BBC4 is showing documentaries about Elton John this evening - so I was rather pleased to find this collaboration by Reg and Marshall on the outer reaches of YouTube...
On The Kingmaker
Fri 4th
22:23
The Snowden files: why the British public should be worried about GCHQ - John Lanchester in the Guar...
[IMG: GCHQ Cheltenham] The Guardian has had a very good idea. It asked novelist and journalist John Lanchester to look at its Edward Snowden papers. This had to be done in New York because the London copies were destroyed under the supervision of some trenchcoats. The result is a thoroughly frightening article in which John Lanchester is able to give his impressions of the secrets without giving away too many of them. It is an excellent piece. You can read in full here. I was particularly impressed by this: Since 9/11, 53 people have been killed by terrorists in the ...
I don't even know where to begin.
From the Northampton Borough Council website: Northampton Borough Council has received a grant of £3.6 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for the restoration of Delapre Abbey project it was announced today. The project aims to preserve and restore much of the main Abbey buildings. The project involves refurbishing parts of the main Abbey building, including rebuilding the conservatory and opening the south wing for events and public access, restoring the 18th century stable block into a new visitor and education centre, shop and exhibition space and restoring the Billiard Room and converting it into a restaurant and café ...
Students just aren't what they used to be. Maybe they never were the rebellious, course work shy, last minute crammers stereotypes portray. I remember my brief stint at university being fairly memorable, involving the removal of bras in record time (undefeated champion, I'll have you know) and a disturbing game known only as "Nervous". Good times, good times. Alas such fun seems completely beyond the comprehension of the stony faced union enforcers who rule at fresher's fairs. Last year the University of Reading's Atheist, Humanist and Secularist Society was kicked out of their fresher's fair for naming a pineapple Mohammed. ...
After many attempts to redevelop the site of the old Crystal Palace a new Crystal Palace has been proposed. It's described as a £1/2bn project to recreate a cultural attraction. [IMG: New Crystal Palace] Chinese developers are proposing with London Mayor Boris Johnson supporting a replica of the original Crystal Palace. But hopefully with better fire alarms and sprinklers to avoid a repeat of 1936 when the original burnt down! But such a huge structure with 94,000m2/990,000ft2 of space predicted to employ 2,000 people would have to draw huge numbers of visitors. How will they get there? What's not been ...
The FT has an exclusive this evening which says Nigel Farage is to stand in Thanet South in the General Election in 2015. But then they appear to get Thanet South a little mixed up with Thanet North... For Margate (though not as I originally thought Ramsgate - thanks Joseph Dance) are of course in Thanet North. Here's a map of Thanet South Now why in the world would Nigel Farage choose Thanet South? Is it that the local MP is an avid supporter of wind farms (good on her) - and Mr Farage isn't? Possibly. Is it that UKIP ...
Good news: latest quarterly stats show Lib Dem membership up. 1st time that's happened outside a general election in a decade — Mark Pack (@markpack) October 4, 2013 Fancy joining yourself? You can sign up here online.
Councillors in South Cambridgeshire have pledged to fight for the best deal for local people on the A14 and have said today (Friday 4 October) that in principle the Government should look to national funding rather than tolls and local contributions as the first option to tackle the blighted road. In a Cabinet meeting to discuss South Cambridgeshire District Council's response to the Highway Agency's consultation on the £1.5 billion plans, leading councillors unanimously supported plans for the upgrade as it is "desperately needed". Despite being against tolling and local funding, Cabinet Members said at the meeting that it is ...
We're very excited that tickets are now available for the launch of our Food for a Greener Future Campaign at Fitzbillies restaurant. We'll be celebrating the best of local, sustainable, delicious food with a menu specially designed by Fitbillies first-class chef, Rosie Sykes. Booking is available through the event page on the CCF website. As part of the Food for a Greener Future Campaign we're also challenging you all to eat local in November! The goal? To source all of your food from within a 30-mile radius of Cambridge for three weeks. How hard can it be? Click here for ...
