#3271943 / gettyimages.com Having watched the BBC documentary on Kate Bush last night, I naturally called in at HMV in Leicester on the way back from visiting my mother in hospital to buy a copy of her 50 Words for Snow. I got talking with the young man on the till. He asked if I had seen the documentary. I said I had, but that for me her first LP would always be the most important. "Was that 1979?" "No," I said, "1978." In fact, as I could have told him, it was February 1978. For a few years in ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

In December 2011 Sir Peter Soulsby told BBC Radio Leicester that the New Walk Centre, which housed the City Council's offices, was to be demolished. In that post I quoted a demolition expert as saying that the roads surrounding the offices could be partially shut for up to five months while the two blocks are demolished. I passed the New Walk Centre today. Council staff have long since been decanted to different buildings across the city and demolition work has begun, but so far, though the site is boarded off, you can still use all the streets that surround it. ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

Spare a thought for Lib Dems preparing to gather in Glasgow in under a fortnight. It's the last conference season before the 2015 general election and the last time the public will get to see [...]

Posted by Lester Holloway on

Will Peter Capaldi know how to fly the TARDIS in an hour's time? Take a Deep Breath! We're thrilled looking forward to the new Doctor, and an old monster. Sixty-seven million years old (today). Doctor Who - Deep Breath It's not the first time dinosaurs have savaged London (and I'm not talking Boris vs Ken). Doctor Who history includes the 1974 story Invasion of the Dinosaurs, featuring Jon Pertwee and, as I've written before... Some problems. But it also boasts one of the most fabulous book covers (and onomatopoeic effects) ever devised. Doctor Who: The New Adventures - Blood Heat ...

Posted by Alex Wilcock on Love and Liberty

Rest in Peace Gerry, you were a broadcasting genius.

Posted by Chris Connolly on A Yellow Guard

The deaths of Michael Brown and Kajieme Powell in St. Louis have bothered me. They have bothered me not so much for their details, though I hope for the families of both men that when all the evidence emerges and is weighed that they feel the conclusions arrived at have delivered justice, but because of what they say, when taken together. For that reason, as odd as it sounds, I want to set aside the arguments about whether Officer Darren Wilson and the two officers in the Powell case were justified in firing the bullets that killed these two men, ...

Posted by Chris Connolly on A Yellow Guard

[IMG: Working to Clear the Line of Track] Working to Clear the Line of Track With work to link Oxford and Bedford as part of the East-West Rail Scheme now underway, Lib Dem Mayor Dave Hodgson has welcomed a new report which identifies the huge economic benefit of extending the line to Cambridge. The report published this week by the East West Rail Consortium, of which Bedford Borough Council is a member along with other local authorities along the route, states that the it will deliver an economic benefit of up to around £750 million, and could see a direct ...

Posted by nickhollinghurst on Nick Hollinghurst

The latest edition of eFocus, our email newsletter to residents in the Whickham area of Blaydon Constituency was written on Thursday and published yesterday. It leads with the possible appeal by UK Coal against Co Durham's rejection of plans for opencast mining near Marley Hill. There are also articles about Planting Up Whickham, Whickham Front Street School rebuilding plans, Marley Hill

Posted by Jonathan Wallace on Jonathan Wallace

Yesterday, I caught up with the first three elected Interim Peers lists, as elected by Federal Conference delegates in 1999, 2004 and 2006. Today, it's time to move on to the 2008 list, and the 2010 'top-up' list that went with it. Here's the 2008 list, in order of election;Brian Paddick - count 1 (1 August 2013)Duncan Brack - count 1Viv Bingham - count 1Ramesh Dewan - count 1Ben Stoneham - count 1 (19 November 2010)Julie Smith - count 1 (8 August 2014)Jonathan Fryer - count 1Gordon Lishman - count 1David Williams - count 1Catherine Bearder - count 2Jonathan Marks ...

Posted by Mark Valladares on The view from Creeting St Peter

[IMG: Austria, not Fife] Fife Today reports: Concerns have been raised over an SNP councillor's ability to serve his constituency – because he lives and works in Austria, it is claimed. Cllr Arthur Morrison, who represents Kirkcaldy East, draws a salary of £16,234 but in 2013/14 turned up to just seven of 47 committee meetings for which he is a member. ince April 1 this year, he has attended only two more... The Press attempted to contact him through various channels – including email – but all met with no response. Cllr Kay Carrington, who also represents the ward, revealed: ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack
YouGov
Sat 23rd
16:06

The Cougar

[IMG: cougar 2] When I was in my late teens, during a memorably awful summer, I had a friend named Todd. Actually, most of the male kids in my class at that point were called Todd; it's a Canadian thing, don't ask. I got him a job at the warehouse where I was already employed. I hated the gig and knew I wouldn't be able to hack it without a sidekick, so I tried to delay the inevitable with every means at my disposal. I asked the line manager to synchronise our shifts so I could go round his flat ...

