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Daily Referendum reaches one thousand posts.
2008-04-08 20:06:00
It's a big day for the Daily Referendum Blog. This is my one thousandth post. I think that I'll stop at one hundred thousand. The blog has come a long from my first post just 16 months ago. I get around 250 visitors a day, last year I was ranked 21st most popular Conservative Blog and 59th most popular political blog in Iain Dale's Guide to political blogging. Hopefully I'll do better this year. Currently my blog is also ranked 29th in the Wikio Political Blog rankings. That's enough bragging (though it's not too much to brag about), it's time to thank all of you who visit my blog and to ask that you continue to do so (pretty please).Onwards and upwards!
More About: Blogging , Posts , Thousand

Olympic Torch Relay - China can do no wrong.
2008-04-08 19:35:00
From Thursday's Hansard written answers:Olympic Games: China Norman Baker: To ask the Minister for the Olympics if she will hold discussions with (a) the International Olympics Committee and (b) the Chinese authorities to urge them not to include the Tibetan Autonomous Region and the Chinese provinces which, taken together, constituted Tibet prior to the Chinese invasion, in the route of the Olympic Torch before the Beijing Olympics.Tessa Jowell: We are aware that the Olympic Torch Relay is due to pass through Tibet and up Mount Everest on its way to Beijing. The passage of the torch relay through any country is a matter for the authorities of the country concerned and the International Olympic Committee.What a load of rubbish. Norman Baker did not ask who had the final say on the Olympic Torch Relay's route - he asked if our government would try to persuade China that it would be a bad idea. The government are making all the right noises to the media, but they have absolutely no i...
More About: Wrong

The Seventy Eighth Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus Leaves in 5 Minutes!
2008-04-08 17:55:00
Got some time to kill but don't know where to go?Why don't you climb aboard the Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus. There are still a few places left.Click on STOP 1 and the Bus will take you to your first Mystery Blog location. To get back on the Bus just click the Back Button and click STOP 2 to continue the Tour. I think you can work the rest out.The Bus rolls out on Sundays and Wednesdays - enjoy the ride. 12 34 5
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Back to Blogging on the Daily Referendum.
2008-04-08 15:35:00
I'm back. Things have settled down in the Green household and the constant stream of visitors has slowed down to a trickle. Little Freddie weighed in at 7lb 6, looks just like his mum and is in good health. I'm over the moon and even Barnsley losing to Cardiff on Sunday has not dampened my spirits. I would like to thank you all for the good wishes left in the comments section.Right back to blogging!
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Baby stops play on Blog.
2008-03-31 00:20:00
Sorry for the lack of posting, my Wife is about to give birth any time now. Back in a few days.
More About: Baby , Blogging , Play , Blog , Stops

The Government is lying about Prison Population.
2008-03-28 16:42:00
The government would have us believe that they have increased prison capacity since they have been in power by 20,000. The Ministry of Justice puts today's prison capacity at 82,205 places (plus 400 places in police cells). That is, to quote the Spectator's Coffee House, a Brownie. Going by the government's own Certified Normal Accommodation (CNA) figures, the actual capacity of our prisons in England and Wales is 72,110. This means that our prisons are not running a couple of hundred places above capacity, they are in reality (i.e un-fudged) running at 112% capacity. Going by the latest Prison population figures our prisons are overpopulated by 9,610 prisoners.To clear things up, here is the Prison Service's definition of Certified Normal Accommodation:Certified Normal Accommodation (CNA), or uncrowded capacity, is the Prison Service?s own measure of accommodation. CNA represents the good, decent standard of accommodation that the Service aspires to provide all prisoners. CNA a...
More About: Government , Labour , Gordon Brown , Lying