Speaking in response to the decision by the EU Special Programmes Body's decision to withdraw funding for the proposed Peace and Reconciliation Centre at the Maze, NI Lib Dems Chair John O'Neill stated: Yet again, as with the putative National ... Continue reading →
[IMG: Chemnitz - Marx Monument] Ian Aitken in the Guardian has written a superb article on the Ralph Miliband/Mail affair. You can read it in full here. One thing I am very pleased about, is that the article kills the myth that Marxism and the Soviet Union were one and the same thing. Here are some quotes from the article to tempt you: (The Mail) seems to believe that anything less than a certificated enthusiasm for the Queen, the Brigade of Guards and the Church of England disqualifies one as a genuine patriot. It finishes brilliantly as follows: ...the idea ...
At my parents' wedding in 1973 my new Granddad Reg stood me up on a chair as I changed from a Savage to a Gauge My eulogy to my Granddad, Reginald Harry John Gauge 26.01.1909 to 20.09.2013 whose funeral was today: Reg, my Granddad, was born, on 26th January 1909 - 104 years ago - I hope you are sitting comfortably. This was quite a life and this may take a little while. Reg was an only child. His father Harry Gauge was a carpenter from Bourn in Cambridgeshire and his mother Beatrice Lily Lank was also from Bourn. After ...
When will it end? This constant demonisation of the poor, the vulnerable, the disabled, the mentally ill; the ones that fell from the ever widening cracks in society, the society that for the most part are suffering from a wilful blindness. An uneasy recognition that perhaps the government and press shouldn't be tarnishing and vilifying all the above sections of society with the same brush, but are either too preoccupied with keeping their own lives together or feel as if their voices would be lost in the crowd. This is basic divide and rule; to take the mind of the ...
During the Federal Conference, Nick Clegg went on a visit to Drumchapel Table Tennis club in Glasgow and ended up actually playing a game. I suspect the collective blood pressure of his entourage was a bit on the elevated side while he was doing it. After all, they usually make sure that their principals never get into any situation that could cause embarrassment. Thankfully, though, Nick is pretty good at table tennis and acquitted himself well. The club filmed the proceedings and put it up here on You Tube. * Newsmoggie - bringing you comment on the Lib Dems whether ...
That's the news just in from the party's HQ: Good news on Lib Dem membership – growing for first quarter in a decade outside elections. — libdemvoice (@libdemvoice) October 4, 2013 Congratulations to all involved, especially those local parties who've successfully retained and/or recruited members. Full speed ahead to elections in 2014 and 2015! PS: anyone know how the Tories' membership figures are looking? Ah yes.
Fri 4th
14:58
A few thoughts after Matt"s brave post - we have to make the system more realistic, fair and compass...
It's impossible to read Matt's brave post on his battles not just with his own severe illnesses, but with the welfare system without feeling deeply moved. I felt upset and angry at the many failures of the state to give him the care and support he needs. I'm not just talking about medical care. It's about having to fight for the benefits which put food on the table and keep a roof over his head. A liberal society takes care of those who are too ill to make their own living. There can never be a compromise on this. I ...
So it is reported that Simon Burns, The Minister for Transport, is to step down from government, so that he can run in the election to become Deputy Speaker. While the timing is of course dictated by the fact that a role has only just become available, I wonder if it is also connected with the fact that: 1. Simon Burns is MP for Chelmsford which has Stansted on his doorstep 2. Simon Burns is an avowed opponent ofa second runway at Stansted (and a third runway at Heathrow). Here's what he said in his constituency newsletter on those issues ...
There were three very good local election results for the Lib Dems last night. Congratulations to Allison Harrison and Mark Willis who held Oakfield in Aylesbury for the Liberal Democrats. UKIP came in 80 or so votes behind, and took almost double the votes of the Tories who were in third place. We also take our hat off to Roger Hurst who held Mickleham in the Mole Valley on an impressive 49% turnout. [IMG: AV Oakfield 1] [IMG: AV Oakfield 2] [IMG: Mole Valley]
Post conference season we've had 3 promises from ourselves and the Tories involving spending. The Good (Free School Meals) the Bad (Marriage Tax Break) and the Ugly (Help to Work)(Ugly, as there seem an awful lot of unanswered questions - but that's for another blogpost...) We also know the costs of these - a total of £1.5bn. And we're pretty sure they are going to be paid for by a tax hike somewhere else. How do we know? Because when challenged to deny that a tax rise was coming to pay for them (on the Radio 4 1pm news last ...
