Yesterday evening the Cabinet of the Liberal Democrat - Conservative Coalition of Reading Borough Council agreed new criteria and process for allocating £181k of new funding to voluntary and community groups in Reading £81k of the grant funding will be revenue and £100k capital funding. This follows the decision on 17 January to agree the budget allocation for grants 2011/2012 and the setting of the overall budget of the Council on 22 February 2011 when the Coalition administration of the Council agreed to increase funding to the local voluntary sector - in marked contrast to other councils across the country. ...
Guido Fawkes, the blogger formerly known as Paul Staines, has today claimed that people appearing in the Yes2AV broadcast this evening are 'slightly odd looking'. A slight case of pots and kettles I think: (For the record, I would never claim to be an oil painting myself...)
Yesterday evening at Cabinet we took an important step in agreeing to enable officers to identify more properties in Reading to be converted into supported living accomodation for people with learning difficulties. Officers will now look into converting four existing properties into supported living accomodation. We have an urgent need in Reading for more appropriate accomodation to enable the growing number of adults with learning difficulties in our community to live more independent lives. As an administration we are strongly committed to increasing choice, control and independence for all residents to help everyone get the most out of life. This ...
Tue 12th
22:57
Win-Win For Residents As Reading Council Extends Repairs Service To Wokingham Council Homes
Reading Borough Council, currently led by a Liberal Democrat -Conservative Coalition has entered into an innovative partnership arrangement with neighbouring Wokingham Borough Council to take over repairs and maintenance of Council housing in Wokingham.. RBC recently agreed to share legal services departments - saving residents in both areas money by improving effciency and use of resources. This latest step builds on the work that the Council is already doing in relation on housing repairs. Reading Council has its own in-house Housing Repairs service which is based in Darwin Close off Basingstoke Road. I have been to meet staff in the ...
The referendum broadcasts began yesterday, with No2AV's rather odd attempt at political messaging. Today it was the Yes campaign's turn, and sadly they didn't fare much better. The message was at least coherent, focussing on making MPs work harder for 50% of the vote, but this came across as a bit 'anti-politics' instead of being ...
The Press Association reports: The Government has lost its final appeal against a human rights ruling requiring Britain to give prisoners the vote. Prime Minister David Cameron – who said the thought of granting the vote to criminals made him physically ill – now has six months to produce "legislative proposals" ending the current blanket ban on inmates voting in national and European elections.
The Two Tunnels scheme that connects the Bath Bristol cycleway through the Combe Down hill and beyond to Radstock is progressing well. In addition to two tunnels there are also two new bridges that need to be put in. These are at Monksdale and Millmead and they have both just been given planning permission. When this is complete it is going to be a fantastic ride from tyhe val;ley floor of Bath up the old rail line and through the Combe Down Tunnel.
School Transport is a hot topic in County Durham at the moment. That's no surprise as many parents face an unpleasant shock at the cost of getting their child(ren) to school in future years. They chose their homes and made their plans expecting that their children would get free transport to school. Now they find there are plans to scrap it. The county council cabinet (and let me stress that the ten people round that table make virtually all the decisions in County Durham) proposes a number of changes for future entrants into the system as follows: 1. Stopping free school ...
You may have noticed a few changes happening to this site - Facebook integration on the right, a new footer at the bottom and so on. Apologies for any rough edges as these new features settle down - and do let me know if you spot any problems or have any feedback. Thanks.
Camden Town station is a nightmare on the weekends, with everyone heading to Camden Market to shop and on particularly sunny days, hang out by the canal. TfL have been forced to turn the station into an exit only on Sunday afternoons to try to alleviate the pressure on the station. Camden Town serves over 19 million passengers a year, Chalk Farm just over 5 million. Following a redevelopment plan which TfL lost at appeal in 2005, no plans have been brought forward to redo Camden Town station to increase passenger access and given the shortage of funds, a plan ...
Pam and I dropped by the latest meeting of the Chestnut, Acorn and Ash residents' association – covering those avenues in Cheadle. The association's gone from strength to strength thanks to the work of the committee and support of residents. This evening, plans were launched for a Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the area – something that could make a real difference as it builds on the successful foundations of the association. We had representatives from the police and the Council's safety unit. The residents' association has regular meetings in the community room at Cheadle Library – if you live on ...
As the pro AV campaign hots up the first referendum broadcast was this evening. For those who failed to catch it here is a link. Yes 2 Fairer Votes Video
As soon as I heard that Plaid Cymru had adopted the phrase 'Ambition is critical' as the title of their manifesto and were attributing it to Dylan Thomas I knew that something was not quite right. This is not because I am any great expert on Dylan Thomas, to be honest I prefer the work of his contemporary, Vernon Watkins, but because I have been around in Swansea for a long time and remember precisely when that phrase first emerged. I have also seen Twin Town. Dylan Thomas in fact is reputed to have described Swansea as the graveyard of ...
This is the Manchester, a Leicester pub that has been closed for a couple of years now. It is just down the road from the Wheatsheaf Works - the vast former Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS) boot and shoe factory in Knighton Fields Road East. The Manchester is pretty big itself for a suburban pub, which leads me to think it may have been built as a meeting hall for the CWS. The other day the Leicester Mercury had the inevitable story saying that the Manchester is to be converted into flats. But what struck me was the sentence: "The company ...
