[IMG: Nick Clegg is missed in Sheffield Hallam (by some); and Jared O'Mara blasted by his Comms man] Nick Clegg, let's face it, normally trends on Twitter for negative reasons, to put it mildly. He has been called a lot of things since his departure from politics but tonight there is a different... The post Nick Clegg is missed in Sheffield Hallam (by some); and Jared O'Mara blasted by his Comms man appeared first on @ambitiousmamas.
The latest podcast from The Evolution of Horror is on Nicolas Roeg's 1973 masterpiece Don't Look Now. It's so good it just makes you want to watch the film again.
It's too hot to write, but I can't let the accession of Boris Johnson pass without saying it is all the fault of Ian Hislop and Have I Got News for You? You'll have to register with the London Review of Books site to read it all, but back in 2013 the novelist Jonathan Coe wrote an important article while reviewing Harry Mount's The Wit and Wisdom of Boris Johnson. I am going to do no more than quote a few passage from it and from an article by Steven Fielding to which it points us. So here is Coe: ...
Today must be one of the darkest days I have personally felt in my political career. Only the morning after the 2016 referendum result and the day following the 2015 General Election have left me feeling much lower. However, there may be a glint of something on the horizon that is driving me forward despite ... Continue reading Trying to look on the bright side of life →
Current Het Amusement, by Brecht Evens The Ghosts of Heaven, by Marcus Sedgwick The Secret Lives of a Secret Agent, by Tim Crook Last books finished Terror Moon, by Trevor Baxendale Better Than Sex, by Hunter S. Thompson 1913: The World before the Great War, by Charles Emmerson The Showstoppers, by Jonathan Cooper A Month in the Country, by J.L. Carr For the Love of a Mother: The Black Children of Ulster, by Annie Yellowe Palma Next books Small Wonder, by Barbara Kingsolver Grimm Tales, by Philip Pullman
So, as expected, Boris Johnson is the new Tory leader. We have little in the way of detail as to what he wants to do but expect a vigorous campaign of bluster bombing to hide the lack of content of this political charlatan. However, be careful not to underestimate him. He won the 2012 mayoral election against the odds in a city that has been moving away from the Conservatives. For many on the
On Saturday I was in Newcastle to take part in the Northern Pride parade. Despite the rain there was a good turnout and spirits were high. I joined the parade with other Lib Dems from around the region.
As everyone will have heard by now, Jo Swinson is our new Party leader. I want to congratulate her and also congratulate Ed Davey for a spirited campaign that he ran. I had several opportunities to watch both of them in hustings and to be honest both were impressive. In her acceptance speech, the two points that struck home was when she said (I paraphrase) that "She had limitless ambition for the party" and "she would fight the next election to be the Prime Minister". I like such ambition as it gives focus. This got me thinking, what values does ...
To recap: political party membership isn't for everyone. In particular, the research evidence shows that it is disproportionately attractive to those who do best out of how our society works. That gives a powerful principled reason to want to find new ways of involving more people in a party – to add to the self-interest, of course, that comes from more people bringing more resources and so more success to a party. Which is where a registered supporters scheme, created by the Liberal Democrats earlier this year, comes in. It's a cause I've long championed as part of a core ...
Jo Swinson and Boris Johnson have become leaders of their parties one day apart. How do their situations compare?
That depends on what Boris's backers are planning. All we know for sure is that he appears intent on crashing out of the EU without any trade, immigration, transition or prior obligations arrangements. We know something else. Boris has also presented his 'WTO-Article-24-managed-no-deal-standstill-plan'. There has been lots of media coverage explaining why this plan is impossible, including myself on LDV. Despite that, the Brexiteers are all still going on about this as if it is still feasible. Why? As Boris's recent interview with Andrew Neil suggested, he doesn't know that his 'standstill plan' is not viable. His backers however know ...
Prime Minister designate Boris Johnson This was supposed to be an election for a Prime Minister who would "unite the country". A few minutes ago, the result was announced...to the backdrop of Peter Gabriel's Don't Give Up - a song about an unemployed man living in Thatcher's Britain. Boris can't even start his leadership of the Conservative Party appropriately, so what are the chances of making a success of it? The "unite the country" rhetoric was always wishful thinking by supporters of Johnson. No-one seriously believed either Johnson or Jeremy Hunt had the skills to unite their party, never mind ...
There have been a number of Tory voices saying that A.B.dP.Johnson has a "mandate". It is important to recognise that this "mandate" is from precisely 0.14% of the UK population: For the record, those parroting the "mandate" word have included our old china plate, Dominic Raab on Radio Five Live (just after the result was announced) and Tim Montgomerie on Twitter: Huge mandate for @BorisJohnson. I hope EVERY Tory MP takes note. — Tim Montgomerie (@montie) July 23, 2019 * Paul Walter is a Liberal Democrat activist. He is one of the Liberal Democrat Voice team. He blogs at Liberal ...
