and marine terminals... that enable supertankers to load millions
of barrels ......for shipment to Asia, Europe, and North America.
Nearby terminals at Juaymah, Ras al-Khair, and industrial ports
around Jubail further expand export capacity, while the King
Abdulaziz Port at Dammam connects the Eastern Province
with global markets, through specialized facilities
supporting bulk commodities and
petrochemical exports.
To reduce dependence on the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia has
invested heavily in western export infrastructure, most notably
the East-West Pipeline that transports crude oil approximately
1,200 kilometres across the Arabian Peninsula from the
Eastern Province to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
This strategic pipeline provides an alternative export route should
maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz become disrupted.
However, the pipeline itself, represents a vulnerable linear target
whose disruption ------ could sever the kingdom's western export
capacity, while the Yanbu terminal & its associated refineries,
petrochemical complexes, industrial ports, and desalination
plants offer concentrated targets whose destruction would
have cascading effects ........on both Saudi exports and
domestic supply.
The maritime dimension of Saudi infrastructure extends beyond
export terminals to the commercial ports that handle the vast
majority of the kingdom's imports.
Jeddah Islamic Port serves as Saudi Arabia's largest container
gateway on the Red Sea...... handling significant volumes of
imports destined for the kingdom's cities and industries.
The disruption of these ports through naval blockade, missile
strikes, or drone attacks would cripple Saudi Arabia's ability
to import food, medicine, industrial components, and other
essential goods, compounding the economic impact of
energy infrastructure strikes.
The Jazan port and industrial city, located near the Yemeni border,
serves as a key support hub for Saudi military operations against
Yemen ------ and has already been targeted in Yemeni strikes on
Aramco facilities in the area.
Red Sea and Persian Gulf Coastal Infrastructure
Saudi Arabia's extensive coastline along both the Red Sea and
the Persian Gulf, hosts a remarkable concentration of critical
infrastructure that Yemeni forces are positioned to threaten.
The Red Sea coast --- stretching from the Jordanian border to Yemen, includes the major ports of Jeddah, Yanbu, and Jazan, plus --- the industrial cities of Yanbu and Rabigh.
These facilities support not only energy exports but also the import
of essential goods, military logistics, and the religious pilgrimage
infrastructure that brings millions of visitors ..and significant
revenue to the kingdom each year.
The Persian Gulf coast, while geographically further from
Yemen, hosts the bulk of Saudi oil production and
processing infrastructure, including the giant
oil fields, processing plants, and
export terminals.
The recent Yemeni retaliatory strikes on Aramco facilities in Jizan
demonstrate the ability to reach targets along the Red Sea coast,
and the development of longer-range ballistic missiles & drones
would extend this capability to the Persian Gulf coast as well.
The coastal concentration of infrastructure means that a relatively
limited number of strikes could achieve disproportionate effects
by targeting the nodes through which Saudi Arabia's economic
lifeblood flows.
The naval dimension of this coastal infrastructure - is particularly
significant given the Yemeni declaration of a maritime blockade
on Saudi shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
This blockade -- coordinated with Iranian control over the Strait of
Hormuz, would effectively sever Saudi maritime access to global
markets through both the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, forcing
shipping to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope ------ at an
enormous cost in time, fuel, and insurance premiums.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, whose Arabic name translates to the
Gate of Tears, handles approximately eight million barrels of
oil daily.... accounting for roughly ten to twelve percent of
global seaborne oil trade, along with billions of dollars
in containerized cargo and other goods.
Aviation infrastructure as strategic target
The July 13 Saudi airstrike on Sana'a International Airport, targeting
a civilian facility...... in an attempt to prevent the return of an Iranian
plane carrying Yemeni officials, established aviation infrastructure
...as a legitimate target in the conflict.
The Yemeni response, striking Abha International Airport in southern
Saudi Arabia, demonstrated the reciprocal nature of this targeting
and the vulnerability of Saudi aviation hubs.
