That a steam engine called Mallard reached 126 miles an hour on the East Coast mainline near Grantham, Lincolnshire. The Beeb and others have lots more. But I stumbled across this film earlier - an attempt to show how fast that really looks using 1930s technology:
Just so people know what's going on with my blogging at the moment: This week, I'm very busy, and so won't be updating much except for linkblogging. In my spare time, such as it is, I'll be writing three Who posts to go up next week. Next week, I'll post up those three Who posts. [...]
After my explorations of North Evington last week I wrote: Maybe it is snobbery or an exaggerated fear of appearing racist - both faults endemic to the British left - but you rarely hear the question of what happened to the white working class who used to occupy these streets debated.But I have found one website that is interested in the history of this part of Leicester. Highfields Remembered (taking a broad definition of Highfields) has history, reminiscences and old photographs of the area. And it has solved one mystery for me. For as long as I have worked in ...
This evening, Jade Farrington and I joined the Launceston Police Cadets and police staff to carry out a community speedwatch event on Western Road. An event like this is based around education. The cadets get to see what speeding looks like and the drivers who go too fast are educated about the dangers that speeding poses. There aren't any tickets handed out for drivers who are going just too fast, but they are reminded by the cadets and officers about the problems and dangers of speeding. Whilst we were with the cadets, we saw about a dozen cars pulled over. ...
Last week I raised issue of poor Parliamentary scrutiny of expenditure. Today at 7.00, we authorised £272,996,671,000. No debate or vote #fb — Julian Huppert (@julianhuppert) July 3, 2013 Maybe if they did a little less grandstanding and a little more checking of the executive....
I yield to no one in my admiration for Norman Baker, but I do not think his widely quoted response to Peter Mandelson will do: "It will create hundreds of thousands of jobs; be a major boost to our economy, especially in the North of England; and will help us shift to the clean, green economy of the future."More and more people are using the rail network every year so we desperately need more North-South capacity - unlike Peter Mandelson we can't all hop on a private jet."We all enjoy laughing at Lord Mandelson, but this is a good example ...
As a memorial to my beloved red and white cat, Cincinnati, I planted my only contribution to our garden, a redcurrant bush, two years ago. Last year, it did bear fruit, although not very much, and the birds loved them. As a result, I wasn't expecting very much this year. Cincinnati just after planting However, it appears to have been a pretty good year for redcurrants, and despite the predations of caterpillars, we've had a good harvest this year, predominantly down to the efforts of Ros, whose patience in picking the caterpillars off with a pair of tweezers, and timely ...
Guido Fawkes has managed to get hold of Ed Miliband's notes for Prime Minister's Questions today. It's clear from the notes that Miliband was expecting the pasting on party funding he got today. What's interesting though is that in only two and bit pages of notes, party vice chairman Tom Watson is mentioned twice. I'll ...
The Council has been looking at how traffic flow can be improved on the South Park Road Estate for all legitimate users, whilst discouraging people using it illegally. Their suggestion is to remove either just the one-way section on the Kingsway Service Road/Mardale Drive or on the whole one-way loop around South Park Road-Kingsway Service Road-Mardale Drive, returning the roads to two-way like most similar estates and giving residents and visitors more freedom to move around the estate. People tend to drive more slowly on two-way residential roads, as we drive as if someone might come the other way. It's ...
Fancy working for the Liberal Democrats? There are a fair few jobs to choose from over on the Work for an MP website, which includes party jobs as well as working for parliamentarians. Top job The press team at Lib Dem HQ is full of lovely people. They all work incredibly hard and there are too few of them, but that's par for the course in this party. If a fast moving and challenging job is for you, then you might be interested in being the new Broadcast Officer: We are looking for an exceptional individual with a thorough understanding ...
Did you know that in November Hertfordshire County Council launched a scheme to help first-time buyers get a home of their own? Following the banking crisis in 2008, most first-time buyers in Hertfordshire face having to find a deposit of £50,000 on a £200,000 property, because of the difficulty in getting mortgages greater than 75%. The Council scheme will guarantee the difference between the mortgages offered by the banks and what the first-time buyers can afford in order to bring the deposit closer to the £10,000 level of an equivalent 95% mortgage. Do you, or someone you know, think this ...
Last night's marathon plenary session on the Human Transplantation (Wales) Bill could prove to be a seminal moment in the development of the Welsh Assembly. Members spent five hours debating a huge number of amendments to the bill covering a wide range of ethical and legal issues. The quality of the debate was exceptional and good-humoured. It was not dominated by party political considerations but often saw members of the same group contradicting each other. This was the visible manifestation of a maturing legislature and I was proud to switch on the television later to see it featured on all ...
