So, I have made it to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, my 54th country visited, dragged my suitcase the short distance to my hotel, and am now at a Lonely Planet recommended restaurant in the Lower Town, with veal in my near future. A very pleasant train journey, with some of the finest scenery that Germany, Austria and Slovenia have to offer, with a little border crossing drama to top the experience at Savski Marof. Add to that quite respectable restaurant car food, and Paulaner weissbier at €2.90 for a half-litre, and a good time was had. My hotel has ...
An international conference is taking place at the University of Glasgow on Friday and Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of the publication of the great cricket book Beyond a Boundary by C.L.R. James. The speakers include Mike Brearley, former President of the British Psychoanalytic Society and (far more importantly) former England cricket captain. You can watch the proceedings live on the web on Friday 10 and Saturday 11 May from 9.30 a.m. John Arlott once called Beyond a Boundary "the finest book written about the game of cricket". And it is about far more than cricket: part autobiography, part ...
So, the tiaras are back in their boxes, Alistair Carmichael's wand is back in its cupboard and the Queen's Speech has been delivered. There is plenty to make Liberal Democrats cheer, but also areas where more details are required before we can breathe that sigh of relief. There are, also, a couple of areas where I was hiding behind a cushion. First, though, the truly extraordinary. We Liberal Democrats are kind of used to playing "stronger economy, fairer society" bingo every time one of our ministers opens their mouths. But we weren't quite expecting this: My government's legislative programme will ...
[IMG: sheltered housing] Yesterday the Chartered Institute of Housing released a brief note summarizing a couple of recent roundtable discussions they arranged jointly with Tunstall. The focus of the discussions was on how housing policymakers and practitioners can make the case to the health service for diverting funds into housing and care. A lot of health spending - both primary and acute care – is directed at providing services to older people. Yet, a chunk of this spending could be avoided. The CIH note deals with some pressing issues and arguments, but it is written in the awful quasi-management speak ...
In Acton, Chiswick and Ealing we heard some good news recently that our fire stations were not due to be closed but the Mayor of London's plan to close fire stations elsewhere. London Liberal Democrats inlcuding Caroline Pidgeon are clear in their opposition to these 'bonkers' plans. At the London Assembly Caroline Pidgeon proposed an alternative budget that would have avoided the need for these cuts, paid for by cancelling trivial council tax cuts. Effective opposition. Me with the local fire bridgade I believe that Londoners would prefer to see their fire safety cover retained and improved in preference to ...
Sadly, those miserable bastards from the Elections Centre at Plymouth University were right again, and the Lib Dems lost almost all of the 130 seats predicted. I know a lot of people thought that they might be wrong, but historically, they have always been pretty accurate, so I guess I wasn't too surprised by the final result. Nonetheless, we lost 6 less than they forecast, so it wasn't all bad. However, if one takes a closer look at the areas in which the Lib Dems are doing well, it is possible to see that these areas are generally ones where ...
After a local resident mentioned that rubbish was blowing out of two old open bins by the Tatton, the Lib Dems got them replaced by a new covered bin. [IMG: New bin for Gatley bus stop] Many of the old bins across Cheadle and Gatley have now been replaced by the new-style bins and over time the rest should be done too, as money allows.
There is no doubt UKIP have evolved in the eyes of the voter. For many years many looked at the euro elections as a referendum and UKIP was the 'no' vote. They now have sufficient council seats to not be dismissed as a single issue party. Already Cameron has been moving immigration up his agenda, Miliband keen to distance himself from the record of the Labour cabinet he sat in. What about the
This afternoon I stood in a packed House of Commons for the most nerve racking speech of my career so far. After the pomp and pageantry of the Queen's Speech (for which I had a bird's eye view from the Lords Gallery) MPs debate the speech over several days. By tradition, the debate is initiated ...
Nadine Dorries has had the Conservative whip restored, having it removed after she had appeared on reality tv show I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here. The news comes just a a few days after Tory donor Lord Ashcroft let his opinion on the matter be known: It's starting to appear "nasty" that ...
Latest news from BT is that they accidentally connected our old line to upstairs, when trying to reconnect us. They're going to try to get it fixed 'by Monday'. Which will, of course, be four weeks to the day after they disconnected us, despite us not asking to be disconnected and them promising not to ...
