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Abortion rights lobby: meeting notice
by Kate BelgraveHey all,
Quick reminder re: tonight’s meeting:
Oct 7th, 7pm, Committee room 11, House of Commons
Join Abortion Rights for an update on amendments tabled for the report stage of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, and to discuss the pro choice campaign.
Speakers: Diane Abbott MP, Annie Campbell - Alliance for Choice, Kay Carberry - TUC Assistant General Secretary, Katy Clark MP, Katie Curtis NUS, Evan Harris MP, Jacqui Lait MP; Wendy Savage - Doctors for a Woman’s Choice on Abortion, Dr Audrey Simpson - fpa Northern Ireland, Polly Toynbee - Guardian commentator.
After Pinochet, Töben should be pretty safe
by David OslerLiberal – and not so liberal - opinion is falling all over itself to defend Australia-based holocaust denier Fredrick Töben, who remains under threat of deportation to Germany following his arrest at Heathrow last week.
Töben, of course, was imprisoned for nine months in Mannheim in 1999 for propagating his execrable views, and was one of the star turns at the Tehran holocaust denial conference in 2006.
This is a man who considers the claim that Nazi Germany slaughtered six million Jews to be a straightforward ‘lie’, and moreover a lie perpetuated by ‘the holocaust racketeers, the corpse peddlers and the shoah business merchants’. continue reading… »
Palin scares Puffy
by Neil RobertsonI’m sure the readers here are all savvy enough to know that rapper/actor/entrepreneur/wannabe Alan Sugar Sean ‘P.Diddy’ Combs ain’t scared of shit. A veteran of the mid-nineties Rap Wars, the onetime Puff Daddy made millions from reminding us that he’s a Bad Boy For Life, and with his reputation for unintentionally hilarious bust-ups in nightclubs, you get the feeling the dude could walk into a Mexican standoff armed only with a cucumber and still come out unscathed. continue reading… »
TODAY’S TOP STORIES / 6th October
by Jennie Rigg
Elsewhere
42-day detention maybe not dropped as unworkable
McCain team gets personal
The £2trillion question: Will Brown guarantee deposits?
Va. GOP fears McCain could lose the state
Stocks fall. Everyone dies.
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Jennie Rigg
Senator Stuart Svyret has some exclusive and shocking updates on the Jersey child abuse scandal (hat-tip: Jonathan Calder)
Charlie Stross wonders how we’re all going to cope with the first recession of the internet age.
Lib Dem Voice is giving a platform to all three presidential candidates. Two of the three have so far posted articles. At the risk of sounding like James Graham: where’s Lemby?
Political Betting wishes a very happy first birthday to Gordon Brown’s biggest cock-up.
Anton Vowl has discovered that not content with nicking stuff from Beau Bo, the Fail are now stealing from Fox News.
Laariii posts on the reason why even though women are breaking into male-dominated workplaces, men are not rushing to female-dominated jobs in the Bad Feminists group blog.
I’m still picking on the party’s public stance on equality (or lack thereof)
Amused Cynicism is chronicling the continuing assault on our civil liberties.
Ryan Cullen has created a special new version of Digg especially for Lib Dem members, although apparently anyone can look, so if you want to go see what excites geeky Lib Dems, knock yourself out. I don’t see the point of it myself, but James Graham likes it, so it MUST be useful… ;)
And amid all these tales of woe there’s one little beardy ray of sunshine, and it’s the Honourable Lady Mark Valladares, who has found recycling provision in Devon to be mightily impressive.
2010: The Wrong Target?
by Robert SharpA couple of weeks ago at the Labour Party Conference, Gordon Brown pledged to “enshrine in law Labour’s pledge to end child poverty” although the specifics were hazy. The Campaign to End Child Poverty staged a march in central London yesterday, urging the government to spend more on eradicating child poverty.
The campaigners said that next year’s budget is the last opportunity for the Government to invest to ensure it hit its target of halving child poverty by 2010 - A crucial waypoint en route to complete eradication by 2020. However, the campaigners (and likely Gordon Brown too) may be suffering from short-term thinking, a target mentality that makes the longer fight against poverty harder to win. In an article published on Comment is Free earlier this year, Ian Mulheirn from the Social Market Foundation makes the case for scrapping the 2010 target, in favour of a renewed focus on the 2020 goal. While the 2010 goal can be solved by another £3bn in tax credits (the policy the campaigners are marching for), the 2020 goal will be solved by more long-term measures, such as increased, targeted spending on education:
Further spending in pursuit of the 2010 target would divert precious resources into tackling the symptoms of child poverty while neglecting its underlying causes. …
…the 2010 and 2020 poverty targets now represent distinct visions of how to tackle child poverty. As money becomes scarcer, they are increasingly becoming opposing visions. It is clear that the provision of real equality of opportunity, represented by the 2020 target, rather than the palliative of tax credits, should now be the priority.
