One Labour seat and one Conservative-turned-Independent seat make up this week's council by-elections. Both, hooray, have a Liberal Democrat candidate.
Tories fail to support Lib Dem motion to end schools and SEND underfunding Parties unite on Conservative call to promote Hindu and Buddhist new year After a short adjournment of the meeting to allow the crowds there for the Parking Strategy to disperse, the business of the council recommenced. Lib Dems call for fair funding [...]
This week saw the birth of the long-awaited new centrist party, The Independent Group. Who knows what's going to happen? My heart says I hope it thrives. At last, a handful of the grown-ups in our two main parties have had the courage of their convictions and done something constructive, positive. Just perhaps it will force a response from the Conservatives and Labour, a reversion to the sensible, moderate mainstream; a rejection of their current adherence to their controlling extremists, whether ERG or Momentum. My heads says it's bound to get squashed by our stultifying electoral system, which stifles at ...
Thu 21st
21:56
Odds sharply improve of next Parliamentary by-election being in a former Lib Dem constituency
Whilst we wait to find out if there will be a Parliamentary by-election in Peterborough, and with one definitely on the way in Newport West following the sad death of Paul Flynn, there is also now the chance of one in Brecon and Radnorshire.
Sometimes you don't realise how much you liked a public figure until they die. I remember being on a walking holiday in the West Country in 1997 when Brian Glover died and borrowing someone's newspaper in the pub so I could read his obituary. Before he was an actor, Glover was a wrestler and British Wrestlers Reunion explains the genesis of Leon Arras: At the start of his career Glover took the ring name of Erik Tanberg from Sweden but he was struggling to make any impact and despite his best efforts did not seem to climb the wrestling ladder. ...
I regard myself as a Fortean - happy in general to accept that "there are more things in heaven and earth...", but distinctly sceptical in individual cases. Recently I came across a podcast called The Unexplained, which is introduced by a smooth professional broadcaster called Howard Hughes who has an obvious interest in such matters. Some of the episodes are really good. I recommend one on the death of Dr David Kelly with the journalist Miles Goslett and the most recent one, which looks at the D.B. Cooper plane hijacking in the US. There are also interviews with David Icke ...
One Something had to happen and I am glad that it did. The two main parties have both been captured by groups of extremists that have more in common with each other than they do with the political mainstream. You only have to see the happy faces of The Independent Group MPs to see what a strain it has been to fight for mainstream values in the Conservative and Labour Parties. The response from Corbyn loyalists, at least, has shown how broken our political system now is. I have no idea what will happen next, but I have a feeling ...
Lots to crunch here. First of all, the GR/LT stats for the Best Novel finalists: Goodreads LibraryThing owners av rating owners av rating Spinning Silver, by Naomi Novik 114,671 4.3 793 4.28 The Poppy War, by R.F. Kuang 76,250 4.04 371 3.98 The Calculating Stars, by Mary Robinette Kowal 27,696 4.22 321 4.08 Blackfish City, by Sam J. Miller 18,116 3.63 189 3.4 Witchmark, by C.L. Polk 15,627 3.92 182 3.71 Impressive lead on all four metrics for Spinning Silver. For Best Novella, there is also a clear leader, if not quite so strongly ahead, but the different modes of ...
We knew it was coming, of course — the cancer he was diagnosed with around a decade ago is one which most people survive for a long time, but which pretty much always gets you within a decade or so, ... Continue reading →
As we mark the beginning of 2019, the countdown to Spring Conference has begun! And on behalf of the York Liberal Democrats, I would like to say how pleased I am to be welcoming everyone back to York in March. For those who have not been to York previously - York is a beautiful, well-connected and unique city, with a lot to offer. Visit York estimates that this year's Conference will provide a substantial boost to the local economy, valued at more than £600,000. Combined with the St. Patrick's Day weekend, I know that the city's wonderful pubs, hotels, B&Bs ...
"Break the mould" was the slogan of the SDP/Liberal Alliance after the defection of 28 (yes 28) Labour MPs to form their Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981. A sole Conservative joined them as well. Together with by-election successes (Roy Jenkins at Glasgow Hillhead, for example) and the existing 11 Liberal MPs the Alliance eventually totalled around 40 MPs, but , in the first General Election to follow, in 1983, although our Alliance polled 25% of the vote (against Labour's 28%and the Tories' 42%) only 23 Alliance MPs were elected, just six of whom were members of the SDP. The ...
Thu 21st
14:37
Why both the Tories and Labour (and really, the Lib Dems) are taking the threat of the Independent G...
Needless to say, The Independent Group could possibly flop from here. There could be no more resignations from the two big parties, for starters, which would leave it dead in the water, the 11 souls stranded on their own political island. The group could really screw up – we've had the unfortunate "funny tinge" moment, right off the bat, after all. On the other hand, this could be the real start of political realignment in this country. It is clear from the reactions of both May and Corbyn that neither of them are taking this in any way seriously enough. ...
Thu 21st
12:37
The Shamima Begum Case: As with Brexit, the Dutch are better prepared for what is coming anyway
As has become a tradition over the past decades, the LibDems and Dutch sister party D66 sing from exactly the same hymn sheet on the subject of taking back "ISIS jihad brides" and their children from the Syrian-Kurdish YPG/SDF prisoner camps they're housed in at the moment. And just as usual, the ALDE right wing (in the Netherlands, Prime Minister Mark Rutte's VVD) is fervently opposed to taking back anybody who has moved to the ISIS Caliphate since 2014, thus bending liberal, judicial and humanist principles to populist kneejerk reactions. In the Netherlands, Rutte and the VVD know they stand ...
