The evolving Miliband-Mail saga is by turns fascinating, troubling and encouraging. The saga is fascinating because it suggests that Miliband is properly getting under the skin of the political right. His Conference speech presented a very diluted form of social democracy. It represented a tentative departure from the neoliberal consensus that has prevailed for thirty years. Yet this has provoked a hysterical reaction. The speech was immediately denounced as socialism, or worse. Yet, that interpretation could only be sustained by distracting from what Miliband was actually saying. After all, earlier this year the IMF - that bastion of leftism – ...
Searching online, I found the London Gazette for 13 March 1874. It contain this notice connected with the death of my hero J.W. Logan's father. John Logan senior had begun life as a railway navvy and become a contractor. The fact that he died at Lansdown Crescent, Bath, confirms that he had done for himself. But what interests me most is that it gives an address where J.W. Logan lived before he moved to East Langton Grange. It is 50 Norfolk Street, Sheffield. Norfolk Street is in the city centre and is home to Sheffield's Unitarian chapel. But Google Street ...
Christmas is coming and I want to see an intiative to assist Southport retailers. I think that the council ought to off the Park and Ride 'free after three' in the run up to December 25th. We all acknowledge that these are difficult times in retail and this is one small way that we could help.
A study by Oxford University and Harvard Medical School looked at the weight of rough sleepers in Boston: Researchers examined the body mass index (BMI) data of 5,632 homeless men and women in Boston, and found that nearly one-third of them were obese. They used the medical electronic records at 80 hospital and shelter sites [...]
[IMG: Featured on Liberal Democrat Voice] It was with enormous sadness that I learned earlier this week that Joan Coleman had died. She had been in a nursing home for some while. Joan, a Scot, was a stalwart of Southport Liberals and later Lib Dems. In her own right she was a formidable politician but her contribution extended far beyond party politics; she was a charity worker, a senior magistrate, real ale advocate and a family women. In 1965 she was in the small market town (was it at Hawick ?) in the Scottish borders when the declaration of the ...
I hope Southport businesses will take up the new Traineeships programme that the Government has announced. To date local firms -including many small businesses -have taken on apprentices in the town. Southport school leavers have taken up apprenticeships in record number. An extra £20m is being made available to the government's new Traineeships programme to support more young people into Apprenticeships Traineeships, which began in August, provide 16 to 23-year-olds with the skills, experience and confidence to compete in the labour market - helping them secure Apprenticeships or other jobs. Nationally more than 500 providers have pledged to take on ...
Chris Huhne is already giving good value to his old employer, the Guardian. His column in tomorrow's paper is trailed in an article on the front page: As a cabinet minister and member of the national security council (NSC), Huhne said he would have expected to be told about these operations, particularly as they were relevant to proposed legislation. "The cabinet was told nothing about GCHQ's Tempora or its US counterpart, the NSA's Prism, nor about their extraordinary capability to hoover up and store personal emails, voice contact, social networking activity and even internet searches. "I was also on the ...
This video is a video of a mother and baby being taken away somewhere in Somerset. No-one involved seems to understand what the law is. The police officers refer to a "police protection order". What they are actually doing is using Section 46 of the Children Act where the police have powers to take children into police protection. For the purposes of this Act, a child with respect to whom a
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 347th 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 (29 September - 5 October, 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. ...
Those of us who lived through the contentious summers of the late 90s in the interface areas of North Belfast would never in our earthly lives want to see the hell ignited by parade "protests" rekindled on our streets. But ... Continue reading →
As I posted the other day, I'm doing the Seven Lakes Challenge, in aid of The Survivor's Trust. I passed 288 lengths today, so I got my second certificate :) [IMG: achievement unlocked: lake Dojran] Total Lengths Done: 294 Needed for Next Lake: 544 Total raised so far: £138.80 I would be very grateful if you could sponsor me; the Just Giving page is here. I know it looks like I've done a lot this week, having got to the second lake and all, but the distances really start mounting up from here, and I'll have to swim similar distances ...
Collecting Buoys (View form the Turner Contemporary ) 05/10/13 Turner and Constable : Sketching from Nature (Works from the Tate Collection) 5 October 2013 ~ 5 January 2014 Over 75 landscape paintings from a selection of artists working in the 18th century. These pictures were a new direction in painting at that time, a change from studio based art to a reactive style working directly with oils in the landscape. They also give a remarkable historical record of urban change taking place in the Georgian landscape, particularly around London, as the industrial revolution and the enclosure of land pulled the ...