Cross posted to robertsharp.co.uk, of course.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES / 5th October
by Jennie Rigg
Elsewhere
War on Taliban cannot be won, says army chief
Mandelson damned PM to top Tory
Power cuts feared in UK nuclear plants crisis
Palin makes Obama terrorist claim
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Jennie Rigg
Smash Boredom has news of the Climate Rush protest in parliament square on the group blog Powerswitch.
Alas, a Blog! discusses Sarah Palin’s assertion that Obama hangs with terrorists.
Dave Hingsburger describes how a threatening phone message affects an activist.
I have some questions for the writers of the current Lib Dem party website.
Showbiz: Andrew K Lawston has a weekend of running into celebs.
Cookery: Junkfood Science takes a look at breakfast cereal.
Blame Maggie link of the week: Nich Starling blames the current economic crisis on Maggie
And, as always, if that’s not enough linkage for you, SepticIsle has more.
Don’t Write Off Labour Yet
by UnitySo what are we to make of Gordon Brown’s new look cabinet?
Well, as I said in the comments under my liveblog of the reshuffle, my first reaction to the return of Mandelson was that the gloves are coming off and things are going to get dirty, really quickly, and there’s plenty more in the reshuffle to reinforce that view.
Liam Byrne’s move to the Cabinet Office, coupled with Justin Forsyth replacing Damian McBride as Brown’s press advisor suggests that Brown will be captaining a much tighter ship in the coming months. Byrne is a detail man with a solid reputation for handling difficult portfolios and intelligent enough to challenge David Willetts for the title of ‘two brains’, while Forsyth is known to be much less chummy with the lobby hacks than his predecessor. Coupled with Mandelson, who’s certain to play a key role in formulating Labour’s election strategy, we can expect to see the government not only staying firmly on message but also cutting out the minor gaffes and factual errors that have bedevilled Brown’s policy announcements in recent months. continue reading… »
Reshuffling towards oblivion
by SepticisleIt’s difficult to overstate just how desperate the cabinet reshuffle shows Gordon Brown as being. Desperate both to win the next election and desperate also to attempt to show that there really isn’t any difference of opinion any longer between the Blairites and the Brownites. Desperate times may call for desperate measures, but the rehabilitation of Peter Mandelson, who for over a decade could not stand the sight of Brown, let alone work with him, was not the way to go about it.
This is not because Mandelson is the uber-Blairite, that he was one of a whole bevy of habitual liars, that he, more than Alastair Campbell, helped to establish the current political culture of spin that has so demeaned politics in the eye of the public, but because he is simply the wrong man at the wrong time. Very few dispute that Mandelson as a minister was effective and good at what he did, whether he was at business, his old and new job, Northern Ireland or as European Commissioner, but there is one quote that more than ever suggests that this is not his moment. He, along with Blair, declared to the City that he and New Labour were “intensely relaxed about people getting filthy rich.” Well, they did, while everyone else didn’t, and now this is the man to spearhead Brown’s new regulatory agenda. Jesus wept. continue reading… »
Nadine Dorries’ hypocrisy makes news
by Sunny HundalFrom Bedford Today, which is Nadine Dorries MP’s local paper:
Mid Beds MP Nadine Dorries has apologised to a watchdog following a complaint she had misused her website. Last week the Conservative MP for Mid Beds said she had been cleared by the Parliamentary commissioner for standards after a political campaigner alleged she had failed to make a clear distinction between her publicly-funded website and her personal ‘blog’.
But the Chronicle now understands that Ms Dorries was required to make changes to the site. A spokesman for the commissioner said: “This has been resolved through an informal resolution. “Ms Dorries was asked to put right the things that were wrong and she has made an apology to the commissioner.
Maybe that will teach Iain Dale to be more careful next time before he takes Ms Dorries for her word.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES / 4th October
by Aaron Heath
Elsewhere
Bailout Plan Wins Approval
McCain Plans Fiercer Strategy Against Obama
Palin divides women of Florida
Record debt and no jobs for graduates
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Aaron Heath
Paul Linford - Brown played a devilishly good hand.