Wed 8th
17:30
Liberal Democrat Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb Announces Legal Rights for Carers
[IMG: normanlamb] People who have to care for elderly relatives – often their own parents – in addition to the demands of work and family life are to receive training in care techniques and an entitlement to help, such as respite holidays. Councils will have to assess what support carers need. Everyone will be offered advice and guidance and means-tested financial assistance to pay for services will be available to those who qualify. These new rights are expected to help an estimated 1.25 million people, many of whom are women, who spend more than 50 hours each week caring for ...
Photo from 192.com Below are recently submitted Planning Applications in the Chorlton area. You can find out more information about any of the proposals on the City Council's Planning Portal at http://tinyurl.com/yv6lex or by contacting the South Area Planning Group Manager - Roger Hall; Tel: (0161) 234 4536; email: r.hall@manchester.gov.uk . You can also make a Planning representation (in support or opposition) to Mr Hall or the designated planning officer for each application. Please feel free to contact me on (07947383740; cllr.v.chamberlain@manchester.gov.uk) if you wish to discuss any application and please also send me a copy of any representation you ...
Though I mean no disrespect to Her Majesty, I cannot bring myself to get cloaked up in ermine each year, to hear her tell us what "her" government will do. The scene of peers all huddled in their red dressing gowns is endlessly recycled in the media - whenever the Lords is mentioned - despite the fact that for all but this one day of the year Peers wear simple, smart business attire. Indeed, even this afternoon for the set-piece debate on the "Gracious Speech" suits, not gowns, are the order of the day. [IMG: Parliament Street / Millbank at ...
Almost a year ago, I laid down a challenge to the Liberal Democrat group in the House of Lords - probably the largest group of Liberal Democrats in any legislature in the world. I felt strongly that we needed to do more to work with constituency parties to tell the story of how we are influencing legislation and debate on a daily basis, both to members and to wider groups. So it was with that in mind that I set the group the target of making 1,000 constituency visits between now and the General Election. And today I can report ...
A group of gardners from the Friends of Beech Road Park will be in the park this Sat 11 May, 10.30-12.30 (followed by refreshments at Beech Road cafe). Plant donations always welcome. Jobs this month include: tidying rose bed, including edges planting any donated plants any other jobs you think need doing - come along and share your ideas. No experience necessary, and you don't have to come for the full 2 hours - any time would be appreciated. Come along and enjoy the wonderful cherry blossom.
Note from the county council My apologies ... for the lack of notice to yourself and local residents in advance of these works This work was part of the highways winter recovery programme which has had a swift turn round process from survey to works and has resulted in the term "emergency" being used. In this case, the works were identified on 23/4/13 and work commenced on 25/4/13. Mistakenly, our delivery team (Ringway), interpreted the status of "emergency" as meaning that all processes could be cut out of the system. Whilst this can be acceptable for road space booking purposes, ...
This was cc'd to him along with the person who has been dealing with our problem: The line still isn't connected. As I explained to you when we spoke, I would far, far rather be given no information than incorrect information. I thought I had made very clear that I did not want to be ...
Amid all the excitement of the local elections, two results of polls on the same day may have passed you by. While in many parts of the country voters were electing local councillors, in Thame in Oxfordshire and in the St.James area of Exeter voters were deciding whether to accept or reject locally developed Neighbourhood Plans. Like many Liberal Democrats I was anxious to see how well we did in the council elections. But as Minister with responsibility for "localism", I was also keeping a close eye on these Neighbourhood Plan referenda. After all Neighbourhood Planning is part of the ...
New ConHome Executive Editor Mark Wallace fears that despite clear guidelines in the Queen's Speech, the snoopers' charter is reemerging once again. Despite Nick Clegg saying recently that it will not happen, a point endorsed Cambridge MP Julian Huppert on 5Live this morning, Mark reports that an over active civil servant is continuing to pursue this dangerous ...
Today's Queen's Speech was a bit of a mixed bag, and although I welcome many of the measures within it, there were one or two issues that I might take issue with. "Tough action", including bigger fines, against businesses which employ illegal labour is welcome as are plans to make it easier to deport people from Britain who commit serious crimes, unless there are exceptional circumstances to say otherwise. The rest of this Immigration Bill though seems to be designed to placate the Daily Mail and I will be interested in seeing the evidence to justify the proposed measures as ...