Saudi Arabia's major international airports, including King Abdulaziz
International Airport in Jeddah, King Khalid International Airport in
Riyadh, King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, and Prince
Mohammad bin Abdulaziz Airport in Medina, serve not only as
civilian transport hubs, but also as critical nodes for military
logistics, troop transport, and support for the aggression
against Yemen.
The disruption of these airports would complicate Saudi military
operations, delay the deployment of forces and equipment, and
impose significant costs --------- on Riyadh's ability to sustain
its aggression.
The military aviation infrastructure supporting Saudi operations
includes air bases near the Yemeni border, such as King Faisal
Air Base in the southwest, which serves as a launch point for
strikes against Yemeni territory.
These bases house the fighter aircraft, surveillance drones, and
supporting infrastructure that enable the Saudi air campaign
against Yemeni civilians, including the bombing of Sana'a
International Airport and attacks on Hudaydah province.
The targeting of these bases would directly degrade Saudi
offensive capabilities while sending a clear message that
the cost of aggression ...will be borne on Saudi territory.
Water and power infrastructure
Saudi Arabia's dependence on seawater desalination for
its municipal, industrial, and agricultural water supply
represents a critical vulnerability that Yemeni forces
could potentially exploit.
Massive desalination facilities.. located along both the Persian Gulf
and Red Sea coasts, including plants at Jubail, Shuaibah, Shuqaiq,
Ras al-Khair, Yanbu, and Jeddah, produce millions of cubic metres
of freshwater daily, to support major urban centres and industrial
development.
The destruction or disruption of even a single major desalination
plant could create a humanitarian crisis affecting millions of
Saudi citizens and residents.
The national electricity grid, operated primarily by the Saudi
Electricity Company, includes thousands of kilometres of
high-voltage transmission lines, major substations, gas-
fired generating stations, and an increasing proportion
of renewable energy projects.
The grid's reliance on natural gas from processing facilities
that are themselves vulnerable to attack creates a chain
of dependencies ---- that could be exploited through
coordinated strikes.
The disruption of the electricity supply would affect not only
civilian life but also the operation of oil processing facilities,
desalination plants, airports, and military installations,
creating cascading failures throughout the economy.
The growing integration of renewable energy projects,
including solar facilities such as... Sakaka and wind
farms, represents a diversification of Saudi energy
infrastructure - but also... creates new target sets
whose disruption - would symbolize the failure of
the Saudi Vision 2030 economic transformation.
The symbolic value - of striking at projects intended to
showcase Saudi modernization and resilience, could
have psychological effects that extend beyond the
immediate physical damage.
Industrial cities and economic diversification projects
Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 economic transformation.. has
created new infrastructure whose disruption would have
both economic and symbolic significance.
The Jubail industrial city on the Persian Gulf coast has
become one of the world's largest petrochemical
manufacturing centres, housing facilities
operated by Saudi Aramco, SABIC, and
numerous international partners.
Products manufactured there include plastics, fertilizers,
industrial chemicals, steel, polymers, and specialized
petrochemical feedstocks ---------- destined for
markets worldwide.
The Yanbu industrial city on the Red Sea coast, hosts major
The Yemeni armed forces have carried out a string of operations
against strategic energy facilities deep inside Saudi Arabia,
striking oil depots and pipelines in reprisal for the Riyadh
regime’s ongoing military aggression and blockade
against their homeland.
“By the grace of God, a number of sensitive sites and installations
related to the supply and transport of crude oil from eastern
Saudi Arabia to [the port city of] Yanbu were targeted by
several drones in response to the Saudi enemy's drone
incursions into Yemeni airspace,” Army spokesman
Brigadier General Yahya Saree announced in a
statement on Monday.
He, however, did not provide any
information about the extent
of damage.
Satellite images show thick plumes of black smoke and raging fire at
the Abqaiq oil facility in southern Saudi Arabia. The installation had
come under attack by kamikaze drones and missiles hours earlier.
The Abqaiq oil processing plant --- operated by the state-owned
petroleum and natural gas company Saudi Aramco, reportedly
bypasses the Strait of Hormuz and delivers oil to the Red
Sea at the Yanbu terminal.
