presumably, they feel quite confident about winning another large majority again come May. Two years ago, they closed down our open air lido to save money. Admittedly, two poor summers ...
The Opposition Day debate tabled by Labour to save EMA is underway, although the chamber isn't as full as it was for the fees debate. Only weeks after the NUS' "Demolition" rally that led to attacks on Millbank Tower, Westminster is once again bracing itself for prostests as thousands of students will march in support of the payment. Over 600,000 students (around 45%) receive the payments of up to £30 a week. The NUS describe it as a 'lifeline for students', but many others point out that the money is frequently not spent on travel or course resources as it ...
There are lots of many wonderful things about living in Scotland. I love being back here amongst fabulous scenery, wonderful cities, an education system which I still think trumps the English system in a long way and, most importantly, it's outwith the reach of English Health Secretary Andrew Lansley. However, many of the people I care about in the world do reside within his grasp and I don't want them to suffer as a result of the Government's reforms. I have to be honest and say that I don't know that much about the internal workings of the NHS, but ...
It seems to me that what the government is proposing to do about social housing is neither all good nor all bad. It seeks to tackle one of the major problems with it - that there isn't enough of it to go round. But their answer is based on trying to increase turnover, shuffle people between types of property, and keep people off the waiting list. And that only amounts to tinkering at the edges. It doesn't address the fundamental problem, which is that there aren't enough affordable homes for everyone who needs one. I'm perhaps being a little unfair. ...
If Labour are ever be trusted with the Government of our country again, they need to stop this rank hypocrisy, admit the failings of their own most recent Government, and come up with some policies of their own.
On Monday I proposed that one of the reshuffles I would make to the Cabinet would be to replace Eric Pickles, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with a Liberal Democrat. My reasoning was that firstly Eric ... Continue reading →
LGiU and CCLA are pleased to announce the shortlists for the 2011 C'llr Achievement Awards. The winners will be revealed at an awards ceremony on 8 February. See how many Lib Dems you can spot! CCLA Award for Outstanding Contribution to Financial Performance Cllr David Finch, Essex County Council Cllr Roland Spencer, Gedling Borough Council Cllr Robin Harris, Luton Borough Council Cllr Paul Watson, Sunderland City Council Cllr Maurice Heaster, London Borough of Wandsworth Community Champion Cllr Joanne Beavis, Braintree District Council Cllr Gill Farrington, South Derbyshire District Council Cllr Chris Best, London Borough of Lewisham Cllr Luthfur Rahman, Manchester ...
The last article I wrote conjoured up a utopian vision of Liberal Democrat e-campaigning. However, it might not be a realistic aim for individuals or groups who lack social media expertise, or time, to develop a fully fledged social media presence. How, then, should Liberal Democrats prioritise the different elements of social media? The first choice is an absolute no-brainer. If you do nothing else, start a Facebook page. Don't mistake a Facebook 'group' for a Facebook 'page'. Though they share some features, they are different beasts. A local Party group should have an 'official' Facebook page. Individuals may use ...
Elections have taken place to elect the principal councillor representative on two Federal Party Committees for 2011-2012: On the Federal Executive Committee the following have been elected: Cllr Stan Collins (South Lakeland DC and Cumbria CC) Cllr Keith House (Eastleigh BC and Hampshire CC) On the Federal Policy Committee the following have been elected: Cllr Louise Bloom (Eastleigh BC) Cllr Stan Collins (South Lakeland DC and Cumbria CC) Cllr Chris White (St Albans CC and Hertfordshire CC) Full details of the election results are here courtesy of Cllr Colin Rosenstiel. Federal Executive Federal Policy Committee
If the Mighty Hibernian ever are going to win the cup they need a coalescence of good fortune and a little skill. One of these would be Celtic and Rangers being drawn together at an early stage. Another would be the third placed team of the year being knocked out. Lastly we would need a ridiculously easy draw against say first or second division clubs. If all of those things come together then maybe, just maybe, they would stand a chance...assuming that the the team actually turned up and play like footballers and not a bunch of haddies. We had ...
Two early diary dates for you: Friday 17 and Saturday 18 June 2011: Liberal Democrat Local Government Conference, Bristol (Group Leaders event on the Friday, Conference dinner on the Friday evening, main one day conference on the Saturday.) Friday 25 - Sunday 27 November 2011: Kickstart 2012, Birmingham
This is my speech in Plenary yesterday outlining the Welsh Liberal Democrats' alternative to the draft budget.
