* stabbity stabbity stab * Stupid blonde woman on Question Time. We do not have conscription. Anyone in the army is there voluntarily, or at least as voluntarily as any of the rest of us who are employed. It is no worse if a woman dies than if a man dies. It is terrible for anyone who is bereaved, no matter the gender of the deceased. Headlines like this make it sound like men dying doesn't matter. And YAY for Nigel Farago admitting that he was wrong! 
Residents of Larch Crescent have been plagued for a number of years by teenagers playing football on the patch of grass in front of their bungalows, kicking the ball into their gardens and causing damage. It's the age old story of the patch of grass available being too small for what the young people need. Quite why they won't go over the road to Preston Park I don't know. Tristar have done the
According to Peter Popham in The Independent, Dante, author of the Divine Comedy and father of literary Italian, is one of us. The occasion for the article is the revocation of the 700 year ban on Dante from his home city of Florence (a bit late now some would say). It's caused little interest in Italy. But it's stirred up a British media bored by worries over the economy or military deaths. Popham writes: 'The White Guelphs, among whom Dante counted himself, were the Liberal Democrats of their time. They strove to sit on the fence. They were for the ...
Lib Dem shadow foreign affairs spokesperson (and women and equalities spokesperson, too) Jo Swinson is one of the panellists on tonight's Question Time (broadcast on BBC1 and online from 10.35 pm GMT). Once again, I have to say it looks like a good line-up... The panel will also include the Secretary of State for Environment, Food [...]
The first girl I ever loved got engaged today. And it wasn't to me. I was utterly in love with her for about three months in the spring of 1999. Stomach-turningly, heart-swellingly, swoon-inducingly gone whenever her name was even mentioned. I met her at my 18th birthday party. For a boy at an all-boys school who'd barely spoken to a girl in 7 years, having one this gorgeous at my party was quite an achievement, even if everyone there knew that one of the cool boys knew her really (through his mum), rather than me. In those days my heart ...
A visit to Holme House Prison really opened my eyes to what they were doing. It was their 'greening and energy management' exhibition in their training centre. I was most impressed by both their commitment to energy and water saving, as well as commitment to getting prisoners off to a good start when they leave. There were a lot of stands from many different companies and...
Lanson boy is showing some excellent photos of the Henley by-election campaign. One series in particular, of the latest magazine being off-loaded from a van into the HQ, brought back memories of the Newbury by-election campaign in 1993 (and I note in passing that Newbury constituency abuts the Henley constituency via the Thames). Indeed, the BBC captured such a sequence for their 'On the Record'
I don't know if the Tories are deliberately trying to suppress interest in the Henley by-election, but their campaign website certainly goes some way towards creating the impression that watching paint dry would be a better option. Check it out HERE to see just how dreadfully dull it is.
'If wet, in the marquee...' - Tesco are thinking about having a tent-type temporary building while they build the new superstore at Yate. It would be marquee construction but look like a normal store inside, with heating, air-conditioning and all - very ingenious, and a good way of keeping the supermarket open and the staff employed. From a customer viewpoint, the main problem during the building works will probably be the parking. Tesco are currently waiting for a decision on its planning application from South Gloucestershire Council. The Gazette has more details about the temporary Tesco here.
Talking of Lord Bonkers, I see that Boris Johnson has appointed David Ross, the founder of Carphone Warehouse, to the board of the London 2012 organising committee. Ross is the owner of Nevill Holt, which most scholars now regard as the model for Bonkers Hall. 
There's been a bit of fuss over something Andy Burnham (formerly Minister in charge of population surveillance) said in Progress magazine: 'To people who get seduced by Tory talk of how liberal they are, I find something very curious in the man who was, and still is I believe, an exponent of capital punishment having late-night, [...]
Liberator 326 arrives, which means it is time to start posting Lord Bonkers' latest diary. This involves starting with Monday on Thursday, but I am sure we can all cope with that. Monday There is something about the great European capitals that makes the heart beat a little faster. London. Paris. Oakham. The very sound of them is exciting. I have spent the past few days in another of those cities: Rome. While I am enjoying an espresso at a pavement café beside the Trevi Fountain, a familiar trio hoves into view: I hide myself behind the Gazzetta dello Sport ...
RESIDENTS of the former Yarborough estate are coming together to take part in a community clean-up day on Sunday, June 22, 2008 as they continue to prepare for the major transformation of their neighbourhood.Shoreline officers, residents, neighbourhood wardens and young people deployed by the probation service's Community Pay Back scheme will work together to clear the land.Shoreline neighbourhood officer Martin High said: "This project aims to create a better, cleaner environment. "It really shows the neighbourhood spirit the residents of Freshney Green have and it is a great promise for what this community can achieve in the future."Neighbourhood warden Jon ...
