The following information was put out by the county council this afternoon. The snowfalls and icy conditions have caused some disruption to the service across the county to varying degrees. Higher areas across the north have been most affected. Following on the ground assessments during today including estate roads, refuse and recycling collections have regrettably had to be suspended in the Consett area. Crews have still been out, with the main focus on more accessible areas around Chester-le-Street. The affected areas are Benfieldside, Blackhill, Shotley Bridge, Ebchester, Medomsley, Moorside, Castleside, Bridgehill, Consett, Tow Law, Usher Moor and collections are planned ...
In Six of the Best 312 I linked to a blog post about the curious case of Joyce Hatto. This documentary tells more of the story.
Rogue landlords across Cambridge have been warned that the city council is to get even tougher by increasing the number of inspections on rented properties. The council has set aside £40,000 in its budget for a landlord liaison officer to give more time to inspections so that they can be carried out when complaints are made. And the council is recruiting an Empty Homes Office with a further £40,000 from the government's New Homes Bonus to bring empty houses across the city back into use. "With so many people having to rely on private landlords in Cambridge we must strive ...
The Libertine has been sent a statement on the #LYElect election results by Acting Chair of Liberal Youth, Harry Matthews. As follows. I'd first of all like to thank all the candidates for their continued patience. I know how annoying it is to wait for a result. I want to reassure you that we're working ...
Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats have called again for their free transport scheme for the young unemployed to be implemented by the Tory-run county council as a report highlights travel costs as a barrier to learning. The report on Adult Learning and Skills was presented to Cambridgeshire County Council's Cabinet today (Tuesday, January 15) and makes a direct link between the cost of transport to the poor take-up rate for opportunities Lib Dems have costed a programme which would provide free transport for young people who are not in education, employment or training. It would cover travel costs for the first month ...
"Terminally ill patients who are mentally competent ought surely to be able to get medical help to end their lives. Unless they are absolutely desperate, refusing medication or ceasing to eat or drink are not to be contemplated. A relative of mine who died in a care home not long ago used to say every time I visited her that she wished she could die, but it never occurred to her to do either." Eric Avebury makes the case for assisted dying on Liberal Democrat Voice. "The Occupy movements dramatised questions about public space — who owns it? who can ...
The moment I saw Napster in the year 2000 I knew the game was up. It was just a matter of time. HMV has sadly had to call in the administrators. I feel very sorry for those who are going to lose their jobs. I have experienced redundancy myself and I know it can be very difficult, especially with the economy the way it is at the moment. I have seen some, mainly left-wing activists try to blame "austerity" for this outcome. I'm afraid they are very wrong-headed about that. This day was inevitable. The idea that a business model ...
Read it here first! This letter was sent by several Liberal Youth representatives to the Home Secretary, Teresa May, and to editors of several major national newspapers. The Libertine is honoured to be the first to publish. Dear Home Secretary, We are writing to express our dissatisfaction with this government's simplistic stance on drug policy, ...
I should say that is a Mummy to go with our Sarcophagus. Most of the Borough's extensive Egyptian collection was given by Mrs Goodison (yes, her husband was involved with Everton FC) to the former Bootle County Borough. It is proper to acknowledge that Bootle had some extremely fine art works. Most famous of all the portrait of Lilith more information here Lilith is at present on display in Copenhagen as part of an exhibition about women and snakes. Don't ask, I didn't Anyway all these treasures and many more besides will be restored to the magnificently restored and enhanced ...
Earlier today, I attended the latest meeting of the Jericho House support group, a regular meeting at which a number of us discuss fundraising and other projects to support this important facility in the West End Ward that assists those recovering from alcoholism. It was good to hear that the Jericho House play is taking great shape and will have its public performances in late February or early March, taking place at the Steps Theatre. We also discussed possible future fundraising activities. You can read more about Jericho House at www.jericho-addictionservices.co.uk/jericho-dundee-alcohol/.
The European Court of Human Rights laid down the judgement on the case of the four Christians who had alleged religious discrimination. The ECHR laid down the sensible and logical decisions under the circumstances. That Nadia Eweida was discriminated against. There is no logical reason why she should have been barred from wearing an item of jewellry in the first place. That the other three were not discriminated against. And this is important because it balances the religious beliefs against the reasonable expectations of the public meeting them in the workplace. The private beliefs of Lillian Ladele in particular are ...
