It is only recently since the London Mayoral and Greater London Assembly (GLA) elections but one u-turn, one untruth and one borrowed policy have taken place! We saw Sadiq Khan elected, but within days we saw him announce that it was going to be difficult to deliver the number of new affordable homes he promised. Being the Mayor of London is a privilege and was never to be easy, but to give up on possibly the most important policy area so soon is very sad for many residents who live in Ealing. Sadiq Khan then reneged on his fares promise. ...
In recent times Ealing Council has a reputation for closing vital services like day centres for the mentally ill, elderly residents and those who are severely disabled. On top of this, Labour-run Ealing Council, has a record of allowing large developments to be built when the borough is left with not enough social or affordable housing to be built. Many have said that converting the Town Hall into a hotel is selling off the family silver like reducing the size of the main library in Ealing. Liberal Democrats believe that to improve an area you need to consult, inform and ...
The first Market Harborough Food and Drink Festival, held a year ago, was wet. Very wet. Several householders in Welland Park Road were building arks in their front gardens. I went to the second day of this year's event today. It was larger and much drier.
Good news from Oxford West and Abingdon where excellent campaign Layla Moran has been re-selected, boosting also the diversity of Lib Dem candidates in the most winnable seats and the numbers of those with a scientific background too: Physics teacher Layla Moran yesterday announced she will once again be the Liberal Democrat parliamentary in Oxford West and Abingdon, and pledged to fight against the Brexit despite the referendum result. She said: "I am delighted to have been reselected once more to fight for the communities. At a time when politics is so precarious and divisive, it has never been more ...
Caron Linday is not impressed by Norman Lamb and Nick Clegg's endorsement of Open Britain. "America likes to pride itself as a beacon of democracy, but our dirty little secret is just how undemocratic our electoral system actually is ... Fifteen percent of the country's congressional districts lack one of the two major parties on this fall's ballot." Stephen Wolf calls for propositional representation in the US. Lola Okolosie is right to say that There would be less pressure on GCSEs if adult education hadn't been slashed. David Boyle is frustrated by the new world of identity politics. "Coming through, ...
I mentioned Eva Ayllon yesterday morning, so here she is, singing Ritmos Negros del Peru, accompanied by Inti Illimani Historico... Perfect for those hot summer nights we so rarely get, eh?
Second speech of third scene of Tamburlaine, Part One (Act 2 Scene 1): MENAPHON [describing Tamburlaine]: Of stature tall, and straightly fashioned, Like his desire, lift upwards and divine; So large of limbs, his joints so strongly knit, Such breadth of shoulders as might mainly bear Old Atlas' burden; 'twixt his manly pitch, A pearl more worth than all the world is plac'd, Wherein by curious sovereignty of art Are fix'd his piercing instruments of sight, Whose fiery circles bear encompassed A heaven of heavenly bodies in their spheres, That guides his steps and actions to the throne Where honour ...
Versions of 'Corbyn was ahead in the polls until nasty Labour plotters got to work' crop up fairly frequently. Here's what the evidence says: From the May general election through to the end of February 2016 there were 54 polls, all of which put the Conservatives ahead. In March and April there were 15 polls, 11 of which put the Conservatives ahead, three of which – all by YouGov – put Labour ahead (by 1-3 points) and one – by ICM – put the parties tied. The other five pollsters during that period all consistently put the Conservatives ahead. Since ...
Writing this on the final official day of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, I'm sitting in my small yard under a clear blue sky. It is the August bank holiday for most of the UK but not for us here. Never say that the Scottish weather does not have a sense of humour.My personal circumstances in the past year has been none too bright. Having being made redundant from the oil business (along with tens of thousands of others) at the end of 2015, frankly it has been a struggle to find a paid position. I have been through all the ...
September 1st is the traditional date when schools in Estonia reopen after the summer break. It is not only of significance for children, because for most adults, the summer is also definitively over. The season is one of the end of leisure and the beginning of work. So, after a long break from blogging, I return. However I do not hold out much optimism for the new season. Most of the things that I would like to see for the country of my birth- a more open society and a more Liberal (and indeed liberal) politics- have been defeated so ...
