Support Workers Right To Strike

Workers should have the right to strike. Its never an easy descision for them, a strike is an extreme action taken rarely as so many suffer when it happens.

I have never been a member pf a union but I support their rights. The history of unions is one of campaingning for and gaining rights for all workers. Without them we would not get tea breaks, weekends or holidays. Read about the past or indeed swratshops to see what life without them would be like.

Most civil servants are hard working and have historically been paid less than the private sector. Some will have chosen this career based on the pensions or other benefits such as holidays or security. So a bit unfair to pull the rug out from under them now.

Cameron talks about reform as he would rather not say he is cutting workers conditions, bit Orwellian. What we should be angry about is he wants low and medium paid people to pay for the mistakes of some politicians, bankers and speculators.

Gordon Brown may have been chancellor while the economy was put into recession but the Tories and Labour backed him at the time. So they are all in this together.

Though Cameron tries to pretend Ed Miliband is a puppet of the unions, actually the so called "red Ed" described the strikes as "a mistake" and "a sign of failure".

All of the big parties seem quick to blame the unions, who represent those least able to afford cuts. No mention of tax rises for the very wealthy. Only the poor and downtrodden get hit with cuts they cant affird.

LD not a "Green party of government"

Though they claim to be a "green party of government" members and elected representatives of the LD dont all behave in a Green way.

They oppose a third runway at Heathrow but up and down the country they all to often support expansion of local airports. How they reconcile this with their Green boasts is not explained.

Indeed while some are ok others are behaving rather like Tories. So quite fitting that they are propping them up. The thirst for power can lead to destruction.

Ex Southend LD mayor Nora Goodman gives “100 per cent backing” to the planned expansion of Southend Airport. Oops.

www.echo-news.co.uk/news/4562644.Former_mayor_backs_expansion_of_airport/

And "Liberal Democrats maintain their commitment to and support for Southend Airport" southendlibdems.co.uk/en/page/southend-libdem-councillors

Then theres MP Jo Swinson, supporting airport expansion in glasgow.
joswinson.org.uk/en/article/2006/055813/airport-expansion-welcome-but-environment-must-be-a-priority

"The expansion of Glasgow Airport is welcome news for Scottish travellers" she says.

While many MPs are concerned with important issues LD MP Mike Crockart "congratulates Edinburgh Airport on being voted Best in Europe" 27 June 2011 Edinburgh West"
www.edinburghwestlibdems.org.uk/newspage.php?cat=mike&id=113

While he was an MP Lembit Opik was also keen on airports "The former leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats is backing plans for expansion of Cardiff airport" www.passengerterminaltoday.com/news.php?NewsID=10865

Meanwhile a few years ago a group called the Green Lib Dems say "Any growth in aviation must be sustainable, yet the government have chosen to follow a policy of predicting
demand and then attempting to provide facilities for this future demand. As anyone involved in building infrastructure knows, demand will always grow to meet
provision. Therefore "predict and provide" is a self fulfilling prophesy which must be discarded. " greenlibdems.org.uk/en/article/2005/014018/government-must-look-again-at-airport-strategy-thurso

They are correct about predict and provide (though LD still want to build motorways) but planes are simply not sustainable transport. Future generations will look back on this era of cheap flights as a shocking waste of scarce resources.

Recycling Computers For Charity

Guest post from a computer recycling charity, Jamie's Computers.

Jamie’s Computers is the computer recycling social enterprise arm of The Society of St James; Southampton’s largest homeless charity, providing housing, care and support to homeless and vulnerable people.

Jamie's Computers offers a free professional and secure IT disposal service to businesses and individuals. We refurbish donated computers and make them available for reuse whilst anything that cannot be reused is recycled.

Through our free IT disposal and refurbishment services, Jamie’s is able to provide training and voluntary opportunities to socially excluded adults within the community.

We can arrange a business collection from anywhere in the South but will ask for a contribution towards transportation costs for locations outside of Hampshire.


--
The Society of St. James, 125 Albert Road South, Southampton, Hants. SO14 3FR
Phone: 023 8063 4596. Fax: 023 8033 9026. Web: http://www.ssj.org.uk/
A Company limited by guarantee and registered in England No. 3009700.
Housing Association No. LH4337. Registered Charity No. 1043664.

Hexham River Hydro project

A friend in the North has asked for help with the Hexham River Hydro project. This is to enable them to get funding to make the project happen. So it is very, important!

The Hexham River Hydro is currently #2 out of >850 groups from all over the UK on the Energyshare site. This is fantastic - but want to be #1 and by as big a margin as possible on 30 June, when voting closes.

