Today's Leicester Mercury reports: Leicester City Council plans to close three museums and a historic building - except for special occasions. Public access to Jewry Wall museum, Belgrave Hall, Abbey Pumping Station and the Guildhall will end in October, and the sites will open only for scheduled events, such as school visits and steam days at the pumping station.I could blame the Coalition for cutting the city's grant, but large cuts would have taken place under Labour too. I could blame the Labour-run council, but I do not have alternative ways of saving money at my fingertips. So rather than ...
Increasing anger from crossbench peers at Labour's filibustering in the Lords looks to be preparing the way for either Labour backing down or (for the Lords) highly unusual procedural decisions to end the filibustering. As I put it earlier in the week, if Labour loses the support of the crossbenchers, it will not only lose the struggle over this bill but weaken its ability to successfully oppose other legislation in the future. At the same time, the government has been showing its willingness to listen to scrutiny rather than filibustering by agreeing to two changes to the ways in which ...
I have taken up residents' complaints about the poor state of the Pennycook Lane car park's fencing. In response, the City Council has replied : "Tayside Contracts have programmed this job in for Tuesday 15th February and they estimate that it will take 2 days to repair the fence."
On the day the Scottish Parliament debated Stage 1 of its budget, Liberal Democrat Finance spokesperson Jeremy Purvis MSP emphasised that Liberal Democrats are focusing on the need to support Scotland's colleges. Commenting, Mr Purvis said, "We have met twice with the Scottish Government and are engaging constructively with practical measures to support the economy and to tackle the pressures on skills and colleges. "As it stands, the SNP budget cuts are too severe for colleges, threatening places and bursaries. "The Scottish Government should be focused on boosting economic recovery by investing in further education. "That's why as part of ...
Tonight's AAP Board Meeting was extremely interesting, possibly explosive. Morris Muter, who heads up Project Genesis, had been invited to talk to the Board. Also at the meeting, to talk about Consett Academy, was Dave Ford who plays a leading role in that Project. The county's present position was summarised as follows: The reduced government offer of £20.7 million for a new Academy is big enough to have a look at, but not big enough to do what the county wants Therefore the county is looking to see if it can find any other sources of funding It's examining the ...
All, Just a quick bit of news. Local campaigners, including Richard Cheney and I, will be out in the Town Centre on Saturday collecting signatures for the petition against cuts to Warwickshire's Youth Service. Please come along and support your local services. Alternatively, you can sign the petition here. This is the county-wide petition which young people are promoting in Shipston and across Warwickshire, which is targeting the 5,000 signatures needed to force a debate at the next County Council meeting on 15th February, ahead of the budget decisions being taken. The latest news on this is that total signatures ...
This morning saw me visiting the newly opened Captain Taylor's Coffee House to support our partners Streetwork in their new social enterprise. Streetwork are one the charities who deliver our homelessness strategy and the new coffee outlet on South Bridge is there to help them get people back on their feet and into work again. The event went off very well and all seemed very happy. I am told the coffee is excellent - I am a tea drinker and coffee isn't something I am an expert on! Best of luck to them. From there to the NHS Board meeting ...
One of the very few positives, to come from Kent Conservatives, is the recent announcement that they are actively seeking to promote a new rail station Thanet Parkway south of Kent International Airport. An idiot could see the potential for both the airport and Thanet, unfortunately councillor Richard Nicholson, is no idiot, instead he is part of the fractured, Labour party which, it looks as if, when not enmeshed in personal vendettas, is now against traditional values like personal freedom, locally social housing and perhaps even jobs and hope. According to Richard Nicholson, as per quotes in this weeks KM ...
Certainly in the first fifty years of the last century these two booklets -'We can Conquer Unemployment' and 'Ownership for All'- can claim to have been the most influential Liberal pamphlets produced. Although published only about ten years apart and of similar length the price doubled which by itself tell us something of the turbulent economic times which gave rise to them. I recall in the run up to the 1979 manifesto preparation Richard Moore announcing to the Policy Committee that he joined the Liberal Party in spite of and not because of its economic policy. In so doing he ...
There's normally a Republican response to the President's State of the Union address. This year there were two Republican responses, including one on behalf of the Tea Party by Michele Bachmann. ...How to shoot yourself in the feet in one easy lesson.
Good Lord! Ed Miliband and David Cameron actually agreed on something. They agreed that yesterday's growth figures were "disappointing". They even agreed that if you set aside the bad weather impact, the figures were flat over the last quarter. An amazing level of agreement at PMQs! Unheard of! Miliband asked about the causes of the disappointing figures. Cameron pointed to the UK's large deficit and the large banking boom and bust. Ed Miliband then asked Cameron to confirm that he still thinks we are "out of the danger zone" (Cameron's words from 15th December). We are no longer linked with ...
