Not for the government, but for the Greek PeopleALDE's Guy Verhofstadt identifies clientelism as a hurdle which must be removed. He calls on the Eurozone leaders to give the negotiations with Greece three more months to work out a programme to fundamentally change the Greek political and economic system in combination with a structural debt solution arrangement.
Despite all that has happened at the Telegraph, its obituaries are still the best. Here it is on Patrick Macnee's childhood: His father was a racehorse trainer, a diminutive man known as "Shrimp" Macnee whose dapper wardrobe his son later recreated for Steed. He had a taste for gin and enlivened his dinner parties by levelling a shotgun at those guests he suspected of pacifist tendencies. Macnee's mother took refuge in a circle of friends that included Tallulah Bankhead and the madam Mrs Meyrick, before absconding with a wealthy lesbian, Evelyn. Young Patrick was brought up by the pair and ...
If you want to know what is really going on in the party, the first place to turn is the Radical Bulletin pages at the front of each issue of Liberator. Here are a few nuggets from the current issue: "The announcement of the front page of the Liberal Democrat manifesto in February created a minor news story. Unfortunately its content was also news to the Federal Policy Committee ... which is supposedly in charge of the manifesto.""Liberator has received persistent complaints, the truth of which is a matter of conjecture, that huge sums were diverted into holding Nick Clegg's ...
Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, on behalf of the Lib-Dems in Broxtowe. May I give a special welcome to the new readers that we have this week. 1. Midland Mainline The biggest piece of news this week was the announcement from the government that they are postponing the electrification of the Midland Mainline. This is extremely disappointing news and one that I would hope that MPs from across the region, of all parties, will fight against strenuously. For many years the Midland mainline has been at the worst funded of ...
Sun 28th
19:22
Rocks Green supermarket should be scaled down to protect landscape says Shropshire Council tree offi...
Shropshire Council's tree and woodland protection officer, Dougald Purce, has criticised the proposal for a new supermarket at Rocks Green because the design puts profit before landscape protection. In a comment on the application last week, he said: In order to maximise the commercial potential of the site the buildings and parking have taken priority [...]
I have been invited today to endorse a proposed amendment to the Party's Constitution, which reads; In article 7.3 of the constitution, add to the end of the first sentence: ", and subject to the Leader's right to veto the inclusion of any specific policy." What this means is that the Federal Policy Committee, which draws up the Party's manifestos for Westminster and Europe, shall retain its responsibility, subject to the right of the Leader to veto anything he or she doesn't like. I like to think that I am not a tin foil hat wearing conspiracy theorist - I ...
[IMG: Pride.jpg] Very happy to have been part of the Lib Dem group marching at Pride yesterday! The march was absolutely massive - so many people, noises and colours. And there was such a fantastic atmosphere, with people watching us and cheering the march every step of the way. Thanks to decades of tireless campaigning, we're now much closer to LGBT+ equality in the UK. There is still a way to go to end discrimination, particularly within certain industries, but those campaigners must be so proud of how far they've come.
These four photographs of British Celanese come from the same roll of film as the ones showing the construction of the A52 at Willowcroft Road. This means that they will date from either 1956 or 1957, as the roll finishes with three taken on the day of the Queen's visit to Derby. It's been suggested that the reason her train ...
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe:
Yesterday the Lib Dem Federal Executive (FE) held an away day, out of which came a promising set of plans and intentions. Previous similar FE planning sessions have also come up with good intentions that haven't quite been matched by subsequent reality, so – as with what the leadership candidates are saying – the real test will be in the delivery. Saying the right things certainly is the right first step, however. That's perhaps best exemplified by the widespread support for simplifying the party's structures and for improving transparency and accountability. The challenge there is that no one person or ...
