Well, King Alex is safely sworn in as First Minister and he has announced his new cabinet. And so the electoral cycle begins again. Alex says it is as inevitable as anything ever can be in politics that Scotland will be independent. The wily old dog!There is one problem. I don't think we voted for independence. The SNP seemed to gain support as a broadly competent government of whom we should have no fear. I don't think their record was particularly scrutinised that deeply as Labour tried to run against the cuts - or whatever Labour were trying to do. ...
Residents from the Redlands Road area have been in touch with us about an accident that took place last week on New Road where a cyclist cycling on the pavement injured a pedestrian.The injury was so serious the pedestrian ended up in hospital. This is a worry and sadly not an isolated incident in Reading. Pavements in this part of town are very narrow and unlike other areas it is not always safe for pedestrians and cyclists to share the pavement. However, we understand why many cyclists prefer to do this rather than risk cycling on busy roads where there is often ...
Vince gave an excellent speech today in the UK at the London Business School's Global Leadership Summit on innovation and entrepreneurship. He fit an impressive amount of substance into just 20 minutes. I don't have the time to write a proper post this evening, but here's three quick thoughts: As a partisan Lib Dem, I'm glad it's one of ours driving the innovation and growth agenda Based on my non-partisan experience of working for tech firms and start-ups, Vince hit a lot of the right notes In particular the importance of about 10,000 medium size firms to creating jobs There's ...
I haven't done a 'Random Thoughts' post for almost a month so this is a bit of a catch up on links related to the aftermath of the May 5th elections. Mainly for reference purposes to be honest. My personal Lib Dem Top of the Blogs, Golden Half-Dozen It would have been better to have put together a post with a round up of the best of the commentary reacting and analysing the results a bit nearer to the local and other elections. But I wouldn't have done any better than the round up that Stephen Tall put together. So ...
Women Bishops was the subject of the Stockton Deanery Synod (a sort of Council of representatives of the Church of England in Churches north of the river in Stockton). It was a special and important meeting, so I decided to go to that, even though I was also supposed to be presenting the revised constitution to the Northern Region Lib Dems (choices, choices !), but then what are mobile phones for. The meeting was much more interesting than I thought it would be, after all I had already decided some time ago that women Bishops had to be. Nothing is ...
See http://tinyurl.com/ttjune
Just before my Monday surgeries at the Mitchell Street Centre and at Harris Academy late this afternoon, I took part in a site visit on Magdalen Green with a colleague from Friends of Magdalen Green and with council officers to look at various issues following cycle path work recently. To say it was windy on the Green would be understatement of the year - and the effects of today's wind was evident to see right across the city, not least at the back of the City Chambers in Crichton Street tonight - see right. At tonight's City Council committees, I ...
Don't forget tomorrow (Tuesday 24th May) there will be a residents meeting at the Moorlands Sports & Social Club (the former Weaste & District Conservative Club) on Liverpool Street at 4pm. Representatives from Urban Vision and Palmer Demolition will be in attendance to give a brief overview of their plans for the site and to answer resident's questions. Langworthy ward Councillor Lynn Drake will be chairing the meeting and I will be on hand to collect questions, should residents not want to ask them personally. The other ward Councillors have also been invited. This is not a political meeting, it ...
It's been two years since the Church of Scotland's General Assembly upheld the calling of openly gay minister Scott Rennie to be minister at Queen's Cross, Aberdeen. However, it was followed by a two moratorium on any other openly gay people applying to join the ministry in the Kirk. This week the General Assembly were finally going to decide on the commission that was set up to look at the issue of sexuality and being in a pastoral position over a congregation. As I blogged earlier this month there were two options on the table. The first of which was ...
The BBC2 documentary 'All watched over by loving grace' chilled the blood with its description of the clear link between a 1940s philosophy of individualism and US economic policy in the 1990s and 2000s, as directed by Alan Greenspan. I'm not one for conspiracy theories but the writer's description of this link, as well as the connection between the Asian economic boom and bust in the 1990s and the 2008 bust in the 'West' was quite surprising. I'll reserve judgement as I plough through the rather weighty book I am reading on the great Keynes and I want to revisit ...
