The news this evening is that 2 people have been killed in an explosion caused by a collision at the Chevron oil refinery near Pembroke in west Wales. Details are sketchy at present and it is not sure whether it was two petrol tankers that collided with one another or otherwise at 6.30pm this evening but in addition to the unconfirmed fatalities, it is said that one man has been flown by air ambulance to Morriston Hospital in Swansea with burns injuries. The site, which can refine 220,000 barrels of crude oil a day into petrol and other products, first ...
...or you say "outsourcing", I say "self-determination"... I love finding out that what I think are my ideas are not original. I usually find they have already been thought of by far cleverer people than myself, so feeding the idea that perhaps great minds really do think alike even when they have never heard each other. Such is the case, roughly anyway, with a view of Higher Education I put forward in 2002 when my own university was consulting on its previous management strategy. In my case I proposed, in what when I look back on it now seems a ...
The following is an article, submitted to Lib Dem Voice for publication, which hasn't yet been published or rejected... and events are moving quickly on this one, so I'm going to make it public here. I'd like to add No2ID and Lib Dem activist James Baker's observations about the powers the police have to use ...
I've been thinking for a while that I need to start reading more science fiction (especially as I've been *writing* more SF, and it's a field that demands keeping up with what's current). Other than Charles Stross, Greg Egan and Neal Stephenson, I've read fairly little from the last thirty years or so (oddly, while ...
My first experience of licensing committee was interesting but not very satisfactory. A significant number of residents attended and wanted to speak. Unlike planning committee, there were several pre-meetings going on with negotiations taking place right up to the last minute. The applicant offered to reduce the time for the alcohol licence down to 7 in the morning till 11pm which is an
[IMG: trudy ddean] Over the years I've been writing this blog, one fairly strong theme has been, Kent County Councils apparent obsession with moulding public image, perhaps the most dangerous manifestation of this, has been the claims made by the council of "excellence" and reference to being a 4 star council, a meaningless term to many of us. Last year Ofsted alerted KCC in November to the dire state of its inadequate childcare provision which exposed 2,000 children to significant risk, Conservative leader of the council Paul Carter shortly afterwards said their would be a review. At the request of ...
You might think it's a small point, and it's certainly not only applicable to Paul Burstow. But in all the fallout since Panorama's harrowing documentary this week, what a shame that so little has been said to praise the whistleblower who didn't just try blowing the whistle once but again and again until he finally had success. It's been good to see Paul Burstow face up to the issue in the media and promise quick action to learn the relevant lessons. But no system is perfect and we're always going to be reliant on whistleblowers as a crucial safety net. ...
There were a number of security alerts caused by dissident republicans in Belfast last Friday. One was in a street close to Alliance Party headquarters in University Street. Now details have emerged that the incident involved a pipe bomb being thrown at the building. Two men were arrested and the latest details emerged as one of the men applied for bail in court today.[1] The accused is a taxi driver who claims he innocently picked up the fare without knowledge of the pipe bomb but police believe he was heavily involved in the bomb plot. The Alliance Party was targeted ...
County Road Safety Officers will be out and about across Cambridgeshire over the coming weeks handing out early 'Christmas cards' which spread the word that drink driving does not only happen during the festive season. An exhibition trailer decorated as a 'Christmas Grotto' will be visiting Tesco stores in the county with leaflets spelling out the personal and legal consequences of drinking and driving and reminding people of the length of time alcohol takes to clear the body. The roadshows will take place between 10.00-3.00 pm, at: * Huntingdon - June 3 * Bar Hill - June 14 * Wisbech ...
England's most attractive town - John Betjeman The climax [of Lincolnshire] in terms of historical as well as architectural significance, is... the town of Stamford, the English country market town par excellence - Nikolaus Pevsner If there is a more beautiful town in the whole of England I have yet to see it. The view of Stamford from the water-meadows on a fine June evening, about a quarter to half a mile upstream, is one of the finest sights that England has to show. The western sunlight catches the grey limestone walls and turns them to gold. It falls on ...
George, Amanda and Jean at Rock Rd Library It is looking increasingly likely that the Conservative-run Cambridgeshire County Council will close Rock Road Library unless the community can offer a solid proposal to keep it going. The Friends of Rock Road Library estimate that we need to raise £6,000 a year and 40+ volunteers. They are conducting a questionnaire to establish what practical and financial support members of the community may be able to offer to keep the library open. As the chair of the Friends, Jane Elliott, puts it, 'We are not just looking for opinions now; we are ...
