Just in case anyone's interested in buying my books and having me scribble in them, I and some of my Mindless Ones colleagues will have a stall at the Thought Bubble convention ( http://thoughtbubblefestival.com/ ) again this year, on November 23rd and 24th. I'll have copies of my books Sci-Ence! Justice Leak! and An Incomprehensible [...]
I am grateful to The Big Debate and Elevation Network for inviting me to speak at an event to mark the start of The Big Debate's 2013 tour at the Stephen Lawrence Centre last night. [...]
Earlier this week the Department for Culture, Media and Sport announced that 26 signal boxes have been granted Grade II listed status. BBC News has the full list, and if you study it you will see that Marsh Brook box in Shropshire, which has featured here before, is among them. My earlier post mentioned that there is a theory that Marsh Brook is the oldest signal box still operating in Britain. It also features in the Lone Pine stories of Malcolm Saville and, with the help of the person who runs the Malcolm Saville Society Twitter feed, I have been ...
Imagine the scene in four years time. You've been on the train from London for the last one hour and twenty five minutes. The journey has been smooth and quiet, on one of the new inter-city trains, powered by electric. As the train approaches Bristol Temple Meads you see to your left a boat docking [...]
In November 2012 Michael Rook, leader of the ruling Conservative group on Harborough District Council, sacked his deputy Blake Pain. By June 2013 Blake Pain had become leader of the group, and he got his revenge by suspending Michael Rook. The result, though this Harborough Mail report is almost impenetrable, appears to be that the Tory group is split into warring factions: A review into the decision by Harborough Council to replace a major planning document just a year after its adoption will go ahead after a group of councillors withdrew their objections to it. Former council leader Mike Rook ...
I've been giving this some thought over recent days. With all the talk between the IOC and the Russians about how the application of the anti-gay propaganda law would be enforced in next year's Winter Olympics in Sochi. This has included the first arrests of foreign nations who were interviewing people was a documentary story on the law change. At first their were calls to boycott Russian vodkas. But I scanned the shelf at Tesco. Smirnoff is distilled in the UK, Stolichnaya is distilled in Russia but bottled in Latvia, in the EU, there are others that sound Russian that ...
Forget fracking: we have struck oil in Leicestershire. Energy Business Review has the story: Egdon Resources received a planning consent from Leicestershire County Council to drill an exploratory borehole on the Burton on the Wolds prospect in the UK onshore petroleum exploration and production license PEDL201, south of Widmerpool Gulf geological basin. A 2D seismic data identified two targets with a conventional oil prospect at two distinct Carboniferous stratigraphic levels. Egdon will drill the shallower target, Rempstone sandstone, and a deeper secondary target underlying a seismic anomaly, which is indicative of a carbonate reef. The mean combined prospective resources for ...
Pictures of Lib Dem Chief Secretary Danny Alexander in various outfits have long been a favourite. Indeed, Nick Thornsby and I started our blogging careers with a rather wonderful story about the Danny A doing a William Hague in a baseball cap, that reappeared courtesy of Mr Steerpike last week. It's a post I've, frankly, ...
Liberal Democrats beware! War is afoot - a war for the very essence and soul of our party. If we don't fight, the Orange Bookers/Liberal Leftests* will gain control and turn us into imitations of the Tories/Labour*. Some of them want to go further, they would sell us out to the Blues/Reds* wholesale. They must be stopped! Conference in Glasgow marks the last stand. It's time for us all to make a stand and not abandon the party to the Libertarians/Social Democrats*. Fail to act, and the result can only be the fragmenting of this once great party. I and ...
A year on from the London Olympics, local people are being encouraged to get set and go to Park Life - South Cambridgeshire's biggest free family sporting day out. Running at Milton Country Park this Sunday (4 August) from 10am to 4pm, Park Life is organised by South Cambridgeshire District Council in partnership with Cambridge Sports Lake Trust. Last year's event attracted over 4,000 people, and this year promises a bumper range of sports for all ages and abilities. Park Lifers will be able to try out free sporting activities from golf, fishing, kayaking, canoeing and paddleboarding to trampolining, climbing, ...
