Diary: Friday 14th December 2018 - Woodmans and eFocusThis morning I visited the Woodmans Arms on Fellside Road, not to have a drink(!) but to speak to the owner about a planning application he has to extend the pub. I am helping him with the application as I think it is appropriate for the site and will create 9 new jobs. Currently the planners are recommending refusal. We had a good luck around the site and discussed options. No date has yet (more) |
The Recruitment Zone: featuring a very young Lembit OpikFrom the 1990s - and featuring a young Lembit Opik, not to mention David Allworthy - this video was produced to encourage Liberal Democrats to recruit more party members. (more) |
Courage Calls...A few weeks ago I was invited by Christine Jardine MP to visit Westminster as her #AskHerToStand delegate. The event was to commemorate the centenary of the Qualification of Women Act, a defining moment in British politics when women were allowed to stand for parliament for the first time. As Christine's delegate, I think I won the Golden Ticket. Where some guests were only able to spend five minutes with their MP, I was welcomed for the entire day. Christine and her assistant, David Evans, were generous with their time and insight despite having to navigate an ever-changing diary. Filing ... (more) |
Reinvigorated by our World Merit Global AmbassadorsSometimes, just sometimes, I feel a little jaded. A feeling of déjà vu overtakes me when I think I am sure that I have done this before and then really remember that I have. 51 years in politics is a ... Continue reading → (more) |
Federal Policy Committee report - 12 December 2018FPC had a full and varied last meeting before Christmas on Wednesday night. We started with a broad overview of the overall financial implications of our policy platform: our priorities for spending and how we would find the resources to pay for them. This ranged widely over a number of areas including spending on welfare and health. We had a particularly good discussion of the best way of supporting education. We also reviewed our various tax proposals, with the 1p on income tax for health as the headline commitment, and also drawing together various other proposals on tax recently approved ... (more) |
Brexit in British and World evolutionThis article was due to appear in September when I asked for a second referendum, but I delayed it as I thought at the time that it would appear as purely academic. Political reflection has evolved since then. The Prime Minister repeats endlessly her political mantra that Brexit will bring a brighter future and happy tomorrows. The student of history knows how costly any secession or independence can be, with usually an array of sweat, tears and too often blood, even with the best plans. This was precisely the sense of my question to FM Nicola Sturgeon at the RSA ... (more) |
My tweetsThu, 13:47: Read the comments. https://t.co/VImZzSa0AJ Thu, 20:26: RT @sianushka: Toby Young, the man who tweeted about an MP's cleavage, the attractiveness of a film director's daughter, the breasts of var... Thu, 20:45: https://t.co/gIy1WPvhbt Thu, 21:06: RT @Dublin2019: Don't wait until New Year's eve; if you want to nominate in @TheHugoAwards, you need to sign up for membership before the e... Thu, 23:48: Father Ted writer Graham Linehan compares the trans movement to Nazism - https://t.co/EzecpA5niE - Folks, if you ar... https://t.co/FVsXMOVGay Fri, 00:21: RT @pmdfoster: So @theresa_may got a an absolute kicking tonight. She made her pitch to the ... (more) |
Christmas Competition: Taking On the DemagoguesWe seem to be in an age of populists - from Brexiteers in the UK to authoritarian voices in parts of Europe and beyond, to Donald Trump in the US. Wherever there is a problem, there's someone to blame, and it's usually minority groups and the vulnerable – those with the quietest voices – that get blamed. This development has potentially dangerous consequences - populist leaders fomenting an atmosphere of distrust, resentment, and hatred. At home politicians and newspapers see "traitors", "saboteurs", "enemies of the people" and little green men hiding under the bed. We all know where this can ... (more) |
Statutory human rights under threat againThe attorney-general had a couple of opportunities at law officers' questions yesterday to affirm his government's adherence to the Human Rights Act and its commitment to maintaining UK membership of the European Convention on Human Rights. One must accept that the Conservative manifesto committed the party to repeal of the Human Rights Act (though it is noticeable that even with the cushion of support from the DUP the May government has not introduced the necessary repeal Bill) but the HRA merely domesticates the ECHR. Repeal would return us to the situation where aggrieved persons would have to spend money to ... (more) |
Desperate times, desperate measuresPossibly the most shocking outcome of the Theresa May no confidence vote was the reinstatement of the whip to two Conservative MPs accused of sexual misconduct. Although this act of arbitrary forgiveness was entirely predictable in the circumstances, that does not make it any more excusable nor does it help the Tories in their wooing of voters in the #MeToo era. Personally, I agree entirely with Jess Phillips who, as the Guardian reports, raised the matter in Parliament yesterday. She questioned why the Conservative party told Andrew Griffiths and Charlie Elphicke they were allowed to participate in the vote of ... (more) |