Today with the rise of UKIP and their anti immigration campaigns it is sadly not unusual to hear hostile comments about immigrants. It is worth reflecting that if UKIP immigration policy had been in place not only would it have excluded many of our Olympic athletes it would also have excluded many of our best entrepreneurs and professionals like doctors etc I am old enough to remember the storm over the Kenyan Asians fleeing from Idi Amin's.Africanisation policy. The Labour Party was in government and passed the 1968 Immigration Act to their eternal shame. Labour's Bill was rushed through in ...
Janan Ganesh — ex-Economist writer, current FT columnist, frequently intelligent political commentator — tweeted thus this afternoon: SDP in 1983. Greens in 1989. Ukip now. Some people always think politics is on the lip of a grand realignment. It almost never is. — Janan Ganesh (@JananGanesh) May 2, 2013 For a more in-depth dissection of why Janan was talking tosh, here's my post from last summer: How Jeremy Thorpe (and then Nick Clegg) broke the electoral system Send to Kindle
The local election count is tomorrow. Expect result tomorrow night. I apologise for the lack of informative posts. I've just been 100% focused on the election and that has left little time for the research and other involvement that normally drives my entries. The Count tomorrow is at the Louisa Centre in Stanley, with the first three hours allocated to the verification process – checking that the number of votes in the boxes tallies with the number of votes issued. Then there's the count proper which tells Consett and the rest of the county (in that order from my point ...
I have waited till 10pm to publish this blog as the polls are now closed for the county council elections and I did not wish to give any publicity to the Tory effort that has gone into this election. However it is remarkable that William Hague has been phoning constituents in Morecambe South. At least that's what David Morris, my M.P. wrote in his tweet on the 1st May. I don't know if our foreign secretary and first secretary of state phoned one or two people in Morecambe South or whether he spent a few hours working on the phones ...
Thu 2nd
22:05
Polls are closed! Here's some election reading to keep you going for the loooong wait...
[IMG: Lib Dems winning here] They're over! Nothing more to be done now but wait. And it'll be a long wait for most, with many of today's local elections not due to be counted until tomorrow. I offered my preview of today's local elections earlier this week. To keep you going, here's a clutch of analysis. Local Election Preview (Anthony Wells) With the Conservatives starting from an extreme high, it is almost inevitable that they will lose a lot of seats and lose control of a substantial number of councils. It also means that Lib Dem councillors up for re-election ...
From 1 April the Localism Act of 2011 made me and all other councillors, MPs and tenant panels "designated person" This means we can refer problems social tenants experience to the Housing Ombudsman. Previously the Housing Ombudsman would only consider complaints after te housing providers complaints procedures have been exhausted – often and exhausting process – and within 6 months. This is particularly good news for housing association tenants. Previously councillors really felt disarmed when presented with terrible problems with housing associations properties. At last we can help in such cases. if you have a social housing problem do use ...
I noticed a particularly interesting bit of analysis earlier this week on a blogsite which is particularly concerned with Police & Crime Commissioners (PCCs): Bernard Rix has been checking up on how much work the 40-odd Police Commissioners, elected last November, have been up to. He has reviewed how many decisions they have each taken, as published on their Police Commissioner websites. So how many published decisions has our own Merseyside Police Commissioner, Jane Kennedy, made in her first 5 months in office? The answer is the grand total of six. According to Mr Rix's analysis, the busiest Police ...
Here's Stockport's Forward Plan – the big issues we expect to be taking decisions on between June and Septembet 2013. Issues include play streets, residents parking, one-hour parking charges in car parks and the proposed move of Castle Hill School to Offerton. Stockport Council Executive Forward Plan – June – Sept 2013 by Iain Roberts
Thanks to Dave Page, I now have something approaching an internet connection at home — a borrowed cast-off smartphone acting as a wifi hub, which gives me a very small level of connectivity. Sadly the comment on the Mindless Ones list ("Just think how much he'll be writing without the net to distract him!") couldn't ...
Tonight it's Part Two of The Politician's Husband - though, first, it's political drama at the ballot box, so if you have elections round your way and you've not been out to vote yet, do. If you need a reminder, here's why you should vote for the Liberal Democrats on philosophical grounds, on practical action, and for just five good reasons - but pick just one to read, as the polls are closing! Now back to The Politician's Husband, starring David Tennant and inevitably in a line from 1995's rather good The Politician's Wife and 1990's outstanding House of Cards. ...
Haven't seen one banker or come to think of it any politician lose their home over the economic crisis.
