Well, that's one thing an ex-MP can do. Hat-tip: Nick Thornsby, who first spotted the firm.
Remember the row over the accreditation of delegates at last year's Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference? In blatant contradiction of the party's beliefs - remember Nick Clegg's vow that he would go to prison rather than carry an identity card? - those attending were required to supply their passport number. And in blatant contradiction of the party's constitution, the central bureaucracy awarded itself the right to vet local parties' choice of representatives. Some of us were outraged by these moves. I was even moved to write an article on the affair for the Guardian's Comment is Free website. Come the conference, ...
I am a massive believer in making sure deaf people get access to democracy in the same way that hearing people do. So, you can imagine how angry I get when I hear about cases like the one at Bexley Council recently. During a meeting an elderly gentleman with hearing loss (and herring aids) complained to ...
Now THAT is how you tell voters what you are doing in Government. Win LibDems. Pure Win. BOOM! I don't like being in coalition. I don't like Conservatives. But I LOVE this (our homepage today after the budget)
...or his diary secretary, whoever they may be, knows no bounds right now. Not that this is any of their fault, but I want to have a moan. Right now, I should be out having dinner with my husband while Anna is at the cinema with her friend watching a preview screening of the Hunger Games. This is the latest teen sensation movie. Its subject matter is very, very dark and a reminder of why you need liberal values and people willing to fight for them. The kids have read all 3 books in the series and are engrossed in ...
I'm a big fan of Vince Cable and unashamedly always have been. Nothing would have pleased me more if he were to have been chancellor but in a Coalition that was never going to happen. So forgive me for indulging myself in enjoying what was an excellent performance today in the House of Commons, especially when ...
Politics, sometimes we agree, but don't mention it as we'd much rather concentrate on areas we disagree. Why? The odds are if we all agree, we're either right about it or perhaps not worked out a better idea. If we disagree, then it all kicks off. Tories will get lord Ashcroft to commission some polling and recruit former News International Hack to convert their argument into an easy to read
As it was a short meeting I've already uploaded it to Youtube. It's in two parts, part 1 (the first twelve minutes) and part 2 (the last eight minutes), which are also below. The agenda and reports can be found on Wirral Council's website except at the time of writing this, the AOB item entitled ...
Back in 2003 (before even Liberal England existed) I wrote an article for the mental health magazine OpenMind - Always on the Go - that was sceptical about the concept of 'attention deficit hyperactivity disorder' or ADHD. This is a supposed mental health condition characterised by such symptoms as failing to do homework, fidgeting and being 'always on the go'. As I wrote back in 2003: In the USA, at least 10 per cent of children - 5 or 6 million out of 50 million - are taking medication to treat ADHD; 90 per cent of them boys. In some ...
The LA Times reports: Eric Fehrnstrom, one of Mitt Romney's top aides, torpedoed what should have been a gangbusters news cycle for the campaign with this answer to a question about how damaging the primary has been to his chances in November. "I think you hit a reset button for the fall campaign. Everything changes. It's almost like an Etch-A-Sketch. You can kind of shake it up and restart all over again." Romney's critics suggested it was proof of what they'd long been warning conservatives — that he'd taken positions now to appeal to the party's base that he'd quickly ...
So the Stella McCartney designed Olympic kits have been unveiled today. They have to be special, they have to be different, they have link to what GB&NI is all about. But most of all they have to be fit for purpose for the various athletes in their disciplines. From what we have heard today by the various athletes and Stella herself that was the prime factor behind the design as far as shape, material and form of the various elements go. Discussions were held with the various sports about what was required as far as that was concerned. Some sports ...
Phil Woolas - remember him? He was, of course, the Labour MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth between 1997 and 2010. In November 2010 he was unceremoniously kicked out of Parliament after being found guilty by an election court of ... Continue reading →
I was looking up the opening titles of Going For Gold earlier on YouTube (it had been an answer on Pointless earlier in the day) and one of the related videos was of when Bill McKaig got the highest possible score on 15-1. I remember watching that at the time but it has been what 13 years since it aired so I thought it'd be interesting to see how I'd do with the same 40 questions in the final round. I have to admit I was pretty chuffed to get 17 right of the 40. I think that is pretty ...
