A stopping up order has been on footpaths at Belle Vue. Your representations are invited. I print the stopping up order in full as published by Durham County Council. NOTICE OF PUBLIC PATH STOPPING UP ORDER TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990, SECTION 257 AND PARAGRAPH 1 OF SCHEDULE 14 THE COUNTY COUNCIL OF DURHAM UNRECORDED PUBLIC FOOTPATHS AT BELLE VUE PARK, MEDOMSLEY ROAD, CONSETT PARISH PUBLIC PATH STOPPING UP ORDER 2012 The above order was made on 3 February 2012. The effect of the Order will be to extinguish the unrecorded public footpaths across Belle Vue Park, Medomsley Road, ...
The publication of the Liberal Democrats' Spring Conference agenda earlier today also lifted the curtain on a new group launching on the fringe: Liberal Left. This group seems to be comprised mainly of the small group aligned with Compass, who have been not only regularly critical of the Coalition but have worked with the Labour Party in its policy review process – an action misguided in my view. At its helm is Richard Grayson, who I have known for a very long time and not always regarded as being further to the left than me – quite the contrary! It ...
In the past few weeks there have been rumblings – and not just from my stomach – as various factions within the Lib Dem blogosphere are starting to emerge. Egos need to be stroked and opinions need to be aired. People are digging their heels in (not a sexist comment) and starting to get snippy (apparently that is a word). Oh yes the Lib Dem blogosphere is not all sweetness and light at the moment. There is no sign of kumbaya around a fire place and no group hugs. So what is causing all the tension? This I am unsure ...
[IMG: Phil Willis] Phil Willis, CC Keith Edkins Liberal Democrat peer Phil Willis has reiterated calls for greater coordination and ministerial oversight on biosecurity in an interview on the most recent episode of Radio 4′s current affairs programme File on 4. Lord Willis was formerly the chair of the Innovation, Universities, Science & Skills Committee, who authored the 2008 report Biosecurity in UK Research Laboratories in response to the 2007 foot and mouth outbreak from the Pirbright laboratory. The report concluded: ... there is a striking lack of co-ordination between organisations who sponsor and run high containment laboratories. No one ...
Someone should have said: In the name of all that is sacred, STOP! The song is very good in a strictly audio sense. It's just such a shame it will ever be linked in my mind with this pathetic waste of effort. ....And his suit trousers seriously need dry cleaning. [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
The winter chill this evening was positively Dickensian, but there was much warmth, wine and laughter at that Chelsea New Curiosity Shop, the BookHaus, where author Peter Clark launched his latest work Dickens's London under the benign direction of publisher Barbara Schwepcke. One of her young staff engagingly juggled clementines while reminding us of Dickens's memoir of the world's ...
OK, I confess that I've had another holiday, this time to celebrate (albeit a little late) hubby's retirement. We've just returned from a short break to Finnish Lapland in a little village near the Russian border. In fact, the road sign at the only major junction in the area pointed towards Murmansk. Like all good holidays, in my estimation at least, there was some relaxation, some effort and
Fans of the Odanglesex Chronicles: I expect the next post here will be from Odanglesex. In the meantime, I'm describing another favourite place. For the non-Brits, some explanation is probably needed - even that the term is not sexist. The Norfolk Broads are a large area of marsh, fen, river, lake and rough grazing in the south and east of Norfolk in eastern England. They start just outside the city of Norwich (or Narj in local pronunciation) and extend almost to the coast. The "Broads" are a series of lakes - for example, Hickling Broad. It used to be widely ...
Charlotte Henry seems to have an axe to grind with every Liberal Democrat who doesn't agree with her. That doesn't seem to be very liberal nor democratic. Now I don't mind discourse within our party, in fact that is what is so great about our party, we do have discourse and we come to a democratic consensus that we then rally behind. The one constant is all the 23 years I have been around this party has been fairness. Look at the preamble of our party's constitution, that is the yardstick against which I measure every policy that is brought ...
Research undertaken by the GMB Union shows that the Tory controlled City Council in Peterborough have a total of £5,751,000 in uncollected local taxes in 2010/11. That's £2.6m in uncollected council tax and over £3m for uncollected non domestic rates (aka Business Rates)! Over a year, this total figure equates to £479,250 a month, around £15,975 a day and £665 an hour! The Figures also show Peterborough City Council in the top worse 12% of local authorities in the country! With 281 other Councils being better at collecting local taxes! Local LIB DEM councillor, Darren Fower has described the news ...
