This post was deliberately postponed to April 2nd for obvious reasons. I really don't want the Labour spin machine saying Lib Dems are using supporting Nick Clegg as an April Fools' Joke. Fellow Liberal Democrats, I am very disappointed in how many people are turning their backs on Nick Clegg, muttering behind his back and losing confidence, or even voting for Labour and the BNP. I can understand the student swing voters who only voted for the party out of their own self-interest (personally, as a student, I think Clegg's done the right thing on tuition fees, but got it ...
"It must have been a week or so after the departure of Claude and Eustace that I ran into young Bingo Little in the smoking-room of the Senior Liberal Club. He was lying back in an armchair with his mouth open and a goofy expression in his eyes, while a grey-bearded cove in the middle distance watched him with so much dislike that I concluded that Bingo had pinched his favourite seat. That's the
Iain Brodie Brown has pointed out that Hannay was in Galloway, not the Highlands. I've checked the chapter called "The adventure of the radical candidate". The meeting was in a town called Brattleburn, described as "an infernal Tory stronghold". It doesn't appear to be on the map but there is a Brattleburn bothy just North-West of Moffat pictured above.
Later today the English Defence League are holding a protest in Blackburn which, according to them, will be peaceful. I am not sure how they can be so sure as they also tell us that they manage to attract "wrong-uns". How could such a peace-loving organisation attract those with a violent nature? Come to that, why are they demonstrating in Blackburn? It isn't the Blackburn branch (if there is one) that has organised the event. On the other hand Blackburn and Darwen Unite Against Racism (BADUAR) has organised a counter-protest. I am taking a wild guess here but the organisers ...
Friday: There's been un peut d'un spat between Mr Huhney-Monster and Baroness Insider Warsi over her scaremongering that AV will aid the British Nasty Party. As you might EXPECT, Baroness Warsi has it all BACKWARDS. Let me explain. Let's take a COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS example of share of the vote: e.g. the latest YouGov Poll: Sickly Green 2% Scots/Plaid 4% Hard Labour 42% Liberal Democrat 10% Conservatory 35% UKPNuts 5% British Nasty Party 2% Suppose you're a Conservatory: whose second preferences will you go after? The 7% of UKIP/BNP voters to your right? Or the 51% of voters to your Left? ...
Today the South Downs National Park Authority went fully live in what was the final stage of designating Britains newest National Park. I'm absolutely thrilled that Petersfield is part of the park and am looking forward to the increased tourist ... Continue reading →
Myself and my fellow local Lib Dems left the meeting feeling cheered, invigorated and ready for the political fight ahead.
New blow to faltering Liberal Democrats as London Mayoral candidate Lembit Opik loses his weekly newspaper column with the Daily Sporttrills Another Green World. Had its writer been as dedicated to research as I was earlier this evening, he would have visited the Sport's Lembit Opik archive. There he would have found that the former Lib Dem MP has not written for the paper since he went off to the jungle. (If you try to access that archive now you will find that the paper's website is not working properly. Pray God someone kept a copy. Later. Thanks to the ...
This week's Friday favourite shows Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart at their pomp. But it's not the Eurythmics. It's with the late Pete Coombes as part of the ultimate post punk pop band the Tourists. And one of the bizarre things about this video is it's filmed at the semi derelict Quainton Road station on the old Great Central mainline. And as a result I hope Lord Bonkers and his representative on the interweb - Jonathan Calder appreciate it.
The Independent reports: The police chief who headed Scotland Yard's inquiry into phone-hacking dined with the News of the World at the height of his criminal investigation into the newspaper. The sensitively timed meeting between then Assistant Commissioner Andy Hayman and the NOTW was left off lists of contacts between senior officers and the paper's owner sent to the Metropolitan Police Authority. Its disclosure in a Freedom of Information request prompted claims that the force had an unduly "cosy relationship" with Rupert Murdoch's print empire News International (NI)... Liberal Democrat MPA member Dee Doocey said: "It is extraordinary that when ...
I have always found St Paul to be a most antipathetic character — enough to put anyone off Christianity for life. He might have had a conversion on the road to Damascus, but it wasn't a conversion half enough, as far as I'm concerned. Of course, that was nearly 2,000 years ago and mores change. Anyway, ...