I like the cut of John Hemming's jib. He has a passionate sense of liberalism and doesn't mind being awkward. In a nice way, he is ever-so very slightly bonkers, like many Liberals, including me. He is a real intellectual. He carries a graph showing the price of WTI Crude oil on his blog. Good man. And when the tuition fees policy was announced he asked Vince Cable if he could be given access to the details of the Net Present Values used by civil servants to calculate the various numbers. Marvellous. Parliament makes the laws. The judges carry them ...
I believe in equality, fairness and honesty and so do the majority of British people not words I necessarily associate with some sections of the legal industry. Its the case that we expect not just as a right but a matter of course, that should we be physically attacked, that the law, as enforce by the police and judged by the courts will treated pretty much, similarly irrespective of position or wealth. Of course when it comes to reputations, there is no facade of equality, if you have the money, fine, if you don't its a case of tough tits. ...
There is a plaque in the entrance of the church with the date 1803. Pevsner has it right: The brick side with the three arched windows belongs to that date.The gross and townish front of 1864 is by E.F. Law."Gross and townish" is just right, and it is an extraordinary building to find in what is still a small village. Finding it is even more of a surprise than discovering that Clipston still has two pubs. The 1803 church seems to owe its existence to what sounds like an outbreak of religious mania led by a young man called John ...
If you have a business you'd like to sell at some point in the future or are even considering starting your first business you've got to check out 'Built to Sell: Creating a business that can thrive without you' by John Warrillow (affiliate link).
I think you had better sit down before you read this. The Guardian website carries an article that praises a Liberal Democrat achievement in government. I am sorry. I did warn you. Would a glass of water help? You will find that article on Desmond Carrington's Environment Blog. It begins: Putting your money where your mouth is a good way to persuade others you are serious. And today, by setting up a serious green investment bank (GIB), the UK government has gone some way to persuading investors that they believe their own rhetoric on the urgent need to develop a ...
.....can I suggest that, amidst all the furore over superinjunctions, which has set Twitter alight all weekend, which led to the Sunday Herald identifying the footballer in question yesterday, and which allowed Lib Dem MP John Hemming to propel himself into the limelight yet again by naming Ryan Giggs as the person who sought that particular injunction in the House of Commons, we take time to consider those who desperately need & can't get, access to the law. At least Hemming's action means that the farcical situation in which nobody could name Giggs is now at an end, because papers ...
Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming has today exposed another superinjunction, this time covering the affair Manchester United's Ryan Giggs had with Big Brother's Imogen Thomas: As was the case with his party colleague Lord Stoneham a few days ago, Hemming was able to do this thanks to Parliamentary Privilege - the right of Parliamentarians to speak ...
Tonight's Leicester Mercury quotes the city's new Mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, as ruling out the building of a new gallery for modern art - at least for the foreseeable future. It also quotes his Labour comrade Ross Wilmott as saying: "The art gallery was my idea, along with a few others. "It would create jobs - building the gallery, running it, running the shop - which would help local people. "There is nowhere in the city to see modern art, which is just disappointing. I know that it would be unrealistic to start building it tomorrow, but I had hoped ...
Some years ago I attended a day course on media law. It was taught by a former journalist who had later taken a law degree, and what a remember most from the day is his stories of the various scams he used to get up to as a young reporter. In the days when you had to phone your copy in, the ability to extract free calls from a public phone was a useful way of making those expenses go further. But he did cover the basics of libel, parliamentary privilege and qualified privilege, and something else he said has ...
Southwark Council has been consulting via the community council on charging for parking permits based on the vehicles carbon emissions. Overall it will see more than 25% increase in charges. Option 1 – straight increase in charges from £99.30 to £125 – ouch. Option 2 – increase the charge from £99.30 to one of 6 bands between £30->£225 but overall an average charge of slightly over £125. At the Dulwich Community Council the councillors and audience opted for Option 2 of the two options. The surplus on running the parking revenue account is used for things like lolly pop ladies, ...
I've recently moved to new VPS servers and something that you need to be careful with is an incorrect setup in your php.ini file. Just a small typo can result in a line of errors everytime a PHP page is loaded, and on a WordPress blog that can be high. So once you've noticed that you have quite a few error_logs and that you have solved the issue causing the errors, this one line of code via a SSH terminal can delete all the logs for you. find . -name error_log -exec rm -f {} \; As a warning this ...
