LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Thursday 10th July 2008

Nuclear clean-up bill massive and still rising

Responding to the Public Accounts Committee report into the cost of nuclear decommissioning, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, Steve Webb said: 'The cost of nuclear clean-up is massive and still rapidly rising. It is extraordinary that estimates of the cost of clean-up seem to increase by billions of pounds with almost no public scrutiny or comment. 'The biggest single cost of the Department for Business is not supporting British business, but cleaning up nuclear waste. 'The Government must urgently provide certainty about the costs of cleaning up yesterday's waste, and guarantees that the taxpayer will not end up footing the ...

Holding Burma to Account

Burma has an unfortunate tendency to disappear quickly from the headlines in the Western press. In Britain, it is seen as a less 'sexy' subject than Zimbabwe, though in many ways the situation in Burma is as bad, if not worse. The military junta is a kleptocracy that enslaves its people and seems devoid of [...]

Housing, Fire fighting and Education

Three crucial issues. A visit to some new housing schemes and then our committee meeting. It is amazing how things can change within a few months, and sadly there are now difficulties in selling even 'affordable homes' with the difficulty of getting mortgages. Given that a number of Registered Housing Associations and the Housing Corporation were at the meeting it was an opportunity to raise...

Jarvis Cocker dines in Market Harborough

We get all the stars here. The Harborough Mail says: It seems an unlikely venue for a party attended by one of Britpop's most famous faces.But Pulp lead singer Jarvis Cocker was spotted dining in a Harborough restaurant.News of the celebrity sighting filtered to the Mail, with customers saying they saw the bespectacled Cocker in the upstairs terrace section of Italian eatery Prego in St Mary's Road.Cocker's London record label confirmed yesterday (Wednesday) that it was indeed the Sheffield-born singer.

Oh David I'm all wet!

Today I went to buy some new tyres for my car. I always go to the same local garage, and like everything you do in Cornwall this involves at least 10 minutes of chat before he can get around to fitting the tyres. Today of course we talked about the only topic of conversation on every ones lips, that's right the weather! After all it was front page news in the local paper- the western morning news , headlining "What a Washout - 2 inches of rain in a day" John(my fitter today) said he was really proud that he ...

Does this say more about the fog of war or the ineffective nature of our helicopters ?

Nine British soldiers were in need of medical attention after being shot at in a so called 'friendly fire' incident, so the BBC reports. But what stuck me was that nobody was killed. Didn't we purchase these Apache helicopters as the ultimate killing machines ? Of course it is terrible that this happened and it is fabulous that no British soldiers were actually killed, but surely the point of an Apache helicopter is that when it fire, it kills, or did we buy some diff helicopters ?

Poor old Luton Town Football Club

I noticed last year a lot of Leeds fans bemoaning their 15 point deduction of points which was down to the decisions of those who ran the club. So have a little honest sympathy for Luton Town who appear to have been deducted 30 points next season (that is on top of the ten they were deducted last season) for misdemenours carried out by the previous owners (not the current owners as was the case with Leeds. Whilst I can see the need for rules and punishments, the Football League's system of punishment on top of punishment on top of ...

Astounded by range of Council activities on offer

At the end of tonight's meeting of Prestwich Local Area Partnership, I nicked one of the brochures brought along by the Council's Prestwich Youth Manager, which outlines the activities for families and adults taking place in Bury over the summer. I have to say that I am absolutely astounded by some of the things on offer, and I urge any local resident to check out the events on offer at www.bury.gov.uk/events. There's something to do virtually every single day between now and October, much of it completely free. I am already excited about going up the Peel Tower next Sunday ...

BBC Question Time: open thread

Julia Goldsworthy, Lib Dem MP for Falmouth and Camborne and the party's spokeswoman on communities and local government, is one of the panellists on tonight's Question Time (broadcast on BBC1 and online from 10.35 pm GMT). The panel will also include the Secretary of State for International Development Douglas Alexander, former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith, [...]