What is the greatest problem with British education? I would say that it is the Berlin Wall between the private and public sectors. The former Tory minister George Walden put it well in his 1996 book We Should Know Better: In no other European country do the moneyed and professional classes - lawyers, surgeons, businessmen, accountants, diplomats, newspaper and TV editors, judges, directors, archbishops, air chief marshalls, senior academics, Tory ministers, artists, authors, top civil servants - in addition to the statistically insignificant but eye-catching cohort of aristocracy and royalty - reject the system of education used by the overwhelming ...
Politicians used to snuggle up to cute little babies to get sweet photos of them in the press. Tavish Scott had an altogether different take on this sort of thing today when he delivered a cute baby lamb today. Although I don't think they're that cute when they're first born, and when you think of all the things that could have gone wrong, I think it was quite a brave thing for him to take on. Of course he's used to this sort of thing as he'll have delivered many lambs in Shetland over the years, but even so......... Anyway, ...
You may not be surprised to learn from Virtually Naked that today's encounter between Nick Clegg and Gillian Duffy had Labour's fingerprints all over it. Chris Davies MEP wants Liberal Democrats to be angry, be proud and campaign harder. Douglas Carswell, the Conservative MP, has asked Sir Philip Mawer, the adviser on the ministerial code of conduct, to investigate George Osborne. Channe' 4's Gary Gibbon has the story. John Major's next book, according to the diary in yesterday's Evening Standard, will be a social history of the music hall: "The introduction to the book is apparently extraordinary, comprising the death ...
I am subscribed to Ted Talks (website of inspiring talks and ideas) & in my email box today, there was a talk by Dave Meslin on political apathy. He said we weren't apathetic, its just the political elite and no, not just the ones sitting in parliament but the councils as well. He described 8
Today saw the launch of the Yes To AV broadcast after various news programmes. It's alright, and at least 15 times more accurate than it's No2AV equivalent I'm very much a believer in the idea that it shouldn't matter what party might get elected when trying to consider which is the best (or in AV's case "better) electoral system. Cries of "Oh noes... the BNP are coming" do not upset me too much. If you don't think you can stop the BNP through the power of your arguments then you've lost to them already. BUT I have heard, IRL, people ...
Over on his excellent blog, North West Lib Dem MEP, Chris Davies, expresses his astonishment at the reluctance of some Liberal Democrats to shout our government successes from the rooftops (or, alternatively, on a FOCUS leaflet). His blog is particularly ... Continue reading →
Sometimes in politics you have to know when to make your views about an issue known and fight your battles in public and when its best to take your fight behind the scenes to push your case and lobby. I took this attitude with the Labour government and I take the same attitude with this one. My views on the VAT rise, tuition fees and not to mention 'that letter' are well known but the effects of the quiet word can be seen in the announcements over the last two days regarding the £90+ million for extra-care housing and regeneration. ...
I've often said that the worst thing that could happen in this election was for Richard Baker, whose preferred policy making procedure appears to be by jerking his knee in response to tabloid headlines, to end up as Cabinet Secretary for Justice, implementing draconian yet ineffective measures. The thought of Labour's policy on knife crime, of sending anyone caught with a knife to prison for six months is ill thought through. Let's make no bones about it, folk shouldn't be wandering around carrying knives, but the way to deal with it isn't to send people to prison when the almost ...
Didn't make it to Steve Webb's meeting about all the housing developments planned for Yate? Did make it but want to recap on what you heard? You can now read the handouts online along with advice on making comments. Don't forget to sign our petition about the Brimsham Park development - tinyurl.com/stopbrimsham.
Over on his blog, North West Lib Dem MEP, Chris Davies, expresses his astonishment at the reluctance of some Liberal Democrats to shout our government successes from the rooftops (or, alternatively, on a FOCUS leaflet). His blog is particularly timely given the frankly extraordinary email sent to Liberal Democrat MPs by the former Leader of Liverpool City Council, Warren Bradley, calling on the Liberal Democrats to pull out of the coalition. It's an excellent piece, and the whole thing's worth a read, but here's an extract: "We should never have gone into a Coalition with the Tories," say some, but ...
Yesterday Scottish Lib Dem leader Tavish Scott took part in The Scotsman's series of webchats with party leaders. The full transcript of this "chat" is worth reading and available through The Scotsman website.
I went to a meeting last week with a very impressive group of young people who want to create a skatepark in Garston. Skatepark is probably the wrong word as we are talking about something BMX riders could use as well. They've found a potential location, in the grounds of the Urban Village Hall on Banks Road. They know that there's a long way to go, and that includes talking to local residents and answering questions. They need to be able to reassure people about noise and about how it could all be managed. So there's a meeting to get ...
[IMG: Silk Mill Heritage Sign] It's always a delight to be interviewed by the BBC – even if it is on a subject I know very little about! As part of the Wikimedia Derby Backstage Pass a group of participants were invited around the mothballed Silk Mill Museum. You can hear the full interview on the BBC iPlayer As the iPlayer removes shows after a week, I've liberated the clip of me chatting away. Your browser does not support the audio element. Download the Derby Interview Thanks to Mark Ansell for performing the interview. A couple of pictures of odd ...
Normanton ward in Derby is turning into a livelier political contest than most. Not only is it home to the political genius that is Ashley Waterhouse, but now Labour candidate Balbir Sandhu is in the news. Following a local newspaper campaign to force candidates to publish details of their past lives, "Anything to Declare?", he has admitted to serving a two year jail sentence for possessing drugs 27 years ago: Mr Sandhu said he supported the campaign and wanted the public to make their decision on who they voted for on May 5 with all the facts. "People should know ...
