Much has been made of the fact that the Commissioner who investigated Maria Miller's expenses thought she should pay back around £45k, but the Standards Committee over ruled her and decided Miller need only pay around £6k back. This would rather beg the question - did the commissioner (Kathryn Hudson) get it wrong - and if so, should her position also come into question? After all - that would be quite a grave error. Anyway, The Guardian reported on Friday (and again today) that the Commissioner and the Chair of the Standards committee have issued a statement to explain how ...
In September 2012 I visited and photographed St Mary de Castro in Leicester. What I didn't know then was that I was taking my life in my hands. A year later the church was closed because it was in a dangerous condition. The spire has now been dismantled and repairs are being carried out on the tower beneath. Access to the whole of the Leicester Castle site has been closed off. You can follow the progress of the project on the church's Save Our Spire Facebook page.
The King's Fund interim report A new settlement for health and social care has key findings typical of all those that have looked at the funding of health and social care: The problems of the current settlement for health and social care are systemic, in the commission's view. They stem from a lack of alignment in entitlements to care, between funding streams, and in organisation/commissioning of care. There is a problem of adequacy, with too little public money spent on social care and too much demanded of at a time of rising needs. The public has a poor understanding of ...
Sun 6th
19:59
In Full: Kirsty Williams' speech to Welsh Liberal Democrat Conference - Proud, passionate and "hungr...
[IMG: rally kirsty williams 1] This weekend, Welsh Liberal Democats have held their conference in Newport. One of these years, I must try and get there because it sounds great fun. Kirsty Williams closed Conference this afternoon with her leader's speech. A few weeks ago, I linked to an article she wrote for St David's Day which expressed her pride in her nation with such positivity that I suggested that those in the pro-UK campaign in Scotland should take note. She was every bit as proud and passionate today. She outlined the Labour governments failures in health and education and ...
Many, many, many years ago, when I was a sixth former, we had a record player in our common room. One person was a big fan of The Skids. He played their records so often that the sarcastic remark "Oh, The Skids – that makes a change" became a ubiquitous complaint. I could never understand their lyrics – a problem that the cassette tape manufacturers Maxell picked up on. The advertisement is great fun and I stumbled across it again today by the wonders of t'internet. However, I'm not convinced that even if I heard it on a Maxell I'd ...
[IMG: image] Believe it or not, the University Challenge episode tomorrow night is the 37th of the series. The series seems to have gone on for several years. And there seemed to be about 13 quarter finals. I realise that the final programme has already been recorded and sits somewhere on the BBC hard drives, with all involved sworn to secrecy. So going "Come on Somerville" is neither here nor there. In fact, the Cambridge lot in opposition are a fairly inspiring lot. But, in our household we have are very much Somerville supporters. There's Chris Beer on the right, ...
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 370th 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 (30 March - 5 April, 2014), 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. ...
[IMG: Norman Lamb, Minister for Consumer Affairs] Norman Lamb has told the Guardian that he will do all he can to eradicate referral to gay conversion therapy in NHS England: Gay conversion therapy is abhorrent and has no place in a modern society, according to the health minister Norman Lamb, who has asked for assurances from NHS England that GPs do not make any referrals for such treatment. "It is based on the completely false premise that there is something wrong with you if you happen to be gay," said Lamb, the minister for care and support. "I certainly want ...
[IMG: CEE 2013] If you're in or around Bristol on 28th April you might find the following event of interest. It's being organised by Dr Diego Acosta Arcarazo, of the University's Law School. I'm not involved, but I'll be there. European Parliament elections 2014: join the debate The European Parliament election is scheduled to take place on 22 May 2014 and the University of Bristol is hosting a political debate on Europe between the first candidates from each of the five most voted parties in the South West: the Conservatives, UKIP, Liberals, Labour and Green parties. You will have the ...
This is an article I wrote in the Sunday Express which is published today. By this it does not mean banning girls from marrying princes but is talking about criminalising "emotional abuse". We are told it is a contender for the forthcoming Queen's Speech. There is no question that there can be situations where children are traumatised by the way they have been treated but the Government
So much has been written about the Holocaust that one might be forgiven in thinking that nothing new could be said about that monstrous period of inhumanity. But every so often a book comes along that proves that the last word has not been spoken. Such is Peter Lantos's Parallel Lines (Arcadia Books, £9.99). Originally published in [...]