Please, please, get as many of your colleagues, friends, family and neighbours to sign up as you possibly can:

How to become an online supporter (also known as 'followers') of Hexham River Hydro:
Go to: http://www.energyshare.com/hrh
Click on the blue bar on the right hand side that says 'SUPPORT THIS GROUP'
Follow the instructions
How to check that you have successfully registered as an online supporter of Hexham River Hydro:
Go to: http://www.energyshare.com/hrh
Click on the tab that says 'ALL SUPPORTERS'
Scroll through the list to see who's there

A couple of other items for your diaries:
the Transition Tynedale stall will be at Hexham Farmer's Market tomorrow morning and a few more helpers would be appreciated, any time between 9am and 1.30pm. No prior experience or knowledge necessary. Please just bring your smile =) come to the Hexham Middle School Community Garden next Tuesday, 28 June, from 7.30pm. All welcome. Come to garden or just come to chat!

"Green Party Of Government"

Climate change minster Huhne points to Britain's woeful record on renewables, being one of the worst in Europe. Doesnt mention the vast number of LD Cllrs who vote against renewables schemes; though to be fair Lab and Tory are if anything worse.

As the confused Nick Clegg said 'the LibDems have long been the greenest of the main three parties - the difference now is that it is not just a green party but a green party of government'.

All three have an apalling record on renewables. Tory, Labour and LibDem

Greenhouse gas emissions increased 2.9 per cent last year. Domestic CO2 emissions alone jumped 13.5 per cent during 2009, the DECC (Department of Energy and Climate Change) said, partly attributing the surge on a cold winter and the lack of effective insulation in many British homes. Which they have done very little to improve the situation now puts UK emissions at about 17 per cent below benchmark 1990 levels. Mostly due to using more gas and less coal power generation, not any green initiatives.

The UK needs to implement a further 17 per cent reduction over the next nine years to hit the target of 34 percent.

The emissions rise is due in part to the recession hitting industry and energy use, 2009 had seen large falls in greenhouse gases (down 8.7% on 2008). But the increase means that the UK's target of cutting emissions by 35% by 2022 is now harder to meet.

Campaigners warned that the rise showed that efforts to transform the UK's economy on to a low-carbon footing were not working.

Andy Atkins, executive director of Friends of the Earth, said: "Our economy is as dangerously hooked on fossil fuels as it was twenty years ago – so emissions are bound to rise as the economy picks up. The government has repeatedly promised to build a low-carbon economy to tackle climate change and insulate us all from yo-yoing fuel prices, but the Treasury refuses to lay the foundations or pay for the bricks."

The total amount of UK greenhouse gas emissions produced during 2010 was 491.7 million tonnes, according to the DECC, although this figure may be revised at a later date. The release of this data coincided with a separate report on global investments into renewable energy.

Previously ranked the world number three in terms of both current and future renewable investments, the UK now sits behind at least ten other nations in a new league table topped by China.

“Britain's blighted by inefficient and draughty homes which is why we want to help people waste less energy through the Green Deal and install new cleaner technologies to heat their homes”, Chris Huhne, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, explained. “As we come out of recession the [Conservative and Liberal Democrat] Coalition's determined to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. That's why we are pushing on all fronts to turn around Britain's woeful record on renewables.”

They took the name of the Green Deal from us but its so watered down its not cut emissions yet. The Greens want 10% cuts in emissions every year. So do many people. Remember 10:10, 10% cuts in 2010.
Lets see some real action on cutting Emissions

www.enviro-news.com/news/uk-greenhouse-gas-emissions-increase-29.html
www.clickgreen.org.uk/news/national-news/122101-uks-greenhouse-gas-emissions-on-the-increase.html

Coalition Target Women

People are starting to notice that the coalition are targeting women, but not in a good way.

Its women by and large who are most affected by the cuts in public services, women who are affected by the unfair pension changes. And women are least likely to receive the benefit from any stimulus packages.

Women all over the world are rising up and many of the revolutions today in the arab world are being led and started by women who have had enough. Notably even in repressive Saudi.

Let us make absolutely sure we dont perpetuate it here. Resist the cuts to public sector workers pensions, womens pensions, care health and education budgets- where women are the majority of the workforce.

So why do these get cut first ? Do they think women are more compliant and will make least fuss- lets resist such an old fashioned and regressive attitude by government !


This has been a guest post by
Miriam Kennet
www.greeneconomics.org.uk
Though I edited it and am responsible for the contents.

"Dark day for Europe" Another Coalition Green Failure

The environment suffered a double blow in Luxembourg yesterday as moves to protect both biodiversity and the climate were scuppered.

After a meeting of EU environment ministers in Luxembourg yesterday, UK energy secretary Chris Huhne described his failure as: "It is a dark day for Europe's leading role in tackling climate change." He should consider his position.