I've noticed that in the digital world, there seems to be a real big battle at the moment between the Left and Right of the Liberal Democrats. The Social Liberal Forumers are both intentionally and unintentionally antagonising the Economic Liberals and vice versa, but attacking each other is just silly there is enough people out there to do it for us. [Edit] I was writing this, and got so far as the first paragraph, when the lovely kavya_kaushik sent me the following blog post, which says entirely what I wanted too, so I'll link her more coherent work.
SHOCK OVER PLAN BY WEST LANCASHIRE COUNCIL TO BUILD 700 HOUSES ON SOUTHPORT BOUNDARY Lib Dem councillors in Birkdale and Kew Wards have spoken out over proposals from Ormskirk-based West Lancashire Borough Council to build hundreds of house on prime agricultural land on the fringes of Birkdale and Kew. On Wednesday this week (8 February), Sefton Council's Planning Committee is due to discuss the controversial proposals set out in the "West Lancashire Local Plan". In total around 700 houses could be build in these areas on the outskirts of Southport. The main part of the area earmarked for possible future ...
For the past eight years or so, any time it's seemed appropriate to mention my orientation, I've usually said "mostly straight". For those of you who don't know why that "mostly" was there, well, the short version is that I've had two pretty serious relationships with women in the past, and two or three more casual dalliances. I did a fair amount of LGBT activism at uni and for a few years afterwards, including being the first Bisexual Women's Officer in my student union. In many ways, that was my introduction to politics. Historically, though, the majority of my relationships ...
On Sunday Jenny Willott wrote an article on LDV explaining the reasons behing Lib Dem MPs voting to reject the Lords amendments to the Welfare Reform Bill. However, I'm afraid that, as someone who has been campaigning on this for several months, I am not satisfied with her explanation and think that there are several flaws in her justifications. For example, to put what Jenny said another way, 4 in 10 people affected by the time limit will lose ESA completely. That'll be 280,000 people with long term illness or disability that prevents them from working. Those who lose it ...
It was back in the summer of 2010 when I decided to announce our plans to Alex. I use the word announce as back then Alex had little say in what activities we would take part in. Being the laid-back fellow he was easily (foolishly?) influenced in decision making, and so when I suggested we went to Europe for a month he took 30 seconds to think about it. And think he did. I saw his eyes gaze into the near distance, there were a couple of things to consider. Money - always an issue, and the fact I'd just ...
I have an article with this title on Comment is Free today: Does this mean British chess has always been confined to a social elite? [Malcolm] Pein suggests not. Talking about the match held by radio between Great Britain and the Soviet Union in 1946, he says: "Yes, the British team were all Oxbridge types - probably because everyone else was too busy earning a living. But if you look at photographs of the audience, they don't look particularly middle class." My own experience as a member of the feared Market Harborough team of the 1980s bears this out. When ...
Today I had the pleasure of sitting down with Martin Shapland, author of Diary of a Political Hack and Parliamentary Researcher to discuss what it's like being on the receiving end of campaigning activity. You recently did a blogpost in which you were rather scathing about [mass campaigning site] 38 degrees. Can you tell us a little more ...
"Lawyers appear in 11 of his 15 novels. Some of them even resemble humans. Uriah Heep ("David Copperfield") is a red-eyed cadaver whose 'lank forefinger,' while he reads, makes 'clammy tracks along the page ... like a snail.' Mr. Vholes ('Bleak House'), 'so eager, so bloodless and gaunt,' is 'always looking at the client, as if he were making a lingering meal of him with his eyes.' Most lawyers infest dimly lighted, moldy offices 'like maggots in nuts.' In the New York Times, Joseph Tartakovsky consider birthday boy Charles Dickens' treatment of lawyers. The business case for HS2 - the ...
Yes. Heart breaking I know. But UCL have had a room crisis and had to postpone my talk tonight until some later date. How will you fill your evening...
Mugglenet has a story about Radcliffe calling the Academy awards snobbish after giving Hugo a nod and not Harry Potter. Sorry Dan, but face up to reality the Hp films just weren't that good especially HP7b. My review in detail is here. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 was nowhere near Oscar standard. ...
The theme for this years Faith and Pride event in July is Fear Not, taken from Luke 12:32. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. As with last year, the event will consist of two talks, each about half an hour long. If you would like ...