Prompted by Mark Thompson's criticism of John Hemming's use of Parliamentary privilege, and fighting back waves of schadenfreude, I'm coming to the conclusion that Mark is right. Much as I admire him for stealing the thunder of News International, John is wrong. There's a difference between the cases of a professional footballer (with the world's most reviled team, ironically the favourite of one P Ruhemann) and the circumstances of Fred Goodwin – a man at the helm of a bank that triggered the biggest corporate crisis in British history. Put simply, it is in the public interest if this top ...
I didn't watch the BAFTAs last night, but I was very sad to wake up this morning to see that during the "In Memoriam" spot, there was no mention of one of the best loved Doctor Who actors. Nicholas Courtney, who played Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, passed away in February. Toby Hadoke, whose show Moths ate my Doctor Who scarf is a must for Doctor Who geeks and occasional fans and, actually, anyone in their 40s or 50s, posted his anger at the lack of respect to Courtney. I'm sure everyone who grew up with the Brigadier will agree with ...
So, President Obama has arrived in Europe, leaving Mr Netanyahu in Washington, but if anyone thinks that the President hasn't brought the Middle East with him on this trip to London and other capitals, think again: The New York Times reports that when the President addresses Parliament on Wednesday, he "will elaborate, aides say, on the ideas he introduced last Thursday in his speech on the Arab Spring and the future of the Middle East". Talking of Parliament, I was fascinated to read this piece in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz about the House of Lords' recent discussion of "the detention ...
The first Social Liberal Forum annual conference – on the theme Liberalism, Equality and the State – is being held on 18th June at City University. I'll be saying my piece on the the compatibility of the Big Society and community politics – accountability and marketisation. Here is the full list of speakers: Vince Cable, ...
Answering questions as to why he named the twitter footballer today, but not before John Hemming said "When he sued twitter it was clear what he was doing. He was going after the ordinary people who have been gossiping about him on twitter. To prosecute someone for contempt of court is quite a serious step. It comes with an up to two year jail sentance." "I have spoken to people of ordinary
So it's finally out in the open. Today in parliament, the Lib Dem MP John Hemming outed Ryan Giggs as the footballer at the centre of the Imogen Thomas affair superinjunction. You can watch him doing it, and the Speaker's robust* (and in my opinion correct) admonishment of him here: It had become pretty much common knowledge for anyone with a Twitter account, or Scottish newsagent that Giggs was the culprit. So it could be argued that all Hemming was doing was bringing an unsustainable situation to a head. I think this is wrong. Parliamentary privilege exists in order to ...
This week's new planning applications include the intriguing 47010: "Change of use from shop (A1) to salt cave (alternative treatment therapy based on salt microclimate)." at 8 Rectory Gardens, Cheadle. Other new planning applications in this week which may be of interest include: 47181: "Erection of two/three storey residential block to form 3 dwellings comprising 3 bed houses" on Park Road, Cheadle (by Jubilee Park) 47167: new access ramp to platform 2 at Heald Green Station. 47148: Re-surfacing of 3 existing tennis courts, construction of 2 new tennis courts, provision of car parking area and construction of a replacement pavilion ...
Last week the Queen was actually at St. James Gate brewery home of the most famous stout of the world. She was poured a pint of the black stuff but didn't even touch the glass, now did HRH the Duke of Edinbuirgh. However, in a small pub in County Offaly earlier the following conversation took place. Leader of the free world "I have been told that is makes a difference, who the person behind the bar is. I mean, that people are very particular about who is pouring your Guinnesss. Am I right about that? His many cousins in the ...
The Guardian has the story so I can legitimately discuss Ryan Giggs's affair with some Big Brother sleb called Imogen. The truth is, the details, salacious or otherwise, hold little attraction for me. Nor, I would hazard a guess, for the majority. The interest is in the sanctions. As I commented this morning, the battle between the courts and modernity has been the most engaging - Twitter is
The Cornish Guardian's Richard Whitehouse informs me that Cornwall Council have started posting advertisements on the Council website. On the face of it this seems like a creative way to raise a few extra quid in these tough financial times but clicking on the planning pages perhaps raises the odd ethical question. When I had ...
