LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Tuesday 17th April 2007

Monday and Tuesday

Monday morning saw a usful planning meeting of the steering group of Western Cemetery Association - I have put together a blog for the group (click on headline above to view) using material they have gathered.Last night saw the last full Council and main committee meetings before the May elections. The Finance Committee, which I chair, had a sensible report on ways to increase Direct Debit payment of Council Tax - an area in which the City Council is improving.Today, Nicol Stephen MSP, Scottish Liberal Democrat Leader, visited Dundee and toured the vastly improved facilities at St John's High School. ...

The Otterburn report

Find I have Question 7 on the Order Paper for Department of Constitutional Affairs Questions. So – turn up and give some thought to what my follow up question would be. But sadly - Mr Speaker called 'Order Order' finishing the session just as we got to my question. Shame - because it was about the Government ignoring the Otterburn report which in turn criticised the Carter report which (

Rejecting The Premise Of Saint Jude

So you may be asking yourself, what is Gareth Aubrey, that smart, sassy young political operative doing spending a month trying to unseat the First Minister of Wales (you may very well not be, but it’s a good West Wing paraphrase and I never look a gift one of those in the mouth) But, taking Leo’s advice not to accept the premise of the question, why shouldn’t I be doing so? I mean, let’s list

Blah blah blah: Atheism under attack!

Saturday's Guardian carries an opinion piece from Nicholas Buxton entitled "Face to faith" where he touts out the now-frequent line from organised religions about how atheism is also a religious movement with a dogmatic approach to everything from science to social justice. He starts his piece with this rather extraordinary sentence: "Post-Enlightment critiques of religion have sought to reduce it to a tool of social oppression (Marxism), bad science (Darwinism) or neurosis (Freudianism)." Yes, there is bad science in the Bible and other religious texts, but if Buxton thinks that biology is the study of how religion is wrong ...

Court circular highlight (part of an occasional series)

WINDSOR CASTLE: The Baroness Trumpington (Baroness in Waiting) was present at Heathrow Airport, London, this afternoon upon the Arrival of The President of Mongolia and Mrs. Tsolmon Onon and welcomed His Excellency and Mrs. Tsolmon Onon on behalf of The Queen. The Baroness Trumpington sounds rather jolly, doesn’t she?

EU ministers to criminalise Holocaust denial

The Financial Times website has a depressing story this evening - one that has been coming for some time: Laws that make denying or trivialising the Holocaust a criminal offence punishable by jail sentences will be introduced across the European Union, according to a proposal expecting to win backing from ministers Thursday.Offenders will face up to three years in jail under the proposed legislation, which will also apply to inciting violence against ethnic, religious or national groups.Diplomats in Brussels voiced confidence on Tuesday that the controversial plan, which has been the subject of heated debate for six years, will be ...

Dinner at the Campbell-Bannermans

BBC Four's Edwardian season, and its emphasis on food in particular - I can't get the channel but it is impossible to avoid the trailers - has reminded me of a quotation to be found on my anthology blog Serendib: Campbell-Bannerman weighed almost 20 stone, as did his wife. He once described his favourite menu as mutton broth, fresh herring or salmon, haggis, roast mutton, grouse, apple tart and strawberries, and he finished every meal with gingerbread and butter. But if we are talking of C-B we must also quote his wonderful answer to the question "What is Liberalism?", ...

The Lives of Others

Went to see the Oscar-winning film The Lives of Others the other night and was very impressed. It’s a film about the Stasi, the East German secret police, and a cautionary tale to anyone who believes in a surveillance society and a “If you’ve got nothing to hide” attitude. Having not studied mid-20th century history, [...]

Why Gordon Brown hasn’t a clue

Iain Dale wounded me last night by implying that I spend too much time taking the piss out of him and seldom point out where we agree. Well, when it comes to things like Lords Reform, I tend to keep blog posts to a minimum on areas which are to do with my day [...]

The slow, strange death of the Labour Party

How strange is the way that history repeats itself. I have been canvassing for the forthcoming election in an area that should contain a bedrock of Labour support - a large estate of now administered by a housing association. Obviously I have been doing this because I hope that some disaffected Labour supporters might consider [...]

Who needs Lembit Opik?

