This is Bessie who, technically speaking, is not my mother's cat...
Thanks to you all and your continued readership, Spiderplant land is now the 12th most popular Liberal Democrat blog on Wikio. I'm also the 4th highest female blogger which makes me even more proud if I am honest to be ...
I'm not organising this properly yet due to a combination of potentially moving house in the next week and a bit, impending San Francisco trip and brane going *flail* about [IMG: [livejournal.com profile] ] mhw, but in the interest of people hopefully being able to keep the date free, here follows an announcement: I turn 24 next month and not being wholly sure what my housing situation will be, instead of throwing a party, I'm taking a suggestion from [IMG: [personal profile] ] marnanel and fulfilling one of my 101 in 1001 goals: punting! Specifically, punting in Cambridge. Through [IMG: ...
I suppose that I should be all right with TMA05. It's on a topic I've studied before (Tajfel and Turner's theories of intergroup conflict) not only from the perspective of psychology, but when I did the OU's "Effective Manager" course way back in 1990. The criticism (from Billig) is a discursive psychological one, which is the perspective I chose to use for my project. All things being equal, that doesn't seem like too bad an assignment. But all things aren't equal. This is DD307 we're talking about, after all. Sigh. I'd really like to get it out of the way ...
Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with my hero J.W. Logan - or Paddy Logan - who was the Liberal MP for Harborough from 1891 to 1904 and from 1910 to 1916. I have known for years that one of Logan's daughters, Nora, was a campaigner for women's suffrage. I recently discovered an exchange in Hansard that suggests that went to prison for her beliefs. The exchange came on 15 July 1908 - a time when Logan had temporarily retired from politics owing to poor health. J.G. Swift MacNeil (MP for South Donegal and, interestingly, a Protestant Irish ...
It is not all that long since I read The Canterbury Tales, which comes from the same century and draws from the same roots (the Reeve's Tale and the Franklin's Tale are indeed both in the Decameron in slightly different form). But I was struck by how much more enjoyable the Decameron is. For a start, it is actually complete - ten days of ten people telling a tale each, to give a hundred short stories and a framing narrative. It is also striking that the dullest of Boccaccio's stories (the ones from Day Six with the untranslatable punchlines) are ...
There is a time for showing some sensitivity and consideration towards others and Diane Abbott clearly doesn't know when that is. She has just tweeted the following, which I am sure the parents of Milly Dowler REALLY appreciate: Frankly that speaks ...
Coulson was vetted and given top clearance? Mind boggles This is mind bogglingly bad. How bad is the Downing St vetting process? (tags: notw Coulson mi5) Ancient first aid kit is rather cool Shipwreck with ancient medical kit, actually workable cures for common problems (tags: archaeology)
Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Liberal Democrats on Broxtowe Borough Council. A special welcome to the new readers that we have this week. 1. Typo's There were a couple of typing errors in last weeks newsletter, for which I apologise. First there was an error with the reference to wellington s, embarrassingly recreating a typing error which has occurred previously. I can't even blame a rogue spell checker as they were typed on different PC's. I think I will follow the advice off one reader ...
Last night I tweeted that the Liberal Democrat MPs should support Labour's Commons motion opposing Rupert Murdoch's takeover of BSkyB. Simon Hughes said the same on Sky News this morning, says Liberal Burblings. Of course they should. As Simon said, we are "a party that's never been close to Murdoch, never been in this inner loop." He might have added "unlike Labour". Simon did go on to say: "I think we should make clear that we think there should be a postponement of the decision. "There shouldn't be a takeover while the investigations are going on and we should let ...
I was recently described as having a "holier than thou" attitude by a Labour acquaintance of mine over the phone hacking scandal and, more broadly, the intertwined relationship of the Murdoch empire and politicians. And, in fairness, I, and most other Lib Dems, probably do have such an attitude over phone hacking - we're certainly feeling rather smug about it. But I would (and did) argue that we have every right to have that attitude. We're the only party that didn't court Murdoch or drop everything to pay homage when he called a conference (as Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David ...
They are not quite The Watersons, but while we are talking of musical Yorkshire families we may as well mention the Deightons too. I remember seeing them playing Travelling Light on television in the 1980s (I think it was a daytime programme it cannot have been the performance in this video), rather liking their home-made feel and feeling a little guilty about it. Then I discovered that their second LP, Acoustic Music to Suit Most Occasions, had been named Record of the Year by National Public Radio in America and felt vindicated. You can read a bit more about them ...
