For the 13th January (LJ | DW) nadriel asked for the Disney acquisition of Marvel, and any ramifications you can think of, which... Okay, I HAVE no thoughts about this. None whatsoever. I haven't seen anything particularly DISNEY happen since the acquisition. I don't know enough about how corporations work to think this should change Marvel properties or Disney properties. Spider-Man ride at Disneyland? I don't know. OPEN TO THE FLOOR. What should I be worried about?
Yesterday's dark, mind screwing finale makes me suspect that Gatiss and Moffat are taking inspiration from the master of dark, mind screwing cinema - Christopher Nolan *Warning - what follows contains an abundance of spoilers. Don't read if you are not caught up on Sherlock* Before, I move onto the meat of the post, let [...]
Here's me discussing recent political events with Labour blogger Emma Burnell, and the director of Tory campaign group Renewal, David Skelton. listen to 'Episode 93 – It's Complicated' on
So it looks like common sense is likely to prevail as the House of Lords votes on Wednesday on an amendment to the Lobbying Bill which would – rightly – let charities escape from its bureaucratic and clumsy clutches. Given that Lib Dem MP and now-Minister Stephen Williams was warning of the shambles of this Bill at a September Conference fringe meeting I chaired, at which charities and campaigning groups from the Barrow Cadbury Trust to Friends of the Earth to the Counteyside Alliance, and those warnings were regularly repeated from that time onwards, the performance of the Government in ...
Today Stonewall launch their campaign to tackle homophobia in work. There are four poster designs, though by looking at their website you would think that there are only three. Two are all male with the headline "One is Gay". There is a lesbian version but this morning it took many LGBT activists some time to locate it. There is one woman that Stonewall are happy to promote on their posters about this campaign. She is a police officer who appears with a male colleague under the title "One is bisexual". So the women may actually be the straight one on ...
The Taylor & Francis website site has a page of politics and international relations articles that have recently been published on an open access basis in Routledge Politics and International Relations journals, making them freely available to read online. They cover everything from Bretton Woods to circumcision.
In September, when BBC's "Inside Out" programme (they followed me as I became self-sufficient) was broadcast, the videos I make about our horticultural and kitchen activities were also featured. With over three million viewings on YouTube, I must be doing something right! This video was filmed after the programme went out and covers our food growing activities in the autumn.
Mon 13th
19:59
LDVideo: Danny Alexander explains decision to guarantee all UK debt up until Independence
It's slightly annoying that the announcement by the Treasury pledging to honour all UK debt up till the date of Independence was made on the same day as Alistair Carmichael's first keynote speech of the New Year, but there was little choice given ill-advised threats last week that an independent Scotland would default on its debts if it didn't get its way on using the pound as part of a currency union. The markets were spooked. The Treasury had to act. This doesn't mean that Scotland would get off the hook. It just means that the UK Government would be ...
You almost certainly know the clichéd canvassing photo. Large number of smiling canvassers for a political party smile at the camera. Such photos have a point to them but the format is very common. A round of applause therefore to the Labour team in St Ann's ward, Haringey, for breaking away from this format and replacing it with one we should call the lament of the lonely canvasser: Barbara Blake talks to a resident in Suffolk Road on @StAnnsLabour's Sunday #labourdoorstep session today. pic.twitter.com/HQ9MboXMOl — Peter Morton (@pjmmor) January 12, 2014 Of course, I'm sure this is all to do ...
Ben Fearn has been chosen as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Derbyshire Dales constituency at the next general election. The seat is currently held for the Conservatives by the transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin. Ben also blogs at Views from the Centre-Left.
Vladimir Putin is a product of the most ruthless elements of the Soviet era. The KGB and its predecessors took human torment to new levels of barbarity in the name of the relentless will of Marxism. Now VVP- as he is known in most of Russia- chooses to operate these same ruthless dictates in the name of a Conservative, Orthodox world view. Yet, in reality both Marxism and Conservative Orthodoxy are both ideas that do not accept challenge, let alone compromise. In the Russian world view, the Slavophile tradition that has always rejected the freedoms of Western Liberalism and which ...
