50 Days that changed Europe: the cover Europe is very much in the news in Britain but instead of being a celebration of it being 40 years since we were allowed into the biggest single market in the world, media attention is focussed on whether we should have a vote on whether we should be in the European Union or not. I have always had a love of Europe, which for me is the cradle of democracy, of human rights and of capitalism and progress. As a Liberal Democrat, I always enjoy meeting Liberals from around Europe and learning about ...
I've been planning to do my own riff on Music Monday for a while, and when I saw about the death of HMV on twitter it spurred me into posting. When I was a wee thing, my godmother gave me a Jason Donovan album for either Christmas or my birthday. It was a reasonable guess, given the fashions of the time and my age, but she didn't know my musical tastes very well. Luckily she also had the foresight to include the receipt. So I toddled in to HMV in Bradford with a Jason Donovan album and a receipt and ...
I'm back. Did you miss me? I was over in Scotland for an interview on Friday, though sadly I am still on the hunt for that damned illusive thing called a job. However, despite being unemployed you will not find me taking part in recreational rioting. However, while I was away from Thursday to Saturday I had quite a bit of time for thinking and here is something that I thought about. Sinn Féin over the last 6 weeks have been saying that they do not want to totally disrespect the symbols that matter to the Loyalists. Indeed they were ...
There's been much talk - though little evidence of - snow in the UK* over the past couple of days, so coming across this poem against that background makes it seem apt. I make no apologies for including this second poem in the space of three weeks by Robert Frost! Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village, though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without ...
A £100,000 rapid response team is to be launched in Cambridge in response to the city's growth. It will keep the city's streets even cleaner by targeting issues such as discarded chewing gum and overflowing bins. The team will be able to be called in quickly to deal with reported issues across residential areas and local shopping centres in a bid to enhance current street cleaning standards while the Business Improvement District fund is expected to address the same in the city centre. Using specialist equipment, the flexible rapid response team will tackle deep cleaning, dealing with issues as they ...
Today, I had the pleasure of holding two West End surgeries jointly with Alison McInnes, MSP for North East Scotland. These took place at the Mitchell Street Centre and at Harris Academy. Alison and I also attended the latest meeting of the cross-party Remploy Action Group that took place at the City Chambers. Alison and I are pictured (right) prior to the meeting today. This evening, I attended City Council committee meetings at which: * I proposed that changes proposed to the Hospital Fund and Johnston Bequest do not go ahead. Having read the last will and testament of Robert ...
The Evening Standard led today on the news that £600 million of flats have been sold in a four day kerfuffle around the new development at Battersea Power Station. The implication is that this is evidence of some kind of recovery. It isn't. It is evidence of just how much our distorted economy depends on speculators. Our increasingly unaffordable homes market, just like the inflationary food market, increasingly pricing out more swathes of the population, is the result. Whether it is the housing rules that allow foreign speculators to buy up homes in London and leave them empty, or whether ...
On the Andrew Marr show this week Ed Miliband was asked why people should trust Labour? This question, although it was addressed to the Labour leader, may as well have been addressed to all politicians. Low voter turnout partly happens because there is a trust problem. The reason that people don't trust politicians is because politicians seem to speak a different language from the ordinary person.Politicians are not down to earth because they are too engulfed in the Westminster bubble. There is a disconnect between government policies and the effect on people's everyday lives. Take welfare, I know the welfare ...
I once had a conversation with the Canon Jeremy Saville - the younger son of Malcolm Saville - who sadly died in 2009. We were discussing the places in which his father had set his children's books. I said that while I liked the perfect towns like Ludlow and Rye which he had written about, I could find them a little too pleased with themselves - I once was once told off at the information centre in Ludlow for not booking accommodation in advance. I said that in some ways - or in some moods - I preferred the scruffier, ...
Liberal Democrat and Labour peers have combined this evening to defeat the Conservatives' plans to redraw constituency boundaries. Much to the annoyance of the Conservatives. David Cameron, it is said, will have a stage a final attempt to get the measure passed by the Commons later this month. But the prospect of the Tories persuading all the minor parties to vote with them and thus defeating the combined vote of the Lib Dems and Labour now seems remote. And at it is possible that at least one Conservative will vote against the plans in the Commons. Here is Glyn Davies, ...
