The Telegraph yesterday pulled out all the stops in support of Boris Johnson's most recent Brexit mind-burp. Not only did they allow him a double page inside spread for his article, but it was accompanied by a chorus of op-ed and editorial comment about Johnson's vision and the need for strong Johnson-shaped leadership of a Brexit government. The aim was, at a minimum, to cause a splash. Achievement unlocked. Beyond grabbing the headlines, speculation on Johnson's motives is rife. Is it simply an attempt to reassert the case for hard Brexit in advance of Theresa May's Florence speech? That could ...
Responding to the news Theresa May plans to use the existing EU-Canada trade deal as the basis of a new trade agreement with Canada post-Brexit, Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake said:"Theresa May is racking up air miles desperately trying to recreate what we have already. "This copy and paste Brexit is a huge waste of time and resources. "Can ministers point to a single country that has responded to their plea for new and improved trade deals?"The government is pointing to a boost in drinks and spirits exports, but we'll need to keep enough to drown our sorrows given ...
Sun 17th
20:50
Europe: one step down, two more steps to go for the Lib Dems in sorting out the party's position
Today's debate on the party's European policy at Liberal Democrat conference should be only the first of three steps in sorting out the party's position. The very clear vote in favour of retaining the existing 'referendum on terms of Brexit' policy (rather than switching to seeing a general election result victory as being sufficient for dropping Brexit) means the party's policy is settled. But there's more work to do. Two more steps are required. One is to decide well in advance whether or not it is a complete deal breaker in any future hung Parliament and then act on that ...
Current Watchmen, by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (a chapter a month) The Famished Road, by Ben Okri Peoplewatching, by Desmond Morris Last books finished Life During Wartime, ed. Paul Cornell Synners, by Pat Cadigan Thinking Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman Diamond Dogs, by Mike Tucker Antarès, Épisode 2, by Leo Onthuld, by Kristof Spaey and Bart Vaessens Antarès, Épisode 3, by Leo Next books The Dancers at the End of Time, by Michael Moorcock Alexander the Corrector: The Tormented Genius Whose Cruden's Concordance Unwrote the Bible, by Julia Keay 1434: The Year a Chinese Fleet Sailed to Italy ...
One of the things that made Bishop's Castle perfect when I first visited it was that it wasn't too perfect. Yes, there were fine Georgian houses, but there were always a couple of them patched up with corrugated iron. My mother says Bath was like that in the 1950s. Time moves on and the town has grown neater. There is now a fashion for decorating those houses' external plaster in a wacky fashion. The bubbles have been there for years, but there was a lot that was new this summer. The trailing creeper is rather lovely and the jigsaw pieces ...
The Liberal Democrats have called on the government to immediately lift the pay cap on the armed forces to address a growing recruitment crisis. Currently, a newly trained private on £18,488 would see a £351 real-terms pay cut next year once inflation is taken into account. The Liberal Democrats would raise wages in line with inflation, meaning a newly trained private would get a pay rise of £536 up to just over £19,000. Latest figures show the number of fully trained regular Army soldiers has dropped to 77,940, way below the 2020 target of 82,000. Voting at conference, the party ...
Lord Bonkers sees history made at Edgbaston and gives us a further insight into his uneasy relationship with some prominent local inhabitants. Wednesday Here in Rutland night-time cricket is well established thanks to the Elves of Rockingham Forest and their torches, even if I will swear they shine more brightly when the Elves are batting. Still, it is best not to fall out with these fellows, as I found when I suggested they were achieving reverse swing by underhand means. "High Elven Magic" my foot! They were using a bottle top to lift the seam. Where was I? Ah yes, ...
Boris Johnson's repetition of the claim that Brexit will create £350 million a week to spend on the NHS has been criticised as "a clear misuse of official statistics" by the head of the UK Statistics Authority. Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable commented: "Boris' £350m lie has been exposed yet again. "He knows an extreme Brexit would damage the economy and mean less cash for the NHS. "I'm glad to see the independent UK Statistics Authority has the courage to slap Boris down. "It's a shame the same can't be said of Theresa May."
The Liberal Democrats have called on Theresa May to use her speech next week in Florence to change course and unilaterally guarantee the rights of EU nationals, to prevent a 'Brexodus' of thousands of nurses and teachers working in Britain's schools and hospitals. In a conference motion passed today, the party demanded that the government urgently publish a review into the impact its Brexit policies are having on staffing shortfalls in public services. There are over 60,000 EU nationals working in the NHS, making up 10% of doctors and 7% of nurses. In addition, there are nearly 100,000 EU staff ...
Glad to see Vince Cable was the guest at the Labradors for Lib Dems meeting today. I hope they didn't give him a rough time when he took himself for a walk around the exhibition area. It was a stroke of luck that I got this photo. I had to paws to take it. etc I think that's enough........
Vince Cable did his obligatory leader's tour of the exhibition area this afternoon. What an ideal opportunity to get a pic of Vince admiring a copy of Parliamentary Campaigner! (Editor is.....ahem....a certain Jonathan Wallace who produces it for the Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidates Association.)
I've been blogging for a long time now, nearly twelve years, in fact, and I still wouldn't claim to be very good at it. I write modestly well, but do so infrequently and slightly erratically. I'm also worryingly reasonable and tend to shy away from those extremes of opinion that draw readers like moths to a flame. But that's enough about me. Well, sort of. Once upon a time, this blog was called "Liberal Bureaucracy". That made sense, as I was a liberal and a bureaucrat. However, eventually, life changed, and I switched to "The View from Creeting St Peter", ...
So much for planning to leave early this morning. Without the need to get up to deal with my livestock, I ended up sleeping in. It meant I only got on the train at Clapham Junction at 10.40am. The good news was that I found a cafe that served breakfast for only £3 - a bacon role and a cup of tea. That must be a record for London. Two hours to Bournemouth - a good chance to catch up with reading
So the Lib Dem leadership's wrecking amendment to make the party pro-Brexit while continuing to say it's anti-Brexit won, despite even the amendment itself being unconstitutional (wrecking amendments are not allowed normally), and despite the policy itself contradicting the Lib ... Continue reading →
The winners of the ALDC Campaigner Awards 2017, sponsored by Midshires, were presented at the ALDC AGM at Autumn Conference by Sarah Olney, celebrating the best campaigners and campaigning teams from across the country. This year's winners and runners-up are: Best By-election Campaign Runner up is Emmbrook by-election in Wokingham Winner is the Brinsworth By-election in Rotherham Best Online Campaign Runner up is Westhoughton Lib Dems Winner is Surrey Lib Dems Best Community Campaign Runner up – Bristol Lib Dem with the Save Jubilee Pool campaign Winner - Oldham for the Defibrillator Campaign Best Fundraising Campaign Runner up – Sheffield ...
Liberal Democrats have agreed at conference to reaffirm their commitment to a first referendum on the final terms of the Brexit deal. The party's position will see the general public being offered an opportunity to exit from Brexit when the full terms of the final deal are known. Speaking from the conference in Bournemouth, leaderof the Lib Dems on Ribble Valley Borough Council, Cllr. Allan Knox said: "The effects of Brexit are already being felt. The value of the pound has plummeted. Inflation has risen. Growth in the economy has slowed, and the government is already borrowing billions more to ...
Day three was writer's day, and I set off up O'Connell street to the Dublin Writers Museum. I passed the GPO Building, the centre of the Irish rebellion known as the Easter Rising, where there was a foolhardy attempt to oust the British. It failed, but the building survived in all its magnificence. The GPO is an excellent building, ruined by the useless Spire planted outside it in the past two decades. It is a tall metal spike mostly, and it's a waste of money according to the Irish people I spoke with. Irish Writers I continued along the street, ...