Checking your sources:blogs and newspapers

On 9 July the Lib Dem Voice ran a piece by Stephen Tall. The heading was David Davis: a bounder and a braggart. Stephen was commenting on a piece in the Guardian that quoted Davis as saying: 'I'm sorry that Labour and the Liberal Democrats funked it, but we're still having a good argument and getting the issue raised.' Now this appeared rather odd as Davis had spoken to Nick Clegg about resigning and Clegg had said the Liberal Democrats would not field a candidate against the then Conservative Shadow Home Secretary. Davis never expected the Lib Dems to contest ...

Nick Clegg visits Malvern

I went to see Nick Clegg at a question and answers public session in Malvern (in the West Worcestershire constituency, a key conservative-liberal democrat marginal) tonight. He of course pledged that if elected as leader once a week he would leave the Westminster bumble to meet with ordinary people. He did it very successfully. He started talking for a short time by talking about how a gulf had emerged between people and politics. How they are so disillusioned due to the system and MPs taking actions like to vote to make sure they covered up expenses. He said how increased ...

Another political news website

Just launched by June Sarpong, Politics and the City, looks at the Westminster village from a different angle to Total Politics and Politics Home. Clearly, this is some kind of trend and if they all propser it will prove that people still are interested in politics.

Facebook takes off

Friends and colleagues of mine may recall the Facebook group set up during the Sedgefield byelection last year called 'Get Jonathan Wallace onto Facebook'. In response I said I would go onto Facebook if 100 people joined the group. I eventually was required to keep my promise though I only set up a basic profile at the time. Well, it started to grow and my fear about getting on to Facebook -

BNP say we are not racist

Whilst doing some research on the BNP website to see how these sick people think and what their policies are i come across a page called 'Sharia law in Britain is unavoidable.' at the bottom of this page they was a poll and the results are listed below: We Should introduce Sharia Law to the UK... The sooner the better=383 In the near future=48 Not for sometime yet=37 When Pigs Fly!=5766 This shows that the BNP are not backing the Archbishop and i think that is not a very good decision as i am with the Archbishop that we ...

Picture is offensive!

I found this picture very disturbing and offensive because as a Muslim i think that if people don't want Sharia in the UK they shouldn't mock it! Please get back to me on this issue!

Not wanting Sharia law doesn't make you a fascist

The BNP are a racist party. It is undeniable. The evidence is endless. However, Irfan Ahmed uses a dreadful argument to prove the point. He argues that a poll on the BNP website where the majority of respondents said that Sharia law should be introduced into the UK when 'pigs fly'. He says this makes them fascist. Well excuse me. I don't want Sharia law either, or any kind of theocratic based legal system. That does not make me a fascist. Not one bit. Sorry Irfan but if that's your definition of fascist then about 90 something % of Britain ...

My New Statesman article on the Wenlock Olympian Games

Having an online column is very pleasant, but there remains something magic about seeing your name in print. So I am pleased that I have made it into this week's New Statesman with a short article on the Wenlock Olympian Games: A thousand people have travelled to Shropshire to take part in the 14 different sports at the Wenlock Olympian Games, which take place from 11-14 July. The event may seem quaint, but the Olympic movement owes the pretty town of Much Wenlock a great debt. The movement's founder, the French aristocrat Pierre de Coubertin, was inspired by the values ...

The Vexed Question of Green Car Taxation

Nick Clegg has got a piece up on CiF today. It's nothing very new to anyone who pays attention to Nick's every utterance, as will be true of many Lib Dem bloggers. What I found notable about it was the comments thread it has sparked. Like all dicussion of this issue, it is full of people arguing for some system or other, who talk past each another, not to each other. What I mean by this is that

No real chance of electing more women into Parliament at the next election

I'm sorry if I'm being a bit slow as this joyous titbit of news (not) first came out from the Electoral Reform Society last week, but I was jet lagged and clearly missed it. But this is terrible!! Unless Labour get a 2% increase in their majority (excuse me while I fall off my chair laughing)we won't see any real increase in women in Parliament at all. in fact, even if Labour do get an increase, the increase in women is only by 3 percentage points!! If the Tories get any sort of majority, whether working or not then the ...

Criminally Ridiculous Bureaucracy!

I caught this on the BBC: BBC NEWS | Wales | South East Wales | Mum's police check for school run A mother has been told she cannot travel to school with her severely epileptic son because she has not been police checked. Jayne Jones, of Aberfan near Merthyr Tydfil, used to travel with her son Alex, 14, in the council-provided taxi when she feared he may have a fit. But Merthyr Tydfil council has told her this must stop until she has undergone a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check. The council said this was a standard requirement for escorting ...