Though Cowards Flinch - The police don’t like political interference. But isn’t that what a democracy is about?
Left of Centrist - Robert dares to believe that Obama might actually win.
Solana Larsen/openUSA - The NY right-wing tabloids are calling the debate for Palin.
donpaskini - For all the talk of Palin’s background, it was Biden’s personal story that won the debate.
Stumbling and Mumbling - Chris on Cameron’s claim that his “character and judgment” trump Brown’s experience. Would you give slippery Dave a job?
O’Reilly to Frank: ‘You’re a coward!’
by Aaron HeathBill O’Reilly to Representative Barney Frank (D - MA) on Fox News ::
via. Politico
Brown defends decision to back Peter Mandelson
by NewswireGordon Brown defends decision to bring Peter Mandelson back into government
Gordon Brown today explained his astonishing decision to bring his bitter rival Peter Mandelson back into the cabinet as business secretary, saying: “Serious people are needed for serious times.”
At a press conference in Downing Street, the prime minister said he was appointing Mandelson, who in the past has twice resigned from cabinet posts in controversial circumstances, because he needed “the best team” to help Britain through the global economic crisis.
Sir Ian Blair sacking: since when did Paul Dacre decide senior police appointments?
by David OslerYou wouldn’t expect a leftie to mount an out-and-out defence of the track record of Britain’s top copper, and I’m certainly not going to do that.
The de Menezes killing happened on Sir Ian Blair’s watch, yet the worst consequence for the Metropolitan Police was a conviction for breach of health and safety regulations, as if the offence was of no more import than leaving packing cases blocking a fire escape. continue reading… »
Sarah’s lifeline
by Aaron HeathImagine the most terrifying, pressured and important moment of your life.
Now multiply it by 10.
That is something like what Sarah Palin must have gone through as she prepared for last night’s Vice Presidential debate with Joe Biden. The media and even fellow conservatives have attacked her relentlessly over the past two weeks. Palin’s spirited performance at the Republican Convention is now merely a footnote in what has become a comedy of errors and gaffes, culminating in a series of Saturday Night Live parodies by Tina Fey, one of which lifted its lines - almost verbatim - from Palin’s own mouth. continue reading… »
Cabinet Reshuffle Liveblog
by UnityIn case you haven’t noticed it yet, the predicted post-conference cabinet reshuffle is underway as we speak, and as I’ve got a little but of spare time, I’m going to have a crack a liveblogging the ‘action’.
So, it’s 10:30 and the story so far is…
Ruth Kelly will, of course, be leaving the cabinet to spend more time with her family - that we already knew - but the story that the will dominate the news agenda is the return of New Labour’s ‘Prince of Darkness’, Peter Mandelson, who’ll be returning from Europe to become Lord Mandelson.
The smart money is currently on Mandelson picking up the Business and Enterprise portfolio from John Hutton, who looks to be the likely replacement for Des Browne at Defence - Browne is leaving the government and returning to the back benches.
It’s also understood that Gordon Brown’s chief spokesman, Damian McBride is to quit as well. continue reading… »
TODAY’S TOP STORIES / 3rd October
by Sarah Ismail
Reactions
You betcha Sarah Palin can debate
Palin defies critics and delivers punchy performance
Palin and Biden spar in debate
Watch the election unfold on twitter
Elsewhere
Revealed: the Tory plot that forced out Met chief Blair
Anger erupts over Met chief’s resignation
Cruddas tipped for minister job in shuffle
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Sarah Ismail
Angela Saini - Has been brainstorming the state of the world in 11 years’ time, with a little help from her friends.
Derek Wall - Is campaigning to Free Hugo Blanco, a human rights activist who’s been arrested in Peru.
Indigo Jo - On the million-dollar question: When was Eid-ul-Fitr 2008? (I celebrated on Tuesday. Eid Mubarak to all Muslim readers!).
Kanishk Tharoor/openUSA - Obama disappoints on foreign policy. So, what’s different about him then?
Natalie Bennett - Links to the 65th Carnival of Feminists.
New Humanist Blog - Lists the Ten Commandments of Blogging. Yes, really.
The Curvature - Cara on her visit to South Dakota Live Action Camp. WARNING: This post is long.
Though Cowards Flinch - Who cares what toilets are called, as long as they do their job?
Breaking: Ian Blair expected to resign
by UnityCredit where its due, it does look as if Iain Dale was first with the rumours, but thus far it seems to be The Times that has the most detailed coverage…
Sir Ian Blair is expected to announce his resignation as Metropolitan Police Commissioner this afternoon.
