The Hull Daily Mail reports: A TWITTER row has broken out after a Hull City councillor tweeted he would "punch a Lib Dem in the face" if he reached 500 followers. Labour councillor Chris Sumpton claims the tweet was only meant as a joke but his Liberal Democrat colleagues are furious and are considering taking the matter further. The issue was raised at yesterday's full council meeting when an angry Councillor Eliza Mann asked council leader Stephen Brady to condemn the tweet. But the leader said he couldn't comment because he wasn't in possession of the full facts and wasn't ...
In the unlikely event that my reader doesn't know it butt today is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F Kennedy. So here's how David Frost, Millicent Martin and TW3 did it at the time:
Unfortunately some very bad news from the Parish Council meeting last night; Bar Hill Skate Park is to be closed and will be demolished within the next few weeks. Exterior Damage The primary reason for this has to be the current state of the park (see some recent photos here). Each of the ramps has suffered significant damage to the surface that has made it uneconomic to repair. People have forced their way inside the ramps and structures on the park and the Fire Service has raised safely concerns in relation to litter, including aerosols, within these confined spaces. The ...
Liberal Democrat Party President Tim Farron writes for the Huffington Post: [IMG: European flags] Whilst the Tories squabble over EU membership and Labour shy away from the subject completely, Lib Dems are united in saying that across Europe we are "better together". We support an in/out referendum when the time is right and we campaign passionately for the UK to remain a member of the EU. But why are we the unambiguous "party of in"? Because to undermine EU membership, would be to threaten jobs across the UK and to risk our security in an uncertain world. Over the next ...
In my first post, I did say that I wasn't here. Which is still true of course, but last Thursday (14th November) I did manage to make a fleeting visit to the university to listen to a guest lecture by Peter Saville, a celebrated occupational psychologist and entrepreneur. At work, I've often found myself involved in the recruitment process and I'd like to think that I'm a better judge than most when it comes to identifying the right person for particular roles. After sitting through Peter's talk, I'm probably going to be a little more cautious in future. For example, ...
I have a First Person column in today's Leicester Mercury. That's enough about me for one lifetime... Selfie has been named word of the year by the editors at Oxford Dictionaries, who say its use increased 17,000 per cent over the past 12 months. In winning the title it saw off "twerk", "bitcoin" and "bedroom tax". If you are down with the kids like me, you will know a selfie is "a photograph one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website". Everyone is taking them and, as usual ...
Respect to JFK and Doctor Who, but today's most significant anniversary for me is the centenary of Benjamin Britten's birth. I must have listened more to his music than that of any other classical composer and, alongside Bach and Schubert, he forms one of my trio of favourites. Today's Guardian editorial reminds us of the central place Britten occupied in British culture - a place hard to imagine today: Imagine an English classical music composer who is so famous in his own lifetime that his name is known throughout the country, who is the first British composer to end his ...
The penultimate...
Guardian columnist Seamus Milne seems to think that some kind of academic spring is going on in economics departments: From any rational point of view, orthodox economics is in serious trouble. Its champions not only failed to foresee the greatest crash for 80 years, but insisted such crises were a thing of the past. More [...]
The work to put the new lane markings in place on the A34 northbound (from Cheadle Royal towards the M60) has been completed. It's bound to take a few days for people to get the hang on the new lanes, but it should reduce the northbound queues by using all three lanes more effectively. Until now, there's been far more traffic in the inside lane (for Gatley, South Park Road Estate, M60 Westbound and M60 Eastbound) than the other two (both for Manchester, though people often cut across to the motorway). The new setup should reduce the queues and the ...
Following recent consultations with residents on the South Park Road Estate, the decision was taken to go with the majority view and improve the slip road coming off the motorway slip and A34. To complete the work, the contractors need to stop inbound traffic coming onto the estate, as they'll need to use that lane for their works. This will be an inconvenience for residents, and will also mean that the people who usually use the estate to get illegally onto the A34 northbound won't be able to do so for a few weeks. It may also mean more people ...
