Last week I was contacted by the North East Refugee Service and invited to their HQ to have a look round. So today (Thursday) I went in to Newcastle to meet the head of the service and one of the trustees. They told me about how the service works and how I could help them help refugees now living in Gateshead. The HQ is next to Charlotte Square, a location which was on the national news last
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.
Mark Park shows how Stop the War airbrushed a conspiracy theory from its website. "The long term trend of the decline of membership and support for political parties has, if anything, accelerated, and long standing loyalties to right or left have given way to a far more complicated political reality in which populist or even anti democratic voices are now being increasingly heard." Cicero's Songs on the crisis of conventional political parties. "What to do with a broken ship full of explosives? That question has been debated off and on for the past seven decades, and the consensus has been ...
Current Moon Over Soho, by Ben Aaronovitch Helliconia, by Brian Aldiss The Gallifrey Chronicles, by Lance Parkin The Reign of Wizardry, by Jack Williamson Short Fiction Eligible for the 1941 Retro-Hugos Vol 4, ed. von Dimpleheimer Last books finished Short Fiction Eligible for the 1941 Retro-Hugos Vol 3, ed. von Dimpleheimer Between The Acts, by Virginia Woolf Keeping it Real, by Justina Robson The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps, by Kai Ashante Wilson Instruments of Darkness, by Gary Russell Witches of Lychford, by Paul Cornell Sunset Mantle, by Alter S. Reiss Binti, by Nnedi Okorafor Last week's audios Welcome To Night ...
It's Human Rights Day today. Earlier this week, Jim Wallace spoke to the Legal Services Agency Conference about protecting our rights. He remembered that he had found himself on the wrong end of a Human Rights Act judgement. His attitude was much better than Alex Salmond's was when the SNP were found wanting 12 years later. At that point, he referred to people bringing actions under the Act as among "the vilest people on the planet." For my part, I spent decades as a Liberal and Liberal Democrat candidate and MP, supporting campaigns to incorporate the European Convention on Human ...
UPDATED DETAILS. LD seat. Cause: Death. LD candidate- Barbara Johnson.
UPDATED DETAILS. Conservative seats. Cause: Disqualification. LD candidates- Phil Dunn and Gill Pardy.
UPDATED DETAILS. Labour seat. Cause: Death. No LD candidate.
UPDATED DETAILS. Conservative seat. Cause: Death. No LD candidate.
Conservative seat. Cause: Resignation. Candidate: Luke Gibbon Agent : Anne Fielding Contact Pam Winlow 07539 884713 pam.winlow@gmail.com
Labour seat. Cause: Death. LD Candidate Stephen Reid. Contact Councillor Robert Brown at Robert@robertbrown.org.uk
For recent readers of my blog, I'm sorry that this small victory is not about the teaching assistants' battle with the county council. This victory is for Consett's would-be Private Hire Drivers. As you will know I have been waging a one man war on the absurd situation where Private Hire drivers (who only carry pre-booked passengers, and mainly work in their local area) have been required to take exactly the same "locality" test as Hackney Drivers (who pick people up off the street or from a taxi rank, and go wherever in the county they are most likely to ...
[IMG: Refugees on Mount Sinjar] The humanitarian disaster the Yazidi were facing on Mount Sinjar in Iraq in 2014 contains important lessons for military intervention in Syria. One is that in the face of a barbaric desire to torture, enslave and murder to other – this time with Daesh threatening genocide – sometimes force is necessary. Humanitarian aid to the Yazidi on Mount Sinjar was also necessary, but on its own would merely have led to people being a better fed and warmer before being massacred. Humanitarian aid was needed, but could only work when there was military action too ...
Thu 10th
20:44
The Barrow Affair (6): Investigation into Barrow costs more than £12K and Shropshire Council i...
Shropshire Council has revealed some of the costs of investigating whether former council leader Keith Barrow breached the council's code of conduct. In answer to a question from Lib Dem group leader, Councillor Roger Evans, deputy leader Steve Charmley said: The final cost of the investigation undertaken has not yet been calculated. External costs to [...]
The highlighted words on Hillary Clinton's website read rather like a cross between the Conservative and Liberal Democrat slogans from the 2015 general election: [IMG: Hillary Clinton slogans] It's as if she's running as a cross between David Cameron and Nick Clegg. The new Jeremy Browne perhaps...
