I was listening to a programme on Radio 5 this morning called 5 Live Investigates, and they were looking at unemployment figures. In particular they had evidence that welfare to work advisers had been telling people who were unemployed to become self-employed. There is nothing wrong with that, provided that the client is suitable for the proposed employment, and they are enthusiastic enough about self-employment to at least have a chance of making a go of it. It is much better for the individual to have employment, as it brings responsibility and self-esteem. It also helps the unemployment figures and ...
I ask the question because Willie Rennie's made a timely and positive contribution in today's Scotland on Sunday. The Scottish Liberal Democrat leader argues that "we must realise the future is federal". But why must we? What evidence actually points towards this eventuality. And who is the "we" Mr Rennie is trying to convince? It would seem he's aimed his piece squarely towards the SNP, but surely if federalism is to become a reality it requires the Labour and Conservative parties to be convinced of its merits? A lot has been made of the Electoral Commission's decision in respect to ...
Yeah that seems to be the approach of certain members of the Conservative party who delivered a letter to the Prime Minister today calling for a delay on the vote on marriage equality. Maybe they are finding themselves like Indiana Jones at the start of The Temple of Doom faced with a giant boulder that has gained too much momentum that they cannot stop it. The momentum behind the boulder is public opinion, including that which was expressed in the consultation. Many of those who expressed an opinion, as opposed to merely signing a petition that they were against period, ...
Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dems on Broxtowe Borough Council. 1. HS2 The official announcement from the Government that Toton was to be the site of the East Midlands station on the HS2 rail line was made on Monday and generated a significant amount of media coverage. I've discussed this during the week on the radio and on the BBC news website and have had several discussions with the Transport Minister as well. I think that this is a very good news story but there ...
Could Robert Reich's new movie Inequality For All do for economics what Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth did for climate change? That is the question posed by Carole Cadwalladr in an article in today's Observer. She reports that, far from being dry and boring as you might expect of a documentary about economics, the film is witty and well-made, and picked up the special jury prize at the recent Sundance film festival. Robert Reich's books have always been worth reading - and so is his blog. You may recall that, in the 1990s, he took a break from academia to ...
Weekends are precious, still some bloggers have time to ramble, me I thought I might take a quick stumble, perhaps knocking over the furniture as I go. As Sundays goes this one, on a scale of one to ten, is probably about 6 or seven for newsworthiness, first a hangover from last week, is the apology given by the aged Rupert Murdoch for a cartoon that appeared in last weeks paper, accusations of antisemitism flew over the cartoon which depicted Israeli PM Netanyahu cementing a wall with blood red mortar. It seemed bang on the money to me, can anyone ...
Quite 'analogue' I know, but Chris Huhne's trial starts tomorrow, and I will try and blog (and maybe even tweet) as much as a rules allow.
Bar Hill Division (South Cambridgeshire) Are you resident in Bar Hill Division (including Girton and the villages of Dry Drayton, Boxworth and Lolworth)?* Do you have time to complete a survey and let us know what you think the local issues are we should be working on? On Liberal Democrats in Government? And the European Union (EU)? If so please follow this link; http://goo.gl/qKXh9 If you have any comments on the survey, or you'd like to comment on any local of national issue feel free to drop me an email. * Feel free to complete the survey if you're not ...
It is a strange reversal of fate that makes you worry a little about your son, at the hands of an educational system that is more geared up to deal with girls. Until 1990, it used to be the other way around. An important new piece of research in the USA by Christopher Cornwall shines some light on the problem, and finds that - if boys were not marked down for poor behaviour - then they would achieve similar results to girls. That is where the roots of poorer performance seem to begin. There was a fascinating article about this ...
Circus and George Street traffic plans announced Proposals to improve traffic flows, make Bath city centre a more pleasant place to walk around, and improve air quality on a congested route are being consulted on by Bath & North East Somerset Council. The plan is to divert traffic away from The Circus and allow traffic to move more freely on George Street. This was one of the campaigns that helped get Manda Rigby elected in 2011 and now the Liberal Democrat administration is delivering. These measures will improve people's quality of life. Residents and visitors should be able to walk ...
Way behind with bookblogging as with other things. Still weight out of 16 to write up for January.Anyway here is the snapshot as of last Thursday. Non-fiction 4 The Doctor's Monsters, by Graham Sleight Making Ireland English, by Jane Ohlmeyer Challenges for EU foreign policy in 2013, ed. Giovanni Grevi and Daniel Keohane TARDIS Eruditorum - An Unauthorized Critical History of Doctor Who, Volume 2: Patrick Troughton by Philip Sandifer Chicks Unravel Time, ed. Deborah Stanish and L.M. Myles fiction (non-sf) 1 Faces in the Pool, by Jonathan Gash sf (non-Who) 3 The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins Neverwhere by ...
