Tracking the Mosquito

The controversial "Mosquito" is being used across the country to deal with "anti-social behaviour". Not only is this a civil liberties issue, it is also highly discriminatory since the Mosquito works by emitting a high pitched noise that only under 25's can hear. So presumably the assumption is that it is only young people who are anti-social.

I got this forwarded to me by a fellow Facebooker who had received the request from 11 MILLION. If any of you can confirm any of the locations, or add others that aren't listed, please can you let me know either here or via Facebook. Ta.

"I was just wondering if you could do us a favour. I have attached a file containing a list of mosquito locations. As you know we are trying to map all the mosquitos across the country. The one problem we have with the list is that we are not sure how accurate and up to date it is. is there any chance you could post it on the facebook website and ask people if they could verify or otherwise the locations that are listed."

Location Berkshire• Maiden Place, Earley, Reading• South Ascot• Cheshire-Outside civil centre in Poynton, Macclesfield• Bollington, Macclesfield• Co-op, London Road, Macclesfield• Panda Way, Congleton• 2 in Congleton Town Market• 2 affixed to care homes, Congleton• Spar at The Parade in Blacon.Cumbria-West Cumbria: • Main Road, Seaton (3)• Windsor Road, Westfield • Workington• Moresby Park, Whitehaven • High Street, Whitehaven • Westfield Drive, Whitehaven • Wellington Row, Main Road, Seaton • Murray Road, Workington• Senhouse Street, Maryport • Ennerdale Road, Cleator Moor• Sainsbury’s Cockermouth South Cumbria: • Chapel Street, Dalton in Furness • one in Dalton Leisure Centre North Cumbria: • Wood Street, Carlisle (2) • Beachwood Avenue, Carlisle, • Blackwell Road Carlisle.• Chiswick Road, Hylton Castle, SunderlandDerbyshire-• Belper• Ironville• Langley Mill• Boythorpe• Glossop• Derby City Centre.Devon and Cornwall• -Coach parking section in multi-storey car park- Torbay in CornwallDorset• -Community centre in BournemouthEssex• Southend Park• Basildon• Hunwicke Shopping Centre in Greenstead estate in Colchester• Burnham train station.• Montrose Court in Stapelford NorthGloucestershire• -Tewkesbury District• Gloucester• Forest • CheltenhamGreater London• -Lythe Road, Ealing• Hallmark Newsagent Shop in Wembley• Tower Hamlets• Ruislip Manor, Blackheath (M&S).Hampshire• -Hart Plain School, South HampshireHertfordshire• -St Albans, Stevenage (x2), • Three Rivers• MacDonald’s Borehamwood• Broxbourne (x2)• Hertsmere• South Oxhey.Kent• Medway, South Kent• RamsgateLancashire• -Broadfield• Moss Side• Bannister Stores, Bannister Drive Leyland• Bamber Bridge• Lancaster• co-op on Norbreck Drive in Preston• Chorley East• Chapel Walk in Rhodes• StaghillsLincolnshire• -Retirement home (South Holland District Council).Norfolk• -Mulbarton• Broadland• North Walsham• Great Yarmouth• Gorleston• Dereham• Thetford• Kings Lynn.Northamptonshire• -Willow Arts Centre in George Street• Oakley Vale Shopping Centre, Corby• Danesholme Shopping Centre in Corby.Nottinghamshire• -Brierley Forest Visitors Centre, Huhwaite• Selston Medical Centre, Selston, • Morven Park School, Kirby in Ashfield• Ashfield District Council Offices, Fox Street, Sutton in Ashfield• Tichfield Park Pavillion, Hucknall, • Beauvale Chip Shop in Hucknall, • Hucknell NET tram shop, • Ling Forest in Oak Tree Lane Mansfield, Shopping parade in Ravensdale Road in Mansfield, • pizza shop in Bagnall Road in Basford, • shop on Oak Tree Estate in Mansfield • Bulwell area.North Somerset• -Mead Vale Shopping Precinct, Worle.North Yorkshire• -City of York• Selby• Market Place, Bedale,• Starbeck, Harrogate• Whitby Station in Whitby • one used by Saxton Parish Council.Merseyside• -Trapwood Close, Eccleston• Play area behind community centre, St Helens• Play area in Haresfinch Park, St Helens• Thatto Heath, St Helens• Chain Lane, St HelensOxfordshire• Westgate Shopping Centre, Chipping Norton, • Reynolds Way in Abingdon.South Yorkshire• Mexborough, • Swinton• Dalton • Orgreave. • Dinnington Indoors Market, Sheffield• Margetson Crescent, Parsons Cross in Sheffield• Rotherham.South Wales• -Spar shop in Barry, South Wales• Town Hall in Renfrewshire• Spar shop on Caerleon Road in Newport Gwent. • Northern Rail Treorchy Station.Staffordshire• -Burntwood• Tamworth,• Stoke• Leek,• Blythe Bridge in EndonSurrey• Epsom/Ewell• Reigate/Banstead• Tandridge• Guildford• Woking.Warwickshire• Co-op at Shipston on Stour.West Mercia• Weston Rhyn, • Llanymynech, • St Martins, • Reddich, • Wythall, • Wyre Forest, • Stourport, • Shawbirch)West Midlands• Sutton Coldfield, • Wolverhampton • Low HillWest Sussex• Macdonalds on London Road in East Grinstead• Spar store on Tilgate Parade in CrawleyWiltshire• Swindon• (Wyvern Theatre, Theatre Square, Guildford Avenue in Lawn and Park North Shop), • Trowbridge (Longfield Community Centre)• Sainsbury’s in Calne Wiltshire.Worcestershire• Charlton Kings• Tewkesbury

The SNP - Taking the Tide on the Flood?

Hearing the results in Glasgow East at some ungodly hour this morning my first thought was of my pal who is a member of the SNP. We had an email exchange a couple of weeks ago and she had been out campaigning. She was genuinely buoyed up, believing they could win. I remembered visiting her and her family a couple of years ago. Her father too is an SNP activist and what struck me about both of them was the enthusiasm with which they talked about their party. They conveyed a real sense of commitment to and belief in everything the SNP stood for. The party was full of heroes, leading lights who they spoke of almost in hushed tones. The contrast with Labour, even then, was palpable. In the inevitable ebb and flow of politics it is clear the SNP are flowing. Barring a huge disaster, this kind of momentum is almost impossible to counter, on the contrary, a party that is ebbing can do virtually nothing about it. Sometimes the more they try to do, the worse it gets.

I guess our challenge is to think about what this means for us. Where are we in terms of the ebb and flow? Where were the SNP a few short years ago, did they anticipate the changing tide and take full advantage of it? Regardless of our views of their politics we must surely learn lessons from their success.

To quote Brutus in Julius Caesar "There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat and we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures."

Marching with the enemy?

As someone who often gets ticked off for being too pally with people from other parties, I have probably earned myself a few negative brownie points over the past couple of weeks. Regular readers will know that I often chat about the Tory Boys and I also value my friendship with our local Labour MP Patrick Hall and friends from Respect. Politics of course is important to me but it frankly isn't the only thing I care about and if I made a condition of friendship shared political views I'd be quite a lonely person!