If you have an issue with services provided by Cambridgeshire County or Cambridge City Council then we may be able to help, and there are several ways to get in touch. If you'd like to speak to one of us face-to-face then you can come to our monthly drop in session on Saturday. We'll be at the Arbury Community Centre from 10am until noon. So please do come and see us if you have a problem. If you can't make us, you can of course phone or email. The details are on the left hand side of this webpage.
I've written before , in my book Sci-Ence! Justice Leak! [Paperback Kindle (US) Kindle (UK) All other ebook formats]. about Rob Shearman's Doctor Who Unbound story Deadline, and I'm going to try not to repeat myself too much in this essay, but given that this book is entirely about Doctor Who without the character of ...
Interesting piece over on on Digital Politico highlighting the fact that a new left group is about to emerge in the Liberal Democrats. I generally avoid using "left/right" terms, as I often find them pretty damned unhelpful. But given that this new group is called "Liberal Left" there seems no more appropriate way of describing them. And given that two of the key names of this new group appear to be Linda Jack, Richard Grayson who both signed the now infamous letter to the Guardian endorsing Compass Plan B , I guess "left" it is. With so little information to ...
It's a great shame that so many Liberal Democrats have reacted to the political downfall of Chris Huhne by bashing his successor. Ed Davey is an immensely capable minister and will do a wonderful job in his new position. Sadly, some have chosen this news to complain because a woman wasn't promoted instead of a man. Gender balance is an issue that seems to divide opinion a great deal in the online world, for some reason, despite being hardly as controversial in the real world, where the principle is generally accepted that talent should be rewarded rather than the accident ...
Officers from Peterborough City Council have now confirmed that moveable Vehicle Activated signs are to be introduced across the Peterborough North area. According to local LIB DEM ward councillor for South Werrington and North Gunthorpe, Darren Fower, "The signs attach to lamposts or other posts already out on the street rather than relying on further posts being installed." The Council has promised that they can be moved around fairly easily and work on a rechargeable battery so don't require cabling or electricity supply nearby. Similar signs are currently operating in the Central and East area. One draw back is that ...
Last night I had the honour of doing the introduction to the first talk we have had at our magnificent new Drum Brae Library Hub. Our speaker was Eva Clarke who had come to speak as part of the Speak Out Speak Up Holocaust Memorial project I have written about in the past. Eva's story was the most remarkable one I have heard in a very long time if ever. She told of how her parents were married in Czechoslovakia in the early days of the war before being sent of to concentration camps. Eva was born in a coal ...
Tue 7th
16:10
Is Andrew Lansley on his way out? And will he take the Health and Social Care Bill with him?
...We can only hope. But today comes breathtaking evidence of Downing Street briefing against Lansley, via Paul Waugh: Rachel Sylvester has a cracking column today (Times £) in which she quotes a No.10 source saying: "Andrew Lansley should be taken out and shot. He's messed up the communication and the substance of the policy." Another insider says:"We're back to square one. Andrew Lansley is just a disaster." Strong stuff! [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
So we are coming up to the thirty year anniversary of the Falklands War. Prince Williams is down there for work purposes. The subject is starting to makes noticeable waves in the corridors of power and that is all thanks to the Argentine government. They want the Falklands. They think it is their right to have them. The fact the natives consider themselves British is neither here nor there. They want them (and the big fat oil reserves in the surrounding waters) but tensions are starting to brew. With the Argentine economy in full-blown crisis the government have decided that ...
The 2012 US Presidential race is certainly going to be interesting. That's for sure. There is no end of permutations, twists and turns ahead which will make very entertaining viewing for us over this side of the pond. Every time you make a statement about the election, there are caveats and "but ifs" which follow. It's tempting to say that Obama is sunk because of the US economy. However, there are strong signs now of a solid recovery. Last week's job news was very positive and polls are showing a thawing of anti-Obama feeling. You could also say that Obama ...
Only five years ago, the New Economics Foundation commissioned Ron Bailey to draft a bill to tackle Ghost Town Britain. Now that ghost towns are seriously on the march, it is really no time to water down the Sustainable Communities Act:
Please sign here.
At one time this blog was greatly exercised by the appearance of future Labour MPs in films. There was Hazel Blears in A Taste of Honey (though that photo is not a still from the film) and Stephen Pound in Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush. Now Amber Elliott on Total Politics has come up with another example. A very young John Cryer, now MP for Leyton and Wanstead, appeared in The Railway Children - and she has a photo to prove it. John's father Bob Cryer, himself a Labour MP, was a great supporter of the Keighley and ...