The Liberal Democrat blogosphere is continuing to talk about the Budget, so here are some of the latest offerings. Sandy Walkington thinks that the Budget is a dish best observed cold. I tend to aim off from all instant, hyperbolic reactions to the Budget. When I worked as a press officer in the oil industry, Budget Day was a time for synthetic outrage at the latest iniquity heaped on the long suffering motorist or on the plucky explorers of the North Sea. And then the sun continued to rise and set. In the current global economic circumstances which only compound ...
A tour of the town at 6.25 p.m. tonight found most of the streetlights coming on as dusk was falling. All of the areas from which complaints have been received were visited and no problems were apparent. So far, so good.
Danny Alexander talking right now to Party Members I have got to say, I think the party has been fantastic in the way it's been getting information out to members about the Budget. I still wake up in a cold sweat at the memory of some of the horrendous e-mails that went out in the early days of the Coalition, but these days I'm having more and more confidence that when I see a party e-mail in my inbox, all stress toys within the vicinity will be safe and the information within it will be useful. The Party has bent ...
I've had a couple of emails asking about disregarded convictions. This is a quick post to highlight the differences between a pardon and a disregarded conviction in the campaign to get justice for Alan Turing and all others like him. ... Continue reading →
Having got that good rant about scaremongering and pensioners out of the way, it's onto the rest of the budget. First, the good. The delivery ahead of schedule of the latest instalment of the core Liberal Democrat pledge to raise the basic tax allowance will take 2 million low-paid people out of paying tax altogether – a significant achievement – and hand back a decent sum of money to others on low and middle incomes: tens of thousands of people in Reading. Delivering on our promises. No wonder Labour don't like it. Also good to see some reprogramming to stop ...
OMG, in exactly one month's time, I will be running my first marathon!!! I'm miles from my fundraising goal & would really appreciate any donations! Online at http://www.runningsponsorme.org/joyce or offline! Thank you!
David Cameron's announcement that he was planning on getting private enterprise to fund roads in the UK has to be a contender for the worst idea since the Potassium Teapot. While, in principle, the idea of private enterprise building new roads isn't necessarily a terrible idea, any private involvement in refurbishing existing roads, widening motorways or improving junctions would be a financial mess. In this case, private enterprise would borrow some money (probably from a pension fund), widen the motorway or make the junction better, then get some sort of pay off from the Government based on road/junction usage. Unfortunately, ...
You'll see below that this Breckland Labour councillor Terry Jermy has responded to my previous post about him. I had received an email from Cllr Terry Jermy to say that I had signed some Labour petition about parking in his part of Norfolk. As a non-driving Liberal Democrat who lives in London, I had of course never signed. So, Cllr Jermy, if my alleged signature was 'fake', then how many of the others were? I understand that you have obviously not deliberately forged any signatures (it is presumably an internet spam type thing), but it would clearly be most regrettable ...
London Kurds and their friends in Parliament gathered in the Jubilee Room of the House of Commons this lunchtime to celebrate the spring-time festival of Newroz. The event was hosted by Jeremy Corbyn MP, a stalwart supporter of minority rights, as well as a representative of one of the areas of north London with the ...
At the risk of incurring the wrath of the excellent Mark Thomson, who asked the other day 'what is the point of a blog that just cuts and pastes official party press releases' (and he's got a point), I thought it would be worth posting Nick's note to members yesterday post budget - because I have something to say about it. But first - here's the note... Dear Richard, We can be proud that the biggest tax cuts in today's Budget go to millions of working families. As a result of this Budget, someone working a full week on minimum ...
Yesterday the Chancellor delivered the coalition government's second full Budget. The dust is now settling a little and it is becoming clear what the reaction is. Broadly speaking, the Labour Party's immediate response - focusing largely on the 50p rate cut - does not appear to have caught the imagination of journalists. Almost every newspaper ran a front page highlighting the tax allowance changes for pensioners. The Times notionally led with the 50p rate cut, but still put the pensioners on the front page. "Granny Tax"So, what is this reform? Essentially, the Chancellor has decided to merge the current age-related ...
Here are my personal pick of the top 9 points from this year's Budget... 1. A definite Lib Dem win on raising the income tax threshold Raising the income tax threshold — indeed, the biggest ever uplift, to £9,205 — is undoubtedly a big win for the Lib Dems. It's two months since Nick Clegg made the unusual move of publicly calling on the Coalition to move "further and faster" on taking more of the lowest-paid out of tax, the number one Lib Dem manifesto priority at the last general election. Evidence from the first 'snap' budget poll shows 92% ...