With many thanks to my West End Christmas Fortnight colleagues Ann and Lynne, that's us all set up for tomorrow's West End Christmas Fayre at Dundee West Church - see below! The fayre starts at 10am and all residents welcome! I was interviewed on both Radio Tay and Wave 102 about Christmas Fortnight - and you can hear the Radio Tay News interview by clicking 'play' below:
There was a great by-election result for Liberal Democrats yesterday in my home patch of Kirklees (named after one of the places where Robin Hood's arrow allegedly landed and he is buried, though the site is actually over the border in Calderdale) Christine Mary Iredale, Liberal Democrat - 1591 Stephan Georg Jungnitz, Labour Party - 901 Gregory Lloyd Broome, UK Independence Party (Ukip) - 450 Daniel Edward Greenwood, Green Party - 210 Clinton Noel Simpson, Conservative - 189Christine lost the seat to Labour last year and admittedly we had an advantage this time round in that that Labour man who ...
Having seen that it was so-called National HIV Testing week via Facebook, I thought I would investigate this a little more and found that it is in fact European HIV testing week. Of course, using the European dimension may not attract everyone's attention and may drive others away. But as we live in the UK which is...
After an absence of a decade from the Parliamentary fray, I have decided to throw my hat into the ring for the General Election in 2015. I am now back on the Parliamentary Candidates' Panel - the list of the great and the good who have the enviable job of being able to stand as Lib Dem candidates at the general election and turn themselves into bomb proof shelters whilst voters and opponents
Now, as a number of you might have noticed, I'm a man. I can't help it - I was born this way. And so, some of you might argue that I shouldn't really have a view on this, or that it isn't my place to start 'getting involved'. I also consider myself a feminist - which only works to confuse things further. But, a lot of the stuff I've read about Lily Allen's latest single, 'Hard out here' is such rubbish, that I feel the need to take it down a peg or two. Yes, it might not be my ...
Fri 22nd
15:35
Julian Huppert MP writes... EU budget boost secures UK's position as world leader in science
[IMG: Europe Day - European Union - Some rights reserved by Niccolò Caranti] I heard some good news this week. It may not have grabbed the headlines, but the UK economy was given a colossal shot in the arm thanks to the European Union. Lib Dem MEPs on Tuesday voted for an EU budget, which was overall lower – a 6.5 per cent cut – but crucially included a 30 per cent increase in funding for research and innovation. This is important funding, and a clear sign of what can be achieved to help our economic recovery when we are ...
On Facebook this morning, I came across a campaign for a National HIV Testing Week. This seems like a very sensible move to me. After all with the NHS reckoning that 1 in 4 people living with HIV in the UK do not know that they are, the only way they will find out is...
The Council is currently consulting on proposals to develop a more flexible approach to supporting the users with the aim of significantly reducing £1.37 million annual budget. A substantial investment in the vehicle fleet is also needed over the next twelve months if the current standards are to be maintained. Councillor Keith Holloway, Executive Member for Adult Care Services, said: "The Council is faced with an unprecedented savings requirement of around £36m by 2017 and therefore has some very difficult decisions to make. "The delivery of social care services is changing. We are enabling people to plan, arrange and pay ...
In recognition of its pioneering work transforming food culture Stockport has been selected to become a part of the UK-wide Sustainable Food Cities Network. Stockport is one of only six places across the country to be selected for the project and will receive a share of the one million pounds funding. The award has been made to a partnership between Stockport Council and The Kindling Trust, a Greater Manchester based, not-for-profit social enterprise that specialises in developing pioneering alternatives in the local food system. The funding will enable the Council to realise its vision of becoming one of the UK's ...
Rising energy prices are an increasing concern to residents; on top of that energy companies have announced that prices are to increase again. Many Stockport residents would get a better deal on their energy by switching providers. Better Energy Deals is being organised by the ten councils within Greater Manchester to allow residents to take control of their energy prices. The scheme began on 13 November, and will run until Christmas, to allow residents to compare energy prices and switch to a more competitive rate ahead of the inevitable price hikes from the big six. Residents can also call the ...
Stockport Council is thanking green-minded residents for helping the borough be the best for recycling in the North West. Stockport residents are once again leading the way, recycling more than any other metropolitan authority and 6th out of the 354 councils nationally. Councillor Stuart Bodsworth, Stockport Council's Executive Member for Communities and Sustainability, said: "These figures are a fantastic testament to all of the residents who make the effort to recycle correctly. Being the best in the North West is a really good achievement and something to be hugely proud of. "However, what this actually means is that we are ...
BBC Cornwall are running a story about Cornwall's libraries being under threat. I want to try to give some reassurance that the council is doing all it can to protect the service. Regular readers will know that I campaigned hard to keep my local library open when it was threatened with closure by the Conservatives a few years ago. The very significant budget pressures being faced by the council mean that every service we provide is being reviewed. As with every thing else, libraries are having to make reductions due to the cut in government grant. We are hoping to ...
