People who know me well know I always say it as it is. So I won't mess about. For me, there is some unfinished business at conference this weekend - and that's why I'm asking you to support Motion F10 on Saturday. How many more reports do we need before we modernise the party's approach to candidates? The 2015 General Election Review called for serious changes to candidate selection and support. And so did the 2019 General Election Review that I chaired. And three years ago yet another report by my colleague Alison Suttie spelt out the real changes that ...
More good news on World Rewilding Day. HFM News reports: A new publicly-accessible open space and country park is to be created near Market Harborough. Harborough District Council has spent just under £1.8m purchasing over 130 acres of land for the ambitious rewilding project. The Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust will lead the scheme either side of the A6 bypass near Great Bowden. It will restore the nature-depleted land - an area the size of 79 football pitches - re-establishing natural processes and building a network of nature sites where wildlife can thrive. HFM News has interviews with Ben Devine ...
On the topic of social security for disabled people my starting point is that I'm jolly grateful I was born and have remained relatively normal in both body and mind. That's not to say that I wouldn't have liked a better body (better hand, foot and eye co-ordination to make a better fist of cricket and football) and a better mind (I've never been very good at spelling, and acknowledge that I'm probably better at explaining other people's ideas than having original ones myself) but I've managed to qualify for and hold down a job which I thoroughly enjoyed and ...
Farmers hung out to dry while fossil fuels cash in—more bad news for climate and nature The Government's outdated climate and nature targets, coupled with a lack of joined-up decision-making, have delivered yet another disastrous policy blunder. Last week, the Government announced a pause in payments to farmers under the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). SFI is one of the key Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes designed to support farmers in working in harmony with nature—to restore ecosystems, lock up carbon, cut pollution in our rivers, and help to protect communities from downstream flooding. Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Environment, Food and ...
America has fallen, but Rutland continues to thrive. BBC News reports:Matt Scase says he is often asked when otters were introduced to Rutland Water Nature Reserve. However, the nature lover, who works at the reservoir for the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, tells the BBC people are always surprised by the answer. "We actually didn't introduce them - they chose to come here," he said. "That's a good sign for us because they wouldn't have come unless we had a really good quality of water." "Well, that and the fact we have a massive reservoir with loads of fish they ...
[IMG: Spring 2024 voting pass] Conferences in Harrogate have, so far, been very special for me. The first time I went there, in 1992, I saw a message on the Wednesday for me on the noticeboard to contact the main desk. They told me to ring my parents. I had to go across the road to a payphone and feed coins into it – something that some people reading this will probably never have done. Obviously I was very worried, as my Dad had just had surgery. But the news was brilliant. My sister had given birth to her first ...
A fair few years back, I had a 'side hustle' as a science journalist. I wrote news and feature articles for a range of science publications, including even some that you might have heard of. The pay wasn't brilliant, but I enjoyed being able to get in touch with scientists around the world and talk to them about their work. And I had a steady stream of editors asking me to write things for them. At one point, I asked one of my editors what it was, in particular, that she liked about working with me. I wondered whether it ...
Tomorrow Lib Dems will be gathering in Harrogate ready for Spring Conference. Whilst the formal opening will be on Saturday at 9am, there are a couple of events on Friday. There will be a Consultative Session on the Policy Review at 4.45pm and the Conference Rally at 6.30pm. Conference Extra is a vital document if you want to make sense of the debates, because it includes all the amendments to motions. You can read or download Conference Extra here. It should be read in conjunction with the Agenda and Directory. Conference Extra also lists all the questions submitted on reports, ...
Recently another paper was produced which hinted at a link between mitochondrial DNA damage and aging. In fact I have been of the view for some time that the damage to mitochondrial DNA is what drives both aging and development at the lowest level. I have said this before, but thought a summary would be useful. It is worth, however, explaining a few terms first before going into the details of
US-Russia call: Putin is "stringing Trump along" NICs vote: Labour MPs vote for "health tax" on GPs, pharmacies and care homes Conservative local election launch: "buck stops" with Badenoch "Time for a fair deal for farmers" - Carmichael to introduce Food Supply Chain Fairness Bill Scottish Government admits it failed to conduct safeguarding review Minister visited Skye House just months before cruelty allegations surfaced Severn Estuary Commission Report - Get on with Building the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon Rennie responds to damning evidence session on funding crisis at Dundee University US-Russia call: Putin is "stringing Trump along" Responding to Putin's ...
We are holding a street surgery tonight to speak with residents on any local issues or concerns they may have. Should you have an issue you wish to discuss with us, e-mail us at westend@dundeelibdems.org.uk or call Dundee 459378 and we will be pleased to meet you - many thanks.
The Independent reports on the findings of the Chartered Institute of Export and International Trade that Brexit has created a "mind blowing" nearly two billion extra pieces of paperwork for businesses - enough to wrap around the world 15 times. The paper says that the Institute found that if all the bits of paper were laid end to end they would also reach to the moon and half way back again: Lib Dem trade spokesperson Clive Jones said it showed the scale of red tape plaguing British businesses since the UK's withdrawal from Europe. He said: "The Conservatives' botched Brexit ...