There was a bit of buzz around the blogosphere today when Iain Dale announced that after four months away he was stepping back into the fray. The references to being nice(r) about Ed Ball's, being a music blogger, and claiming having to obey Ofcom regulations on his blog should have given it away that it ...
Good news from this blog's second home in the Shropshire hills. The South Shropshire Journal reports that the Heritage Lottery Fund has agreed to provide development funding of £56,500 towards the restoration of Bishop's Castle Town Hall: The main features of the project are: to restore the building's fabric to its original sustainable condition using traditional materials and skills; to provide disabled access and internal access to modern toilet facilities; improve energy efficiency and heating and to enhance the public spaces within the Town Hall, particularly the market hall, to accommodate a range of new uses including heritage learning, art, ...
Last week, at the request of residents, I attended the licensing sub-committee to speak against the New Inns application to increase weekend opening hours to 1.00am, live music until midnight and remove the condition that states they must employ door staff. To briefly explain how it works. To run premises selling alcohol, the premises must have a licence (it should also be supervised by
Well census day has been and gone and the media hype generated by a multi-million pound, tax payer funded marketing budget is starting to die down. Only time will tell whether the 2011 census was the last or whether it will return in 2021. Sadly the question as to what happens to our data remains as nothing has been done to close the legal loopholes created by the previous government that enable census data-sharing. What has caught some attention is Lockheed Martin's involvement and an early day motion has been created warning of the potential risks of the US government ...
You will remember that for some years we have been looking to get the pinch point removed from the bottom of London Road. Plans were drawn up on how both the flow of traffic could be improved, but also speed controlled. Shortly before the consultation, a student was involved in an accident on the road, she later died from the injuries suffered. It was agreed that all work should be halted
I was watching last nights BBC Question Time on iPlayer here. What astounded me was the amount of confusion over the country's finances. Mark Serwotka, the General Secretary of the Public & Commercial Services Union was confusing our debt with the deficit. A lady in the audience confused the cyclic deficit with the structural deficit
This is my seventh monthly round of blog figures for anyone who is remotely interested in who reads my little blog. These stats for the month of March come courtesy of google analytics. At last, my blog has finally calmed down after a frenetic first 6 months of blogging. After a month-on-month continued growth, March saw the first overall fall back on the month before. It was nevertheless only a mild fall back and it was still an active month on the blog. Having blogged a record 42 times in January and 40 times in February, I was down to ...
Yes, that's right. On 18 April Reading Borough Council implements the closure of Station Hill and marks the death of any chances of a proper integrated transport hub. Ever since I first learned more than two years ago of what has been planned for this area, I have campaigned for a more sensible approach to be taken and for Reading to seize a unique opportunity to have a single integrated transport hub, next to the Station, that would be the envy of many towns and cities across the UK. Places that have moved away from this approach repent at their ...
So this morning LibDemVoice announce that it had been bought out by Lord Ashcroft as was renamed LibDemHome. Of course being announce in the morning of the 1st April it was just an April Fools joke. One first conceived over two years ago, and started three months ago, but to ensure that everything went smoothly (and that I didn't have to flick a switch whilst asleep) here are the steps used to have a new domain name, different theme and redirects. The Domain Some webhosting companies will allow you to park a domain at your site. What this results in ...
The Shetland Underground...
One of the highlights of last Christmas' TV viewing was Little Crackers: David Baddiel. It told the hilarious tale of when Norris McWhirter, at the height of his fame from Record Breakers, visited Baddiel's school in 1978. The excited teenage boys at Haberdasher's Aske's school were expecting to revel in McWhirter's fantastic knowledge of record facts and figures. Instead, they had to sit through him droning on about his Freedom Association. When it came to the questions, Baddiel was bursting to ask about records, but instead the first question threw him as it was neither about records nor the Freedom ...
I had written an 'April Fool' post a few days ago that was scheduled to appear here just after midnight. However, I read it again and decided it just wasn't that funny. So it's gone. As such, you'll have to make do with a repeat (kind of) instead. *Drum roll* The graphic below shows the 30 most popular posts on this blog as voted for read by you, dear reader, in the first quarter of this year. [IMG: Most popular posts - Q1 2011] Most popular posts - Q1 2011 Here's the repeat bit – these were the most popular ...
