This is the report from Michael Crick shown at the start of this evening's Channel 4 News.
Channel 4 News has obtained evidence of tens of thousands of pounds of spending by the Conservatives during key by-election campaigns which appear not to have been declared. Hundreds of pages of receipts obtained by this programme seem to show undeclared expenditure by the party in three crucial parliamentary by-election campaigns in 2014. If all the receipts had been declared, the party would appear to have flouted spending limits in all three by-elections in Newark, Clacton, and Rochester & Strood during 2014... In each of the three by-election campaigns, we found the same pattern with two hotels booked for Conservative ...
Embed from Getty Images We're kind of used to invitations to Lib Dem action days containing a hint of a reward for turning up to help. I've seen organisers promising all sorts of things to motivate people to deliver that extra 100 leaflets or knock on more doors. I certainly have some interesting photos of a particular candidate to release as a treat for spectacular action day performance. There have been promises of chilli (Tom Utting's in Edinburgh Western is legendary), cake and all manner of treats to keep the army marching on its stomach. I have to say that ...
Newly advertised job vacancy: Membership Development Manager (Lib Dem HQ, London) Closing date: Monday 29 February 2016 at 09.00am The successful person in this position will be responsible for growing and mobilising the Party's membership through effective recruitment, engagement and retention programmes. Salary: £26,500 pa Benefit: 8% Employer's Pension Contribution Contract: Permanent Hours: Full time 40 hours/week Location: LDHQ, Westminster, London More details over on the party website.
[IMG: ALDC Master Logo (for screen)] Last Thursday saw four principal council by-elections take place. The Liberal Democrats in East Cambridgeshire (DC), came close to making a gain from the Conservatives in Bottisham ward. The party's vote share increased by 9.8% from last May as candidate Steve Aronson fell just 17 votes short of the Tories. In Northumberland (UA), no Lib Dem candidate was fielded in the by-election in Hexham West, where a non-description candidate made a gain from the Conservatives. The winning candidate had previously served as a Liberal Democrat councilor in the division. The Tories also suffered a ...
Much of Europe is on alert following the Paris outrages late last year and London in particular is braced for one sort of attack by radicalised Muslim youths or returnees from service with ISIS/Deash in Syria. Having lived through years of IRA bombings the British public is probably more phlegmatic about terrorism than most, but [...]
Kirsty Williams and Tim Farron have wandered into the controversy over the singing of the Tom Jones song Delilah by Welsh rugby fans. Labour MP Chris Bryant thinks it shouldn't be sung on account of its account of the murder of its eponymous heroine. I had never really paid too much attention to the lyrics before but they are certainly pretty chilling. Having said that, if you banned every reference in literature or music to violence, and particularly violence against women, there wouldn't be much left. You certainly wouldn't be able to study Othello for your GCSEs or A Level, ...
A Dozen, a Gross, and a Score, plus three times the square root of four, divided by seven, plus five times eleven, is nine squared and not a bit more. A second one, from Integral z-squared dz from 1 to the cube root of 3 times the cosine of three pi over 9 equals log of the cube root of e.
Glyn Jones was an actor, writer and director, who was born in South Africa in 1931 and died in Crete in 2014. This 700-page autobiography recounts the high and low points of his career, somewhat rambling in places, name-dropping of course, but mainly complimenting those who did him favours of various kinds over his long career or noting with satisfaction that he spotted this or that star on his way up (Peter Firth, Maul McGann). The parts about his South African childhood and early acting career are fascinating; the story of his most frustrating failure, a play about the Connaught ...
South Glos Council is currently consulting about their draft waste management strategy. The key points about this for most householders would be: Replacing the 240 litre black bins with smaller 140 litre bins, still only collected every two weeks - the theory is that if people have smaller bins they will recycle more and send less to landfillHaving fewer different kinds of recycling containers, and using boxes rather than bags, but with recycling collections every weekStopping collecting engine oil, car batteries and household batteriesThere are no proposals to bring back free green waste collections - the Tories can't afford what ...
[IMG: John Pugh MP for Southport] The Liverpool Echo has the story – see link above John's move is interesting and it will certainly ratchet up the pressure on Liverpool FC to think again about their proposed hike in ticket prices. I also wonder whether this issue helps to highlight a wider problem in our society whereby those on low incomes are effectively being priced out of the market? In the case of football the high ticket prices are to subsidise the ridiculous wages of the footballers on Liverpool's books but of course this also applies to all the ...
Uncannily accurate, I think you'll agree. when mom says dinner is ready pic.twitter.com/jqoJUuSxl5 — Cute Emergency (@CuteEmergency) January 30, 2016
One of the most depressing things about Britain for native Europhiles such as myself is the way most of the mainstream media — especially newspapers — fuels antagonism to the European Union. But will that affect the outcome of the forthcoming IN/OUT Referendum? I suspect it will, though not necessarily to the extent of giving [...]