From me in the New Statesman yesterday. Do have a gander, comment, or see what others have been saying over on the New Statesman site. An awful lot of the Lib Dem grassroots spent last week feeling the pain of the betrayed spouse. And it's nothing to do with Chris HuhneTwo weeks ago it was all chocolates and flowers from those on high with the promise of the raising of tax thresholds, and all the arguments and flirtations with other party's policies seemed like another life. We wandered around starry eyed......until last Wednesday, when we walked into the smack of ...
(This post continues a series that I started writing last year. Click on the "How we know what we know" tag to read those earlier posts. In particular, if you're not familiar with the concept of proof by contradiction, you might want to read the third post before reading this.) The idea of infinity is ...
Tue 7th
14:19
Health and Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Committee 6/2/2012 Part 2 Anna Klonowski report
Following on from part 1 Bill Norman continued. Bill Norman said that a number of names should be disclosed to councillors. One of those names was his and he had no reason in them not knowing which number he was in the report (although some may have already guessed). He was working towards giving them ...
And some other things too:
The First Minister has been answering questions again today on the alleged financial irregularities and other matters around the All Wales Ethnic Minorities Association, on which issue I posted yesterday. It appears that the Government's report will be published on Thursday, though I understand that it will not address the human resource issues that have caused so much anguish for many former employees of the charity. The First Minister says that the Government will then carry out a lessons learned review and publish the 2003 report into AWEMA at the same time. That is hardly satisfactory and looks set to ...
Am I the only one who is disturbd by this report in today's Telegraph senior civil servants are being sent to "leadership school" amid concerns they do not have the skills to run major projects like the Olympics, welfare reforms and new high-speed trains. The paper says that the new system is an effort to avoid debacles like wasted public spending on a £12 billion NHS computing system that never worked. From October, senior civil servants, including permanent secretaries and director-generals, will have to obtain qualifications from the academy before they are allowed to be in charge of major projects. ...
I was delighted to learn this week that a second Energy Efficiency project in Chorlton has been successful in their grant to the Government's Local Energy Assessment Fund, which aims to promote Energy Efficiency and sustainability at a local level and was set up by a Lib Dem Energy Secretary. Chorlton Refurb (in association with Green Chorlton) has been successful in obtaining £38,000 funding from Department of Energy and Climate Change as part of their Local Energy Assessment Fund. The funding is for: • Mapping types of property in Chorlton. • Carrying out 20 detailed assessments of properties in Chorlton. ...
From Good with outstanding features to special measures as a new academy is a journey no school wishes to travel. But to make that journey as a new flagship Academy raises important questions of accountability and governance. Birkdale High School has made that journey. Ofsted visited in December 2011 and yet the report was only published on the website this morning. It is well known that drafts have been in circulation for some time. I have never before heard of such a delay. Please read the report it can be found here: It does seem wrong that if this ...
In 1731 Captain Robert Jenkins had his ear cut off by the Spanish Coast guard sparking off the War of Jenkin's ear that ran from 1732-48. In 1860, during the Opium war, Private Moyse of the 3rd East Kent Regiment was captured and executed for refusing to Kow-tow to the local Chinese Mandarin causing massive consternation amongst his piers and indeed in the Realm. Britain has always guarded the sovereignty of its citizens and their rights abroad. They are citizens of this realm and subject to the justices of the Monarch and her ministers plain and simple. It is along ...
The Liberal Democrat Spring 2012 conference agenda has been published. I'll do a fuller analysis later, especially as there are quite a few eye-catching items – backing the 50p rate tax, introducing a mansion tax, setting out the party's line on Europe – and dropping two out of the three locks from the triple lock. Liberal Democrat Spring 2012 Conference Agenda
I've just had an e mail from Network Rail to say the flytipping has been cleared from that bit of railway land near Hartington Road. ( I would normally go and look before reporting this but suspect the mayoral debate is going to keep me busy today) NR is responsible in law for keeping the land it owns clear of dumping and there are a few other places in the area I have now reported in through their helpline. Let me know if there's any near you that's bugging you so I can chase it up.
