Sat 12th
23:12

Customs confusion

The suggestion leaking out from the government over Northern Ireland customs arrangements is that the province will remain within the UK's customs territory but customs arrangements between Northern Ireland and the Republic will continue as if Northern Ireland is in the EU customs union. So, customs between the North and South will continue to be harmonised. Were the UK to achieve the unicorn

Posted by Jonathan Wallace on Jonathan Wallace

North East Lib Dem conference was held today at the National Museum of the Royal Navy at Hartlepool. A well attended event, I was in the interesting situation of most of those attending were strangers to me. The increase in membership of the Lib Dems and the growing number of party activists means that many new faces are around. There were a number of debates. I spoke in the one about

Posted by Jonathan Wallace on Jonathan Wallace

This photograph comes from the January 1970 issue of the Inland Waterways Association Bulletin. The caption says: This is the first lock on the Cromford Canal which, with the Nottingham Canal, forms a Y-shaped junction with the Erewash at Langley Mill. Much of the Cromford Canal above Langley Mill is filled in, but this lock could be restored and a good marina developed at the old junction.And that is what happened. Great Northern Basin is on my list of places to visit.

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England
Sat 12th
20:30

Lib Dem tabloid arrives

Gateshead Lib Dems have been working on a big project recently. Our next tabloid has now been written and printed. It arrived three days early. That meant yesterday saw quite a bit of activity to move tens of thousands of tabloids from their drop off site to the ward teams. Delivery began this morning.

Posted by Jonathan Wallace on Jonathan Wallace

I was sorry to hear of the death of Stephen Moore today. Talking Pictures TV shows Clockwise quite often, and during one of those showings I looked up members of the cast on IMDB. I was surprised to find that the actor who played the personable young teacher on John Cleese's staff had also been the voice of Marvin the Paranoid Android in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. He supplied that memorable voice on both radio and television. It's interesting that the television adaptation, which was regarded at the time as a as brave but unsuccessful attempt to reproduce ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

We went on a wedding anniversary trip last weekend to Dordrecht, a lovely old town in the Netherlands, a bit less than two hours' drive north of here. Here's the Grote Kerk, seen from one end of one of the canals. [IMG: IMG_7276.JPG] One of the locals was waiting anxiously for his master to come home. [IMG: IMG_7278.JPG] The street architecture is interesting and varied. Here's the former home of the Fishermen's Guild: [IMG: IMG_7353.JPG] And a former cinema with Art Nouveau reliefs of the Muses: [IMG: IMG_7309.JPG] [IMG: IMG_7310.JPG] [IMG: IMG_7311.JPG] There is a street named after an annoying ...

I am ashamed to be an American. That has not always been the case. For most of my life I have been very proud of my heritage. And hopefully, I will be again. America is responsible for much good. Its historic stand for democracy and human rights has been inspiring. Its modern achievements in science and technology are staggering, as are American contributions to world culture, support for the rule of law and the can-do Horatio Alger pioneer spirit. That is not to say they are no black spots in its historical record: Slavery and the Jim Crow laws; a ...

Posted by Tom Arms on Liberal Democrat Voice
Sat 12th
11:00

My tweets

Fri, 12:02: RT @NobelPrize: 2019 Peace Laureate Abiy Ahmed Ali is the first Ethiopian to be awarded a #NobelPrize. This year's prize is also the 100th... Fri, 12:18: RT @deeharvey: IF, the VR film I co-wrote and directed, has been nominated for an RTS NI award in the Interactive category. 😃 Delighted an... Fri, 12:28: RT @tconnellyRTE: BREAKING: European Commission says Michel Barnier had a "constructuive" meeting with Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay. They... Fri, 13:29: RT @Brexit: U.K. and EU negotiators may now enter the so-called tunnel for Brexit talks, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar tells reporters... Fri, 13:40: RT ...

[IMG: "We take 'pride' in being out, but for some it's just not possible"] Being an ally to the Gay community is important to me even though I am not gay. When I was growing up in Asia, gay people were seen as 'others' whose lifestyles were not acceptable.... The post "We take 'pride' in being out, but for some it's just not possible" appeared first on @ambitiousmamas.

Posted by ambitiousmamas on @ambitiousmamas

In a telephone conversation with Recep Erdogan on Sunday, the President of the United States of America gave the Turkish armed forces the green light to enter Syria east of the Euphrates and occupy all or part of Rojava, the quasi-autonomous northern region controlled by the FDS (Syrian Democratic Forces, composed of a majority of Kurds and a minority of Arabs, and led by the progressive Kurdish party PYD). The Pentagon indicated that, if the FDS were to resist, weapons in hand, American forces (which are based at eight bases between Kobane and Raqqa) would refrain from supporting them. The ...

Posted by Renaud Girard on Radix Think Tank
YouGov

Responding to comments by Brandon Lewis that EU citizens living in the UK could face deportation, Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary Christine Jardine said:"I am absolutely appalled. I have just been at a school where a Hungarian-born pupil told me she was scared about Brexit, and now I learn that the Conservative Government is threatening to deport people like her. "Brandon Lewis has finally confirmed what we've known all along: Boris Johnson has no intention of keeping his promise to automatically guarantee the rights of EU citizens living in the UK. "No one seriously believes the Home Office will have ...

Posted by Aberavon and Neath Liberal Democrats on Aberavon & Neath Liberal Democrats

Thank you so much Layla for these kind words: Mark has been invaluable to so many campaigns across the country for decades. His on the ground experience, energy and breadth of knowledge is exactly what we need right now to build our inclusive movement. You'd be fantastic @markpack! #BackPack [IMG: 🎒] https://t.co/XJbp44cA55 — Layla Moran [IMG: 🔶] [IMG: 🏳️‍🌈] (@LaylaMoran) October 11, 2019 The reason for these tweets is that I'm running to be the next President of the Liberal Democrats. It's great to have Daisy and Layla add their support to that of so many other members. Thank you! ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

Eighty Seven Million pounds is small potatoes when it comes to UK Government expenditure but to ordinary people (and smaller administrations such as local government and even the Welsh Assembly) it is a fortune. So when we learn that the latest contract to prepare us for crashing out of the EU without a deal has that price tag attached to it, it is worth reflecting on how that money could be better spent if we instead took the best deal available to us and stayed in the European Community. As the Guardian reports, the government has now signed contracts worth ...

Posted by Peter Black on Peter Black

The Liverpool Echo has the article on its website – see link below:- This is a welcome move by Lib Dem members on Wirral Council as their initiative will, if supported, have a beneficial effect on bus services across the Liverpool City Region (LCR). I recall hearing Merseytravel Chairperson, Cllr. Liam Robinson, talk about such a move at an OPSTA meeting in Southport in November 2018. However, my concern then, as it has been for many a year, was that regaining local control over buses was becoming a matter oft talked about rather than actually being energetically taken forward. ...

Posted by Cllr. Tony Robertson on Sefton Focus

From the Friends of the University of Dundee Botanic Garden : Tomorrow - Sunday 13th October - at 2pm, there will be a presentation at the garden's Education Centre on the subject of hospital therapy gardens. It will be presented by James Falconer. James is a former chaplain with NHS Grampian Healthcare and has been the driving force behind the Robertson Family Roof Garden at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, and now the proposed staff garden. This event is free to attend to all members of the Friends of the University of Dundee Botanic Garden and all others are invited to attend ...