Badger cull must be opposed

Updated 6th June 2010 - see bottom of this blog

The Citizen report that the LibCon Government plan to cull badgers in Gloucestershire - this is despite all the evidence showing this will not reduce Tb in cattle in the long term.

Copyright photo: Badger by Tony Evans Nature Picture Library reproduced with permission from Stop War on Badgers

Indeed it was a ten year study that cost an amazing £34m and killed 12,000 badgers that concluded in 2008 that culling simply would not work as a method of controlling Tb. That research showed that not all badgers would be caught in the cull, and the ones which escaped would wander around and spread the disease even more. I have to say I'm not totally convinced by that research but have not seen any evidence to challenge this meaningfully.

As Professor John Bourne, chair of the Independent Scientific Group, said, culling has no part to play in controlling Tb. Labour were at least brave enough to join the Green party and stand by the science and oppose a cull, but still have done too little to tackle Tb.

Over the last few years I have spoken with a number of farmers - some for (like the NFU) and some against a cull - certainly more seem to be for - See local farmer Len Ballingers story here - he was a local farmer whose cattle were the first in Britain to be linked to the theory that bovine tuberculosis comes from badgers and he has since rubbished the connection – and declared his land a "no-kill zone".

Vets also seem to be in favour of a cull and I had a very useful conversations with a local vet and an old school friend who is a vet who works with cattle - their arguments cannot be dismissed lightly but nevertheless I am not convinced that culling will do anything in the longer term.

Pics: campaign in 2006 with me dressed as the badger - see here - and below with kind permission from the artist to reproduce here

I have found very interesting the work of Martin Hancox - a Stroud resident who has devoted much of his life to this topic - see his website here - he raises a useful question - after all this time it is still unclear how badgers are supposed to give cows a respiratory lung infection...it is much easier to see how badgers catch TB FROM cows! Indeed following the label 'badgers' below you will see some previous posts with his questions and research but his website is perhaps the best place to start.

This week there will be a meeting of the local badger group - it is an evening I can't go but hope to feed back on any info about next steps.

Tb is a huge problem

We should in no way underestimate the vast impact it has on our already beleaguered farming communities. Some 40,000 cattle are lost every year and millions of ££££s spent. But culling will not help - even with the complete extermination of our native badgers. As Brian May of Queen (who was in Stroud campaigning with David Drew) said "This is a tragic wrong turn."

Instead we need better testing, better targeted restrictions of cattle movements and more work on vaccinations. This needs action now - for too long have farmers been left to carry the can. See SW Green party news release here.

Lastly see here a video on the attempts to cull badgers in Wales - there the courts decided the cull could go ahead - not based on scientific evidence but rather that it legally could go ahead. Is this a taste of what we will see in Gloucestershire?

Update 6th June 2010

Fi Macmillan wrote a letter on this to the local papers which prompted this reply from the local Badger group:

To the Editor

With regard to Fi Macmillan’s letter on badgers Stroud Life, June 2nd, I was shocked to read a Green councilor repeating the theory that, during culls, escaping badgers ‘spread the disease even more’.

It’s time people stopped repeating this DEFRA idea, and realised that very few badgers actually have contagious TB. The theory may have served to delay culling in the past, but unfortunately it implies that TB is rife in badgers and they spread it wherever they go.

During the 1998 Krebs trials when 11,000 badgers were killed, only 166 were found to have had advanced lesions which MIGHT have been a risk to cattle, though how infection is supposed to take place when TB occurs in the lung in cows, and in the gut in badgers has never been explained.

Actually, MAFF(DEFRA) admitted in 1982 that it was easier to explain how cattle pass TB to badgers than how badgers could give cows a respiratory lung infection. And at a consultative panel meeting in 1992, MAFF’s John Wilesmith said that if badger to cattle transfer happens at all, it’s such a rare event as to be little practical relevance.

I’m indebted to Martin Hancox,BSc and BSc Hons Natal BA and MA Oxon,a lone voice of sanity on badgers and bovine TB for many years, for providing much of the above information. See www.badgersandtb.co.uk

Yours faithfully, Tony Meeuwissen

While I fully understand this view and indeed have called for more investigations it is hard to counter a £34m study results - yes I would agree the results do appear flawed if we accept that badegrs don't have such a role to play - but all main opposition groups including the Badger Trust are quoting this study as a key part of the evidence against a cull. As the only party that has always been against a cull it would have been useful to at least challenge the other parties views?

Living Churchyards

Updated 8th June 2010

At the Parish Plan morning in Whiteshill last month I learnt more about a national project to create 'Living Churchyards.' I have written on this blog about the threats to our wildlife from a whole range of factors like industrial farming practices, the relentless growth of urban developments and more - see most recently my blog on International Biodiversity Day here. Well here is a project that is trying to create more oasis of wildlife....

Photos: St Pauls Churchyard, Whiteshill - what a wonderful place of wildlife and beauty - so many cowslips and orchids on their way...

Churchyards have become in some ares the only protected eco-systems where remnants of the local flora and fauna can survive. The ‘Living Churchyards’ project has been described as not so much a vision of the dead rising up as the dead providing sanctuary for species whose living space had been cut back.

I understand more than 6,000 British churchyards run their small plots of land as sacred eco-systems – without pesticides, and mowing the grass only once a year – ensuring that birds, reptiles, insects and bats can thrive. In Stroud for example there is a particular scheme with the Global Bee Project to protect an earth bank where solitary bees regularly nest.

I was interested to hear that some local people were looking at how we can enhance still further our local churchyards. Already St Pauls in Whiteshill do a great job but what else could be done? We recently had a meeting of the new allotment association and we had Jessie Jowers from the Global Bee Project share some of her enthusiasm about solitary bees - well I am sure we could do lots more in our churchyards. I am hoping that perhaps the Parish Plan work might lead to a local group that can take forward such ideas - already living in our valley we have a surprisingly huge number of wildlife experts.....but it isn't always the experts we need! Anyone interested do get in touch with me....

See also my previous blogs regarding yew trees in churchyards - in particular the fantastic Portbury Yew here. I also learnt here that a project in 1999 took cuttings from Yew trees that were alive at the time of Christ and planted them for the new Millennium - more than 8,000 were distributed to churches!