I've just been invited to a fundraiser in aid of Aware Defeat Depression in the John Hewitt bar, Donegall Street, Belfast on this Wednesday 25th May from 7.30 p.m. to 9.30 p.m.. Aware Defeat Depression is currently coordinating our second annual Depression Aware Week. The week aims to raise public and political awareness of the ...
As I wrote yesterday the footballer involved in the injunction case against Imogen Thomas was a fool. Twitter is widely used but to say it has the audience of the majority of people in the UK is foolish. By suing twitter for allowing his name to be mentioned it brought the story into the mainstream domain and it was only a matter of time before a big media outlet thought 'sod it' and named him. The Sunday Herald yesterday did not but had a photograph of Ryan Giggs on the front page and made it clear who it was. So ...
There is quite a lot of alarm around today following a Telegraph story that the coalition government might be resurrecting a national identity scheme. The headline for the story is I feel a little misleading as it seems to be giving people the impression there is a plan to reintroduce ID cards. If you read in detail the proposals appear to be an on-line digital scheme for accessing government services. The problem is that at this stage it isn't really clear what the scheme will be in like in practice. NO2ID needs to see the detail before we can come ...
Well, the worst kept secret in Reading politics is out. The Greens have confirmed they will enable Labour to form a minority administration on Wednesday at the Council's AGM. But whatever they say in press releases or blog entries about preserving their independence the die is cast. From now on Greens will be responsible for every decision Labour makes, including every cut and every pet project because they put them there. Despite an almost impossible budget settlement the Lib Dems fought hard last year to protect key services to the most vulnerable people in Reading. For the first time ever, ...
I read with enormous interest what Vince Cable had to say in the Guardian today. I also note what Ed Miliband has been saying over the weekend.We face some enormous issues.Cable argues that we are facing profound long term change because of the banking collapse, the recession and the changing world economy.He argues that some fundamentals were wrong with our economy based on consumer spending, a housing bubble, and an overweight banking system where three banks had a balance sheet larger than the British economy. The deficit was only one of the symptoms of the financial crisis. This is a ...
You know, its tough enough being a Liberal Democrat these days anyway what with all the policy u-turns and backtracking due to 'being in coalition' and its been bloody tough to take at times. Often as you feel like a ... Continue reading →
It turns out that Henry Kissinger - another person who can hardly be labelled a liberal peacenik - strongly endorsed President Obama's approach to the question of Israel's borders on the Today Programme on Saturday; his comments on Israel/Palestine can be heard roughly three minutes, twenty seconds in and are well worth listening to.
VN normally leaves the gutter personality politics to Guido and Harry. However, things got a little bit personal with former NUS President Wes Streeting yesterday. Wes was doing the Sunday Times live blog with Dan Hodges yesterday morning, being the New Labour poster child in a debate for the heart of the Labour party, when this ...
[IMG: opentech] Another year, another OpenTech. I found last year's OpenTech conference to be awe-inspiring. This year's was equally good. This is a quick rundown of the sessions I attended that I found particularly interesting. How can we win the Information Wars? A roundup of what the Open Rights Group has been doing over the last year. [IMG: DEact] Always good to hear from them. Interesting to learn about the tensions of being up against a company for some issues – yet supporting them in others. Good to see that they're still banging away at the digital civil liberties drum. ...
Dave's a nice bloke, really he is but he's not a miracle worker and that's what it would take to change the image of the Tories. Here's another example of what the real Tories are like, from just down the road from Dave's constituency in Abingdon. Little more needs to be said. The picture of the new Mayor of Abingdon tells its own story, as do his graceless comments. I understand that the comments below this article had to be removed from the Abingdon Herald's website. Why could that be...? You can't trust the Tories and their commitment to common ...