I hear good reports back from Henley, where there is a parliamentary by-election taking place to elect a new MP after Boris Johnson resigned following his election to be Mayor of London. I am ashamed ...
I spent much of today at the Licensing Committee. I have blogged already about my frustration with the system. But more important for local residents I suspect is the result of the committee hearing. The committee, which is made up of three Councillors, was deciding whether or not to give a license to sell alcohol to the BP garage on the corner of Grassendale Road and Aigburth Road. There were a lot of objections from local people and some significant comments from the police. All three Cressintgon Councillors - that's me, Peter Millea and Richard Oglethorpe - were there to ... 
In a Radio 4 interview this morning, Boris Johnson was asked about the costs of the Olympics and he said there was a dispute over whether London or central government would cover any extra costs. Asked about a memo between then London Mayor Ken Livingstone and central government saying the latter would cover the costs, [...]
Some time ago a group of young people came to my councillors' surgery to talk about the need for somewhere they could do to use skateboards and BMX bikes. At the time we got them involved in a group of young people looking at what needed to be provided. Some time has gone by since then, but the good news is that the City Council is now having a serious look at what's needed in terms of a permanent site (obviously temporary ones are set up for the HUB festival). There's a consultation going on and I would really urge ...
Boris Johnson is complaining about the latest Lib Dem literature in the Henley by-election campaign and (according to ConHome) has written to Chris Rennard to complain. Naturally, his complaint is an inverted pyramid of piffle. Perhaps if Boris had read the magazine properly he would have seen that the magazine clearly bylines the article as being from the magazine itself, not Boris. Of course, the Henley team only put together the magazine in homage to the superb example of campaign literature distributed earlier in the campaign by the Tory team.
1. Conservative candidate John Howell is asked a dozen questions about his links to developers - but repeatedly refuses to answer them fully. 2. John Howell is a county councillor, but misses two key votes on whether a new town should be built in the Oxfordshire countryside. 3. And then to round it off, John Howell has been [...]
I haven't blogged about being a 'parliamentor' to three young women from the Three Faiths Forum. It was born to work at friendship and understanding between Jew, Christian and Muslim. For a year nine groups of three young people (one from each of those faiths) has been mentored by one of nine parliamentors as they developed a project - and at the same time learned about each other. Amina, Eva and Michele were assigned me as their mentor. Each month they have come to spend time with me at Parliament or in Hornsey & Wood Green. What a bright and ...
As the elder brother of a soldier currently serving in Afghanistan my heart goes out to those families who have recently lost loved ones there. This week I have also known very well the sick feeling that goes into the pit of your stomach when an announcement comes through that someone from the armed forces has been killed in action or injured over there. I hope that there will lessons learned and fewer soldiers will lose their lives. May the Ministry of Defence work harder and faster to improve the quality of the protective kit out there. Good luck to ...
..especially in hilly cornish towns (and city) like Falmouth and Truro Trondheim in Norway has the Trampe, imagine how much of a difference they could make to cycling in devon and cornwall : especially Truro, Plymouth and Exeter! Read and post comments | Send to a friend
Tsk tsk Mr Cameron: The Tory chief yesterday ploughed through a pedestrian crossing, narrowly missing a Mercedes, and ditched safety gear. (Daily Mirror) This is becoming really a rather regular occurrance, for as I wrote in March: Can you guess who was caught cycling through a red light and without a helmet in 2007? And was then caught [...]
I spent much of the day today at the Licensing Committee. I'll post about the actual issue and result in another post but I have never been to such a frustrating meeting in my life. And it's all to do with national laws which must have been written without thought to the consequences. If you are a local councillor, and there is a planning application in your ward that you want to comment on, you can. You turn up to the committee and ask to speak. I have often done that, particularly to try to prevent harmful developments or ask ...
Went to the House Magazine annual awards last night. The House Magazine - is just that - the magazine of the Commons and Lords. The voters are the MPs and Peers and there's a range of categories. Just a quick big up for Vince Cable - who not that surprisingly won Opposition Politician of the Year. He is such a star! Congrats to Vince.
Henley Lib Dem candidate Stephen Kearney received a very enthusiastic reception last night from firefighters based in Watlington. Stephen had been invited having bumped into one of the station chiefs at the recent Thame festival. The firefighters at Watlington (as across much of Oxfordshire) are retained - ie part-time. They have day jobs and agreements with their employers that if they are paged to go to a fire they can drop everything to respond. The biggest problem is that they have to live very close to the fire station in order to respond quickly. Firefighters are not paid huge salaries ...
