Never mind the banks that are "too big to fail"; what about the bankers who are "too big to jail"? Rolling Stone reports that British-based bank HSBC has just been prosecuted in the USA for the largest drug-and-terrorism money-laundering case ever. But none of the bankers responsible were jailed. Instead, the bank was fined $1.9 billion, equivalent to about five weeks' profit: For at least half a decade, the storied British colonial banking power helped to wash hundreds of millions of dollars for drug mobs, including Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel, suspected in tens of thousands of murders just in the ...
[IMG: Thornden school - Some rights served by anguskirk] Unfortunately, the hot house atmosphere of a by-election campaign means that any controversial comments by candidates get magnified a thousand times. Let's be frank, Maria Hutchings has a record of bringing her children into the public domain. Like anyone, she has the right to decide where her children are schooled. But she went one crucial step further and said that it was "impossible" for her "gifted" son to be educated in state schools in Eastleigh, alluding to her child's ambition to be a surgeon. That is a view which is perfectly ...
Here's the agenda for Thursday's meeting of Bar Hill Parish Council (7pm). The first item, the Open Forum, is the part of the meeting where anyone can just turn up and present to the Council any item they're concerned about. If you can't make the meeting you can contact me (at andy.pellew@gmail.com) and I'll raise the issue for you. Open Forum 1. To receive apologies for absence and any declaration of interest 2. Approval of minutes. To approve minutes of Parish Council Meeting held on 17th January 2013 3. Matters for discussion and decisions to be made from Previous Minutes ...
[View the story "Eastleigh by-election: 16 February - Dale vs Tall, my visit and other stories" on Storify] Eastleigh by-election: 16 February – Dale vs Tall, my visit and other stories Storified by Mark Pack· Sat, Feb 16 2013 12:10:14 Maria Hutchings, the Conservative candidate, has continued her record of stirring up controversy on the relatively rare occasions when she switches from dodging the media to making public comments: Eastleigh by-election: Conservative candidate Maria Hutchings rubbishes state education systemTory Maria Hutchings indicated two local schools with glowing Ofsted reports were not good enough for her boy Lib Dems: Maria Hutchings ...
The recent revelation that Pope Benedict XVI was retiring from the Papacy due to ill health has sparked an endless stream of speculation over who will succeed his holiness as the Bishop of Rome, and Head of the Catholic Church on Earth. As is always the case with these events, the bookies publish their odds ...
You'd have thought that losing a Judicial Review in court would make County Durham more careful. Apparently not. As you may know from this site, the inspector's third report advised the council to reject the village application for Belle Vue on the grounds that "on the balance of probabilities" the land had all been bought for "public walks and pleasure grounds" under the 1875 Public Health Act. I know it's dry legalese but on it hangs the legal qualification for Belle Vue to be declared a Village Green or not. If bought as Public walks and pleasure grounds all Belle ...
Here is the update from the Histon Neighbourhood Policing Team for the meeting on 19th February @ 19:30 (Swavesey Primary School); Neighbourhood Profile Update Here's the relevant section in relating to Bar Hill Division (both Bar Hill and Girton Wards); Bar Hill Ward (Bar Hill, Boxworth, Dry Drayton, Lolworth)Crime There have been a total of 54 crimes reported in Bar Hill in the last period. 18 of these relate to Tesco, 10 relate to Swavesey services and 4 relate to Menzies hotel leaving 20 other crimes reported. There have been two shed burglaries and one dwelling burglary; there was also ...
Over at the New Statesman, LDV's Thursday editor Nick Thornsby has looked at Ed Miliband's proposal to cut taxes for the low-paid funded by introducing the Lib Dems' mansion tax proposal. Far from being upset by the plagiarism, Nick argues that Lib Dems will be "secretly rather happy" for two reasons: First, it shifts the political debate to the area where the Lib Dems are at their strongest: tax policy. For whatever else the party has done in government, it is the implementation of a £10,000 tax-free allowance that is cutting through the fog and being recognised by voters as ...
