This year marks twenty five years since the formation of the Liberal Democrats. The party's had something of a roller coaster journey since the merger of the old Liberal Party and the SDP. The first two years could not have been more disastrous. Three of the SDP's five MPs refused to join, though most grass ...
Stamford has a station on the Leicester to Peterborough line - today it largely houses the railway bookseller Robert Humm & Co. - but the town used to have a second, even grander station. This was Stamford Water Street, as it was known from its opening in 1856 until 1950, or Stamford East, as it was known from then until it was closed to passengers in 1957 and goods four years later. Its grandeur is out of scale with the two branch lines it served - services to Essendine and Wansford ran from here. That grandeur may have been a ...
Ed Miliband's recent declaration that a future Labour government would seek economic growth through a VAT cut is a disappointing deviation from the recent raft of progressive policies announced by Labour. Miliband has charted a carefully centrist course for his party- embracing economically liberal ideas, such as the mansion tax, and agreeing with the Liberal Democrats on Heathrow expansion, and ID cards. In these and other areas Miliband has shown himself to be closer to the Orange Book than the Red Flag, that's why his proposal to cut VAT is a deeply disappointing return to the "conservative" (Tony Blair's own ...
The consensus is that the death of Rear Admiral Sir Morgan Morgan-Giles has left John Freeman, the last survivor of the 1945 House of Commons, as the oldest former MP. But he is notable for far more than his longevity, as a recent New Statesman profile by Hugh Purcell revealed: In the 1940s he was a war hero, and then an MP who reduced Winston Churchill to tears in the Commons. In the 1950s he was tipped to become Labour leader but resigned from politics and became a TV interviewer. In 1961 he resigned from the BBC and became the ...
This week sees the fourth Queen's Speech of this Coalition Government, but no-one's expecting it to be especially busy or radical. (You can hear me discuss some of the reasons why on Radio 4′s PM programme here.) To some extent, Lib Dems will breathe a sigh of relief: missing from it will be any reference to the Communications Data Bill, already torpedoed by Nick Clegg. Indeed, the Speech seems to have been stripped of those bits of legislation which looked set to cause the Coalition leaders most aggro for least reward. While Lib Dem pressure saw off the 'snoopers' charter', ...
By Dr. Christian DeFeo In a way, UKIP's recent local election triumph shows how European Britain has become. If one casts their eyes across the Channel, it's not difficult to discern the tide of discontent that is rolling across the Continent. In Italy, a comedian with a populist, anti-establishment manifesto got a quarter of the vote. In Germany, insurgent movements like the Pirate Party and a new Eurosceptic force, Alternative für Deutschland, are making progress. In France, the party of perpetual discontent that is the National Front seems worryingly poised to take advantage of the disarray on the right. Far ...
Gareth Epps tells us what Nick Clegg should have said after Thursday's elections. "Putting in 20 mph speed limits in residential streets means more than just making streets safer. It is the beginning of a culture change where people on foot and on bikes, and children playing, take precedence over passing motor vehicles. It's about giving control of streets back to the people who live in them." Great stuff from Lib Dem councillor Roger Symonds on the Local Government Association site. The mixed messages the British government is giving out to potential foreign students - "at best unclear and at ...
By Ellis Palmer My name is Ellis Palmer and I'm standing to be the Chair of Liberal Youth in the West Midlands. I'm 18, originally from the Wirral in England's North West. I am currently in my 1st year of a Political Science and Spanish degree at the University of Birmingham. I've been involved with the Liberal Democrats since September 2012 and I was previously a Labour Party member, holding positions within Young Labour at a local and regional level. I'm currently the Secretary and Press and Publicity officer of the University of Birmingham Liberal Democrats. I was recently elected ...
Nigel Farage likes to boast that UKIP rather than the present-day Conservative Party represents the true spirit of Margaret Thatcher. And he is right, but probably not in a way he would like you to think. Because the dirty secret about Thatcher and UKIP is that, for all their flag-waving jingoism, both dislike their own country. Thatcher's contempt for much of Britain emerges clearly in a remarkable essay by Andrew O'Hagan in The New York Review of Books: ...by the end she left Britain a greedier and seedier place. Despite the pomp and circumstance of her funeral and the many ...