2011's Federal Spring Conference takes place 11-13 March 2011 in the Liberal Democrat-led City of Sheffield. The Conference is the last opportunity campaigners and councillors from across the country will have to come together before the important local, Scottish, Welsh and AV votes on 5 May 2011. ALDC has a busy programme planned for the conference. All our training and fringe events are FREE to all party members, so even if you can only come to Sheffield for the day it's a great chance to catch up on skills and learn new ideas. All Training takes place on Saturday 12 ...
I only discovered the Labour Uncut site a short while ago, but has it always been the place where supposedly rational people let out their weirdest thoughts? Last week, we had Sion Simon declaring that he didn't like The King's Speech because Colin Firth voted Liberal Democrat, and he should be apologising to people for that. Then today we have Tom Watson – admittedly, never normally a man who acts like he knows the meaning of the word 'restraint' – stating that JFK would have supported locking up shifty-looking people without charge because, um, er, it's wrong that anyone should ...
Jonathan Calder has reaped a whirlwind of hostile comment by remarking on the case of left-wing writer Laurie Penny's attempts to recruit an researcher at below the minimum wage. I don't have a problem with Penny's privileged background. Well and good if someone's views are not conditioned by their upbringing. But her prose style, consisting largely of student union style rants, is certainly tiresome. So it would take a heart of stone not to feel a sense of schadenfreude at a member of the sanctimonious left being caught using a variation on the intern system, which is at once exploitative ...
I am now well and truly sock and tired of hearing Ed Miliband and his team of past Labour Government ministers ranting on about spending cuts, unemployment and the state of the economy. The economy did not go into meltdown the day after the Coalition Government was formed. Tax revenues dind't start plummeting as Nick and Dave started chatting and I for one do not believe that anyone in the Government wants to scythe public services for purely ideological reasons - at least not at the present time. Labour have to take a long hard look at their own record ...
Peter and Hazelmary Bull, the guesthouse owners who have been found guilty of discrimination by turning away a gay couple, are the latest on the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph roll call of Christian martyrs. At the same time they present Christianity in an intolerant and petty-minded light. Despite being a Christian (albeit with irregular church attendance and various heterodox beliefs), I think the judge made the right decision and have little sympathy for Mr and Mrs Bull. But then, mine is a liberal Christianity, and in common with a good proportion of my Roman Catholic co-religionists, I politely disagree ...
I was at a meeting of the Friends of Colchester Roman Wall this morning to talk about the funding we've secured and matched from English Heritage to repair and maintain the Wall along Middleborough and Balkerne Hill. They're still a relatively new group – and are chaired by my ward colleague Cllr Henry Spyvee – but they've got some interesting plans for working to improve the setting of the Wall, including new interpretation boards in various locations. If you are interested in preserving Colchester's heritage, then it is worth joining them, and your donations will go towards helping the Wall ...
This is a follow-up to my recent post on the Coalition's Grand Strategy of reshaping Britain in such a way as to leave no political space open to their rivals. Here, I'd like to briefly examine one of the ways they plan on doing this – via the planning system. The Localism Bill does something ...
Could Nick Clegg's strategy of taking "full ownership" of the coalition's decisions - even unpopular ones - may be paying off, after all? Earlier this month, The Independent's Andrew Grice summed up the accepted version of Nick Clegg's approach to the coalition thus far: The Deputy Prime Minister is convinced that his party would reap no dividend at all if it tried to let the Conservatives take the blame for the nasty medicine needed to cure the country's economic ills. He hopes the Liberal Democrats will eventually get a reward for facing up to hard decisions, by showing they can ...
A press release from the Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales explains, The Minister for Social Justice and Local Government [Carl Sargeant] has announced that he will not be making any changes to the present electoral arrangements for any local authorities in Wales until after the 2012 local government elections. However, despite this the Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales is pressing ahead with some of its boundary reviews, with draft proposals for County Borough of Caerphilly published on Monday and feedback requested by 22 March. The reviews for Wrexham are also continuing, but those for Swansea are on hold ...
One of my real concerns is that although the private sector will create jobs they will be so concentrated in the SE that regional economies like our own will be left without jobs. The latest figures just released ( in the North West have fallen by 17,000 to 260,000) are encouraging-but the jury is still out.
There will be a by-election in Kenton ward, in the London Borough of Brent, on Thursday 17 February 2011. From the Harrow Observer: A by-election has been called for the Kenton Ward following the death of Conservative Councillor Arthur Steel who died on New Year's Day. Nomination forms are available from and must be returned to Electoral Services, Brent Council, Brent Town Hall, Forty Lane, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 9HD on any working day from Friday January, 14 until 12noon on Friday, January 21. Kenton ward lies within the Brent North constituency, which has a Labour MP, Barry Gardiner. The Conservatives ...