So on Saturday I was at Chicksands at the Defence Intelligence and Security Centre for Intelligence Corps day. This is always an enjoyable event, Pimms on the lawn, lunch in the marquee (always a reminder, despite the fact that it is private contractors providing it now, of 1970's army food!) and an afternoon to look round the beautiful Chicksands Priory and visit the excellent Military Intelligence Museum. One of the guest's of honour was Sir Stanley Odell, erstwhile President of the local Tories. He is quite a character who I first got to know when I ran Bedford Boys Club some 16 years ago. Whenever we meet he likes to tell me he thinks I am in the wrong party (after all I look like a Tory (!)) but is also always disarmingly informed about what I am up to politically. Clearly has taken on board the army maxim "know your enemy".

Then on Monday, having interviewed Jo Swinson (more about that later), I met up with Patrick for dinner in The Adjournment at Portcullis. I have also known Patrick almost as long, he was a County Councillor when I worked in the Youth Service and was always a great supporter of our work, going out of his way, unlike others, to attend events and to encourage our young people. In fact, one of the deciding factors for me in not standing for PPC in Bedford was a fear that, being the fighter I am, I would find myself pulling my punches standing against a friend, although this has never meant I haven't challenged his party's policies on public platforms, or when chatting privately.

There are many examples in Westminster of close cross party friendships and I have to say I find it quite sad that some in our party disapprove so vociferously, for me it holds echoes of the sectarianism that has been so damaging in places like Northern Ireland. But, whilst such attitudes make me cross, they have absolutely no impact whatsoever on my behaviour. If those who display such attitudes think by doing so they will force me to change my wayward ways, they will be sadly disappointed!

The Revival of the Conservative and Unionist Party

I woke up to the news this morning that David Cameron is having talks about closer links with the Ulster Unionists. This could be seen as a sign of the times, the climate has changed. But despite the progress in Northern Ireland, the UUP will still be seen as a sectarian party. I always remember a Catholic union colleague of mine from Belfast, who would constantly chide the Tories about being the "Conservative and Unionist" party. Of course what the Tories do is up to them, but I will be watching with interest the fallout from this.

That Nick Clegg - what a hoot!

Drawing to the parliamentary end of term, Nick Clegg has attracted a little criticism in some quarters for appearing not to have a sense of humour. He has dealt with PMQs extremely competently but with little of the dazzling humour employed by his stand in predecessor Vince Cable. Although it has to be said, I heard one parliamentarian the other day declaring that he thought Nick was our best leader in a generation when it came to dealing with PMQs.

That said, I have to say I have been disappointed that Nick's sense of humour hasn't as yet really emerged, I am hoping that next term, perhaps when he can relax a bit about the ordeal that is midday on a Wednesday, his real character can emerge. I have always found him to be great fun and very witty. One example was when we travelled back from Birmingham together. I had been chatting away (out of character I know !) about this and that when Nick went off to buy coffee. He asked me if I wanted sugar, my reply was to say no, "Thank God for that" says he "we would have been on to story 143!"

So it was great to read this story from Black Dog in the Mail -
"Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg is no fan of David Cameron's favourite new political book, Nudge, by Richard Thaler, which says human behaviour is best changed by small nudges not heavy-handed laws.
'Thaler says if you draw a fly in the centre of a gents' urinal, men will aim more accurately,' said Clegg.
'Cameron has drawn the fly on the floor.' "

Making it Happen?

Having had one of my manic few days my only response so far to Making it Happen could have been interpreted as a negative one. In fact that is not the case at all, my concerns were predominantly about one aspect of it and the marketing of that aspect, namely cutting tax.

So, what do I think of Making it Happen in the round? A few weeks ago we had a detailed look at the draft at an FPC awayday. I elicited some amusement by saying how excited I was about it as a document. But I was excited then and I am excited now. Overall it begins to tell the story which so many have been crying out for. It connects with our values and has a genuine thread running through it which is about making life better for so many in our country who struggle financially, but also in terms of being heard when they come into contact with the state; who are fearful but feel powerless to change anything; who share our values, but don't see those values reflected in any of the other major parties.

There are elements of the detail I personally would want to change, but overall I think it has a fresh, intelligent and forward thinking feel. On many issues it puts clear blue water between us and the other two Tory parties and articulates beautifully what that looks like. Anyone who asks "what are the Lib Dems for?" would be hard pressed not to be able to find an answer in these pages.

A Topsy Turvy World - Cameron or Clegg on tax?

Arriving home in the early hours from the Liberal International AGM last night I heard the news about Nick's plans to cut taxes on 5 Live. This novel idea was not news to me, it had been discussed at FPC last week, which elicited my (measured!) response that whilst I had no problem with cutting taxes at the bottom end, I was concerned about where the cuts would be coming from to pay for such cuts. Presumably this was rushed out in response to David Cameron's "we may have to put taxes up" comment. Has the world gone completely mad?????! I arrived at work this morning to be greeted by a jokey comment from my boss (who happens to be a former Labour minister) about what was happening. It has elicited the expected response - Nick will cut taxes but he doesn't know as yet where the cuts will come from. THIS IS WHAT MAKES MY BLOOD BOIL!!!!!!! Of course I am a great supporter of Nick, but he knows and I know, this does not extend to supporting policies that potentially undermine all the promises we are making about the changes we would make in public policy terms, the pupil premium, ending child poverty, covering the cost of private health care……….need I go on? If Nick had identified something he wouldn't be doing anymore (I have made plenty of suggestions, Trident for example could be a big chunk of his savings -and maybe the silver lining of this premature promise is that we could offer the electorate a choice, Trident or tax cuts?) then I think he would have been in a much stronger position. We are in grave danger of falling into the unjustified stereotype of being opportunist. Whilst I respect the fact that many fellow bloggers are jumping for joy at this announcement, I am afraid, I am very afraid…...what happened to the party of 1p for education and the 50p tax rate, a recognition that quality services cost money? My position hasn't changed, but I fear my party's has.

Cameron on Black Fathers

Cameron has jumped feet first into the debate about black fathers. I have to say it makes me a little uneasy, an Old Etonian presuming to comment on an issue about which he has little experience and even less understanding. In an age when the political imperative seems to be to score points by finding simple solutions to complex problems, my view is that the last thing politicians should be doing is moralising. Actually Dave, what we want are political solutions not moral ones. Now don't get me wrong, of course there are moral issues - and solutions have to take account of the moral landscape, but this constant need to find someone to blame worries me. He does touch on poverty and education, though his comment that "mobility has to be unblocked by a revolution in secondary education where you have got to bust open the monopoly of the state system..." should sound alarm bells for all of us who care about education.

Last week I attended a conference for academics in the field of youth and community work. Bernard Davies raised a number of important issues with regard to the political landscape, some of which I will return to. But he struck a chord with me when he bemoaned the fact that we no longer talked about race equality but rather 'community cohesion'. A friend of mine, who has been in the Race Equality field for years, just got a job, doing what he has always done, as a community cohesion officer. Hmmmm, the power of language in helping us side step difficult issues!

At the same conference I attended a shocking workshop highlighting the discrimination still faced by black students in HE, something else I will return to having naively thought things may have changed.

So, getting back to Cameron, if he has to start moralising I would have a lot more respect for him if he did so in a context that acknowledged the racism so many black people still face and looked at serious policies to tackle poverty and an education system that condemns some of our most vulnerable young people to failure. Now those are all issues politics can tackle head on.

The giggling Chancellor?