I've come home to the news that the BBC journalist Andy West has been suspended because of his comments that he's ashamed of his employers fail to admit their error in giving Tyson Fury a platform on SPOTY. Seeing the coverage that the story has been getting on the BBC over recent days actually rebroadcasting his views unedited and as spoken I feel that Andy West is not the only person to be ashamed. The BBC brand themselves as Your BBC meaning that it really is "Our BBC". It would appear that in the case of this incident it applies ...
Bizarrely the new leader of the Council thinks these nominations are somehow a reflection on the work he plans to do over the next 4 years. They are in fact a reflection of the work done by the Liberal Democrat administration over the last 4 years. Many thanks are due to the fantastic commitment and work from staff over what was a difficult time as the budget was reduced year on year. the new LD leader, Cllr Dine Romero said "These awards are a recognition of the work done over the last 4 years in creating in Bath and North ...
The new student accommodation going up at James Street west by the car park is proceeding fast since planning permission was granted in April this year. The scheme will provide 160 student units and whilst also providing for students will ease some of the pressure on family homes in the South of Bath being converted into HMOs for students. The construction techniques are amazing to watch. The bathroom units are delivered as sealed pods which are simply unwrapped and plugged and wired in. [IMG: JSW 1] [IMG: watching the concrete being pored] watching the concrete being pored
Lying Eurosceptics and grey drizzle; close polls and an air of dread amongst Liberals fearing a No vote; and political elites pitted against voters who don't trust them. Sound like a British Euro Referendum campaign? Well no, that was Denmark last week. Now that we know that there was a narrow victory for the No side, let's look at why and what it might mean for the forthcoming UK Euro referendum. And what we can learn from it as Liberal Democrats. I'll start with the differences. First, the proposition was unclear to many in Denmark. A November 3rd poll indicated ...
Lib Dem County Councillors were appalled to discover that despite already losing staff, cutting any excess costs and really tightening their belts, over 50% of Secondary Schools in Hertfordshire are in the red this year. At the County Council's Performance and Resources Panel this week, council staff reported that ten of the eighteen secondary schools [...]
I notice there are epetitions going up trying to haul Tyson Fury over the coals for his politically incorrect statements. There are others going up demanding that we ban a complete buffoon from the country while he is standing for US president. Meanwhile, under our very noses, a far more serious threat is emerging. The Front Nationale won nearly a third of the votes in the French local elections and topped the poll. There is a real prospect now that France will elect the far right as their government. But, hey, maybe we should start an online petition against the ...
Thu 10th
13:21
Was Angela Eagle that great at PMQs? Or is the applause at her performance symptomatic of something ...
In the absence of David Cameron from the country, George Osborne took his place at PMQs yesterday, which meant that Angela Eagle took over on the opposition side. This event is notable for the following reasons: 1. The very loud and unquestionably enthusiastic cheer that erupted from the Labour MPs as Bercow called upon Angela to speak. This was in sharp contrast to the moody, subdued mooing that accompanies Jeremy Corbyn's name when the normal run of things are in play. This tells us little, beyond the fact that a very large proportion of the PLP think Jeremy Corbyn is ...
Posted by Tim Farron on Sunday, 6 December 2015 Willie Rennie and Tim Farron have seen the areas they represent in Parliament hit by catastrophe and challenging circumstances. In Cumbria, Storm Desmond and its aftermath has caused devastation that will take months to fully sort out. In Scotland, Willie Rennie's constituents have been hit by the closure of the Forth Road Bridge and the loss of a route that takes 70,000 cars per day. It's not expected to re-open until the New Year. Both Willie and Tim do a phenomenal amount of work to stay in touch with the people ...
[IMG: LYdiate Vilage Green - Christmas 2015] 'Yes I know, and have thought very much the same thing myself since the switch-on last Tuesday' – I seem to have said this to a number of folks in the last few days as reaction to the 'Xmas' tree (which is actually a Holly tree) has been rather in the 'could do better' category. I am sure other Lydiate Parish Councillors will have had similar thoughts and comments made to them.