Cambridge MP Julian Huppert has raised a glass to the city's Kingston Arms after it won the best independent pub category in his Discovering Cambridge competition this month. The pub in Kingston Street balances a traditional feel with innovations such as offering free internet access and texting drinks offers. And it's no stranger to recognition having being named in the Good Beer Guide since 2001 and winning three awards from Observer Food Monthly for Best Cheap Eats, Best Sunday Lunch and Best Place to Drink in East Anglia. The Haymakers in High Street, Chesterton, which re-opened as an independent business ...
The details of two extra consultation events near a proposed new village at Bourn Airfield have been confirmed today (Wednesday 31 July) to give even more opportunities for nearby residents to have their say. At a Council meeting last week concerns were raised about proposals for the new village as part of the Council's Local Plan and councillors agreed to add the two events so as many views as possible could be heard. The third and final round of consultation on South Cambridgeshire District Council's Local Plan launched on Friday 19 July which is considering how to develop the district ...
OK, so it isn't a bedroom tax, but everyone understands what those words mean. Today the administrative court did not conclude that the government's policy on disabled people and the spare room subsidy was unlawful. However, the details are important. There are people who as a result of disability do need a spare bedroom. There is no question about this. The government's plan was for these
Last night, I had the pleasure of taking part in the latest committee meeting of the West End Community and Sports Hub, that took place at the now greatly upgraded Riverside Pavilion. The Community Payback Fund upgrade is almost complete and the pavilion is looking so much better. WECSH has great plans for the pavilion in terms of creating greater capacity and services for West End sport and the pavilion improvements represent a great start. We were all delighted to learn that our Vice Chair, Steve McSwiggan of the Dundee Saturday Morning Football League has won the Sunday Mail Volunteer ...
Jericho House Yesterday, I attended the latest meeting of the Jericho House support group, a regular meeting at which a number of us discuss fundraising and other projects to support this important facility in the West End Ward, that assists those recovering from alcoholism. We had a very positive discussion about forthcoming activities by the folk at Jericho House, including : * Participation in the next Dundee Open Doors events in September. * Service users and staff walking the West Highland Way in October. If any local resident is interesting in participating, please contact Jericho House at dundee@jericho-addictionservices.co.uk. * There ...
GetSurrey reports: The result of the 2012 Maybury and Sheerwater ward vote for Woking Borough Council has been thrown out by an election commissioner. Liberal Democrat candidate Mohammed Bashir defeated his Labour counterpart Mohammad Ali by 16 votes in May last year. But on Monday, Richard Mawrey QC ruled that corruption and illegal practices were "widespread" in the ward and there was "overwhelming" evidence that Mr Bashir and his team had been responsible. Handing down the High Court judgment at the Woking Borough Council civic offices, Judge Mawrey decided Mr Bashir was guilty of corrupt practices including registering 'ghost voters'. ...
Cheadle Area Committee meets at 6pm on Tuesday 6th August 2013 at Bolshaw Primary School, Heald Green. All are welcome, as always. We're hearing from Chelwood Food Bank (which I visited a week or two ago), hearing some planning applications for new houses and house conversions, considering a new lease for Gatley Scout Hut and looking at proposals for access improvements to Sainsbury's at Cheadle Royal.
Like most of you I guess an email headed "Proud" just popped into my inbox from Simon Hughes. I plucked up the courage to read said email and found myself closer and closer to the verge of vomiting. Sorry, but I've got to be honest and I wish I didn't feel this way, if anyone can suggest a way to help me not to please email me asap. But somewhere along the line we have surely lost total touch with our declared values and aims? Yes, we have taken people out of tax, but no, they weren't the poorest, the ...
Greens aren't anti-science, but who'd be dumb enough to be pro- the whole of science? A friend asked me recently, how can someone be sceptical about GM and yet also believe in climate change? This post is an attempt to answer her. If you scream "I totally heart science, the Royal Society has teh awesomist mindz ev-er, you cannot dispute their pure and good genius" in one breath before voicing suspicion at these strange, corrupt and elitist would-be-wizards in pay of big pharma/ag/oil/ [insert your own bogey-man] in another, then yes, you are being a bit silly. But such silliness ...