This afternoon I got an excited telephone call from my daughter Lara. She was at her local petrol station in Flitwick and "Fifth Gear" had been asking people about the shocking price of petrol, reminding them it was all the government's fault - and giving everyone £2(?). She had been interviewed but was ringing me to apologise. "I just got so nervous Mum, when they started talking about the government I wanted to say something about you but I just giggled!" What she would have said about me she didn't know...........maybe, "what this country needs is my mum as Chancellor" or "if you vote to get my mum into Europe she'll sort them out", or "my mum said it would all end in tears if we went into Iraq" .................or maybe just "Hi mum!" Reminding me of the interview I did with the PM programme when I was the candidate in Luton North.

They had called to ask if they could do an interview..........I was puzzled, there was a lot of interest in Luton South at the time, but not Luton North. I asked if they had it right, yes, they say, we think Luton North could be a shock result, no one will be more shocked than me says I! In the event they arrived on the day Simon Hughes was in town, catching some typically sage words from him.....then on to me. Hmmmm, did they broadcast my wise words about the world the universe and everything? Er...........no. What they broadcast was me giggling. The only saving grace was that an old friend who I hadn't seen for years heard it contacted me. "I heard the giggle and I knew it was you!" says he.

So, we will all be watching agog in August to see if we can spot Lara (see pic) following in her mum's footsteps.......

Gene Robinson - the personification of grace

Grace is a virtue rarely talked about, perhaps because it is in such short supply. But this fact means that when it is demonstrated it is all the more powerful. As "Tuesday's Child" I am supposed to be "full of grace" but I confess it is a quality that I admire so much in others, but rarely find in myself. So I was deeply moved watching the Andrew Marr interview with Gene Robinson this morning. As the only Bishop not to have been invited to Lambeth he could have been full of pique and anger. Instead he has chosen to come and be around the fringes of the conference in order to have the conversations he believes need to happen in order to help move the church on, he says " You know I think miracles happen when people who are divided by something sit and talk with each other, get to know one another as human beings and as brothers and sisters in Christ and that's why I'm going to offer myself in that way"



Whilst he has a clear position himself he is not condemning those who don't share it, he is rather recognising the importance of keeping lines of communication open. He is a brave man, whose suffering, far from embittering him, has deepened his humanity and prophetic zeal.



Sir Ian McKellen who was also there, revealed that he like Gene had received death threats in the past. But, although an atheist himself he encouraged the Bishop with the words of Thomas Jefferson, talking about whether the Constitution should ever be changed "One might as well require a man to wear still this jacket which fitted him when a boy as for civilised society to suffer under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors".

Ian adds -

"And you know we do have barbarous ancestors, in politics, in religion, in the military, in every part of our lives. And argument between the twenty first century and those old prejudices that's been played out here in this man. And that he should be in the eye of the storm as his autobiography puts it is a, an enormous weight on his shoulders. And I do wish you well on behalf of us all".

Knife Crime - John Major nearly gets it right - Jacqui Smith doesn't get it at all

Andrew Marr interviewed John Major this morning, remember him? Inevitably following the chat about the economy the subject of the current moral panic about knife crime. What he said I found very interesting "....If you look at knife crime in the cities, if you go back to the time when I was a boy I, I lived in the middle of Brixton at a time of quite a lot of social turmoil, when there was relatively little to do. But there were gymnasiums, there were places where you could go and you could box, you could play indoor soccer, you could do things of that sort.

Now one of the reasons I set up the Lottery which the government have ransacked and taken a large part of the money sadly, was to set up things like that right the way through the big cities. We need to find things for our young people to do. In the early part of the century, the previous century when there was a lot of trouble with youngsters, er, youth clubs, the Scouts, things like that were established and became set up.

Maybe not the same prescription. But we certainly need the opportunity for sporting facilities and arts facilities inside the inner cities so that youngsters have something to do when they go out rather than stand on the street corner. Give them something to do. Give them the opportunity to do it. I think that would be expenditure well spent. It was the purpose of the Lottery. I very much hope and believe that a Conservative government will return the Lottery to its original intention.

.......We need to help them. Of course we condemn people who use knives. That is unacceptable by any measure. But let us give them something to do that will attract their interest. And if that isn't worthwhile expenditure I cannot myself imagine what is." (my emphasis)

Yes, this was John Major, the same John Major who was part of a government, later leading it, that presided over the wholesale decimation of the Youth Service! And does he really believe that a future Conservative Government would be any different?

Last week I had a coffee with a leading light in the youth policy world (who will remain nameless). We were talking about who the political champions for young people were in the different parties. For us the answer is simple, both within, but particularly without, our party, Simon Hughes is seen as the parliamentary champion par excellence for young people. Annette Brooke is someone else who has also been tireless in her advocacy for young people. In the Labour Party,when he was responsible for the Youth Service Ivan Lewis was highly regarded, also Phil Hope and John Denham. But, could we think of a champion for young people in the Tories...........???? Er, no.


Now, of course, John Major is right to say we need to prioritise spending on young people, but he got it wrong in thinking that the National Lottery was the answer with the government washing their hands of the problem. He has essentially admitted it was the Tory Government's fault. Ten years of a Labour Government hasn't seen much additional funding going to services, but it did arrest the trend. Sadly Andrew Marr didn't challenge him on this.

I am not suggesting youth facilities and services are all the answer, but there is enough evidence that youth crime falls when, for example, the local youth club is open. What is more of an indicator of risk is poverty and poor education - that surely has to be a starting point. One only has to look at Maslow's hierarchy of need to understand that for many young people whose needs are not being met in other ways, they will look elsewhere. So the gang becomes the surrogate family and support. Young people who are made to feel of little or no worth at home and I have to say in many cases, at school, gain the little self worth they possess from being someone in the gang. So, my argument is and always has been, this isn't just about providing so called "diversionary" activities for young people, it is providing safe places and safe relationships. It is about tackling poverty in the round and providing an education system that truly takes account of the needs of all pupils. I often argue that we wouldn't put an acid loving plant in lime soil and then blame the plant for not thriving, but we do it to our children every day of the week.

Getting back to the role of youth work and youth facilities. The best youth workers, in particular detached youth workers (working out on the streets) will offer both safe places and safe relationships for young people. Good Youth Workers don't see young people as problems but acknowledge the challenges and look for the good in every one of them. During my career one of my great senses of satisfaction was when young people I had worked with firstly aspired to be, and then became, youth workers. These youth workers are the best, they understand the streets, they understand what is going on, but all too often, given the lack of respect given to the field, they are not heard.

And so on to dear Jacqui. Something has to be done, so, like governments before she retreats to that old chestnut - shock tactics. Get young people into A&E to see the consequences. Remember Aids and the iceberg, beeping babies, various anti smoking, drink driving campaigns? These campaigns, whilst they may have an impact on a very few, rarely have much if any lasting impact. I always look at the example of the campaign to reduce teenage pregnancy. Young people can be taught how to put condoms on bananas, how and why pregnancy happens, given the skills to negotiate and an understanding of the choices they have and the consequences of those choices. However, how much has teenage pregnancy actually reduced? It seems to me that the important missing ingredient is an understanding of what motivates behaviour and as we all know, behaviour is the hardest to thing change.

Jacqui Smith's solution, whilst different in that it gets away from the lock 'em all up mantra, is a clear demonstration of the lack of connection between policy making and the reality of people's lives. It is a top down solution which is designed to be headline grabbing and get the good burghers of middle England nodding sagely and saying, yes this is what these reprobates need. These young people know the consequences of their actions, but the alternative is more unthinkable. Rather be remembered as a "fallen soldier" than appear to be soft.

The carnage on our streets, particularly in London, is deeply disturbing. There are no quick fixes, but until and unless we start talking to the young people who live with this reality we will never even begin to scratch the surface of a lasting solution.

