The site of the old level crossing on Bridge Street, Northampton, is still obvious: there are even rails left in the road. Back in 2012 I wrote of this spot: Northampton Bridge Street station used to stand to the west of the road here. It was on the line to Peterborough. That line closed to passengers in 1964 and to through freight trains in 1972, but there were permanent way yards on either side of the road and various industrial sidings nearby. So, though crossing was clearly derelict when I visited on Tuesday, it seems the last train across Bridge ...
Wycombe Liberal Democrat Councillors were among 150 Lib Dem councillors from across the country who descended on the Jury's Inn, Milton Keynes on 27/28th June to attend the major, annual Lib Dem's Local Government Conference, this year entitled "The Future of Local Government". [IMG: MK Mayor Welcomes Malcolm Bruce] Milton Keynes Mayor, Subhan Shafiq with Malcolm Bruce MP (Deputy Leader of the Lib Dems). The Conference was opened by the Mayor of Milton Keynes, Cllr Subhan Shafiq, who thanked the delegates for coming to Milton Keynes and invited them to come back as tourists and visit Bletchley Park, the International ...
Integration, or rather the lack of integration, is a major problem in the NHS and although having a diversity of providers is sometimes attacked as evil privatisation that will fragment the NHS, fragementation happens aplenty without private providers: @normanlamb we have too many separations: health & social care; mental & physical health; primary & secondary care. Unhelpful to patients. — Andy Cowper (@HPIAndyCowper) July 1, 2014 Fragmentation may not simply be a result of "competition", but how much "competition" is the answer to fragmentation is another question, of course.
Wednesday Time to get the old ermine out of mothballs and travel up to Town for the State Opening of Parliament. When Her Majesty is halfway through the Gracious Speech one of her pages keels over in a faint. Really! That's not the spirit that won the Brecon and Radnor by-election, is it? While the wretched child is carted away I ponder whether it might not be possible to have the job given to the Well-Behaved Orphans next year - being hardy types, they are not given to swooning when the going gets tough. More important, I could tip one ...
There are mixed feelings in Ludlow with the news that the 192 bus service to Kidderminster will be saved but the 492 bus to Hereford will no longer serve the town. Richard Huffer, Shropshire Councillor for Clee, has been lobbying hard for the service from Kidderminster, through Cleobury Mortimer and Clee Village to be retained. [...]
Very interested to see the Jewish Chronicle's coverage of a recent visit to Israel/Palestine by Laurence Brass: and Laurence is a former Liberal candidate who, like me, used to be a Vice-Chair of Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel (on whose committee I still sit, although I write here in a personal capacity) and is the Treasurer of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, although this trip by Laurence to Israel/Palestine (organised by a British group called Yachad: http://yachad.org.uk/) was undertaken by Laurence in a personal capacity.Israel's critics often say (sometimes disingenuously) : "We criticise Israel because, as ...
Today's Headline of the Day Award goes to London's Evening Standard.
Martin Freeman appears to have been "speaking off-message" in an interview with the Telegraph and revealed that Sherlock there will be a Christmas Special but not till 2015. And worse still, the implication of it being a 'special' is that it presumably won't be a full series! So as soon as the waiting is over, [...]
[IMG: European Parliament, Strasbourg] In May's European elections, it was liberals across the EU who stood up against the growing tide of nationalists, anti-Europeans and populists. Today, the newly elected MEPs met for the first time in Strasbourg to officially open the 8th European Parliament. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), the political group with which Liberal Democrats sit in the European Parliament, took a big hit when we lost all of my hardworking Lib Dem colleagues and nine German FDP MEPs. But it is not all doom and gloom. Liberals topped the polls in the Netherlands, ...
The Liverpool Echo carried this interesting article on 25th June:- [IMG: rsz_img_0001] Click to enlarge and be able to read text.
[IMG: stephen gilbert] After the energetic debate in these columns over the photo of Nick Clegg holding the free World Cup edition of the Sun, it is, shall we say, interesting to be able to report a Lib Dem MP praising that newspaper for a campaign it is running. Stephen Gilbert, the MP for St Austell & Newquay, in the holiday county of Cornwall, is quoted as supporting the Sun's petition to cut VAT on holidays in the UK. He says: Thanks to the hard work of people across Britain, our economy is now turning a corner. And a VAT ...