In all the Bills announced today by the Queen one department is front and centre – Vince Cable's Business, Innovation and Skills. From what I can tell Cable's department will have three new bills to steer through, while at most others like the Home Office only have two. The graph below show the departmental breakdown of ...
From the Guardian, video of Nick Clegg talking about Liberal Democrat inspired pensions reforms and help for the elderly and their carers. * Newshound: bringing you the best Lib Dem commentary published in print or online.
I have just submitted an EDM praising Sir Alex Ferguson. I wish Sir Alex well in his retirement. He has made an outstanding contribution to football and Manchester, and deserves ...
I would abolish the Queens Speech for one simple reason. It ends up becoming some sort of macho process regarding how many laws a government can pass in a Parliamentary session. This is an unhealthy situation which replaces good government - which essentially involves good leadership and management - with more laws to show you are doing something! What we end up with are laws used as glorified press releases. Don't believe me? Well you could look at some of the comments from MPs complaining that there are not enough bills but try this instead. Have a quick guess at ...
National Insurance Contributions Bill This bill is designed to reduce the cost to small businesses of employing people. If it passes, from April 2014 every business and charity will be entitled to a £2,000 employment allowance. It also aims to stop the use of offshore companies that are sometimes used by companies to avoid paying their National Insurance contributions. The bill will remove the presumption of self-employment for limited liability partnership members. It will apply to the whole of the UK That is how the BBC reported the item in the Queens Speech aimed at helping small businesses. In a ...
This Blog is unashamedly fond of Bristol. It is, after all, a great city with fantastic urban art, varied architecture, lively bars and clubs (I'm told...), tea emporia, artisan coffee houses, various independent shops (and an independent Mayor). It's a hub for creative industries, the home of Deal or No Deal and featured in Dirk Gently, Dr Who and (soon) Sherlock. It's home to one of the UK's (and the World's) top Universities and is a key centre for the Aerospace Industry. It's a city of Festivals: from the Harbourside festival to the Balloon Fiesta, from Upfest to Brisfest. It's ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Three years after the Coalition took power, Labour has gone nowhere, very, very slowly - Telegraph Blogs Key pt from Dan Hodges: "Lab has not even begun to address issue of how it makes itself relevant in age of austerity" http://bit.ly/16WH75Y Is Liverpool FC deliberately driving Anfield into poverty, in order to keep its overheads down? - Telegraph Blogs Interesting/shocking Q from @TomChivers ("Is Liverpool FC deliberately driving Anfield into poverty?") Any follow-up? http://bit.ly/10hIxQd BBC News – Lord Lawson's argument with business Interetsing take on Lawson from @Peston – big issue is ...
It's natural for defeated political leaders to make up stories which absolve themselves from blame. After every by-election, those who have done less well offer unconvincing explanations. Nick Clegg is no exception, but his story last week that "the Liberal Democrats are on a journey from a party of protest to a party of government" is curious for two reasons. First, because no previous Liberal or Liberal Democrat leader has presented the party as one of protest and second because the party was very much a party of government before he became leader. It is wrong and insulting to suggest ...
There's a growing campaign in the US to get universities to stop investing in fossil fuels. UK science should take note You might have read Naomi Klein on green investment in fossil fuels last week. She points a finger at NGOs who aren't checking whether their sometimes considerable endowments are being put to work in the same industries they campaign against. The context of this is not just that it makes parts of the environmental movement look a bit silly, but the growing disinvestment campaign that Klein has been involved in promoting over the past year. Disinvestment is, quite simply, ...
Wed 8th
12:38
Honey bees under threat: a political pollinator crisis | Daniel Lee Kleinman and Sainath Suryanaraya...
Recent controversies over honey bees remind us of their environmental and economic importance, but should also prompt us to reflect upon the structures of expertise we rely upon The recent revival in controversies surrounding dying honey bees has brought global attention to issues farmers, beekeepers, politicians and environmental campaigners have long been aware of. Honey bees are in danger. Honey bees play a critical role in pollinating the crops people eat and, as such are both part of the big business of agriculture and a big business in their own right. Bees are important, environmentally and economically. The debate over ...