Here's a quick response to Iain Dale's blog-post Eastleigh by-election gets dirty, itself a response to my post earlier today, So this is why the Tories have been trying to keep their Eastleigh candidate quiet. I like Iain, admire his blog: it's incredibly readable, authentically honest. His post today, though, is based on an inaccuracy: that the son about whom the Tories' Eastleigh candidate Maria Hutchings said it would be "impossible" for him to get a good enough education in a state school is autistic. As a result, Iain has told me I "should now feel rather ashamed" of myself. ...
I sometimes wonder why on earth I stay a member of the AA. Their breakdown service is usually very good, but they take my membership and use it to imply that I agree with their rather dysfunctional views on motoring - which seems to me that there should be no restraints to it. They claim rather disingenuously that they are not against the London congestion charge, but this is the story they generated yesterday pouring scorn on the whole idea - arguing that it has extracted £2.6 billion from motorists over the past decade without actually reducing congestion. Well, I ...
Monday sees the start of a Family History Taster five week course at the Mitchell Street Centre in which participants will learn how to use the internet to find out about their family and Scottish roots and learn about the world our ancestors knew. The course starts at 10am but please call the centre on 435872 first thing on Monday if you wish to take part as booking is essential.
Peter Purves Philip Hinchcliffe Nicholas Briggs Me with the head of Jon Pertwee Dalek Angel Ten and Rose Six, Five and Four K9 and company Policewoman Amy, Cat and Roman Rory The TARDIS girls Expensive autographs (beyond my budget)
Having forsaken my New Barnet penthouse and moved into my new home with the lovely Jacqueline (to whom I am to be married) in Whetstone, I recently closed the British Gas account at my former abode. Little did I know that this would involve my piloting a new TV game show format that's all about billing (it's called Test the Patience). On 31 January, they emailed to say that I owed them £303.61. My entering a meter reading on 4 February sparked an email thanking me for said reading, followed on 7 February by an email to say "We're sorry, ...
It's becoming increasingly clear that Maria Hutchings is a liability. This probably went unnoticed during the 2010 general election as there were 649 other contests going on simultaneously and most in the know didn't seriously expect Huhne to lose Eastleigh. So the focus was elsewhere. On the 28th February, Eastleigh will be the only election being fought with real national significance and therefore there is much more focus on the Tory candidate. She has been found wanting. She has made a number of statements that have embarrassed her own party leadership (on equal marriage and Europe) and it reached the ...
My latest in the New Statesman David Cameron finds himself supporting a candidate in the Eastleigh by-election who disagrees with him on Equal Marriage, on membership of the EU and who has some pretty extreme views on immigration and abortion. Meanwhile, right-wing commentators call on the party to wake up and get behind their 'modernising' leader.But in fact, the evidence is that the latest brand of Tory MPs have more in common with Maria Hutchings, "the Sarah Palin of the south coast" as one person referred to her the other day, than they do with the leader of the Tory ...
It's been a long time since something riled me so much I headed straight for the keyboard but the news of the comments made by Welsh Secretary David Jones regarding same sex couples bringing up children did it. For anyone who missed it, t he said : I regard marriage as an institution that has developed over many centuries, essentially for the provision of a warm and safe environment for the upbringing of children, which is clearly something that two same-sex partners can't do. He has now claimed that he was quoted out of context given that elsewhere he lauded ...
