Blog
Irish election faces quotas for women – or funding cuts for political parties
The next general election could see quotas for women candidates introduced in the Republic of Ireland - and political parties have been warned they could lose half of their state funding if they fail to comply. The clause is included in the Electoral (Amendment)...
Walpole St Peter’s Chuch, a rare treasure
Being born and bred in Wisbech, I lived close to Walpole St Peter for many years without realising what a jewel its church is. I discovered this special gem in Simon Jenkins' best seller, England's Thousand Best Churches, where it was awarded five stars - the highest...
Wisbech, a town in crisis?
I visited my family in Wisbech today - the very same town which "the Baltic Mafia is terrorising" - according to this sensational report in today's Daily Mail. Driving through the town, I passed a coach with a Lithuanian number plate parked outside a factory. A new...
Virgin Health Bank and Cambridge hospitals partnership
Sir Richard Branson has launched an innovative new bank alongside Northern Rock - the Virgin Health Bank - which stores cord blood, the blood that remains in the umbilical cord after a baby has been born and is a rich source of stem cells which can be used for life...
A Headway friend forever
I have just stepped down as a trustee from Headway Cambridgeshire after six years - four-and-a-half years as its chair - and am already feeling withdrawal symptoms, missing the many friends I have made there. I do think you can stay in a position too long and that...
Cannabis on prescription
Cannabis, a class-B drug available on prescription as a medicinal remedy for multiple sclerosis patients, could also be used to target cancer pain, epilepsy, rheumatoid arthritis and even schizophrenia if trials demonstrate its effectiveness. What once seemed a...
Inspirational woman Julie Jones meets Samantha Cameron
I was very moved after reading today about the selfless life of single mum of three Julie Jones who only earns £18,000 a year as an administrator, yet willingly adopted her best friend's five children after she had died. I think any woman who can bring up eight...
An evening with the “beyond heartbroken” Katherine Jenkins
Last night we took pa-in-law and Aunt Betty to a concert given by the "beyond heartbroken" Katherine Jenkins in Ipswich. We were wondering if she would blub on stage again following her recent broken engagement, and my husband reminded me tersely that anyone else in...
Cambridge academics will bypass European stem cells ruling
BREAKING NEWS The Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, has vowed to bypass a European Court of Justice ruling that bans patents on embryonic stem cells by turning to the United States or India instead. There are 26 laboratories in...