[IMG: The Clyde in February 2] Well done to the LDV team for rejuvenating these awards. It should all make for a great evening at the Glasgow conference. Here follow my nominations, and apologies for probably nominating for ones that aren't nominatable. You can read the starting orders for the awards here. My nominations are: Liberal Democrat Blog of the Year – George Potter, The Potter Blog Liberal Democrat Tweeter/Facebooker of the Year – Lord Bonkers Best use of social media by an elected representative (Tim Garden award) Dr Julian Huppert Lib Dem Councillor of the Year – Alex Folkes ...
This one on The Adventuress Of Henrietta Street
[IMG: lingering.....] There are a lot "posh" people in here ...said my companion in a restaurant this evening. No. It's just that the few "posh" people in here are talking very loudly. ...said I. photo by: jenny downing [IMG: Post to Twitter] Tweet This Post
Citra is named after the single variety of hop that Oakham Ales use in its brewing. The result is a wonderfully refreshing beer that hits you with a burst of grapefruit flavour - much better than lager or cider on a hot day. I have drunk it in bottles from Waitrose and, even better, on draught at The Lord Nelson in Oakham, which you can see below. It is tucked into a corner of the market place. Last time I was there the building housed a good, chefy but struggling restaurant. Today it is thriving as a pub with good ...
Photo by Guinnog Frack Off offers daily reports from Balcombe. The "Realos" vs "Fundis" debate misses the point for the Liberal Democrats, argues Cicero's Songs. "Clegg's speeches are full of exhortations about showing that we're serious about power and refusing the comfort of opposition. Less subtle are a string of newspaper articles which a suspicious mind might attribute to leadership stirring. Self-identified supporters of Clegg frequently attack internal critics of government policies as being insufficiently realistic, dedicated to the necessities of coalition, or 'serious' about being in government, preferring juvenile oppositionism." underthewesternfreeway also looks at internal party debates. Orkney is ...
An interesting detail from the Liberal Democrat autumn conference agenda, published today: the economy motion, one of the potential flash points of conference, will see the final speech in the debate given to Nick Clegg. Any controversial amendment will be voted on moments after he has finished speaking – giving him a strong direct influence on the vote but also making it very hard for him to play down a defeat over an amendment. Higher chance of him getting his way; higher cost of failing to do so. You can download this document here (PDF, 1.53MB)
News release from East Sussex Lib Dems A Liberal Democrat proposal to create jobs and invest £2m windfall money in a programme of properly patching potholes has been deferred by East Sussex County Council. At the recent Full Council meeting, Councillor Mike Blanch (LD Hampden Park) called for a radical approach to focus on the tens of [...]
Sunday: Peter Capaldi is the new Doctor Woo! After all the rumours and speculation, we can hardly believe our luck. It can't be him, can it? But it is! We're absolutely delighted. He's a brilliant actor with a hugely exciting body of work to show it. Yes, he's hilarious, terrifying and even occasionally worthy of pathos as Malcolm Tucker the monstrous face of modern politics' spin machine, but go watch "The Hour", "The Crow Road", "Torchwood: Children of Earth", "Prime Suspect*" or (as we did last night) "Neverwhere" for many different faces that'll convince you of his range and versatility. ...
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 337th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (28th July – 3rd August, 2013), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. ...
This weekend, the annual two day banger meeting takes place at Netherbridge, just over the border into Devon. It is a great event put on by North Cornwall Motor Racing Club. If you have never seen banger racing, it is quite a spectacle. There are different classes from full contact bangers to classes which (in theory) allow no contact. There are even junior classes. The NCMRC holds a number of meetings each year, but the two day August meeting is a highlight. You will be amazed at how some of the cars apparently written off on day one can make ...