I have a big soft spot for The Globe. Its growth from large hole in the ground mirrors my adult progress living and working in Southwark. I started working in the area in 1988 moved very locally 1992. The number of people I've taken to the exhibiton and productions over the years! So I was chuffed to be lucky enough to buy two tickets to the newly opened Sam Wanamaker Playhouse for its second night. FABULOUS. Incresibly atmospheric with the candles adding quite a different dimension. What a great addition to The Globe. What a great addition to Southwark. Do ...
Mon 13th
17:05
In Full: Alistair Carmichael's New Year Speech - A positive vision of UK's achievements to contrast ...
This is very long, but I thought it was worth posting in full. My analysis is here on Liberal Democrat Voice. You can never really get the full flavour of a 14 page speech into a blog post. It's not always worth reading the whole thing, but this is well written and definitely worth it. It is a real pleasure to be with you all here in Stirling University today to talk about Scotland's future. On 18th September this year we will take the most fundamental collective decision that a nation can ever be asked to take. This is a ...
Only the Liberal Democrats can be trusted to anchor Britain in the centre ground by building a stronger economy and a fairer society, enabling every person to get on in life. That's why in Government we have: 1. Fixed the mess left by Labour. We have: reduced the deficit by a thirdkept interest rates downhelped business create over a million jobs 2. Eased the squeeze on household budgets by: cutting income tax by £700 for 24m peoplegiving every 5, 6 and 7 year old a free school meal dailygiving 15 hours free child care to all 3 and 4 year ...
Mon 13th
16:54The three dimensions to Alistair Carmichael's speech: positive vision of UK, incoherent nationalist ...
[IMG: Alistair Carmichael speech Jan 2014] Alistair Carmichael's keynote speech and subsequent question and answer session in Stirling today touched three different dimensions of the constitutional debate, the last of which should cheer any Liberal Democrat heart. Up until now, roughly, the nationalist campaign has been all about painting a pretty picture of how all our problems would disappear if we controlled our own destiny, and in dismissing all searching for detail and questioning as scaremongering. The pro UK campaign has been about robust analysis of the SNP positions, but it hasn't even made my heart sing and I'm voting ...
Boulton vs Campbell, the real highlight of the 2010 general election Boulton was knackered. Campbell was gutted. Then this happened.
After a quarter of a century Sky News will be looking for a new political editor, as Adam Boulton announces he will be taking on a new role. Boulton, who
That's right, rub shoulders with the London diplomatic corp but just don't pretend you represent some obscure country, as they all know each other! Seriously, Liberal International British Group's annual diplomats' reception is an unusual opportunity to mix with a wide range of people stationed at embassies in London. The event is also attended by Lib Dem MPs and peers interested in international affairs and is hosted this year by Simon Hughes. My haul of business cards last year included officials of Albania, Bolivia, Honduras, the UAE and Japan, and there are always some representatives present of pretty controversial places, ...
At the outset, ministers believed the bill would be a fairly non-controversial measure, limiting the political influence of maverick millionaires in elections. It was construed very differently by people we Liberal Democrats most strongly identify with: our natural, liberal allies in the voluntary and charitable sector saw the bill as a broad assault on their freedom of speech. So write Paul Tyler and Shirley Williams in the Guardian. The so-called 'gagging law' is keeping the definition of 'non-party campaigning' in the Political Parties Elections and Referendums Act 2000 – as that which "can be reasonably regarded as intended to promote ...
Inside the Cave is in effect a cuttings collection, but a very good one at that, brining together the most useful insights into the Obama digital campaign that appeared in the media or online. Including the story about getting drunk people to donate... and also about the value of clipboards (even if they weren't up to the standards of my German favourite). You can download this document here (PDF, 10.2MB)
The Government's putting more cash into the Pupil Premium scheme which means some Liverpool schools could be due some more cash. But the money is dependent on parents taking action. Up to now the Pupil Premium has given extra money to schools for each pupil who has had free school meals at any point during the last six years, is a son or daughter of a service family or is a looked after child. Now the eligibility is extended to cover another group of children, which includes some who have been adopted. For the school to qualify though, the parents ...