Another year and, whilst the media response is pretty feckless response, I am moved to comment on what is, in the round, a pretty good Budget by Messrs Osborne and Alexander in difficult circumstances.Firstly, income tax rates and allowances. Taking another chunk of the poor out of the income tax bracket is clearly a big success for Liberal Democrats, and we can look forward to telling the public that we delivered on that key commitment in 2015. Next, I suggest, increasing and synchronising the National Insurance Contributions (NIC) threshold and taking full-timers on the minimum wage out of both income ...
George Osborne is gradually cementing a reputation as an effective Chancellor of the Exchequer and skilful politician. He certainly understands coalition politics and how to play for the longer term. Yesterday's was a very interesting budget. There a two schools of thought about coalition governments. One may be characterised as "lowest common denominator": all the bold ideas are knocked out and we are left with a few messy compromises that lack any kind of coherence. The second is the "natural selection of ideas" in which the ideas of the various parties have to compete on their merits and the weak ...
The response from Labour and the tabloids to yesterday's Budget have majored on the patronisingly termed 'Granny Tax'. However Ed Balls and colleagues must be delighted that so far everyone seems to have missed that the last Government froze the Age Allowance between 2009-11 – or as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Rachel Reeves would term it Labour imposed 'an enormous stealth tax for older people'. * Sara Bedford is a local councillor and member of the Lib Dem Voice editorial team.
The big substantive Liberal Democrat wins that yesterday's budget contained will be familiar to regular readers by now. However, I think it's worth highlighting once again just how big a deal the increase in the personal allowance announced yesterday is. A rise of £1100 is unprecedented, and means that those earning the minimum wage and working full time will have seen their income tax bills halved because of the Liberal Democrats. Before Nick Clegg intervened publicly back in February to call for the threshold to be raised faster than previously anticipated, the working assumption was that it would be raised ...
Manchester's Chief Executive, Sir Howard Bernstein, has called yesterday's budget a "game changer" for Manchester. In an E mail to staff, he welcomes the budget announcements that will place Manchester front and centre when it comes to growth and job ... Continue reading →
Thu 22nd
14:19
We need 'shovel ready projects'...my reaction to the Budget and debut piece for 'Shifting Grounds'
Give us a New Deal, Nick!
It was Mother's Day last Sunday, in case you didn't notice, and I was going to write a blog about mothers then, but didn't find the time. But recently I've confirmed a few insights which I'd like to explore here. Where to begin? I suppose I should lay my cards on the table and tell you I was brought up in a single parent family, by my grandmother, and it is that experience that informs my own attitudes towards parenthood. The first promise I made to myself was that when I had children, they would know me, and I would ...
To help make your campaigning as easy as possible, we've gathered together some of the essential campaign tools, paperwork and information that you'll need as the campaign goes on. Do let us know if there is anything else that you need and we will add it in. Campaign artwork tools and advice Useful fonts including Democrat Sans and Helvetica Neue (zip file) Liberal Democrat logos (zip file) Liberal Democrat clipart Liberal Democrat colours Buy PagePlus x4 software More campaign resources also available on the Liberal Democrat Members' Site Watch Liberal Democrat training videos and download factsheets from OSKAR Campaign template ...
As spotted by Simon Dickson: From 2014, new online services will only go live if the responsible minister can demonstrate that they themselves can use the service successfully. Knowing how un-online some ministers are, this could result in quite a lot of fun... but also is a very clever way of setting a simple, broad but useful standard.
Discrimination on the grounds of race, faith, sexual orientation, disability or gender is wrong whichever way you look at it. No one with any clear conscience could suggest otherwise. However, that doesn't mean to say that we as a society get to simply make outcasts of every organisation that we disagree with. The issue of CARE ...
Nearly two years into the Coalition, and with the Health and Social Care Bill now on its way to Buckingham Palace for Royal Assent, now seems a good time to reflect on the future of ideas within the Party. There will be those who will wonder why a self-confessed bureaucrat, not known for a yen for policy wonkery, would be worrying about such things. And I guess that they would have a point. But from a process perspective, I suggest that the way that we make policy is now flawed. At the moment, the hub through which virtually all policy ...