F-list, I am posting to charge you with a Sacred Duty. If you love music, if you hold sonic entertainment dear, it is your task to download at least one illegal copy of a song a week, because if you don't, Kiss will release a new album (Hat tip - {[info]} von_geisterhand). If we get another Crazy Nights, I'm blaming you lot. Get downloading, now, before it's too late! ETA: Best Google Ad EVAR on the notification emails for the comments on this post.
Post Office Ltd has indicated to Darlington Borough Council that it will keep four of the five post offices which are due to close next month open, IF the Council provide a subsidy of £25,000 to £30,000 each per annum. Hopetown will definitely close. An officer's report will go to Cabinet next month. Now, I was told that Milbank and Cleveland Terrace post offices were profitable anyway, and that
I find this both tragic and troubling.
I blogged previously about the importance of having more women actively involved in politics - that is, actively involved in the processes which take so many decisions that hugely impact on all our lives. And yet - sit down and read the rulebooks and you'll see that women have as equal a right to vote as men, an equal right to stand for office, and so on. Despite this, the outcomes of our electoral systems are pretty consistently to produce groups of elected public officials who are overwhelmingly men - especially in Parliament. Why? What are the barriers that women ...
Nick Clegg, David Laws and Stephen Kearney visited the Lord Williams School in Thame yesterday afternoon to speak to sixth form pupils studying politics. This was the school that ex Tory Leader William Hague went to a week ago to speak to the same group of students. As ever with these events, the questions were massively varied covering local, national and international issues. Afterwards, one of the students said that Nick was 'a lot more coherent and convincing than Mr Hague'.
Full story here. Claims by the (Henley) Conservative campaign that their candidate assisted in the campaign to save Henley's Townlands Hospital are in tatters having been refuted by independent Townlands Campaigners. BOTH the current and former Chairs of the Townlands Hospital Steering Group have issued statements denying any contribution into the campaign by John Howell, despite Conservative
Can the Tory Leopard really change it's spots? And more to the point is now the time that redecoration of the polka dots going to achieve it? Iain Dale, recently returned from being civil partnered, led me to an article by Tim Montgomerie in today's Telegraph. Not since Lady Thatcher visited factory floors while looking to get elected in Dartford have the Tories appeared so keen to woo the
Islington's library service is doing well, with more people joining, and borrowing more books than last year. There's certainly no shortage of library branches. They range from the Carnegie libraries including 'points of the compass' libraries (North, South and West) and Central library, to the post-war Finsbury Library (now also home to Islington Museum) and [...]
I've just been emailed, and have completed, a YouGov poll asking my thinking about the post of Lib Dem party president, which will be vacant when Simon Hughes stands down after four years in the role this autumn. Here's a screen-grab: The poll itself plays a straight bat compared to previous party leadership YouGov polls I've [...]
It has been reported that Tory MP Peter Atkinson is standing down as candidate for the next general election because he thought his age was a problem because by 2010 the time tabled next general election he would be 67 and with that in mind he stepped down. Peter Atkinson with this proposal i think is trying to say to other MP's who are above 65 to stand down too. Well ming campbell is old but has still got a lot of Political force in him.
Nick Clegg is at a joint press event with Greenpeace today presenting on the "compelling evidence that low carbon energy is deliverable now". The aspect the BBC have emphasised is the mooted possibility of offering rebates on business rates for businesses that make energy-saving improvements to their premises. This idea echoes the practice of some councils who [...]
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4164118.ece It has been reported that two Tory MP's both a married couple have been claiming rent on a property that they already owned. They had purchased the property and then were claiming rent on the property. The Two Tory MP's were using the tax payer's money to earn some money and scam the system using a house that they already owned. The MP's should actually pay the money back and that is what the general attitude is. The Tory MP's should pay all the money back because that money could have been used on the NHS or in the ...
Just walking around the patch is a joy and Eton Avenue is no exception - until 1800 it was pretty much a farmland estate and then was carved into the wide avenues it is today by a series of developers and business interests - and the architecture reflects the spread of ambition. But I was really stuck by the grandeur and range of the gateposts - and within 100 yards or so captured these four great pictures. If we have any modern understanding of what makes a place good, what makes a place special, what enhances people's pride and activity ...