Vicki Baars, who as Vice President of the National Union of Students was forced to apologise for suggesting chants for an NUS demo such as "Build a bonfire, build a bonfire, put the Tories on the top, put the LibDems in the middle and burn the f*cking lot!" and calling for "class war" against the Government, has decided that she would make a fine President of the NUS. I sincerely hope that no rational person votes for her. As a student Liberal Democrat, I would resent effectively being made to be a member of an organisation fronted by somebody that ...
Well, the one that's always going to be special is the one you grew up with. This was MY theme. I wasn't keen when it went all boingy and electronic in the 80s. Mind you, I liked the bit where Sylvester McCoy grinned and the melodic bit in the middle: I was ok with the Eccleston and Tennant titles, but it was the Matt Smith ones in 2010 that really felt like proper Who. And what of the new ones? Well, all very good, especially with that snippet of the Doctor's face, except they make me motion sick. I also ...
Did you hear about the girl who was put into isolation for having pink tips in her hair? It is a story that is all too common and one that really gets me hot under the collar. It has been a while since I was boarding school buses and going to a compulsory education establishment day in, day out but one thing I do remember is back then I seemed to have a bit more latitude with how I looked. Not that I ever had crazy hair or anything but others did and there wasn't too much hassle. I know ...
I'm fucking angry. And if you were in my position, you would be too. If you've been living under a rock for the past week, it's been filled with an onslaught of articles from the nominally liberal paper The Guardian against the transgender community. And finally, thank god, it looks like it's reached a point where cis people are saying it's gone too far. It started with an article written by the newspaper's health editor David Batty, about the GMC investigation into Dr Richard Curtis for alleged malpractice in his private trans healthcare practice. While not getting into talking about ...
I've just realised I've made a mistake in working out when my 10th blogging anniversary is. Because I looked at a file name rather than the dates on the post themselves, I had it down as being on the 26th, when it's actually on the 30th. It kind of fits for the way I've run this blog for the last ten years that I get that wrong, but all it means is that the retrospective posts will start tomorrow, but they'll only appear on Monday to Friday, as leaving the weekends blank will give me the four days gap I ...
In all the current debate about the proposed parliamentary boundary changes (which David Cameron still intends to push in the Commons, despite his defeat yesterday in the Lords), hardly anyone mentions the real reason for the supposed pro-Labour bias in the electoral system: turnout. As Mike Smithson helpfully points out today on PoliticalBetting.com, while there is a small difference in the size of electorate between Conservative-held and Labour-held seats, there is a much bigger difference in the average turnout: The average level in CON seats was 68.4% while in LAB seats it was 61.1%. It is this gap which is ...
Tue 15th
17:29
Trying to be a good trans* ally: round up of developments on Burchillgate and related issues
Something that has really warmed the cockles of my flinty old heart the last couple of days has been the number of people - of all genders, cis and trans*, from most sides of the political divides - who have come together to say "hang on a minute, THAT'S not on" to the way trans* people are being treated by the media. Slightly less gratifying is the way that this all seems to be centred on the media and how everyone on all sides is being mean to the media, and not on the actual people who are suffering - ...
Paragraph three, page 27 of the 2010 Coalition Agreement document says: Lords appointments will be made with the objective of creating a second chamber that is reflective of the share of the vote secured by the political parties in the last general election. I understand that the introduction of public elections for the House of Lords has been abandoned by the Government after the antics of the Conservative backbench, but there's no reason that this particular part of the Coalition Agreement should not be implemented. In fact, if the House of Lords is set to remain as it is for ...
Over the last 20 years I have had a few close shaves that made me think about death, including a quadruple bypass, a burst colon, lung cancer and an aortic aneurysm. None of these were conditions that involved more than temporary pain and a fairly low risk, though as Hamlet's mother says: 'All that lives must die Passing through nature to eternity.' But then in August 2011 I was diagnosed with myelofibrosis, an incurable form of blood cancer, that ultimately leads to various unpleasant and painful symptoms, needing frequent blood transfusions to prevent the arteries seizing up with fibres. Would ...