Here's a series of songs with seven beats to the bar: The Beatles, "All You Need Is Love" (the verses only, the chorus seems to be in 4/4): Rather more frantically, "Mother", an early song by The Police: On a different plane, the chorus "Old Joe Has Gone Fishing" from Benjamin Britten's opera Peter Grimes: Probably even more famous than "All You Need Is Love" (and qualifies better for this list since it is mostly in 7/4) - "Money" by Pink Floyd: If you watch none of the others, do watch Dave Brubeck's joyous "Unsquare Dance":
Chief Executive Departure As you will have seen in the news the County council's Chief Executive Andrea Hill resigned last Monday, 4th July. She left Suffolk County Council with immediate effect. The story appeared in many of the national, as well as local papers. The County Council released this statement to the media; "The Dismissals and Appeals Committee of Suffolk County Council has today (4 July 2011) concluded its investigation into the 'whistleblowing' allegations made against Chief Executive, Andrea Hill. "Bullying and harassment allegations were robustly investigated by an independent firm of solicitors. Although it remains a concern that such ...
The News of the World debate ploughs on unhindered by the closure of the newspaper and the competing politicians over who can be most disgusted by the actions of the journalists, editors and chief execs. In General By far the best take on the #NOTW I have heard is John Finnemore on the Now Show on Friday here. My most recent thoughts on the matter will well expressed on a blog post; It should be noted; (a) News International proposed taking the Sun to a seven day week operation a few weeks ago therefore they intended to close down NOTW ...
At the last Full Council meeting a lot was made of new Conservative leader Nick Clarkes changes to the Constitution which were pushed through after about 24 hours notice and required only a simple majority of the members present to vote in favour in order for the changes to take effect.This surprised a lot of people (me amongst them).I had assumed that making wholesale constitutional changes would required a larger majority - like two thirds - but we had to accept based on legal advice that this simply wasn't the case in Cambridgeshire.What I didn't realise at the time was ...
From Sky News: Speaking on Sky News' Murnaghan programme, Mr Hughes said he would encourage his fellow Liberal Democrats to vote with Labour, if the opposition tabled a Commons vote on halting the bid. "If there is a debate and vote in the House of Commons I will be suggesting to my colleagues that we as a party, a party that's never been close to Murdoch, never been in this inner loop, I think we should make clear that we think there should be a postponement of the decision. "There shouldn't be a takeover while the investigations are going on ...
It has been a relatively crime free week. We have received one complaint of criminal damage in Bar Hill and a nuisance report detailed below. On Saturday, 2nd July 2011, during late evening the trampoline in the preschool yard was damaged. It is though that the damage has been caused by youths who climbed over the perimeter fence. I have made enquiries into this particular complaint but have been unable to trace those responsible. Please let me know if you hear about who was responsible or saw anything at the time of the incident that may help to trace those ...
Watching Amanda Platell and Fraser Nelson on Sunday Am eulogising on the death of the News of the World made me feel very queasy. Well done to Kevin Maguire for bringing some realism to the wake on BBC News' paper review. Rebekah Brooks has held up the "Sarah's Law" campaign as if it is the Holy Grail. But, as Kevin said, there was much to criticise it for. Just read this from the BBC: In July 2000, the News of the World published the names and photographs of 50 people it claimed had committed child sex offences and pledged to ...
TweetThis is the 3rd blog by Tom King, a Labour Party activist from Wyre Forest Labour Party. Tom's profile can be found here.I hope this offers a break from the unremitting News of the world News. Enjoy. After a lengthy and unbelievably frustrating twitter debate with@Joe_Armitage earlier this afternoon, I have decided to spell out in more than 140 characters why official crime statistics don't show how much crime is actually committed. Joe's argument was that the official statistics show that violent crime increased by 44% under the last Labour Government, and that the same statistics showed a fall in ...
From the Guardian's live gloat blog on the hacking scandal: Have staff who put together the News of the World's last ever crossword included some subtle hints for News International's chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, the former editor who told them that the newspaper was to be shut down today? The Independent's Whitehall Editor, Oliver Wright, has pointed out a few interesting elements in the quickie crossword on page 47. Its clues include: Across • Brook (6) • lamented (8) • Prestige (6) • Stink (6) • Catastrophe (8) Down • Digital protection • Less bright • Chair • Pest • ...
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 229th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (3-9 July, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. A dangerous developing ...
