Another walk with John Rogers, who this time takes us from Leytonstone to Fairlop. He promises a "hauntological expedition". If you want to support his YouTube channel, visit John's Patreon page.
Government must be more ambitious to save the economy UK needs a Green Recovery plan to deal with biggest recession in 300 years Liberal Democrats welcome Government's "screeching u-turn" on Huawei Government must be more ambitious to save the economy Responding to this morning's monthly GDP estimate from the ONS, showing that the economy grew by only 1.8% in May - lower than the 5.5% forecast by economists - Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: Regrettably this dashes any hope of an early recovery and is bad news for millions of people experiencing real financial hardship. It ...
Good news from the Evening Express, which refuses to be confined to its Aberdeen beat:Businesses in Barnard Castle have noted an upturn in visitors as lockdown eased after it was made famous by Dominic Cummings' controversial family trip. TV antiques expert David Harper who has a shop in the picturesque market town said local businesses could never have afforded the exposure Barnard Castle received from the affair. Mr Cummings visited the riverside at Barnard Castle on Easter Saturday after traveling from London to Durham to stay at a property on his parents' farm when he and his wife fell ill. ...
Tue 14th
19:11
British Medical Journal: England's chaotic Covid-19 testing system cost lives in Leicester
A British Medical Journal editorial published last week begins:With the flare-up of Covid-19 and re-imposition of lockdown, the population of Leicester is suffering the fallout of a chaotic testing system that seems to have forgotten its prime purpose, namely to trigger prompt, targeted measures, informed by local knowledge and up-to-date surveillance. Without swift and decisive action by those at local and national levels who understand communicable disease control, England will see further lockdowns and more avoidable deaths. Leicester was a city at risk, with high levels of social deprivation and ethnic diversity. We now know that cases spiked in late ...
One interesting point that jumped out at me from reading this year's Hugo finalists in this category, and comparing with the 1945 Retro Hugo finalists: the protagonists of the stories on the 2020 ballot are all women, and the protagonists of the stories on the 1945 ballot are all men. Admittedly this is a sweeping statement that has to be qualified a little, but only a little. "As the Last I May Know" is about the peculiar relationship between a young girl and a much older man, but it's clearly her story more than his; and "Ten Excerpts from an ...
Kenyons Park – Lydiate We had a Lydiate Parish Council meeting on Monday evening (via Zoom) and decided to reopen our 3 play areas as soon as all safety checks have been completed. I anticipate that the reopening will be tomorrow Wednesday 15th July. Below there's a scan of the posters/notices which are displayed at each play area – To clarify, Lydiate Parish Council maintains 3 children's play areas at:- * Sandy Lane Playing Field * Kenyon's Park * Ridgeway Park Click on the photos to enlarge them
The Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson MP, has recently placed the Blair philosophy of 'further education' in doubt by saying that we are sending too many young people to 'university'. You might say that this isn't that surprising coming from a Tory, albeit one who was educated in a state comprehensive school. However, quite a few people have been thinking this for years and some, like me, have been prepared to say it out loud. Does that make us bad people? Have we perhaps lost our way as a nation when it comes to equipping our young people ...
For Liberals - and, indeed, anyone opposed to right-wing authoritarianism - the results of Sunday's Polish presidential election will have come as a huge disappointment. It's a loss for Poles who oppose the direction in which their country has been heading under PiS dominance. It's a loss for progressives. It's a loss for Europe. It's also a loss for humanity generally, as the rise of unenlightened populism continues. For many, Andrzej Duda's victory feels like the end. So many hopes had been pinned on an unlikely win for Warsaw mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, not least because this election represented the final ...
On Tuesday South Glos Council launched a "call for sites". This gives everyone a chance to suggest sites that you think might have the potential for development, for houses or economic purposes. It is open from Tuesday 7th July to Tuesday 20th October and is part of the process of preparing the new Local Plan.The "call for sites" process sometimes causes concern, so it's well worth reading the FAQ document to understand what it means. Further information, including on how to submit sites and the status of sites submitted through previous call for sites, can be found at www.southglos.gov.uk/CallForSites2020.During the ...
The Liberal Democrats have appointed Mimi Turner as the Party's new Director of Strategy, Messaging and Research. Mimi started her career as a journalist, and has since worked across PR, brand and strategy roles for digital and media organisations. Mike Dixon, CEO of the Liberal Democrats, said: "I'm delighted to welcome Mimi to the team. She's focused, strategic and has a stellar track record of listening to people and speaking to their concerns with emotion and empathy. This is another sign that our party is changing." Mimi Turner added: "I am grateful and delighted to be joining the Liberal Democrats. ...
Mon, 12:56: RT @WajahatAli: How Cancel Culture really works: During my year at CNN, which was a great experience, I was "warned" a total of 3.5 times.... Mon, 16:05: Europe is no longer America's sidekick when it comes to China - John Hulsman https://t.co/aYug4XJbN0 Interesting pi... https://t.co/0fIHfoQbUG Mon, 16:47: RT @rusi_agneza: #СоНеаСме @MilevskaTanja Говор на омраза, брутални закани и навреди кон новинарката Тања Милевска #СоНеаСме - https://t.c... Mon, 17:11: RT @NesrineMalik: "'Cancel culture' has existed for a long time, but the panic around it is renewed every time walls between discourse-make... Mon, 18:31: 2020 Hugo finalists and 1945 Retro Hugo ...