Thu 10th
12:06
Maghull – Netto on its way and another twist of the knife in Maghull's Labour councillors ribs
The story of how the former Maghull Library and Stafford Moreton Youth Centre site, in the heart of Maghull's shopping centre, has been disposed of by Sefton Council is quite a saga as this blog site has previously noted. However, the Champion newspaper has added another chapter in its Aintree & Maghull edition of 9th December. Apart from announcing the Netto planning application for the former Library site, which of course this blog site made public on 30th November, the Champion also refers back to the ding dong battle between Maghull's Labour councillors and their Labour masters on Sefton Council. ...
Over the course of November I lost count of the exhortations I received to contribute, either financially or through my time, to the Oldham campaign. But is our current approach to by-elections the best for our party, and, if not, what wider lessons can we draw? This article is written to provoke, to challenge, and to inspire debate; equally, it is not written to insult or degrade the hard work or enthusiasm of activists or candidates with which this party is blessed. Activists are encouraged to get involved in a by-election for a number of reasons: (i) the excellent qualities ...
[IMG: York Minster] ALDC's programme of 2016 events is below. No action necessary, but if you're interested in attending, do save the dates now. 11-13 March: ALDC at Spring Conference York ALDC will be in attendance at Spring Conference, and delivering a total of eight campaigns training sessions over the course of Saturday 12th 17-18 June: [...]
[IMG: The LGA Lib Dems support Liberal Democrat council groups across the country] LGA free member conference – supporting businesses, sustaining regulatory services The LGA is running a free event at the end of January. The event is focusing on how council regulatory services can support local businesses and is showcasing some really good work that leading councils have done in this area. The event is specifically targeted [...]
A short and simple film which powerfully makes the point that your choice of words matters – and that the real power of words lies in telling simple stories rather than making factual statements: For more on how to use words successfully in political campaigning, see 101 Ways To Win An Election.
Former Liberal Democrat Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey has warned about alliances developing between climate change sceptics and anti EU campaigners. The Guardian reports that he has written to the head of the Vote Leave campaign to point out the damage associating with those who dispute climate change could do to their campaign and, ultimately, to the UK's international reputation: Davey writes: "The campaign you lead, Vote Leave, seems ready to ally itself with climate change deniers who are on the wrong side of scientific evidence and international consensus ... If you will not unequivocally distance yourself from ...
A new planning applications has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 59509 Registration Date: 01/12/2015 Location: Land at rear of 7-11 Carisbrook Avenue, Whitefield, Manchester, M45 6UP Proposal: Erection of 1 no. bungalow Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you require further information or help with this. The details will be on the Council's website here. Steve
This week the small group of Liberal Democrat councillor in Bury were successful in getting the Council to take action on access to life saving education and equipment. A motion proposed by Lib Dem councillors Mary D'Albert and Tim Pickstone at Bury's Full Council meeting was agreed by all parties and is now the policy of the Council. In the UK there are over 30,000 cardiac arrests a year outside of hospital where the emergency medical services attempt to resuscitate the victim. However, the survival rate is dismal - less than one in ten victims survive to be discharged from ...
UPDATED DETAILS. UKIP seat. Cause: Resignation. LD candidate- Ste Greenall.
My colleague Cllr Mary D'Albert recently attended an update on some significant changes currently taking place with the police service in Bury: A presentation was given by the Superintendent of Bury. She started the meeting by saying in the past GMP had almost 8000 offices- over the last 5 years, things have changed- they now need to work in a smarter way.They expect to end up with between 4500 and 5000 offices by the end of restructuring. At present in Bury we have two policy divisions one for Bury North and one for Bury South (based at Whitefield). The proposal ...
Just wanted to feed back about discussions we have had with the Highways Agency regarding road works at Simister Island. Residents may well be aware that some very noisy overnight works took place recently, which I know caused concern and nuisance to people who live quite a distance from the roundabout. We have discussed this with the Highways Agency team for the M62/M60 'smart' motorways project. They have assured me that when they are planning to do noisy works overnight they do endeavour to notify all residents, who are likely to be disturbed, in advance. The noisy work referred to ...