This article originally appeared on Liberal Democrat Voice. I have followed recent mainstream media events unfolding around the Trans community with a mixture of excitement, anxiety and sadness. Excitement, because it is rare that Trans issues get coverage that isn't designed to portray us as perpetrators of some hideous evil. Even though the stories started with biased coverage in the Guardian about a doctor under investigation by the General Medical Council, it turned into something more positive when the #TransDocFail hashtag lead to discussions on BBC Radio. Even the continuation of bad reporting had a silver lining, when Julie Burchill's ...
According to the Leader of the Cornwall Council, street sweeping and litter picking services are working well and he is confident that the council is monitoring the contract properly. This will come as a surprise to the residents of Launceston who have seen the contractor, Cory, fail to deliver the service they are paid to and fail to keep proper records. In addition, the council cannot provide even the most basic information in a reasonable time about what work is being done in each area. I think it is time that the Leader (and the cabinet member responsible) paid a ...
Lib Dem peer Meral Hussein Ece has criticised government plans to scrap a law to work towards eliminating racial hatred. The former race equality adviser to Nick Clegg wrote in The Backbencher magazine that she ...
It was a case of good news / bad news at today's Cornwall Council meeting where council tax benefit cuts were on the agenda. The good news was that the Conservative proposal to impose a 25% rise in council tax on the poorest families in Cornwall was defeated by 43 votes to 37. The bad news was that the Liberal Democrat alternative to continue with the current scheme was also, very narrowly, lost by 44 votes to 41. A number of councillors were controversially excluded from the meeting because of their relationship to people who receive council tax benefit. That ...
Sport England has today launched a new fund which is aimed at helping organisations with projects that will involve more people in Sport. This runs alongside other schemes, like the small grants fund. You can find out more at this link.
We know this is a blatant plug for the brand new series of 'Yes, Prime Minister' which will be showing on Gold at 9pm this evening – but we will all be watching it, won't we? * Mary Reid is the Tuesday Editor on Lib Dem Voice.
When I was a child, I prayed to God to send me a bicycle. The Priest told me God doesn't work like that; so I stole a bicycle and prayed for forgiveness. Emo Philips (probably) There's a noble tradition in hackerdom of finding creative ways around obstacles. My personal favourite expression of this desire to get things done quickly is the maximum "far better to seek forgiveness than beg for permission." It's something I practice both at work and for my private projects. It's much easier, faster, and more fun to get on and do things without the tedious rigmarole ...
Ground Control: Fear And Happiness In The Twenty First Century City. Anna Minton, Penguin 2009 This book control covers an intensely important issue in modern British life: the alienation of public spaces from the public. However, it is not a good book. It's the kind of book you sometimes see quoted in Guardian comment pieces ...
[IMG: Help me] Pretty much whenever I (or colleagues over on Lib Dem Voice) write about a particular email sent out via Liberal Democrat HQ, at least one person comments with a question or complaint about not having received the email themselves. So here's a little troubleshooting guide if you find yourself in that situation, or if you come across someone else who is. Check your spam folder It is an occupational hazard of running large email lists that some people will find the messages for them end up in spam/junk mail folders rather than in their inbox. If you ...
This week we found out the government will accept the amendment to the Public Order Act 1986 to remove the word 'insulting' from Section 5. As an advocate of freedom of speech & expression its nice to see some good news in this area. For me, another big issue is the instant twitch hunts that we seem to see on a daily basis and woe betide anyone who gets on the wrong side of one of those! In many cases the response of the 'offended' make great reading if you fancy a laugh (especially the ones of the "I've not ...
[IMG: Energy-bills-006] As we enter the first cold snap of the year there will inevitably be a focus on the rising cost of energy - particularly after there have been inflation busting increases in gas and electricity tariffs of 6-10% over the past few months. No country can stop the main cause of this - rising and high world prices for oil and gas. Yet we must do everything we can, to help people and firms struggling with these bills, especially the most vulnerable. And that's why helping with energy bills has been and will be one of my top ...
Who said this ? "Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. The cost of one modern heavy bomber is this
Nick Clegg has joined a growing list of prominent figures opposed to any move to axe Crimean War nurse Mary Seacole from the school curriculum. Just days after Archbishop John Sentamu wrote about the need ...