Mark Pack reviews the new book (edited by Kevin Hickson) The Political Thought of the Liberals and Liberal Democrats Since 1945 on Liberal Democrat Voice. No matter that the contributors sound a little like the usual suspects, it is always good to see volumes like this appearing. The sad thing is that the price (£60 for a hardback) may mean that it finds few buyers outside academic libraries. Certainly, Hickson's book will have a long way to go to rank with what may be the two most most iinfluential Liberal pamphlets of the 20th century, as discussed by Birkdale Focus. ...
I was writing a posting before it became necessary to go and deliver Focus in Hillside Rd. I was looking at two Liberal pamphlets that have a claim to be the two most influential of the last century. New readers should start here for the posting on 'We can Conquer Unemployment' The second pamphlet is the 1938 'Ownership for All being the report of a committee appointed by the Executive of the Liberal Party Organisation into the Distribution of Property' The committee was chaired by Elliot Dodds and included Liberal MP Harcourt Johnsone, Lucy Masterman, Milner Gray and Miss Jean ...
Wed 26th
19:30
Oh Joy! Gerry Adams and Iris Robinson join together in humble toil at the service of Her Majesty the...
[IMG: Gerry Adams Explaining Why It Was A Mistake To Approve The Lisbon Treaty] [IMG: Creative Commons License] photo credit: infomatique You have to chuckle at the promotion of Gerry Adams to be Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead (which is in North Yorkshire). Understandably, he didn't follow tradition and apply for the post, but it was given to him, after he told the Speaker he was resigning. But, wait! There's more! In a further twist of delicious irony, Gerry Adams is now a colleague in the service of the crown with Iris Robinson, who is Crown Steward ...
At yesterday's full Council (a meeting that seems to be the subject of numerous, mostly poorly-written blog pieces, though I thought Rob White hit some nails on the head) I was finally able to ask a question about the fiasco of the Shinfield Road highway scheme, which has resulted in opposition not seen in Reading since the days of the one-way IDR. That insane scheme, for budding local historians, wasted over £1 million and managed to unite just about the whole of Reading against it, with the exception of the arrogant Labour Party which lost 7 seats at the 2007 ...
We have received notice that from the Frome Road junction roundabout to junction with the Park and Ride roundabout will be resurfaced. This should happen 21st March - 25th MarchWe are pleased that is going to happen, but we are still waiting for Kingsway to be re-surfaced as well. body, div, table, thead, tbody, tfoot, tr, th, td, p { font-family: "Arial"; font-size: x-small; } body,
God knows politicians, are only human but having a quick read of Cllr Mark Nottingham's account of Cllr Clive Hart's (Local Labour Leader) role, in Mark being de-selected from Northwood Ward and subsequent investigation, leaves a smell more offensive, than the mess I just cleared up left by the family cat, (Mr Puss has no finesse). Mark's post, is one that needs careful reading but a cursory glance would suggest that Clive Hart and other members of Thanet's Labour party, ought to resign assuming Mark's account is true, which since I understand, it is well documented, I have little reason ...
The council is to introduce no parking along Frome Road, we have received this email."SCHEME: Introduction of No Waiting At Any Time restriction, Frome Road, Bath. In relation to the new Sainsburys.The above scheme is being progressed as part of the Parking Services programme of works. I include a copy of the plan showing the details of the proposals. "The plans can be seen at http://
I have always been somewhat uncomfortable with the idea of BBC World Service. On the one hand it sounds like a marvelous idea – spreading the message of freedom to those that don't currently enjoy it; dispensing "truth" where news is otherwise suppressed or distorted; bringing the many joys of sport and culture to those currently deprived... On the other hand – if the aim is to provide unbiased news, information and culture from the free world – why does America have its own world service (aka Voice of America)? Surely if this was just about getting accurate information into ...
Blogging lite at the moment due to round after round of meetings with councillors, businesses, voluntary groups and individuals regarding the council budget. Meanwhile over at the Biometrics in schools site confirmation that the taking of children's biometric data without parental permission will end. Another victory for civil liberties and another reminder of how bad it got under Labour! Biometrics in schools: Freedom Bill
How long will it be before the Conservative's plans for the NHS turn it into a two tier system? No time at all seems to be the implication of the news that Care UK has won the contract to provide health care to prisoners in the North East. Which is fine except that the NHS bid was ...
The last Labour Government took away a lot of the rights and freedoms of the individual under the guise of anti-terror legislation. The need or not for this was in part due to the widely perceived illegal, immoral and unustified invasion of Iraq on a trumpt up allegation. A war that cost the lives of 100s of thousands of innocent lives in Iraq, destroyed the futures of many British families and cost billions of pounds. Now bit by bit Labours authoritarian straightjacket is being dismantled. Good News for us all. This Government has ended the political games played by the ...
