After disappointment last week, we've GAINED a seat tonight: Knaresborough result. Lib Dems 2051 (54.7%) +6.5% Cons 1313 (35%) -18.5% Lab 369 (9.8%) -5.9% A @LibDems gains from the Conservatives — ALDC (@ALDC) August 16, 2018 * Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings

Posted by Caron Lindsay on Liberal Democrat Voice

A journey along the alignment of the former narrow-gauge railway between Barnstaple and Lynton to discover what remains of this line 83 years after its closure. The line now has an active restoration society. And while we are talking about it, see my own photograph of Barnstaple Town in 1982.

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

Photo by Nicolas Gras on Unsplash He may be the new prime minister of space, but Lembit Opik is having a less happy time of it down here on Earth. The Daily Mail reports that he has been stripped of his parliamentary pass after breaking the rules about bringing guests into the Palace of Westminster. As Lembit tried something a little similar at a Liberator disco the first time I ever met him, this does not come as a complete surprise. What may be a surprise is the Mail's revelation that former MPs who have been convicted of criminal offences, ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

Second paragraph of third chapter ("A London Courtship", by Victor Zhang): This 'London courtship' helped us to get our foot in the door of the European sector, and was a milestone in Huawei's progress into the global markets. I attended a reception hosted by Huawei a few months ago, and they kindly handed out two books of essays by Huawei staff, of which this is the first. It opens with an introductory paean of praise for Huawei's wonderful corporate culture, but then settles down into a series of first-person accounts by young Chinese people working in different cultures. The growth ...

Good news from the Shropshire Star: The Bishop's Castle Railway Society has started work on the weighbridge building with plans to turn it into a community hub for public use. Originally built in 1865, the building is situated in the yard of Charles Ransford & Sons timber, and was home to railway offices and a weighbridge facility. Plans have been drawn up to preserve the weighbridge mechanism and restore the building as near to its original state as possible.I blogged about the railway society's plans a year ago. They are now coming to fruition thanks to a grant from the ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

The trends in polling on the European Union continue: A recent BMG poll on behalf of The Independent shows that 48% of the public now support a public vote on the terms of the Government's Brexit deal. The results represent a small increase in support from last month, up four points. The exact wording of questions matters greatly on the topic of another / second / third / first referendum on the deal as it produced substantive differences in the results. The key thing to track, therefore, is how the answers are changing between different times that the exact same ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

I am on an extended tour through the continent with my wife and three small children. To add perspective to the following story, they are six, four and one. So, you know, small kids. We have taken in France, Italy and now Austria, where I write this article. Throughout this adventure, I have learned some good things about Europe and some not so good things. I also think I understand the emotional heart of the Leave project better than I did a few weeks ago. Not why some chap in Morecambe voted to Leave, to be clear, but why the ...

Posted by Nick on nicktyrone.com

Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake has responded to comments from Peter Coates, Chair of Stoke City FC, and Mike Garlick, Chair of Burnley FC, that Brexit could be "hugely damaging" to English football. Brake said: "Fans want to see the best footballers at their clubs, competing in the best leagues in the world. The Premier League, and sport across the UK, has flourished in recent years. However, all that could come to an end with the economic calamity that is Brexit. I am glad that leaders from high profile clubs have spoken out against a policy that could badly ...

Posted by LD Neath on Aberavon & Neath Liberal Democrats

An 8mm cine film of floats and marching bands participating in the 1977 Ockbrook & Borrowash Carnival. It was shot opposite the shops on Priorway Avenue. Corona soft drinks were still going strong (a wastebin with Corona branding appears 2s in). The Borrowash Mother and Baby club had clearly spent a lot of time and effort on their Magic Roundabout ... The post Ockbrook & Borrowash Carnival, 1977 appeared first on ten pence piece.

