On Friday 9th January 2015, the disastrous Circle franchising experiment finally came to an end after they walked away from Hinchingbrooke Hospital just before a CQC report announced that their running of the hospital was inadequate and highlighted serious concerns over patient safety, staffing and financial difficulties. Campaigners have called for Circle to be sacked however take no pleasure in being vindicated in every criticism and concern that was raised. This was a disaster waiting to happen and Circle lurched from disaster to disaster from day one. Losing key figures such as Circle Chief Exec Ali Parsa who quit merely 6 months into the 10 year deal with a £400,000 payout followed swiftly by the Chief Exec of the hospital who took 'early retirement' at the age of 50 hinted at serious underlying problems. Staff cuts including nearly 50 nursing posts and axing cleaning staff have contributed to the issues highlighted in the CQC report, along with the closure of an elderly trauma ward in 2013. Circle were held up as a flagship for NHS privatisation however the knight in shining armour never materialised, Now it is up to us to fight to save Hinchingbrooke. Sign the petition and join us in calling for Hinchingbrooke to remain within the NHS and say no to private sector experiments or further franchising deals

Freedom of speech and freedom of expression are integral to global peace and security. We don't have to agree with what is being said, but we have to respect the persons rights to say it without fear. States which have laws like this which restrict free speech are wont to abuse them - to shut down dissent, to punish difference of opinion, and to insulate the government from all criticism. That is why the right to free speech, including the right to offend, is protected in international law. Even Raif's lawyer has been jailed. His crimes? 'Harming the reputation of the state by communicating with international organizations' and 'preparing, storing and sending information that harms public order'. Without respect for the right to freedom of expression, we are vulnerable to the worst oppression states can muster.

It's great to see that Ofcom have involved The English Greens however, their failure to involve the SNP who are currently the UK’s third largest political party with over 93,000 members and even more importantly are the ONLY political party in the UK to hold a Majority Government, This alone you would think entitles the SNP to be heard by all UK voters. Unfortunately NOT.... In Ofcom's failure to contact the SNP in their consultation ahead of the General Election also represents a failure of democracy in the UK, Ofcom needs to recognise that the SNP hold a majority government and are the UK’s third largest political party and involving them in Broadcast of Political Debates is key to ensuring fair media coverage in the run up to the 2015 May 7th General Election.. Ofcom must show the voters of the UK that by including the SNP they are showing that they are unbiased and plan democratic coverage of the run up to Broadcast of Political Debates in the 2015 General Election that will determine the future of the UK, By excluding the SNP, Ofcom are denying fair representation which is a democratic right and should be considered as bias media coverage by denying every UK viewer the right to decide what is right or what is wrong for their country during these Broadcast of Political Debates. LEND SNP YOUR SIGNATURE... LET'S TOGETHER HELP GET THEIR VOICES HEARD BY ALL UK VOTERS.....THEN DECIDE WHAT'S BEST FOR THE UK.. AUSTERITY, POVERTY, FOODBANKS, ZERO HR CONTRACTS MUST END.... SAVE THE NHS.. A LIVING WAGE IS A RIGHT FOR ALL UK CITIZENS... PLEASE SUPPORT OUR CAUSE AND SIGN...THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR LENDING YOUR SUPPORT.

Ofcom’s decision means the Greens would not be allowed election broadcasts on eight major TV and radio stations despite having overtaken Nick Clegg’s Lib Dems in the polls.

Senior citizens and disabled people are trapped in their homes and there is nowhere on the streets for them to sit in the sun or to communicate with others or even to rest if they need to.

This is important because we are democratic, aren't we? 79% of the general public believe the leader of the Green Party should be invited to debate, found in a poll by ICM Unlimited. Currently, 81% disagree with Ofcom's statement that UKIP is a major political party, but the Greens aren't. Younger populations must not be alienated from the processes that will decide their future. http://www.icmunlimited.com/media-centre/polls/4-in-5-greens-should-be-part-of-leader-debates http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/poll/2015/jan/08/ofcom-ukip-greens-major-party http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/electoral_commission_pdf_file/0019/16093/youngpplvoting_6597-6188__E__N__S__W__.pdf

Because paper is overused and we must learn to limit our use of the planets resources. Sign the petition to rid our stations and undergrounds of free newspapers. In our time the idea that paper is a free commodity to do with as you please is ridiculous considering the negative eological impact deforestation has on our planet. To cheapen it and enhance it's disposability is outrageous and needs to be rectified.

Defend Our Rich Cultural Heritage West Dorset District Council has shocked and appalled archaeologists by insisting that the controversial Charles Street development be allowed to go ahead without an adequate archaeological investigation prior to the bulldozers moving in. The site lies within the walls of the Roman town, and its archaeology is likely to include vital clues to our town’s history, from prehistoric times to the present. Flying in the face of English Heritage’s advice, and acting against the spirit of the law where archaeology and development are concerned, the Council has decided to squander a major opportunity to explore and enhance the understanding of Dorchester’s past. Instead of a thorough investigation of what remains below ground level, the site is to be destroyed and removed for landfill, after a mere cursory examination. The Council employed consultants to provide a report which assessed the site as being of only ‘medium’ importance, despite the fact that it is bounded on one side by the remains of Dorchester’s Roman bath-house, and on another by a unique and internationally important Neolithic henge monument. This report contains many factual errors and omissions, and its ‘fitness for purpose’ has been questioned by an internationally renowned and respected archaeologist. By their own admission the consultants’ assessment was ‘refined in order to reduce expenditure and maintain the economic viability of the development scheme’. Hardly the statement one might expect of detached, unbiased professionals! Plainly, the Council are determined to see the project through at any cost. So far this has included several millions of pounds of ratepayers’ money – now it seems as if it will also be at the cost of our town’s heritage, and the future opportunity for generations of residents, visitors, students and historians to enjoy, study and understand a vital part of Dorchester’s history. Thomas Hardy only exaggerated marginally when he asserted that ‘It was impossible to dig more than a foot or two deep about the town fields and gardens without coming upon some tall soldier or other of the Empire, who had lain there in his silent unobtrusive rest for a space of fifteen hundred years.’ Prince Charles has written that ‘If you destroy the past, or consistently deny its relevance to the present, man eventually loses his soul and his roots’. In the early nineteenth century, a group of Dorchester residents, led by the poet William Barnes, managed to avert the demolition of Maumbury Rings by Brunel’s Great Western Railway by forming a pressure group and lobbying against the wanton destruction of our town’s priceless heritage. Now we need to act again, to make sure that when development occurs, that heritage is treated with the respect it deserves, and is properly investigated, recorded and conserved. Please support D.O.R.C.H.’s actions to try to make West Dorset District Council change its mind, and ensure that a full and thorough excavation is carried out. Our future as a unique historic town depends on it.

