New outdoor gym equipment has arrived at Carr Lane Rec. Some little while ago the old play equipment had to be removed as it had become dangerous. When I went to look at the four pieces of apparatus this evening I was delighted to see a family from Ranleigh Drive using it. The Mum was most impressed and her daughter energetically tried out a particularly demanding exercise routine. We had a chat with the family who had moved into Ranleigh Dr seven years ago. They wanted to know if they lived ion Birkdale and we were able to reassure them. ...
I posted part 1 yesterday and will post part 3 tomorrow. A reader suggests tentatively: Might that not be too much of a good thing? Liberal England replies: Be off with you.
Nick Clegg had an article in the Daily Telegraph responding to the publication of Alan Milburn's report on social mobility. It was not a bad article, but the passage that all the other news outlets picked up and gave prominence (and which was presumably spun to them) was the one where Nick claimed the report makes: debatable assertions, about the appropriate balance of fiscal consolidation between different age groups, for example - punishing pensioners isn't going to help a single child achieve more in life.Alliteration is often a bad sign in politicians, and "punishing pensioners" is not an exception to ...
My colleague Richard Hands has good reason to be smiling. Alongside the volunteers in Friends of Bedford Park he has seen the once neglected park transformed. The latest improvement is a new pavement leading to the children's play area which will improve access for Mums and Dads with push chairs and people with disabilities Bedford Park was, as all Sandgrounders know, the original home of the now prestigious Royal Birkdale Golf Club
I was delighted to see the improvements carried out by Birkdale Store which is on the Guildford Rd / Grantham Rd junction. I met the proprietor who has carried out some excellent work on his premises. I was particularly pleased o learn from him that a Post Office Local will open in the store at the end of November
LD seat. Resignation.
LD seat. Resignation. Prospective Candidate: Annie Rawlinson Contact: Paul Trollope paul.trollope@libdems.org.uk or 01539 723403
Con seat. Resignation.
Lab seat. Death
Lab seat. Death.
Con seat. Resignation.
Ind seat. Resignation. Prospective Candidate: Liz AllsobrookContact for helpers: James MacCleary, Campaigns Officer, 07908 251426 james.maccleary@libdems.org.uk
Cicero's Songs makes a welcome return, but is not optimistic about Britiain's propsects: "The visceral anti-politics mood is throwing up even more damaging problems: UKIP in the party political sphere, but rent-a-mob responses to any issue of the day from fracking, to planning, to many other controversies. Intelligent debate gets left behind in a morass of simplistic cat-calling. As the world grows more complicated, British Society demands ever more simple solutions." The campaign to elect a new MSP for Dunfermline is hotting up, says Caron Lindsay on Liberal Democrat Voice. Jennie Rigg explains why it would be a bad idea ...
Thu 17th
21:37
Jo Swinson: "About to get on tube. Seat offers welcome....but I was happier standing yesterday"
The febrile world of Twitter has been a little obsessed with the fact that Liberal Democrat minister Jo Swinson, who is 7 months' pregnant, was standing throughout Prime Minister's Questions yesterday, with concerned political correspondents expressing outrage that nobody had offered her a seat. Then the Daily Mail got in on the act. Their attitude to women generally can be summed up as patriarchal nonsense. That's not the word, I confess, I used earlier in a private LDV team discussion, but this is a family site. I've written before about that awful phrase they tend to use about any pregnant ...
No time to blog today so here is a taster of the new album from Psycho Kiss, whose lead singer works as my caseworker as well as being a Coedffranc Community Councillor.
A planning application's come in for the church hall at Garston Park Church to be demolished and for a small number of houses to be built there. You can see the details and comment on plans at this link. The comment deadline's in early November
Calling all local artists! Art by Yate is a colourful and imaginative art project created by local people, children, and artists - in fact anybody can have a go. Collectively, the canvases can be seen as an exploration of modern culture and life in Yate, Chipping Sodbury and the surrounding areas. The vision is to create an exhibition of 8×8 inch canvases each created by a local artist, child, mother, father, or local resident. Anyone can take part. The canvases will be sold in support of the Chipping Sodbury Lions Club. To take part or find out more, email artbyyate@gmail.com ...
[IMG: Senator Clinton @ Hampton, NH] From Michael Hirsh: In the innermost sanctum of Clintonland, it is difficult to imagine that Hillary and Bill, two of the savviest politicians in the country, are not pinching themselves to make sure that it's all real. Perhaps they're dancing a jig together, or knocking back shots and howling at the moon out of sheer, giddy joy at their good luck. (OK, Hillary's not howling, but Bill might be.) Or maybe they are just quietly kvelling over the latest turn of events. Because the trend lines are unmistakable, and they're looking better all the ...