The head of Her Majesty government, responsible for implementing the daily business of our Sovereign, cannot mention [the footballer we cannot name] in public – even though Cameron, like the rest of us, knows who he is. Her Majesty's personal ... Continue reading →
I was astonished to just read the following cable from the UK Prime Minister to the US President:On returning from a very pleasant day's shooting at Bolton Abbey, I have just received the information that you have decided to supply Hawk missiles to the Israelis and that the decision will be conveyed to them tomorrow. This follows two years of close co-operation during which we decided that it would be unwise to supply these weapons to the Israelis...[The US Secretary of State] gave a most categorical assurance to [the British Ambassador] that your Government would consult us...To be informed on ...
It's worth watching last weeks BBC One program See you in Court on BBC Iplayer here It follows A young Tamil refugee fights for his reputation after the Daily Mail and The Sun claimed he faked his lengthy hunger strike by eating burgers. This led to death threats, he went to court to clear his name. It's just another example of newspaper lies. See the Tamil News for more info http://www.uktamilnews.com/index.php/archives/32005
I have some good news for residents of Larkspur Close in Kew Ward. A resident of one of the flats complained some time ago about fly tipping, which I had removed(as reported in my post "Fly Tipping Removed in Kew". I asked officers to look into how we could prevent further incidents of fly-tipping at this site. Officers from Environmental Protection met with representatives of Contour Housing and Network Rail. At the meeting it was put to Network Rail that, not withstanding their access requirements, the area would have to be fenced off to prevent further incidents of fly-tipping. Network ...
TweetAs a Liberal Democrat I often find myself getting rather excited over constitutional reform, be it AV, Lords Reform or the practical implications off fixed term parliaments, it's in my blood as a self confessed reformer, progressive and radical. In fact the thought of an election in Britain under AV or STV would actually send me positively weak at the knees. BUT, there is a problem with that, It doesn't excite the person that lives on the council estate worrying about paying their rent, or the middle class professional commuting to London to earn a crust. It almost positively turns ...
The Green's press release is probably more revealing than they intended. They said from day one that they wouldn't join in a coalition so that is not news but if they wanted to give the impression that they were genuinely sitting on the fence they wouldn't have used the language of Labour (Con-Dem) to describe people they are trying to give the public the impression they had been genuinely holding open and honest talks with. I say give the impression because any similarity to open and honest talks with the Greens is complete bollocks. They've not spoken to anyone other ...
Paper people Homerton Children's Centre, Holbrook Road, is running a series of free parenting courses: First Aid, safety in the home Back to work course 123 Magic; parenting course All of the courses are free. To book, contact Carly Bareham at the Centre There's also a Careers Fair coming up, plus a range of half-term activities for children.
I have now written to John Lee and to the Liberal Democrat News concerning John Lee's letter published in the Liberal Democrat News this week. Here is my letter to John Lee: Dear John Lee I'd like to make clear my strong disagreement to your view on House of Lords reform published in the Liberal Democrat News this week. House of Lords reform is not a "consolation prize". It is a principled stand made by this party and its predecessor party, the Liberal party, for numerous generations. We have the word "Democrats" in our party title. Legislators should be elected ...
Following the death of Wouter Weylandt earlier in this years Giro d'Italia, which enters it's final week today after a rest day yesterday, come the news of another tragic death of a professional cyclist. This time it is the sad demise if Xavier Tondó. At the age of 32 his Palmarès* doesn't read like the stuff of legends, this was a cyclist who was a workhorse of his teams, lately Moviestar. His best performance in a Grand Tour was 6th in last year's Vuelta a España. Although he had won a stage in the Paris-Nice race and was the overall ...
Chris has been talking to county hall about the dangers of a new school not being opened in St Albans:
Mon 23rd
12:05
ID cards? You what coalition government? Come again...? I thought we'd all decided they were a naff ...
Over in the Technology section of The Telegraph the headline story is one sure to repulse the majority of this nation. As a country we pretty much said rather loudly that we hated the ID Card scheme and we rejoiced when the coalition agreement took one look at it and chuckled before consigning it to history in May 2010. Twelve months on though and they are working behind the scenes to bring in a new ID Card system that the government themselves won't police but a small number of private firms will – yes folks that is exactly what people ...
