This afternoon, I attended a briefing on air quality in the city, organised in advance of a report on the subject to tonight's City Council Environment Committee on the subject. I have long-campaigned for air quality improvements in Lochee Road, the area from the Polepark to Tullideph junctions being an air quality 'hot spot.' The report before committee tonight shows some improvement in NO2 emissions but there is some way to go to reach acceptable targets. I made the point that there should be traffic modelling undertaken to see if the complex junctions at Cleghorn Street/Dudhope Terrace/Lochee Road/Rankine Street could ...
#90733847 / gettyimages.com This family is standing on the town's pier, now long vanished. You can, however, see it in the minor Ealing Comedy Barnacle Bill.
Thanks to BBC News, Headline of the Day visits Cambridgeshire, while Prickwillow has landed itself Place Name of the Day.
Monday (cont.) It was then I recalled the early days of the Independent Television franchise for Rutland. In those days we prided ourselves upon our coverage of international affairs, so it was a blow when, owing to an unfortunate concatenation of circumstances, we found ourselves unable to cover Suez. Nothing daunted, I stepped in and restaged the whole thing at Foxton Locks with the local Scouts and a couple of narrowboats borrowed from Fellows, Morton & Clayton. We had a grand time of it, but imagine my annoyance the next day when I learnt that the promised legend 'Reconstruction' had ...
1 Jun 1979: Sometimes I dream, in the long sleepy afternoons, that the Defence calls a surprise last minute witness, and Rinka bounds in. — Auberon Waugh Diary (@AuberonWaugh_PE) December 6, 2014 Having your former leader on trial at the Old Bailey for conspiracy to murder makes modern-day political scandals look tame. Tweeting a picture of a house with a flag? Pfft. I enjoy Tom Mangold's Radio 4 programme Jeremy Thorpe: The Silent Conspiracy, but I am slighlty puzzled by its most important claim. A BBC News report about it says: Presented by Tom Mangold, who reported on the Thorpe ...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-30013195 The BBC web site covered this story recently – see link above:- Low lying Sefton will always suffer from flooding of one sort or another. Remember this scene from not so long ago – September 2012 in fact. [IMG: Bridges Lane just to the est of Maghull] Bridges Lane just to the east of Maghull
We'd like to thank everyone who put so much work into Cheadle's Victorian Christmas Market last weekend. From the musicians and choir to the puppet show in the church, the funfair in the White Hart car park, the markets on Cheadle Green, the Churchyard and Old Rectory Gardens, the shop displays and a whole lot more, it was a great success that saw Cheadle busy all day. [IMG: cheadle victorian 1] [IMG: cheadle victorian 2] [IMG: cheadle victorian 3] [IMG: cheadle victorian 4] [IMG: cheadle victorian 5]
I am beginning to feel that the unresolved, unresolveable struggle between privatisers and nationalisers has so stymied debate in the UK - almost as much as the race debate bogs everything down in the USA. Nothing seems to change. Nobody changes their mind. The old battles continue with the advocates on both sides slugging it out with the same old phrases - like the Bourbons, they forget nothing and they remember nothing. So I do kind of welcome unusual interventions, especially about the future of public services, from wherever they come from. My friend Jonty Oliffe-Cooper, and his colleagues at ...
If you are fainthearted you might want to give this post a miss So we all know Sean Bean is the guy who dies in every movie. There are even (NSFW) videos to prove it: But Kyle Hill of Nerdist – in a post which rather dubiously is published in their science section – has [...]
This morning Paul Givan MLA wrote in The Newsletter about his reasons for introducing a Private Members Bill allowing a conscience clause. It has been a while since I did a good line by line Fisking of something but this is just so full of holes I think it deserves the full treatment, my comments as ever are in The decision by the Equality Commission to launch legal action against Ashers Bakery for refusing to print a slogan in support of gay marriage made headlines across the UK and beyond Whereas if the cake had been made there would have ...
[IMG: england-flag] Every time a Tory mentions English Votes for English Laws they have a certain daemonic glint in their eyes. The power junkies think they are about to get the keys to the pharmacy. They say nature abhors a vacuum, but the Tories can hardly conceal their delight at the vacuum created by the meteoric rise up the political agenda of the West Lothian Question (which they and their friends in the media have helped to propagate). In 2010 they gained 56% of English MPs with 40% of the English vote. Implementing overdue boundary revisions and reducing MP numbers ...