Janusz Lewandowski, the Polish commissioner in charge of the EU's €130bn budget, even expressed scepticism over the science of climate change and the future of emissions policy. "We already have overambitious agreements on CO2 emission reduction," he told a newspaper, adding, “there is a notion that the thesis that coal energy is the main cause of global warming is highly questionable. Moreover, more and more often there is a question mark put over the whole [issue of] global warming as such."

Poland gets 90% of its electricity from coal. Lewandowski said the CO2 targets "are too ambitious for the Polish economy … Polish politicians have to persuade people that there cannot be a quick jump away from coal. For Poland it would be a disaster."

"It's terrifying that the man in charge of Europe's budget is someone you might expect to see in Sarah Palin's Republican party," added Greenpeace advisor Ruth Davis.

Among Huhnes colleagues, 23 Conservative MEPs are reported to be threatening to vote against David Cameron's policy of increasing the target from 20% reductions by 2020, compared with 1990 levels, to 30%. This is in the coalition agreement, and supported by other EU member states.

Another coalition failure, in a long line of them. If the LD want to be taken seriously on Green issues they should stop propping up the Tories and show some courage.

Vote For Grow Reading

Reading GrowAllot is Food4Families’ exciting new community allotment project.

Local families want to transform a piece of derelict land at Florian Gardens, Southcote into a thriving allotment growing fresh healthy food.
We need your vote to make it happen for Reading

Vote here
http://www.food4families.org.uk/

Denyimg Climate change is anti science and ignores a real threat.

A guest post first published as a letter in the Canadian Sun Times.

Before the election I read a point of view by Monte Sonnenberg in The Sun Times. It is hard to believe that someone could have such an incredibly shortsighted slant on the Green Party's environmental concerns about global warming. It is attitudes like those of Monte's that illustrate the difficulties in persuading people to take action against a very real and serious problem.

Elizabeth May is not crying wolf. Global warming and consequent climate change are happening right now and have been during the latter half of the past century. Witness the noticeably increased intensity of the sun's rays in our summers over the last five to 10 years and warnings related to the hole in the ozone layer.

Coincidentally, the same day the column was published I came across two very differing points of view by professional environmentalists and scientists. The first was an article entitled, "A Voice for the Arctic" by Peter Feniak in the magazine Good Times. In it Peter outlined how an Inuit woman, Sheila Watt- Cloutier, has been using her talents to to bring a human face to Arctic climate change. She is an educator, translator and councillor as well as the former president, now chair, of the Inuit Circompolar Council (ICC) representing the Inuit of Canada, Alaska, Russia and Greenland.

Sheila tells of how climate change has affected the Inuit hunting culture in this century alone: "The Arctic has seen above freezing winter temperature, lightning flashes, freezing rain. Thinning ice fields have become treacherous, rivers raging torrents, brown patches of earth emerge, new bird, fish and insect species arrive that are unknown to the elders. Seal and caribou migrations alter."

She believes that damaging emissions of greenhouse gases coming from the U.S. are part of the problem and that it represents a human rights violation. She believes "the Arctic has a right to be cold. For the Inuit, the environment is everything."

Sheila states that what happens to the Inuit is the warning for what's to come to all. Whether we like it or not, the Inuit and the Arctic wildlife are the canaries in the global coal mine.

A second and similar point of view came from a program I watched called "Arctic Mission: Climate on the Edge," narrated by David Suzuki and containing many interviews and statistics given by several other experts, one of whom was Canadian glaciologist Fritz Koerner.

The experts explained how the ice age lasted millions of years,

with only occasional warmer periods. But suddenly, as the human race became more industrialized over the past 150 years, levels of CO2 have begun to increase very quickly. They listed fossil fuel use as the major cause.

They demonstrated how the Gulf Stream moves in a cyclical direction, thus being a crucial function in keeping temperatures in Europe so temperate.

They explained further that glaciers melting too fast will cause ice chunks to be flushed out into the North Atlantic where they will melt. Changing ocean temperatures will cause an alteration in the direction of the Gulf Stream, thus bringing Europe much cooler temperatures, not to mention all the extra water, causing the ocean to rise at least three metres all along coastlines where 70% of all humans live.

Think of the devastation this will cause.

Ongoing research in France has shown that with continuing global warming, the polar regions are affected much more severely than tropical regions. If the Arctic ends up with no ice cover in the summer, then the whole marine environment will change -- from tiny organisms right up the chain to the polar bear.

Polar bears can only feed on their primary food, the ring seal, where there is ice. This is essential for them to be able to put on enough weight to survive through to the next season.

During the summer, polar bears live off their fat reserves, eating very little. According to data collected, they are already smaller in size and must travel farther and farther in the ocean to find food, indicating that their fat reserves are inadequate.

Records show that ice is forming two weeks later and leaving two weeks earlier, representing a 15% decrease in time for feeding during a four-month period, a serious development for mother bears with cubs.