The Political Quarterly announced the winner of The Bernard Crick prize for the best piece 2014 a couple of weeks ago. It was awarded to Alan Finlayson's article Proving, pleasing and persuading? Rhetoric in contemporary British Politics (free to read at the moment). Finlayson contrasts political rhetoric at the start of the twentieth century with contemporary rhetoric. The thrust of his argument is that contemporary politics offers an inhospitable environment for sophisticated rhetorical strategies. There are several reasons for this. Rhetoric is about appreciating where audiences start from in their understanding of the world and tailoring your arguments so as ...
[IMG: 7 ver 4 full] Many thanks to the 13000 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here's our 7 most-read posts... Norman Lamb's campaign suspends two volunteers for alleged misuse of personal data for push-polling (67 comments) by Caron Lindsay Opinion: The Clegg Catastrpohe: what the Guardian didm't mention (47 comments) by Gareth Epps Guardian revelations about Clegg, Cable and the Lib Dem election catastrophe (77 comments) by Caron Lindsay Opinion: I'm a Liberal so why should I feel excluded? (81 comments) by Paul Halliday Video: Nick Clegg's interview on LBC (44 comments) by The Voice Is ...
This isn't a music track. It's a: Sound work for radio and red vinyl 45rpm 12" record (blank 'A' side, single track on 'B' side), stereo, 16 mins, 2006-2007.Because Paul Rooney is an artist, you see. The blurb accompanying an excerpt on Vimeo explains what is going on here: The record comprises a single voice monologue above and amidst music influenced by dub reggae and Lancastrian post-punk. The voice on the piece is that of Lucy, a 'sprite of the air', an airborne spirit, who is possessing the grooves of the record itself, and is damned to endlessly repeat stories ...
[IMG: Tim Farron and Norman Lamb] Tuesday night sees Ethnic Minority Liberal Democrats (EMLD) holding a Lib Dem leadership hustings focusing on racial inequality. It's from 7pm at Draper Tenants Hall, Elephant and Castle, Newington Butts, London SE1 6SF, with the leadership candidates due to arrive at 6:30pm. (Note: not the Draper's Hall in EC2.) You can book your place here. (It's free but places are limited.) If you can't make it in person, you can submit a question in advance by email instead via EMLD's Secretary Marisha Ray (marisha.ray1@gmail.com). Keep up with news on the Lib Dem leadership race ...
Like others, until now I have kept my views private, sat on the fence and watched the past few weeks events unfold. I still intend to sit on that fence, but feel I should throw my two penneth of views ... Continue reading →
Baroness Sal Brinton, Lib Dem President presented the Lib Dem Council Group of the Year Awards at the Local Government Conference in Manchester in June, with awards for Lib Dem Council Groups across the Country who are leading the Lib Dem fightback from the grass roots, these included: City of York Liberal Democrat Group – Council Group of the Year Award – This group bucked the national trend to win 4 seats – They came back after losing seats in the 2011 elections. Key campaigns included: o Keeping a recycling depot open, including a 2,700 strong petition, press work and ...
The Government wants to scrap our Human Rights Act. The Human Rights Act was drafted by British lawyers in the aftermath of the Second World War, and gives us so many fundamental protections that we rely on in our day to day lives. It has held the state to account for spying on us, safeguarded our soldiers and supported peaceful protest. It's helped rape victims, defended domestic violence victims, guarded against slavery, protected elderly couples in care and shielded press freedom. Scrapping the Human Rights Act would weaken the rights of everyone, meaning less protection against powerful interests. It would ...
Peter Tatchell yesterday highlighted at Pride in London that the LGBT people in Northern Ireland are being denied the same rights and opportunities enjoyed elsewhere in the Union. He urged the people of the UK to stand in solidarity. Here is him being interviewed about the issues. President Obama on Friday also said that the US Supreme Court ruling ended the patchwork of equality for LGBT people in his great nation. Northern Ireland is now becoming that little patch that needs to be added to the quilt of Western equality.