Cambridge Liberal Democrat MP Julian Huppert has posted his response to yesterdays Coalition budget announcement via the Cambridge City Liberal Democrat Activists mailing list (in response to a request from Cllr Sarah Whitebread); "Hi all, I'm still, like you, trying to digest all the details of the budget. But I thought I'd write to you with some of the key issues, and my thoughts on it. I've seen Sarah W's email, and I know I'll miss out many details - ask me and I'll do my best to answer them. I think it's fairly clear which bits of the budget ...
Cambridge Liberal Democrat MP Julian Huppert has posted his response to yesterdays Coalition budget announcement via the Cambridge City Liberal Democrat Activists mailing list (in response to a request from Cllr Sarah Whitebread); "Hi all, I'm still, like you, trying to digest all the details of the budget. But I thought I'd write to you with some of the key issues, and my thoughts on it. I've seen Sarah W's email, and I know I'll miss out many details - ask me and I'll do my best to answer them. I think it's fairly clear which bits of the budget ...
Read about the new anti-drinking crackdown in Rosehill Park West by visiting my local blog here
Another Deputy Prime Minister's Questions and another set of traded attacks. Harriet Harman has a go about the 50p tax rate and tax credit cuts. Nick Clegg lobs back this salvo: Next month, this Government will take more than 1 million people on low pay out of paying income tax altogether. Next month, we will deliver the largest cash increase in the state pension ever. There will be no more of Labour's 75p pension insults. Next month, thousands of children from disadvantaged backgrounds will receive an uplift in the pupil premium to give them the head start in life that ...
Earth Hour 2012 will be held on 31st March, between 8.30pm and 9.30pm. It has been organised by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) who are asking households and businesses all over the world to turn off all non-essential lights and appliances during this hour to raise awareness of climate change. In support of this, Stockport Council will be turning off the external spotlights on the Town Hall and is also asking its employees and residents to take part in the initiative by switching off their lights at home for one hour. Councillor Shan Alexander, Executive Member for the Environment, said: ...
The argument for, and against, free schools in Suffolk has taken a curiously sinister turn.In last year's District Council elections, one of the more lively campaigns was in Stradbroke and Laxfield, where local school governor, library campaigner and self-confessed geek, James Hargrave, took up the cudgels for the Liberal Democrats against the incumbent Conservative (described on the ballot paper as Independent, but we all know what that usually means). And, whilst he lost, his campaign was seldom dull.Afterwards, he returned to his two personal campaigning issues, libraries and education, giving the County Council a hard time, and highlighting efforts by ...
Read about the new LED 'slow down' signs in Sutton Common Road by visiting my local blog here.
Read about the meeting with residents of Rosewood Gardens over the St Helier hospital nursery planning application by visiting my local blog here
Perhaps the title of this post should be, what will the Lib Dem's big idea be in 2015? After all, it is unlikely the party will give away too many policy ideas while in government and three years away from a general election. The Liberal party always stood out, for better or worse, as having a very different vision of society to the other two parties. Some of its policies were ridiculed while others were adopted and became mainstream. For quite some time now all three parties have had similar policies. The arguments are over emphasis and methods as opposed ...
Read about the new hordings on the former Burger King site on Sutton High Street by visiting my local blog here
Early Day Motions are like petitions that only MPs can sign. Some MPs refuse to sign them, Ministers are not allowed to.At this link you can find a list of those that I have signed.There has been an interesting debate about EDM 2893 - Use of the phrase ton of bricks which is currently signed by two lib dems, one conservative and three Labour MPs.That this House notes the reports in the BBC and
If one were interested in the demographics to which different newspapers aim to appeal, one could do a lot worse than look at the headlines this morning. Compare and contrast: The Daily Telegraph: 'GRANNY TAX' HITS 5M PENSIONERS The Daily Mail: OSBORNE PICKS THE POCKETS OF PENSIONERS The Times: THE 50P GAMBLER The Guardian: PENSIONERS ...
Figures released last week show teenage pregnancies in Southwark fell in 2009/10. The fall was dramatic with 192 conceptions in Southwark by those under 18 in 2010 compared to 233 in 2009 and 318 in 1998. What fantastic news. I'm really pleased that the work done by the previous Lib Dem administration which ended two months after the 2009/10 period has resulted in such a huge reduction in teenage pregnancies. But will this rate of conception stay here or go lower? Part of teenage pregnancy is seeing others do it so clearly that part of the equation is lower but ...