When you go to another country, for a short or long stay, it's always important to keep an eye on some of the more eye-catchingly different laws. For instance if, unlike me, you are into your recreational drugs you might act differently depending on whether you were in Amsterdam or in Bangkok. In that vein I have one very strict rule regarding my own personal travel arrangements: I will not visit a country where homosexuality is illegal. It's partly out of a sense of personal safety and partly out of respect for those still suffering under such an illiberal Government. ...
At last some good news for Southport. I picked up Wednesday's copy of the Visiter to find "Good News" articles about: Rotten Row, King's Gardens, Crossens Rec and Southport's Launch of Britain in Bloom. All falling within my portfolio for Leisure & Tourism. Pictured above are myself, officers, volunteers and judges at last year's Northwest in Bloom competition. At last year's competition we won several awards including the opportunity to enter Southport into the national Britain in Bloom competition. The team behind the campaign met last night to consider the best strategies for making the bid a success. The main ...
At least I hope they are. 1. Lib Dem Voice to be renamed Lib Dem Home.. 2. Arise. Lord Schwarzenegger 3. Red Flag Street parties for Labour's Royal Wedding 4. Iain Dale is back blogging... 5. UK UnCut launches Political Party. Enjoy!
Last night I hosted this years Edinburgh Social Work Lecture. The speaker was Gordon Lishman, former Director of Age Concern England. Gordon spoke very eloquently about older peoples services and how all too often short term politics gets in the way of necessary lasting change. He touched on the challenges of overcoming bureaucracies and presented an Interesting perspective on 'specialisms' and the fact that sometimes these can stand in the way of joint working. This was compounded by the caricatures associated with different professions e.g. 'economists are cold and unfeeling', 'social workers are woolly and can't project manage'. He also ...
There was a car crash on St. Ann's Road North this morning – serious enough for the police to attend and someone to be taken to hospital. I don't know the details, but it may be connected to concerns Pam, myself and local residents have been raising with the amount of traffic on the road, more aggressive driving and the problem of cars from Cheadle Royal starting to park along the road. Although there are definitely no easy answers, we're looking at all of those problems in detail, getting ideas from residents and hopefully finding ways to improve the situation ...
Tory politicians. You can't take your eyes off them for a minute. I talked up David Willetts yesterday for his radical ideas about improving social mobility in higher education, by allowing pupils with lower grades from poorer performing schools to usurp pupils with better grades - but loads of advantages to getting them (generally because they are at private schools). Maybe someone told him that he was being praised in the Lib Dem blogosphere and it spooked him. Because he's now gone all True Blue and Old Tory and blamed the travails of the world and in particular the failure ...
This morning I spent some time in Hexham Road Estate with a couple of fantastic officers from the Council's Housing Department. I remember all too clearly what this area looked like when it was represented by three Labour councillors. It was badly neglected by them when I first got involved in campaigning in Reading: abandoned cars, graffiti, fly-tipping and other forms of anti-social behaviour were all big problems for residents. The estate could not look and feel more different now - thanks to the work led by the local Lib Dem team and much-needed improvements funded by our local Decent ...
I was in the hall during the great NHS debate at the Liberal Democrats' spring conference in Sheffield last month, but have only recently tracked down and listened to a recording. I suggest that you should too, because in the space of three minutes, Baroness Shirley Williams gave the conference a masterclass in political communications. (Click here - her speech is about 26 minutes in.) Whether she realised it or not, Baroness Williams followed the key steps set out in Stephen Denning's book, The Secret Language of Leadership (John Wiley and Sons, 2007). But she built on them as well. ...
This post is just to ask a favour of my readers, if any of you can help. I'm currently finishing up the first draft of volume 1 of my three-volume look at the Beach Boys' music, which I plan to send out to my beta readers this weekend and have published hopefully within a few ...
Fri 1st
13:57
"You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done wi...
Last week's council meeting produced some interesting and revealing moments. There were three motions on the order paper and we shall return to the first two later but for now let us look at the one moved by my fellow Birkdale Councillor Simon Shaw. We trailed this motion earlier in the week. It charted Labour's abdication of responsibility over the budget in Sefton. They have voted against almost all the proposal for reductions and championed every aggrieved lobby group without moving any coherent alternative. The question that is inevitably raised by such conduct in the context of Sefton's all party ...