Posted by Nick on nicktyrone.com

I've just finished two books which detail the bloody history of two Mormon sects headed by two very different brothers. The 4 O'Clock Murders gives a very well-written overview of the history of the LeBaron family, their Mormon fundamentalist faith and the events leading up to and following the religious split that would lead to a great deal of misery. Cult Insanity: A Memoir of Polygamy, Prophets, and Blood Atonement by Irene Spencer, a personal memoir of her time as the plural wife of Verlan LeBaron. As a (then) member of the family and someone who was privy to the ...

[IMG: Crown photo by trainjason] In his recent article in Liberal Democrat Voice, Liberal Democrat Party President refers to a review of the Party's disciplinary procedures, carried out by a senior barrister, Diya Sen Gupta, and goes on to say; She has now made recommendations to us and I am determined that we will implement these as quickly as possible. Now call me a stickler for process if you will, but where does Tim get off making such a statement? After all, authority over membership matters is a State Party matter, not a Federal one, and changes to the Membership ...

Posted by Mark Valladares on Liberal Democrat Voice

[IMG: Portsmouth - Spinnaker Tower. Image courtesy of http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1511600 - some rights reservedq] As PoliticsHome has reported, Gerald Vernon-Jackson is one of the three bidding to be the next Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate in Portsmouth South. Former leader of the council, Gerald Vernon-Jackson is one of the party's most skilled campaigners and led the council team there to a series of political gravity defying wins, until the Hancock scandals brought things crashing down this year. On that affair, and the resulting demands from some that he stand down as council group leader, he told a local newspaper earlier in the ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

[IMG: members forum wordle] LibDemVoice has two parallel sites. The first is our public blog, the thing you're reading now. The second is our private members' forum, which only current Lib Dem members can access. If you're a member and want to chat with fellow party members about any issue that's on your mind, then why not sign up? In addition, you'll be included in our regular surveys' of party members' views. Here's some of the most active discussions this past 7 days: Canvass data and connect. how do you mark undecideds?; Toll roads + Welsh Lib Dems proposal for ...

Posted by The Voice on Liberal Democrat Voice
Sat 23rd
13:50

Christiania

When a community of hippies and eco-warriors settled in Copenhagen's garden suburb of Christiania over 40 years ago they were hailed as Europe's equivalent to San Fracsisco's peaceniks. But whereas many American drop-outs returned to the conventional fold after a couple of years or so, becoming stockbrokers on Wall Street and the like, the alternative [...]

Posted by jonathanfryer on Jonathan Fryer

I may have done a personal best at the Newbury Park run on Greenham Common this morning. I should find out the verdict from the official timespeoples later this afternoon. Certainly, the lady from Mapmyrun, who comes over my headphones, was very encouraging. ++BREAKING NEWS++ PB confirmed at 27:56! As usual, as I ran round, I listened to my "old mate" Brian Matthew and Sounds of the Sixties, about which I have waxed lyrically on several occasions. This morning the great spinmeister played a cracker of a song from Ray Stevens called "Mr. Businessman". I normally associate Ray Stevens with ...

Posted by Paul on Liberal Burblings

I've recently had the chance to work in the Scottish Parliament during August, and it's been a really great experience. On Thursday, I was fortunate enough to get tickets to the final debate before recess, courtesy of Liam McArthur MSP. By the wonders of technology, you can watch it too. It was an interesting experience. Alex Salmond took the opportunity to note all the good things the Scottish parliament had done, and attempt to be fair to other parties. He did actually manage this; however, his argument that the parliament has done some great things and made some mistakes could ...

