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Will PCSOs Throughout Cambridge Wear Video Cameras?
Earlier this evening I attended Cambridge’s South Area Committee in the British Legion Hall on Fisher Lane in Cherry Hinton. When the police attend area committee meetings the public are able to ask questions and make suggestions before councillors set the local policing priorities. I think this local democratic influence over policing is fantastic, but […]
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Should Lone Parents of Under 5s Have Their Benefits Cut if they Don’t Attend Government Courses?
A couple of days ago I started a thread on the discussion site Mumsnet. I had been following a debate in parliament which had cumulated in Labour MPs voting to cut the benefits of lone parents of under 5s who won’t attend government run “back to work” courses. My post was removed from the site, […]
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Keeping Marshall Flying at Cambridge – A Walk Around the Airport
More than 50 People Joined a Walk Around Marshall Airport in Cambridge on the 15th of November to Express Support for the Company Continuing to Fly from the Airport. On Sunday the 15th of November I joined a group of over fifty people who walked around Marshall Airport in Cambridge to show support for the […]
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Looking at How MPs Vote
In an effort to get a clearer picture of what MPs are doing in Parliament I have created an interactive table showing votes where parties have abstained and votes which have split parties. (Image:MONET) I’ve created an interactive table showing all House of Commons votes since the last general election. Using this it is possible to […]
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Cambridge Parliamentary Hustings Focusing on Growth
Top: Richard Normington, Daniel Zeichner. Bottom: Tony Juniper, Ian Nimmo-Smith. On the evening of Friday the 23rd of October I attended a hustings for prospective Cambridge Parliamentary Candidates run by the Federation of Cambridge Residents Associations with the cooperation of Cambridge Past Present and Future. The event focused on the subject of planned growth, particularly […]
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Cambridge City Council Harassing Students for Council Tax
Given the importance of research students to the City of Cambridge it is astonishing that the City Council has recently increased the level of harassment to which they subject those working towards a PhD. The council is sending council tax bills to research students. This has been a problem for many years, but in the […]
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Explosion of Complexity and Bureaucracy As City Council Introduces CCTV Policy
Some residents of Martingale Close in Arbury Were Surprised when Cambridge City Council Deployed CCTV Cameras Outside Their Windows. At Cambridge City Council’s Strategy and Resources Committee on Monday the 12th of October councillors will consider adopting their first “corporate and unified” CCTV policy. I have been actively encouraging Cambridge City Council to improve the […]
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No Councillors or Council Officers Turn Up for Public Meeting on Tree Strategy
This year a large number of trees have been felled by the City Council in Cambridge. There are no long term plans for tree planting on the city’s green spaces. On the evening of the first of October I turned up at Parkside Pools for a City Council public meeting to discuss the tree strategy […]
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Secrecy Surrounding Contract to Sort Cambridge’s Recycling in Peterborough
New blue bins for mixed recycling are to be distributed in Cambridge next month. Details of the city’s contract for dealing with the recycling have not been made public. On the morning of the 6th of October 2009 I attended Cambridge City Council’s Environment Scrutiny Committee. I used the opportunity for members of the public […]