An investigation published by The British Medical Journal this evening looks at the way the tobacco industry seeks to influence parliamentarians. It shows that, since 2010, 38 MPs - 29 Conservatives, eight Labour, and one independent - have accepted over £60,000 worth of tobacco industry hospitality, including tickets to the Chelsea flower show, high profile sporting events and rock concerts. More than half of these MPs are from constituencies where the number of smoking related deaths exceeds the national average of 289 per 100,000. Read the full report on the BMJ website.
If you like This Sort of Thing there's Devon, Bedfordshire, North Lincolnshire, East Sussex, Leicestershire, Herefordshire, Hampshire, Cumbria, Cambridgeshire, Kent, Lincolnshire, Cornwall and Rutland. Rutland? Yes, Rutland.
The Guardian reports: More than 100 Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidates have signed a letter to the Guardian backing Tim Farron's bid to succeed Nick Clegg as the party's leader. One hundred and eleven Lib Dems who to stood for parliament on 7 May have put their names to the letter, which argues that the MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale is the best candidate to rebuild the party. Amongst the 111 are three former MPs: Duncan Hames, Jo Swinson and John Leech. Not all of the signatories are candidates who stood in 2015, by the way. I've not checked the full ...
Wed 20th
20:55
Tim Farron talks to Pink News about his record on LGBT issues, disestablishing the Church of England...
Tim Farron has given an extensive interview to Pink News in which he directly addresses his voting record on LGBT issues and announces some key policy initiatives he wants to take forward. His three ideas are: One, when it comes to the equal marriage legislation, I think we really missed a trick on trans issues. On the spousal veto, I think it's an appalling thing that one person is allowed to block another person's freedom. We should be making that a priority. Secondly, it strikes me as deeply troubling is that there was no regulation of psychotherapists in the UK ...
Wed 20th
20:20
Confused peacock called Felix tries to squeeze through cat flap at Aberdeenshire house
The Herald wins Headline of the Day for this account of life in Inverurie. Thanks to Jo Swinson on Twitter.
The great Liberal philosopher John Stuart Mill was born in Rodney Street, Pentonville, on 20 May 1806. To mark the day, let me point you to an article I wrote about the old boy for Liberator some years ago: It seems we have become obsessed by Mill's harm principle. Yet it is only a small part of On Liberty: the essence of that work is not concerned with curbing liberty at all but is a glorious hymn in favour of its expansion. Writing in Prospect magazine last year, Richard Reeves put it well: for Mill, liberty consists of much more ...
There's praise in the Guardian for Norman Lamb's work on mental health and for his efforts on social care. They assess him as a good but not a great minister – although they then go on to make pretty clear that the things he couldn't deliver were because they were blocked by the Tories. Norman's judgement on what needed to be done seems to have been pretty much exemplary: First, on mental health: Once in post, Lamb threw himself into the role with gusto. He combined a heavy Westminster workload - not least ensuring passage of the watershed Care Act ...
Expenses Returns for the Local Elections 2015 We all know that they have to be done but getting round to the election expenses is most activists least enjoyable election task. Your local authority should supply you with a set of election expenses forms. There are 3 basic forms to be submitted for each candidate: 1. [...]
On 16 May 2010, 10 days after the general election, the Lib Dems organised a special conference to debate the Coalition Agreement. It was put together in four days. As Duncan Brack, then Chair of the Federal Conference Committee put it "In holding this special conference we are demonstrating again that we are a democratic party which listens to and trusts its members." It also gave the impression of a party which is nimble enough to react swiftly to major developments. On the morning after the general election on 7 May 2015, I woke up to the sad news that ...
Wed 20th
18:51
Political & Constitutional Reform Committee: Another Early Victim of the Great Liberal Defeat, 2...
The news has just broken that the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee has been abolished, following meetings between the party whips. The Committee was established in 2010, mainly in order to scrutinise the work of the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who had responsibility for a host of reforms – so many, in fact, that he [...]
Over on the Facebook event for the 2015 Liberal Democrat leadership contest, a great question was asked about whether the Liberal Democrats should ever go into coalition again: [IMG: Coalition question] [IMG: Coalition question - Tim Farron and Norman Lamb answer - Lib Dem leadership contest 2015] Thanks, by the way, to both Norman and Tim for engaging so regularly with the questions being posted up there. The level of immediate dialogue between candidates and party members is much greater than at similar stages in previous leadership contests – and it's just what the party needs. Want to keep up ...
