The Social Liberal Forum obviously fulfils a need within the Liberal Democrats, as the healthy turnout for its conference at King's College Waterloo campus in London today testified. Since the party went into government it has been important to have a social liberal network thinking about what the Party's distinctive narrative should be. Nick Clegg, ...
The darkroom orgies of old came up in conversation today, and the general consensus (of the whopping two people involved) was that with the miserable weather in the UK right now, we all need something to brighten up our week. So, here we go again! Here's the past DW orgies, if you're in need of inspiration, or just fancy a read: 2009, 2010 and 2011. Dreamwidth Darkroom Orgy, v4 Comment with your account name. If you see someone who takes your fancy, leave them a message describing exactly what depraved and thoroughly rude things you would like to get up ...
It's been a busy week as County Council Chairman. A very busy week. Attending the Bwcabus '2' Launch in Lampeter. Thanking Prince Charles for his visit to Aberystwyth where he met with victims of the recent floods. The Bwcabus '2' launch in Lampeter at Monday lunchtime with Welsh Government Minister Carl Sargeant AM was followed by a special visit by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to Ceredigion where they met flood victims in the Council's Canolfan Rheidol offices later that afternoon. Helping Launch Ceredigion County Council's Local Mortgage Scheme with Lloyds TSB in Aberystwyth This ...
Just thought I'd do a quick post reminding myself that despite all the bad stuff in the world (and many bad things which I haven't mentioned on my blog have happened to me and my friends in recent weeks, so if I've seemed grumpier or less talkative in comments, there have been reasons), there's still ...
[View the story "Nick Clegg gives the William Beveridge lecture" on Storify] Nick Clegg gives the William Beveridge lecture Speaking at the at Social Liberal Forum Conference 2012 on Saturday morning, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg gave the William Beveridge memorial lecture. Here are my tweets of the event, interspersed with some links to older blog posts that expanded on some of the issues which came up. Storified by Mark Pack · Sat, Jul 14 2012 10:25:17 Impressively large turnout at #slfconf. Well done Mary + colleagues.Mark Pack Nick Clegg giving William Beveridge Lecture 2012Mark Pack .@nick_clegg praises Social Liberal ...
Liberal England comes to you from a hotel bedroom in York with a slightly flaky Internet connection. Before I left home I sent the following tweet: I'm against a two-tier system in education says Westminster Old Boy #slfconfSome people on Twitter have interpreted this as an attack on Nick Clegg, but if it was an attack on anyone it was an attack on his audience. We already have a two-tier system because Britain today is dominated by the products of private schools. This is not so surprising. In a contest between a ruthlessly competitive private system and a public system ...
David Laws may have resigned from the Coalition's cabinet two years ago, but (after an initial period of wondering whether to quit politics altogether) his influence hasn't actually waned much. His interests range across economic and social policy: though he was the party's education spokesman in opposition, he was a natural fit as chief secretary to the treasury in government, however briefly. He is widely expected to make a return to government at the next reshuffle, and has given a number of media interviews in the past few weeks. He spoke to the Telegraph (the paper whose revelations brought him ...
There's a hugely technical report that has been produced by a group of Cornwall councillors one a process which could have significant impact on the way in which services are delivered in future. At one end of the spectrum, we could be seeing a move towards the privatisation of many front line services like libraries and one stop shops. The process is known as the support services joint venture and the report has been prepared by a single issue panel of councillors which has been allowed to see the confidential documents relating to the formation of the joint venture. About ...
Yesterday, the New Statesman ran a story saying "Andrew Lansley To Announce Removal of Cap On NHS Private Income". I knew, instantly, on reading the story, that it was completely false. It had to be, because Lansley doesn't, under the NHS Act, have the power to raise private income for NHS trusts. A couple of ...
The Liberal Democrat campaign for Action on Land Tax and Economic reform has recently released a new video to explain the virtues of a Land Value Tax — described by ALTER as 'making taxation more progressive and addressing the injustice of economic rent, it would encourage development and boost the economy. It's the kind of measure that our country is in desperate need of right now.' (Available on YouTube here.) The campaign doesn't start and stop with a video, though, with Land Value Tax also being pushed in parliament as an alternative form of local taxes: This comes at an ...