Here's today's hand-picked selection that caught my interest... bit.ly Excellent from @mePadraigReidy > Dieudonne is a racist. And he has a right to free speech – Index on Censorship http://bit.ly/1eCKnGo Nick Clegg's time to speak up | Chris Huhne | Comment is free | The Guardian "Love-in, irritation, disillusion" < Chris Huhne on the 3 stages of Coalition & what LDs need to do before 2015 GE http://bit.ly/1eCJkGu Supplanting the Liberals | Progress | News and debate from the progressive community Interesting read by @NThomasSymonds on Victor Grayson, 'Labour's Lost Leader', winner of 1907 Colne Valley by-electn http://bit.ly/1eCISYJ Opinion: Why ...
A flurry of phone calls and angry folk accosting me in the street followed the Council's unannounced actions of removing old lamp posts painted in the Southport County Borough colours of burgundy and cream-the same colours as our buses used to be. The were replaced(the lamp posts not the buses) by boring standard issue utilitarian steel posts. I am delighted to report that after pressure from many quarters-not least of all my colleague Haydn Preece--I have noticed that some have now been painted.
Mathew Oakeshott was on Newsnight stating the blindingly obvious last night. A party which was re-formed in the image of Jo Grimond's vision of re-aligning the left and which merged with the Jenkinsite wing of Lab has mostly centre-left activists. Such a statement would have not cause any comment over most of the last 70 years. Of more interest was David Steel and Alan Beith taking part in the Radio 4 programme called The Reunion . If you listen to the programme you will find David Steel describe the present coalition as 'unnatural' because it is with the Right. The ...
Cambridge residents are being urged to sign a petition calling for action to protect cyclists and pedestrians in East Chesterton before someone is seriously injured. Councillor Ian Manning, who represents the ward on Cambridgeshire County Council, is concerned about safety on a route from the High Street to Chesterton Road. On part of the route the pavement is the same height as the road and there is a tendency for cyclists to veer onto the pavement putting pedestrians at risk. He wants to see council or developer money used to improve the situation and believes a designated cycle route protecting ...
ALDC is currently recruiting for the following staff position: Development Officer (to cover the South West, Wales and the Midlands) (3 days a week, location flexible) Help us support and develop teams of Liberal Democrat activists around the country in our ambitious programme to help develop effective campaigning and local election success. SO1-SO2 £24,646-28,636 pro-rata [...]
This year's European elections are bound to be a tough fight. Eurosceptics such as UKIP and the French National Front are determined to turn back the clock and tear down the internal market, stoking xenophobia and putting millions of jobs at risk. In the UK context, the Conservatives appear to want to throw in the towel and leave the EU, whilst Labour are still sitting uncomfortably on the fence. Only Lib Dems are clear where they stand as the party of In. Being the main pro-European party, across the EU, though does not mean defending the status quo. As Liberals ...
Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services PRESS RELEASE 13 January 2013 AIMS, run entirely by volunteers, has been a national pressure group for 53 years, for expectant and new parents. Because our help-line is totally confidential, we are trusted with a great deal of information which parents no longer give to doctors, midwives and nurses because information about
[IMG: stapleford-500] East Midlands Euro candidates Issan Ghazni and Phil Knowles joined an Action Day in Stapleford, Nottingham, to support two council byelection candidates. They met the local Lib Dem team, delivered leaflets and chatted to local residents. Ghazni and Knowles are pictured with Matthew Holden, one of the byelection hopefuls. Speaking late on Saturday afternoon Issan Gahzni and Phil Knowles thanked the local team for all their hard word. "We much appreciated the warm welcome of the local team and of the residents we chatted with as we went door to door delivering the latest edition of our Focus ...
Stonewall has launched a new campaign today, targeting workplace bullying of gay and bisexual people. It's a great to see a focus on workplace bullying, which still remains a huge
[IMG: Hinckley-500] East Midlands Euro candidate Issan Ghazni joined an Action Day in Hinckley and Bosworth, in Leicestershire, and spoke to activists about the need to tackle head-on the lies and myths about Europe perpetrated by UKIP and the Tories. Ghazni said: "Many of the local residents in Hinckley and Bosworth we spoke to were still undecided about the Euro election so there is all to play for. "People have been exposed to a lot of anti-Europe propaganda but despite this there is a great deal of concern about the risks of pulling out of Europe. When we spoke about ...