Responding to the news that the Labour-Plaid government has allowed the spending gap per pupil to rise to a record level of £604 per pupil, Jenny Randerson AM, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Education Minister said: "This is yet more evidence that the Labour-Plaid government is failing our children. The Welsh Liberal Democrats have warned for years that the spending gap of £500 per pupil between England and Wales would have disastrous consequences. The impact of having Plaid Cymru in the government with Labour is that the spending gap has grown to over £600. "Sadly, Welsh children are now paying the ...
Today's news on Control Orders is good news. They have been watered down in many areas, and the conditions in which those held without trial are kept will be improved in many areas. The time during which the new orders apply has been fixed, and the amount of time people can be held without trial ...
Page 29 of the Cabinet report today contained the following lines: (v) The £6m available to the capital programme from the withdrawal of budgets to be utilised as follows: • The Consett Sports Project is presently partially funded by the use of £4.1m of General Reserve. It is recommended that the reduction in capital budget be utilised by removing the need to use General Reserve. This will enable General Reserve levels to be maintained. • The Consett Sports Project was also originally financed partially by £1.9m of grants / contributions, which will no longer be forthcoming. It is recommended that ...
With thanks to a tweet from @helenduffett I fell upon this HM Treasury announcement that has been released today. As it reads: "The Chancellor of the Exchequer has this day appointed Gerard Adams to be Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead". I know that this is Parliamentary protocol but as the BBCs Michael Crick blogged about here last Monday, Adams as has ever been his way, has not gone about resigning from Parliament to stand in the Irish elections next month in the conventional way. So will he openly refute this piece of protocol? Well, unless or until ...
To my shame, I have to confess that today was the first time I've ever watched Scotland Questions all the way through in this Parliament. I have usually been way too disorganised to find out when it was on and just caught the end when switching on for Prime Minister's Questions. In the last Parliament, I got heartily fed up of listening to then Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy spouting pure poison, using the word patriot as if it were a political weapon and putting the emphasis on bashing anyone who dared disagree with him rather than actually answering questions in ...
Recommended reading for Lib Dem councillors and local campaigners from the last seven days: The Telegraph reports on: Alan Johnson resignation: Ed Balls gets his way Writing in the Independent: Mary Ann Sieghart: Ed Balls will be a disaster for Labour The Guardian reports on: Control orders: home secretary tables watered-down regime Meanwhile The Telegraph reports on how: Nick Clegg: Lib Dems will not strike deal with Conservatives In local Government: Municipal Journal reports on: Funding gap of £165m estimated for pothole repair The Telegraph tells how: Half a million more homes lose weekly bin collections Lib Dem LGA Adult ...
We heard the news yesterday that Dennis 'The Menace' Tanner is to return to the cobbles of Coronation St this March. The son of Corrie legend Elsie Tanner, he appeared in the opening episode of the serial on December 9th 1960 having just been released from jail. He left the Street in 1968 when he married Jenny Sutton and moved to Bristol. Not only is he returning, but for authenticity's sake, the great news is that he's returning under the guise of Philip Lowrie, who originally played him in the 1960s. He has signed up for an initial 6 month ...
Now that the formalities of Gerry Adams vacating his seat, as Nigel Dodds wittingly said in PMQs to emigrate, or at least attempt, to so he can stand for the Dail Éireann, here is the next issue. The Parliament website says that: "Traditionally the Chief Whip of the political party whose MP held the vacant seat will begin the procedure for a by-election. This is known as 'moving the Writ' and takes the form of a motion in the House of Commons." This has to occur within the next three months now that the vacancy has arisen. Now the highest ...
The Coalition Government has today ended the political games played by the last Government over national security. The results of today's review are a major victory for those who have campaigned for so long against the deluge of authoritarian and draconian legislation passed by Labour, with Liberal Democrats delivering on our manifesto commitment to scrap control orders. This Government has created a package of counter terrorism and security powers which both protects our citizens and restores our freedoms. Lord Ken MacDonald, Liberal Democrat peer and former Director of Public Prosecutions, welcomed the review in his report saying the decisions "point ...
Why doesn't Twitter's OAuth let me specify the length of time a 3rd party has access to my account? Take a look at all the crap you've given access to your Twitter account. Are you ever going to use that "See how many of your friends like cheese" app again? No. Long time readers will know that I have some severe usability and security concerns with Twitter's OAuth implementation. See also my interview in The Register. Zach Holman has an entertaining and informative blog post about giving Twitter applications fine grained controls. Essentially, he's saying that you should be able ...
The latest ICM poll for the Guardian has the Lib Dems on 15%, with Labour on 39% and the Conservatives on 35%. Now, obviously you can't look at polls in isolation as they are always liable to be out by plus or minus two or three percentage points but, having said that, it does form part of an underlying trend on ICM which showed a Lib Dem decline since the election and now shows what looks like the start of a gradual recovery. In my opinion this recovery was only to be expected as the tuition fees fiasco (quite rightly) ...