By Kevin McNamara This is a long fought argument and maybe one that everyone that will read this is tired of hearing but nonetheless, it is an argument that all liberals should support. As liberals, we oppose the concentration of arbitrary concentration of power - and you don't get more arbitrary than your head of ...
I'm not quite up to date with Big Finish, as there are several Sixth Doctor audios which I have yet to write up, but I have now listened to the three most recent Fifth Doctor stories, featuring Turlough, Tegan and Nyssa (set just after Nyssa's departure in Terminus, the idea being that she has been picked up by her former crew-mates several decades late in her own timeline). There is one thing about The Emerald Tiger, by Barnaby Edwards, which is quite remarkable and superlative: the incidental music, by Howard Carter, is some of the best I can remember from ...
Since my Raspberry Pi arrived a few weeks ago, I've been tinkering with it rather a lot. For example, I'm currently on my 3rd operating system build. I've already been through the Debian squeeze and wheezy beta, and last night I started using a version of the Raspbian port (derived from Debian, but complied to take advantage of the floating point processor on the Pi, meaning better performance for most things). All this tinkering means that I haven't got as far as I hoped with my attempt to learn a little more Python by creating a port of a Star ...
[IMG: Dawn, by Will Barnet] This was a freebie book slipped into the goodie bag for a conference I spoke at in Camden, Maine, in early 2007. I confess that my knowledge of Maine is pretty much restricted to the two-hour drive through a snow-filled landscape from Portland airport to the conference venue, and my knowledge of print-making as an art is not a lot more than my knowledge of Maine, so it is not very remarkable that it took me five and a half years to get around to reading it. It was published in conjunction with The Maine ...
When I travel overseas, I never really feel I am properly abroad until I have tuned into the BBC World Service on Short Wave. Indeed, I never feel really abroad these days, because even after tuning into the World Service, they don't play "Lillibulero" before the pips any more. Sob. Sob. The first YouTube clip below is of a classic 1995 short wave broadcast of Lillibulero before the pips. This is to pay tribute to the World Service, who moved out of Bush House in the Strand this week. While I was searching YouTube I happened upon a video the ...
121133: Change of use from B&B to multiple occupancy, East Street. 121212: Retrospective application for replacement doors and windows, Castle Road. 121248: Externally illuminated fascia sign and internally illuminated internal sign, Lion Walk. 121275: Proposed erection of blue plaque, Head Street. Please note that I am a member of the Council's Planning Committee for the next municipal year. This means that I'm required to act in a 'quasi-judicial' manner with regard to applications before the Committee and as such, can't make comments in favour or against planning applications as I may then have pre-judged them before they come to Committee. ...
IEA Director General Mark Littlewood speaks at the IEA's event, debating eight years since the Orange Book.
In reaction to the Tories failing to deliver on their Coalition Agreement over Lords reform last week, there have been some ponderings as to what the Lib Dems should ask for instead. A common thread is Vince replacing George Osborne as Chancellor, as proposed by Millennium Dome and Richard Morris among others. Personally, I'm with ...
The Telegraph highlights why the current law on surveillance by local Councils and Government needs reforming when it reports that almost 1,000 innocent people have been wrongly spied on by the police, security services and town halls because of errors in "snooping" requests. They say that two people were even arrested and wrongly accused of crimes they did not commit because officials wrote down incorrect details, a surveillance watchdog revealed. In addition a local council wrongly used snooping powers designed to combat crime to spy on a family it suspected of not living in the right school catchment area: The ...
Sadly, the Launceston Show 2012, scheduled for Thursday 26th, has been cancelled due to the weather conditions. Show Secretary Jill Stevenson writes on the show website that other dates were considered but none were suitable. That's sad news for local farmers and businesses and for all who enjoy the day out. But it's understandable that if the organisers know the ground conditions will be foul then better they cancel now than nearer the time. Looking forward to 2013. Tweet
Sometime ago Southwark purchased aerial heat photos of Southwark. It shows blue for cold, through green and amber to red for hot ie lots of heat leaking away. Attached is a more detailed copy of that map superimposed on OS map showing property outlines. Fascinating. Take a look at your East Dulwich neighbourhood. In East Dulwich ward 625 uninsulated lofts out of 3,500. Heat map East Dulwich We've had one program to try and persuade more people to insulated their lofts. Clearly lots more to do.
