John Hemming's Web Log

Camden LBC, Hampstead Town LD Linda Chung 1242 (44.1; +11.5) Con 1114 (39.6; -6.9) Lab 289 (10.3; -1.0) Green 140 (5.0; -3.3) BNP 29 (1.0; +1.0) [Ind (0.0; -1.3)] Majority 128 Turnout 36.7% LD gain from Con Percentage change is since May 2006 Chiltern DC, Chalfont St Giles Con 927 (68.1; +0.6) LD Paul Meakin 434 (31.9; -0.6) Majority 493 Turnout 25.4% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2007 Greenwich LBC, Plumstead Lab 1318 (59.1; +12.4) Con 542 (24.3; +1.5) LD Leonie Barron 195 (8.7; -10.6) Green 175 (7.8; +7.8) [Ind (0.0; -11.2)] Majority 776 Turnout 21.5% Lab hold Percentage change is since May 2006 Stevenage BC, Pin Green Lab 716 (54.4; +6.9) Con 321 (24.4; -5.1) LD Gordon Knight 112 (8.5; -2.8) UKIP 85 (6.5; +6.5) Free England 81 (6.2; -5.4) Majority 395 Turnout not known Lab hold Percentage change is since May 2008 Swale BC, Minster Cliffs Con 549 (48.0; +1.6) Sheppey First 328 (28.7; +28.7) Lab 204 (17.8; +1.8) LD Dave Manning 63 (5.5; -25.9) [The official Monster Raving Lo...

The link is to Norman Lamont's article about the Government's Economic Policy. I always wondered why there was such a treasury constraint on the building of housing for rent through Social Landlords. I had this theory that it could be as a consequence of trying to push up house prices through scarcity of resource. In any event having a policy based upon equity withdrawal and ever increasing house prices to drive the economy was always unsustainable. We are now starting to have to deal with the consequences of this. The figures of 90-100bn for PSBR are very high indeed. I haven't yet seen a breakdown of this, but it would be interesting to see one. I shall try to post such a breakdown if I find one.

Glasgow City UA, Baillieston SNP 2318 (45.3, +12.1) Lab 2167 (42.3, -3.7) Con 259 (5.1,-1.4) LD David Jackson 159 (3.1,-0.7) BNP 73 (1.4,+1.4) SSP 58 (1.1,-5.6) Green 45 (0.9,-0.8) Ind 43 (0.8,-1.3) Turnout 22.7% SNP hold The election was held under the AV system and the winner was elected at the 9th stage. Percentage change are on 1st preferences since May 2007 when the ward elected 2 Labour and 2 SNP councillors. Leeds City MBC, Farnley and Wortley Green 1183 (27.1, -17.5) LD Rosie Spencer 1151 (26.3, +22.2) Lab 1009 (23.1, +1.1) BNP 556 (12.7,-1.1) Con 428 (9.8, -5.2) Ind 45 (1.0, -0.5) Majority 32 Turnout 24.8% Green hold Percentage change is since May 2008 Pembrokeshire UA, St Dogmaels Ind 496 (55.7, +17.4) LD Elfyn Rees 177 (19.9, -41.8) Ind 160 (18.0, -20.3) Con 57 (6.4, +6.4) Majority 319 Turnout 49.3% Ind gain from LD Percentage change is since May 2008 Rothwell TC, Trinity Con 477 (52.5%) Lab 373 (41.0%) LD Daniel Garside 59 (6.5%) Majority 104 Turnout 31.0% Conservative h...

When it comes to attempted coups within parties the standing orders are key. Generally things have been tightened up in all parties to make challenging the leader harder. It was recently explained to me, but I have not confirmed this, that Labour's standing orders effectively permit the Cabinet to remove the leader. Hence it would be surprising for any cabinet minister to call for this publicly (and be sacked) because they would then be unable to participate in the coup.

The link is to a Scottish Appeal about a case where someone took a child to England from Scotland and an English Family Court decided unlawfully to take jurisdiction. It is symptomatic of the way in which some English and Welsh Family Courts do not follow proper procedure and yet the system basically tolerates this. I have even seen a case where a couple were divorced without the husband being told. Note importantly in 6. Despite the length and complexity of those proceedings, it may be noted that there has never been any hearing in England in which evidence respecting the substantive issues concerning the welfare of the child has been heard. This is the Court of Appeal judgment from 2004

Guildford BC, Stoke LD Zoe Franklin 864 (56.0; +3.0) Con 410 (26.6; +7.6) Lab 211 (13.7; -14.4) UKIP 59 (3.8; +3.8) Majority 454 Turnout not known LD hold Percentage change is since May 2007 Harrogate BC, New Park LD Matthew Webber 843 (61.1; -14.2) Con 491 (35.6; +20.9) Lab 45 (3.3; +3.3) [UKIP (0.0; -3.6)] [BNP (0.0; -6.4)] Majority 352 Turnout 33.7% LD hold Percentage change is since May 2007 Redcar and Cleveland UA, Guisborough Con 1124 (55.9; +13.5) Lab 887 (44.1; -0.8) [LD (0.0; -12.7)] Majority 237 Turnout 34.4% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2007 Okehampton TC, East Town Con 452 (50.8) LD Jackie Reynolds 437 (49.2) Majority 15 Turnout 32.4% Con gain from Ind Stowmarket TC Con 330 (40.0) LD Nicky Turner 246 (29.8) Green 156 (18.9) Lab 93 (11.3) Majority 84 Turnout 13.5% Con hold

The government are now facing the consequences of a total free market in Energy. The difficulty lies in moving from a buyers market to a sellers market. Those people lucky enough to have stocks of fossil fuels make large sums of money through serendipity rather than inventiveness. I will be waiting to see the Winter Outlook reports before coming to any conclusions as to what might happen this winter. If, however, the weather is as cool compared to normal as it has been in August then we are likely to face supply challenges. However, recent winters have been quite warm so it may not be any difficulty.

The Kingsnorth verdict shows the need for juries. This prosecution was a vindictive prosectution about political campaigning. It is the second time Greenpeace have used the lawful excuse argument about a protest. I don't think it is a general permission to put graffiti all over the place or do real damage to a power station that stops it working (for example). However, it is a shot across the bows of an intolerant government.

I have linked to this case because it is an important case. I have not myself come to a view on it as yet.

The link is to the report on the Charities Commission website about the repayment of the Catz Club's £15,000. Much less money that Bernie Ecclestone's "loan" of £1m. From the report: Findings The Charity confirmed that it had issued a cheque for a general donation of £7,500 to the Labour Party. However, it explained that ‘the payment to the Labour Party was an administrative error’. The Charity had contacted the Labour Party who had agreed to reimburse the Charity’s donation. The Charity advised that the donation should have been made by the trading subsidiary, Catz Club Services Limited (“the trading subsidiary”). Our enquiries identified that Catz Club Services Limited was the Charity’s trading subsidiary company. The Commission made clear to the Charity that as the trading subsidiary was a charitable asset owned by the Charity, it was therefore not permissible for the trading subsidiary to make a donation to the Labour Party either. The Charity advised that in ...

I attended the Acocks Green Branch of Mecca Bingo today to launch their energy efficiency campaign. Together with Southern Electricity they are offering 2 energy efficient lightbulbs to everyone who turns up. Of the 2 million lightbulbs 10 win extra prizes of either a car or £1,000. Those lightbulbs are identified by the fact that they go green when plugged in.

Barrow in Furness BC, Newbarns Con 478 (52.3; +9.4) Lab 177 (19.4; -1.7) Peoples Party (Furness) 155 (17.0; +17.0) BNP 104 (11.4; +11.4) [Ind (0.0; -36.0)] Majority 301 Turnout 21.9% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2008 Harborough DC, Broughton Astley – Broughton Conservative elected unopposed Con hold [Result in May 2007 – Con 447 (65.3) Ind 238 (34.7)] Havant DC, Waterloo Con 849 (48.7; -21.5) LD Fred Dunford 801 (45.9; +26.6) Lab 95 (5.4; -5.1) Majority 48 Turnout 23.2% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2008 Melton BC, Melton Egerton Lab 314 (43.2; -4.8) BNP 236 (32.5; +4.5) Con 177 (24.3; +0.3) Majority 78 Turnout 26.3% Lab hold Percentage change is since May 2007 Stocksbridge TC, East Con 422 (46.7) LD Keith Davis 369 (40.9) Lab 112 (12.4) Majority 53 Turnout 30.0% Con gain from Ind Further Result from Thursday 28-8-08 Crewkerne TC, LD Robin Pailthorpe 1317 (59.7) Con 814 (36.9) Lab 75 (3.4) Majority 503 Turnout 38.6% LD hold

The link gives the detailed spreadsheet for the years 2004 to 2006. Remember that it takes some time for a child to have a destination hence the figures in each destination as a proportion of the whole grow year by year (and the numbers "in care" reduce).

I have linked to the story about Sam Thomas in the Daily Mail. http://fightingmonsters.wordpress.com/ is a web log written by a Social Worker who comments on this issue. Pregnant Sam Thomas emigrated to Ireland a couple of weeks ago because she and her mother (Carol Hughes) were concerned that the local authority (in this case Somerset) were set on taking the newborn baby into care and that this would be likely to result in the baby being given to another family and them banned from seeing it again. It is worth looking at a few facts in respect of this case. At the time Sam emigrated there had not been a case conference. However, one was held on Monday (1/9) which resulted in a decision by the local authority that the unborn baby should be placed on the child protection register. This means that the LA believe that the baby faces a "risk of significant harm". This implies that they will initiate care proceedings when the baby is born. There is then the question as to what th...

Annesley and Felley PC, Annesley LD Rachel Madden 168 (72.7) Ind 63 (27.3) Majority 105 Turnout 24.2% LD gain from Ind Camborne TC, Camborne South Con 304 (29.9) Mebyon Kernow 289 (28.4) LD 263 (25.9) Lab 161 (15.8) Majority 15 Turnout 19.4% Con gain from LD Rotherham MBC, Wickersley Lab 871 (31.1; -4.8) Con 824 (29.5; -9.4) BNP 538 (19.2; +19.2) UKIP 373 (13.3; -11.9) LD Steven Scutt 191 (6.8; +6.8) Majority 47 Turnout 30.0% Lab hold Percentage change is since May 2008 Shrewsbury and Atcham BC, PimHill Con 341 (45.6; -34.9) LD Helen Woodman 331 (44.3; +44.3) BNP 59 (7.9; +7.9) Independent Anti Incinerator Candidate 16 (2.1; +2.1) [Lab (0.0; -19.4)] Majority 10 Turnout 46.5% Con hold Percentage change is since May 2007

The links is to a good article on Community Care where a GP argues: There is no parallel between being underfed and overfed Obesity cannot be connected with child abuse According to David Rogers, public health spokesperson for the Local Government Association, "parents who allow their children to eat too much could be as guilty of neglect as those who did not feed their children at all". The LGA's conviction that overweight children should become the subject of child protection procedures was reported under the headline "Fat children 'should be taken from parents' to curb obesity epidemic" (The Times, 16 August). I first encountered this facile presentation of obesity as a form of child abuse at a case conference about a teenage girl some years ago. Social workers accepted that her parents were devoted and there was no hint of neglect. Nevertheless, they cited a case in the US in which authorities had been blamed for the death of a morbidly obese young w...

Melksham TC, Melksham Spa LD Jon Hubbard 713 (51.4) Con 562 (40.5) Lab 112 (8.1) Majority 151 Turnout 29.6% LD gain from Con

Rhondda Cynon Taff UA, Cilfynydd Lab 331 (43.5; +5.0) LD Stephen Powell 252 (33.1; -19.8) Ind 85 (11.2; +11.2) PC 67 (8.8; +0.2) Green 14 (1.8; +1.8) Con 12 (1.6; +1.6) Majority 79 Turnout 35.5% Lab gain from LD Percentage change is since May 2008

During the recess I have an opportunity to deal with things that I don't have time for whilst the House is sitting. This includes going to meetings in the Constituency and visiting constituents to look at issues that I cannot see otherwise. I am also spending time on upgrading my casework computer system. I run a form of CRM that I have written myself in Java running on the JDatastore SQL server. Over the past few weeks I have had a real struggle trying to get JSP pages to work on Tomcat 6.0. I have found some interesting errors in the way in which Eclipse (the programming environment) creates the server.xml configuration page. It creates it with an incompatible parameter in the CONTEXT section which has to have the source parameter removed, but at the same time then the directory it looks for is not webapps, the wtfwebapps hence the parameter needs to be changed on the basis of ..\wftwebabbs\(application) The system still fails to properly initialise jasper and cannot find javax.s...

From yesterday's telegraph (see link): In his most outspoken criticism of the Jersey authorities, Mr Harper told the Telegraph: "I can quite clearly say that the investigation is being held up. There are people on the island who just don't want us going down the route of this inquiry"