The Western Mail report on the latest twist in the pressure for reform of the Barnett formula and this time it is one that Westminster politicians may not be able to ignore so easily. It appears that English local government have woken up to the fact that the distribution of public money by the Treasury is not carried out on the basis of need, though their proposed outcome may not be what is envisaged here in Wales. Sir Merrick Cockell, chairman of the Local Government Association quite correctly asserts that the Barnett Formula has passed its use-by date. He is ...
Most people know that politicians can sometimes talk up goings on in Parliament in the hope of gaining a bit of newspaper coverage. Observers of Scottish politics will be familiar with claims that this or that debate marks a momentous change from what has gone before. But this week at Holyrood we discussed legislation that can legitimately be described as historic. There is no need to exaggerate the impact it will have because it is plain to see that this Bill will change the lives of thousands of Scots around the country.an act that offers same-sex couples the same protections ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... What Works policy labs: are they working? – livechat | Public Leaders Network | Guardian Professional A week today, I'll be taking part in this livechat > What Works policy labs: are they working? | Gdn Professional http://bit.ly/I40mAM David Cameron's attack on Labour over Paul Flowers is classic Nixonian bully politics - Telegraph Blogs Fair point from @DPJHodges » Cameron's attack on Labour over Paul Flowers is classic Nixonian bully politics http://bit.ly/1iyVeTe Left-wingers are more likely to cheat? Peter Oborne piles nonsense on top of prejudice in his latest 'trollemic' – Comment ...
For the third year running, the Mindless Ones will be at the Thought Bubble comic convention in Leeds, far and away Britain's best comic convention. This time, we'll have a whole TWO tables in the Allied London Hall (meaning that we'll have done all three halls), and we need them, because there's lots of stuff [...]
Friday Again: Age: He's the detective; he can work it out Stories: 1 Awesomeness: Never Mind the Most Important Punch in History... he's IN A JAMES BOND FILM! Cuddles: Wedded to mindless violence AKA: Harry's Brother (Sarah Jane, Big Finish); Le Chiffre's stockbroker (Casino Royalle... did I mention IN A JAMES BOND FILM!); the suave super-sleuth Tom Chadbon
Friday: Age: Ageless Stories: 76 Awesomeness: Lush! Aggressive! Vegetation! Impudent Worm! Lady Lord President of the Time Lords and Ladies; hand-picked by the White Guardian (but never mind); triple first from the academy (but never mind); Magnificent (with medal to prove it) Cuddles: The Time Traveller's Wife; Mr Professor Richard Dawkins AKA: Princess Astra; her supreme divinity, Mistress Lalla the Hon Sarah Ward
It seems that Autumn was blown away by the St Jude storm and the blowsy days of mellow sun and crisp leaves underfoot have been replaced with winter winds. As such, work in the garden has stalled and I am kicking myself for not getting the pond in or the new wild cherry tree planted or the spring bulbs relocated or the grass cut to a more respectable length... Winter winds have bought the hail and rain with them. One benefit it that the change in temperature has bought in more birds into the garden. Jay, magpie, blackbird, thrush, wren, ...
A progressive is someone who wants to see society reorganised part by part and step by step so that ordinary men and women have a better chance to live a larger life.
The economic crisis that started in 2007 exposed deep flaws in conventional macroeconomics. This was wonderfully exposed by Adair Turner, as I have posted before. But many of the macroeconomics's big beasts seem to plough on regardless. Most shameless of these is Nobel Laureate and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman. This has become apparent in the latest kerfuffle to take the world of macroeconomists: the idea of "secular stagnation". This can get very technical very quickly (indeed the technicality of it is something of a hiding place), and I will try to spare my readers of these technical details. ...
That would be... me. Those of you who were active on twitter last night will already know this, but I thought I'd beter mention it here, too. Suspect this is going to prove very interesting indeed :) Was great to catch up with a bunch of people at the AGM too, especially Hilary, who I haven't seen for FAR TOO LONG. Only real fly in the ointment was that Northern Rail made us have to get a taxi to get there, so that's twenty quid down the drain. But you know. £20 taxi fare vs being made chair? I think ...