A new transport strategy is to be drawn up for Cambridge's Mill Road following a request by Romsey Liberal Democrat Councillor, Kilian Bourke and Petersfield County Councillor Nichola Harrison, who between them represent the two parts of Mill Road on Cambridgeshire County Council. It is hoped that the strategy, which will be developed by Cambridgeshire County Council alongside Cambridge City Council's Local Plan, will secure more funding in the long-term for significant improvements. Cllr Bourke, who represents Romsey and leads the Lib Dem group on the county council, wants the plan to look at all of the issues in the ...
One of Britain's most successful road cyclists ever retired today. Nicole Cooke won races all over the world, including a World Championship and an Olympic gold medal in 2008, but she got a fraction of the attention that riders like Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins have received. I think her retirement shows some of the problems that are faced by women in cycling, especially the lack of attention they receive. Cooke's retirement has made headlines, though that seems to be just as much for the fact that she's not gone quietly into retirement as it is for the fact that ...
From time to time in amongst the reposted and revised Odanglesex adventures, I get a new idea. Recently that was the tale of Lord Pond's council credit card. Of course, Odanglesex's Chief Executive, leading from the front, was bound to comment on the affair. ED'S JOB The blog of Chief Executive Edelbertha Spengler Hi! Are you one of those people who open a credit card statement, whether it's yours or your partner's or your mother's, with just a little fear? Or is is just another chore? Or maybe it's one of those things you just don't get round to doing ...
[IMG: House of Lords. Photo: Parliamentary copyright images are reproduced with the permission of Parliament] The House of Lords has today voted to block a reduction in the number of MPs from 650 to 600 as part of the review of constituencies that might have seen the Conservatives gain up to 20 seats. The BBC reports: The House of Lords voted by 300 to 231 to delay until 2018 a boundary review necessary to make the change. ... Lib Dem leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg announced that his party would withdraw his support for the boundary review, after ...
The first few Community Market Dates for 2013 have been agreed and are (all Saturdays); 2nd February2nd March6th AprilThe market is from 10:30am to 2pm and is located in the Octagon next to the Church (a map, courtesy of OpenStreetView.org, is below). Stalls include Fruit and vegetables, Homemade cakes, Jewellery, Cards, Confectionery, Jams, Knitted items, Patchwork, Bags, Wooden crafts, Beauty products as well as stalls raising funds for local projects. There will also be refreshments and, weather permitting, a BBQ. If you wish to be part of the market please contact us. Karen Austen 01954 781085 or Sue Gadsby 01954 ...
I came across an interesting paper in the British Journal of Psychology at work today: 'The social consequences of conspiracism' by Daniel Jolley and Karen Douglas from the University of Kent. (That link will take you to a PDF of the whole paper.) In it the researchers explore the potential consequences of exposure to governmental conspiracy theories on intentions to engage in politics. Their conclusion: Research exploring the consequences of conspiracy theories is timely because despite claims that they are harmful, especially in raising suspicion concerning scientiļ¬c claims, ... there is little evidence supporting this claim. The current studies demonstrate ...
As I said yesterday, I wanted to throw a few posts filled with understanding and empathy in order to counteract the hate and negativity put out there by Suzanne Moore and Julie Burchill. And so, here is a selection of posts from the last few days. First of all, the word "intersectionality" was being thrown around the place. If, like me, you were wondering what that's all about, Den of the Hyena explains it for us - and tells us why things that are different about us shouldn't divide us: It is time for people to realise that there need ...
I support the pension reform proposals in principle, but far from simplifying our retirement plans, they make them much more complicated. My husband and I both have a little over 30 years contributions. That was enough for a full pension under the old scheme, so there was no reason to make additional voluntary contributions after ...
