May 29, 2010
Laws claimed £40,000 to rent rooms from partner
By Michael Savage, Political Correspondent
David Laws was embroiled in a damaging row over his expenses last night after it emerged that he had handed his long-term partner tens of thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury, who won rave reviews from both Tories and Liberal Democrats for his performance this week during the announcement of significant public spending cuts, now faces an investigation into his actions and a fight to keep his job after admitting claiming £40,000 to rent a room in two houses owned by his partner.
Mr Laws apologised and said that he will pay back the money claimed between 2006 and 2009. He has also voluntarily referred his case to Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, John Lyon. Last night, the Prime Minister David Cameron agreed that he had done the right thing.
The news follows just days after Mr Laws, a Liberal Democrat MP, said his public spending plans would send "shockwaves" through Whitehall.
In a statement Mr Laws said he was in a relationship with the owner of the properties, James Lundie, who works for a lobbying firm. "James and I are intensely private people," he said. "We made the decision to keep our relationship private and believed that was our right. Clearly that cannot now remain the case. My motivation throughout has not been to maximise profit but to simply protect our privacy, and my wish not to reveal my sexuality." He said that though the relationship had begun in 2001, it had been "unknown to both family and friends throughout that time".
The revelations over Mr Laws' expenses represent the first major setback for the coalition Government. He had been pivotal in negotiating the agreement between the two parties and was entrusted with defending the £6.2bn of public spending cuts that were announced this week.
According to The Daily Telegraph, the Yeovil MP claimed between £700 and £950 a month to sub-let a property in Kennington, south London, between 2004 and 2007. Mr Lundie owned the flat and lived there with Mr Laws, selling it on for a profit of £193,000 in 2007. After that, Mr Laws then began to rent a "second bedroom" in another property bought by Mr Lundie, with his monthly claim increasing to £920 a month. Mr Laws' main home is in his constituency.
Strict rules introduced in 2006 forbid MPs from renting a property from a partner. Mr Laws, who is a millionaire in his own right following a career in banking, said: "At no point did I consider myself to be in breach of the rules, which in 2009 defined 'partner' as 'one of a couple ... who, although not married to each other or civil partners, are living together and treat each other as spouses.' Although we were living together, we did not treat each other as spouses - for example, we do not share bank accounts and indeed have separate social lives. I regret this situation deeply, accept that I should not have claimed my expenses in this way and apologise fully." Mr Cameron has previously taken a tough line on expenses issues. However, under the coalition agreement, he needs Nick Clegg's permission to sack Mr Laws.
Factfile
*David Laws was born in 1965 and brought up in Weybridge, Surrey.
*He went to an independent Catholic school before going to Cambridge University, where he graduated with a double first in economics.
*He began his career as an investment banker with JP Morgan, and by his late twenties was managing sterling for Barclays de Zoete Wedd. He was a millionaire by the age of 28.
*In 1994 he quit finance to become an economics adviser to the Lib Dems.
Seven years later he succeeded Paddy Ashdown as MP for Yeovil.
*He held a series of posts during the Lib Dems' period in opposition, including work and pensions spokesman.
30 May 2010
Laws claimed £40,000 to rent rooms from partner
Cabinet minister faces expenses row
Cabinet minister faces expenses row
- Press Association, Friday May 28 2010
Chief Treasury Secretary David Laws is facing a storm over his expenses after it emerged he had channelled more than £40,000 of taxpayers' money to his long-term partner.
The Liberal Democrat Cabinet minister - who this week promised public spending curbs which would send "shockwaves" through Whitehall - claimed up to £950 a month for five years to rent a room in two properties owned by his partner, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Mr Laws has issued an apology and announced that he would "immediately" pay back tens of thousands of pounds claimed for rent and other housing costs between 2006 and 2009. He has also referred himself to Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon.
The Yeovil MP's partner is James Lundie, who works for a lobbying firm. The Telegraph has stressed that it was not intending to disclose that Mr Laws was homosexual, but he has chosen to do so.
"James and I are intensely private people," Mr Laws said in a statement. "We made the decision to keep our relationship private and believed that was our right. Clearly that cannot now remain the case. My motivation throughout has not been to maximise profit but to simply protect our privacy and my wish not to reveal my sexuality."
According to the newspaper, between 2004 and 2007, Mr Laws claimed between £700 and £950 a month to sub-let a room in a flat in Kennington, south London.