[IMG: Vince Cable - Some rights reserved by Liberal Democrats] Yesterday's Sunday Times carried a treat for those of us who are Liberal Democrats and petrolheads. Jeremy Clarkson being "away" is seen by some as a treat in itself, but his replacement for this week was our Vince Cable. Vince took an £150,000 Aston Martin Rapide S for a test drive during which he reached 160 mph. His criticism was as follows: The car was more capable and felt quicker than my favourite Aston — the DB9 — although I was disappointed that it didn't have a manual gearbox. I ...
My advice to Ukip is to savour this moment. After being repeatedly being dismissed and written off, their performance in last week's local elections was the story of the day. They took over a quarter of the vote where they had candidates, and that was in many more seats than before. They won well over 100 council seats. The commentariat are reeling, and were talking about little else over the weekend. As the dust settles somewhat, what are we to make of it? The obvious comparison is with the Lib Dems and their predecessor parties in their two separate golden ...
Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) are applying for up to £20 million of Government Money to make Greater Manchester a better place to cycle in. The funding is part of the Department for Transport's Cycle City Ambition Grant. The bid is for up to £20 million to be spent over two years in the form of a series of more continental-style, largely segregated, cycle routes within the heart of the conurbation, together with the delivery of a number of cycle and ride stations. The proposals include number of super cycleways called 'Spokes'. Spokes will be ...
The Wales On-Line site reports on a growing split in the ruling Labour Group on Cardiff Council with a number of backbenchers mounting a challenge against the leadership. They say that backbench councillor Phil Hawkins has launched a challenge against Heather Joyce for leadership of the Labour group running Cardiff council at the group's annual general meeting next Monday evening. Canton's Ramesh Patel is running against group and council deputy leader Ralph Cook, Splott's Gretta Marshall is challenging for the chief whip job against Plasnewydd's Sue Lent whilst former council leader Russell Goodway faces a challenge for the group treasurer ...
A talk by Prestwich based historian Ian Pringle takes place in Bury on Saturday 11 May to mark Local History Month. The subject of Ian's talk will be"How I Researched Philips Park, Prestwich", and will include a look at an exhibition about Philips Park and the Philips family. The event takes place at Bury Local History and Archives Service in Moss Street, Bury from 2.30pm to 3.30pm. It is free of charge, and there is no need to book. For more details, call 0161 253 5871 or email information@bury.gov.uk For further information about Local History Month visit
A new planning application has been received which is within your Ward (Prestwich – Holyrood) as detailed below:- Application number: 56244 Type of application: Full Date Registered: 02/05/2013 Location: 470 Bury Old Road, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 1NL Proposal: Variation of condition no. 2 of planning permission 55686 for repositioning of extraction duct at rear, siting of new air conditioning unit on rear wall and new air inlet duct on roof of rear extension (part retrospective) (resubmission) Plans will be available to view on the Council's website here (use the planning application number to search). Any questions or if I can ...
Anyone passing Cheadle Green on Bank Holiday Monday can't help but have noticed it packed with people as market traders selling food, clothes, jewellery and more all seemed to be doing good trade. [IMG: 6 May 2013 12:51] [IMG: 6 May 2013 12:48] The next Makers Market is on Saturday 1st June – don't miss it! At the event, I was also made aware of an issue with advertising the market, which I'm hoping to sort out.
Is this how Abraham Lincoln felt, I wondered, when he lost his race for the Illinois State Senate in 1832? Is this what Winston Churchill was thinking after the Oldham by-election of 1899? Maybe, but it was little consolation at the time. The results were pretty damning. Despite the penchant of Staffordshire Conservatives for spending ...
There's a great discussion regarding income/wealth equality over at Cafe Hayek and Bleeding Heart Libertarians: I care - very deeply - whether the process for pursuing one's life's goals is fair or not. I want everyone to have as fair a chance in the economy as is humanly possible. I despise special privileges that stack the deck either in favor of Jones or against Smith. (We can have a debate about what the details of "fair process" and "special privileges" look like, but this post is not the place for such a debate.) But I do not care about differences ...