My name is Emma Allen-Taylor I am the Engagement Officer for the Manchester Mobility Team of Guide Dogs. As part of my job I deal with access issues that ...
Angus Council chief Richard Stiff calls for flexibility Thanks to @TimMinogue on Twitter.
Having spotted this in today's Evening Standard, I thought that I ought to share... This 54 feet high piece of art is floating in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong, and brought a smile to my face.
I was just a little taken aback to read this web site today. http://billwith.blogspot.co.uk/p/about.html Assuming the allegations are true there are questions to be answered here. If they are not true I am sure the MP will tell us so. Those with longish memories will recall that former Labour Minister James Purnell was caught doing precisely this some years ago. He apologised and the Labour Party gave assurances that this behaviour would not be repeated. Time for Labour to issue a statement is it not?
That's the does-what-it-says-on-the-tin name for the website, created by William Summers and run by Mark Pack, highlighting some of the key successes of the Lib Dems in government. It's been freshly updated this week, so what better day could there be than to take a look and share it with any friends and colleagues yet to decide how to cast their vote today? [IMG: what have lib dems done - apr 2013] PS: I understand from Mark that the updated version of his infographc — click here to enjoy its resplendence — should be available shortly. * Stephen Tall is ...
The Sun, for the first polling day in 44 years, has chosen not to endorse an party. Instead, today's editorial urges those voting in county council elections to "vote local". They say: David Cameron's Conservatives should be the best at getting value for your pound. But many of their councils have defied the PM's demand to ...
The United Kingdom Independence Party, to give it its full rather clunky name, is expected to do rather well in the local elections today. The main driver behind this potential success is ostensibly its positioning as an anti-establishment vehicle for discontent with the main parties. This is interesting, because claiming to be against the establishment ...
South Liverpool Housing is helping to promote a gardening competition with categories that even include houses without gardens ( containers in back yards and window boxes stand a chance). Housing organisations all over the City are involved and there'll be a bit prizegiving in October. It'll soon be time to get the entry forms in though. You can find the details at this link.
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... The nudge unit - has it worked so far? | Politics | The Guardian Evidence-based policy in action... > The nudge unit - has it worked so far? | The Guardian http://bit.ly/13OWY25 The Real Blog: Mad Candidates Disease and how to recognise it .@DavidBoyle1958 diagnoses the symptoms > Mad Candidates Disease + how to recognise it http://bit.ly/ZBy3Qf The Sun says: NHS mess | The Sun |News|Sun Says SHOCK! as, for FIRST TIME EVER, The Sun urges its readers to THINK FOR THEMSELVES who to vote for at election http://bit.ly/10u18Z3 Miliband's turn as ...
One of the things that has pleased me, but has gone mostly unnoticed by the commentariat, is the steps taken by the Coalition to address the problems caused by tax havens and banking secrecy. Agreements with Switzerland and Liechtenstein have generated significant tax yield, all of it presumably from wealthy people with an ambiguous view on personal morality, and recent announcements of similar disclosure agreements regarding bank accounts in Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man can be expected to generate further funds. Best of all, they make it harder for criminals - and those who fail to declare income ...
It's been seven weeks now since I broke down about a third of the way through my speech in the Scottish Liberal Democrat conference mental health debate. It was a debate characterised by quite astounding bravery from almost all of those who got up to speak. Each brave speaker independently chose to disregard the stigma surrounding the issue and relate their own experiences of mental ill health in the hope that those present could learn from those experiences and help to bring change. I am especially grateful to Christine Jardine for abandoning her prepared speech in order to deliver the ...
We see the difficulty of the operation of the British Constitution with the government writing to Munby P about the Court of Protection. In my view James Munby is one of the better judges. However, there are issues that cannot simply be left to the judges. Yes, the judiciary should be consulted, but in the end parliament writes the laws not the judiciary. The problems in the Family Division
Good luck to all Liberal Democrat candidates in today's local elections. And will you be staying up late to hear the results? Of course you will...
Clearly Bill Esterson has been taking lessons at Mark Dowd's school of charm and open accountability on how to handle bad news- talk loudly about anything else to try and drown out the story. Don't apologise,don't explain. The fact the man has a little 'previous' must also be ignored. I have a small wager about how The Champion will report the story-if at all. Remember the stick James Parnell-who we should acknowledge was a politician of real substance-was treated for a similar offence http://billwith.blogspot.co.uk/p/about.html LABOUR IN PHOTOSHOP SCANDAL! Bill Esterson is the Labour Member of Parliament for Sefton Central. In ...