This flat was owned by the MP's partner who was also registered as living at the property. The partner sold the flat for a profit of £193,000 in 2007.
During the same year, Mr Laws' partner bought another house nearby for £510,000. The MP then began claiming rent for the "second bedroom" in this property. His claims increased to £920 a month. The partner also lived at the property. Mr Laws' main home is in his Yeovil constituency.
The arrangement continued until September 2009, when Parliamentary records indicate Mr Laws switched his designated second home and began renting another flat at taxpayers' expense. His partner remained at the Kennington house.
Since 2006, Parliamentary rules have banned MPs from "leasing accommodation from a partner".
Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2010, All Rights Reserved.
The Liberal Democrat Cabinet minister - who this week promised public spending curbs which would send "shockwaves" through Whitehall - claimed up to £950 a month for five years to rent a room in two properties owned by his partner, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Mr Laws has issued an apology and announced that he would "immediately" pay back tens of thousands of pounds claimed for rent and other housing costs between 2006 and 2009. He has also referred himself to Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon.
The Yeovil MP's partner is James Lundie, who works for a lobbying firm. The Telegraph has stressed that it was not intending to disclose that Mr Laws was homosexual, but he has chosen to do so.
"James and I are intensely private people," Mr Laws said in a statement. "We made the decision to keep our relationship private and believed that was our right. Clearly that cannot now remain the case. My motivation throughout has not been to maximise profit but to simply protect our privacy and my wish not to reveal my sexuality."
According to the newspaper, between 2004 and 2007, Mr Laws claimed between £700 and £950 a month to sub-let a room in a flat in Kennington, south London.
This flat was owned by the MP's partner who was also registered as living at the property. The partner sold the flat for a profit of £193,000 in 2007.
During the same year, Mr Laws' partner bought another house nearby for £510,000. The MP then began claiming rent for the "second bedroom" in this property. His claims increased to £920 a month. The partner also lived at the property. Mr Laws' main home is in his Yeovil constituency.
The arrangement continued until September 2009, when Parliamentary records indicate Mr Laws switched his designated second home and began renting another flat at taxpayers' expense. His partner remained at the Kennington house.
Since 2006, Parliamentary rules have banned MPs from "leasing accommodation from a partner".
Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2010, All Rights Reserved.
- guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010
Eiji Kusuhara obituary
Eiji Kusuhara obituary
Beguiling Japanese star of fringe theatre and popular television
- Hilary Westlake
- guardian.co.uk, Thursday 27 May 2010 18.58 BST
- Article history
He was born in Tokyo shortly after the second world war, a time when poor provisions and facilities meant that many babies died. Eiji was one of four children born to Ryoichi and Yasuko Kusuhara. Their first son died at three days old. Eiji was a weak, sickly baby and his parents waited to see if he would survive before they registered his birth. When Eiji was nine, his sister, Ikue, was part of a teenage suicide pact with her boyfriend.
Eiji was brought up in Hokkaido, where his father had a jewellery shop. He went to Iwamizawa East high school in Hokkaido before going on to study acting at Tama Art University in Tokyo. After graduation, he was a member of the Neo Literature Theatre company and then joined the Tokyo Kid Brothers. This company, formed by Yutaka Higashi in 1968, was part of the underground theatre movement and the style of rock music used in its shows was profoundly anti-establishment.
I first met Eiji in 1972 when the Kid Brothers brought their show The Moon Is East, the Sun Is West to London. The show appropriated western music culture with a maniacal energy and felt both familiar yet utterly strange. It was based on a 16th-century Chinese adventure story about a monk travelling to India looking for enlightenment. The show opened at the Oval House theatre in Kennington, then moved to the Royal Court and the Hampstead theatre.
Eiji subsequently joined Stomu Yamashta's Red Buddha Theatre for The Man from the East, a physical theatre show depicting episodes from Japanese life, ancient and modern, real and fantastic, with accompaniment from Yamashta and an ensemble playing electronic and traditional instruments. This popular show originated in Paris, played for a month at the Roundhouse in London, then toured Europe and the US.
