Click on the image above to watch Reel Rushcliffe Newsreel on the BFI site. There the blurb says: This very basic campaign film, shot in the amateur 9.5mm format, was made to promote Ralph Assheton, the Conservative MP for Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire from 1934 to 1945. Predominantly using still photographs and captions, the film follows Assheton's victory in a by-election in July 1934, through to his maiden speech to the House the following year. An ominous mention of German re-armament and warnings given to Mussolini in Italy underline an uncertain future. Ralph Assheton (1901-1984) later held the seats of the ...
Over the past few weeks, we've seen the spread of Corona Virus continue at a frightening pace. Countries around the world are taking increasingly more authoritarian steps to try and contain the spread before it is too late to stop it. A consequence of this has been millions of people left in limbo, unsure of what they're going to do as the lockdown increases. Across the UK schools have closed and many businesses are slowly shutting down due to concerns over staff/customer safety and lack of custom. But as the UK grinds to a halt, people's lives simply do not ...
The BBC play Responsible Child, shown just before Christmas, questioned the low age of criminal responsibility in Britain and in particular our practice of trying children as young as 10 in front of a jury as though they were adults. This is a cause the Liberal Democrat peer Lord Dholakia has long been fighting. Before the general election was called he had succeeded in taking a bill through the Lords to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12 and he has promised to continue this campaign. Here he is moving the second reading of his bill in September 2017 ...
Ludlow Town Councillors will hold an urgent meeting on the growing threat of Covid-19 on Monday night. It will be held in the Methodist Church not the Guildhall, which is too cramped for meetings in our era of social distancing. It begins at 7pm. Members of the public can speak in the 15 minute (max) slot at the beginning of the meeting. Conventionally, public speakers are restricted to three minutes. Speaking is at the discretion of the mayor or his deputy. The main items on the agenda are to allow flexible working for staff, including home working, and keeping our ...
The Windrush Learned Lessons Review has been published and the issues raised highlight the fact that The Windrush Scandal was and is a true scandal. Wendy Williams – the Independent Adviser conducting the review – was tasked with providing an independent assessment of the events leading up to the Windrush Scandal and to identify the key lessons for the Home Office. This is what she had to say: Members of the Windrush generation and their children have been poorly served by this country. They had every right to be here and should never have been caught in the immigration net. ...
A guest post from Liberal Democrat Vice President, Isabelle Parasram: The Windrush Lessons Learned Review has now been published. It scrutinises the way in which the government handled the Windrush scandal. The Windrush Scandal laid bare the horrifying cruelty of the Conservatives' hostile environment. People who have every right to live in the UK were wrongly denied access to NHS treatment, housing and other services simply because they don't have the right documents to prove it. Many were wrongfully detained and even deported. Damningly, the review itself states that the scandal was "...foreseeable and avoidable", and thirty recommendations have been ...
You can find previous Isolation diaries here. Over the last couple of days I have been receiving emails telling me that events I was planning to attend have been either cancelled or, optimistically, postponed. They offer me the choice of getting a refund for the tickets I bought, waiting to see whether the event will go ahead later, or leaving the ticket money as a donation. I have donated in every case, adding on the benefit of Giftaid. I could afford to buy the tickets in the first place, and I am not experiencing a drop in income during this ...
Current Red Notice, by Bill Browder Ragged Alice, by Gareth A. Powell Last books finished 1493, by Charles C. Mann Fleet of Knives, by Gareth A. Powell Babayaga, by Toby Barlow Atlas Alone, by Emma Newman Strategic Europe, ed. Jan Techau Next books Excession, by Iain M. Banks Prophet of Bones, by Ted Kosmatka
Look after yourself and those around you. And hang on in there. Because this, too, shall pass. Continue reading →
The late Moris Farhi was a great hugger. Bearded, short in stature, barrel-chested, he wore his heart on his sleeve and spent much of the time when he wasn't at his desk campaigning against injustice and for the freedom of imprisoned fellow writers. A Ladino-speaking Turkish Jew who fled to England from his hometown of [...]
First Bus are switching to Saturday timetables from Monday
A network of local groups including churches, voluntary groups and the town council are trying to provide support to the vulnerable. Please, being careful about social distancing, check on your elderly or vulnerable neighbours, Contact the town council if you need help.
Asked a few months ago what his philosophy is, what his politics represent, what his programme means, Boris Johnson, new UK Prime Minister, said, " ...boosterism!" The notion of boosting morale, of boosting services, boosting business, boosting...Britain! This was and is great news, at least, from the man who during Brexit, said, f***, business! Boosterism, is not a half bad philosophy of government, come to think of it. Certainly with more of an appeal, than say, "frugalism!" It might be the philosophy of government for the future! Whatever the concerns that populists only stand for populism," boosterists," of course, might ...
I've always liked the view from my desk at home. I think I'm going to really treasure it over the next few weeks. Now I just need some sounds to go with.