Second paragraph of section 3 in each book as follows: 1) The Spaceship Graveyard, by Colin Brake'That's not the answer,' he [the Doctor] says quietly.2) Alien Arena, by Richard DungworthDetermined to dislodge you, the creature tries another tactic. It backs towards the nearest section of the Arena's perimeter, and rears up, in an attempt to crush you against the wall.3) The Time Crocodile, by Colin Brake'It looks a bit like any other zoo,' you tell the Doctor.4) The Corinthian Project, by Davey MooreHe appears to be wearing an old navy uniform - a thick blue wool jacket with gold buttons ...
Here is Jo Swinson's speech to Conference. Let me take you back to a rainy Saturday morning, 28 years ago. I'm doing what many 9-year-olds do on a Saturday morning, watching TV. It's a children's programme called Going Live, presented by Philip Schofield - some of you might even remember it, and depending on your age, nostalically feel it was no match for Swap Shop or Saturday Superstore. "That particular morning's show sticks in my mind because in amongst Gordon the Gopher, kids' cartoons, and celebrities getting gunged, there was an amazing competition. The prize was to win a piece ...
The Conference rally was as upbeat and optimistic and positive as you would expect that motivational event at the start of Conference to be. You can watch the whole thing below. I'd heard earlier that Vince was not going to be making a speech, but he did. He came on and made some very serious comments about terrorism in the wake of the Parsons Green attack, praising the emergency services and condemning Donald Trump's tweets. He then rather cheekily gave the speech that was more suited to the debate on Europe this morning, talking about the need for a referendum, ...
From this 1968 track, a later version of which was released as a single under the title And Now She Says She's Young, you would think Timon was a star child - a sort of Liverpudlian Nick Drake - who faded with the decade. Not a bit of it. In the early 1970s Timon, born Stephen Murray and by then known as Tymon Dogg, move down to London and became a part of the underground scene. He shared a Westbourne Grove squat with and went busking with a young Joe Strummer. Tymon Dogg played on a couple of Clash tracks ...
Sat, 16:11: Wings (1927) https://t.co/xTM1lUEoXU Sat, 20:18: RT @NorthernSlant: NI hasn't had devolved govt. since January. Do people want it restored? @JamesMcMordie on the latest @LucidTalk poll htt... Sun, 04:14: RT @PolakPolly: I studied law for 5 yrs, a Masters Degree in European Union studies, did a traineeship in the CJEU & now writing PhD Thes... Sun, 09:39: RT @TheDazzlingOne: @Karnythia Reminds me of this bonkers Dear Prudence letter: https://t.co/uh1o7fMHk0 Spoiler alert mother in law was tot... Sun, 09:39: RT @TheDazzlingOne: @suesswassersee @Karnythia The update was even wilder: https://t.co/ptQiZ6NjP5 are you serious? Sun, 10:45: RT @dynarski: Female academics, all academics, ...
So, word has got out that I resigned as Secretary of the Committee, and "Liberator" has reported the story in their usual style. If you're interested, and I'm not sure that the resignation of a minor figure on an obscure internal party committee is particularly newsworthy, you can read the story there. However, my first meeting since then takes place this morning, and I ought to let you know what I'll be focussing on there. My aim since being elected to the Committee at the end of last year has been to try and enable it to fulfil its functions ...
Here is Lynne Feathestone's speech to yesterday's climate change debate. The party passed entirely predictable policy – in summary, Paris Agreement is fantastic. Trump and the Conservatives are awful and we are the party of renewables and the green economy. This is what Lynne said: It was a glorious moment in time The signing of the Paris Agreement The world coming together to do the right thing Thinking of future generations Accepting responsibility Taking real action to turn the tide A moment in time But time is not on our side And the battle intensifies Even as 97% of experts ...
Had a great day out yesterday with Keith Page reliving the age of the tram at Wirral Transport Museum where they were celebrating the 60th anniversary of the running of Liverpool's Last Tram. Sadly Liverpool no longer has any tram tracks so celebrating the 60th anniversary there was a non-runner. But over the water on the Wirral about a mile of track was relayed in modern times for the heritage trams of their Transport Museum and Merseyside Tramway Preservation Society to run on. As part of the celebrations a 1950's street scene was recreated on Pacific Road with Liverpool's recently ...
I went to the Opening of conference, and was impressed by how quickly El Presdente got it done - because she knew what was coming. The FCC report was passed, as is custom, and then the debate about suspending standing orders happened. There was a counted vote, despite some idiot protesting it wasn't necessary (IMHO on these contentious things you don't want to leave ANY room for doubt) so we know the exact margin, and it was 4-1 in favour of suspension. Obviously I voted in favour of suspending standing orders. I voted to pass the FPC report, and then ...
All the attention on Boris Johnson's 4,000 word article about Brexit has been on how it positions him as a potential challenger to Theresa May. Indeed, as the Observer points out the piece appears to have achieved the desired effect with Tory MPs infuriated at the challenge and, in some cases at Theresa May for not sacking her foreign secretary. However what Boris had to say is also significant, not least the repetition of the lie that leaving the EU will nets an additional £350 million pounds for public services. In fact during the referendum campaign it was shown conclusively ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - SUNDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 2017 Perth Road (at Roseangle) - temporary traffic lights on Sunday 17 to Monday 18 September for Scottish Water main repair. REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 18 SEPTEMBER 2017 Riverside Esplanade/Riverside Drive (Tay Road Bridge off ramp to 75m along Riverside Drive) - westbound nearside lane closure for 12 weeks to facilitate V&A construction works. SSE Glenagnes Cable Renewal - Lochee Road lane restrictions and closures on Blinshall Street until midweek. A85 Riverside Drive - prohibition of right turn from ...
Here is today's shameless plug for the events LDV is putting on or helping to run. At 1pm in the Bayview 2 at the BIC, we'll be looking at the effect of Brexit on the Irish border and on Gibraltar. We have an incredibly illustrious panel. David Ford was until last year leader of the Alliance Party in Northern Ireland and is a former Justice Minister. The Hon Joseph Garcia MP is the Deputy Chief Minister of Gibraltar. I'm old enough to remember when the border between Gibraltar and Spain was closed. Being part of the EU sorted that out ...
Here's your rundown of what's on in the hall today. You can watch it all on the Autumn Conference Live Stream here and follow the #ldconf tag on Twitter. Keep an eye on the Liberal Democrat Facebook page, too, for some real treats. 09:00-09:10 Report, Federal Appeals Panel 09:10-10:00 Report, Parliamentary Parties – your chance to question MPs, our MEP and Lords about their activities 10:00-10:45 Policy Motion: Armed Forces personnel – Recruitment, retention and welfare 10:45-12:30 Policy Motion on Europe after Conference voted overwhelmingly (377-97) to suspend standing orders to do so. Vince pretty much made his speech in ...
Sun 17th
07:26
Councillors call for a fair deal for retired women and an economic duty for Shropshire Council
At the next meeting of Shropshire Council on Thursday, Councillor Heather Kidd is calling on Shropshire Council to support women campaigning for fairer pension arrangements after their state pension age was raised in 1995 (see the WASPI campaign). I have tabled a motion calling for the council to adopt an economic duty and report on the economic impacts of its policies. Tracey Huffer had submitted a motion on gender neutral titles in council paperwork. This has been agreed in principle without the need for council discussion. Fairer pensions From Councillor Heather Kidd: "The Council notes that the Government has failed ...
Lib Dem conference started this morning in Bournemouth but I'm not there yet. I am staging my journey. I left Newcastle by train this aftrnoon and am now at my flat at Crystal Palace. It has been unoccupied for 3 months as my friend, who normally lives there, is seriously ill and since June has been either living with us where we can care for him, or is in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in