It doesn't seem that long ago that Ireland rolled up the red capret as a head of state left Irish soil. That is because it was only Friday. But today it has been rolled out again. President Obama has arrived today ahead of a three day State Visit to last week's visitor the Queen and the UK. He will meet with President Mary McAleese and then hold talks with Taoiseach Enda Kenny. But the highlight of his visit to Ireland will be the trip to Moneygall, Co Offaly. "Where?" you may ask. Well here. So yeah it is a little ...
Residents have contacted us to complain about missed bin collections on Foxhill Road in Redlands. Residents report the following: "over the last three weeks we have been having problems with collection of our bins. Not being collected on the days stated on our collection calendar. This week they should have been collected on Thursday and still not been done." This is a problem that has occurred in the past and is linked to parked cars (and in this case vans) making it difficult for Streetcare vehicles to access the street. We successfully campaigned a few years ago for double-yellow lines to ...
Very, very clever piece of literary art. That's all.
Don't get conned by anyone calling about installing solar panels on your roof and saying they are from Cornwall Council. At the moment, Cornwall Council is not running running or supporting any current solar PV schemes on private housing. Residents in Penzance have been called by someone pretending to be from the Council and advising about grants that may be available to install panels. A company called Sunseeker UK then made a follow-up call. Solar panels may be a good idea for many householders in Cornwall because of the amount of sun we get, but at the moment the Council ...
Come and join local Bat watcher Jerry Sorfleet and Bury Rangers for our 2nd night shift in the clough this year! We'll be looking for and listening to our local flying wonders. 9.15pm Tuesday 24th May Places are limited so booking is essential To book places please contact Ranger Ian Rogers on 0161 253 5522 or email; i.rogers@bury.gov.uk
Well, of course I do. I'm a Lib Dem political geek - the desire for radical political reform is part of my DNA. An entire Parliamentary Chamber which owes its existence to political patronage, the whim of the sitting Prime Minister, or to the family you were born into, or to your position in one particular church, well, it all just seem so 18th century to me. So, obviously, I was pleased to see Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg publish a white paper which includes plans which go further than anyone else ever has to give a bit of political ...
Peter Black makes a valid point in his blog this morning on the on-going farce that is the current superinjunction debate. I haven't waded into the debate until now but it is a very sorry state of affairs. I've blogged of my great admiration for this footballer before in this blog but he and his lawyers have made a right pigs-ear of this situation. Yesterday's Sunday Herald on the right (with thanks to Andrew Reeves for the photo), clearly shows who we're talking about and of course, it is the worst kept secret at present as thousands of Twitter users ...
David Cameron will head to Buckinghamshire today to launch the Big Society...for the 4th time. The Prime Minister will say: "It holds the key to transforming our economy, our society, our country's future and that's why I will keep on championing it and keep on building it, every day that I lead this country. These are the ...
Saturday's Western Mail ran this article about the revival that we here in Cardigan are about to witness in the jeans industry.  Local pioneers David and Clare Hieatt David Hieatt, the founder of the howies brand, is looking to tap into the skills of the area by employing at this initial stage, 5 skilled machinists to produce the premium Hiut Jeans denim which he plans to sell at around £150-£200 each and which will be aimed at top markets in London and Japan. He aims to open his new factory in Parc Teifi in July. The skill base is ...
Despite a torrid season and many promises from the Edinburgh Capitals (Edinburgh's ice hockey team, based at Murrayfield), none of which were forthcoming, there is hope for next season and currently it does look as if the Caps will be playing in the Elite league once again. However, as I said, last seasons promises were not forthcoming so I am not holding my breath this time. As usual news from the club has been quiet. In fact, just two news stories of any substance. The first being the welcome return of Keith Butland, who will once again head up PR ...
Consevative Home's Yellow B**tards League table? Note the casual racism in the opening paragraphs - ostensibly a quote from a top tory. (tags: bloodytories) Thankfully, I've never had to come out about anything Amusing video about coming out (tags: funny) Whatever Happened To Jesus? MoronWatch on the Rapture that never was (tags: religion) Smartphone app offers Lincolnshire's bikers safety tips Interesting idea for motorcycle safety. (tags: biking)
The Socialist government of Spain suffered heavy losses in local elections last night. The People's Party, center right opposition, had an extraordinary night – a 10% lead over the government. United Left, coalition of parties who opposed Spanish entry to ... Continue reading →
There have been many pages written about David Lloyd George and a search on the internet will bring up pages of very similar information. Many will know him for his success and personality, or even his position in the Liberal Party and his part in its decline. However, he is considered to be one of ...