In a speech yesterday Minister for the Armed Forces Nick Harvey both showed how ministers can stake out clearly different ground from the Conservatives and also gave a hint of major debates over nuclear weapons yet to come. In his speech to the Franco-British Council Defence Co-operation Conference Nick Harvey said, As you will know, the two parties in the UK coalition Government have a different approach to the renewal of the current Trident system, but we are jointly pledged to maintain Britain's nuclear deterrent... As a Liberal Democrat Minister in this UK Coalition Government, I have the freedom to ...
As part of the Corso Street 2nd Development roof repair programme, re-roofing works will take place from 18th April onwards, covering 14, 16, 18, 20, 19 and 21 Abbotsford Place. The Housing Department has produced a useful leaflet to update residents about the planned work, along with contact details should residents have any questions.
As Alexis Rowell (formerly a trailblazing Camden councillor who had a real impact on the environment) points out in a letter in today's Guardian, there are lessons for Liberal Democrats to learn from the results of last week's German state elections in Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg. The status of the nuclear debate in Germany was emphasised in the boost to the Greens, which is unlikely to be repeated in the UK: the German Greens are a much more mature party, and the Liberal Democrats' anti-nuclear position, reflected in the subtleties of Chris Huhne's work, are likely to mean the financial risk ...
Fri 1st
13:16
Cornwall Council's idea of strong strategic leadership - throwing their toys out of the pram
Yesterday came the news that the Government has rejected the proposal for the new Isles of Scilly link. Not only that, but they were utterly scathing of the bid, calling it 'very poor value for money'. In response, today Cornwall Council has pulled out of the whole scheme. There has been considerable debate on the plans for the new larger vessel and the associated harbour works in Penzance. There have also been questions about why the Duchy of Cornwall was not contributing more. And there is probably a valid debate about why the Government continued to encourage the scheme only ...
Following a busy surgery in Blackness Primary School last night, as the schools come off on holiday today, my ward surgeries don't take place over the next couple of weeks. They start again on Monday 18th April, but meantime I can be contacted as follows : By phone : Dundee 459378 at any time By e-mail : fraser@frasermacpherson.org.uk
Responding to David Cameron's speech in Swansea, Peter Black, South Wales West lead Regional Assembly Candidate said: "David Cameron today gave his backing for the Tories in Wales' plans to take a machete to the economic development, training, education, transport and housing budgets in the National Assembly. The Tories want to protect bloated bureacacy and managers in the NHS. They just don't realise that this will put Wales further behind where Labour and Plaid Cymru have left it. "Welsh Liberal Democrats will focus on tackling the skills gap and making sure that Wales is a good place to do business. ...
Ed Balls on whether there was a structural deficit under Labour: "I don't think so" (BBC interview, 30 January) "Of course there was" (New Statesman interview, 31 March)
Fri 1st
12:57
Suffolk want small children to clean up litter near their schools. Am I wrong to worry about this?
Reading through my papers following last night's Parish Council meeting, I have come across a letter from Lisa Chambers, the Portfolio Holder for Waste on Suffolk County Council. In it, she talks about the 2011 Don't be a Tosser campaign, which launched on Monday, the closure of seven of the eighteen Household Waste Recycling Centres, and the reduction in the opening hours for the remaining eleven, as well as the launch of a new fly-tipping squad (presumably to deal with those people who can't or won't drive the increased distances to the Household Waste Recycling Centre...). All depressing enough, I ...
Bury's top Police office, Police Chief Superintendent Jon Rush, gave a presentation to local councillors on Wednesday night outlining the future of Policing in the borough as the service deals with the budgetary pressures that all public servuces are under as a result of deficit-cutting measures. It was actually good news. It was confirmed that Bury ...
How AV Works and why you should do it And here's one from the alternative direction - what's wrong with FPTP.. If you're seeing this on Lib Dem Blogs, it will appear meaningless as the video doesn't show on the sampler - so best click for a proper look... And here's a very funny video about us which has nothing to do with AV but makes you laugh at what the world actually thinks of us...