The television license is a tax in everything but name but advert-free, non-profit television should always be an option for consumers. Turning the BBC from a government-owned corporation into a consumer-owned cooperative would mean nothing about its current high quality content would change – just the unfair aspect of how it is funded. As it is currently structured, the funding of the BBC creates a lot of losers. I love BBC programming but I rarely watch any BBC channels beyond BBC One and Two. I hardly ever watch sport and do not have access to BBC Three and Four. If ...
Why not join hundreds of other Lib Dem Voice readers in getting our latest headlines by email? Some people like regularly visiting a site to see if there's new stories of interest. Some people like subscribing to its news feed (RSS) and checking that way. But if you prefer email, you can instead sign up to get a daily early morning email with a summary of the previous day's posts from Lib Dem Voice, complete with a note of how many comments each post has got and convenient links to click on if any take your fancy and you want ...
You would think that the statement that one of the reasons for there being over a million unemployed young people in Britain is "poor preparation for the labour market" would come from someone on the far right. In fact it was from David Miliband, unsuccessful contender for the Labour leadership, on the BBC's "Today" programme yesterday (6th February). Genuine socialists in the Labour party must be breathing a sigh of relief that the younger brother won, and that the elder has now announced that he will remain in the obscurity of the back benches. I find the statement alarming for ...
Here are the Liberal Democrat entries in the top 100 political blogs as ranked by EBuzzing (Wikio as was). Nobody has dropped out this month, while Stephen and Lisa return to the top 100. 1 (9) Liberal Democrat Voice Down 2 2 (20) Caron's Musings Up 3 3 (29) Mark Pack Down 7 4 (42) Jack of Kent Down 10 5 (53) Liberal England Down 8 6 (58) Mark Thompson Up 7 7 (65) Paul Walter Down 11 8 (81) Liberal Vision Down 18 9 (82) George Potter Down 8 10 (84) Liberal Bureaucracy Down 4 11 (91) Peter Black ...
Spare a thought for the gritter crews who are out in all conditions and times of the day, making sure we can get to our destination. Information about road conditions can be found on local radio sites like Radio Suffolk. The County Council also has information about snow clearance and road gritting. Use this link The national site DirectGov also explodes the myth that you will be sued if you clear the snow outside your property! It also gives practical advice on snow clearance here School closures For reliable information about school closures use the County Council's website. Link here ...
I don't like much political advertising, it is usually filled with half truths or sometimes blatant lies. I dislike America's style even more where so much is just aimed at damaging the opponent's reputation rather than focusing on any issues that matter. I don't think I'm often shocked when it comes to such political adverts - but I was really amazed and almost enraged when I was linked to Pete Hoekstra's ad where he is running for a place in the Senate - this ad was apparently ran during the Super bowl for maximum exposure. Here it is for those ...
Tue 7th
11:32
Losing mentoring bid was "head and shoulders" above the rest, claims former Boris advisor
Controversy surrounding Boris Johnson's mentoring scheme for black boys looks set to increase after one of the mayor's former officials admitted that the rejected black-led consortium was "head and shoulders" above the bid that won. The losing Freeman Oliver consortium ... Continue reading →
Burstall/Aldham Road Closures Map of closure and alternative at link below 2012-01-30-NA-Plan-C726 Church Hill C726 Church Hill, Burstall C726 Ipswich Road, Burstall C726 Burstall Hill, Burstall C726 Road from A1071 Burstall to A1071 Hadleigh, Aldham C726 The Street Aldham Reason for closure Highway Maintenance Date of closure 30/01/2012 to 17/02/2012 Alternative routes The roads will be closed on a rolling basis. The diversion routes will be: C726 Burstall Road, A1071 Hadleigh Road, A1071 Thorpes Hill, A1071 Silver Hill, A1071 George Street, A1071 Wilderness Hill, A1071 Back Road, U4420 Priory Road. U8406 Hadleigh Road, U8406 The Street, U8412 Flowton Road, U8408 ...
Whilst perusing The Guardian earlier I came across an article entitled Why we need more banker bashing and knew that I'd get annoyed if I read it. So I read it. I got annoyed. Sometimes I am my own worst enemy I really am. So anyway the link is there for all to see but the long and short of it is this. Banking reform has been pretty weak and shouldn't we have more say in how these private companies work? We'll look at banking reform first and the Vickers Report and recommendations are to be carried out with one ...