Here's the new official publication from the party, setting out what it's been achieving in government. (For two unofficial versions, see my infographic Lib Dem achievements in government and the website What The Hell Have The Lib Dems Done?)
Wed 31st
16:20
LibLink...Stephen Tall: We Lib Dems haven't chosen our strategy. The voters have chosen for us
Our Stephen has been writing at Conservative Home again. This time he's looking at this idea, which sits uncomfortably with many Liberal Democrats, that we're a party of the centre. He says we have little choice: Yet the reality is it's precisely because we are perceived to be moderate centrists that many of the electorate vote for us. And if we are to continue as a party of government - which almost three-quarters of Lib Dem members would like us to do - then we will have to do a deal next time with either the right-leaning Tories or left-leaning ...
Shepway Conservative Councillor and Cabinet Member Rory Love has long had aspirations to "go further" in politics. He's previously stood for the Conservatives as a Parliamentary Candidate in Lewes in 2005 (he got hammered by sitting Lib Dem MP Norman Baker), and stood to be on the Conservative Euro list list for South East England in 2004 (although he didn't make it to the election itself). Still, he's a trier. He's reapplied to be on the Conservative European Election list for South East England in 2014. Could he get himself into an electable position? Er - No. The Conservatives South ...
This morning Nick Clegg launched the Party's new booklet: "A Record of Delivery: What the Liberal Democrats have achieved in Government." As Nick says in his foreword to the booklet, The Liberal Democrats have always been able to campaign on a strong record of local delivery. Now – for the first time in our party's history – we can combine that with our record in national government too. That's what we did in the Eastleigh by-election – and it works. But no one is going to tell our story for us. We need to use every opportunity between now and ...
Wed 31st
15:39
In Full: Michael Moore's speech to the Chamber of Commerce in Dunfermline: Scotland, better, safer a...
Like it says on the tin, the whole speech delivered this morning, which neatly summarises what he's been doing in terms of the Independence debate over the past few months. And reminds us all, that, actually, independence would be a pretty drastic change for a lot of risk and uncertainty. The Chambers of Commerce network right across the United Kingdom plays a vital role in growing British businesses. I know that the network here in Fife is central to ensuring that the area attracts and supports its local businesses. It's a great opportunity for me to be able to talk ...
The green movement has been taking scientific knowledge and giving it cultural and political life for decades. Where next? Among the big questions raised by the difficult new knowledge associated with human-caused global environmental change is "how do we take care of things?" The fact that it is a question that has been debated across mainstream politics in one form or another is an immense achievement by environmentalism. It reflects their entrepreneurialism in taking scientific knowledge and giving it cultural and political life over the last four decades. But so much for putting this on the agenda - what about ...
As far as I am aware, there are no meetings scheduled next week at Blyth Town Council
Wed 31st
14:39LibLink... Jo Swinson: Our children shouldn't grow up thinking looks are the most important thing in...
I remember the genuine distress suffered by a teenage friend of ours. Her hair straighteners had broken and we don't possess such implements. She was actually frightened and anxious at the thought of leaving the house and being seen by her peers with unstraightened, but perfectly tidy, hair. I had to source another set of straighteners before I could get her to school. That, sadly, is the tip of the iceberg. The pressure on particularly girls to conform to a very narrow standard of beauty, dictated by the likes of Heat magazine and the pornography industry, is excruciating and can ...
Wed 31st
14:13
Hertfordshire Liberal Democrats Say Pickles' Plan for Double Yellow Parking is "Crack-pot"
[IMG: BeggarsLaneDYL3Blogsmall] Responding to Eric Pickles' proposals to free parking for shoppers on double yellow lines, Cllr Stephen Giles-Medhurst, Liberal Democrat Opposition Leader on Herts County Council and Highways Spokesperson said: "Double yellow lines are there to keep people safe, keep traffic Moving, and reduce congestion at key locations. They have been put in as a result of Traffic Regulation Orders that have been consulted upon and indeed agreed with Police and public for that very purpose. "Removing parking restrictions on these parts of the road could jeopardise the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and other motorists and create further traffic ...