This morning I submitted myself to the grilling of 100 Launceston College Year 12 Citizenship students alongside Launceston Town Mayor Paul O'Brien. The aim of the exercise was to explain what the different tiers of elected representatives do, how we got to where we are today and how we interact with each other and with MPs. Among the questions I got were ones on tuition fees (I think the Government is wrong), the AV referendum (I'm in favour because it gives more power to voters) and whether I feel frustrated or enthusiastic in my role (both - sometimes I win, ...
It is with growing respect that I have been following the WI's Care not Custody Campaign As they say: More than two-thirds of all prison inmates have two or more mental health problems such as depression and anxiety. Many have a history of attempted suicide and self-harm, while significant numbers have severe and ongoing problems such as schizophrenia or personality disorders.
28) Martin Warner (ed.), Religion and Philosophy (Supplement to 'Philosophy': Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplement 31) (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992, ISBN 052142951X). This consists of a selection of paired essays on relevant topics, one essay in each set responding to the other, all originally written for a religious education conference in 1991 - although I do wonder what the RE teachers made of it, as it's pretty heavy stuff with no discussion of pedagogy or how the ideas discussed could be used in the classroom. My reason for reading this was, once again, that my late supervisor Renford Bambrough ...
It's an odd one this. Despite oodles of fact-checking website posts endorsing the fact Barack Obama was born in Hawaii, and the Hawaii Department of Health certifying that he did, the "birthers" carry on undiminished. They think Obama's poor mother did a moonlight flit from Hawaii to Kenya/Indonesia to have little Barack and then there was a major multi-agency conspiracy to falsify documents giving the birth location just in case Obama one day became the first black man to be President of the USA. Now Donald Trump is leading the birthers. Well, it's a great way of him firing up ...
Welcome to the latest in our series giving the human face behind some of the blogs you can find on the Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator. Today it is Liberal Democrat peer (and former MP) Paul Tyler who blogs at www.lordsoftheblog.net. 1. What's your formative political memory? Suez, October 29th 1956. Israel with British collusion bombed the Suez Canal on my 15th birthday! 2. When did you start blogging? About three years ago. 3. Why did you start blogging? I was invited to do so by the Hansard Society, who set up LordsoftheBlog to try to engage people outside Westminster in ...
Dorian Kelly (Artistic Director for Colchester Carnival) has asked for this news to be passed around as widely as possible: Artists opportunity from Illuminati Creative Arts in conjunction with Colchester Carnival 2011, Slack Space, and Firstsite. Artists who live or work in the Essex and Suffolk area are invited to apply to take part in a 3 day Carnival Arts training course, There are spaces for 12 people. The course, normally costing £300, is fully funded and is completely free . The training takes place at Slack Space in Colchester in from Sunday 15th May to Tuesday 17th May inclusive, ...
Fri 1st
11:01
EXCLUSIVE! New evidence suggests Nick Clegg is, apparently, very popular amongst Lib Dems...
We're a quarter of the way through the year and so I thought I'd list the most popular posts on the blog this year. And I write one post in three months - just the one - defending Nick and it gets more readers than anything else. It would seem we're still quite keen on our glorious leader, no matter what the media in general or the comments section on Lib Dem Voice would have you believe. Anyway, here we go... 1. Nick Clegg bashing by the press is getting ludicrous now (24 Feb) The Tories turn the NHS on ...
Those who like to paint themselves green should distance should themselves from the charlatans in the Reading Labour Party as quickly as possible. And if you are a Labour councillor that includes you if you want to be taken seriously. Reading WILL get a greener recycling scheme and it won't be any thanks to Labour. In fact they fought tooth and nail with a sprinkling of vitriol when Lib Dems tried to get glass recycling, anaerobic digesters and meaningful cuts in CO2 levels implemented in Reading and their actions when in power of following national Labour party dogma rather than ...
[IMG: Newsletter screenshot] The latest edition of mine email newsletter about what's going on in the Liberal Democrats is out, featuring: Electoral reform Lib Dem successes (mostly) away from the headlines Who likes which party? Mayor of London Campaign Tip corner Party conference And finally... You can read it online here and once you have, please do also take part in my very quick reader survey. Finally, if you like it why not
Fri 1st
10:26
Five stories you shouldn't miss: what firms don't understand about customers, keeping tabs on key da...