The state opening of parliament saw the Queen announce the introduction of 15 Bills, as well the continuation of the Energy Bill and two draft bills. The full list of Bills announced today is as follows: National Insurance Contributions Bill Deregulation Bill Intellectual Property Bill Draft Consumer Rights Bill Local Audit and Accountability Bill High ...
Phew. No Snooper's Charter in Queen's Speech but sensible tweaking re IPv6 addresses etc. — Mark Pack (@markpack) May 8, 2013 As to how it compares to my preview? Lighter on political reform than Liberal Democrats would have wanted, but also less Tory red meat in there too. A decent score draw between the coalition partners – and the big issue remains, as ever, economic growth, something you can't just pass a bill to order into existence.
I'm very much looking forward to the upcoming conference – Race Equality: A New Lib Dem Approach. The guest speaker is Vince Cable. It will be from 11:45 – 6pm on Saturday 1st June. If you'd like to come and ... Continue reading →
Pity the artists. The writers, sculptors, composers, musicians and actors. We believed we were struggling in our 21st century garrets, eking out an existence, surviving on our day jobs. At least we were suffering for our art. Only it turns out that we have been bitterly deluded. The latest report from Arts Council England (ACE) demonstrates with forensically gathered evidence and logic that we're off the scale when it comes to ROI (that's Return On Investment as any thespian will now tell you). Outperforming The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR)'s study for ACE shows ACE gets less than ...
I am not entirely in a happy frame of mind which, given that I am doing something I enjoy, is less than wunderbar (I'm in Germany). The first disappointment has come courtesy of Deutsche Bahn and OBB (Austrian Railways), the first of whom has graciously sold me a first class ticket for a through train which, thanks to OBB, does not actually have a first class carriage. I am not impressed. In fairness, my seat is comfortable, there's plenty of legroom, and the view over the Bavarian countryside is perfectly charming. And, having perused the first class carriage that will ...
I am still receiving replies from the council from the questions that were asked of me in the election campaign. Today I read about the council's policy on 20mph areas. It was interesting to read that the 'the current policy is not to include short cul-de-sacs due to the difficulty of reaching a high speed on a short stretch of road' as I had asked specifically about two very narrow and very short cul-de-sacs. However in both these cases the council had overturned its own policy. My favourite quote of the campaign was from one local resident who told me ...
PCSO Mark Ball attended the One Stop in Cheriton Road in relation to a report of Robbery. From viewing the stores CCTV Officer Ball was able to ascertain the direction of travel before and after the event. From checking other local stores CCTV footage it was determined that the original target had been The Coop. Footage shows the male suspect attempting to enter the store just before they were scheduled to open and upon being unable to gain access proceeded to the One Stop. This investigation is currently on going. On 3rd Wednesday April PCSO Mark Ball conducted a routine ...
There is a point in the film Gandhi when the man himself says that: "When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall - think of it, always." I'm not of course accusing the Government Office for London (GOL) of anything of the kind, but I must say I did think of Gandhi when I walked past the site of their plush offices at the north end of Vauxhall Bridge, to ...
The Queen's Speech today looks set to be a relatively sedate affair. As Stephen Tall observes, "the Coalition is now pretty much intellectually dead" when it comes to its legislative agenda. Enthusiasm for pushing new ideas has been replaced with a business like determination to deliver what is already underway. The content of the Queen's Speech is nonetheless important. It will shape what happens over the course of the next parliamentary session, and will therefore influence the outcome of the General Election. If CentreForum had the privilege of writing the Speech, we would focus on three headline issues in particular: ...
Medway has known many disasters. The Gillingham bus station firestorm of 1940. The explosion of HMS Bulwark. Mark Stinson's reign as manager of the Gills... However, the Medway political scene has suffered a great loss. John Ward has retired from political blogging and tweeting. When I first started out almost three years ago the lines were very clear of blue, red and gold and John was the elder statesman and former Conservative Councillor. His opinion on things as well as his vast memory and catalogue of information and stats was respected from all sides. To be honest I understand his ...
