LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Monday 9th October 2006

Campaign against Mayor's new powers gathers pace

The Liberal Democrat Executive of Southwark Council will be campaigning against the Labour Government's decision to sweep away local democracy on matters such as planning by granting the Mayor of London some new powers. The Labour party in recent years haven't run shy of using the Secretary of State's powers to favour developers against local people. Including, for example, the recent Downtown decision by Ruth Kelly. These new powers mean Kelly will be joined in her quest to increase Labour's £3.3m of sleazy campaign loans from developers by the Mayor who would be able to, for example, clear ...

Conkers: Now the good news

Fair Deal Phil has the most toe-curling blog name in the known universe, but he does link to the website of the World Conker Championships.

More Bullshit from Blair - ID Cards "Only" to Cost £5.4 bn

Apart from the fact that the planned ID cards system would radically alter the relationship between the individual and the state into one where we would all, in effect, become the "property" of the state through the decision to tag each and every one of us, I have never seen such a load of rubbish as the claim that ID cards would "only" cost £5.4 bn. Everyone who has ever followed government IT related projects knows that under both Labour and Conservative Parties virtually all public sector IT projects have come in late and over budget. This one is ...

I don't care if it is a twenty-sixer, you're nicked

Nanny Knows Best mentions (but strangely does not link to) a story about children in Littlehampton being stopped and searched by police because they were throwing sticks at trees to bring down conkers. Never fear: Littlehampton Today has the story: Angry mothers have blasted police after they stopped and searched four children – for knocking conkers out of a tree. The children were issued with stop and search tickets by a police officer at Littlehampton on Saturday and had their haul of conkers confiscated. But they went back the next day with their parents' permission after they called police ...

North Korea - China Has to Step Up to the Plate

Well, everyone told him not to do it and nobody more than the Government of China but Kim Jong-Il showed the world that he is probably the biggest pillock and risk to world peace on the planet. There are a number of scenarios that suggest themselves now: Economic sanctions and increased isolation. Not likely to work as the North Korean regime is pretty isolated already. Military intervention by the United States (possibly with active Japanese support). This would destabilise the Asia-Pacific region and make the Chinese very nervous as a united pro-American Korea would reach ...

Greater Hughenden By-Election

A By-election to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of a Conservative elected Councillor has now been set for the 9th November. Wycombe Liberal Democrats have selected William Barnes as their candidate. Further details will appear shortly. In the meantime if anyone wants to register their help then please email me at ian.morton@wycombelibdems.org.uk

FOCUS for Tait's Lane - and sad demise of Fred Ell...

Delivered a special edition of FOCUS today to the residents in Tait's Lane about the road resurfacing - click on the headline above to view.Been doing my filing - various parts of the West End spread across the lounge, dining room, hall ... you get the picture! Janet awfully impressed, not. Anyway, all filed but do not believe the paperless society is with us just yet! And lastly, superb Coronation Street tonight (favourite TV programme in the world - normally watch Monday's on Tuesday but its the Council recess!) - Fred Elliot is no more - tears all round, I ...

Farm of the Week

Perhaps this would only count as a story in the South Shropshire Journal: Little Dowie Owen follows in lots of his family’s footsteps whenever he enters Onny School. Dowie is the first member of the fifth generation of his family, local farmers who have lived in Onibury for more than 100 years, to go to the school.But I did like the name of the family farm: Stepaside Farm.

ID cards cost

Well they've come out and said it.. ID cards are going to cost a fortune. the governments figure for the introduction, set up and running of the scheme for the first ten years runs into billions. How many hospitals.. how many extra police for that matter.. would that money pay for. Many of us have opposed ID cards as a point of principle.. but i suspect when people see these details, even those who have been in favour will think again.

Buried with ham.