[IMG: Top 5 picture] Cross-posted from the MHP Communications blog, my monthly round-up of five stories to read: Welcome to the latest monthly collection of five weblinks that you shouldn't miss, put together by the Digital Leadership Group. Thanks to everyone who contributed suggestions this month. The Perception Gap: Customers don't want what businesses think they want http://bit.ly/eU50VO Mitch Lieberman points out how some of the latest research shows that what brands think their customers want from them via social media is rather different from what the customers themselves say they want. GeckoBoard: Your business in real time http://bit.ly/dSHVOU Bring ...
I think April Fool began three days early for me this year. At least, I believe that's what one of the world's most famous courier companies has been doing to me all this week. I'm expecting a time-critical package from overseas that should have been with me by Tuesday at the latest. On Monday, I'm out walking the dogs and, as luck would have it, when I get back I find a card on the mat to say that said courier company has tried to deliver but I was out. On Tuesday morning, I email them, using the address provided ...
A new month means it is time to mention our next drop in session. As usual it will be held on the second Saturday of the month, which this month is April 9, and will be from 10am until noon at Arbury Community Centre. We usually sit in the reception area, but we have a private room if needed. If the weather is nice we might sit outside! This time Andy and myself are scheduled to attend.
Following the recent Budget announcement of £200 million to be made availabe for road repairs across the country, Durham County Council has been awarded £2.3 million for its roads. This represents almost a quarter of the total entitlement for the North East. The highways team at County Hall have confirmed that this additional funding will go a long way to restoring the condition of the network following the severe winter. During the summer months a programme of targeted resurfacing and structural patching works will be undertaken.
Wednesday night was Bury's Full Council meeting. This was the last full meeting of the Council before the local elections on 5th May 2011. Here's what happened: Apology from the Leader of the Labour Group The Bury's Labour Leader Cllr Mike Connolly read out an apology for not declaring an interest at a meeting of the Council last year. The issue was that he had proposed a motion about employment issues at Bury Council, without declaring that his partner works for the Council. A Standards Committee hearing had resolved that he had to read out an apology to the Council ...
I've been watching 10 o'clock Live over the past few weeks, to see if Lauren Laverne will ever be trusted to talk about the news without being pre-recorded, to see if Jimmy Carr will finally catch on to the fact that one-liners don't really work for satire, to see if David Mitchell will finally accept ...
It seems we are, yet again, suffering from selective amnesia on the consequences of providing military assistance to a militia in warfare. Again, officials in NATO are forgetting the Afghan – Soviet war and the Western support for the Afghan ... Continue reading →
[IMG: 20mph_schools.jpg] Conservatives on the Local Committee voted unanimously to reverse a commitment to implement 20mph limits near all local schools. In a dramatic U turn, members voted 8-1 to scrap the policy that the same committee had agreed to in 2004! Mine was the only dissenting voice. I was surprised and disappointed to see that Conservative councillors seem to be sending a message that the safety of our children is no longer a priority. Where these limits have been introduced there has normally been a marked decrease in average speeds. The police also supported the policy, stating in the ...
As a part of Liberal Democrat rebranding programme announced in the Telegraph on Sunday, several consultative forums have been set up to seek input from party stakeholders. We are pleased to announce our involvement in this programme, particularly in forums on Popularising Spending Reduction Visual Identity & Party Unity We will of course be seeking input to each of these streams from our readers and welcome your thoughts.
Macedonia have also sent an interesting pastiche song that is getting rave reviews. It's post-ironic statement is winning plaudits all over Europe. Click the link
Liberal Democrats have expressed concern about the plans of the Olympic Development Authority to use the Hertfordshire Showground near Redbourn as a car park for next year's Games. The facility would operate on a park and ride basis. Chris White, who raised the issue at this week's full council meeting, said: 'It is doubtful whether the authorities should be encouraging people to drive down down motorways rather than using the train – the Olympic and Paralympic event in 2012 has one of the best railway networks ever and people should be using public transport. 'Even if people are going to ...