[IMG: The Sun_Kinnock_1992] Does what The Sun says matter? In its own terms, of course not. Its own self-promoted myth that it was 'The Sun wot won it' for the Tories in 1992 with its anti-Kinnock front page belies the reality: it backs the party it thinks is most likely to win. It's in that narrow sense that it's interesting The Sun has declined to back either the Tories or Labour today for the first time in its 44-year history: Who you choose today must be a local decision, not a national one. Read the leaflets. Listen to what all ...
Thu 2nd
10:48
Some nationalists need to get a grip - you can't compare UK with brutal occupation of Latvia
I wrote this post yesterday on Liberal Democrat Voice about the implementation of the Scotland Act. I was slightly perplexed to see this comment appear:I am assuming you would not agree that Latvia and Russia, for example, are "better together"?Clearly not, but you cannot compare a brutal occupation and a mutually beneficial, legitimate union. Perhaps a little history lesson is in order. Let's have a look at the recent history of Latvia from Britannica.com: The uncompromising effort of the regime to transform the country into a typical Soviet bailiwick compounded the devastation of the war. Severe political repression accompanied radical ...
Today is polling day, and for Bar Hill the polling station is the Village Hall. All you need to vote is your address, if you have the postcard from South Cambs (with you polling number on it) it makes things slightly quicker but if you don't have that you can just turn up with your address and ask to vote. Polling takes place up till 10pm tonight. Local Parish Councillor and Liberal Democrat candidate Andy Pellew said; "Today's the day you have the opportunity to set the direction for Cambridgeshire County Council for the next four years. I believe it's ...
I blogged yesterday about the oddity that the current Tory Party seems obsessed with promoting public schoolboys in general, and Eton alumni in particular, up the greasy pole; odd, because no privately schooled Tory has won a general election since Macmillan in 1959. The problem was fairly neatly illustrated on 10 O'clock Live last night, when Janet Street Porter berated the 'Eton educated Ian Duncan Smith' for encouraging pensioners who didn't need their benefits to give them back. Her suggestion was how dare this posh bloke tell us we need to give our money back. Now there's no denying IDS ...
From the BBC: how not to eat healthily for £1 a day (tags: ) Labour party members face Joyce seat vote ban | Herald Scotland Ahhh, entryism (tags: ) Moon Landing Faked!!!—Why People Believe in Conspiracy Theories Apparently some people believe that Osama Bin Laden is both dead and alive. Schrodinger's terrorist? (tags: ) Local Elections 2013 - Seat Projections Too 'Conservative'? Bookmarking this to go back to it on Friday... (tags: ) Deserted Places: BBC Television Centre: The end of an era (tags: ) Quote(s) of the day Carl pulls out some words of wisdom from Daniel Finkelstien. (tags: ...
Liberal Democrats around the country are taking to the streets or phones to get out the vote. Here's Lib Dem HQ in sunny Ludlow. [IMG: Ludlow HQ] From the Liberal Democrat website: The Liberal Democrats are building a stronger economy in a fairer society, enabling everyone to get on in life. Our councillors have proud records locally, standing up for local people: No library will be closed in any Lib Dem-run or Lib Dem-led authorities this year Northumberland County Council, Portsmouth and Stockport are opening new ones Liberal Democrats are helping businesses and customers to get their economies moving with ...
Let's spare a thought today for all our candidates facing their moment of truth in the local elections - and not just our candidates (by which I refer of course to the Lib Dems), but all candidates everywhere. Even maybe the 'clowns'. Think of them because, however level-headed they are - however sensible and charming they are in other aspects of their lives, or were before signing their election papers - they are still susceptible to worrying signs of Mad Candidates Disease. I haven't been a candidate myself since 2001 (how are you, Regents Park and Kensington North?), but even ...
Readers will know I am a big supporter of the Maghull in Bloom volunteers and I also have the privilege to chair the steering group that brings all the volunteers and organisations involved in this long-running project together on a monthly basis. I thought I would run a few articles about some of the projects that Maghull in Bloom is presently involved with so here goes with the first of 3 initial postings. The Leeds Liverpool Canal used to be a real mess but in recent years volunteers have been litter picking it on a weekly basis. What's more local ...
In the run-up to today's county council elections, Ed Miliband has been taking to a wooden pallet in towns and villages around the UK, telling anybody who would listen about Labour's plan to rescue the British economy by temporarily reversing the 2.5 percentage point increase in the rate of VAT. Desperate, though, to avoid admitting this would involve a significant increase in borrowing, he's been telling us that this would actually be a free tax cut because the economic growth that resulted from it would increase revenues by more than the upfront cost. That unlikely-sounding claim was given short shrift ...