Dear Resident, Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes from Westminster. July 19th sees the end of the second round of consultation for the A6 to Manchester Airport Relief Road and I am urging local residents to have their say as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander MP, confirms finance deal is in place for necessary funding. Earlier this month, I spent the morning celebrating 20 years of the Fledglings Pre-school and Day Nursery in Bramhall with the parents, children and staff. I received a tour of the nursery facilities and was able to see the improvements carried ...
[IMG: Burgers] Burgers have been in the news too much in the last week. And having had to pay £15 for one in a Hilton Hotel this weekend, you better believe they are not my favourite food at the moment. Yesterday's Daily Politics, in an attempt to keep the story going for a bit longer, had a trio of MPs taste test 3 burgers and pick which one was the best. The MPs were our Gordon Birtwistle, Labour's Ian Murray and the legend that is Conservative Peter Bone. Have a look here and see if you can identify which burger ...
The Liverpool Echo has the story. Is there no end to this utter madness? For what it is worth and despite trying to raise the profile of this Sefton and Merseyside gun problem I am yet to hear how Merseyside Police and the Police Commissioner are actually going to tackle this menace on our streets.
Wed 3rd
14:28
LibLink...Sophie in't Veld and Guy Verhofstadt: Europe must get tough with the US over NSA spying re...
ALDE MEPs Sophie in't Veld and Guy Verhofstadt pull no punches in an article in the Guardian about the US spying revelations, saying that Europe has only itself to blame for treating the US with awe to the extent that it was bound to start taking liberties: The truth is that for too long, the EU and its member states have been prioritising cosy relations with the US over the interests of their own citizens. The spying scandal will now put Europe to the test. It must show that it is both willing and able to protect the rights of ...
Move over Jennifer Aniston, there's a new haircut style guru in town: [IMG: @aaronleehair tweet "I can't actually believe this..."]
On Monday I asked ministers whether they would consider lowering the drink drive limits. Regular blog readers know my views on this, my opposition to increase speed limits on motorways, [...]
Some of the things Nick Clegg has championed in Government have been revolutionary for women. He's spent years talking about shared parental leave, for example, and it's now on the way to becoming a reality. His interest in improving mental health and smashing the related stigma doesn't just help women, but it does show that he's willing to take a stand to challenge our long held assumptions. He quickly and vocally embraced equal marriage to the delight of those of us who have supported it for decades. I know that Nick gets it on a lot of the barriers facing ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... buff.ly Invest in railways, yes – that's why HS2 should be ditched. Mandelson's absolutely right on this http://buff.ly/... UK Polling Report Are you a political journo? Do you tweet about opinion polls? If yes to either/both, please read this post http://buff.ly/1cNPI9V No, It's Not Sexist to Describe Women Politicians' Clothes – Molly Ball – The Atlantic Interesting reseach via @TomChivers > No, It's Not Sexist to Describe Women Politicians' Clothes – Molly Ball http://bit.ly/11XmbJp Stephen Tall: Why the yellow and blue pact of mutually assured deferral continues Conservative Home Columnists My @ConHome ...
I think it was in the first of the Party Leaders' debates before the last election that Nick Clegg so courageously advanced our Liberal Democrat policy of an amnesty for a carefully defined group of illegal immigrants. Again and again he countered the populist opportunism of Cameron and Brown, who wanted, if not to hang, draw and quarter them, at least to deport them with the utmost dispatch. Apart from the merits of the case: "How are you going to find them?" he repeatedly asked. This was the debate which gained Clegg so much kudos that one party "senior" declared: ...
Can a crowdsourced project on university-industry links move us to a more powerful debate about how science is put to work? It's easy to cry "corporate stooge" at scientists without actually looking at the complex sets of social, cultural and economic negotiations they engage in. That isn't to say journalists and campaigners should not "follow the money" and investigate the impact of industry funding on science. But the key word here is "investigate". So said the Science Media Centre last week, and I agree. But we do need to do that investigative work. A bit of citizen science policy research ...
We've seen some awful stories in the media over the last few weeks about poor standards of home care. Norman Lamb has been writing in the Guardian about what the Government can do to ensure that everyone has good quality care. First he outlines the problems: One of the most common complaints I come across is where care is carried out by the clock. Carers will come to the house and have a time slot of around 15 minutes to get everything done and be off to the next appointment. But 15 minutes may not be enough to do what ...