Transport for London (TfL) is seeking your views on proposals to run the 154 bus through the night on Fridays and Saturdays from September. The purpose is to link in with the 24 hour London Underground service when it comes into operation. The details and online survey can be accessed here.
A member for 13 years, this is only the fifth time (out of five) that I have been a candidate and lost; it's only the ninth set of elections that I have been involved with, all of which have been characterised by losses. I realise that I am only a beginner compared to many folk in this wonderful political family of ours. In our part of the world, there are elections (of some form or other) almost every year. And I admit, particularly after the results became clear last Thursday, to have started to flag a bit. But as the ...
UKIP claim to be different to other parties. In reality they are not. However, if this newspaper article in the Telegraph is to be believed they have invented a new form of in-fighting, one where the leader plots against himself. The paper quotes the UK Independence Party's deputy chairman, Suzanne Evans, who has denied that she or others planned a coup for the party leadership. Instead she says that Farage was undermining himself. It is not clear as to whether he was aware of this at the time: "The only person that's ever plotted against Nigel Farage's leadership is Nigel ...
[IMG: COE-Logo-Quadri] Liberals (with a small "L") believe that society should not be governed by immutable dogma. New laws can be created when required and old laws changed or removed. Immutable revelation only applies to religion. Not everyone believes that laws should be subject to the uncertainty of the democratic process. For decades the Soviet Union relied on the absolute principles of Marx and Lenin. Some religions provide God-given legal codes. But for liberals, laws are the work of humans and must be subject to democratic change. It is therefore strange that the Liberal Democratics support the European Convention on ...
Given our new position in parliament with eight MPs, we'll be handing out multiple portfolios to whoever can possibly take them – and I suspect, Lords, AMs and MSPs as well, where necessary. This is by no means a bad thing. We have fantastic members in all parliamentary institutions, and the devolved ones in particular could do with being taken more seriously. The only issue being they cannot then hold their respective ministers to account. The main question that strikes me now though is with a more or less inevitable EU referendum and being the most unapologetically pro-EU party – ...
[IMG: Jeremy Hunt prediction] Actual election result? Jeremy Hunt 59.9%, Louise Irvine 4th with 8.5%.
[IMG: facebook and twitter] I have been thinking why it seems that right wing parties are more toxic than left wing parties. Is this true? Or is it simply my prejudices? Is there anything in the "shy Tory" phenomenon? It does seem that popular culture is more left leaning, but I thought some numbers would help us understand society better and also help Liberal Democrats decide who to vote for in the upcoming leadership election. For this analysis I have used the Facebook likes, Twitter followers and 2015 General Election votes for the following parties: Conservatives, UKIP, Democratic Unionist Party ...
At yesterday's Annual Meeting of Hertfordshire County Council (May 19), the Liberal Democrats, who form the official opposition on Hertfordshire County Council, revealed a new Shadow Cabinet. The new Shadow Cabinet is as follows: Stephen Giles-Medhurst (Central Watford and Oxhey) – Leader of the Opposition, Hertfordshire County Council Malcolm Cowan (Handside and Peartree) – Deputy Leader of the opposition, Hertfordshire [...]
Norman Lamb, says the Guardian's David Brindle, will go down in the annals of social care as a good, arguably very good, minister: Once in post, Lamb threw himself into the role with gusto. He combined a heavy Westminster workload - not least ensuring passage of the watershed Care Act - with a remorseless programme of visits to observe care practice and engage with professionals, carers and people who use services. He always seemed accessible: approached by strangers on the train from his North Norfolk constituency to London, he would happily set aside his papers and chat. Ray James, president ...
The production values aren't maybe the slickest, but that doesn't matter. This heartfelt video made by young activists shows what Nick's leadership has meant to them. Some people have agreed with Nick more than others over the years, but there is no doubt that there is much to thank him for. Enjoy.
When she entered the contest for the Labour leadership two days ago Yvette Cooper apparently criticised Ed Miliband's campaign for being "anti-business." The only appropriate response I can think of involves too many expletives which would need to be deleted. I haven't studied Miliband's comments on business in any detail, but, for heaven's sake, it is not being unfriendly to business to suggest that they should: pay their taxes; observe health and safety laws;offer employment contracts which respect the needs of their employees as well as their own.That seems to me to have been the gist of the Labour campaign. ...