The facility houses the world's largest oil processing and crude
stabilization facility, and supplies approximately 5 percent of
the world's oil.
Red Sea shipping slumps after Yemen strikes on Saudi oil facilities:
Commercial shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait reportedly
drops to its lowest level in months after Yemeni forces targeted
Saudi oil facilities along the Red Sea coast.
The development came only a few days after the Yemeni army
claimed an attack on two Saudi oil tankers transiting through
the Red Sea.
“We targeted two Saudi oil tankers, named Encelia and Layla,
for their violation of the blockade decision issued by the
armed forces,” Saree said on Wednesday.
He said the operation was carried out “within the context of
breaking the unjust and oppressive siege imposed by the
Saudi enemy on our dear people for 12 years.”
Saree noted that it was intended to affirm “the equation of ‘siege
for a siege’” and Yemen's right to confront “Saudi-US injustice
and tyranny” and reclaim its wealth and legitimate rights.
Yemen declared on Monday that it would impose “a maritime blockade” on Saudi Arabia, effective immediately.
Military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree announced
in a televised statement that a ban on maritime navigation
associated with Saudi Arabia “has taken effect from
the time the statement was made.”
Saree cautioned that any escalation from Saudi Arabia
would provoke a “thorough and harsh response.”
Today, on July 28th, in 1917,
the Silent Parade,
is born.
The Negro Silent Protest Parade - commonly known as the Silent Parade..... was a political protest in New York City on July 28, 1917.
The primary objective of the march was to draw national attention
to the widespread racial violence and entrenched systemic discrimination endured by US/Africans.
It was organized in direct response to a series of racially motivated
attacks in 1916 and 1917, including the East St. Louis massacre
and lynchings in Waco and Memphis.
The parade was organized by a coalition of US/African groups, led by
the recently formed NAACP. Starting at 57th Street the parade route
proceeded down Fifth Avenue, ending at Madison Square. It was a
silent procession, with an estimated 8,000 to 15,000 US/African participants marching in protest, accompanied by a muffled drum beat.
The event was widely publicized --- and drew attention to violence
against US/Africans. Organizers hoped the parade would prompt
the federal government to enact anti-lynching legislation.
Federal legislation was required because the Southern
states often refused to prosecute lynchings under
existing state statutes that outlawed murder,
kidnapping, and assault.
Marchers hoped to persuade President Wilson to implement anti-
lynching legislation and support US/African civil rights. 4 days
after the Silent Parade, a group of NAACP leaders traveled to
Washington, D.C. for a prearranged appointment with Wilson.
Upon arrival at the White House, the group was told that Wilson
was unable to meet with them due to another appointment.
They left a petition they had prepared for Wilson, which
reminded him of US/Africans serving in World War I
and asked him to take steps to prevent
lynchings in the future.
2 weeks later, Wilson met with a smaller delegation
from the NAACP and ''listened to'' their concerns.
11 months later.... in July 1918, Wilson issued a written statement discouraging mob violence, but it fell short of calling for anti-lynching legislation. Discrimination against US/Africans - significantly increased during the Wilson presidency (1913–1921) - after Wilson segregated the federal government workforce.
The federal government --- would not pass an anti-lynching law
until 2022, when the Emmett Till Antilynching Act was passed.
UK legislators call for comprehensive
arms embargo, settlement trade ban
on Israel
July 27th, 6:06am
(PressTV)
A coalition of 80 British lawmakers and peers has called on
newly appointed British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, to
impose sanctions on Israel -- including a comprehensive
arms embargo and a ban on trade that supports illegal
settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.
In a letter, spearheaded by MP Kim Johnson, they urged the
government to “decisively change its stance to uphold the
rights of the Palestinian people and to prevent Israel’s
continued violation of international law.”
It also called on the government to acknowledge the UN
Independent Commission of Inquiry report, which
validated Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Alongside recognition of the UN finding, the lawmakers urged
the government to fully enforce the International Court of
Justice' advisory opinion, delivered on July 19, 2024.