Ukip's spectacular showing at last week's local elections has got the Tories spooked. The full realisation is sinking in that this may not be a one-off eruption of popular protest. Nigel Farage's band of modern-life-is-rubbish disciples will likely top next year's Euro polls. Such momentum may propel them towards a double-digit general election performance in 2015. If so, the Tories' hope of a majority is dead: Ed Miliband will become prime minister as leader of the largest single party. Though the local elections were scarcely a bundle of laughs for the Lib Dems, there's a fair amount of schadenfreude to ...
Meols Ward Lib Dem Councillors John Dodd, David Rimmer and Nigel Ashton, together with FOCUS Editor Jo Barton, are holding their next advice centre on Saturday 11th May, from 11 am to 12 noon at St John's Primary School, Rufford Road, Crossens. We will be there to meet you and discuss any Council problems you may have. No appointment necessary. Just pop in. We hold our advice centre at St John's School, Rufford Road, Crossens every month (except August) on the second Saturday of the month. We also hold a monthly advice centre in Churchtown, at Cafe Moo Moo on ...
Here is the latest FOCUS newsletter from Meols Ward Liberal Democrats, which was delivered to residents of Churchtown, Crossens and Marshside recently.
Well Yellows, it's time to start thinking about the next election. I think it's reasonable to assume that we'll get somewhere in the region of 15 - 20% of the national vote share and our vote will be more regionalised than in 2010. I tried to come up with a list of constituencies to focus on in 2015 and decided the clue was in the number - 20:15. We pick 20 of our most vulnerable seats and 15 of the seats most vulnerable to us and focus our resources and activists in them. That's not to say that we do ...
There weren't any elections in Southport this year, but the results from elsewhere in the country are interesting. The key message from the 2013 results is that in constituencies with Lib Dem MPs, like Southport, Liberal Democrat support is holding up well.
Exciting new plans to redevelop Wallington Square in Wallington high street have been submitted and are out for consultation. The square has been looking very tired for years with a number of empty units and needs redeveloping to be able to attract new businesses. Work was done recently to turn the derelict offices facing onto ...
The Liberal Democrat group on Aberdeenshire Council has been strengthened today as Cllr Fergus Hood, who represents the East Garioch ward, joined it from the SNP. He is shown here being welcomed by his new colleagues ward colleague Cllr Nan Cullinane on the right and Group Leader Cllr Martin Kitts-Hayes (with the beard) and Chair of the Social Work and Housing Committee Cllr Karen Clark on the left. [IMG: Aberdeenshire cllrs welcome Fergus Hood] Martin Kitts-Hayes said: I am delighted to welcome Cllr Hood to the Scottish Liberal Democrats. Having worked closely with Fergus on the council I know that ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Argonauts of the incredibly specific: anthropological field notes on the Liberal Democrat animal | Who rules where This is a brilliant anthropological dissection of the LibDems (tho you may need to be a LD fully to appreciate it) http://bit.ly/10gdTMX Professor Tim Bale: The balance of advantage for the Conservatives has shifted. They would now be better off with PR. Lots of good sense from @ProfTimBale on @ConHome arguing Tories need voting reform. Should guarantee they ignore it http://bit.ly/ZKUQZZ Rape anonymity for the accused: well-intentioned but wrong 10 interesting comments on my LDV ...
Wandering down my suburban street this morning, I noticed a manhole cover, with the initials G.P.O. carved into it. [IMG: GPO] The General Post Office was the UK communications monopoly. Created by King Charles I in 1660, it remained a fixture of British life until it was abolished a mere 309 years later. The GPO ceased to exist in 1969. And yet, 44 years later, its brand remains seared on the flesh of the streets. Most of the GPO manhole covers have survived for over half a century - although many are in severe need of repair. It got me ...
[IMG: Newbury calamity and catastrophe] Today is the twentieth anniversary of the Newbury by-election victory for the Liberal Democrats on May 6th 1993. It seems appropriate to thank all the Liberal Democrats who came to help in that campaign, to pay tribute once again to the party's by-election machine, to its driving genius, Chris Rennard, and to David Rendel. David was, for twelve years, a first class MP for Newbury. He continues to be an inspiration as a model of liberalism and selfless integrity. It seems a good day to report that the flame of Liberal Democracy continues to burn ...