The highlight of the Bedford calendar - Bedford River Festival

One thing I love about Bedford is our real sense of community and that is never more wonderfully demonstrated than at our bi-annual River Festival. At one time Bedford was the most culturally diverse town in the country and we are still home to over 100 different people groups - a fact that is evident in the diversity of the festival.

This year will be the 30th anniversary of an event that started as a celebration of the Ouse becoming navigable from Bedford to the coast and is now second only to the Notting Hill Carnival as the biggest free festival in the country.

My first River Festival was 14 years ago. I remember it well, my son, 4 at the time, went round commenting that by the next River Festival I would be 41. Heavens, that seemed so old to us both then! There have been great years and not so great years, times when the event seemed to be losing its way, but this year looks like being exceptional. For anyone close enough to get to Bedford (and remember we are only 35 minutes from St Pancras) it is well worth a visit. I have to say the highlight of the weekend for me is always the parade of boats as it begins to get dark, all decorated and lit up - magical!

Shall we have the bun fight in the Autumn or the Spring?

To scrap or not to scrap that is the question ..........whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous activists, or to take arms against a rebellious party and by opposing......hmmmm who knows?

That frankly was the dilemma facing FPC last night. To go to conference with a proposal to change our popular no tuition fees policy, or to delay the potential bun fight until the Spring. The almost overwhelming decision was to defer until Spring, when of course we are also anticipating another bun fight when we debate our schools policy. Well, let's get all our bun fights over together, why not? Deferring also gives some more time to try and find a compromise that the whole party can support.

Of course FPC protocol and the delights of the Chatham House Rule, sadly prevents me from reporting back on what at times became a very heated debate. Suffice to say, despite my feelings of being in drawbridge mode, having benefited from a free education myself and in a professional capacity having serious concerns about the debt culture we are contributing to, I come down on the side of the argument that we do need to review the situation. We need to treat part time and FE students more equitably and we have to look at where scarce resources are most effectively used. Or, we need to get back to the tax debate. Also, it is something I bang on about all the time but I despair at how little cost benefit analysis is done in regard to public spending of any kind.

Of course all this could have been avoided. We could have continued with our no tuition fees policy, doubled the grant, raised the threshold for repayment and kept the motion on the agenda for Autumn......how? Er...........revisiting our Trident policy, which as luck has it, if the FCC see sense, we may have an opportunity to do!

As for the bun fight......those intending to participate, please bring Krispy Kremes:-)

Stop wasting food......OK Gordy, whatever you say!

You know when you lie in the bath and you can hear what is going on outside but it is a little muffled, and anyway you are in your own little world. Or you sit on the tube and miss your stop because you are reading and the monotone voice barely pricks your consciousness as it says Kings Cross St Pancras.......? Oh....it's just me then!



I had the same kind of sensation at the news today that Gordon Brown is urging us to stop wasting food. My ears didn't prick up, my conscience wasn't pricked..........it kind of washed over me really. The thing is, he has a point. The question is............is he the right person to make it?

Remembering 7/7

7/7 - like 9/11 and for those of us of a certain age, the assassination of Kennedy, the shooting of John Lennon, will always remain scars on our memory.

My daughter called this evening to ask if I was watching Channel 4. She was watching their programme on Islamophobia (an issue she is well informed on, her partner being a Muslim). She tried to describe a Tory who had been speaking, who she was less than impressed with given his attitude to women who wore the Niqab, who apparently did it because they were affiliated to Islamists. I am still trying to figure out who this guy is, apparently blonde, really skinny, speaks with a plum in his mouth and is often on Question Time - any ideas????

So, I am just done watching the programme about the survivors of 7/7 on Channel 4. It was very moving, the triumph of the human spirit, the putting into perspective all the triviality we worry about. But it brought back for me, as I am sure it did for many others, memories of that day three years ago.

I had hmmmd and haaaaad about whether to go into work that day. I had work I could have done at home. In the end I decided to go. When I arrived at the station I was frustrated that Midland Mainline was not running. There were problems at Mill Hill, this meant not only would I have to go on the painfully slow Thameslink, but it would be positively snail like given it was stopping at every stop. Again I debated with myself about whether I should just go home and phone into work to tell them I was working from home. In the end I got on the train. On the way I had a brainwave. I could save time by getting off at West Hampstead and jumping on the Jubilee line. This I did, arriving around 9.25 and taking the short walk along to the tube station.

It was one of those days when you grit your teeth, not only had my journey taken twice as long, now I had arrived at the Jubilee line to find that the gates were being closed. A message flashed up above the gates, there was an electrical problem. Now, how on earth did I get to Canary Wharf? I followed the crowd around the corner to the bus stop, no idea how to get to where I wanted to be. I couldn't get on the bus, it was too crowded. I decided to call work - but, unusually for me, I had left my mobile at home. I walked into the nearest Kebab House and asked if I could use the phone. They kindly allowed me to and I called work. Karen, our administrator answered. She told me that they had heard there were problems in London, something about four explosions, all the buses and tubes had been suspended. She suggested I went home.

I was lucky. I went back to West Hampstead and got on a train going back. Had I gone all the way into St Pancras I would have been stuck. The journey home was surreal. People were picking up news on their mobiles, there was far more chatter than usual. As we travelled the story began to unfold. We tried to signal to people coming the other way on trains that they should get off, but they clearly didn't know what was happening.

I finally got home at about 11.30 - switching on the TV to watch the horrifying story unfold. On my mislaid mobile were 14 missed calls. My children, desperately asking me to call, my friends, some of whom had been called by my children, wondering where I was.............I remembered my daughter's concern when I got my job a year earlier in Canary Wharf - why did I want to work somewhere that was such a terrorist target? She didn't really buy my attempted reassurance that actually Canary Wharf was probably one of the safest places to work.

What was worse was when I got back into work the following Monday. My children had also left heart wrenching messages on my answerphone. All I could think about was how many other such messages had been left on other answerphones across London, the difference being that the recipients had never received them. I also reflected on my journey. The 7/7 bombers had boarded the train at Luton, my hometown. The problems at Mill Hill had clearly affected them too. Their train was late - it reminded me of the Thornton Wilder book the Bridge Over the San Luis Rey, the story of five people who found themselves crossing a bridge in Lima, Peru, when it collapsed. So, presumably, they had intended to arrive in London earlier. I have no doubt, given the time, that more people, but different people, would have died had they arrived earlier.

For anyone caught up in that day it will remain with them forever. So much more for those whose loved ones died, or who were injured. For weeks afterwards we all travelled on the tube suspicious of anyone with a rucksack looking vaguely Asian. And then there was the tragedy of Jean Charles de Menezes. This hit me particularly hard - that could have been my son.

What happened on 7/7 was an outrage. But frankly we must try to understand what motivates intelligent young men to do such terrible things. The alternative is more and worse of the same.

Yes, I really am this shallow!

Do you suppose inanimate objects have a sense of humour? I ask this for a very good reason. Last week I discovered I had lost my beautiful pink sandals. I had only worn them a couple of times so I was a bit miffed and retraced my steps mentally as to where they may be. I decided, through a process of elimination, that I must have left them on the 6.55 on my way back to Bedford. I called lost property - but no sign..............then, at the weekend I found them! They had crawled under a pile of washing waiting to be ironed (I know it isn't one of my strong points!). I was delighted to be reunited and celebrated by wearing them, despite the pouring rain, yesterday.