It holds that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories
is unlawful, that Israel should put an end to that occupation,
desist from creating new settlements, and evacuate those
already established.
“The previous administration ---- has willfully ignored the rulings of
international courts. It has still failed to issue a formal response
to the July 2024 International Court of Justice judgment
- which requires Britain to cease all actions that aid or
assist [Israel’s] grave violations of international law,”
the letter read.
It added, “Now is the opportunity for this government and for you,
as the new Prime Minister, to truly turn a new page.”
The letter bore the signatures of prominent legislators,
including Diane Abbott, Jeremy Corbyn, Baroness
Jenny Jones, and Baroness Warsi.
In an op-ed for Labour Outlook, Johnson stated that Palestine
has emerged as the “defining test” of the Labour Party’s
commitment to the notion --- that international law
applies to all.
“If we condemn violations in one part of the world while excusing
or ignoring them elsewhere, we undermine the very rules-based
international order that Britain claims to defend,” she said.
“Burnham tells us --- he has a plan to renew confidence in Labour. If
that renewal is to mean anything, it must begin by making a clean
break with the failures of Starmerism on Palestine. If we are truly
serious about turning the page, there could be no clearer place
to begin,” Johnson noted.
The letter is supported by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which
has been advocating for Burnham to distance himself from former
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s disgraceful legacy by implementing
extensive sanctions against Israel - comprising a complete arms
embargo, a cessation - of all military collaboration & diplomatic support - and a total ban on all trade.
Image: No thanks to Israeli goods App
The world and her daughter are calling for a boycott of the genocidal colonial apartheid state of Israel.
Place yourself on the right side of joy and sorrow by joining the world's boycott - say ''no'' to evil!
Keir Hardie - Britain's first Labour MP - opposedWorld War One.
His namesake is stammering his way in the opposite direction.
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
ROGER WATERS TO MUSICIANS:- "BOYCOTT ISRAEL"
Roger Waters formerly of Pink Floyd, in an open letter, calls on his fellow musicians --- to boycott the Zionist Israeli regime and follow the example of the cultural boycott against the ex S. African Apartheid regime.
“Given the inability or unwillingness of our governments [to act] …. I write to you now, my brothers and sisters … to ask you to join with me, & thousands of other artists around the world, to declare a cultural boycott on Israel,” Roger Waters says in his letter.
Waters says the Zionist regime has been found guilty of major breaches of human rights and international law by international organizations, UN officials and the International Court of Justice.
He touches on two such cases, saying the regime has been identified as perpetrating the “crime of Apartheid”, including in a statement on March 9th, 2012 by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and the “crime of ethnic cleansing” including in East Jerusalem (al-Quds).
Waters adds that he has been a member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against the Israeli regime’s occupation of the Palestinian lands and Tel Aviv’s violations of Palestinian human rights for 7 years, and now wants other musicians to also join the anti-Israeli front.
“Please join me and all our brothers and sisters in global civil society in proclaiming our rejection of Apartheid in Israel & occupied Palestine, by pledging not to perform or exhibit in Israel or accept any award or funding from any institution linked to the government of Israel, until such time as Israel complies with international law and universal principles of human rights.”
The former Pink Floyd Musician also says he has recently faced a boycott by the US media after his November 29th, 2012 address at the UN on behalf of the Russell Tribunal.
In the address, he sought accountability for the Zionist regime’s violations of the international law and the lack of United Nations resolve that prevents the Palestinian people from achieving their inalienable rights, especially the right of self-determination.
____________________
AT THE FACTORY
Tickets from
www.wegottickets.com/thefactory
www.ticketweb.co.uk
browse venues in Wales
www.ticketlineuk.com
02920 230130
Cash tickets from:
The Factory, Porth Instrumental Music, Penygraig Spillers Records, Cardiff
Indulge in a delicious cake and a cup of tea while enjoying music and sing-along songs from fantastic Welsh musicians.