On yesterday's BBC Radio Berkshire 'Morality Panel' my wife and I did a split shift. I was involved in the discussion about swearing. This followed Joan Rivers being chucked off 'Loose Women' for calling Russell Crowe 'a piece of ******* ****'. My view was that it's all right having swearing at 11pm on Jonathan Ross, but at 1pm on ITV there are children under 5 watching - so it's not OK. Mind you
Fraser Nelson in the Spectator gives some interesting insight on the full extent of David Davis' disenchantment with David Cameron: At a dinner party in central London a few months ago, David Davis made an extraordinary confession. He had become disenchanted with David Cameron, he said, and was considering quitting politics. 'I believe in certain things,' he said, 'and I do not believe the next
Commenting on the Government's announcement of the deployment of further troops to Afghanistan, expected to bring the total to over 8000, Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence Secretary, Nick Harvey said: 'Further support for the vital work our troops are doing in Afghanistan is welcome. 'However, the Government is still failing to address the pressing issue of overstretch in our armed forces. 'It is becoming increasingly clear that our troops are being kept in Iraq largely for the political convenience of President Bush. 'It is time the Government set a timetable for withdrawal of our forces from Iraq. By continuing to try ...
Frances Done, the new head of the Youth Justice Board, admits that the number of children in custody remains 'stubbornly high' and welcomes new police priority targets for reducing first-time entrants into the youth justice system and re-offending among young people. Liberal Democrat Justice spokesperson, David Howarth agreed: 'Frances Done is absolutely right. All the evidence shows that placing record numbers of young people behind bars has not reduced crime or reoffending. 'Of course there are some very dangerous young people who have to be detained, but a decade of ineffective rhetoric from Labour has left the criminal justice system ...
The newly-elected LibDem member of the Greater London Assembly (GLA), Caroline Pidgeon, did her first local party members' briefing last night, when she went to Beckenham. Hailed by the Evening Standard as 'someone to watch', Caroline has been given the plum transport brief, which is the one that Lynne Featherstone used so effectively before moving [...]
I am sure that holding the Euro 2008 football championships was thought of by the tourist boards of Switzerland and Austria as an ideal opportunity to boost tourism in the countries, particularly outside of the skiing season. However, from what I can see from the TV, these countries seem to be blessed with the most inclement weather of any countries in Europe. Virtually every night I watch the matches taking place in the most appalling heavy rain, thunder storms and grey murkiness. Not that I was looking to go to Switzerland or Austria, but if I was, I wouldn't be ...
I am now addicted to {[info]} failblog_rss {fail owned pwned pictures} see more pwn and owned pictures Sometimes Schadenfreude isn't that bad.... Right?
Carers Forum The Sutton Carers Forum was set up to give carers the opportunity to make their voices heard. It is jointly supported by the Council's Carers Development Unit and the Sutton Carers Centre. It is usually well attended and has managed to attract a good range of speakers & opportunities for discussion. Today we had [...]
The Training for the Bar Committee of the Bar Council have recommended that students should gain automatic entry to the BVC only if they have a 2:i in Law, or its equivalent on the GDL. I realise that something has to be done to prevent hundreds of students from wasting thousands of pounds on the BVC and then finding it impossible to get a pupillage. Moreover, the plan isn't as dramatic as it seems: those with a 2:2 can still gain entry either by obtaining a 2:i in each foundation subject, or by sitting an aptitude test. Perhaps most importantly, ...
I have just complained to the BBC about the dehumanising and offensive use of 'illegals' in this headline. If you agree that this is a demeaning way to talk about people, please consider doing the same. I know the BBC is supposed to be one of our national treasures, but some days I am not at all happy to be paying them my licence fee.
Crime is still going down in Hook and Chessington, and that's in spite of the fact that this area already has one of the lowest crime rates in the whole of Greater London. The Safer Neighbourhood Police teams for Chessington South and Chessington North & Hook held their quarterly residents' meeting together on Tuesday evening. Both teams announced drops in crimes reported...
The Independent/SNP administration which has been running Highland Council since May last year has collapsed. The 34 Independents had joined forces with the 17-strong SNP group following last year's STV elections which resulted in no overall control for the first time ever on the council. There are 21 Lib Dem councillors, 7 Labour and no Tories. However, the Indies and the Nats have had a series of disagreements over the past year, so it's not a great surprise that the administration has fallen apart. I suspect the most likely scenario is for an all-party administration to take over.