Another interesting site with info is Caring for God's Acre which works primarily in Herefordshire, but can provide information that is relevant to locations throughout the UK. Lastly an article here by David manning on living churchyards.

Updated 8th June 2010

I have just heard from The Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) who picked up my link above to their website - here is their comment: "Many people come to our website (www.arcworld.org) after having searched the web for the term “Living Churchyards”, probably because our website is one of the first that appears on Google when this phrase is typed. However the information we have is not as up-to-date as we would like it to be, and does not as yet include links to all of the wonderful activities already being done under the Living Churchyards umbrella. It is a project that ARC is very fond of and that we have supported in the past. We would now like to support it further by creating on our website a brand new page on Living Churchyards that will act as a platform for those seeking to know more; as a hub of information/ contact details/ stories/ links and resources for those who wish to get involved or learn more. To give an example of one enquiry, I recently received a phone call from a photographer asking for a list of Living Churchyards within the UK, so that he could visit them and take photos for a project he was doing. I could not provide him with a detailed answer, and would like to know if such an inventory does exist, and if so where can it be found? If you have any relevant information about Living Churchyards in general and/or more specifically in your area, I would be very grateful if you could contact ARC, so that the new ARC web page can be filled with useful information for those seeking to get inspired by this wonderful project."

Whiteshill and Ruscombe Parish election results

UPDATE 7th JUNE 2010: these results that were published were withdrawn and a new set were published - see my blog on 6th June - however these turned out to be wrong - see my blog post on 7th June!!!! These results below are infact correct!!!!!!!!

See full results of Parish elections here and here for comments earlier today. Results just out below:

Name of Candidate	Description	Votes
CHARLEY Rebecca Louise		173 ELECTED
DANCE Greg;		127 ELECTED
HOOD Peter David		183 ELECTED
KIMBER Geraldine Maria	Serving Councillor	138 ELECTED
PRICE Vanessa		144 ELECTED
REDVERS-WEST Elizabeth Caroline		78
ROGERS John Geoffrey	Past Chairman of Parish Council	161 ELECTED
SCOTT Louise Katrina		119 ELECTED
SMITH Nigel Lawrence		124 ELECTED
TOMKINS Steve	Existing Parish Councillor	185 ELECTED

Caroline Lucas: 'You can do politics without selling out'

In conversations locally several people have asked about Caroline Lucas as the Greens first MP....well The Independent have just done a piece "Caroline Lucas: 'You can do politics without selling out'. Her election as an MP is a triumph for the green movement. But how will Caroline Lucas make a difference? She talks to Sophie Morris about turning ecological ideals into reality." Worth a look - See here. Also good was their coverage of Caroline's first speech in Parliament..."History doesn't always come in thunderclaps or cheering crowds, and yesterday it was made with very little outward fuss when a woman in a pale blue trouser suit got to her feet from a green leather bench and began to speak." See here.

See also alternative Queens speech here.

Photo: nothing to do with this blog entry but a cute lamb in Randwick!

Parish elections: vacancies still in Randwick

Turnout was very low in Whiteshill and Ruscombe for the election yesterday - not much over a 100 was one suggestion - disappointing but I am not sure if folk really know the candidates - I have suggested that next time candidates put details of themselves on the Parish Council website so that folk who don't know them have a better idea of who to vote for...anyway results soon!

Photo: Randwick Village Hall Polling Station at District elections - wasn't needed this time as not enough candidates

In Randwick the elections went uncontested. Five candidates were nominated for the nine seats. Jane Godsell, David Preece, Mort Watkins, Mike Woods and Vernon Williams were declared elected and form the new Parish Council. However that leaves 4 vacancies - see here if you are interested in joining the Parish. In fact I'm talking to someone later today who is interested in standing - I'm not on the Parish Council myself but attend their meetings when they don't clash with District meetings.

If you are willing to put yourself forward please write to the Clerk by June 9th. Applicants are asked to state in the letter what skills and experience they would bring to the council.

The applicant's name must appear on the current electoral register or the applicant should during the whole of the twelve months preceding the relevant date have resided in or within three miles of the parish or the applicant’s only place of work during the whole of the twelve months preceding the relevant date is in the parish. Write to The Clerk, Randwick Parish Council, Rising Sun Cottage, Randwick, GL6 6HT

Hypocrisy over Lords appointments

Below is what Power 2010 have to say - I would encourage anyone reading this to send the emails to party leaders.

Photo: One of the recent campaigns to raise awareness about the unaccountability of the House of Lords - see here

172 new Lords. That is how many may be appointed in the coming weeks.

172 more peers who are unelected and unaccountable to the people they are meant to serve. To be frank - this is unacceptable.

The new coalition government has said it will bring forward proposals for a wholly or mainly elected upper chamber. But it simply isn't credible for parties to talk about cleaning up politics and creating a more democratic upper chamber while at the same time preparing to appoint over 100 new Lords. The House of Lords is outdated, unjust, and unfair. It shouldn't be growing!

That's why I need you to write to the party leaders and demand that they put a stop to this right now. Tell the party leaders you want no more Lords:
www.power2010.org.uk/172newlords

Chemicals and cancer

The link between exposure to everyday chemicals and cancer risk has been 'grossly underestimated' according to the National Cancer Institute in the US.

Photo: view from Standish woods across Severn

However UK cancer researchers continue to refuse to act as they say there is still a lack of evidence about most environmental risks. See article in The Ecologist here. This is an issue I've covered before on this blog - indeed I find it worrying that British cancer charities are not putting much greater resorces into checking out stuff like food additives, pesticides and other chemicals in our environment - these seem to be ignored and the companies reassurances about safety accepted.

Some 6 weeks or so ago in The Independent there was a good piece calling for better regulation of chemicals - here was Green party Leader Caroline Lucas' letter in response:

Dear Sir, It is encouraging to see the Independent supporting calls for better regulation to protect consumers from the potentially toxic chemicals that appear in everyday products (‘Scandal of danger chemical in baby bottles’, 31 March).

Back in November, the Green Party gave its full support to Breast Cancer UK’s No More BPA campaign warning the UK government about the continued use of the chemical Bisphenol-A (BPA) in baby products. So it is incredibly disappointing that, despite the public pressure and despite growing concern over the potential impacts of BPA on human health, the UK Government and the European Commission seem to have no interest accelerating research into the substance or strengthening regulation. As a member of the Euro-Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, I have written to the Commission to challenge the continued use of BPA, and to call for an EU wide ban based on the precautionary principle.

In response, the Commission says it is not considering a ban due to ‘insufficient evidence’ of the harmful effects – but national governments could of course enforce a ban if they wanted to. Indeed, Canada is implementing a ban on the sale of BPA-containing baby bottles and, in the US, the six biggest manufacturers of baby bottles agreed to stop selling bottles containing BPA – while some states have also implemented bans.

I understand that a number of European member states are looking closely at their national legislation too. Given the mounting evidence of a link between some chemical products and the onset of diseases such as cancer, the distinct lack of research, product labelling and effective legislation is alarming. That young babies and infants are being regularly exposed to a chemical like BPA is unjustifiable.

I hope that this public campaign and the recent signals from other countries will prompt our own Government to take urgent action in order to guarantee that human health is adequately protected. Yours sincerely, Caroline Lucas MEP, Green Party leader

Lastly a neighbour pointed me to Orchid a charity which helps to raise awareness for male cancers... Its the only charity which specifically focuses on male cancers and as she says "judging about how coy you boys can be when it comes to problems "down there" its a good thing too!! They are a really small charity and yet the work that they manage to do is incredible so..."

She has done a 10k run for them to raise some money and awareness - infact nearly 20 years ago I was involved in trying to raise awareness about such male cancers - many more folk know now but there is still much needed....

We must halt the capitalist merry-go-round

David Marquand writes in The Guardian an interesting piece that looks at how the 'new politics' needs a realignment of the mind and 'needs Caroline Lucas'. He writes: "Tarted-up neoliberalism won't cut it. The great question of our time isn't the deficit, but halting the capitalist merry-go-round."

Photo: At Stroud's District Council's election count when Anya Whiteside returned from Brighton where she had witnessed Caroline Lucas become the first Green MP

The article covers some of Labour and Lid Dem failures - it is worth a read but if short of time here are some key parts of the article which also argues that the LibCons are an improvement on the previous government - and how the 'Labour party is not going to change in a hurry.' And 'how the Liberal Democrats have undoubtedly changed, but in the wrong way. They have lost their reason for existing. There was point in voting Liberal Democrat when they could claim to be the party of insurgent democracy. There is no point in voting for them merely because they have buttressed Cameron's Whiggish statecraft.'

It then goes onto argue we need a realignment: "For the last two years we have been living through the third great capitalist crisis of modern times; and it is not over yet. The neoliberal paradigm that has dominated policy-making throughout the developed world, not least in the institutions of global economic governance, has been turned inside out. Markets, we have discovered (or rediscovered), do not always know better than governments. Private greed does not procure public benefits. The lords of creation in the hedge funds and investment banks are not wealth creators. They are wealth destroyers. A rising tide does not invariably float all boats. The self-regulating market of neoliberal economic theory is a phantom, whose pursuit led to a shameful increase in inequality and eventually to a catastrophic fall in employment and output. The newly untamed capitalism of the last 30 years has not been driven by "rational economic actors": the "rational economic actor" is another phantom. It has been driven by stampeding herds of electronic gamblers. It is not only monstrously unjust, it is also unsustainable – not only economically, but politically, environmentally and, above all, morally.

"Yet the implications have not sunk in....Sooner or later the crisis-haunted capitalist merry-go-round will have to stop. The great question for our time is not how and when to cut the fiscal deficit, or calm the markets, or curb the bonus culture, or tax transnational financial transactions – pressing as all these questions are. It is how to halt the merry-go-round before it is too late: how to switch from an unjust and unsustainable economic order to a just and sustainable one. No single thinker, party or school of thought offers a complete answer, or anything like it. Answers will have to be hammered out in open-minded dialogue, between all those who accept that tinkering is not enough, across the lines of party and creed. The need, in fact, is for a realignment of the mind, socialist in economics and republican in politics. In such a realignment the Green movement must surely have a central place, along with radicals and dissenters from all parties and none. Caroline Lucas, over to you." See full article here.

Stop Tories increasing arms spending

I've already covered a number of the email campaigns to try and influence the new Government - here is another on arms spending.

Photo: Taken from London Eye a long while ago

Last year, the Conservatives said they wanted to increase the support given to arms exports, and use arms sales as a "foreign policy tool" - a truly alarming prospect. But in the past many senior Liberal Democrats have supported the Campaign Against Arms Trade's campaign to end government support for arms exports, including Vince Cable, now the Minister responsible for the UKTI Defence & Security Organisation.

This is a real opportunity to shift the balance - if we put the pressure on now. Please take one minute to email Vince Cable today: he needs to know we care! Meanwhile if you want to know more about UK government involvement in arms exports then a good place to start is CAAT's new briefing paper: Private gain, public pain: The case for ending the Government's arms selling. It has facts, figures, case studies and graphs, all fully referenced...

Lastly Heydon Prowse is at it again. His films have exposed MPs and organisations doing the wrong thing - now it's the turn of UKTI DSO. His short film, "Quango Awards 2010: UKTI DSO" exposes the shameful way this government body promotes the private security industry, including an unknown firm with a director with a criminal record (you guessed it, Heydon made the company up!). You can see the results, both amusing and horrifying, at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjMIFNFE6j8

Queen's Speech

Well I have just caught bits of the Queen's Speech and it is a great disappointment. I have tried to be positive about the coalition government and am still hoping for good stuff - at least ID cards are to be scrapped, but sadly no action on the use of control orders.

Photo: from Channel 4 website - see below

Most sad is the sell out on reforming our political system - a referendum on AV goes nowhere near far enough - a tragic sell out by the Lib Dems. See my blog here. At least climate change got a proper mention but no proper targets or investment - Labour were good with the words but the reality is that emissions are rising and we remain third from bottom in terms of renewables - only Malta and Luxembourg are worse in the EU. This comes on top of news that there will be cuts to public transport - where is the joined-up thinking?

Plus whats all this about free schools run by private companies? Profit to be made from our education system at a time when many schools are already cut to the bone.....and privatisation of the Royal Mail - yuck, yuck, yuck!

I was however pleased to see that power is to be devolved to local councils – but as one commentator put it "even the Tory councils are not hurling their hats in the air. Why? As one Tory put it with glee at their last conference: 'We will devolve the axe!'"

Today Channel 4 publishes the “Green Queen’s Speech” – an alternative Queen’s Speech prepared by Caroline Lucas MP to show what a Green government would prioritise. See Green Queens speech here.

Stop Trident renewal

CND are running a campaign to try and get the new government to relook at Trident and stop them wasting money on a replacement - see here - sadly the new Conservative Defence Secretary Liam Fox has made clear he will continue with the previous government's plans.

Photo: from CND website

As promised, the government is going to begin a new Strategic Security and Defence Review, which both Labour and Tories made clear Trident would be excluded from. The Lib Dems election commitments on Trident are not in the coalition agreement. We cannot let the government's commitment to Trident replacement go unchallenged - it will cost billions of pounds and last into the 2050s. Join me in taking email action here.

Guest Blog: Whiteshill and Ruscombe Shop report

Last week at the Whiteshill and Ruscombe AGM (see here) there were many reports from local groups - well Mary Dunford from the village shop has kindly let me use her piece here - it is a great summary of what they get up to - and an appeal for more volunteers - as I've said many a time it must be the cafe with the best views in Gloucesershire! So get on down and while you are there stop for some shopping.

Photo: view as I walked up to the shop last week!

This October will be the start of the Ruscombe and Whiteshill Community Shops twelfth year, a venture that many predicted would never last. It is a convenience store with coffee shop, with extensive views, situated on the playing fields. It is run entirely by unpaid volunteers, with an elected committee. The shop is still trading steadily and has a small financial cushion.
As well as every day items, the shop now sells a wide range of products to reflect changing tastes and lifestyles. These include Organic, Vegetarian, Fair Trade, Eco products, and alternative environmentally friendly cleaning products. The shop tries to offer locally produced products such as Winstones ice cream, Bottle Green cordials, bottled milk, free range and farm eggs and fruit and vegetables. Bread, pies and pasties are freshly baked daily on the premises. Arts and Craft items made by customers can be sold for a small commission for shop funds. Like Harrods we will always try to satisfy a customer’s request, but may have to draw the line at an elephant!

The shop uses mostly wholesalers and the Co Op ,who now give us a small discount. Earlier in the year another Committee member and I decided that the time had come again to undertake another undercover mission to check prices in other local small shops. Although we were not wearing headscarves and dark glasses, shopkeepers still looked on with bewilderment. It showed that the Village Shop can be less expensive than other local convenience stores. We were very pleased to find that as we do not have to pay wages we can continue to be very competitive.

Regular fundraising events and prize draws take place throughout the year, Pancake Races, Easter Fayre, Annual Sale, Halloween, ending the year with the Annual Christmas Fayre, and special refreshments are available in the coffee shop. At Halloween the adults often appear to be having more fun than the Children.

The committee would like to thank our customers for again being very generous in supporting our fundraising activities and donating goods, services and money towards shop repairs in a box on the shop counter. This enabled us to fund a new shop sign and badly needed new front door. Unfortunately, as soon as the door was in place intruders broke in one night and badly damaged it. The alarm went off and the intruders fled empty handed. When previously arson destroyed the toilet and badly damaged the shop exterior, the outside had just been painted .

The shop always DESPERATELY needs more volunteers. Unexpected sickness, holiday and other commitments of the volunteers mean that at times it has been extremely difficult to cover all the shifts. The shop has never had to close yet, but has come very close.

Volunteers are all ages and from all walks of life. It can be a great way to meet new people, make new friends and gain satisfaction from helping to keep this valuable asset for the community. Could you spare a couple of hours a week on a fairly regular basis, or be available occasionally to cover an unexpected empty slot. Volunteers other commitments will always be taken into account. Shifts are very flexible, can be on the till, in the coffee shop or a combination of both. Or have you other skills to offer, new ideas or connections.

The shop is open 9-5 during the week, 9-1 on Saturdays, and 9-11 on Sundays. So next time you run out of bread or other items why not pop round to the village shop, you will be saving on petrol, and probably money as well, for who comes out of a supermarket spending less than £10 on items that they didn’t know they needed. Why not pick up a basket and select a few items, you will be very pleasantly surprised at the prices. Maybe you would like to order a regular newspaper to which 5p is added to cover costs. Why not stop for a coffee, cake or light meal in the Coffee Shop, have a chat and put the world to rights. Again you will be pleasantly surprised at the prices. Perhaps you make like to arrange to volunteer as you leave?

During the winter the local schoolchildren are praying for snow, for a day off school, sledging on the playing fields. The Committee are probably the only adults in Whiteshill also hoping for deep snow as experience has shown that the shop will be used to capacity.

During the last heavy snowfall, the bread delivery van got stuck, and older children sledging on the playing field where commandeered to act as Sherpas, ferrying bread to the shop. As the traffic was at a standstill a volunteer set forth herocially with a sledge across the fields to Stroud to collect the newspapers.

So to reduce your carbon footprint, help the environment, and help maintain a valuable facility, use or volunteer at your village shop. You will be sure of a welcome.

Stroud International Textiles Festival triumph

The fourth Stroud International Textiles Festival finishes today - it is a triumph and huge credit must go to Lizzi Walton and her team - see their website here.

Photos: yesterday at Museum in the Park where they also had free swingball - great fun!

It has had wonderful events and exhibitions - I've only managed to catch a handful of them - yesterday I revisited the Museum exhibition with family - great stuff indeed. Talking to Lizzi there, I hear that it has also led to significant increases in visitor numbers to the museum and indeed the town - no wonder - this event truly puts Stroud on the map internationally when it comes to Textiles and builds on our reputation as a centre of arts and creativity. Big thanks to all involved for creating so many good things to see, be inspired and more.

What is PR? Are Lib Dems selling out?

This blog covers the different forms of proportional representation (PR) - but you can also learn more on Friday at the Coffee House Discussions which will be on PR...What's the point of PR? What are the different kinds of PR? What would be best for us? What should we do now to get the change we want?

Photo: Packing the poster boards away for the next election

You can listen and join discussion (Sponsored by the Green Party but all folks invited) - complete with drinks and delicious cakes at Star Anise cafe (behind the Old Painswick Inn), Gloucester St., Stroud, on Friday, May 28th from 7.30-9.30pm. Speakers include Molly Scott Cato, the national Green Party’s economics adviser, who will describe the different options for proportional representation and Mary Southcott, Deputy Chair of the Electoral Reform Society. Other Coffee House discussions here.

I have already expressed concerns about the Lib Dems giving in regarding proportional representation - see blog entry here - you can also see Stroud's Molly Scott Cato's look at the Cabinet here - and here a film by John Cleese and another much earlier film here released in 1987 on Proportional Representation by John Cleese.

The Take Back Parliament campaign and demonstrations have delivered clear messages to
the Liberal Democrat/Conservative coalition government that plans for a referendum on Alternative Vote do not go far enough - and only a system of real PR will satisfy the need to empower voters.

The Tories position to me is untenable - how can they believe in an electoral system whereby the majority of MPs, about 450 of them in this election, are not elected by a majority of their respective constituency valid votes. Mind it is equally odd that the party which believes in proportional representation is exercising more power than is its proportional due!

Jean Lambert, Green MEP for London was a key speaker at the demonstration, said: “Once again, this election demonstrated the fundamental flaws of the disproportionate first-past-the-post system. It was an election fought at the marginal seats, where the majority of voters were disempowered, and as a result we got a government that did not reflect how the electorate voted. This must not happen again. The next General Election must be under a fair voting system. People must be free to vote positively – for what they really want. That would be real political change. Yes a referendum on electoral reform is a step in the right direction but we need to go further, we need a system in which every vote has equal power and equal value and we can only achieve that through true proportional representation.”

With those comments in mind I am adapting below work by Molly Scott Cato on voting systems - Molly gives some useful insights - indeed the vast majority of the stuff is hers but any mistakes can be blamed on me!

Voting Systems: A Brief Guide

The issue of how to translate our votes into representatives at Westminster is going to become a subject of increasing discussion over the next few months. This is a short guide to how we might think about choosing a system, and what the options are.

What electoral systems do

The first important lesson is that there is no one best system. What you are seeking is an electoral system that is appropriate to your setting. That means the type of election (local council, Westminster, school governers’ board, etc.) but more importantly the country and its political culture. In the Lebanon or Northern Ireland the priority is containing tensions that could spill over into civil wars. In Israel or Ireland avoiding instability in a fractured political culture is most important. In the UK at present, introducing a system that would allow some real change rather than the traditional see-saw feels like the priority.

Beyond this there are four potentially conflicting objectives of an electoral system:

Stability: making sure you have a political system that can make decisions effectively and hold authority, so no repeat collapses of government or political inertia as in Italy or Weimar Germany.

Moderation: you may want to prevent radical extreme views from undermining the political system.

Representation: your system should translate votes into power in a proportionate way so that, as far as is possible, every vote counts.

Relationship: ensuring that there is a person you trust who you can approach with your personal political issues, as in the UK constituency system.

The different systems described meet these objectives more or less effectively. Which we choose for the UK depends on how we want to balance these objectives. A point should also be made about what is called the ‘threshold’. This is the percentage of the vote you need to receive to achieve any level of representation in the parliament. An effective threshold is just the proportion represented by one seat, e.g. in a parliament of 100 seats you need 1% of the vote to get one seat. But other countries use a threshold as a barrier before allocating seats proportionally, perhaps until you reach 3% or 5% of the vote you will not be allocated seats even if you deserve them on the basis of the calculations. In Poland and Germany the threshold is 5%; it is 2% in Israel and 10% in Turkey. The threshold is introduced to satisfy the moderation criterion.

It is also important to remember that the explanations that follow are about the principle of the system. There are a variety of ways of calculating the outcomes mathematically—rather like the way you work out who has won a drawn cricket match.

The systems on offer

Graph from Guardian v useful article here that sadly missed the Additional Member System favoured by Greens

Party list systems (as used in UK European elections and indeed the most popular among countries using PR). The parties select as many candidates as there are seats and you choose a party. Seats are then allocated proportionately according to votes cast. The effective threshold depends on the number of seats available. In the UK European elections in the South-West is was around 11%. As the number of seats in the voting area increases the threshold comes down. Lists can be open or closed—if they are open voters can order party’s candidates on the list according to their preferences as well as choosing their party of preference.

Last year saw the Green party in fourth place in the South West in the European election. Greens got 9.3% of the vote, ahead of Labour's 7.7%. Green candidate Ricky Knight narrowly missed out on being elected as the region's first Green MEP, missing the sixth available seat by 12,070 votes (0.8% of those who voted, or 0.3% of the electorate). The two highest Green polling areas in the region were a 15.7% in Bristol and 15.6% in Stroud. The two Greens that were elected were Jean Lambert in London and SE with 10.9% of the vote and Caroline Lucas in the SE where Greens received 11.6% of the votes ie 271,506 votes beating Labour, who received just 192,292, into fifth place. For a brief guide to the European Parliament go here.

Additional Member System (as used for the Scottish and Welsh parliaments). Under this system you vote twice: once for a person and then for a party. It relies on multi-member constituencies. A proportion of the seats in the parliament are not filled by individuals but topped up from party lists based on the whole area, to achieve proportionality. Favoured by the Green Party for UK national elections.

Single Transferable Vote (used in the Republic of Ireland and for local elections in Scotland). In a system based on multi-member constituencies, voters rank candidates according to their preferences (1, 2, 3 etc.) and do not have to do this according to parties. There are various methods of allocating seats following these votes. Candidates achieving a certain proportion of the vote (quota) are automatically elected, with all their second (surplus) preferences then being distributed to other candidates. On other counting methods the lowest-ranked candidates are eliminated and their votes transferred. Since the aim is to reach an overall quota, the system favours moderate parties and thus is strong in terms of the moderation criterion rather than the representation criterion. Favoured by the Liberal Democrats.

Alternative Vote (used to elect the Australian parliament). This system is based on constituencies and is a majoritarian system as we have now but with less wastage of votes. When you vote you are presented with a list of candidates and you rank these in order of preference. If one candidate gets 50% s/he is automatically elected. If not, the votes for the candidate with least votes are allocated according to the second preferences indicated by the voter. This process is repeated until a candidate reaches 50%. It scores well on stability and representation but is not a proportional system.

This modest reform that looks like it has support from the coalition for a referendum would have given the Liberal Democrats just 22 more MPs and no change to smaller parties.

AV+ System (alternative vote with continued constituency link: as proposed by Roy Jenkins for the UK but never actually used anywhere). The system is a combination of the alternative vote and additional member systems with single-member constituencies with only the top-up happening at county or regional level. It is an attempt to achieve (limited) proportionality without losing the relationship and stability benefit of the FPTP system. Recently favoured by the Labour Party.

Plurality systems. As in our first-past-the-post you have to get the majority of the votes in a single constituency to win. This can result in some highly unproportional outcomes but scores highly on the stability and relationship criteria. These are very rare on an international basis and are usually brought in to deal with a catastrophic history of electoral instability. Favoured by the Conservative Party.

Nestle U-turn, now HSBC must see sense

Nestlé and I have never seen eye to eye and their recent refusal to stop using palm oil from companies destroying Indonesia's rainforests was just another example of extreme corporate greed and breakdown of any sense of justice - see my blog here - yet this last week I hear that Nestle have done a U-turn and are indeed planning to give the rain forests and orang-utans a break.

Nestle have just finalised a plan to identify and remove any companies in their supply chain with links to deforestation, so their products will have a 'no deforestation footprint'. Nestlé are not known to give in easily, so everyone who has taken action on this campaign should feel good - thanks especially to the folks at Greenpeace and 'enoughsenough' for leading the campaign.

Now it's time to get to grips with those who are funding rainforest destruction, starting with the world's 'local bank' HSBC. Join me in sending them an email to Michael Geoghegan, HSBC's CEO, from here.

International Biodiversity Day

Today is International Biodiversity Day and 2010 is the United Nations' International Year of Biodiversity- see more here.

Photos: Buttercup fields viewed from the top of Ash Lane, Randwick

Natural England recently said that England is becoming a country of 'beauty spots rather than beauty'. Their report earlier this year showed nearly 500 species of animals and plants have become extinct in England as a result of human activity since 1800.

In the first ever audit of England’s lost and declining species, 12 per cent of land mammals, 22 per cent of amphibians and 24 per cent of butterflies were shown to have been lost!! The populations of a further 943 species are at precariously low levels including the northern bluefin tuna, the Natterjack toad and the red squirrel, which Natural England says could become extinct in the next 20-30 years without urgent action.

Biodiversity is not some add on that we can do when the economic situation is good - it is a fundamental indicator of our planet's health. Indeed restoring and supporting our ecosystems is what has been described as "cost-effective investment in this planet’s economic survival". Although while we need to more clearly recognise the value of biodiversity in economic terms that doesn't discount other values.....one example given is the Red Squirrel which is not worth anything in economic terms but is hugely important to us culturally, spiritually and aesthetically.

The intensification of agriculture perhaps plays the largest part in terms of biodiversity loss - in particular the overuse of fertilisers and pesticides, the ploughing of grasslands and the loss of mixed farms. Yet producing more food and protecting biodiversity are not opposed - see the many examples of organic farms that have hugely enhanced local biodiversity.

Other scary facts...

Defra statistics released in April 2009 show a deterioration in levels of breeding seabirds, wintering waterbirds, woodland and grassland habitats; farmland bird populations declined by 13 per cent in England between 1994 and 2007; mammals like dormice have disappeared from 50 per cent of their former habitats and only 140,000 native red squirrels remain.

This year the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) estimated 80 per cent of English and Welsh ponds were in a ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ condition while Pond Conservation estimates 75 per cent of Britain’s rivers fail new European standards on biodiversity. In fact I wrote a letter on thsi a while back to the press - see here letter about no pristine rivers being in the South West.

See also the article The Ecologist "UK wildlife becoming the ‘living dead’" by Laura Edgecumbe-Ansdell and Tom Levitt which was useful in putting together this blog entry.

This blog has covered a number of local projects to improve biodiversity - in particular the exciting plans to make Stroud the first Bee Guardian town and the moves by the local hedgehog hospital to protect hedgehogs. Locally we are having a talk soon about how the Ruscombe Brook can be viewed as a living organism.

Lastly I just acme across this article here about saying 'nature has to be preserved' condemns the poor to poverty - and here about how helping poor and biodiversity are two sides of the same coin.

Save Human Rights Act

The Human Rights Act is a vital piece of legislation that protects all of us in the UK - the Lib Dems and the Conservatives are negotiating over it as we speak. The Conservative's have so far expressed a wish to repeal the Act, but the Lib Dems support the Act. Please sign the petition below.

If you are unsure about the Human Rights Act - what it does, or it's worth - then please read the petition, it might makes things clearer or maybe even change your mind. Certainly the Act has been hugely misunderstood and misinterpreted in the media. This is part of what the petition says: "Many of the more ‘ridiculous’ law suits brought under the name of the act have been dismissed. It does not allow criminals to get whatever they want, in fact it actually makes it a legal requirement that the public is protected from dangers to society. Just one example of the benefits of the act is its use in keeping an elderly married couple in long-term care together. Although in an ideal world this should have been avoided by common sense or compassion, the fact is that law is clearly needed to prevent unpleasant situation like this occurring. Secondly, the Act does not, as it sometimes suggested, mean that threats to our nation’s security cannot be dealt with. The Act requires courts to balance public safety against individual rights, and if necessary, a person at risk of harming our country can certainly have their liberty deprived."

Any meddling with the Human Rights Act that leads to less rights than those that we already have guaranteed by the convention would mean victims would have to seek redress in Strasbourg rather than in the domestic courts. This would make it all a nonsense. Please join me in signing the new petition:
www.gopetition.co.uk/online/35589.html

Stroud District Council AGM

Well the third AGM of this week was last night (see others here) - this is the evening where various committee places get allocated - some are divided proportionally according to how many councillors from a particular political group while other committees and panels just have a party representative - there was some 'fun' last night - well fun is not the word - it was tedious and one of the least attractive side of politics.

Photo: View of Ebley Mill from top of Ash Lane

Tories rebel?

The first 'fun' was that two Tory councillors, John Jeffries and Nigel Studdart Kennedy declared they would now stand as independents - understandably the Tory Leader Frances Roden said she questioned how they could stand as a Tory knowing that they would not be part of the party group - their argument was that they were still Tories......anyhow surprisingly the rules mean that while they are now independents they get seats on committees as part of the Tory allocation.

All this a little unfair it seems to me that Linda Townley who stands as an Independent doesn't get that right - indeed she ended up with offers on panels and places that were not really of her choosing. It is also sad to see her talents not utilised in scrutiny committees - while I do not agree with all she says she is excellent at picking out many of the key issues - indeed at this meeting she raised a key point about the constitution.

Constitution?

The point raised basically was that decisions are currently delegated to Officers of the Council - it would be better that Cabinet Members made those decisions and were accountable for that - otherwise what are we paying them for? Indeed some changes to the Constitution were voted through - I hope perhaps a scrutiny group can look at this in more details.

IT security

A couple of items on the agenda related to our council computers - the first was a change to the allowance so that rather than being loaned a computer we would be given some money towards one - this would lead to financial savings for the Council and most councillors appear to be in favour - however some of the nitty gritty still needs sorting so it went back to look at again in July. Meanwhile an item on tightening security of our emails etc was also deferred - it was based on government guidelines but seems to me very over the top - emails get coded as restricted and already it takes some 7 minutes to start the computer up with various stages to go through - two passwords, name and a special number that has to be created on a separate gizmo at the time you want to get into the computer plus various "OK" buttons to click.....some are hopeful the new government might remove some of the requirements.

Petitions

Well now folk can get a petition together - download details from meeting notes here.

Committee allocations

I am on Performance Overview and Scrutiny Committee again and will be letting folk know what I get up to in that - Greens have a seat on all the committees and panels and we meet at least monthly as a group to try and work together to bring about the changes we are seeking. It is also an opportunity to share ideas and see what we can push - for example we are following with interest Kirklees....nearly a significant Green party policy gain in Kirklees. They're drawing up plans to provide private householders with free solar panels. Not there yet but well on the way. Details in this blog posting:
http://greeningkirklees.blogspot.com/2010/05/here-comes-sun.html

Interestingly the new Energy Panel - set up as a result of the recommendations the Scrutiny inquiry that I chaired - was due to have only 6 councillors on it - it ended up with 12 as interest was so strong! Let's hope we can make some exciting stuff happen this year!

Help rebrand BP

This week the FT refused to run Amnesty's advert targeting Shell's hellish activities in the Niger Delta but The Guardian yesterday ran a full page ad, targeting BP and their CEO Tony Heyward and asking you to help rebrand BP. Well enoughsenough sent more details yesterday about the ad which I post below:

Despite promising to stay in the US until the oil spill was sorted, BP CEO Tony Heyward decided to fly back to London to celebrate his 54th birthday and for a board meeting. So Greenpeace climbers were on the roof of BP's HQ in London first thing this morning to greet him, with their 'British Pollution' flag.

When BP rebranded to 'Beyond Petroleum', they spent more on the rebranding than they invested in developing clean renewable energy that year. You can see from today's ad that their 2010 investment towards moving 'beyond petroleum' is less than 5%. Remarkably, when Tony Heyward became CEO of BP, he even said, "We had too many people that were working to save the world". So it's time BP rebranded again, except this time, we can all have a go. You can either click on the advert, print it, design it, then post it, or use the online tool, here.

See my previous blog this month on the oil spill here.

Two Parish AGMs: village shop, brook, 20 is Plenty and more

Whiteshill and Ruscombe on Tuesday, Cainscross on Wednesday and well it would have been three this week if I could have got to Randwick's tonight - however it is Stroud District Council's AGM tonight.

Photos: first two drinks and nibbles after the Whiteshill and Ruscombe AGM and the notice in Ebley Mill re the Cainscross AGM.

Whiteshill and Ruscombe Parish AGM is always a very informative and social affair - about 12 speakers or more presented brief reports on what they had been doing during the year. I did one on the District Council and one on the Ruscombe Brook Action Group. The Chair is strict so I had to try and keep to my 5 minutes in each of those slots - so a bit of a race through stuff - much of what I have covered in my recent newsletter or key issues re the election.

It was great to hear from groups like the village shop - all volunteers - and they need more - they are now in their 12th year - huge congrats to them. Indeed they did another undercover survey and found their prices are still excellent compared to the surrounding small shops. I've enclosed below the survey we did five years ago for interest.

The Parish Council gave feedback on their successes over the year (don't forget elections) - in particular three areas that I've had lots to do with - the allotments, opposing the housing developments (see here, here and the meeting) and traffic calming...... the saga of the '20 is Plenty' signs was shared by the Parish chair - the County approving the signs and now saying they must come down. However it was interesting to get the results of the recent traffic survey...4 years ago 37% of traffic was going above 30 while this month only 1.75% was going above 30. The 20 is Plenty could be playing a part? But as I've said before what we want and need is a 20 mph in all residential areas.

We also heard about the developing international links by Whiteshill School, how the Village Agent was supporting people over 50 in the area and from Snow Warden Gerri Kimber about her struggles to obtain grit earlier this year. The Church noted it's need for funds - I think it was some £700 per month for running costs for the two churches. Lots more from village groups but this is just a taster.

At Cainscross Parish on Wednesday evening I was able to give an update on projects with the Ruscombe Brook and the Stroud Valleys Water Forum. One of the issues I was able to highlight was the combined sewage overflow in Gladfield Gardens. I requested that the Parish send letters to the EA and Severn Trent in the hope of reducing the problems of sewage there. The meeting agreed to ask the Parish. I wasn't able to stay for the whole meeting but heard reports from many local groups in that area including allotments associations, residents groups and the Cainscross Rugby Club (who are sadly bottom of 11 teams but very enthusiastic and have raised lots of money to improve facilities).

Anyway let me finish with that press release about the Village Shop from 2005...including the view of the old sign which was recently replaced....

19th July 2005 Volunteers do shopping basket comparison to encourage locals to support their local store

The Whiteshill and Ruscombe Village Shop has been run by volunteers since it opened in 1998. In the hope of countering claims that they were much more expensive than other shops in the area, they carried out a price comparison using a cross-section of 18 randomly selected items. Having seen the local post office close earlier this year, the community was keen to ensure they don't also lose their one remaining shop. The volunteers went around the other shops with notebook in hand collecting the prices. They found that their shop easily beat their nearest rival convenience store, where prices were a whopping 19% more expensive and also faired better than expected against the supermarkets (i).

Philip Booth, a local resident and regular customer, who helped organise the price comparison, said: "We were surprised by the significant difference in price with the other local store. We are clearly very much better value for money. We also looked at two supermarkets and found as expected that they were cheaper - but by only 11% to 15%. The bus fare would eat a lot of that."

Philip Booth, added: "I think some people have forgotten this shop is here and what a good range of services they have. Few can beat the cafe prices - and no one beats the incredible view nor the wonderfully relaxed and friendly atmosphere. And with summer holidays on the way, what better place to come for a drink where you can watch your children play in the playground. Plus you can hire DVDs, borrow books, get many local products - and all supporting the local community (ii). The homemade jams are worth the trip alone!" Volunteers wanted

Geoff Warren, Secretary for the Whiteshill and Ruscombe Village Shop said: "The shop is looking for more volunteers to help run it - full training is given and there are many different areas where people could help from working in the shop a couple of hours a month or in stock control or expanding the services. It’s a good way for newcomers to get to know people and everyone who has worked here seems to really like the atmosphere and the flexible working arrangements." Shop opening times: Mon - Fri 9 - 5, Sat 9 - 1, Sun 9 - 11. Contact number for volunteers: Mary Watkins 01453 766277

Notes: (i) The items selected were picked at random and all items in the survey were included to ensure fairness. The survey was carried out on 3rd June. The lists compare prices; a '?' signifies the price is unknown or the same item was not available. Where this occurs the item was not included in that particular price comparison. Item - Whiteshill and Ruscombe price - Other local store price - Supermarket A price - Supermarket B price Hovis sliced white bread - 78p - 89p - ? - 77p Small wholemeal loaf - 75p - ? - 65p - 69p Pot noodle - 79p - 86p - 68p - 70p Heinz Baked beans - 55p - 59p - 44p - 44p Milk - 43p - 42p - 32p - 32p Branston Pickle - 72p - 99p - ? - ? Del Monte sliced peaches - 72p - 99p - 72p - 79p Countrylife butter - 79p - ? - 72p - 75p Atora Suet - £1.15 - £1.48 - 90p - £1.05 Kelloggs Cornflakes 500g - £1.65 - £1.79 - £1.28 - £1.29 Whiskers pouches - 29p - 31p - 26p - 26p Ambrosia Rice pudding - 66p - 75p - 54p - 55p Caster sugar - £1.09 - £1.49 - 84p - 84p Sardines - 49p - 59p - 47p - ? Mullers corner yoghurts - 41p - 49p - 28p - 41p Rowntree pastells - 32p - 39p - 34p - 35p Yorky chocolate for girls - 39p - 46p - 43p - ? Soothers - 51p - 55p - 49p - ?

Analysis: Whiteshill and Ruscombe price for all 18 items: £12.49 Other local store price for 16 items: £13.04 Whiteshill and Ruscombe price for same 16 items: £10.95 ie £2.09 more expensive in One Stop - this calculates to be 19% more expensive??????? Supermarket A price for 16 items: £9.36 Whiteshill and Ruscombe price for same 16 items: £10.99 ie £1.63 less in Tesco (15%) Supermarket B price for 14 items: £9.21 Whiteshill and Ruscombe price for same 14 items: £10.38 ie £1.17 less in Waitrose (11%)

(ii) The Whiteshill and Ruscombe Community Shop is housed in a refurbished Portakabin perched on the edge of the Cotswolds near Stroud, with parking, a playground, coffee bar and some of the best views in Gloucestershire. It opens seven days a week and is entirely staffed by volunteers mainly retired people or mothers with children at school. In addition to stocking groceries, the shop offers newspapers, DVD rentals, local crafts, local products like Farmers Market favorite, 'Frocester Fayre' frozen meals, books to borrow and one of the cheapest places for cake and a tea or coffee in the County. Health and safety requirements demanded a loo, so a second-hand disabled-access portaloo also has pride of place on the site and is allegedly the largest loo in the village! Following a survey in 1997 which indicated overwhelming support for a local shop, a formal management committee was set up with a constitution, a chair, treasurer and secretary; the inaugural meeting included representatives from a wide range of community interests. Fund-raising started and more than £6,000 in loans was raised in the community, Stroud District Council gave £5,000 and Whiteshill and Ruscombe Parish Council donated another £1,000.. Near the playing field and car park was identified as the best site. Planning permission was sought. A Gloucester school donated free an unwanted cabin which was transported to the site; local contacts it happen at half the normal cost. A local builder and a couple of local retired people then transformed the outside of the battered old terrapin to suit its new life. Inside, heaters were donated, as was crockery and cutlery for the cafe. The Co-op and Sainsbury's were contacted for permission to stock their brands, and the shop became a reality. Within 2 years loans were all repaid.

Say no to Bristol Airport

The new government has scrapped plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport, along with new runways at Gatwick and Stansted. Yippee!!! Some commonsense at last - although I can't see how Labour would have pushed it through after the recent court case (see here).

But we now need the government to go further and develop a new aviation policy that properly takes account of climate change. So far Tories have failed to rule out more expansion (see here). Indeed there are still plans in the pipeline to expand nearly 30 other airports across the UK including Bristol. Regular blog readers will know that I have been part of the campaign to stop that airport expansion - indeed have written lengthy submissions on the subject for various stages of the consultation.

As Greenpeace say in their latest campaign: "If the new government is serious about tackling climate change, it needs to stop all airport expansion plans, not just the big three in the southeast. A new aviation policy fit for the 21st century must be drawn up - one which recognises the urgent need to slash our carbon output. On the 24th May, local councillors in Bristol will decide whether to expand Bristol Airport. This is the first green test for the new Tory Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond. If he is serious about getting a grip on the UK's spiralling aviation emissions, he needs to stop this application going ahead."

Please join me in taking action here.

Matthews Way tragic fire

Six fire crews attended the scene just before 6pm yesterday - the fire that sent clouds of smoke across the sky sadly has led to the death of one occupant while another was rescued. Some 18 properties were evacuated to Maypole Hall by the District Council. Surrounding roads were closed but were reopened later yesterday evening. An investigation has been launched. See SNJ report here.