How often does it need saying? There is no need, repeat, no need for the Liberal Democrats to be spooked by UKIP or to appease xenophobic opinion. UKIP is basically the Conservative Party's problem. It is threatening the Tories' right flank, giving Tory backbenchers the jitters and prompting the Tory leadership to react with rightward moves on various issues (as today's Queen's Speech demonstrates, with its emphasis on immigration and the dropping of policies on plain cigarette packaging and overseas aid). UKIP is not the Liberal Democrats' problem. There is no rational reason why the Liberal Democrats should move rightwards ...
Having just savaged civil Legal Aid, the Ministry of Justice has launched a consultation paper containing proposals that would do the same in crime. I declare an interest (I am a barrister practising in cases of serious fraud) but I hope that this at least qualifies me to highlight the devastating impact these proposals would have. The Importance of the right Verdict For those accused of a crime, representation by a tenacious, high quality lawyer of your choice, as provided currently, is fundamental. Even minor convictions can cost someone their good character and livelihood. A prison sentence can cost them ...
I am on my way to ALDE Council, scheduled to start in Pula, Croatia, on Thursday evening - there's a drinks reception planned. And so, obviously, I'm in... Stuttgart. Yes, there is beer, although that's entirely incidental. But I am on an adventure. Having discovered that flights from London to Pula are awkwardly timed, I was inspired to find a 'prettier' route, especially as Ros, who likes travel but not that much, wasn't able to come with me (Queen's Speech, bad flight times). And, after a lot of research, and agonising about connection viability (is fourteen minutes just too tight ...
An illustration of the out of touchness of some MPs (tags: ) posted The Blood is The Life 07-05-2013 http://t.co/Hep0dA2cBA on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) http://tmblr.co/ZNUHgxkQfnmp "Absences of women in history don't "just happen," they are made." http://t.co/QME4ZzaSRv #feminism (tags: (from twitter) feminism ) a critique of viscous which I find myself agreeing with even though I enjoyed the first episode (tags: ) Old Spock battles New Spock in the greatest car commercial ever (tags: ) http://youtu.be/xrfszN5qo_Y Ray Harryhausen's War of the Worlds. The film that was never made. Test footage. http://t.co/EFUDqrRlNN (tags: (from twitter) ) RIP ...
[IMG: Lancashire rose] Superficially, the story in Lancashire last week was of huge Labour gains, falling just short of getting control of the county council. Dig a bit further, however, and Labour's result raises questions about the party's organisational revival. For Labour, Lancashire should be the heart of their great organisational revival. It is where Arnie Graf and others are concentrating with their new community organising model for Labour. It is where Ed Miliband made no less than three campaign visits this time. The result of all this? Big gains, but not enough even just to undo their disaster in ...
Email sent 1:08 PM yesterday from BT:"The line will be reconnected as a BT line today." The phoneline has still not been connected. I think the outright lies bother me far more than the incompetence...
With hours to go before the Queen lets us know the Government's legislative plans for the year ahead, I thought it might be a good idea to ask you for just one idea you would like to see in the Government's legislative programme. Liberal Democrats are likely to wince at further curbs on immigration, but be pleased at the presence of Steve Webb's pension reforms and at the absence of draconian plans to require companies to keep records of every website we visit and every email we send. But if you were writing the speech, what would you put in ...
If you are involved in a voluntary group and would like a small grant to help you serve the local community, now is the time to apply for a South Gloucestershire Capital Grant. Starting today, you can apply for up to £3000 (in the Frome Vale Area, there is no limit in Severn Vale although obviously the total funding available is limited). The decision on how much to award will be made by local councillors at the relevant Area Forum. The closing date is 10 June and you apply online. If you need help, ring the Grants Helpline on 01454 ...
As you may have noticed from the spate of posts last week from candidates, elections are currently under way to elect the Liberal Youth Executive for next year. All members of the party under the age of 26, or who are students and those between 26-30 who aren't students but who have opted to stay as members of LY have the chance to vote. If you fall into these 3 categories, over the weekend you should have received: a) An email from me telling you about the elections and where you can find details about the candidates. b) If you ...
Wed 8th
08:44
A fascinating fact from recent local government elections and declared voting intensions - Labour ar...
I assume, that like me, you probably thought that any rise in the UKIP support would come from right-wing Tory supporters but a detailed analysis of what actually is happening throws up the opposite of what you might expect; it's Labour who have the most to fear. Look at this graph:- [IMG: Local-elections-graph] Conservatives have dropped back into another black mood of kicking themselves to death (so that's a bit of good news then) over Europe despite doing so under John Major and no good coming of it. Yet if they can try to regain their composure the above chart ...