Thanks for making this post top of the LDV Golden Dozen this week. I am blushing with pride. I will of course be doing all I can to keep the blog just as interesting. Meantime, I am off to practice not looking smug in the mirror. Thanks again all.
The Attorney-General is considering contempt proceedings against a Sunday newspaper that has effectively identified a footballer behind a controversial privacy case. The footballer has already been named in tens of thousands of Twitter messages — up to one tweet every five seconds yesterday contained his name — and his lawyers have begun action against the micro-blogging site in their hunt for the Twitter user who first disclosed his identity. But yesterday the player's legal fight escalated with the publication of the photograph by the Scottish Sunday Herald — with the player's eyes blacked out and "censored" written across them. The ...
We're planning to close our online survey at 9 pm tomorrow (Tuesday 24th), so that we can pull everything together ready for South Gloucester's consultation deadline later in the week. You can view the outline options from the links in the box in the right hand column of this blog. Then you can complete the survey online, or download the form and print it if you prefer. We'll report back on this blog with details of the survey findings.
Today the Guardian writes NHS shakeup: From malignant to muddled and outlines the difference Clegg has made in government. It shows some strengths for Clegg which are worth highlighting: Nick Clegg is making a real difference. These are not common words to read these days, and yet they are becoming hard to dispute with the ...
With 30,000 Twitter users having tweeted the name of the Premiership footballer alleged to have had an extra-marital affair with Imogen Thomas and with a Scottish newspaper printing a thinly disguised photo of the accused litigant, is there any way back for the superinjunction? At least the Attorney General seems to know when to stop digging even if the footballer and his lawyers do not. The Independent reports that sources close to him suggested he would be highly unlikely to authorise criminal proceedings against anyone who had breached either injunction on Twitter: They said that Mr Grieve - who is ...
Another bit of my attempt to widen my historical knowledge, this book does exactly what it says on the tin an provides a good overview of 200 years of Roman history. There's obviously a limit to how much detail Scullard can provide in this overview, but he does a very good job of linking the different trends in Roman society and politics together to explain how the Republic began to crumble under the pressures its expansion had put in under, how the early Empire emerged from that process and then how it stabilised itself. Scullard does presuppose some knowledge of ...
Liberalism, Equality and the State Vince Cable, Lee Chalmers, Evan Harris, Simon Hebditch, Simon Hughes,Chris Huhne, Will Hutton, Neal Lawson, Alex Marsh, Mark Pack, Ed Randell, Alexis Rowell, Naomi Smith, Claire Tyler, Halina Ward The Social Liberal Forum are proud ... Continue reading →
As described by Paul Burstow, the changes to the Health and Social Care Bill all sound good. In particular, it is good to see it acknowledged that the driving philosophy was utilities-style regulation, i.e. 80s style privatisation, i.e. US-inspired market-based reforms. Health care is not like a utility. You can't lag Granny to keep her health bills down, use a lower wattage of bulb to cure your cancer, or use Skype to call your cousin in Australia to relieve your intermittent back pain. Market mechanisms in health care reform are really about flexibility and localism, not lower costs through competition. ...
When the coalition first formed last May, I found myself in an odd position. Having been a member of and involved in campaigning for the Lib Dems and of course against the Conservatives, I now found myself as a member of a party that had 57 MPs, 5 cabinet ministers and a Deputy Prime Minister that were part of a government with the Conservatives and led by David Cameron. Over the next few weeks and months I did start to find my perceptions of Cameron changing a little. I had previously seen him as a bit of a political chancer ...
Jo Swinson is one of those people who literally never stops. In the last 6 weeks, she's run a marathon, got married and last week launched the All Party Parliamentary Group on Body Image. Central YMCA is doing the administration work for the Group which will be: Bringing together interested parties, from a range of sectors including:Advertising industryHealth and fitness sectorMediaYouth organisationsFashion and beauty sectorHighlighting areas of best practiceExamining potential causes of negative body imageShowcasing new research on body imageLast week's celebrity magazines were covered with pictures of Cheryl Cole, about to start her new job as an X Factor ...