Fred the Coronation Street butcher has just karked it on the day of his nuptials. In happier times, a vomitoriously sycophantic Labour MP asked a question at PMQs about the release of Corrie character Dierdre Barlow (then Rashid) who was at the time banged up. (They had spaces in prisons in those days.) I assume our revolting and dispirited Labour MPs will not be asking about Fred's death come

Leafleting in the moonlight

Perhaps being a Liberal Democrat operative after dark is not such a good idea, but with the nights drawing in, there aren’t enough hours of daylight to get all the leafleting done. So tonight, for the first time in a long while, I was out under cover of darkness delivering Focus to my “home patch” of Mountside Crescent and Clough Drive. And despite being bright yellow, the Lib Dem rosette emits a

The figures that prove how brilliant this blog is

I understand it’s become the custom on some blogs to note how many readers visit. As if size matters. It all seems terribly un-English to me. But if you can’t beat ‘em… Here, then - in the spirit of full disclosure - are my user stats. The left (y) axis is the number of unique users, the bottom (x) axis is the year: As you can see, I started from a low base, as I hadn’t in fact dipped my toes

When two become none - Mid Norfolk Tories tell Nor...

The EDP reports today that none of the Norfolk "two" longlisted out of 20 possible candidates to be Conservative candidate for the Mid Norfolk seat have made it to the final 10. One former Tory candidate made the point as a comment to a previous entry on this blog to suggest that not all Lib Dem candidates are local when first selected, which is indeed the case. however, I cannot remember a Lib Dem seat choosing no local candidates at all to be shortlisted. Surely there must be one Tory in Norfolk who is good enough or bright enough ...

Never before seen. With good reason

I see m’colleague, Cllr Rundle, has posted a quick ‘n’ easy users’ guide to aid the unfamiliar in distinguishing the two of us. (I learned a few things about myself I can tell you.) David tends towards the circumlocquacious. Me, I’m more direct and visual. So here’s a photo. Most councillors have stashed away somewhere a campaigning photo that’s never seen the light of day, one that seemed a

Missing the point

I’ve just read a fascinating article which shows just how out of touch Labour have become with themselves. You’ll find the whole article at ‘Could have been a contender‘. It starts promisingly with an frank admission of the problem: A spectre is haunting Labour – the spectre of defeat and long exile from power. Too many [...]

Keeping Up With The Joneses

You ignore the trends of political life at your peril.I mention this in view of the delight shown by Conservative activists at another poll showing their vote up at the expense of the Lib Dems (supposedly). The national swing will smite us down and put us back into our place as the nowhere men of British politics, so goes the theory.But again, you ignore the trends of political life at your peril.

It's hello from me, not from him

So, yes, this thing does fly in a virtual sort of way. Thank you, to all of you, of various hues, who have welcomed me to this rarified atmosphere of yours. And to those smarties who have noticed that my first posting was from my ward colleague: a chocolate Euro awaits each of you for your perspicacity. I realise the apparent interchangeability of David and Stephen, and Stephen and David, could raise existential questions about identity and the representation received by the good burghers of Headington -- all of whom, whatever they vote, each of us, with our county ...

Norfolk County Council's Latest Insult

Am I the only person who finds the quote from the Cabinet Member for children's services, Cllr Rosalie Monbiot, regarding the cost to students of the increase enforced by Norfolk County on students the slightest bit insulting ? Quoting directly from the EDP, she said "“That £83 increase is less than a pint of beer a week". Why do people instantly relate the cost to drink when they refer to students ? Yes, there is a stereotype of students drinking all the time, but can I remind the Conservatives who run County Hall that not all students are drinking ...

Blogging for Backlash

Today is Blogging for Backlash day. This is being organised by Backlash the umbrella group which was set up " in an attempt to collate evidence for an informed debate on censorship of pornography, which the Government's tendentious and one sided consultation paper spectacularly failed to provide" I have commented on this issue before back in August in a post entitled Banning violent pornography - should it be done? It does seem to me that this is an issue, no matter how hard it may be to do so, which we as Liberals should take a stance on. In my ...

My latest book

We've just noticed a package lying behind a planter by the front door. Not a suspect device, but the parcel containing the five author's copies of my latest book sent from my publisher! I'm a bit miffed that the delivery company left it outside like that - what if it had rained before I noticed it? I decided to take a break from writing during this year, and the final...

Coming down from the (Blogging) Mountain.

Over the past week or so I've been pondering the amount of time I spend blogging. In a little less than three months, I've made just over 100 posts. Net result number one: it has become impossible to find the time to read anything more concrete than other blogs. I mean actual books, as opposed to virtual ephemera. Net result number two: my family no longer recognise me. So a change of tack is

Physics at Reading

My brother has asked me to sign and promote this petition objecting to the closure of the Physics Department at Reading University, which will impact upon a friend of his. Physics is of some importance to this country, and indeed the whole world. So teaching it to people and researching it is probably a good idea. Please support this petition.

