Peer's report chided for letting justice system off the hook after calling for greater emphasis on victim supportA misleading focus on the proportion of rape cases that result in conviction has left victims' needs neglected and stopped women coming forward, the author of a landmark government review said.The independent report by Baroness Stern was commissioned by the government last year in response to ongoing concerns over the level of rape cases resulting in convictions. But in an interview with the Guardian, Stern said that while they remained important, the conviction rate was "not the be all and end all".Stern suggested the figure of 14% – the estimated proportion of reported rapes that end in a conviction for that crime or another related offence – was "not dramatically low"...

(Repost) Let us briefly analyse this War on Terror and War in Iraq, as it appears apparent that this struggle, death and destruction could have been avoided? Following 9/11, the “War on Terror” has raged; reportedly to neutralize the activity of international terror groups and nations considered to support them. The War...

Men detained following MoD inquiry into companies allegedly receiving millions of dollars for undelivered armoured busesTwo men have been arrested following a Ministry of Defence inquiry into an alleged multimillion pound fraud in post-invasion Iraq, involving British companies headed by ex-soldiers and a former high-ranking Scotland Yard officer.One man was detained after he flew into Britain from the Far East, while a second is understood to have been arrested in London and freed on bail.The arrests, carried out by the fraud squad of the MoD's police force, follow investigations on both side of the Atlantic that were triggered by a Guardian report on fraud on the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) that was installed in Baghdad shortly after the 2003 invasion.In March 2007 the...

An extraordinary story about how George Osborne would 'go quietly' if David Cameron decides he isn't quite right as shadow Chancellor. Is this supposed to inspire confidence in the Conservatives? The supposedly positive suggestion is that Osborne would not create a fuss were he sacked for not being good enough. If ever there was a statement resulting from an uncomfortably defensive position, that is it. This is not the face or the message of a coherent and electable opposition, and unleashing Kenneth 'Big Beast' Clarke into the frontlines in Osborne's place - while an attractive proposition - does not exactly scream 'new Conservatives, new...

You can check it out in full here. Very, very good stuff. I have high hopes for the coming election!  If you feel benevolent and particularly generous, this writer always appreciates things bought for him from his wishlist...

Remember Swine Flu? Der Spiegel has a report on how and why a relatively mild flu virus mutated into a medical and media epidemic. It's long and detailed, but here are two vital paragraphs:Researchers in more than 130 laboratories in 102 countries are constantly on the lookout for new flu pathogens. Entire careers and institutions, and a lot of money, depend on the outcomes of their work. "Sometimes you get the feeling that there is a whole industry almost waiting for a pandemic to occur," says flu expert Tom Jefferson, from an international health nonprofit called the Cochrane Collaboration. "And all it took was one of these influenza viruses to mutate to start the machine grinding."Now turned up, the machinery was set into motion. Researchers got to work examining the molecular...

ANYONE FOR TENNIS……….. Another week, another abject British failure in the sporting world. Great Britain’s loss in the Davis Cup to the mighty Lithuania could mean a descent from the third tier of this competition. Matches against the likes of Ireland, Turkey and Monaco, would be replaced with games against Moldova, Andorra and San Marino. How can...

Leader brushes aside coalition talk, telling pre-election conference he believes party can lead next governmentNick Clegg, today shrugged off the idea he would play the role of kingmaker in a hung parliament, telling the Liberal Democrats' pre-election conference the party "could lead the next government" if it upped its share of the vote from one in four to one in three.Speaking over the heads of the party faithful, the leader encouraged wavering voters to vote "with your heart" and not dismiss voting Lib Dem because the electoral maths where they lived suggested the party would not win a seat outright.The Lib Dems should seek to break the two-party duopoly of Labour and the Conservatives, he said, and end the "pass the parcel" electoral system by increasing their party's share of the...

Proposals for a fully elected House of Lords will be set out shortly by the government, the transport secretary tells the...