Ticket information:
The Cultural Services Booking & Information Line:
08000 147 111 or book online at
www.rct-arts.co.ukÂÂ
*************************************************
Mid Rhondda Modelling Club...
7pm - 9pm
Tonyrefail Comprehensive School Mid Rhondda Modelling Club
has been running for over 30 years.
We meet on a regular basis
& enjoy making models for display.
We encourage both Gentlemen
and Ladies to attend, and also young people aged 12+.
However, Young people under 16, must be accompanied by an adult.
Ticket information
£1 contribution every week. Under 16's free
Telephone Mr. Davies on 01443 686658
************************************************
Comedy In The Laughter Lounge
The Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.
COMEDY IN THE LAUGHTER LOUNGE
Join us once a month in the intimate setting of the Laughter Lounge for some top notch comedy with some of the biggest and brightest rising comedians on the circuit.
Laugh? You'll snort like a pig!
Hilarious - TimeOut.
www.rct-arts.co.uk
Rhondda Records exists to express the Rhondda's vision --- when it was confident, powerful, caring, and socialist.
A Rhondda very aware of the media's poisonous tricks -- how they con working class people into attacking each other, or racial groups, or, often, even their best allies and friends... instead of seeing their real enemies:--- an elite who hate the very idea that working people can think, create, or achieve a fairer society.
Thatcher said her proudest achievement was Blair and New Labour - who parachuted in careerists and expenses fiddlers - to stop local Labour members having a say, and who made genuine socialist MPs leave the Labour party in disgust and many members and voters to despair... and the young to stop voting.
Jeremy Corbyn was always attacked because he was trying to reverse all that New Labour corruption --- that's why membership was flooding in all over the UK.
______________________________________
Get Involved!
– If you feel you’ve been ‘purged’, take this online survey:
– Request all your own data that the Labour Party holds on you:
http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/privacy
_______________________________________
IF - YOU THINK you HAVE BEEN UNFAIRLY BARRED:
“Any member who is suspended & intends to appeal the decision should throw in a ‘Subject Access Request in accordance with the Data Protection Act’ --- for ALL data that the Labour Party hold on them.
The Labour Party are Data Controllers and therefore have to, by law, provide you with all material/information they hold on you.”
If anyone is in contact with anyone who was barred from voting --- please can you pass this info on:
The Labour leadership election was under the jurisdiction of the electoral reform services.
If you were unfairly deprived of your vote you can call them on 0208 365 8909 and lodge your complaint, and inform them of your Data Protection request.
https://www.electoralreform.co.uk
The notification letters barring new members did not give a clear reason, or information on how to appeal, so Vox Political suggests that anyone in this situation, could also contact Liz Davies here: http://www.whycantivote.com
She is a barrister --- who can advise members on what to do.
**************************************
PONCY LABOUR MPS PROBLEM?
A huge drop in working-class Labour MPs, caused a massive drop in support among voters with similar backgrounds, reveals research seeking to explain why support has dwindled in the party’s heartlands.
The study says past leaders like Kinnock and Blair made a concerted effort to pick “more and more middle-class candidates to run for office, during the 80s and 90s, as part of an effort to rebrand” -- which had initial successes at the ballot box.
But this “conscious electoral strategy” stored up problems, as working-class voters who initially, just didn’t vote in response, now seek an alternative.
The solution?Trust each constituency to put forward its own candidates, and don't impose ‘party-approved’ choices who can't do the job.
Now, unfortunately, there are "entryist" MPs who, for decades, have been groomed by CIA cold war relic organisations -- like the Atlantic Council -- and are now trying to misdirect the Labour Party towards cuts, a militarised police, and a US war agenda... - and their anti-Corbyn slant is hobbling Labour.
‘How Can I Deselect My Labour MP?’ A Short Guide to Reselection and Democratic Accountability by Eric Sim, excellent free advice here:
http://novaramedia.com/2016/07/13/how-can-i- deselect-my-labour-mp-a-short-guide-to- reselection-and-democratic-accountability/ CHRIS BRYANT - SUPPORT THE MEMBERS' LEADERSHIP CHOICE & POLICIES - OR GO!