The Times reports that the rift within the coalition on immigration is not just between the Tories and the Liberal Democrats. There are also some big hitters within the Conservative Party who disagree with the Prime Minister as well. The paper says that Ken Clarke deepened the Conservative rift on Europe and immigration by praising migrants for contributing to British society and contradicting David Cameron's claims on migration: The Prime Minister's trade envoy and former Justice Secretary said that migrants had helped to make Britain "a far more exciting and healthier" society, and derided as deluded the naysayers in his ...
It is often said that one should not speak ill of the dead, but as a Quaker I believe one should speak truth to power, and be forthright about the powerful when necessary. At Mr Sharon's state funeral in Israel the eulogies lauded an "indomitable" figure, but passed over the fact that he was one [...]
Long term readers may remember I have written before about the possibility of X ("Unspecified") gender markers on passports. It looked like we were getting somewhere on this, until in the middle of last year the Identity and Passport Service decided it was too difficult, and refused. Thanks to the work of Christie Elan-Cane, the issue is not dead yet. There is an Early Day Motion doing the rounds on this topic, number 907. If your MP hasn't signed yet, why not ask them to put their name to it? You can use WriteToThem to find out who your MP ...
With the Williams Commission on public services due to report on Monday 20th January and rumoured to be recommending cutting the number of Welsh Councils in half, the Welsh Liberal Democrats Spokesperson on Local Government, Peter Black sets out his views: A dictionary definition of 'collaboration' tells us that it is a situation in which 'two or more people work together to create or achieve the same thing'. For many in Wales over the last few years, it has been a form of displacement activity to avoid facing up to and doing something about the mess created by the 1995 ...
A Citizen's Income Convincingly Argued In 'Money for Everyone', Malcolm Torry delivers a blockbuster argument in favour of a Citizen's Income to wholly or partially replace current benefits. His book is well-researched, well-informed, well-written, and is articulate and readable. His main argument is that, given widespread acceptance of a benefits scheme of some sort, then a Citizen's Income is by far the best option. Specifically it avoids the disincentives of very high marginal deduction rates of current benefits which create the familiar unemployment and poverty traps. According to Torry, a Citizen's Income would incentivise employment, training, new business formation, women's ...
"It's far too soon to say 'job done'. It's not even half done. That's why 2014 is the year of hard truths." So said Nick Clegg in an interview on the Andrew Marr show. He was talking about the economy, and he was absolutely right - the economy may be on its way towards recovery, but it is a long way from there yet. Yet there is a hard truth which does need to be articulated. It takes nothing away from the coalition's success in pushing the economy out of the hole in landed in by 2008. That is, and ...
This week's policy updates from our Lead Members on LGA policy boards includes news and information from: Children and Young People Safer Communities Regular updates on the work of the LGA Lib Dems on policy boards will be published on the ALDC website and feedback on any of the matters raised is encouraged. Children and [...]
In the news last week were reports that the Electoral Commission wants to introduce mandatory photo ID before people can vote in England, Wales and Scotland. (It's already a requirement in Northern Ireland) The obvious reason for wanting to do this is an attempt to reduce electoral fraud in the UK, which is laudable. (For those not familiar with UK elections, the current system means you can only vote in one location, and your name is crossed off the list once you've voted, preventing voting twice) But there are always drawbacks. In this case, two – firstly, the obvious that ...
Sarah Teather's interview in the Guardian over the Christmas period talked about the way the political system tends to invent simple issues, in order to give the impression of solving them. She is clearly right. Because governments are beset by global issues, by phenomenally complex systems, and they fear upsetting their key compromises - then it must sometimes seem easier to stick to the purely symbolic. What Sarah didn't say is that oppositions and campaign groups are almost as guilty. They create symbolic issues over proposed legislation which they can campaign on. They win, nothing changes, and everyone stays happy. ...