[IMG: Big Ben Orange Blue 200] Government's "Transparency" Bill seeks to ensure that those who are not standing in an election, but nonetheless wish to spend money influencing the outcome, are also subject to tight limits within constituencies and have to be transparent about the source of their money. It builds on existing law passed by Labour, and reduces present spending limits. However, the Bill has caused an unexpected row, with charities and lobbying groups claiming that restrictions on election expenditure could be a "gag" on their right of free speech. That is not the experience of candidates. Nonetheless, I ...
This morning I joined my colleague Jeremy Rowe on a visit to the council's contact centre in Camborne. This is the facility that handles most of the calls made to the authority - more than a million every year. The deliberate decision has been to concentrate on the quality of the outcome of each call rather than speeding through each one as quickly as possible. Over half are still picked up within 5 seconds, but there will be some cases where people have to wit for a while before their call can be answered. But we hope to make sure ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Europe's wings must be clipped - but how? – Telegraph Sue Cameron on the Deputy Speaker runners and riders http://bit.ly/18B4D7D < 5 Tories in the running Scarborough councillor refuses to apologise for calling grandmother a 'stupid old cow' – Yorkshire Post Good grief > Scarborough councillor refuses to apologise for calling grandmother a 'stupid old cow' – Yorkshire Post http://bit.ly/18B4cKF Fareham councillor leaves UKIP to become an independent – Portsmouth News LibDem -> Tory -> Ukip -> Independent. Interestingly Owenite political journey of a Portsmouth councillor http://bit.ly/18B3JrE POLITICS: Why Lib Dems aren't ...
Wednesday: Firstly, congratulations to the Daily Heil for granting Mr Milipede free publicity to totally overshadow the guff our pie-faced Prime Monster came out with at the climax to the Conservatories conference. But to be honest, David Cameron - Mr Balloon - was probably grateful for anything overshadowing the uninspiring, reheated, frankly tired Thatcherite rhetoric he was coming out with. He looks like he's decided the next election is a lost cause and he's gone back to shoring up the base against UKIP I mean "Land of Hope is Tory"? Are you really going to say that, Prime Minister? Really? ...
Street trading fees to be reviewed: press release from district council St Albans City and District Council's policy on street trading fees is being reviewed following a recommendation by the Local Services Scrutiny Committee. At a meeting last night (3 October) the Committee agreed to set up a Task and Finish Group made up of councillors to look into the level of fees being charged for street trading. The fees are included in a street trading policy approved by the Licensing and Regulatory Committee on 22 January 2013 following a 12-week consultation. The Council can charge for street trading in ...
The headlines of national papers are very rarely the same, even if they are covering the same story. But on Wednesday, the Times and the Daily Telegraph both came up with the same one: 'Profit is not a dirty word, says Cameron'. This may be the sign of a similarly abject relationship to the press office at No 10. But both papers saw this phrase as the key element of David Cameron's speech to his own conference. By implication, we were supposed to see this as a riposte to Ed Miliband's attack on the energy providers. It also provides a ...
"I don't think we need to apologise for anything. This was a piece which examined somebody's views very carefully. "I think there are people out there who need to apologise to us because there have been vicious accusations in the last couple of days, from (former Labour leader) Neil Kinnock among others, that somehow this was an anti-semitic attack." So said the Daily Mail's City Editor Alex Blummer to Radio 4's Today programme. However, the "Man who hated Britain" headline was taken from comments made in his youth as he arrived in this country having fled the Nazis in Belgium. ...
[IMG: Pickles and Quelch Boles] The planning minister wants to be shot. I'm not making this up. At the Conservative Conference he was asked about Tory proposals for further planning reform after the next election (£). The minister replied: "I'm going to answer it very simply. If I'm still planning minister after the next election, I want you to shoot me." Of course, planning minister Nick Boles has form in this territory. Back in May, he said that "if anyone comes to me with an idea for new planning legislation I am going to shoot them" (£). Putting aside the ...
