After nearly four decades of work by many hundreds of volunteers and staff, the Bluebell Railway reinstated public services to its original northern terminus; the West Sussex market town of East Grinstead on 23 March 2013. This is the culmination of the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society's long-term ambition. Establishing a mainline connection and the prospect of more visitors coming in by rail, the extension included the extraction of over 90,000 tons of domestic waste from Imberhorne Cutting; a substantial part of the project which took over two years and cost over £2.7m.
[IMG: Sea otter] Yes, welcome to the frozen North, as today is brought to you from Leeds and Brighouse, the home of two prominent Liberal Democrat bloggers, Jennie Rigg and Mat Bowles. However, as it is Good Friday, Liberal Democrat Voice doesn't tend to work quite as intensively, so it will be a bit quieter than usual. We will be reporting on by-elections at Harwich West (Tendring District Council), Parson Drove (Fenland District Council) and Evelyn ward (London Borough of Lewisham). We also bring you news from Europe, where Liberal Democrats continue to challenge excessive spending, and we have a ...
We know it isn't what some of the residents of Woodward Close would have liked, but on Wednesday evening, 27th March, the planning application for the new primary school next to the British Legion at Winnersh Farm was approved by the Planning Committee of Wokingham Borough Council. The shortage of school places has to be given greater weight than almost anything else under national planning policy, which meant that once the planning application was submitted its approval was inevitable. Other ways of providing the extra places had been looked at, including a further expansion of the existing Winnersh Primary School ...
Jon: You can't be in two places at once. Nicola: I'm not. I'm in one place twice. The ancient Observatory at Armagh has always been a place of mystery and wonder to me - I worked there for a couple of months during my gap year in 1985/86, and showed visitors Halley's Comet through the telescope erected a hundred years earlier by J.L.E. Dreyer to round off his New General Catalogue (which gives galaxies their NGC numbers). Later, the observatory's official historian supervised my M Phil and was the external examiner of my Ph D. It's an important part of ...
This synopsis of Covert Network: Progressives, the International Rescue Committee, and the CIA by Eric Thomas Chester casts an interesting light on David Miliband's new employer: This book tells the story of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the largest nonsectarian refugee relief agency in the world. Founded in the 1930s by socialist militants, the IRC attracted the support of renowned progressives such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Norman Thomas, and Reinhold Niebuhr. But by the 1950s it had been absorbed into the American foreign policy establishment. Throughout the Cold War, the IRC was deeply involved in the volatile confrontations between the two ...
Not a glamorous meeting – but one of the best I attend. The Derwentside Health Network seeks to provide a forum for a wide range of people interested in health in Derwentside to find out what's going on and set some direction in the local Public Health area. There are people from the NHS, County Council, Voluntary sector, Link (becoming Healthwatch), AAP, Leisureworks and more and what fascinates me is the number of initiatives happening both under and above the radar. One new initiatives which is very community based is a breast-feeding peer-support group centred in Stanley, but hoping to ...
I realise this blog is becoming, in some ways, a kind of conversation with Jonathan Calderwrites David Boyle on The Real Blog. Let me continue that conversation by reporting that David has another book coming out. The other day I blogged about his The Age to Come. But there is also Broke: Who Killed the Middle Classes? Discussing its themes back on his blog, David says: In the 1930s, the heyday of middle-class house buying, a new semi-detached cost just over £500, available with a down payment of £50 (that is why I've got that poster at the top). This ...
I think I've mentioned that I am fan of the oevre of the late Mr Johnny Cash. A fine singer. He would have got the thumbs down from Simon Cowell for being out of tune, I reckon. But I don't like Johnny Cash enough to have "Thing called love" going around in my head for five days! There are limits. I blame it on Nat West and their blessed e-ISAs. Anyway, there is now only one thing for it. I have to lance the boil! So I am now listening to the tune at full ear-bleeding volume over and over ...
I joined two parents from Didsbury, Adrian and Ann Thornber, in London today as they presented a 52,000 name petition, organised by change.org to Downing Street calling for the law ...