Earlier this week, I published a guest post from Robin McGhee arguing that atheism offers "a more beautiful depiction of the world than religious faith could ever offer." Here's my response. In his post, Robin wrote that: "Sometimes I have tried to imagine how I would see the world if I were a practising Christian. [...]
[IMG: Justice] The Lib Dems should be proud that under the Coalition Government crime is falling and fast - in 2013 there was a drop in offences overall of 15%, including a drop in violent crime of 12%, continuing a trend that has been continuous for more than five years. Crime is now at its lowest level for more than 30 years. This Bill marks the Coalition Government's commitment to keep the pressure on to drive down crime. There is much in it that is good. The Lib Dems have led the way on a number of key issues. The ...
Tue 1st
13:17
So today I was told by someone that I had a face that looks as if I have a permanent hangover! Can y...
via Facebook
[IMG: Lynne Featherstone in Uganda] I am pretty sure I have taken every chance available to enter the ballot for a Private Member's Bill since being elected to the House of Commons in 1997. What is certain is that I have never succeeded in securing one of the highly coveted slots that give backbench MPs a chance to pilot legislation through Parliament - until now, that is. In the old days I am sure that those lucky enough to emerge in the "top 20" of the ballot would have learned of their good fortune by letter or maybe even messenger. ...
Here's a little quiz for you: a. The richest 20% of households (measured by income) have an annual income that is X times greater than the poorest 20% of households. What is X? b. The impact of taxes and benefits changes X to Y. What is Y? Answers below. Answers: X: 14.8 Y: 3.8 Or in graphical form: [IMG: Income redistribution graph] All data taken from the ONS's The Effects of Taxes and Benefits on Household Income, 2012/13
[IMG: 2005_grizzly_man_018] One day, almost exactly ten years ago, a friend of mine whom I will refer to only as the Chicago Connection and I were hanging out near the Franco-Spanish border. We had come to a town called Puigicerda on the recommendation of a random bloke we'd met in a Barcelona bar (how all of the best nuggets are discovered, right?). Turns out that Puigicerda is a swinging town at the right time of year - and we'd come out of season. We were in Catalonia, but it felt like Colombia, with large gangs of men driving around in ...
Some might think that this is a plea from the heart after thinking that not enough of them voted Lib Dem in May. Not so! It is occasioned by the release of a report last week by the Institute of ... Continue reading →
[IMG: equal marriage] Government has announced that couples already in civil partnerships can convert to marriage from 10 December 2014. Liberal Democrats have been fighting in the coalition to make equal marriage the law and we were delighted to see the first same-sex wedding take place in March. The new situation means that all couples, regardless of gender, will have the choice between a marriage or a civil partnership. As part of the Marriage Act, there has also been a review launched today by the Government into whether or not to allow non-religious belief organisations such as humanists, to perform ...
Since entering Government, my Lib Dem colleagues and I have worked hard to make the childcare system fairer for working families. Couples and single parents should not be forced to give up work to look after children because of the costs of childcare - and more generally people shouldn't have to choose outright between a career and a child. That's why we recently announced that working families will get up to £2,000 a year tax free childcare, from Autumn 2015. Parents will be given vouchers for any Ofsted regulated childcare in England. In Haringey alone it is estimated that 8,340 ...
[IMG: schoolsign] I have recently written a couple of articles on Liberal Democrat Voice around changes to schools (here and here). Please read them, as they go with this one. To follow on from them I believe we also need Lib Dems to get behind changes to the curriculum in secondary schools. The National Curriculum in England gives standards for each subject, but not which subjects (beyond the core subjects of Maths, English and Science) must be taught. If a mainstream school offers History they must follow the History national curriculum standards, but if they don't have a History teacher ...
Following a consultation with residents earlier in the year a '20mph' area has been agreed for the St Margaret's Road area. Work will take place in the Autumn. The scheme includes the smaller roads off St Margaret's Road, together with the section of Polefield Road from Heywood Road to St Margaret's. The report has been uploaded on the Council's website and is available here [IMG: St_Margaret s_Road_area_-_Revised_Scheme_Plan_TM7179-3-page-001] Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any queries or comments about the scheme. Tim
There is a growing view that"inequality is one of the main problems confronting the modern world. This is quite a change. Distribution of income or wealth (or indeed the difference between the two) was not a major concern in the previously dominant neoclassical economic world view. But now that the benefits of growth in the developed world go almost exclusively to a tiny elite, while median incomes stagnate, this view has become complacent. And the work of the French economist Thomas Piketty has drawn attention to the potential power of the very wealthy. This presents a major challenge for liberals. ...