So today we learn that Nick Clegg does approve of Osborne's Workfare, even though it so blatantly contravenes Liberal Democrat core values. He claims it can be justified as being something that will help people, despite the evidence being to the contrary. What is...Read more ›
In the cold war, as now, the ocean environment around Gibraltar became a proxy stage on which geopolitical dramas played out A little over a year ago we couldn't have anticipated that our research topic would suddenly acquire such political relevance: it was a first for a British historian (Sam) and a Spanish historian (Lino) to join forces to investigate the role of ocean science in Gibraltar's diplomatic history, and soon it became apparent that it was a well-timed first. Events have evolved rapidly since last July when the Gibraltarian government dropped large concrete blocks into Algeciras Bay, the first ...
On Wednesday I nipped down to Exeter to take part in a HotHouse event, organised by the NHF, to discuss the future of social housing. I gave a 10 minute talk at the beginning, offering some thoughts on where things are heading. On reflection I got a bit distracted by the question of whether institutionalism is a useful framework for thinking about these issues, which I'm pretty sure is a question that was of rather limited interest to the audience. And I probably ended up sounding more negative than I'd intended. But there you go. The text accompanying my talk ...
There's a meeting for people to have their say/share their views about the proposed South Liverpool skatepark later this month. I've blogged previously about this. Basically a very determined group of young people got together to research, campaign and lobby to get the funds for a skatepark in South Liverpool and to look for a location. Loads of work has been done, with help from Brendan Burton at Merseyside Youth Association, and it really feels as if it's nearly there now. The group have organised a meeting, open to anyone with views about what sort of a skatepark it should ...
When something strange has been around long enough it can come to seem commonplace. It then usually takes an outsider to notice remind you that it's still weird. So it is with this exceptional piece from last year about the Daily Mail in the New Yorker. The whole article is worth a read but the [...]
For full details and events ~ http://rochesterlitfest.com/
One of the issues around the Labour Council's desire to sell off the Meadowlands has been whether or not it is actually part of Sefton Park. Those who want to save it, with the back up of some historic maps, argue that it is and so shouldn't be solved. The Mayor has tended to say that it isn't. But does he really believe that? The Liverpool Echo this morning has a report of the "debate" at the Council's regeneration committee last night. (The committee's majority Labour members supported the sell off) The Echo quotes the Mayor as saying this (to ...
[IMG: EU Flag and Scissors] On Wednesday the European Commission unveiled a major set of proposals that will significantly cut unnecessary red tape, especially for small businesses, following a sweeping review of all EU legislation. Perhaps the most eye-catching of these was the decision to withdraw proposed health and safety rules that would have banned hairdressers from wearing jewellery and high heels at work. Unsurprisingly, this did not garner anywhere near as much coverage in the tabloid press as when it was first proposed. Far more important though are the concerted efforts to simplify or repeal overly burdensome and unnecessary ...
When the private sector can't or won't borrow money and take risks, what should a local council do to boost the area? In Stockport, we're not sitting back. We're investing in a range of projects across the area which should end up making a profit for taxpayers as well as helping to regenerate the town. We're taking advantage of the Council's ability to borrow more cheaply than the private sector to build strong business cases for each development. On Tuesday I presented proposals to Stockport Executive to invest £18.5 million in building new grade A offices and a new hotel ...
When I registered as an undergraduate student at Warwick in 1982, queuing became an unexpected feature of life. I queued for my library card, for my accommodation, to sign onto my course and most importantly of all, to receive my grant cheque. I rapidly became an expert at queuing and how to avoid it. How to avoid queues is, of course, a life skill almost as useful as anything you learn on a Computer Science degree. Yesterday, I received an email from Leicester University inviting me to register as a distance learner for my occupational psychology masters. As I'm currently ...
On Tuesday I presented the latest reports on the A6 to Manchester Airport Relief Road to Stockport Council Executive, and all were approved. I reported back on the consultation over the road. We recognise that, although there is a very strong majority of people in favour of the relief road, there is also a smaller number who are concerned that they will be directly and adversely affected by it, and all their concerns deserve full consideration. Over 5,000 people responded to this phase two survey with a clear majority agreeing that we are addressing the ecological, landscaping, visual and noise ...
