John Hemming

Letters: Honduras warning for Latin America

The Guardian (Free subscription) | 27/11/2009

Latin America faces the greatest threat to its democracy in decades (International, 7 November). The military coup that overthrew elected president Manual Zelaya and seized power in Honduras in June is now seeking to legitimise its illegal government through the international recognition of elections on 29 November. Such recognition would give a green light to opponents of democracy throughout the...

Public relations

PoliticalHackUK (Free subscription) | 14/11/2009

Debra Davis, the PR supremo for Birmingham City Council - who recently admitted that after three years in charge, her department still wasn't fit for purpose - materialised on the Stirrer yesterday to promote the continuation of Forward , the council newspaper that quietly disappeared from clogging up Birmingham letterboxes over the course of the summer. As I've not had a copy delivered to me in two...

An All Party Parliamentary Group

Dare to Know (Free subscription) | 10/11/2009

News of the inaugural meeting of a new All Party Parliamentary Group on Home Education has reached us via Graham Stuart's Twitter. We are not sure of all of the names of those on the group, but believe it includes the following: Conservative Graham Stuart (Chair) Michael Gove Mark Field Oliver Heald Andrew Selous Anne Milton Graham Brady Alistair Burt Stephen Crabb Robert Goodwill Julie Kirkbride Peter...

Justice: Jersey Style

Liberal England (Free subscription) | 07/11/2009

Thanks to John Hemming for pointing us to a news report on channelonline.tv: A Jersey accountant jailed in 2007 for six years for money laundering has had his conviction quashed. His defence council took his case to the Jersey Court Of Appeal but it was rejected. They then took it to the Privy Council - the highest court islanders can appeal to - where it was finally quashed. The judge, Commissioner...

• Jersey - the Crown Dependencies and conflicts of interest - John Hemming's Web Log

Graffiti, Groningen and Anti-Social Behaviour

John Hemming's Web Log (Free subscription) | 03/11/2009

There was a debate in the house last night which can be read in hansard here. It demonstrates that the government are not really listening on the issue of graffiti and low level crime. The punishment of "clear it up" is the ideal punishment for graffiti, but the government want to fine people. Quite a few cannot pay the fines so it becomes meaningless.Anyway here are some extracts:John Hemming...

Jersey senator Stuart Syvret seeks asylum in London

Liberal England (Free subscription) | 26/10/2009

The Birmingham Post reports that Stuart Syvret, the Jersey senator, is staying at the London flat of the Lib Dem MP John Hemming and is planning to ask the British government for asylum and “protection from harassment” from the Jersey authorities. The newspaper says Syvret: is facing prison after leaking a police report into an aborted investigation surrounding the conduct of a male nurse...

MPs oppose Trinity Mirror Brum shake-up plan

Jon Slattery (Free subscription) | 22/10/2009

Birmingham Northfield Labour MP Richard Burden has put down an Early Day Motion calling for Trinity Mirror to meet local MPs before switching the Birmingham Post to a weekly and bringing in overnight production for the Birmingham Mail. The EDM states: "That this House expresses its opposition to Trinity Mirror's plans to reorganise the Birmingham Post and Birmingham Mail in a way that will cut...

They wanted to take away our child.

Chatterblog (Free subscription) | 22/10/2009

They wanted to take away our child' Since the death of Baby Peter, state applications to put children into care has risen by almost 50%, and innocent families are suffering. by Heidi Blake Published: 7:00AM BST 21 Oct 2009 George and Liz McCulloch with daughter Emily Photo: ASHLEY COOMBES In an inn on the banks of the Firth of Clyde, with the lights of the Kintyre peninsula twinkling on the water,...

I play hardball with the media. One...

PoliticalHackUK (Free subscription) | 07/10/2009

I play hardball with the media. One way is to meet them and have it out across the table. If that doesn't work we withhold advertising budgets, or use the press complaints process. I liken the relationship to that of the schoolyard bully. You don't get a bully to stop by negotiation; you knock them down first and then you're on equal terms. Terry Brownbill, late of The Super Soaraway Sun , now advising...

A blooming success

Spaghetti Gazetti (Free subscription) | 24/09/2009

P artnership working was the key to granting the wishes of one green-fingered resident in Yardley district. Keen gardener Astrid Evans, a resident at Manor Court Extra Care Scheme, entered the annual Yardley district gardening competition last year – but although she had lovingly tended to her potted plants, she found it increasingly difficult to do so from her wheelchair. Coming from a long...

Your Future Under Socialised Medicine Maimon Schwarzschild

The Right Coast (Free subscription) | 14/09/2009

"Question A Doctor And Lose Your Child", reports the Times of London. PARENTS are being threatened with having their children taken into care after questioning doctors’ diagnoses or objecting to their medical care. John Hemming, a Liberal Democrat MP, who...

The Phoenix Four

ffranc sais (Free subscription) | 11/09/2009

So John Towers and the rest of the Phoenix consortium (Nick Stephenson, John Edwards and Peter Beale) are to be debarred from running public companies? The BBC has the background story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8244497.stm . There is a LibDem connection: John Hemming MP was involved with the Alchemy Group which put in the bid which was passed over. John has been reluctant to say much about...

British MP Charges Some Parents Have Been Threatened for Questioning Health System

Amy Ridenour's National Center Blog (Free subscription) | 11/09/2009

A Liberal Democrat Member of the British Parliament is charging that some parents in Britain have been told they could lose legal custody of their children because they complained about the British government's National Health System. From the Times (UK): Parents are being threatened with having their children taken into care after questioning doctors' diagnoses or objecting to their medical care....

A bit more catching up

PoliticalHackUK (Free subscription) | 10/09/2009

Stories I covered earlier.... If you remember, John Hemming was threatened with legal action by a developer over an allegation in a Lib Dem leaflet distributed across of most of Yardley (but delivered to my home with the offending paragraph rewritten). John claimed that an attempt had been made to gag him, but has caved in and issued an unreserved apology on his blog instead. Whether that is sufficient...

Britain: Question a Doctor and Lose Your Child

cryptogon.com (Free subscription) | 10/09/2009

Via: Sunday Times: PARENTS are being threatened with having their children taken into care after questioning doctors’ diagnoses or objecting to their medical care. John Hemming, a Liberal Democrat MP, who campaigns to stop injustices in the family court, said: “Very often care proceedings are used as retaliation by local authorities against ‘uppity’ people who question the [...]...