Jo Swinson MP is well aware that the pending new EU trade deal with the USA (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership TTIP) could make existing privatisations of the NHS, and all that follows them, irreversible. All Cameron has to do is to threaten to use his veto by ensuring all mention of Health is removed from the treaty. We want Lib Dem MPs to insist he does it. Jo Swinson can help stop the Privatisation of the NHS and make sure it stays in our control, not the control of American multinationals. She should write to Cameron without delay. Because TTIP is negotiated between the coalition government at Westminster and the EU, it could have an effect on Scotland's healthcare services too, even though our NHS is devolved. The coalition government are putting the NHS in Scotland at risk too. Under this TTIP Agreement, our elected Government would not be able to bring NHS services back into public ownership regardless of circumstances. This is because TTIP will include legal arrangements whereby multinational Health corporations can sue Governments for loss of profits. TTIP Negotiations are taking place right now, and neither the European Union or the Con / Lib Government can give assurances that the NHS is safe or not. David Cameron can clear up all this confusion and protect the NHS.

For too long the political views of young people in the United Kingdom have been swept aside, not only by the so called 'major parties' but also by the mainstream British Media. Recent polls show that the Green Party of England and Wales, in the run up to the 2015 General Election, are polling at the same level as the Liberal Democrats who are themselves considered one of the major parties. To add insult to injury OFCOM have decided to upgrade the status of UKIP to major party, giving them more television time, more radio time and more opportunity. Quite frankly the decision taken by OFCOM to not grant 'Major Party' status to the Green Party is symbolic of two things. The first, that they are stuck in the past, unwilling to listen to the views of young people, not dissimilar to the current government. Secondly, that OFCOM as an organisation are more worried about viewing rates, and consider the controversial politics of UKIP to be better for viewing statistics. Both of these facts are unavoidable and unacceptable and we would call upon the UK OFCOM to reconsider its decision and upgrade The Green Party of England and Wales to Major Party status for the 2015 General Election.

Caewyd y rheilffyrdd yma yn y 1960au gan ynysu ardaloedd helaeth o Gymru. Mae angen eu ailagor i ailfywiogi'r ardaloedd maent yn rhedeg trwodd. Byddai eu hailagor yn helpu pobl leol i gymudo, yn hwyluso mynediad i wasanaethau iechyd, siopa ayyb, ac yn helpu myfyrwyr i fynychu prifysgolion yng Nghaerfyrddin, Llanbedr Pont Steffan, Aberystwyth a Bangor. Fe fyddai’n hwb i dwristiaeth yn yr ardal, ac yn lleihau'r nifer o gerbydau nwyddau trymion (megis pren, cynnyrch archfarchnad ayyb) o’r ffyrdd cul i’r rheilffordd, sy’n fwy diogel a chynaliadwy. These lines were closed in the mid 1960's and have left these areas of Wales very isolated. They need to be reopened to reinvigorate the areas they pass through. The reopening would help local people with commuting, access health services, shopping, improve access to the universities served by the lines in Carmarthen, Lampeter, Aberystwyth and Bangor. New lines will also boost tourism in the area and enable much of the heavy commercial traffic (timber, supermarket goods etc.) to be shifted from narrow roads to rail, which is much safer and more sustainable.

Anyone using a British companies services has the right to have their data provided in the mother-tongue with regards to convention of dates. This sounds Techy and maybe not so important however, it can and does affect people and companies finances. Here is what I am going on about........6/1/2015 is and always should be 6th January 2015 if you are using a British business or companies services. It is NOT 1st June 2015 which is what some other countries use/cultures. This ignorance of locale can and does cause major financial errors, confusion and disruption. The compromise version is the month being written in words EG: 06/Jun/15 or Jun/06/2015. I don't think is good enough. As Boris says, if you go to Rome, you will be expected to at least fit-in, at most integrate. When I downloaded some major banks statements last year, the dates were in US convention not British (English). This bank is a major very old institution. I read the dates correctly but they were in US convention and lead to issues. This is also cultural erosion. It is not acceptable to have this change unmanaged. If you have been affected by reading a date incorrectly that has had major impact on your life or your family please get behind this campiagn and let's start at the top. I have already discussed it with the Banking Ombudsman but it was pushed aside. This is NOT a 'non-issue'. It is as much about 'stealth-change' and NOT involving or asking opinion of the 'average Jo' as much as being a flaw. I have gone on enough now!, please have a serious think about joining this campaign and let's try and reduce cultural erosion and enforce Technical locale conventions. Thank you! NB: Here is a screenshot of computer settings for English (United Kingdom) http://i.imgur.com/7pZnG2t.png