STUC conference

Up in Perth this afternoon for the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) conference ...

... speaking at a fringe event on "Transport Options for Edinburgh" - 'quality not quantity!' audience; and an enjoyable debate after the informal presentations.

Talking of fringe events - there's an amusing write-up of such a meeting I participated in at the recent Labour Conference in Dundee --- you can find it here: click on the Dragon's Den event :-)

Hope springs eternal, indeed :-))

Legislation-light?

I've mentioned before that, whilst I'm no fan of "legislation for legislation's sake", the situation at Holyrood recently has really taken things to the extreme ...

... well, the contrast now has some actual depth to it as we're just about at the half-way mark of this current Parliament and it transpires only 7 Acts of Parliament have actually been passed.

That total of 7 Bills contrasts with 50+ in each of the first two terms of devolution - so, say, 25 Bills in each half-term; as compared to 7 this half-term.

Even if you want to argue that the first 8-years of devolution were 'legislative-heavy' ... a general point I could agree with ... we still appear to have gone from one extreme to the other :-(

After all, Holyrood is a "legislative body" not a Local Authority which actually 'delivers' services ;-)

Atagoal: Cat's Magical Forest

Junior has a bit of a thing for Manga comics, manga films --- manga absolutely anything actually (think I've 'mentioned' it before) ...

... so, we all went to see a 'one-off' screening of such a manga production at the Filmhouse yesterday. It's already disappeared from their web-site, but a good review can be found here.

Very enjoyable - and graphics were really exceptional.

I'm a manga convert ;-)

A museum for Leith?

Interesting coverage of the long-running campaign for a 'Leith Museum' in the Scotsman this morning ... article here.

Not my part of town, but there does appear to be pretty broad-based support for the idea of taking this forward?

One can only hope the Scottish Government have 'got what it takes' ??

:-)

Turning-point?

I know there's plenty of other significant news around today ...

... but, in the greater sweep of things, I reckon the change of view on CO2 emissions by the US Government today could be an historical turning-point?

I know that words have to be followed by actions - but such a complete reversal of policy direction, from a mere 3-months ago, is truly stunning.

No decisions here today

I know that the Council is still formally in 'Easter Recess' this week, but just contrast the list of meetings last month with this month - April 2009 ...

... it does, to me, seem remarkably light - even when I recall Easter months from previous years?

The cynic in me says its just another example of 'as much as possible' being kept away from Committees (and any formal decision-making process) due to the uncertainty that induces ... primarily down to Council arithmetic.

Not healthy at all.

Surgery; Tollcross; and pigeons

Weekly surgery this evening - quiet tonight: possibly down to the school holidays? - and thereafter attended a meeting of Tollcross Community Centre, along with a couple of elected colleagues. Funding, and staffing, issues dominated the discussions.

Don't laugh too much at this --- but in the usual rush home (just prior to attending the above meetings) --- I was merrily cycling along the union canal; there was a slight drizzle so the canal path was wet but not that bad; rang my bell (as I always do!) when I approached one of the canal bridges; gently pulled the brakes to avoid any oncoming pedestrians; and promptly went into a huge skid on the cobbles that line the sections of path underneath each bridge; came flying off the bike and ground to a halt centimetres (and I'm not exaggerating) from the edge of the canal :-(

No serious damage done (other than to my pride) and absolutely no one else around --- thankfully really --- to witness my downfall.

All due to --- wait for it --- excessive pigeon sh*te on the cobbles :-((

I feel a strongly-worded letter to British Waterways in the making!

This all had nothing whatsoever to do with heavy braking on my part, of course --- and I simply refuse to blame London for their rumoured reductions to British Waterways funding ;-)

Neil MacCormick

Regular readers will know that I was doing my best to avoid politics last week - in one of those periodic attempts to re-acquaint myself with the family ...

... well, as a result, I completely missed (until today) the very, very sad news that Neil MacCormick died on the 5th April.

Neil had the good grace (despite his undoubted work pressures) to grant me an interview way back in February 1995 when I was doing some research on constitutional reform - he spent over an hour of his time with me; answered all my (undoubtedly naive) questions with politeness and candour; was personally encouraging about what I was doing; and was genuinely interested in knowing not just about my subject-matter but also about me. He simply could not have been more thoughtful or helpful in the time I spent with him.

The whole experience really stuck in my memory --- I can vividly recall the meeting today, some 14-years later --- and it was a great encouragement to me at the time.

A truly decent man - precious few, the like-of-which, I've met in my 45-years.

Lies, damned lies and statistics ... again

This other Evening News story from yesterday - about a possible Council pay freeze - is pretty grim in its telling ... summary follows:

• Liberals and Nationalists have been running Edinburgh for two years.
  
• everything in those two years has been wonderful - everything!


• everything in the previous 23 years was awful - everything!


• a Liberal is the current Finance spokesperson


• he has form on taking responsibility seriously


• the UK budget isn't set until next week


• there may be a Barnett consequential, in terms of additional efficiency savings for the Scottish Government


• it could amount to a total of £500million (that's half of one billion pounds for all of Scotland) for the whole Scottish Government


• that's not Local Government, but the whole of Scottish Government (NHS in Scotland etc.)