One can extrapolate to our own food supply to see how a shortened period for growing crops worldwide might negatively affect the outcome, especially when a mean temperature increase or decrease of one or two degrees can mean the difference between survival and starvation.

In addition, to the problem of already airborne CO2, scientists also explained one more disturbing factor: that of CO2 and methane that has been stored for millions of years in the permafrost. If they are released, there will be even more warmer air, bringing more violent storms and tornadoes.

All of these knowledgeable people stated that we should have reduced greenhouse gases yesterday in order to slow down and stabilize excess CO2.

Elizabeth May is on target and has been all along. To ridicule her and her party's stand on global warming by reason of one cold spring is unfounded, small-minded and totally irrational.

We cannot ignore all the signs. Glaciers are melting. Sand dunes are advancing. Global warming and climate change will not go away in our time.

Where is the warming? Monte asks.

Well, if he had been reading any scientific articles or watching researched documentaries, he would have seen that warming is a fact. Glaciers are melting and not returning, as evidenced by pictures of them taken over 50 years apart from the same spot. The pictures prove glaciers are receding at an alarming rate.

Winds are depositing dirt from the south on northern ice, drawing even more heat to melt the glaciers.

All of the data mentioned here has been accumulated and studies by people with credentials, who are well-versed and knowledgeable in their fields and should be taken to heart.

As for Monte Sonnenberg' who is he? Nobody is my guess.

Monte, you'd better build an ark.

Marian Hammond Berkeley
http://m.owensoundsuntimes.com/articledisplay.aspx?e=3179865j

Brian Haw R.I.P.

Pace campaigner Brian Haw, who lived and slept outside the Houses of Parliament in London for a decade to protest against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, has died of cancer, his family said on Sunday. He was 62.

R.I.P. Brian, you will be much missed.

This is a picture of his peace camp before the authorities moved in to reduce it. He stayed despite attempts from Blair, Brown, Cameron and Boris Johnson to remove him.

Bike Week 18 to 26th June 2011

bike week starts today. The link leads to some organised rides and events.

Theres an event in town tomorrow, Broad Street information day.
A certain irony as bikes are banned from part of Broad Street, unfortunately.

I have been campaigning for improved cycle routes and parking facilities for years, lets hope the new Reading Labour administration do something, even if its just letting bikes on Broad Street or allowing people to chain bikes to the town hall fence.

Update:
pic from today. The stall was on the no bike bit. Oh the irony.

They were giving out cycle maps of Reading, good to finally see the new one being distributed.

Poor Kids; child poverty

There something on TV that all those interested in politics, or people, should see. Poor Kids on BBC1.

We are so used to hearing from our media and mainstream politicians about welfare cheats. This program was a reminder for us, what welfare is all about. Families so poor they struggle to feed the children. Parents unable to get work though they keep applying. Parents not eating in order to feed their kids.

Its a failure of the government to adress this, focusing insteead on cutting benefits to those who need them most. And the last government who claimed to have tackeled poverty, but have not. All need to adress the inequality, the equality trust have answers.

More info available on the Poor Kids webpage
Documentary telling the stories of some of the 3.5 million children living in poverty in the UK. It is one of the worst child poverty rates in the industrialised world.

Least Green Government Ever?

The government adviser in charge of overhauling the school syllabus in England has recommended that climate change should not be included in the national curriculum.

Dont brush climate change under the carpet, take action with
http://peopleandplanet.org/navid12439

Email sent to: Mr Tim Oates & Rt Hon Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove

I am a concerned parent who is shocked that you are considering brushing under the carpet the biggest threat to the people on our planet. The most at risk are the the poorest but we are far from future proof.

I am deeply disturbed to learn that you are recommending to the government that climate change no longer be taught through the national curriculum. It is absolutely crucial that young people be taught how human activity and natural processes can lead to changes in the environment and about ways in which living things and the environment need to be protected.

Without knowledge and understanding of the social, economic and environmental impacts of climate change, how can we expect young people to be ready to deal with the impacts and help find the solutions to climate change that will play such a huge role in their futures?

Climate change is widely accepted as the biggest threat facing our planet and billions of people on it. Given the government's commitment to being "the greenest government ever" it would be shameful and tragic for the UK to actively undermine the central opportunities that our young people have through the curriculum to explore the much-needed climate solutions of renewable energy, recycling and sustainable resource management.

I urge you to reconsider your dangerous recommendation,

Yours sincerely,

Driest Spring On Record, But Water Companies Profit

Drought conditions are coming but the water companies are not talking about any cuts in supply. Many Rivers are getting dangerously low but it may be because the water companies are putting their profits ahead of the nations health.

