This started off as a hum drum photo that I took while walking the dog. After a bit of magic from Aviary, it has turned into a little beauty – although I say it myself. [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
Back in July I got an email from Jim Hancock that read: Jessica and Katy Bingham have asked me contact you to ensure that you know that there will be a memorial celebration of the life of their father Viv Bingham (President of the Liberal Party 1981-82) on WED SEPT 12th at 6pm in the Lloyd George Room of the National Liberal Club. .. and so it was a goodly crowd of Liberals assembled at the NLC to remember Viv's life. It was the sort of event Viv would have loved to attend. The range his of friends there from ...
My local hospital trust needs to save money. In fact it needs to save "£1 for every £5" spent to balance its budget within five years. So what is it going to do? What would you do if you had to cut back your budget by 20%? Well if most of my expenditure was on staffing then that would be the first thing I would look at but that's not an easy answer. There is a five-year plan to balance the books but they aren't sure yet what that plan is, but it is good to know that they have ...
So here are the six posts I've picked for your delectation this week: First, Caron reports on the belated (but so so very welcome) appointment of Jo Swinson to the post of Equalities Minister. The "How Upsetting" blog dissects the meme that did the rounds on Twitter and Facebook on the appointment of Maria Miller to the Cabinet post of Minister for Woman and Equalities. I fear I may have been one of those who unquestionably retweeted such a post. Gareth Epps and Mark Thompson are among a number of Lib Dem bloggers who think that Tim Farron shouldn't be ...
Sat 15th
22:26
Liberal Democrats and the Police and Crime Commissioner Elections (by Cllr Andy Pellew)
Liberal Democrat PCC Election Papers As you (might!) be aware there will be elections in a very short while for the newly created post of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Cambridgeshire. The first thing to say is that I completely oppose the creation of these new posts. The problem of lack of democratic control over the police is *not* solved by having a single elected individual overseeing them. Especially when that elected individual is, as will be inevitably the case, Party Political. The cost of an election is staggering, just the deposit for being part of the PCC election ...
The Bevan Foundation have published a blogpost by me previewing the Liberak Democrats Federal Conference. It can be read here. It is though a bit disconcerting to find my piece illustrated by a picture of Kirsty Williams. After all she neither wrote the piece nor is she our Federal leader.
This is the press conference held by the University of Leicester in the city's Guildhall on Wednesday at the which the discovery at Greyfriars was announced. My sources tell me that the Leicester's mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, was originally a sceptic about the project. But he looks like a cat who has got the cream here.
One of the best hours of radio I have heard in the last year came not from a radio station but actually via a podcast from "Talk About the Passion", a podcasting collective who make recordings about aspects of British culture of which they are passionate. The one that I enjoyed the most was from Tim Worthington and Ben Baker about the "Video Nasty" phenomenon. You can download it here. Anyone coming of age in the 1980s or older will remember the furore from the media and politicians about the fact that people could get hold of in some cases ...
At the rally earlier on today, approximately 5000 people attended, to show their presence to stop local hospital downgrades. Some had come via Acton and a larger set of residents from Southall. Myself and fellow ward Councillor Andrew Steed were lucky enough to lead the march, holding the banner at the front as we travelled from Acton Park to Ealing Common. Andrew Steed and Gary Malcolm marching from Acton Park Rare is it that Councillors of all Ealing's political parties, join together. Today was one of those rare occasions. I was lucky to speak to show why the Liberal Democrats ...
MPs who suffer mental health problems will benefit from the government's decision to back a Bill going through Parliament: The Deputy Prime Minister announced that the Government is backing the Mental Health (Discrimination) Bill brought forward by Gavin Barwell MP, which receives Second Reading in the House of Commons today. The Bill repeals section 141 of the Mental Health Act, which sets out that an MP automatically loses their seat if detained under the Act for more than six months. It also amends similar discriminatory provisions in legislation concerning jurors and company directors. Meanwhile, another Police and Crime Commissioner candidate ...
Dignitary visits country. So dignitary wears their smart uniform and is introduced to one of the country's most famous symbols, who kindly turns to face the camera. Of course.
For the purposes of research I have just watched the Sam Bacile video, which I will not link to. The film is ridiculously badly made. The list of clangers is long: Very bad acting Very bad random over-dubbing Laughable false beards "Green screen" usage which abandons the actors in mid-air The lack of a discernable plot etc etc But I can recognise that the script is very offensive to Islam. Such gratuitous insults are to be very much regretted. I very much doubt that the well organised riots and attacks across the Arab world are really caused just by this ...
Sat 15th
15:07
This 'No More Page 3′ petition is highly unlikely to do anything but the sentiment is fab
In the past few days some momentum (well I say some momentum – a few people have blogged on it but actually at the point of writing only 8,772 have signed the petition despite featuring in national newspapers) but lets ignore that and pretend the momentum is gathering. I have strong feelings on Page 3. I don't like it but I don't feel that it should be banned. This petition though isn't about banning it. It is about getting the editor of The Sun to decide that it is time to move on and ditch this aspect of his newspaper. ...