The government has outlined plans to help fill more than 3 million potholes. Councils across England have been allocated £168 million of funding from a Pothole Repair Fund, with which they are required to publish updates to local residents on how many potholes have been repaired. Bury's allocation is £244,561 – the equivalent of fixing potholes. We will be asking Bury how it will be spending the money and where! The money from the Government is part of the £24 billion which is being spent on England's strategic road network between 2010 and 2021.
I have commented before on Prince Charles habit of seeking to use his privileged position to influence public policy. Back in November 2008 I said that Charles may be in line to succeed to the position of Head of State by an accident of his birth but that does not give him the authority to contradict those who have been voted into office by the people. Nor does it give him any legitimacy to 'speak for the nation'. So this story in The Times, who report that the Prince of Wales tried to persuade Tony Blair's government to expand grammar ...
First bus will be holding a meet the manager event in the Atrium at Southmead Hospital this Thursday 3 July from 10:00 - 14:00. In the evening, there will be an online meet the manager session from 17:00 - 19:00 on Twitter (@FirstBSA) and Facebook (First West of England). Both sessions will offer opportunities to residents of the West of England area to provide feedback on the changes to the services to the hospital which were made in April, the forthcoming changes to the fare structures in the wider West of England area (as Bristol was changed last November) and ...
Young people in Bury are organising an event to celebrate diversity and promote tolerance and equality. They are taking part in a Walking Rainbow through the town centre on Sunday 13 July. This will leave the town hall at 12.30pm and, via The Rock, finish at Kay Gardens where there will be music, speeches, information stands and activities. The event is supported by Bury Council, Greater Manchester Police, The Lesbian and Gay Foundation, Gaydio, Backing Young Bury, The Rainbow House Project, Streetwise and more. You can keep up to date via Twitter @walkingrainbow1, Facebook 'The Walking Rainbow 2014' event, 'The ...
Remember C. P. Snow, he of the Two Cultures lecture (to read it would be to condone it, according to F. R. Leavis)? He used to say that, to be hailed as forward-thinking in your own lifetime, the trick was to be only a couple of seconds - and certainly no more than a minute or so - ahead of anyone else. Any more than that, and you look like a crank. For people like me, trying to generate ideas and make a living out of it, this is a fearsome problem. I am constantly either too far behind or ...
4th August 2014 is the day the public has the right to raise questions on the council's financial statement. Details are advertised on the central display section of the county website and will no doubt soon be available.
ongoing: Your Country Calls exhibition, Folkestone Town Hall Until 6th: Hythe Festival Week - The Great War Centenary 5th: World Naked Bike Ride - Folkestone 6th: Community Village Fete, Folkestone Sports Centre 6th: Great Raft Race, Royal Military Canal, Hythe 6th: Lorraine Lucas & The Troubled Family Unit live at Kipps Ale House 6th: Bayle Music Classical Concert, St Eanswythes Church, Folkestone 11th-20th: JAM Multi-Arts Festival, various venues, Romney Marsh 11th: Anja McCloskey live at Googies Art Café, Rendezvous Street 13th: Whitstable Brass Band, The Leas Bandstand 16th-20th: War & Peace Revival, Folkestone Racecourse, Westenhanger 17th: Charlie Larkin, celebrity chef ...
The Bank FOR*** International Settlements has been making front page FT news (£) recently with its warning that we need tighter money to guard against bubbles. The piece kindly refers to other such warnings made in 2003. As Ryan Avent highlights, however, they seem to have been foreseeing dozens of the next asset bubble. Cards on [...]
Tue 1st
08:55
Opinion: Britain is the mother of parliamentary democracy, yet on Friday its Prime Minister voted ag...
[IMG: cameron-europe] For political historians, the 27 June 2014 may go down in history as the day a British Prime Minister voted against parliamentary democracy. For that is what the Juncker nomination was really all about, and which many commentators in the UK fail to understand. Comments such as "two-faced EU leaders", "Europeans fed up with the UK", etc, as read in several articles this weekend, reveal a lack of understanding of the process that has been building up in the EU in the past two years. Without even mentioning Cameron, the Brussels correspondent of France's Liberation newspaper, Jean Quatremer, ...