[IMG: MagicRec's avatar] Follow @MagicRecs and magic happens. Or more precisely – follow this experimental Twitter account and you get a series of direct messages letting you know when there's a tweet that lots of your followers have retweeted, or when there's a Twitter account that lots of them have recently followed. In other words, it's a very useful way to spot the stories and Twitter accounts bubbling up in the slice of the Twitter community that most interests you. Very handy.
You have seen pictures of Saturday's floods in Market Harborough. You have seen the video of the 1958 floods in the town. Now @solarpilchard has put them together.
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... As Peter Cruddas wins a resounding High Court victory against The Sunday Times, the Party needs to learn major lessons from this debacle – by Lord Ashcroft KCMG PC .@LordAshcroft on Peter Cruddas's libel victory against The Sunday Times's shoddy journalism http://bit.ly/13mfqS2 Thirty significant moments marking three decades of Lib Demmery Terrific birthday post from @caronmlindsay > Thirty significant moments marking three decades of Lib Demmery http://bit.ly/1eaAwnN Liberal Democrat Councillor Annie Darby leaves party to join Labour | This is Grimsby News from Grimsby > Liberal Democrat Councillor Annie Darby leaves party ...
Early this year as part of its 'Red Tape Challenge' the government consulted on whether it should keep, amend or abolish the Code of Practice on Noise from Ice-Cream Van Chimes Etc. 1982 (And I am not joking). The code restricts the volume, timing and length of operation of ice-cream van chimes and was introduced by that paragon of laisse faire - the Thatcher government. A grand total of 57 people and organisations responded - with just over a quarter coming from the noise abatement society and environmental health, who needless to say, were dead against repeal. So it wasn't ...
Today is my birthday. I can barely bring myself to say the great age I've reached, but it does mark a significant milestone for me. Three decades ago today, I joined the SDP. I hope you'll forgive the narcissistic indulgence, (and if you can't, don't read any further, because it'll be five minutes of your life you won't get back), but I thought I'd share with you 30 brief snapshots, significant moments of my life as a party member. I'm grateful for the wonderful friends I've made and the battles we've fought together and am raring to go for decades ...
What is the ALDE Party? It is an alliance of Liberals and Democrats across Europe consisting of more than 50 member parties, Liberal Democrats in the UK being the largest. What is ALDE Party Congress? ALDE is arranging their annual party congress in Canary Wharf, London this year. The theme of the Congress is creating a European Manifesto. The ALDE Party Congress is the biggest annual event gathering Liberals across Europe: over 650 members of liberal parties from around the continent; top politicians including Prime Ministers, European Commissioners, Ministers, Members of the European and national Parliaments, Members of the Committee ...
Edited announcement from Herts CC Temporary Closing and Temporary Waiting Restrictions in Various Roads in St Albans, Harpenden, Redbourn, London Colney and Chiswell Green NOTICE is given that the Hertfordshire County Council intend to make an Order under Section 14[1] of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, to prohibit all traffic from using the following lengths of roads, and to prohibit all vehicles from waiting at any time on both sides of these lengths of roads whilst works are in progress:- 1. that length of Bricket Road, St Albans from its junction with B691 Victoria Street north eastwards and south ...
Today the High court has ruled against another case of a critically ill person who wanted to have an assisted death. This is a very divisive case and issue for many. Life is a very fragile thing but ultimately it belongs to the individual and if the individual chooses to end it then so be it. I know suicide is a selfish act and death itself leaves family members suffering from the loss and picking up the pieces especially if it is a sudden death. Families may lose out financially as well and the damage that can be left in ...
The Euro crisis is in one of its quiet phases. But few are foolish enough to think that its future is now secure. It is often said that the currency is destined to fail because of a fundamental economic law which means that you cannot operate a successful currency without the full authority and resources of a state behind it. The Euro needs to the apparatus of a federal superstate to survive, it is said. One Tory MP even suggested that the Euro's promoters were committing fraud to suggest otherwise. But, for all that many in Brussels want it, establishing ...
I became a climate scientist because I care about the environment, but we have a moral obligation to be impartial As a climate scientist, I'm under pressure to be a political advocate. This comes mainly from environmentalists. Dan Cass, wind-farm director and solar advocate, preferred me not to waste my time debating "denialist morons" but to use political advocacy to "prevent climate catastrophe". Jeremy Grantham, environmental philanthropist, urged climate scientists to sound a "more desperate note ... Be arrested if necessary." A concerned member of the public judged my efforts at public engagement successful only if they showed "evidence of ...
posted The Blood is The Life 30-07-2013 http://t.co/DWSM2Dv37g on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) Another Problem with UK's 'Nudge Censorship': No Clear Accountability http://t.co/l3iQtird3S (tags: (from twitter) ) posted Artificial War Within the Lib Dems: Both Sides Win, But Everybody Loses. http://t.co/pkThCpS74R on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) Kindergarten coders can program before they can read http://t.co/giy4xO0pVN <<< brilliant (tags: (from twitter) ) If this won't include political canvassing cold calls, which... RT @BBCPolitics: 'Crackdown' plan for nuisance calls http://t.co/wRhhEsvPhM (tags: (from twitter) ) This is a balanced post by a professional ...
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe: Also on YouTube.
[IMG: Random Thoughts logo] This is the latest in my series of Random Thoughts posts with links, things found on the web and other stuff that has occurred to me between 17th July 2013 and 31st July 2013: Residents offered chance to speak about town's outdoor sports facilities Back when I was a councillor and a portfolio-holder I remember trying to get the Council to do some work on developing a proper strategy for outdoor sports. Sadly I got resistance from some officers and the idea never really went anywhere. So I was interested to see that Luton Borough Council ...
If you listen to the Nationalist camp, you would think that independence is just a bit of tidying up round the edges. Scots can happily separate from the UK and we won't really notice the difference. We'll still have the Queen and we'll still have the pound. Life will go on, pretty much as normal. You have to ask, though, if it's not going to make that much difference, why Scotland has to spend 3 years debating it. Nationalists may want to play down the consequences of next September's vote but that position doesn't make sense. Michael Moore is giving ...
Today is my birthday. I can barely bring myself to say the great age I've reached, but it does mark a significant milestone for me. Three decades ago today, I joined the SDP. I hope you'll forgive the narcissistic indulgence, (and if you can't, don't read any further, because it'll be five minutes of your life you won't get back), but I thought I'd share with you 30 brief snapshots, significant moments of my life as a party member. I'm grateful for the wonderful friends I've made and the battles we've fought together and am raring to go for decades ...
I've just reached another YouTube milestone. My videos have now been viewed 3 million times. To be precise, 3,000,555 times. Most of the material I upload to the channel is about self-sufficiency and sustainable local food production. These, by far, generate for my the most advertising revenue. However, I also upload videos about local issues and about travel (I am in the middle of editing
Three significant developments have occurred over the last couple of weeks in the campaign for pubco reform. On balance I would say that two of them have been good, and one bad, for licensees, consumers and the Fair Deal your your Local coalition. Let's start with today's news first. The pub sector of the property industry is starting to articulate what campaigners have known for some time: there is increasing demand for free-of-tie pub leases as the pubco option becomes less and less attractive. The quote from industry profesional Stephen Taylor sums up the reason why:"Free-of-tie leases have been sought ...
This morning's Western Mail has Plaid Cymru defending a claim by their Anglesey candidate that Carwyn Jones has been anti-nuclear in the past. Their argument is that in 2006, Andrew Davies, the Welsh Government Minister responsible for energy policy said there was no commercial case for more nuclear power stations in Wales. This was backed up by a Welsh Government report called Energy Wales, which did not mention nuclear power but did say that it is difficult to see the need for new nuclear build in Wales within the timeframe of that report's route map. As Carwyn Jones was a ...
On Sunday evening I went with my granddaughters Sarah and Lily (aged 4 and identical twins)to an open air promenade version of Wind in the Willows put on the YEP at Croxteth Hall. We chose a great day. Thunder,lightning and rain accompanied us as we followed the actors around the parkland. the girls loved it-it added to the atmosphere. The young actors were great and did not let themselves be distracted by the torrential rain or the muddy walkways. You can find out more about the production here
The Western Mail reports that an investigation commissioned by the Welsh Government has criticised teacher assessment at key stages 2 (late primary) and 3 (early secondary) as being "not fully in line with best practice": It said levels of understanding of teacher assessments in both sectors is "less than ideal" and there is room for improvement across the system. A survey of stakeholders found a quarter did not think current teacher assessment procedures are an effective use of resources and a third of schools, local authorities and cluster co-ordinators did not consider external moderation worthwhile. The report said: "There is ...
[IMG: ldv coalition lessons] LibDemVoice is running a daily feature, 'Lessons of Coalition', to assess the major do's and don'ts learned from our experience of the first 3 years in government. Reader contributions are welcome, either as comments or posts. The word limit is no more than 450 words, and please focus on just one lesson you think the party needs to learn. Simply email your submission to voice@libdemvoice.org. Today Mark Valladares shares his thoughts ... Better party communications responding to the realities of governing My lesson of coalition is the importance of building a Party communication system that can ...
[IMG: AntiTraffickingWalk] A group of young people from Dacorum, Luton, Aylesbury and Bushey have decided to make a stand against human trafficking – a modern version of the slave trade that is estimated to have ensnared 27 million people world wide. They decided to support a charity called the Attacking Trafficking Foundation, which aims to combat this evil. To raise awareness and collect money, a group of a dozen or so assembled early on Thursday morning at Tring Station. They invited local county councillor and Deputy Mayor of Tring, Nick Hollinghurst to meet them and give a formal start to ...
After a long wait we finally have a new start date for the much delayed roof repairs to Acocks Green Library. The Library is now scheduled to close on 27th August with repairs likely to take until the end of November. If you have been following this saga, you will, like me, retain a healthy scepticism about this new start date (I think its about the 5th we have been promised!), but I'll be keeping my fingers crossed the work will actually take place this time – its desperately needed with the roof leaking in several places. While Acocks Green ...
Have slipped in collecting links for a while, but here's the latest smorgasbord from around the web. Andrew Neil – these are your climate errors on BBC Sunday Politics – Once again, Andrew Neil lies about science to bolster his own beliefs and mislead viewers. Free to schmooze – Interesting post by Alex Marsh on the aims of libertarians within the Liberal Democrats State of the parties – Jason O'Mahony on the current state of Irish political parties. Includes the great description "(he) resembles a man plummeting to Earth strapped to an anvil, who's getting angry with people for not ...
Like many folk I was horrified when I first heard the Science Museum had publicly said that to make ends meet they would be closing one of their 3 northern museums i.e. The National Railway Museum in York, The Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester or The National Media Museum of in Bradford. [IMG: rsz_img_0505] [IMG: rsz_img_0506] I have visited them all over the years and great facilities they are too – see a couple of my shots above from a visit to the National Railway Museum. But don't you detect a touch of a southern public sector view ...
Following the success of the TimeTree North East Dundee TimeBank, I was contacted recently by Gill Bain, Timebank Development Officer, about starting a similar initiative across the West End. Here's some information from Gill, along with contact details: There's nothing new about people helping out friends and neighbours. Some of that goes on every day in Dundee. Sometimes, though, it can be hard to offer help to people you don't know or say when you could do with a hand yourself. Timebanking is a new and exciting way for people to share their skills within the community and be rewarded ...
Today was the official release date (though I received my copy yesterday) of The RCA Albums Collection, a 17-CD set of pretty much everything Nilsson recorded during his short but incredibly productive career. While the average listener only knows Nilsson for two songs, both covers — Everybody's Talking and Without You, both of course included [...]
Friday You have, presumably, heard how one of Britain's biggest landowners is to use its enormous capital reserves to try and bankrupt a recent successful start-up company. Although you MIGHT have heard that reported as: "Church of England to force Wonga out of business". This initiative from everyone's favourite establishment theocracy comes after the Government announced that the monthly interest that credit unions can charge will increase from 2% to 3%. That's an increase of 26.8% APR to 42.6% APR. So it looks like the Church only got interested when credit unions went from being CHARITABLE loans to PROFITABLE ones. ...