Ident cards

Hurrah for Mr Nimbos, who has made his own BBCone ident.

Hate my Tory

I know this is very childish but it does guarantee hours of amusement. Visit Hate My Tory.Com now.

Not much more Life on Mars

The second series of Life on Mars will be its last, says the Beeb: The producers said two endings to the second series had been filmed “to keep everyone guessing until the very end”. […] Executive producer Claire Parker said the story would reach a “natural and explosive climax”. I wasn’t a big fan of the first series, but [...]

Don’t go to Glasgow on match day

Unless you’re going to the football, I recommend not trying to get to Glasgow - and even more so not trying to get back out of Glasgow - if Scotland are playing at Hampden Park. From slaloming around the kilted hoards at Edinburgh Waverley at lunchtime to queuing for a train back again at night, [...]

New Labour's Hugh Bayley and his 'protection' of NHS patients

Through the letter box this morning came 'a report from Hugh Bayley, MP for the City of York'. Receiving top-billing was an article called 'Protecting NHS Patients in York'. 'Oh', I thought, 'perhaps our esteemed Labour MP has found a way to stop the proposed cuts to local NHS services'. Well, actually, no. He just goes on to say that he's 'met' with Patricia Hewitt and then goes on to...

An area the size of Wales

The Government has announced that its ID card scheme will cost £5.4 billion to implement. To set that in context, that’s what Gordon Brown last year stated that the world’s developed countries should spend each year on combating the AIDS pandemic in poor and middle-income countries.

White and Nerdy

With North Korea testing nuclear weapons, the world remembering the victims of the Pakistan earthquake and the situation in Iraq getting worse by the day, it's always good to watch the latest Weird Al music video:

Orchards and Peace - a musing on Afghanistan

With British troops becoming even more involved with fighting in Afghanistan maybe we should all take time to learn a bit more about that country. I am only an interested amateur but here are a couple of snippets… The TV pictures from southern Afghanistan show vast acres of arid fields. Surely nothing can grow here but Opium? Well actually this was once one of the great orchard areas of the world with many hundreds of square miles of carefully irrigated fields producing superb quality fruit. Only Afghan peaches would do for the courts of the Moghul emperors of India ...

Kenilworth and Southam - Labour goes for an All Woman Shortlist

The Labour Party have advertised their selection for Kenilworth and Southam and they will be using an All Women Shortlist, again will they not learn. Kenilworth and Southam is a new seat being created by the boundary review. There are various guesses at how this seat will go, with both Labour and the Liberal Democrats claiming to be in second place notionally, the Liberal Democrats in Kenilworth and Southam are participating in the West Midlands Moving Forward programme and are certainly taking the challenge seriously.

Modern Manners for Monday Mornings

I don't have the resources (or the body) to try video blogging, so I thought I'd try an older style of satire: the cartoon strip....Built using Witty Comics

Are we making children lazy?

I was waiting at the bus stop earlier this morning and I was beseiged by a number of school children. They were all waiting for the bus to take them to school which is only 15 mins away. Is free bus travel encouraging children to hop on a bus, rather than walk to school?

Is Cameron and Brown the same people?

I see that David Cameron is seeking to take politicians out of the day to day decisions of running the NHS. Didn't Gorden Brown suggest this a couple of weeks ago?

Anna Politkovskaya RIP

I have hesitated to write about the brutal murder of Anna Politkovskaya. She was a close friend of friends and I know many people who will be simply stunned at this senseless crime. Politkovskaya was in a very real sense the conscience of modern Russia. A voice speaking up for tolerance and mutual respect. She was scathing about the failings of the Putin regime, and in Chechnya she had seen the crimes of that regime up close. Her life had been threatened several times, but she had the courage and determination not to give in to the thugs and crooks ...

Can Ctrl-AltGr-Del

Well, I now feel like an unimaginative slave to the machine as I realise that in 20 odd years of using PCs I have never equated the AltGr key with the Alt key. It was the key I never pressed - like a DO NOT PRESS button that bypassed my curiosity gland. Thanks [...]

