Category Archives: Uncategorized

The large underspend was questioned by Cambridge’s Liberal Democrat and Green Parties at July’s full council. You can read the papers here – in particular, item 4a on Housing and Revenue Acct “Approve carry forward requests of £22,055,000 in HRA and General Fund Housing capital budgets and associated resources from 2021/22 into 2022/23 and beyondContinue reading “Broken supply chains and skilled worker shortages hit Cambridge City Council’s housing programme”

Above – from a workshop run by Cambridge Carbon Footprint. Following what must have been Cambridge’s second hottest day ever, will we see a sea-change in public opinion on the climate emergency – and on what to do about it? Have your say below! And this one is not the same as 1976 as BBC’sContinue reading “What would “Retrofitting your town/city” courses and workshops be like in practice?”

Only it was something that the UK Climate Risk Assessment of January 2017 said was an urgent action over the following five years. And we are now six months on from that end point and the mega hotwave is about to hit us. I quoted the report in my last-but-one blogpost at the start. “WhatContinue reading “What will your town’s urgent actions involve to reduce the impact of the urban heat island effect?”

…and I’m already asking questions about how prepared we could – and should have been for this. Here’s Prof Emily Shuckburgh of Cambridge Zero at the University of Cambridge, speaking to Channel 4 News earlier. (From 3mins 30secs in) Cambridgeshire County Council has also been putting out messages like the one below: …with further guidanceContinue reading “Bracing ourselves for 41°C hotwave”

As were the executives of large corporations – including those old enough to remember the Blue Peter Green Book from 1990 – digitised here. “The Evidence Report states that urgent action is needed in the next five years across a range of policy areas to address overheating in homes and public buildings and to reduceContinue reading “Red Warning – Extreme Heat: Ministers were warned. Repeatedly. And did nothing.”

Looking at what other things are needed to make the proposals from the New Local think tank work in practice. You can read their report here. My interest in this amongst other things is as a patient governor of the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Foundation Trust, which is responsible for NHS mental health services in CambridgeContinue reading ““A community-powered NHS” and the local public sector”

Why are so many vital sectors not covered? What does this say about the way the public sector runs such forums. Would you be interested in serving on the Board? This was raised as an issue at the previous board meeting – and written up in the minutes as follows: “To increase the number ofContinue reading “Who is missing on the Employment & Skills Board for Cambs & P’boro?”

Yet that is what successive governments have expected from Cambridge. The results make few people happy – financiers & developers complaining about the planning system constraining their opportunities, while local communities watch helplessly, unable to act as their homes are transformed into something they had no influence over. So, what can be done? TL/DR: WithContinue reading “International economic opportunities cannot be managed by enfeebled councils designed for market towns”

Above – From “The Man from Auntie” by Ben Elton – Mrs Thatcher’s then new slogan for her party shortly before her resignation as Prime Minister. Is history repeating itself? In 1990, Ben Elton did a stand-up routine in the dying days of Thatcher’s administration which sounds very familiar to current events. It was fromContinue reading “How many of the new ministers have you heard of before?”

…and the Prime Minister couldn’t even bring himself to tell people he was resigning. As David Baddiel noted: …noting that The Prime Minister did not say: “I am resigning” My general reaction? “I’ll be glad when you gone, you rascal, you!I’ll be glad when you gone, you rascal, you!When you gone from public life,We’ll getContinue reading ““I’ll be glad when you’re gone – you rascal you!””