In the heart of the EU: sickles, hacks and hatred

From Hungary comes news of a local councillor urging council colleagues to take up "sickles and hacks" and "cleanse" the local synagogue (http://www.juedische.at/TCgi/_v2/TCgi.cgi?target=home&Param_Kat=3&Param_RB=9&Param_Red=11300). And if I was blogging every time I saw a story like this, we'd all be here all day. The same newspaper that first alerted me to this story carried, on the same page, a story about a Jewish family having to flee Yemen after a grenade was thrown into its home. We live in interesting (if under-reported) times, and I'm not sure if everyone realises just how interesting they unfortunately are.

Disappointed with First Great Western

I have a Zones 1-5 Monthly Travelcard on my Oyster, for which I pay £169 a month. So when I travel to Swindon from London Paddington on Thursday, I will only need to pay for my journey from Boundary Zone Five - a substantial saving. At Paddington on Thursday, I shall simply ask for a cheap day return from Boundary Zone Five to Swindon, and will be served immediately, as a matter of routine. But when I tried just now to find out in advance on the phone how much this ticket will cost me, neither National Rail Enquiries nor First Great Western could tell me, nor could they sell me a ticket from Boundary Zone Five to Swindon. Given that I could easily buy this ticket at a railway station, it is disgraceful that I cannot even find out what it costs on the phone. Come on First Great Western, upgrade your computers to include information on ALL available journeys. I asked the First Great Western person to whom I spoke (who was very pleasant and professional) for a number for their press office, so that I could warn them about this blog and seek a quote. She advised me to call 01793499400 and "ask for head office" if I wanted the press office. So I rang that number and, today at least, it gave me no option to speak to anyone or even to leave a message - it just invited me to call either Customer Services or National Rail Enquiries, both of which I had already called! Does FGW not have a press office? Perhaps someone from the company would like to respond to this post? Or perhaps I will have more luck if I pursue this matter through my local Tory MP, who just happens to be the Shadow Transport Secretary?

BBC DEC row: confusions and contradictions

I am a passionate supporter of the BBC and its editorial independence. I strongly resent any row in which shouty people try to force the BBC to change an editorial decision. The price we pay for the BBC's neutrality is that it sometimes makes decisions with which one disagrees - and nobody should seek to shout those decisions down, however unpalatable they may sometimes be. The BBC's decision not to show the DEC Appeal is the BBC's decision and the BBC's decision alone. It is ironic that the very people (including Government ministers!) who are now insisting that the BBC change its mind are accusing other people of having bullied the BBC! Pot, kettle, etc. I suggest that the DEC could produce a Gaza appeal which is in line with the BBC's editorial policy and rules on impartiality. The Red Cross, a constituent body of the DEC, is raising funds for Palestinian AND Israeli civilians affected by this conflict. For example, at time of writing, if you text LIFE to 81400, it will cost you £1.50, most of which will be split equally between a hospital in Gaza and a hospital in Israel. Israel too has had its wounded, and the emergency medical service Magen David Adom (which gets no govenment funding) has faced greatly increased costs as a result of Hamas' rocket attacks (and Magen David Adom has opened a field hospital for wounded Palestinians in Gaza, with an emergency room and four ambulances to take patients to Israeli hospitals). Surely DEC could produce an appeal, based on the Red Cross's work, that the BBC would consider impartial and so be able to broadcast? Of course, the immense suffering of Palestinian people in this latest Gaza conflict far outweighs that of Israelis (which has still been considerable). It is vital to get aid into Gaza and I applaud British charities' work there. If the BBC does decide to show the DEC Appeal after all, then I will not be opposed to that. What I oppose is bullying of the BBC by politicians and others who insist that the BBC MUST show this appeal - hands off the BBC! Especially you Government Ministers, Messrs Bradshaw and Alexander. A final thought: a recent poll (http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/pollresults.htm if you scroll down to the questions about Gaza) of UK public opinion shows that 24% of people blame Hamas for the Gaza War, 18% blame Israel and 58% blame both sides equally or are not sure who to blame. That 58% do not go on demonstrations or shout angrily at the BBC. But they do pay their licence fee and expect the BBC to be an utterly impartial guide to the deeply complicated politics of Israel, Palestine and the wider Middle East.

Thank you

I would like to thank the 75 people who gave me their first preference votes for their support in this selection campaign (thanks also to anyone who gave me one of their other preferences). There was a cluster of people who got between 54 and 81 first preferences, ranging from me as runner-up to the people who were selected in fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth place on the list. So my 75 first preferences was not unrespectable, although I would naturally have been pleased to have been elected on to the list rather than being runner up. Congratulations to those who did make it as I am sure that we now have an excellent list of candidates. I greatly enjoyed this selection campaign, a positive experience from which I have learnt a lot. I am very grateful for the positive feedback that I received from party members throughout this process and I look forward to continued activism as a Liberal Democrat, including in support of the European election campaign for which these candidates have been selected.

Deadline extended!

The party has granted extra time for members to vote in the London and European selection ballots, because of the lingering effects of the postal dispute. The deadline for return of ballot papers is now 12 noon on Friday 9 November. Please vote if you have not already done so, and please give me your first preference. The extension is great news as it gives me more time to get out and about meeting members and discussing the issues in this selection, which I have really been enjoying doing. And now it looks like we have one, if not two, London council by-election campaigns to help in as well. Should be fun.

Wine, questions and Europe

Two highlights of Thursday, as the European selection campaign continues (please give me your first preference vote if you have not already done so!). One was Kensington & Chelsea's very enjoyable Quiz, at which my team was narrowly beaten (alright, we came third...), but at which I won a decent-looking bottle of red wine in the raffle! The other highlight was a very friendly email from one London councillor asking me to summarise what I think the EU can mean for young people. Here is my answer: the EU has prevented the outbreak of a European war of the sort that wrecked the lives of our parents and grandparents in 1914 and 1939. It is the world's largest economy and our being part of it makes our economy more competitive, meaning lower prices, cheaper mortgages and more jobs. The EU is an example of the sort of co-operation between countries that the world needs today, especially as the environment does not respect national borders. It is through the EU that we can best tackle environmental crises like global warming - working together with our fellow EU countries and packing far more punch together than we ever would alone.

Good news from Poland

Poland's centre-right Civic Platform party appears to have won enough seats to lead a coalition following the country's General Election. This is good news, as it spells defeat for the governing, conservative Law and Justice Party, whose policies are bad news for Poland and the EU. The media are exaggerating when they call Civic Platform "Poland's 'liberal' opposition party", but they are still much better than Law and Justice. It will be interesting to see how Poland's Democratic Party, social liberals who sit with us in the European Parliament, have done, once all the votes are counted.