We went to the nearby town of Sint-Truiden today, it being a public holiday and the place looking at least vaguely interesting. It is blessed with decently preserved architecture, witness here the town hall and church in the main square: and here a sculpture dedicated to the area's main agricultural produce, yer basic fruits: (You will note Mrs [Unknown LJ tag] making a rare appearance.) Some interesting art also in the main square: Rather gloriously, the tourist agency has put together a Quest for younger visitors, consisting of nine little locked boxes at several of the monuments. You are given ...
I only ask, you see, because earlier today the Conservative Party's press team decided to highlight the fact that a Labour MP, Chuka Umunna, claimed £43.12 for "soap, toilet roll etc". [IMG: Toilet paper] Well, the claim was for his office where staff work. So quite why would someone want to pick on an employer providing toilet roll (and soap! yes, soap! the sheer luxury!) for his staff? But perhaps that's how CCHQ works and the staff there are so used to having to bring their own toilet paper in to work that they don't see why anyone else should ...
The Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black has said that test drilling for shale gas at the St. John's Colliery site in Maesteg should not go ahead until more is known about two earthquakes linked to similar activity near Blackpool. He has expressed his concern following the suspension of a controversial new drilling operation for natural shale gas in Lancashire following a second earthquake in the area that may have been triggered by the process. The earthquake last Friday near Blackpool occurred at the same time that the energy company Cuadrilla Resources was injecting fluids ...
What is a black hat? A black hat is an awkward kind of person. They're the troll, the class clown, the devil's advocate. Their job, whether self-appointed or not, is to critique, toy with and interrogate someone from an arbitrary, hostile point of view in order to test how well they understand their own views, actions and decisions. The cartoon above contains a character who embodies this spirit, who regularly does terrible things to reveal other people's weaknesses and is generally feared and loathed in his world for it. In this encounter he meets a black hat for black hats, ...
'"To govern is to choose. To appear to be unable to choose is to appear to be unable to govern"So said former Conservative chancellor Nigel Lawson MP. I'm no fan of his, but I like the quote and I think it describes particularly well the behaviour of Reading's new or new-old Labour administration. Politics is about choices. What you choose to do and not do. What services you choose to fund and not fund. So what will Labour spend public money or rather, what services will they cut? After they have already promised to free Council Tax and with a ...
I always find it an enjoyable start to the day when I pick up a Metro and the main headline is something I agree with - the war on drugs most definitely isn't working! I have blogged about this many times before however it's good to see so many places running this story. The Metro obviously leads with the fact that former global leaders are speaking out against the current policy, but also the BBC, Express and Politics.co.uk have the story that celebrities are writing to the Government to suggest they change their tactics. It's all basic common sense. One ...
It was Nick Clegg that said it. "You shouldn't trust any government, actually, including this one." There's been much happening since then to prove his words true, yet much of it has gone under the radar of Lib Dems. Ken Clarke, everyone's ... Continue reading →
Thu 2nd
19:05
Keep the Liberal in Liberal Democrat Conference - Episode 2: The Petition and The Letter #ldconf
Thanks again to the fabulous Sarah Brown, @auntysarah on Twitter for producing this image and allowing me to post it here. Just imagine a whole auditorium of Liberal Democrats wearing t-shirts bearing this logo. It amply represents much of the feeling expressed today on the Liberal Democrat blogosphere about the party's decision to bow to police demands that they have the final say on who attends our Conference. Our constitution states that local parties should elect Conference Representatives to attend. The Police should not be allowed to put that process asunder, so to speak. I wrote about this earlier and ...
The new Liberator has been sent to subscribers and you can find one of the articles from the issue on the magazine's website. It is "My 'yes' campaign hell" by James Graham, an account of his experiences of working for the unsuccessful side in the AV referendum. Some extracts: Research was not merely not commissioned; it was ignored. Our initial focus group work clearly showed that people were contemptuous of the idea that electoral reform would prevent corruption; people only approved of notions such as AV "making MPs work harder" in the context of them having to reach out beyond ...