Not a lot of interest from last week's results - particularly as the Lib Dems only stood in three of the eight contests - with all the elections being held by the incumbents. The Lib Dems did poorly polling just 44 votes in Manchester and falling back slightly in Tweedale West in Michael Moore's constituency. The remaining contest saw the Lib Dems actually increase their first preference share in Govan Glasgow to 1.5%, where the most interesting electoral stat of the night were the 23 transfers the 'No to the bedroom tax candidate' received from the eliminated Tory! This week's ...
With Louise Mensch an increasingly distant memory in Westminster, attention has now turned to the next piece of Parliamentary meat Labour's Gloria De Piero. De Piero, as you've probably read elsewhere, has risen from humble beginnings in Bradford to being member of Labour's shadow cabinet, via GMTV. You've also probably read that aged 15 De [...]
It is a tradition for LDV to bring its readers copies of our new MPs' and Peers' first words in Parliament, so that we can read what is being said and respond. You can find all of the speeches in this category with this link. Today, Baroness Manzoor made her maiden speech in the House of Lords during a debate on drugs policy. Her words are reproduced below. My Lords, it is a real honour and a privilege to take my place on these distinguished red Benches. I have been overwhelmed by the sincerity of the welcome and the warmth ...
[IMG: Carmichael Mark Darcy blog] There are occasions when political journalists get things so wrong that they make themselves look a bit silly. The BBC's Mark D'Arcy has made me laugh with his latest blog in which he suggests that new Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Carmichael might challenge Nick Clegg for the party leadership if we have a poor showing in the European elections next year, but this would happen some 4 months after the vote. This is how the theory goes: Faced with the prospect of devastation at the next general election, the scenario runs, the Lib ...
Given my slightly unhealthy minion obsession, I'm delighted to discover that I share my name with one of the Gru's henchmen. Here's his page on the Despicable Me Wiki and here he is in action: Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Cinema, Despicable Me, Films, Gru, Minions
Two weeks is a long time in politics. In a few days I've gone from high-speed rail, environmental issues, and cycling to anti-social behaviour, drug policy and tackling violent crimes. It was a fantastic opportunity to work in the Department of Transport, and I know Susan Kramer will make an excellent Minister. We have achieved a lot in a short period of time, and I know Susan will continue to develop positive, progressive and sustainable transport policies. I am very pleased to have been appointed as Minister for Crime Prevention, and continuing the good work which Jeremy Browne has done ...
[IMG: Oliver Twist] Presenting a report laid before parliament today, the coalition's social mobility tsar Alan Milburn said "child poverty is a problem for working families rather than the workless or the work-shy." Entrenched poverty remains a priority for action but transient poverty, growing insecurity and stalling mobility are far more widespread than politicians, employers and educators have so far recognised. The nature of poverty has changed. Today child poverty is overwhelmingly a problem facing working families, not the workless or the work-shy. Two-thirds of Britain's poor children are now in households where an adult works. The problem is that ...
H/T to Mike Smithson of Political betting (fairly obviously)(click to enlarge)
Party 1 xx (x%; +xx) Party 2 yy (y%; -y) Party 1 Gain from Party 2 Majority zz Turnout not known Percentage change is since previous local election
Via qunb: [IMG: How to improve a graph]
OMG WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!!111!! [IMG: Fukushima-fs8] (Subsequently deleted but still available at Fadah Jassem's tweet) Let's take a look at the article and see if we can determine if this is a trustworthy source... [IMG: Sleuth-fs8] Hmmm... I see "9/11 Truth", "Bilderberg", "Chemtrails" right next to the image. There's a conspiracy corner in the top right. We haven't even got below the fold yet. Now, that's not to say that sites like these don't occasionally break news - but I'm not sure I'd rely on it for accuracy. The story is, of course, a hoax. Snopes has an ...
[IMG: Choices of a businessman] My post discussing possible housing association futures has just appeared on the HotHouse website. It is a cut down version of Housing associations and the path to 2033, the text to accompany my HotHouse talk, posted here a few days ago. [IMG: Share]
Blogging has become more and more intermittent of late. There are two reasons, one weak and one perhaps less so. The weak reason is that I have been travelling even more than usual and have simply got out of the habit. The other reason is that this blog has its origin in my political activism, and although I am more motivated than ever to try to put forward a platform for economic, social and political change, the fact is that I am much less sure that conventional politics in the UK can deliver necessary reform. The Liberal Democrats have been ...
