Magna Carta - 800 years!

Today we will be celebrating the 800th anniversary of events that occurred in a meadow by the River Thames. Historians tell us that they actually took place over a few days - and the exact sequence is unclear - but today's date is the one that has gone down in history.

There are some excellent websites with great resources - I list a few (with hyperlinks)

* British Library
* Previous Washminster Posts: 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, Feb 2015,
* US - National Archives and Records Administration
* Lincoln Cathedral
* Salisbury Cathedral
* BBC - Taking Liberties (note - some content may only be available in the UK)
* CBC News


"No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled . nor will we proceed with force against him . except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice."

Visit to Washington

I arrived back this week after a superb fortnight in Washington DC. As long time readers of this blog know, I love the city - its history, its buildings, its coffee shops - and its political activity. I was able to indulge myself with all these during my stay.

For me the highlights included

* watching the special Sunday session of the Senate on May 31st -
( To watch the video follow the links: C-Span video - Part 1 ; Part 2)

* sitting in two hearings of the House Rules Committee ( Rules Committee website - which has videos of all meetings 'Committee Hearings Archive')

* many hours watching the House of Representatives from its gallery

* A tour of Congress, led by a good friend of "Washminster", Bob Carr (a former Representative from Michigan, who served as Chairman of the Transportation Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee), and from whom I have learnt a lot about the workings and recent history of the House.

* Two events at the Bipartisan Policy Center . One on improving health and healthcare - focussing on avoidable lifestyle chronic disease (a particular interest of mine - and a political priority) - video available here and the other about  the challenges for leadership in the second term of a presidency.
C-SPAN 3 plans to broadcast the meeting on Sunday, Jun 28 at 4:30pm EDT (9-30pm UK)

* A visit to the battlefield of Gettysburg

* some great time spent with friends who live in the Washington area.

But now, I am back home - and will be commenting on events in the British Parliament (I will make my first visit to the 56th Parliament of the UK, later this week) - as well as events and issues in the USA, EU & France.

What's On in the House of Representatives

Each weekend the Leader of the House of Representatives sends an email of the weekly schedule. Next weeks schedule can be found here.

This week Steny Hoyer (Minority (Democrat) Whip) launched an app, which I am already finding useful.

He wrote on his webpage "The app includes real time updates on what’s happening on the Floor; access to the House calendar, which is updated in real time; access to House Floor schedules for both the day and the week ahead; access to press releases and videos from the Whip’s Office; and, for the first time, the ability to view job openings in House Democratic offices. Users can customize how much information they want – and when they want it – by setting notification controls."

Currently it is only available for iPhone and iPads - and can be downloaded from the App Store - search for "Whip Watch"




By the way - Happy Birthday to Steny Hoyer - who celebrates his birthday today.

Washminster - at a slower pace

Washminster is to be revived - but not at the pace that has been seen in the past!

It will still concentrate on describing and explaining the British Parliament and the US Congress (with some European Parliament and the French Assemblee nationale thrown in). As ever, I will bring my background as a political scientist and law lecturer to bear, as well as first hand observations of the legislatures concerned. [I have worked at Westminster for a number of years as a staffer to members of both the House of Commons and house of Lords - and continue to visit "the Palace" for current research. I have been a frequent visitor to Washington DC and Congress - in fact I returned on Wednesday from a fortnight's visit - which allowed me to sit in on the Sunday session of the Senate; a couple of House Rules Committee meetings - and many hours in the gallery of the House of Representatives].

I hope you will continue to follow this blog - and do share with friends.

David

Next Week in Westminster

A big week in the House of Commons next week - Two important bills are having their committee stage taken on the floor of the House (most bills are dealt with by a Public Bill Committee, in one of the committee rooms)

The Scotland Bill on Monday - (as with the next bill, there is a hyperlink in the name to the Bill itself)

and on Tuesday and Thursday the European Union Referendum Bill.

The business for the week can be found at -
http://services.parliament.uk/calendar/#!/calendar/Commons/MainChamber/2015/6/15/week.html