#456844274 / gettyimages.com From the BBC: The Conservatives must "come clean" about spending plans should they win the general election, says Nick Clegg. The Lib Dem deputy PM told the BBC his coalition partners planned to "pare back" the state "remorselessly" after 2017 and their plans did not "add up"... Mr Clegg told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "I just think the Conservatives are kidding themselves and seeking to kid British voters if they are claiming that it's possible to balance the books, deliver unfunded tax cuts, shrink the state and support public services in the way that everybody wants. ...
[IMG: michael-moore-mp-secretary-of-state-for-scotland] Matt Whittles and I, as the co-founders of Liberal Democrat Fairtrade Future (LDFF), are delighted to announce that we're awarding our first ever MP of the Year award to Michael Moore, the MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk. We're awarding him this honour in recognition of all of the hard work he's put in to his Private Members Bill – currently working its way through Parliament – which will enshrine into law the UK's promise to spend 0.7% of the UK's gross national income on International Aid. We couldn't be more proud that it is a Lib Dem ...
[IMG: Ballot box] Is it just me, or has something recently changed in British politics? In fact, this apparent move towards what some might see as extremism may also be a characteristic of the political scene in Europe and further afield, too. It is almost akin to the frenzy that seems to hit societies at the end of each century, but manifesting itself a decade and a half late. What the opinion polls appear to show is that the centre ground, represented primarily by the Liberal Democrats, has lost ground in favour of a move to the right, as represented ...
About the only perk I get as Hon. President of my local Liberal Democrat Party is to give a little talk at each AGM. Here's the gist of last week's: 1. We have absolutely nothing to apologise for in going into coalition with the Tories. No principles have been abandoned: rather the reverse. As a party we are passionate advocates of proportional representation, which means that balanced (not "hung") parliaments are both likely and logical, and coalitions inevitable. Natural justice demands that the party with the largest number of seats should make the first offer to the minority part(ies) and ...
This morning Paul Givan MLA has issued his thoughts on his conscience clause in The Newsletter. Right in the middle of this I have a major issue. "It is important to highlight particular cases which would, and equally important, cases which would not be affected by the legislation I propose."It would not mean that an evangelical grocer could refuse to sell apples to a gay man. Selling apples does not involve someone to endorse, promote or facilitate a same-sex relationship in violation of his or her faith identity so there is no conflict."It would not mean that a Catholic photographer ...
This is the concluding part of a trilogy of counterfactual pieces previously published on LDV. For Part 1 and Part 2, including the full results of the by-elections in Clacton and Heywood & Middleton in this continuity, please click the links. ...while some on principles baptized/To strict party platforms ties/ Social clubs in drag disguise/Outsiders they can freely criticize/ Tell nothing except who to idolize...." -'It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)', Bob Dylan The dual results in in Clacton and Heywood & Middleton on 9th October threw UK Politics into complete disarray. Douglas Carswell had been re-elected (fairly narrowly) in ...
Draft press release LOCAL LIB DEMS CALL ON [NAME] OF COUNCIL TO END "HIGH STREET TAKE -OVER" BY BOOKIES Liberal Democrat Councillor [name] is calling on [name] council to join forces with over 90 authorities up and down the country calling on the government to halt the proliferation of high street bookies in local communities. [...]
GOVERNMENT MUST EXPLAIN HOW THEY WILL MAKE UP AFFORDABLE HOMES SHORTFALL Following the news that councils will be prevented from asking developers on small sites for contributions towards affordable housing, Cllr Gerald Vernon Jackson, Lib Dem Group Leader at the Local Government Association said: "The LGA and Liberal Democrat councillors have been expressing our opposition [...]