Earlier in the year, I started an occasional series of Liberal quotations that made me think. Perhaps I've not been thinking enough, but I haven't published any for a while. So today I opened Duncan Brack's 1999 Dictionary of Liberal Quotations at random and found myself nodding at a few thoughts from Ralf Dahrendorf, German, British and European Liberal thinker and politician. Here are three that seem to me to go together: "Liberty remains a response to the fact that we live in a world of uncertainty." "Utopia is always illiberal, because it leaves no room for error or correction." ...
More road works - this time due to water works. Westgate Street will be closed for overnight roadworks from September 23rd to 27th. The works will take place from 7pm until 7am each day. Tweet
When England won back the Ashes in 2009 I was in Sutton Bridge and when we retained them a couple of winters ago Lord Bonkers even liveblogged the occasion. I am on holiday again now, but my mother is older and frailer, which makes it harder to get away (though I shall be in Shropshire this weekend). I listened to the cricket this morning. The promised rain had nor arrived and by lunch England were rocking at 35-3. Radical measures were clearly required, so I caught the bus to Brixworth and had another go at photographing its magnificent Saxon church. ...
[Introduction | Supers | Bats | Wonders & Lanterns ] So I hear there are other heroes in the DC Universe who may or may not be able to carry their own title? 17. AQUAMAN is Arthur, King of the Britons Oceans. Swimming fast, talking to sealife, hanging with Mera and Tempest and Lagoon Boy, defending the oceans from invaders, and being really angry while he does so. At some point I did promise that there would be a mini-series spin off in which he teams up with Ra's Al Ghul, Poison Ivy and Gorilla Grodd to do some Saving ...
[IMG: Autumn 2012 conference - Some rights reserved by Liberal Democrats] Agenda papers for the federal conference in Glasgow have been published. Within the theme of 'a stronger economy in a fairer society, allowing everyone to get on in life' there are policy motions on work life balance, green growth, learning and skills, fairer taxes, strengthening the economy, housing benefit, tackling sexual and domestic violence, racial equality, and more. Also of note are the issues of protecting children online, Europe, Defence, PFI, and Gambling. A full list follows. Click on the above link for the details. F1 Formal Opening of ...
Here's my contribution to Lib Dem Voice's Lessons of the Coalition series: The invisible ministers should up their game, or be sacked [IMG: Lessons of Coalition] For the start of both 2011 and 2012, I wrote about the challenges the party faced in government. I didn't do a 2013 sequel because I couldn't think of much to say other than "see 2011 and 2012". However, in one respect my view has got tougher another year and a half on. The party can't afford the luxury of the invisible junior ministers - those who do a perfectly nice, decent job somewhere ...
I posted earlier today on the issues that Welsh Liberal Democrats need to be thinking about in the light of the National Assembly Anglesey By-Election result. My attention has since been drawn to a contribution from a fellow Member of the Social Liberal Forum. There is now a general debate beginning about the future direction of the Party. We need to have that debate in Wales, but starting from our own particular circumstances. I would particularly endorse the point about the self-identified supporters of Nick Clegg frequently attacking internal critics of UK Government policies as being insufficiently realistic, dedicated to ...
Qualified because he's another skinny abled white bloke. Not Miriam Margolyes, booooooo. But out of all the skinny abled white blokes they COULD have chosen, PCap is pretty near the top of the list. I don't think the fact that he's a known Who geek (or, indeed, a geek in general, and if you think he might have grown out of it you need to see Cricklewood Greats) makes a lick of difference - both my favourite and my least favourite Doctors were fanboys before being cast - but the fact that he's a damn good actor is a great ...
I read Kelly-Marie's article about her '#twittersilence' yesterday with great interest, and not just because I couldn't believe that a Dr Who fan would be able to stay out of the twitter discussions on 'Number 12'! As a feminist, social-media addict and aspiring MP too, Kelly-Marie and I have much in common. However, it was for exactly those reasons that I decided to be part of the '#shoutingback' crowd yesterday - those users who refuse to be intimidated by nasty people hiding behind their keyboards, spouting bile because they think that they can get away with it. I've been utterly ...