A huge step forward in challenging the illegal trade of trafficking in the UK was announced on Thursday. It is almost unfathomable that we allow people who have been trafficked to be prosecuted for their behaviour. Trafficking should surely provide a defence of duress in all cases. However, it has be changed, with those who are trafficked no longer being treated as criminals by the CPS. It is unclear from the report in the Guardian whether it only applies to women and children, or whether this is simply an evocative statement to gain support. A trafficked man can no more ...
Bowling, Bell ringing, and Bangor. Three B's, two friends, and two hobbies all in one evening.
Sun 10th
18:44
Hexham Estate - After Decades of Labour Neglect, Lib Dem Campaign Delivers for Residents
Campaigning for Improvements to Hexham Estate Since 2006 I, along with my colleagues Kirsten Bayes and Glenn Goodall have actively campaigned for improvements in Hexham Estate to improve the quality of life of residents. It is very satisfying to see that the estate I first visited in 2005 has been completely transformed after the work we did to get the Council to tackle longstanding problems and issues. These included problems of anti-social behaviour, vandalism, and graffiti that contributed to an overall atmosphere of neglect. But what is even more satisfying are the results of the Council's second Residents Survey of the estate which shows ...
Unable to reform the law on hunting that was introduced by the Labour government, the Conservatives are attempting to push through a badger cull. I live in a constituency that is largely surrounded by farmers and farm land. Therefore I am familiar with the variety of arguments presented that badgers carry and therefore are responsible for the spread of bovine TB. However, all scientific evidence relating to the issue seems to be purely geographically coincidental. To give you a precis, there is a good site here which details the basic information on badgers themselves in the UK. There is evidence ...
TweetIn the process of tracking down another email from Steve Brine, I've just found this one, and it appears to be extremely relevant to whats going on at the moment. Judge for yourself. Dear Andrew, Thank you for contacting me about the proposed acquisition of British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) by News Corporation (NewsCorp). The Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt is bound by a process set down in law by the previous Government and has followed this assiduously. Following advice from Ofcom and the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), he has announced that he intends to accept undertakings from News Corporation on ...
Yesterday my good friend Michael came out to Bangor for some sea air. The two of us being us of course a trip for him to Bangor did not just involve the normal activities of Bangor. There was a stop of at the Frederick Schomberg, the 1st Duke of Schomberg's camp before he set off to the Boyne where he died in battle in 1690. There was a visit to the old Walled Garden of Bangor Castle, now shortlisted for Britain in Bloom 2011 and open to the public and a walk around town, checking out some architectural history in ...
You know how it is sometimes you are out and about and you see a poster that is up and you notice a mistake. Well, last Friday afternoon I was out and about in the seaside town of Bangor, County Down and spotted the sign below. It is obvious that the designer is trying to ...
Sun 10th
17:28
In (partial) defence of Labour's so-called 'Lay Off Murdoch' instruction to party's MPs
'Lay off Murdoch' — that was the ever-so-quotable paraphrase that the New Statesman used to accompany this article by Dan Hodges, revealing how the Labour Party press team had issued a circular 'to all shadow cabinet teams warns Labour spokespeople to avoid linking hacking with the BSkyB bid, to accept ministerial assurances that meetings with Rupert Murdoch are not influencing that process, and to ensure that complaints about tapping are made in a personal, not shadow ministerial, capacity.' In reality, Labour's communications chief Tom Baldwin — yes, himself a former Murdoch employee — did not use the phrase, 'Lay off ...
Whilst Attention has been focused on the News of the World phone hacking scandal.David Moss has remembered a report from the Information Commissioner entitled 'What Price Privacy'. The report examines, studies and provides details of the illegal trade in personal private information. Information obtained through phone hacking is just one example of one of the different methods by which such information is obtained. Other examples of methods are through blagging and pretending to be someone else to get information out of organisations, and corruption where officials are paid to divulge information. Amazingly the ICO stated that they knew 305 journalist ...
The press in this Country is politically motivated, or should that be the politics in this Country is media motivated? Unless you are on the moon, everyone has read and heard about the collapse of NOTW and the apparent demise, ... Continue reading →
Sun 10th
16:25The Lib Dems on 'Hackgate' and Murdoch: Ashdown, Huhne, Hughes, Farron, Oakeshott all join the fray
It's been a frenzied week in British politics, with attention for once focused less on the mis-deeds of politicans than the criminality practised by many journalists, both at the News of the World and beyond. Here's a brief round-up of what the Lib Dems have been saying... BSkyB takeover: Lib Dems hint at backing Labour motion to delay deal (Guardian) The Liberal Democrats have indicated they could back a Labour move in parliament to delay the Murdoch takeover of BSkyB until after the police investigations into phone hacking. ... [Simon] Hughes told Sky News: "We have to be careful and ...
