Well, that didn't take long. No sooner had Brown finished his little speech , up pop three ex-generals to give their considered judgement on how the Prime Minister is conducting himself towards the armed forces. Lord Boyce, Chief of the Defence Staff between 2001 and 2003, said: It is too much to hope that the present government will provide the necessary cash to allow its aspirations to be realised...
Fair_deal has recently written an excellent article on Open Unionism on things the DUP should do to minimise further damage at the Westminster and Stormont elections. I would disagree with very little of it, though (I suspect like fair_deal) I would like the DUP in addition to move its political stance. The DUP’s discourse about, and attacks on the TUV have always been fairly vitriolic as indeed...
Its been yet another one of those in weeks in which the use of ‘offensive’ language has been making headlines in both the press and with at least one prominent blogger. The story that captured the media’s attention was, of course, Pierre Lellouche’s description of the Conservative Party’s attitude towards the European Union: “They have one line [...]
Wrth drafod gwasanaethau cyhoeddus mae un o ymgeiswyr ar gyfer arweinyddiaeth Llafur Cymru, Carwyn Jones wedi gweneud y sylw canlynol a gofyn cwestiwn dilys iawn; "Three years after the Beecham Report, it is time for the Local Service Boards to show they are delivering. Are they meaningful structures to advance public service collaboration or are they simply sticking-plaster? Are they driving...
Peers accuse prime minister of lacking commitment to the war and failing to support British troops Three former defence chiefs have accused Gordon Brown of failing in his commitment to the war in Afghanistan and support for British troops. Field Marshal Lord Inge said the armed forces never really believed Brown was "on their side" while General Lord Guthrie accused the prime minister of...
The Scottish Liberal Democrats candidate for the Glasgow North East by-election candidate, Eileen Baxendale has had a busy week with visits in Glasgow North East with Leader Tavish Scott, Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Carmichael and yesterday former UK Leader, Charles Kennedy MP. Eileen Baxendale hasn't taken a day off since she was selected to fight the seat made vacant over 120...
If Lord Mereworth's claim is upheld, all legislation passed by upper house in last decade could be declared void Ministers are facing a legal challenge from a hereditary peer that threatens to unravel the law that reformed the House of Lords 10 years ago. Lord Mereworth, who lost his seat in the upper house as a result of the House of Lords act in 1999, has served a legal paper, called a protocol...
By punishing men buying sex instead of women coerced into selling it, the policing and crime bill will create a new consensus There's been a quiet revolution in the House of Lords. Peers have been debating the policing and crime bill . Their deliberations mean that the government will take a historic step: instead of controlling prostitution by punishing women, it will penalise the purchasers –...
THE sacking of the Government's chief drugs adviser has caused "serious concern" among the scientific community, the Science Minister Lord Drayson said today.
Are all the "noble peers" as bent as safety-pins? Seems you can hardly look at a newspaper (online, fucked if I'm buying any of them!) without there being yet another fucking trough-pig in ermine caught stealing in one way or another. There are so many of them using the "little house in the country" dodge that I suspect it's listed in the Idiot guide to the House Of Lords given...
Tony Blair was no enthusiast for Proportional Representation. He gave it to new bodies to indicate that he didn't think they mattered. But his introduction of the party list system for Strasbourg, while certainly having that motivation, also had another. The old European Parliamentary Labour Party had been a rich seam of dissent over many long years. Almost all of it was duly purged. To that end, the...
Conservative party members in the constituency of Gosport are apparently angry that their potential candidate will not be a local. Gosport is the seat of Sir Peter Viggers , or "duck island man" as the media would have him. Fair enough, Sir Peter was born in Gosport and grew up there, and has been the MP for more than thirty years. But an MP does not need to be local. It helps, but it should...
Over at Conservative Ho they’ve been busier than Carol Decker’s drycleaners in whitewashing David Cameron’s betrayal of his ‘cast iron pledge’ to hold a referendum of the Lisbon Treaty if it was in force by the time he was elected Provincial Governor. This: " Today , I will give this cast-iron guarantee: if I become PM a Conservative government will hold a referendum...
A year ago today I set off for my week's holiday in Paris. Before I left I spoke with the UUP's Alex Kane by phone and we discussed the ongoing refusal of Sinn Fein/IRA to work devolved government due to their childish fit of pique over the devolution of polcing and justice 'powers' (in reality it is nothing more than transferring the budget from London to Belfast as the police will retain operational...
(London, UK) In preparing to speak at an 18 November "Find, Pitch and Close: The Art of Securing Investment" event to be held at the Royal Institution in London, Dragons Den investor and serial entrepreneur, Doug Richard has been researching start up and small business funding options in the UK. He has begun sharing his insights into the industry with visitors to his blog at www.schoolforstartups.co.uk...
British Parliamentarians of all parties in the House of Commons in Westminster have backed an early day motion on Autism and the Carer's Allowance. EDM 1551 was tabled by Lee Scott MP who has been campaigning tirelessly in the House of Commons on autism and Asperger's Syndrome. Autism campaigners in the United Kingdom have been urging the Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the Government to increase the...
Political assassination is always an interesting thing to watch. I remembered seeing it happen to Thatcher and its effects made long lasting and deep, near fatal wounds on the conservative party. They never recovered even after Major won a general election after Thatcher's departure and it is only now, 18 years after her departure that they are beginning to look like a united party again. The...