The editorial in this morning's Guardian will make difficult reading for the Labour leadership. For, whilst the Government makes difficult and unpopular decisions to get the economy back on track, the opposition appear to be floundering. Indeed, as the paper puts it, Ed Miliband's personal support is, in some polls, worse than Iain Duncan Smith's at the same point in his leadership. Labour's problem is that they don't have an alternative: Last week's TUC march will in political terms be remembered less for the appalling violence of a minority, or the policing tactics, but for what it said about Labour's ...
"There was never a by-election like it, Tom, there was never any election like it. We are born, we get married, we divorce, we die. But somewhere along the way, if we get the chance, we should also stand as Liberal Candidate for...Gulworth North..." Thus begins Chapter 11 of John le Carré's A Perfect Spy. As far as I recollect the BBC version with Ray McAnally as Rick Pym, the candidate, based
I have had a meeting this week with Regulatory Services and discussed various ways of tackling this issue, from Education to fining. I will feedback on this later as it was a very comprehensive and productive meeting. Fixed Penalty notices issued 1st March to 31st March (Fines) Dog Fouling 22 Dropping Litter 2 I can also confirm that there will be more activities in relation to tackling this type of problem in the near future. Interesting Estimates It is estimated that one in three households include a dog, with around 100,000 households in Conwy and Denbighshire, it is estimated that ...
Sad news this morning that the former North Wales Conservative Assembly Member, Brynle Williams has died at the age of 62. Brynle had been ill for some time but at various stages it was hoped by all of us who knew him that he would recover and come back to join us in the Assembly chamber. He certainly never gave up, fighting to the end. So much so that he remained on the Conservative's North Wales list for next month's elections until he passed away. Brynle and I did not see eye to eye on everything but he was a ...
Wapley Bushes Conservation Group is trying to locate local people who took part in a mass planting on Sunday 13 March 1994. In just one morning 80 people - half of them children - planted 800 trees to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of Dodington Parish Council. It was an event called 'Plant a Tree for Mothers Day'. "Many of the trees planted in 1994 are now twenty feet tall" said Cllr Paul Hulbert, a member of Wapley Bushes Conservation Group. "We're planning a very special planting on Mothers Day next year - March 18th 2012 - to create a hedge ...
Niece-filled weekend: today seeing my 1-day old in Norwich (Grace, gorgeous), tmrw celebrating 3rd b'day in Oxford (Ana, also gorgeous).. # Was on good time to get back from Norwich for #TheKilling – now stuck in traffic on A40, just outside Oxford. So close. Grrr. # @mssusieday Pizza? Double woes [IMG: :(] in reply to mssusieday # @mssusieday TY [IMG: :)] Still no movement. Sat-nav assures us we're 'still on the fastest route'. Doubting this. [IMG: :(] in reply to mssusieday # @NickThornsby Lucky you, sitting in cold, dark car on A40 [IMG: :(] (Which would be fine but am ...
In spite of severe cuts to the County Council budget, a long awaited crossing facility for Pendleton Road near St Johns school has now been promised for the 2011/12 financial year, although it is likely to take the form of a traffic island rather than a full pedestrian crossing. Last year, we were told that plans were going to be scrapped due to lack of funds but following continued pressure from Liberal Democrats and residents, the scheme is back on the agenda. Logistical problems and financial pressures have meant that the scheme has had to be scaled back, but a ...
Fri 1st
08:20
The Swing Voters Curse: The reason the Lib Dem vote didn't live up to the polls at the General Elect...
The final poll before the general election had the Lib Dems on 27% but the final results were disappointing. Re-polling after the election has found that those who said they would vote Lib Dem continue to say they voted Lib Dem. So either all the polling companies got it wrong or something else was going ...
(One of a series of regular posts on the run up to the AV referendum on May 5th. As the post makes clear, I'm in favour of voting Yes. For those whom it concerns, I believe the question is either a choice between FPTP and AV - or between standing still and electoral reform - and not what I think is the best voting system.) Lord Waldegrave in The Times (sorry, hidden behind a paywall) makes an unusual argument in favour of FPTP i.e. one based on an actual principle. This is interesting and important, because I agree absolutely with ...
