I watched the BBC's seven-strong leaders' debate last night, along with 3.5 million other people; half the audience Britain's Got Talent attracted on ITV at the same time; and only 500k more than Channel 4 / Sky's May v Corbyn head-to-head attracted on Monday. Theresa May's decision to stay away attracted a lot of negative publicity, further damaging her brand as a strong leader. Though, to be honest, it's hard to say she made the wrong decision given the ensuing pile-up. The continuing squabbling, as each tried to shout over the others, gave her stand-in home secretary, Amber Rudd, an ...
Tim Farron has challenged Theresa May to sort out her mate Donald Trump on climate change. After the President announced his intention to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement, the Lib Dem leader told Theresa May: You have gone to Washington to hold Donald Trump's hand, now is the time to hold his feet to the fire. If the special relationship between the Prime Minister and Mr Trump actually exists, it exists for moments like this. We need to make him see sense on climate change. Prime Minister: if your special relationship with Donald Trump means anything, prove it. ...
There are few veterans of 1940s cinema left, so here is an interview with Robert Henrey. As Bobby Henrey he was the child star of Carol Reed's 1948 film The Fallen Idol. He is interviewed by Leonard Lopate for WYNC, the New York public radio station.
The esteemed publication the Economist has said that its vote goes to the Liberal Democrats. It is not, to be fair, the most enthusiastic endorsement that this world has ever seen, and its language harks painfully back to the brains and heart stuff that Nick Clegg came out with pre 2015, but we can take this. No party passes with flying colours. But the closest is the Liberal Democrats. Brexit is the main task of the next government and they want membership of the single market and free movement. (Their second referendum would probably come to nothing, as most voters ...
"They are more honest than the Tories about the need to raise taxes for public services; and more sensible than Labour, spreading the burden rather than leaning only on high-earners." - The Economist on the Lib Dems
I noticed on the Whickham Residents' Facebook site that someone had put up a post saying they were going to vote for me. And then I spotted one of the responses, from a certain Chris McHugh, who just happened to forget to say that he is the agent to the Labour candidate here in Blaydon. Mr McHugh lists what the election is about (but does not include Brexit on which the Labour candidate is
I am just this minute in from a night's canvassing and haven't yet watched Tim Farron's interview with Andrew Neil. I will do so in a bit and add in some commentary here but you may wish to discuss it in the meantime. It's available on iPlayer here if you haven't seen it either. So, I'm going to watch it and comment as I go. Neil starts provocatively, stating that we wanted to have our laws made in Brussels and have no control of our borders. Tim wisely immediately responded by saying that it was important that we give the ...
Embed from Getty Images I must begin by apologising to Stephen Tall for stealing his headline, but I have had it in mind to write a post on these lines from some time. And today's news that the Economist has endorsed the Liberal Democrats has prompted me to do it. The endorsement is grudging: Many moderate Conservative and Labour MPs could join a new liberal centre party—just as parts of the left and right have recently in France. So consider a vote for the Lib Dems as a down-payment for the future. Our hope is that they become one element ...
Second paragraph of third chapter:It was worse than he had feared. Coming out of the station he saw that the supermarket was closing: a man in a suit was locking the main door. There could be no chance of seeing her today. In a state of utter desolation he plodded the length of the poster-covered windows. He even tried to peer in through the glass doors to see if any of the staff might be working late. A spotty youth, stocking the shelves, gawped at him. Shamed, he trudged on towards home.This is the last in the series of six ...
As volume three of my Beach Boys series is *finally* coming out this month, for one month only I have reduced the price of the first two books — on the Kindle only (messing with other platforms' price is an ... Continue reading →
So what's with the pedestrian bridge across Northway (A59) getting a camouflage make over? I think Sefton Council needs to cut back the trees that are taking over this bridge, alternatively they could issue tree loppers to locals to do their own hacking back before the bridge becomes impassable. With thanks to Lydiate resident Keith Page for the lead to this posting. And yes I have asked Sefton Council to take some action.
Thu 1st
11:54
Pensions Triple Lock – Lib Dem pledge to keep it as Tory attacks on pensioner incomes mount
Only one political party will keep it – the one that ensured it was brought in to help pensioners – the Lib Dems:- The Tories want to scrap it, along with winter fuel payments for some and they're going to bring in a dementia tax too. Who would want to be old with the Tories in power!
Thu 1st
11:50
WATCH: A brighter Lib Dem future for Britain - with Tim, Andrew, Layla, Jo - and a cameo by Jasper
The party has been producing some cracking videos lately. This one is bound to make you smile. In it, Tim talks about what Lib Dem MPs can do for their communities and highlights the key strengths of 3 of our key candidates. Andrew George on fishing, Layla Moran on science and Jo Swinson on business are featured. And, if, like me, you are a fan of Tim's Springer Spaniel, Jasper, you'll be very happy indeed. Enjoy. If you love it as much as I do, share it everywhere.