Wed 3rd
12:03
LDV: Liberal Youth Activate gives the new LY leadership a renewed focus on Further Education
I write post Activate, Liberal Youth's flagship training weekend. This year, it also included policy debates and constitutional amendments - two of which were on Further Education. Liberal Youth's leadership on Further Education has improved significantly over the past year, with Freshers Fairs conducted in FE institutions for the first time, as well as training for [...]
[IMG: The New Digital Age - Schmidt and Cohen] This book comes with impressive credentials. The authors have excellent technology and foreign policy experience. The pair of quotes on the cover are from people with their own brilliance too – Richard Branson and Walter Isaacson. The subject – how digital technology is changing nearly every aspect of our life – is one that fascinates me. So why did I feel getting to the end of it was all rather a slog? Because it's written in a very flat style. The prose is plain – in a workmanlike rather than Ernest ...
Below is a roundup of all the coverage of the McNally appeal result that I am aware of. This should be a complete list, so if I have missed any please let me know. Many of the articles and blog posts contain swearing or homophobic or transphobic language, although usually as part of the comments rather than in the main body of the text. Other than the first three items which are notable because of where they have been published, entries are listed in date order. Paris Lees/Vice: Should Trans People Have to Disclose Their Birth Gender Before Sex? Jane ...
[IMG: SLF Scotland 2013 Robert and Norman] The Social Liberal Forum Scottish Conference took place in Glasgow last Saturday, 29 June. This was our third conference since the Scottish organisation was set up in 2010. In previous years we have mainly relied on our own resources, inviting as speakers politicians and academics from the Liberal Democrat membership in the West of Scotland. This year we moved out of our comfort zone and invited speakers from outside organisations, most notably from The Poverty Alliance and YesScotland, together with the Scottish Convener Craig Harrow. The result was a very stimulating day of ...
All the details are on this flyer:-
News has broken about the Whittington Hospital. At a Camden Council meeting last night, the Hospital's medical director Dr Greg Battle told councillors that there has been a 'complete rethink' of their strategy. The controversial hospital strategy - announced in January without consultation - would have seen hospital buildings sold and money reinvested in other services. It also included a reduction in hospital staff and beds, as more care is moved into the community. Understandably this caused great concern. That's why the Lib Dems and I campaigned for months to get the hospital to listen to residents - and for ...
Used Wikipedia this morning. Up popped a begging letter, "Dear Wikipedia readers: We are the small non-profit that runs the #5 website in the world. We have only 150 staff but serve 450 million users, and have costs like any other top site: servers, power, rent, programs, and staff. Wikipedia is something special. It is like a library or a public park. It is like a temple for the mind, a place we can all go to think and learn. To protect our independence, we'll never run ads. We take no government funds. We run on donations averaging about £20. ...
Why not join hundreds of other Lib Dem Voice readers in getting our latest headlines by email? Some people like regularly visiting a site to see if there's new stories of interest. Some people like subscribing to its news feed (RSS) and checking that way. But if you prefer email, you can instead sign up to get a daily early morning email with a summary of the previous day's posts from Lib Dem Voice, complete with a note of how many comments each post has got and convenient links to click on if any take your fancy and you want ...
posted The Blood is The Life 02-07-2013 http://t.co/bPyXGSAFxo on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) @timfarron start prepping now would be my advice http://t.co/RZycfYuAKg - easier than waiting to find out on 5th Nov @LDKatz71 @markpack (tags: (from twitter) ) Well done @BattyeJanet for standing up for liberalism: @HebdenBrTimes: Councillor hits out at burlesque ban: http://t.co/m8ltZs1pGT (tags: (from twitter) ) http://pinterest.com/pin/164803667586865885/ Brian May in tiny tiny shorts http://t.co/9V48yqnCuH (tags: (from twitter) ) Planet Littlewood ... sounds like a terrifying place to be. (tags: ) Jim C. Hines » Stumbling Over Gender, and an Apology This is how ...
I have, in the past, indicated that there is something of a difference of opinion locally regarding social media here in deepest mid-Suffolk. But, perhaps no longer... Alongside my agenda for next Monday's meeting was notice of a communication policy for the Parish Council and, most intriguingly, a social media policy. I did, I admit, fear the worst - I wasn't the only one to feel that way - but in the spirit of goodwill, I thought that I ought to wait for it to turn up before getting too aerated. And now they have. I do have a problem ...