And some of the nicest people you could hope to meet. That's the fortnightly coffee afternoons run by the young people of Real Care Ltd, the Charitable Company which provides extended services after the age of 19 to the former students of Villa Real Care. For just 90p you can get a cuppa and cake (or a scone to die for) – bargain – and have some friendly chat with the trainee waiters. [IMG: Realcare Coffee afternoon]
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Today Ed Miliband started to re-frame the economic debate « Labour Uncut Interesting article from Dan McCurry » Today Ed Miliband started to re-frame the economic debate http://buff.ly/YkMc0f The horsemeat scandal is unfortunate, but it is not a full blown crisis | British Politics and Policy at LSE Yep » 'The horsemeat scandal is unfortunate, but it is not a full blown crisis' http://buff.ly/XdInZA Eurosceptic attitudes are widespread but varied in the Nordic states | Ballots & Bullets Ever wondered about the Nordic countries' attitudes to the EU? Well, you have now ...
LibDemVoice noted last week that the Tories' candidate in Eastleigh, Maria Hutchings, had been playing hide and seek with the media. Now we know why... [IMG: lib dem eastleigh education 600px] Quote from today's Mirror: 'You'll never be a surgeon if you go to a state school': Tory by-election candidate rubbishes education system — Tory Maria Hutchings indicated two local schools with glowing Ofsted reports were not good enough for her boy
The debate on Genetically Modified Organisms has been raging, largely unchanged, for some years – Frankenstein Foods are coming to your plate if they are not already there. Aficionados of science fiction may point out that Moreauesque foods may be a better term, since Dr Moreau did genetic engineering, whereas Dr Frankenstein merely assembled a living organism from body parts, all of the same species. But I digress. Greenpeace lead the charge saying While scientific progress on molecular biology has a great potential to increase our understanding of nature and provide new medical tools, it should not be used as ...
Today I are mostly phoning the lovely voters of Eastleigh and badgering them for the Lib Dems. I will need sustenance to keep me going. I have some ready meals in the fridge and a microwave. View Poll: Lunch ETA: lunchtime has arrived and the vote is decisive even if the electorate is tiny ;) Sausage and mash it is. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
We've just finished a first meeting to set up a Friends of Garston Library group. Plenty of ideas and it's clear there is scope to organise events and to get more people using the library. We've got a follow up meeting, to make more organisational progress, on 2nd March at the Library. Because there aren't an infinite number of chairs there, it would really help to know if you are coming (if you are one of the people who wasn't here today). You can e mail me at paulakeaveney@yahoo.co.uk Thanks to Denise from the library service also for updating us ...
I'm not a big fan of NFC. I think it's an impractical technology except in very specialised use cases. Because it's so rarely seen in the UK I don't tend to post about it much. The Boy Whatley recently posted about his new favourite NFC toy - the Nokia MD-310 (catchy name, guys!). That reminded me - there was an interesting use of NFC which I'd seen in Las Vegas. Las Vegas - like most of the developed word - is full of QR codes. They're on fliers, printed on t-shirts, in all the magazines, and on all the posters. ...
Having already commented on the misadventures of the Tory candidate for Eastleigh I note that her minders let her off the leash again with inevitable consequences. The Daily Mirror reports that Maria Hutchings sparked a storm yesterday by saying her 12-year-old couldn't possibly go to state school because he wanted to be a "cardio-respiratory surgeon": Tory Maria Hutchings, who is fighting to win the vacant seat of disgraced former Cabinet minister Chris Huhne, indicated two local schools with glowing Ofsted reports were not good enough for her boy. She said: "William is very gifted which gives us another interesting challenge ...
Don't forget Faith, Pride, and Chat, our informal social evening, is taking place on Friday, 22 February at 7 p.m in St George's Church on High Street. More detail....
Today's Western Mail reports that new figures have shown that one in 10 homes in Wales is at risk of flooding. They say that overall, the number of properties at risk of flooding fell from 220,144 in 2008 to 219,571 in 2012. The biggest fall was in the number of homes at significant risk, down 16,227 to 48,064 in four years. But the number of homes at low risk has grown from 81,000 to 110,000 suggesting that while properties have remained at risk, the chance of being flooded has dropped from as much as a one in 75 chance to ...