Earlier in this Tour de France, on stage five, we saw a motorbike wipe out the bike of Nicki Sørensen. The bike disconnected from the motorbike 200m down the road and the rider came to gentle stop after sliding on the crash verge. The pilot of that motorbike was thrown off the Tour before he had a change to reach Cap Fréhel the end of that stage. Today we have just witnessed a far worse case. With just over 36km to go a French TV car swerved to avoid hitting a tree. Only problem was it was beside the breakaway, ...
Members of the South Werrington and North Gunthorpe FOCUS Team, tell us that they are really benefiting from their increasingly popular Facebook page. As well as local residents and activists, the latest person to join the page is Andrew Duff, Liberal Democrat MEP for Peterborough. Alongside message from the FOCUS Team, fans of the SWNG FOCUS Team page, also get police updates, notifications of local meetings, links to the latest LIB DEM articles and a forum for them to express their thoughts and opinions - as well their photos of issues that they have discovered in the local area. CHECK ...
The position of the Lib Dems towards Culverhay is that it should be kept open and: · A co-ed school · Girls there, sooner rather than later (2012 rather than 2013) · The community to be taken seriouslyThat will start to happen with the full council meeting on Thursday 14th July, when hopefully the council
I don't get asked to write personal blog posts for people very often. Therefore when someone asks me if I would write a blog post for them on their issue, I take the matter very seriously and want to do ...
Following a personal invitation to chair the 2011 Annual General Meeting of the Paston & Gunthorpe Community Association meeting, local LIB DEM ward councillor for South Werrington & North Gunthorpe, Darren Fower, has now been appointed as the Association's Council Representative. Members of the Association said it had been several years since someone from the Town Hall had bothered to attend or get involved in their organisation, despite the Association having a turnover of some £30k a year! Commenting after his appointment, Cllr Darren Fower said: "This is an organisation that serves, predominantly Gunthorpe, Paston and Walton, which covers maybe ...
Following my post last week about reported vandalism and theft at local allotments on the edge of Hexham estate I have had this very helpful response from RBC Parks Department: RBC officers met with allotment holders last week week m regarding the problems regarding Newcastle Road allotments. Officers promised the resident who contacted me they would do their utmost to support him in his efforts to resolve the problems we are having on the site. Officers will contact the police next week toarrange a meeting with the PCSO that has been assigned to the case ) to find out ways RBC can assist the police. ...
There has been a lively debate on Lib Dem Voice this week on housing policy. Well-argued articles from Alex Marsh, Mike Tuffrey and Stephen Gilbert have ignited equally interesting debates in the comments. All sorts of intriguing policy ideas have been proposed to address the growing crisis in housing supply. However, a great idea is just the starting point on the long journey to create a successful policy. For a mainstream party with ambitions to form the next government, it is crucial that ideas enjoy popular support with voters. Housing development invokes strong feelings amongst the electorate, both among would-be ...
Last May, inspired by 10:10, David Cameron and Chris Huhne pledged to cut central government carbon emissions by 10% in twelve months. The results were announced today: a 100,000 tonne decrease in government CO2emissions or, put another way, a 13.8% reduction. Big numbers. The government has a long way to go before they can claim to be "the greenest government ever", but today's announcement is genuinely impressive. Many said it was impossible for big organisations to cut emissions fast - this proves that it's possible. If it took Cameron to stand on a stage last year and announce the government's ...
Working on amendments to the Localism Bill and Education Bill coming up next week, and listening to Paul Tortelier's recording of Bach's cello suites. Maybe one's favourite bits vary from time to time, but my choices at the moment would be Bourée 1 from Suite No 3 in C, Sarabande from Suite No 5, and Gavotte 1 from Suite No 6. I think that if people could be persuaded to listen to Bach's music they would discover how fantastic it all is, and I wish that teachers could be persuaded to try it out in schools. Denying children the right ...
The recent discussions over the data requirements for Liberal Democrat Federal Conference have sparked wider discussion about the Federal Conference and the role it plays in the party's life and policy making. It's why I rushed to finish my guide to conference for the grassroots series, to add a bit more information to the debate ...