Reading Declan Walsh's article on Islamabad in today's Guardian, I am struck by the social system between countries. As he observes, Pakistan's first nuclear explosion signalled 'it's entry into the global nuclear elite'. Yet having big bombs doesn't guarantee your social status alone. There are many analogies, but let's go for the school yard favourite of mine. If a school boy pulls big punches,
I am still highly disappointed today in the new requirements for registration at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Birmingham this autumn. It seems others are too. For most of today I have seen other Liberal Democrats express their dismay at ... Continue reading →
The Liberal Democrats' Chief Executive, Chris Fox, has written this post in reply to yesterday's piece by Gus Baker from the Intern Aware campaign. At a recent meeting of all party staff, the majority of people said they had begun their career as an intern. It was testament to dedication and commitment, but also proved that internships give people unrivalled access and experience of one of the country's most highly competitive careers. There is no denying that internships in both business and politics have for a long time hindered social mobility, promoting the culture of contacts over ability and often ...
Some amusing news from the ermine chamber this week: 76% of peers, including 54% Lib Dem peers, would see reform of the House of Lords unconstitutional. The first thing is that the number of Lib Dem objectors, including Lord Steel, is depressingly too high: Lords reform has been Liberal and Liberal Democratic party policy since before proportional representation was added. The second thing is that this is complete bollocks. My friend over at Legal Fiction has posted, from a legal standpoint, why this is not the case: most importantly, the use of the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 to override ...
One of the things I have always prided myself on is that I can recruit people to our party with the phrase, you too can make a change to the way we make policy. It is a rather unique selling point that our party is one that gets together twice a year and any local party can propose policy. Any party member can speak on the policy proposals and any voting rep can then vote on them (anyone of course can then get to be in that last category). No consider my role as a Membership Development Officer here in ...
TweetThere have been numerous posts about this already, however I also feel I must post. I love going to conference. One of the best things about it is that any party member is allowed to attend, and that party members ... Continue reading →
Received from Dundee City Council : THE ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 : SECTION 14(1) THE DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL AS TRAFFIC AUTHORITY being satisfied that traffic on the road should be prohibited by reason of BT duct laying works being carried out HEREBY PROHIBIT the driving of any vehicle in Step Row (from Perth Road to approx 100 metres south), Dundee. This notice comes into effect on Monday 13 June 2011 for 2 working days. Pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained. Alternative routes for vehicles are available via Perth Road/Patons Lane/Magdalen Yard Road. For further information contact (01382) 433168.
This afternoon the Corporate Resources scrutiny committee was able to quiz officers about the Daily Telegraph story on the use of credit cards by the authority. Over the days since the story broke, the Council has produced a series of statements in answer to some of the items of spend. We know, for example, that many of the overseas transactions are actually in local currencies and the actual amount spent on those items (in sterling) is pretty tiny. We also know that much of the spending was incurred by the Council but on someone else's behalf and that the money ...
West End Community Council now has a new website and the new domain name is www.dundeewecc.co.uk. You can also e-mail the Community Council at mailbox@dundeewecc.co.uk.
I had the pleasure of attending the Disgruntled Radical's birthday celebration last weekend. As part of his preparation to move house he was giving away some of his precious books. Each one was carefully chosen for the recipient. The creator of Vote Clegg get Clegg got Samuel Smiles 'Self Help' and a Labour politician Craig Murray's Murder in Samarkand. I was lucky enough to be given Elliot Doods 'Lets try Liberalism'. I began to ponder where I first came across Elliot Dodds. I well remember a book launch at a party Assembly in the 1970s when Russell Johnson was the ...
It was what around six weeks ago that Holly-Ann Battye was without a doubt the most famous Liberal Democrat candidate standing in any election on May 5. This is because the Daily Mail found her DeviantART website and decided that posing in sexy photos is not what prospective councillors should do and they decided to make a huge fuss over the story. I said there and then that it was a mountain out of a molehill and the story just seemed so incredibly pointless and stirred up a lot of fuss over nothing. Young woman posing for photographs and oh ...
Dalkia are currently commissioning a new plant in Co Durham to produce electricity from waste wood. The 17.5 MW plant is expected to be ready at the end of July. Follow http://bit.ly/lz690C
Over on the Guardian's Comment Is Free site, Lib Dem blogger James Graham has a piece arguing that if the party wants to demonstrate its commitment to reforming the House of Lords, we should start by stopping the appointment of additional peers. Here's a sample: Nowhere are the flaws of political appointment more apparent than in the Liberal Democrat party in the House of Lords. Not only are Lib Dem peers handpicked by their leader (in theory, the leader is restricted in his choice; the reality is somewhat different), they are self-selecting. You are either the sort of person who ...
