You never know what you will find. Searching for C.P. Snow's plaque, I found this idiosyncratic building in Cavendish Street. This, you may recall, was the street hardest hit by the first German bombing raid on Leicester in World War II. The Mock Tudor timbers and Art Nouveau lettering survived that, though the modern replacement windows do them no favours. Down the road you will find another happy survival: a proper hardware shop.
Conservative MP for Tunbridge Wells, Greg Clark, is looking likely to face Councillor Ben Chapelard at the next general election.
Embed from Getty Images It's the line everyone knows from Alan Moore's graphic novel V for Vendetta and the film that was made from it: People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.But is it as obviously right as it sounds? Is fear really a good thing in politics? Take the current situation in the Commons, where it highly likely that a majority of MPs believe it is against Britain's interests to leave the European Union. Why don't they vote in accord with their beliefs? Because of fear. They are afraid of their ...
Commenting on reports that the UK government will not block death the penalty in the case of Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson Ed Davey said: "The crimes committed by these terrorists are amongst the most heinous imaginable. Clearly these two individuals present a serious danger to the public and the argument that they should spend the rest of their lives in prison is overwhelming. "However, the use of the death penalty - no matter the crimes involved - is wrong. By refusing to stand up to Donald Trump's administration on this issue, Sajid Javid ...
Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake MP has warned that there is "no returns policy" when it comes to Brexit following reports Amazon's UK Manager, Doug Gurr, has told the Tory Government that the UK would face "civil unrest" within weeks of a no-deal Brexit.Mr Brake said: "Although Amazon were referring to an extremely unlikely scenario, warnings of this nature from leading business leaders are embarrassing for the Tories, and deeply worrying for the public when it comes to the state of our economy."The Tories are delivering an absolute mess of a Brexit. Time is running out to prevent this ...
I'm having a break with my family for a few days. We have been visiting our beautiful countryside. But everywhere we go, townscapes and landscapes are blighted by litter. We hate it. Everyone hates it. We were up on the Titterstone Clee today. There we met Colin, Chris and Ben, three volunteer litter pickers. It was great to see them. Ben, who picks up the bottles and cans from difficult slopes, is a border collie. Watch him collect a plastic water bottle in this video. Colin and Chris have cleared up the Titterstone car park area for a while. They ...
Current The Æneid, by Virgil (translations by John Dryden and Robert Fagles, plus Seamus Heaney's translation of Book VI) The Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England, by Ian Mortimer Aztec Century, by Christopher Evans Wounded Heart, by S.W. Baird Last books finished Maigret Loses His Temper, by Georges Simenon Up Jim River, by Michael Flynn (Did not finish) Next books Aliénor, la Légende noire, tome 5, by Arnaud Delalande, Simona Mogavino and Carlos Gomez The Supernatural Enhancements, by Edgar Cantero
There are two types of people in this world. Those who divide the world into two types of people, and those who don't. The rise of left and right wing populism points reformers towards updating liberal democracy. The remedies that left and right populists peddle are remarkably similar; one-party regimes, state control of the economy, dismantling the 'separation of powers', nationalism, and a rapid increase in state spending. Less attention, however, is paid to the parallel rise of liberal, pro-democracy parties in government; Canada, Netherlands, South Korea, Malaysia, Ireland and elsewhere. There are many lessons to be learned from liberal-democratic ...
I joined the Liberal Democrats in November to help to create a more liberal United Kingdom. At a time when protectionism and populism are on the rise, not just in the UK but around the globe, it is crucial that we have liberal answers to the difficult questions. Despite being 10 years on, we are still hungover from the financial crisis. There has been a major squeeze on incomes, structural changes that have damaged towns and the generational divide has grown. Because of this, I decided to apply to join the A Fairer Share for All working group. Even though ...