We discussed a report into the legal situation around A-boards and signs attached to lamp-posts, railings and traffic lights at Cheadle Area Committee. There's a lot to it (you can read the four-page report starting on page 35 of the committee agenda here). The discussion covered all sorts of obstructions to the highway. On A-boards, the Council has the power to ban them completely, but currently works to a compromise (since shop owners want to attract customers and not all A boards cause a problem). Under a policy inherited from the old Greater Manchester Council , A boards are permitted ...
There are times when I really wish we were in Government on our own. Then we could simply reduce the pre charge detention time to the matter of hours, or certainly less than a week, that it is across Europe. Then we could completely get rid of measures which restrict people's liberty when they haven't been found guilty of anything. Today's announcement by Conservative Home Secretary Theresa May on the review of counter terrorism legislation has some welcome steps in the right direction. For example: The end of Section 44 searches where Police could stop anyone they felt like or ...
As has been widely reported, Reading Borough Council, like all other local authorities is faced with the need to make big savings as a result of the reduction in the amount available to the Council via the Local Government Settlement. This was the subject of a Council debate at the full Council meeting yesterday. Draft savings proposals were outlined for inclusion into the 2011/12 draft budget - to be approved in a few weeks time. In total the Council needs to find £17.8 million pounds worth of savings - an unprecedented amount. Finding this level of savings has been incredibly ...
It seems my search for a comfortable sinecure will have to continue, as Parliamentary tradition has been upheld now Gerry Adams has decided to end the rather pointless deadock over his resignation by accepting the role as Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. He may, of course, have noted that David Davis For Freedom took the job of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds and immediately resigned from it in 2008, so is likely planning the same course of action. It would be interesting if he could keep the role for just a little while, if only so ...
All, The Town Council were given a presentation on Monday about potential redevelopment of the Pettiphers Garage site. The plans would include a store on the ground floor, with 8 flats above (4 single bedroomed and 4 2-bedroomed). The store would be slightly larger than the former Somerfields. I've included some drawings from the developers here: 10-043 3D Telegraph Street View 10-043 3D Street Scene View 10-043 3D Street Corner View 10-043 3D Rear View 10-043 3D Bus Stop Sketch View There are a number of things to look at in the plan. It does provide additional store space, which ...
There are several things I like in today's announcement on counter-terrorism. The first two things we already had, but it's been confirmed there is no intention to reintroduce them. Firstly, 28 day detention is out the window, down to 14 days as the previous legislation had a sunset clause in it that had lapsed. The government is drafting legislation to increase this to 28 days but not actually introducing it, basically reserving parliaments right to change it's mind in future. (Which seems reasonable) Secondly, section 44 stop-and-search powers were already gone as they were ruled a breach of Human Rights. ...
I can't believe how I fell for it. The idea that Reading Labour were somehow a well oiled political machine. Last night they were a shambolic mess. There's nothing against the rules that says the Mayor has to be apolitical during a council meeting as the ceremonial and political functions are clearly split in the constitution. However, there have been long standing conventions that appear to be proving inconvenient at the moment to the Reading Labour party. It was clear from the first full Council meeting when Glenn Goodall was passed over in asking a supplemental question in favour of ...
Nick and Danny, David and George, here's some advice on cutting deficits from Barack Obama giving the State of the Union address."I am willing to eliminate whatever we can honestly afford to do without but let's make sure that we're not doing it on the backs of our most vulnerable citizens."Oh yes, and for Vince:"Cutting the deficit by cutting the investments in innovation and education is like
New Footcare Clinic in Stockwood A new footcare clinic begins at Stockwood Medical Centre 10-30am - 1pm Mondays. Run by Age UK you can have your feet looked after for an initial fee of £5, thereafter £10. Be the first 75 attending and you will get a free footcare kit. The service includes basic footcare advice, such as toenail cutting, filing & skin-care treatments for older people needing help. Contact Lorraine Age UK Bristol on 0117 928 1540. Interested in learning how to grow your own food? If you are interested in growing your own food, being involved in growing ...
There is a real risk that expertise will be replaced by advocates, and peer review by opinion, says Dr Evan Harris Last week the Home Office appointed a Manchester GP, Dr Hans-Christian Raabe to serve on the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. Until last month Dr Margaret Birtwistle was the GP member of the ACMD. Dr Birtwistle is a GP Consultant to Surrey Drug Action Team as well as senior tutor at St George's Hospital, a forensic medicine examiner and a trainer. And until relatively recently, Dr Clare Gerada was also on the ACMD. She was primary care ...