A lovely little story from the newly revamped monthly Liberal Democrat magazine, Ad Lib: [IMG: Ad Lib - telephone callings for the Scottish referendum]
[IMG: United Nations complex] We Liberal Democrats do like a challenge. From taking on Labour/Conservatives in entrenched local authorities to being the smaller party in an austerity coalition, we've fought the good fight for liberal values and policies. Whatever the difficulties in national and local politics, international issues are often more intractable. Conflicts and disputes, whether frozen, like Northern Cyprus, or persistently violent, like Israel/Palestine, linger on for decades. These different problems require different solutions, but I do think that better global governance would help things along. The UN security council is still dominated by those who won a war ...
Mon 8th
11:20
LibLink: Danny Alexander - Liberal Democrats have no part in Tory plans for harsh cuts and empty tax...
The two Coalition parties continue the process of "conscious uncoupling" today. Yesterday, George Osborne said the Lib Dems threatened the economic recovery. Today, it's a case of straight back atcha from Danny Alexander, as he lays bare the difference between the Lib Dem and Tory economic approach ahead of the May 2015 election in an article in today's Telegraph: Last Wednesday, the Coalition delivered another Autumn Statement that stuck to the strategy we've had since 2010: clearing up Labour's mess in the public finances and doing so fairly; reforms to reward work and improve the UK's long-term growth prospects. This ...
I have waited with interest to see the responses to the autumn statement. All Parties admit that there is still a massive gap between income and expenditure. None admit that their 2010 spending and saving plans have been ruptured by ... Continue reading →
Monthly report for December 2014 from District Councillors Sue Carpendale and Kathy Pollard In this report: Local housing development Food Standards Agency Audit Food businesses and allergen information Resurfacing works on the A12 Local housing development We have been aware for some time that larger villages like Capel St. Mary may be approached by developers to build housing on Greenfield sites around the perimeter of the village. We have previously reported that under Babergh's new local development plan we may expect an additional 100 houses over the next 20 years. However that number is not a maximum. We provide an ...
Mon 8th
10:26
Nigel Farage and traffic: it's lack of infrastructure, not immigrants he should be moaning about
[IMG: how-to-avoid-traffic-jams-35319_2] The UKIP leader managed to miss a reception on Friday evening, one in which people had paid £25 for the privilege of hearing Nigel speak (insert joke here about limited sympathy for those who would pay that much to hear Farage talk crap). He had an excuse at the ready for why he missed it, however. How many guesses do you need to nail down what it was? Come on, you say, even Nigel Farage couldn't blame his own lack of professionalism on immigration. Take it away, Nige: "It took me six hours and 15 minutes to get ...
[IMG: Lib Dems winning here] Here's the full list of selection contests in the coming month available for Lib Dems on the approved parliamentary candidates' list, together with the closing date for applications. The following seats have selections in progress and are currently advertising for candidates: Hemel Hempstead, 8th December Hertford & Stortford, 8th December Bridgwater and West Somerset, 12th December Dunfermline and West Fife, 12th December East Hampshire, 12th December Weston-super-Mare, 12th December Chesham and Amersham, 15th December Luton North, 16th December Luton South, 16th December Hull East, 17th December East Devon, 18th December Ashford, 19th December Battersea, 19th ...
We're getting reports of buses not running in Yate and Sodbury because of traffic congestion in Bristol and maybe Bath. Services have been missing and parts of the routes have been left out as the drivers attempt to get back on schedule. Please comment below about any problems you've encountered. Please be specific about the day, the time and the service affected. It seems daft that jamsaasfar away as Bristol can stop our buses running completely in Yate and Chipping Sodbury. Not everyone wants to go to Bristol - the local leg of the journeys is a lifeline for many ...
After weeks where I have been preoccupied with the fantastic Commons vote that will see a Fair Deal for your Local and 15,000 tenanted pubs across the UK, time for a blog on everyday political matters. Political debate this weekend has largely been based on an apparently entirely coincidental attempt by senior Tories and Lib Dems to scaremonger about each other's economic plans. Osborne claims the Lib Dems want huge income tax and National Insurance rises. Clegg claims Osborne's plans don't add up. Danny Alexander gets sent round the studios and sends hundreds of Lib Dem activists ducking for cover ...