Embed from Getty Images Kishwer Falkner has taken part in a gripping and chillingly realistic BBC Two TV programme. It's in the "This World" series and entitled "World War Three: Inside the War Room". You can see it on iPlayer here. A committee of senior former British military and diplomatic figures comes together to war-game a hypothetical 'hot war' in eastern Europe. It is an absolutely fascinating programme. Using actors and footage, a scenario involving Russian infiltration in Estonia starts a crisis. Kishwer, our Foreign Affairs spokesperson, gives plenty of input into the discussion, warning at one point that there ...
It was great to have a nose around Bramall Hall a few days ago, with the renovation works well underway. When it re-opens in the summer it'll have not only repairs to the ceiling but nearly every window repaired, new rooms open to the public, improved information for visitors, a great visitor centre, new restaurant and walled garden. Our thanks to the Friends of Bramall Hall and the dedicated council officers who have all worked so hard to make the renovation and improvement of our historic hall a reality. Here are some photos I took on my trip round. [IMG: ...
I don't know what I think about All Women Shortlists, or the party's motion about them, yet. I'm not completely bought into the motion but I need to understand more about what local parties are being asked to do, and how far AWS will extend. I think it's probably a good thing other areas of diversity such as disability, sexuality and BME representation are being considered tho. But as of yet I don't know what it all means. But, related, I do know what I think about sexist analysis of Hillary Clinton's campaign tho. Apparently when she shouts she is ...
Mon 8th
14:20
Is there a chance that the new Top Gear will be very entertaining but not (borderline) offensive?
Embed from Getty Images The list of past Top Gear controversies is long. There have been allegations of homophobia and criticism of the mockery of Argentines, Mexicans, Germans and Romanians. I have great respect for Jeremy Clarkson as a motoring and general writer. But he presents a persona to the public which teeters on the brink of controversy and often falls over the edge. I have always enjoyed Top Gear – even since Angela Rippon and Noel Edmonds presented it – but particularly with the "famous three" of Clarkson/Hammond and May – when it basically became a comedy programme with ...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35462112 The plight of care home residents has pretty much slipped below the radar in recent years. While there is close scrutiny of everything from A&E waiting times to access to the latest cancer drugs, the support – or rather lack of it – care home residents receive from the NHS has gone almost unnoticed. The BBC has the full story on its web site – see link above With Thanks to Roy Connell for the lead to this posting
Embed from Getty Images As a Brit, living in Brussels and working in the European Parliament, I've had a lot to reflect on over the past months and weeks. When asked by friends and colleagues, "well what do you think about 'Cameron's renegotiation'", I reply "embarrassed". It's a very English sense of embarrassment, arising from the social awkwardness of being associated with someone who has done something fairly stupid and feeling guilty by proxy. Like being the nephew of the drunk uncle who ruins the children's birthday party, it is difficult to have any response other than a weary "yes, ...
The Southport Visiter has the story – see link above [IMG: Departure board at Southport Station.] Departure board at Southport Station. This is an interesting story that I have picked up on many times before. It seems logical to me that those travelling by train towards Manchester from Southport and West Lancashire will want the option of going to Victoria or Piccadilly stations and indeed onto Manchester Airport. Oddly though those who plan future rail services seem to think that Bradford will be be the place to go to by train from Southport! [IMG: John Pugh MP] I have ...
Embed from Getty Images Here are some of the things our team in the House of Lords will be doing this week: Monday: Roger Roberts will be pushing the Government to take action to relieve the situation of unaccompanied refugee children. Tim Farron has been pushing the Government to accept 3,000 at risk refugee children but David Cameron has recently rejected the proposal. The Liberal Democrats will continue to fight to find a solution which does not leave these children vulnerable. John Lee is asking the Government what their latest assessment is of tourism's contribution to the economy of the ...
Sun, 13:59: House of Shattered Wings, by Aliette de Bodard https://t.co/hlUXCQpgQK Sun, 16:05: Anne Frank's Stepsister: 'Donald Trump Is Acting Like Hitler' https://t.co/jOQAm19qnA And she knows what she's talking about. Sun, 17:01: Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott https://t.co/3kZejmmQXv Sun, 19:13: The New Jersey-raised, bow tie-loving president of Estonia gave the best speech on the refugee cri... https://t.co/uWzizk3P3G via @delicious Sun, 20:48: The New Jersey-raised, bow tie-loving president of Estonia gave the best speech on the refugee crisis https://t.co/DeDLJ53QeQ Go @IlvesToo... Mon, 10:45: A Dozen, a Gross, & a Score, + 3 times the square root of 4, divided by 7, ...
Looks like under Corbyn, Labour is hoovering up Greens. But losing Lab-Tory swing voters (a vastly greater group). https://t.co/dmlp7WUsfR — Helen Lewis (@helenlewis) February 6, 2016 This is an unusual post for me. I'm not writing it to convince you of my position but to invite readers to convince me of theirs. What is a party [...]
There have been 111 Liberal Democrat MPs in total since the party was founded in the late 1980s. Ninety-three of them have something in common, not shared with the other eighteen. That factor? Being male. The reason I mention this is that the reaction of some to the radical plans to improve diversity in the Parliamentary Party (see details of the motion here) is to say that the problem is just that the party go so very few MPs elected in May 2015. Now that was certainly a bad result for all sorts of reasons. But remember the 84%. Whether ...