[IMG: North Korea 2] I have long used Voyages Jules Verne for interesting places to visit. In 2012 one flyer caught my notice. The chance of a trip to the hermit nation, North Korea. I instantly booked up. This trip is no longer on offer and I am pleased I took the chance in May 2013. To begin, it is the only country where I have had to fill in a pre visa application form. It is certain that my son, as a former RAF intelligence officer, would not have got in. I was pleased that, despite being a former ...
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Prime Minister Theresa May has announced proposals to bring back more Grammar Schools. Liberal Democrat Leader Tim Farron explains why he feels that Grammar Schools block rather than aid social mobility: [IMG: cartmel-priory-school] There are currently only 164 grammar schools left in England but none in Wales or Scotland I get why grammar schools seem an easy solution. Too many parents are understandably concerned about the standard of education their children are receiving. With school budgets squeezed to breaking point, class sizes growing, teachers feeling overworked and an increasingly narrow curriculum, it is little wonder some parents look for alternatives. ...
Information from the National Lottery on their 'Celebrate England' grants scheme: More information here. Six out of ten people surveyed* say they cannot remember ever coming together to celebrate with their community. The Big Lottery Fund wants to help change this with our Celebrate! programme. We are offering grants of between £300 and £10,000 for groups to hold one off events or activities which celebrate their local community. You could celebrate something from your community's history or a local hero. Or maybe it's a chance to bring people together to get to know their neighbours better. We have a total ...
The CAB have produced this helpful summary of services which are available to Bury residents. In the first instance they would prefer people to phone their Telephone Advice Line: Monday - Friday 10am - 3pm 08448 269 320 (Click to download full size document) [IMG: Screen Shot 2016-08-29 at 12.57.21]
A free drop-in information session about lip-reading for people who are hard of hearing takes place on Monday 5 September. It is in the Green Room in Textile Hall (next to Bury Library), from 2.30pm to 4pm, and professionals will be there to answer any questions about hearing loss. For more details, call 0161 253 7512 or email sensory.lib@bury.gov.uk
I've been away on holiday for the past couple of weeks so have missed most of the media coverage of the Olympics. Nevertheless I've picked up enough to find much of the British coverage extremely disquieting - indeed , not at all according to my understanding of "British values" which I acquired in my youth (we were taught to be modest and unassuming and our our patriotism should be understated.) Without wishing in any way to detract from the wonderful achievements of all the athletes (and particularly the gymnasts) I find the emphasis on national rather than individual performances distasteful. ...
Mon 29th
12:01
Liberal Democrats must enthusiastically occupy the clear pro EU space - nobody else will
The Liberal Democrats have historically been enthusiastically pro EU. The strength of that enthusiasm, it's fair to say, has not always been uniform. While a small number of Liberal Democrats campaigned to leave the EU, the vast majority of us wanted to remain. That was very clear to the tens of thousands who have joined us in the aftermath of the vote to leave. As a party during the referendum, we did more than any other to campaign for a Remain vote. That's quite a staggering achievement given our size and resources compared to the Labour party. However, there are ...
Mon 29th
11:49
Brexit: is it really worth risking the economy in order to meet a target that didn't make sense six ...
The news that there is significant pressure from within the Cabinet to choose restricting migration over access to the single market is a sign that, perhaps, this is not about our place in the world, it is about making sure that the world has no place in the United Kingdom. Six years ago, when the Conservative policy of reducing net migration below 100,000 per year was announced, I was somewhat unimpressed, and I wasn't alone. The failure to take into account that, to some extent, it was linked to a figure you couldn't really control, i.e. those choosing to leave ...