Again this is another easy one. Scaring a bairn is one thing. Scaring a grown adult is quite another. The Vashta Nerada, the shadows that melt the flesh, as seen in The Silence in the Library and The Forest of the Dead. Creatures that lurk in the shadows, disembodied people continuing to talk after death, all the haunting stuff that went on as you were trying to figure out about Cal, wondering who this bloody awful River woman was and whether she could be trusted. Then she goes and (as we later find out, again) sacrifices herself for the Doctor. ...
A friend, in an email about other subjects, said in passing today "if you tried crowdfunding to support you while you're writing, I'd put in between £50 and £100 per book." I've briefly considered Kickstarter type things in the past for my work, but decided against it. I have a fairly small audience for my ...
The latest update on Lancashire's Gritting service was announced this afternoon as follows: Update for: 14/01/13 13:04 We have weather predictions of snow/ice and temperatures reaching -6.5. We will apply precautionary salt to all priority routes. We will also be monitoring the conditions very carefully over the next 24hrs and a further salting of the priority routes will be carried out at 03:00hrs on Tuesday morning. A map of priority routes in Clitheroe can be found here.
From The Independent: There are a string of things we [the Conservatives] want to do and can't do because we are in coalition. Indeed. And good.
I mentioned a couple of times during the Yuletide process that I had put a playlist together that I was listening to over and over again, while writing A Complex Problem. And sometimes while staring at the page, actually crying and making the "now kiss!" gesture at my screen. I promised Becca at the time that when reveals were up I would share my playlist. The whole thing is available on Spotify HERE. I don't own all the songs, and Spotify is not currently supporting purchase, so I was unable to upload all of them to 8tracks. The ones I ...
As LDV readers will no doubt be aware, this year marks the 105th birthday of the 1908 Old-Age Pensions Act. Through this Act, Lloyd George introduced the first state pension to Britain, providing 5 shillings (£0.25) a week for those over 70. Fast forward nearly forty years to another great Liberal, William Beveridge, and the National Insurance Act of 1946 that gave birth to the modern state pension. Beveridge's original idea was for a single, simple, decent state pension, paid after a lifetime of National Insurance Contributions and not subject to a means-test. Beveridge's principles have been subject to a ...
Unless it turns out David Cameron is as fluent a Dutch speaker as the Deputy PM, The Netherlands seems like a very odd location for David Cameron to choose to make his big 'give us our ball back' speech on Britain in Europe. Unless of course it turns out The Dutch PM backs him. Sadly, this tweet from Paul Waugh seems to suggest that isn't the case... Another triumph for the No 10 media machine... By the way, aren't they meant to be trying to get us all to talk about pensions today anyway? So why announce this news today?.... ...
At the request of local residents Colin, Jayne and Monica are campaigning for a new zebra crossing in Shotfield. With lots of people visiting the new Jubilee Health Centre every day, we think that this is essential and we are working with the Council to find a suitable location. We would be pleased to hear what you think.
Mon 14th
15:57
Doctor Who Fandom Challenge Days 13 and 14: Favourite theme tune and hated character I love
(a list of the questions and links to all the answers can be found on this entry) Favourite version of the theme tune You can watch all of them here: You have to give props to the original Delia Darbyshire arrangement. Nothing quite like it had ever been done before, and it's been steadily watered down ever since. I particularly detest the current series inability to have it without a full orchestra. The whole POINT was its electronic otherworldliness. Orchestras are bad and wrong for the Doctor Who theme. That said, I do have a soft spot for the Peter ...
Yes I know it's not real. Yes, I know he doesn't get nice music swelling under his words. Yes, I know President Bartlet is the best leader who have lived. But replace the words 'milk subsidy' here with tuition fees. The rest all works. And it is actually true- we did put children above students. Anyway; enjoy PS sorry about the subtitles. Can't shift them. anyone know what language?
This weekend I was speaking to residents in Brixton Hill ward, Streatham, with our by-election candidate Liz Maffei. One of the main issues that was brought up when speaking to local people was the complete disregard of what is happening on the streets of Lambeth by the Labour councillors. The council currently has plans to ...
Britain's potential is chained. Chained by poverty and by debt. The way in which it is chained by debt is obvious. The deficit means that our national debt is growing and, as it does, the amount of money we have to pay just to service the debt is growing, taking away money that could be spent on other things. And we will never be able to thrive as a nation with a ticking time bomb of debt above our heads. But our potential is also chained by personal debt. The level of consumer debt in this country is enormous - ...
