One day it 1981 a university friend and I set off from Harpenden to follow this line. Without really intending to, we walked all the way to Hemel Hempstead. On the way to the railway station there I passed the second primary school I had once attended in the town: Boxmoor. It had been replaced by a new school a few years before, but was still standing. When I went back years later it had been demolished and replaced with a close of four houses. I have started swapping emails with someone I was at Boxmoor with, even though this ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

This morning's Telegraph reported that Lord Steel - the former Liberal Party leader David Steel - faces condemnation from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. It also said a committee of senior Lib Dem MPs and peers is being convened to discuss Lord Steel's future in the party once the inquiry's finding is made public. The question at issue is Steel's failure to pass on Cyril Smith's alleged confession of abusing boys to the authorities. After that the article quotes the inevitable 'friends' of Steel disparaging the inquiry. As an antidote, let me point you to an interview with ...

Posted by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England

Welcome to the latest Liberal Democrat party political broadcast (PPB): The Liberal Democrats are working hard to tackle the big issues that people are facing across the UK. [IMG: ✔] ︎ Ensuring a properly resourced NHS, to provide the highest quality care for our loved ones [IMG: ✔] ︎ Fighting to reverse police cuts, to protect our communities from violent crime [IMG: ✔] ︎ Protecting our environment. We've already done more to fight the climate emergency than any other party [IMG: ✔] ︎ Building high-quality, reliable public transport links across the UK [IMG: ✔] ︎ Investing in world-class education, to ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Mark Pack

The 2019 General Election Liberal Democrats manifesto calls for standing to a peaceful world; not only because this is our value, but also everyone deserves a better world. When we jointly face challenges in our support for liberal democracies, stable partnerships are often fostered. One such alliance calls for "Honouring our legal and moral duty to the people of Hong Kong by reopening the British National Overseas Passport offer, extending the scheme to provide the right to abode to all holders". Nonetheless, do words suffice in supporting the civilians in Hong Kong who are among those standing in defiance of ...

Posted by Larry Ngan on Liberal Democrat Voice
Wed 19th
17:49

Wednesday reading

Current Children of Ruin, by Adrian Tchaikovsky Last books finished A Popular History of Ireland, by Thomas D'Arcy McGee (Did not finish) The City in the Middle of the Night, by Charlie Jane Anders The Aachen Memorandum, by Andrew Roberts H.G. Wells: A Literary Life, by Adam Roberts 2020 Vision, ed. Jerry Pournelle Hex, by Thomas Olde Heuvelt Next books Small Island, by Andrea Levy Babayaga, by Toby Barlow

At our latest meeting, the Federal Board welcomed our newest member, Lisa Smart, who has been elected the new chair of the Federal Communications and Elections Committee (FCEC), taking over from James Gurling. Welcome on Board, Lisa! We also welcomed back to the Board Tony Harris as Registered Treasurer and Chair of the Federal Finance and Resources Committee (FFRC) and Mike German as Federal Treasurer. Details of the outcome of elections for other key posts around the party are available on the party website. Congratulations to everyone elected and thank you also to everyone else who applied, helping to give ...

Posted by Mark Pack on Liberal Democrat Voice

As a party, we have long advocated a cooperative relationship between labour and capital rather than an adversarial and hierarchical one, where the investor, the manager, and the worker are partners in the industry. Such a vision was expressed in our 1964 manifesto, with the statement: "Employees must be given a share in the decisions and profits of the companies in which they work. [they] should be represented on the board of directors, or on a joint supervisory council". This vision has deeper roots in the Party's history for in 1908, the Liberal government passed the Port of London Authority ...

Posted by William Francis on Liberal Democrat Voice

It's not too late to register for the York Spring conference, which is happening on the weekend of March 13-15th. You can register here. We've already covered the main policy motions which will be debated in the main hall. But there will be oodles of other stuff going on – both in the main hall and in rooms around and about the conference venues of the York Barbican, the Novotel York Center and the Hilton York. The conference agenda and directory is available online and gives you details of the whole panoply of activities which would exhaust even the most ...

Posted by Paul Walter on Liberal Democrat Voice
Wed 19th
11:00

My tweets

Tue, 12:56: Reading Buttigieg https://t.co/nfT76Os052 Great piece. "he understands that hatred and intransigence are not the cu... https://t.co/77uGOiXrIn Tue, 16:05: Former UUP leader: Unionism must realise it is no longer a majority in Northern Ireland https://t.co/uWLHtgzVdq Well said, @MikeNesbittNI. Tue, 16:22: RT @RehnbergAnders: Great to see that the Dutch House of Representatives just voted yes to the CETA-agreement with Canada, now the Dutch Se... Tue, 17:11: World Taekwondo Federation changes name over 'negative connotations' - BBC Sport https://t.co/FsiktEftRb 😂😂😂 Old news but still funny. Tue, 17:11: RT @StefaanDeRynck: I will be speaking in London tomorrow morning on #Brexit at this ...

Members of the Focus Team on Yate Town Council have been working with officers to raise cash to add a new multi play unit at Millside , and expand the sculpture trail in the park with more wood carvings and interpretation boards to extend play and help children to learn about their natural environment through play.. This will replace the carvings vandalised last summer. We are delighted to announce we have now got £45,155 so we can go ahead with the project). (You may have seen reports of this in the newspaper a couple of weeks ago, but that was ...