The petition to ban Donald Trump from the UK gathers pace this morning, currently standing at over 380k signatures and rising. Unlike the successful petition to strip Trump of his Aberdeen honorary degree, which I signed yesterday, I won't be signing this one. I have long ago learnt the lessons of 'no platforming'. Those who... More You Ain't No President, Bruv
A new planning applications has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 59447 Registration Date: 12/11/2015 Location: 46 Poppythorn Lane, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 3BY Proposal: Demolition of garden room at rear and single storey extension at side/rear and two storey rear extension: New vehicular access and drive to front off Poppythorn Lane Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you require further information or help with this. The details will be on the Council's website here. Tim
Six Town Housing, Bury Council's housing provider has got very creative with it's Annual Report this year – click on the images below find out about their work this year. The report is also available as a video here.
Last week BBC Radio 4's Thinking Aloud ran a piece on research showing how people assume that most other people think like them. This is, apparently, particularly strong at the political extremes. We don't need academics to tell us this, of course – it explains many of history's major political misjudgements. Prime candidates at the moment are supporters of the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who are in deep denial about how difficult it will be for their party to win elections. In this, if nothing else, they resemble the supporters of Donald Trump in the US. Of course, being in ...
After Donald Trump said what he said about banning Muslims from America.....actually, as a point of order, let's see exactly what Trump did say: "We need a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States while we figure out what the hell is going on." The key phrase being "total and complete shutdown", which seems to suggest banning even American citizens who happen to be Muslim. In the wake of this comment, the other Republican candidates finally spoke up about something outrageous and hateful Trump had said. Many of them cited the fact that moderate Muslims are key ...
Thu 10th
08:50
Syrian Conflict: What is the strategy for dealing with the failure of the Vienna talks?
I opposed the government's (and this party's) support for air strikes against ISIS in Syria not because I think there is a credible alternative to confronting them militarily, nor because I don't wish to stand with our allies, nor because I doubt that air strikes helped saved large numbers of Kurdish lives in both Iraq and Syria. I opposed them because while they can and ought to be part of a strategy for defeating ISIS, the government's Syria policy is full of contradictions and I don't think it can succeed. Largely because it does not put the protection of civilian ...
As a liberal my instincts are always to err on the side of freedom of speech and not banning anything unless demonstrable harm can be proved. Over 350,000 people believe that Donald Trump has met the latter test and that as a result he should be barred from ever setting foot on our shores ever again. That may prove difficult if he becomes US President. Trump has been stripped of his role as a business ambassador to Scotland, where he has invested more than £1 billion of his fortune in golf courses, as well as having Robert Gordon University in ...
West End-based artist John Stoa (pictured right) is exhibiting his latest paintings of winter landscapes and snow scenes. The exhibition, running at John's studios at 17A Menzieshill Road, runs from 11am to 5pm each day up to Sunday - 13th December. Entry is free of charge.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly 67 years ago today, but the fight for rights is as necessary as ever, not just in totalitarian states and conflict zones round the world but even in so-called mature democracies. Each International Human Rights Day (IHRD), 10 December, is a [...]
The campaigning group set up by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's supporters – Momentum – faces the prospect of an investigation by the information commissioner. The data protection regulator said it had received a complaint about the group and would be making enquiries... Labour figures hostile to Mr Corbyn fear that Momentum will try to undermine the Party leader's internal critics, and have privately questioned its use of personal data. Information gathered during the leadership campaign has been kept by Momentum, which says on its website it is collecting data to help build a lasting network of support. [BBC] Here's the ...
The social sciences have never been more vital. But they still face challenges in terms of quantitative skills and the diversity of available funding. By any measure, UK social science is in good shape. The recent Business of People report, international benchmarking reviews and case studies from the Research Excellence Framework demonstrate its many strengths. Sir Mark Walport, the government's chief scientific adviser, has praised its contributions, most recently in strategies to tackle Ebola. We also have a robust infrastructure to meet the data challenges that face us. For the first time in decades, the main birth cohort and longitudinal ...
David Cameron's cabinet saboteurs are pushing him to Brexit Polly Toynbee, partisan but interesting. (tags: eu ukpolitics ) Azerbaijani Rights Activist Leyla Yunus Released From Prison Hooray! (tags: azerbaijan ) The Men In The Castle: When the Political Gets Personal "I was *not* the President's lover. But I got fired." (tags: estonia media )
New operators of Yorkshire train services announced Education Secretary Set To Put More Female Thinkers On Politics A-Level Syllabus Tory MP admits adding 'death threat' to Facebook post over Syria air strikes Gender Bias Simulator [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