Registration has now opened for the Lib Dems autumn conference. Sadly this year for the first time all those wishing to attend are being asked to supply an unreasonable amount of personal information to perform detailed security checks. To apply for a conference pass individuals are asked to provide their passport number, driving licence number or national insurance number. This is despite government advice that you should keep your national insurance number safe and not give it out to people who do not need it: It's very important you keep your number safe and don't give it to anyone who ...
Whenever discussions of the minimum wage come up, supporters of a legal price floor are quick to point out that the introduction of the minimum wage in the UK was not accompanied by rising unemployment, as economic theory would suggest. What explains the labour market's seeming resilience in the face of what should be a very bad policy? Over at the IEA blog, I discuss three reasons why unemployment may have appeared to have been unaffected by the introduction of the minimum wage. Please take a look and feel free to comment on their discussion thread.
Whilst most Lib Dem bloggers are (rightly) busying themselves with blogs about the need for the police to have all party conference goers personal details to decide whether or not they should be allowed in, I've been reading about this insane article in The Sun where three people have a diet that consist of one single food. Now that might be weird on its own but here were my initial thoughts. Firstly that the woman who eats only Monster Munch is quite tasty and secondly considering how shit all of their diets are then doesn't their skin looking remarkably clear ...
[IMG: Stella Artois_019] [IMG: Creative Commons License] photo credit: rob_rob2001 They'll be dancing inthe streets of Greenock tonight.... Full story here. I particularly like this bit from Rebecca Macdougall: Was casually chatting to my dad about the beer situation at Tesco, mention 3 crates for £11 and he sprints to the car It's all very reminiscent of Compton Mackenzie's Whisky Galore. Here's a clip from the wonderful film:
"your passport details... will be retained and/or passed to other police forces in the future" Erm, I think not. I understand security and the precaution of protecting delegates from potential terrorism or other belligerent actions. It is, though, a little ... Continue reading →
I have to admit that I didn't enjoy the Sheffield Conference. The iron curtain drawn around the venue, the hassle of avoiding demonstrators (not that there were anywhere near as many of them as had been threatened). It felt deeply uncomfortable but, at least, the security was efficient and friendly enough, and Ros and I had to be there so that she could hand over the gavel and the copy of 'On Liberty' to young Mr Farron. I was looking forward to Birmingham even less. Without any real purpose for being there, with the prospect of even greater security, and ...
As Michael blogged earlier registration for Autumn conference has now opened. As is laid out in our parties constitution: Article 6: The Federal Conference 6.1 The conference will consist of (a) Representatives of Local Parties... 6.3 Representatives of Local Parties shall be elected by all members of the Local Party concerned... As one of the ...
I have been notified by the City Council that the County Council Highways Department has instructed them to remove four early mature silver maples in Apthorpe Way. These trees are causing subsidence damage to two of the adjacent properties. The consultation included the three options; 1) Do nothing. Retain the existing trees and either resist of accept any potential claim for damages. This option is not acceptable to the County Council. 2) Reduce the crown of the tree to reduce the trees water update. This would need to be substantial (50%) and due to the vigorous nature of the trees ...
I'm finding some of the debate over the LibDem conference attendance disappointing and not what I expected of the party. There's a small but significant number of people who don't see what the fuss is about. That's fine, but how about letting those that do care campaign on it without labelling people as hysterical or overreacting? Some of us have good reasons to be wary of the police and when statements like "your passport details... will be retained and/or passed to other police forces in the future" appear in the terms and conditions, that's bound to set alarm bells ringing. ...
I have been notified by the City Council that the County Council Highways Department has instructed them to remove four early mature silver maples in Apthorpe Way. These trees are causing subsidence damage to two of the adjacent properties. The consultation included the three options; 1) Do nothing. Retain the existing trees and either resist of accept any potential claim for damages. This option is not acceptable to the County Council. 2) Reduce the crown of the tree to reduce the trees water update. This would need to be substantial (50%) and due to the vigorous nature of the trees ...
Translink are encouraging customers to switch to smart cards - but more investment from Danny Kennedy MLA is needed to bring it up to scratch.
Cartels have infiltrated local government and police authorities throughout Mexico. The American state of Arizona is declared the 'kidnap capital of the World'. Mexico City is honoured with the macabre prestige of one of the most notorious 'murder capitals' of ... Continue reading →
Michael explains that he will turn his attention to the illiberal security measures for LibDem Federal Conference when he has finished his first TMA for his Open University Course. Sometimes, even fighting illiberalism has to wait!