Today, I again decided, despite the pouring rain, to continue the celebration. Given my half hour trek to the train station I wore an old pair of flatties and put my dear sandals in a little bag. I put the bag next to my handbag to remind me to pick it up. Did I remember? Er.........no! So, my theory is, the little devils had a mind of their own and decided it would be rather fun to really get lost......

.......OK, shallow I know, but if anyone finds them, please send them home :-(

Feeling Sorry for Bojo

OK, there goes me street cred (if I ever had any, tho I did get asked by our illustrious leader the other day if I worried about such things at my age!).......but I found myself feeling a little sorry for Boris today. This, it has to be said, having previously posted that the best outcome of a Boris win would be that it would probably have the unintended consequence of undermining the notion that the Tories could govern. I suppose my unexpected feelings spring from an appreciation of how being well meaning can sometimes end one up in the soup.

Boris's decision to appoint Ray Lewis as one of his deputies I saw at the time as a sound move and if nothing else I was delighted that he had recognised that a youth worker rather than a police officer could offer more in the fight against youth crime. So far from crowing I am rather disappointed that he hasn't had an opportunity to even begin to get to grips with a serious problem that is destroying lives on almost a daily basis. This is not to condone any wrong doing if it is proved, or to excuse Boris for his lack of judgement, but to put what has happened (in which as far as I know nobody died), in the context of the far more serious problem in which many young people are dying and families (of victims and perpetrators) are being devastated. Do we want to take the risk of involving those who may have answers but don't tick all the boxes, or maintain the status quo with those who tick all the boxes but never get beyond the questions? This morning we have heard the news that Martin McGuinness and Lord Alderdice are going to Iraq to try and help them move forward in building a peaceful and cohesive future for that country. I don't hear anyone disqualifying Martin McGuinness from that vital task because of his past? I know I am venturing into dangerous waters, we expect our public servants to be beyond reproach, but sometimes they don't have the answers for that very reason. Frankly if we want to resolve any problem we surely have to involve those who understand, are affected by, or part of the problem. Anything less will lead us back into the vicious circle, the blind allies, the mealymouthed words that have failed to even come close to changing things.

So, the wheels may be falling off early in the Boris Mayoralty. Frankly he is a colourful character but has not to me demonstrated any of the attributes necessary in a leader. As I observed on Tuesday, he appears to spend no time at all preparing for anything and flies by the seat of his pants. He talks the talk but I fear we will discover he is incapable of walking the walk. He makes the perfect maverick MP, entertaining writer, Have I Got News for You chair.............but Mayor of one of the greatest cities on Earth? Er.........don't think so. He may be well meaning, which is why I find myself in this peculiar place of feeling sorry for him this morning - but as the saying goes the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

"Appropriate Rewards" Geoff Hoon, Keith Vaz and..............us?

That leaked handwritten letter, promising Keith Vaz an "appropriate reward" raises again that old chestnut of cash/votes for honours. Now, it has to be remembered that Geoff Hoon used to be affectionately referred to in military circles as Buff Hoon - so no stranger to the relationship between foot and mouth. But it got me to thinking about how we go about dishing out the honours. We have a buffer in the Peers list, but this has done very little to ensure our presence in the Lords reflects the party, let alone the country.

At some time Gordo will see fit to offer some crumbs from his table to Nick Clegg - so what will he do? Does he have favours to repay? Will he break the habit of seeing honours as a reward system for the great and the good? Now I am a great believer in a directly elected second chamber, but we are where we are for the meantime, so my view is that we should not see appointing folk to the Lords as a reward, after all, they are supposedly "working peers". Some clearly take that responsibility seriously, some seem to swan off all over the place and do very little to support the party in the Lords.

During the hustings for the last but one leadership, Simon Hughes made a commitment that he would use appointments to the Lords to begin to address the lack of diversity in the parliamentary party - stating categorically that “If I am leader then I will expect, if the opportunity arises, to nominate people to the Lords. I will not normally nominate any white male because we have to correct the imbalance. We have about ten women out of 70 peers and we have two or three people from minority communities. We have to take positive action.”

It may be window dressing (and I have it on good authority that it is) but at least the Tories have begun to grasp this nettle - the appointment of Sayeeda Warsi in order to give her a role in the Shadow Cabinet, the selection of a number of BME candidates in winnable seats - while we, of all the parties lag behind. So, Nick has the perfect opportunity, which I am confident he will take, to use his prerogative to do the same and send a clear message that he is serious about redressing the balance. After all, as I have said before........and will no doubt have engraved on my tombstone - if we want to represent we have to be representative!!!!

Answers not Lists - Nick Clegg at PMQs

PMQs was a little subdued today. The speculation is that Cameron is pulling his punches as he would rather keep Brown there than contribute to his downfall. But I was impressed with Nick - he asked an important question about mental health, drawing attention to the fact that there is a two tier system. Brown just did his usual and banged on about the NHS and all their investment in mental health services, Nick rightly challenged him, asking for answers not lists.

Regular readers will know that this is an issue close to my heart, having grown up with a father with a bi-polar condition and having spent most of last summer supporting a sister who suffered unbelievably in a terrible psychiatric unit. To put vulnerable people in mixed sex wards is inexcusable - I lost count of the number of times my sister called me terrified because of something that had happened, whether that was a man exposing himself, or coming into her room in the middle of the night and trying to kiss her, or there being a fight. I was also horrified at how badly she was treated by some of the staff, even being threatened. Of course, when I complained it was all put down to her condition. One of the worst things that happened was when she was so frightened she hid in the tiny cupboard in her disgusting room (which looked and to her felt, more like a prison cell with tiny windows, chunks out of the door, dirty walls and carpet) all night, eventually wetting herself. Perhaps this is not the sort of thing to talk about on a blog, but it seems to me part of the problem is that there is still such a stigma attached to mental illness and we don't talk about it. We are quite happy for people to be locked away in disgusting conditions so that we don't have to see them or think about them. These people are often the most vulnerable in our society. Some will have families who will do their best to fight for them, others have no one. Of course there are dedicated caring doctors nurses and care assistants who try to make the best of a bad job, but sadly mental health is not top of anyone's priority list. So I for one am pleased that Nick is taking this up as a campaigning issue. At a time when the government is lauding its new vision for the NHS - that people should be treated with care and dignity - my question is, isn't that what we should have expected anyway for goodness sake?

Boris - Shining with Pride?

Last night I went with Yas to the Pride reception at City Hall. It was a lovely evening with good company, just a pity about Boris really. Now he clearly plays on his bumbling image, but frankly there are times when I think it is plain ignorant and disrespectful - last night was one of them. Friends of mine who attended the LGBT Mayoral hustings told me that he had apparently said something like "yes.....L...G...B....T er yes that's right isn't it? Er yes I'm all in favour of it!" Now he has had a little time since then to become a tad more well informed. Last night demonstrated that he hadn't, it was cringemakingly awful, patronising and frankly insulting to the extent that he even engendered some booing. There was no evidence that he had really prepared for the event (know your audience), especially when he started talking about the Pink List, then kept asking the signer next to him if it was the Pink List, if that what it was called etc. Apparently David Cameron thinks he will "shine" on Saturday, hmmmm, we will see!

Good to see Simon Hughes flying the Lib Dem flag, though he was clever enough to arrive after Boris had left!

20 Questions to a Presidential Candidate - Updated

I hope to get the answers to my questions (see below) soon, but in the meantime, wondered if there were other potential presidential candidates I should send them to - Chris Huhne? Chris Rennard? Susan Kramer? So, if you would like to suggest the candidate you would most like to see standing in the upcoming contest, I can include them in my distribution list!