In 1975 Eiji returned to Britain and joined my avant-garde theatre group, Lumiere & Son. He appeared in The Sleeping Quarters of Sophia, a play about split personalities, and delivered a succession of disciplined but eccentric performances for the company over the next 10 years. He was serious and focused in rehearsal, yet could be constructively unpredictable in performance. In Dogs (1976), Eiji played Edgar, a hapless immigrant entrapped by a murderous couple who are in thrall to Sadean aristocrats. The part required a comic but cowed quality that contrasted strongly with the violence Eiji summoned in Indications Leading to ... (1975), a tale of detection in which the detectives enacted the roles of both perpetrator and prosecutor.
In 1977, he was in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Privates On Parade by Peter Nichols, playing a spying communist servant. He worked for several other companies, including Oxford Playhouse, Bristol Old Vic, Yellow Earth, Polka Theatre and Amazonia, and was one of the founder members of Ichiza Theatre Company. His last stage performance was in 2007, in Hisashi Inoue's comedy masterpiece of Japanese postwar drama, The Face of Jizo, at the Arcola in east London. The play comprised conversations between a young woman who survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and the ghost of her father. The play shows the daughter's anguish that she survived but her father did not.
On television Eiji appeared in Doctor Who, Inspector Morse and in 17 episodes of the much-praised BBC series Tenko. Set in 1942 in an internment camp on a Japanese-occupied island, Tenko dramatised the experiences of British, Australian and Dutch women captured after the fall of Singapore.
During the 1990s, Eiji was a regular presenter on two Japanese TV programmes, Hello London and Living in England, in which his idiosyncratic, comic personality was given free rein. He had vast experience as a voiceover artist in both Japanese and English in film, TV, commercials and radio. He was the voice of the evil genius Dr Kamikazi in the animated TV series Robotboy and was particularly well known for his wild co-narration in the cult TV classic, Banzai, which invited viewers to place their bets on bizarre challenges, such as how long Mr Shake Hands Man would maintain a handshake with a procession of bemused celebrities. Eiji's enthusiastic commentary highlighted the programme's wackiness.
His film credits included small roles in The Elephant Man, Eyes Wide Shut and Topsy-Turvy, as well as many student films in which he appeared without taking a fee.
He is survived by his wife, the designer Kyoko Wainai, whom he married in 1992, and his brother, Yuji.
• Eiji Kusuhara, actor, born 2 January 1947; died 23 April 2010
- guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010
28 May 2010
Oval House Theatre: FREE TICKETS on offer for Bend it Like Beauty - Outrageous South African Satire
I have tickets available for this Saturday and next Tuesday,
but people would have to email or phone the Box Office direct to claim the seats as I won’t be here,
(and mention Kennington Association)
Let me know!
All the best
Deb
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26 May 2010
Interiors: Stephen's pied à terrace
Interiors: Stephen's pied à terrace
By Clare NolanLast updated at 8:01 PM on 22nd May 2010
With serene, light-filled spaces and a verdant roof terrace, garden designer Stephen Woodhams has fused indoor and outdoor living
Click on an image for prices and stockist details
THE HOME
An apartment in a former Transport for London 30s-built depot in Kennington, South London. Stephen Woodhams, 45, bought the flat, where he lives and works, two years ago as a basic shell on the inside and a blank canvas on the exterior so that he could ‘work his magic’ on it. It is filled with natural light and has a large roof terrace (approx 100 square metres) that catches the sun throughout the day.
THE PROJECT
To expand upon a basic conversion undertaken by the original developers. Stephen worked with his builders to knock out two walls, re-floor the inside and outside spaces, resurface the kitchen, install air-conditioning and construct the bathrooms and terrace. It took eight weeks to finish after three months of intensive planning.
THE INSPIRATION
The nub of the idea for the apartment and terrace is a photograph by Anthony Goicolea called ‘Greenhouse’, which hangs in Stephen’s living area. ‘The picture is in greys, whites and aquas. I’ve never designed a house in these shades before, but I find them so uplifting and easy to live with,’ says Stephen.
Stephen Woodhams co-designed the Smallbone Alfresco Kitchen for the Chelsea Flower Show, which opens on Tuesday (for more details, tel: 0845 260 5000, rhs.org.uk). His new range of indoor and outdoor furniture and accessories is available from stephenwoodhams.com (tel: 020 7735 3798)
UP ON THE ROOF: STEPHEN’S TERRACE TIPS
- First, get a structural engineer to check the terrace and advise you on maximum weights and positions for heavy pots.