By Stephen Donnan Much has been made of Nick Clegg's sudden U-turn on Government immigration plans, seemingly backing the Conservative's policy of planning to remove benefits from some EU migrants. The plans in earnest are part of a larger attempt by the Conservatives to chase UKIP to the right after the Eastleigh fiasco, with the Home Secretary Theresa May talking up the idea of the UK leaving the jurisdiction of the ECHR and scrapping the Human Rights Act after the next election. It is obvious that the Conservatives are worried about UKIP, however I don't believe they need to be ...
Nick Clegg sounded very cheery as he introduced his weekly LBC phone-in today. Maybe it's the thought of two weeks away from the rough and tumble of Parliament, or waking up to a basketful of chocolate eggs on Sunday, but he certainly seemed in good form. I have a long held obsession that if politicians concentrated their minds and sorted out housing, we'd all be a lot happier. It's one of the things people care most about, unsurprisingly. Imagine how you'd feel if the roof over your head was threatened. Imagine the uncertainty, being forced to rely on the homelessness ...
John's article in The Irish Post 28th March 2013 From the Manchester Ship canal, built thanks largely to Irish 'navvies' in the 19th century, to the thousands of Irish ...
No not me (although I doubt I'd be missed) but the fabulous Louise Shaw did such a thing and she had written her thought up on her blog over here. It is a rather interesting look into the effect that social media has on our lives in this modern day and age. As someone who uses social media to a significant extent (but not to a crazy level of having many prolonged conversations through it) I was intrigued to see how she coped and found it. She still used Facebook and Google+ but just cut out Twitter. She makes the ...
As you will know, the Justice and Security Bill went unamended after the debate in the Lords on Tuesday, and so will now become law - and secret courts will become a reality in the Civil Court. I find it extremely upsetting that this could happen with Lib Dems in government. There is an excellent round up of the events of Tuesday over at LDV from Caron, where you can find a list of the Lib Dem peers who defied the three line whip to Vote against the government. Also over at LDV today there is a great piece from ...
Thu 28th
16:15
REMINDER: Call for evidence regarding independent inquiry into processes, culture and complaints rel...
With a week to go before the deadline for written submissions, I'd like to make a further call for any evidence that may be relevant to my independent inquiry. As previously indicated, the review covers three overlapping areas: Processes (and what did and did not happen) Attitudes and culture within the Party A blueprint for the future. I am keen to hear from all those who have relevant experiences and views to help me form an accurate picture (whether Party members, staff or public). Thank you to those who have already submitted evidence. I'd welcome any additional evidence around the ...
[IMG: Andover museum March] Conservative-run Hampshire County Council have admitted they plan to sell off our museums, art centres and cultural services. Hampshire County Council plan to handover control of these vital services to a 'Trust', the Hampshire Solent Cultural Trust. Local people will no longer have a say on how our museums and art centres are run. Many fear that this move will put them at risk of more funding cuts, and even closure. As a community we've fought hard to stop Conservative cuts to our local services. This news is yet another bitter blow to Andover. The Conservative ...
Via Charles Arthur: An overview of my PhD research from Felienne Hermans
When neighbouring landowners hired subcontractors to remove some dead trees from an area near Dower Avenue in Wallington, residents were furious that the subcontractors got over-enthusiastic and decimated all the trees on an area of undesignated land which marks the entrance to their road. The Dower Avenue residents had been informally looking after this piece ...
The British engineer James Dyson is best known for his successful and rather expensive vacuum cleaner. It is successful because, unlike so many other vacuum cleaners on the market, it works rather well. The same goes for his Airblade dryer, an alternative to hand dryers which began appearing in public lavatories in 2007. The old hand dryers used to take up to 44 seconds to work - or so Dyson claims. Actually, I have encountered many, especially on trains, that would happily maintain the dampness on your hands at great expense for hours under a pathetic breath of tepid air. ...