Much excitement among Tories today at the arrival of a new Ipsos-MORI poll showing them drawing level with Labour – 36% apiece – among those who say they're certain to vote. The explanation's not too hard to hazard a guess at: the return of economic growth is gradually feeding through into a feel-good factor. (For more on this, see this excellent post by YouGov's Joe Twyman: '"It's the long term trends, stupid": the Conservatives, Labour and the economy'.) However, it was some of the underlying IPSOS-Mori data concerning perceptions of the leaders which caught my eye... (All the graphs below ...
There are two meetings at Blyth Town Council next week Events Committee, Tuesday 22nd October, 6:30 pm, at Arms Evertyne House Policy Working Group , Thursday 24th October, 6:30 pm at Arms Evertyne House The PWG is "normally a closed meeting"
Thu 17th
13:32Kennedy, Carmichael and Alexander visit Dunfermline as Susan Leslie's campaign hots up
[IMG: Dunfermline campaign Susan plus deliverers] Susan Leslie's spirited campaign to be the next Liberal Democrat MSP for Dunfermline continues to gather pace. So far, almost all of the party's Scottish MPs and MSPs have been to visit. Charles Kennedy did a walkabout on Dunfermline High Street and Danny Alexander is expected in the constituency this evening. Leaflets have been flying out of the office. Liberal Youth Scotland held an action day last weekend and Liberal Youth across the country have been making phone calls. Campaigning was led by Jo Swinson last Saturday and new Secretary of State for Scotland ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... The Lib Dem mud is sticking to the Tories | The Times I like @TimMontgomerie but the idea mud has only been flung in one direction in Coalition is (he must know) nonsense http://thetim.es/19SxtSc Factcheck: Are disposable incomes rising as the Prime Minister claims? | Full Fact Very interesting graph showing av household disposable income: top 10% worse off than bottom 10% http://bit.ly/17umI4G Error: 404 – Page Not Found – error 404 Labour's 'Plebs for Police' campaign seems not to work any more * innocent face * Error: 404 – Page Not ...
[IMG: VIDEO: Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference 2013 Glasgow thumbnail] Today's social mobility report highlights that two out of three children in poverty are living in households where at least one adult is in work. It's a stark illustration of how much the poverty problem is about people in work and not only about people not in work. Yet people not in work have been the focus of far too much welfare reform under both this government and the last one. (Or more accurately, people not in work and below retirement age - because of course, courtesy of policies such as ...
I don't mean Monopoly, of course, a game designed originally by land tax campaigners to raise the issue - but the threat that comes to our economy and well-being from allowing companies to build up a stranglehold on their market. Why don't they get it? Environment minister Owen Paterson is an intelligent enough fellow, yet he ranted on this week about opponents to GM crops as "wicked" and as a "dark shadow". For a moment it appeared that he didn't understand what the objection is. So in case he is reading this (hello, Owen!), here is a guide to what ...
[IMG: Energy-bills-006] "There is no such thing as a free lunch" was one of the first things I learnt in economics. But it seems that Ed Miliband thinks there is. He seems to believe that you can have freeze energy prices for 20 months with no adverse impacts. It may have seemed a politically smart thing to do leading into the traditional period of energy price increases. But it is likely to have really harmful consequences. In short, it's a con. Many commentators have already pointed out that energy companies will be free to increase prices before or after the ...
[IMG: Edited Register Flyer] Residents in Oadby and Wigston are receiving their Annual Voter Registration Canvass Form through the post. Our local electoral registration department are offering no fewer than 4 ways to register: by phone, text, internet and post. If you want to opt out of the Edited Register and there is no pre-printed tick in Edited Register (For Sale) column on the form, you can only use the internet and post to indicate this when you register to vote. The "Edited Register" is available for sale and can be purchased by anyone. This is different from the "Full ...
There are some big organised bonfire night events in Merseyside this year. Here's a link to a list of some of them.
For the last 16 days only the leader of the Republican Party (the majority party) or his designate has had the ability to move an amended join resolution of the House and Senate. Why? Because on 1st October the Republican led house moved to change centuries of House standing orders. So now you know that only person had the power to reopen the US Government and he wasn't elected to rule over the USA, by all the people, but merely by the 750,000 people or so of the Virginia's 7th Congressional District. Of whom 222,983 gave him their vote. His ...