This morning's meeting of the Cabinet was pretty grim. Spending cuts are extremely unattractive, because even when they result in efficiency savings (and there will be many of those) which don't affect front line services, they still result in job losses which can be devastating for the individuals affected and their families. The surpise announcement, therefore, in a world where the council says it will have to shed 1,600 jobs over the next three years, was that 1,500 people have expressed an interest in Early Retirement or Voluntary Redundancy. That's an increase of 700 in the week since the cabinet ...
It was interesting to see Labour launch into the Government over the news that the economy contracted during the last quarter of 2010. The current strategy of Labour would appear to be to admit responsibility for nothing, take credit for anything good and keep their own policies to themselves. Second choice as shadow chancellor, Ed Balls, could barely contain his smiles at the announcement that the economy had contracted but could only offer the previously well worn mantra. The fact of the matter is that the economy was severely affected by the longest cold snap of weather in a century. ...
The Tories running the County Council have decided to ignore residents' wishes and push ahead with a plan which will see dozens of subsidised bus services lost in the next four years. A likely early casualty is the free Cambridge city centre "Circular" bus, which the rural Conservatives regard as a luxury. This service was introduced alongside the pedestrianisation scheme, so that people who cannot walk long distances would still have access to it. Losing it would be disastrous for the pedestrian area. Cambridge LibDems have launched a petition to try and save this service from the axe. You can ...
[IMG: Ed Balls in Q&A on education] Image by Downing Street via Flickr Ed Miliband was today flanked by his new Shadow Chancellor in Prime Minister's Questions, giving Cameron ample opportunity to test out the Government's remixed attack of tying the two Ed's to their Brown past, and his disastrous economic legacy. [IMG: CBI annual conference 2010] Image by The CBI via Flickr Perhaps it was Miliband's fault. His fast question asked who was to blame for the bad GDP figures, which instigated much pointing at Ed Balls and cries of 'you' from the coalition. Time and time again though ...
Anyone who's visited Kings Avenue in Gatley recently might have noticed a section of pavement covered in wooden boards. There's a problem with a water leak from somewhere that's leading to water pooling and then draining slowly into one of the gardens. A good deal of work has been done by the Council and United Utilities to identify where the problem is coming from (hence the hole in the pavement, the result of trial digs to explore further) but so far without success. As I mentioned earlier today, the water network's complex and the issue could lie with the Council, ...
Good news on the e mail today! A planning application's going in for new houses on the site of the former Bankfield House (this is at the Banks Road/Brunswick Street junction) The plan is for 18 properties - all with three bedrooms. Obviously there are a lot of steps before this becomes approved, built and occupied but its great to see some progress. People have been living next to/opposite what has become a fly tipping location for a while now and I am sure this will come as good news to them.
In a matters of weeks this blog has been viewed over a thousand times (which compared to the traffic other new (and established) blogs get is quite astounding). The most popular pages have been the homepage (naturally) and a page about myself. The top ten most popular stories have been:- 1. A story about housing ...
Earlier this week I mentioned that Andrew Neil has a programme on BBC Two this evening (starting at 9 p.m.) asking why it is that the British political system is increasingly dominated by people who were privately educated. He has also written an article on the subject for the BBC website: The decline of the unions has clearly cut off one working-class route to Westminster. So has the decline of an affluent, aspiring working class, which seemed to disappear with the end of the Industrial Age. But our education system must have something to do with it as well. Almost ...
Wed 26th
12:46
Ros in the Lords: Written Question - National Parks and Access to Countryside Act 1949
You'll remember that Ros and I had visited our local nature reserve, following the proposal from Suffolk County Council to divest itself of its responsibilities for maintenance of country parks and nature reserves. It struck us as being odd that a local authority could simply walk away from its obligations like that, and so Ros decided to test the Government's stance on the issue... 19 January 2011 Question Asked by Baroness Scott of Needham Market To ask Her Majesty's Government whether a local authority has the power to stop managing local nature reserves which are provided under section 21 of ...
There've been a series of exhibitions by Peel Energy about proposals for a "tidal barrage". Obviously however there'll be people with a lot to say about this who simply couldn't get to the exhibitions. Here is the link to the website about the proposals and the consultation. There has already been some comment on this, both pro and anti. Here is a link to an organisation with concerns about what's being suggested.
A few weeks ago it snowed, which was nice. But then is snowed and snowed and snowed and snowed and snowed some more until lots of people were mightily fed up with the whole cold, wet, sorry mess. A white Christmas is lovely, but not if you want to walk to the end of the street ...
Last night the re-hashed report about the future of Children's Centre charges came before the Council's Internal Scrutiny panel. If you remember, last time the report was so lacking in detail, and the Cabinet Member who had decided to increase the numbers of charges being levied was so clueless, that we sent both him and it ...