- Plant pots with both lightweight drainage material and compost.
- Play around with the design and aim to create an outdoor living area, laid out as you would an interior. Be realistic about scaling up or down to suit the available space.
- Create a vista – a scene that draws the eye from inside to out. The view from my apartment through the double doors on to the terrace takes your eye to the coffee table (with built-in fireplace) and on to the seating area and potted trees.
- Think about irrigation and lighting at the start. Each of the large pots on my terrace has built-in irrigation and an uplighter.
- Choose trees that have an open habit, which allows the wind to blow easily through the leaves (such as silver birch, eucalyptus and olive). This reduces the risk of scorching or the trees being blown over.
Report Sarah Stewart Smith
Find this story at www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1279372/Interiors-Stephens-pied--terrace.html
Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd
Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group
© Associated Newspapers Ltd
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Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group
© Associated Newspapers Ltd
Contact us Terms Privacy policy Advertise with us
Backing for plan to split Northern line
Boris Johnson's plan to split the Northern line to increase the number of rush-hour trains on the City branch has the backing of Wandsworth council.
Tory leader Edward Lister said the £312 million proposal to separate the line at Kennington — forcing all passengers travelling to or from south London via the Charing Cross branch to change — could not come quickly enough.http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23837767-backing-for-plan-to-split-northern-line.do
Situation Vacant: City & Guilds Art School - Library Post
Art School Librarian
Employer: City & Guilds of London Art School
Location: 124 Kennington Park Road, London SE11 4DJ
Salary: £22,000 to £25,000 pro-rata.
Status: 5 days a week, term time only, 33 weeks.
Job Description
The City & Guilds of London Art School is a thriving privately funded art school with an international reputation, particularly for work in the areas of Conservation and Historic Carving. The School runs a Foundation course, BA degree and MA courses in Fine Art and Conservation studies and Diploma programs’ in wood and stone carving. With just 180 students the School has an enviable staff to student ratio, currently averaging 1:12.
A graduate in library skills is required to manage the School’s library resource which provides a wide range of services to both students and staff, and to ensure the library is used to its full potential and provides support to all its users.
Experience of working in a library is essential, as is, an in-depth understanding and appreciation of the relevant areas of subject matter.
To Apply
For details on how to apply contact Susan Magee on 02070911681 or email s.magee@ cityandguildsartschool.ac.uk
Closing Date: Friday 18 June 2010
25 May 2010
Free Community Cinema reminder
Insight Free Cinema Club
A free weekly cinema club at the Insight Hub,
in Lilian Baylis Old school Lambeth.
Showing a combination of international feature films,
documentaries, shorts and locally made films.
The film is chosen on the night by the audience;
you are welcome to bring a film you'd like to share.
Every Thursday 7PM,
everybody welcome.
Next screening: *27th May*.
Address: Lilian Baylis Old School
Lollard St
SE11
A free weekly cinema club at the Insight Hub,
in Lilian Baylis Old school Lambeth.
Showing a combination of international feature films,
documentaries, shorts and locally made films.
The film is chosen on the night by the audience;
you are welcome to bring a film you'd like to share.
Every Thursday 7PM,
everybody welcome.
Address: Lilian Baylis Old School
Lollard St
SE11
Karen Gillan: just what the doctor ordered
Karen Gillan: just what the doctor ordered
Matthew Sweet21.05.10
Red alert! It's Karen Gillan: the giant flame-haired time-travelling Scotswoman with whom the British nation has fallen madly, hopelessly and devotedly in love. Here she comes, fresh from these photographs, pounding down the thickly carpeted stairs of Fulham Palace in a dirty great pair of heels and a shimmering fairy-tale frock, all six foot of her and, I can't help noticing, most of it leg.
...
She left home at 16 to study performance at Telford College, Edinburgh, then followed in Bonnie Langford's spangled footsteps to the Italia Conti drama school near the Barbican. From there she started to get smallish roles on TV: a few lines in an episode of the detective show Rebus, a turn as a soothsayer in a David Tennant episode of Doctor Who, and spots as a comedy headmistress and a lesbian bride in The Kevin Bishop Show (no, me neither). Then the work dried up and the pint-pulling began. She spent a year behind the bar of The Pilgrim pub in Kennington, wondering if she'd done the right thing to launch herself into an acting career without formulating any kind of Plan B. It was brought to an end by a talent-spotter from a modelling agency, who noticed that Karen didn't have to stretch very far to reach the optics and asked if she fancied parading on the runway in the Allegra Hicks show at London Fashion Week 2007. 'It was depressing not working for so long,' she reflects. 'I hated not being involved in acting, but looking back on it I'm pleased it happened. Otherwise I wouldn't know what it's like to have a normal job.'