I've decided to learn to fly whilst on holiday. Never know when it will come in useful. Could make sneaking up on the neighbourhood cats interesting in future ... they'll never expect a parachuting dog, tee hee...

My latest holiday snaps

Rented a boat and went out in Doubtful Sounds - the passengers were doubtful I could navigate through the fjord but I proved them wrong. Waiheke Island - how did they know I was here? I flew out to look at the glaciers in the south island - looks a bit cold - think I'll stay in here!

Day 2297: Yum Yum

Monday: We settled down with a late dinner this evening to watch "Edwardian Super Size Me", an everyday gastronomic adventure with all the trimmings and a side order of lard. And extra trimmings. And extra lard. It turns out that the people of the Edwardian Era, led by King Edward VII or King Tum-Tum as he was known by his loving subjects, were rather fond of their food. It would be unfair to say that they ate like pigs, mainly because "entire pig for breakfast" seems like a pretty average start to the day! For ...

Day 2296: His Legacy will Live on!

Sunday: No, not HIM – Mr Barry Nelson, who was the first person to bring JAMES BOND to the screen. Mr Barry starred in a version of "Casino Royale" for the telly and that (Mr Kevin McClory aside) was where all the legal trouble started. Thankfully, this has all been resolved now. So even though it is sad that he has passed away, the recent hugely successful proper film version of "Casino Re-al", staring Mr Daniel, is a testament to the enduring appeal of the visual Mr Bond. And as ever, James Bond will return… ...

Trouble In The Kingdom

Apparently Rodney Bass, the Tory portfolio holder in Essex for highways and transportation has resigned his post. There have been reports of a leadership bid against the current leader, Lord Hanningfield..... And apparently two more Tories have actually resigned from the Tory Group! Surely more revelations to come....?

Unison fail to back Labour in Scotland

It is reported on Labour Home that Unison are not backing the Labour Party in the Scottish elections whilst the Scottish T.U.C. only backed Labour by a majority of one single vote ! Dark times for Labour indeed, especially given recent opinions polls both in England and Scotland.

The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen)

You can't move on the Tube at the moment without seeing a poster for The Lives of Others. Boosted by its Oscar and the almost unanimous critical praise (only the Sindy was sniffy and who it reads that anyway) it looks like it might be the first European film to cross over into the mainstream since Amile. And it deserves to. Set in 1980s East Berlin it, in simple terms, tells the story of a

Confessions of an Economic Hitman

I recently picked up John Perkins' book, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man: The Shocking Story of How America Really Took Over the World, for the shockingly low price of £3 at HMV. Whilst the title (and the cover blurb) suggest that this will be a tell-all book about America's nefarious dealings in various under-developed countries, it's more about the author's personal journey towards (what he

The Cameron Game - For all those who missed it

For any regular readers of my blog who don't read Lib Dem blogs aggregated, you may well have missed this little gem from Cllr David Walker. Its an LCD style game like the old "Game and Watch" products Nintendo first became famous for. This one is called "Cameron's don't count your chickens". It's very clever indeed.

Those localist Tories strike again

Big news from the Tories, they have found the answer to climate change. A national school bus service!! Now, now, pipe down on the back seats, this is a serious policy proposition by Her Majesty's Official Opposition. Chris Grayling announced yesterday that if the Tories win the next general election they will develop a national school bus network, modelled on the yellow school buses that are

Vote, vote, vote for the anomalies?

Great excitement on LibDem blogs (here and here for example)on UK voting rights. Should non-UK citizens be able to vote in all UK elections, and indeed stand for Parliament? Logic says no, and yet there is a lesson from history that may be relevant in the near future if things go pear-shaped across England’s various borders. Until very recently of course there was no such thing as UK Citizenship, the important thing was to be a ‘British Subject’. And until the 1920's the vote depended on property qualifications, not being an universal right. The complications really started when ...

Privacy for the Child

This photograph of five children appeared on the front of the Sunday Mercury in Birmingham on Sunday. Those who defend secrecy in the Family Courts claim it is there to protect the identity of the child. Why then are they pictured on the front page of a newspaper. The same people who say nothing should be mentioned about the proceedings then claim: "The youngsters, including 14-month-old

Of all the idiot comments about the Virginia massacre, this surely takes the biscuit.