Lib Dem MEP welcomes EU infrastructure investment Liberal Democrat European transport spokesman, Phil Bennion, welcomed Tuesday's adoption of an EU infrastructure package worth EUR 33 billion between 2014 and 2020. The 'Connecting Europe' programme will help fund and facilitate projects of common interest in the areas of energy, transport and infrastructure, and the West Coast Main Line corridor is among the identified priority projects that would be eligible for EU funding. Phil Bennion MEP said: When it comes to energy, transport and digital infrastructure it is important to look beyond national borders to exploit potential synergies and enable an easy ...
Here is south Manchester we are very lucky to have some of the best and most popular primary schools in the whole of Manchester. I know, from my regular [...]
As part of the budget setting process, earlier this year, the Federal Executive were asked to look at how the Party runs its Spring Conference and the costs it incurs. With pressures on Party finances as they are, the challenge was therefore to look at how to make spring conference, at worst, a 'break-even' event. From the start, FE recognised that answering this challenge involved potentially significant changes to Spring Conference, and produced a paper which looks at three broad options - continuing as we do with a two day spring conference (and seeking to make cost savings accordingly), reducing ...
Just how much must Ed Miliband wish he'd known about this event, apparently held at Tory Party Conference last year, ahead of this weeks PMQs? h/t to @_lilykins
Fri 22nd
10:57
"Discrimination and prejudice are wrong in all their forms"-my speech on LGBT rights to HBBC Scrutin...
The following is the speech I gave at last night's meeting of Scrutiny Commission at Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council at the Hinckley Hub; in an item on Support and Provision for the LGBT Community in Hinckley and Bosworth (which I'd asked be looked at by Scrutiny; as far as I know the first item of [...]
Http://countingdownto.com
Fri 22nd
10:26Phil Bennion MEP writes... Anti-Bullying Week: The EU has a duty to share best practice on Autism-re...
This week is Anti-Bullying Week, now an annual UK event. It aims to raise awareness of bullying of children and young people and people with conditions such as autistic spectrum disorders which make them particularly vulnerable to abuse. Organised by the Anti Bullying Alliance (ABA) in England, which is made up of sixty member organisations, the week is an important opportunity for policy-makers to take stock of efforts to stamp out this social evil and evaluate new approaches. As MEP for the West Midlands region, I have always believed that the European Union has an important role to play in ...
The planning minister Nick Boles has suggested reviving the National Liberal Party, the strange hangover from the 1931 National Government that eventually petered out when the electoral alliance with the Conservatives petered out, in the 1950s. Let's leave aside his motives, or whether they are in any way achievable, and just say that - rather to my surprise - the Lib Dem group in the House of Commons has been really staggeringly united during the difficulties of the coalition. This is a tribute partly to the Clegg leadership, despite the background noise, but also to five decades of electoral discipline ...
Fri 22nd
09:25
Electoral Commission recommends near 40% increase in constituency spending limits - but they'll cove...
[IMG: An election count - ballot papers being counted] Running through to mid-December is an Electoral Commission consultation on updating election expense limits for UK Parliamentary elections and also for English and Welsh local elections. For general elections, the combined impact of inflation and an increase in the length of the Parliamentary timetable since the last review in 2005 means the Electoral Commission is recommending an increase in the formula that works out at an average rise of just under 40% in the spending limit for the short campaign (the period immediately running up to polling day). The new formula ...
Who makes the best Kebab in south Manchester? This time last year, I nominated Turkish Delight in Chorlton-cum-hardy and they won won the inaugural British kebab of the year award. [...]
posted The Blood is The Life 21-11-2013 http://t.co/fQMd1S0OMR on #dreamwidth (tags: dreamwidth (from twitter) ) When we lose antibiotics we lose a lot of other stuff too (tags: ) (tags: ) http://ift.tt/18r7uBt Calderdale Liberal Democrats select candidate http://t.co/G3Fv9P5lJM #Calderdale (tags: calderdale (from twitter) ) boys, if you have to wear tighty whities, make sure they are like Ian McKellen's (tags: ) Google celebrates 50 years of Who http://t.co/TRQUVM8Ffi (tags: (from twitter) ) http://ichabeard-crane.tumblr.com/image/65515707809 FAO @DerdyDee: Ichabeard ;) http://t.co/lLfJQTngeO (tags: (from twitter) ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Fifty years ago today a shooting in Dallas left US president John F. Kennedy dead and Texas Governor John Connally injured. 3 in 4 Americans believe that this was the result of a conspiracy. They are wrong. In this article for Slate, Fred Kaplan – himself a former conspiracy theorist – argues that the evidence [...]