Wed 20th
11:59
If you were elected as an MP, what text would you choose to swear your oath of allegiance on?
Prompted by this article on the BBC news website and the ensuing discussion on twitter. View Poll: Oaths I'm not sure what the rules are for courts, these days. I suspect they're a bit more stringent than parliament. I know most courts let you choose a religious text if you are going to swear by almighty God to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God, but I don't know if you get a book to hold if you're affirming, or what they do with people from polytheistic faiths... Google gives me an ...
It's 4 years since Willie Rennie became Scottish Liberal Democrat leader this week. He was elected in the wake of a crushing electoral defeat and he celebrates this anniversary in the wake of another one. That is despite him regularly being credited with landing some real blows on the SNP administration at Holyrood with not even 5% of MSPs. Let's just look at some of the accolades he and his small team have received. Within weeks of him becoming leader the journalists were full of praise: A doughty campaigner, with an unpatronising down-to-earth style, Mr Rennie may grow into an ...
This great film is really two films in one. The first, is a family drama about Stanislav Petrov looking back on his life and, finally, healing some of the rifts in his family. [IMG: The Man Who Saved The World - DVD cover] The second, which actually takes up the lesser part of the film is the horrifying real-life story of how Russia nearly launched a nuclear attack on the US in the 1980s after faulty equipment indicated missile launches by the Americans. Petrov was the officer in command when it happened and decided not to believe what his colleagues ...
On the morning after the General Election, feeling rather shell-shocked by the results, I turned on the radio and caught John Dowland's lute song In darkness let me dwell. The music captured the feeling of the moment, but context was more thought-provoking: a Radio 4 programme The glass delusion, exploring a seventeenth-century phenomenon of people thinking they were turning into glass. The link to Dowland was because melancholia was seen as a disease of the imagination. That flowering of melancholic music and the glass delusion were reflections of what was going on in society at the time. Delusions are manufactured ...
I did not know that either @SalBrinton or @ThomasBrake were in the Green party or Ukip (tags: ) A question for writers: why are you writing a rape scene? (TW) (tags: ) Motivational Posters for ppl who think motivational posters are bollocks (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of the General Election results. Some 1065 party members responded – thank you – and we're publishing the full results. Of the former MPs which stood for election, but failed to regain their seats we asked if you would like to see them Enter the House of Lords; Run for Mayor of London; Start work on 2020; Go on I'm a Celebrity or have no answer. There was only one choice per MP, and I regret not asking about the Scottish Parliament / Welsh Assembly. ...
Since the Shell garage on Temeside closed a few years ago, Ludlow has had only one petrol station in the town. That has led to long queues for fuel at the Co-op on Foldgate Lane (formerly Harry Tuffins). This is about to change. Yesterday the South Planning Committee approved plans for a petrol station and [...]
Listening to the fall-out from Steve Hilton's proposal that bankers should earn packages in line with senior civil servants suddenly flung me back five years to the start of the coalition, when I proposed something similar to a packed meeting of Lib Dem special advisors and parliamentarians. An icy cold fell on the room as they looked down the table at me. "How would you do that?" someone asked, with a tone that was if anything even cooler. "Tax their bonuses at 95 per cent?" I said hopefully, and a little interrogatively, but I had lost my audience. Nobody replied. ...
[IMG: lGBT+ lib dems logo] The Liberals were the first party to support gay rights in a general election manifesto. The Lib Dems opposed Section 28 from the start, were the first to call for legal gender recognition for trans people, literally wrote the law on civil partnerships and were the first major party to support same-sex marriage, which was pushed through in Government by Lynne Featherstone as Equalities minister. It's clear that as a party we've always been there for LGBT+ people, and we always will. Liberalism is inherently opposed to conformity, and our party is constitutionally supportive of ...
Douglas Carswell wrote a piece on his website yesterday about how UKIP could seriously challenge Labour in the north, taking seats off them sooner than some might expect. He described his party breaking up a "one party state" and claims that UKIP do not need to move to the left in order to achieve this; that in fact, the whole draw of UKIP in the north, theoretically at least, should be that they are a right of centre party northerners can vote for because they are not the Tories. A lot of what Carswell had to say on the matter ...