I am happy with the Coalition's state pension reforms. They will deliver a single, simple and decent pension for the people of Manchester.By April, the state pension will £650 more than when Labour were in power. This ... Continue reading →
Liberal Democrat Pensions Minister Steve Webb, the man who has already delivered the "triple lock" system for ensuring a decent annual rise in the State Pension, writes in today's Telegraph about the Coalition's plans to simplify pension provision and ensure that the basic state pension increases from £107 to £144 from as soon as 2017. First, he outlined the problems with the complexities of the current system: In Britain today, we have not one but two state pensions. The first is a basic state pension based on 30 years of National Insurance contributions, with complex rules for people who are ...
Five more interesting things for you, gathered from across the internet. The Whiffle Flib test - Hopi Sen offers a way to ensure that political speeches are devoid of all meaning and context. Security Myths and Passwords – Why making people change their passwords once a month doesn't improve security. (via) Leadership That's Working? – a look at Northern Irish politics now that Protestantism and Unionism are slipping away from the status of an absolute majority (via) What If We Responded to Sexual Assault by Limiting Men's Freedom Like We Limit Women's? – And the 'what about the men?' whiners ...
Now look, it's this Liberal Voice of the Year business.... First off, congrats to Sam Bowman. He won fair and square by a country mile and that's fair enough. Neither do I have any truck with this stuff about 'it's a fix, it's the result of a twitter campaign'. There's nothing in the rules (to my knowledge) about campaigning - and after all I posted a blog post and tweeted in support of my own nominee. Neither am I trying to say Sam shouldn't be delighted to have won, and having won he can say what he likes about that ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... And the winner of our Liberal Voice of the Year award is... Sam Bowman Interestingly (to me) the top 4 in LDV Liberal Voice of the Year http://buff.ly/VFj1qq were also my top 4 http://bit.ly/UiLUVw tho diff order A straightforward pension scheme for all – Telegraph .@stevewebb1 announces > A straightforward pension scheme for all – Telegraph http://buff.ly/VF910w www.tes.co.uk .@teseditor on the "the 'so what?' revolution" of academies > 'An unfinished revolution in the reign of timidity' http://buff.ly/VFgxbE The Behaviour Guru: Tom Bennett's School Report: The Laugh of Khan: if this is the ...
[IMG: John Hayes - Some rights reserved by bisgovuk] There's an interesting interview with Conservative minister John Hayes in the latest edition of House magazine. We learn that he is the only Tory minister who has worked for two Liberal Democrat Secretaries of State. "He points out he has extensive links to HM Treasury." And there is this passage about his relationship with his "boss", Ed Davey: Of course it was Hayes' shift to the Energy brief in the September reshuffle - with a reported instruction from the PM to 'deliver a win for our people on windfarms' - that ...
Well done BBC News: A German student "mooned" a group of Hell's Angels and hurled a puppy at them before escaping on a stolen bulldozer, police have said. The puppy, in case you are worried, is now being cared for in an animal shelter.
With a remake of Yes Prime Minister starting later this week, this article from former Prime Ministerial aide, Steve Hilton in today's Telegraph seems particularly apt. Mr. Hilton has told students at Stanford University in California that Ministers are being overwhelmed by "horrific" bureaucracy dominated by "paper-shuffling" civil servants, often leaving David Cameron unaware of government decisions. It is the age-old problem of senior officials trying to get their own way by wearing their Minster out with too much paperwork. It is of course up to the Minister to suss-out these tactics and take action to deal with them. That ...
After a break of quite a few months, I was delighted yesterday to have the chance to speak at one of Liverpool's Citizenship Ceremonies. These events are the final culmination of the process people go through to become citizens of the UK. Liverpool's registry office does these on behalf of the Home Office. People get their actual citizenship certificates at the events. The organisers try to have a "dignitary" speaking at each event and handing over the certificates. Yesterday it was me. I used to make a parallel between being an opposition leader and issues of free speech. Obviously I ...
