Category Archives: Party politics

The Banking Commission’s Report: Pulling few punches

Posted on June 19, 2013 by

Summary Some short paragraphs on the Banking Commission’s report The document is massive. The papers are held here on Parliament’s website. I have been through the summary, tweeting via Puffles from 00:10 of 19 June 2013 the key quotations from … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Law and legal issues, Party politics | Leave a comment

Accountability and responsiveness in the Senior Civil Service: A response

Posted on June 18, 2013 by

Summary My thoughts on the IPPR’s report It feels like I’ve got blogposts coming out of my ears at the moment. It’s that time of year where lots of organisations get their publications out before they head off for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Law and legal issues, Party politics, Public administration & policy | Leave a comment

Networked councillors

Posted on June 17, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts from a gathering in Cambridge where we discussed Catherine Howe’s report for the East of England Local Government Association First of all ***thank you*** to Catherine for allowing Puffles and I to gatecrash what was otherwise an … Continue reading →

Posted in Cambridge, Social media, Party politics | Leave a comment

If ministers need training, what should that training comprise of?

Posted on June 17, 2013 by

Summary What would you like to see in any training programme for current and/or future ministers – or should they require no training at all? I’d like this to be an open thread – & will try to storify under … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, training and exams, Party politics, Public administration & policy | 3 Comments

Commodifying communities

Posted on June 15, 2013 by

Summary On the corporate takeover of communities in a Cambridge context This post links back to the privatisation of public spaces. At the same time, I also want to make some anecdotal observations comparing out of town shopping centres versus town … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Cambridge, Campaigning, protesting and demonstrating, Charities and Big Society, Law and legal issues, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 1 Comment

Why sex and relationship education is important – a male perspective

Posted on June 13, 2013 by

Summary Why the piecemeal approach gives men the worst of all worlds, and what can be done about it. This post follows on from my previous one about the vote in the Commons on sex and relationship education. Many of … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Campaigning, protesting and demonstrating, Education, training and exams, Party politics | 1 Comment

Compulsory sex and relationship education in schools – Commons’ vote

Posted on June 11, 2013 by

Summary Why it’s not the end of the road for Lisa Nandy, Stella Creasy, Sarah Wollaston and friends There will be understandable disappointment from lots of people – myself included that Lisa Nandy MP was unsuccessful in persuading Parliament to … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, training and exams, Law and legal issues, Party politics, Public administration & policy | 1 Comment

Why a statutory register of lobbyists alone won’t solve the problem

Posted on June 8, 2013 by

Summary Further thoughts following the Sunday Times’ sting on Tim Yeo MP – looking at which lobbyists might not be covered by such a register Another weekend, another lobbying sting about what a politician might or might not do. This post … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Campaigning, protesting and demonstrating, Charities and Big Society, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 1 Comment

Ed Miliband’s social security speech – what about costs of living?

Posted on June 7, 2013 by

Summary Is Ed Miliband making the same mistake as his shadow chancellor in missing out on the bigger picture? First of all, ignore the spin and the press reports: read the transcript for yourself and draw your own conclusions. My … Continue reading →

Posted in Law and legal issues, Party politics | Leave a comment

Shaping up Cambridge

Posted on June 6, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts on the launch of a local authorities-backed community website for Cambridge It was Cambridge Citizen Journalist Richard Taylor who tipped me off about the looming launch date of this in his blogpost about Shape Your Place coming to … Continue reading →

Posted in Cambridge, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 2 Comments