Q. When do you know you've got an NHS advocate beaten in a health debate? A. When they bring up the USA. If there is no better defense of the socialist system than that the USA is worse, then we really are at the point where reform is not only logical but necessary. For a comparatively ridiculous argument, let's consider a reasonable argument we might put forward, and the equivelant argument that the converted use against NHS reform. "We need to clean up Moss Side in Manchester." "No, Benghazi is worse." [IMG: Moss Side] What, really? So because our system ...
Knightsbridge Park is a new housing development in the Adswood area of Stockport. Rather impressively it has its own website: Our approach is to create a framework of conditions that help residents to be neighbourly when and if they want to be. This is the main reason why we have created this online space for interaction and dialogue and we hope that it can encourage neighbourliness. We aim to provide a centralised source of updated news and information, covering all aspects of local life (business, shopping, education, entertainment, clubs and societies) to better inform the residents and visitors of events ...
Tonight's Report on Radio 4's Six O'Clock News on the subject of the European Court of Human Rights and Prisoners' Right to Vote was a model of tabloid bias and I have told them so. Both the headline and the full report on the ECHR decision to refuse an appeal today was inaccurate and descended to tabloid levels, saying that the ECHR had demanded that prisoners must have the right to vote. The
Yesterday the beginning of France's ban on covering ones face in public (aimed of course at women wearing burqas and niqabs) began with some predictable political theatre. Some protesters obligingly turned up to break the new law, and the police ... Continue reading →
I read with interest on Cllr Ian Lewis' blog that the Conservative candidate there has signed a Clean Campaign Pledge. It did take me a while to find what that pledge meant which I found on the Conservative's website. It seems this is the Tory's reaction to what went on in Oldham East and Saddleworth ...
Tue 12th
18:00
Hot off the press: the Yes to Fairer Votes broadcast - make them work for our votes #yes2av
The ink is barely dry on the Yes Campaign's first broadcast which has just been shown on BBC2. Subtle it ain't by any stretch of the imagination. None of the politicians I know and love are like those portrayed in the broadcast, but we've seen so much evidence of MPs who take their area and their constituents for granted because, no matter what they do, or don't do, they'll get re-elected anyway under our travesty of an electoral system. The broadcast also makes the point - but the campaign needs to keep saying this louder and louder - that parties ...
[IMG: National Liberal Club] Earlier in the month I argued the 'Yes' case for the AV referendum in a debate at the Gladstone Club. Bearing in mind the host organisation and the venue - the National Liberal Club - I took a more historical approach than usual. Though regular readers may have heard my Winston Churchill quote on electoral reform before... Thanks to the technically wizardry of Alex Foster, you can listen to a podcast of the event here.
Cambridgeshire County Council has told is it is about to start resurfacing some roads in this area. Here are the details, so you can try to find alternative routes: Mowbray Road between Holbrook Rd and the QE Way roundabout: this Thursday, 14th April Fendon Road between the two roundabouts: this Friday, 15th April and Sunday 17th April Babraham Road: extensive patching from the Audi garage to the hospital: Mon 18th-Thur 21st April (approx) All traffic will be controlled by stop and go signs.
Following on from my blog post about the voluntary, community and faith sector I was out delivering on the Beechwood today and passed the Beechwood Community Association (which has a large sign pointing out Cllr Harry Smith is its trustee). Its stated activity is "to work for the benefit of Beechwood residents" (which to me ...
In the least surprising political revelation of the year, it turns out Gillian Duffy's encounter with Nick Clegg this morning may just have had something to with the local Labour party. The Lib Dem's Deputy Head of Media tweeted: VN would hate to be accused of being a mouthpiece for Cowley Street, so here is ...
So I've noticed the lack of comics posts on here recently. This is mostly because most recent comics have been uninspiring. But werdsmiffery on Twitter, yesterday, asked me why I don't do a book on a Grant Morrison series, and a lot of people who read my stuff seem to like my writing about Morrison. ...
Conservative MP, Anne Milton has launched an attack on the younger generation, implying that if you're under-45 you don't know stuff. I wonder what she thinks of her boss & Prime Minister who is 44 or the Deputy Prime Minister who is the same age as Cameron. I think this is disgraceful especially since it
It's incredible to learn that some Liberal Democrat council candidates are reluctant to promote the achievements of the party in Government. "Keep it local," they argue. "Don't mention the Coalition or the cuts." Jo Grimond, the former Liberal Party leader, ... Continue reading →
If you aren't registered to vote, you only have two days left to register. Without doing this, you will be unable to express your wishes at the forthcoming Local Elections and Fairer Votes Referendum to be held on May 5th. Don't worry though – you can still register online at www.aboutmyvote.co.uk The process is really easy, and takes around 3 minutes to complete. The deadline for applications to be included in this round of elections is 5pm this Thursday – 14th April, so be sure to get your applications in soon. Did you know? that students can vote in Local ...
He seems to have dealt with it reasonably well. No radio mike issues this time.
[IMG: Cllr Robert Gorrie out in New River Avenue to get residents' views on the devlopment] New plans to build a 278 metre long and 11 metre high train shed in Hornsey have come under fire from local residents and Liberal Democrats after formal plans were submitted to the Council last week. Liberal Democrats are concerned that the consultation on the controversial development by the Council will be during an extended holiday period, giving residents limited time to respond and will "minimise scrutiny". The proposals put forward by Network Rail are similar to those stopped by an Article Four notice ...