Denise Fergus says comments that Venables and Thompson were too young to stand trial in adult court for killing were 'twisted and insensitive'James Bulger's mother has called for the children's commissioner, Dr Maggie Atkinson, to be sacked after she called for the age of criminal responsibility to be raised and said that the toddler's killers should not have stood trial because they were too young.Denise Fergus described Atkinson's comments in a newspaper interview – stating that Jon Venables and Robert Thompson should not have been prosecuted because they were too young to understand the full consequences of their actions – as "twisted and insensitive".Despite England and Wales having one of the lowest ages of criminal responsibility in the EU, the Ministry of Justice yesterday...

The peer informally known as “Barrenness Udder” initially appeared to have escaped from charges of milking the taxpayer. In a display of asininity remarkable even for him, the perpetually useless Keir Starmer has declared that guidance issued by the Clerk of the Parliaments – guidance, mind! – rendered the law irrelevant. If anyone else ran...

There's a lot of anger about. Yesterday morning in the corner store stubbly track-suit man came in for his 'Sun', saw a queue of three for the till and left his twenty pee on the counter. The Sri-Lankan checkout girl tried to give it back to him, motioning him to join the queue. Suddenly he exploded with rage; "I'm not f...ing queueing! You've got your money!" and stalked out. It woke us all up. It even woke the Nigerian security guard up.In the office I caught a senior colleague, a man known for his equable temperament, kicking the photocopier, jammed with papers he needed for a meeting for which he was already late. The IT manager is having a breakdown and his PA fields phone calls with 'he's gone home sick' with increasing frequency; abusive emails have mushroomed recently as work...

Nick Clegg is to say he is "not the kingmaker" amid speculation about the Lib Dems' possible role in a coalition...

Tough questions as undecided voters quiz the...

I started making pornography for women because there was a need. And now I want to do something about the need for more female MPsI'm Anna Arrowsmith, the Liberal Democrat PPC for Gravesend or, as many will know me, Anna Span, the UK's first female porn director. Take your pick.Since news of my selection broke on Thursday, many people have asked me why I want to be an MP. The answer is: for exactly the same reason I decided to start making pornography for women more than 12 years ago. Someone had to do it and it didn't look like anyone else was going to – at least not with the drive, enthusiasm and determination that I could offer. The unfortunate truth is that there are far too few female MPs in this country compared to the rest of the world.Did you know that Rwanda has the highest...

Chancellor will cite state investment in jobs as key to lower-than-expected unemploymentAlistair Darling will claim next week that government action to protect jobs has saved around £12bn, as Labour uses the pre-election budget to spell out key economic dividing lines with the Tories.In what is expected to be the most political budget in decades, the chancellor will cite government investment in jobs programmes as a major reason why unemployment has turned out to be dramatically lower than economists predicted. Last year's budget anticipated that the level of unemployment, based on National Audit Office assessments of independent forecasts, would be 2.09 million people in the fourth quarter of 2009 and 2.44 million in the fourth quarter of 2010. By December's pre-budget report (PBR),...

Nick Clegg describes George Osborne's plans to slash budgets as 'economic masochism'The Liberal Democrats have distanced themselves from the Conservatives by warning they would not support plans to cut public spending too early in the next parliament.The party's leader, Nick Clegg, said early deep cuts would be "economic masochism". It came as the Lib Dem treasury spokesman, Vince Cable, hit out at the Tories' economic plans. In his speech at the party's spring conference in Birmingham, Cable accused the Conservatives of engaging in a "phoney war over cuts" that would affect millions of lives. He also hit out at George Osborne, the shadow chancellor.Cable said the Tories were trying to present their economic team as "'Slasher' Osborne and the Hard Men". But, he added, they appeared to...

Former prime minister builds network of Christian allies as he prepares to launch a religious 'offensive' in North AmericaTony Blair is preparing to launch a "faith offensive" across the United States over the next year, after building up relationships with a network of influential religious leaders and faith organisations.With Afghanistan and Iraq casting a shadow over his popularity at home in Britain, Blair's focus has increasingly shifted across the Atlantic, to where the nexus of faith and power is immutable and he is feted like a rock star.According to the annual accounts of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, a UK-based charity that promotes cohesion between the major faiths, the foundation is to develop a US arm that will pursue a host of faith-based projects. The accounts show that...