I've started producing a regular monthly(ish) email newsletter focusing on my work for the people of Launceston as a Cornwall Councillor. The first edition went out last week and included a review of the annual Launceston debate, news about the adoption of Kensey Valley Meadow and about the application to build houses on the police station overflow car park in Moorland Road. So if you are interested in receiving this newsletter, please sign up by clicking on the link below: Subscribe to my newsletter *I say monthly-ish because I'm not going to bombard you with non-news. If there's something urgent ...
For those of you who read Liberal Democrat Voice (and for those of you who don't, why don't you?), you will have noticed that I have, somewhat unusually, taken a stance on something that troubles me. Actually, it's some of you... So, take a look at the piece I've written, and let's see just what sort of Party it is I'm a member of...
Tue 7th
11:18
Opinion: Federal Policy Committee to the left of me, Tories to the right, where are the Parliamentar...
Perhaps Stealers Wheel had it right... so it's time to speak my mind, isn't it? I have been following the debate on internal party democracy with first interest, then frustration, and now a degree of numbing disbelief, as the Parliamentary Parties have taken significant flak from a cross-section of Party members and activists. And yet, from my perspective of a reporter on events in the Lords, a very different story emerges to the increasingly popular one of rogue Parliamentary Parties trashing Liberal Democrat policy in an entirely unaccountable way. But let me tell you a story... Once upon a time, ...
Jaime Daremblum,director of the Center for Latin American Studies at the Hudson Institute, recently wrote in The Weekly Standard about a "New Falkland's War" and the allege snub from Obama. To the contrary, the United States government recognises the de facto United Kingdom administration, but see the sovereignty issues as a bilateral position. Which the Reagen ...
[IMG: Twitter logo] If you're interested in the Liberal Democrats and you're into Twitter (start drawing that Venn diagram now), here are three lists I curate which help you get the best out of the social network: Liberal Democrat MPs (34 currently) Liberal Democrat peers (10 currently) Liberal Democrat London Assembly members/candidates and Mayor candidate (20 currently) As ever, if you spot any errors or omissions do let me know.
While out and about doing a home visit for some casework I came across this sign. It's clearly been their forever and a day. The actual school entrance is 200m away on Etherow Street these days and for as long as neighbours to this sign could remember. I would have removed it myself but it had special fastenings to the brick wall. So I sadly had to treat it as full item of casework with all the admin and van being dispatched to remove it. What silliness do you know of on your street? Tell me and I'll try and ...
Here's an interesting talk on how co-operation developed in a market economy from the Learn Liberty website.
True to my word, during the first week of every month, Spineless Liberal will take the well-known "Political Compass" test, to see if my views change over the year. On the 2nd of February (delayed posting for my ECFR Scorecard post on how Britain stands within Europe on matters of foreign policy), here goes take ...
Spring Conference this year is from 9-11 March at NewcastleGateshead. The Conference Agenda has been finalised and is now available online. For those members who registered for conference before 31 January, hard copies will be arriving through the post very soon and your pass will follow at the end of the month. If you haven't registered yet then it's not too late. Rates start at just £21 for a one day pass and concessionary rates are available too. To find out more and to register, go to: www.libdems.org.uk/SpringConference We have planned an interesting agenda with a variety of debates. As ...
Young unemployed people in rural areas need help with transport costs to find work according to a new report produced by a commission chaired by former Foreign Secretary David Miliband. Mr Miliband was asked by the voluntary sector group ACEVO to look into the issue and their report has been published today. The St Mary's area of Bodmin has been identified as the worst in Cornwall for youth unemployment and is one of 600 wards in the UK where youth unemployment rates are double the national average. Mr Miliband points out that getting to interviews can cost a huge amount ...
Thanks to everyone who sent in suggestions for a 10 minute rule bill. I have amalgameted several suggestions around road safety and the bill is reproduced below. "That leave be given to bring in a Bill to require drivers to ... Continue reading →
Hey all, First of all I'd like to say a big thankyou to everyone for helping this site get off the ground – we've gone from 0 to quite an acceptable number of daily hits in a week, I wasn't expecting to get this many until 6 months or so in. This week I'm going ...
South Glos Council is looking for your views on the number of parking spaces that should be provided with new homes. There have been widespread concerns that in recent years too few have been provided, causing problems on nearby streets. To have your say, complete the questionnaire online by the 2nd March 2012. Responses will be used to inform the drafting of a Parking Standards Supplementary Planning Document, which will be subject to further public consultation before being adopted by the Council.
