Sunday 29 November 2009

Climate change denier Nick Griffin to represent EU at Copenhagen

BNP leader, Nick Griffin, has graciously taken time out from rehearsals of his first panto, Mother GooseStep, to furnish the United Nations with the facts behind the myth that is climate change.













link to The Observer

Tory Zac Goldsmith admits he is a non-dom


















Goldsmith is an ally of David Cameron and was commissioned by the Conservative leader to draw up a blueprint for environmental and “quality of life” policies. He suggested a swathe of green taxes, including hikes in levies on 4x4 vehicles and aviation, and rebates on stamp duty for green homes.
Times Online

Saturday 28 November 2009

Robin van Persie faces five months out

Arsenal striker Robin van Persie will be sidelined for up to five months after being told he needs an operation on his injured ankle ligaments.  Van Persie, 26, who suffered the injury while playing for the Netherlands on 14 November, was initially expected to be out for about six weeks.  However, scans have revealed the injury is worse than originally feared.


Tories advance on key Labour strongholds

The YouGov survey of voters in 32 northern marginal seats currently held by Labour shows the Conservatives lead Labour by 42 per cent to 36 per cent, enough for all to fall into Tory hands. In the same seats at the 2005 election, the Tories polled 34 per cent with Labour on 44 per cent.













the Daily Telegraph

Friday 27 November 2009

Lord Pearson (who?) elected leader of UKIP (what?)

He said the party would still be "majoring on leaving Europe" - but he also pledged to campaign on a range of other issues including Swiss-style direct democracy.



















BBC

Vatican 'snubbed Ireland church abuse inquiry'

















The inquiry into sex abuse by Catholic priests in Ireland has disclosed that the Vatican ignored formal requests for information.
link to the BBC article

Where the European Union spends its money

















link to the Daily Telegraph article

Irish Catholic Church apologises for abuse by priests

















"Whatever the historical and societal reasons for this, the government... apologises, without reservation or equivocation, for failures by the agencies of the state in dealing with this issue," a government statement said.
BBC

Wednesday 25 November 2009

Brighton's culture bid is dropped














"If we were a culturally impoverished city seeking to establish a name for ourselves, or even one with a reasonable offer but no profile, chasing the award might make more sense," said a spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council. 

Ministers urged to take action against bank charges


Charges are expected to be increased as Britain’s high street banks try to recoup some of the losses from the credit crisis. Banks can earn billions of pounds of income from the fees.

BBC: We won't charge for online news
















The BBC has today said it has "no intention" of charging for online news, in a declaration that is unlikely to please James Murdoch and his father Rupert as they prepare to start charging for News Corporation content on the internet.
G U A R D I A N

planetpmctv

P M C A U D I O V I S U A L

Bob Ainsworth criticises Barack Obama over Afghanistan













The Defence Secretary has blamed Barack Obama and the United States for the decline in British public support for the war in Afghanistan.
T E L E G R A P H

Liverpool could be counting the cost of this early exit for years














It is impossible to calculate precisely the financial cost to Liverpool of their dire failure to qualify for the Champions League knockout stage but it is safe to assess it as several million pounds the club could have seriously done without losing.
G U A R D I A N

Vatican tries to woo back the art world













Pope Benedict has invited international artists, sculptors, architects, musicians, film directors and even a solitary Italian prima ballerina to meet him under the soaring vaulted ceiling of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel in the Vatican on Saturday to begin a new dialogue between the Catholic Church and the arts.
B B C

Tuesday 24 November 2009

Police passes files on four Parliamentarians to the CPS













Scotland Yard believes it has uncovered enough evidence to bring criminal charges against four MPs and peers for allegedly abusing their expenses.
G U A R D I A N

Thursday 19 November 2009

MPs' expenses: David Curry quits as standards chief over new Telegraph disclosures

T E L E G R A P H

Belgian PM 'named as EU president'

B B C

Charlotte Vere selected as Conservative candidate for Brighton Pavilion


Charlotte Vere has been selected as the new Conservative candidate for Brighton Pavilion at the next general election, writes Andy Chiles on the Argus website.  Big White Wall chief executive Mrs Vere was selected ... from six finalists in an “open primary” staged by the Brighton Pavilion Conservative Association.


