Dr Beeching, who saw it as an important freight route, didn't want the Oxford to Cambridge line closed. But closed it was, to freight as well as passengers, on New Year's Day 1968, apart from the middle stretch between Bletchley and Bedford. This video looks at the history of the line, its current condition and, close to the end, the prospects for full reopening. Given the need for what is largely a new line between Bedford and Cambridge, this is looking increasingly expensive, increasingly unpopular, and thus increasingly unlikely. Reopening between Oxford and Bedford, however, is well in hand.
Rishi Sunak faced questions from 3 Lib Dem MPs today. First up as Ed Davey, giving voice to so many people's fears as Cancer waiting times soar: "I lost both my parents to cancer as a child... I know the devastating impact of treatment delays," says Lib Dem leader Ed Davey who asks when cancer backlogs will be cleared Rishi Sunak says cancer treatment rates are "back at pre-pandemic levels"#PMQs https://t.co/30dg6Nh6ge pic.twitter.com/tUnrdoZF54 — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) December 14, 2022 It's good to se our parliamentarians challenging the Government on the issues which are causing so much misery and anxiety to ...
In comment to his recent important article The army should not be called as strike breakers, Mr Boddington asserts that "We are not a totalitarian state but the direction of travel is to restrict freedoms". If so, this is serious and demands that we seek indicators/bench marks of totalitarianism. Totalitarianism concentrates power, wealth, status and so on and so does Fascism. Like all forms of totalitarianism, fascism contrasts with and opposes democracy. Consequently, the more Fascism flourishes and grows, so Democracy diminishes and becomes more vulnerable. What makes democracy yet more vulnerable are generally accepted attitudes to the effect that, ...
Tue, 12:56: RT @gossjam: Chris Boucher giving it both barrels. RIP https://t.co/wicNzqHr1d Tue, 13:19: The Clockwise War, by Scott�Gray https://t.co/1UXzQPpDbW Tue, 16:05: https://t.co/f4L43xGHAX https://t.co/QNDPQ61maj Tue, 20:48: Ed Davey: "Voters are not blaming Brexit" https://t.co/Br93NCQJLt And the Lib Dems can't quite admit the problematic legacy of the coalition. Wed, 07:56: #December: the one month of the year when the average temperature in #Brussels is colder than the average temperature in #Belfast. Wed, 10:45: RT @AnaMartinsGomes: Not just #Qatar. #Morocco should have been financing Antonio Panzeri & pals since long at the @Europarl_EN. To frustr... </ul
Lib Dem peers, ably led by Kath Pinnock, tried to get rid of the Government's regulations for Voter ID last night. If Labour had voted with us, we might have had a chance of defeating the Government, but they abstained and the so-called fatal motion was defeated by 210 votes to 63. While Kath Pinnock conceded that the principle of voter ID had been passed in the deeply flawed elections Bill, she found quite a few devils in the detail that could cause problems for voters. She told her fellow peers: There are 240 pages of regulations in this statutory ...
Yesterday's announcement by the Prime Minister that he is going to intensify the hostile environment against asylum seekers and other migrants must surely put the UK on track to be considered an international pariah by those other countries who are doing all they can to relieve the suffering caused by war, famine and climate change. According to the Guardian, Sunak insisted he can clear a backlog of nearly 100,000 asylum claims by the end of next year as part of a set of policies that include resuming "hostile environment" checks on bank accounts suspended after the Windrush scandal: The prime ...
As if it was not bad enough that a former Prime Minister is being investigated for allegedly misleading the House of Commons over parties held in Downing Street during lockdown, it seems that the taxpayer is still paying the legal bills in his attempt to fight these charges. The Guardian reports that ministers have been accused of writing a "blank cheque" for Boris Johnson's legal bills, as it emerged taxpayer-funded support was being extended to help defend him against claims he misled parliament over Partygate: With just days left until a contract expires with the law firm Peters and Peters, ...
The Boar's Head Carol, says Wikipedia, is a 15th-century English carol that describes the ancient tradition of sacrificing a boar and presenting its head at a Yuletide feast. The version of the carol most usually performed today is based on one published in 1521. Steeleye Span issued this version as a Christmas single in 1977. but failed to repeat the success of Gaudete in 1973.
The ScrapAntics Team is holding a celebration day in its Wellgate space on Saturday 17th December - all welcome! There will be an exhibition of artwork made by the local community, film screenings, Loose Parts Play, creative activities and food - all for free. Everyone is welcome and you can just drop in for whichever part of the day you fancy - on the poster you will find the times of the different activities. Please feel free to bring family and friends, and if you work with any community groups please share our poster and let everyone know! Look forward ...