Here's my latest blog on the Huffington Post website, from my visit to Mozambique and Ethiopia with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. Today I met a future doctor, accountant and engineer. They were all 13 year old girls. The aspirations of these Ethiopian girls is heartening. The engineer says she wants to train to help "build up her country". I wouldn't bet against her doing just that. And the UK Department for International Development (DFID) is working with Ethiopia to make sure she is joined by many others. The deputy prime minister and I are in Kokebe Tsebeh school in ...
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the longest running science fiction show in the world I am taking a weekly look at some of my favourite Dr Who episodes focusing on one Doctor a month. This month it's the second Doctors turn. Can you have a favourite of favourites? This is what this weeks choice is - The Invasion. Yes, I know this is another Cyberman story but it is just so good. I first came across this story when I was a young un reading the Target novelisations in the early 1980s. I was captivated by it and loved ...
Sat 16th
10:00
Happy Birthday Guido, now it's time for the rest of the political blogosphere to step up
The Guido Fawkes blog is 10 years old, and has risen to notoriety and prominence over that time. Paul Staines founded the blog having declared himself bankrupt. Along with Iain Dale, he essentially invented the political blogosphere as we recognise it today, turning political blogging and advertising into a business. In 10 years, few have ...
Ed Miliband's speech on tax the other day sparked bemusement amongst Liberal Democrats. For years, Labour have passed off the Liberal Democrats as the sellout Spawn of Satan and here they were embracing Vince Cable's Mansion Tax and trying to make out that they knew how to make the tax system fairer. Amongst those bemused Liberal Democrats is Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, the man who has given 23 million people a tax cut by raising the threshold at which they start to pay tax. For the tax year beginning in April, this will amount to £600 being ...
xkcd: App Oh yes. This. didn't seem to be such a problem when I was on symbian (tags: ) Tory MPs push for move that would disestablish the church I say we support them (tags: ) what happens when the paperwork demanding people mistake the name of the policedog for the name of the addressing officer? (tags: ) BBC News - MP Nadine Dorries faces expenses investigation OH dear. (tags: ) Reeva Steenkamp's corpse was in the morgue, her body was on the Sun's front page | Marina Hyde | Comment is free | The Guardian "Doubtless they'll claim they ...
Liverpool City Council is talking about changing the bin service so that the purple bins are collected every fortnight rather than every week. The proposal at the moment is that this would only apply to parts of the City although its not clear from the definitions exactly which those parts would be. We believe that these sorts of changes shouldn't come in without a serious attempt to collect people's views and act on them. My Lib Dem colleagues and I are now doing just that. If you want to fill in our on line survey on this topic, please use ...
Good Morning, this week's Saturday Six is on schedule and under budget... This article is one of the best things I've read about the current Horse meat scandal engulfing the processed meat industry - and the implied demonisation of those who buy Value Ready Meals. The Daily Mail reports that 4 million adults have never worked. Stephen Tall unpicks the figures a bit.... Mark Thompson is a regular on these pages, this week he's arguing that the Pope's decision to stand down injects some humanity into debates on Popes and Monarchs having a vacation for life. Vince Cable has picked ...
Last autumn, following a concern raised by a constituent about the need to improve parking arrangements for disabled people at the Gallagher Retail Park, I raised the issue with JP Morgan Asset Management, the retail park owners, who promised to tackle the issue. All credit to JP Morgan Asset Management - see right. Drivers with disabilities can now park for up to 4 hours without having to use the ticket machines as long as a Blue Badge is displayed. A good result.
From Sheena Wellington: Later this morning, Mark Spalding will be performing an interesting recital of keyboard music for the Friends of Wighton's monthly cappuccino concert. This well-loved event starts at 10.30am upstairs in Dundee Central Library, with complimentary coffee and newspapers included in the £5 admission price. Then the music is from 11am until 12 noon. Mark Spalding is a regular performer at the Wighton Centre and he will play old Scottish tunes from the rare books in the Wighton Collection, using the stunning harpsichord which is kept there with the books. He also plans to perform some music by ...