...
24 May 2010
Cycling in London. Con la bici en Londres
Just a very short video at kennington park on a sunny day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2is6ZG7LYI&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2is6ZG7LYI&feature=player_embedded
Hippolytus at The White Bear - Quote 'KA' for £8 (instead of £13) tickets
By Euripides. A new version by David Crook.
18th May – 13th June 2010
Tuesday - Sat @ 7:30pm, Sunday @ 5:00
Presented by Tough Theatre
Phaedra is consumed with an insatiable lust for her stepson Hippolytus. Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Lust, is furious that Hippolytus will not worship her. She wreaks bloody retribution on him, destroying everything and everyone around him. A dark, tense piece about passion, loyalty and vengeance, Tough Theatre presents Euripides’ masterpiece in a fresh, new translation by David Crook in a modern dress production.
"Tough Theatre have mounted a highly persuasive production"
– Jeremy Kingston, The Independent
*** SPECIAL PERFORMANCES ***
SATURDAY 29th MAY: GALA PERFORMANCE A limited number of tickets will be available at £25 each to include a post show discussion with Director Andy Brunskill. Please note these tickets must be booked in advance. £13 tickets and concessionary £10 tickets will also be available for this performance but do not include the discussion with the Director. SATURDAY 12th JUNE: the performance will start at 5pm on this date only.
Latest review in The Stage here:
http://www.thestage.co.uk/
Box Office:
Telephone: 020 7793 9193
Leave a message with the number of tickets you wish to reserve and on which date.
We will only get back to you if there are no seats available.
Our Address:
138 Kennington Park Road
London SE11 4DJ
To reach us by Tube:
Two minutes walk from Kennington Tube, on the Northern Line. Kennington is one stop from Waterloo.
To reach us by Bus:
The 133, 159, 109 buses stop nearby.
To reach us by Rail:
Elephant and Castle Train Station, then bus.
Petanque in the Park
*FREE*
PETANQUE IN THE PARK
This summer why not enjoy some:
All ages and abilities welcome.
The playing area has seats, shade and is close to toilet facilities.
Starts 10th June 2010
Meet: 2pm at the Camberwell New Road gate
*FREE*
Contact Cathy Coker on tuacok@yahoo.co.uk for more details
PETANQUE IN THE PARK
This summer why not enjoy some:
- Gentle exercise
- Friendly competition
- Relaxed chats with friends old and new
All ages and abilities welcome.
The playing area has seats, shade and is close to toilet facilities.
Starts 10th June 2010
Meet: 2pm at the Camberwell New Road gate
*FREE*
Contact Cathy Coker on tuacok@yahoo.co.uk for more details
It's Foundation Show week at City & Guilds Art School!
Magnus von Wistinghausen
Deputy Director
City & Guilds of London Art School
124 Kennington Park Road
London SE11 4DJ
Direct Line: +44-20-7091 1680
General number: +44-20-7735 2306
Mobile: +44-7798-642175
Young Vic: Joe Turner tickets - Last minute availability - Don't miss this opportunity!
Hello,
I am writing to let you know about some last minute availability I have had come up for Joe Turner's Come and Gone. (see flier below)
TICKETS ARE FREE FOR COMMUNITY GROUPS IN LAMBETH AND SOUTHWARK.
Tickets available THIS THURSDAY: 27th May 2010, show starts 7.30pm!
Reply to this email stating how many tickets you would like!
This show stars Delroy Lindo from Malcolm X, as well as other faces you may recognise from TV and Films!
Please be aware: This show is recommended for ages 14+ and latecomers may not gain entrance to the auditorium!
Best wishes, Kirstin
--
Kirstin Shirling
Two Boroughs Projects Manager
Taking Part
Direct line: 020 7922 2861
Young Vic Theatre Company
66 The Cut, London, SE1 8LZ
t: 020 7922 2800
w: www.youngvic.org
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