Mon 14th
12:42
Government shifts to back full range of medical care for rape victims in armed conflict
[IMG: Lindsay Northover] Welcome news from the House of Lords last week, where Lib Dem peer and government spokesperson for International Development, Lindsay Northover, for the first time said the British government believes that girls and women raped in armed conflict are protected under international humanitarian law, even when domestic law in the country in question says something else. What that means in practice is that the UK government is willing to fund the full range of medical care for the victims, including abortion where medically necessary - even if domestic law in that country says abortion is illegal in ...
Congratulations to Sam Bowman, Policy Director of the Adam Smith Institute, for winning Lib Dem Voice "Liberal Voice of the Year" award. Sam was the clear winner taking 52% of the vote, indeed Sam was the clear winner through out every round of the voting (see here) receiving nearly 50% from the off. The top 3 were 1. Sam Bowman (52%) 2. Malala Yousafzai (28%) 3. Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (20%) Congratulations to all three. But special congrats to Sam. A very worthy winner who has been positively prolific across 2012, speaking out for liberty across so many areas: ...
There's been a little bit of confusion in the blogosphere recently about the true cost of smartphones. Ewan Spence points out that the iPhone actually costs $2,000. An instant response by Bill Palmer points out that Nokia's Windows 8 smartphones cost $2,500. The US and European markets are radically different in how they operate and advertise. The US tends to advertise phones as being "Only $10 upfront!" whereas the UK tends to advertise as "Only £20 per month!" With a range of subsidies, price plans, discounts which only last a few months, and multi-year contracts, it can be very confusing ...
[IMG: House number] Search around online for information about the origins of house numbering in the UK and the chances are you will find stories which say it started with the Postage Act of 1765. This, for example, is what the BBC website has to say: Most British houses started being numbered with the introduction of the Postage Act of 1765. Yet more precise information, such as a quote from the act itself or a more detailed explanation, is conspicuously lacking. The widespread appearance of the same claim, all without any detail behind it, made me suspicious. It has the ...
Last summer I wrote a survey that was sent to all party members, as part of informing the creation of a new Lib Dem women's organisation. Colleagues at the Campaign for Gender Balance and the Women Liberal Democrats are working on a new constitution, and I hope many Lib Dem Voice readers will consider joining, so please get in touch if you would like further details. Please email me at tamoralangleyATgmail.com, replacing "AT" with "@". Perhaps the trickiest issue to resolve, in a party characterised by people who tend to think of themselves as individuals rather than members of a ...
So, it's happened again. Those terrible free market liberterian types have rigged the Lib Dem Voice poll, handing victory to Sam Bowman of the Adam Smith Institute. Teeheee Succeeding the IEA's Mark Littledwood, Bowman was in the leader from the beginning, receiving nearly 50% from the off. It all shows that some proper old school ...
How the state is going to provide care for our ageing population is one of the most urgent tasks facing policy makers in governments at both ends of the M4. According to initial data from the 2011 census, there are over 150,000 people in Wales aged 80 or over. This figure is only going to continue to rise as the average age of the population increases and this is going to pose a new set of challenges to our Health and Social Care Systems. Governments of all colours talk starkly about how important it is to take the issue of ...
Looks like the 'blackbusters' intern is back. It's Landale.
Here's my latest Muswell Flyer article on high street parking charges. Please sign the petition for 30 mins free parking here: http://eepurl.com/tvXkH One of the best things about my constituency is the large number of independent retailers that line the high streets. We have unique bookshops, bakeries and antique shops, to name but a few. It sets us apart from other high streets, which have become dominated by chain stores. In these tough times, however, many of these valued independent retailers have been struggling and need a little extra help. In September last year, a local business owner contacted me, ...
Mon 14th
10:54
Question to Kent County Council [with answer], 13 December 2012: Google, cookies and the Kent County...