Posted by Hannah Bettsworth on Liberal Democrat Voice

[IMG: Watford tube station platforms. Photo courtesy of - some rights reserved] In Liberal Democrat Newswire #50 I covered the selection dilemma for the Liberal Democrats own Boris Johnson – a popular, directly-elected Mayor thinking of making a run for Parliament. In the Lib Dem case it is Mayor Dorothy Thornhill in Watford. Another Lib Dem has now decided to go for the selection too: Rabi Martins, who represents central Watford on the borough council, has applied to be the party's candidate for the General Election... He said: "I tried for it before (in 2004) when Sal Brinton narrowly ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

The new series of Doctor Who begins today and wherever the eponymous Time Lord goes his greatest foes will not be far behind. The Daleks are the most feared species in the Doctor Who universe, able to bring even the all-powerful Time Lords to the brink of defeat. So where did that technological superiority come from? Dean Burnett: The Brain of a Time Lord We first meet the Daleks of Skaro as survivors of a devastating nuclear war who have retreated into protective mechanized shells. We later learn that the tank-like shells and the extreme xenophobia exhibited by the creatures ...

Posted by Kieron Flanagan on Political science | The Guardian
eUKhost

In 2010 a lot of political analysts believed that Labour wanted to lose so they could sit on the opposition benches for five years, throw stones whilst the economy turned around and then promise the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow to lure people back. It was a very persuasive argument and one that I thought actually carried some merit. Sometimes in life it is better to fight the good fight but lose and say that you've fought the good fight without actually then having to make the big decisions. Yesterday I wrote what I thought was ...

Posted by neilmonnery on The Rambles of Neil Monnery

I can still remember my first ever live football match. It was a glamorous encounter between Everton and Newport County in the second round of the League Cup on 24th September 1986. A big part of what made it memorable was the electric atmosphere of the Gwladys Street stand at Goodison Park. I was nine, so everything seemed huge but the big scousers around me, shouting and cheering, made sure I could always get a good view of what was happening on the pitch. I was reminded of all this by the headline in the The Mirror yesterday reporting Lib ...

Posted by Stephen Tall on Liberal Democrat Voice

St Albans City and District Council has lodged a claim in the High Court. The claim challenges the Secretary of State's* decision to grant planning permission for a rail freight terminal at Park Street, near St Albans. The Council's claim concerns the legality of the Secretary of State's decision on 14 July 2014 to allow an appeal brought by Helioslough Limited. Helioslough Limited's appeal concerned the Council's refusal of planning permission for a strategic rail freight interchange on the former Radlett aerodrome site. The Council is challenging the decision on three points of law. The first is concerned with the ...

Posted by chriswhite on Chris White

Legalize Drugs, Deal With the Downsides - Bloomberg View (tags: ) Register for electronic billing: Council tax: Calderdale Council I am very happy to do this: not just for environmental reasons, but because I am much more likely to notice an email than something that comes in the post. (tags: ) SCUDAMORE, BANTER, WOMEN AND FOOTBALL - The Anfield Wrap "inclusion only really happens when those on the inside welcome the outsiders in" - yeah. That applies to SO many more things than football. (tags: ) Can you pass a UK citizenship test? Most young people can't - I can ...

Budding entrepreneurs are invited to a free event at Bury Library called Setting Up as a Market Trader on Thursday 18 September. Corin Bland, proprietor of High Peak Beer Company in Stockport Victorian Market Hall, will give an insight into his personal experiences of setting up and running a successful business. Gary Phillips, information services librarian, will provide details of the resources that the library service has to offer. The event runs from 6pm to 8pm, and Delicious of Bury will be providing free refreshments. To register for a free ticket, click here.

Posted by prestwichfocus on Tim Pickstone

[IMG: Football stadium seating] Next off the press release summer production line of policy ideas from the Liberal Democrat manifesto process is restoring standing areas at football matches: Under manifesto plans announced today, football clubs would be allowed to work with their supporters to introduce standing areas. 70% of UK football clubs support safe standing and fans say standing provides a better atmosphere. Introducing safe standing would also cut the price of going to watch a football match. The idea has received a huge range of media coverage for a policy announcement, and even a friendly write-up in the Daily ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

[IMG: Steve_WebbBlog] Four million people have now automatically enrolled in workplace pensions – an increase of over one million this year. Liberal Democrats in government introduced automatic enrolment, which their boss and the government pay in to, in order to give people the confidence to save for retirement. Automatic enrolment started in October 2012, requiring all businesses to enrol staff into a workplace pension and start paying contributions, beginning with the largest employers first. The next stage of the automatic enrolment will see small firms begin to enrol their workers into workplace pensions, with all employees due to be included ...