Britains water companies are set to gush nearly £1 billion in profits as England and Wales suffer their driest spring since 1938. Northumbrian Water, Pennon, Severn Trent and United Utilities are to report combined annual profits for 2010-2011 estimated at £961 million by analysts at Evolution Securities.
Thames Water posted a figure of £208.5 million.
Wessex Water has pre-tax profits £149.9 million for this year.

Craig Bennett, the policy director of Friends of the Earth, said that successive governments had taken "precious little action" to stop "unsustainable abstractions" and limit building where there was not sufficient water infrastructure.

Parts of England are officially in a drought following the dry spring, say Defra. Areas of East Anglia are in drought, with parts of the Midlands, South West and South East in a "near-drought" state.

In the drought-affected areas, Anglian Water and Cambridge Water say there is no threat to public water supplies. But Severn Trent Water says there may be restrictions if rainfall stays low. And Thames Water, which serves London and the Thames Valley, has reassured its customers that hosepipe bans are unlikely this year.

Both the South East and central-southern region of England have had their driest spring on record. Across England and Wales as a whole it has been the driest spring since 1990, prompting the Environment Agency to issue advice on how best to reduce water use. It comes as large areas of northern Europe are facing drought after one of the driest European springs on record.

EA Advice:
. Let your grass grow – this provides shade for the soil and helps retain water.
I like that one, Ive not got round to cutting my grass yet this year, now I dont neeed to.
. Washing your car with a bucket generally uses less water than using a hose, but do you really need to wash it? Just keep headlights, mirrors and windows clean for safety reasons. I just dont wash my car.
. Don’t let water run to waste while waiting for the water to get hot - collect and use to water plants. Similarly collect the running water in the shower before getting in. My houseplants are drought resistant, which is handy as I forget to water them from week to week.

No mention of collecting rainwater from roofs, showers rather than baths, fitting a low water shower/taps/toilet.
This site has more advice.

Don't leave the tap running while you brush your teeth, shave or wash your hands. This can waste up to 6 litres of water per minute.
Showers use about 9 litres of water per minute.
A 5 minute shower uses about a third of the water of a bath

Mayors for Peace Seminar Replacing Trident – what should happen next?

A seminar is happening in Oxford next month. Hosted by Oxford's first Green Lord Mayor, Elise Benjamin.

Mayors for Peace / NFLA (Nuclear Free Local Authorities) English Forum Joint Seminar
Replacing Trident – what should happen next?
Date: 8th July 2011
Location: Mayor’s Parlour, Town Hall, Oxford

In May 2011 the UK Government announced its ‘Initial Gate’ decision, committing up to £3bn for the initial developments for the replacement of Trident submarines and missiles – a final decision on the programme will be made after the 2015 general election. The spending of such resources at a time of huge cuts across public spending is a matter of much debate. It also raises the wider question as to whether the UK requires a nuclear deterrent in a world where conventional and potentially even possible ‘dirty bomb’ type terrorist attacks are more likely.

This seminar will consider the work groups like Mayors for Peace, BASIC and NIS are engaging with nationally and internationally in seeking to build consensus for reductions in nuclear weapons around the world. It will also consider the recently-signed defence treaty between the UK and French governments which announced close co-operation on nuclear weapons development, partially based at the atomic weapons facilities in Aldermaston and Burghfield in nearby West Berkshire. What are the local and national issues around such developments?

This seminar is FREE and open to all interested Mayors for Peace and NFLA member councils, interested non-members and interested local and national groups.

PROGRAMME (speakers may be subject to change)

11.00am UK Mayors for Peace Working Group business meeting – all members and interested groups are welcome to attend

12.30pm Registration:  Tea/Coffee

1.00pm Welcomes: Councillor Elise Benjamin, Lord Mayor of Oxford, Councillor Van Coulter, NFLA representative for Oxford City Council and Councillor Ralph Pryke, NFLA England Chair.

1.10pm Paul Ingram, Executive Director, British American Information Security Council (BASIC) – Trident replacement: what next? The work of the cross-party Trident Commission. (to be confirmed)

1.40pm Stephen Hendry, Nuclear Information Service, Reading – The Anglo-French Defence Treaty and developments at Aldermaston and Burghfield. (confirmed)

2.10pm Aaron Tovish, Executive Director, Mayors for Peace – how the Mayors for Peace coalition is influencing the nuclear disarmament debate. (to be confirmed)

2.40pm Panel Discussion

3.00pm Conclusion

Mayors for Peace and the NFLA English Forum would like to thank the Lord Mayor of Oxford & Oxford City Council for kindly hosting this seminar

Oh The Irony; Lib Dems attack their own cuts

The local LD have been campaigning hard against a cut, but it turns out its their own cut. Oops.

They say they spotted a stealthy change to end of academic year student rubbish collections. As the new Labour administration had been in power just over a week this was possible but unlikely, as it dated from March.