Chris Bryant, the Rhondda's dodgy MP, was on TV -- as soon as the PLP coup started -- telling us that Jeremy MUST go, because it was the ONLY way to act in the Labour Party's interest...
Chris Bryant's voting record: from TheyWorkForYou.com
On Tuition Fees:
On 27 Jan 2004: Chris Bryant voted in favour of university tuition fees increasing from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted for the introduction of variable university tuition fees (top-up fees) of up to £3,000 per year in place of the previous fixed fee of £1,250 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year to up to £3,000 per year, and to make other changes to higher education funding and regulation arrangements.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted against: the immediate abolition of all tuition fees, the re-introduction of maintenance grants of up to £2,000 for students from low-income homes, and changes to the country's higher education system.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted to reject the Liberal Democrat policy of abolition of tuition fees.
On 25 May 2016: Chris Bryant was absent for a vote on Queen's Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies - Further Rises in University Tuition Fees
On Human Rights:
Consistently voted for introducing ID cards
Almost always voted for requiring the mass retention of information about communications
Generally voted for mass surveillance of people’s communications and activities
On the Environment:
Generally voted against greater regulation of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract shale gas
On Special Interests:
Almost always voted against limits on success fees paid to lawyers in no-win no fee cases
Generally voted against a statutory register of lobbyists
On War or Peace:
Generally voted for use of UK military forces in combat operations overseas
Consistently voted for the Iraq war
Consistently voted against an investigation into the Iraq war
Generally voted for replacing Trident with a new nuclear weapons system
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On Independence:
Generally voted for more EU integration
____________________________
Chris Bryant Labour MP From Wikipedia
(aka 1962-1986: Mr Christopher John Bryant 1986-1991: The Reverend Christopher John Bryant, 1991-2001: Mr Christopher John Bryant, 2001-: Mr Christopher John Bryant MP.)
Born in Cardiff, to a Scottish mother & a Welsh father, Bryant grew up in Cardiff, Wales (where his father worked for 5 years), and Cheltenham.
He was educated at Cheltenham College, an independent school for boys in the spa town of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, where he was captain of the school swimming team, and Mansfield College at the University of Oxford, where he graduated in 1983, with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in English. This was later promoted to a Master of Arts degree (MA (Oxon)), as per tradition.
After completing his first degree, Bryant began training to be a priest in the Church of England at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, in Oxfordshire. There, he obtained a degree in theology.
Although a member of the Conservative Party, and an elected office-holder in the Oxford University Conservative Association, he joined the Labour Party in 1986, after leaving Oxford.
He was ordained deacon in 1986 and priest in 1987. He served as a Curate at the Church of All Saints, High Wycombe, from 1986 to 1989; then as a Youth Chaplain in Peterborough, as well as travelling in Latin America.
In 1991 Bryant left the ordained ministry, after deciding that being gay and being a priest, were incompatible. Statements made by Richard Harries, then Bishop of Oxford, also influenced his decision.
After leaving the priesthood in 1991, Bryant worked as the election agent to the Holborn and St Pancras Constituency Labour Party, where he helped Frank Dobson hold his seat in the 1992 general election.
From 1993, he was Local Government officer for the Labour Party; he lived in Hackney and was elected to Hackney Borough Council in 1993, serving until 1998. He became Chair of the Christian Socialist Movement.
He is both a member of the Labour Friends of Israel and Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East. From 1994 to 1996 he was London manager of the leader-grooming "charity", Common Purpose.
He was Labour candidate for Wycombe, in the 1997 general election (he lost by 2,370 votes), and Head of European Affairs for the BBC, from 1998.
His selection for the very safe Labour seat of Rhondda, South Wales in 2000, shocked many people given Bryant's background – gay, an ex- Anglican vicar, and someone who was a Tory, while studying at Oxford, and a member now, of the Henry Jackson Society 'think tank' --- described by The Guardian newspaper as 'neoconservative'. It is pro-US, pro-NATO and pro-military intervention, as well as being fundamentally anti-socialist.