Posted by nickhollinghurst on Nick Hollinghurst

[IMG: Gaza Burns - photo by Al Jazeera English] Readers may recall that in May, the Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine (LDFP) aroused controversy by posting a link to an alleged anti-Semitic article about Ed Miliband on its Facebook page. LDFP was roundly condemned for posting this link which was quickly removed. An apology from LDFP followed soon after. It is with this case in mind that I am surprised at the lack of response to what the Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel (LDFI) is promoting on its website. Since 27th June, the LDFI site has featured a number of ...

Posted by Nicholas Pentney on Liberal Democrat Voice

A book about anarchism from the world's most influential anarchist leaves me unclear what anarchy actually is. As improbable as this might seem given that I was a politically engaged teenager who was angry about wars and stuff, I've never before read any Noam Chomsky. I had, however, come across his ardent fans. They generally [...]

Posted by Mark Mills on Matter Of Facts

Abquick round up of the recent crop of DVD's watched (just in case it's a really wet Bank Holiday weekend...). Tracks (12) ~ Woman on a mission to walk across the 1,700 mile western deserts of Australia with camels and a dog in the 1970's. A quirky true story. Five out of five stars. ***** Calvary (15) ~ Beautiful cinematography and scenery do little to help this horrid tale of murder. One out of five stars. ***** I, Frankenstein (12) ~ Gargoyles, fallen angels, Frankenstein's monster, it's all thrown in... you'll like this if you're a young teen. Two out ...

Posted by Trisha xx on ripplestone review

No, I don't possess a helmet with horns, nor do I partake of looting, pillage or any of the other stuff that Scandinavian tourists used to get up to in less enlightened times, although I do enjoy the occasional beer... but where on Earth has the idea come from that I might be a Viking? Let's go back to the beginning, shall we?... Tuesday morning dawned a bit grey, it had to be said, but Ros and I had a boat to catch. And as it made its way west from the city, we began to realise just how close ...

Posted by Mark Valladares on The view from Creeting St Peter

Sefton Council operates a system whereby elderly and disabled residents can be given assistance to get their bins out to the pavement for collection and it usually works well. I have had to help an elderly resident in Maghull's Poverty Lane previously when the system has broken down but things were put right there. However, the other day Lydiate Parish Councillor Mark Courtney got in touch with me about a concern held by a group of elderly pensioners living in Barnes Drive, Lydiate that their assisted bin collections were about to cease. Happily all seems well and the assisted collection ...

Posted by Cllr. Tony Robertson on Sefton Focus

Doctor Who returns to BBC One tonight with the first full appearance of Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor. It's been noted many times that Liberal Democrats tend to be bigger fans of Doctor Who – and SF in general – than members of other parties, though to the best of my knowledge Nick Clegg hasn't yet talked in public about his own views on the show. With that in mind, I've come up with five things that I think the new Doctor and his career could teach Nick Clegg: 1) What it's like to be a professional actor Clegg used to ...

Posted by Nick on What You Can Get Away With
Sat 23rd
08:30

Victoria Park

I recently highlighted the superb job the City Council has made of Seabraes planting again this year. Another real credit to the Environment Department is the lovely display at Victoria Park :

A family visit to this excellent preserved railway in North Wales took place recently with a return steam engine hauled trip from Carrog to Llangollen and back. The shot below shows the present end of the line at Carrog but later this year the railway will reach Corwen, so I look forward to another visit when that is achieved. One disadvantage the Llangollen Railway does have is the lack of car parking facilities in Llangollen. Getting a space anywhere in the Town is almost impossible on a nice day. There is a long stay car park which really should be ...

Posted by Cllr. Tony Robertson on Sefton Focus
Sat 23rd
08:05

Cats of World War One

This blogpost which I found via a tweet by Jonathan Calder is absolutely fascinating. It outlines the role played by cats during World War One, hunting mice and rats in ships and in trenches and being embraced as mascots by the soldiers and sailors who they comforted. The author, Mark Strauss says that an estimated 500,000 cats were dispatched to the trenches, where they killed rats and mice; some were also used as gas detectors. At sea, cats had the run of the ship — a tradition dating back thousands of years. As the U.S. Naval Institute explains: It is ...

Posted by Peter Black on Peter Black

In which I react to The Multiversity 1 in the way I think Grant Morrison intended. In other words, this may be the wankiest, least comprehensible, thing I've ever written... Tagged: me elsewhere

Posted by Andrew Hickey on Sci-Ence! Justice Leak!
Sat 23rd
00:24

Sparks in the 1970s

#85519189 / gettyimages.com Now listen to This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us.

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England