Rupert Murdoch is not a figure who inspires affection. He is now, as he has always been, a ruthlessly efficient businessman. He promotes the interests of himself and his family above all else, and when those interests are threatened, he acts without compunction. However he is now 80. The fact is that, no matter what, his day is passing. For those who value freedom that is a happy thought. Murdoch has been a pernicious enemy of a free democratic process, calling politicians to heel through threats or through promises of support. Although his newspapers are a relatively small part of ...
I've had a real mix of things to do this week. Actually I'm very lucky to have such a combination of job and politics that gives such a variety. Along with quite a few doorstep conversations with constituents, some meetings on local issues (some of which I'll blog about separately) and a load of writing and research, I shared a bill with Ken Dodd. Tuesday was the Freedom Roll ceremony for the Liverpool Post and Echo. As opposition leader I am asked to speak at these and it was a great pleasure (although speaking last you always find you are ...
So, I'm back from my week's break in the highlands refreshed and relaxed. It's normally quite quiet this time of year so I expect nothing much to have happened. Just off out to buy a News of the World to check out what's been going on in the world. Ok, ok, I may have had slow to rubbish to non existent internet access for the last week, but I haven't had my head completely in the sand. I have been itching to write about the scandals which have led to the closure of the News of the World newspaper which ...
I've been out this morning with the charming Gill from Liverpool Cricket Club trying to solve some parking problems in our area. The cricket club plays host to car boot sales on a Sunday. It has a free car park for visitors to the sales. However these Sundays are also marked by quite a lot of indiscriminate parking in some of the residential streets near the club and quite a few complaints from residents who can't get into and out of their own drive. It's not an easy one to solve but we thought we'd do some work to draw ...
I've had a lazy Sunday morning where I have just lazed about the house and deliberately not paid any attention to the continued media storm over the News of the World scandal. I've even avoided Twitter this morning on the ...
Today's Telegraph carries an interview with the Metropolitan Police's Assistant Commissioner John Yates with a full mea culpa for his failure to get to grips with British journalism's criminal free-for-all. As the paper notes: Mr Yates had the opportunity to reopen the case in 2009 but chose not to do so after just eight hours' consideration, including consultations with other senior detectives and Crown Prosecution lawyers. ... In his interview, Mr Yates addresses last week's revelation that Glenn Mulcaire, a private investigator working for the News of the World, had allegedly hacked into teenage murder victim Milly Dowler's mobile phone ...
Sun 10th
11:51
Drought in the Horn of Africa, Energy crisis in the UK and locally a Labour scandal that beggars bel...
The Mayor's Chaplain last night prayed that we would temper our contributions with brotherly concern. Well the Leader of the council certainly took that message to heart. I had the temerity to ask a formal question at the Council meeting about the conduct of Merseyside Integrated Transport Authority (ITA) better known to you and me as Merseytravel. I had a wide range of option I could have asked about the truly I eye watering allowance claim by the Chair of the ITA £70 million frittered away on Merseytram. The last Labour government frantically signalled that they were not going to ...
I have sent an email to our MP, Amber Rudd, on this subject via the 38 Degrees website. If you have not already done so, please add your voice to this debate. Now is the time for politicians to show their true colours, and to promote both a proper plurality within our media, and to ...
Another short chapter (30 pages) which does what it says on the tin, taking the Bulgarians, Hungarians and Russians in turn and looking at their interactions with the Byzantine Empire over its later centuries. Gibbon is clearly taken with the scholarship of the Hungarians, and the romance of the Russians; rather less so with the Bulgarians. Essentially this is a chapter of three short national histories, each with a different ending - the Bulgarians end up dominated and partially assimilated, the Hungarians assertive and free, and the Russians gain Christianity but become ever more isolated.
On Saturday I had the pleasure and honour of opening the 7th Sparkle in the Park in Manchester. Sparkle is the biggest event of its kind for the transgender community. The transgender community as a group suffer a great deal of discrimination. It is a community that is small and little understood by the population at large. That most basic of questions when a child is born – is it a boy or is it a girl – is something that most of us never question or even have to think about. But for those to whom the answer to ...
Today I am going to be doing one of my periodical f-list clean-ups. This is mostly inspired by wanting to get out of Facebook as much as possible for various reasons: now that I have Google+ this is a more distinct possibility. This does not mean I am abandoning Facebook altogether, merely that it will become, as Livejournal has, an adjunct to my internet life that I only look at occasionally. I will be removing a LOT of people from my facebook f-list today and some of them are very close friends; I'll only be keeping you on there if ...