Conservatives command a 14 point lead over Labour (YouGov Poll).
2008-03-28 13:17:00
As confidence in Gordon Brown's ability to manage the economy (and Darling's I suppose) drops like a very large stony thing, the Conservative s have polled at least 40% for the last six months. The Lib Dems are hovering around the mid-teens (no pun intended). And if Nick Clegg does not whip his Peers to abstain from the vote for a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, then I can see that reducing drastically. I don't think it will be long before we see a 20 point gap between the Conservatives and Labour (45-25). Could we see a decade of Labour and the Lib Dems fighting it out for second position?This poll would give David Cameron and his MPs a 100 seat majority in the house of commons. And that is what is probably needed to reverse the mess this Labour government have got us into. Of all the questions asked by YouGov in this poll, maybe this will be the most damaging to Gordon Brown:Do you think that Alistair Darling is doing a good job or a bad job as Chancellor of the Exchequer...
More About: Poll , Polls

Geert Wilders releases his film criticising the Koran.
2008-03-27 20:26:00
Earlier this month I put up a post about how Geert Wilders had called the Dutch PM a coward. Well it seems Geert has gone a step further and released his controversial film criticising the Koran on LiveLeak. Oh dear. There will be trouble ahead.......More HERE.
More About: Islam , Film

No one should ever vote Lib Dem again - Lisbon Treaty.
2008-03-27 18:45:00
There are rumours flying around and whispers of what could be the most disgusting act of self serving politics to occur in decades. It is well known that if you were to cut Nick Clegg in half, you would find gold stars running through him like Blackpool rock. So it was no surprise when he forced his MPs to abstain from voting for a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. You see, it is thought that as many as fifty Lib Dem MPs would have voted for a referendum if given a free vote. And old EU Nick would not like that. To cover up this massive split in his party he invented the In or Out option, which was seen by all as a feeble attempt at a smokescreen.Now, you would think that Nick would continue with this party policy when the Lisbon Treaty reaches the House of Lords. You would, it seems, be thinking wrong. There's one major difference between Lib Dem MPs and Lib Dem Peers - Lib Dem Peers are very Pro-Europe and if given a free vote, they would probably vote against allowing a referendu...
More About: Vote , Gordon Brown

The Final Redoubt - Spring day for Europe song.
2008-03-27 08:22:00
In response to my post yesterday on the EU's Spring Day for Europe , Hookie of the Final Redoubt has knocked up a suitable song. Please have a look, it's good.
More About: Song , Labour

Child Indoctrination - Spring Day for Europe 2008.
2008-03-26 19:01:00
I cannot believe what I've just stumbled across: Have you ever heard of "Spring Day for Europe 2008 ?" No I thought not. This is how the European Parliament's website describes this well known event:For the sixth time in row spring will not be only a season of blossoming flowers but also a time when students all over the world can get to know more about the European Union. Spring Day for Europe, the event organised by European Commission in cooperation with the European Parliament and other EU institutions, runs this year between 25 March and 30 June. Spring Day for Europe is an annual event open to all schools in Europe as well as in the rest of the world. During this time schools are encouraged to organise events that could help students understand better how the EU and its institutions work. Teachers and pupils discuss EU issues and share their own opinions and visions about Europe.You may have notice that I've enlarged a certain section of the above text. That section immediat...
More About: Child , Indoctrination

The Seventy Seventh Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus Leaves in 5 Minutes!
2008-03-26 15:53:00
Got some time to kill but don't know where to go?Why don't you climb aboard the Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus. There are still a few places left.Click on STOP 1 and the Bus will take you to your first Mystery Blog location. To get back on the Bus just click the Back Button and click STOP 2 to continue the Tour. I think you can work the rest out.The Bus rolls out on Sundays and Wednesdays - enjoy the ride. 12 34 5
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Is Scotland's Barnett going to be cut?
2008-03-26 10:38:00
Nick Robinson is prophesying the end of the Barnett Formula. Nick believes that Labour Ministers are in flap over the formula because the are worried that George Osborne may propose scrapping it. And that will be a massive vote winner in England.And George knows that the government are struggling over the formula's future:"These leaked documents suggest that while Gordon Brown refuses to consider any changes to the Barnett formula, Jack Straw is arguing for change, leaving Alistair Darling, as usual, the weak man in the middle. "The Government's spending policy is being pulled apart by the warring members of the Cabinet."The Barnett Formula gives a subsidy of £1500 to each Scottish citizen. That money comes from the English tax payer and unsurprisingly many (myself included) want to see this outdated formula scrapped. Taxes are high enough under this government without sending a load of what is collected to Scotland .

Is Peter Kilfoyle MP really that daft?
2008-03-25 20:52:00
Peter Kilfoyle MP has put forward the following EDM:"That this House notes the impending launch of a purportedly politically neutral magazine called Total Politics; notes that it is fronted by Iain Dale , a failed Conservative parliamentary candidate; further notes that it is being run from Lord Ashcroft's address in Cowley Street and that it is fronted by Lord Ashcroft; and calls upon hon. and right hon. Members to reject the free copies which will be sent to them in the near future."Peter is well aware that Iain Dale is hiring staff from across the political spectrum in an attempt to create an un-biased magazine. This is surely just Peter having a dig at Lord Ashcroft. Does he think that his fellow Labour MPs are too dim to read the magazine and come to their own conclusions? Actually - he could have a point.
More About: Daft , Peter

Five years for gun crime - What does mandatory mean?
2008-03-25 20:23:00
Chief Constable Hogan-Howe has criticised judges for failing to impose mandatory five year sentences in gun crime cases. When I was in the armed forces, mandatory meant, well err, mandatory. It didn't mean "If you feel like it".Jan Berry, Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales says:"Despite the year on year increase in gun crime and the legislation introduced in 2003 allowing judges to give mandatory five year sentences, lenient decisions by the courts are failing to protect society from the menace of firearms.Chief Constable Hogan-Howe is right to highlight this issue because not only are judges playing with the safety of the public, but some of the ludicrous sentences are hugely demoralising for front line officers doing their very best to protect the communities they serve.Understandably there are a few exceptions when circumstances dictate it is not suitable to hand out the mandatory five year sentences; but they should be the exception not the rule as they appe...
More About: Crime , Years

It's Stone-Bloody-Henge mate.
2008-03-25 20:09:00
Australian Ross Smith intends to build a full size replica of Stone henge on his land on the south coast of western Australia. Ross will be using 2500 tons of granite to reproduce the monument in its original glory. He hopes it will attract 300,000 visitors per year and he will be renting it out for weddings and other special occasions. I think he could be onto a winner.
More About: Australia , Blogging , Mate , Bloody

Teachers vote to keep Army "Propaganda" out of School.
2008-03-25 14:34:00
Paul McGarr, a teacher from east London, is in my opinion, a tw*t. Speaking at the National Union of Teachers conference, this is what he believes Army recruiting materials handed out to school kids should say:"Join the Army and we will send you to carry out the imperialist occupation of other people's countries"."Join the Army and we will send you to bomb, shoot and possibly torture fellow human beings in other countries."Join the Army and we will send you probably poorly equipped into situations where people will try to shoot or kill you because you are occupying other people's countries."Join the Army, and if you survive and come home, possibly injured or mentally damaged, you and your family will be shabbily treated."I can agree with the last one, the first three however are the typical simpering of ar*ehole who would not be able to spew out such crap if we did not have a martial tradition in this country.
More About: School , Propaganda , Vote , Defence

Smoking - Star Wars VII Relighting of the Cig
2008-03-24 21:33:00
To follow on from my earlier post on smoking, here is a bit of a fun video.And here is one that could drive you to smoke.
More About: Star Wars , Wars , Labour , Star , Smoking

Displaying cigarettes in shops to be banned?
2008-03-24 09:23:00
The latest attack on our everyday lives from the "good ideas club" comes in the form of putting an end (ban) to the displaying cigarettes in shops. The smoking Nazi's have had their way and managed to get all smokers out in the cold, but that's not enough. They don't care about second hand smoke, all they care about is a total ban on cigarettes, and inch by inch they are getting their way. It also looks likely that the anti-smoking lobby will push for a ban on vending machines in pubs and restaurants.Of course the government have announced that they will have a public consultation to gauge public opinion on these issues. If this is anything like their other consultations with the public, you can guarantee that they will waste a massive amount of money by ignoring anything the public had to say. This governments' consultations are just a smokescreen to push through any policy they like, they don't give a monkey's what we think.
More About: Labour , Cigarettes , Banned , Shops

The Seventy Sixth Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus Leaves in 5 Minutes!
2008-03-23 21:43:00
Got some time to kill but don't know where to go?Why don't you climb aboard the Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus. There are still a few places left.Click on STOP 1 and the Bus will take you to your first Mystery Blog location. To get back on the Bus just click the Back Button and click STOP 2 to continue the Tour. I think you can work the rest out.The Bus rolls out on Sundays and Wednesdays - enjoy the ride. 12 34 5
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Give OUR Gurkhas British citizenship petition.
2008-03-22 09:07:00
Last year I posted several times on the subject of our Gurkhas and the appalling treatment handed out to them by the British Government. It started with the pitiful story of the government's refusal to allow VC hero Tul Bahadur Pun to come to Britain for desperately needed health care. Eventually Mr Pun was allowed to come to Britain, but only after massive pressure from the general public.In March last year I posted the following:The Ministry of Defence is to pay ex-Gurkhas the same pensions as British soldiers. Ex-Gurkhas Currently receive just a sixth of the average army pension (£984 a year) and many ex-Gurkhas say they are left destitute. The new pension deal will not apply to Nepalese soldiers who retired before July 1997, leaving many disappointed. Padam Bahadur Gurung, President of the Gurkha Army Ex-Servicemen's Organisation, said: "This is good news for serving Gurkhas, but not for the Gurkhas who fought in the Second World War and the Falklands. "There are currently ab...
More About: Petition , Give

David Cameron has a message for The Daily Mirror (cycling).
2008-03-21 21:22:00
Click to enlarge.
More About: Daily , Cycling , Cameron , Message , David

Climate Change My Arse Part 25 (Ocean Temperatures).
2008-03-21 13:49:00
Apparently (so the climate experts say) 80 to 90 percent of global warming involves heating up ocean waters because they hold much more heat than the atmosphere can. Obviously this would mean that if you had recorded Ocean temperature over the last five years of devastating Global Warming you would expect to see a rise in Ocean temperature, right? Well it turns out that you could be wrong. Ocean temperatures have in fact been recorded in a world wide survey involving 3,000 scientific robots, and guess what? the oceans have cooled.This shocking (not) news coincides with reports (using the latest US satellite figures) that surface temperatures have not increased since 1998, in fact they have also cooled. 2007 saw global temperatures at the same level as those last seen in 1983. It has now been established that the hottest decade in the last century was in fact the 1930's, with 1934 holding the record for the hottest year.When I come across these figures, it does make me wonder if Gor...
More About: Climate Change , Climate , Change

Post Office closures - See how your Labour MP voted.
2008-03-21 10:26:00
The Conservative motion to suspend the Post Office closure program was beaten by 288 to 268 votes on Wednesday. Over 90 Labour MPs and seven Cabinet Ministers campaigned in their local constituencies to keep their Post Office s open. Nineteen of those Labour MPs disobeyed the whip and voted for the Conservative motion. Of course this means that at least seventy one of those Labour MPs campaigning to keep Post Offices open, voted to continue with the Post Office closure program.Did your Labour MP tell you they were pulling out all the stops to keep your Post Office open? To find out if they were full of crap, click HERE.Note: If you want to know the real reason why Gordon Brown must shut down our Post Offices click HERE. (Hat Tip: Jeremy Jacobs for pointing this out in a comment).Labour MPs accused of "hypocrisy" over post office closures Mansfield MP votes for Tory motion on Post OfficeLabour MPs slammed over Post Office closures.Post office closures: Labour MPs criticisedMP defends ...

Dutch PM is a coward says MP Geert Wilders.
2008-03-20 18:48:00
The controversial Dutch MP Geert Wilders, (who is to release a film later this month reportedly attacking the Koran ) has called his Prime Minister a coward who has sided with the Taliban. His comments were made after praising the Danish PM for his stance on freedom of expression. Wilders said:"I wish we had such a prime minister in Holland. "Unfortunately we have a coward who will not stand fast on the constitution's words about freedom of expression, but instead has sided with the Taliban."It's not surprising that the Danish PM, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, is trying his best to disassociate himself and his country from Geert Wilders:"I dissociate myself completely from Geert Wilders' points of view, and I must clearly reject Mr Wilders' attempt at associating his views to those of the Danish government. "The Danish government respects all religions. Wilders generalises and demonises groups because of their religious or ethnic background."Wilder's film has the Dutch government braci...
More About: Islam , Coward

Labour's immigration policy is a disgrace.
2008-03-20 11:30:00
We are overrun with illegal immigrants, the government claim to not have a clue how many there are. We have illegals working in government departments and as security guards all over the country. And yet this government have thought it perfectly acceptable to remove a Ghanaian woman who was being treated here for cancer. Ama Sumani, 39, has died in Ghana because the drugs required to treat her condition were not available in her home country.Miss Sumani came to the UK on a student Visa but broke its condition when she started work. Campaigners were trying to persuade the government to allow her to return to the UK to continue her treatment. Unfortunately for Miss Sumani and her two orphaned daughters, they failed.The medical journal The Lancet called the government?s behaviour "atrocious barbarism". I totally agree.Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
More About: Immigration , Policy , Disgrace

Post Office closures - MPs are voting now.
2008-03-19 20:01:00
MPs have just gone to division to vote on the Conservative 's motion to suspend Post Office closures. The vote follows and Opposition Day debate in the House of Commons. It was amazing to see Business Secretary John Hutton defend the indefensible in the latter stages of the debate. You could tell his heart was not in it - probably because he is aware that he was more than likely committing electoral suicide.The result follows shortly.Votes for a suspension to the closures = 268Votes against = 288Can you believe it? The public are betrayed once again by their Labour MPs.Note: I will of course publish a full list of those Labour MPs who voted for the closure program to go ahead. 90 Labour MPs, seven of whom are in the Cabinet, had been campaigning against the post office closures. What a bunch of stinking hypocrites.
More About: Voting

The Seventy Fifth Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus Leaves in 5 Minutes!
2008-03-19 19:25:00
Got some time to kill but don't know where to go?Why don't you climb aboard the Magical Mystery Blog Tour Bus. There are still a few places left.Click on STOP 1 and the Bus will take you to your first Mystery Blog location. To get back on the Bus just click the Back Button and click STOP 2 to continue the Tour. I think you can work the rest out.The Bus rolls out on Sundays and Wednesdays - enjoy the ride. 12 34 5
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And I thought I was just lazy - Hypothyroidism.
2008-03-19 15:27:00
I've been quite ill on and off for about a year, at one point I thought that I was having and heart attack. After several blood tests and lot of investigation it turns out that I've got Hypothyroidism . Basically I've got an under-active thyroid gland. Apparently the Thyroid is the body's gearbox and mine is running below idle. I pick my medication up tomorrow and from what I've read on the subject I should see an almost immediate improvement in my health (if I take the tablets for the rest of my life).The main symptoms are: Tiredness, lethargy, intolerance to cold, dry skin and hair loss, slowing of intellectual activity e.g. poor memory and difficulty concentrating, decreased appetite with weight gain. Basically, if the medication doesn't work I need to be shot.The reason I'm telling you all this is that I'm hoping someone out there has got the same condition and that they will tell me the medication works. I'm fed up of feeling like I can't be arsed to do anything,...
More About: Personal , Blogging , Thought , Lazy

Abortion is getting more common amongst the young.
2008-03-19 12:01:00
Abortion is a bit of an hot topic at the moment. The main issue is whether the abortion limit should be reduced from 24 weeks due to the increased chances of survival we are seeing at that stage of pregnancy. I for one agree, it should be reduced to 22 weeks and then be assessed in twelve months time to see if 20 weeks would be more appropriate.On the subject of abortion, I came across some quite startling figures today:In England alone, during the period 2002-2006 there were 99,620 recorded pregnancies for under 17 year olds. Of those 50,763 (51%) were aborted. The figures show that the percentage of abortions has increased over the period: 50% were aborted in 2002 compared to 53% aborted in 2006.We are seeing approximately 20,000 under 17 pregnancies in England each year and there seems to be no sign of that improving. What can we do to drastically cut the 10,000+/year under 17 abortions? Is sex education working?It would be handy to give the following information to teenage girls...
More About: Abortion , Young , Common , The Young