Sun, 12:29: RT @davidallengreen: Today's Brexit idiocy, and it is a stark and dangerous one. UK both owes this and has accepted it should pay. For UK... Sun, 12:56: RT @JulianDutton1: OTD in 1969, Apollo 11 Moon landing. BBC coverage: Pink Floyd played, Ian McKellen read poetry, The Dudley Moore Trio pe... Sun, 15:28: Two ancient churches in Burgundy https://t.co/8FQvdOT5Jv Sun, 16:05: RT @chazhutton: So here's my favourite little quirky thing in New York, which to me is a perfect embodiment of New York's attitude, and a d... Sun, 16:45: RT @Paul_Cornell: Just realised during that panel: across all media, ...
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Here is a major constitutional problem that would arise the moment Labour got a parliamentary majori...
Immediately following the Chequers incident, I wrote an article explaining that I thought I knew what Theresa May was trying to do, finally. I said I wasn't sure if it would work, but at least she seemed to have a plan. However, she blew the whole thing up herself within a week, so now I'm back to being unsure as to what the prime minister thinks she's doing. But so far, so 2018; we live in an age where not only huge political problems but full blown constitutional crises have become commonplace. Speaking of constitutional crises, here's one that no ...
One of the more obscure (at least as far as the general public is concerned) areas of worry resulting from Brexit was British participation in Horizon 2020, the European Union's Programme for Innovation and Research, which invested significant sums into European research and development programmes, linking researchers across the Union for that purpose. The transitional period appeared to allow British participation until its end, even if Conservative politicians seem determined to put that in doubt. Now, the European Commission are proposing a new version, Horizon Europe, intended to take the programme forward in the 2021-27 period, and their concept is ...
It has been de rigueur in certain middle class circles to complain about the baleful effect of political parties in government, but nobody appears to be complaining now they have all but disappeared in the chaos hat now seems to be overtaking what used to be known as the UK government. The collapse of ideological [...] The post The breakdown of party government appeared first on Radix.
As I have been looking at the layout of the new Maghull North Station two things in particular jump out at me which don't seem at all right. Firstly, the vast majority of those approaching the station by foot, on a cycle, pushing a pram, using a disability buggy etc. will do so coming from the direction of Maghull Square yet the access to the new station from this direction is at present via a short flight of steps:- There's no alternative to these steps, there's no dropped kerb and hard standing to School Lane so how are people with ...
I don't think anyone could deny that young people are getting a raw deal. But every time the conversation turns to young people, the go-to issue is tuition fees. There are so many issues which have a much greater impact on young people than tuition fees, especially those from low-income backgrounds. Here are 5 examples: 1. A lower minimum wage The minimum wage of £7.83 per hour is far too low. But the rate is even lower for Under 25s. For 21-24 year olds it is £7.38, and for 18-20 year olds it is £5.90. Maybe (at a push) you ...
The grass in my garden is looking a bit distressed, and the oasis of a new centrist party is looking like a bit of a mirage. But life goes on, and so does Liberal Democrat Voice. So, what have we got for you today? Ben Andrew kicks us off with some suggestions that would help the young amongst us. And yes, he does touch upon student finance, but his focus is on earlier years too. We have news on proposals for Horizon Europe. "What's that?", I hear you ask. Well, it's a major funding programme, supporting collaborative research and development ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 23 JULY 2018 Perth Road (at Arnhall Drive) - temporary traffic lights from Monday 23 July for one week for gas service connection. Forthcoming Roadworks Riverside Drive (at Riverside Approach) - temporary traffic lights from Monday 30 July for 5 weeks for gas main renewal. Riverside Approach closed southbound and prohibition of right turn from Barnetts Garage will be in force for periods of the 5 weeks.
I have been writing about the way that restaurant staff are exploited by big chains through their tipping policies since 2008 with a number taking a cut of any tips added onto the bill and paid with credit cards in particular. In 2016, the Government announced plans to end unfair tipping practices and ensure additional payments for service are voluntary to the consumer, and received by workers in full. These included updating the current voluntary code of practice, increasing transparency for consumers to make it clearer that tips are discretionary, and preventing or limiting any employer deduction from tips, except ...