Could you envisage putting together 'an informal alliance of the centre left' in the (highly possible) run-up to a general election this autumn? The phrase comes from Labour's David Blunkett, setting out the case for attempting this in the Mail on Sunday (July 14th). He argues that we face the threat of a parallel informal alliance between the Brexit Party and a Johnson-led Conservative Party, with the Brexit Party not standing in seats held by right-wing Tory Brexiters and focussing their money and efforts on Remain-supporting Labour, LibDem, and nationalist constituencies (and any surviving Conservative Remainers). This would threaten a ...
Mon, 14:20: RT @apcoworldwide: With the #UK set to appoint a new #PrimeMinister this week, much attention will be placed on the future of #Brexit. Our... Mon, 16:04: RT @MSmithsonPB: Bookmark this to test it against real events. https://t.co/jHQNH23HdK Mon, 16:05: But London has not been listening. https://t.co/gp8egP7puv Mon, 17:11: RT @KameronHurley: The replies to this tweet from actual Dutch folks are A+ https://t.co/TBJBW2DkPi Mon, 17:25: RT @LibDems: Congratulations @joswinson - the new Leader of the Liberal Democrats https://t.co/zduKmQsBhN Mon, 18:43: Her way https://t.co/1pmqLEiVUh @XTopherCook's post-mortem of the Theresa May premiership. I would have been more vicious. Mon, 18:44: Becoming, ...
New leader of the Liberal Democrats, Jo Swinson The Liberal Democrats have a new leader - congratulations to Jo Swinson who won 47,997 votes compared to Ed Davey's 28,021. Our party's leadership election has been overshadowed by the farce that is the Conservative Party's leadership race, which is regrettable as Ed and Jo are more interesting, more personable, more intelligent and more politically astute than anything the Tories are currently able to offer. Many have already stated the obvious - that the Liberal Democrats have now elected their first female leader, who also happens to be the first leader of ...
I spoke at party conference in the Spring and said, amongst other things, that I had no idea why I hadn't started sooner in politics. The truth is I knew full well. Back in the early 1990s, when I had my first child at the age of 25, and a couple more in a short space of time, only one of us *had* to take time off straight after the birth. Maternity segued into parental leave after the second child. My husband and I have a pretty egalitarian household but it would have been financial suicide for us to use ...
In 2016, Michael Gove, then Justice Secretary, gave his now notorious "people have had enough of experts" Sky News interview.[1] The Brexit vote drew deeply on this anti-technocratic zeitgeist, a profound antipathy to arguments relying on data, statistics and competence. It is the genius of populism that it thrives on the resentment of expertise. Populists, [...] The post Populism, language and the madness of crowds appeared first on Radix.
Posted by Daniel Jonas on
Radix
Hearty Congratulations to Jo Swinson on her election as Leader of the Liberal Democrats !! She will bring a breath of fresh air to the party, while still retaining many ( all?) of the party's principles. It was a clean fight, no back-biting and name calling. I hope Ed Davey will be found a job within the leadership team... he has a lot of great ideas to bring. Finally the party owes a huge vote of thanks to Vince Cable. From a difficult position he has led the party to a position where the Liberal Democrats are in a position ...
I've cycled past this street nameplate many times and like others in our cycling group I have scratched my head wondering what a Yort is? Googling 'Yort' did not throw up any answers so my fellow cycler Roy Connell emailed the Clerk of Formby Parish Council who told him the term may mean 'Yard' but also suggested that we ask the views of Formby Civic Society. An e-mail to the Civic Society brought back this:- 'I have been doing some digging in our archive and attach a newspaper cutting from about 1957 which gives some interesting background information. We hold ...
From Sheena Wellington : Fèis Rois Ceilidh Trail Today - Tuesday 23rd July 1pm - 3pm at the Wighton Heritage Centre, Central Library This is our annual concert and session with the talented youngsters of the famous Feis Rois Ceilidh Trail. Please bring your instruments and voices for a great informal afternoon of music! Admission free with donations for Feis Rois Ceilidh Trail welcome. Fèis Rois established its successful Ceilidh Trail programme in Ross-Shire in 2000. Following the success of the Ross-Shire Ceilidh Trail, Fèis Rois started a National Ceilidh Trail for Scotland in 2012. This project has since gone ...
New national planning guidance published on Sunday by communities secretary James Brokenshire orders developers to do more to protect wildlife. Ludlow Swift Group will welcome his insistence that developers install swift bricks in new homes. Pricklebums Hedgehog Rescue and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society will welcome the obligation for developers to install hedgehog highways. There is more to this guidance which strengthens requirements for developers and councils to seek a net gain in biodiversity when developments are built. This is a welcome announcement but there is wriggle room in the guidance and a lot will depend on local interpretation. Wildlife ...
The Guardian reports that About 750 people were denied a vote at May's local elections because of a controversial trial scheme to oblige people in some areas to show ID before casting a ballot. A study by the Electoral Commission found up to 2,083 people were initially turned away for not having the necessary ID with them, and as many as 758 never returned. As a proportion of all votes cast this ranged from 0.7% in two areas, Craven and Pendle, to 0.03% in Mid Sussex: While ministers have said compulsory voter ID is necessary to avoid fraud, critics say ...