[IMG: John F Kennedy] On Monday 7 August 1962, Arthur Schlesinger, liberal historian and adviser to President John F Kennedy, had lunch at the White House with a friend of his, Harvard historian Frank Freidel. Naturally enough, the pair stopped off in the Oval Office for Freidel to be introduced to the president. Among the things discussed was an article written by Schlessinger's father, also a very accomplished historian, and published the previous month in The New York Times Magazine. In the piece, Schlessinger Sr published the results of a poll of 75 leading historians asked to name the country's ...
I've been taking a look at how big brands try to buy their way in to social spaces online. I'm not talking about ephemeral advertising on the side of the screen, I mean "sponsored posts". It strikes me that large companies simply don't realise that buying your way into a conversation is an admission of failure. It's like being that kid who no one likes but, hey, we'll play with him because his parents buy him loads of toys. It's not friendship, it's not authentic, it doesn't create anything more than the most transient of relationship. This is best summed ...
Fri 22nd
08:25Sci-fi meets horror meets alternative history meets espionage: The Atrocity Archives: Book 1 in The ...
[IMG: Charles Stross - The Atrocity Archives] The novel at the heart of The Atrocity Archives: Book 1 in The Laundry Files by Charles Stross comes with three add-ons – a subsequent short story, featuring the same main characters and fictional universe, an afterword also by Charles Stross about his attitudes to writing science fiction and its similarities to horror fiction, and an introduction by a friend of his. That introduction is, as you might expect, a very friendly and warm introduction but also one that gives the reader fair warning of what the novel is likely to be like. ...
[IMG: President John F. Kennedy] Warning – contains one rather grim statement. I very much recommend the ITV documentary, "The Day Kennedy died" narrated by Kevin Spacey. It's available on ITV Player and Catch-up for the next 22 days. I've watched several documentaries about the JFK shooting, but this one stood out. They follow JFK (and his body) from the moment he walks out of the Fort Worth hotel, where he was staying, in the morning, until the early hours of the next morning. They use an extraordinary mixture of footage, taken from various angles, both black & white and ...
Around the world almost universally children start school much later than the age of 4. In the UK it is 4. Why 4? 4 is not based on any research. 130 UK early year education experts have called for informal, play-based preschool activities to continue to the age of 7 and only at 7 start formal schooling. The evidence from Scandinavian countries is that this approach leads to more confident children and better educational experiences and better results for the children concerned. Scandinavia has more patents, PhD's etc per head of population even that the UK. We've even had UK ...
West End Christmas Fortnight will be launched tomorrow - Saturday 23rd November - with a West End Community Fayre, taking place in Dundee West Church from 10am to 12 noon. Over 25 local groups in the West End are taking part. Entrance is entirely free of charge and it will be a great way for local residents to learn about all the organisations in the West End that are working for the local area. There will be lots to see, including free face painting for the children and the children from the Russian School and the Polish School will be ...
From Sheena Wellington: This month, it is the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Wighton Centre in Dundee. To celebrate a decade of this very special music and cultural place, the Friends of Wighton are organising a day of music, books and entertainment on Saturday 23rd November from 10.30am. The popular monthly Cappuccino Concert will start as usual at 11am. Violin soloist, Liam Lynch, will be appearing with the Maxwell String Quartet. Liam will be performing with George Smith, Asher Zaccardelli and Robert Anderson. The music they will perform will be Haydn op.20 no 4 and the Ravel string ...
The Welsh Liberal Democrats have called upon the Welsh Labour Government to develop a sustainable solution to M4 congestion. On Saturday, at the party's Autumn Conference, Welsh Liberal Democrat members voted to support a solution to develop the A48 Southern Distributor Road to move local traffic off the M4 and reduce congestion, and ruled out supporting a £1 billion relief road south of Newport. This solution would form part of a greater transport strategy for the South-East Wales region through improving rail and bus services as well. Commenting, Eluned Parrott said; "Addressing congestion on the M4 is an important issue. ...
I was privileged to be part of a Voice 4 Change England panel discussing the Lobbying and Immigration Bills along with Conservative former Boris Johnson adviser Kulveer Ranger, Labour shadow communities secretary Hilary Benn and my [...]