Sources told The Times that the pressures of recent months had forced Sir Ian, who became commissioner in February 2005, to consider his position.
He is understood to be standing down before Boris Johnson, the new Tory Mayor of London, takes control of the Metropolitan Police Authority next week.
“It is a combination of things - a new mayor in London who does not support him, the inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes and the inquiry into how Scotland Yard contracts were awarded,” said a senior police source.
It was disclosed earlier today that an inquiry into Scotland Yard contracts awarded to a close friend of Sir Ian had uncovered one deal which had not involved a tendering process.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair has announced his resignation after three years in the job.
Sir Ian said he had lost the backing of London mayor Boris Johnson, who took over as chairman of the police authority on Wednesday.
Mr Johnson praised his “distinguished” service but said the Met would benefit from “new leadership”.
The class politics of free school meals
by David OslerA political opponent of the Scottish Socialist Party once quipped: ‘Elect six Trotskyites to the Scottish parliament, and the most radical thing they can come up with is a demand for free school meals’.
That criticism was coming from the right, as it happens. But it’s exactly the sort of sneering remark one can readily imagine on the lips of that certain breed of public school-educated far leftist who has succeeded in memorising the Transitional Programme word for word. Free school meals? Call yourselves revolutionaries?
Actually, when the SSP first started campaigning on the question in 2001, I thought it was quite a politically savvy thing to do. The is just the sort of concrete policy that many working class people will instantly see as making a difference to their lives. continue reading… »
Top Stories and Blog Review - 2nd Oct
by Jennie Rigg
Elsewhere
France seeks €300bn rescue fund for Europe
Fresh criticism and concerns over “42 days”
Cabinet reshuffle expected
House prices fall further
We’re all doomed.
No, really, we’re all doomed.
… Except Rick Astley.
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Jennie Rigg
Chicken Yoghurt shows naked enthusiasm for Cameron’s conference speech.
Jonathan Calder has an urgent appeal from the Labour Prime Minister.
Alas, a Blog! examines what might be to blame for the financial crisis.
Sexual Intelligence has the answer - clearly it’s all the fault of PORN!
Septic Isle went to the Sun’s fringe events at Conference. He’s a braver man than I…
Mat Bowles has an interesting book meme.
Oh, and speaking of memes, The Supreme Court meme is doing the rounds on LiveJournal - see Nick Whyte’s post for an example - do feel free to join in.
DAILY BLOG REVIEW *EXTRA* / by Lee Griffin
CiF/Joanna Lumley I don’t think we can highlight enough how the Governments illegal actions are finally being overturned on the Gurkhas.
Obsolete wraps up the analysis of the Tory conference. In short, the Tories are certainly appearing to be the next party in power, even if they sound as shaky as ever.
Amnesty International UK Is Northern Ireland a sexists paradise? With figures like these we have to ask, is there a cultural problem here in urgent need of change?
TPM highlights the hypocrisy of the McCain campaign team, on the one hand trying to appear noble and above petty politics, but then also trying to blame Obama for everything that’s wrong in the world.
A week is a long time muses on the benefits of mistakes if you clear up the mess well
CiF/Colin Matthews Thinks that all this talk of “no third runway” at Heathrow is unrealistic.
Extended list will be on my blog later
Top Stories and Blog Review - 2nd Oct
by Lee GriffinUS Senate injects new momentum to $700bn bail-out
Elsewhere
France seeks €300bn rescue fund for Europe
Fresh criticism and concerns over “42 days”
Cabinet reshuffle expected
House prices fall further
DAILY BLOG REVIEW / by Lee Griffin
CiF/Joanna Lumley I don’t think we can highlight enough how the Governments illegal actions are finally being overturned on the Gurkhas.
Obsolete wraps up the analysis of the Tory conference. In short, the Tories are certainly appearing to be the next party in power, even if they sound as shaky as ever.
Amnesty International UK Is Northern Ireland a sexists paradise? With figures like these we have to ask, is there a cultural problem here in urgent need of change?
TPM highlights the hypocrisy of the McCain campaign team, on the one hand trying to appear noble and above petty politics, but then also trying to blame Obama for everything that’s wrong in the world.
A week is a long time muses on the benefits of mistakes if you clear up the mess well
CiF/Colin Matthews Thinks that all this talk of “no third runway” at Heathrow is unrealistic.
Extended list will be on my blog later