No Libraries are closing in Calderdale despite the tough economic times. You might think that this would be cause for celebration, that a much valued front line services has through implementation of a careful budget been protected. The local Labour candidate in Luddendenfoot doesn't see things that way. Faced with an absence of cuts in front line services to whip people up with, instead he accuses the Lib Dems of hypocrisy for putting the libraries at risk in the first place. Trying to blame a party of non-existent cuts seems bizarre line to take. Anyone with local knowledge will know ...
Over at his New Statesman blog, David Allen Green — the magazine's legal correspondent and author of the Jack of Kent blog — has explained his decision last week to become a fully paid-up member of the Liberal Democrats. To be more accurate, he first lists all the reasons why he will be a dissenting member of the Lib Dems [is there any other kind? - Ed.]... before then highlighting how he was finally persuaded to join by ConservativeHome's founding editor Tim Montgomerie analyses that 'the current government is significantly more liberal than an entirely Conservative administration would otherwise be'. ...
There was good news for employment in Acocks Green and the whole West Midlands today as the region emerged as the big winner in the first round of the Regional Growth Fund bids confirmed today by Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg. More than 40,000 jobs will be created in the West Midlands – just over 6,000 directly and another 34,000 indirectly – which is by far the highest of any region in the country. Major local schemes which get funding include: A project to undertake design engineering for a new family of engines in the Midlands and separately for a ...
I'm planning to run for election as Liberal Youth's first finance officer – a new position created at the conference in Bristol earlier this month. If elected, I will be responsible for the financial affairs of Liberal Youth. If you'd like to support my campaign, please: Become a fan of my Facebook page Follow me on Twitter – @chrisjenkinson Join my organising group if you'd like to help out! Here's my key bullet points for why you should vote for me: I'm experienced with finances – as a sabbatical officer and trustee of my students' union I've been jointly responsible ...
I am a regular donor to Christian Aid, with a history of support that goes right back to when I was a boy. It has outlasted my attachment to the Church itself because the charity does not go in for proselytising, and they are dealing with some pretty gritty and important issues. So I get their supporters' magazine. The latest publicises their Poverty Over campaign (which in the publicity is written as POVERTY). The aim is to "deal with the root causes of poverty"; the publicity highlights eight issues: climate change, conflict, corruption, disasters, food and agriculture, health, inequality, and ...
Kirsty Williams, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, took the opportunity of a visit to a food production business in Newport to highlight Welsh Liberal Democrat commitment to boost the Welsh economy. Accompanied at Clarks facility by Danny Alexander MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury and Veronica German, South Wales East Assembly Candidate, Kirsty said that the Welsh Liberal Democrats would: · Offer 5000 training grants (worth £2000 each) a year to new businesses that set up in Wales and take on young unemployed people. · Create a Jobs and Growth Innovation Programme to increase the number of patents, establishing ...
Fifty years ago today, Yuri Gagarin became the first human being to travel in space. It seems remarkable to think that we're now almost as far away in time from Gagarin's flight as he was from the Wright Brothers making their first flight. I wasn't born for Gagarin's trip, though I do remember the day twenty years later when the Space Shuttle was launched for the first time, though what I mainly remember of that is being allowed to watch it at school, and spending a long time sitting around in front of the TV before being told the launch ...
So, I came across this graph today: Now, can you see the obvious flaw in this graph? I can. The graph shows Entitlement spending & Interest payments increasing at a rate produced by essentially drawing a line following the current direction of entitlement spending. However, the Revenue line, instead of being extrapolated from it's most recent direction, quickly levels out and flat lines in the prediction. Now, call me stupid, but looking at the underlying trend, I would say it's far more likely that entitlement spending would probably grow at a relatively slow rate, just as revenue would probably remain ...
Right, this should be my last post on the AV referendum as I fear I'll end up boring people otherwise. This is another video by CGPGrey in which he explains how the Alternative Vote works. One thing I would add is that AV works by making sure that everyone has one vote in each round of counting. One of the main things people use to argue against it is that AV is unfair people who vote for smaller parties get more of their preferences counted than someone who voted for one of the mainstream candidates. The problem with this argument ...
The Angus-Reid poll I mentioned yesterday, puts "Yes" to AV ahead by 53% to 47%. It also includes national voting intention numbers: CON 31, LAB 42, LD 11 Political Betting suggests that the cross-tabs allow us to distinguish between voters who voted Labour in the general election and those who have switched recently from the Liberal Democrats. If this is true, and they look like a distinct group, I wonder what the national voting intention really tells us, and if it tells us anything about voting in the council elections in May. I can think of three possibilities: The move ...
There's nothing like a human interest story, except perhaps a cat interest story, and following the drama of the Leiston rescue last week, the East Anglian Daily Times brings news of another rescue. Wendy Wilson, of Little Bealings, travelled 600 miles to rescue a cat from a roof near her second home in the village of Cruzy, in south-west France, flying to Carcasonne and then hiring a car, after hearing that a stray tabby that she had adopted was trapped and could not be rescued (one presumes that the local fire brigade takes a more laissez-faire view of trapped cats). ...