Both the LD and Labour have a history of telling fibs, particularly Cllr Page the Lab deputy leader, so not so easy to decide which one is being 'creative' in this case. However the Tories, instead of backing their coalition partners, have mostly remained silent. This speaks volumes.

The Reading Chronicle quotes Lab, LD and council oficials and has it as a LD cut.

Lib Dem leader, Cllr Daisy Benson, who launched an online petition against this cut, said on her blog on Monday it was Labour councillors who scrapped the collections. But when informed of a council oficials statement, she maintained there is a difference between decisions taken by officers and the savings confirmed by councillors, and insisted it would have been overturned had her party still been power sharing. Perhaps.

She added: "This was never part of our savings plan and was not brought to our attention." Ignorance is not an excuse. Does anyone expect an apology for all the name calling? Listen to the sound of silence.

Actually they LD are claiming it as their sucess! Displaying the 2010 election results on their websites tells you all you need to know, 2011 was a disaster so they hope people will forget while they stick their heads in the sand.


pic from http://www.digitaljournal.com/img/4/3/4/4/i/4/2/0/o/head_in_sand.jpg

Down And Out in Local Politics

It seems the political career of Cllr Warren Swaine is taking a turn for the worse. He came to prominence with his satirical website muckspreading, but recently was thrown out of the LD for some nasty comments on twitter that were taken to be racist.

Waren may have been under considerable stress, he seems to have lost his sence of humour along with any perspective.

Recent Twitter Update:

How can you tell when a Labour councillor is lying? Their lips move, send a tweet or blog post.

about 6 hours ago

Recent Blogs:
"Why can I blame Rob White for this cut? Simple, it was not in my budget savings." So if Warren wasnt going to do it, it must be evil? Bit arrogant.

A coalition administration would not have cut this service. Labour have and Rob White let Labour form the administration. He is just as much to blame as Paul Gittings. In fact even more so because his negotiations with Labour demanded the reversal of the charges for green waste collection. Cause and effect.

In the Greens' world of pestering Mummy at the supermarket checkout for sweets she can't afford, their "victory" has come home to roost and will directly impact the residents of Park ward. Nice one Rob.
.
.
.
In the Green's little world they believe that an absence of decision making absolves them of culpability. Wrong. Threatening to squweam and squweam and squweam until they're thick will not abdicate them of that responsibility. Every cut, every stopped service and every closure is just as much their fault as it is Labour's and I will hold them to account for each and every one of them.

and on his website muckspreading:
a video of Chaimberlain from pre WW2 with Robs head placed on the then PM

fake cabinet mins that is just sweary, not satire.

a video of Orville the Duck with Robs head placed on Orville. I expect a 'its not easy beng green' with Kermit any day.

a postcard of a Lab Cllr stabbing a Tory Cllr

All of this in the space of a few days. He must have lots of time on his hands. And is a little too interested in Rob.

Update; looking at this the next day I can see that I could have said far more, but I left it for the reader.

I will point out that the LD are responsible for propping up the government, who make the rules on what Councils can do, what they can spend or borow. One amusing thing is last year the local LD Tory coalition blamed Lab for the disasterous Shinfield road changes though it was months into their administration. it cost a fortune and made things worse.

Now after just a few days they expect everyone to believe that everyhing that happens is the fault of Lab and Greens. Well I remind them of what they said last year. Hypocrites.

Keep Money Local

It might surprise some but Being Green can also mean not joining the euro, favouring localism over globalism.

A few towns and cities have gone even further and started their own currency

Plans are being drawn up in Bristol to introduce £1, £5, £10 and £20 notes which people could use at shops in the city which sign up to the scheme.

They could also use their mobile phone to pay for goods. The idea is to protect independent traders and to build "resilience" into the local economy so it is not at the mercy of the highs and lows of international finance markets.

Those behind the idea also hope it will keep wealth generated in the Bristol area here instead of being sucked into offshore financial institutions.

A local currency system has already been introduced in other parts of the country such as Brixton, Totnes in Devon, Lewes and Stroud.

But the big difference about the Bristol Pound will be the hope of using mobile phones to pay for goods.

Shoppers would just have to agree the price with the trader and text the amount to their account. They would then receive a text to confirm that the transaction had been completed.

Transactions could not be carried out without using a PIN number for security purposes.

Talks are already being held among the major mobile operators about introducing a national system for paying by phone.

But the Bristol Pound is currently developing the software needed so that any phone on any network could be used.

The currency scheme is being promoted and backed by a consortium of experts and charitable trusts which would run the scheme as a stakeholder co-operative.

This means a board would be represented by traders, users, the Bristol Credit Union – the bank supporting the scheme – and charitable trusts.

Any proceeds would go towards running the scheme or helping to promote it. If any profits were left over, then these would be paid as an annual dividend to users.

