The count had taken place, the results were known. All that was left was to announce them, and that was the point where Congress went wrong for the Liberal Democrats. In a shock result, Ros Scott was unsuccessful in her quest to be re-elected. It was an outcome that nobody had expected, with the exception of the candidate herself, leaving the ALDE Party Bureau without a British member for the first time in living memory. Jonathan Fryer, blogging after the event, suggested that; ...it looks as if Brexit was a factor, for which Theresa May and her UKIPTory government are ...
From LBC's phone-in show hosted by Nigel Farage comes this confrontation: David in Croydon launched the attack on the Ukip MEP after it was reported Britain and the EU had come to an agreement on the so-called divorce bill... The news left Nigel furious as he slammed the government for "selling out" and bowing to the demands of Brussels. But, Brexit voter David called LBC to blame Nigel for the revelation. "I think you've caused all this mess," the caller said. "I voted Brexit, but now I realise the implications and I've spoken to a lot of people like me ...
On holiday in Oxford one summer, I came across the church that was home to the Revd Andrew Wingfield Digby. Blogging at the time, I described him as a stalwart of the Oxford University cricket team in the 1970s. All told he took 97 first-class wickets @ 33.87 - a highly creditable record for a university bowler. He also, says Cricinfo, played for Dorset, a minor county, for over a decade. In 1989 Ted Dexter, then the chairman of the selectors, appointed him as spiritual advisor to the England team. In that era it was a role that would have ...
Maghull North Station site on 4th December with a train running through from Ormskirk. Be prepared especially if you are using the Liverpool Ormskirk Line – the link below to the Merseyrail site may help In particular please keep this in mind:- Planned Engineering Work Maghull – Ormskirk Wednesday 27 December until Sunday 7 January 2018 Preparation for the new Maghull North station will take place between December 27th 2017 and January 7th 2018. Rail replacement buses will run between Ormskirk and Maghull stations. Passengers are advised that to reach their destination station at their normal time, they will ...
People my have seen press coverage about the commitment from supermarket chain Aldi's promise to distribute surplus produce to food banks and charities as it closes its stores on Christmas Eve. If you're involved in a local charity that might be interested, the deadline for letting them know is 8th December 2017. Details in the picture below
As part of Transport for Greater Manchester's 2018 Women's Cycling campaign, T4GM are offering the opportunity for clubs, groups or organisations, located within Greater Manchester, to apply for funding towards events/activities that will encourage women to cycle and make journeys by bike. T4GM say: "This year we are asking for schemes that are wider than a single event, can take place between January and the end of March, and are aimed at delivering either a series of opportunities or a programme of progression towards making journeys by bike. The events and activities must be aimed at either introducing cycling to ...
I had hoped that Theresa May would be a "good" Prime Minister – she used to be my MP so have met her on a few occasions. But she fell under the same spell as her predecessor David Cameron, she did not listen to the voters, she gambled and lost. She said; the Government I lead will be driven not by the interests of the rich and powerful, but by the interests of ordinary, working class people Yet she never followed through, never put forward a strategy for achieving this, she had many chances to do this, but nothing. The ...
You may or may not have heard about Armchair Detectives, the new daytime TV show on BBC1. Looking at the ratings*, it's more likely than not that you haven't. This strikes me as something of a shame: I really really love it. It follows a similar format to 1970's panel show Whodunnit except with normal people rather than celebs, who get to look at evidence, rather than talk to the suspects. It's clearly made on a budget of about 20p, and some of the acting is atrocious, but there are many things to love about it:Susan Calman It falls firmly ...
For the UK to remain in EU, a second EU referendum on the terms of Brexit is a false goal. It implies Liberal Democrats will oppose the terms when they are known, whatever they are. We risk being accused of wanting the worst outcome for our country, to justify our opposition. Actually, the terms don't matter. Most Brexiteers, especially in government, just want to leave, without terms, a divorce bill or a transition, in order to end immigration and continental entanglements. Calling for a second referendum, assumes Remain could win. The lamentable Remain campaign in the 2016 referendum and the ...
As of this moment, it looks as if the UK government has got the EU to agree to move the trade talks forward based on an agreement that there will be no regulatory divergence between at least Northern Ireland and Ireland, meaning that there will be no hard border. Except it is a fudge, of sorts anyhow. The draft text of the agreement runs: "In the absence of agreed solutions the UK will ensure that there continues to be no divergence from those rules of the internal market and the customs union which, now or in the future, support North ...