Thai Prime Minister announces post coup cabinet

The interim Thai Prime Minister General Surayud Chulanont has announced his cabinet which has been approved by the King. The BBC News article can be found here The full cabinet list is as follows The full list of Surayud's Cabinet is: Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister: MR Pridiyathorn Devakula Deputy Prime Minister and Industry Minister: Kosit Panpiemras PM's Office Minister: Kunying Tipawadee Meksawan PM's Office Minister: Thirapat Serirangsan Defence Minister: Gen Boonrawd Somtat Foreign Minister: Nitya Pibulsonggram Deputy Foreign Minister: Saowanit Kongsiri Tourism and Sports Minister: Suwit Yodmanee Social Development and Human Security Minister: Paibool Watanasiritham Agriculture ...

Government by press release

Following Friday's announcement (whilst the Education Committee were out of the country) that the Assembly Government are abolishing coursework in GCSEs I note that this morning's Western Mail contains yet another initiative by the Education Minister. This time she is proposing giving additional support for gifted pupils. The paper describes this as a £50,000 aid package but there are no more details than that and I am unable to cast any light as once again this proposal has never been before the Education Committee for scrutiny. It was also interesting that one Cabinet member I spoke to at the ...

Labour support for a written constitution

Well at last some sense from the attorney general who says that a written constitution for the UK should be "seriously" considered. He went on to oppose Camerons suggestion of a Bill of Rights to replace the Human Rights Act. He now says there are strong reasons in principle to consider a written constitution. I agree with him although I am slightly puzzled as to why he has come out now and made this statement. Have I missed something?

Hospital Closures - Not a political issue ?!? (Nothing to do with me gov)

Both David Cameron and Gordon Brown appear to be suggesting that Hospital Closures and other "service reconfigurations" should not be a political issue. David Cameron will set out plans today to give the NHS greater protection from political interference. The Conservative "independence Bill" for the NHS would put crucial decisions on its running and resources beyond the control of ministers by

Oxford East gained by Lib Dems

At least notionally we gain Oxford East after accounting for boundary changes according to the UKPollingReport. Unfortunately under the same boundary changes we lose Solihull and Somerton and Frome. Better news when looking at the seats which are designated as new where we a predicted to pick up Chippenham, St Austell and Newquay and York Outer. However again there is some bad news as one of the abolished seats is Brent East currently held by Sarah Teather who has indicated she is going to contest Brent Central which has a notional Labour Majority of 18 percent Meanwhile locally the changes ...

Reading fans get an apology

Reading fans have at last got the apology from one national newspaper that they feel they deserve. Paul Wilson wrote his apology here in Sundays Observer. He said "Get ready, Reading fans, here is the unreserved and really quite grovelsome apology to which you are unquestionably entitled. At the start of the season I rather flippantly predicted Reading would be the new Sunderland, prompting a rash of emails from indignant supporters who said Steve Coppell's side would do a lot better than that. In my defence I do think it is important not to sit on the fence in these ...

Liberal Democrats Blog Too!

Unusually for me, I managed to see the Politics Show on BBC1 today. I have to say that the report was the usual biased one you come to expect off the BBC. You would think that Liberal Democrats don't blog the way the BBC reported it. Usual low, sloppy journalistic standards AGAIN! The Tories often complain about anti-Tory bias from the BBC but the real victims of the BBC's political lazyness and inability to think outside the political duopoly box have often been the Liberal Democrats and it still sadly seems to continue to the present day. Nil points ...

How Martin Scorsese got me blogging

Sunday night and I am just back from the cinema and Scorcese’s latest offering, The Departed. A film about cops going undercover of master criminals and criminals going undercover as hot-shot policemen – about rats, in short. We have rats in politics; defectors they’re called, but as a good Liberal, I wouldn’t recommend the sort of treatment that is meted out to them in this film. It is, by no means, a classic in the realms of, say, Taxi Driver or even (a personal favourite) that ever-so-unScorcesean period drama Age of Innocence. But it has Jack Nicholson showing ...

The wheels on the liberalibus are going round and ...

A large liberal welcome to my Headington ward colleague (and Oxford City Council deputy leader), David Rundle, who has - at bloody last - joined the Lib Dem blogosphere. He's posting at the snappily-titled de moribus liberalibus. Make nice to him 'cos he's worried no-one will notice...

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