I am spending today at the annual conference of the Social Liberal Forum which is being held on the campus of King's College London near Waterloo. There is a rather packed agenda with the focus being on "social justice across generations". I've just listened to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg give the 'William Beveridge Memorial Lecture'. As I write this I am listening to Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey MP talking about the intersection between the environment and economics. You should be able to see a live stream of the conference from the SLF website. ...
It's something experimental, and who knows if it will amuse anyone but me, but I've just created a new blog called Mundane Cliffhangers. It does what it says in the name, really – just simple situations containing mild peril and easily-resolved dilemmas, but just the situation, not the actual resolution. The idea is to post one a day, so as not to overload people with mundane tension, and to keep them as mundane as possible. There's also a Twitter feed.
I joined the Lib Dems because a friend said I should. She wasn't a Lib Dem but on the run up to the 2010 election I had a daily argument with a group of my friends who read the Daily Mail about not voting Tory, or Labour either and what the Lib Dems had to offer. This is interesting because apparently more Lib Dem voters read the Daily Mail than any other paper. I had read that sentence a few times cos it's easy to misconstrue. I personally believe this has more to do with the Daily Mails circulation, (very ...
Tim & Freya the full story & Conclusion! Couple break up on train, fellow passenger live-tweets it all. (tags: romance ) TomTom Congestion Index Hooray! Brussels was most congested city 2011, now overtaken by Warsaw, Rome, Marseilles! (tags: belgium ) George Monbiot - For Those Who Love Life Activists who are attacking the fish industry. (tags: environment ) Despatches from Caledonia: It's Not You, It's Me. Officially. On being diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome at the age of 46. (tags: autism )
One of the perils of blogging and social media is you occasionally bash something out without thinking about it properly, and the next thing you know, someone's written a blogpost that gets to the top of the Golden Dozen pointing out you're an idiot. *sighs* So first, here's the offending RT and tweet I sent last week that so annoyed Neil. These have not gone down well with Neil ( and not just because of my spelling mistakes) who makes some excellent points. So let me clarify.. I agree that the Financial Services sector is of vital importance to the ...
Time away with Sophie, Sam and baby #2 Dear all, Just a brief announcment of what is coming up over the next month or so. As some of you are probably aware my Son (second child) is due in just about two weeks time and I will be taking a four week break to spend with my family. This means that pretty much all Twitter communication will cease to happen and unfortunately there will be little activity on this blog as well. There may be the odd post go up but service will be suspended for the most part. To ...
At the end of Matt Roebuck's guest post Tommie Smith: The Man Behind the Image I mentioned the film Salute: The Movie. This was made by Matt Norman. He is the nephew of Peter Norman, the white Australian silver medalist who also took part in the demonstration. Here is the trailer for the film
German circumcision ban: Is it a parent's right to choose? BIG can of worms. Very big and very wormy. (tags: ) BBC News - 'Swift justice' plans revealed by ministers This makes me worry. Just on instinct. (tags: ) David AG on What "freedom of the press" should mean (tags: ) New Statesman - Cameron needs to stop rewarding the lucky (tags: ) 10 principles for the management of internal elections in membership organisations « Strange Thoughts Excellent post on how to run internal elections. In my view all elections for membership-only bodies should be run on The Strange Principles. ...
Spotted in the wild: (You too can get your own pointing prop here.)
Something a little longer for the weekend – a talk explaining how the British electoral system works, and in particular why some parties need more votes to get a winning number of seats than other parties: * Mark Pack has written 101 Ways To Win An Election and produces a monthly newsletter about the Liberal Democrats.