And so the awards season starts in earnest. Official BSFA press release here. Congrats to all concerned. In particular, I think the non-fiction short list is a lot better than in previous years. The Goodreads / LibraryThing stats for the shortlisted novels are as follows. Ranking is consistent between the two (except that there is a tie st the end for LibraryThing). I've read three and must now get the other two. Goodreads LibraryThing owners av rating owners av rating The House of Shattered Wings, by Aliette de Bodard 6,981 3.49 150 3.84 Luna: New Moon, by Ian McDonald 5,506 ...
Embed from Getty Images An urgent summit to discuss unaccompanied asylum seeking children who have fled conflict, poverty and persecution will be chaired by leader of the Liberal Democrats Tim Farron. Liberal Democrats have been pressing the Government to take 3000 orphaned child refugees who have reached European shores. Tim recognises that accepting these children will have an impact on public services and will require local authorities, charities and central government to work together to mitigate these challenges. This roundtable seeks to explore best working practice and establish how central government can act to support local authorities both financially and ...
Connectivity is the key to a successful economy in the twenty first century and that does not just mean roads, railways and airplanes. We spend a lot of time in the Welsh Assembly talking about the proposed M4 by-pass around Newport, Cardiff airport and the electrification of the main line. All of these are important, but so is superfast broadband and increasingly, the availability of 4G and 3G mobile communications. In both areas Wales is struggling to keep up. Today's Telegraph underlines the importance of digital communications to our economic success. They report on a survey by the Engineering Employers ...
Note from Thameslink Due to the severe weather conditions forecast for today and Monday February 8th, speed restrictions will be in operation on some routes from 21:00 today until 03:00, and from 11:00am on Monday 8 February as a safety precaution. We plan to run our Monday morning service as advertised, however passengers are advised [...]
Mon 8th
09:23
Could this man be the next leader of the Conservative Party (and thus next prime minister)?
I have speculated in the past about who would succeed David Cameron as Tory leader. I've said David Davis; I've also intimated that Owen Patterson might be a nailed on certainty. All of these predictions were predicated on certain things happening which in the end did not (such as Cameron failing to get a majority in May 2015, as a for instance). My point is that predicting such things is a moveable feast; who looks likely to take the crown always depends on circumstance. Most of the talk regarding who will be next Tory leader revolves around three people at ...
I moved house to Sussex nearly 18 months ago. None of the public services I used found it easy to grasp this idea. Some proved incompetent; some proved downright malevolent (TalkTalk springs to mind). But all of them, in their different ways, have managed to sort out the glitches, except one. Southern Water. And their failure seems to me to have important lessons for services generally. The problem stems from the fact that my new house boasts both a number and a name. I enrolled with Southern Water (not that I have much choice) using the number; though I didn't ...
Here is Tim Farron's message to welcome the Year of the Monkey: It is with great pleasure that I wish UK's Chinese diaspora communities a very Happy Lunar New Year on the advent of the Year of the Monkey! I am delighted that ties between UK and China have strengthened and deepened over the years and am deeply appreciative of the many contributions the Chinese living in the UK have made to our economy, enriching our local communities. I am particularly proud that we have a British Chinese candidate from my party standing in the Mayoral and London Assembly elections ...
The latest video from the Stronger In Europe campaign is out, and it's rather good. Plausibility comes from directly quoting leading anti-EU campaigners, showing them saying the words that are attributed to them, and it has a good one-two punch: the risks of leaving the European Union followed up at the end by the hopeful future from remaining in the EU. As Benedict Pringle points out: The style of the video is very similar to rebuttal and attack ads that we're used to seeing in US-politics. Features of this style include: Using your opponents' own words against them Relentless repetition ...
I was pretty furious with the patronising fob off reply I received from Bristol Council's Chief Executive to my request for transparency about the spending of £8million on the city's year as European green capital. (See my blog of 29th January) The well salaried Ms Yates implied that I was either confused or ignorant and [...]
As residents know all too well, getting parked in the Union Place car park car be a challenge (as can parking on-street nearby or in the Pennycook Lane car park) given the large demand for parking in the area. A resident contacted me recently to suggest the possible removal of the unattractive flower beds (see right) in the car park to create more parking spaces. I asked the parking team at the council about the viability of this and have received the following response. "I refer to your email to look into the possibility of removing the large and rather ...
Come to the textiles and text exhibition. [IMG: heart of stockport]
Cutest thing on Instagram this morning How did the UN get it so wrong on Julian Arseflange? I have a theory on this: the UN are so pissed off with our cavalier attitude to human rights in general - both those of refugees and migrants, and those of our own citizens, especially the poor and disabled - that any human rights thing to do with the UK that gets sent to them elicits a Pavlovian reaction Freedom of Movement is not simply an economic good, but a bulwark against oppression Reaction to Susan Sarandon's low-cut outfit shows how many men ...
