The latest edition of eFocus for the Whickham area was published tonight. Issues covered include:Anti-social behaviour in Chase Park;Hospital bus service saved;Petition - cut Gateshead Council down to size;Whickham Voluntary Library is five years old;Chase Park dog show postponed;Sunniside phone mast;Wood carving at the Whinnies;Can you donate a school uniform?You can read eFocus on this link.
The news of Salman Rushdie's stabbing at an event in upstate New York is profoundly shocking. My first thoughts were with those police officers and a doctor in the audience who put themselves in harm's way to help the author and no doubt give him the chance of survival. At the time of writing he is still in surgery and I know that everyone reading this will hope that he pulls through and our thoughts will be very much with his loved ones. We don't know the motivations for this particular attack, but we are well aware that Salman Rushdie ...
Peter Walker, the Guardian's political correspondent, saw more of Cheltenham yesterday than the just the Conservatives' leadership hustings. What he found will encourage the local Liberal Democrats: In 2019, the incumbent Tory MP, the former solicitor general Alex Chalk, held off the Liberal Democrats by just 981 votes, and one local Conservative conceded they expect to lose the seat by 5,000-plus votes next time. And that's not all: Another Tory activist said that while the 500 or so local party members who will help choose the next PM are receptive to talk of tax cuts, culture wars and curbs on ...
About a million years ago I travelled from Aberdeen to Birmingham to attend my first ever SDP Students Conference. It was held in the Birmingham University Guild of Students and we all slept on the floor in our sleeping bags. It was a great learning experience. I remember it was the first time I had done public speaking training and it scared the life out of me. It really helped, though. I really enjoyed the experience and it obviously dug me deeper in to the party. Not even the SDPS "Have you got the guts to vote SDP" campaign the ...
Embed from Getty ImagesWith Joan of Arc is in the news today I thought I would take a look at how Charles Dickens treated her in his A Child's History of England. It should not surprise me, but I am pleased to find that he is wonderfully compassionate, has more insight into mental health than some modern professionals and is not jingoist in the slightest: It was natural in one so young to hold to life. To save her life, she signed a declaration prepared for her - signed it with a cross, for she couldn't write - that all ...
Lib Dem Treasury Spokesperson Sarah Olney has demanded that the Government take action to avoid a recession immediately after the announcement of the fall in GDP She said: The warning lights are flashing red but the government is missing in action. There's no time to waste, ministers must act now to boost confidence and avoid a recession. It's time to reassure families by scrapping the energy price rise, funded through a windfall tax on the record profits of oil and gas giants.
Fri 12th
13:44
Liz Truss pledges to beat the Lib Dems in Cheltenham, but doesn't know which county it's in
Yesterday's Conservative leadership hustings took place in the plum Liberal Democrat target seat of Cheltenham. During it, Liz Truss pledged she would ensure the Lib Dems did not take the constituency back. (We held it from 1992 to 2010.) She may have trouble keeping her promise, because she appears to think the town is in Derbyshire. Just watch the video. Incidentally, she could have saved herself time and embarrassment by dropping that prefabricated answer. Because it became clear that her honest reponse to any question about what she would do to give immediate help to people hit with colossal fuel ...
A Blue Plaque has been installed on the house at 72 Anerley Park, Penge where Dadabhai Naoroji lived. Naoroji was the first Indian elected as an MP ( by 5 votes!), one of the founders of the Indian National Congress and a leading member of the Zoroastrian community. A recent biography was reviewed by me on LDV here. The unveiling included a Zoroastrian prayer and a number of speeches about his life. Representing the Lib Dems at the unveiling were myself, Cllr Julie Ireland Leader of the Lib Dems on Bromley Council , Amna Ahmad the Party's Vice President responsible ...
Three principal authority council by-elections this week, with not only a full slate of Liberal Democrat candidates but that's two up on the last time these wards were fought. Excellent news. Yesterday's Laleham and Shepperton Green (Spelthorne) council by-election result: CON: 55.5% (+3.8) LDEM: 39.6% (+16.0) TUSC: 4.9% (+4.9) No UKIP (-21.2) and Lab (-3.5) as prev. Votes cast: 1,459 Conservative HOLD. — Britain Elects (@BritainElects) August 12, 2022
Thu, 14:14: RT @AdeccoGroup: 🌐 Voices from the debate "Platforms can help workers & businesses flourish, but we need to evolve the relationship betwee... Thu, 18:09: The Life of Col. Samuel M. Wickersham, based on his writings 1863-1894, ed. Edward Wickersham�Hoffman https://t.co/8fIsc8N4De Fri, 10:45: UK Conservatives fear scars of bitter leadership contest will take time to heal - POLITICO https://t.co/kTsQx77BwM Oh, I do hope so. </ul
I am no great fan of the Eurovision Song Contest though I did watch the final in May. That said, I am a great fan of the tourism industry so anything that encourages people to visit Gateshead, Newcastle and the North East generally is welcome. It's all about jobs, wealth creation and the local economy. For a successful tourism industry we need reasons for people to visit us and spend their cash
You may remember we brought you the sad news that much-loved former Scottish Lib Dem Chief Exec died suddenly on 17th July. As I wrote at the time: In every single conversation I have had with people about Ron in the past two days, the words kind and gentle have featured very highly. He was a lovely man, always wise and one of those people who could instantly calm a frazzled situation or, dare I say, bruised egos. He was one of the best humans, gone way too soon. Ron's wife Sandra Grieve would like us to share details of ...