Brian Paddick, 'lined up as President of the Lib Dems'

In today's 'The Londoner's Diary' in the Evening Standard, where they like to 'leak' gossip, there is the headline news that there is a 'rumour' that Brian Paddick... 'the former Freemason, is being tipped as the next President of the Liberal Democrats' According to the article, it seems that Brian has been on the lookout for a new role. There are quotes from Brian's Diaries serialised in the Mail on Sunday, a week after the Mayoral elections, where he said he was 'bruised and bewildered by the lack of support.. nine months of my life, unpaid and for what?' Many ...

Conservatives: Pendle Matters............. I say: That is a bag of dirt

I recieved a Leaflet from the conservative parlimentary candidate in Pendle and found that the Conservative had again put stories up that are just foolish. The conservaitve tree logo is meant to show that they are a green party yet the conservative is wasting a lot of paper and ink when he makes these leaflets and distributes them. The Conservative sent out Coloured leaflets that just shows that the Tory's have a lot of money to start wasting on leaflets that just show all the publicity stunts that they are going to do for example the Parliamentary candidate Andrew is ...

10p all over again

One of the bizarre features of the row over the abolition of the 10p tax rate was Gordon Brown's initial refusal to admit that anyone at all would be worse off! It was certainly true that there were other budget measures (eg changes to tax credits and winter fuel payments) which meant that the effects of the 10p rate change were mitigated for some people, but it was never remotely true that no-one would be worse off. Amazingly, we seem to be having a repeat of the same phenomenon over the changes to Vehicle Excise Duty due to come in ...

Is it worth £22 of taxpayers money per vote to return Davis to parliament ?

Stephen Tall on LibDem Voice speculates on tonight's result at the Haltemprice and Howden by-election. Goodness knows what will happen. I hope the people of H&H will show some good judgment and watch the telly instead of voting for Davis. I would have thought that all the 25 candidates aside from Davis will get tiddler votes and Davis will get a disappointing vote for him - but way ahead of

Facilities for young people

I gave the keynote speech to the Annual Conference and AGM of the Council for Wales of Voluntary Youth Services this morning. The text of my speech can be found here.

Pendle councillors in favour of Sainsbury's to come to Colne

The Liberal Democrats run Pendle Council has decided to let plans go ahead for Sainsbury's to open a store in Colne. The Lib Dems have faced criticism from People in Pendle and did loose a lot of seats in the Last local Election but we are doing what we do best making Pendle a better place to live in for the residents. So please don't be fooled by the conservatives and Labour saying that the Liberal Democrats haven't done nothing just look at the huge archive of work we have in the past four years when we controlled the ...

UoR Halls redevelopment consultation

If you live close to the university, you should have received a leaflet informing you about the planned Halls redevelopment consultation. The University of reading will be holding two public exhibitions in the foyer of the new Carrington building {2322853194_4b167db7f5} (pictured to the right). There you will also be able to discuss the plans with University consultants and there will be feedback forms availible. I am sure this will be of interest to many local residents, and a good chance to air your views. We wil be watching with interest to see if the provision for student accomidation remains at ...

Council Tax Limitation - Lincolnshire police authority budget

Last night when I got home, I discovered that Parliament were debating "Council Tax Limitation - Lincolnshire police authority budget". The bill was to place a cap on the 78.9% increase that Lincolnshire police authority had made on the council tax bills. I blogged about this in March (Council Tax up by 11.1%). So how did those Lincolnshire MPs vote? Quentin Davies - Grantham & Stamford (Lab) - aye John Hayes - South Holland & The Deepings (Con) - absent Douglas Hogg - Sleaford and North Hykeham (Con) - absent Edward Leigh - Gainsborough (Con) - absent Gillian Merron - ...