With the commencement of road works in Nethergate and the very east part of Perth Road up to Roseangle started today, I have had constituents ask about the effect on bus services 204 and 204a and also the Friendly Bus Sheltered Shopping Service that goes to Paton's Lane Sheltered Housing each Tuesday. The City Council has now advised me as follows : 204/204a Service "Service 204/204A will still use Magdalen Yard Road when Nethregate works are in operation. Members of public should be aware that the buses on Magdalen Yard Road will all travel in an Easterly direction, both travelling ...
By a happy coincidence, the Quest For Adventure's morning stopover on Guernsey yesterday coincided with the annual Scarecrow Festival in the parish of Torteval. So while many of the passengers went off to visit the Occupation Museum and Underground Hospital, following my lecture the day before on Guernsey under Occupation, I accompanied my cousins — [...]
I was recently invited to take part in Lord Bonkers' blogpost recommending good summer reads. This gave me the impetus I needed to get on and finish Iain Banks' the Quarry as well as to re-read a childhood favourite, When The Wind Blows by Raymond Briggs. You can read my reviews here and the whole series here. If you don't already follow Liberal England, I do recommend you have a good browse whilst you're there. Andrew
Lots of discussion was had about "#twittersilence" this weekend. The premise is clear. Following the diabolical harassment of feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, threats included the most heinous debasement, the threat of rape; feminists around the world pledged to go silent on Twitter for National Friendship Day. As a feminist and social media user myself, as well as being an aspiring politician, I've experienced my fair share of offensive behaviour, comments and abuse. Indeed the downside of social media in society seems to be that it creates a form of mask through which people can hide in order to persecute and ...
There have been a few times recently where I have thought; I am so done with Twitter. The echoing sound box of people agreeing with each other and the shouting down of those who disagree. Those waiting for a mis tweet or slip up and *boom* it is everywhere... I'm tired of the political robots who have built a facade removing most of their humanity and replacing it with professionally taken Avatar images, tweets that are straight from their party line as if their feed is connected to the central Press office. I should clear this up for those who ...
Regular readers of this blog (if there are any) may have noticed, if they were particularly observant, that I have't managed to keep up my usual, how shall I say, rhythm, over the past week. That is because I've been on holiday on a very small farm in Normandy. We found the gite through the website Accueil Paysan, which gives people the chance to stay on small farms, and which apparently the English very rarely use - though their cars and accents are very much in evidence in the local town, Port-Bail. This is rather strange, because that kind of ...
The 'Grave concerns' voiced by William Hague over Zimbabwe's election make clear their displeasure at Robert Mugabe winning a seventh presidential term. But would the result be any different were it not for voter fraud? Britain has implied this but not even opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai claims he really won. The issue is not whether Mugabe stole the presidential election but whether he stole the all-important two-thirds majority in parliament which allows ZANU-PF to make constitutional changes. Tsvangirai lost because the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is a mess. There are two MDC's, one run by Welshman Ncube, and many ...
Former North Wales assembly member Christine Humphreys became the latest Welsh Lib Dem to be admitted last week. She told Vaughan Roderick on Sunday Supplement on BBC Radio Wales that she was delighted but still looked forward to the day when there would be a reformed House of Lords, which she didn't want to be named the House of Lords.
Featuring the wonderfully named Leg of Mutton and Cauliflower in Ashtead.
[IMG: storage room] Zero hours contracts are not new. But that doesn't mean they're not news. Today the BBC reports on a study by CIPD that suggests there are four times as many workers on zero-hours contracts than previously thought - a million rather than 250,000. Perhaps as important as the absolute number is the speed at which the use of such contracts appears to be growing. They have been around for a long time and are prevalent in particular industries - such as domiciliary care - where demand for services has always fluctuated substantially and unpredictably. But it appears ...