Twitter This is probably true, but it's still bloody depressing Twitter RT @TheReremouse: Soprano pipistrelle wing veination #bat #bats #ecology #conservation #chiroptera #wildlife... Instagram RT @TheReremouse: Soprano pipistrelle wing veination #bat #bats #ecology #conservation #chiroptera #wildlife... Twitter RT @scribblefrog: In general, really. If a tweet has a [CN], I can mentally brace myself so it doesn't smack me in the face so hard miss_s_b | The Blood is the Life for 28-08-2016 posted The Blood is the Life for 28-08-2016 on #dreamwidth Hard Evidence: Teachers' Unconscious Biases Contribute To Gender Disparity : NPR RT @HiddenBrain: Unconscious bias among 6th grade ...
[IMG: Rally entertainment Spring Conference Liverpool March 2015 Photo by Liberal Democrats] Spring Conference 2016 saw the launch of the Conference Access Fund, which makes grants to members to enable them to attend conference. It was pretty successful at York, and is proving to be even more popular this time round for Brighton. When members register for Conference they are asked if they would like to make a donation to the fund and they have been amazingly generous. The fund is ring-fenced and any that is not spent is carried over to the next conference. The website states: All applications ...
Personally, I have little sympathy with the plight of the Labour Party as outlined in this Guardian article. The paper argues that two hundred Labour seats, more than 85% of the party's total, could be affected by the review of parliamentary boundaries due next month. They say that up to 30 Labour seats could disappear altogether, while the rest will see their composition altered in some form. The changes could give the Tories a substantial advantage at the next General Election. These changes were initiated by David Cameron with the objective of cutting the number of MPs by 50 to ...
This fund raising event for local good causes at the Rose of Mossley, Rose Lane raised almost £1,000 and was entirely run by volunteers supported by Marion the licensee August Bank Holiday weekend is always a great time in Church ... Continue reading →
Why do I feel so frustrated about the new world of identity politics? I suppose because it is politics based on partial blindness, rather than understanding the whole picture. Because it accepts no progress except complete victory. Most of all, because everybody has to be one thing or another. This is something I have discovered the hard way by writing recently about two people who were clearly bisexual. Earlier in the year, my book about the criminalisation of homosexuality came out, and the narrative interwove the rather tragic story of my great-great-grandfather, who got caught up in the Dublin Scandals ...
[IMG: cropped-Portsmouth-from-Lansgtone-Harbour-2.jpg] I've been having thoughts about time and life recently. This is all a bit random and disjointed, but I felt I had to get it down on the screen. When you look a beautiful view, it's easy to assume that it's just a beautiful view which you can always look at. The scary thought is that it will still be there when you are gone. Other people will see it. But all the people on the earth could just disappear in some awful accident and the view might still be there but no one could enjoy it. The ...
[IMG: image] A whole series of my local Liberal heroes have been leaving us over the last few years. Just recently we lost Chris Hall. Chris signed me up to join the Liberal Democrats in 1992 (long story – I joined the Liberal Party in 1987 but they didn't have a computerised reminder system so I lapsed a few years afterwards). He just stood in my house with his lovely smile and paused until the silence was unbearable and I said "Oh well I'd better sign up as a member then". I later called this silence his "unctuous silence routine", ...
For those wondering where this long-running project has actually got to here is an update. For clarity it should be remembered that the proposed site is within West Lancs Borough but the land that surrounds it to the east, west and south, is all in Sefton Borough. [IMG: HALT poster] Planners at West Lancs Council do not, I understand, expect the planning processes to be completed until October or even November. It seems that several of the statutory consultees have yet to respond to the planning authority. These include Rural England, English Heritage, NATS and MOD. If memory serves this ...
The Liverpool Echo has the story – see link above Well I have heard everything now. It's as if Merseyside does not have enough challenges and problems to solve! Let's talk about educational attainment, public health, housing and the environment but not about whether we need a sub-regional flag.
Fear of That Which I Cannot See There's definitely no parasitic nematodes on that mate. You should be fine. (tags: Funny ) Ian Traynor, Europe editor of the Guardian, dies aged 60 A gentleman, and an honest and dogged journalist. (tags: deaths ) A Powerful Russian Weapon: The Spread of False Stories Be aware. Be very aware. (tags: news russia )