By-election stage collapse fears

The 26 candidates in the Haltemprice and Howden by-election will not share a stage at the count after fears it could collapse under their combined weight. That says it all, doesn't it? You couldn't make it up. Perhaps they ought to hold the result announcement in a circus - that would be fitting. As a piece of irrelevant political trivia, I can add that at the 1993 Newbury by-election (which

BAE faces two new Swiss corruption investigations

Associated Press reports: Swiss authorities have widened a corruption investigation linked to arms deals by the British aerospace company BAE Systems PLC, prosecutors said. Federal prosecutors are conducting three criminal investigations into possible money laundering linked to the company, spokeswoman Jeannette Balmer told The Associated Press late Wednesday. Previously prosecutors had confirmed only one investigation and Balmer declined to comment on what prompted Swiss authorities to open two additional investigations. The investigations center on allegations that BAE used Swiss bank accounts to pay millions of pounds (dollars) in bribes to officials from Saudi Arabia in return for contracts. BAE has ...

Open (speculation) thread: What do you think will happen in Haltemprice and Howden?

It's the day of the most bizarre by-election of the year. Exactly one month after David Davis shocked the political world by quitting the Tory front bench and Parliament in protest at Labour's attempts to push through 42 days detention without trial, the voters of Haltemprice and Howden today deliver their verdict. Will they judge [...]

Out with the Old in with the New!

We definitely need more youth into Pendle Liberal Democrats. They is not enough young people interested in Politics from where i see the politics. They is about a hand full of young people including myself who blog and despite that no other young person has got the slightest interest in Local Politics. Here in Pendle Liberal Democrats i think they only get a executives position when they get into the golden ages like Tony Greaves! Pendle Liberal Democrats needs some new blood it needs enthusiastic young people who can really change the face of Pendle Lib Dems. I believe that ...

Stage might collapse

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7498648.stm They is fear's that the stage for the By-Election Results for Today may collapse with the amount of people that would stand on the stage at the results hearing. The 26 Candidate record in any election has got so many candidates that if all of them stood on stage and with all their weights combined the stage would collapse. Well the loonies and the weird opposition that faces David Davies would really leave the result announcement with a noise if the stage was to collapse! Hope David Davies doesn't get hurt if the stages collapses as his publicity stunt ...

Fellow Travelers and Useful Idiots

Sometimes I wonder whether Mary Dejevsky is not actually in the pay of the Kremlin lie factory. Pieces like her latest in The Independent leave me open mouthed. The idea that Britain is in some way responsible for Kremlin sanctioned murders in London, 'because we give asylum to the Kremlin's enemies' is simply despicable. The special pleading she makes for the Kremlin is reminiscent of the most lick spittle Communist fellow traveller. The fact is that Russian agents were sent from Moscow to kill in broad daylight, and with scant regard for the well-being of any innocents who might have ...

You are the Weakest Driver

That scary red-head Anne Robinson didn't bank on losing her licence for incurring a fourth speeding offence and 12 penalty points. The Weakest Link presenter seems to make an annual job of speeding past some speed camera the other 3 offences being in September 2005, March 2006 and June 2007. Mr McGoldick her brief said she would suffer 'significant inconvenience' to the winking one as she

Prestwich LAP tonight - Prestwich Community Plan Launched

Don't forget that it's Prestwich Local Area Partnership tonight, from 18:30 at St Monica's High School. Part of the agenda will be dedicated to the Prestwich Community Plan, which will outline the vision for Prestwich's improvement over the next three years to 2011. What is the Community Plan? The Community Plan is a document which sets out the Local Area Partnership's (LAP's) priorities for Prestwich between 2008-11. It is the document which says how Prestwich will become a better place to live in the next three years. The Community Plan contains ten priorities overall, with the aim to create a ...

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

I went to see Prince Caspian last night. I am not going to spoil it, just wanted to say it was very good and incredible funny.

This could soon be the most powerful man in the world...

Taegan Goddard's Political Insider blog has some interesting news from John McCain's US Presidential campaign. No-one knows who's in charge, by the look of it. Taegan quotes the New York Times as stating: ...his campaign is once again a swirl of competing spheres of influence, clusters of friends, consultants and media advisers who represent a matrix of clashing ambitions and festering feuds...

