There was a time when #libdemfightback was used in all sincerity. We had a huge surge in membership, the public were displaying their sympathies for our electoral defeats and after the emergence of pernicious policy, there was a greater appreciation for what we did in government. Back then, #Libdemfightback was almost a hymn of hope, [...]
S.G. Collins explains. h/t the mighty Brian Moore.
Nick Clegg will be speaking on Europe at a public meeting on Europe in Oadby on Thursday 19 May. Also featuring Dinesh Dhamija, the founder of Ebookers, the meeting will take place at Beauchamp College with a 5.30pm for 6pm start. My old friend Liberal Democrat councillor Phil Knowles says: "Zuffar Haq and the team are working very hard to make this a successful evening and I have no doubt that tickets will be in high demand. My recommendation is to book early to secure your place at the event and to avoid disappointment.''To book a place at the meeting, ...
"The UK has gone further down the road of co-opting its citizens into immigration policing than most European countries," says Frances Webber. Tesco's marketing strategy involves making us feel warm towards farms that do not exist, explains Tom Levitt. Charlotte Gill is not impressed by a Leeds primary school's decision to ban the game of tag: " I find all of this safeguarding a great shame. It shows how childhood, which should be a free and exploratory time, is now being over-policed." JohnBoy pays tribute to Barry Hines. Among the facts he is uncovers is that Hines once played in ...
As it stands this evening, the Labour leadership is against bombing Syria but in favour of bombing Britain— Jonathan Calder (@lordbonkers) November 26, 2015 It's nice to be widely retweeted, but does it mean that all those people have understood what you have said? A new paper highlighted by the British Psychological Society's Research Digest blog suggests it does not: The researchers based at Peking University and Cornell University say that the very option to share or repost social media items is distracting, and what's more, the decision to repost is itself a further distraction and actually makes it less ...
A second day in the US with Lords Bonkers. Today he meets an old friend who once featured prominently in these diaries. My old friend Rising Star It seems the Red Indian influence remains strong in New Rutland to this day. Who should I meet when I arrived in Gladstone, the state capital, but my old friend Rising Star, at one time the Liberal Democrat MP for Winchester? We went for a firewater and he told me that he had given up politics and returned to the trade of his forefathers: he is dealing in animal skins ("Um nice little ...
Second paragraph of third chapter: "Breakfast?" A Seventh Doctor novel published in 1997, featuring Ace and Cybermen in wartime 1940s London; grittily imagined, with good characterisation; one of the better Past Doctor Adventures that I have read. It shares certain resonances with The Doctor Dances / The Empty Child, but is really very true to the spirit of McCoy era Who, to the point that I wondered if it could have been a script in its own right. As indeed, apparently, it was - submitted for the 1990 season that was never made. This was the next in the internal ...
Part of the frontage of the new Harris Academy building as it looks this week This morning, I participated in the latest Harris Academy Project Board meeting. The Board oversees the strategic aspects of the new school building project and we had a very positive update about construction progress. The building is substantially complete and can be handed over to the City Council by Robertson, the contractor, subject to snagging works that always are required with any new build, plus some slabbing work. Residents will note the ferris fencing at the front of the site and the temporary huts being ...
Like many academic books it is ridiculously expensive, it is advertised on Amazon for £58 . I recall a meeting of the Liberal Party Standing Committee in 1979 which was drawing up the Election Manifesto. We reached the item on the agenda marked economic policy. There was a silence until Richard Moore spoke: 'I joined the Liberal Party in spite of not because of its economic policy 'he told us. Many people hold the opinion that our party gives economic policy a lower priority than say the environment, reform of government, foreign policy, Europe, individual rights or the state of ...
The Boundary Commission for England (BCE) has published details of its plans for the Parliamentary boundary review slated to be conducted ahead of the 2020 general election: 24 February 2016 The 2018 review had formally launched, with announcement of the relevant figures (number of constituencies for each part of the UK, the electoral quota figure and the minimum and maximum permitted constituency electorates). Summer 2016 Publication of the 'Guide to the review' containing BCE's policies and procedures for the review. September - December 2016 12-week consultation on BCE's initial proposals. The aim was to publish in between summer recess and ...
Already we are being bombarded by both "remainers" and "outers" in the Europe debate by claims which may or may not be valid. There's a good deal of exaggeration and wishful thinking on both sides. In this post I shall try and distinguish between what is fact and what is speculation oropinion.. The facts quoted are based on the Springfield and Telford article summarised here and available in full in Prospect Magazine (January 2016). The cost. Brixit hope: we shall save our net contribution, which is generally agreed to be about £10bn per year. Brexit likes to quote this daily ...