Much of the recent debate on an EU exit strikes at the heart of the Ukip agenda and Lord Lawson has just switched sides and wants to leave. Ukip are not just concerned with this exit although many may have voted for them on this issue alone. David Cameron may well have decided that silence was the best policy following his comment in November last year that Ukip were a bunch of "fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists". This week he had to eat his words but really he shouldn't have attacked their politicians as inadvertently he was criticising the people ...
I was recently asked to list my three least favourite government policies. As you can imagine, this was a tall order... But I've managed to narrow it down. 1. War Governments kill in times of war but it's never clear that they have reached their aims from an IR perspective. Apart from the the death and destruction there's the awkward legislation that follows in times of war. Wars are expensive, your taxes rise to pay for them and they don't come down once the war is over. Your civil liberties get eaten up and you never get them back. There ...
For the last few years each opposition party in the National Assembly has set out their number one priority to the Welsh Government when entering budget negotiations. It is only the Welsh Liberal Democrats who have called for further investment in our education system. I am proud that the Pupil Premium is no longer just our proposal, but is now our achievement in the form of the 'Pupil Deprivation Grant.' It means that each school currently receives an additional £450 for every pupil on free school meals. In North Wales that equates to over £6 million extra for our schools. ...
Excellent New Statesman comment on Lawson's outburst. "Lawson's piece is a reminder of why the EU referendum has the potential to result in the biggest Conservative split since the reform of the Corn Laws. " Now that's a day we can all look forward to.
Nigel Farage insists that Ukip is not recist, merely concerned for the efects that immigration has job opportunities for we Brits. Well, I suppose there are a number of high-flying bankers, including Adair Turner perhaps, who are a bit miffed that the Governorship of the Bank of England has gone to a migrant. However, Mark Carney is White and for all I know may also be Anglo-Saxon and Proetestant, and maybe Canadians don't count in Ukip's lexicon of migrants: more like kissing counsins. Similarly there may be some top-notch business executives who wince when a lucrative chief executive post goes ...
At an extremely well attended public meeting and AGM last night with around 80 in the audience (see audience right), Friends of Magdalen Green launched our new campaign and project for new play equipment for the well-used Roseangle playpark. The Friends are working in partnership with the City Council to see what play equipment improvements can be achieved and will be launching a fundraising effort to assist. The meeting also heard from Sandra Thomson, Managing Director of McGregor Balfour Textiles (see right), who gave an entertaining and informative talk about her jute journey and there was also a presentation from ...
The Friends of the University of Dundee Botanic Garden are holding a plant sale at the garden this Saturday - 11th May - from 12 noon to 3pm. There will be alpines, herbaceous perennials, shrubs and climbers on sale. Donations of plants (labelled and potted if possible) are most welcome and should be brought to the Botanic Garden from 10am onwards on Friday 10th May or on Saturday 11th May from 10am to 12 noon.
It's not often, these days, that people remember to say thank you, so its so much more gratifying when they do. Lots of us enjoy the West Hampstead Farmers Market which seems to be going from strength to strength and so I was delighted to receive the following email which I forwarded to my Lib Dem colleague, Cllr Gillian Risso Gill who was at the forefront of getting this market off the ground: "I wanted to tell you how much I look forward to being able to shop at the farmers market on Saturdays on Iverson Rd. I don,t know ...
A lot has been said over the last little while about UKIP, and whether or not they've rebalanced the British political establishment, or whether they're just having their five minutes in the sun. So, is this a new dawn, or Faragemania? I don't know, but there are two things I am confident of. 1. UKIP succeed in a vacuum. One of the things that has been most readily apparent to me, is that, putting social demographics to one side, we do less well against UKIP when we're complacent. In our area, we have a pretty big group of people that ...
Whilst looking for something else I came upon Robin Cook's resignation speech on You Tube. I remember listening to it at the time. It still moves me to tears and anger at Tony Blair and his fellow war criminals on the Labour front bench. At the end of the clip when the house claps, you can see their embarrassed immobility, except for John Prescott who shifts his great weight uncomfortably.
