The Joy of Six 1600"In a sacred ceremony dating back to time immemorial, a researcher from a poverty charity or housing campaign group raises their mournful head from the Budget small print and confirms to their line manager that no, there is no money assigned to raising Local Housing Allowance in line with rents and yes, that means housing benefit for private sector tenants in all but the cheapest homes is being cut. Again."Chaminda Jayanetti says John Healey's "breathing space" Budget has ensured the noose around the neck of the poorest private renters gets ever tighter. Daniella Shreir reports on the unrest in France: ... (more) |
The Ethiopians: Everything CrashA site devoted to the band says: The Ethiopians (originally The Ethiopian Children) were one of Jamaica's most influential vocal groups during their heyday. Not only did the original quartet (Leonard Dillon, Wally Booker, Harold Bishop & Neville Duncan) spearhead the transition between Ska and Rocksteady, Dillon's heavily Rastafarian lyrics also paved the way for the socially conscious roots reggae era that was to come. The Reggae Museum adds that they were among the first Jamaican groups to tour widely in Britain. This single from 1969 records a wave of public-sector strikes- a sort of Jamaican winter of discontent. (more) |
Ed Davey quizzed on EU, slavery reparations and Lib Dem relevanceEd Davey was interviewed on Sky News this morning The first question was about whether we should apologise for our role in slavery. He said: If you have done something wrong, I have no problem in apologising for it. That's what normal people expect to do. I think Tony Blair started this about 20 years ago and I think if the PM wants to consider it in a bit more detail, we should have that debate. I don't think reparations is the right approach. We've been doing a lot about it in terms of supporting poorer countries. It showed we ... (more) |
Burnham's housing black holeThe Independent reveals the conclusions of a new report that the prime minister's promise to oversee the 'biggest council housebuilding drive since the postwar period' risks falling short if more funding is not delivered. The paper says that unless a further £7bn of extra funding can be found then Burnham is at risk of failing to deliver his flagship pledge to oversee the "biggest council housebuilding drive since the postwar period": The prime minister promised a "historic council housebuilding comeback" shortly after he returned to parliament in the wake of his victory in the Makerfield by-election. He has since pledged ... (more) |
Bishop's Castle Town Council sees the importance of supporting residents during a food crisisBishop's Castle has always had a strong sense of community. Here's a contemporary account of how it responded to the Civil War: Out of Shropshire we hear that there are above a thousand in armes about Clun and Bishop's Castle, standing out against both sides: neither for the King nor for the Parliament, but stand only upon their own guard for the preservation of their lives and fortunes. So it's no surprise to learn from the Ludlow & Tenbury Wells Advertiser - it's that paper again - that Bishop's Castle Town Council's new food resilience strategy aims to "improve local ... (more) |
Assembly Rooms toilet row - Ludlow council "not a bottomless pit"Now here's a decision that didn't take the judges long: the Ludlow & Tenbury Wells Advertiser is the clear winner of our Headline of the Day Award. (more) |
Former Green Mayor Ian Conlan joins Lib DemsFollowing the news of a Green councillor joining the Lib Dems, there is now also news of former Mayor Ian Conlan doing the same: Liberal Democrats on North Yorkshire Council say they are aiming to take control of the authority in next May's elections as they welcomed a former Green Party mayor into their ranks. Ian Conlan, who served as Mayor of Malton for three years, has defected to the Liberal Democrats and announced plans to stand as a candidate in the May 2027 local elections. [Richmondshire Today] Liberal Democrat councillor Steve Mason welcomed the decision, saying: I have known ... (more) |
Scottish Lib Dems defeat SNP on Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence BillThis week Scottish Lib Dems inflicted the first parliamentary defeat of this session on the minority SNP Government. SNP candidates had championed the idea of a Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill for years and it was in their manifesto for the elections in May. I represented the party at numerous hustings on disability, including specific ones to do with supporting people with learning disabilities, autism and neurodivergence, and there was unanimity amongst all parties. Earlier this month, the SNP Government said that it would no longer pursue this, claiming that they could make change more quickly as though these ... (more) |
The Manchurian Candidate (the 1962 version)The latest edition of the email newsletter for my podcast, Political Fictions, is out and you can also read it in full below. But if you'd like to get future editions emailed direct to you as soon as they are published, sign up now: Get the books As well as covering some books in the podcast, we also mention others in the newsletter's bonus content. You can browse all the books mentioned and get them for yourself via my Bookshop.org page (affiliate link) including the original novel version of The Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon. The (original) Manchurian Candidate [IMG: ... (more) |
The Red Lady of PavilandGreece may want us to return the Elgin Marbles, but they are not the only misplaced historical artifact. There are people in Swansea who want the red lady of Paviland returned to South Wales as well, though this aint no lady. As the BBC reports, two-hundred years ago scientists unearthed one of the most intriguing and controversial finds in Welsh archaeological history: On 18 January 1823, The Red Lady of Paviland was discovered in a cave on the Gower peninsula, Swansea, by William Buckland, a reverend and Oxford University's first ever professor of geology. "She" was immediately transported to the ... (more) |