This is the seventh in a series of reviews of Welsh blog posts that have caught my eye over the last month. I thought it was worth starting with a classic Glyn Davies post, an insiders view if you like on the potential challenge to David Cameron. Glyn is having none of it. He effectively says that Adam Afriyie may be a good man, tall, slim, handsome, well dressed, and very rich but he really needs to do a bit more in the House of Commons before he can be taken seriously. Anyway none of this is the point. David ...
This is an article and this is a recording including an interview with Eileen Munro. During this interview she says (in response to a question about whether or not the UK government is likely to apologise in the future for the damage done to families today) "I would not be surprised if a future generation looks back and thinks how horrific the quality of our work was and the damage that we did
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 311th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (27 January - 2 February, 2013), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. ...
Regular readers will recall that when Roger Helmer left the Conservatives and joined UKIP he had to leave the Tory MEPs' office in Market Harborough. He then set himself up at the new Harborough Innovation Centre, which was built with public money to nurture new businesses. Once word got around he was asked to leave it on the grounds that he is not a new businesses. Strolling through Market Harborough this afternoon I noted that he is now to be found above a coffee shop in Manor Court.
[IMG: Liberal Democrats Logo] That's a question that many have asked. But what I am actually referring to is an online campaign that is being promoted today. 'What The Hell Have The Lib Dems Done?' is an excellent website that acts as a showcase of what the party is doing in government. It matches a list of achievements against commitments made in the General Election manifesto. It was originally created by William Summers and has been recently updated by Mark Pack. See if you can be convinced by visiting: www.WhatTheHellHaveTheLibDemsDone.com
Last week Joseph Boughey wrote a guest post for Liberal England on the politics of the railway preservation movement. Now Out in the Shires has written a post of his own debating the issues that Joseph raised: What I don't think is up for debate is the "small is beautiful" element of the movement, in as much as the preserved railways are often most successful when they can present as the underdog. An interesting observation of the preserved railway scene is that the more successful a particular railway gets, the more divergence there is between the aims of the company ...
Posted below are some of the letters Liberal Democrat members have sent to their MP / Nick Clegg over the past days asking for them to oppose Part II of the Justice and Security Bill. We will add more as we get the authors' permission. Dear Nick, You have often told me that you always listen to the party membership. You have long stated that you are a Liberal Democrat to the core. I also understand the extraordinary strength of resolve you need to do your job. However, if you continue to support either the Justice and Security Bill as ...
In keeping with the generally bumpy ride on this course, its ending also didn't go quite to plan. Completion certificates for those of us who achieved 55% or more were eventually issued a few days later than originally scheduled on 1st February. However, the reason given for the slight delay was an intriguing one. Some "unexpected legal issues with distribution" had occurred. There's been no official word from the course team to all students as to what the issues were, but one student who is still caught by these issues posted this message that they'd received onto the course forum: ...
The Times reported this week that following a briefing to Conservative cabinet members about the continued lack of support for the Tories from Britain's Black and Asian communities David Cameron has instructed his ministers to ...
Carrying on from yesterday's post on The trick is to keep breathing I thought I'd share another favourite track by the somewhat unstoppable Garbage. I first heard Only happy when it rains on TFI Friday on Channel 4 back in 95, as Garbage became big. I'd heard Queer and disliked it at the time but was bowled over by Stupid Girl and as soon as I saw the live set of Only happy... I rushed out to Ourprice and bought the album. Second best album ever, only beaten by their second album Version 2.0. Though the song sounds depressing it ...
"The Bradford Earthquake": How Bradford West was won – Excellent report by Lewis Baston for Democratic Audit on the by-election that sent George Galloway back to Parliament. Essential reading for anyone interested in British politics. Nicholas Stern: 'I got it wrong on climate change - it's far, far worse' – so, can we begin the official panic yet? It Takes Planning, Caution to Avoid Being 'It' – What happens when you keep playing a game of tag for years after you left school. 'Only a Phase': How Diplomats Misjudged Hitler's Rise - A look at some of the communications ambassadors ...
Well, it's not every day you get to see the star of one of your favourite tv shows of all time just a few feet in front of you. And here she is, resplendent in tartan, with her glasses on her head: Sidse Babett Knudsen, the actress who plays Birgitte Nyborg, the Danish Prime Minister in the political drama Borgen was in Edinburgh today to promote the DVD boxset of the first two seasons of the programme. Initially there was only going to be one showing of the last 2 episodes of Season 2 followed by a Q & A ...