Sun, 12:56: RT @DenisMacShane: Italian gov's economic advisor is Marco Leonardo. Is @ecfr director moonlighting? @markhleonard @JyShapiro Sun, 13:18: RT @Five_Rights: .@MarietjeSchaake: We in Europe must not lose sight of what is happening in Russia. #ALDECongress Sun, 13:22: Both @worldcon2018 and @Dublin2019 will run Retrospective Hugo Awards; here is a salute to the SF of 1942 & 1943... https://t.co/PIW9G7BgGI Sun, 14:09: RT @po8crg: @pnh I've just written and sent these questions to SMOFcon for the Fannish Inquisition. The USA is not the only country with t... Sun, 16:42: RT @GuitarMoog: As predicted, the seven new red lines from the Brexit ...
miss_s_b | A quick question for Brits who had a telly in 1998 Has been answered now, thanks 100 Tweets that made British people piss themselves in 2017 [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
The Boundary Commission are reviewing parliamentary boundaries to reduce the number of MPs from 650 to 600 and to equalise the number of electors in each constituency. Their proposals for Yardley (currently including the Birmingham wards of Acocks Green, South Yardley, Yardley North and Stechford & Sheldon) are for radical changes. These were discussed recently at a meeting of the Acocks Green Focus Group. Their blog post, from which the rest of this post is copied (with a few minor corrections), can be read here "If these the new proposals go through, these changes will take place in 2022. Historic ...
Having railed constantly against the European Union gravy train for decades, one would have thought that Brexiteers such as Nigel Farage would set an example by putting his principles where his wallet is. That though is not how the former UKIP leader sees things. According to the Independent, Farage refused to pass on the money when challenged on the Andrew Marr Show, demanding to know why his family should suffer for his beliefs and actions. Farage is entitled to an estimated annual pension of £73,000, which he would be able to claim in ten years time at the age of ...
Some years ago, I was in the room when a consulting firm was pitching a mega-project to the president of research and development at a major multinational company. They would construct a huge IT system that would allow him to manage personally every project in his sprawling organisation. He would be able to dive into [...] The post The great delusion of governments and corporations appeared first on Radix.
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 4 DECEMBER 2017 A85 Riverside Drive - prohibition of right turn from westbound lane of Riverside Drive into Riverside approach and prohibition of right turn from Riverside Approach in to Riverside Drive for one week for works to the sea wall. Prohibitions will only be in place when required. A85 Riverside Drive (at Railway Station) - eastbound nearside lane closure for 2 weeks for SGN essential valve maintenance and footway, drainage and kerbing works.
Christmas looks a little more cheerful for the Lib Dems after a string of November council by-election results but so far as national opinion polls go we are bumping along the bottom. Given such data, it would be unsafe to draw the conclusion that are resolute anti-Brexit stance is paying dividends. It may well do so when some turn of events demonstrates to the vast swathes of voters that Brexit was a catastrophic economic and political mistake, but no-one just now is holding their breath. There may well come that Iraq moment when the party's wisdom is demonstrably vindicated but ...
Liberal Democrat Voice comes to you this morning from Amsterdam, at the end of a weekend in which it became clear that Europe is preparing to move on with, or more probably without, the United Kingdom. So, what have we got for you today? We'll kick the day off with some thoughts from John Pugh on regional liberalism as a means to rebuilding our presence in local and national government. My usual preview of the week in the Lords will follow, and we'll have news of the elections for the ALDE Party Bureau, which took place on Saturday here in ...
Responding to the news that all four members of the board of the government's Social Mobility Commission have stood down, Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable said: "This is a serious vote of no confidence in the government's policies. "Brexit is sucking all the life out of government so that it has no time or energy to address inequality and lack of opportunity for young people. "Alan Milburn and his team were taken seriously by the coalition, helping to drive forward policies like the pupil premium. "Now ministers are too preoccupied by internal infighting and Brexit to tackle social injustice."
Nigel Farage told the Andrew Marr show on Sunday that he would take his EU pension, saying "why should my family and others suffer even more." Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake commented: "Nigel Farage is a shameless hypocrite. "He rails against the so-called EU gravy train, but is happy to cash in when it suits him. "No doubt he also secretly backs the £50bn Brexit divorce bill that includes money to pay for his EU pension."
Britain is seeing the the first sustained rises in child and pensioner poverty for two decades, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's state of the nation report. The report warns poverty rates rose last year to 16% for pensioners and 30% for children - and that welfare cuts are reducing families' financial breathing space. Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable commented: "This report sounds the death knell for Theresa May's claim to be building a country that works for everyone. "Instead of tackling social injustice, the government's policies are worsening inequality and hitting the poorest in society hardest. "The significant progress ...
