Cllr Owen Burbidge 🔶
@oburbidge.bsky.social
Scientist, Husband, Parent to Crumble the Romanian rescue. Lib Dem councillor for West Fenham, Newcastle upon Tyne 🔶🏳️🌈 he/him
“In London cyclists now outnumber cars in the City by 2 to 1. Paris, where they now outnumber motorists across the whole city, is catching up with Europe’s traditional bike capitals, Amsterdam & Copenhagen…In Copenhagen, bikes account for almost half of commuter trips to work/school.” @economist.com
Forget EVs. Cycling is revolutionising transport
Pedal power is booming, spinning up a new culture war
economist.com
I feel for our trans and non-binary community as the Gov brings into force the EHRC Code of Practice - a discriminatory, dangerous and flawed piece of guidance. Taking the EA and interpreting it in a way that gives licence for people to harass, intimidate or hurt. Funded by RW money to divide.
There’s “off the charts” and there’s France’s absolutely bonkers June & July 2026 temperatures (see black line below). Bad things are happening. Fast.
Oh god
Kees van der Leun@sustainable2050.bsky.social · 4d agoThis El Niño is set to be the largest on record by a ‘mind-blowing margin’ Forecasters predict that the monster climate pattern will combine with global warming to push global temperatures in 2027 to new heights. www.nature.com/articles/d41...
I think Crumble is exhausted after Parkrun this morning.
Parkrun done, this time with my weekend sidekick! 27.02 isn’t too bad with a dog that isn’t yours!
‘Man of the people’ Farage is channeling populism to not only poison our politics and wreck the fabric of society through his divisive politics. But behind it this is lining his own pockets and those around him. I hope the law holds him and others properly accountable.
Graham Simpson@grahambs.bsky.social · 5d agoFarage’s £5m gift, the Cottrell family’s links and donations, and Richard Tice’s business dealings form part of an increasingly clear nexus of relationships. - They are in it for the money! www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Let's talk about mayors - a 🧵 Burnham wants to give mayors across the country substantially more powers, money and responsibility. He's looking to roll out "Greater Manchester Plus" (my phrase) across England within three years. That's very fast, and very good. It needs to be done. 1/X
The gay audacity has hit me hard tonight. I’ve been researching how difficult and how much it would cost me to repoint the house in lime mortar 😬😬😬
Green gazpacho with crab and walnuts was probably one of the nicest soups I have had in a long time. Would highly recommend. www.independent.co.uk/life-style/f...
Too hot to cook? These chilled gazpacho recipes are built for a heatwave
As Britain swelters through another heatwave, Hannah Twiggs shares three chilled gazpacho recipes – from roasted vegetables to crab and cherries – that prove cold soup is the smartest thing you can ma...
independent.co.uk
Two years since Crumble came into our lives having been rescued from the streets of Romania. 🥺🥺🥺
Implementing passivehaus standards as the minimum would reduce the heating/cooling load on the house to begin with. If we then did need additional mechanical cooling, A2A heatpumps would be the logic.
We have had rain!!! Not enough by far but at least the soil is looking slightly wet.
Imagine if the rest of the country got this type of public transport. 😢
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan@london.gov.uk · 2w agoWeekend Hopper has landed! Unlimited bus and tram journeys every Saturday and Sunday for the price of a single fare per day. ️ To celebrate, we've given a selection of buses a froggy makeover. Keep your eyes peeled along these routes for a chance to spot one ⬇️
Over 150,000 came out in full force for London Trans+ Pride to say loud and clear: Trans rights are human rights 💖
Just as Pride in Newcastle wraps up. My heart is broken. Where there should be pride, instead this is replaced by grief and trauma. This is the reality LGBTQ+ people still face. Even during our moments of visibility and solidarity, we are still targets. 😢 www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
Berlin Pride march called off after car crashes into crowd of people near route
Christopher Street Day event cancelled following incident that left several people injured
theguardian.com
Under a Binface government, anyone who doesn’t accept human-made climate change as fact will be sent back to school, from Year 1 right the way to A Levels, to see if anything goes in the second time round. #VoteBinface
Fake passports. A money laundering conviction. A mystery casino fortune in Montenegro... There's yet more revelations about who Farage chooses to surround himself with. Let’s start with George Cottrell. A man Farage describes as "like a son," and his former chief of staff 👇
England's dry weather is intensifying, acc new gov data 🧵 ⬇️ Rainfall so far in July is just 3% of long-term average ⬇️River flows are falling ⬇️ Reservoirs are shrinking ⬇️ Soils are at record dryness levels for this time of year across large parts of country
A very sobering watch of the National Emergency Briefing this evening. We have to go harder and faster at tackling climate change. Thank you for @iamnicksimpson.bsky.social, @alistaircford.bsky.social and @space4gosforth.bsky.social for organising and hosting.
I know loads of you know this already but it’s SO MUCH COOLER under trees. Cities should be half forest FFS
I dread to think how many microfibres will be generated through use and upkeep 😬 Then what the overall environmental impact of this is in comparison to standard grass turf.
The Dutch equivalent of Cass, (except it’s a proper scientific review not pseudoscientific drivel like Cass) has wholeheartedly endorsed puberty-blockers and full gender affirming care for young trans people.
Landmark Official Dutch Review Recommends Trans Youth Care, Call For Expanding Treatment
The review finds that wait times must be shortened, that few people detransition, and that trans youth care has enormous benefits.
erininthemorning.com
Proportional representation anyone?
James Ball@jamesrball.com · 3w agoAndy Burnham is going directly against the 2024 Labour manifesto by doing this (as the BBC correctly and prominently notes). That opens a door that his team have tried hard to keep shut. If he can go against the manifesto for *this*, he will hear, why not for other issues?
Newcastle City Council announced investment in grass cutting, potholes, bulky waste collection and youth services amongst other things! 💪 #LiberalDemocrats new.newcastle.gov.uk/news/2026/cl...