Tonight is the final Internal Scrutiny of the municipal year, and so your last chance and mine to give the Council some serious internal scrutiny, whilst being careful not to snigger at the innuendo. On the agenda at tonight's meeting (which is public, so come on down if you want to see it) is the ...
Free parking for shoppers has begun in Prestwich today, after a fairly predictable cock-up meant that it wasn't introduced yesterday as billed. The Council tell me that they were let down by the contractor responsible for upgrading the software package on the parking machines. This still hasn't been fixed, but after the problem was pointed out ...
Tue 12th
13:40
So what responsibility do councillors have as corporate parents? Cornwall Council can't tell me.
Back in October, Cornwall councillors were urged to attend training sessions which promised to tell us about our legal responsibilities as 'corporate parents'. The Council is a corporate parent because it is responsible for children's homes and looked after children. I attended a session on October 5th and was amazed that it did not cover the key question as to what the legal responsibility of ordinary councillors is. The best they came up with was that "councillors have a legal duty to be interested" - which is complete rubbish. So I asked the question of the Council's legal officers and ...
Video also available on YouTube. Here's a preview of the Yes campaign's broadcast which will be shown tonight on BBC1 and ITV at 6.55pm. It features voters calling MPs to account – their voices amplified for a change, using the politician's electioneering loudhailer as a metaphor for a fairer voting system. Watch this video – have a little think about who your MP should work for, and then make sure everyone you know is ready to say Yes in May. You can sign up to the Yes campaign at the YES! to Fairer Votes website. Also find out what your ...
Today, Clegg was interviewed by Gillian Duffy , who was the woman that Gordon Brown called a 'bigot'. The full interview can be found on the BBC here. Nick talked plainly to Duffy and re-hashed everything he's already said. There was nothing knew in what Nick Clegg said. I think it might be time to
Back in February, at the request of Stewart Findlay, who was acting as the local co-ordinator for the Scottish Boys' Brigade Bands Contest, I did an update about this excellent event on www.dundeewestend.com. Stewart has now advised me of another concert - here's the details from Stewart : The weekend of the 18th/19th June 2011 will see the band of the Ypres-Surrey Pipes & Drums from Belgium visit Dundee for a long weekend. The highlight of this weekend will be a concert to be held in the Central Baptist Church in Ward Road, Dundee on Saturday 18th June from 7:30 ...
[IMG: Save Our Green Belt] Save Our Green Belt I recently got together with the Kirklees Lib Dem group for our campaign launch in Huddersfield. We were joined by David Ward MP, who kindly gave up his time to give us some words of wisdom. After the "Public Consultation" of the draft strategy for Kirklees Planning policy for the next 18 years, I'm really concerned about a few things. The document is known as the Local Development Framework (or LDF) and is a key piece of documentation that will affect all residents for some considerable time. It's a legal requirement ...
The first broadcast from the Yes to Fairer Votes campaign airs today (17.55 on BBC2, and an hour later on BBC1 and ITV, I understand) It has already been released online: The broadcast is fairly simple. It essentially consists of a sequence of shots of MPs, all wearing No rosettes, being ambushed by voters. The voters raise a number of complaints. They point out that they only see the MP at election time. They point out how AV would force MPs to work harder. They also raise the expenses scandal. Each MP is then asked whether they will vote Yes. ...
I tend not to do 'bleeding heart' blog posts about my personal life. My writing tends to be strictly political. Nothing else. But alas, I feel the need to exploit this medium to get a few issues off my chest. ... Continue reading →
This years Community Fund is open. You can apply for between £100-£1000 for a community event – festival, outing, fun day, newsletter. Any ideas but you're not sure contact me. The Dulwich Community Fund has £15,000 which we usually divide into £5,000 for each ward. To apply you'll need to fill in a form by Monday 16 May and the event must be take place before 31 March 2012. I'd expect us to decide by the end of May which events to support with funding. Get applying.
A new page has been added for a chronological order of the posts from Solution Focused Politics that have been recommended by others.
I've often thought that the history of continental philosophy since Kant can be thought of as a fight between the Master and his Germanic successors, with occasional interventions from their European cousins. I've been reminded of this view after finally finishing Zizek's The Sublime Object of Ideology, which has taken me quite a while to ...
The developers of the former Oaklands site have appealed against the district council's 'non-determination' of their application to cram more homes into the site. Chris White, who 'called in' the application to be considered by councillors in public, said: 'The application would see 20 more flats on this already cramped sites. the effect on local on-street parking and the general increase in traffic would clearly be detrimental to the area. I shall be writing to the planning inspector accordingly.'
Tuesday: Peoples of Russialand and all across planet Earth celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary of the first ever space trip by one of you monkey people, when Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was strapped into a tin ball, plonked on top of an enormous firework and blasted into orbit. In Moscow, capital of Russialand, this amazing achievement is rightly celebrated by this statue in tribute. To Infinity? It is called the "Monument to the Conquerors of Space". Which clearly puts the DALEKS in their place! But wait, Daddy says we are receiving an incoming communication about this... run VT! (ashamed now!) .
A rather good film from the Yes To Fairer Votes campaign: Impressed by the film too? Help spread it online or sign up to the Yes to Fairer Votes campaign here. And if you want a more detailed case for a Yes vote, take a look at Nick Clegg's weekend speech on the alternative vote.