At the last election the Conservatives made a manifesto pledge to offer 1.3 million English tenants of housing association houses and flats the chance to buy their homes at a discount. It is an innocuous looking promise but it could have huge consequences for the housing market, particularly in London and South East England. The Observer reports that local authorities in inner London now believe that they will have to sell every new council home they build, as soon as they are ready, just so that they can finance this give-away. This is because the funding for discounts for housing ...
Next week, in two separate debates, Alistair Carmichael and Lord Jim Wallace will highlight the importance of human rights and civil liberties. In an email to party members, Carmichael urged them to sign our petition in support of the Human Rights Act. He said: As a former solicitor working in the courts, I know the HRA isn't just some bureaucratic system invented by Brussels bureaucrats to wrap us in red tape, which is what the Tories would have you believe. The HRA was drafted by British lawyers in the aftermath of the Second World War, and gives us so many ...
People who talk about politics on Twitter and Facebook aren't typical of the overall population. That's not only the obvious conclusion from taking a look It's also the more rigorous conclusion from work such as the British Election Study which found huge variation in the willingness of supporters of different parties to share political content online, as these graphs via PoliticalBetting show: [IMG: BES data on Facebook] [IMG: BES data on Twitter] However, there is another way of looking at this: with more registered electors on social media than vote, social networking is a hugely effective way of getting at ...
Earlier this year, on behalf of constituents, I requested of the City Council repairs to the mosaic in Tay Square in front of the Rep. The City Council's Planning Officer (Public Art) has now advised me that the repairs are now complete - see below : BEFORE AFTER
In March of 1968, the last episode of the TV show "The Monkees" aired in America. The rock group that had been assembled by a television studio for the purposes of the programme alone, had lost its raison d'être. The group's commercial potential, in terms of both selling albums and singles as well as attracting advertising dollars, had elapsed. Were this to take place in the 21st century, the group would have been thouroughly legally extirpated, with every member getting a carrot in the form of a healthy financial send off, along with a potential stick waiting in the wings ...
Well you don't need to tell me Peter as Sheila and I put them on our own house roof in 2011 and I was also involved in them being installed on Maghull Town Hall and Lydiate Village Centre with my Lib Dem colleagues who used to run Maghull Town Council & Lydiate Parish Council. Lydiate resident Peter Greener is now trying to get the powers that be in Sefton Borough to seriously match and improve on what has already happened in Maghull & Lydiate. This is what Peter says:- [IMG: Solar panels meter at Lydiate Village Centre r] See the ...
Part of my occasional nostalgia series. Remember when Maghull had its own cinema where Lidl's supermarket now sits at the Alt? [IMG: IMG_0002] Click on the photo to enlarge it This photo was taken after the cinema has closed in the early/mid 1990's. Stood in front of the sadly derelict building is Jim Byrne who served on Maghull Town Council for many years and who still lives just up Northway from the site. Interesting that the 3 names that the cinema had all began with the letter 'A'. The Beatles played there in their early days.
Did the Conservatives make false rail promises to north? - #QTWTAIY Liberal England: EXCLUSIVE Listen to Tim Farron's band - it's so very 80s LOL ♡ Neuroscience: The hard science of oxytocin - unfortunately promoting dangerous misconceptions about ASD people Srsly, if I see one more article in which some clueless arse who claims to be a scientist goes on about how ASD people don't feel emotions I'm going to hulk out. If you've been socialised from birth that your emotional displays are inappropriate of course you display less, but suppressing the display of emotion does NOT mean not feeling, ...
NHS Southwark Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) makes all the decisions about GP services. The CCG is a club of all Gp practices across the borough – replacing what was previously called the PCT. They're investing £2M in GP services but are they doing it in the right way? They've created two hubs for overflow GP appointments. One in Bermondsey Spa to cover the north of Southwark and one in the middle at the Lister Primary Care Centre covering the south of Southwark. The assumption is patients don't care where they can be seen by a GP. That GP practices will ...