My questions are as follows:

1. What motivated you to get involved in politics and does that still motivate you now?
2. Which political figure, living or dead, do you most admire and why?
3. If you could introduce a new party policy, what would it be?
4. If there was a party policy you could overturn, what would it be?
5. Have you done the “political compass” exercise and if so where do you sit?
6. What will you bring to the position of President?
7. What will be your priorities if elected?
8. What is your view on the marketisation of public services?
9. What is your view on our policy on Trident?
10. If you could wave a magic wand and change one thing in this country, what would it be?
11. If elected how will you advance the cause of Libdemmery?
12. As a party, despite our values, we still seem to find it impossible to reflect the diversity of the country we seek to represent, how will you redress this?
13. There has been a lot of debate, in the blogosphere and elsewhere, about our narrative. What should it be?!
14. What do you consider the most pressing issue facing the world?
15. With a resurgent Tory Party, how would you ensure that as a third party, our voice was heard?
16. If elected, what do you most look forward to about the role?
17. As someone more on the “left” of the party, why should I vote for you?
18. If you were stranded on a desert island, which politician – from another party – would you be happy to be stranded with and why?
19. If you were stranded on a desert island, which politician – from our party – would you be happy to be stranded with and why?!
20. If elected President what will you do to help elect a second MEP in the East of England? (Or anywhere else actually!!!)

Iain Dale v Political Betting...............no contest!

Iain Dale is very fond of biggin' himself up as the most read political blog in the country. However, the reality is that he is out hit 4:1 by Political Betting. Now, Mike Smithson is a well known Lib Dem, former Councillor and PPC, but his site is probably the most politically neutral in the country. Why? Because its focus is on the betting odds, not the political rhetoric. In contrast Iain (God bless'im) is overtly partisan to, on occasions, the point of hysteria! So I am pleased to see that Mike is taking on Iain's inflated claims by advertising just how popular his site is. Although, having met at a bbq on Saturday, he did slightly blot his copy book (!)- we were discussing the role John Major may have had in Gordon Brown's disastrous decision to abandon plans for an election last year, and for some reason got chatting about IDS. I said how impressed I had been when talking to him at an event last year. Unlike most politicos who talk to you with one eye over your shoulder in the hope of escaping/talking to someone more important (what do you mean it is only me that happens to?!), IDS did nothing of the sort. We must have spoken for at least 20 minutes with no sign of him wanting to escape. Mike pointed out that it may not have been my scintillating conversation, but because no one else would speak to him!

Lib Dems - The Low Tax Party - has Nick Clegg got it right?

Mark Littlewood, ex Lib Dem Head of Media and well known exponent of dragging the party kicking and screaming to the right, urges Nick Clegg in an article in the Telegraph yesterday to make us the low tax party.

"Greatly to his credit, Nick Clegg has dropped some hints that the LibDems could become the party of low taxation at the next election. But he has yet to adopt the policies to make such a claim truly plausible"

He also has some wise words to say about our desperate need for a meaningful narrative and clear messages, though clearly his view is that the clear messages should be about low taxation alluding to the idea that this could be the only way our MPs in vulnerable seats can tackle the Tories. But my question is, if the choice is between a large low tax party and a small low tax party, why would you choose the small one? This for me gets to the crux of the issue. We are trying to get policies that will appeal to soft Tory voters so that we can hang on to our Southern seats, rather than returning to our values to discover what should drive us.

We are tying ourselves up in knots about narrative and clear messages, actually we have a clear message which is the sure foundation for our narrative..........it's the preamble to our constitution:

The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community, and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity

(My emphasis). This morning The Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, Kings College London published research that criticised the government's approach to tackling knife crime. They argue that the government's punitive approach is counterproductive and that it is the underlying root causes of poverty and inequality that needs tackling. So, my argument is, a drive for being seen as a "low tax party" without explaining how that relates to our core values is vacuous. We are starting at the wrong end. Now, if Mark et al could explain how lower overall taxes will contribute to ending poverty and inequality then there is a conversation to be had.

Thug or stooge? The police officer on the anti Bush demo - Updated....and updated again!

There has been a lot of coverage about the police violence during the STWC demonstration against George Bush a couple of weeks ago. In the middle of all this is an interesting and very disturbing story.

This was the first demo I have missed for sometime, but in the early evening I had a call from my pal Yas who was there. She asked me about a guy we had both met at a Christmas Party - she wanted to be sure he did what she thought he did - a senior police officer with a hugely sensitive role. He had been deliberately trying to agitate including chanting "pigs" at the police. There are only three explanations for what happened - and you can read all about it in Yas's article in the Mail on Sunday. Firstly, he wasn't who she thought he was (unlikely as he recognised her and responded to his name and is someone who is striking to look at), secondly, he was deliberately living dangerously and for some reason got a thrill from it, thirdly, he was working - this is the most disturbing of possibilities. Yas's article has generated a lot of interest. I trust there will be a full police investigation.

Update: Heard from Yas this afternoon that George Galloway has now written to Jacqui Smith about this. Full text of his letter, which names the suspect is here.

This whole affair has attracted a lot of attention in the blogosphere. I understand from Yas that it appears the police are taking the story seriously as she is being interviewed by them shortly.

Henley - time to reflect

A dozen red kites circling over Chinnor, someone in a brash Union Jack t shirt yelling at me that he was voting BNP, me shouting back that if the fascists got into power he'd never vote again, a woman congratulating Stephen on an excellent campaign, a guy (somewhat bashfully) admitting he voted Tory where he had always voted Labour - but suggesting we were knocking up in the wrong area "coz they are all BNP round here". A snapshot of my memories from yesterday in Henley.

Questions on the blogosphere are already being asked about what went wrong. I am not sure, we fought a professional campaign against a known resurgent Tory party - but as I have said before and will say again, the landscape is quite different from Bromley and that is what we need to reflect upon. The world is no longer one where we can pick off Tory seats in by elections, though the same may not be the case where we are second to Labour. I made this observation about Crewe and Nantwich and got roundly criticised - but we can't continue to do what we have always done when the goalposts have shifted and expect to score goals!

Firstly my heartfelt congratulations and commiserations to Stephen Kearney. He was an outstanding candidate and a great new talent in the party.

But, I hope this will provide the goad for us as a party to review where we are in this changed landscape. We have lost two battles, we need a time to consolidate, to rethink our battle plan, to consider if we have the right resources, to rally the troops. I hope this will start with a good think about what radical and risky, insurgent and anti-establishment (to quote Nick Clegg) looks like and in my humble opinion, the less like Tory/New Labour the better!

Will Chris Huhne stand for Party President?

At the moment we have two declared presidential candidates, Lembit Opik and Ros Scott, both of whom have agreed to answer my 20 questions (which will be posted as soon as I have them back from both of them). But will the contest take an interesting turn if there is a third contender? I have heard that the "anyone but Lembit" lobby are looking for someone else to take him on and that Chris Huhne is the name in the frame. Hmmmm, interesting. Of course Simon Hughes lost the leadership and then overwhelming won the Presidency. But then, the last time the Presidency was contested it was Lembit who lost, so there is a feeling in some quarters that it is his turn this time. So, having had the position uncontested last time, maybe we are in for a three way battle this?

Hughes, Kennedy, Bruce, Ashdown, spy cameras,Fibber Magee and the ever flowing vodka

Phew, what a week! And here I am sat next to fellow blogger, Toryboy Andrew McConnell, in the city of Wloclawec on the Vista in Northern Poland, trying to catch up.

On Monday evening I attended the celebrations for Simon Hughes, Charles Kennedy and Malcolm Bruce's 25 years as MPs. It was a really nice relaxed evening, sparkling speeches from all three (in Simon's case uncharacteristically short!) and a chance to catch up with fellow libdemmers normally passed as ships in the night. This meant I missed the last flight across to Belfast and I was horrified that it took me over 2 hours to reach my hotel at Heathrow. Partly caused by the ridiculous fact that I had to wait 45 minutes for a taxi at terminal 1. One of the busiest airports in the world and you can't get a taxi! The result was less than three hours sleep. I arrived at the airport at some ungodly hour only to see Paddy Ashdown charging off on the other side of security - I guess he saw me first! This was the first time I have been to Heathrow since they installed the sinister looking cameras - so now you can't get through without having your picture taken and scanned on to your boarding pass. I questioned this and was told it was so that I could go into the international lounge. But says I - I don't want to go into the international lounge - and I don't want to have my picture taken! I was told I had no choice if I wanted to fly. Hmmmmmm, and then all through the lounge the even more sinister posters advertising IRIS - whoever she is! Someone who is even more likely to erode our civil liberties methinks!

So got to Belfast bright and early to speak at the launch of the Young People and Money programme that is being delivered by Citizen's Advice NI. Our chair was Nuala McKeever a comedian who was brilliant - very very funny. Then off to Edinburgh and back to Bedford Wed eve. Thursday I spent in beautiful Henley as I knew I wouldn't get down over the weekend - then a mad rush to pack and get down to Luton for another ridiculously early morning flight across to Warsaw and a four hour drive to Wloclavec our unofficial twintown. But now off to their river festival with my erstwhile councillor colleagues and members of Dom Polski! More later!!!!

20 Questions to a Presidential Candidate

Later this year we will all be invited to vote for a new Party President. Simon Hughes has set the bar high. So far we have two declared candidates, Baroness Ros Scott and Lembit Opik MP. Regular readers will know I have a genuine dilemma about who to support - so I have written to both with 20 questions which I hope will help me, and others, decide.

I have heard from Ros that she is happy to answer my questions and I trust Lembit will do likewise - watch this space!

The Terrible Tale of the dog and the sweeping machine?

Did you hear it? How dreadful. Someone who was left holding his dog's lead as it was sucked up into a sweeping machine and killed.

Out on the "Shandy Run" with Lembit and Stephen

One of the attractions of the Henley constituency has to be the picturesque villages, liberally sprinkled with equally picturesque pubs, so it was fun to finish my day there yesterday joining Lembit and Stephen Kearney on the "Shandy Run" - touring said establishments until they closed. Apparently it was Lembit who recruited Stephen to the party and they have been friends for 12 years.

As you may expect Lembit's high recognition rate meant he was instantly engaging with the punters, but what was more impressive was that nearly as many people recognised Stephen and were happy to talk about the issues he has been raising. For those of you wondering whether or not it is worth the trek to Henley I would say here is evidence of the undoubted impact the campaign is having - every little counts and there is no doubt the Tory vote is soft. Even those who confess to always having voted Tory, the very people you would expect to by buoyed up by a resurgent party, are not sure if they will support them.

There is no doubt that everywhere we went people will be chatting about "guess who was in the pub last night?" but more importantly will also be able to talk about Stephen and how impressive he is as a candidate.

So, let's get out there and rattle the Tory cage - we have a great chance to do it, but it is a case of all hands to the pump.

Let's hear it for Chris Huhne........

.....bet you never thought you would hear me say that! But, he has come up trumps today - just got the following message from Stop the War Coalition re the planned demo against George Bush on Sunday -

The demonstration against George Bush's state visit to the
UK on Sunday 15 June will definitely take place, now the
police have accepted that we can assemble in Parliament
Square.
The campaign to get the ban lifted on us marching from
Parliament Square to Downing Street continues. Today, the
Liberal Democrat shadow home secretary, Chris Huhne, wrote
to the home secretary, Jacqui Smith, calling on her to
overturn the ban on the anti-Bush march.
Calling the ban 'the final straw' after Wednesday's vote on
42-day detention, Huhne says, "Just because the votes of
these protesters cannot be bought, it does not mean that
their voices should not be heard by those in 10 Downing
Street. In this country we have a long tradition of peaceful
protest and I would be shocked if British civil liberties
were curtailed at the request of a foreign government." (See
full text of the letter below.)
This is a very important demonstration against a war
criminal who should be on trial rather than "honoured" by a
state visit. But it is now also a key event in the battle to
reclaim our civil liberties, which have been under continual
attack under the guise of the "war on terror". The shameful
farce of Gordon Brown bribing through parliament his
detention without trial legislation and the ban on our march
to Downing Street are just the latest examples.
Stop the War urges all its supporters to join us in
Parliament Square on Sunday 15 June at 5.00pm, when we will
insist that war criminals are not welcome here and asserting
our right to demonstrate peacefully. It is still our
intention to defy the ban on our march from Parliament
Square to Downing Street.
GEORGE BUSH NOT WELCOME HERE
DEFEND OUR RIGHT TO PEACEFUL PROTEST
END UK SUPPORT FOR US WAR POLICIES
DEMONSTRATE SUNDAY 15 JUNE, 5.00PM
PARLIAMENT SQUARE, LONDON
http://www.stopwar.org.uk/
Called by Stop the War Coalition, Campaign for Nuclear
Disarmament and British Muslim Initiative

THE FULL TEXT OF LIBERAL DEMOCRAT SHADOW HOME SECRETARY
CHRIS HUHNE'S LETTER TO THE HOME SECRETARY:

Dear Home Secretary,
I am writing to urgently request that you review the
decision of the Metropolitan Police to ban the anti-Bush
march taking place this Sunday 15 June from marching down
Whitehall. As you will be aware the Stop the War Coalition
have organised dozens of peaceful marches past Downing
Street, and I am deeply concerned that the request has been
denied.
In this country we have a long tradition of peaceful protest
and I would be shocked if British civil liberties were
curtailed at the request of a foreign government. I hope
that you can also confirm that the decision of the
Metropolitan Police was not made at the request of the US
authorities.
A static demonstration in Parliament Square is no
replacement for a protest march down Whitehall and I urge
you to work with the police and the protesters to ensure
they are able to make their voices heard outside Downing
Street. Just because the votes of these protesters cannot
be bought does not mean that their voices should not be
heard by those in 10 Downing Street.
Kind Regards,
Chris Huhne
Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary

David Davies - would he have resigned without Lib Dem support?

A conundrum........is it not? David Davies flounces out so what do we do?

Now. It may not of have escaped your notice dear reader, but I tend to have Messrs Clegg and Hughes so far up the pedestal they are hardly visible to the naked eye. But on this decision I fear they have got it terribly wrong.

So. Let me pose a question. Let's imagine that it was not David Davies taking this principled stand that we so agree with. Let's imagine it was Bob Spink (forget his actual position for a mo), who had taken the same principled position as us. Let's imagine it was Bob Spink who had flounced out and forced a by election. Would we have taken the same view and given UKIP a clear run? And if not why not?

