This illustration, A Farm in February, is not from a Ladybird book, but it is by a Ladybird artist, Ronald Lampitt. And if you're tempted to dismiss it as an exercise in nostalgia for that reason, you should read an article by Adam Chapman: Lampitt has captured a time of change. The Labour government's 1947 Agriculture Act secured prices and hastened investment and development and here we can see the tangible results in affordable technology. This farm is perhaps the result they imagined. That's most obvious in the juxtaposition of bright red tractors - the nearer pulling a disc harrow, ...
It was off to join a big team of Lib Dems over the bank holiday weekend canvassing in Ealing, with four things of particular note. First, the smart forward planning by Ealing Liberal Democrats. A Conservative councillor in a split Lib Dem / Conservative ward was elected an MP in Surrey in June. So the local Lib Dem team is up and running campaigning in the ward, even though the by-election has not yet been called. That sort of forward planning – and taking every election as an opportunity to progress – is just what helps us build up across ...
Liberal Democrat Newswire #187 came out last week and has a go at crystal ball gazing on what the future holds for the party. You can now read it in full below, but if you'd like the convenience of getting it direct by email in future just sign up for it here. "*" indicates required fields Name* First Last Email* Enter Email Confirm Email If you submit this form, your data will be used in line with the privacy policy here to update you on the topic(s) selected. This may including using this data to contact you via a variety ...
I've never liked the term "progressive parties", lumping us together with Labour and the Greens despite some significant differences in policies and priorities. It often serves as lazy shorthand for "not Tory", but it's accurate in one respect - the Conservatives have spent the last few years slowly strangling any expectation of progress. Their legacy is a cost of living crisis, exponential growth in hospital waiting lists, unaffordable housing, falling living standards and the virtual abandonment of attempts to tackle the climate crisis and protect the environment. You will have seen that the new Labour Government has recently awarded "inflation ...
The threatened reunion of the Oasis brothers is a stark warning of the potential breakout of Britpop across the entire UK region, warns Stuart Whomsley. Last year's reunion of the Blurists should have been a warning. The so-called Pulp group (PG) have been rumoured to be in a studio creating new material. A Labour government's election this year has also been seen as a catalyst for this worrying development. The previous Labour inhabitant of Number 10, Tony Blur, was an advocate of the Cool Britannia movement. After 14 years of Tory rule that brought us UK Grime and Drill, a ...
Although I am a recipient of it, and have been ever since it was introduced, i think Rachel Reeves is quite right to scrap the pensioners' universal Winter Fuel Allowance. It has been a profligate waste of public money from the start. I have no idea what the proportion is, but I suspect at least half of us, and possibly more, are very comfortably-off on a combination of our state pension, work pension and, in some cases, interest and investment income. We need this extra boost like a hole in the head. (At least one of my friends calls it ...
I did something I had never done before this General Election – I stood as a Westminster candidate for the first time. I'd stood for Holyrood and the Council before, but this was was my UK election debut. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I loved doing local and national hustings. I loved interacting with voters who contacted me and while out and about. I thought that the daily Candidates' Briefings we received were absolutely fantastic. They were written with humour and contained information that was really helpful. They were very clear about what we should (and shouldn't) be doing. The ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR THE WEST END WARD - WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 26 AUGUST 2024 Blinshall Street (Douglas Street to 50 metres south) - closed until December 2024 for construction works. Douglas Street (Blinshall Street to Brown Street) - temporary traffic lights until December 2024 for construction works. Brown Street (south of Douglas Street) - closed until December 2024 for construction works. Seafield Road, Dundee - closed from its westmost end (in cul-de-sac) extending for a distance of no more than 20 metres in an easterly direction to facilitate a site access for a new ...