I'll preface this by saying that Wonga's lawyers are far better than mine. Wonga, the payday loan company, has found itself in a bit of hot water recently. They've had an Advertising Standards Authority adjudication against one of their adverts and they have raised the ire of Stella Creasy MP over their sponsorship of the Tube on New Years. Even London's mayor has said people should be aware of the extortionate rates of interest that they can charge and people should not enter into irrational or unwise debt obligations Now, I'm not convinced that payday loan companies are bad per ...
I recall watching a cold war documentary about 15 years ago, where one of the Soviet survivors recalled Russian pride in 1957 when the launch of Sputnik 1 edged the USSR over the USA in development of Space technology. On that day he said he wandered around town cheerfully saying "Beep, beep" to anyone who would listen and yet avoided being sent to Siberia. In the US the event precipitated the Sputnik Crisis, a series of policy responses that led to the formation of NASA, millions in investment in education, and the most earnest period of the Space Race, eventually ...
Normally VN doesn't report back on by-elections, we leave that to our exceptionally well informed friends over at Lib Dem Voice, but we couldn't quite let this go. After being accused of putting up a paper candidate in Oldham East and Saddleworth, the Conservatives took a different approach in a council by-election in the Marl ward of Conwy, North Wales. They decided to field a poster candidate instead! Julie Fallon, or 'Julie from Llandudno' as she was known in the Conservative General Election poster campaign (below), was off the billboards and onto the ballot paper. Being a Tory poster-girl didn't ...
Sir Menzies Campbell led a debate on the future of RAF Leuchars in Westminster today (25th January 2011). An edited transcript of the debate is below: 25 Jan 2011 : Column 265 RAF Leuchars Sir Menzies Campbell (North East Fife) (LD): I am glad to have the opportunity to initiate the debate on the future of Royal Air Force Leuchars, which lies near St Andrews in my constituency of North East Fife. A number of other hon. Members have indicated a wish to make short interventions, and I am happy that they should do so. In addition, I have the ...
[IMG: Lib Dem manifesto cover] The following meeting report appears in the latest edition of the Journal of Liberal History - sent free to members of the Liberal Democrat History Group: Conference fringe meeting, 19 September 2010, with Professor John Curtice, Professor Dennis Kavanagh and James Gurling. Chair: Tony Little. Report by Dr Mark Pack.It has become a Liberal Democrat History Group tradition at the first Liberal Democrat conference after each general election to hold a fringe meeting looking back on the results and placing them in historical perspective. The historical contextPsephologist John Curtice from Strathclyde, a long-term Liberal Democrat ...
Wed 26th
10:46
Planning Committee - 25th January 2011 - Part 6 - Liverpool Waters - Consultation by Liverpool City ...
Agenda item 11 was in three parts, the report, appendix 1 and appendix 2. There were two recommendations in the report at 19.1 and 19.2. These were in relation to the Liverpool Waters and Wirral Waters projects and are below:- 19.1 Members are requested to note the decision by the Secretary of State not to ...
In the past I have posted on here about the ongoing (7 years plus) campaign to get some form of emergency service for children in Southport. In my last posting on the subject NHS Stitch Up I explained how we had reached stalemate and how we hoped that a meeting with the Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley may be able to move the situation forward. Well the revised report requested by the Minister has been produced and guess what absolutely no movement with regard to the Primary Care Trusts decision regarding a WIC for Children in Southport. You ...
Wed 26th
10:34Planning Committee - 25th January 2011 - Part 5 - APP/10/01303 - Derelict site, Dock Road North, Bro...
Item 9 was APP/10/01303 – Derelict site, Dock Road North, Bromborough – Relocation of plots 12-18 and 46-54 inclusive due to existing and proposed drainage basement routes, the widening of all footpaths to 2m and omission of grassed service verges(Minor Amendment to planning permission APP/2010/00672). Cllr Brighouse asked as this was adjacent to the landfill ...
Hot on the heels of Telegraph 'blogger' James Delingpole's meltdown on Horizon, the Telegraph has taken aim at another bugbear of the pro-science folk: the potential for an asteroid to smash into the Earth and extinguish almost all life. Apparently, we're all getting our knickers in a twist over nothing, because such an asteroid would ...
Wed 26th
10:29Planning Committee - 25th January 2011 - Part 4 - Items 7/8 - APP/10/01206 - Land bounded by Bedford...
Item 7 – APP/10/01206 – Land bounded by Bedford Road to north, New Chester Road to east and Nelson Road to south, Rock Ferry – erection of 78 houses and 57 apartments (extension to OUT/2006/7396) and item 8 – APP/10/01205 – Land bounded by Bedford Road to north, New Chester Road to east and Nelson ...
Kevin Hickson's volume, The political thought of the Liberals and Liberal Democrats since 1945, may be a short volume from an academic publisher with an academic book price tag to boot (look out for cheaper second-hand copies), but its contributors include many political practitioners. With Vince Cable, Steve Webb, David Howarth , Richard Grayson and Duncan Brack amongst them, this book has a very strong representation of people at the coalface of policy making rather than simply those who know of it only in theory. As Hickson points out in the book's introduction, the policies of the Liberal Democrats - ...