My dear husband is not a Granny. And he'd better not be a Grandad for a very long time to come, given that our daughter is not yet a teenager. He is of an age to be affected by the so called "Granny Tax" eventually. Now, you might, if you wish, feel a bit of sympathy for poor Bob. It must feel sometimes like George Osborne has pulled his name out of a hat and decided just to chip away at his income. First he decided that in the year Bob reaches 65, the State Pension age will go up ...
At the end of this answer, the Home Secretary could have said "by ringing up", "by writing in" or some such words. But no, she went for "from the internet access", resulting in a superbly ironic self-referential loop. Ma'am, I salute you. Mr David Hanson (Delyn) (Lab): Why has the Home Secretary ruled out a free-post leaflet or candidate booklet for police and crime commissioner elections? Will she now heed the serious concerns raised by the Electoral Commission that internet-only access to candidate materials will disadvantage the poor, the old and those in rural areas, and, accordingly, help to address ...
Once upon a time a Chancellor of the Exchequer would have been forced to resign for as much as breathing a word about what was going to be in the Budget before he (it's never been a "she") stood up in the House of Commons. By contrast, this must have been the most leaked budget in history. This pre-budget transparency bit George Osborne in the bum when observers seized on the one major surprise, the freezing and planned elimination of age-related tax allowances, now dubbed the "granny tax". (What about grandpas, I wonder.) Generally pensioners have done deservedly well out ...
The link is to the debate on litigation friends yesterday. I will copy the whole of the debate here:John Hemming (Birmingham, Yardley) (LD): I thank Mr Speaker for allowing this debate.If somebody is in an accident and ends up in a coma, they need a litigation friend to instruct a solicitor to sue for damages. A litigation friend, or next friend, is very different from a Mackenzie friend. A
We've heard lots about Labour mayoral candidate "Red Ken" Livingstone's tax affairs recently, as this Telegraph article reports. Then we have Labour leader Ed Miliband turn up in a Rolls Royce to a football match. Leaving aside the clear communications ineptitude about his diary for that day, it's not the best look for the leader of a party which claims to be all about social justice. Especially when he has such a strong record of standing up to rich and powerful media moguls whose operations are under investigation at the moment. * Newshound sets the agenda, as you would expect ...
Many thanks to Rob Simmons who has found the details of how to have your say on the Pasty Tax. The simplest way is to email david.roberts4@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk Alternatively, please write to: David Roberts HMRC VAT Projects Team 3C/10, 100 Parliament Street, London, SW1A 2BQ A summary of responses will be published and the responses considered before a final version of the legislation is laid before Parliament in the summer. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2012/vat-con-4801.pdf Tweet
To the EU: How not to hold a consultation « mmmullen's Blog "Increasingly, "email us your thoughts and ideas" is being used by those who don't really want those thoughts and ideas but want to say they have asked" - esp if the email address in question bounces! (tags: eu ) Met Police lose 2005 rape handling report « Complicity London bobbies mislay evidence of own incompetence. (tags: sexandgenderandsexuality ) The Eyjafjallajökull Event - Research on Complex Systems Beautiful pictures, must read carefully to see what it means. (tags: mathematics ) Elections in Georgia: Degrees of control | The Economist ...
Just a quick reminder that North Area Committee (Arbury, King's Hedges, East/West Chesterton) will be meeting tonight from 6pm for planning and 7:30pm for the Open Forum which is your opportunity to question your local Councillors. Tonight's North Area will not be at the Manor but will instead be at the Shirley School in East Chesterton. Please come along and make your voice heard.
Thu 22nd
09:50
Message from Sir Howard Bernstein "City Deal & Broadband Funding: great deals for Manchester"
Sir Howard Bernstein, Chief Executive of the City Council, sent the following email this morning presumably to all Manchester City Council staff: When I last wrote to thank staff for their hard work and support, at the end of last year, I promised to keep you informed of new ways we would maximise the impact of public spending to continue delivering the best results for our residents and making the most of the resources available. So, at a time of significant uncertainty about the resources we will recieve from the Government for 2013/14 and beyond, I'm delighted to share with ...