Fresh from capitulating to his backbenchers over Europe, David Cameron is having to give in again on the issue of the marriage tax allowance. Evan Harris has already spoken out against the Tories' plans here on LDV this week, highlighting how the policy harks back to the 1950s' concept of nuclear households with (male) 'breadwinners' and (female) 'stay-at-home' spouses. In the lead-up to the 2010 election, the IFS also looked hard at the policy, producing a devastating indictment of the policy's flaws. First, it sets out how it works: 'up to £750 of the income tax personal allowance [will be] ...
Liberal Democrat Secretary of State for Scotland, Michael Moore MP, writes a regular column for newspapers in his Borders Constituency. Here is the latest edition. Royal Highland Show [IMG: Mike Moore et al at Royal Highland Show] In the Borders we have a strong and successful farming industry with local farmers trading their products throughout the UK and abroad and constantly innovating and developing their businesses. Every summer I always attend local rural shows and events in the Borders which are an opportunity to meet with local farm businesses and discuss the work they are doing to expand and create ...
From today's Independent: Nick Clegg vowed today to veto any move by the Conservatives to allow academies and free schools to become profit-making businesses. The Deputy Prime Minister intervened after The Independent revealed that Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, is considering plans to redraw the rules to allow the schools to use hedge funds and venture capitalists to raise money. The Liberal Democrats will block any moves to change the rules before the 2015 general election. During the election campaign, Mr Clegg's party will claim that they acted as a brake on the Tories inside the Coalition. "We will say ...
I promised to go on a bit about the future of money, and I've just spent a fascinating lunchtime speaking at a seminar in London organised by the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation. So now I can't stop myself. I was talking alongside my colleague Leander Bindewald, of Community Currencies in Action, digital money guru Dave Birch and the great Australian new economics pioneer Shann Turnbull, who ought really to get a whole blog to himself. I can't say what everyone said because of the rules, but I can say what I said. It was a prediction for ...
I trip to Maghull's Frank Hornby Pub with Jen the other day brought to my attention that Moorhouses are soon to brew up up a beer named after Maghull's great toy maker's Meccano. [IMG: rsz_frank_hornby_beer_06_13] Yes I know the photo is a little blurred and no this is not intended to show how difficult you would find it to focus on the pump after you had sampled this beer! Let's hope it is a good pint.
Wed 3rd
07:20
Removing a continuous at sea nuclear deterrent could raise tensions in an international crisis
The BBC is carrying a story that the Lib Dems are considering a policy of ending the continuous at sea nuclear deterrent. I am not sure this is a good idea. Politically, this will please no one. Those who believe in Trident want to keep the all round deterrent. Removing this will not be popular with them. Likewise, on the other side of the debate, not scrapping Trident will annoy people who want it scrapping. Not picking a side and annoying both protagonists takes a special sort of genius. The political considerations are not my main concern, it is this. ...
In the UK we have nearly 5 million households of the 25 million UK homes in fuel poverty. In Southwark we have 10,139 or 9.2% of our 109,674 homes in fuel poverty. In Dulwich and West Norwood we have 4,627 or 11.1% of the 41,748 homes in fuel poverty. This is clearly too many. The governments Green Deal is meant to deal with this. It effectively enables people to borrow money for insulation etc to reduce their bills against the savings they'll make. But I still think we have a big gap where basic loft and cavity wall insulation needs ...
I mentioned at the end May that I had held a very well-attended meeting with the residents of Blackness Court. Issues discussed included pedestrian safety and traffic speed on Blackness Road and I have now received this feedback from the City Council's Head of Transportation: "Thank you for email about Blackness Court and elderly pedestrians having difficulty crossing Blackness Road at the Bus stop. I do have sympathy for elderly people crossing the road, however I think it would be highly unlikely that a new pedestrian crossing could be installed at this location as I do not believe that there ...
This photograph of the north side of Dundee's Nethergate at the junction with Tay Street Lane dates from after 1891, after which point numbers in that section were altered after extensive building works. The image may date from shortly afterwards. As there are no names on any of the shops, it is difficult to date the picture with any greater accuracy. The low building at the righthand side (and east) housed the galleries of J. Gonnella & Co., a family of Italian sculptors, several of them consuls. The corner establishment was the wine and spirits business belonging to Peter Fenwick. ...
Every year around 325,000 people are diagnosed with, and more than 157,000 people die from, cancer in the UK. A diagnosis of cancer used to be seen as a death sentence but now we have the technology to fight and defeat more cases of cancer than ever before. But there is more we can do. Last week I had the pleasure of attending an event in the Senedd, hosted by Cancer Research UK, emphasising the importance of Clinical research and Clinical trials. It was great to meet people doing work, here in Wales, right at the cutting edge of medical ...