Business Insider has considered why polls on the referendum show a mixed picture and may or may not be reliable. Many have noted that phone polls give IN a much bigger lead than online polls. A point made in this article is that most phone polls, unlike online but like the real ballot paper do not offer an explicit "don't know" response. This may suggest that when confronted with the choice "don't knows" break for IN (assuming they have taken part in the vote). This would support the much cited belief that higher turnout will favour IN and lower turnout ...
Recent events have done little to strengthen the cause of the EU 'Remain' campaign and the internationalists amongst us should be concerned at their potential impact on the outcome of June's Referendum. TATA Steel's announcement that it has put its British operation up for sale has highlighted the EU's reluctance to impose higher tariffs on the cheap Chinese steel that is largely responsible for the dramatic drop in price. UKIP are already playing this message for all it is worth. In Wales its a message that poses a double threat; it will resonate in South Wales West, home of Port ...
Here is what I have put on my om nom nom form so far: Best Novel The Fifth Season - NK Jemisin Signal to Noise - Silvia Moreno-Garcia The Secrets of Drearcliff Grange School - Kim Newman Unhallowed Graves - Nuzo Onoh Veiled - Benedict Jacka Best Short Story Ten Things You'll Only Get if You Were a 50's Kid - Andrew Hickey HOW TO BECOME A ROBOT IN 12 EASY STEPS - A. Merc Rustad Best Graphic Story Corpse Talk: Season 2 Tamsin and the Deep Ms Marvel vol 4: Last Days Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form) Ash Vs ...
More educative entertainment from Tom Scott: No, it wasn't called "hacking" back then: it was called "scientific hooliganism". Let's talk about Marconi, Nevil Maskelyne, and a demonstration that didn't go as planned.
The ballot papers will soon be out in the Liverpool Local Elections With some amusement I turned today to the Liverpool Echo opinion poll for the Mayoral election in Liverpool. There were four horses heavily loaded with candidates (in one ... Continue reading →
After the second televised Scotish Leaders' debate of the election, two newspapers have judged Willie Rennie to be the winner. The Press and Journal, not known for its undying devotion to the Liberal Democrat cause, gave him and Labour's Kezia Dugdale the winning 7/10 score, saying that he "spoke with a personal touch." The Scottish Daily Mail, similarly without a history of Lib Dem love, also gave him 7/10, but made him the outright winner. Analysis of last night's #ScotDebates pic.twitter.com/j79zz9p4gs — Alan Roden (@AlanRoden) March 30, 2016 Personally, I think both papers were being unfair to him. I know ...
[IMG: Lorna and the winning Sutton by-election team.] As an ALDC member you won't have failed to notice that we have seen some spectacular by-election wins recently. Even in by-elections we're not fully contesting we are seeing an upswing in our vote. ALDC member John Grout has crunched the numbers and found that: This year, up to February 19th, Britain Elects calculated that Lib [...]
View Poll: NewspapersIt's almost exactly 3 years since I last asked. If you prefer Andrew's way of wording things he may well follow up his version too ;) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
[IMG: pbwwsealssized] With five weeks to go until polling day North East Fife Lib Dems' campaign to elect Scottish Leader Willie Rennie as the Constituency MSP is going full throttle. Mobilising Volunteers Last Saturday was a Super-Clerical Saturday which saw 51 volunteers from across the region give up a day of their Easter break to support a [...]
[IMG: Toolkit] ALDC have produced a Campaign Toolkit which provide a one stop hub for advice and templates.This is full of advice, downloads and templates to help you get the best start to your by-election campaign. The Whole Toolkit Doorstep Survey – PDF and PagePlus Canvass Leaflets Supporter – PDF and PagePlus Canvass Leaflets Squeeze – PDF and PagePlus Canvass Leaflets Switch- PDF and PagePlus [...]
A recent public hearing in Lancashire highlights the limits of evidence in determining the pros and cons of fracking In the run-up to Easter, I spent several weeks at Blackpool FC's Bloomfield Road stadium, watching an appeal hearing unfold into plans to frack two exploratory wells in the Fylde region of Lancashire. On one side of the room sat Cuadrilla, occasionally joined by the North West Lancashire Chambers of Commerce. Lined up opposite were Lancashire County Council, often accompanied by Friends of the Earth and two local grassroots campaigns: Roseacre Awareness Group and Preston New Road Action Group. In the ...
Tim Farron and Kirsty Williams have said that the UK Government must intervene to be the lender of last resort for Tata Steel. The Liberal Democrat leader said that the Westminster Government should be prepared to step in and act as a temporary buyer for the plant if required, and also offer financial support to ensure key staff are retained during any sales process. Tim Farron said: The Conservative Government in Westminster has let down Port Talbot, not least because of Sajid Javid's disgraceful veto of measures at an EU level to stop the dumping of cheap Chinese steel that ...
As we recently reported, the Severn Tunnel will be closed from 12 September until 21 October due to electrification works. Rail services will run via Gloucester and journeys will therefore be longer. GWR will also provide a comprehensive schedule of bus services between Newport and Bristol for local journeys. While the work is some time away GWR have started to alert customers so they can plan for the changes. This includes a dedicated web page www.GWR.com/SevernTunnel2016 As well as the work in the Severn Tunnel, Network Rail will also be carrying out improvement work around Filton which will affect Bristol, ...
So, it didn't take long for the Tories to apply the brakes to all the good work done on mental health by Norman Lamb and, before him, fellow Liberal Democrat Paul Burstow. The Independent talks exclusively to Norman about what's happening now he's not there to drive things forward. Norman Lamb, who served as the minister responsible for mental health in the Coalition government, said that vital new waiting-times targets for a range of mental health conditions including bipolar disorder and OCD "won't happen" because the plans were not funded. He also hit out at an NHS England decision to ...
What is key to a successful capitalist economy? You might say clearly defined property rights. You might say a sound financial system. You might say entrepreneurs willing to take risks to innovate. You might even say a government that desists from strangling the economy with unnecessary "red tape" and inefficient tax-funded public production. And you'd no doubt be right. But let's just pause on that last one. It is absolutely the case that the proliferation of unnecessary regulation can stifle an economy. But what is "unnecessary" is by no means self-evident. It can be a matter of perspective. Are health ...
Twitter RT @UKTriumph: Thanks to @CastrolMoto for sharing this gem from the archives #RecordBreaker #ForTheRide Teachers sent packing in midst of recruitment crisis - because they earn too little idiotic tory policy is idiotic. Closing courts to fling £700m at digital stand-ins will fail, MPs snarl at UK.gov Men must prove a woman said 'Yes' under tough new rape rules I suspect this will prove controversial among the usual suspects. The Distress of the Privileged - an excellent article about how the hurt privileged people feel is real 'War on Drugs' has made no difference to number of users and ...
The Atlantic takes a look at why the massive wave of anti-Trump TV adverts don't seem to be denting his chances of winning the Republican nomination for the 2016 US Presidential election: On a related point, for more on how online video can work see How political ads and video content influence voters in the US.
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie today said that voters will hear the Lib Dem message on education loud and clear as he revealed that the party is set to deliver more than 5 million pieces of election literature in a campaign blitz. Mr Rennie was speaking from a printing firm in Pollokshaws as the [...]
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-35842488 The BBC has the story on its web site – see link above Liverpool comes in 3rd behind Oldham (the most deprived community) and West Bromwich. In terms of house prices Southport gets a mention due to the fall in house prices comparing 2015 with 2010. An interesting if worrying read as my take on the most deprived communities is that they rarely stop being the most deprived if you look at stats over a long period.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35687296 The BBC has the story on its web site – see link above [IMG: nhs-logo] This project interested me and considering how much Maghull in particular is going to expand because of Sefton Council's awful Local Plan you would have thought it may have been considered for this health project. As I only recently mentioned (see my posting below of 1st March) Maghull (and indeed Lydiate) has had some real struggles over the past few years with primary health care/GP services so putting it in this scheme would have at least started to re-balance things health-wise locally so to ...
[IMG: John Leech and Tim Farron] On Monday night, Tim Farron went to Manchester to launch former MP John Leech's campaign to win the Didsbury West Council ward in Manchester. The Lib Dems missed out by just 162 votes last May. The Labour Council is desperately in need of opposition. At the moment, Labour holds all the seats which is not a healthy situation in any democracy. John was MP for Manchester Withington from 2005-15. He told the packed meeting: Fear has won where liberalism, hope and hard work has been trampled on by politics wreaked by division, complacency and ...
One thing we often hear these days from the commentariat is how "Project Fear" – trying to win a referendum by scaring the voting public into going the way you'd like them to – failed in Scotland and is failing in the EU referendum. Whether this strategy is actually deficient in regards to the current referendum debate is a matter of opinion until June 23rd. However, the idea that Project Fear failed in Scotland is a false one, disproved by evidence. I realise it can be easy for some to forget, given the unprecedented rise of the SNP since September ...
Local people have been complaining for months about the gap left where a Network Rail access gate used to be. There have been reports of dogs running out onto the road and of cyclists taking a short cut onto Shire Way, at the risk of colliding with the traffic. There could of course be even worse consequences if it's a child cyclist. The gap was left there because of a planning dispute between Network Rail and South Glos Council about the access. presumably this has now been solved - railway contractors are now on site. We understand that they are ...
Bird haiku and photos from the garden bird feeders here ~ Bird Moment Haiku
In early June, Ealing will see most of borough covered with wheelie bins. Many rural boroughs make use of wheelie bins. Many urban places do not, and for a number of good reasons. The main reason is the lack of space. When questioned, Labour-run Ealing Council, stated that only 2% of people would be exempt from having wheelie bins but in many wards, including Southfield, the figure is over 10% Wheelie bins: eyesores The Council is wrong in its basic assumptions. When Councils want to make controversial changes, they should consult. Sutton Council did this and people accepted the result ...
Peter Black, Welsh Liberal Democrat Finance Minister, has e-mailed First Minister Carwyn Jones calling on him to ask the Presiding Officer to reconvene the Assembly over the announcement that Tata Steel is to sell its UK interests including the plant at Port Talbot. 5,500 jobs are at risk in Wales. The Assembly's Standing Order 12.3 states: If no plenary meeting is timetabled for a particular date or time, the Presiding Officer may, at the request of the First Minister, summon the Assembly to consider a matter of urgent public importance. Peter Black AM said late last night before Tata confirmed ...
Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesman Jim Hume has slammed the SNP for taking their eye off the ball instead of focusing on the bed crisis in our NHS, as new figures reveal almost 2,000 beds have been cut over the last five years. Statistics published today show that in March 2011 there were 20,893 beds [...]
I've long been an advocate of the idea of basic income (or universal income, negative income tax, citizen's income, "great British cashback" or half a dozen other names for the same principle), but I've just realised I've never explained on ... Continue reading →
This sounds like some massively cheesy slogan for some TED Talk or "motivational guru", but it's mostly how I'm feeling after an evening at my local Libertea – our Liberal Drinks / #libdempint evening that takes place in a coffee shop rather than a pub. We still do the pub on alternating months, and get [...]
Last night, I attended the latest committee meeting of the Bonnie Dundee group, at the City Chambers. This really positive group encourages improvements to the Dundee environment and helps local groups who keep Dundee's parks, open areas, streets and gardens in good shape. In addition to the work maintaining colourful planters over the summer at several locations such as the West Port, Union Street and outside Dundee Science Centre, the group is taking responsibility for one of the Waterfront's Show Gardens in the new Slessor Gardens, which is great news. You can find out more about the work of Bonnie ...
Scottish Liberal Democrat Holyrood candidate for Edinburgh Western (and No. 1 Lothian List candidate) Alex Cole-Hamilton said yesterday that action was needed to ensure that drug and alcohol treatment services in Lothian can meet treatment time targets. New statistics published yesterday revealed that Lothian was the worst performing health board area in Scotland, with less [...]
Commenting following the second televised leaders debate of the Holyrood election campaign, Scottish Liberal Democrat campaign chair Lord Purvis said: "Willie Rennie's performance tonight shows just how clear, bold and positive the Scottish Liberal Democrats' proposals for May's election are. This is our chance for a transformational investment in education – with £475 million a [...]
Brussels Airport stays closed a 7th day, snarling Easter holiday travel I'm in @USAToday! (Name misspelled). (tags: my media Belgium waronterror ) Is 'Friends' Still The Most Popular Show On TV? Apparently so. (tags: tv ) Why ISIS Is Winning the Social Media War Excellent piece (thx @tochitruestory). (tags: waronterror internet )
Last night's news that Tata is to sell its UK operation is deeply unsettling and worrying for the region I represent, those whose livelihood depend on this business and for the future of our area's economy. It is inconceivable that the Assembly will not now be recalled to discuss this issue and yet the time for talking is over. We need action and in particular we need the UK Government to step up to the mark and put its money where its mouth is when it comes to the future of the steel industry in the UK. I have slept ...
Launching the Welsh Liberal Democrats' Assembly Campaign in North Wales, Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, pledged that the party would build 20,000 new homes, rather than blow a billion pounds on the M4 relief road. Speaking at Gladstone's Library in Flintshire to party activists, Kirsty also pledged to establish a new independent health watchdog to help avoid future scandals similar to recent events at Betsi Cadwaladr. Speaking ahead of the launch, Kirsty Williams said: "If there was ever a place to show Labour's failure to make devolution work and deliver for people, it is here in North ...
Today in Brazil the largest party in the country's ruling Coalition, the PMDB (Brazilian Democratic Mvcement Party), pulled out, declaring that the game is up for President Dilma Rousseff. Ms Rousseff is in danger of being impeached over allegations that she manipulated government accounts to hide a yawning deficit. The Brazilian economy has been contracting [...]
