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About pauljohnston

Elected as Conservative councillor in Surbiton Hill, Kingston upon Thames in 1998. Re-elected 2002 and 2006. Former parliamentary candidate in Lancashire and Birmingham. Ceased to be a Councillor (temporarily?) in 2010. Active among Residents' Associations in Surbiton Hill and among residents in social housing generally. Former teacher of History at St. Brendan's College Bristol and Head of History and Politics at the London Oratory School. Worked with Sutton Trust running summer schools for sixth formers at Oxford University from 1997-2000 aiming to improve uptake of places from pupils from state schools which sent very few applicants to Oxbridge.

The Westlothian question – and answer!

Posted on February 21, 2012

When New Labour signed up to the devolution project for Scotland and Wales, Tony Blair seemed to think he was creating a couple of super county councils which would always be Labour controlled and would kill local Nationalism stone dead. … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Constitution, Labour, Lib Dems | 6 Comments

Fair access?

Posted on February 15, 2012

It seems that Vince has triumphed over Dave over the appointment of the egregious Prof. Ebdon to head up the ‘Office of Fair Access’ (to universities). This office was part of the New Labour flock of quangoes set up to … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Lib Dems, Politics | Leave a comment

Happy St. Valentine’s Day!

Posted on February 14, 2012

Happy New Year – yes it is my first post on this blog in 2012. I have been active elsewhere though! Also happy Valentine’s Day! I was pleased this morning to read that Baroness Warsi is to see the Pope … Continue reading →

Posted in Celebrations, Conservatives, Religion | Leave a comment

One year on….

Posted on September 24, 2011

Almost exactly a year ago I wrote about voting reform, calling for a serious review of the registration system as a starting point. Not long ago I read that Cornwall County Council is seeking to ban second home owners in … Continue reading →

Posted in Campaigning, Elections, Politics | 1 Comment

Surbiton Hill by-election

Posted on September 24, 2011

I notice that a lot of people came searching on this site on 16th September, doubtless wanting a quick reaction to the Surbiton Hill by-election. They didn’t get one. The curious can read what I think on the Surbiton Hill … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Elections, Lib Dems, Politics, Ward | Leave a comment

Lamentable!

Posted on July 4, 2011

What is? England’s performance in the second and third ODIs! Cook seems to have got Strauss’s disease – an inability to set an attacking field and respond to situations in any other than a purely formulaic way. The usual advice … Continue reading →

Posted in Cricket, Sport | Leave a comment