The government's declared policy of "levelling up" has done nothing for inequality, argues Zubaida Haque: "Not only is inequality between regions getting worse, but disadvantaged groups are being pushed more to the breadline. And with Boris Johnson stumbling from one political crisis to another, it's hard to be convinced that levelling up is anything more than another campaign slogan on the side of a bus." "Even Johnson's critics will have been taken aback by the sheer crass inhumanity of the current scheme. It is the wrong answer to the decades-old question of how to make use of the Commonwealth and, ...
I was contemplating recently the fact that I will have completed 39 years of service as a councillor at the end of this month when it occurred to me that there was a much more important anniversary to celebrate. At ... Continue reading →
Responding to the Prime Minister's press conference in New Delhi, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: "At this dark moment, we must make clear to all our allies that you cannot be neutral in the face of the war crimes being meted out against Ukrainians by Putin's forces. This must be a matter of principle for the UK - sadly, Johnson seems so desperate for a bargain basement trade deal that he is keeping quiet. "We should be standing tall on the world stage and stating that the UK expects any country which seeks increased access to ...
In the 1960s my parents had wine on the table (I was even allowed a small glass myself) and a subscription to Private Eye. My sister and I would choose a yoghurt for breakfast from the milk float and, yes, we watched Simon Dee. Yes, we were a middle-class and even a little bohemian. Which may be why, given the poor background she came from, why my mother was so attracted to this record when it came out in 1969. Then, in 1972, my father walked out and life became very different. I have to report that when I played ...
It's that time of year - Labour leaflets pop through local letterboxes. There must be an election! Labour's candidate for Whickham South and Sunniside (who lives in Blaydon) has been issued with a map of where to go and the success of this can be shown by the fact I walked past him last week in Sunniside. His election leaflet, which he was delivering at the time, seems almost to have come from a
This week, G7 finance ministers said that they – together with the international community - will be helping Ukraine to the tune of more than US$ 24 billion this year and beyond. And the door is open for more. However, this is just a drop in the ocean of blood and destruction in Ukraine. Already three weeks into Russia's invasion, President Zelenskyy had estimated that Ukraine had suffered half a trillion US dollars' worth of damage to housing and infrastructure, let alone the ongoing cruel cost of human suffering and death. Western countries are reported to have frozen at least ...
A piece about the importance of text messaging in (US) political campaigning had this eye-catching statistic buried deep within it from Cole Edwards, a former Distributed Organizing Director for Bernie 2020: We gathered thousands of [voter] IDs via doors, texts, and through our campaign's relational app. Then, we hired an independent pollster and polled hundreds of IDs gathered through each method. What we found was pretty astonishing: it turned out IDs gathered through knocking doors didn't really hold up. Only 25% of respondents who were canvassed at the door actually identified as Bernie supporters in the poll. We assumed this ...
Sat, 13:04: RT @IanMoore3000: I've been thinking about why people might support Putin's invasion of Ukraine. https://t.co/TQvMfcFrl0 Sat, 16:48: February 2016 books https://t.co/P2EaY4gvwI https://t.co/ldx8mc3MKT Sat, 19:58: Saturday reading https://t.co/pXjg6An9Q8 https://t.co/01R3QaMMqw Sun, 11:56: Unexpected greeting at a Flemish castle. https://t.co/bhbAHTiHaf
With Boris Johnson facing an imminent standards investigation to establish whether he lied to Parliament or not, you would think that other ministers might stop and think. But no, according to the Guardian, the home secretary has now been accused of misleading parliament after a high court ruling revealed that unpublished parts of a controversial policy to push back migrant dinghies in the Channel said the tactic would not be used against asylum seekers. The paper says that the pushbacks policy was finalised in autumn 2021, yet in January this year Priti Patel said pushing back migrant boats was "absolutely ...
The Russians have changed generals as well as shifting the focus of their attack from the north to the east and south. The new man is Lt. General Alexander Dvornikov, aka "the butcher", a title he earned for his merciless bombardments in the Second Chechen War and Syria. In the first he levelled Grozny and the second left Aleppo a smouldering ruin whose streets were littered with the bodies of civilians. General Dvornikov is wanted for alleged war crimes in Syria and has been blacklisted by the EU. Vladimir Putin has awarded him with the Hero of Russia medal. Dvornikov's ...
Hello! I'm Mark Pack, author of Polling UnPacked: The History, Uses and Abuses of Political Opinion Polls, as well as 101 Ways To Win An Election and Bad News: what the headlines don't tell us. Welcome to my summary of the latest national voting intention poll from each pollster currently operating in Britain. Below the table, you'll find the option to sign up to email updates about new polls and also a set of answers to frequently asked questions about political polling. Or, if you'd like to find out more about how polls work, how reliable they are and how ...
From the 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 road safety measures during Dundee Dance Event being carried out HEREBY PROHIBIT the driving of any vehicle in Old Hawkhill / West Port / South Tay Street (between Hunter Street and Nethergate), Dundee. This notice comes into effect on Sunday 1 May 2022 for one day (1pm to 11pm). Pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained. Access will be maintained where possible. Alternative routes for vehicles are available ...