Many thanks to the 13,800 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here's our 7 most-read posts... I need the Liberal Democrats to stand up for me when Conservative ministers denigrate me (62 comments) by Matt On the Lib Dem conference polling bump (or lack thereof) and what it means for the party (68 comments) by Stephen Tall Of course, the Daily Mail has form when it comes to smearing party leaders' families (21 comments) by Stephen Tall Might some of the welfare changes be a little more helpful to people than Osborne made out? (69 comments) by ...
It is now 99 years and about three weeks since my great-grandfather was killed, leading his regiment into action at the Battle of the Aisne in 1914. I'm not sure why I think of him particularly on these occasions, but I do. This is what I ask myself. If he rose from the dead, from the village churchyard where he now lies, and popped back to London - would he be able to understand our newspapers? If we found ourselves in London in September 1914, we would undoubtedly be able to understand his newspapers, but what about the other way ...
More people expect the Liberal Democrats in Government post 2015 than the Conservatives. Adding together those that expect to see a Labour majority and those that expect to see a Labour / Lib Dem coaltion to get the figure for Labour, vice versa for the Conservatives and both coalition numbers to get the Lib Dem figure, we see a sharp drop in people expecting Labour in government and an incremental increase in people expecting either a Conservative majority or a Conservative / Lib Dem coalition. The full figures are: Lab maj: 23% (-10) Lab / Lib: 17% (-2) Con / ...
[IMG: House of Lords] Yes, our Noble Lords are back after their summer break, and with the excitement of an election contest to come. Add to that the introduction of three new Liberal Democrat peers, and there's quite a lot to cover this week. Tuesday sees the introduction of Olly Grender to the Lords, or as I ought to refer to her, Baroness Grender. As there has never been a Grender in the Lords previously, she isn't obliged to be 'of' anywhere in her official title. We will be covering her maiden speech as, and when, she makes it. Meanwhile, ...
Michael wonders if he will see spaghetti trees - as broadcast on the BBC - on his forthcoming trip to the Italian Republic.
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... Has Adam Afriyie jumped the shark? Number 10 hopes so. » Spectator Blogs Delicious understatement from @IsabelHardman: " Europe has a funny effect on Consvtv behaviour at the best of times" http://bit.ly/1bAgmIa A reply to Matt on welfare by Lib Dem ministers Norman Lamb and Steve Webb: "We believe in standing up for the vulnerable" Two LibDem ministers respond @libdemvoice to a heart-rending article by Matt on his experiences of being on welfare http://bit.ly/1f9KPgW Educating Yorkshire 5: How deep is your love? – Tom Bennett – Blog – Tom Bennett – TES ...
We have revived this consultation responses are by 14th November Southdown Community Infant School and Southdown Junior School propose forming a federation. As most of our pupils live in the Odd Down, Oldfield, Southdown, Twerton and Westmoreland wards of Bath, we attach a copy of our consultation document as part of our effort to reach our wider community. If any of you wish to promote the
The letter is much more interesting than its uninspiring title. A very personal tribute to Andrew Stunell, standing down as MP for Hazel Grove in 2015 and praise for Lisa Smart, who was this week selected to fight the seat. The underlying theme is that Liberal Democrats are anchoring Britain in the liberal centre ground while the other parties lurch to left and right. The personal stuff about Andrew and Lisa made me think that it would be good if, over the next few months, he highlighted the successes of some of our local councillors as well as parliamentary candidate ...
She didn't make it to Market Harborough Leisure Centre, but if you see Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings on the rest of their UK tour, they will have Maria Muldaur as their "very special guest". Muldaur is best known in Britain for this song, which reached number six in the UK singles chart in 1974. It was written by Dave Nichtern. But there has been much more to her career than "Midnight at the Oasis". As her website says: In the 39 years since "Midnight at the Oasis," Maria has toured extensively worldwide and has recorded 40 solo albums covering all ...