[IMG: Folkestone and Hythe District Council logo (Folkestone and Hythe District Council logo)] The Government has made a series of announcements in the Budget last week and over the last few days on measures to support businesses during this difficult time. We are regularly updating information about these on our www.Folkestone.works website, including: Details on how to access the hardship funds and loans, as this emerges; Other information that might find useful, including sector specific announcements; Links to government and other business association websites. Please click on the link below to a summary of the most recent announcements, including today's ...
TH White's story of King Arthur is unconstrained by the traditional myths. He reinvents the world of round tables completely, influenced by the horrors and futility of war. His Merlyn, and the way in which he experiences time, is a mind-bending concept that has fascinated me since childhood. Scholars of the work debate aspects, but roughly, he began his existence at the end of time, and moves backwards to the beginning. Thus he knows outcomes but has little power to change them: ... one gets confused with time... gets muddled... if you know what's going to happen to people, but ...
My eldest granddaughter, now a university student, has all four grandparents still living. More than that, when she was small, she had two great-grandparents around and met at least one of them several times. This is marked contrast to my state, two of my grandparents died nearly twenty years before I was born, my father's [...]
If anyone has time or knows of others with the capacity to help, Facebook group Yate and Sodbury Covid-19 Help & Support are looking for neighbourhood volunteers, here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/650869675671695/
Thu 19th
11:36
How will long term isolation of most of society affect that society - even after CoVid is no longer ...
Western society is shutting down. Yes, people are complaining about people still being in cafes and pubs in London, but this is temporary. Whether the government shuts this down by legal means in the coming week or not – and I suspect they will – this behaviour will fade out as more people become ill. We are a week or so away from a virtual society; where everyone interacts online and nowhere else. It is obvious to say that I never thought I'd see this happen in my lifetime. That it is an airborne virus that has caused this is ...
Thu 19th
11:32
What does the polling data say about the future for the Lib Dems? Never Mind The Bar Charts S2/E5
In the latest episode of Never Mind The Bar Charts, I welcomed back to the show academic Paula Surridge. We talked about what the British Election Study is and what it's polling data from the 2019 general election shows, including its implications for the future for the Liberal Democrats.
Wed, 12:00: "Stately, plump Buck Mulligan came from the stairhead, bearing a bowl of lather on which a mirror and a razor lay c... https://t.co/LqpvNZVebg Wed, 13:00: RT @pmdfoster: Brexiteer fury/denial on this is interesting, but not surprising. But as one industry chief points out, business needs to... Wed, 18:10: The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of Scandinavia's Utopia, by Michael Booth https://t.co/cu4GJwhc7F Wed, 20:48: The worst British Prime Minister ever https://t.co/T2gfsuNx0A Brilliant review of David Cameron's memoirs. A must-read. Wed, 21:14: "Passen Sie gut auf sich, und auf Ihre Liebsten auf." "Look after yourselves, and look after ...
A mock-up of a Class 777 – The new Merseyrail trains that will soon replace the Class 507/508 EMU's Although Merseytravel posted this video – see link below – on 7th February I had not come across it before. It's worth watching to see how the new trains are being built and the initial testing of them:- www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOn07VAeGHU 'From design concepts to the real thing; watch as the new trains for the Merseyrail network take shape from initial designs to the first train out on the test track in Europe!' As I post this Merseyrail (still operating Class 507 & ...
Here in Hull, where I'm a Liberal Democrat Councillor, I was proud that in January we moved a motion that, with unanimous support called on the Government to run the first UK pilot of Universal Basic Income (UBI). This would see every person receive a fixed amount of money to free them from financial insecurity - protecting the most vulnerable in society. It's safe to say much has changed since January, but the issue of Universal Basic Income is more important than ever before. The Corvid-19 virus has plunged our nation into chaos and shown how financial insecurity through the ...
Back in August 2019 I called on Lancashire County Council to resurface the stretch of Eagar Lane/Greens Lane outside Lavender Barns just yards into Lancashire from Lydiate, and I blogged about the state of the lane – see link below:- If I recall correctly that prompted more patch repairs but the message must have got home to LCC (maybe others raised the matter with them too?) as a couple of days ago they did a significant resurfacing job:- Editor's note – 'Thanks for that LCC, much appreciated, but sadly there's another very poor stretch of Greens Lane which has ...
The Guardian reports that private health firms have come under fire for profiting from the coronavirus pandemic by selling thousands of testing kits for up to £295 each - while frontline NHS workers go without. They say that one chain of private clinics in the Midlands has ramped up the cost of its home delivery coronavirus testing kit from £149 to £249 in just a matter of days - a 67% price increase. Another firm, which normally lets patients book face-to-face GP appointments via an app in London, is selling home tests for £295, boasting laboratory results within 72 hours ...
Just a reminder on the day my Thursday surgery at Blackness Primary School would have normally taken place, due to the COVID-19 emergency situation, surgeries are suspended. See below - which also gives my contact details - many thanks :
The Coronavirus stakes for Britain moved up a significant notch today [Wednesday] as the total number of deaths exceeded 100 and the government announced plans to close schools for all but certain groups of children as from Friday. During the day rumours had been circulating that because the epidemic is particularly severe in the capital, [...]