OK, so most of the country is totally repulsed by the Screws and News International. Rupert Murdoch is "the devil incarnate" and Rebecca Brooks the most reviled woman since Marie Antoinette. Many of us have been convinced of this for years, if not decades. I once had the misfortune of working for a paper taken over by Murdoch. And seeing happy, friendly creative colleagues suddenly stop working for each another, poisoned by a culture of cynicism, suspicion and toadying to the bosses. But as we devour the final copy of the News of the World, who will think ahead to ...
Jonathan Calder has already cornered the line that the News of the World has made its excuses and left, however that is clearly not the end of the matter. Wherever one looks today everybody is talking about the newspaper and the phone-hacking saga that centred on its offices but is apparently not the sole and exclusive preserve of that title. From behind its firewall, the Sunday Times claims that at least nine journalists and three police officers could be jailed in connection with the News of the World phone hacking scandal. If they have committed a crime then that would ...
Next week will be a one year anniversary. It is one year since Ofcom reprimanded Radio Clyde over their presenters breaking election law. This seemed ludicrous at the time and even more ludicrous now. The 'breach' was during a football show when a presenter mentioned he "put a large cross beside the Kirkcaldy minister's son". He then went on to speculate that Walter Smith and Neil Lennon would have voted for Labour. Those that know me know that I have worked in the radio industry for a number of years and so had a special interest, particularly as I was ...
Credit where it's due, fair's fair, and well-played. As Paul Walter noted here on LDV on Wednesday, Labour leader Ed Miliband is having a good war, sticking up for clear and proper principles — a judge-led public inquiry, referring News International's BSkyB bid to the Competition Commission, and the public call for the resignation of Rebekah Brooks — that resound well with the public. By contrast, David Cameron is on the back-foot over the unravelling scandal at News International, compromised both by having hired former News of the World editor Andy Coulson as his director of communciations (despite warnings), as ...
It seems strange to describe any of the categorised mountains that the riders scale as being little mountains but that is just what we have today. Although today is harder than yesterday with three second category climbs to contend with as opposed to one. As well as three category threes and the easiest category fours are at the end, including yet another for a finish. There are eight climbs in total. The Sprint today comes at Neuvéglise 30km from the end, but significantly after the roller coaster of the steepest gradients of the stage. While the pure sprinters like Mark ...
St Martin's Garden Primary School Summer Fun DayIt is on Saturday 16th July from 11am to 2pm at the school.Activities include a bouncy castle, tug-of-war, plant sales, beer tent and barbeque.It is organised by the school PTFA which helps raise money for activities around the school. This year, the school is concentrating hard on fundraising because its swimming pool is about to be refurbished.
We have reported, again, all of the pot holes outside of the Green
I have received a number of residents' enquiries recently about progress in getting park and ride in Dundee - particularly to the west and south of the city. Having moved forward the Park and Ride issue when I was chair of TACTRAN, the regional transport partnership, between 2007 and 2009, I asked TACTRAN for an update on the issue, and also on moves towards community transport (Demand Responsive Transport or DRT) that would be a boon for those who have difficulty using the main bus services or who have a poor bus service at present. The TACTRAN response is below ...
Leading Cambridgeshire Shadow Cabinet Member for Health, Geoff Heathcock, has warned the county is facing serious issues in the future if it fails to make health a top priority. The warning comes as a newly-released county health profile reveals that more than 15,000 children are living in poverty. The report shows that almost 21 per cent of residents across the county are obese and more than 18 per cent still smoke. As local authorities across the county prepare to become more involved with public health through the government's NHS reform, Liberal Democrat Councillor Heathcock has warned that more needs to ...
Ed Miliband has a achieved a minor "clause four" moment by persuading the Labour Parliamentary Party to let him rather than them choose the members of the Shadow Cabinet. True the Shadow Cabinet elections were messy, to some extent divisive, and to some extent emphasised personalities rather than policies, but they were honest in that they revealed the true nature of the Labour Party, as, like all parties, a coalition of opinions. The Miliband move is an attempt to present the party as a streamlined, obedient and homogeneous entity, which it isn't and shouldn't be. The move also enhances the ...
My blog tour continues today with a discussion with my friend, the historian (and regular PEP! contributor) Gavin Robinson on his blog Investigations Of A Dog. We talk about self-publishing, e-publishing, the benefits and otherwise of having an editor, digital comics and more. With luck, the book I'm touring to promote will be up sometime ...