Fifty-two people applied for the candidature and a local councillor was hot favourite to win, before Bryant was parachuted in.
In 2004, a photograph of Mr Bryant in his underpants, which he had posted to a gay dating website, was published in 'papers.
When an interviewer suggested he was a 'disgrace to the Rhondda', he replied: "They can't get rid of me."
His pay, allowances and some expenses:
The basic annual salary for an MP, from April 1st, 2016 is £74,962. MPs also get expenses: to cover the costs of running an office, employing staff, having some- where to live in London, plus, in their constituency and travelling between Parliament and their constituency.
His MP's expenses story:
Chris Bryant changed second home twice to claim £20,000: the deputy leader of the House of Commons, "flipped" his second home twice, in 2 years, allowing him to claim almost £20,000 for renovations and fees.
Chris Bryant, MP for the Rhondda, split over £92,000 of expenses between 3 properties in Wales and London --- within five years.
In 2004, he attempted to claim £58,000 to overhaul his second home in Wales, after allegedly complaining that properties in his constituency were "terrace or mine owners' houses".
Mr Bryant, a former Church of England clergyman, wanted the money for a new bathroom & kitchen, and to demolish his conservatory. He'd bought the detached house for £97,500, under a year earlier.
He submitted a claim to the Commons fees office for £58,493.26 --- almost 3 times the annual maximum. He noted that the claim exceeded his allowance.
His alleged justification was disclosed... in correspondence between Commons officials. By email, an official wrote: "He had problems finding a suitable property because in the Rhondda there is a choice mainly of terraced property or mine owners' houses." When approached by the Daily Telegraph, Mr Bryant said: "I have never said or thought anything of the sort".
In all, he successfully claimed over £13,000 for renovations, repairs & appliances, in 2004. Along with other bills, his annual claim was £20,902.
In April 2005, he flipped his expenses to his flat in west London, which he bought for £400,000 in April 2002. He also claimed £630 a month for mortgage interest, along with other bills. After claiming over £3,600 over 3 months, he sold the flat in July 2005 for £477,000.
Mr Bryant used his profits to buy a more expensive flat in west London, which was valued at £670,000. He immediately flipped his second home expenses there, claiming almost £6,400 in stamp duty, legal fees and mortgage fees, incurred in the purchase.
He then began claiming interest of £1,000 a month on the mortgage. He also claimed a further £6,000 a year for the flat's service charge and ground rent.
In all, he claimed £92, 415 in second home expenses, from 2004 to 2009.
Mr Bryant said at the time: "I moved flat in London, so as to be closer to Parliament."
Research by Channel 4 News in 2015 found that at least 46 MPs had this kind of system in place – a move one Labour backbencher described as “a new fiddle”. Channel 4 reported then:
“Our investigation found that many of the MPs bought their London properties with the help of the taxpayer, when a previous expenses system allowed them to claim back mortgage payments. But when those claims were banned, following the expenses scandal, they switched to letting out their properties, in some cases for up to £3,000 a month. They then started claiming expenses for rent and hotels in the capital.”
Among those identified was Chris Bryant, shadow leader of the House of Commons. He had already bought a penthouse in London back in 2005 and claimed around £1,000 a month in mortgage claims under the old system.
But after the expenses scandal, he started renting the property out. It’s since been advertised by estate agents as having a private lift and a porter, with rent at about £3,000 a month. Meanwhile, Bryant moved into a new flat;- claiming his own rent on expenses.
Image: Russian scientists and Scottish ones
Russian/Scottish scientists hail long-range secure quantum communication system.
A group of scientists from ITMO University in Saint Petersburg, Russia, has developed a new approach to constructing quantum communication systems for secure data exchange.
The experimental device based on the results of the research is capable of transmitting single-photon quantum signals across distances of 250 klmtrs or more, which is on par with its cutting edge analogues, the ITMO press-service says.
"Now researchers are on a mission -- to create a fully-fledged quantum cryptographic system, that will generate & distribute quantum keys and transmit useful data simultaneously", ITMO says.
