Should Life Mean Life?

Prisoners serving ‘whole life’ sentences are challenging the right of the UK justice system to sentence them to jail for the rest of their lives on human rights grounds. Today, on the Today program, I debated whether - for the worst crimes - life should mean life.   You can listen to the discussion on this […]

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A Royal Visit

On Thursday, Walton was graced with a Royal visit from Princess Anne, to open the Citizens Advice Bureau’s (CAB) new office at the Elmbridge community hub. Our CABs do a marvellous job locally, advising on a range of issues from debt to housing. We also paid tribute to their Domestic Abuse Service’s tenth anniversary.   It […]

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The British Reaction to the US Spy Row

This week, Channel 4, The Guardian and The Independent broke the latest Edward Snowden disclosures about US surveillance - and UK involvement. They provide further evidence of the scale of US/UK surveillance and the indiscriminate techniques used. The US have announced sweeping reforms to deal with concerns about intrusions into personal privacy, but the UK has […]

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Walton’s Community Hub

 Today, I visited The Hub Walton, a local charity serving as a one-stop shop of advice for those with disabilities, the elderly and carers.  Matt Seaby (below) showed me around and explained how his team fit into the community hub in Walton. He has a team of around 13, mostly volunteers, and they are […]

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Thames Ditton’s New Year’s Panto

On Saturday night, Thames Ditton residents, led by Ruth Lyon and Karen Randolph, organised another fabulous New Year’s panto. The brilliant Charles Court Opera performed ‘Buttons’ at a packed Vera Fletcher hall. Erika and I attended, and enjoyed a great meal and a terrific evening. The funds go towards new equipment for Thames Ditton hospital - a […]

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