Each of the contenders faced 20 minutes of questioning from the 80 association members and members of the public who had gathered at The Grand hotel, in King’s Road, Brighton, before a series of elimination votes were held.  Barrister Anna Firth was knocked out first, followed by senior Conservative organiser Scott Digby.  Local candidate Andrew Wealls and tv producer Douglas Chirnside were both eliminated simultaneously in the third round of voting.  Charity worker Mr Wealls’ departure drew gasps from the audience.  Two votes had to be held to separate Charlotte Vere and insurance broker Mary Weale after the first produced a dead heat.  The vote counts were not revealed to the public, only the results.

Mrs Vere, who has been closely involved with the campaigns of environmentally-minded millionaire Tory Zac Goldsmith [ker-ching!] appeared to emerge victorious by a slender margin.  The mother-of-two, from south-west London [what, you mean she doesn't even live in Brighton?!], said: “It has been a huge experience over the last two weeks. You should know I wasn’t on the first shortlist, I was a reserve.  We have a huge fight ahead of us but it’s a fight I believe we can win. I will put up an excellent fight and I absolutely intend to win” . 

She will now contest the general election, expected in May, in what is anticipated to be one of the closest constituencies in the country.  It is held by retiring MP David Lepper by a 5,000 vote majority which his Labour successor Nancy Platts will hope to maintain.  It has also been made the Green Party’s top target after a series of strong local and European election performances and their national leader Caroline Lucas [haha!] has been brought in to contest the seat.

During the open primary each of the candidates answered questions about their reasons for entering politics, their views of Brighton and Hove, their role models and a series of public queries involving the economy, the gay community, green beliefs [beliefs?!], Afghanistan, Europe, tax, immigration, crime and cleanliness [what?!]. Several people left during the three and a half hour selection process [i'm not fucking surprised!].

Following the selection BPCA chairwoman Carol Ramsden said: “Charlotte is going to be absolutely brilliant. The fact it went right to the wire shows how strong a field there was. We’re ready for the fight now. It will be starting tomorrow and as far as we are concerned, bring it on.”

CHARLOTTE ON THE LEFT - GIVE 'EM ENOUGH SCARF . . .

There were mixed reactions among the audience.   Jason Bull [any relation to David?], who attended as a member of the public, said: “I didn’t vote for her on the first round but I think she was the strongest candidate. I originally voted for one of the three gay candidates (Scott Digby, Andrew Wealls and Douglas Chirnside) because I’m gay and I would’ve liked to have seen one of them selected.”   Resident Derek Burns said: “I thought the whole process was a bit long winded, they could have narrowed it down to less candidates and a shorter time each. It was extremely difficult to choose. Everyone around me said they didn’t know who to vote for. I think Charlotte Vere has got a very tough fight on her hands with the Greens now.”

Conservative Brighton and Hove City Councillor Geoffrey Theobald said: “We’ve got a good candidate and we’re going to win” [article ends].

The Brighton and Hove Conservatives' website tells us ... Charlotte is a successful social entrepreneur and businesswoman. As CEO of Big White Wall, she led a team which developed therapy for depression using the internet. Big White Wall won the 2009 Guardian Award for Innovation in Community Engagement. Charlotte is a key campaigner for Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative candidate in Richmond Park, and she has a passion for the environment. She is married with two children.


It's ok, you won't be charged - yet.  However, if you're depressed and want a wall to write on then it'll cost you seventy quid.  This is because raising funds by advertising might be upsetting for you if you're depressed so they use the more considerate approach of ripping the piss out of you first.  Fucking tories, they can't just be nice for nice's sake, can they?

In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king

A R G U S
a somewhat surprisingly eloquent editorial from brighton's local rag.

Ireland wants replay against France

B B C

Heavy drinkers less likely to get heart attack, research says

G U A R D I A N
FTW?!

France 1 - 1 Ireland























isn't it ironic that a man must cheat in order to maintain the pride of his nation and to gain the respect of his fellow countrymen?

Lord Ashcroft's British Caribbean Bank funds Turks and Caicos leader's lavish lifestyle

I N D E P E N D E N T