A major new planning application, the largest in Prestwich for a number of years has been received. This is for 97 new homes on land immediately behind Tescos. It is not in Holyrood Ward, but will probably be of interest to people. The details are: Application Number: 58655 Registration Date: 06/05/2015 Location: Land at Valley Park Road/Clifton Road Prestwich, Manchester, M25 3TG Proposal: Erection of 97 no. residential units (Class C3) comprising 67 no. dwellings and 30 no. apartments with associated landscaping, access arrangements and car parking and substation and creation of pond and woodland walk and seating area. The ...
Following complaints from residents about graffiti on the utility boxes in City Road near Saggar Street, I asked the City Council's Rapid Response Team to remove this and they have very promptly tackled this : Before After There is also graffiti on the Friary wall on City Road, which will also be removed after a disclaimer is signed by the owner to grant permission to undertake removal :
The BBC reports: A complaint against former Respect MP George Galloway over his use of parliamentary funds has been referred to the police, the parliamentary standards watchdog has confirmed... Ms Ali Khan alleged that, during her six-month stint as his taxpayer-funded assistant in 2012, she was required to help plan Mr Galloway's wedding, shop for underwear, sort out his laundry, make his breakfast and work for the Viva Palestina charity. Her lawyers said this amounted to a breach of the requirement to use funds for parliamentary purposes.
No this is is not a obituary, Dave is still very much alive and kicking but it is a tribute to a man who has done so much for Lydiate over the past 25 years or so. I made mention of Dave in part of a recent posting about the recent local elections but here is a more detailed tribute to him. [IMG: Lydiate environmental campaigners presenting Dave Russell with a petition to try to save the Green Belt from development around Lydiate] Lydiate environmental campaigners presenting Dave Russell with a petition to try to save the Green Belt from ...
An annual Five Churches Walk will be taking place round the green paths of Prestwich on Saturday 30th May. Walkers take a 10-mile country route from St Gabriel's, Bishops Road, Sedgley Park - via St Hilda's, St George's (Simister), St Margaret's and St Mary's - stopping off at each place for a cup of tea and some light refreshments. The walk goes through Phillips Park, Prestwich Clough, Heaton Park and the fields between Heywood Old Road and Nutt Lane, too. It's a sponsored walk - where each walker can raise money for any cause they wish. Walkers from St Gabriel's ...
Technology-based sharing platforms are touching more and more people's lives, but policy and regulation can struggle to cope with new technologies. We need to rethink our notion of the sharing economy in order to make better regulation The technology-enabled sharing economy is an increasingly significant social and economic phenomenon. Increasing numbers share their homes (Airbnb), cars (Relayrides) and rides (BlaBlaCar), and people are also now sharing boats, tools, gardens, pets and clothes. This week in Paris entrepreneurs, innovators, regulators and academics will come together at OuiShare Fest, a major three day celebration of the new sharing economy. But the sharing ...
This week is Dementia Awareness Week Bury Council's Social Development Team, alongside Bury Dementia Action Alliance, Making Space Dementia Charity, the Alzheimer's Society, have planned a week of events to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of Dementia. [IMG: Screenshot 2015-05-20 06.54.32] Please click here to view a programme of the week's events. Apologies for circulating this after the week has started. Tim
Applications are open for the Community Fund grants which are available for each of the Township Forum areas across Bury Council. The Community Fund was originally established by a Liberal Democrat group proposal at Bury Council which became part of the Councils budget. Each Township Forum area has been allocated £8,000 to support the work of voluntary and community funds with funds allocated at 4 meetings each year (June, September, November and March). A maximum grant of £250 is availbale for formally constituted organisations. Additionally a borough-wide allocation of £8,000 is available for 'cross ward' applications where activity takes place ...
Pennine Care NHS Trust, who operate the community NHS services throughout Bury are organising a 'Fun activity event' to mark the launch of their 'My Health My Community' initiative on 29 May 2015. There is a launch event leaflet here. Pennine Care say: "You are invited to come along to a FREE activity day on 29 May to celebrate the launch of an exciting new scheme that will help people to better manage their own health and that of the people they care for. On the day, you can come along and find out more about My Health My Community ...