This afternoon I have another meeting to discuss Sefton's budget. I general terms after the Comprehensive Spending Review Sefton had to reduce its budget by around £44m. To date we have managed to identify £27m which leaves us with a black hole of £17m. Some of the savings we have agreed ( I say agreed but labour voted against without proposing an alternative) include a 25% reduction in Management which needs to be fleshed out. I am keen that we keep explaining to our residents what we are doing and not hide from them the impact of our decisions. We ...
In the two principal authority by-elections that took place on Thursday 13th January 2011 the Tories held one seat and Labour gained one from the Tories. There were no town or parish council election results reported to ALDC. [IMG: Our canddiate in Camborne Anna Pascoe talking to residents] In Camborne North ward Labour were fifth in the first elections for a unitary Cornish County Council in 2009 with only 100 votes, we were second with 182. Labour held the parliamentary seat from 1997 to 2005. We held the parliamentary seat till 2010 when we lost it to the Tories. The ...
Next Monday is just 100 days and counting to the vital set of elections on 5 May 2011. In Scotland and Wales voters are electing their Parliament and Assembly respectively, all over the UK we'll be deciding whether to change to a fairer system of electing our MPs. In England, half of all all Liberal Democrat councillors are up for election in district, unitary and metropolitan councils across most of England. It's the first big national electoral test that the party will have faced as a party of Government at a UK level. Here's a list of all the seats ...
In may we will be electing a councillor for Stockwood. Not only that but the Referendum on Fairer Votes will take place on the same day. The Alternative vote system is not ideal, but it's a better option than the discredited First Past the Post system. We will shortly be putting out information on AV in our Stockwood Focus. It's your chance to change the way we vote, as well as elect me as your councillor. A lot of people have told me that they want a change of councillor in Stockwood, as we will be going to the Polling ...
From time to time Warwickshire County Council's Trading Standards issue email warnings about various "scams" which could be affecting local residents. These are circulated widely, but as a service to my residents I intend to publish relevant ones on this web site from now on: 19/01/11Warranty Scam Warwickshire consumers have reported receiving unexpected phone calls from someone claiming to be calling on behalf of Sky Television. The caller tells the consumer that their Sky warranty/guarantee is about to expire and asks them if they want to extend it. The caller possesses quite a lot of information about the consumer which ...
Wed 19th
11:25
The Great Reform Act of 1832: its legacy and influence on the Coalition's reform agenda
[IMG: House of Commons in the 19th century] That's the title for the next Liberal Democrat History Group meeting, on Monday 24 January, for which I'm one of the speakers. Here are the details: The Great Reform Act of 1832: its legacy and influence on the Coalition's reform agenda Soon after becoming Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg promised "the most significant programmes of reform by a British government since the 19th century.... the biggest shake-up of our democracy since 1832." But how do the Coalition government's constitutional changes actually compare to the changes brought in by the Great Reform Bill ...
Ryanair have announced that they are abandoning Newquay Airport as they cut their summer route to Alicante. Some might say that it should be good riddance rather than a sad goodbye. Ryanair is the ultimate marmite company. To many, their low charges have helped to bust open the old state carrier monopoly. But to others their extra charges and sometimes misleading adverts are a source of anger. As far as Newquay Airport goes, the airline has been a pain in the proverbial. Quick to criticise the Council when it was forced to shut the airport for urgent safety works when ...
At last night's meeting, Launceston Town Council voted unanimously against any move towards fortnightly rubbish collections in place of the weekly service the town currently receives. The issue was raised by a resident of Hurdon Way who was concerned about the impact that uncollected black bags would have on his area and the rest of the town. He asked the Town Council to make representations to Cornwall Council against the change. I was asked to tell the council what changes were likely and gave my own opinion supporting residents against the change. Although the introduction of food waste collections and ...
From the Leicester Mercury: An advertising agency acting for the Compare The Market insurance website wants to turn Market Harborough into Meerkat Harborough for a day as part of its latest campaign. It will promote Meerkovo, the mythical Russian village home of Aleksandr - the now infamous meerkat who launched the adverts, along with the "simples" catchphrase, in 2009. London advertising agency Good Relations is looking to launch a competition to find a twin for Meerkovo, and wants to use Harborough as an example for the TV ad.Meerkat Weighton? Meerkat Deeping? No, they just won't do. It has to be ...
"Fiscal policy!" whooped Ford Prefect, "Fiscal policy!" The Management Consultant gave him a look that only a lungfish could have copied. "Fiscal policy ..." he repeated, "that is what I said." "How can you have money," demanded Ford, "if none of you actually produces anything? It doesn't grow on trees you know." "If you would allow me to continue ..." Ford nodded dejectedly. "Thank you. Since we decided a few weeks ago to adopt the leaf as legal tender, we have, of course, all become immensely rich." from Chapter 33 of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams ...