[IMG: Sheffield Town Hall] The Localism Act was introduced in November 2011 on a promise of new freedoms and flexibilities for local government, new rights and powers for communities and individuals, and a guarantee to make the planning system more democratic so as to ensure decisions about housing reflect local community wishes. Even the most ardent supporters of this coalition government will be hard pushed to provide evidence that localism has done anything of the sort. Instead, what we have witnessed in the past four years is a constant reduction of local government budgets leading to a steady erosion of ...
Due to circumstances beyond our control, the Liberator website has gone down and will take some time to recover. Meanwhile please redirect your browsers to our current home at http://liberatormagazine.org.uk/en/.
Please sign this petition to get the IOC to include protection of LGBT+ rights in the Olympic Charter (tags: ) 100% of people in this room say ban poor reporting of opinion polls (tags: ) Here's what happened when a news site only reported good news for a day (tags: ) He is not "a tramp" - he is homeless in Ludlow and he doesn't deserve abuse (tags: ) Crazy Girl in an Aspie World: The long road to new shoes. *gazes guiltily at 15 year old black new rocks that @matgb has been trying to throw away for months ...
The highlight of the weekend has to be Nigel Farage's excuse for missing a reception at the UKIP Wales Conference at the weekend. As the Independent reports, the UKIP leader blamed the fact that he missed a paid-for party event in Wales on immigrants: In an appearance on BBC's Sunday Politics Wales, Mr Farage was accused of a lack of professionalism after he failed to make it to a "Meet Nigel Farage" evening in Port Talbot for which about 100 people paid £25 each. But the party leader said that traffic on the M4 was to blame for his lateness ...
[IMG: Tessa Munt photo by Keith Edkins] That's the headline in today's Mirror newspaper: The Tories have launched a nasty dirty tricks campaign in a knife-edge constituency ahead of the next election. Conservative activists are ringing voters in marginal Wells and pretending to be calling on behalf of the respected local Lib-Dem MP Tessa Munt. They then ask the voters if they wanted to see David Cameron or Ed Miliband as Prime Minister at the next election. The calls were all made from a number in Southend, Essex. The Mirror has confirmed that it is one used by the Conservative ...
The Blackness Library knitting group started last month - details below - all welcome :
Mon 8th
08:25
A trio of trouble for Ukip: vile views, benefitting from Euro cash and ousting candidates
#98341472 / gettyimages.com The extremism: Ukip leader Nigel Farage proudly poses with a party activist who leads a double life as an open neo-Nazi. Andrew Lovie, 51, a former secretary of the Aberdeen branch of Ukip, posted a series of vile racist and homophobic rants on a white supremacist website... He also praises Holocaust denier David Duke's My Awakening book about anti-semitic theories and calls his internet radio broadcasts "a breath of fresh air for those people of European ancestry". In another post he calls voting a privilege not a right, and says "practising homosexuals" should not take part in ...
Was out on the campaigning trail and leafleting over the weekend with my old chum Roy Connell. It was a bitter cold but well worth the effort to fly the Lib Dem flag. [IMG: Bruce, Tom, Bill, Roy & John] Roy and I go back a long, long way and we speculated about how many times we had been out on the campaign trail together and how many leaflets we had delivered. The conclusion was that it must be hundreds of thousands – far too many to count. And this got me thinking....... In the photo above, taken by me ...
If you are or know an older resident and help is needed to keep warm this winter please direct them to the Warm & Well In Winter project. Six key things AgeConcern told me: 1. Stay Warm In Your Home. Keep your home 18-21 degrees C. Wear plenty of thin layers so you can easilly adjust your termperature. If you need to wear bed socks, thermal underwaear and a nightcap at night. 2. Get Financial Support. There are grants, bemefits and avice avaialb to improve your homes energy efficiency, heting system and controls. 3. Eat Well And Drink Regularlry. Food ...
Last week's Welsh export figures have shown big drops in the value of exports to key markets that have been visited by Welsh Government trade missions,. Export levels to countries identified as key markets for Wales including the USA, China, Japan and Turkey have decreased. Each one of these countries were visited by Welsh Government trade missions in 2013. This week the Welsh Government rejected a key recommendation of a report from the Assembly's Enterprise and Business Committee which, after taking evidence from business leaders and people who deal in international trade, had called for Key Performance Indicators and targets ...