Thanks to the Conservative Party the unelected House of Lords continues to exert undue influence on the legislative process. There is no indication that this situation will change anytime soon. However, at least you can see them exercising this influence day in, day out on the television. The same cannot be said for the royal family. According to today's Guardian Whitehall papers prepared by Cabinet Office lawyers show that overall at least 39 bills have been subject to the most senior royals' little-known power to consent to or block new laws. They also reveal that the power has been used ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Countdown to ten | What You Can Get Away With – Nick Barlow's blog .@nickjbarlow approaches his 10th blogging anniversary. Kudos > Countdown to ten http://buff.ly/VHkeO2 Bravo! The pensions minister actually understands pensions | Mail Online Quentin Letts in high praise for Lib Dem shocker: "This was a masterly performance" http://buff.ly/VHeWSI He means @stevewebb1 of course Nick Clegg unveils Lib Dem 'memorial' in London | Politics | guardian.co.uk Well, we know what he meant [IMG: :)] 'Nick Clegg unveils Lib Dem 'memorial' in London' http://buff.ly/W2wnKU
[IMG: Street lights] Folkestone West County Councillor Tim Prater has welcomed a U-Turn by Conservative Kent County Council on the removal of streetlights in the area. Kent County Council had previously issued a paper proposing the turning off and removal of over 200 streetlights across Shepway. In Folkestone West, streetlights marked for removal included lights leading into Cheriton on the A20 from Peene to J12 of the M20, Sandgate Hill and Sandgate Esplanade. After lobbying by Councillor Tim Prater, including a Lib Dem motion on streetlighting at the December Full Council meeting, Kent County Council seem to have revised their ...
The Welsh Labour Government are in disarray over the purchase and development of Cardiff Airport. Recent events like the announcement of a direct bus route to Bristol Airport from South Wales, a cut in the money spent on promoting Wales abroad and the lack of a Welsh Government business plan before the announcement of the purchase of the airport paints a picture of confusion and chaos within the Welsh Government. There are also concerns about the Welsh Labour Government's ability to provide value for money for Welsh tax payers following previous unsuccessful and expensive projects. While I agree that action ...
Local Councils are setting their budgets. Everyone knows the belt is being tightened. One of the most usual refrains is that Councillors are protecting their own financial interests whilst inflicting pain on others. I speak at a Leaders of the Opposition with one of the lowest allowance claims in any metropolitan authority. I regularly meet residents with want to see a reduction in Councillors' allowances and a reduction in the number of Councillors. It would be folly to suggest that such adjustments would solve the budget issues with which we are faced . It would be equal folly to suggest ...
[IMG: British Electoral Facts 1832-2012] For decades, FWS Craig was the doyen of British electoral statistics. His reference works were widely used and often contained facts and figures that he had created from original sources. Yet today he is almost completely unknown. The reason? He died just before the internet took off. His hard work was locked away in reference volumes either sat on the shelves in libraries beyond the reach of an internet connection or available to purchase – at eye-wateringly expensive prices. Rather like the first person to map a geographic area, even as his name has been ...
On Three Worlds (the campaignstrategy.org blog), Chris Rose reports an analysis by Pat Dade showing that America's right-wing Tea Party (the Republican party-within-a-party) consists of two very different wings, libertarians and religious conservatives. Antagonism between these two groups is causing a sharp drop in support. The two groups have very different values: The Libertarians... scored highly on power, achievement, pleasure and self-direction, whereas the Religious Conservatives scored highly on benevolence, tradition, propriety and security.What units them is narrow: a rejection of fairness and universalism (a belief in the universality of the human experience and a consequent belief in human unity ...
I have followed recent mainstream media events unfolding around the transgender community with a mixture of excitement, anxiety and sadness. Excitement, because it is rare that trans issues get coverage that isn't designed to portray us as perpetrators of some hideous evil. Even though the stories started with biased coverage in the Guardian about a doctor under investigation by the General Medical Council, it turned into something more positive when the #TransDocFail hashtag lead to LibDem Councillor Sarah Brown discussing the issue on BBC Radio. Even the continuation of bad reporting had a silver lining, when Julie Burchill's transphobic screed ...