Posted by tim on ten pence piece

Recent reports based on the Freedom of Information request made by Liberal Democrats highlight the shocking abandonment of prisoners upon release. This is when they are most vulnerable and in need of help to transition into a settled place in society. Lib Dem Home Affairs Spokesperson Ed Davey MP revealed that more than 100,000 prisoners across England and Wales left prison for "unsettled" or "unknown" accommodation in the last three years, almost half of the 220,411 prisoners released in that period. A full table of figures for individual prisons can be found here. Ed Davey said the new figures proved ...

Posted by The Voice on Liberal Democrat Voice
YouGov

In the next of this series of short essays on US culture and its impact, I will address how it impacts healthcare. Few aspects of the US are more bewildering to non-Americans. We have some of the best medical schools, centres and physicians on the planet. We lead the world in new diagnostic and therapeutic [...] The post The strange, rococo American healthcare system appeared first on Radix.

Posted by David Boyko on Radix
Thu 16th
11:00

My tweets

Wed, 13:46: RT @jonworth: How to get a #Brexit deal - the flow diagram, based on where things are at the moment https://t.co/jLDQh8NqGT Wed, 16:05: RT @Popehat: This fascination with "is there a tape of Trump using a racial epithet" is the ultimate in Trump-era media onanism. No outcom... Wed, 20:20: RT @AKimCampbell: OMG!! https://t.co/IkbmcVzrNW Wed, 22:00: Walls in Belfast https://t.co/sFFsDV4nPA Thu, 10:45: RT @JamesERothwell: Thread on Brexit, lorry drivers, Chris Grayling and no deal planning. If you think government's no deal planning is all...

It is approaching ten years since the collapse of Lehman Brothers. To most people this is when the great financial crash started, since it is from this point that the most serious repercussions started to take place. Personally I date it from the collapse of interbank markets more than a year before, but never mind. ... Continue reading Have economists learnt nothing from the crash? Three fallacies that persist

Posted by Matthew on thinking liberal

Following on from the European Athletics Championships last week in Berlin comes this letter from the Government on the free movement of those involved in sport after Brexit. It was in answer to a letter from the Chair of the House of Lords EU Home Affairs Sub-Committee, Lord Jay of Ewelme. It begins, The Home Affairs Sub-Committee of the House of Lords EU Committee recently concluded an inquiry into Brexit: freedom of movement in the fields of sport and culture. The Committee will publish a report on freedom of movement in the field of culture; this letter refers to the ...

Posted by Kirsten Johnson on Liberal Democrat Voice

Boris Johnson is not afraid of controversy. In fact he actively courts it. The dishevelled, bumbling, obfuscating figure he projects is a carefully nurtured act designed to throw people off guard, get him through awkward situations and endear him to others. It raises his profile and keeps him in the 'game' as a potential future Prime Minister. His problem is that when looked at in the cold light of day, his past behaviour and record do not stand up to scrutiny, not least in any evaluation of his fitness for high office. What may be concerning his constituents however, is ...

Posted by Peter Black on Peter Black

Just to let residents know about recent planning applications in our area – on Simister Lane, Polefield Road, Middleton Road, Cromwell Road and St Austell's Drive. Please just let us know if you have any queries. Erection of outbuilding Land at rear of 161 Simister Lane, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 2SFRef. No: 63147 | Received: Wed 08 Aug 2018 | Validated: Wed 08 Aug 2018 | Status: Registered Single storey extension at side and pitched roof to existing front bay 47 Polefield Road, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 2GN Ref. No: 63110 | Received: Fri 27 Jul 2018 | Validated: Mon 30 Jul ...

Posted by prestwichfocus on Tim Pickstone

You are warmly invited to attend the 33rd Annual General Meeting of the One World Centre on Tuesday 21st August which is to be held in Lecture Theatre 1 (LT1) on the ground floor of the Dalhousie Building on University of Dundee's main campus. Staff and committee members will be welcoming attendees from 5.15pm with a group photo planned before the talk at 5.30pm. This year we are very fortunate to have Dr. Husam AlWaer, Senior Lecturer at the University of Dundee, joining us to talk about his research on the urbanism of refugee camps. Often considered as temporary places ...