It is now a week since Andrew and I flew out of Northern Ireland to take up residence in Gibraltar. We actually moved into our flat on Thursday, having stayed in an hôtel in neighbouring La Línea de la Concepción since last Sunday. The sun is definitely doing us both good. All over the last two...
[IMG: 7 ver 4 full] Many thanks to the 14911 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here's our 7 most-read posts... Nick v Nigel: the polls call it for Farage. Disappointing, but don't panic! Here's 3 reasons why you shouldn't... (56 comments) by Stephen Tall Nick v Nigel Round 2, My second thoughts (39 comments) by Stephen Tall UKIP's success masks its existential crisis (40 comments) by Caspian Conran Our survival lies on the back of moderate Conservatives whether we like it or not (77 comments) by Caspian Conran Lib Dems only party to vote against Khat ...
Here are the Liberal Democrat entries in the top 100 political blogs as ranked by EBuzzing (Wikio as was). It's goodbye this month to two relatively recent entrants – Matthew Green (Thinking Liberal) and Jonathan Fryer. 1 (4) Liberal Democrat Voice No change 2 (25) Mark Pack Down 6 3 (26) Stephen Tall Down 1 4 (41) Lynne Featherstone MP Down 4 5 (48) Jennie Rigg Down 4 6 (58) Paul Walter (Liberal Burblings) Up 7 7 (60) Zoe O'Connell (Complicity) Down 4 8 (64) Richard Morris (A View from Ham Common) Down 4 9 (76) Mark Valladares (Liberal Bureaucracy) ...
We're little more than a year from the May 2015 election so here's my latest running check on how candidate selection is going in our held and key target seats... [IMG: Lib Dems winning here] I published a first draft of this list at the start of October, and asked readers to help me update it. Many thanks to those of you who have helped me keep it updated, including the party's Candidates Services Office. Here's the latest version of the list of (re-)selections in our held seats and the top 50 targets for the party. It's a snapshot of ...
BEING A CHRISTIAN DOES NOT MEAN BELIEVING IN A GOD WHO DAMNS PEOPLE FOR ETERNITY A fortnight ago, I wrote a post about the Westboro Baptist Church. I argued that its theology is heretical because it focuses on damnation to the exclusion of salvation. Writing about this strange sect's obsession with hell, made me wonder [...]
[IMG: stephen lotinga] Readers may recall the rather brief tenure of Emma Gilpin-Jacobs as Nick Clegg's Director of Communications – she left after a few weeks in the job "because my strategic global, corporate-focused communications experience will be better utilised in a less day-to day-political operational role". Her replacement has now been appointed. Here's how Nick's chief of staff, Jonny Oates, announced the news: I am delighted to announce that Stephen Lotinga will be joining us shortly as the DPM's new Director of Communications. Stephen has extensive experience in the communications field. Many of you will already know him from ...
Yesterday I renewed my Libdem membership again. I still have mixed feelings about some things but I do believe that we have a good record in Government and have achieved some great things that have benefited many working families like mine. I also have mixed feelings about Nick as leader. Sometimes I find myself in despair of the things that we have signed up to and think that Nick should show more backbone and stand up for what he/we believe in but then I see him speak at conference, the news or listen to Call Clegg and I'm immediately back ...
Yesterday Zoe O'Connell tweeted a newspaper cutting about an accident to David Laws. I have now found the story in the Western Gazette: Yeovil MP David Laws has broken his elbow after falling while on the election trail in Somerset. On Friday he was leafleting in Horton and Broadway, near Ilminster, in the pouring rain when he slipped over in a driveway and subsequently spent the day in Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton. He said: "Unfortunately I had only called on five houses when I managed to slip over and fell down backwards on my left elbow. "The owner of the ...
Recently I was challenged by someone on Facebook that I was only jumping on a band wagon and interested in sound bites over my stance on St Luke's Church If so then it is a very long standing bandwagon! In ... Continue reading →
Sun 6th
10:46Alison McInnes MSP writes...The Scottish Justice Secretary is wrong to say stop and search is an ope...