[IMG: Wedding rings] From the polling published this weekend: Would you support or oppose changing the law to allow same-sex couples to marry? Support: 55% Oppose: 36% Amongst Conservative voters the results are 44% – 49% (which is a statistical dead heat, when you remember to factor in the margin of error). Interestingly, the majority support comes despite the lead-up to the question being a tadge inaccurate: Since 2005 same-sex couples have been able to enter into civil partnerships. While civil partnerships offer the same legal rights as marriage, same-sex couples are not able to marry. In fact, the legal ...
Sun 3rd
14:40
Nick Clegg's Letter from the Leader: "Ignore the papers, here's the real truth about the Coalition's...
The latest letter from Nick Clegg to party supporters takes us behind the scenes of the Coalition's negotiations over how best to help families with the cost of childcare. He dismisses newspaper gossip of splits in the 'Quad' as "total nonsense", before setting out the principles that have guided their decision-making — focusing help on low- and middle-income families, and especially those with kids under 3 who don't qualify for the current free 15 hours' early education provision. Here's Nick's letter in full... [IMG: libdem letter from nick clegg] You'll often hear politicians say, "Don't believe everything you read in ...
I've an interview with Lib Dem president Tim Farron in the February issue of the party's Ad Lib magazine. [IMG: faron ad lib intvw] I met Tim in mid-January. It had been a controversial 24 hours, as I noted here: ... the previous night he had lined-up with the Conservatives - alongside most, but not all, his backbench Lib Dem colleagues - to vote for the Government's Benefits Uprating Bill which will increase welfare payments by a below-inflation 1% for each of the next three years. For someone who was politicised by Cathy Come Home, Ken Loach's gritty TV docu-drama ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Stewart Lee is not amused at monopoly control of TV comedy – News – Comedy – The Independent I was kinda with Stewart Lee on stand-up comedian monopoly til this line "It should be policed, like real ale." Or not. http://buff.ly/XevCgq
There appears to be an increased fracas over this bill as it approaches its second reading in the Commons. As an earnest Christian (and by the way I only use that phrase once in every 20 blue moons), my approach is guided by two elements: 1. I don't think some people have the right to enforce their "norms" on everyone else in society. I might not have a particular, given lifestyle but that does not give me the right to enforce any particular idea of "the norm" on others in civil society. 2. I always think of the boy or ...
My houseguest just walked into the kitchen and said "Katie, can you think of a good reason why there might be a dead fish in your toilet?" I replied, "Well, it wouldn't be the first time. I assume whoever put it there intended to flush it away, so I would just... go about your business, and flush, and..." ...and then I couldn't continue talking, because we were both laughing too much. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
It is a dark day for the Conservative party, especially locally. Alan Collins has resigned. When I first dived into Twitter and active politics I quickly learnt the party lines with Tristan Osborne & Vince Maple in red, Gary Allanach & I in gold, Chris Irvine & John Ward in blue supported by the indomitable blogging force of Alan Collins. Alan was and is an inspiration in the way he conducted himself and blogged, always even keeled and authoritative - something I've tried to emulate but never quite achieve. Indeed, when I wrote the Clegg city-status letter last year, it ...
I see that circumstance has given you an opportunity to restructure. While I am sure you will feel the loss of Count Packula keenly, it would be a shame if you did not treat his departure as an opportunity for reform, particularly of what happens below the line. I'm sure you are aware of the dissatisfaction many of us feel with the way comments are run on LDV. But I'm not here just to whinge! I'm here to propose solutions. 1, The number one most important thing I would suggest is to follow the advice given in this article on ...
Just a reminder Don is having a surgery in Odd Down 23rd February 10-11 at St. Philip's Church institute
The pot hole in Frome Road opposite St. Philip's School has been reported
I've had a number of meetings this week. On Monday evening I took part in the full Town Council Meeting. We heard that we had not got all the information we needed to set a budget for the town council yet, for April 2013 to March 2014. In the past the number of households on which to base Council Tax has included all those who did not pay council tax, but were in receipt of benefits. The government then guaranteed the collecting council, in our case Central Bedfordshire, the money. Now, the government is saying that the collecting council cannot ...
The Coalition for Marriage has published its own briefing ahead of the marriage equality vote in the House of Commons on Tuesday. Prepare yourselves as we break down its summary. There is no mandate - it wasn't in the manifesto of any major party. I've dealt with this argument before. Ultimately after the next election either the Conservatives or Labour will be elected into power (either alone on in another coalition) and at that point there will be a mandate for marriage equality (and probably an even more determined effort to get it if it is denied in this Parliament). ...
We really love our independent shops in Hornsey & Wood Green. So now I've launched a competition to find which one we love the best. This is part of my mission to support the many independent retailers we are lucky enough to have here. It runs alongside our Liberal Democrat campaign to introduce 30 minutes of free parking to Haringey's high streets. Constituents can nominate and vote for their favourite independent retailer in three categories: best customer service, the most attractive shop front and the overall best independent shop. Many shops have already agreed to actively participate and are already ...
