It has been too little noticed that one of the three Chiltern Hundreds is Burnham.
Paul Evans
@courtenayilbert.bsky.social
Retired Clerk in House of Commons, continuing as a parliamentary nerd; Victorian by nature; books and buildings biggest passions. Lives in and cares about Wales.
This is so true. Every organised thing needs a margin to deal with the unexpected. I would say that most complex organisations should run at no more than 85% of capacity in normal conditions (armies obviously need to aim for about 15%). Getting rid of that margin isn't clever - it's easy and stupid.
Frank Witte 🇪🇺 🇳🇱 🇩🇪 🇨🇵@alarcos.bsky.social · 2mo agoThe problem were not the global supply chains, the problem were *and are* CEOs viewing system redundancy as wasted money and easy targets for 'cost-cutting' with a bill likely to only emerge after they went on to their next position 🤷
🇬🇧 British Political Spectrum Quiz My result: Democratic Socialist Economic: collectivist Social: centrist Sovereignty: cosmopolitan Military: leaning anti-interventionist Authority: centrist Constitutional: leaning reformist Take the quiz: quiz.jmoxley.co.uk
British Political Spectrum Quiz
Find out where you sit on the British political map across six dimensions.
quiz.jmoxley.co.uk
With all this about Mandelson's vetting I feel an urge to tell a story of my own. One of my best friends (long since dead sadly) was offered a post in John Major's private office when he was Chancellor. One evening in the Red Lion on Whitehall he told me he had put me down as a referee for DV.
Just completed the DCMC BBC charter review survey. It's not exactly quick work but it is a labour of love and I would encourage others to give it a go before the closing date on Tuesday. www.gov.uk/government/c...
Britain’s Story: The Next Chapter - the BBC Royal Charter Review, Green Paper and public consultation
The government is consulting the public to aid decision-making on the terms for the BBC Charter’s renewal and any changes needed to help the BBC to continue to serve the public.
gov.uk
Can the House of Commons handle multi-party politics? Earlier this week we were joined by @elliechowns.bsky.social, @courtenayilbert.bsky.social and @louisevthompson.bsky.social to discuss smaller parties in the Commons. Listen to a recording 👉 linktr.ee/constitution.... Or watch a recording 👇
Can the House of Commons handle multi-party politics?
The 2024 election delivered an unusually fragmented opposition; almost half the non-government seats in the House of Commons were won by parties other than the Conservative 'Official Opposition'.…
youtube.com
Does the House of Commons need to change to reflect a more fragmented politics? In one hour, join @elliechowns.bsky.social, @courtenayilbert.bsky.social and @louisevthompson.bsky.social to discuss smaller parties in the Commons at our free, online event. Sign up 👉 www.ucl.ac.uk/social-histo....
There is, to my mind, no justification for the continued use by the UK Government of X as a platform for official comms. There hasn't been for some time, in fact, but if the latest developments around AI-generated image abuse and CSAM don't change the policy I really don't know what will.
Maggie Harrison Dupré@mharrisondupre.bsky.social · 7mo agoNEW: People are using Elon Musk's chatbot, Grok, to alter images to depict real women being sexually abused, humiliated, hurt, and even killed. futurism.com/future-socie...
A lonely, confused, slightly depressed, socially inadequate, Norwegian fisherman. Suits quite well.
Nick Harkaway@nickharkaway.com · 7mo agoSoooo I’m an interdimensional warlock-ninja. Or a consulting detective, if we’re counting short stories.
A more assertive and exciting report from the Commons Backbench Business Committee than I was anticipating, published yesterday. Longer thread from the UCL Constitution Unit below. (One slight correction - it describes me as the first Clerk of BBCom - I was in fact the second.)
UCL Constitution Unit@conunitucl.bsky.social · 8mo agoThe House of Commons Backbench Business Committee has today published a 15th anniversary report about its work and options for reform. The report extensively cites Meg Russell and @hannahkelly.bsky.social's submission. Read the report 👉 publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cm....
Further to my earlier response to this post, I today stumbled across the Report of the 2013 report of the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt201314/.... At paras 258-265 it discusses the very matter of MPs and witness summons./2
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Legal C@legalclaret.bsky.social · 9mo agoThree comments on this case: 1. Why does the Standard feel it necessary to refer to the defendant’s gender, which is irrelevant to the charge. 2. How was a summons issued in the County Court? 3. What possible power does the Speaker have to intervene? www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/c...
thecritic.co.uk/peers-have-n...
Peers have no duty to vote for assisted dying | Fleur Elizabeth Meston | The Critic Magazine
Ellie Ball, Director of Communications at Dignity in Dying and Compassion in Dying, posted on X recently that “The Lords has an important duty to scrutinise, but it also has a constitutional duty to…
thecritic.co.uk
It melts my head that X is still used for official Government communications, and, catching up on today's news and the fact we have a foreign billionaire inciting violence on our streets, it's clearer than ever that this should end. I raised this in Parliament last week 👇
First conkers of 2025 - picked up in the bucolic surroundings of Heston M4 Services (Westbound since you ask). Autumn has definitely arrived. I love conkers - one of the greatest beauties in nature.
Miller2 being a fine example of the Burkean constitutional model. UKSC, rightly dismissing the idea that prorogation was a proceeding of Parliament, noting that it was an unrestricted executive power, thwarted it, handing the reins back to Parliament which, unused to exercising any power, bungled it
The Empty City@davidallengreen.bsky.social · 11mo agoConsidered and informative the thread on the history of parliamentary sovereignty, from Professor @robertsaunders.bsky.social
One can only congratulate the institute for Government for being willing to explore some of the most obscure corners of parliamentary procedure - in this case hybrid bill procedure. Surprisingly (to me) they are quite positive about it.
Hannah White@drhannahwhite.bsky.social · last yr.How can government legislate better to deliver major infrastructure projects? Fantastic new paper from @instituteforgovernment.org.uk on how to improve the little-known hybrid bill procedure! www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/...
Had strange vision today of London deserted by climate change refugees (population of Scotland quadrupled) and public transport having become economically unviable so all those tunnels adapted to cycleways which intrepid tourists used to visit ruins of the Houses of Parliament, St James Desert, etc.
So Bluesky is supposed to be "nice", but here is a supposedly respected contributor shamelessly trolling ordinary decent people who grew up in the 50s to 70s when 22 degrees was regarded as quite adequate for what we humorously called Flaming June. I wonder if they're a foreigner - or worse, young?
Marie Le Conte@youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com · last yr.ok do NOT shout at me but the weather right now in London is maybe my personal ideal weather, it's exactly right, I'm so happy
Possibly the first appearance of an iPad in English art - Tirzah Garwood (currently to be seen at Dulwich Picture Gallery).
1 Has any competent, Marxist-tinged cultural historian written a history of Eurovision? In my lifetime (to show you how old I am I'm still in love with Sandie Shaw) it seems to have passed through a number of distinct phases, and I wonder what this might tell us about the wider zeitgeist. /2
I hope the conference will look at the work of the Joint Committee on Human Rights. So I'm posting this to encourage former legal advisers, members and clerks to consider submitting something.
Colin Murray@colinmurray.bsky.social · last yr.New call for papers for a conference on the impact of the Human Rights Act across multiple areas of law after 25 years in effect. Conference being put together by @echrhawk.bsky.social and @lewisgrahamlaw.bsky.social at @lawatleeds.bsky.social this September:
An alarming proportion of people who follow me will be thrilled that the House of commons Procedure Committee has arrived on Bluesky. Let's hope this presages the arrival of many more select committees. If you follow one in particular, pile the pressure on for them to escape the cesspit of X.
House of Commons Procedure Committee@commonsproccom.parliament.uk · last yr.Today the Committee will hear from the following witnesses for our inquiry into the status of independent MPs: ➡️ @shockatadam.bsky.social ➡️ Iqbal Mohamed MP ➡️ @johnmcdonnellmp.bsky.social ➡️ @ianbyrnemp.bsky.social Watch live from 3pm: parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/...
For a long time I thought David Lynch and David Byrne were the same person.
Why all this talk of the DUP *pulling* the Stormont Brake? Surely you *hit* the brake(s). Unless, of course, you are a joyrider performing a handbrake turn in an empty car park.
I saw something somewhere recently showing that people thought MPs pay and Parliament was the second largest area of public spending. Can anyone tell me where this might have been?