Ciaran Mundy, who is helping to promote the scheme, said: "We have seen schemes introduced in other parts of the country which have generated a lot of local civic pride and been an expression of local identity.

"But we have to be realistic in the sense that 90 per cent of
transactions these days are done electronically.

"There will be a big push during the next few years by the major phone networks and mobile phone companies to develop payment systems using chip or SIM.

"But we want to see a system developed which means that any phone can be used – it won't have to be a smart phone or one which is locked into an expensive contract."

He said the software system was currently being developed with funding from a charitable trust and with the aim of testing it out in Bristol later this year.

He said one of the main aims of the scheme was to protect independent traders and discussions were being held with them about the introduction of the Bristol Pound.

"We are hoping we can introduce the scheme next February," he said.

In order for the scheme to work, it needs to start with a critical mass of 300 traders and a minimum of 1,000 users.

Initially, it is expected that pockets of traders in areas such as Gloucester Road, Cotham Hill, Clifton Village, and North Street, Bedminster, will sign up.

But as it grows in popularity, then it could spread across the region.

Mr Mundy, 42, director of the charitable trust, Transition Network, said: "We have enormously long supply chains which are strongly influenced by the global economy which is fossil-fuel intensive.

"As the price of energy goes up, the supply chains suffer a knock-on effect because we are so locked into this global economy.

"But we, as individuals, feel powerless to do much about it except pay higher and higher prices.

"If we can make the local economy stronger, then we can protect and encourage local independent traders," said Mr Mundy.

"One of the ways we can do this and build resilience into the local economy is to introduce a locally-based currency because this helps to keep the generated wealth within the area.

"If you spend £10 in a supermarket, then eight of those ten pounds have gone out of the local economy because so few of the items on sale are sourced locally.

"If you spend your money in a local baker's for example and they source their supplies locally, then that helps to keep the wealth within the area."

The notes for the Bristol Pound have not yet been designed and there is bound to be a big debate on the most appropriate graphics to reflect the city's heritage and culture.

Whatever the design, they will include security features and are expected to be equivalent to sterling which means that if you use a £1 note to buy goods worth 69p, then the shopkeeper could give you 31p change in coins.

John Savage, chairman of the Bristol Chamber of Commerce and Initiative said: "I think it's an intriguing idea which has been tried elsewhere with some success and I think it would be great to give it a go.

"It's imaginative and innovative and therefore worth trying – if we don't do imaginative things, then nothing will happen."

Trader Marcus Wells who runs The Bread Store on Gloucester Road, said:
"I think the concept is fantastic – I think it is just a question of whether it takes off.

"I think one of the reasons why the Gloucester Road is so successful is due to the independent traders who are happy to help each other and this seems a great idea to help us be even more self-supporting.

"We have about 600-to 700 customers a day and more at the weekends so I'm a little worried that the different money might be a bit of a nightmare but I guess we could get used to that."

Paul Wick, who runs the Southville Deli in North Street, Bedminster, said: "In principle, it looks like a good idea but one of my concerns would be that if there was paper money as well as electronic payments, then I would not have enough room in my cash register for a different
currency."

For further information, visit the website, www.bristolpound.org.

http://www.southwestbusiness.co.uk/bristol/BANKING-BRISTOL-POUND/article-3627305-detail/article.html

I support wind energy

Unfortunately a recent scheme near the M4 did not get planning permission; but wind is part of a renewables future. Thanks to scared politicians from the LD and Tories, fraid of Nimbys. When (not Green) politicians wake up to the fact that renewables are the future we may get more wind farms.

The UK's annual festival of wind energy, Wind Week, is coming up on June 12th-19th. Energy from wind and other renewables is rapidly becoming part of everyday life, and we want to celebrate this fact, while giving as many people as possible the chance to see the beauty of wind turbines.

We're going to be putting up wind turbines in city centres across the UK - we've put a map on the website showing the ones that've been confirmed so far. Several wind farms across the country will be putting on special events - if you're in Glasgow, Whitelee Wind Farm's visitor centre will be worth a visit, or if you're closer to London, RES are holding events all week under their turbine at King's Langley. We'll be launching a brand new film about wind power, starring Embrace supporter - and national treasure - Bill Oddie.

But that's not all. We want to give you the opportunity to stand up and say, 'I support wind energy'. We've got DVDs of 'Oddie's Odyssey' if you want to arrange a showing, and a range of exciting speakers you can book to come and give a talk to local renewables supporters. On our site we've got materials for street stalls you can download, and we've got packs of information for kids if you're a teacher or parent.

If you'd like to organise your own Wind Week celebration, get in touch - either email adam@embracemyplanet.com or call 020 7901 3035 for more information. It's time for the silent majority of wind energy supporters to stand up and be counted!

