Liverpool needs to catch up with London in the fight for clean airSmoke emission from exhaust pipe of SUV car – concept of pollution I have always been interested in what has happened in terms of air quality not only in Liverpool where I've lived for 52 years but also in London where I lived for the 1st 11 years of my life way back in the 50s and 60s. Whilst I lived there the air quality in London and indeed almost every city was appalling. It was only when the clean air acts in the middle of the 60s began to bite that the air began to clear and be safe. ... (more) |
A library on the site of an old fire stationOystermouth library in Mumbles was built in 1935 and is a classic example of the architecture of that period. But what was on the site before then? An article on the story of Mumbles site by Carol Powell provides some insight. She tells us that there had been a school on the site since 1813, but the British 'Non-Denominational' School took over the premises in Dunns Lane in July 1835, when it enrolled 138 pupils: There had been a school on the site since 1813, but the British 'Non-Denominational' School took over the premises in Dunns Lane in July 1835, ... (more) |
Ian Christie asks if the cinema invented Swinging LondonI've already posted the first two videos in this series of film lectures by Ian Christie. They were on Gothic London and on the British pioneer Robert Paul. Here, in his final lecture, he talks about British cinema and Swinging London. (more) |
David Campanale seeks £788,740.75 compensation from Lib DemsEmbed from Getty ImagesDavid Campanale, the former prospective Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Sutton and Cheam who was deselected in 2023, and the national party are oceans apart when it comes to the compensation he deserves for suffering religious discrimination. The Guardian reports: Campanale's schedule of loss, seen by the Guardian, puts his claim at £788,740.75, including interest. It seeks compensation for injury to feelings, aggravated damages, past and future earnings, the loss of an MP's pension, counselling costs and the "loss of a chance", or "loss of political capital". But in a counter-schedule filed on Friday, the Lib Dems ... (more) |
Looking down on Clun's parched bowling green from the castleI've been to Clun today, making use of one of the last workings of the 745 bus from Minsterley to Ludlow. It's going to be replaced by a community transport scheme that sounds as though it may even be better for residents, but it will no longer be possible to get to Clun, as I did today, by catching the early bus from Shrewsbury to Minsterley. Anyway, here's a souvenir of Clun and of this extraordinary summer. It's taken from the castle mound looking down on the town's bowling green, though 'green' isn't quite the word at present. It seems ... (more) |
Latest voting intention and leadership ratings opinion pollsWelcome to my summary of the latest national voting intention polls for the next general election, along with the latest MRP projections and party leadership ratings. If you'd like to find out more about how polls work, how reliable they are and how to make sense of them, check out my book, Polling UnPacked: the History, Uses and Abuses of Political Opinion Polls, or sign up for my weekly email, The Week in Polls: General election voting intention polls PollsterConLabLDGrnRefLab leadFieldwork Find Out Now 18% (-2) 23% (+1) 11% (nc) 14% (nc) 23% (-1) 0% (vs Ref) 19/8 GB Survation ... (more) |
ALDC by-election report, 20th AugustThere were four principal authority by-elections across England on Thursday 20 August. Labour were defending two seats, Reform UK were defending one and there was one vacancy in Huntingdonshire where Reform had won one of the ward's three seats at the May elections. The Liberal Democrats were defending no seats this week, but produced the standout result of the night by gaining St Neots Eynesbury from Reform UK with a commanding swing of almost 30 percentage points. Elsewhere, Labour regained a Reform seat in Barnsley, Reform gained from Labour in Carlisle's Harraby South, and Nottingham's crowded six-way contest demonstrated how ... (more) |
Social Liberal Forum heading to Brighton i360 for high-flying pre-Conference eventThe Social Liberal Forum (SLF) has unveiled a pair of high-profile keynote speakers for its signature Pre-Conference Social ahead of the Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference in Brighton. Taking place on Friday, 18th September 2026, at the iconic Brighton i360, the evening will feature guest appearances from Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Energy Security and Net Zero Pippa Heylings MP, alongside former Cambridge MP David Howarth, who will be launching his new book, Being Liberal: The Liberal Disposition in Contemporary British Politics. A High-Altitude Start to Conference Weekend Set 450 feet above the Sussex coastline aboard Europe's highest moving observation tower, the ... (more) |
George Eliot as Coventry City supporterOne of my occasional flights of fantasy is thinking anachronistically about what football teams historic political or cultural figures might have supported. In that regard, I sometimes refer to George Eliot as a Coventry City supporter even though she died three years before the club was founded. Prompted by Coventry City's return to top-flight football after a 25-year absence and seeing the great author's grave at Highgate Cemetery earlier in the summer, I have been pondering that a little more in the last few weeks. I think there are good reasons to see affinity between the two. They are certainly ... (more) |
Reinvigorating the Royal NavyOn the 20th July this year, a Russian Navy frigate conducted live-fire exercises approximately 40 nautical miles south of Plymouth, in the English Channel. The vessel was shadowed by a Royal Navy ship and a French military aircraft. A week earlier, a separate Russian frigate had fired warning shots at a British yacht south of the Isle of Wight. These are not distant signals picked up by intelligence. They are warships firing guns off the English coast. And the Royal Navy response required a French aircraft because we did not have enough of our own to spare. Welcome to the ... (more) |