Resident's who make use of the John Clare recreational ground, located between Gunthorpe Road and Hallfields Lane, now have their very own Facebook Page to LIKE, Share and comment on issues relating to the park! Visitors to www.facebook.com/JohnClareRec can already enjoy a wide selection of images and there's even a chance to sign up and support the park by becoming a Friend of John Clare! Commenting, local LIB DEM ward councillor, Darren Fower said: "This new Facebook page is great! It really helps show of the area and also means that local residents have somewhere to share their thoughts and ...
From Stockport Council: Stockport's extraordinary people are to be recognised in the borough's popular citizen awards. The 6th annual Proud of Stockport awards will see individuals, groups or teams that go out of their way to make the borough a better place, recognised at a ceremony at Stockport Town Hall. The Council, its partners, and award sponsors are asking people for their suggestions as to who should be honoured with a Proud of Stockport award. Do you know someone who helps to make Stockport special? Is there an individual, a group, a volunteer, or perhaps a local personality, or someone ...
Having cut £26 million from Council spending over the last two years, Stockport has to cut another £24 million over the next two, and it doesn't get any easier – especially as Stockport was a pretty efficient and low-spending council at the start. The initial proposals are now open for consultation, with the final budget decision being made by councillors next March. As far as possible, the ruling Lib Dem group are seeking to save money by redesigning services and finding inefficiencies to cut out. But it seems certain some services will be affected – it isn't possible to cut ...
Life is all about having fun, and one of the things a lot of people have trouble with, including in political circles, is the ability to laugh at yourself. My friend has a habbit of sending me Clegg jokes and I thought I'd share a couple: I went in to Libdem HQ to buy a couple of Candidate badges. I went up to the desk and ask the receptionist if she has any Libdem merchandise. Sorry we've sold out she said. I know, but do you have any badges. Next one: Nick Clegg walked into a branch of HSBC to ...
Sat 15th
13:00
As we need a bit of cheering up, shall we have a chat about the Tory leadership campaign.
As William Hague once told David Laws, the Tory party is an absolute Monarchy with a taste for regicide, and so 2 years in to the first government with a Tory PM for 13 years and 8% behind in the polls, the knives are out for Cameron. What larks. Reports are that so far 12 (or 14) of the 46 Tory MPs required to trigger a leadership ballot have delivered their letters to the chair of the 1922 committee, with a few more looking at their options. I'd make a few observations about this. 1. Timing - seems a little ...
It's just dawned on me that this time next week, I'll actually be in Brighton for Federal Conference. It'll be the first one I've attended in full since Brighton in 1998. On that occasion, I'd found out I was pregnant just four days before and had to go through Conference neither smoking nor drinking. Anyway, it is very good to see that the party has produced, ahead of Conference, a handy little pocket guide containing all the good things we've done in Government, impeccably illustrated. There are sections on everything from Fair Tax to Jobs to the Environment to crime, ...
Tim Gordon, the CEO of the Liberal Democrats, sends out an Email each week, telling us, among other things, that one of the five points Liberal Democrats should make on the doorstop is that (we are) "Clearing up Labour's economic mess." This statement is highly misleading, if not downright mendacious. I have written to Mr Gordon pointing this out, but received no response, and a letter on the topic to the party newspaper has not been published, or not yet anyway. So this appears to be a point of view the party hierarchy would rather not acknowledge. That the "economic ...
I just couldn't get into Liege, candidate city for Expo 2017, so I'm back on the train again. Alright, it isn't a particularly glamorous train, a mere year younger than I am, but it does the job. But despite its age, and its rather firm second class seats, it's a surprisingly cosmopolitan service, as we're on our way to Maastricht (don't tell any Conservatives, the place has a strange effect on them). Interrailers from Canada, students fretting about the courses availlable to them as part of their International Relations degree (and fretting in English too), a woman from Somalia chatting ...
For over a month the blog has sat idle. It was never planned that way and I was far from idle during the summer. Planning applications come thick an fast, though few require intervention. One of the disadvantages of a town Centre ward is every time a shop or bank wants to change their signage or a new store opens, an email arrives with a reference number, sadly this means each one has to be
Read about the issues debated at Sutton's Environment and Neighbourhood Committee on my local ward blog here.
I was debating with Owen Jones on Twitter last night. He made what I thought was a rather intemperate comment about how Ed Miliband had given a nod to some of the positive things that Margaret Thatcher had done Owen appears to have deleted the tweet from his timeline so this is from memory but it was along the lines of "Ed Miliband praising Thatcher is the equivalent of telling Labour supporters to f**k off". I thought this was rather odd and as I read the piece in the Telegraph Owen was referring to I could not see "praise" as ...
Ah yes, Belgium. Famous for its linguistic divide, its inability to form a government from time to time and for its beer. Ah, beer... But I am here for none of these things, I am here to work. And, although my meeting doesn't start until 11.00 on Monday morning, I am carrying out some important research work first. Yesterday evening, I explored the area around Place Jourdan (alright, I admit, there may have been a little beer involved), with the Hon. Jamie, and today I am off to Liege, possibly to examine European shopping. As a member of the ELDR ...