Nick Clegg frames the Lib Dems as the new progressives moving away from the 'poverty plus a pound' and towards increased social mobility. I think few could argue that there is a need for those who have the ability and try should be able to improve their standing in life. One significant area of a ...
Wed 26th
10:19Planning Committee - 25th January 2011 - Part 3 - Item 5 - APP/10/00999 - Melrose 90 Oldfield Road, ...
Cllr Johnson, having previously declared a prejudicial interest in this item, left the room during its consideration. The committee then moved onto item 5 which was another greenbelt application involving remodelling. The application would lead to an increased height to a two storey flat roof. There had been a late objection from the Heswall Society ...
This means that 40% of the books I've read this year have been by James Lovegrove, entirely caused by the fact that I saw this and The Hope next to each other in the library. Looking around the web after reading this, it's interesting to see the various SF sub-genres that other reviewers have tried to place this in and then come away disappointed that it doesn't fit their expectations of that genre. Some say it doesn't work as an alternate history because Lovegrove clearly hasn't spent ages detailing out his timeline, while others say it doesn't work as military ...
Two of the friends I made during my "year abroad" as part of my recent French course were fellow singers in the little church choir I joined in order to try and improve my French. (It was not as helpful as I'd hoped, as the choir specialised in Bach chorales and, being purists, sang them in German.) Annie and Guy lived near me so would give me a lift home in their car after choir practice. They were both enthusiastic Anglophiles (though they spoke no English,which was good for me) and, I think to flatter me, told me proudly how ...
Wed 26th
10:14
Postponed Development Control consideration of Wallington town hall railings application
D2010/63700 Orchard Hill College Old Town Hall WOODCOTE ROAD Reduction in height of wall at side to 1 metre, topped with 1.8 metre high railings and dismantling pillar opposite northern entrance and reconstruct up to 1.5 metres back from existing position. Please note that this application due to be considered by the Development Control Committee this evening ...
Planning Committee started with a different makeup of councillors to usual. A number of deputies were standing in for those who are usually on the Committee. Councillors present were:- Lib Dem Chair (Cllr Dave Mitchell) Cllr Alan Brighouse (Deputy for Cllr Kelly) Cllr Ann Bridson (Deputy for Cllr Gilchrist) Cllr Bob Wilkins (Deputy for Cllr ...
Across Cheadle, Gatley and Heald Green crime is down about 20% from 2009 to 2010, which is great news and equates to over 500 fewer victims of crime, including 483 fewer victims of anti-social behaviour. But the work goes on. In particular, Inspector Gilbertson asked people to think about what they leave in their gardens - lots of people leave things that could easily be used by burglars to help them break into houses such as tools or ladders, or sheds are left open. Burglary is down in our area, but by 7% as opposed to 24% across Stockport as ...
Wed 26th
09:43Planning Committee - 25th January 2011 - Part 2 - Item 4 - APP/10/01315 -2 Target Road, Heswall - De...
The committee then proceeded to consider item 4 – APP/10/01315 -2 Target Road, Heswall – Demolition of existing dwelling and attached garage. Construction of replacement dwelling and detached garage. There was a qualifying petition. The petitioner Paul Foley of 1 Target Road, Heswall (which is adjacent to no 2) addressed the Committee. He told the ...
Do you know your Beto Shuffle from your Cumbia Funk? Do you have the slightest clue what I'm on about, or does that last sentence make you scared? There's no need to be - these weird sounding things aren't medical procedures, they are Zumba moves. I'm now into my second week of Zumba classes and so far I'm really enjoying them. I have to say that last week the Wednesday class was much harder going than the Monday one. Wise people on Twitter suggested that two a week was maybe a bit too much to start with, but I think ...
Yeah, I got bored, so I started looking through WordPress themes and found one I liked (Librio 1.0, if you're interested). Everything should be working, and I've had a bit of a declutter, but please let me know if anything's broken or not working as it should.
Cornwall Council has just five days left to comply with new Government regulations about financial transparency. The rules mean that all spending over £500 must be published online by the end of this month. Cornwall's Council Leader Alec Robertson has twice been asked about this deadline and has confirmed both times that Cornwall will meet it. I'm sure that the Council will do so, but it's getting awfully tight...
Doctor Who Goes Plush I WANT A CUDDLY COLIN!!!! (tags: doctorwho) Ladies Making Comics Bayeaux Batman (tags: comics funny) "The Establishment" strikes back: SpAds, Dads and Rads Cicero wants to break down the walls and open it all up. Man. I'm with him. Are you? (tags: libdemmery thought) Take ten minutes to tell the Government what you think on wellbeing Go on, do what mummy Caron tells you. (tags: government) BBC News - BBC to cut online budget by 25% so long and thanks for all the fish, h2g2 (tags: media)
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: Valley Community Centre (off Dorning Road) Time: 6.30pm - 7.30pm No appointment needed. See you there!