Time for a final dip into Alice Hawkins and the Suffragette Movement in Edwardian Leicester. We have read about suffragettes in Market Harborough and Isobel Logan, but what struck me most in the book was the level of direct action in and around Leicester by supporters of women's suffrage. There was nothing quite as startling as the arson that badly damaged the church at Breadsall in Derbyshire, but it came close. Leicester pillar boxes in Eastgates, Humberstone Road, Rutland Street and Newark Street were attacked. So was Leicester Golf Course on Stoughton Drive, where 'No Votes, No Golf' was carved ...
So, the day where they turn the map the other way around and put the big mountains at the start of it becomes the day the breakaway stays away and delivers a winner. Yesterday was the Tour's equivalent of declaration bowling in cricket – everyone has a contractual obligation to be there and deliver a result, but only a few are going to put real effort in. It was down to a combination of factors – riders tired from two tough days in the mountains, a course for the stage that the sprinters didn't fancy, and a breakaway that was ...
As we all know, David Cameron is, this weekend, a considerably weaker Prime Minister than last - as Jonathan Calder puts it the new John Major of British politics - thanks to his inability to deliver on Lords Reform. He has two main problems - firstly, he has to find a way of reasserting control over his party. And secondly - he has to find a way of keeping us 'on side' and supporting the government he leads. To do the second, the rumblings are that he can't deliver much on Lords Reform - I've heard that the basic proposal ...
For the last decade and more, the publication of the Interception of Communication Commissioner's Annual Reports has gone largely unremarked, even when they have contained news of copious errors or news (by omission) of a Commissioner not investigating evidence of widespread breaking of the rules he is meant to oversee (see my previous posts). This year, however, with the Draft Communications Bill hanging over us and given a helping hand by a deft MP, it is rather different, as this sampling of coverage shows: Two wrongfully arrested after comms data blunders Flawed communications data led to two people being wrongfully ...
Unfortunately due to the amount of rain we've had overnight and in the last few days the field is not in a state where we can actually use it. The Fete Committee have met this morning and have taken the difficult decision to cancel the fete. We are currently trying to contact everyone who we know is coming, if you get this message (and we haven't already spoken to you!) please let us know! Apologies for the short notice, we hope you understand. Andy Pellew (on behalf of the Fete Organisers)
Mitt Romney was listed on SEC documents after 1999 as being "The chairman of the board, the chief executive and the president" of Bain capital. He has just had his first major round of interviews of the Presidential campaign to tell the nation that, after 1999: I had absolutely no role in the management of Bain capital after February of 1999 .....apart, that is, from being "The chairman of the board, the chief executive and the president." I think Romney may have just imapaled himself on the horns of a dilemma which will haunt him for the rest of his ...
Period: June 6th 2012 to July 4th 2012 Calls for area:- 202 Community related calls:-32 Alcohol seizures:- A successful "Street safe Operation" was carried out on a very rainy Friday 15th June. Alcohol workers were situated at Consett Academy North and the Neighbourhood Police Team went looking for youths who either had alcohol with them or had been drinking. The youths were then taken home to parents for words of advice. Youths were stopped near Consett Belle Vue Football Ground and in the town centre. Home Burglaries:- 1 House entered via insecure kitchen window on Villa Real Estate. Items removed ...
Yesterday was the 45th Anniversary of the death of the first British rider to wear the famous Maillot Jaune, Tom Simpson. So how did a Brit who was wearing that jersey for the most consecutive days go about marking the day? Well on the day's first climb the Col du Grand Cucheron he showed us his own climbing legs near the summit by going after a small break away on his own, without the aid of his now famous Sky Mountain Train. However, up the road there was a small breakaway which after the second climb the Col du Granier ...
Back in March, I raised with the City Council the fact that the 'yellow box' markings at the Logie Street/Lochee Road junction were extremely worn. I was promised repainting but this was delayed due to gas main replacement works on Lochee Road during June. The Dundee City Council and Tayside Contracts Roads Maintenance Partnership has now updated me as follows: "Rhino patching works are currently programmed for week commencing 13th August with the road marking works to follow."
I was on Radio Tay News yesterday about the petition I handed in to National Express Dundee on Thursday regarding the Service 5 bus route change. Click 'play' below to listen:
