Southwark Council after resisting years of campaigning from the people at 35% and Lib Dem colleague Cllr Adele Morris have agreed a new policy of publishing viability reports about whether a developer can afford to provide 35% social housing in any proposed development, some reduced amount or none at all. For years developers appeared to hood wink Southwark Council and the council appeared to collude by keeping everything secret. So it is a huge positive step forward to publish such statements in future. These statements are produced as per Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors guidelines. But they're flawed and the ...
Dear Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne, As I know you are both such long-term supporters of the banking and financial services industries, I am writing to request your help with the financial issues currently being faced by the Port Talbot Metallic Commodities Creation Bank. As I'm sure you are aware, our banking institution has a long and proud history of metallic commodity creation for city trading floors and other financial and investment services. Though we have traded under several names and owners, we are proud to say that without our commodity creation services the United Kingdom would never have reached ...
Published 50 years ago, in the April 1966 edition of Argosy, reprinted from September 1964 Our six diggers were spading back the hard, cindery earth crusted over a formation of flat stones. I was sitting on a wall just above them, supervising the job. Tanner, my partner, was in his tent suffering from intermittent malaria. Twilight was flowing over the Jordanian hills, and the first fat drops of rain were just beginning to splat on the bone-dry dirt. The headman, Hassin, straightened up and grinned at me. They had uncovered a stone floor or roof, a rectangle of, say, 20 ...
We join the old boy as he waits from his flight back from the states. Liam Fox? My dear, I screamed! So here I sit in the VIP departure lounge at JFK, fighting off all attempts to put ice in my Auld Johnston. Before they call the flight to Oakham International, let me share with you my hopes for the months ahead in Britain. First, the Conservative Party. Cameron has made that the fatal error of announcing that he will go before the next election, with the result that the his potential successors have been running wild. Let me list ...
The verdict on #ScotDebates is in. @willie_rennie had so much fun he wants another debate https://t.co/9mHboQ1gVW pic.twitter.com/gks5rfJn3o — Scot Lib Dems (@scotlibdems) March 30, 2016 No wonder then that: Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has today called for an additional TV leaders' debate ahead of polling day in the Scottish Parliament elections. Mr Rennie was speaking the morning after the second debate within a week of the start of the campaign. At present, there are no plans for a leaders' TV debate in the month of April... "The debate last night was a fantastic opportunity for people to get ...
Each week we look at five great things happening within the party over the past 7 days as well as a couple of things that perhaps haven't gone as well as we'd like. So here goes:- GOOD WILLIE EARNS HIS WONKA BARS: Scottish Liberal Democrats Leader Willie Rennie turned in a convincing performance in the [...]
The resignation of Brazil's Sports Minister, George Hilton, just four months before the Rio Olympics are due to start, has added another twist to the tortuous political crisis that the country has been suffering in recent months. The government insists his departure will not affect Brazil's ability to deliver on the Games, but there is [...]
I have never heard Sajid Javid do anything but mouth slogans. He makes Danny Alexander sound like J.K. Galbraith— Jonathan Calder (@lordbonkers) April 9, 2014
I've had a strange week. Last Friday started well enough. I went over to the Caterham dealer at Donnington Park and test drove a 270 SV. I was grinning like an idiot all the way around the route. It was definitely the most enjoyable road car that I've ever driven. I was hooked. I sat down in the showroom. I ... The post Caterham highs and lymphoma lows appeared first on ten pence piece.
With critical HIV treatment deemed too expensive for the NHS, ACT UP London takes on pharmaceutical companies and austerity cuts. Today, on April 1, as part of a global series of direct actions in cities on five continents, naked activists from ACT UP London stood in the lobby of the pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, displaying the slogan "Pharma Greed Kills". Gilead produces Truvada, a type of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) which is used to treat HIV in adults and teenagers. Yet at £446 per month, Truvada's price makes it too expensive for it to be viably considered under the National Health ...
[IMG: ALDC Master Logo (for screen)] Five principal council by-elections took place yesterday. In Craven (DC), an Independent candidate made a gain from the Conservatives in Embsay with Eastby ward. In a head-to-head contest with the Conservatives, the Independent polled 79.9% in what was the fourth by-election loss for the Tories in March. There was also success for the Richmondshire Independents in the Richmond Central by-election in Richmondshire (DC). The Independents made a gain from the local Liberal Democrats in receiving 35% of the vote to finish 31 votes ahead of Lib Dem candidate Philip Knowles. Elshewhere, the SNP collected ...
A couple of years back, I was one of the speakers selecting a forgotten liberal hero for an event at the National Liberal Club. The person I've picked is still mostly forgotten, still a liberal and still rather heroic (perhaps all the more so given our most recent experience of being in power). So here is the recording kindly edited at the time by Alex Foster:
Five principal council by-elections took place yesterday. In Craven (DC), an Independent candidate made a gain from the Conservatives in Embsay with Eastby ward. In a head-to-head contest with the Conservatives, the Independent polled 79.9% in what was the fourth by-election loss for the Tories in March. There was also success for the Richmondshire Independents in [...]
Embed from Getty Images BBC 2 are repeating some of Terry Wogan's programmes at lunch time. They've been showing "Terry and Mason's great food trip", where our Tel went round Britain with a cabbie. I think it's the best thing he did. There is no greater spectacle than the great Irishman bantering away and tucking into good old fashioned grub. They're also showing "Wogan: the best of". Today we had him interviewing Margaret Thatcher when Prime Minister in 1990. Referring to male MPs in the House of Commons, Wogan asked: Do they make any concessions to the fact that you ...
When I wrote Lessons for the Lib Dems from building successful companies, I hadn't yet read in full the job description for the Liberal Democrat Membership Development Manager post. In my post I wrote: It is strikingly rare, for example, to hear a local party officer talk about the great idea for recruiting members they've adopted from a trade union or campaign group. So it is very good news to be able now to add that the job description includes: Research, collate and produce best practice from inside the organisation and from other membership organisations to support local Party membership. ...
There was an excellent article on Victoria Derbyshire show yesterday about the dramas the legal highs legislation is going through now the Police are having to consider its enforcement. The problems centre on the practical difficulties for police of proving that a substance is 'psychoactive', that is, that it actually gives people a high. Whilst this might lead to a surreal career opportunity for someone, the very process of defining what a legal high is shines a wonderful light on the futility of prohibition, with legal experts straining to find a form of words which makes mind altering substances illegal ...
Blog Categories: Economics Political Theory Vote: 2 votes + Vote up! - Vote down! I'm sure everyone knows that I have what some would call an obsession with rent, of the economic kind rather than the Piccadilly kind frequented by politicians and the like :) It wasn't always this way. I was once as ignorant as anyone else about the effects of rent on our economy and society. It crept slowly up on me, and even now I continue to learn and find connections between rent and social and economic problems. But it worries me. Not once, for instance, unless ...
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[IMG: 24869120040_956c1ae439_o] ITV/Granada has the story on its web site – see link above Now here is a project to celebrate art on Merseyside, not least because Maghull resident Jen Robertson was a part of the project team and can be seen cleaning a rare Wedgwood fireplace in the video. You can visit the Museum's web site via the link below:- www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/ladylever/ [IMG: logo-nml-white]
We hope you enjoyed our bit of fun this morning. For your delectation we've now released all the comments that were held in moderation, although we did publish some during the morning from senior members of the Federal Conference Committee. And we weren't the only Lib Dems at it. Lib Dem Hame gave us this rather worrying image: Lembit Opik To Front British Eurovision Entry. Mark Pack celebrated the launch of a new PR outfit: Walking Stick PR firm launched - a firm for an ageing country Then there is this one from Aberavon & Neath Liberal Democrats: LibDem MPs ...
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie today set out how his party's Penny for Education is part of a wider plan to support small business. He launched a three-point plan to break down the barriers faced by entrepreneurs in Scotland. Speaking as he and top Lib Dem list candidate for the West of Scotland, Katy [...]
Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesman Jim Hume has warned that for health and social care integration to be a success, the new integration authorities going live today must have clear, long-term plans of how they will make a difference in the lives of Scots. Today is the legal deadline for the 31 new integration authorities [...]
Video: Watch Sky+ ad featuring Alice Cooper and Ronnie Corbett | Media | The Guardian I'll never forget him trying to pinch @RealAliceCooper's tea, TBH Humble Comics Bundle: Buffy, Angel, & Spike (pay what you want and help charity) This comic has saved my life more than twice now and I hope it helps others as much as it did me How to send an 'E mail' - Database - 1984 OMG this is hilarious - the software transmission at the end brings back SO many memories! Opinion: podium boys are no better than podium girls Lone 8-Year-Old Kept in ...
Fri 1st
11:51
The real problem for Corbyn is that he's mostly Ed Miliband revisited - just even less competent and...
Looking at current Labour economic policy is striking – and not in the way that many casual observers might expect. Let's examine the essence of McDonnell's "fiscal credibility lock" for instance: "day-to-day spending would not exceed government income although there would be scope for borrowing for capital investment" says the shadow chancellor. Okay, sorry to say this, but that sounds a lot like what Ed Miliband and Ed Balls threw at the electorate last May. There are many problems with this. First off, if it didn't work in May 2015, why will it work in May 2020? Particularly when you ...
Embed from Getty Images While I was on holiday, BBC 2 sneaked out the first episode of a fantastic series: Inside Obama's White House. You can currently watch the first three episodes of the series here on BBC iPlayer. This is a brilliant series produced by Brook Lapping for the BBC. They've got some truly sensational behind-the-scenes footage. So, as they tell the story of Obama's presidency, they are able to show specific video of that event behind-the-scenes – advisers emerging from a crunch meeting or whatever. And they have a remarkable parade of players giving their retrospective view on ...
The Daily Mail reports Nigel Farage speaking to supporters at Clacton-on-Sea has attacked the European Union for spreading paedophilia across Britain. "Millions of migrants have the right to come here", he said, "and many of them bring their foreign habits and alien culture to our country. Can it be a coincidence that the rise in [...]
I've decided to start a new series on this blog which will delve into my stamp collection on a weekly basis. And to start it all off I'm looking into the part of my collection that has really grabbed by attention recently and which is going to grow over the next few years as various nations and stamp issuing territories honour their part in World War I. The decision of course is which location to kick off. I decided that this set from Gibraltar is a good place to kick off. Designed by Westminster collection this set of 6 stamps ...
You can read all the articles that have caught my attention this week here: https://delicious.com/stephentall Below are a selection... Sponsored: 64% off Code Black Drone with HD Camera Our #1 Best-Selling Drone–Meet the Dark Night of the Sky! UK Polling Report Anthony Wells' comprehensive guide to the inquest into the great 2015 polling fiasco http://bit.ly/1q6zp6f Up The Injunction Popbitch's guide to decoding how newspapers "reveal" the IDs of superinjuction celebrities http://bit.ly/1VVWvYV Labour and the Tories are in turmoil – and, despite what many say, it's nothing to do with Corbyn's leadership | Voices | The Independent Belatedly, the 2008 Great ...
Another month has passed, and a surprising number of leaflets have been delivered. After all, if I'm going to be walking around, I might as well do something useful. And thus, my ten thousand steps have achieved each day - forty-three consecutive days since my mid-February food poisoning glitch - and my nearly two litres drunk. My work colleagues are beginning to notice now, and some of the more exotic elements of my wardrobe are coming back into play, all of which is nice. Ros has, as is her way, been incredibly supportive, calorie counting our meals, accompanying me on ...
Embed from Getty Images A party source has exclusively revealed to LDV that the Federal Conference Committee is seriously considering holding the 2020 Spring Conference in the Isles of Scilly. As a first priority, after complaints about the lack of real ales in the Novotel at York, members of the Committee have rigorously checked the quality of the cask ale on offer in the conference hotel and can reassure party members on that score. Travel to the venue will be memorable. Inspired by the razzle-dazzle ferries in Liverpool, the Conference Office is discussing with a ferry company the possibility of ...
In a shock move a quartet of former Liberal Democrat politicians led by former MP Lembit Opik have been asked to represent the UK in this years Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden. The bizarre turn of events happened after the originally chosen entry, to be performed by Joe & Jake, had to be dropped because [...]
Fri 1st
08:14
Health bosses plan further reduction in community hospital beds in Ludlow and across Shropshire
The Clinical Commissioning Group is planning to reduce the number of beds at community hospitals in Shropshire by around 40%. At Ludlow, this would mean a reduction from 24 to 14 beds. The CCG's intention is to rely more on community services and adult social care to ensure the wellbeing of patients that would otherwise... Continue reading Health bosses plan further reduction in community hospital beds in Ludlow and across Shropshire →
If Azerbaijan is a democracy, why were we imprisoned for our views? "If." (tags: azerbaijan humanrights ) How to Hack an Election A chilling read. (tags: elections democracy )
Fri 1st
07:53
Did the UK Tory Government sacrifice British steel to secure better relations with China?
To be frank I have been seriously unimpressed with the reaction of UK Tory Ministers to the crisis encompassing the UK steel industry. Media interviews with Ministers have produced bland, non-committal statements that have led me to question whether they are just going through the motions. We do not get the impression of a real commitment to saving the industry. We are also getting mixed messages. One Minister says they are ruling nothing out whilst another says that nationalisation, even for the short term is not an option. And of course for all the talk about tackling the dumping of ...
A new PR agency called Walking Stick is launched today. It's gap in the the market? The clue is in the name. With British population projections repeatedly pointing towards an ageing population, Walking Stick is determinedly aimed at helping clients reach the over-50s in order to build brand love, accelerate digital transformation and enhance consumer loyalty. "The industry is obsessed with millennials, yoof, Generation ABC or whatever the last jargon for 'youngsters' is. But lift your head out of the PR soup of cliches for a moment and you'll notice the rest of the country is all worrying about our ...
After years of being an airfield for training aircraft and gliders and a spell as the base for the local police helicopter RAF Woodvale is back in the big time as strike aircraft and helicopters are to be based there from later this year. [IMG: Sea King helicopters seen at a Southport Airshow in recent times will now be based at RAF Woodvale] Sea King helicopters seen at a Southport Airshow in recent times will now be based at RAF Woodvale The news came as quite a surprise to many and it is anticipated that the roar of the jet ...
Paul Krugman's most recent NYT column reminded me of an incident that I'd largely forgotten about which seems relevant to the current debate about both the Port Talbot steel plant and the EU referendum. Here's the Guardian from 2003 reporting that: The US today stepped back from a trade war with the EU and Japan [...]
