Latest news with #Thornley
Scotsman
7 days ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
No wonder the Liberal Democrat brand colour is yellow
Lib Dem victor Kevin McKay makes his speech after the Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart by-election result was announced How uplifting it was to read the local Liberal Democrat leader Ed Thornley's column in Monday's Evening News, congratulating his party's winning candidate in the Craiglockhart by-election and welcoming the new councillor to 'the best job I've ever had'. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Given that Councillor Thornley's other job is a member of the Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton's staff, his bar might be set rather low, but it is indeed a great privilege and honour to be elected to Edinburgh City Council. But done properly it can come at a cost. Few people would put in the kind of shift required of councillors to get even just the basics of the job right – helping constituents, reading thousands of pages of reports, night and weekend work with no time off in lieu – for the available allowance of just over £25,000 if it meant giving up other better-paid work. Nobody should enter politics for the money, but be motivated by the desire to make things better for the voters who place their trust in you. I know my old business suffered because I needed to spend so much time on council duties, especially at the height of the campaign to save Currie High School. The responsibilities only increase in administration, but that's what everyone who stands for election should be aiming for, because you can achieve an awful lot more in power than in opposition. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But after recent by-elections put Edinburgh's Lib Dem group in position to take control of the city council, they have shown a marked reluctance to express any enthusiasm for so, instead just saying they will take the summer recess to think things over. Cllr Thornley used his column to tell readers how well-known his new colleague Kevin McKay is in Craiglockhart, not how he was looking forward to heading a new administration after the summer as the leader of a 14-strong group. There was nothing about putting Lib Dem priorities, whatever they are, at the top of the council's agenda, as Lib Dem voters are be entitled to expect. Not a word of what he and Cllr McKay are actually going to do. In truth, they seem to be little more than a disparate collection of community activists whose purpose is to prop up a lame duck Labour administration, force Labour to accept some of their local budget ideas, accept no responsibility whatsoever for the subsequent outcomes and sit on the fence whenever possible. A perfect illustration is the treatment of their Edinburgh West MP Christine Jardine, sacked from her front bench position as equalities spokesperson last week because she defied party orders to abstain over a Conservative amendment to reduce some benefits. I would have rather she had not voted against the motion, but at least she had the courage of her convictions and got off the fence. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Unless something changes, they will have conned voters into believing they were voting for a Lib Dem-run council but instead got some shady puppet regime operating under cover of darkness. The electorate expects the winner to take the spoils but to do otherwise, to hand them back to avoid accountability for the difficult decisions authorities must take, is an act of gross political cowardice or cynicism. Neither is a good look. No wonder the Lib Dem brand colour is yellow. Sue Webber is a Scottish Conservative MSP for Lothian
BBC News
05-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Northern Kin festival cancelled after efforts to save it fail
A festival has been cancelled after attempts to save it did not succeed, organisers Kin was due to take place at Thornley Hall farm, in County Durham, at the beginning of Wannasee Ltd had previously said discussions were under way to preserve the festival after 10 of its other events, including Stone Valley North and Kubix, were cancelled at the end of a social media post on Wednesday confirmed Northern Kin would not be going ahead, despite the team having worked "around the clock" to find a way to run it. "We are heartbroken to confirm that Northern Kin will not be going ahead this year," the post said."The team have been working around the clock the past couple of weeks trying to find a way to run the festival, but despite our best efforts, we are unable to do so."It joins Sunderland's Kubix and Monument festivals, Stone Valley North in Thornley, County Durham, Wannasee Penrith, Wannasee South, Jukebox Sunderland and Jukebox Bingley, Sign of the Times, Stone Valley South and Stone Valley Midlands in being Ltd had previously said it was "not able to continue" with the events and was in discussions with liquidators, but added discussions to preserve Lindisfarne Festival and Northern Kin were under company has been contacted for a comment. Northern Kin previously faced criticism from fans over traffic problems and issues with toilets, water supply and disabled access at its previous site in Ushaw, County Durham. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Edinburgh Live
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Edinburgh Live
Call for action on Edinburgh busking as new rules won't be in place for this summer
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Action is needed to control busking in the Capital, a councillor has warned, as it emerged new rules for performers have been delayed beyond the start of the summer. The council started work last year to try and develop new rules for busking and busker management. Officers had intended to submit a report on the topic in autumn last year – but this has since been delayed until beyond the start of this summer. Liberal Democrat councillor Edward Thornley put forward a motion to the city's Culture and Communities Committee calling for an update on busking in the city. In it, he asks for council officers to present information on how effective temporary measures put in place during summer 2024 were, highlighting any new approaches and asking for any data that might be available. Last summer, the council put up posters at popular busking spots reminding performers of rules and passed out 'busking guides', in addition to an increased level of street outreach. He also asks that officers provide an update on the report concerning the new busker rules, and an outline of what steps will be taken towards their introduction. Officers met with buskers, fringe acts and members of the public when developing the new rules. At present, the council's rules for busking are available on the city's website. It calls on buskers to only perform between 9am and 9pm, and to move to a new site at least 50 metres away after every hour. Additionally, it asks them to keep the volume of their performances low, to not disturb nearby businesses and residents. It also says that buskers should not pitch up within 50 metres of another performer, and calls on them to not block pavements, doorways or cashpoints. It further says that Police Scotland can charge and seize the equipment of buskers in some circumstances. As of now, buskers do not need a licence to perform in the city. Cllr Thornley's motion will be discussed at the next meeting of the city's Culture and Communities Committee, set to take place on Thursday, 5 June, which can be viewed here.