Black fathers need to become more involved with their children to help tackle social problems among young people, an MP will...

Lib Dems tread carefully before General...

Fears over Muslims in prison, fears about Mosques, fears about… Jihad Jane, etc, etc. Ian McEwan, The Booker Prize winner, has said that criticising Islam is not racist, however, the credibility of such an argument would depend on the nature of the criticism particularly since he appears to ignore that the majority of terrorists...

In honour of my writing this from Lib Dem spring conference in Birmingham, today’s (short) list is Pop Songs That Name Constituencies With Liberal Democrat MPs. It’s also inspired by the first entry on the list, which – bizarrely – was being sung outside the conference hotel in the early hours last night. Despite our 63 MPs, few constituencies are likely to appear in song lyrics because they contain qualifiers (mainly compass points). So Brent East, Leeds North West, Bristol West, Cardiff Central and Oxford West and Abingdon are unlikely to feature. I’ve managed to come up with six. Any additions in the comments please. Jackie by Scott Walker – Twickenham From Rochdale to Ocho Rios by 10cc – Rochdale Boston (Ladies of Cambridge) by Vampire...

Law and Order Edition. CharonQC on overcrowding in Britain’s Jails…. Jack of Kent on prosecutions in the ‘electronic medium’. Jailhouse Lawyer on who is really running Britain’s prisons. Internet News on how the piracy laws in France have failed miserably. and finally Raedwald, because this post made me laugh so...

Campaigners demand David Cameron identifies member who killed bill protecting developing world from vulture fund bankersPressure is growing on David Cameron to identify the mystery Tory MP who deliberately scuppered a landmark anti-poverty bill that could have stopped "vulture" bankers profiteering from the developing world's debt burdens.Debt campaigners have reacted in fury and disbelief to the killing of the bill and Labour MP Sally Keeble, one of the bill's backers, has accused the Conservatives of "duplicity" by pretending to back the legislation and then sabotaging it at the last minute.Campaigners are now calling on the leader of the opposition to clarify his view of the bill and asking whether the MP concerned will be identified. The international development secretary, Douglas...

Leaked adjudication largely clears government over campaign that some thought 'scary, inaccurate and too political'Read the full text of the ASA adjudicationThe advertising watchdog has mildly rebuked the government over the phrasing of a claim in two advertisements on the danger of climate change, while dismissing the rest of the complaints against the controversial television and newspaper campaign.The campaign, run by the Department of Environment and Climate Change last winter, brought in 939 complaints. Various groups said the adverts were political, too scary, and factually misleading.The vast majority of these complaints have now been dismissed by the authority.The Advertising Standards Authority's only criticism was that a claim that "flooding, heat waves and storms will become...

Act I, Scene I: A man sits hunched at a shabby desk in a leaky portakabin at the back of a railway station car park.  At the sound of someone trying to shoulder their way through a warped portakabin door, he hunches himself lower over his desk and buries his face...

Possibly one the more famous quotes from the 19th century American Novelist, Mark Twain:""There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."I had an email last night, telling me that Thanet Life has just entered at number 251 in the Wikio 'Politics' rankings. Just in case you didn't know, I didn't, Wikio is apparently the number one news aggregator in Europe, indexing over 200,000 English-language sources, which is nice!But I'm not alone. Eastcliff Richard reports that his is now the: "521st most influential blog in Britain", Thanet Strife hovers at 599 and Mark Nottingham tells us Wikio rates his blog, "as the 680th most influential blog in the country." He also adds with characteristic generosity "They also do not rate Thanet Conservative councillor Simon Moores blog...

The Lib Dems would not support a government which proposes major spending cuts within in the next year, leader Nick Clegg...

Here we go again: Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary, unexpectedly announced that a £270 million loan guarantee would be given to General Motors Europe, the parent company. Unexpectedly? Very unexpectedly! Because not all that long ago: Unions had criticised Lord Mandelson, saying he had been on the periphery of discussions concerning the future of Vauxhall, and the UK...

Samantha Cameron speaks publicly for the first time of her relationship with the Conservative...