Secretary of State for Education, Conservative Michael Gove, has downgraded the value of nearly all 14-16 vocational qualifications at a stroke. I felt angry when I heard this. However, it did little to reduce my respect for Mr Gove; I had very little anyway after 'free' schools, and his arrogant disregard of the role of Local Authorities to support 'failing' schools. But having thought about this a little more, I am left perplexed by Gove's decision. The impact goes against so much I thought was accepted wisdom. Industry has for many years had a concern that school leavers do not ...
Sixteen Good Things The Lib Dems Have Achieved "this is why, despite the fact that I don't support the government, I *do* support the Lib Dems in the government... Because we haven't made the world perfect in only eighteen months with only nine percent of the MPs in parliament - but we've made it better. And that's more than I can say about the actions of any other government party of my lifetime." (tags: libdemmery ) G. I. Joe and Sleeping Beauty "I don't have terribly high standards for movies trying to cash in on my 80s nostalgia. I don't ...
How often have we heard of flagship UK businesses paying little or no UK corporation tax? A lot. It is not, however, a subject loved by the companies themselves or their shareholders. If tax can be avoided off-shore, then the companies themselves and their shareholders can benefit – and the UK government and UK public ...
Yesterday Brian Paddick, along with GLA member Caroline Pidgeon and Enfield & Haringey GLA candidate Dawn Barnes, visited Tottenham to talk to the local community about recovering from the riots and how the area is policed:
Ros and I had been visiting friends for dinner in Hadleigh, a rather lovely little town in South Suffolk, on Saturday evening, and so found ourselves on the road on Sunday morning, snow or no snow. The road out of Hadleigh towards East Bergholt was twisty and slippery, as the volume of traffic had not been sufficient to clear away the snow, and Ros drove cautiously as far as the turning for the A12. But thanks to the work of the Essex and Suffolk County gritters, road conditions were pretty good as far as Stowmarket. Stopping only to buy a ...
The Sun reports that, after a 'successful' pilot, there is a proposal to give iPads to all MPs. Saves paper, allegedly. Most of them already have smart phones. It seems bonkers to give those who have smart phones iPads as well. And can you imagine Sir Peter Tapsell producing an iPad from his silk waistcoat to catch up with his email? He'd be more likely to put it in the corner of the room and address it on the subject of 19th Century British Prime Ministers. [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
As a long-standing and active supporter of the Dundee Transition Town group, I am really pleased that "Transition on Tour" comes to Dundee tomorrow. You can download a copy of the flyer about tomorrow's activities by clicking on the headline above or by going to http://tinyurl.com/transitiontour.
I was on Wave 102 news yesterday about the Local Government Information Unit Awards - click 'play' to listen:
Ros has always wanted to see the Northern Lights and, being a devoted husband and keen traveller, I have made the arrangements. And so, just after Valentine's Day (because the Lords will be debating the Scotland Bill that day), I'll be taking her to the Arctic Circle, to Oulu and Rovaniemi, where it's currently -31°C (-24°F for those of you who prefer that measure). However, there is a bit of a breeze blowing, with the wind chill making it feel like -44°C, or -47°F... Oh well, it's a relatively balmy -28°C in Oulu... But why Oulu and Rovaniemi? Well, the ...
Just watched one of the best television shows I have seen in ages. We recorded it off BBC4. It was called Cricklewood Greats and you've got another 6 days to catch it on iPlayer. I urge you to do so. And if anybody from the beeb is reading this: it was announced as a pilot PLEASE pick it up for a series. Please please pretty please with a cherry on top. And chocolate sprinkles. I shall end with a salute to the geeky genius of Peter Capaldi. You sir, rock. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Just so people are aware, I'm currently not particularly well, and when I'm not well I have to prioritise stuff according to how much or how little it stresses me. Writing actually relieves my stress, so expect me to be positively logorrhoeic here over the next few weeks, but other forms of internet activity (Twitter, ...
Today's papers have reported that Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has switched support from the Lib Dems to Labour. It is worth noting that they gave this item more prominence than they did when he originally revealed that he supported the Lib Dems, but that's the British press for you. More interesting than the fickle actors announcement was the reasons he offered for his change of heart. Referring to Ed Miliband he said, "He speaks for what I believe in." He went on to criticise Nick Clegg, stating his opinion that the Lib Dem leader was being 'used by the ...
Charles Dickens was born on 7 February 2012. Visit his bicentenary website. Or read Claire Tomalin's letter to him in the Guardian.
