There was a time when all a lazy Tory politician had to do to get a laugh was pick up a copy of The Guardian’s society pages and started reading out the ludicrous public sector job titles advertised therein. These days, there is something better still – the Public Agenda supplement in The Times every
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It was Tony Blair, in another context, who said that the ‘kaleidoscope had turned’. Britain’s political kaleidoscope has certainly turned in the past 48 hours. Tony Blair will be remembered for lots of things, and I need not list them all here. But I ask you to reflect on the following: Tony Blair is perhaps
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There are times when you just don’t know where to begin. So much is going pear-shaped for the Government at the moment. Home Office Minister Liam Byrne has made the preposterous and bizarre claim that ID cards will be “a great British institution” on a par with the 19th century railways, and “part of the
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This one really makes me angry. Some hitherto unheard of little bunch of nannying whingers who go by the name of the Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre has decided that the British Egg Information Service will not be allowed to celebrate its 50th anniversary by replaying its classic 1950s ‘Go to work on an egg’ ads
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I’m clearly receiving hidden signals, since just as I was writing the previous blog about there being 650 Blackpool teenagers in neither education, employment or training, the Council release the latest figure of 588. Great that there are 70 fewer – though I wonder what the percentage change is given how age cohorts vary size
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I gather the Government’s ‘respect czar’ Louise Casey has been in town yesterday, bestowing £175,000 on us to promote ‘respect’ in the community. However, rather than leave it up to the Council to decide how to spend that money on reducing anti-social behaviour, it seems she has dictated it will be spent on hiring a
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The protest held outside the Post Office on Saturday morning was a magnificent success. We had people actually queuing to sign our petitions, and many had come into the town centre just to sign – for no other reason. Even LibDem councillor Doreen Holt signed! The employees in the Post Office were, apparently, not allowed
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It may be like shooting fish in a barrel, but there are somethings you simply cannot resist lampooning. Labour-controlled Lancashire County Council is spending £1.8 million over the next three years in reducing carbon emissions across the county – a perfectly worthy objective. However, an unspecified amount of that money will be going on a
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It seems that the Police Federation have decided the Winter Gardens no longer suits their needs, so won’t be coming to Blackpool again either. I posted a few weeks ago on the injustice of the £1m taxpayer subsidy to Leisure Parcs for their ‘stewardship’ of the venue. Given all we now seem to be left
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