In April and October last year, the Spanish online newspaper OK Diario published two stories including completely false statements about me, in particular about my alleged contacts with Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez - I have never met Pedro Sanchez, or communicated with him at all. I complained to the Spanish Comisión de Arbitraje, Quejas y Deontología, which has now published its official decision on the matter, finding completely in my favour and against OK Diario. Sometimes it's worth pushing back to set the record straight.
What many have been speculating will happen for some time has finally taken place – the government has said that face masks are to become compulsory to wear in all shops and supermarkets in England from July 24th, ie, next Friday. It is classic CoVid era Boris, this one; it appears to be a decision made under some amount of resistance from Number 10 and then with a staggered introduction that might please no one in the end. I suppose one could cite the relative difficulty of getting masks, but there are two ripostes to this. One is that you ...
What are the best questions to ask at a party leadership hustings? And what answers should get the alarm bells ringing? Read Liberal Democrat Newswire #139 to find out.
Tue 14th
10:29
Shropshire Council plans to pulls down Shirehall in favour of a Shrewsbury civic centre - it should ...
Shropshire Councillors are to discuss demolishing the unloved Shirehall and replacing it with a civic centre in the Shrewsbury Loop. The Shirehall site will be sold, presumably for housing. The potential location of the civic centre has not been revealed (I think Riverside would be a good location). More details may be given at the Shropshire Council meeting on Thursday morning. There is a lot of sense in this proposal. Staff and councillors are now largely working from home. Shirehall is a vast, unwelcoming, energy inefficient, concrete monstrosity. A smaller, more accessible civic centre makes better sense. But it should ...
OK, I know that countries have very different ways of reporting deaths from Covid-19. But this table, from Worldometer (excluding a couple of micro-states), gives us some idea how the UK is doing in terms of Covid-19 deaths per million of population. Badly. We are second in the world for the rate of deaths, after Belgium. We are mush worse than the USA, and well over six times worse than Germany. Yes, factors such as ageing and poverty demographics need to be taken into account. But we are well ahead of many comparable countries. For example, our death rate is ...
A press release from the party brings the news of the latest step in putting the party back on track: The Liberal Democrats have appointed Mimi Turner as the party's new Director of Strategy, Messaging and Research. Mimi started her career as a journalist and has since worked across PR, brand and strategy roles for digital and media organisations. Mike Dixon, CEO of the Liberal Democrats, said: I'm delighted to welcome Mimi to the team. She's focused, strategic and has a stellar track record of listening to people and speaking to their concerns with emotion and empathy. This is another ...
i) births and deaths 14 July 1943: birth of Christopher Priest, apart from Douglas Adams the only famous science fiction writer to write stories for Old Who. Both of his scripts were in the end rejected, in famously acrimonious circumstances. Seen here in 2016 with me and Nina Allan, at a pub in deepest Somerset. Happy birthday, Chris! 14 July 2008: death of Margot van der Burgh, who plays the First Doctor's fiancée Cameca in The Aztecs (1964) and Nyssa's stepmother Katura in The Keeper of Traken (Fourth Doctor, 1981). ii) broadcast anniversaries None. iii) dates specified in-universe 14 July ...
Do you want to have your say on the Liberal Democrat leadership election or the future of the party? This is a reminder that I welcome guest posts on Liberal England. As you can see from this list of the 10 most recent guests posts, I am happy to consider a wide range of subjects beyond the Lib Dems If you would like to write a guest post for this blog, please send me an email so we can discuss your idea. Why am I a Liberal Democrat - Simon BeardHow the Revoke policy harmed Lib Dem chances - Michael ...
Liberal Democrats: Higher education announcement lacks substance Responding to the higher technical education measures announced by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, Liberal Democrat Education spokesperson Layla Moran said: Ministers have extolled Further Education for years, yet chosen to make deep cuts. This announcement risk being no different – strong on rhetoric but low on substance. Introducing new qualifications will be no use without the funding to back it up. We need to see unprecedented investment in skills for young people coming out of this crisis so that no-one is left behind.
Further update - for Tuesday 14th July - from Councillor Fraser Macpherson (West End) and Councillor Craig Duncan (Broughty Ferry) FURTHER EASING OF RESTRICTIONS Following the Scottish Government's shift to Phase 3 - see also detail in the image below : The 2-metre rule still applies except where specifically stated. From now Those shielding can end physical distancing with those they live with. https://www.gov.scot/news/next-steps-for-people-shielding/ Mandatory face coverings in shops and other retail. This guidance includes exemptions for people with breathing difficulties etc. Shop workers are also required to wear a face covering with some exemptions. Outdoors - a household ...
Considering UK Ministers have stood on their doorsteps week after week applauding health and care workers, one would have thought they could show more sensitivity and concern for the thousands who have risked and, in some cases, lost their lives tackling Covid 19. But no, as with everything else with this government, their petty jingoism has taken precedence, and new immigration regulations have chosen to penalise these front-line heroes and the sector that they work in. The Guardian reports that care home staff have been excluded from a post-Brexit fast-track visa system for health workers, in a move that critics ...