Odd isn't it, when RCRE put out a quite vindictive press release about me knowing full well that I could not respond to their complaint once it had been made to the local Standards Board the local press were falling all over themselves to get quotes and print their malicious allegations. However, when the local Standards Board ruled two weeks ago that there is nothing wrong with my posts, the silence has been deafening. For the record, my posts about the "grassroots" campaign, which in at least one instance used a lie to support RCRE's case, solicited the following ruling ...
These days, when I visit Britain it is impossible to miss the fact that the country seems to be retreating into some backward looking myth of its own past. For example, I still find it astonishing that the country has still not fully adopted the metric system. As I try to wrestle with the conversion of Miles to Kilometres and Fahrenheit to Celsius I recall with a certain sense of frustration that the Imperial system is no longer taught in schools, but we are still stuck with the fact that we drive in approximately 1.6 kilometre increments and drink in ...
Responding to the launch of the Plaid Cymru manifesto, Elizabeth Evans, the Welsh Liberal Democrat's Assembly candidate in Ceredigion said: "Plaid Cymru says the current Government is 'Plaid driven' but their manifesto ignores their failure in government over the last four years. "They say they want to create jobs but when Ieuan Wyn Jones took charge four years ago, Wales' unemployment was below the the UK average, now it is higher than the UK average. "They talk about making sure children read, write and count to the expected standard but under the 'Plaid driven' government we have seen the worst ...
Getting a picture on what's happening across the country on council spending is difficult. We all hear stories, whether it's the a plan to close a library or a conversation I had a few weeks ago with a friend who works in Brighton, who told me that the council had avoided almost all frontline cuts to services through efficiency savings. Last week some surprising figures have appeared in an overlooked survey by the Financial Times. They show that at least half of the spending cuts that councils are making will have no impact at all on frontline services. The Financial ...
Continuing the creepingly slow (or, as I like to put it, carefully considered) updates to my blogroll, it's hello to Richard Morris and A View From Ham Common. Richard is one of the large number of Lib Dem bloggers who have started in the last year or so. A high proportion of new blogs start with a flurry and then quickly die away, so fingers crossed that I am not putting a curse on Richard by saying that his blog looks to me one likely to grow and to continue, regularly providing a well-written and different take on political news. ...
Mrs Duffy has returned! This time she has confronted Deputy PM Nick Clegg, who was out and about in Rochdale. Clegg's earnest response does sound a little patronising, but he was probably just terrified of having a row with her! He handled the confrontation a million times better than Gordon Brown, although that in itself ...
This Sunday morning, my intention is to get up at the crack of dawn, watch the Chinese Grand Prix and then settle down to watch the London Marathon. How very couch potato of me. Jo Swinson, Liberal Democrat MP for East Dunbartonshire, will also have the marathon on her mind. Although she won't be on her couch - she'll be queuing up at the start ready to run the 26 miles for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. These last few months, not only has Jo been working silly hours as an MP, and training in all weathers for the marathon, but ...
Last week, President Barack Obama used a YouTube video and his extensive e-mail list to kick off his 2012 re-election campaign. Now the GOP's Mitt Romeny has also used social media to announced the formation of a an exploratory committee, looking into him launching a Presidential run. Romney's video differs significantly from Obama's – he is actually ...
Listen to Liberal Democrats make speeches and there are frequent references to historical figures, but drawn from a small cast. Just the quartet of John Stuart Mill, William Gladstone, David Lloyd George, David Penhaligon corner almost all of the market, especially since Bob Maclennan stopped making speeches to party conference. Some of the forgotten figures deserve their obscurity but others do not. Charles James Fox's defence of civil liberties against a dominating government during wartime or Earl Grey's leading of the party back into power and major constitutional reform are good examples of mostly forgotten figures who could just as ...
Former Liverpool City Council leader, Warren Bradley, is worried about the coalition and concerned that our principles are being damaged by the coalition. He thinks we face meltdown at the election. Well, Cllr Bradley, I'm worried about the coalition as well but I am also clear that it is the right thing to do. When I was fighting the General Election in 2010 in Henley - not exactly the easiest terrain to be a Lib Dem - I was clear about Nick's message that he would work with whichever party won the most votes, which is precisely what he did ...
Today is Global Action Against Military Spending Day promoted by the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimates that in 2010 global military expenditure was $1,630 billion. Globally it would cost $10 billion to provide universal primary education, $30 billion to eradicate world hunger, $30 billion to provide clean
Being Human Spotify Playlists saved for my own edification for when I can get to Spotify (tags: music) France introduces its new bill to emancipate women by arresting two women.Rest assured they are now fully liberated in the cells. Title gacked from JimJay; he blogs at The Daily Maybe and you should read him, even though he's a Green ;) (tags: feminism epicfail) Times paywall coming down - fortuity, or cynical marketing ploy? Digital Raven makes a very good point about the continual "accidental" lowering of the Times' Paywall (tags: media)
Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert If you own a Kindle, chances are you've downloaded some of the free books. Chances are this is one of them. It's always hard to judge critically a translation: if you like it, is that all credit to the author; if you dislike it, do you blame the translator? Parts of it I loved. For example, the dry wit, or the wonderful exclamatory prose — such as the priest delivering extreme unction 'First upon the eyes, that had so coveted all worldly pomp; then upon the nostrils, that had been greedy of the warm breeze and ...
I must give a mention to a site also called Solution Focused Politics as this site was started 2 years before this one, however, that site has only managed to have one post about school reform but at least they identified that the approach could be applied to politics. Its tag line is As opposed ...