Health Service in South Liverpool

Liverpool Primary Care Trust is later this month going to be consulting people in South Liverpool about its plans for health care. This is about 'out of hospital' care so is really about GP surgeries, clinics and the like. The consultation kicks off around the 21st. There'll be trailers parked at various strategic sites - supermarket car parks and so on as well as leaflets and other communications. The consultation ends on 15th September. It's important that as many people as possible have a say so please look out for the publicity. We discussed the consultation programme a little earlier ...

Iain Dale announces death of an un-named Scottish Labour MP....then retracts and apologises

Sometimes I am quite delighted that I turn off the internet in the evenings and watch things like re-runs of 'Doc Martin'. Last night I am glad that I missed the fatuous rumour that a Scottish Labour MP had died which got as far as a posting on Iain Dale's Diary. He removed the posting later when it transpired that an MP hadn't died - Scottish, Labour or otherwise. You can see the genesis of

Thanks to Dee Doocey and Caroline Pidgeon

The future of local police stations have been hanging in the balance since the Metropolitan Police Authority confirmed the proposed closure of Hampstead Police Station. This has been a major issue and residents have been very against the plans. To that end we submitted the FOI request which confirmed the closure plans, led the media campaign, submitted a massive petition to Sir Ian Blair and the MPA, have consistently kept residents informed of what is going on. So yesterday was the plenary session of the Greater London Authority with Deputy Mayor Kit Malthouse answering questions on policing and crime. My ...

Mr. Brown and what we have to fear

On March 4th 1933 President Roosevelt made his inaugural address at the east portico of the US Capitol Building. In the face of a catastrophic failure of the financial system and almost total economic meltdown he began his leadership on note of optimism: 'This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.' His speech, which is well worth reading fully, stands out ...

You're banned

Watch this Drew Carey video for Reason about the banning craze. Oh and sign up to the Fbook group barring Alistair Darling from your local.

Its a conspiracy, dontcha know

Conspiracy theorists and believers are everywhere. Their views are more prevalent than before and their reasoning becomes ever more pernicious. Be they attempted Republican Presidential nominees, candidates for a Parliamentary by election, or Egyptian businessmen they are very much in the public eye. These are no longer the deranged, foam-at-the-mouth, lunatic debarred from normal society by their mad starring eyes, and bunker basements. What is causing this conspiracy inflation? Have a read of this excellent article by Frank Furedi and have a think about it. This is a subject I'm pretty sure I'll return to frequently because the philosophical implications ...

Feminists For Harman

Harriet Harman can't become Prime Minister because, according to her, men would want to flee the country and there isn't enough capacity in the airports to cope with demand. Is this a rare glimpse into how she sees herself? In 2008 one of the most senior female politicians in the UK is deliberately holding herself back on the grounds of percieved sexism of the Great British male. She's cast herself as the role of victim before she's even started. Quite horrified to be honest. I'm fairly certain that the UK is ready to accept a female Prime Minister, what with ...

Registrar wins same-sex tribunal case

The Islington registrar who claimed she was bullied by the council into conducting same-sex civil partnerships has had her case upheld. Lillian Ladele who said the civil partnership ceremonies went against her Christian faith hailed the decision as a 'victory for religious liberty'. Islington Council has so far said it is disappointed with the outcome and will be considering whether to appeal. Cllr Gilbert comments: 'The wider issue of whether councils should be able to expect employees to carry out civil partnerships doesn't seem to have been fully addressed.

Grauniad Fnuks Up

Stephen Tall obviously is more high up the blogging food chain that I. As Martin Wainwright the Guardian journalist has sent him a email regarding the quote yesterday that David Davis said us Lib Dems had funked it. Just to alert you asap to the fact that the quote attributed to David Davis by me about the LIb Dems 'funking it' was my fault - putting you in with Labour in a rush - and we are

David Davis

Yesterday I posted about David Davis on the basis of a quote in a piece by Martin Wainwright in the Guardian. Martin has now admitted he made an error with the quote and a retraction appears in today's paper. He wrote to LDV: Just to alert you asap to the fact that the quote attributed to David Davis by me about the LIb Dems 'funking it' was my fault - putting you in with Labour in a rush - and we are running a correction. Sorry, age and haste. The Correct quote is on the Guardian audio material on the ...