[IMG: Police stop and search] 1st April 2014 marked the 1st anniversary of Police Scotland, a single national police force that replaced our 8 regional forces. The Scottish Liberal Democrats were the only group in the Scottish Parliament to oppose the national force from the outset. One of the key strengths of Scotland's policing up until then had been its local foundations. Funded by local councils, managed by local officers and officials, accountable to locally elected representatives, responsive to local needs. When the national police force was proposed, we had concerns over accountability, local control and political independence. Savings claims ...
Shocked Torquay homeowner finds 'antique' condom (via @SimplyJenkins) (tags: ) Elections etc: A long range forecast for the UKIP share of the vote at the 2015 general election (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe: You can also watch this on YouTube.
This case is an example of the judiciary seeing through the nonsense so often spouted by local authorities and their friends in cafcass. Sadly, it is a rare example.
Here's some of the articles that have caught my attention in the past couple of days... Tim Harford — Article — What next for behavioural economics? Very interesting from @timharford » "What next for behavioural economics?" http://bit.ly/1hsjdiO Why Nigel Farage reminds me of Enoch Powell - Telegraph Blogs "Why Farage reminds me of Enoch": his view of the world is off-the-peg Powellite isolationism" http://bit.ly/PCH6xZ (h/t @dlknowles) Elections etc: A long range forecast for the UKIP share of the vote at the 2015 general election Steve Fisher's latest » "A long range forecast for the UKIP share of the vote at ...
Around 40 vehicles in Bath - in addition to those operating on the university services and the park and ride - have also been fitted. WiFi is provided for free. It is dependent on signal strength: it only works where a 3G signal can be detected. Customers wishing to log on to the free on-board WiFi should ask their devices to search for available WiFi networks and select the one called "
Yesterday morning I gently admonished Paul Walter for calling The Strawbs "one hit wonders". It wasn't so much because they had a couple of other hits besides Part of the Union: it was because the band has a long and interesting history. At various times both Sandy Denny and Rick Wakeman have been members. So here is an early Sandy Denny recording of her great song Who Knows Where the Time Goes? made in 1967 when she was briefly a member of The Strawbs. It was intended for an LP by the band, but this did not emerge until 1973, ...
[IMG: Department of health, mental health care report] I am sure that many of you will remember the stories about the Winterbourne View scandal a couple of years ago. Vulnerable residents with autism and learning difficulties were subjected to shocking abuse from those who should have been protecting and caring for them. The review that was carried out into the scandal highlighted the widespread and inappropriate use of physical restraint, including dangerous face-down restraint, at the hospital. As a Liberal Democrat I am committed to tackling poor quality care, and ensuring that everyone in our society is treated with the ...
Further to my update last Thursday about the Royal Bank of Scotland's proposal to close well-used the Perth Road Branch of the bank, I have now set up a petition calling on the bank to reconsider its decision and keep the branch open. Please sign the petition here. Many thanks. There is also a short link to the petition at www.tiny.cc/perthroad.
As of today, 144,000 people in Wales will have been taken out of income tax altogether since 2010. Over 1.2 million people in Wales - the vast majority of working people - will have had an income tax cut since the Liberal Democrats entered Government in 2010.
Following the recommendations made by the Silk Commission on devolution, the Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, told the Welsh Liberal Democrat Spring Conference in Newport yesterday that he will be the first party leader to fully commit his party to including Silk recommendations in the 2015 general election manifesto. Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg said: "The build-up to the Scottish Referendum is now in full swing. The Party leaders - me, David Cameron and Ed Miliband - have, in a rare moment of consensus, all set out our hope that Scotland chooses to remain ...
Why the Liberal Democrats love UKIP, and how Nick Clegg may be the saviour of the United Kingdom. It is a truism that in politics as in war, my enemy's enemy is my friend. This is being seen in Scotland right now, where Alex Salmond is rooting for a Conservative comeback in the opinion polls down south in the knowledge that the more likely a Tory government in 2015 appears, the more likely Scotland will say Yes to independence in September. (It must be strange for David Cameron to know that the more likely it appears he will win the ...