The NHS is quite high up the news agenda these days. From the media there seem to be two big issues: culture and privatisation. The mainly right-wing press say that much of the NHS lacks a caring culture and this often leads to a breakdown of service. Left-wingers, and NHS insiders, worry about the new commissioning rules, and whether unscrupulous private companies will bid their way into contracts that destroy what is good about the service. These are both valid concerns, but a third issue should be causing more controversy than it does: funding. Not so much the NHS's overall ...
I can't understand why a liberal would join the Tories or Labour, but the Greens seem to be a different matter. A number of Liberal Democrats have joined the Greens since May 2010, for reasons that most fellow-liberals won't find unsympathetic. In their own words (more or less), here are some examples: Alexis Rowell (sometime Camden cllr), Clive Smith (Worcestershire cllr), Alan Weeks (Hampshire cllr), Robert Vint (Totnes cllr). (I should also mention Martin Ford - formerly Lib Dem, now Green Party councillor - and others from Aberdeenshire, although that sorry business predatesthe Coalition). The distinction that I've heard over ...
Science fiction and real-world innovation have always fed off each other. The history of the electronic book shows us things are more complicated than fiction predicting fact Nesta has published two papers on the mutual influence of science fiction and innovation. It's been great fun working with the authors: busting the myth that science fiction predicts future technologies; exploring what stories tell us about public attitudes to technology; and finding out about the latest trends for collaborative writing, design and experiments speculating about the future. Check out the original papers here and here. This is Lydia Nicholas' take on what ...
Haringey Council has a terrible reputation for failure. The tragic child protection scandals of Victoria Climbe and Baby Peter and the 2011 riots which started in Haringey are just some examples of the many crises in the borough. Haringey Council has been mismanaged by Labour for the last 41 years and frequently tries to persuade sceptical residents that these problems are in all in the past. But the last month has seen a succession of bad news stories that have further battered the reputation of the crisis-hit council. Children's services still in trouble Two local parents recently won a High ...
I rather like the new Lib Dem magazine 'Ad Lib', not least because the stuff in it is actually interesting to party members. I was very pleased when Editor in Chief Phil Reilly tweeted me to let me know that the magazine had gone digital. Helen Duffett blogs about it on Lib Dem Voice: ...
Thu 28th
14:17
Future concerns for Werrington library as Tory Council cuts opening hours by another 8 hours!
[IMG: Werrington Library] Local LIB DEM ward councillor Darren Fower, says he is now concerned for the future of Werrington Library after the Tory controlled City Council decided to cuts opening hours by 8 hours, a week, on top of previous reductions in previous years! Commenting, Darren said: "Despite all the alternatives that compete for the use of our spare time, reading remains one of the most educational and fulfilling pastimes. "What we have is a Tory contolled city council who are attempting to manage the financial crisis caused by a wide range of their own mismanaged endeavours! "In 2009, ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... BBC News – The pleasures and perils of the open-plan office Fascinating feature (I hate open plan) >> The pleasures and perils of the open-plan office http://bbc.in/YhhRCX Damian McBride & Me: How the Book Came About – Iain Dale .@IainDale & @DPMcBride – how sworn enemies became bestest friends by Iain http://bit.ly/15YaIXV (Srsly, it will be a *fab* book, I'm sure) Can David Cameron snap the Tories out of their mid-term blues? » Spectator Blogs 25 no-con letters sent, 46 needed, reports J Forsyth » Can Cameron snap the Tories out of ...
[IMG: Paddy Ashdown cover of Ad Lib magazine] When AD LIB launched last December one message we got back loud and clear, not least from Lib Dem Voice readers, was that you want a digital version. Well, we've only gone and done it. And, what's more, it will be available next week. We've been working hard with the good people of PageSuite to get the digital edition ready to launch alongside the publication of April's magazine, which will land through letterboxes next Tuesday (after the Bank Holiday). And we're making it a truly interactive experience - with videos and links ...
Here is the BBC News at Ten O'clock. The headlines are: Vote Conservative! That's the message across the country for tomorrow's general election - vote Conservative. Nick Robinson, our political editor, reports why a Conservative majority government is the best answer to the country's problems. Our economics editor, Robert Peston, discusses the dangers to the economy of implementing policies promoted by the Labour party. Peter Snow uses his famous graphics to show the confusion and disarray of a hung parliament and how we can avoid it. David Dimbleby interviews Grant Shapps on the latest on the campaign. And, finally, sport. ...