Question by Tim Prater to Mike Hill, Cabinet Member for Customer & Communities On searching through Google for "Kent County Councillor Mike Hill", a link is found to Mr Hill's Councillor profile on the kent.gov.uk website, but the description underneath reads that "A description for this result is not available because of this site's robots.txt". The same applies to many other pages across the site, and the indexing of still more files on the kent.gov.uk are explicitly blocked. a) In these days of transparency and openness, would the Cabinet Member for Customer and Communities explain why? and b) Given web ...
[IMG: liberal-voice] It's a fortnight since we launched our search for the Liberal Voice of the Year with the aim of finding the individual or group which has had the biggest impact on liberalism in the past 12 months. This is LibDemVoice's sixth such annual award, and as is our tradition, we looked beyond the ranks of the Lib Dems to find the liberal who's most impressed our readers and is not a member of our party. We unveiled the shortlist here on New Year's Day. In total, 755 readers cast a vote in the past two weeks using a ...
Crime is always around. For this point, you cannot fully depend on police. There will be chance the pile of unsolved cases has made your report into another waiting list stuff. When you lost your car as example, there will be chance that the stolen car will be sold in black market somewhere in the city. There will be chance that the car will be sold separately. If you are lucky, it will be weeks or months to find the car whereabouts. Of course, there will be no guarantee that your car will be the same car that you know. ...
Here's my latest Ham and High Column on education funding. I'm really angry with Haringey Council for botching our local school funding, and will keep fighting for truly fair funding... My mother and father were not that enthused about education. Going out to work as soon as possible and earning a living came higher up on their agenda. When you had known poverty as they had - earning took precedence over learning. I went to my local school – Highgate Primary (We are talking over fifty years ago). Luckily for me my headmistress, Mrs Jobson, called my parents in and ...
Mon 14th
09:54Opinion: Straphanging now takes a quarter of your wages - what do the continentals do?
[IMG: Virgin train] Happy New Year Britain! Stand by for more cuts! cuts! cuts! Except in rail fares. There it's a case of "let the train drain you dry". As part of the festive fireworks, rail fares exploded by 4.3% so, if you are privileged enough to have a job at all, you can kiss good-bye to up to a quarter of your pay packet just to get you to work. A season ticket will cost as much as 23% of gross salary or, put another way, you'll effectively have to work till April Fools' Day for nowt. Supreme irony ...
They're dead, but some Conservatives are still clinging on to the corpse hoping for a miracle. I'm talking about, of course, the Parliamentary boundary changes. Another confirmation of their death comes in today's Times [£]: David Cameron's slim hopes of pushing through boundary changes that would deliver the Tories 20 extra safe seats have been dealt a blow by the Ulster Unionists... William McCrea, the DUP MP for South Antrim, said he would not back the changes.
The January meeting of the Castle Ward Neighbourhood Action Panel will take place on January 21st at 2pm in the North Committee Room of the Town Hall. The NAP exists to "address crime, anti-social behaviour and quality of life issues throughout the Castle Ward" and meets monthly. The members are councillors, police, residents, council officers and others. There's more information on the Council's website here, including the up to date Action Plan for the NAP. If you've got issues you want the NAP to consider then please come along and tell us about them – meetings are open to all ...
Mon 14th
09:30
Lynne Featherstone calls for Julie Burchill to be sacked for post attacking transgender people
As Equalities Minister, Liberal Democrat Lynne Featherstone put into place the Government's Transgender Action Plan. She will be acutely aware of the issues facing transgender people, particularly in relation to violence and discrimination. Hate crime towards that community has been rising as the Independent reported. Yesterday, the Observer published a piece by controversial writer Julie Burchill which was peppered with hate filled language. Had the target of Burchill's invective been a particular ethnic group, and she had used similar language, then her piece would have found its way onto the editor's spike and she would most likely have been given ...
Mon 14th
09:25Lynne Featherstone calls for Julie Burchill to be sacked for post attacking transgender people
As Equalities Minister, Liberal Democrat Lynne Featherstone put into place the Government's Transgender Action Plan. She will be acutely aware of the issues facing transgender people, particularly in relation to violence and discrimination. Hate crime towards that community has been rising as the Independent reported. Yesterday, the Observer published a piece by controversial writer Julie Burchill which was peppered with hate filled language. Had the target of Burchill's invective been a particular ethnic group, and she had used similar language, then her piece would have found its way onto the editor's spike and she would most likely have been given ...