Episode 43 of the House of Comments podcast "The Shelf Stacking Reflex" was recorded on Sunday and is out today. This week myself and Emma Burnell are joined by Conservative activist and former PPC Charlotte Vere to discuss the government relaunch, childcare reform, Labour's proposals for regulating landlords and we all reveal whether or not any of us own a Onesie like Nick Clegg. There were some slight technical issues on the Skype call we used to record this it so occasionally the voices break up a bit although it gets better towards the end. Apologies for this. You can ...
Just over 20 years ago at Operation Mobilisation's Love Europe training week in Nuremburg, Germany I got my guitar out and with my fellow member of the LUKE line up team Rob Davis greeted our UK teams' guest speaker for an evening orientation season with a rock song. It only had one line, the title of this blog post repeated over and over. We then handed him a Love Preston t-shirt as a thank you for the session he had just given. Today I want to get my guitar out again because of something that he has written here in ...
Last October, I blogged about the lack of lip reading classes locally Well, there is some good news. The Trafford Hard of Hearing Group have begun a new session of in demand Lip-reading classes in Sale. The Trafford Hard ... Continue reading →
[IMG: Map of the European Union] I have long been a fan of the Westwing, and I was recently reminded of a particular scene where President Bartlett faces a difficult decision on whether to reprieve a man on death row or not. His local priest tells him a tale of a man who prays for help, but refuses all assistance when it is offered, claiming that God would save him. However, on his death he is told by St. Peter that God had sent a multitude of people to help him, but he had not accepted any of their help. ...
Jessops closed this week and HMV are now in administration and very likely to go into liquidation. At the end of last year Comet closed and Staples announced closure of 23 of their stores including the one at Dunstable. Argos, too have spoken about possible shop closures. So what future for shops? Is shopping online killing our shops? The world changes you have to move with it. When business struggle and go out of business the land occupied by shops should go back to green field site or housing. Newspapers used to be a 1p but they won't be that ...
Nothing like doing things at the last minute to get the adrenaline flowing. As you may have been aware, I've been fairly vociferously opposed to the Coalition's plans to legislate for secret courts. As Liberty says: Cabinet Minister Ken Clarke again insisted to Parliamentarians that the legislation was vital - to allow our spies to properly defend themselves and to protect relations with our US allies. These tired arguments would be somewhat more believable if all of this wasn't coming so soon after a series of shameful events that expose the true motivation behind - and danger of - this ...
I don't know who this was* but hats off: if you're going to make a statement, make it like this... In response to "Why isn't Nick Clegg attending the Privy Council?...' The Telegraph reports the following: "I can't believe we are having this ------- conversation again," an aide to the DPM emoted in a tirade worthy of Malcolm Tucker in the television series The Thick of It. "The ------ fact is he can't ------- be everywhere, but I know you are going to go off and write that the DPM has ------- snubbed the Queen once a ------- gain." Blimey ...
HMV is going into administration. This will affect me, and with 239 stores it will affect most of the country but if we are to lose this store, and 4000 jobs and 90 years of history, then choice will be significantly reduced for those who use the local shops. That is progress as we have chosen to buy online, but, in turn, large stores have played their part in the closures of small independent companies. When Scottish and Newcastle bought the Matthew Brown brewery in Blackburn there was strong local opposition. Asset stripping and closure were the fears which proved ...
Tue 15th
09:51
Lib Dem success as Home Secretary confirms government to back amendment to Public Order Act
The Guardian reports that, following a high-profile campaign, the government has agreed to retain an amendment to the Crime and Courts Bill going some way to implementing Lib Dem party policy (pdf) on the Public Order Act: In a government climb down, the Public Order Act that covers speech and writing on signs and states: "A person is guilty of an offence if he uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour", will be changed to remove the word insulting. The move follows a high-profile campaign which united Christian and secular groups and was spearheaded by the comedian Rowan Atkinson, ...
[IMG: Screen Shot 2013-01-15 at 08.56.39] Sign up by 28 January to join Greater Manchester's energy-switching auction for UK energy providers to bid for your custom. You'll receive a new personal offer for your energy for the next year – you can choose to join GM Fair Energy if it works for you. Sign up, there's nothing to lose. All you need is your recent energy bill(s). How does it work? Greater Manchester councils have organised their first ever collective energy switching scheme. Together they will find you a good deal and an easy way to switch. - Sign up ...
