Monthly Archives: January 2014

TV news has carried some powerful images after a jury found Mark Duggan was lawfully killed by the police.  His family and supporters were clearly furious and, it seems, unprepared for the verdict although very organised in terms of making their … Continue reading →

There was a fascinating debate on @BBCr4 recently. It involved Michael Gove and the usual education “experts” debating school policy. What was disappointing was their concentration on the curriculum to the exclusion of the potential for more substantial reform. The … Continue reading →

I had to drive to Banbury today. In the town centre, I drove past a police car with its blue lights flashing. It was parked between a white van and a saloon car and quite a few figures were grouped … Continue reading →

I see Eric Pickles has published a “bin bible”, designed to bully councils into maintaining or reverting to weekly bin collections.  I think he should back off. If local government has value, it is because it is local and local politicians … Continue reading →

Following my blog Private roads – a route to perdition, a Bodicote resident who lives in Canal Lane and who sees, hears and suffers the destruction of the green fields outside her home has sent me a poem that expresses her … Continue reading →

When I was a County Councillor, my  patch included the Domesday village of Bodicote. I spent a decade helping the village to fight proposals to build an urban extension within the parish. In the end, we lost and the green … Continue reading →

Towards the end of last year, I defended the BBC Today programme for giving air time to Anjem Choudary.  Today, I have more stringent words for the BBC’s concept of political balance. The Today programme on 2 January 2014 had invited … Continue reading →