Twitter Instagram photo: You can tell when daughter has made a cake, because she signs it with little holly leaf...... [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Norman Lamb has the endorsement of a heavyweight today. Frank Bruno, who is a great supporter of Norman's work as health minister although he doesn't support any political party, is visiting North Norfolk to campaign for him. From the Eastern Daily Press: Since meeting Mr Lamb during his time as a Health Minister, the pair have worked together on a number of initiatives to improve mental health support. Bruno, who is not party political, is a long-time ambassador for people suffering from mental health problems and has spoken of his own experiences with bipolar disorder and will join Mr Lamb ...
Thu 1st
09:50"As an MP, I'd find solutions" - a profile that shows why Elizabeth Riches should win North East Fif...
There's a super profile in The Courier of Elizabeth Riches, our excellent candidate in North East Fife. The reporter sent to follow her for the day was obviously impressed, saying that she is "full of charm and charisma." When I read it, I thought that this is definitely the Elizabeth I know. Elizabeth is full of charm and charisma, chatting to everyone she meets, whatever their political preferences. "You have to listen to what concerns people; individuals have their worries and there's no point in pontificating about things that hold no interest," she says. "Some are worried about their children's ...
I'll be brief here. Last night after the debate, I said that Amber Rudd came out the winner while Paul Nuttall was the loser. People on social media were outraged. What debate was I watching? Rudd won because by putting in a strong performance at a time when one was necessary (and up against a crowd that was weirdly pro-Left, given it was supposed to be balanced) she will have massively improved her standing within the Conservative Party. Nuttall demonstrated how redundant UKIP have become with every breath he muttered. No one else got much out of it. Farron and ...
This election is all up in the air with just over a week to go and the key message going out to Lib Dems everywhere is target, target, target. I agree 100% with one caveat. When I wake up (or perhaps more realistically; go to sleep) on 9th June I would like us to have more MPs. Whilst the number of likely gains is small in number, each one will be a massive boost to the party and the hard-won result of hours and hours of volunteers delivering, canvassing and promoting those candidates. My one caveat however, is that I ...
I tried really hard to watch last night's debate between seven party leaders all the way through, I really did. However, it was a struggle coping with all that shouting and talking across each other and in the end I gave up. I suspect many other voters thought the same. The significance of the debate though was not the arguments being put by its various participants, but in the perception created amongst voters by the non-appearance of one the main protaganists in this election. Theresa May was a no-show and in her absence she insulted us all. After all, she ...
From the Curator of Museum Services at the University of Dundee : Botanica MathematicaD'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum2nd - 30th June, Fridays 2 - 4.30pm The D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum at the University of Dundee re-opens to the public for the summer season on 2 June and will be open every Friday 2-4.30pm until 1 September. Throughout June there will be a special addition to the displays - an exhibition of knitted artworks inspired by mathematical biology. Botanica Mathematica is a textile taxonomy of mathematically inspired plant forms. Its creators, Julia Collins and Madeleine Shepherd, have combined ideas from D'Arcy Thompson's ...
Yesterday, Caroline Lucas, the co-leader of the Green Party, carried a green question mark around London to draw attention to the absence of any discussion of the environment during the general election campaign. Across the pond, Donald Trump is about to withdraw from the Paris climate change agreement. So, what do the manifestos say about climate change and green energy?[1] The political scene has changed hugely since December 2009. That month the world's leaders - and Prince Charles - arrived for the Copenhagen climate summit (COP15). There was a sense of the urgency and necessity of tackling rising CO2 emissions ...
The Liberal Democrats have called on Theresa May to urgently speak out and challenge Donald Trump following reports he is set to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on tackling climate change. Sir Ed Davey, who played a key role in negotiating the agreement as Liberal Democrat Energy and Climate Change Secretary, commented: "It's an utter disgrace that Trump is showing such disregard for the threat posed by climate change by preparing to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement. "This deal was the result of two decades of international negotiations and is now on the brink ...
Here are four of Tim's highlights from the debate last night: His opening statement 3 reasons to vote Lib Dem and warning against giving May a blank cheque to introduce Dementia Tax, nick school lunches and implement a bad Brexit deal without giving people a say. The Bake-off moment Taking on Paul Nuttall over demonising immigrants – and what makes a good immigration policy Taking Corbyn to task for waving through Article 50
Sunday saw me delivering 500 tabloids in Sunniside and Marley Hill, Monday saw me delivering 500 tabloids in Whickham and Tuesday saw me delivering 750 in Dunston and Whickham. Total of 1750. By the end of this campaign I will either be super fit or dead.