I appear to have made the golden dozen again. This means I'm going to have to change my blog title again soon... (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
I am about to head off to Stirling to see Alistair Carmichael deliver his first keynote speech of the year in which he will set out the benefits of Scotland remaining in the UK. The pro-UK arguments have mainly been quite dry and technical and he wants to do more to relate them directly to people's practical concerns and to celebrate what the UK has achieved by building such institutions as the NHS and the BBC. He will say That partnership has a remarkable history. And we're not just talking about the past – right now Scotland sees the benefit ...
[IMG: liberal-voice] It's one week and six days since we launched our seventh annual search for the Liberal Voice of the Year, as voted for by you, our readers. That means you have only a day left if you haven't yet made your choice. You can read more about the short-list – as chosen by party members via our latest survey – here. And you can cast your votes in order of preference using the electronic ballot paper below. Many thanks to the hundreds of readers who've already done so. The poll closes tomorrow, 14th January, with results to follow... ...
From the Council: "On 13 December 2013 one of our dog wardens witnessed a female allow her dogs to foul on Scholes Fields, Gatley and fail to pick up and dispose of the faeces. She was subsequently issued with a £50 fixed penalty notice which she has since paid. Our service will now be producing posters to erect on and around the fields advising people that a fouling offence was witnessed in order to try and deter further irresponsible dog owners. I wanted to make you all aware so that you can hopefully spread the word in the area and ...
It is an error to say that because there are more children in care that there are "more children protected". a) The most important question is whether or not we are seeing a reduction in children being subjected to serious abuse. In particular those children that die from child abuse and neglect. b) The secondary point is that it is not true to say that just because a child is in care that
Mon 13th
07:30
New Statesman readers have described my latest effort as 'utter bollocks', 'utter crap' and 'excreme...
Here's my latest contribution to the New Statesman, which seems to have upset a few folk... So Nick Clegg suggests George Osborne is on the verge of making a monumental mistake, next thing you know Ed Balls is describing Nick as a man of integrity,suddenly there's a Twitter love-in going on, and everyone acts like we may as well not bother with the 2015 general election, as a Lib-Lab coalition is a done deal. CoalisciousOr is it?Well, as Labour figures get increasingly nervous about whether it will be able to achieve a majority in 2015, you can see why they ...
The Liberal Democrats now have hundreds more members than a year ago after a dramatic surge in new members joining in the second half of 2013. This is the first time in recent history a governing party has increased its membership over a year while in power and the first time the Liberal Democrats have increased membership outside of an election period in more than a decade. However, Liberal Democrats grew by nearly 1000 members in total in 2013. The Liberal Democrats are now recruiting at least 500 new members every month, with more than 1,000 recruited in November and ...
Here's another fascinating West End photograph from Photopolis - the old Harris Academy in Park Place, that opened in 1885 but was replaced by the Perth Road building (currently being replaced) in the 1930s :
[IMG: 20-Feet-From-Stardom] My friend asked if I wanted to go to the movies? I've been living in Chiang Mai, Thailand for two months writing and filming a new online course for musicians and needed a night out. The movie in question was '20 Feet From Stardom', a documentary about the lives of the backing singer. Here's why you need to see it... You see there is an elite group of singers (mostly women) who sing backing vocals on ALL those albums you love. You've likely never heard of them...Lisa Fischer, Darlene Love, Patti Austin, Merry Clayton, Tata Vega. Their story ...
Storytime and Rhymetime return following the closure of Churchtown Library thanks to the efforts of North Meols Library Association and Marshside Methodist Church. Come on a bear hunt with Crossens the Bear when he starts storytime on Tuesday 14th January, 9.15 at The Methodist Church on Rufford Road.
[IMG: 4758221913_138b765642_n] [IMG: 4907468988_21d094622b_n] Today, as might have been anticipated, Andrew Rawnsley took as his subject the apparent thawing of relations between Labour and the Lib Dems. The opinion polls suggest that an outright Labour majority in 2015 is by no means assured. So it makes sense for them to leave the option of plan B open this time around. The major news this week was Ed Balls' concession that it would be possible to work with Nick Clegg, rather than demand his head on a plate as the price of coalition. Others in the Labour party - notably Tom ...