A first in The Sun today – its polling day leader doesn't endorse a party and instead says, 'vote local': [IMG: The Sun logo] THE Sun is not going to tell you how to vote today... Sometimes we endorsed Labour or the Tories at election times. But today, as 18 million people have the chance to elect new local councils, none of the big four deserves our support. Tories, Labour, Lib Dems and yes, even UKIP, have all proved beyond your trust... Who you choose today must be a local decision, not a national one. Read the leaflets. Listen to ...
Yesterday, I indicated some doubts about what UKIP actually stand for in terms of specifics. Today, Diane James, the UKIP candidate in the Eastleigh by-election, claims that "UKIP is more than a protest vote - we stand for something". So, what is that something? "It is a simple philosophy. We believe power should and must be devolved down to the people, where it belongs. Decisions made that affect any man or woman's life should by and large be made with their consent, with as little interference from the paid agents of the state as possible." I admit that, as a ...
Best of luck to all Lib Dem candidates in today's local elections across England (and in the Ise of Anglesey). Good luck, too, to Hugh Annand in today's South Shields by-election; and to John Brown (Doncaster) and John Appleby (North Tyneside) in today's mayoral elections. And a particular shout-out to LibDemVoice's 'Libby Local', the first-time candidate in 'Libbyshire' who's been keeping LibDemVoice readers up-to-date with campaign progress over the past 6 months. You can catch up with all her experiences here. [IMG: goodmorning_ld]
There are no local elections in my area today. It should be the year to elect our county council but it was abolished by Mrs Thatcher. That demagogue for democracy didn't like what the county councils were doing (most had Labour majorities) so she finished them off "at a stroke." The most well-known victim was the Greater London Council (GLC) lead by Ken Livingstone, but all the other Metropolitan County Councils went as well, including ours in West Yorkshire, heir to the great West Riding County Council and its internationally admired Director of Education, Sir Alec Clegg. So the local ...
The City Council has recently published a leaflet highlighting the role of the West End Local Community Planning Partnership. You can download it here. The LCPP meeting is a great opportunity for representatives from different council departments, councillors and representatives from other organisations like police, fire and rescue and the NHS to discuss local issues and matters of concern and also let local residents raise issues, ask questions and have their say. The next LCPP meeting is at the Tartan Coffee House at 53 Perth Road at 7pm on Thursday 16th May and all local residents are welcome to attend. ...
I make no apologies for having been so quiet on here over the past few weeks. It's been election time so there has been little going on at county hall and few new announcements. What there has been is a lot of leaflet delivery and a lot of talking to voters across Launceston. I've been hugely encouraged and gladdened by the conversations I've had. Whether you are voting for me (or one of my colleagues) or for someone else, I can only think of a couple of occasions where the discussion has been of the negative 'none of you care ...
I spoke on Wave 102 News yesterday following the Remploy announcement that there is a bid for the Textile Business at Dundee Remploy and that it would now progress to the final stage (Best and Final Offer). A bid for the textile business is positive news and I do think every effort should be made to assist the bidder, subject to assurances about continued employment of the workforce and their terms and conditions. Securing a positive future for the workforce is vital. You can hear my interview on Wave 102 News by clicking 'play' below:
It is election day so here is a quick video to keep you amused while I try and get people to the polls. Has Lembit finally lost the plot? Discuss. Hat Tip: Labour List
Kirsty Williams has labelled Welsh Conservative plans that would force people, who are injured whilst exercising, as 'ridiculous' and 'dangerous'. The Welsh Conservative Health Spokesperson, Darren Millar, took to the airwaves yesterday morning to launch his party's new policy to charge 'irresponsible' patients for their use of the NHS. During the phone-in, Mr Millar seemingly acknowledged that people injured, for example whilst skiing or rock-climbing, should pay for their healthcare due to the 'high-risk' nature of the activities. Kirsty Williams commented: "The Welsh Conservatives have completely lost the plot with these ridiculous plans. "We should be encouraging people to be ...
Thursday 2nd May is county election day (and some unitaries and Doncaster's Mayor). Expectations in the party (and Westminster circles) are that the dismal Lib Dem performance in 2011 and 2012 are now a thing of the past as things have bottomed out and the electorate are beginning to see positives about the Lib Dems time in government. Some are even foolish enough to predict Lib Dem gains. My rule of thumb is to take the most pessimistic projections and then add significantly more losses. At each round of elections so far the Lib Dems have lost around half of ...
Good luck to the Liberal Democrat candidates in Market Harborough and across the country.