I had to read Dan Falchikov's The new Lib Dem summer campaign is an admission of failure a couple of times to get to grips with the issue. The blogpost topped last week's LDV Golden Dozen so, presumably, it attracted a decent readership. And so it should. Dan comments critically on the technocratic and tin-eared nature of the first part of the title of the campaign "A record of delivery". He rightly argues that it now appears that Clegg and his "frightfully bright" "teenage acolytes" have realized it might be good to tell a better story about the Liberal Democrat ...
Late last year, as a trustee of the Dundee University Student Trading and Innovative Enterprise (DUSTIE, now branded as DRIVE) I was very pleased to learn of the project's success in the recent Keep Scotland Beautiful Climate Challenge Fund - Round 16 awards. Bogdan Handrea, Project Manager, recently updated me as follows : - After receiving the first round of funding, it allowed us to buy some supplies for our project, such as bicycles and other office supplies. We currently have 35 bicycles which will be hired out from June onwards.- We rented a space on the University of Dundee ...
"Israel launched more than 30 air strikes on the Gaza Strip overnight," says the BBC. "The strikes came in response to 18 rocket attacks on southern Israel from Gaza since Sunday night, the Israeli military said." Is it possible that what the BBC actually meant was: "According to the Israeli military, there have been 18 rocket attacks on southern Israel from Gaza since Sunday night. Israel launched more than 30 air strikes on the Gaza Strip overnight, in what its military called a response to the rocket attacks." If reporting on an incident and a response to that incident, would ...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-28090147 The BBC has the story but this sounds serious to me. Having said that the challenges in Knowsley Borough must be amongst the toughest in England because of the levels of deprivation in some parts of that Borough. Educational attainment levels are also nothing to write home about in parts of Knowsley hence the large number of children attending Sefton Borough schools in places like Maghull. I can see a time coming when a Government of whatever colour says it is not going to allow things to continue and takes direct control of some services.
A new planning application has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 57700 Registration Date: 23/06/2014 Location: 10 Mount Pleasant, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 2SD Proposal: Single storey rear extension Full details are on the Council's website here. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any queries or require help or information. Tim
[IMG: libdemvoice] LibDemVoice's surveys of party members signed-up to our discussion forum have been running for close to four years now. (I posted yesterday the final set of figures from our most recent poll.) Our surveys are a way of testing members' views on a variety of hot topics. And as they've been running throughout the first four years of the Coalition they're also an interesting record of changing views on how the Coalition is regarded within the party. If you would like to take part in the LibDemVoice surveys, there are simply two steps you need to follow: 1) ...
A new planning application has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 57649 Registration Date: 17/06/2014 Location: 36 St Josephs Avenue, Whitefield, Manchester, M45 6NT Proposal: Lawful Development Certificate for proposed single storey extension at rear Full details are on the Council's website here. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any queries or require help or information. Tim
A new planning application has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 57620 Registration Date: 18/06/2014 Location: 46 Holyrood Road, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 1PE Proposal: Two storey extension to rear. Full details are on the Council's website here. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any queries or require help or information. Tim
At the end of May I blogged about the Scottish Government's named person scheme. As I quoted Stuart Waiton saying in that post: The new act will mean that, from birth, each child in Scotland will have a specific state-appointed professional, a 'named person', to oversee their interests, and, in particular, to oversee their safety. Initially, this named person is likely to be a health visitor or midwife, the role later being taken over by school teachers who will have the 'duty' and responsibility to act as the child's guardian.Now another Spiked article, this time by Josie Appleton, has alerted ...
After a large amount of public backing, Pensions Minister Steve Webb is to press ahead to overhaul the private pensions market. Legislation will be brought forward to enable internationally-renowned pension scheme models to be brought to the UK market, after backing from businesses, trade unions and individuals. Liberal Democrats in Government first published proposals to reinvigorate workplace pensions in November last year. 'Reshaping Workplace Pensions for Future Generations' outlined ways to enable new forms of risk sharing and to provide more certainty for members. Steve Webb said: "This Coalition Government has already made fundamental reforms to the pensions landscape. These ...
Before I start this, a brief apology — I know that people are expecting California Dreaming, Cerebus and Liberal Future posts, and there haven't been any over the last few weeks, and nor have there been any more Hugo posts. There probably won't be for the next couple of weeks either. I've had a truly [...]