At lunch time I scared myself by contemplating the size of the chickens that lay the giant chocolate Easter eggs. - [IMG: [livejournal.com profile] ] pinkweasel has the best brain in the world and I adore her. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
The main redeeming feature about the budget is that it is obvious which part is owned by which party. Would a Conservative budget have brought in tax cuts for the lower incomes and move towards a clampdown on tax avoidance by the wealthy? Would a Liberal Democrat budget have reduced the top rate of tax, partly paid for by a raid on pensioners? Of course not - you don't need to be a political animal to know that. But it is a coalition government and hence a coalition budget - both parties must stand or fall by it. So while ...
It was a stroke of marketing genius to declare that the national dish of Britain was Chicken Tikka Masala. A dish almost totally devoid of Indian origin – but exotic enough to make us seem comfortable with multiculturalism. I like a good curry. Damn. Even the word curry is a generic Britishism designed to cover any spicy food from lands afar. Every Indian restaurant in the UK offers "The Most Authentic Cuisine". I know what I like – but I've no way to judge its authenticity. One of our hosts asked where I wanted to go out for dinner last ...
I've just set up a 'Say No to the Pasty Tax' group on Facebook to build support for the campaign to save one of Cornwall's biggest manufacturing sectors (and thousands of jobs) from a 20% VAT hike. If you support the campaign, whatever your politics, please join the group by clicking here or searching for Say No to the Pasty Tax on Facebook. Tweet
After a teenage boy was hit by a speeding car on Broadway, Keith Holloway consulted residents in the area on having a 20mph zone for the roads. The proposal is to extend the current 20mph zone on High Grove Road and Milton Crescent to include Broadway Daylesford Road Daylesford Crescent Daylesford Close Broadway Avenue Arlington Road Barcheston Road Cherington Road Brookfield Crescent The residential section of Kingsway off Broadway Over 90% of residents who responded to Keith's survey have told us they're in favour of the proposal, so we've now asked the Council to conduct a formal consultation as part ...
"Budget 2012: new tycoon tax in victory for Nick Clegg" – so reports the Daily Telegraph: In a significant victory for the Liberal Democrats, the Chancellor effectively introduced a 25 per cent minimum rate of tax in the Budget. Under the changes, he will limit how much people offset their tax bills by investing in businesses or donating to charity. Anyone seeking to claim more than £50,000 of tax relief in any one year will have a cap set at 25 per cent of their income from 2013. Accountants said this means the wealthiest will have to pay at least ...
Cardiac specialists wondering if the religious might give them a little credit for Muamba survival "With headlines proclaiming that the prayers of a nation have helped Muamba back from the brink, experts have described this assertion as 'fucking nonsense'. "What saved his life is the years of dedication to scientifically proven treatments from a range of medical professionals you can actually see." "If you want to credit God with anything, why not blame God for giving him the heart attack in the first place?"" (tags: funny ) Anti-Street-Harrassment video and commentary thereon. "If you're a man, you have so much ...
Probably because I spent too much time watching Gordon Brown deliver budgets I have a golden rule - never comment on a budget in the aftermath but wait, digest and analyse.....yes I know I broke my rule this year by having a few twitter debates but winding up some of these lefties is fun. Anyhoo, onto the issues. It felt a bit flat, probably because just about everything has been leaked beforehand like many budgets you have the good and the bad. The Good. I'm really happy with the further raising of the income tax threshold Yesterdays rise will equate ...
"Granny Tax". Those words could well mark the political graves of George Osborne and David Cameron. A bit like "Poll Tax" did for Margaret Thatcher. Freezing the pensioner tax thresholds for existing pensioners and abolishing them for new pensioners is rapidly becoming the main story of yesterday's budget. Which is interesting because in advance it appeared it might have been the reduction of the top 50% rate to 45% that would generate the most headlines. Labour however quickly seem to have correctly realised that the pensioner changes are likely to have the most traction for them. It's an easy message ...
A tour round Tring between 10.30 and 11.00 p.m. last night found that the lights were back on in those areas where they were out earlier in the week. It appears that the fault in the control units has caused the lights not to come on at all on odd nights. Herts Highways have stopped installing any more new units and are monitoring the affected areas closely while we wait for replacement control units. Contact me on nick.hollinghurst@hertscc.gov.uk if you need to.
My dear husband is not a Granny. And he'd better not be a Grandad for a very long time to come, given that our daughter is not yet a teenager. He is of an age to be affected by the so called "Granny Tax" eventually. Now, you might, if you wish, feel a bit of sympathy for poor Bob. It must feel sometimes like George Osborne has pulled his name out of a hat and decided just to chip away at his income. First he decided that in the year Bob reaches 65, the State Pension age will go up ...