A quick trip down memory lane for some historical perspective on the impact of the internet on political campaigning with this piece that I wrote for an academic email newsletter (the Political Marketing Group Newsletter) after the 2003 Brent East by-election. The lessons still look extremely relevant – making the point that principles of good campaigning and communication last as individual technologies, programs and companies come and go. Winning Brent East: did the internet matter? When Sarah Teather won the Brent East Parliamentary seat for the Liberal Democrats in the by-election on September 18th 2003, it was one of the ...
Graham Allen, the Labour MP for Nottingham North, published a report in the last Parliament with Iain Duncan Smith on 'early intervention' with children . Frank Field echoed many of the findings in that original document. The Government asked Graham Allen to produce a report and the first part is published today. It was the lead item on the BBC news this morning and the author was interviewed on Today when he said: Only early intervention can break the "inter-generational cycle of dysfunction and under-achievement", it says. Mr Allen's report highlights the impact of poor parenting and says too few ...
I'm sure the accused would get a 'fur hearing'...
I think it's an abject failure of the BBC not to have had a piercing debate on the Economy. Political interviewing is still pretty mind-numbing. Take for example the Today prog this morning (19th Jan). Some Labour person in disguise saying the change in EMA would `kill off our kids futures` while on the opposite ...
Today, the government is publishing it's Health and Social Care Bill, which envisages the abolition of Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and Strategic Health Authorities (SHA) and the transfer of most commissioning powers to GPs and responsibility of Public Health to local authorities. For the last few years, I have sat as a Non Executive director on Northumberland Care Trust, our local PCT. When I read the coalition agreement and it said there would be no top down re-organisation of the NHS, I was relieved. Every year under Labour a new secretary of state would put forward a new minor tweak ...
One of the highlights of the last few weeks for me has been finding out that Liberal Democrat Voice's and London Region's Helen Duffett has been appointed as the Party's Internal Communications Manager. This is probably the most sensible decision that the Party has made since the Coalition was formed. I don't know any party members who haven't groaned at the useless patronising guff that's been landing in our inboxes as news from key party figures. They would be almost fine if they were accompanied by things that we could actually use. One example I can think of is on ...
Are we going to be like the Australian DemocratsI'd love to know your thoughts. or the German FDP...or can we find our own third way?
Jim Hancock, the doyen of NW political commentators, turn his attention to the disintergration of Southport Tories this week in his Daily article Post IT WASN'T a good week for the Conservatives. Their vote haemorrhaged in the Oldham by election and locally the Tories are exploding in Southport like a super nova. The suspension of Sir Ron Watson, who has been a party stalwart and councillor for more than 40 years, means that things have come to a pretty pass.................................... Indeed the Conservative Party in Southport has had a troubled recent history. In 2007 the choice of Tory veteran Brenda ...
Anybody who has spent any time laughing at the crazy pictures and captions on the LOLcats website will be gratified to know that it is worth a bit of cash. According to the Independent, former journalist Ben Huh, who paid $10,000 dollars for the site in 2007 has now attracted some $30m in venture capital funding. Mr. Huh says: "I want Cheezburger to be the ultimate leader and influence in internet culture." Well, it is certainly one of the richest now. However, as the paper speculates the value of lost business hours as a result of people viewing the site ...
Penny Red: Filthy assistant required: please help! Laurie is after an assistant. I happen to think she is worth the effort, so if you have some spare time on your hands and think you can fit the bill, why not apply? (tags: feminism) Ladies Making Comics: Creator Poll Go vote Posy Simmonds in catagory 3! Go! Click! Now! Also Gail Simone in category 1, but I reckon she's going to win anyway... (tags: comics voting) Talking Loud and Clear Are you a person who tosses around the word "rape" with gay abandon? Oh dear. I used the words "tosses" and ...
So reports the Press Association: Christian hotel owners who refused a gay couple a double room acted unlawfully, a judge ruled [yesterday]. Peter and Hazelmary Bull were breaking the law when they denied Martyn Hall and his civil partner Steven Preddy a room at their hotel in Cornwall in September 2008. Judge Andrew Rutherford made the ruling in a written judgment at Bristol County Court as he awarded the couple £1,800 each in damages.