Chris Davies MEP has added his voice to those of Sir Richard Branson, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and three former chief constables in calling for an end to the criminalisation of drug use which puts billions in the ... Continue reading →
On Thursday 9th June, South Glos's Development Control (West) planning committee will consider the Beech Hill Farm tipping and Mayshill in-vessel composting facility applications. The case officer has recommended approval for the tipping and a 2 year temporary approval for the composting application. You can view the agenda for the meeting, with links to the officer's reports, online.
Last night was the first of this year's Causley Festival in Launceston. After an initial welcome event for sponsors and local dignitaries, the opening event was a discussion with Professor James Lovelock in the Town Hall. There was a really good turnout for this and a queue of people wanting to quiz the professor and to have books signed. As with many of the events, there was a reading of one of Causley's poems to start with and Jane Nancarrow did a great job and will hopefully have another big turnout for her guided poetry walk around town on Saturday. ...
[IMG: Top 5 picture] Cross-posted from the MHP Communications blog, my monthly round-up of five digital stories to read: The Museum of Me http://intel.ly/j5rcXO Social networking meets computer power meets clever brand promotion. The World of 100 http://bit.ly/lT0prM Imagining the world as a village of 100 people through the eyes of an infographic addict. (Thanks to Hannah Morgan from Slice.) Gettup http://bit.ly/kCUvb8 What better way to make sure you do those worthy things you dislike than by ensuring you'll be embarrassed in front of your friends if you fail? (Thanks to Johan Hogsander from Transform.) Ditto.me http://bit.ly/iTd3FZ You may think ...
making sure people know about registration for Federal Conference in Birmingham in September 2011.
Sefton Council has recently announced that its is carrying out the annual review of its 'Winter Service Policy' (that's 'Gritting' to you and me) and is asking residents, councillors, businesses and partner organisations for their views. The deadline for responses is 21st June, and they can be submitted on-line at https://engagespace.co.uk/sefton/default.aspx Regular Birkdale Blog readers will recall that my ward colleague, Councillor Simon Shaw, has been at the forefront of efforts to get the Council to improve its gritting response. Immediately following last year's Christmas bank holiday break (on 29th December) Simon led a team of councillors from across Southport ...
I can't help feeling a little bit sorry for Lord Taylor, who has been sentenced to 12 months imprisonment for fiddling his expenses to the tune of £11 000, a fleabite compared to the rakeoff the bankers are taking for the results of their incompetence. I suspect Lord Taylor felt that he was only doing what lots of others were doing and that the authorities would connive at his deceptions, but he deceived with rather less circumspection than was required. However, his case illustrates a more flagrant abuse of authority by the establishment: the use of the House of Lords ...
The census has now passed but the costs continue. One of my freedom of information act requests has revealed that the ONS spent £43,131.50 simply on pens, mints and umbrellas to promote the census. This extortionate amount of money demonstrates the sheer scale of waste tax payers face when funding the operation. The cost of the census is much wider though Hull a city that is facing cuts and economic hardship could stand to lost £344 Million because people have not returned their census forms (despite spending £43,131.50 on pens mints etc). Hang on a minute though, if you are ...
Some things that as a candidate I stood up for in the 2010 General Election as a Liberal Democrat, they are right there in our manifesto. Reduce time-wasting bureaucracy at police stations with better technology that can be deployed on the streets. (page 72)Scrap intrusive Identity Cards and have more police instead, and also scrap plans for expensive, unnecessary new passports with additional biometric data (page 94)End plans to store your email and Internet records without good cause (page 94)Remove innocent people from the police DNA database and stop storing DNA from innocent people and children in the future (page ...
I only ask because I have been unable to find any evidence of this beyond a mention in Ann Murray's (his mother's) obituary in the Independent, in Wikipedia (on Chris Huhne's page) and on Twitter (one tweet only). There is a history of the UK Speaking clock here and Ann Murray isn't in it. She isn't listed in the list of voices of the UK speaking clock on Wikipedia here. There have been four voices for the UK speaking clock (apart from charity temporary ones like Lenny Henry). They are: Ethel Jane Cain, first permanent voice: from July 24, 1936 ...
It's button central here at Flock Together. Following the addition of the Twitter Follow button on Tuesday, yesterday we added a Google +1 button. What fun...