I'm used to activities being cancelled due to rain, snow and cold but we now have to get used to events being cancelled because of extreme heat. The Fun Dog Show in Chase Park, Whickham, due to be held tomorrow, has been cancelled because of the extreme weather conditions. I had planned to spend much of the day there but, though disappointed the show is postponed, the welfare of the people and
Actually, this is not an occasion for glib titles, it is there to attract your attention to a very serious failing by a major political party in Wales. As the Guardian reports, Plaid Cymru have restored the whip to an MP who was cautioned by police after assaulting his wife, prompting anger both within the party and without. The paper says that Carmarthen East and Dinefwr MP, Jonathan Edwards, who had been sitting as an independent since he was arrested on suspicion of assault, will again be able to represent the nationalist party at Westminster following his suspension in July ...
Phew! What a scorcher! That's a phrase we have rarely heard in the UK since 1976. Here in Shropshire, the Shropshire Star reported yesterday seven combine harvester fires over the last week. There have been a at least a couple of more fires since, including at Soulton Hall. Soulton Hall has a particular place in the history of the Lib Dems and our current fightback against the Tories. After the enforced resignation of Owen Paterson amid a typical Tory scandal, Soulton Hall became the base for Helen Morgan's successful campaign to replace him. Two days ago, farmer and Lib Dem ...
[IMG: Electricity (power) socket] Older residents facing financial hardship could now be eligible to get more help from Folkestone & Hythe District Council. The council has been allocated funding by Kent County Council from the Household Support Fund Extension (HSFE), which runs until 30 September 2022. Unlike the original scheme, the HSFE will focus on energy bills and for people over pensionable age. F&HDC will be directly contacting households that could be eligible. Food will also remain a priority, but the HSFE can be used to support households with wider essential costs. Vulnerable households are defined as those that are ...
Max Wilkinson, who wrote earlier today on LDV about the Cheltenham navel gazing, features in today's Guardian. Political correspondent Peter Walker wrote: "Sitting in a town centre pub converted from an imposing former courthouse, Max Wilkinson, a local Liberal Democrat councillor who competed against Chalk in 2019 and will also fight the next election, says the imminent change of leader has not overly changed voter sentiment... In 2019, the incumbent Tory MP, the former solicitor general Alex Chalk, held off the Liberal Democrats by just 981 votes, and one local Conservative conceded they expect to lose the seat by 5,000-plus ...
Sixty two community litter picking hubs are now available across Glasgow - in parks, schools and at some coffee shops. Equipment, including bin bags and litter pickers, can be used by anyone keen to do a litter pick in their area. This is a great initiative by Glasgow City Council and we asked Dundee City Council's Head of Environment if this could be replicated in Dundee. He has responded positively as follows : "Yes, I agree that this is a very positive initiative and it would be good to emulate with a similar scheme within Dundee. Grateful if you could ...
It was a night that confirmed what many people already thought. For those of us on the outside, it's now clear that the Conservative party leadership is out of ideas. In fact, the boldest thinking we heard during the debate at Cheltenham Racecourse last night (Thurs) was when Liz Truss suggested Cheltenham was in Derbyshire. You'd think that in this moment of national crisis, the two candidates would have something new to say. Alas, there was very little to help those worried about the cost of living during the debate. If only they had the foresight to pursue bold policy ...
"It's subversive of constitutional democracy. It's peddled by wealthy and privileged people to discredit reasoned government and distract the disadvantaged. Populism is a powerful poison, with the potential to kill off liberal democracy." William Wallace says we need to work harder to dispel the right-wing myth that Britain has a "liberal elite". "Outsourcing has ... broken the link between care and local communities, with thousands of children in care sent to live many miles from their families and friends because no local homes are available. Companies maximise returns by locating their business where homes are cheapest - not where children ...