• but hey, it may be theoretical at the moment, but in a rash of maturity I'll blame all my problems on that possible efficiency saving being fully implemented and a share given to Local Government in Scotland


• I know I sound like a Nationalist, but I'm a Liberal so I can sound how I like

Grown up politics - just what we need at the moment.

And here's what is conveniently missing from this stunning analysis:

• funding for the Scottish Government in 2008/09 was £33.2billion


• funding for the Scottish Government in 2009/10 is £34.5billion


• funding for the Scottish Government in 2010/11 will be £35.6billion


• yes - that's right - a real terms increase year on year


• over £50billion was pumped into Scotland to save Scotland's two biggest banks - by the Scottish Government? ; by the Liberals in Edinburgh? ; I think you know the answers.


• over £2billion has been delivered directly to Scottish people via recent tax changes (most implemented just a few weeks ago at the start of the new financial year) - by the Scottish Government? ; by the Liberals in Edinburgh? ; I think you know the answers.

This whole approach is highly intelligent and treats voters with the respect they deserve: of course everything in Edinburgh is the fault of London and nothing --- absolutely nothing --- is the fault of the inspirational leadership that we've seen at the City of Edinburgh Council over the last two years.

No more school closures?

If the schools rationalisation process in Edinburgh is finished, then there is an obvious logic in winding-up the 'Forum' which reviewed the whole process as reported in yesterday's Evening News ...

... but if more school closures are coming up (and I think the Council budget indicates they may well be) then, if true, to axe the 'Forum on School Estate Rationalisation' at this moment in time is just madness.

Can memories really be that short?

... and apart from anything else, there has been no cross-Party discussion on this possible step. So much for consultation (of any kind).

McBride affair

Oh dear - feel this is not a subject that any Labour blogger can easily avoid :-(

I've mentioned the joys of e-mail on several occasions before --- here and here for example --- but what's been exposed over the last few days has taken my comparatively innocent worries to a whole new (much, much lower) level :-((

I very occasionally lapse into naming the target of my political angst; and even more occasionally this blog does get me into a spot of bother ... but in the main, I think I manage to get my political point across without resorting to personal abuse and bile ;-)

The serious point being - I reckon most voters can judge both personal character and political content pretty well, and trying to 'force-feed' that very individual assessment usually back-fires sooner or later.

And its back-fired spectacularly in this case, that's for sure.

It's damaged Labour yes; but even more depressingly it's damaged the whole political process at a time when it can ill-afford it --- to say the least!

Holiday reading

These days, time spent away from Edinburgh is about the only space I get to read a novel from cover-to-cover; and last week I managed to complete "The Other" by David Guterson.

I mentioned the film of his first major novel some time ago - and I think he's been an author who has struggled to produce something as good as "Snow Falling on Cedars" (which is an exceptionally good book, and now film) ever since writing it ...

... well, in my humble opinion, the problem has been solved - because "The Other" is a classic to rival anything he has produced before.

It's not a book to cheer you up, and challenges modern-day living and all that goes with it.

Timely, I would say.

Allotment planting

Proof that 'spring has definitely sprung' down at the allotment ...

... spent a lot of Saturday down there getting some of the major crops planted: potatoes now all in, along with a host of other vegetables --- and several new plants (obtained from an excellent Nursery near Kirkcudbright) also now laid out.

And if all that allotment-rigour wasn't enough, when we visited my parents' on Sunday we were roped into planting out a large selection of bulbs in their house garden :-(

No rest for the wicked.

Easter over :-(

Easter weekend over.

Had a very relaxing few days (mostly) at home in Edinburgh over the weekend --- in all that glorious sunshine, managed plenty of planting at the allotment; more news of which to follow ...

... and did manage to escape the city during some of last week, returning to Kirkcudbirght (as predicted last year!), which we all very much enjoyed again this time around.

Back to work now, for some in the household :-(

School's out ...

"School's out" later this afternoon, and the rest of the Burns' household will thus be off for a couple of weeks until Tuesday 21st April :-(

So - although we're mostly around in Edinburgh - there will be a bit of a reduction in blogging (and hopefully, work) activity, whilst I try to re-acquaint myself with the family!

Very brief updates 'may' still appear ...

No 1933

I reckon its pretty nigh-on impossible to be 'absolutely certain' about the long-term outcome of yesterday's events in London ...

... so rather than pontificate too much, I'd simply encourage actually reading the 3 (relatively brief) Communiqués that came out at the end of the formal events (as well as glancing at the longer working papers); look at some of the BBC coverage; and marvel at today's Daily Express!

And, on balance - and I hope even political opponents would accept this - the process does appear to have resulted in some fairly radical changes ...

... it is no repeat of 1933 as many predicted it could have been.

Another 'April Fools' joke?

Still on the theme of 'April Fools' ... just received this e-mail at my work-account:

"From: Communications
Sent: Wed 01/04/2009 8:51 AM
To: Everyone
Subject: Internet access

Access to the Internet is currently unavailable. BT is looking into the problem and we will let you know when it has been resolved."

I 'think' it's a joke ... but nothing would surprise me when it comes to the Council contract with BT ;-)

'Green trams' on their way?

Yet more new tram proposals for Edinburgh have emerged this morning ...

... involving the use of 'green trams' on certain city streets?

You can read all about the plans here.

Very funny ;-)