Most parents know the frustration of sparring with teenagers. But some have special challenges with troubled teens who seem to be bend on self destruction. Many of these parents find themselves asking, "Where did I go wrong?" The truth is there's no magic spell that can guarantee your kids go through their teen years happily. There are programs to help troubled teens. But there are things you can do early to forge a strong relationship that will be more likely to endure when life gets most difficult for your kids. Here are a few tips that may help. Spend time ...
Nick Cohen makes a sensible argument No, honestly. worth reading the whole thing too (tags: ) Indy journo tries living on a normal income and finds it hard Still it's a sympathetic piece, it's just... How is this stuff not obvious? (tags: ) James has a fabulous pithy response to Julie Burchill I'm quite often proud of James. This is one of those occasions. (tags: ) Stavvers makes a good point on the Burchill debacle too. (tags: ) What's the EU ever done for us? (tags: ) terrifying vision of the future from the conservatives (tags: ) an explanation of ...
[IMG: House of Lords] Yes, I know that I had intended to write this on Friday, but it was never a pledge, right? But yes, as Liberal Democrat Peers gather from around the country to vote down a piece of Government business, now seems as good a time to publish this... Yes, Monday will see the Parliamentary Party in the Lords vote in support of Amendment 28A to the Electoral Registration and Administration Bill, sponsored by Lords Hart of Chilton (Labour), Kerr of Kinlochard (Crossbenches), Rennard and Wigley (Plaid Cymru), which postpones the changes intended in subsection 3, Section 10 ...
Ed Miliband is beginning to make a habit of apologising for things that the previous Labour government did. That is a good thing. Too many politicians stick to their guns even when events (and eventually history) prove them wrong. To recognise that his own party has made mistakes and to outline what they were marks him out as a mature leader. He was at it again last week during a speech to the Fabians: The Opposition leader said the previous Labour government had become distant from the public on issues such as immigration, and failed to rein in excess at ...
What Cameron *should* say on Europe (WSJ) Wishful thinking: "...the idea that I am going to hold the euro zone to ransom at a time of acute financial stress by blackmailing our closest trading partners with some cobbled-together list of vague and probably unachievable ultimatums, risking years of damaging uncertainty, simply to appease a faction in my party who will never be reconciled to EU membership anyway, is completely absurd." (tags: eu ukpolitics ) Links: Britain and Europe "The Americans have never wanted the UK out of the EU. If they did, they'd say it." (tags: EU ukpolitics )
Last night's edition of BBC Radio 4's Westminster Hour took the temperature of the Liberal Democrats by assessing the mood of grassroots activists. Party members interviewed included Liberator's Gareth Epps. You can listen to the report online here (it lasts about eight minutes).
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie is rightly taking the fight to the SNP on Freedom of Information. It is imperative that those in positions of power demonstrate how their decisions are made especially after an autumn which saw the Scottish Government behave appallingly over whether or not they had asked for legal advice about the position of a newly independent Scotland within the EU. Over the years I have seen all sorts of decisions made on whims or for populist short term gain at the expense of the longer term good of the public. When the Scottish Parliament was ...
At the end of last month, I again highlighted concerns about the deteriorating road condition of Riverside Drive - see right. The City Engineer has since advised me: "The Roads Duty Inspector inspected the road as noted below and arranged for a number of actionable defects to be repaired at that time. The road will continue to be inspected regularly and any actionable defects that may arise will be repaired as appropriate." I have also been advised by roads engineers that: "There are actually two significant potholes. The first one is approximately 100m east of the rail bridge; the second ...
I can't tell you how exciting it is that Jantastic (over on marathontalk.com) finally kicked off this week, for my third week of training for Eugene. Overall, a good week. Lets are a little tired, but I should be making some good gains now (since the book says that it takes about 10 days for your body to adapt to the training). I'm so glad that there's a build-up phase built in that lets me spend a month working on the whole "running five times a week" thing before ramping up to six runs, since the most I've ever done ...