Information security is becoming more and more of a critical issue not only for large companies, banks and defense enterprises but even for small businesses and individual users.
But the data encryption algorithms we currently use for protecting our data are imperfect - in the long-term, their logic can be cracked. Regardless of how complex and intricate the algorithm is, getting around it, is just a matter of time.
Unlike algorithm-based encryption, systems that protect information, by making use of fundamental laws of quantum physics, can make data transmission totally immune to hacker attacks, in the future.
Information in a quantum channel is carried by single photons that change irreversibly if an eavesdropper tries to intercept them. The legitimate users will instantly know about any kind of intervention.
Researchers at the Quantum Information Centre of the International Institute of Photonics and Optical Information Technology at ITMO Uni., Russia, along with their colleagues from the Heriot-Watt University, in Edinburgh, have devised a new way to generate and distribute, quantum bits.
This makes it possible to share quantum signals --- via optical fibres --- 250 kilometres in distance.
"To transmit quantum signals, we use the so- called side frequencies," says Artur Gleim, head of the Quantum Information Centre, at ITMO University,
"This unique approach gives us a number of advantages -- such as a considerable simplification of the device architecture and the large pass-through capacity of the quantum channel. In terms of bit rate and operating distances, our system is comparable to absolute champions in the field of quantum communications."
According to Robert Collins, research associate at the Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, and one of the authors of the study, this may become a pivotal point for the whole field of quantum communication and cryptography:
"Down the track, this new approach can enable smooth coexistence of numerous data streams with different wavelengths in one single optical cable. On top of it, these quantum streams can be fed into the already existing fibre optic lines --- along with conventional communications."
The research paper is published in the Optics Express journal.
Scottish universities are to be congratulated for their strong & growing links with Chinese and Russian universities....
What a shame, that Wales is lying low --- with academics too scared to break from US military research.
Image: BRICS
Image: March 26 London anti cuts demo
KILLING THE ELDERLY BY CLOSING CARE HOMES
Did you know that each time a local authority
closes a care home for the elderly, within 8
months, around half the residents are dead?
Campaigners liken the cuts and their effect to euthanasia of the UK's elderly. What to do?
We can start by urging our MPs to sign EDM 2251:
EDM 2251: The contents
This House notes with deep concern the worsening crisis for elderly care as growing numbers of local authority and private care homes face closure
Acknowledges concerns that the loss of elderly people's care homes causes fear, anxiety and, in many cases, a higher mortality rate, when vulnerable, elderly people are forced to leave their homes
Further notes that the Southern Cross crisis will increase needs for local authority care
And therefore calls on the government to hold a public inquiry into the deaths after closures, of local authority care homes, and impose a moratorium on the closure of local authority care homes, until that inquiry publishes its results, to ensure that vulnerable, elderly people's lives are not put at further risk.
Image: unemployment in Wales
FARMING AND SCIENCE COULD REGENERATE WALES
A new UN General Assembly report warns "vast areas" of cultivated land are lost each year, and that this could lead to unrest.
The report says up to 30 million hectares, an area the size of Italy, is lost each year to environmental degradation, industry & urbanization - the growth of cities - and all because of speculative building and greed.
The UN special rapporteur Olivier De Schutter, gives the example of eastern Africa, where the amount of cultivated land has declined by half --- in just one generation! "
As rural populations grow and competition with large industrial units increases, plots cultivated by smallholders are shrinking year after year," says De Schutter.
"Farmers are often relegated to soils that are arid, hilly or without irrigation."
The UN officer also mentions India as another example, where the average landholding fell from 2.6 hectares in 1960 to 1.4 hectares in 2000. A cut of nearly half in 40 years!
He says 500 million small farmers suffer from hunger, partly because their right to land is being violated. The expert warns of the devastating consequences, as foreign investors compete for larger and larger areas of the world's land for "their" agriculture.
Rhondda Records says Wales could rebuild its new economy by basing it on a fresh approach to high-value added products, using science and agriculture... such as the Altzeim project in Gwent.