The New Statesman published this on Tuesday and I'm rather smug that 2 days later, even post Miliband, it remains the 2nd most read piece on The Staggers. It's also attracted a load of comments. But hardly anyone has answered the second question (in the last line). Anyone care to have a go? Over the last two weeks I've been wrestling with a couple of questions. Trouble is, I only have an answer for the first. Perhaps you could all help me with the second?My first poser is this. Let's imagine that David Cameron had not gone into politics when ...
There's more than one cuckoo in my LibDem nest and I very much regret that Nick Clegg and cohorts, thought it reasonable or indeed 'liberal/Liberal', to whip his MPs into voting in favour of legislation that is nothing of the sort. I am, of course, referring to the Secret Courts fiasco. I understand there were 'rebels' who did not take the same view as Nick Clegg - and happily, my father, Lord Avebury, founding member the All-Party Parliamentary Human Rights Group was amongst them, along with 28 other Members of the Upper House.However, whilst compromises may have been necessary in ...
On Tuesday night 26 Lib Dem peers voted against a three line government Whip on Secret Courts. For many of them, it was the first time they had defied such a strong Whip. I am proud to have been one of them. Sadly - for the party and for the country - we lost by 16 votes but would have won comfortably if Labour peers had turned up and voted in their usual numbers. They demonstrated in spades their indifference to civil liberties. The Tory Whips laid on a showing of a James Bond film during the debate to keep ...
*And a telescope.... The photo on the left is me just pointing my Galaxy Note II at the sky - the one on the right uses the same phone, but with a bit more kit... [IMG: Comparing moon with and without scope] Last year, I bought myself a small telescope as a birthday present. I wanted to use it to take photos of the moon. I like the moon. The problem is that putting the phone up to the lens of the scope is really tricky to align. Which makes taking good photos really tricky. So, I picked myself up ...
David Miliband's decision to abandon British politics and move to head an American charity can be interpreted in two ways. Some will see it as and act of heroic self-sacrifice to enable his younger brother to lead the Labour Party without constant press sniping about sibling rivalry. Others will see it as akin to the pique of the schoolboy who refuses to play the game if he can't be captain. Despite the attempts of Labour luminaries, particularly of the Blairite wing, to push out PR in favour of the former, I suspect the bulk of the electorate will take the ...
With next Monday being the Easter Monday Bank Holiday, all bin collections are put back a day. So, if your normal "bin day" is Tuesday , next week it will be Wednesday and .... well, I'm sure you get the idea. Any questions please contact Northumberland County Council
Come on guys! At the time of writing Ryan Cullen needs £20 of donations to keep the Lib Dem Blogs Aggregator alive. For many of you today is payday so make a little contribution. I already had earlier in the month, the joys of being back in paid employment. Update over lunch and we're back on the web. Thanks to whoever it was that made the necessary donations.
We've got a busy Area Committee meeting coming up – we'll be starting the meeting at 6pm on Tuesday 9th Apil 2013 at Bolshaw Primary School, Cross Road, Heald Green. The agenda includes: Planning applications to convert old office block behind Abney Hall to an 80-bed care home, upgrade the car park and add pedestrian paths Two-storey extension at 51 Firswood Mount, Gatley (residential) Report on the possible introduction of Play Streets into Stockport – for consultation Report on proposed changes to parking tarrifs to 20p/hour in District Centres and 80p/hour in Stockport Town Centre. I reported on this last ...
Former Downing Street insider Christine Jardine, now back in Scotland and selected as a Liberal Democrat Euro-candidate, highlights in the Scotsman how more urgent problems are being forgotten as Scotland gears up for the Independence Referendum. While all the attention is on 18th September 2014, Christine reminds us that there is some serious stuff going on now: Traditionally, conferences, like the SNP's recent gathering in Inverness, are where policy announcements are made, government plans set out and ministers take the opportunity to highlight their successes in the full glare of the media spotlight. But not this time. This time I ...