I have "cut and pasted" the following from my colleague Councillor Peter Hough's Blog. His article highlights the irresponsible behaviour displayed by Sefton's Labour Group in their refusal to take part in setting the budget. Sense and incensed-abilityThere was a very interesting letter in yesterday's Daily Post from the Labour leader of Liverpool City Council. It is about the cuts he is having to make, and shows maturity and a sense of responsibility. I have reproduced it below, and it is worth reading in its entirety. What a contrast then to the dangerous antics of Sefton's Labour group. They refused ...
A day trip across the Gulf of Finland leads me to Helsinki for the first time in many years. Well, not strictly speaking true, because I am a constant transit passenger at Helsinki-Vantaa airport, but it is about ten years since I last visited the centre of the Finnish capital. Helsinki in the cold sunshine of early spring is quite a contrast to Tallinn, As the ferry nosed out of the Bay of Tallinn, it was breaking trough the blocks and slush of sea ice and moving slowly through an early fog. yet by mid crossing, the fog (and the ...
Excellent post here from Anthony Smith highlighting how under First Past the Post, the tortuous decision process you have to go through in order to make your vote actually count makes it more complicated than it would be under Alternative Vote. Here is his flowchart that explains it all:
As is its right in a free country, Save the Children has recruited Stacey Solomon to front its Mothers for Other Mothers campaign:"In 2011, 8 million children will die of preventable causes before they reach their fifth birthday. I know that children and their mothers need vaccines, medicines and access to doctors, nurses and midwives to survive. As a mother I believe no child is born to die. "That's why I'm joining with other mothers to pledge my support for every woman and child, no matter where they are in the world, to get the proper healthcare they need. "This ...
Everyone finds Eric Saade's (I love the pronounciation – `erik sharder`) Swedish entry `popular`. It's the epitome of bang up-to-date schlager as is some of the best down and dirty tongue-in-cheek homoerotic dancing ever. Should do well – including on its own merits!
I hesitate to say this but the UK could do very well with their entry. It's by an established popular band with a song that is memorable enough to be in any serious pundits top ten. Click the link
Keep on thinking about this song. It's very contemporary and reminds me of the Danish group Mew. Think chilled out Coldplay meets Cocteau Twins and you get some idea. Songs like this win Eurovision now.
[IMG: Speed Camera] [IMG: Creative Commons License] photo credit: DaveBleasdale After an eight month switch-off, the 72 speed cameras in Oxfordshire will be switched back on at 9 o'clock this morning. The switch-off coincided with an increase in road deaths (12 to 18 comparing the six months with the previous same period), collisions and serious injuries Unbeknown to drivers, police left two cameras switch on during the "switch off" just to monitor what drivers did, thinking the cameras were off. One was in Woodstock. Within a week, the number of drivers exceeding 35 mph in a 30 mph zone was ...
The Hull Daily Mail is carrying an exclusive story regarding plans put forward by the University of Hull, East Riding Council and Hull City Council to harness the power of CO2 generated at county hall and the Guildhall to generate electricity. Read all here
According to the Hull Daily Mail a goldfish is to stand against me. You can read the story here
Someone has obviously pointed out my review of Shapiro's Contested Will to the deniers. *points and laughs*
i) births and deaths 1 April 1917: birth of Sydney Newman, without whom etc etc. 1 April 1926: birth of John Scott Martin, Dalek operator and rubber-suited monster extraordinaire. ii) broadcast anniversaries 1 April 1967: broadcast of fourth episode of The Macra Terror. The Doctor floods the mines with oxygen and then blows them up, killing the Macra. 1 April 1972: broadcast of sixth episode of The Sea Devils. The Doctor sabotages the Sea Devils' base and it explodes killing them all; he and the Master escape. iii) date specified in canon 1 April 1963: setting of First Doctor novella ...
Game of Thrones Writer George R.R. Martin's Favorite Science Fiction Films - The Daily Beast (tags: sf films) The Class Divide between Yale and Southern Connecticut - Innovations - The Chronicle of Higher Education (tags: usa politics)
I am delighted to announce that Lib Dem Voice has secured major investment to develop and expand its in-depth coverage of UK political news. For many years, Lib Dem Voice has been the only 'home' site for a major UK political party to be run totally on a volunteer basis, without any staff, interns or office space. However that is not a sustainable long-run position and in addition there are many new features they would like to add to the site but have not previously been able to resource. Over the coming months they will be moving over to a ...