[IMG: Roger Helmer (Photo by Berchemboy at en.wikipedia.org)] Roger Helmer! There, now I've got your attention. No, that wasn't an expletive although it could well be – Roger Helmer is a Tory MEP who is in the new recently for his Tweet: Why is it OK for a surgeon to perform a sex-change operation, but not OK for a psychiatrist to try to "turn" a consenting homosexual? I wasn't going to blog about this as although it's annoyed me, it's been handled elsewhere, by several people. But two things have made me change my mind. Firstly, the mainstream coverage such ...
Dozens of young people from the Lillington and Campion youth centres in Leamington came to last night's meeting of Warwickshire County Council's Warwick Area Committee, to see and hear their spokesperson Becky present a 1600-signature petition to the Council. The petition calls on the Council to minimise planned budget cuts to the youth service, and prevent youth centres from closing. 16-year old Becky spoke eloquently of the impact her youth centre had made on her life, and the benefits she derived from it. She really brought home the point that youth clubs are about far more than ping pong!! All ...
Last night, I took the minutes at the January Friends of Magdalen Green committee meeting. We had useful discussions and progress reports on the Green lighting project, BBQ provision on the Green, the community sports/environment hub project, parking on the Green - and other issues. However, the main purpose of tonight's meeting was a presentation to our colleague and friend Liz Broumley (pictured right) on her and Roger's move to Cromarty next week. Liz has made a huge contribution to community life in the West End through Friends of Magdalen Green and WestFest and she will be greatly missed. Liz ...
Do you have an idea or argument you would like to share with the world? Would you like to publish it on a (ahem) popular blog? I have decided to invite people to contribute guest posts to Liberal England. I can offer the prospect of hundreds or thousands of readers for your thoughts and would be happy for you to link to your own blog, pressure group or employer in the post. So if you have an idea for a posting please send me an email. If I am too far out of sympathy with your views I will say ...
Further to my previous angry post about the HTC Desire: After further unsuccessful efforts with HTC's Exchange ActiveSynch, which was unable to synch with my contacts (I have over 4000) without stuffing the phone's memory beyond capacity, I finally found an email solution that did just enough of what I want to give the brick another chance: Touchdown, which at least doesn't choke on my contacts and allows me to read and send emails, though at a cost. Its memory storage is still lousy - I have to take it down to only three days of archive, whereas the old ...
[IMG: Yes to Fairer Votes] A No vote this 5 May is more than a vote against AV. It's a vote in favour of our existing electoral system, first past the post. But we've yet to hear the No campaign clearly explain the merits of the system they're campaigning to uphold this May. I delivered a letter this weekend to the president of the No campaign, Margaret Beckett, challenging her to an honest debate about FPTP's merits. Help make that debate happen by signing up to my petition for a debate now: http://www.yestofairervotes.org/Debate-Challenge We're inviting Beckett to name the time, ...
This week An A-Z of my CDs is a two-parter. First up, a lady who was featured with the Pet Shop Boys in my entry a couple of weeks ago: the incomparable Dusty Springfield: Here's the sublime "If You Go Away": and here's "Son of a Preacher Man": Enjoy! Andrew
I see that Iain Aitch, writer and author, will be giving a talk in Margate next Monday for details click here.
broadcast anniversaries 19 January 1974: broadcast of second episode of Invasion of the Dinosaurs. The Doctor and Sarah coordinate with the Brigadier, not realising that Mike Yates is part of the conspiracy. Once again the Doctor is threatened by a Tyrannosaurus Rex. 19 January 1982: broadcast of second episode of Four to Doomsday. The Tardis crew discover more about the plans of Monarch and the Urbankans; the humans they have met turn out to be androids. 19 January 1983: broadcast of second episode of Snakedance. The Doctor and Nyssa find more clues to the Mara in the caves; meanwhile Tegan ...
Life imitating art
Regular readers of this blog will know that the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers regularly places advertisements defending the tar sands, and I like to comment on each one. They deserve serious attention, after all this is CAPP's bid to make a case for the sustainability of this much reviled industry. Today's tar sands beefcake is Garrett Brown, another strong but sensitive type, smiling confidently and crouching to show his closeness to the soil, in front of a wood. The headline states : "I grew up on a farm. I know what it means to have the land restored." Maybe ...
Cutting the education maintenance allowance (EMA) affects 16 to 19 year-olds who come from poorer backgrounds and choose to stay in education. The argument for giving the students up to £30 per week is that the country will gain by raising levels of education, the individual gains an education and we save money on benefits while the youngsters look for work. There is also a case to say that part-time work is avoided and gives the student longer to study. The case against EMA is that it is not targeted correctly, most teenagers would still stay in full-time education anyway ...
300 Free Movies Online: Great Classics, Indies, Film Noir & More | Open Culture (tags: films)
