I was invited to be one of the speakers at the pro-Europe rally at Grey's Monument in Newcastle yesterday. I was on at 2pm, just before John Shipley, former Lib Dem leader of Newcastle Council and now a Lib Dem peer. My speech concentrated on the dangers to foreign businesses and jobs of Brexit and on the dangers of the Right using the referendum vote as a sign to take the UK back to the social
Some nice vintage photographs of the railway through this small Northamptonshire town. Many are of Desborough and Rothwell station (between Market Harborough and Kettering on the Midland main line), which closed in 1968.
Few people would call John Simpson, the septuagenarian BBC World Affairs Editor, a shrinking violet. For several years there was even a BBC programme called Simpson's World and fellow broadcasters like to rib him about the time he "liberated" Kabul in front of the camera. But the ribbing comes mainly from admiration for the solid [...]
Embed from Getty Images One of the torrent of accusations against Donald Trump is that he groped a woman called Jessica Leeds on a US internal flight more than three decades ago. However, a witness has come forward to say that no such assault took place. As the New York Post reports: The man says he was sitting across from the accuser and contacted the Trump campaign because he was incensed by her account — which is at odds with what he witnessed. "I have only met this accuser once and frankly cannot imagine why she is seeking to make ...
Josh Tewksbury: Over the next week, leaders from around the world will take part in a historic summit on the future of cities. But this landmark event highlights how the pace of science may be unable to keep up with today's rapidly-changing world. Science, cities and innovation in the human age Over the next week, leaders from around the world will take part in a historic summit on the future of cities. But this landmark event also highlights how the pace of science may be unable to keep up with today's rapidly-changing world. Continue reading...
Sun 16th
20:37
Leeds Liverpool Canal – Bicentenary Voyage from Leeds to Liverpool 15th to 23rd October
[IMG: Museum of Liverpool and Museum Canal Link Tunnel.] Museum of Liverpool and Museum Canal Link Tunnel. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-37671372 The BBC has the story on its web site – see link above The inaugural 1816 boat passage by Yorkshire and Lancashire merchants on the 127-mile Leeds and Liverpool Canal is being recreated on a former working boat called Kennet. [IMG: Canal Bicentenary] The good ship (or in this case barge) Kennet set sail from Leeds last Saturday and it should arrive in Liverpool on Sunday 23rd. That means it should be sailing through West Lancashire and Sefton Boroughs on 22nd and ...
In covering council by-election results, I've often made reference to Jonathan Calder's excellent turn of phrase about how the Liberal Democrats need more good third places. As Jonathan wrote: We will know the Liberal Democrats are thriving again when we regularly score 20 per cent in wards where we have no history of success. All the more so when the 20% is scored by a new party members, bringing life back to areas where the party has been weak for a long time. So a special shoutout to one of the candidates from last week's council by-elections, Krish Shanmuganathan. He ...
There appears to have been a recent spike in reports of parking problems across Unsworth and Whitefield in the past few weeks. At Unsworth pole, problems continue with lack of spaces throughout the day and into the early evening, with significant problems around 8-9am. A few people have told me that they have received 'fines' aka parking fee demands as much as £100 as a result of parking in the car park behind the Bay Horse pub, which is run by Holts. That land does belong to the brewery, rather than the council and as much as we hate it, ...
Who Decides? by Paul Tyler is like an excellent after dinner speaker - not too long, with plenty of laughs and a bit of knowledge imparted.
I know that many of you will rightly be focused on the positive by-election campaign that we are currently running in Witney so you might have missed that internal elections to our Party's Committees are now underway. Nominations opened last Wednesday. This is the biggest exercise in internal party democracy which the Party has undertaken in decades, following the implementation of One Member One Vote. For the first time, every member is allowed to vote for committee members and any member who receives the required nominations can stand for election. There are four committees up for election: the Federal Board, ...
A song about Donald Trump from Neath/Swansea band Psycho Kiss from their new album. The leader singer is a Welsh Liberal Democrats Community Councillor in Skewen. Order it here:
Sun 16th
12:19
Nick Clegg shows why he is such a credible, authoritative leader of the opposition to May's "hard br...
A year ago, Nick Clegg's career appeared to be pretty much over. Some even wondered if he night have been upset to have clung on to his Sheffield Hallam seat. Now, former critics are starting to be glad that he is there. He is by far the most experienced politician in the country on both international trade and how the European Union works. This week has seen the latest in a fairly long line of articles, which started with the Mystic Clegg stuff in June, suggesting that Nick Clegg's star is in the ascendancy again. The New Statesman, of all ...
You may have read recently, that the ruling Conservative group voted for a pay rise for all councillors which will cost Peterborough City Council £186,000 a year? The pay rise recommendations were made by an independent panel for members to have their basic allowances increased from £7,962 a year to £10,100. In the report presented to [...]
Brexiteers are denying the mendacity of their original campaign as it's coming back to haunt them, says Nick Clegg: .@Nick_Clegg: Leave campaigners are Breniers. They deliberately withheld a clear Brexit plan from the British people #Marr — Lib Dem Press Office (@LibDemPress) October 16, 2016 On which point: A new poll, commissioned by the Open Britain campaign, shows that there is large scale support among the public for Britain staying in the Single Market, with 59% of people saying we should stay in the world's largest trading bloc and only 41% of people wanting to leave it. 58% of voters ...
More comedy genius from Australia's Clarke and Dawe as Donald Sin-Trouble, US Political Correspondent, reports on the 2016 US Presidential contest.
With killer clowns in the news, I have been thinking of this 1967 single by the bass player from the Kinks. Dave Davies explained its genesis in an interview with Yahoo!: One night I nodded off at a party and woke up and saw all these decadent people running around. I had a vision of being a circus clown. I thought, "What are we doing?" We were going from day to day to day like performing seals. And that's where I got the idea for "Death of a Clown." I went back to me mum's house with the same old ...
Yesterday, the Sunniside History Society and the Mayor of Gateshead, Cllr Allison Thomspon, unveiled the information panel about Fugar House as part of the Hidden Heritage project we are running. The House has been largely forgotten and the project aims to draw out the history not just of the house but of the Washingwell/Watergate area. My job was to provide the medieval catering for the day!
Planning is obscure at times. It is governed by a sprawling collection of frameworks, statements of guidance, strategies and miscellaneous documents. Any decision is a matter of judgement - we call it the planning balance. This article is an attempt to explain to you the planners' conclusion on Tuesday that the impact of the proposed... Continue reading Rocks Green supermarket: Understanding the insignificance of significance →
All of today's media is reporting on the unpublished newspaper column by Foreign Secretary and Chief Brexiteer, Boris Johnson written just days before he decided to campaign for the UK to leave the EU, in which he makes a strong case for us to remain. As the Observer reports, in the column Boris wrote of the EU: "This is a market on our doorstep, ready for further exploitation by British firms. The membership fee seems rather small for all that access. Why are we so determined to turn our back on it?" The paper says Boris warned that Brexit would ...
Late due to crappy wifi in hotel. Current Songs of the Dying Earth: Stories in honour of Jack Vance, eds. George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois SPQR, by Mary Beard Valley of the Dolls, by Jacqueline Susann Last books finished Seventeen, by Booth Tarkington Winter Song, by Colin Harvey The Joy Device, by Justin Richards Next books AfroSF: Science Fiction by African Writers, ed. Nnedi Okorafor Kings of the North, by Cecelia Holland Angels & Visitations: A Miscellany, by Neil Gaiman Books acquired in last week A Short Guide to Irish Science Fiction, by Jack Fennell Jerusalem, by Alan ...
Although details are to be confirmed, I believe that the Remembrance Arrangements are: Sunday 6th November, Submariners' Service at the monument beside St Mary's Church Saturday 12th November, Newsham Service, at Newsham War Memorial Sunday 13th November, Cowpen Service at Cowpen War Memorial Sunday 13th November , Blyth Parade and Service at Blyth War War Memorials Again, I believe that the Services all start at 11 am There will probably be a service at the Blyth Academy ( formerly BCC ) on 11th November, but I haven't received confirmation yet.
Blyth Town Council ha the following meetings scheduled for November. Thursday 3rd November, Finance Committee Thursday 10th November , Planning & Development Committee Thursday 17th November, Full Council ( preceded by Public Question Time at 6pm ) All meetings start at 6:30 pm, at Arms Evertyne House As always, please check with the council beforehand
Embed from Getty Images We've known for a while that Boris Johnson wrote two articles for the Telegraph, for and against Brexit, two days before declaring himself as a "leaver". Only the leave article was published, leaving the remain article under wraps. Via a book and the Sunday Times, the second article has now been revealed. It contains such corkers from Boris as these: This is a market on our doorstep, ready for further exploitation by British firms. The membership fee seems rather small for all that access. Why are we so determined to turn our back on it? ...Britain ...
This Photopolis photograph (below) shows Perth Road at St Peter Street. It shows the north side of Perth Road running eastwards to the right towards the city centre, with St Peter Street leading north to the left. Alexander Sutton, The West End Supply Stores, was at No. 121 Perth Street. Notice the peculiar barrow in St Peter Street. Sutton lived at No. 4 Gowrie Street. The confectioner at No. 199 was David Kermack. No. 117 was George Pickles' West End Hosiery. Alexander Thompson Watt at No. 115 was a butcher, with other shops at No. 4 Wellgate, No. 30 Victoria ...
My previous posting of a few days ago refers at:- The latest news is that Sefton Council's proposed new double yellow lines will are likely to be shortened to the minimum required to help make the junction of Hall Lane and Southport Road safe for drivers exiting Hall Lane. This seem to be a sensible compromise in the circumstances commensurate with road safety considerations.
The Fury and Failure of Donald Trump Matt Tabibi, glorious as usual. (tags: uspolitics ) Spin To Survive: How 'Saturn On Steroids' Keeps From Self-Destructing Wow. (tags: astronomy )
I have been helping to run a project with the Sunniside History Society about the Fugar/Washingwell area in my ward in Gateshead. There are thee parts to the project: 1269 to modern day, the Roman period and the restoration of the derelict historic orchard at Fugar. We are still on part one of the project though it is nearing completion with the installation of an information panel about Fugar