This morning on Radio Five Live I heard a comment from a member of the American gun lobby which highlighted the stupidity and backwardness of the gun lobby's argument. This fool argued that the best way to prevent another tragedy was for all students to arm themselves so they could shoot back. Of all the idiot comments from the gun lobby, this surely takes the biscuit. The regular argument they give "it's people not guns that kill" can be undermined in a second when you look at incidents in other countries. In the UK, a disaffected youth, ...

M40 noise needs more than just platitudes

Whilst canvassing in Lane End, I have again been shocked by the level of noise that some residents have to put up with from the M40. I have met many residents who have to live with a constant background roar from the M40. Last weekend we were treated to some beautiful weather, but I cannot [...]

Lowther Road / Hilton Lane Junction updates

A number of local residents have asked us to look into the safety of Lowther Road, where the road narrows towards St Ann's Road. After talking to the Council, they have agreed to install some yellow-backed safety signs advising drivers of the narrowing road. They will also encourage slower speeds and hopefully lower the risk of accidents at that spot. So that is good news. The signs should be

Corporation Tax and Payroll Tax: the stealthiest taxes of them all

Imagine, if you will, a society made up of two types of citizen: the taxpayers and the voters. Taxpayers cannot vote, and voters do not pay tax. What will the result be? It seems fairly obvious that voters will vote for high taxes to pay for public services from which they will benefit at the expense of the taxpayers. Such a society would quickly fall apart, as the taxpayers agitated for more representation and refused to pay “taxation without representation” Such a society would seem anathema to us, nowadays. Which is surprising, because we live in such a society. ...

Virginia Tec Massacre: The price of liberty?

The issues involved with gun laws in the US are complex and frustrating, especially to a European audience who will shake their heads and tut at yet another massacre of innocent lives and ask why Americans fail to understand the common sense link between enacting stricter gun laws and reducing such atrocities. For Americans, however, gun ownership is a deeply emotive issue, entwined with the cornerstones of their existence. Firearms ensured the population’s independence, conquered the western frontier and continues to ensure liberty against external threats. They also provide protection from any potential tyrannical governments and, ...

The role of the humble wetsuit in extending the tourist season

At the weekend I was ruminating with my brother, Marhamchurch Man, who returned to one of his favourite themes. In the old days (yes, I am getting on), you didn't see any wetsuits on Cornwall's surf beaches. Nowadays, virtually every one wears a wetsuit when they take a dip in the old briny. Fair enough. We're a bunch of sissies or, alternatively, we've got some sense. In the old days however,

SNP poser

Last week, I noticed SNP leader Alex Salmond standing next to deputy leader, Nicola Sturgeon. I won't make the obvious cheap joke about these two, not least because there is a stubborn "d" preventing the dream joke. However, I do look forward to an appropriate posting from our own dear Fluffy Elephant.

Nursing sniffles with a hamster

I’ve taken the day off to nurse my sniffles. Before heading out to sit under a tree in the sun I had a quick play with the present Jo & Rob bought me for Christmas. Whoever thought it up is a genius, pure genius.

Where Does Europe End?

In Cyprus for 24 hours, en route to London, I’m enjoying using the local currency for what will probably be my last time, as Cyprus will join the euro next 1 January. Slovenia pipped Cyprus at the post on this, among the new member states, as it managed to organise itself for membership of the single currency [...]

Run rabbit, run

I very much enjoyed this piece in this morning's Western Mail, so much so that I have reproduced it here: "Five thousand rabbits blocked a Hungarian motorway yesterday, after the truck that was carrying them crashed. The animals escaped after the truck - which was heading to the slaughterhouse - collided with another vehicle and overturned. The M1 motorway, the main road between Budapest and the Austrian capital, Vienna, was closed for several hours. Both drivers were unharmed in the accident, but some 500 rabbits were killed. By midday, 4,400 rabbits had been collected and ...

Environment and Heritage Committee

Last night was the final (in this municipal year) meeting of the Green Environment and Heritage Select Committee. A bit fractious really. These meetings shortly before an election can be quite bad tempered. We did however discuss, and hear about, some important stuff. We always discuss recycling as part of the scrutiny process. And the good news is that initial information from the new collections - both the new bins and the collection of more types of material - show that the figures are set to rise. Certainly I've noticed in my road ...