Just after I was first elected as MP for Eastbourne, some three years ago (crikey - doesn't time fly by) I pledged to do everything I could to ensure Eastbourne would buck the economic trend; and it's worked. We have had a tremendous success in keeping unemployment down locally – it's actually 30% lower than at the General Election! A key part of that success was to start an apprentice recruitment campaign early on - I was the first new MP to do so after the general election. Under the banner '100 Apprentices in 100 Days', I set about contacting ...
Sun 6th
10:55
Watch and laugh: Clarke and Dawe - Nick goes really well here but the prize has already gone
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe: Also on YouTube.
The news Helen Duffett posted this week — Tom McNally to stand down as Leader of the Lib Dem Lords — was rather drowned out by the Tory conference and the row over the Daily Mail's smearing of Ralph Miliband. But as the BBC's parliamentary correspondent Mark D'Arcy (no, not the fictional Mr Bridget Jones: different guy) points out here, it's a role that matters lot these days, especially with the House of Lords here to stay for the forseeable... The decision of the avuncular Lib Dem Lord to stand down as deputy leader of the House and leader of ...
Sun 6th
10:25
Its our very existence that makes it possible for Labour and the Tories to pursue core voter strateg...
My latest in the New Statesman argues that because we exist, the main goal for both Labour and the Tories remains just to beat the other. It also contains one of my favourite jokes. I have also taken to responding to a few of the commentators. That doesn't go down well. Anyway, enjoy... So according to George Eaton (who is my editor, so I'll be careful what I say here), Labour leads polling on living standards, the Tories lead on the economy, and "the party that triumphs in 2015 will be that which seeks to address its weaknesses, rather than ...
Just how sensitive are Labour about their tenure in government in charge of the health service? Well, sensitive enough to sue a Cabinet Minster its seems over disputed allegations about Andy Burnham's time as health secretary. According to the Sunday Times Mr. Burnham, who is now the shadow health secretary, is preparing libel proceedings against one of his successors in that post, Jeremy Hunt over remarks made on Twitter. They say that Labour party lawyers yesterday wrote to Hunt demanding that he remove the comments from the social networking site or face further action: Burnham has been under intense pressure ...
[IMG: Milk Bottle Politics 200] I cannot help but be amused by the coverage of the affair of Ed Miliband's dad in the Sunday Telegraph. First up is an article declaring the "BBC accused of becoming Ed Miliband's mouthpiece." It seems that Andrew Bridgen, Tory MP for North West Leicestershire - a champion of a living wage for MPs - has reported Auntie to its governors for allowing Miliband to "milk" coverage for Labour's advantage. It's a story on fairly thin ground, but I have long imagined that there is an old adage among right wing journalists. "If in doubt ...
At Odd Down playing fields on Saturday there was a swap event putting cyclists in the bus drivers seat and bus drivers on bicycles. Cyclists can appreciate that drivers have a big blind spot on their left, don't undertake a bus on the left was the message. Thank you to First for organising the event, and for the one of the cyclists Aileen from the cycle forum for getting it off the ground.
Sun 6th
08:30
A reply to Matt on welfare by Lib Dem ministers Norman Lamb and Steve Webb: "We believe in standing ...
This week, Lib Dem Voice published a deeply personal account by one of our readers, Matt: I need the Liberal Democrats to stand up for me when Conservative ministers denigrate me. It was read by many in the party, including two Lib Dem ministers in the Coalition — Norman Lamb MP (Department of Health) and Steve Webb MP (Department for Work and Pensions) — who have co-authored the following response. [IMG: lamb and webb] When we read the article posted on Lib Dem Voice on Wednesday by Matt, setting out very personally the distressing and painful experiences he has faced ...
The Friends of Riverside Nature Park have now published a new membership leaflet that you can download here. The Friends are doing great work at the Nature Park and you can join for only £5 (individual membership) and £10 for family membership. Simply complete the tear-off section on the back of the leaflet and send it back with your membership fee to the address listed.
The Western Mail reports the comments of British Medical Association Welsh Secretary, Dr Richard Lewis who has warned that staff in the Welsh health service are over-capacity and that vacancies need to be filled if it is to cope with winter pressures: Dr Lewis said: "We had high levels of demand last winter which was not even on the back of a significant inlfuenza epidemic, which had been predicted. While the report does suggest that lessons have been learned, the NHS is still lacking in capacity and with significant winter pressures that may occur alongside an influenza epidemic, the jury's ...
The long-awaited green belt review can be found here.