Pam and I have been speaking to quite a few of the people who had problems with anti-social behaviour around Gatley village centre over the last few months and the message we're getting back is that things are much better – for now at least. We were having issues with groups of young people throwing fruit or stones at windows, particularly around Oakwood Avenue, Beech Avenue and Elm Road. The Police have been working hard to resolve the problems, evidently with some success. However, there may well be issues we've missed and, of course, these problems do tend to come ...
Out of nearly half a million asylum seekers, 161,000 have been given leave to remain in the United Kingdom. Members of Parliament question the policy as 'indefensible' and criticised the government for effectively granting amnesty for asylum seekers. Deportation of ... Continue reading →
Oh dear oh dear. Some people seem to have go their knicker's in a twist about the 'draconian' new measures the police have demanded of Liberal Democrat members wanting to attend Liberal Democrat Conference in September. Let's quickly take a look at what is actually being asked of members (I joint booked by the way, ...
Making a start on the nominated works in this year's Best Graphic Story category of the Hugo Awards. As before, I think there is a valid question of eligibility given that the actual "Witches" storyline is bookended by two other stories between the same covers, and that it's not really completely resolved; but I think this is a case where the Hugo rules don't completely match the reality of how graphic stories are published or read. The central story of Witches has the rise of Baba Yaga as an enemy of the Fables, courageously opposed by the winged monkey Bufkin ...
Every year just before Christmas one of the highlights is to see just what card arrives from my late father's sister and her husband.The reason being that my Uncle Geoff is a painter, mainly of portraiture but has expanded into landscape. One year I believe the following picture featured. It seemed a little odd to us at the time, mostly pictures were of family (see below) the layout also appears somewhat odd. However, when explained as he does on his website it all makes sense. The bearded gentleman who appears four times is Dr Jim Skinner, or rather he was. ...
"All change, all change here!" That was the shout of the bus-conductor as we reached the terminus. If only we had realised what a profound philosopher he was. For he is no more, nor is his role, nor the structure of society he inhabited. Change and how to cope with it is at the heart of every human decision. The conservative wishes to take a measured step based on hard facts taken from experience. The progressive predicts the shape of the future and confidently proposes a radical leap. By contrast, the community politician, the ideas behind whose activism we have ...
[an edited version of this has just been published in the (subscription only) New Law Journal] Like nearly everyone else I have lived most of my life not thinking to question that we need a government in order to create and enforce the law, to preserve the peace and to guarantee contracts. Even as I watched, horrified, through a decade of frenzied legislative activity which sapped all my faith in political government it was difficult to see how we could really do without some legislators. But it turns out that there has long been a school of thought that says ...
A small story in the Standard alerted me to the death of Haleh Sahabi. I had never previously heard of her, or of her late father, Ezatollah Sahabi. I feel that I ought to have heard more about this, and I wish that it had been more prominently reported in the media, although I appreciate that I have a responsibility to seek these stories out, rather than simply expecting them always to be spoon-fed to me. In the context of what is happening in the wider region, Iran cannot be ignored.
This makes more sense, although there's still a couple of things I don't understand. 1. If HQ staff don't want to get grief from angry members about this arrangement riding roughshod over the founding principles of the party, why not make it clear that they are doing this under the insistence of the rozzers, and not because they want to? Yet again, a lamentable failure in communication between the top brass and the grass roots, and with the level of suspicion that appears to exist on both sides now, can you blame some people for assuming that this has been ...
This brilliant image has been produced by Sarah Brown, @auntysarah on Twitter and is reproduced here with her permission. Can't you just see a whole auditorium full of these t-shirts? Would look fabulous on tv. During his leadership campaign, I was so proud of Nick Clegg when he said that he was prepared to go to prison rather than be compelled to carry a compulsory ID card. That was a flash of the immense political courage he has shown us since. He's not always right, but you can't deny he's brave. Nick will not have had anything to do with ...
CCLA announces the launch of The Public Sector Deposit Fund New AAA rated fund for public sector cash CCLA, the specialist fund manager for charities and local authorities, announcet that on Wednesday 25 May the Public Sector Deposit Fund ... Continue reading →
The point about free markets and an open and transparent economy is that they should reward success and penalize failure. When competition becomes limited and access to markets or capital is denied, then individuals or corporations can behave in non-market ways. We are now seeing more and more examples of this happening: the corporate leader who presides over falling profits and faltering performance still managing to increase his compensation package, for example. This perverse result is justified on the grounds that "the competition for talent requires greater rewards for managers". The result is today's news that FTSE Chief executives have ...
