My final Patreon request post for May (I got all of them in!) is a request to write about Ursula Le Guin's The Lathe of Heaven. Shamefully, I'm not actually very familiar with Le Guin's work. I read some of ... Continue reading →
Apologies for the abrupt ending to the previous post. I have a MacBook that just won't charge which, as you can imagine, is incredibly frustrating. So, I am typing this on my phone. The debate tonight was prettty much Amber Rudd getting some fairly forensic scrutiny from Farron, Lucas, Robertson, Corbyn and Wood, probably in that order. Paul Nuttall was the malevolently embarrassing interloper – that pain in the backside at a party that nobody will admit to inviting. If his role was to make the Tories look less scary, it didn't work. Tim Farron was brilliant – he got ...
Here is Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron's initial statement in the TV debate: .@TimFarron's opening statement at #BBCDebate #VoteLibDem pic.twitter.com/GxMjJfyerY — Liberal Democrats (@LibDems) May 31, 2017
And we're off. First off opening statements from the 7 participants. We have Leanne Wood from Plaid Cymru, Angus Robertson from the SNP, Jeremy Corbyn, Caroline Lucas from the Greens, Paul Nuttall, Amber Rudd and Tim Farron. Amber Rudd is now claiming credit for stabilising the economy...before driving it off a Brexit cliff. She's predictably doing the May vx Corbyn. But will people like what they have seen of her Brexit plan, Dementia Tax and under-investment in the NHS. Amber Rudd says the best person to lead Britain is someone who is too weak and scared to turn up to ...
In just under two hours, Tim takes to the stage with representatives from 6 other parties for the tv debate. It's the one and only time during the election that we will see all 7 parties represented in the one debate. Theresa May has bottled it, which is no surprise as we have seen how awful she is when she's unscripted or when something happens that she's not expecting. That moment with Kathy in OXWAB showed that she has no ability to listen to what she is being told or to properly empathise with people. Jeremy Corbyn is showing up, ...
A good month this month, aided by some long flights and other journeys, and a couple of sunny weekends of sitting in the garden reading. Non-fiction: 4 (YTD 16) Descartes' Clock, by Gary Powell Broederschap: Pleidooi voor verbondenheid / Fraternité: Retisser nos liens, by Frans Timmermans The Innocent Man by John Grisham Katherine Howard: The Tragic Story of Henry VIII's Fifth Queen, by Josephine Wilkinson Fiction (non-sf): 4 (YTD 9) The Parrot's Theorem, by Denis Guedj A Suitable Boy, by Vikram Seth Every Step You Take, by Maureen O'Brien A Motif of Seasons, by Edward Glover Doctor Who, etc: 3 ...
You know when you're trying to think of a way to describe how things are going in the election as things turn a little weird and then someone hits the perfect metaphor? That: Chris, this is not the time for sober analysis. This is the stage where every1 gets to play w the infinite improbability drive for a while. — Declan Gaffney (@djmgaffneyw4) May 31, 2017 I know I promised back at the start of this diary, all those weeks ago, that I wouldn't spend it following 2015 into the dark corners of polling obsessions but YouGov threw out a ...
The Telegraph has published an obituary of former Liberal Democrat MP Paul Keetch who died last week at the age of 56. Locally-born and a former city councillor, Keetch built on the efforts of previous Liberal candidates - among them Sir Robin Day. He ousted the long-serving and highly regarded Sir Colin Shepherd by 6,648 votes when the national anti-Conservative swing became irresistible, then fought hard to hold the seat, his majorities in 2001 and 2005 being 968 and 962 respectively. Keetch was an assiduous party defence spokesman from 1999 to 2005, when Charles Kennedy dropped him. His main concern ...
My new favourite author, Michael Perry*, has a theory about making it as a writer. It is, he says, like shovelling horse manure. If you keep at it long enough, sooner or later you'll have a pile so big that ... Continue reading →
A version of this blog first appeared on the Radix website. The exhausting general election campaign confirms what was in effect Parkinson's Third Law. His more famous first law is known by almost everybody - that the things that need doing expand to fill the time available. This is actually one of the great truths of life, but his third law is vital too. It is that the time spent discussing things is in inverse proportion to its importance. C. Northcote Parkinson himself was a historian and he illustrated the law by reference to a committee meeting with three items ...
While pleased that our 1p on income tax to rescue Health and Social care is in the public consciousness I'm disappointed that one of the most important ideas in the manifesto; the cross-party Health and Social Care Convention, hasn't had the high profile it deserves. Not only is it by far the best way forward but it is also a model for a better way to do politics. I am proud that we recognise that Health and Social Care should not be a political football and that, while developing clear ideas for a long term solution, Norman Lamb has put ...
www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/40057017 The BBC has England Cricketer Sarah Taylor's story on its web site see link above Suffering from a mental health issue when you are in the public eye must be really tough so I have great admiration for those sportspeople who fight their way through it and have the courage to speak out because that helps others cope too. MP's like Norman Lamb are championing mental health and there seems to be cross-party backing to make it an NHS priority. Lets hope those enlightened MP's succeed in their quest in the next Parliament.
Theresa May called a snap general election, despite earlier saying she wouldn't, supposedly because she wants a strong mandate to negotiate Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, though one can't help wonder whether the true reason was because she thought she could wipe the floor with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and return with a huge [...]
The latest Tory tactic seems to be to warn against a "bad Brexit" and to say that only they, if they get a whopping enough majority, can make sure we get a "good" deal. On that majority point, think of the last time you said to yourself "Oh, Merkel has a huge majority, we need to do what she says." The point is that we go into these negotiations in a weakened position anyway. There are 27 EU member states and 1 of us. Who has the power here? The Tory brexiteers needn't bother trying to blame the EU for ...
Tim Farron's Liberal Democrats want answers from the Tories The Tories seem to think - if we ignore any difficult question - we don't have to tell the public the truth. If they cannot tell us even the most basic things why should we trust them at all. Theresa May seems to be hiding their real agenda from the public. The Tories cannot tell us anything about their plans and they are doing it on purpose. They hope to secure a colossal majority and then to take the country for a ride. We cannot let this happen - our schools, ...
Wed 31st
11:02
Amber to take free school lunches off over 500 #Hastings #Rye children assessed to be living in pove...
Up to 562 children living in poverty across Hastings & Rye will have their lunches taken away under Theresa May's plans to abolish universal free school lunches for infants, Liberal Democrat research has revealed. In total nearly 3000 children are set to lose out under the plans. Those families losing out are expected to have [...]
Yes, I know you're a bit busy right now, but this is important. If you have just been paid, now is the time to register for Autumn Conference as the Early Bird discount will have expired by the end of next month. A reminder of the post I wrote when registration opened: An email from Andrew Wiseman, chair of Federal Conference Committee, announced that registration was open for Autumn Conference in Bournemouth. The Dorset town is my favourite conference venue. Maybe I'm just biased because the weather was so gorgeous the last time we were there, and the Goat and ...
On BBC iPlayer, history broadcaster Dan Snow takes a look at Liberal Prime Minister from 1916-1922, David Lloyd George, who was his great-great-grandfather. It's an excellent documentary, drawing on photos and footage from the era of Lloyd George's life, as well as commentary from a team of excellent historians and biographers. The programme presents all ... Continue reading Dan Snow on Lloyd George: My Great-Great-Grandfather
Willie Rennie will launch the Scottish Liberal Democrats' manifesto this morning at an Edinburgh mental health charity. We will have the details later, but ahead of the launch he said: Votes for the Liberal Democrats will stop another divisive independence referendum from the nationalists. With the Scottish economy teetering on the edge of a recession, the performance of Scottish education dropping down the international rankings and mental health services failing to deliver, the last thing our country needs is another divisive and distracting independence referendum. The Liberal Democrats are setting out a positive plan to invest in mental health and ...
The pundits and spin-doctors seem to have decided on a "no-score draw" for the Corbyn and May interviews with Jeremy Paxman and a studio audience. Neither party leader suffered a gaffe, and neither produced a triumph. Although a dedicated Liberal Democrat I cannot claim to be an impartial observer as my sympathies are much more with the principled Jeremy Corbyn than the vacillating and opportunistic Theresa May. In my opinion Jeremy Paxman's Rottweiler approach, his sneers and constant interruptions when interviewing Mr Corbyn were a stark contrast the almost jocular interrogation of Mrs May. Yes, he probed Mrs May repeatedly ...
This is the speech I'd like to hear Tim Farron give before the General Election. I stand with you today to talk about the security of our nation, the protection of our way of life and about combatting the terrorist, the bomber and the gunman. Our police and security services are working at full capacity. We know that and we thank them for it. The government deserves praise for its reaction to the Manchester outrage. Many voices - prominent and influential Muslims among them - have joined in condemnation of the terrorist's actions and in praise for the wonderful response ...
More revelations in the Independent this morning illustrating that far from providing an extra £350m a week for the health service, Brexit is going to cost more. The paper quotes the Nuffield Trust who have estimated that the price of NHS treatment for tens of thousands of British pensioners returning to the UK from Spain, France and other EU countries after Brexit will hit a billion pounds. They add that shortages of NHS and social care staff and extra charges for new drugs are likely to hike costs for the health service even higher when Britain leaves the EU: The ...
For the past seven years WestFest's Big Sunday on Magdalen Green has marked the beginning of Summer, and this year will be no exception. For lovers of music, good food and a great atmosphere, Big Sunday has always maintained a friendly, local feel - offering entertainment for all ages. There will be many different types of food and drink available, as well as stalls from local businesses and community groups. Big Sunday is next Sunday [4th June] from 1pm to 7pm on Magdalen Green a free event and all are welcome! More information is available here.
Wed 31st
07:25
If you stop and evaluate the polling numbers behind the topline figures, it's not good for Labour. A...
While we're all living through this "Labour bounce" period, it is worth reflecting on items such as this one in the Guardian yesterday under the title of "Guardian/ICM poll: Tories' 12-point lead offers Labour crumbs of hope". Because when you actually look at the psephology involved, it makes for dire predictions for everyone but the Tories. Some have wondered why I persist in my prediction that the Tories will win a landslide majority on June 8th; here's why. Let's start with the crumbs one could forlornly place in the basket marked "hope" from a Labour perspective. DE voters are now ...
This is the penultimate post in my Patreon request series for May — tomorrow will see one on Ursula Le Guin. This is a review of a book by Simon Bucher-Jones. Simon's a friend, we've written in the same book ... Continue reading →
Commenting on the fact that the Conservatives have failed to publish their manifesto in a single accessible format just 10 days before polling day, former Liberal Democrat Equalities Minister Jo Swinson said: "Theresa May has shown she just isn't addressing concerns over disabilities and is continually taking people for granted. "People don't have to settle for this cold, mean-spirited vision of Britain. A better future is available. The Liberal Democrats will stand up against a bad Brexit deal that will cost jobs and push up prices, and we will reverse Conservative cuts to benefits for people not fit for work." ...