YouGov

And the shitshow rolls on. Today, we have an immigration policy unveiled by the government that makes no sense, even on its own terms. They want say they want to prioritise for skill not salary, so that we can get social workers and health care professionals from abroad as needed. Okay, great. Except that salary is still going to be a benchmark and it will still be set too high for social workers and a lot of health care professionals to get visas. Yet do not fret, fair Britannia: Priti Patel was on the media this morning telling us to ...

Posted by Nick on nicktyrone.com

Responding to an Office for National Statistics report for February 2020 which estimates that a record 974,000 people are in employment on "zero-hour contracts" in their main job, Liberal Democrat Acting Leader Ed Davey said:"With more people than ever before depending on low-paid, irregular work to make ends meet, the Conservatives have no right to celebrate today's employment figures."Hundreds of thousands of people are trapped in jobs that are badly paid, don't offer career advancement, and take a toll on people's wellbeing. Yet Boris Johnson keeps hiding behind high employment figures, refusing to address the problem and its impact on ...

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

Responding to the Government's proposed changes to migration rules, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine said:"Too many businesses are already struggling to hire the workers they need. Now the Tories want to stop them recruiting all but the highest paid employees from abroad. "The Conservative Government's immigration proposals are based on xenophobia, not the social and economic needs of our country. Ten months is nowhere near enough time for either employers or the Home Office to get ready for these new rules, creating chaos and confusion. "Liberal Democrats will oppose these destructive policies and continue our fight for a ...

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

The weekend of 27-28 June 2020 is the date for the Prestwich Carnival, with the parade taking place on the Sunday. This great event only works with the help of many volunteers. The carnival committee are in need of people to help with this years event – traffic marshals , donation bucket collectors and programme sellers are some of the tasks people are required for anyone interested should contact Lee Davies at Lee@prestwichcarnival.org.uk. More information here.

Posted by timpickstone on Tim Pickstone

Having written a few days ago about possible food shortages and price hikes in the supermarkets, I was not surprised this morning to see predictions that the government's new immigration rules could lead to staff shortages, from logistics to food and hospitality to health and social care. The Guardian reports that business groups have warned that major industries would face a shortage of vital workers after the government outlined its new points-based immigration system to limit the number of low-skilled workers coming to the UK: Unions said the care system would be "on its knees" should the policy be introduced ...

Posted by Peter Black on Peter Black

Bury Council and NHS Bury are currently consulting people on the future of 'urgent care services'. This consultation particularly affects services that take place in Bury itself. A second phase of the review which looks more at services that relate to North Manchester hospital (and quite possibly Prestwich) is expected later in the year. Urgent care services are for things that are not an emergency, but at the same time can't wait; for example a person might be looking for some urgent advice, an urgent GP appointment or a walk-in service to help with a minor ailment or injury. A ...

Posted by timpickstone on Tim Pickstone

A LEGENDARY figure from the British Circus circuit is to share his decades of experiences and anecdotes at a talk in Whitefield. Over a near 75 year career, ringmaster Norman Barrett has delighted audiences around the globe and worked with some of the world's most famous circuses. During this time he spent 25 years at the Blackpool Tower Circus as well as being the ringmaster at Belle Vue Christmas Circus in the 1970s and 80s. Next month will give a public talk at Besses United Reformed Church from 2pm on March 14. Admission to the event is £5 and refreshments ...

Posted by timpickstone on Tim Pickstone

A new refuge for victims of domestic violence and abuse is opening in the borough of Bury. The new facility, developed in partnership with Irwell Valley Homes and Fortalice, will provide much-needed emergency accommodation to women and their children fleeing domestic abuse. Fortalice will provide the support to victims to help them feel safe and empower them to live independently before helping them to secure long-term, stable accommodation. Not only does a refuge provide support to victims but will also encourage more victims in Bury to take that step and flee abusive relationships in the knowledge that there are safe ...

Posted by timpickstone on Tim Pickstone

At ten o'clock last night, the government announced a package of funding for flood affected homes, businesses and councils. We have yet to see the local details but there will be financial support. That includes business rate and council tax relief. Grants for small businesses to recover. Money for households to improve their flood resilience. That will be welcomed by businesses and households. I will publish details on how to apply as soon as I get them. Given the late notice of the funding, no one knows the details yet. If there is specific help you need right now, let ...

Posted by andybodders on Andy Boddington

Last week, I advised that Dundee City Council has launched a consultation on a number of schools proposals. Part of the proposals see substantial proposed changes to the catchment areas of the primary schools that are feeder schools to Harris Academy. In the West End, there are significant proposed changes to the Blackness Primary, Victoria Park Primary and Ancrum Road Primary catchment areas. I can now advise that consultation meetings about the West End proposals will take place on Wednesday 26th February and, again, on Monday 16th March, with a drop-in from 6pm to view the proposals and a presentation ...

eUKhost

Shropshire Council came to Ludlow yesterday to help with the clean up operation. At least 30 homes are flooded. Many businesses also. From mid-morning, highways crews were collecting furniture, fridges, carpets and other debris from Temeside. At an on-site meeting with Shropshire Council leader Peter Nutting and chief executive Clive Wright yesterday lunchtime we agreed that skips would be delivered to Lower Corve Street and Temeside. We need skips to help people who are flooded out. We need skips to prevent a rat infestation as the food in fridges and freezers goes rotten. Council leader Peter Nutting watches council crews ...

Posted by andybodders on Andy Boddington