This morning's Independent reports that the personal spin doctor and attack dog for the embattled Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, has been muzzled, after senior Liberal Democrats objected to her alleged rubbishing of Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, and other Liberal Democrat ministers. The paper says that Jenny Jackson was barred from briefing journalists after being caught sending emails that undermined Mr Clegg: Earlier this month, Mr Clegg told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that the reforms were being pushed through too fast, that the 2013 deadline should be put back and that GPs should not be forced to sign up ...
See if you can spot the irony in this quote from "Dads Against Drugs" founder Rob Broomfield: "Drugs are dangerous. There is no straightforward, simple answer."
I'm confused by the Assylum seeking figures in today's news. The Tory Government in the early 1990s processed legislation which effectively criminalised the behaviour of assylum seekers; taking their finger prints and DNA and electronically tagging some. Criminalised, because we in the UK do not allow this sort of treatment of the regular citizen, only of offenders. If we hold this information,
Can someone explain to me practicality, moral or otherwise, of allowing one limited company to go bankrupt, but then for the director to simply start another the next day? Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
The first question that came to mind when I heard of Google's superheroics blocking hacking spies, was how did they know these people were senior US Officials? I am simply too cynical to believe Google has a philanthropic approach to spam, and seeks to protect every user from phishing. As modern technology strives to battle governments on democracy, we also see it battle to steal, lie and
Another day at Bonkers Hall... An elderly man sits in a large house behind high walls watching films of his earlier triumphs when a group of American Navy Seals breaks in and shoots him dead. Dash it, it could happen to anyone! Osama bin Laden (who met his demise in Abbottabad, named after the popular comedian Russ Abbott) was, it has to be admitted, one of nature's bad hats, but his demise did make me think. Only the other evening I was watching my speech to the Hunstanton Assembly of the National League of Young Liberals in 1948 ("If we ...
i) births and deaths 2 June 1922: birth of Carmen Silvera, who played several parts in The Celestial Toymaker (1966) and also Ruth in Invasion of the Dinosaurs (1974), better known in later years as René Artois's long-suffering wife Edith in 'Allo! 'Allo!. ii) broadcast anniversaries 2 June 1973: broadcast of third episode of The Green Death. The Doctor and Jo escape from the mine, but the egg they bring back hatches and a maggot threatens Jo. 2 June 1997: publication of The Eight Doctors, by Terrance Dicks, and The Devil Goblins from Neptune, by Martin Day and Keith Topping, ...
This is my ninth monthly round of blog figures for anyone who is remotely interested in who reads my little blog. These stats for the month of May come courtesy of google analytics. A Record Shattering Month Thanks to one blog post, May saw all of my previous blog records shattered into pieces. On 2nd May, I wrote the blog post Osama Bin Laden's Death - Obama's Victory & Pakistan's Shame. Suddenly out of nowhere, it became the busiest day ever on my blog with near on 1,000 hits to my site on that day alone and within its 2 ...
Given I've spoken before about the importance of a broad cross-party coalition to back Lords reform, it's only right that I compliment two Labour bloggers who have spoken up on the topic in the last few days. Luke Akehurst over on Progressonline wrote, Labour's constitutional conservatives are gearing up for another rearguard action ... Unlike the AV question, when the party outside parliament was as divided as the PLP, the wider Labour party has a clear and settled view on this one. The National Policy Forum, representing all the key party stakeholders, voted at the 'Warwick II' meeting in July ...
Bizarre legal battle could result in TWO competing Superman pics The rights to Superman are becoming complicated, as Andrew put it. (tags: comics superman) Understanding How Children Learn | Dig Deeper Educational research at Mammoth Discovery! (tags: education palaeontology) Made of WIN and AWESOME: Remote-Controlled Superhero [Video] Who doesn't want to fly a cardboard man around? (tags: toys)
( contains much swearing ) The day we demand "papers, please" to attend Lib Dem party conference is the day we have already lost.
Along with a lot of Liberal Democrats in the North East, I was disappointed to read the increasingly isolated former parliamentary candidate Cllr Dr Ron Beadles column in the Journal today where he advocates that it "is time for the Lib Dems to reclaim the party". Quite who we are to reclaim it from I'm not sure. According to Ron it seems to have been stolen by a tiny clique of renegade pseudo Tories and the only way to get it back is to get rid of any "sell outs" and start again with a pure year zero party. But ...