Ferry stupid

Whatever your views on Brian Ferry’s barmy comments about the Nazis’ sense of style, I find it a little hard to see how boycotting Marks & Spencer can be seen as striking a blow against anti-semitism. Normally such boycotts are organised by anti-Zionists. Clearly they can’t win. Share This

Going to war

The latest opinion poll in The Times seems to indicate a Labour meltdown in a few weeks time with voters using the Welsh, Scottish and local elections to give the Government a bloody nose. The paper reports that Labour’s rating has sunk to a level previously seen in the early 1980s during Michael Foot’s troubled leadership. But although the Conservatives have led for a year the survey suggests that their leader, David Cameron, has still not made the breakthrough to give him an overall majority at the next general election. How this will pan out in Wales has yet ...

Swiss Toni

Couldn't resist linking to this! Iain Dale's Diary: Swiss Toni aka Des Browne Survives - For Now

GLA candidate websites

I am going to write a review of the GLA candidates’ websites. So far I know of six - if you know a candidate has a website, it would be helpful if you could e-mail me the address to robrobWHOISATlibdemvoice.orgrobWHOISATlibdemvoice.org (replace WHOISAT with @ to e-mail) (replace WHOISAT with @ to e-mail) just so I don’t miss anyone! The website must contain something [...]

Justifying Junk

Two of the top stories on the BBC News site right now are “Too much bacon ‘bad for lungs’” and “Red wine ‘may treat lung disease’” - so if I weren’t a Vegetarian that doesn’t like alcohol I’d be with artesea in having Bacon and Red Wine for Breakfast However this does strike at [...]

New Lib Dem Climate Change Proposals

The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Menzies Campbell, writes... "This week we announced our latest plans to save carbon emissions from our homes. These plans should save as much carbon as taking every car in the country off the road. They are crucial to tackling climate change. More than a quarter of the carbon we burn comes from our houses, and we currently waste energy in our homes on a heroic scale. "We calculate that each household could save £385 a year in energy costs if our average energy bills were reduced to Swedish levels, even ...

Time to disenfranchise Commonwealth citizens living in the UK?

Lib Dem Anders Hanson has a thought-provoking blog piece.

Volksgemeinschaft Plain

Now this made me laugh. Recess Monkey reports on a story in the Mirror, headlined, Ferry: Nazis were amazing. I don’t think that was precisely what Bryan Ferry said, but anyway, it looks like he’s in a bit of hot water. The shock factor of the story is complimented brilliantly by the rather visceral reference to vomit in the comment they extracted from a peeved Lord Janner.

Watch me on 18 Doughty Street. Me. Me. Me.

I forgot to mention/cowardly avoided mentioning (delete according to preference) that I was going to be on 18 Doughty Street last night. You can however still watch the programmes (Blogger TV and Vox Politix) on their on demand site. Better still, they don’t appear to have the End of the Day Show on [...]

Loans for lagging

Surprisingly little discussion in the Lib Dem Blogosphere about Chris Huhne and Andrew Stunell’s proposals for tackling the thorny problem of reducing the carbon impact of British housing. Indeed, the only commentary at all I’ve read thus far is Iain Dale denouncing it as illiberal. Poor show. Myself, I’ve only skimmed through the policy [...]

Erica's in the marathon!

My council colleague - Erica Kemp - one of the Lib Dems in Church ward is running in the London marathon. She's raising money for RNID - she has hearing problems herself and has had a lot of support from the charity. It's such a big undertaking.. training for the event and taking part. We are all really impressed. Go Erica!

Mayor's Charity Ball

Redcar and Cleveland Council's Mayor, Councillor Mary Ovens, hosts the main fund-raising event of her civic year with the Mayor's Charity Ball at Gisborough Hall on Thursday, April 26. Proceeds from the black tie/evening wear occasion will be shared between her two charity choices, Marie Curie Cancer Care and the Redcar-based young people's project, The Junction. After a drinks reception, and a three-course meal with wine, the evening, hosted by Stewart McFarlane, will feature live music from Gene Jarred's Swing Eight Band, a charity auction, tombola and raffle. Tickets are priced £35 and available from the Mayor's ...