Local schools will hopefully be celebrating a further increase in 'Pupil Premium' funding for 2013-14. The Pupil Premium is a major Liberal Democrat priority that is being delivered by the Coalition Government. It is extra money given to schools, directly from Government, to help ensure that children get the very best start in life. It covers any primary or secondary school pupil that has been registered for Free School Meals in the past six years. For 2013/14, the Premium will be worth £1.65bn, or £900 per pupil, in total. It is up to headteachers and school governors how to spend ...
A number of local residents have got in touch in the last week to complain about the amount of dog fouling – particularly in the area around Heywood Road from Bury Old Road up towards the reservoir, and a number of roads off. I have asked for the relevant Council officers to look at installing extra signage and also to undertake some enforcement visits. If anyone has any information about particular times or locations of places where this might be happening it would be really helpful if you could let me know, so that the Enforcement Officers can do their ...
As you may have noticed, I've been unearthing a lot of old links and posts recently. This is because my blog's approaching its tenth anniversary on January 26th, and I wanted to go mark it and remember a lot of the stuff I've done. So, I've been reading through all my old entries and gathering the best, funniest and interesting ones into a series of posts, one for each year I've been blogging. This navel-gazing may only be of interest to me, but it's been an interesting exercise to carry out, as I've got to see how much has changed ...
The incredible imploding UKIP (tags: ) good news! Julian Huppert isn't standing down :) (tags: ) calls for Julie Burchill to be arrested for hate crimes (tags: ) Dimensions in Time | How Your Average Whovian Views The Doctors LOL this is worryingly like me. (tags: ) Private renters the next target group of swing voters? They're a growing band, after all (tags: ) Guardian columnist Suzanne Moore apologises for 'Brazilian transsexual' remark - PinkNews.co.uk Too little too late; that said, any apology is a step in the right direction. It'd be nice to see her condemn Burchill though. (tags: ...
The Liberal Democrat Federal Policy Committee has announced the formation of a new policy working group "Immigration and Identity" and would like to invite members to apply for membership. Obviously this is a sensitive and important area of policy so we are keen to get as many applications as possible. We hope that you will consider applying and helping us develop new policies in this area as we head towards 2015. If you are interested please contact adam.pritchard@libdems.org.uk for an application form. * Julian Huppert is Liberal Democrat MP for Cambridge.
Mother Jones reports: [IMG: Angry man] In a recent study, a team of researchers from the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication and several other institutions employed a survey of 1,183 Americans to get at the negative consequences of vituperative online comments for the public understanding of science. Participants were asked to read a blog post containing a balanced discussion of the risks and benefits of nanotechnology (which is already all around us and supports a $91 billion US industry). The text of the post was the same for all participants, but the tone of the comments varied. ...
50 stories for 50 years: 1982 Andrew Hickey: Why Earthshock succeeds, against the odds. (tags: Doctor who ) Katesbridge: The legend of Northern Ireland's 'frosty hollows' Why is it so cold in Katesbridge (and Castlederg)? (tags: Weather northernireland ) Czech presidential vote marks shift in EU relations (tags: EU czechrepublic )
Further to the recent article on this blog and updates in the Courier and Evening Telegraph about vandalism to McGonagall's Walk, constituents have contacted me to ask that, when the walk is cleaned in the spring, if the Tay Rail Bridge Centenary plaque - see below - can be cleaned at the same time as McGonagall's Walk. I have asked the City Council if this can be done.
Last year, I saw a film entitled "White Material" which featured Isabelle Huppert and Christophe Lambert. The plot focused on the life and fate of a family of white French settlers in an unnamed African country: the country in question is being overrun by rebels. The insurgent army bears a chilling resemblance to the "Lord's ...
Every election has to come to an end and #LYElects is no different. Our latest election/co-option mash-up ended and results are being released. Here are the figures. Don't forget: elections took place via the Ranked Pairs system. Winners! Chair: Campaigns Officer: Communications Officer: International Officer: Membership Development Officer: Non-Portfolio Officer: Likely to have results evening of ...