Whilst I fully accept that David Davies is totally opposed to the erosion of our civil liberties, as was pointed out this evening, would it not have been better had he stayed as shadow Home Secretary and fought his corner there? I have never heard anything quite so absurd. Had he been Home Secretary in a Tory Government in these circumstances his decision would have been brave and appropriate. As it is, he is resigning from the party he supports....???? It is posturing of the worst kind and I fear we may be complicit in it. We hear that he spoke to Nick Clegg late last night. Why - if it was not to ensure Lib Dem support for his actions and an agreement to butt out of the by election? Had he been told we would contest the by election, would he have gone ahead and resigned?

Simon Hughes reminds us that we have done the same thing before in Tatton. We also bowed out in Kidderminster. But in both cases it was to support independent candidates. I am not sure I even agree with that, it doesn't quite accord with my notion of democracy. However, that is far more defensible than what we have here, we support one aspect of what this man is saying about civil liberties, but heavens, on nearly every other issue isn't he the archetypal right wing Tory??? And let's not forget, these are the Tories who can bang the drum about civil liberties on the one hand and talk about repealing the Human Rights Act on the other - shouldn't we be taking this opportunity to point out that hypocrisy? Instead, it seems to me, we are allowing David Davies to steal our overcoat whilst inviting him to take our shirt while he is about it!

For me Jonathan Fryer has hit the nail on the head. Mark my words, this is likely to come back and bite us in the bottom.

Shocking news on poverty....more news Gordon Brown wants to bury?

The figures have just been published.......100,000 more children living in poverty, a shocking 3.9 million. And the first increase in pensioner poverty since 1998, an additional 300,000 bringing the total to 2.5 million. Kate Green from the Child Poverty Action Group is calling for a further £3 billion to be spent on tax credits and benefits. What is disturbing is that these figures are from 2006/7, with the huge jump in the cost of living there is no doubt it will be even worse now.

But these figures are not just a problem for the government, they are a problem for us as we go round promising tax cuts at the same time as being committed to tackling poverty. Ultimately they will also be a huge problem for the Tories, wanting to cut taxes at the same time as presumably crying crocodile tears over these figures.

Frankly we have a choice. Ending child poverty, youth poverty, pensioner poverty will cost. If we are serious about it we need to have a serious look at either reordering our priorities, or reviewing our tax policy. What's that saying about not having your cake and eating it?

Sensible Shoes - my secret vice

Given that I don't have to go into work tomorrow (tho having to make a torturous journey from Bury St Edmunds to York tomorrow evening)...I am uncharacteristically not worrying about what time I will surface tomorrow morning!

So, on the advice of one of my Tory boys I am reviewing my posts and adding "labels".....and came across this post, started in April. Well, started is perhaps slightly egging the pudding. All I had was a title. Can I remember what my point was........er............

Given the date, it probably had something to do with my purchase of some "sensible" canvassing shoes. Being "vertically challenged" I tend to rely on heels to bring me up to my full height. But, it has to be said, I have tried canvassing and leafleting in me heels and it is a sorry sight. So, I was delighted to find some luverly flatties, perfectly designed for canvassing. It reminded me of a feminist theatre group I used to do some work with years ago called "Sensible Shoes", a company that is sadly no more.

Does height matter? As liberals, clearly not. But, I am reminded of the time when as Branch Secretary of my union I went to a school to support some of our members in a dispute. The meeting went well. But, at the end, the woman who had invited me was brutally honest. "When you walked in" she said "my heart sunk when I saw the size of you!".....but, she had been (thankfully) impressed, when she saw me in action.... sat down I can be amazingly formidable!!!

How long til the Cameron bubble bursts?.............

.......17 days?

The world is an unpredictable place. We are fortunate to live in a part of the globe where there is more stability than in most countries. But, in relative terms, we are being shaken. The "credit crunch", falling house prices, rising oil, fuel and food prices - all are contributing to a feeling of insecurity. And then there is the terrorist threat.....hmmm that hot potato, 42 days, ID cards, islamaphobia. Add to the mix a smidgen of xenophobia, demonising of young people, fear of crime, dirty hospitals, failing schools, oh.....and don't forget that great demon Europe.

At the heart of all our relative insecurity is a deep cynicism about politics and politicians. No one, from any party, can surely deny that this has got worse. That cynicism was aptly displayed in Crewe and Nantwich. How will it be displayed in leafy Henley?

The smart money may be on a Tory victory, after all, there is no doubt the Tories are resurgent. In Crewe and Nantwich it was clear they were a shoo in. But in Crewe and Nantwich it was a Labour seat. We were third. In Henley the landscape is very different. Of course, the Tories may well consolidate and increase their share of the vote, but let's not forget, the cynicism isn't only about Labour and Gordon Brown, it is also about politics in general. The local elections and recent by elections have demonstrated that. As Lib Dems we have made some brilliant gains from the Tories. This for me makes me believe we could do really well in Henley. The Henley electorate can't send much of a signal to a Labour government by voting Tory.........but they can send a message to the political establishment by voting Lib Dem!

I am a great fan of chaos theory....you know, the butterfly flapping its wing in Brazil ultimately influencing the course of a tornado. We live in "interesting times". As a party that has at its heart the belief that no one should be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity..........all too often we rely on that very conformity!!!! Ds and Ps, yes?!

So, back to Henley. As I said yesterday, we have the kind of candidate in Stephen Kearney who can throw the rule book up in the air. I confess, I didn't have that sense of optimism in Crewe and Nantwich. I am frustrated that we pretended it was winnable and now have the problem of a "cry wolf" backlash. However, to those of you who may be feeling downhearted, worry not! We are serious contenders in Henley, it is worth every second, minute, hour you can put into this. Every little will help.......who knows if it is your straw that will break the Tory camel's back, your "grain of sand" that will tip the balance?

Dear oh dear, I sound very melodramatic about this, but regular readers will know, I am not a great fan of spin. I was quite prepared to air my concerns about Crewe and Nantwich, if I thought we were banging a hollow drum in Henley, I would be the first to say so.

So, back to Mr C. Don't forget this time last year. He was unpopular with his grass roots (may still be so from my intelligence). He was struggling to find a foothold with Brown (who started well remember?), it is the incompetence of Brown that has puffed up Cameron. Where is the substance in Cameron? Where does Cameron stop being Blairlite? Our challenge is to highlight the clear fault line between Cameron and his party, "Liberal" Dave has a party that is still, conservative, rightwing, to its core!

A huge bubble has developed around DC. But, like a bubble, it may be big, but it is fragile, it could burst at any moment. My hunch is, this could be on 26th June..............

Homophobic verbal abuse - should we report it?

On Friday night I was out for dinner with two gay friends, who happen to be councillors. We were chatting about all things political when they told me the story of a visit they made to their local pub last week. As they walked in someone in a group of people near the bar spotted them and shouted out, to the amusement of his friends - "Oh look here come the benders". My friends were rightly shaken and upset, particularly as they had had a similar comment when they were out canvassing the previous weekend. We got to talking about what they should do about it. One of them wanted to leave it, the other to report it. My view was very clear, I asked if a racist comment had been made to someone they knew, would they have felt it was OK to leave it?

I had a look at the Home Office website, and whilst it gives stats for numbers of hate crimes reported, it doesn't break them down. Where they are broken down - for example in the Met, they make up about 10% of reported hate crimes. This made me wonder, are people less likely to report homophobic hate crimes, or are they just less likely to occur? Also, what responsibility do establishments, like pubs, have, to take action against customers who verbally abuse other customers on the basis of their race, religion, disability or sexuality?

So, I am planning to visit said establishment next week.........will let you know how I get on!