Over on Slugger, Mark has been musing on the subject of how a legitimate political state is defined (Congress of Vienna, the Montevideo convention, recognition by the UN and social theory) and how this is reflected in the arguments put forward by those who reject the legitimacy of Northern Ireland (usually referring to it as the Six Counties). I intend leaving that conversation over on Slugger where it will run long and heated!But on a related note, the Electoral Commission recently updated their Code of Practice for Electoral Observers. Long time readers will remember that I signed up as an observer before last June’s European Election and posted a bit about some of what I saw during the opening of postal ballots, polling day, the verification and the count.The introduction of the...

Lib Dem leader condemns bankers as 'Scargills in pinstripes' and says electorate, not him, will decide who is next PMNick Clegg is to call for a 10% tax on bank profits to fund a £2bn job creation programme to rescue victims of the recession.In a Guardian interview, the Liberal Democrat leader condemned bankers for behaving like ''Arthur Scargill in pinstripes'', and vowed his party would be "a radicalising, rather than moderating force" in the event of a hung parliament so long as the majority party was committed to bring the deficit under control.On the eve of his party's pre-election spring conference, he insisted he will consult his party fully before joining a coalition or supporting a Queen's speech tabled by a minority government.Clegg insisted it is not for him, but for the...

The three major parties have revealed their slogans for this year's general election. Labour were first with “A Future Fair For All”. Unlike the other parties, they’ve had the advantage of being in power since 1997. They’ve had plenty of time to create “a future fair for all”. The Conservatives were second with their slogan “Vote For Change”. It is possible to vote for change without fvoting for Visit seniorspeaks.blogspot.com to read the entire entry....

A Court has ruled the BNP rules as still discriminating despite it’s recent rule change. On one hand, and as I’ve said before, the Courts are wrong in forcing the BNP to change it’s rules and therefore be able to hide it’s racism under the banner of political correctness, on the other hand it’s a...

A Court has ruled the BNP rules as still discriminating despite it’s recent rule change. On one hand, and as I’ve said before, the Courts are wrong in forcing the BNP to change it’s rules and therefore be able to hide it’s racism under the banner of political correctness, on the other hand it’s a...

Political director Charlie Whelan says phone bank operation is largest ever undertaken by a British unionBritain's largest union is mobilising its members to canvass for Labour in key marginal constituencies, and help counteract the money being poured into the areas by the Conservative election team.Unite's political director, Charlie Whelan, who is also Gordon Brown's former spin doctor, said the operation was the biggest ever undertaken by a British union.Up to 100,000 Unite members in 90 marginals will be contacted by the union, in the hope that it will galvanise support for the government."In 90 key seats the Unite membership is larger than the current Labour majority," said Whelan. "If almost every Unite member voted Labour, we would win the election. If the union delivers votes it...

As I predicted, porn director Anna Arrowsmith's candidacy for the Liberal Democrats in Gravesham has attracted quite a lot of attention from the press. You read it here first. (Unless you got if off Twitter like I did, of course.) What I hadn't quite banked on was that the coverage would be almost entirely uncritical. Even the Daily Mail was surprisingly complimentary - at least Ms Arrowsmith thought so - noting for example that "a quick glance through the titles of her 300 or so films may suggest she has used them to address some of the major challenges facing Britain today". The paper illustrated its story with photos of Anna Span posing with some of her performers, everyone looking happy. A potted biography of the candidate informed readers that "she became involved in porn to...

Edward McMillan-Scott accuses David Cameron of 'propitiating extremism abroad' and says he fears that on Europe the Tory leader says one thing in opposition and will do another in governmentThe former leader of the Conservatives in the European parliament has defected to the Liberal Democrats, the party announced today.Edward McMillan-Scott accused David Cameron of "propitiating extremism abroad" and said he feared the Tory leader said one thing on Europe in private but would do another in government.The MEP for Yorkshire and the Humber clashed with Cameron last year over the Conservative leader's decision to remove his MEPs from the centre-right European People's party and set up a new group, European Conservatives and Reformists, with controversial allies from eastern...

A long-serving Conservative MEP, expelled in a row over the party's new allies in Europe, has joined the Liberal...