Norfolk: a frontline in the battle against global warming

Also in the news in Norfolk this week has been the visit of environment minister Phil Woolas to look at the challenge of defending the north Norfolk coast from rising sea levels. Norman Lamb seems to have extracted half a commitment from Woolas, although there is no promise of compensation for cliff-top homeowners at risk from the sea. The plight of threatened homeowners in Happisburgh has made the national press. Norman makes the point that where global warming is contributing to the problem, there is a good case for society as a whole sharing the cost. This makes sense - ...

Ask the PM: Questions Answered

Gordon Brown has responded to questions put to him on Downing Street's Youtube channel (a bit late, as Guido has noted). My pick is this Q&A on 42 days and civil liberties:

Tory Sleaze - It Just Won't Go Away

A Conservative MEP has criticised party leader David Cameron's attempt to reform expenses as 'half-baked'. The BBC claims to have seen an unsigned memo saying the change is a 'direct breach of the rul...

Sarah Kennedy: An apology

It is always a surprise to me when postings of mine get read by more than one reader (myself). I was particularly astonished by the number of people who read my recent rant aimed at Radio Two's Sarah Kennedy - which was in this week's LibDem Golden Dozen. As Stephen Tall comments, it could well be that I take too much notice of Ms Kennedy. I have a clock radio and rather than having an annoying

Liberal Democrat campaigners are calling for action to open up a former school site to the public

The site of the former Sacred Heart School and the playing field in Mersey Road, Redcar, have become overgrown and closed to the public. Ian Swales Liberal Democrats Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Redcar said: 'As a condition of the planning permission for the new Sacred Heart School it was agreed that the former site would be retained as public open space to compensate for the loss of green space on the new site. 'It is now more than two years since the new school opened and the old school has been demolished.' Lib Dem campaigner John Hannon and a former ...

Marco's Great British Feast and Bonekickers

The trouble with cooking on the telly is it starts to make you think about food and so after last night's second helping of Marco Pierre White's (MP3) gastronomic tour of the best of British, I couldn't stop trying to compile my own menu... summer pudding, potted shrimps, devilled kidneys, game pie, gooseberry fool, brandy snaps, kedgeree, junket, buttered leeks...ok, not necessarily in that order but... hmmm, extra time on the Wii fit for me today! Last night saw cockle picking in Morcambe Bay(a poignant and lonely place), real ham for a real pig fed on real acorns, then hung ...

David Davis APOLOGY alert: Grauniad confirms slip-up

Yesterday I noted with some dismay a quote attributed to David Davis in The Guardian, suggesting that the Lib Dems had 'funked' putting up a candidate in today's Haltemprice and Howden by-election - when in fact Mr Davis and Nick Clegg came to an agreement that the Lib Dems would not contest the seat before [...]

If Brown is Heathcliff, who does that make Clegg or Cameron?

From today's Indy: Gordon Brown has likened himself to Heathcliff, the brooding, intense character in Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights. The Prime Minister is normally at pains to avoid being compared with other figures but his guard dropped in an interview with New Statesman, published today, in which the interviewer, Gloria De Piero, suggested to Mr Brown [...]

Executive Committee 9 July 2008

Last night was the regular meeting of Bury Council's Executive Committee. This is the Committee that brings together the "portfolio holders" in the ruling Conservative Group, myself and the Leader of the Labour Group get to go as non-voting members. Last nights meeting was an unusually packed agenda, with some very important issues agreed: East Lancashire Railway Commuter Services The Executive Committee noted the progress of the study that has been going on into the possibility of running "normal" passenger services on the East Lancashire Railway - without detracting from the heritage service that is currently offered. A number of ...

'Norfolk annexes Lowestoft'

The big news story from Norfolk this week has been 'there's a bat in my bra'. What news outlet could resist a story involving fluffy animals and breasts. My favourite Eastern Daily Press headline this week was 'Norfolk annexes Lowestoft' - above a story on local government reorganisation in Norfolk and Suffolk (can't find it on the net). Hopefully peacekeeping forces will not be needed. The cross-border element seems to have been provoked by a Labour attempt to set up a coastal unitary taking in Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth (which Labour might hope to control). It is funny how gerrymandering ...

Flirting with Ann Widdecombe

Ann Widdecombe reveals today that no one has flirted with her for ten years. This begs the question: Who was the person who flirted with her ten years ago? No comments about Specsavers please. That would be ungallant.