If you judge the health of a centre by the number of vacant units (and that does seem to be the measure of choice these days), Gatley is looking pretty healthy. On a walk through the village, I counted seven empty "shopfronts": Former Tatton cinema (planning application under discussion with the Council) Nat West (proposal to convert to takeaway, which I oppose) Flowers By Design 57 Church Road A unit on Buxton Street The Pet Shop, following Derek Hill's sad death Griddle and Grill I've not worked out the percentage, but I think it's about 10% vacant units. That puts ...
Mon 6th
10:59
Alistair Carmichael and Richard Hughes from Keane tell the Independent about their friendship
Yesterday's Independent on Sunday carried an interview with Alistair Carmichael and Richard Hughes from Keane about the friendship they developed after they met on a trip with Amnesty to try to prevent the execution of American Troy Davis in 2009. Sadly, Troy was executed in 2011. The article captures the bright and funny personality of one of our most popular MPs, along with his passionate opposition to the death penalty. Richard Hughes sums him up like this: Alistair is a passionate guy - it's one of the things that makes him so charming. And he's absolutely given me faith in ...
For the back ground you can read here or here. This entry is not about the rights or wrongs of a housing number, but the honesty of our councillors. Some credit has to go to Cllr Cubbitt. Her motion suggesting the Council sticks to building 594 home a year is exactly the number promised by the Conservatives explained here. That number appeared unrealistically low at the time, but meant they
posted The Blood is The Life 05-05-2013 http://t.co/PNyjf8olVU on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22417334 BBC News - Which? poll says many 'borrowing money for food' http://t.co/ze5YC3qVev How shocking - in 1 of richest nations in the world? (tags: (from twitter) ) http://twitpic.com/co7lvs I am so handsome, I even make grown Human males faint with desire! #doctorwho http://t.co/MAuKOLqgvs (tags: (from twitter) doctorwho ) posted Why any analysis of the local election results cannot be extrapolated to a general election http://t.co/OFQ53gfnbV on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) @mjrobbins Saw this; thought of you: http://t.co/G5AP9igZlT (tags: (from ...
The Social Liberal Forum campaigns for policies that promote social justice and to narrow gaps in opportunity and power between the rich and poor, as a way of freeing society from poverty, ignorance and conformity. As we launch this new...Read more ›
The media is reporting today the suggestions Tory MPs have for fighting back against the "UKIP surge". They still aren't even in Parliament but Tory MPs spook easily it would seem. Peter Bone, the Wellingborough MP, said Mr Cameron should halt the gay marriage Bill, currently going through Parliament, and cut overseas aid. "Those are things that Conservatives want and that's what Ukip voters want." UKIP voters want to halt the same-sex marriage Bill? Really? Let us look at the evidence. The Coalition for Marriage, understandably, likes to terrify the jumpy Tory traditionalists with its tales of doom for any ...
Imagine you wrote a book about the threat to the middle classes and implied that one person in particular deserves at least some of the blame - then the Sunday Times handed your book to that man's son to review. What would you feel? Nervous? The prospect of reading Dominic Lawson's review of my book Broke: Who Killed the Middle Classes? nearly prevented me from reading the papers at all this morning. But, in the event, Dominic is highly professional and I needn't have worried: "Boyle's call to bourgeois arms ... has a pace and passion that elude most chroniclers ...
The public consultation for the proposed new cinema development at Yate Shopping Centre will take place on Thursday, 9thMay and Friday 10thMay. The display will be in the former Stead & Simpson shop at Unit No1, South Walk and will be manned by members of the Project Development Team at the following times: Thursday, 9 May Noon - 8.00pm Friday, 10 May 10.00am - 6.00pm The display will then stay in the unit until 5.00pm on Monday 13 May where visitors can view it at their leisure during Centre opening times. The proposals are for a six-screen cinema, restaurants and ...
[IMG: dont judge my family] The Prime Minister has confirmed his intention to introduce a tax break for married couples before the end of this parliament. The tax break would be worth about £150 a year and would go to around a third of married couples: only those where one plays the role of breadwinner and the other is a homemaker. Let's be clear - this policy is not about supporting children: only 35% of the families who would gain from the policy have children, and only 17% have children under 5. And of course, it wouldn't help the 1 ...