NZ Herald
06-05-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Wellington cryptosporidiosis outbreak: High number of cases still being reported
'In the meantime, we are continuing to closely monitor case rates, hospitalisations and the spread and severity of illness.' As of the beginning of May, there have been 81 confirmed cryptosporidium cases in the Greater Wellington Region, with the majority of these being reported after the outbreak began in mid-March. 'This number is around twice the number of cases for the same time period last year, with around two thirds of cases residing in the Hutt Valley area,' Thornley said. 'The number of cases reported each week is steady, with only three new cases reported in the last week. Initially, a majority of cases were associated with swimming pool use, however, recent cases are more likely to be from close contact with an infected person.' Health NZ will continue to liaise with swimming pools or early childhood education centres that may be associated with a case in a bid to limit further spread of the infection. 'Crypto is a gastro bug that causes vomiting and diarrhoea, and people can remain infectious for up to two weeks, which is why good hygiene and cleaning practices are important. People who have been unwell must not swim for two weeks afterdiarrhoea has stopped – crypto can still spread for two weeks after the illness has gone away. 'Children can return to preschool once symptom-free for 48 hours with a focus on promoting good hand washing and drying.' Details about specific precautions and advice can be found in the Crypto Factsheet and by Health New Zealand Recreational Water Safety. Lower Hutt woman Sarah, who is only being referred to by her first name, earlier said her husband and 1-year-old son caught the bug and were so violently ill 'I nearly called an ambulance'. '[My husband] was on the toilet at 2am screaming for me to go get a bucket,' she told the Herald. 'I ran down to get a bucket and came back and he'd passed out from overheating, pretty much, but it was almost like a seizure. His eyes were open and he was leaning back. 'I freaked and went to get my phone to call an [ambulance] and slapped him and he came to.' She said his body temperature was extremely high and he was sweaty, shaking and could not keep any water down. 'Anything he took came straight back out. He was also getting super-intense stomach cramps, it was incredibly painful for him.' She joked the experience was an example of 'through sickness and health, pretty much'. Meanwhile, her toddler was 'vomiting and sh***ing left, right and centre'. He was 'really hard to wake', but was 'happy enough' when he was conscious. Sarah said the bug was 'brutal'. Health officials have confirmed cryptosporidiosis cases were connected to the toddler pool at Te Ngaengae and the hydrotherapy pool at Huia. In response, Hutt City Council closed and disinfected both pools using high doses of chlorine and ultraviolet light in accordance with public health guidelines. 'As soon as we were made aware, we took immediate action,' read a statement at the time from Hutt City Pools + Fitness. 'Both pools were closed and underwent an intensive treatment process … There is no indication there had been further cases from the complex.' As a further precaution, several pools were drained and refilled. Council's head of aquatics, Iain Brown, said while they didn't have complete data, it appeared general attendance at pools was down about 15% in the weeks following the initial outbreak, though this has since recovered. 'We have done everything required by Public Health to keep our pools free from crypto and have worked effectively to keep the public informed about the issue. 'Pools are not the source of crypto outbreaks. It is introduced by pool users who carry the gastro bug. This can happen unwittingly as people suffering from crypto can still be infectious up to two weeks following recovery.' Health recommendations include: Soap and water instead of hand sanitiser, which does not kill the parasite. Close monitoring of tamariki hand washing, especially after illness. Cleaning with hot, soapy water before applying disinfectants like bleach, as crypto is resistant to many cleaners. Strict pool hygiene rules, including ensuring children shower and use the toilet before swimming, and avoiding pools for two weeks post-illness. The parasite cryptosporidium can cause vomiting, cramping and diarrhoea, and is not easily detected in regular pool-water testing.