I have now lodged my nomination papers for May's Council elections. I have contested every council election since 1990 having first been elected to the old Lothian Region in 1994. A steady trickle of other candidates drifted in to the Mandela Room where the officers scrutinised the forms. Among them was my Vice Convener Norman Work. Norman is the SNP councillor for Almond, the Ward he has represented since 2007. The Nationalist riding high in the polls had considered putting up two candidates in the three member seat. Norman having a surname beginning with W would be further down the ...
This morning's Western Mail reports that female Assembly Members are to benefit from a series of seminars advising them how to deal with the unreasonable expectations from media commentators. Professor Laura McAllistern who has devised the course with a colleague from Liverpool University, explains that the last 20 years have seen a gradual increase in the number of women being elected to their national legislatures and over the past few years, a steady rise in women winning the top jobs of party leader, president and prime minister. She argues that the media landscape and news reporting strategies have not kept ...
We've been told of an anonymous leaflet being pushed through doors that opposes the changes on Gatley Green – especially the plan to block off the little cut-through road. At the same time, we've continued to receive emails from residents around the Green in support of the plans. The plans for Gatley Green can be found here. No changes are being proposed on the Green area itself at this stage. The short cut-through road will be blocked off with bollards (there are legal reasons why that's a better option than removing it completely and grassing it over, though that remains ...
Even if Labour somehow ended up in power today, with a new Budget introduced by Prime Minister Ed Miliband straight away, Labour would not reintroduce the 50p rate. So said Labour's Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna on the BBC last night. Speaking not about 2015 but about what Labour was do in "a Budget tomorrow" (and yesterday's tomorrow is today's today), he said Labour would not reintroduce the 50p rate: Add that to the fact that for 12 years and 11 months out of 13 years in power Labour did not have a 50p rate, and all the sound and ...
This is the latest update I've received from council officers. Generally good and progress news. Site 1 (Lordship Lane / East Dulwich Grove) is now fully complete and was commissioned for use at 9:30am yesterday. I am pleased to inform you that the facility is working well and is already heavily used by pedestrians. The operation of the signals is also assisting with local traffic management by assisting vehicles turning in and out of East Dulwich Grove whilst the lights are red to general traffic on Lordship Lane. Site 2 (Outside the Supermarket) has been constructed (including all civils works, ...
Rob Reid uses ©opyright Math™ to explain how it could be... Enjoy! Andrew
Plans by the Government to introduce VAT on hot takeaway food from bakeries and supermarkets will actually mean a pasty tax which will cost Cornwall jobs. Cornwall is rightly proud of the pasty - and pasty makers worked hard with Lib Dem MEP Graham Watson to get EU protected status for it. But adding 20% VAT to the price will inevitably see a drop in sales with no extra money going to the baker. Lower sales will mean job losses in areas which cannot afford them. The Government has said that they are consulting on this proposal. I hope that ...
Residents have complained to me about damage to the steps (see right) leading down from Pentland Avenue to Scott Street. I contacted the council's Roads Maintenance Partnership who have now advised me that: "An order has been raised by the Road Maintenance Partnership inspector for the repair of a hole at the top of the steps on Pentland Avenue with a timescale for completion of three days."
At my meeting with the sheltered tenants at the Ancrum Place and and Morven Terrace last month, residents raised the poor condition of the pavement in Morven Terrace near to the Tullideph Road junction. Yesterday, I had a site visit with the roads inspector for the area, who has kindly agreed to my request for footpath repairs - see right. I am very pleased at this as the pavement is currently in a poor state.
At the AGRA meeting tonight a number of interesting local issues were discussed: 1. Firstly the crime figures for 2011 were discussed. They showed that crime had gone down by about a third compared to 2010. However in the first month of the year it appeared that motor vehicle crime had gone up. The advice given was from people not to leave items on view on the passenger seat or the back seat. Also it was said that March and October are times when cutting your hedge was more vital (as they allow burglars to hide from people passing by). ...
I was in the record crowd at Elland Road of 57,892 on 15 March 1967 v Sunderland with my Dad and brother Gordon. On 20th March 2012 I was at Elland Road with my lad Mark and Grandson Daniel to witness Leeds United's heaviest ever home defeat, 3-7 against Nottingham Forest, in a crowd of 21,367. We may not be famous anymore but we can still make history.