I am very grateful to Malcolm Baines for the following information."Despite being a Tory MP from 1927 to 1935, Buchan has sympathetic portraits of Liberals in quite a few of his books and short stories. In "Castle Gay" for example, published in 1930, there is a thinly disguised Lloyd George renamed as Foss Jones. In "The Gap in the Curtain" from 1932, the 5 major characters are all able to look a
So now I am out of the top 50 because I am standing down as LGA vice Chair. A swift passage indeed from 'Never Was' to 'Has Been!' But I did get a consolation prize. I came third in the ... Continue reading →
If you're concerned about all the major housing developments planned for our area, please come to Steve Webb's public meeting about all the housing developments this evening (Tuesday 12 April) at 7.30pm in Yate Parish Hall on Station Road. And if you haven't already done so, please sign our petition about the Brimsham Park development - click here tinyurl.com/stopbrimsham
Today's Herald has revealed that Scottish frontline police officers are not only opposed to proposals to merge Scotland's regional police forces into a centralised single service, but that they may actively resist them. According to the Herald reporters, there is the risk of a "rank and file revolt by police officers" on the issue. They also quote Callum Steele, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, as saying "as a manifesto proposal it is understandable why the pledge is considered as attractive. Although unconvinced by the reality, only politicians will know if it's truly affordable and deliverable in practice." That ...
I'm not a huge fan of referenda. I'll be voting "Yes" in the AV referendum on 5th May - but I'd prefer if we didn't have it at all. Let's be honest - the only reasons the referendum is going ahead is because Labour promised it in their manifesto and Cameron was coerced into offering the same as the very minimum concession in a coalition agreement. I have a democratic problem with referenda. Direct legislation by its very nature undermines the Parliamentary system. A referendum can sometimes be a good idea, as was the case in 1975 on Britain's membership ...
Tue 12th
09:06The right to a vote that actually counts - Eddie Izzard et al at Yes Campaign launch #yes2av
Here's some video from last week's launch of the Yes to Fairer Votes campaign. I kind of like the fact that it doesn't have any politicians (ok, Martin Bell was an MP, but he's more national treasure than hack) and we hear from real people as well as celebs. The thing that chimed with me most was the woman saying that she wanted the right to a vote that actually counts. Enjoy!
Scientific American reports on a recent Journal of Experimental Social Psychology article by Larry Sanna and his associates at the University of North Carolina: Building on research showing the power of metaphors to shape our thinking, Sanna and his colleagues noted that height is often used as a metaphor for virtue: moral high ground, God on high, looking up to good people, etc. If people were primed to think about height, they wondered, might people be more virtuous? In a series of four different studies, the authors found consistent support for their predictions. In the first study they found that ...
Take a read through Parent Motivators: A Parent's Guide To Helping Graudates Find Work, as published by BIS under Peter Mandelson's reign, and you find this advice on page 3 for parents wanting to help their children: Identify who you know that might be able to help. If they want to work in architecture, travel, etc. is there a friend of a friend who may be able to help set up some work experience or job shadowing? Ah yes, getting an internship through parental contacts. I'm sure I heard somewhere a Labour politician praising Nick Clegg's parents for doing just ...
The biggest issue with France's notorious 'banning the burkha' legislation is that is a futile and destructive knee jerk political reaction. The law lacks the fundemental requirement of purposive legislation. Were it a proclaimation on all face coverings in the name of public protection, it would be safer. However, the reasons presented are that it prevents women from being oppressed. What the
This is the second blog post countdown of my top 20 greatest sporting commentary moments. My first blog post which can be viewed here gave my countdown from No.20 down to No.16. Here, I continue with No.15 down to No.11. No.15 - "What a Goal! Radford the Scorer!" (John Motson) It was one of the greatest upsets in FA Cup history. Mighty Newcastle United from the old 1st Division, were humbled by lowly non-league Hereford United, then of the Southern League, at their Edgar St ground in 1972. Ronnie Radford's equalizing goal here that cancelled out an earlier Newcastle strike, ...
There was a time when loudspeaker vans were a major part of any election campaign. Indeed I can recall spending a day in one during the 1981 Crosby by-election. However, nowadays more sophisticated methods such as e-mail, text messages and direct mail are the order of the day. I was a bit surprised therefore, whilst out canvassing last night, to be overtaken by a loud speaker van. Closer listening confirmed that the occupiers were not promoting any particular candidate. Instead the van was reminding residents that Tuesday is a black and pink day. In other words, in week two of ...
Anyone away from Cambridge or unable to get to their local polling station to vote may vote by post - a method that's becoming increasingly popular. But you need to act now, as the deadline for postal vote applications is this Thursday, April 14th. The AV referendum 'Yes' campaign has been sending out application forms for votes in the referendum. This is very proactive, but lease be aware that these forms will get you a vote in the referendum, but not for the local elections. If you want to vote in the council elections at the same time, you will ...
Yesterday we read about the massive £83 million investment into social care in Hull today the Government will announce that the bid by Keepmoat to the Regional Growth Fund for £8m to keep the regeneration of St Andrews and Newington wards has been accepted. Hull City Council which worked closely with Keepmoat on the bid is expecting to see a further £118m worth of investment from private industry into the scheme. It is hoped that over the course of the next decade thousands of new homes will be built and refurbished, creating hundreds of jobs in the construction industry. The ...