Given my unabashed love of Neil Hannon's Divine Comedy, I'm ashamed to admit I've only just got round to acquiring his cricketing spin-off musical venture, Duckworth Lewis Method. I loved it. I. Loved. It. Abso-bloody-lutely loved it. I could write more along a similar theme (It I loved. Loved it I did. Did I love it? Yes. Etc.), but it's probably quicker to offer up my favourite track instead — Jiggery Pokery, a re-telling of Shane Warne's 'Ball of the Century' delivery to Mike Gatting in an England-Australia 1993 test match, which I remember watching umpteen replays of at the ...
No sooner has Tony Blair stepped off the witness stand at the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war and people are lining up to contradict him. In this case it is Lord Wilson and Lord Turnbull, who were both heads of the civil service under Mr Blair, neither of whom recognise the picture he painted of a fully informed and unanimous cabinet set to overthrow Saddam Hussein. According to today's Independent, both former Cabinet Secretaries made it clear that senior ministers were not kept up to date with Mr Blair's intentions: Far from keeping his Cabinet in the loop, Lord ...
I remember this act from the early 1990s. It turns out to have been an early incarnation of John Thomson. There is a longer set from Bernard Righton elsewhere on Youtube, but this gives you a good idea of what his act was like.
Following pressure from councillors and some other changes, the Council and United Utilities have made good progress on flooding issues at Ladybridge Road in Cheadle Hulme, Cross Road and Outwood Road in Heald Green and around Brookfield Crescent and Chapel Street in Cheadle. Pam and I have been particularly involved in the issue at Brookfield Crescent which, as we suspected, turns out to be the same problem that's been causing pooling at the bottom of Schools Hill. Here's what the Council have said about it: A large degree of debris has now been removed from the culverted watercourse running along ...
The sudden appearance of a number of rats on the steps of 10 Downing Street during live television broadcasts has led the authorities to seek a replacement for previous feline occupants of the famous street, Humphrey and Sybil. The Daily Telegraph says that David Cameron's aides have confirmed they will look for a new cat: A No, 10 official said: "We have not yet been to Battersea cats and dogs home - not yet." Cats have not had a happy time in Downing Street in recent years. Humphrey wandered into the building as a stray but was moved out at ...
broadcast anniversaries 26 January 1973: broadcast of third episode of Invasion of the Dinosaurs. The Doctor is playing with his Tyrannosaurus; Sarah is captured by Charles grover and wakes up on a space ship three months out of Earth. 26 January 1982: broadcast of fourth episode of Four to Doomsday. This is the one with the rebounding cricket ball getting the Doctor back into the Tardis. Monarch is killed by his own virus, and Nyssa faints. 26 January 1983: broadcast of fourth episode of Snakedance. The Mara is revived; but the Doctor smashes the Great Crystal and destroys it. 26 ...
President Obama has delivered his second State of the Union address. In the speech, that lasted just over an hour, Obama developed the theme of "winning the future", discussing future investments, innovation, and ideas. He cited China and India as competitors, but said that the country could reinvent itself to have "this generation's Sputnick moment". The speech will have won over some wavering independents, as the President put himself right on the centre ground. Bold and brave, without being barnstorming, President Obama decided that the best way to deal with a difficult present, was to look to a better future. ...
Thirty Six Days of Me: 06 Your Day, in Great Detail My day, like most weekdays (except Monday, on which I have no need to be anywhere of a morning, and Wednesday, which starts an hour earlier because I have a weekly appointment to talk with Abby over Skype), started at 7am when my cell phone alarmed yanked me out of a dream. I have no idea what it is about this apartment, but I suspect it's my super comfortable IKEA mattress that has given me the most detailed, vivid, plot based dreams with characters and themes. They're not particularly ...
Edinburgh West's MP Michael Crockart gave an unusual spin to his Toast to the Immortal Memory at the 20th annual Burns Night Supper hosted by Merton Liberal Democrats in South West London last night when he drew on images from love poems of Robert Burns to illustrate what had happened last May following the General Election. ...
Commission and Parliament hit by telephone outage | European Voice Belgacom strikes again! (tags: eu phone)
The news that took my attention yesterday was that all residential roads in Lancashire are going to have a 20mph speed limit. My first thought was that drivers in Morecambe and Lancaster may not be able to drive that quickly, but there are times when the roads are quiet. In fact I was walking the dog at around 11pm on Monday and a car drove past me driving far quicker than the 30mph limit. This notion of breaking the law regardless of the limit was mentioned on Look North West yesterday. One comment was that if drivers can't keep to ...