Grow Heathrow

The transition movement is about changing the way we do things to a world with no oil. Transition deals with climate change and shrinking supplies of cheap energy (peak oil).

In Heathrow the local group has become active in protesting.

On March 1st 2010 Transition Heathrow members swooped on an abandoned market garden site in Sipson.

One year on and the site has been transformed from a derelict mess into a beacon of community strength and a great example of how to live sustainably on this planet.

The project aims to return the Berkeley Nurseries site back to it’s intended purpose – a thriving market garden that will provide our community with locally produced, organic fruit and veg as well as a venue for new and interesting projects and workshops…

The site is a hub for local residents and environmental activists to share knowledge and practical skills such as organic gardening, permaculture design, bicycle maintenance and wood and metal work.

Not only are we producing our own food, but we are now creating our own energy from the sun, we are collecting our own water from the greenhouse roofs to feed the plants, fruit and vegetables, we are using the rocket stove invention to heat our water and composting our own manure.

We welcome all ages, abilities and ideas so if you would like to get involved then please come and visit, just give us some warning on the site phone number: 07890751568 or at info@transitionheathrow.com and we will make sure the kettle is on for you.

City Status

LibLabservatives all support Readings bid to become a city. A recent vote on this issue saw all the big parties support this. The Greens are the only opposition on this and many areas. So much for the claim "Greens always vote with Labour".

We Greens support Reading and want to make it Greener so its ready for the future. Wasting time and money on this bid does little for the town. The status of some Cllrs and officials may be augmented but residents see it as irrelevant, some question whats in it for them.

Reading has attempted this before and lost, so chances are we may not win. Most Reading residents are indifferent, some think we are a city already. Thats partly due to a bus destination city centre, which is a bit silly of the bus company. Still if we win many signs and logos will need changing, this bus is perhaps future proof.

Looking at the fuss being made over the city status, most of the arguments in the local media seem to be taken from the website www.thecityofreading.com/2011/05/26/10-reasons-why-reading-should-be-a-city/

1 "Close links to Royalty, with Kate Middleton, now married to Prince William being born and lived in Reading." this argument is scraping the barrel, could be used also by her village near Newbury or indeed Windsor and is ridiculous.

2"One of the lowest unemployment rates in the whole of Europe and a high concentration of qskilled workers". So a good place to get work.

3"Largest urban area of the Thames Valley with a catchment area of over 1.7 Million people." People who dont live in Reading, many will commute to London and never even visit us so is it really relevant.

4 "Commercial Centre of the Thames Valley and recently voted in the Top 5 of the “Centre for Cities” in City Outlook and marked as a “City to watch”. Not a city yet so a bit suspicious why we were included.

5 "World Class Education Facilities with Reading University, which is a research intense University." Many a fine Uni is not in a city, so irrelevant and for those wanting to go to Maiden Erlegh school bit ironic.

6 "Location chosen by top International Brands such as Microsoft, Cisco, Oracle, and Logica CMG due to great transport links and a “Hub of Transport” in the South of England." Not to mention more Tescos than we need. But are theses comppanies here because we may be a city, no, so modtly irrelevant.

7 "Diverse Community and rich heritage and culture with Children in local schools speaking over 120 different languages." at last a reasonable argument, I dare say shared with many other bids.

8 "Home to top sporting teams such as Reading Football Club (The Royals), London Irish, Reading Hockey Club, Reading Rockets (Basketball) and also host to one of the biggest Music Festivals in the UK, The Reading Festival." smaller places have bigger festivals and sports so not really relevant.

9 "Investing heavily in the future and infrastructure with the £860 Million revamp of Reading Train Station, The construction of “Reading Gateway”, and many large Brownfield urban regeneration projects not forgetting the Oracle and Reading as the choice shopping destination in the region." True, though I am suspucious of some of these "brownfields". And we are a cenre for binge drinking, why dont they mention that also.

10 "Reading is the “Capital” of the Royal County of Berkshire, in which there is not 1 City at this time!" good point.

So dear Readers, cant we come up with better? How about the Museum, with a rare copy of the Bayeaux tapestry. Or the location of Jane Austens school. Where Oscar Wlde was in prison (which still exists). Near Roman Silchester. Or the Abbey ruins (closed) kings meadow baths (closed) both alowed to fall apart ta council. Home to the Madjeski academy? Hmmm.

A visit to smelly alley or the shop "but is it art?" will tell visitors all about the heart of Reading. Or that the bus station and tourist office were closed. Visitors coming by train have no informaion but there is a big pub. Priorities are questionable.

If we are awarded city status on merit thats ok, but I dont want to waste the time of council officials who should have far more imporant things to do. Especially in an issue of such indifference to residents. While services to the most vulnreable are being cut.