Russell T Davies 'Wizards Vs Aliens' to feature Brian Blessed Still sad that this show seems to be a lot more boysy than SJA, but it's got BRIAN BLESSED in it, so it can't be all bad. (tags: ) BBC News - 'Discriminatory' ban on MPs with mental health issues to be axed Hurrah! (tags: ) BBC News - Cable to cap unfair dismissal payouts I have to say, I am not fond of Vince's continual chipping away at worker's rights of late... (tags: ) FactCheck: Case dismissed on employment law reform | The FactCheck Blog And a reminder of ...
Quite properly much has been made of the Hillsborough Report. Our MP John Pugh- a devoted Liverpool fan - has played his part in supporting those who have campaigned on this issue. Pride of place amongst politicians must go to the work of Steve Rotheram . Last night the Liverpool Echo published this poem by Carol Ann Duffy. the full article is here [IMG: Tributes at the Hillsborough memorial 620] Tributes at the Hillsborough memorial Carol Ann Duffy is Poet Laureate - a coveted title awarded to a handful of poetry's most celebrated and talented names. A graduate of Liverpool ...
From the Shropshire Star: Tory group leader Andrew Eade stormed across the council chamber to confront Labour rival Clive Elliott and told him: "We can sort this out outside." Councillor Elliott, a member of the Labour Cabinet on Telford and Wrekin Council, had said: "What does he do for his Special Responsibility Allowance? "Even the seven dwarves went out to work. I can see some of them here: Sneezy, Sleepy, Dozy, Happy, Doc and Bashful. "What I don't see is any leadership from Grumpy."Councillor Eade said to mayor Kevin Guy, chair of the meeting: "Either you shut him up or ...
This is a rather nifty new publication from the party, with some great content and presentation that is well ahead of the traditional party fare for these sorts of documents.It's been produced in time for conference, which is very good news as that makes it a huge step forward on the messaging inconsistency that was last autumn. If you're looking for more material in a similar vein, remember there's my own Liberal Democrat achievements in government infographic too (which the party's policy experts kindly helped provide data for). Mind you, if things continue with documents like the above, I'll soon ...
The district council's timetable is here: Core strategy timetable
For the second time this month a member of the Royal family has been caught out in a state of undress and causing "embarrassment" to the Queen and the Royal family. Personally I think it says more about today's culture than the Royal family. Take for example let's look at what happened to the Duchess of Cambridge. Kate was on holiday in a hot country and wanted an even tan so she did what millions of women have done and took her bikini top off. The Royal couple were in a private compound as well so hardly in Public. Now, ...
St Albans City & District Council has published a number of draft planning documents. These documents will be considered at two public meetings to be held on Wednesday 19 and Monday 24 September. The documents include a draft housing target for the District over the next 17 years and the draft Strategic Local Plan. Once formally adopted, the Strategic Local Plan will set out planning policy in the district, including a framework for infrastructure and development policy, up until 2028. The Plan will partially replace the 1994 Local Plan on which planning policy is currently based. Both draft documents are ...
Photo Credit: Helen Duffett "Frankly, because of me now, thousands of 2 year olds are to get free nursery places" When Harry Matthews (@hmatthews92 ) tweeted this from Nick's 'meet the press' session in Cambridge, my immediate thought was 'blimey, someone 's pissed Nick off royally with a question there, he sounds very arsey'. And I've heard him give a, ahem, robust responses to members in sessions in the past. But on reflection it occurs to me that this is probably exactly the line we should be taking. More than that, it's exactly the response we should have been taking ...
I think that there are two meetings at Blyth Town Council this week. Both are at the Isabella Centre, Ogle Drive, starting at 6:30 Policy Working Group , Tuesday 18th As a working group I'm not sure if this meeting is open to the public, Full Council Thursday 20th, followed by public question time. Unfortunately I am unlikely to be at either meeting, the PWG was rearranged from last week and I already have an existing commitment on the 18th. I have a medical appointment on Thursday, and don't know if I'll be either back in time or in a ...
It was with some sadness that, last December, the rather fabulous Retro Dundee blog ended, after three or more years of brilliant articles, pictures and videos of Dundee through the 1960s, 70s and 80s. Over the next few days, I'll feature some of its items about the West End and I start with a photograph of Logie Street as it existed in the late 1960s/early 1970s. Much of this part of Logie Street (West End Ward is on the south side only) no longer exists but the Logie Bar and adjacent tenement is still there:
Bach's Mass in B Minor; I've been reading a book recently on German culture, how rich and important it is and has been, and how we need to understand Germany with a longer view than 1933-1945, with a brief mention for reunification. So enjoy this, perhaps the best creation of one of the greatest names in the history of music.
The suspension of disbelief is an essential element of the relationship between an audience and any play or film. But some productions require more suspension than others. Joe Wright's new take on Tolstoy's great novel Anna Karenina — with a screenplay by Tom Stoppard — straddles this complex late 19th century Russian fictional world by employing a variety of ...
If the government is to fulfil its duty to protect citizens' rights, change is needed to terms of UK-US extradition
