If you keep chickens or ducks on your property, even if they are kept as pets rather than egg producers, as of Monday 7th November you are required to keep them caged or in runs which are netted over to avoid domesticated and wild birds mixing. The restrictions have been brought in to tackle the spread of avian flu. They apply to all poultry keepers, not just farmers. In the video above we show
It's been another day in which the apparent total lack of understanding of governance has been the undoing of another Conservative minister, and today's press releases reflect how quickly that can play out... Williamson comments: Independent Cabinet Office investigation needed now Welsh Liberal Democrats Only Party in the Senedd Making a Stand on Human Rights Gavin Williamson resigns: Sunak's integrity left in tatters Williamson comments: Independent Cabinet Office investigation needed now The Liberal Democrats have demanded an immediate independent Cabinet Office inquiry into remarks made by Gavin Williamson, in which he told a senior civil servant to "slit his throat." ...
The Guardian reports: Gavin Williamson dramatically quit Rishi Sunak's cabinet on Tuesday night after the Guardian revealed claims that he told a senior civil servant they should "slit your throat" while he was defence secretary. The Cabinet Office minister stepped down after the former Whitehall aide put in a formal complaint to parliament's Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), piling more pressure on Sunak over his decision to reappoint his ally. Responding to the news, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper MP said: This should be the third and final time Gavin Williamson is forced out of the Cabinet. Rishi ...
Barring some unexpected political crisis that requires an emergency meeting, Monday night saw the last Federal Board meeting of this three year cycle.
The Conservative Government's PR machine is working overtime to prepare us tor the Chancellor's mini-budget on the 17th November. One day the "leaks," "rumours," or whatever you want to call them emphasise tax rises, on another there is speculation about cuts in spending. The purpose of all this "kite flying" is to try to assess the public reaction to the various alternatives: more about what will go down well politically rather than what is best for the economy and our well being. More sinisterly we are bombarded day by day with phrases such as "difficult decisions," hard choices," "essential efficiencies" ...
I have been working on improving the health of the cells in my body, with some success, for a while now. This year, however, I have decided to monitor the situation with what are essentially weekly blood tests. I started out the year with blood tests every 4 weeks, but in May I moved to weekly tests. Apart from a short period when on holiday I have had at least one blood test each week since
Mon, 16:05: Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid - The Atlantic https://t.co/PzjRqk6KHv How social media has destroyed social discourse - long but sobering read. Mon, 17:11: Writing from prison, Hakan Altinay says he wants Europe to re-engage with Turkey | The Economist https://t.co/SL7oCnyPHH ...despite everything! Mon, 18:37: Goliath, by Tochi�Onyebuchi https://t.co/1g9dhfhQxC Mon, 20:34: Daily Duotrigordle #250 Guesses: 35/37 2️⃣2️⃣ 0️⃣5️⃣ 2️⃣3️⃣ 0️⃣4️⃣ 2️⃣4️⃣ 0️⃣6️⃣ 2️⃣5️⃣ 0️⃣7️⃣ 2️⃣6️⃣ 0️⃣8️⃣ 2️⃣7️⃣ 0️⃣9️⃣ 1️⃣0️⃣ 2️⃣8️⃣ 2️⃣9️⃣ 1️⃣1️⃣ 1️⃣2️⃣ 1️⃣3️⃣ 3️⃣0️⃣ 3️⃣1️⃣ 1️⃣4️⃣ 1️⃣5️⃣ 1️⃣6️⃣ 3️⃣2️⃣ 3️⃣3️⃣ 1️⃣7️⃣ 1️⃣8️⃣ 1️⃣9️⃣ 3️⃣4️⃣ 2️⃣0️⃣ 3️⃣5️⃣ 2️⃣1️⃣ https://t.co/hh9bUoa7aM Mon, 20:48: RT ...
Channel 5 recently screened a superior documentary on the career of Leonard Rossiter - you can watch it on its catch-up service My5. If features a few clips from what it bills as a "never seen before interview" with Rossiter. Except that readers of this blog may well have seen the interview before, because I linked to it last year. Maybe that's how the documentary's researchers found it? In that post I suggested Rossiter had a talent for turning up in films where you don't expect to find him, and the video above - from a 1967 Michael Caine thriller ...
There is a black hole, we are told. A yawning one, that needs to be filled in, oooh, around 10 days from now, or we face some unmentionable doom. Fortunately, after a brief flirtation with Rule by Crazy Libertarian, the grownups are back, prepared to take tough-but-necessary actions such as (checks notes) raise income taxContinue reading "Is there any alternative?"
Congratulations to BBC News on winning our prestigious Headline of the Day Award.
Are voting and other democratic functions corrupted and/or negated when significant news is denied, distorted, diverted and/or dissipated? Some information is, wrongly and rightly, kept secret for strategic reasons. However, when we are confronted with the results of past policies and actions there are no strategic reasons for secrecy. The obscuration of history to protect the reputations of politicians, officials, civil and military comes behind the need for the citizenry to be well informed so that their inputs to the democratic processes may be better in the present and the future. As is currently the case with the "West's" leaving ...
When I first joined the South Planning Committee in 2014, it was a well-run committee that made the right decisions much of the time. But since it was replaced by the Southern Planning Committee standards have slipped, particularly in recent months. Officers have argued amongst themselves in meetings. A public speaker made defamatory comments. And votes have become less informed as members are brought in from the far corners of the county to votes in on applications in areas they barely know. The result is too often bad planning decisions. I have received several complaints about recent Southern Planning Committee ...
What should the priorities be for the Liberal Democrat Federal Party President over the next three years?
Historian Max Hastings' latest book is "Abyss: The Cuban Missile Crisis 1962" (William Collins, £30 557pp). I was fortunate to attend a talk by Hastings on the book, at the recent Wantage Literary Festival. To a packed house, he gave a compelling narrative about the events. His conclusion was that we (the world) were very lucky to John F Kennedy as President during the Cuban crisis. He brought a high intelligence to bear on the issue, and, in particular, faced down his military advisers who were "gung ho" for war. This is summed up by this excerpt from the book's ...
The Independent reports that the Conservative Party is facing renewed accusations it is failing to tackle Islamophobia - both in society and within its own ranks. Recent figures show anti-Muslim hate crimes are on the rise in the UK, while an investigation into alleged Islamophobia by a Tory MP continues. Conservative Party Chair, Nadhim Zahawi has been urged to use Islamophobia Awareness Month to implement the recommendations of the Singh Investigation into Islamaphobia within his party in full, confirm whether the government will adopt the APPG's definition of it and end the party's "bizarre practice of refusing to use the ...
Bracing yourself for disappointment seems to be a good approach to the US Midterms. With the Democrats panicking about the New York state governorship (previously thought safe for their Kathy Hochul), it could be a very bad night for the Democrats. Public focus has turned increasingly to the economy and crime in recent weeks. That's not good for the Democrats, although there is still a hope that abortion will help them as an issue. The non-partisan Cook Political Report says that the Republicans have a "clear edge": ...House control appears easily within the GOP's reach — with the biggest remaining ...
The Blackness Library Book Club meets this Thursday at lunchtime - all welcome! For more information, please call the library on 435936.