Daily Mail, 03/08/12: Cameron risks Lib Dem backlash as he gives in to Tory rebels and kills off plans to reform House of Lords Huffington Post, 20/07/12: Liberal Democrats Should Stop Looking for Reasons to Leave the Coalition... And Start...Read more ›
[IMG: rsz_last_campaign_30_07_1998] Maghull Town Council has a new (Interim) Labour Leader in the form of Sandra Williams; she is the third Leader of the Council in less than 2 years. But why do I mention this revolving door of Labour Leaders? History teaches us many things and this time it comes from an edition of a former newspaper that used to cover the Maghull area called the Maghull and Aintree Advertiser, which was a part of the Ormskirk Advertiser Group. Its edition of 30th July 1998, which is reproduced above, was all about how the Town Council under its then ...
We have asked for the damaged sign to be replaced
So, the United Kingdom Independence Party has won 147 seats on our county councils. I wonder what they're going to do? I've never served on a council, but I understand that the work, though important, is mostly tedious and time-consuming, and that flashes of political excitement are rare These 147 proud bearers of the Ukip standard will soon find that their county councils do not have the power to withdraw from the European Union, or even call a referendum on it. I suppose they could, in a fit of pique, refuse to accept any of the EU's regional development funds. ...
Further to the recent occupation of the former GA Call Centre site, I am extremely concerned at the mess left at the site. See some photos below: A constituent contacted me over the weekend concerned at the mess left behind. The constituent who regularly walks his dog around the grass areas in the Technology Park said: "There's piles of brickwork, and what looks like the excavation of driveways or the spoil of some serious tunnel digging elsewhere but dumped here. Also bikes, scooters, nappies, and even a small shed or dog kennel. Unbelievable!" I visited the site yesterday and have ...
As I have previously raised residents' complaints about the state of the pavements in Riverside Place with the Road Maintenance Partnership, I am pleased to receive this update from the City Council : "I wish to notify you that work is programmed to commence at the above location on Wednesday 8th May 2013, and will last for approximately 2 weeks. The Contractor for the works is Tayside Contracts. No on-street parking will be permitted on the carriageway (except disabled parking) during the works. Access to properties driveways will be provided to residents requiring access. Please accept my apologies for any ...
Following my receiving more complaints on Saturday that the Riverside recycling facility was unavailable first thing in the morning because of flooding, I have made clear to Dundee City Council that West End residents and other Dundee citizens are rather losing patience with the council's failures over recycling facilities. I have again raised complaints with the council's Environment Director and asked for assurances that henceforth both civic amenity sites in the city will be fully operational during their advertised opening times. When the council administration announced it was closing the Marchbanks Civic Amenity Centre, I sought assurances from the Environment ...
The Metro reports that Britain's first cat café is set to open in London after members of the public helped raise £100,000 for the venture on crowd-funding website Indiegogo. They say that the café, which will be filled with cats looks set to open in the coming months, and that thousands of feline fans are set to battle it out to be the first through the door: The idea has sparked interest in cat lovers across the country and despite not even advertising, Ms Pears revealed she has received over 700 job applications for less than 10 expected positions. Pre-sales ...
[IMG: dawn 6th May 2013] This is turning into a habit (as the first knitter of a monk's garment said....). Oh well, I don't have to get up for work... When you have a north facing garden, this is one of the few times of the day you can take advantage of the sun! [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
Chris's locality budget will (in part) be used to fund footway repairs in Avenue Road. The map below shows (in red) the areas which will be dealt with: Avenue Road footway repairs
[IMG: Adam Boulton] Adam Boulton@adamboultonSKY Updated @Sky News projection Labour majority of 12. Lab 331 Con 245 L/D 48 Oth 26. Reply Retweet Favorite More 4RETWEETS 1FAVORITE [IMG: Dave Bodimeade] [IMG: Bobby Bainz] [IMG: Jerry] [IMG: Habsboyspolitics] [IMG: A Better Tomorrow] 11:27 AM - 3 May 13