When Gateshead Council proposed the demolition of Sun Hill Aged Persons Home in Sunniside in 2011 without replacing it, our campaign to ensure that a new facility was built hit the ground running. After a large number of meetings with officers, we got what we wanted: Sun Hill would be replaced, thanks to a housing grant from the Coalition Government. Work started on the new building late last
Our friends in the Southwark Liberal Democrats took the latest steps in their "Save Our Pubs" campaign, with the press release and council motion below. These are also available to download from the ALDC File Library in MS Word format, here. ALDC members can also read our very own Cllr James Baker's Build Up Blog [...]
Thu 17th
10:28Opinion: Back Liberal Youth Scotland's campaign to end gay conversion therapies in the UK
This year Liberal Youth Scotland decided to choose an issue which is relatively unknown or underestimated in British public life for one of its campaigns. Gay cure therapies (or to give them their proper name reparative therapies) are when a psychiatrist attempts to alter a patients sexuality. This can be incredibly damaging to the "patient" as many are either pressured by family members into accepting "treatment" or see it as a last resort. When it becomes obvious that no "cure" is possible many become depressed and even suicidal. Substance abuse, self harming, depression and homelessness are all far more prevalent ...
posted The Blood is The Life 16-10-2013 http://t.co/WQRwy3fVYJ on #dreamwidth (tags: (from twitter) dreamwidth ) Bradford science festival wish I'd heard about this before it actually started. And I'm reasonably well embedded in Bradford news stuff. I wonder who else who would have been interested hasn't heard about it? (tags: ) Gothic film festival over the Halloween weekend showing some very cool films too (tags: ) http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164803667587435219/ Sometimes I am amused by the juxtaposition of weather app & wallpaper on my phone http://t.co/nK1b3dPWXG via @pinterest (tags: (from twitter) ) Hungrier than ever: Britain's use of food banks triples - ...
Look I love Ian Hislop as much as the next man but I'm finding his petulant stance on press regulation tiresome. Firstly there was his an unconvincing interview on Channel 4 news last week. Not only did he avoid engaging with the points made by a victim of press intrusion, he also neglected to produce [...]
There's another new drug in town, and the System is being cranked up to counter its insidious spread. This drug is increasingly popular among the young, who consider it exotic and often try it when abroad. It's called "The Devil in Disguise" in government propaganda, because of its supposedly devastating health effects - just one session of this drug is equivalent to smoking 100-200 cigarettes, so say the "experts", and it can even harm nearby children. What is it? Well, it's the shisha water pipe ("hookah"), with tobacco. There is growing anti-shisha propaganda around, which I don't have a problem ...
Starting this Friday, acclaimed artist and Duncan of Jordanstone graduate Lara Scouller will be running a four week course on Museum Drawing. The D'arcy Thompson Zoology Museum is the perfect setting for someone who is interested in improving their observational drawing technique. In this course participants will work from a variety of zoology specimens and other objects. The course runs 12 noon-3pm over four Fridays starting on 18 October. It costs £45 which includes tuition and some materials. You can find out more information about this and other classes by Lara on the website www.cargocollective.com/purepastels. Spaces are limited so please ...
For many people the Welsh Education Minister's Damascene conversion on cutting the link between deprivation and attainment has come too late. The Welsh Labour Government has left generations of Welsh students behind due to their complete failure to improve our education system. Wales continues to lag behind England, Scotland and Northern Ireland in reading, maths and science. Sadly I don't see us catching up any time soon with Welsh Labour in charge. It is bewildering that it has taken until now for an Education Minister to declare that cutting the link between deprivation and attainment will become this Labour Government's ...
Here's a quick reminder about the agenda for tonights Parish Council meeting - I've included a copy of the agenda below for your information. As always all members of the public and press are invited to attend, particularly for the Open Forum which is your opportunity to raise any issues you'd like the Parish Council to be aware of. If you've got any comments on this agenda or anything you'd like me to raise let me know. Open Forum 1. To receive apologies for absence and any declaration of interest 2. Approval of minutes. To approve minutes of Parish Council ...
Because a tech news site has decided to whip up a moral panic over porn, all self-published ebooks have been removed from the Kobo site, all ebooks whatsoever have been removed from W.H. Smith's site... Many thousands of "innocent" people — even if you consider people creating or consuming pornography to be doing something wrong, [...]