I am a bit too busy with real life at the moment to discover groovy new sounds that the young people enjoy, so here is Neil Hannon's take on William Wordsworth. "Lucy", a setting of lines from three of Wordsworth's Lucy poems, was The Divine Comedy's first single. It did not make the charts (I blame the lyricist.) I understand that at concerts it is customary for the audience to provide the animal noises halfway through.
Being a government minister is a strange job in lots of ways. There is no formal interview process. You are simply appointed by the Prime Minister. You may have little or even no direct experience of the department you are being put in charge of and hence need to get up to speed very quickly in often very complex areas. You may never have run anything in your life before and suddenly find yourself (at least nominally) in charge of tens or even hundreds of thousands of people, their jobs and livelihoods. You take decisions every day that can affect ...
BBC Sport - ICC Women's World Cup 2013 tournament guide The next few weeks are pretty sport-heavy, but here's one you might not see covered (outside the Today programme, anyway, who seem to be doing well with women's sport at the moment). (tags: ) Jupiter Embroidery | pardalote makes Amazing embroidery of the surface of Jupiter including the big storm. (tags: ) BBC Sport - Women's Six Nations Guide Another sporting link. Of course, England are going to win again, but it's still worth watching where the other teams end up... (tags: ) Dagenham Woman Naomi Oni Suffers Acid Attack ...
I suggested earlier this week that those of us who oppose secret courts should reply to Nick Clegg's Letter from the Leader this weekend, asking him to withdraw Liberal Democrat support from a measure that all the evidence suggests is illiberal and unfair. I was pleased when Jo Shaw, one of the co-founders of the Liberal Democrats against secret courts campaign, reinforced that in a campaign email to supporters. If enough of us do that, then somebody at HQ will take note and pass on our concerns. Yes, we'll all get an automated reply saying that Nick can't reply to ...
After the last general election, Ed Miliband started making some promising noises about changing Labour's approach (aka frequent disregard for) civil liberties: Activists cheered as he said Labour had appeared "casual" about civil liberties and said he would not let the Tories or Lib Dems "take ownership of the British tradition of liberty". Where's that taken Labour? Nowhere much, as can be seen from Meg Hillier's support for secret courts: Meg Hillier (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op): We have heard, from the Government side, suggestions that the Opposition are not in favour of CMPs. For the avoidance of doubt, I ...
Malaria in England in the Little Ice Age Argument framed in an odd climate change way, but interesting evidence. (tags: disease ) Paperman #fb Lovely short film with romantic enchanted paper aeroplanes. (tags: Films ) Interactive 360° Video From A Helicopter Flying Over Four Erupting Volcanoes Amazing. #fb (tags: geology Films ) Live Thog's Masterclass (2004) It will be twenty years this Easter since Thog emerged. (tags: funny sf ) Applebee's Overnight Social Media Meltdown: A Photo Essay « R.L. Stollar, Journalist. How to lose the argument, in a few easy steps. (tags: Socialmedia )
You'll often hear politicians say, "Don't believe everything you read in the newspapers." There's not the time to correct every inaccuracy but when a mistake becomes received wisdom and gets repeated again and again, it's worth putting things straight. Like on the Government plans to help families with the cost of childcare. You'll know by now that this is a topic incredibly close to my heart. Making sure all families, and mothers in particular, can afford to work is important for our economy and for our society. That's why I ensured we found the money to up the hours of ...
Following complaints from residents about potholes in Perth Road west of Sinderins, I raised the concerns with the City Council's Road Maintenance Partnership which has since advised: "An inspection has been carried out by the Road Maintenance Partnership inspector following receipt of your email ... and an order has already been raised for the repair of a number of potholes on Perth Road (5 @ Hyndford Street, 2 @ Glamis Road, 2 @ Dunmore Gardens) and these were repaired on 30-1-13."
The follow-up to 15 Big Ones may well be the most controversial album the band ever did, with fans almost evenly divided between those who love it and those who hate it. In a recent (totally unscientific) poll on one fan forum, Love You made the top ten both of fans' favourite and least favourite ...
Two things that influence my ability to give Alpha a perfectly unbiased review: 1) Greg Rucka is a favorite writer of mine, and has created and written some of my all time favorite characters, such as Tara Chace, Renee Montoya and Kate Kane. 2) I really really irrationally dislike reading books in the present tense. It disorients me and takes adjusting to, and because more often than not a story contains scenes or elements that take place before the 'now' of the book, sometimes necessitates a tense switch that just annoys me more. So there are two conflicting elements here. ...