[IMG: Mark Hunter MP and Chief Superintendent Chris Sykes] Mark Hunter MP and Chief Superintendent Chris Sykes Recorded crime in Stockport more than halved between March 2003 and March 2013. In the year to 31st March 2003 there were 34,619 offences recorded. In the year to 31st March 2013 there were 15,862, a fall of 54%. Within those numbers, different types of crime have fallen by different amounts: Criminal damage and arson down 60% Domestic burglary down 60% Fraud down 67% Robbery down 65% Vehicle offences down 71% Violence with injury down 47% There are a few exceptions to the ...
The Western Mail reports that the Chief Executive of the Welsh Local Government Association has posed an interesting philosophical question with regards to the cuts many local councils are anticipating in the next few years. Steve Thomas believes the Big Lottery Fund should change its constitution to allow lottery money to be spent supporting services that until now have been run by councils: Currently, the rules say cash from lottery proceeds should only be used to provide facilities over and above what councils have traditionally provided. Mr Thomas said: "The Big Lottery Fund runs hugely beneficial schemes for the community ...
I am appalled at the machinations of the Labour Party in Liverpool. Last Friday at 24 hours notice they made a massive change to consultation plans concerning the introduction of a fortnightly bin collection service in Liverpool. They rightly rejected ... Continue reading →
If this was real, I might even watch Dr. Who
This morning's Western Mail reports that Wales' Health Minister is investigating whether Wales could go it alone on major public health issues such as plain cigarette packaging and a minimum price for alcohol. His action comes after the UK Government refused to proceed with these measures, preferring instead to get more evidence as to their efficacy. As somebody who has never smoked and is virtually teetotal I am always wary of pontificating on these issues if I can help it. However, it strikes me that if we are going to proceed down a legislative route we should at least have ...
Dear Claire Perry MP; Thank you for inviting me to e-mail you to discuss my concerns with the proposals advanced by the Prime Minister and yourself with regards internet filtering. I hope I can lay out the reasons why I feel completely unable to support any such filters. There are three principle reasons for this: that they represent a threat to some of the most vulnerable people in Britain; that they threaten the liberty of others, and that they face insurmountable technical challenges which mean that they will likely harm the vulnerable and leave those you seek to impede unhindered. ...
[IMG: Jo Swinson wins "Best use of e-campaigning 2009"] It's less than 6 weeks until Federal Conference in Glasgow. And late on the Saturday night of Conference, as always, Liberal Democrat Voice will be holding its annual awards. This is the 8th such ceremony, and this year, we're making a few changes. As usual, they'll be awarded in a budget lavish ceremony in Castle 2 at the Crowne Plaza between 10 and 11:30 pm. The dress code is "imaginative." There will be some Very Important Guests. Some we will keep as surprises, but we can tell you that Kirsty Williams, ...
Charlotte Gore on twitter silence (tags: ) http://xkcd.com/385/ @3rd_Doctor 1, women are not a minority 2, not just women want equality 3, Maggie Thatcher? Are you not doing this: http://t.co/KixGJISjsw ? (tags: (from twitter) ) http://itv.co/15FkK2s FFS RT @itvnews: A man has been killed in a row over a disabled parking space in a supermarket car park, police said http://t.co/rAPjGPUCMx (tags: (from twitter) ) http://beardedgeniusofftwitter.tumblr.com/image/57323491096 My take on #twittersilence. http://t.co/bUegIavqW6 http://t.co/lPSRVMoDZD (tags: (from twitter) twittersilence ) A love letter to Twitter, from @stavvers http://t.co/ijZX4HVmpH (tags: (from twitter) ) http://www.women-inventors.com/Stephanie-Kwolek.asp Stephanie Kwolek, inventor of Kevlar: http://t.co/8j1eys8iNW #InspiringWomen (tags: (from twitter) ...
