So. Tommy Sheridan gets three years for perjury.

These days, politicians are falling like skittles.

In his plea in mitigation, I see that Sheridan mentions Lord Archer and Jonathan Aitken.

As it happens, almost ten years ago, in March 2000, Jonathan Aitken claimed in his autobiography that I had been responsible for his downfall!

He believed my Commons adjournment debate in December 1997 finally persuaded the police to act.

Surely not?

As I told the Pendle Labour Party at the time, there should not be one law for the rich and powerful and another for the rest of us.

Nothing personal.

Baron Greaves of Pendle in the County of Lancashire

I see that the old bearded Liberal relic, Tony Greaves, has been in the House of Lords for almost a decade. (see attachment)

We rub our eyes in disbelief but it’s true.

There he is, happily and contentedly legislating for the rest of us.

To be fair, he believes (I think) in an elected House. It's just that it never seems to happen.

We have been led up the garden path on Lords Reform for so long I suppose I shall believe it only when I see it.

I want to see a small elected Upper Chamber rather than the bloated House of Patronage which is what we've got at the moment.

The Canadians have the same problem with their unelected Senate.

They know it needs to change but into what?

Burnley’s A&E - more dancing around the issue

We are indeed being led a merry dance on the reinstatement (or not) of Burnley General’s Accident and Emergency Department.

The dainty minuet continued yesterday (25 January) in the Commons with Burnley’s lacklustre Lib Dem MP, Gordon Birtwistle, pleading with Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, to “re-visit” the issue.

Gordon Birtwistle (Burnley) (LD): The College of Emergency Medicine recently stated that if a hospital A and E unit is to be downgraded to an urgent care centre, the nearest A and E unit should be no more than 12 miles away. Will the Secretary of State revisit the cases of A and E units that were recently downgraded by the previous Government to urgent care centres when the nearest A and E unit is more than 12 miles away?

Mr Lansley: Yes. My hon. Friend makes a very important point. I promise I will discuss with John Heyworth of the College of Emergency Medicine precisely the point that my hon. Friend has raised. The College of Emergency Medicine says that it does not recognise what an urgent care centre is. From its point of view, hospitals should either have an emergency department or an A and E or they should not. If they do not, it is very important to be clear that they do not. I feel that we need to be much clearer about the nature of the service provided in A and E departments and the distinction between that and the service provided in minor injury or minor illness centres.

We must brace ourselves for the sight of more dancing before the music finally stops.

Attachments:

GC Report March 2000.pdf	[Pendle Labour Party March 2000]	8476 Kb
Operating Framework for the NHS in England.pdf	[NHS Operating Framework]	743 Kb