The solution to school shootings - arm the students

A recent Virginia Tech graduate called Wayne Chiang has reaped the jackpot with his blog. Interestingly, he has hit on the solution for school and college shootings: ...the situation could have turned out better if other students were allowed to be armed. I would call this the "OK Corrall" solution. The fellow is only 23 years old, so it is a bit unfair to quote him and throw him into this

Plaid bid to subvert the RPA fails

Plaid Cymru are crying foul over the BBC’s decision not to throw the Representation of the People Act out of the window and allow them thousands of pounds of state-subsidised advertising. All I can say to that is: ha ha. If Plaid should be angry at anyone, it is the Welsh Rugby grounds who signed [...]

Bacon and Red Wine for Breakfast

Brits Behind Campus Shootings

I think the UK should take some of the blame for the campus shootings in Virginia. If only we had allowed the settlers in the Americas to form their own militias, the US constitution would not h...

Wonderful photo of Jeremy Thorpe and Jimi Hendrix

I am indebted to "Rusty Bullet" on newbury.net, who has alerted me to the existence of this wonderful photograph, which is available from Easyart. I was not aware of it previously (perhaps some Liberal party history buffs may be?). I didn't realise that the two great men had met. It is marvellous to see my two interests of music and Liberal politics coinciding in this way. That looks like Noel

First Aid Rag Doll

Another group are getting in on the ’scare you into doing something’ advertising bandwagon - this time it isn’t happy slapping teenagers getting run over - it’s ragdolls. St John Ambulance, the normally restrained group sitting in the corner with bandadges are launching an ad campaign to encourage people to learn first aid - no bad [...]

Northern Tories declare UDI

In the Times this morning, along with an opinionn poll that will bring moderate cheer to the Liberal Democrats (up 2% to 20%) and moderate disappointment to the Tories (eight points clear of Labour but down one to 37%) is a piece reporting on the Tories in East Yorkshire. They're revolting...

Three Party

While walking to work this morning I found myself wondering about politics and what would happen in an even split. Let me explain. If, and I know this is extremely unlikely, but lets just if for now. If, in the next general election there was an even split between the three main political parties how would [...]

U and Non-U

Class is to the British what Race is to the Americans. It is not really discussed, and if it is, it is usually dismissed to foreigners as "not really important, these days". And of course, by and large it should not be that important- the braying Piers' and Tobys have mostly been expelled from the city for being really quite bad at sums, and now content themselves being estate agents, whether in Belgravia or Bulgaria- much more appropriate for someone educated at Cirencester's Agricultural College. However amongst the more insecure and driven Middle Classes the fight for good ...

The slow-acting masterplan

I can remember how, for many years after 1997, former Telegraph editor Charles Moore kept pushing the idea that David Trimble should be leader of the Conservative Party. Well, one step of his plan has finally come to fruition, now all he needs to achieve is to get Cameron to resign and the rest of [...]

People are unfair to George W Bush

I've heard it said and seen it read that George W Bush has the blood of Iraqis on his hands and that his policies are concerned only with America, and he cares little about anyone outside of America. Quite clearly this is incorrect. he also has the blood of Americans on his hands and he also cares just as little for American lives as he does for anyone else's life in any other part of the world. After all, why would he allow a law to lapse that prevented the purchase of automatic weapons. With regular school ...

Populus Poll - Lib Dems up two points

In a poll that spells bad news for Labour, with their support slipping to 29%, the Lib Dems can take cheer as the party rises 2% to 20% in the Populus survey for The Times.

Latest Flash game

For those us of a certain age who grew up with things a little less techical than a Sony PSP, see my latest Flash game below - a retro remake of one of those natty little lcd handheld games. CONSERVaTORY GAMES is please to bring you: Cameron’s “Don’t count your chickens” game. I hope you enjoy it.

David Trimble on road to become government minister?

The last opera I saw was a BYO production of Eugene Onegin, at the Peacock Theatre in London, and I remember spending both intervals standing about ten feet away from Lord Trimble, who was on his own, trying and failing to pluck up the courage to go over and shake his hand and compliment him [...]

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to introduce legislation to replace the monarchy with a democratically elected head of state

Sometime ago I signed a petition on 10 Downing Street E-Petitions website calling on the PM to introduce legislation to replace the monarchy with a democratically elected head of state.

Tuesday 17th April 2007

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