In typical swash-buckling style, Kelvin MacKenzie confirms in the Sun today that he is not standing at the Haltemprice and Howden by-election. Jonathan Calder carries a quote from the Birmingham Post which lists a number of minor candidates who are likely to be stand: Eamonn Fitzpatrick, Northampton stall holder endorsed by Kelvin MacKenzie. Miss Great Britain Gemma Garrett Neil Glass political
I'm going to be part of an experiment! Next week we start the standing committee discussion on the Climate Change Bill. This is the bit where about 20 MPs spend a few weeks doing detailed line-by-line scrutiny of the legislation, tabling detailed amendments etc., all in an upstairs committee room out of the glare of publicity. What is going to be different is that on a 'pilot' basis we are going to be allowed to have laptops in front of us! There will be temporary power supplies put in, and instead of having sheafs of notes we can simply refer ...
So, it has been a week since David Davis shocked Westminster and resigned to fight a by-election in his Haltemprice and Howden seat. The publication of the political weeklies raises some interesting questions and provides some interesting insights. Fraser Nelson's politics column in The Spectator is worth quoting at length because it backs up the theory that this is not an issue of principle for Davis but a way of resigning to campaign against David Cameron's leadership; 'At a dinner party in central London a few months ago, David Davis made an extraordinary confession. He had become disenchanted with David ...
I arrived in Westminster yesterday in the full expectation that we would be sitting late into the night and would troop through the lobbies at least three times during the Third Reading of the Bill to ratify the Lisbon Treaty. It didn't turn out that way. Proceedings started with a motion from the Tory front bench that we delay Third Reading until October so that the full ramifications of the Irish vote could be absorbed. Now, I agree that the Irish 'No' means that the Treaty should not be ratified by the EU as a whole - but that is ...
A complete waste of time was my reaction to the morning's event. I went to a workshop which I'd been led to expect would be useful in my role as Chair of Western Area Board. Unfortunately this was one of those rare occasions when I found absolutely no value at all in the session. In fact I don't think I've ever been to something where I've come away feeling quite so cross about wasting time.
Last night saw the first meeting of the District Committee covering our area. It's made up of councillors, officers and representatives of partners from Speke/Garston, Belle Vale, Cressington, Allerton and Hunts Cross, Woolton and Mossley Hill. Last night was really a 'setting up' meeting. We have four working groups set up to make progress on different themes that have been identified as important. Most of the actual 'work' will be done in those. I am going to Chair the group looking at safer, stronger communities. Flo Clucas is chairing economic development and enterprise. Richard Oglethorpe will chair the group looking ...
It has been a busy week so I am a bit behind with some of these posts but I did not want to miss commenting on Jonathan Freedland's column in yesterday's Guardian. It is an insightful analysis of what we have all been thinking about Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister: I find myself in sympathy with those who admired Brown through his 10 long years as chancellor and who keenly awaited his premiership, and yet now conclude that they got Brown wrong - that, on the current evidence, he is simply not up to the job. At its most basic, ...
The health records of nearly 11,000 patients are on a laptop stolen from the Wolverhampton home of a GP. The Doctor was from Castlecroft Medical Practice.
Being one of the thousands of people suffering from over-payment of Working Families Tax Credit in 2002/3 I find this a total disgrace. I have been hounded by the tax man, I went through every appeal possible and finally last September I was told I had to pay back over £3000 within 12 months. I had to borrow the money to pay it back. I will still be paying it back in...
Dundee City Council News Release Almost £200,000 could be spent in the next few months on expanding the number of SmartBus passenger waiting shelters in Dundee. Councillors on Dundee City Council's policy and resources committee, which meets on Monday (June 23) will be asked to approve funding for 16 new shelters across the city. Convener of the planning and transport committee, Fraser Macpherson, said, 'The demand for these shelters to be installed at more locations has been very high as passengers who have used them experience their advantages. 'The plan is for two locations in each of the council's eight ...
Scotland is to redefine rape which will make it a statutory offence, rather than common law as well as given a clear definition of what is consent. Kenny MacAskill, the SNP Justice Minister, announced his proposed changes to the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Bill yesterday. On recommendations from the Scottish Law Commission the new bill will cover spiking of drinks with date rape drugs, sexually
I'm delighted that the photo of the 'let us through' campaign launch at Kings Cross station has got its place on the Guardian's politics webpage, at least for now. Slightly bemused that the flyby caption describes me as 'Bridget Jones MP'. Still, no such thing as bad publicity, especially for such a worthwhile campaign. [...]
Every time some sombre-voiced newsreader on Radio Four mentions Helmand Province in Afghanistan I hear Hellmann Province and think that must be where the mayonnaise comes from. Then I berate myself for having levity about a place where so many people (of all genders) are dying. But then, if you don't laugh at death, you'll cry. | < | June 2008 | > | ||||
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