What with secret courts, immigration and now the snoopers charter, it is understandable if Liberal Democrat members' anger is all used up on civil liberties issues at the moment. But please spare some of your anger for this: the introduction of food stamps: "Food stamps" arrive in Britain next month, when tens of thousands of vulnerable people will be issued with food vouchers in lieu of money to tide them over short-term financial crises.Rather than, as now, offering a cash loan, most councils will from April offer new applicants who qualify for emergency assistance a one-off voucher redeemable for goods ...
I always find that, in re policy at least, Liberal Youth tends to be much more interesting and innovative than the main party. If I recall correctly, we spent most of that wet week-end in Brighton a few weeks ago discussing 'Revitalising the Rural Economy' and other such similarly scintillating stuff. Whereas at Liberal Youth Conference (Manchester, ...
Lib Dem MEPs have welcomed the Coalition Government's commitment to ensure that cuts to European funding from 2014 onwards will be shared in a fair manner across the UK. The Coalition Government has announced that England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be subjected to an equal percentage cut of around 5% compared to the current 2007-2017 EU funding levels. MEPs and national governments are currently negotiating the next long-term EU budget for 2014-2020. Although a final deal has yet to be reached, the EU's budget is expected to be cut in real-terms for the first time in its history. ...
The Snoopers' Charter: we need a new consultation | Paul Bernal's Blog (tags: ) My experiences in tech: Death by 1000 paper cuts (tags: ) Words I think we need: Schroedinger's Douchbag (tags: ) Lord Dear: The same-sex marriage bill could be defeated by peers - PinkNews.co.uk Cue "Oh Dear LORD" jokes to take the edge off the horror... (tags: ) Tougher privacy rules prompted Google Reader shutdown, sources say - 25 Mar 2013 - Computing News (tags: ) BBC News - Take a look inside the King's Cross signal box (tags: ) Diary of a Benefit Scrounger: BREAKING : ...
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe: Also on YouTube.
The debate around the government vote to regulate the press has ranged across the airwaves, print media and the blogosphere for 11 days now. Passionate and sincere opinions are held on both sides and many third party organisations have expressed opinions on many aspects of the vote including compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights. You would think that Libertywould have something, however small, to say about this especially as Shami Chakrabati was an adviser to the Leveson process. I have checked their website every day to see what their views are on the crucial issue of press regulation. ...
British heroes: The doctor and the spy The Economist on Who and Bond. (tags: doctorwho ) Where Are We Going? Nic Clarke reviews Barbara Demick's book on North Korea (tags: northkorea ) British minister quotes from Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy (tags: Ukpolitics sf )
I was contacted earlier this week by a University of Dundee student who was very concerned to have witnessed the death of a female Goosander caused by eating from the floating garbage behind the Unicorn at Victoria Dock. As reported in last night's Evening Telegraph, this sad event was filmed (see below) and as the SSPCA correctly pointed out, this sort of irresponsible littering can prove fatal for local wildlife:I took up the matter on behalf of my constituent and the Port Manager from Forth Ports Limited has reacted swiftly. Two boats are being used this morning to clear all ...
From the Curator of Museum Services at the University of Dundee: New art acquisitions on show in the Zoology Museum at Easter The D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum at the University of Dundee will re-open its doors to the public this Easter. As well as all our amazing animals from around the world, we will also be displaying some of the latest purchases from our Art Fund grant to build a collection of art inspired by the museum's founder, Professor D'Arcy Thompson. Going on show for the first time in the museum will be two works by major 20th-century artists. One ...
[IMG: post-office-logo-colour] The Post Office has 373 Crown Post Office branches. It's decided to transfer 70 to retail partners. One of the 70 is our one on Lordship Lane. They have stressed to me that this is not about closing our post office on Lordship Lane but rather replacing it. But obviously this will cause great concern and will require a 6 week public consultation. My experience of such Post Office replacements has been very positive but that is no guarantee it will work well on Lordship Lane. A Post Office spokesperson stated "We are confident that our plans will ...