There were many things badly thought through, totally illogical and or just down right annoying in the piece on Lords Reform that Andreas Whittam-Smith wrote in The Independent last week. Unfortunately, I don't appear to have the 4 or 5 days spare I need to write exactly what I think about each and every ludicrous point. So I'll just plump for the last one. He quotes Anthony King, Professor of Government at Essex University, in saying that "an elected House of Lords 'would inevitably almost entirely consist of a miscellaneous assemblage of party hacks, political careerists, clapped out, retired or ...
Well here it is.
Rather like being in one's car, people have the approach to Twitter that if they pick their nose, no one will see. The threats over a certain footballer from lawyers have attempted to counter this threat, by demanding information about each tweeter who mentioned him. The response has been a resounding delight, his name on twitter is now being spoken once a second. What I adore about what is
The visit of Obama is fast approaching with little more than disdain from me. From his simpering and obsequious interview with Marr yesterday to his 'agenda' for a UK visit, I am seeing him more and more as a facade for the same old politics. He simply uses a different vernacular. Omnipotence I would imagine he identifies with modern Doctor Who images of a 'lonely god', the idea that he is
The McNulty report - Realising the potential of GB rail - is a queer beast. The report, published last week, is the final report of a long term investigation, established by the last government, into the efficiency of the British rail industry. And the report identifies a sensible and quite extensive set of barriers to ...
This week's poem (I feel justified in calling it "this week's", as I seem to be getting back into my stride with this anthology strand) is Upon Westminster Bridge by Wordsworth. Composed on the 3rd of September 1802, his view would have been from the original Westminster Bridge which was of stone - shown here in a 1746 picture by Canaletto - rather than the 1862 bridge which stands to this day. Upon Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth Earth has not anything to show more fair: Dull would he be of soul who could pass by A sight so touching ...
I don't buy a Sunday newspaper because reading Saturday's already takes up too much of my weekend. However, I understand that in several of yesterday's papers where was speculation about a cabinet reshuffle. It has been a staple for years in the analysis of British politics that ministers are shifted too often from one department to another; that they are just getting the hang of one job when they are moved on to the next. Somewhere in his excellent memoires Chris Mullin observes that he was just getting to feel effective as Minister for Africa when he was moved, not ...
broadcast and related anniversaries 23 May 1964: broadcast of "Temple of Evil", first episode of the story we now call The Aztecs. The Tardis lands in medieval Mexico, where Barbara is received as the reincarnation of the priest Yetaxa. 23 May 1970: broadcast of third episode of Inferno. The Doctor realises that he has travelled to a parallel Earth. (This is the one with the famous eyepatch scene.) 23 May 1988: release of "Doctorin' the Tardis" by The Timelords (later the KLF). A true cultural milestone. 23 May 2003: webcast of fourth episode of Shada. The Doctor and Chris discover ...
It is nearly four o'clock in the morning and, despite a number of aborted attempts, Sleep has been just escaping me tonight. I don't know what is going on that is creating this problem. Perhaps I am doing too much? Perhaps there are many outside forces which are leaning on me? What could they be? ...
It will be our task over the months of these hearings to investigate and probe these and other matters which include very troubling suggestions, at their highest of state involvement in the murder of one of the state's own citizens, in a dispassionate and calm way so that the truth is not itself obscured by ...
All too often in Northern Ireland you can find yourself asked the question, which can be roughly translated to mean Are you sure of your redemption and membership of the Church having been born again and accepted Jesus Christ as your personal saviour? On Sunday morning at the meeting house this was the subject of ...
TweetIf you haven't read the first part to this blog I thorougly recommend you do it, and it can be found here Since I wrote my original blog piece entitled What is the point in Liberal Youth? I've understandably generated quite a lot of controversy and even an entry in the Golden Dozen (Thank you Lib Dem Voice) but because so much has happened since, I wanted to blog further about some of the things that have arisen. Initially after writing the initial blog post, being a sensible blogger, I wanted to post my work somewhere that would recieve the ...