...was what the Labour party did - at the Conservative conference So here's a couple of cracking stunts they pulled off, and then a selection of my other favourite political communications tricks and groundbreaking developments at the time they happened - as lets not forget: THE 2015 ELECTION CAMPAIGN STARTS NOW AND WE LIB DEMS NEED TO GET SOME COOL STUFF IN HAND Goes without saying it is the communication tool I am picking for its signficance in the world of messaging, not the message itself, which I am likely as not to profoundly disagree with... 1. Labour at #CPC13 ...
As bus services in the Ludlow area go from bad to worse, one ray of light is the arrival of the Ludlow Traveller bus service from Monday, 8 October. The service will use a 14-seater minibus and a wheelchair-accessible people carrier to take people who currently find it difficult to access existing public transport from [...]
Make no mistake, this is a sketch. Cue applause When even the Torygraph takes the piss out of the Tory leader's speech there is something very very wrong with the world. (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
[IMG: Print] I was pleased to see a the latest road safety initiative from Warwickshire County Council, who have organised a number of 'clinics' across the county where parents can come along and get free advice on buying and fitting child car seats and information on the new i-size regulations. The Kenilworth clinic will be held at the Waitrose store on Wednesday 23rd October, between 10.00 am and 3.00 pm.
[IMG: Alistair Cooke] There are voices from history that cannot be forgotten. Among them is that of Alistair Cooke, a Brit who understood America like no other. There are times when I really miss Alistair. He had a unique ability to explain to us the seemingly bizarre and sometimes incomprehensible machinations of American politics and government. Of course, he spoke of much more than politics in his Letter from America broadcasts. His tale of Gershwin and Russian immigration still gives me goose bumps. His lament on the closure of Woolworths captured the aspirations of a generation. He even managed to ...
Today's Western Mail reports that the UK Government through the Financial Conduct Authority is to crack down on payday lenders so as to prevent ease of instant access loans and limit retrieval attempts from struggling borrower's bank accounts. The paper says that firms will no longer be able to grant loans in 10 minutes while a limit will also be placed on the number of attempts payday firms can try to claw money back from a struggling borrower's bank account. The last measure will be controlled by using a type of recurring payment called a continuous payment authority minimising the ...
Following his announcement yesterday that registrars may be allowed to refuse to carry out same-sex marriage the SNP's Scottish Health Minister has announced that LGBT Scots will also be allowed to withhold their services from those that they conscientiously disagree with. Many wedding dress designers and kilt outfitters will withhold their services from couples who get married without having a genuine LGBT friend on the invite list. As for brides who object to same-sex love they will be hard pressed to find a hairdresser for the big day. And the honeymoon had better be a staycation and those air stewards ...
IBIS Interactive Unit A constituent contacted me recently about the electronic bus timetable information (IBIS Interactive Unit) in Nethergate opposite Park Place and audio facility on Perth Road near Grosvenor Road as follows: "I happened to try the "audio" facility at the eastbound (north side of Perth Road) stop at the Harris site the other day. It isn't working properly. It belts out a response at loud volume, but that's maybe the problem: there must be "feedback" within the system, or some sound imbalance, because it's quite impossible to understand what's being said: the words are drowned out by the ...
We should be aiming for excellence in ALL our schools, ensuring that ALL pupils receive an education that will enable them to reach their full potential, and at the same time providing them with the skills they will need to be fully equipped for the future. I believe, as a principle, that there is no difficulty in pupils of all abilities achieving their potential under the current system as long as the proper processes are in place to keep standards high. The recent Review of Qualifications gave us a clear indication of the way forward if we are to raise ...
Teenagers heard first-hand what life is like in the fire service when a crew of firefighters visited a Cambridge college as part of a careers event. Year 11 pupils at Coleridge Community College listened to how firefighters deal with not just 999 emergencies, but also carry out varied work in the community to help prevent fires. A crew of firefighters from Cambridge White Watch visited the college at the end of last month (September). Pupils were told about firefighters' important community safety work, levels of fitness needed and the opportunity to experience business management as part of a career in ...
