Links I like 12.05.05

Reaction to the elected mayor vote in Bristol – various Well done Bristol for bucking the national trend and voting decisively, if in small numbers, in favour of an elected mayor to lead the city from November. They were the only city to vote yes to the proposal following a pretty low-key campaign on the issue. The Centre for [...]

Campaigns get people to care about an elected mayor

I’ve been looking at the debate around proposals to devolve power to English cities, by installing elected mayors who (it is argued) will help areas outside London ‘punch above their weight’ and revitalise interest in local democracy. I wanted to find out more about the arguments around this idea in Bristol, where I work, which [...]

Shapps’ speech signals support for ‘self build’

Encouraging support for ‘self builders’ was signalled by the Government today, with Grant Shapps articulating his strong belief that helping more people to build their own homes could be the answer to the country’s housing crisis. His speech today at ‘Grand Designs Live 2011′ outlined Shapps’ vision for self build (which doesn’t necessarily mean ‘build your own’) to become a mainstream [...]

Hanham visit caps a hell of a year

My first year at the Homes and Communities Agency passed today with the visit of its chief executive Pat Richie to the South West. It was very much a day of two parts. Firstly, and most importantly, she was in Bristol to talk to colleagues about the ongoing restructure of the HCA. The agency is consulting staff (myself included) on proposed changes [...]

Twelve months that have passed like a train

In what has been a varied and challenging week at work, I’d forgotten until today that it has been a year since I left my old job at IPB Communications. Maybe it’s a measure of what has happened in that time (the hectic end to the last financial year, followed by an election, new Government [...]

Links I like 11.01.24

‘The Big Society debate must move on’ – Matthew Taylor’s blog RSA chief executive Matthew Taylor gives his reaction to The Times’ coverage of the perceived threat to the Government’s Big Society vision today. His opinion appears to be that the project is too all-embracing to take root: “The ideas of the Big Society can’t [...]

Links I like 11.01.08

‘Squalid truth behind the Sun’s murder reward’ – Media Guardian Roy Greenslade takes aim again at the tabloid press, and The Sun in particular, whose offer of a £50,000 reward to help catch Joanna Yeates’ killer is treated with cynicism. He should know; Greenslade was once a senior executive at the paper, when Kelvin MacKenzie (think ‘Freddie Star ate my hamster’, [...]

Media turns fire on itself over reporting of Bristol case

The concerns surrounding some media reporting of the Joanna Yeates murder case in Bristol have become more public since I blogged about it a couple of days ago. It emerged yesterday that Avon and Somerset Police took the rare step of banning ITV News from its morning press briefing because it had run a story the previous night that was the force [...]

‘Shameful’ coverage risks more than contempt

Bristol was at the centre of a narrative that gripped the country over Christmas, following the disappearance, discovery and investigation into the murder of Joanna Yeates. Inevitably, some coverage resulting from the arrest of suspect Christopher Jefferies raised concerns that the media could undermine the investigation. This will be all too familiar to those with [...]

Homeless project ‘one to watch’ for 2011

The last story I was involved in this year also has the potential to be one of the best. The HCA announced last week that it is to invest in a fantastic housing scheme which will be dedicated to homeless ex-servicemen and women in Bristol. The project, delivered by Knightstone Housing Association and the Community [...]