High Steward-watch

There's recently been brisk business for the Treasury appointments office concerning the offices of the Crown Steward and High Bailliff of the Chiltern Hundreds and the Manor of Northstead. As of today, David Davis holds the office of the former and David Marshall holds the latter. Presumably, when David Davis re-wins his seat, the post of CS and HB of the Chiltern Hundreds will be vacant until

David Davis' bungee jump - was it worth it?

For those who might be worried about the LibDem position on the H&H by-election, have a read of this on Conservative Home. From the various runes they read and comments placed, the over-whelming answer to 'Was it worth it?' from the Conservative grass roots is: NO!

Kingston and ICELE in high places

Kingston and ICELE were both mentioned in the House of Commons yesterday. Hazel Blears launched her White Paper on empowerment called 'Communities in Control - Real People, Real Power'. I haven't had a chance to do more than skim read it so far, and will comment on it in a day or two. But Eric Pickles, the Conservative spokesperson on Communities and Local Government,...

Were you there?

There was a good turnout at the South of the Borough Neighbourhood meeting last night for the discussions on some significant planning applications and on the new recycling and waste collections. I'd be really interested to hear if anyone attended as a result of reading about it in my blog - do leave a comment or email me.

Were you there?

There was a good turnout at the South of the Borough Neighbourhood meeting last night for the discussions on some significant planning applications and on the new recycling and waste collections. I'd be really interested to hear if anyone attended as a result of reading about it in my blog - do leave a comment or email me.

Moving The Date Of The 2009 County Council Elections

Has anybody else seen this from the Department of Communities and Local Government: Summary We are seeking views about moving the date of the English Local Elections from Thursday 7 May 2009 so that they take place on the same day as the European Parliamentary elections on Thursday 4 June 2009. This consultation seeks, in particular, views of councils and other stakeholders on where the balance

Reflecting the nation

It has been a long hard slog against impossible deadlines but the Assembly Broadcasting Committee of which I am a member, managed to publish its report on time yesterday, largely due to the heroic efforts of its clerks, the members' research service and the Chair, Alun Davies AM. Our main conclusion is that Wales is largely invisible on the UK TV networks, all of whom fail to reflect modern Welsh life in their output and fail to take account of the devolution settlement in the way that they deliver news and current affairs programmes. We have called for greater acountability, ...

Those troublesome Tory MEPs

The BBC reports that David Cameron's attempts to reform the way that Conservative MEPs. An unsigned memo written by a Conservative MEP is a 'direct breach of the rules of the European Parliament' and likely to bring a PR 'defeat'. The document suggests that an attempt by Mr Cameron to merge the European and Westminster expenses system 'threatens the worst of both worlds'. It describes the proposal as a 'direct breach of the Rules of the European Parliament', which will 'snatch defeat from the jaws of victory' in PR terms. It adds that Mr Cameron's plans threaten to 'scupper plans ...

Dram Fine Double Speak

I know there is a new blog set up call Holyrood Crap Chat shame there isn't the same for Westminster where yesterday in the final Scottish questions of this session one SNP member seemed to counter the message of his party at Holyrood. Angus Robertson (Moray) (SNP): The Minister will surely concede that raising duty undermines the efforts of the Scotch Whisky Association and others who are

Off the Mark

Yippee! Mister Stephen was jumping on thge sofa last night for the first time in 6 years a Brit won a stage at the Tour de France. In recent times it has either been as a time trialist like David Millar or Chris Broadman, or as a part of a breakaway as happened with Sean Yates. But when you are the world madison champion the bunch finish of a long flat stage in le Tour is nothing to get too

Giant lizards and carpenters, part deux

As the good people of Haltemprice and Howden go to the polls, I reveal some of the highlights of the other by-election pamphlets I have in my possession. Again in no particular order: David Craig The author of Squandered is standing for election on a platform of Stop the Government/Politicians wasting our money coupled with the usual demand for a referendum on the Lisbon treaty and clear

John Amis has a blog

The former My Music panelist John Amis, who is now aged 86, has a classical music blog called John Amis online. Trivia: John Amis is a cousin of the novelist Kingsley Amis.

Thursday 10th July 2008

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