ALAN SIMPSON
News from Somewhere Else
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In her book Men in Dark Times, the philosopher Hannah Arendt coined the notion of inner emigration. What was it that stood in the way of so many prominent/influential people challenging the rise of Hitlerism or organising escape routes from it? From the biographies she explored, Arendt concluded that many found the external realities of…
Are local authorities equipped to reach net zero? “Only rapid and drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in this decade can prevent climate breakdown” – Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Scientific Advisor. This Inquiry could not be more timely or important. Before the last election, I set up scientific briefings for MPs calling for a step…
The ‘Sun Ship’ (Das Sonnenschiff) is a small community in the Vauban district of Freiburg. Built in 2004, it is one of the earliest examples of ‘energy-plus’ housing; developments that generate more electricity than the community itself consumes. Powered entirely by solar energy (and storage), and designed to high standards of natural heating and cooling,…
Something big is happening; really big. All the pillars of smug certainty are beginning to crumble. Nothing captured this more than the ‘waste’ sculpture taunting the G7 Summit in Cornwall. The ‘Mount Recyclemore’ sculpture – made from dumped e-waste materials – symbolised far more than the 53 million tonnes of electronic goods the world throws…
What a mess we are in. Labour loses the Hartlepool by- election with a 16% swing to the Tories. A new North-South divide is opening up. With the exception of London, Labour no longer holds the hearts and minds of its conventional heartlands. So much for new leadership, new vision. What on earth is going…
Labour is lost. I say this in sadness more than anger. Anger is no substitute for answers. It clouds the fact that the Left could be just as lost as the Right. Boris Johnson has bought himself some ill-deserved credibility; slowly loosening the lockdown rules and stepping up the vaccination programme. Both are welcome. But…
Transformation Moment
My pamphlet 'Transformation Moment' is intended to support the case for a radical shift in energy thinking; as much about democracy as technology, and about 'systems' rather than just supply.
Be VERY wary of DHL delivery services. Here’s the dog food package thrown over the gate. Took 30mins just to clean everything up. DHL - Dump However you Like?
David would be amongst the first to tell Tobias Ellwood that MPs mustn’t retreat into ‘virtual’ meetings with the public. It would hand victory to the enemies of democracy…and be a betrayal of David’s own beliefs in the people he represented.
Lovely thread about David here. I remember how loyal Lionel and the rest of his office were to him when I was working with him. This is why. https://t.co/q0cwm3aMU2
What a tragic, senseless loss! David was a fellow conspirator in the battle to end fuel poverty; a generous heart that stayed loyal to the issues rather than the Whips instructions. Often guilty of giving parliament a good name, his death leaves us all so much poorer.
Appalling news about David Amess MP. Perhaps unexpectedly (given our political differences) I really enjoyed working with him to tackle fuel poverty through the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act he guided into law back in 2000. Desperately hoping he makes a full recovery.
Ministers should be charged for failing to turn up with policies that cut carbon emissions by 10% a year. Missing our appointment with the climate emergency is the real abuse of position.
Do you think Ministers who fail to turn up for GP appointments should be charged?
Basket case Britain: this is anything but global leadership.
Daily Covid cases yesterday:
UK: 40,224
Germany: 4,872
Netherlands: 2,711
Belgium: 1,594
Italy: 1,561
Ireland: 1,357
Spain: 1,277
France: 1,120
Brexit debacle continues: If Britain wants zero border checks, it can rejoin the single market. If we want to set our own rules, kiss the Good Friday Agreement goodbye. That’s where the EU border will be.
Brexit: Lord Frost proposes 'entirely new' NI protocol
The UK's Brexit minister says the existing protocol cannot survive and warns the UK could still trigger Article 16.
www.bbc.co.uk
Shades of Gray: Tory MP becomes his own ambulance case.
Charity asks Tory MP who confuses two ethnic minority ministers to step back from role
The Conservative denies saying "they all look the same to me" after mixing up two ethnic minority ministers at an event.
www.bbc.co.uk
This is why ‘levelling up’ is horse poo. Those who buy preferential advantage have no interest in others joining them on a level playing field. Privilege always protects itself.
How the funding gap between private schools and state schools has dramatically widened since 2010 – today's @NewStatesman Chart of the Day. https://t.co/2sxZt0g0pA
I can’t understand how this is no longer a front page issue. The health implications are massive. Political indifference is no substitute for a coherent strategy.
Our current Covid hospitalisation rates are 3x those in France, 6x Italy & 15x Spain.
We have nearly 7000 gravely unwell Covid patients in hospital.
Do these people not matter?
Nor the thousands with long Covid?
Nor the children off school because case are sky high?