Thursday 1st August saw a by-election take place for the National Assembly Constituency seat of Anglesey/Ynys Mon. The result, when it was announced was: Plaid Cymru 12,601 (58.2%) +16.8% Labour 3,435 (15.9%) -10.3% UKIP 3,099 (14.3%) +14.3% Conservative 1,843 (8.5%) -20.7% Socialist Labour 348 (1.6%) +1.6% Liberal Democrat 309 (1.4%) -1.7% Turnout: 42.4% (-6.3%) From a Liberal Democrat and Liberal perspective it could not be much worse. As Roger Scully said on 3rd August on the Click on Wales Blog: "The less said about the Liberal Democrat's Ynys Mon showing, the better." And, of course, there will be some in ...
You don't have to talk to many people about tax these days before someone brings up how unfair it is that some of the biggest international companies and brands seem to be able to find ways of getting out of paying any. And at the same time, many people are themselves feeling the financial squeeze in their own budgets. So in preparing new tax policy for the party to debate at autumn conference, we have worked to create a fairer balance: a tax system which helps those on low and middle incomes, and ensures that the richest companies and individuals ...
Glasgow will give Liberal Democrats the opportunity to debate Trident, climb down the ladder or jump off altogether? George Potter makes the case for jumping off and we will hear from David Grace later this week on the case for...Read more ›
My name is Vidul Vithlani and I am studying Politics and International Relations at Kent University. I am on a work placement in John Leech MP's office. As part of [...]
The Police and Crime Commissioner claims that he is readily available to deal with concerns. So if you are unhappy with the way policing is going then contact him on: David.LLOYD@Herts.pnn.police.uk
I have invited some bloggers to nominate a couple of books they have enjoyed recently and write a few sentences about each. You are welcome to send me your own choices. I suggest you nominate one political and one non-political book, but I don't insist on that. You can read Round-up 1, Round-up 2, Round-up 3, Round-up 4 and Round-up 5 on this blog. Simon McGrath The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson Volume 4 by Robert A. Caro The best political book I have read recently is the fourth volume of Robert Caro's biography of Lyndon Johnson. ...
It goes without saying that counterfeiting coins is illegal. Sir Isaac Newton when he was Master of the Mint, had people hanged or tortured for illegally producing coins. So, don't do it, ok! That said, coins are very useful as calibrators for 3D printers. They come in various shapes, sizes, and thickness. More importantly, it's really easy to compare a 3D printed coin with one in your pocket. Or, even, just by looking at them. I've spent the last few days creating a basic set of 3D coins - based on the UK's currency. [IMG: 3D Coins MeshLab] The Royal ...
Caroline Criado-Perez received an all-too-common wave of abuse and rape threats for her campaign to having a woman on a Bank of England note. This weekend just past, there were a couple of Twitter hashtags to protesting the abuse of women online: #TwitterSilence and #InspiringWomen. Twitter is a commercial service, not an open medium. When the idea to just not tweet for a day popped up in whatever article I was reading (#TwitterSilence), it caught my eye. Not using a company's product, a company that will have extremely good traffic monitoring – that company just might notice! Twitter did indeed ...
[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 Pack shares his thoughts. The invisible ministers should up their game, or be sacked For the start of both 2011 and 2012, I wrote about the challenges the party ...
From Sheena Wellington : Friends of Wighton are delighted that the first Lunchtime Recital of the new session, on Wednesday 7th August, will feature the talented young musicians of the National Ceilidh Trail. The Recital starts at 1.15pm in the Wighton Heritage Centre, Central Library, Dundee, and admission is free. It's only a matter of weeks since Fèis Rois returned from Australia where they worked with The National Celtic Festival of Australia to introduce the hugely successful Ceilidh Trail model which has been delivered successfully in Ross and Cromarty since 2000. Since those early days the trail has been replicated ...
Yesterday, I had a very enjoyable afternoon visiting the City Road Allotments Open Day. It was really well attended and a lovely, sunny afternoon. I was shown the improved facilities that have been achieved over the past year, and here's a couple of photographs from yesterday's visit:
