Saturday 24 November 2012

Saturday Six 15

It's a grey, drab, dreich Saturday afternoon here in Bristol and I'm sat in my reading room listening to Kylie Minogue's The Abbey Road Sessions* with a cup of tea and my book awaiting. So, let's crack on: 

Choosing to be gay is all about embracing hardships - so why should we introduce Equal Civil Partnerships? Andy West reports...

Of course any discrimination and prejudice directed at gay people is magnified many times for Transgendered people - as this press release on the publication of the European Commission's "Eurobarometer" report on discrimination makes clear.

The Justice and Security Bill has been in the Lords this week where a number of amendments were passed - with support from cross-benchers, Labour and some Lib Dem backbenchers. Meanwhile, the Lib Dem grassroots campaign against it continues. Nick Thornsby makes an interesting contribution: pointing out that the phrase "secret courts" is not nearly sinister enough in describing the effect of the measures proposed.

The Director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Jonathan Portes,  relates an exchange he had with Jesse Norman MP (Conservative) when giving evidence to the Treasury Select Committee. Norman pursued and extraordinarily hostile line of questioning.

E-mails from Cabinet Ministers to Lib Dem Members are ten-a-penny these days. Mark Valladares has had a missive from Danny Alexander.

And finally - this picture of a feature in this week's Private Eye made me chuckle.

Andrew

* I was when I started, now have Hurts with Happiness playing and I have drunk all the tea. I've also acquired a cat on my lap, so laptop is now a-top my knees.

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