Manuel Chaves Nogales (1897-1944) was witness to many of the catastrophic events of the first half of the 20th century, from the turmoil that followed the Bolshevik Revolution in the USSR to the rise of Fascism, the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War, which saw the loss of millions of lives. Though opposed [...]
First the Seven, then plus One and, at the time of writing, now joined by the Tory Three. Brexit has made strange times for politics is highlighting the flaws in our current political system. From both Labour and the Conservative sides, the emphasis has always been on "broad church politics". What does this phrase really mean? It means that each of the larger parties are a coalition of views: a group of sub-spectrums within the larger political continuum. The latter is often described as horseshoe-shaped, as the extreme ends of left and right bend in towards each other. It is ...
There is a hidden gender problem deep in the heart of Westminster. We often talk about the number of female MPs in parties and on the frontbenches, and how male, pale and stale those can look.It is obviously worth discussing, but we should look at what goes on behind the scene as well. By the [...] The post Westminster's hidden gender problem – and how it's getting worse appeared first on Radix.
Wed, 12:34: RT @JusticeLeagueEU: @jonworth Reminds me of when @nwbrux diplomatically said 'I don't know why the minister said that' when what he meant... Wed, 12:37: The Independent Group: Tories Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston and Heidi Allen quit party over Brexit to join ex-Labour... https://t.co/b5TyA6QDHa Wed, 12:47: RT @purves_peter: Almost ready to go https://t.co/CGL51Nbqrs Wed, 12:56: RT @Dublin2019: Still undecided about who to vote for in the Retro Hugos? Ian Moore investigates what else was happening in fandom in 194... Wed, 16:05: The world's first democratically elected Muslim woman was from Georgia https://t.co/wfzXAW7Rgv Fascinating piece by... https://t.co/t2eF7bZ0d6 Wed, 19:52: RT ...
The real advantage of having been around a long time (52 years as a member and 36 as a councillor) is that you can usually say, "I've seen it all before". There are two things about the emergence of the "Independent Group" which are different to the huge surge of support for the SDP when it was created. Firstly, there are no big names amongst them. Most people outside their own constituencies probably couldn't put a name to a face if shown the magnificent 11. Secondly, this time there are splits in both the other Parties not just one. It's ...
Rimrose Valley Country Park map. Some years back Sefton Council's then Technical Services Traffic Services Unit produced, in conjunction with The Countryside Commission, a quite beautiful set of walking booklets* which are pieces of artwork in their own right. I blogged about another of the walks (No.7 in the series – The Maghull Trail) not so long ago – here's a link to it:- But back to the Rimrose Valley, which I cycle through regularly. The threat is of course a new road to the Port of Liverpool that Highways England says it is going to build down through ...
History tells us that the championing of tariffs on imports by Joseph Chamberlain in the early 1900s through the Tariff Reform League, was a major factor in enabling a Liberal landslide in the 1906 General Election. Free-trade stalwarts in the Liberal and Labour parties prevailed with the argument that such an arrangement would penalise voters by undermining their cost of living. Many working-class people at the time saw tariffs as a threat to the price of food. The election was won with the slogan 'big loaf' under a Liberal government, 'little loaf' under a Conservative government. Liberals also commissioned a ...
I welcome the report by the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, High Streets and Town Centres in 2030, which calls on the Government to consider the options of an online sales tax and reforms to business rates. It states: We believe that high streets and town centres can survive, and thrive, by 2030 if they adapt. Our vision is for activity-based community gathering places where retail is a smaller part of a wider range of uses and activities and where green space, leisure, arts and culture and health and social care services combine with housing to create a space ...
Continuing a trend largely unremarked in the media, another local councillor has joined the Liberal Democrats.
From Sheena Wellington : Bruce Davies at the Wighton! - Cappuccino Concert Wighton Heritage Centre, Central LibrarySaturday 23rd February - 11am (doors open at 10.30am) Bruce Davies, the Fife based singer songwriter will be appearing at Wighton Heritage Centre, Dundee on Saturday 23rd February from 11am to noon. With 35 years as a professional entertainer behind him, Bruce is a musician whose easy on the ear singing and storytelling have gained him many friends on four continents. Crisp acoustic guitar playing is one of his trademarks and, as BBC Celtic Roots said, "a voice in a million". His recent album ...
Thu 21st
06:14
Approval given for 74 homes in former quarry on Fishmore Road - no affordable housing but small home...
This application has taken a long time to get approval but earlier this week Shropshire Council gave outline planning permission for 74 houses and apartments in the former brick quarry. There will no affordable homes on site and the developer will only have to pay affordable housing contribution if profits from the site are higher than expected. This is because of the costs of providing a retaining wall to protect the development from the quarry face and decontaminating the site. Nearly half the homes will be two-bedroom. This is only outline permission. The developer now has three years to submit ...
Responding to the report by the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee calling on the Government to consider the options of an online sales tax and reforms to business rates, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Vince Cable said: "While our high streets are going through an extremely difficult time, with the right action from government, councils, businesses and local communities, they can prosper once again. "Instead of trying to recreate the high streets of the past, our towns and cities need to tailor their offer to local tastes and focus on experiences at a time of growing demand for online ...