In just under a months time, on May 5th, the people of Luton will be going to the polls to elect councillors to represent them over the next four years. I will again be a candidate for the Liberal Democrats in those elections. I will be standing in the Barnfield ward. This is not the same ward that I have represented as a councillor for the last eight years. I was asked to move by the local party, who I think felt that a shake up and reordering of the troops would be a good way of reinvigorating our team ...
In the financial sphere it has long been the case that investors are more interested in making a fast buck than in long term investment to generate growth and streams of revenue in the future. Harold Wilson put it succinctly 50 years ago when he said; "It is easier in this county to make money rather than to earn it." That remains true today, except that the speculators have now demonstrated their ability to lose money quite dramatically, and then expect the much derided state to bail them out. One banking reform we urgently need is some banks dedicated to ...
Like many in the Lib Dems I receive a regular email from Lib Dem MEP for the North West Chris Davies about all things European. A short quote from him seemed very apt to these elections. It's something any candidate and agent should take on board. For those who don't know what canvassing means it ...
There has already been some comment on the fact that the Welsh Conservative party election broadcast failed to feature their Welsh leader, Nick Bourne. The Prime Minister was there but not a sign of Nick. Now that I have received the Tories' Regional freepost leaflet it is apparent that this is a feature of their campaign. The front of the leaflet is adorned with a photograph of David Cameron together with the regional list candidates. However, there is no sign of Nick Bourne anywhere in the leaflet. Anybody would think they were hiding him away.
I've just read the latest press release from Cllr Holbrook about the May elections. As he points out, Liberal Democrats work hard for residents all year round. Unlike Labour who announced budget cuts to libraries, then defended the plan to the public, then spent thousands on a barrister at a public enquiry, the Lib Dem/Tory ...
i) births and deaths 12 April 1989: death of Gerald Flood, who played Kamelion in 1983 and 1984, and also King John in The King's Demons (1983) ii) broadcast anniversaries 12 April 1969: broadcast of sixth episode of The Space Pirates. Caven is defeated and captured; the Space Pirates are neutralised. 12 April 1975: broadcast of sixth episode of Genesis of the Daleks. The Daleks take over the bunker, killing everyone including (apparently) Davros; but the Thals bury them for centuries. 12 April 2003: webcast of "No Child of Earth, part 3", tenth episode of Death Comes to Time.
Jason O Mahony » Blog Archive » For my British readers: AV is the voting system for non-fanatics. "Melissa Kite in the Daily Telegraph has been doing that other thing the No side have been engaged in for weeks now, deliberately shutting down their brain functions and going on about how complicated it all is... By her own words, it took Melissa an hour to count eight votes. I'll say no more on the subject." (tags: politics ukpolitics) Revolutions and youth movements « Neighbourhood But the 2011 protesters are different not because just Facebook and Twitter replaced sms. They are ...
From today, Tuesday 12 April 2011, your blue and brown bin, recycling collections will be changing from a fortnightly to monthly collection schedule. Under the new scheme: Your blue and brown recycling bins will be collected once a month (instead of once a fortnight) on the same day as your black bin. Collection of all other bins will not change with your general domestic waste (black bin) collected weekly and your garden waste (pink lidded bin) collected fortnightly. All households in Salford should have received a new calendar sticker attached to your blue and brown recycling bins which detail your ...
While attending a meeting at my local Lib Dem MP's office (every constituency should have one). I came a cross a rather good piece of direct mail from the Yes campaign. It put three good reasons why people should vote yes on May 5th - making MPs work harder for their constituents, getting rid of jobs for life and giving voters a greater say. It even mentioned the expenses scandal and the need to clean up politics. And the fact there is a big correlation between the MPs supporting the no campaign and those with dodgy expenses is something I've ...
It looks like the next big thing in Kindle-land is – depressingly – advertising subsidisation. the world's first ad-supported Kindle, going on sale within Target and Best Buy locations for $114. That represents a gentle $25 savings compared to the price of today's cheapest Kindle, but those 2500 pennies don't come free — you'll be asked to endure "advertisements on the bottom of the device's home page and on its screen savers." Engadget Can It Work?On the strength of the current evidence – no. Browsing on the Kindle's web browser is a slow and frustrating experience. It's slow at downloading, ...
Today was the meeting of the Highways Committee, new recipients of the power to grant or refuse applications for Town or Village Green status. And today they got the chance to cut thier teeth and practise their new found skills on the Belle Vue application. I don't suppose you are in much suspense as to the outcome. Councillors had been provided with a hefty 180 page report, and the meeting started with a good summary by the officer in which he explained how the Consett Green Spaces Group had won the argument on almost every point, but that on the ...
According to http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-13028624 "One of Nick Clegg's closest advisers has threatened to quit unless ministers make changes to a proposed overhaul of the NHS." The advisor in question, Norman Lamb, was the Lib Dem health spokesman before the election, and Nick Clegg does rely heavily on his advice. When added to the opposition expressed by the Lib Dem rank and file at the spring conference, this puts a lot of pressure on the Coalition to think about and maybe rein in the implementation of the policy. Which is exactly how it should be. Both Conservatives and Liberal Dempcrats want to ...
Being in Coalition with the Conservatives is not always proving easy for Liberal Democrats — and many of them would doubtless say the same about the partnership with us. But as Brian Paddick told the inaugural Haringey Liberal Democrats Supper Club at a Thai restaurant in Hornsey this evening, things would be worse if the Tories ...
