iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Although Rangers managed to cope with their trips to Elgin City and East Stirlingshire (amongst others) after their financial “misfortune”.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I think that you might be confusing them with the Institute of Economic Affairs…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

And to confuse matters more, we’re in Norfolk County, which is south of Suffolk County…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Quiet Lanes, as proposed by a Liberal Democrat Peer in 2000…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

And, unlike our Conservative and Labour opposite numbers, we do it all unpaid…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Greetings from Portman Road, home of the Tractor Boys, for Ipswich Town vs Leicester City in the second round of the Carabao Cup…

The view from our seats at Portman Road, home of Ipswich Town FC…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

I am, slightly unexpectedly, in a mildly damp forest, watching the @redrosechain.bsky.social production of “Twelfth Night”…

A sweet chestnut tree looms over the stage at Sutton Hoo for the Red Rose Chain production of “Twelfth Night”.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

I suppose the problem is that, as a Lib Dem, you do want to believe that people can be rehabilitated. I’m not sure that a Conservative could really say the same…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

I’m at Portman Road for Ipswich Town vs Le Havre - a preseason friendly…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

I’m looking forward to working with you too, and the project looks to be an interesting one as we learn more about the topic and our fellow working group members.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

You are too kind! If someone had suggested twenty years ago that I could credibly discuss rural issues, I’d have looked quizzically at them and wondered what they were on. But life can be unexpected sometimes, and perhaps I found my local government niche at just the right time…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

It’s been a long time since I last worked alongside @aaemmerson.bsky.social and it’s probably fair to say that it’s a long way from Liberal Youth to a policy working group on Rural Communities, but there you go…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

I had a colleague whose strategy, almost regardless of who it was, was to start with, “I’m X, who are you?”. It was surprisingly disarming…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

I still haven’t forgotten your selection meeting…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

There was one exception, when Sir Michael Lord was awarded a peerage. I’d have to excuse his taking Lord Framlingham… and it was in his former constituency…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

Reform UK want to waste your Council Tax money to delay the new Unitaries, sign up here to tell them no… www.southsuffolklibdems.org.uk/stopreformuk...

southsuffolklibdems.org.uk

Our Petition - Babergh Liberal Democrats

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

I’m pleased to see this, and that it’s framed in terms of a principle - that we should protect people from victimisation, harassment and discrimination. People, ALL PEOPLE, have a right to live their lives as they wish if, by their actions, they are not causing hurt or offence to others.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Funnily enough, as one of the sacrificial Lib Dem candidates in Village ward in 2006 - as Local Party Chair, you do your duty - I am reminded of the 2005 GLA election result in Dulwich Village… liberalbureaucracy.blogspot.com/2006/04/down...

liberalbureaucracy.blogspot.com

Down these mean streets...

Village ward is a pretty place for a stroll on a sunny afternoon, especially now with so many trees blossoming, and, after a rather miserab...

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Given what modern Conservatism seems to stand for, you’d almost wonder how they’re not fourth…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

It’s hard to believe just how much Dulwich changed between 1990 and 2006 - I moved away in 2008 - but if the Greens are following the old Lib Dem playbook, I’m less surprised at their success. That’s what a young, enthused membership can achieve against an unpopular status quo…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Although, in fairness, there weren’t many Conservative councillors left, the Labour Group were in some disarray, and the solitary Green from 2006 was Jenny Jones, who might as well have been in the Labour Group anyway…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

It is, I fear, true though. The only question is, where are we in the queue when it comes to having our rights taken away.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

So, trans people are going to be punished for what they are rather than what any individual does. It’s a reminder to the rest of us minorities that our rights aren’t necessarily secure and, that if we don’t conform, they could be taken away. Canary in the coal mine, anyone? 🏳️‍⚧️

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

And that, for me, is the worst aspect of how AI has developed. There may be genuine benefits but whilst it’s being portrayed as a universal panacea by those seeking to make a quick buck, the actual thoughtful research is being undermined. Perhaps it was always so, but it still saddens me.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Perhaps it’s the optimist in me that holds out a hope that there might be benefits, but I understand and acknowledge the threats. As a bureaucrat, I think that the value of any innovation needs to be thoroughly evaluated. As a liberal, I think that the harms should be mitigated or eliminated.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

And likewise, I’ve blocked it. If I want to interact, I want it to be with actual people…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Flattering but truly bizarre. And that’s the sort of abuse that undermines any credibility the sector has…

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

But don’t you think that the technology would have emerged anyway, and that our problem is both with the people running these companies and the abuses committed by them?

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

I know, and they were right. But what should Government do to ensure that the benefits of new technologies aren’t lost? How do we channel emerging technologies to maximise the benefits whilst mitigating the risks?

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

That’s possibly true, although the organisation I’m thinking of supports the first tier of local government and, if AI wasn’t available, there probably wouldn’t be a human alternative anyway. But virtually any technological change makes some jobs obsolete and how we support those affected matters.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Again, I agree with that. The valuations of these emerging businesses appear highly inflated on the basis of judgements made by people who don’t understand the technology but probably don’t want to left out. But that doesn’t change the potential impacts of the technology itself.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

That I agree with - the idea of intellectual/creative property theft appals me on a range of levels. But an organisation I work with is using AI to improve the guidance it offers to its sector, based on its own intellectual property. That strikes me as a valid use of the technology.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

I guess that, if AI is inevitable, and I have a terrible feeling it is, perhaps we ought to be discussing how best we take advantage of it. And I do think that it’s a stretch to suggest that Roz is shilling for the sector, given the content of the article.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

I’ve rather failed to report back on my trip across Europe, and so it’s time to catch up with Antwerp to Flensburg, in which I reminisce about my youth, miss connections and walk… liberalbureaucracy.blogspot.com/2026/05/inte...

liberalbureaucracy.blogspot.com

#interrail2026 - day 2: across the Low Countries to Schleswig Holstein

It's time to catch up with the trip now that I'm back, so le t's do just that... Early morning, Antwerp, and my first intention was to de...

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

It’s apparently World Bee Day today, so here’s a photograph of a bee from my archive….

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

After eight years, I am no longer the Chair of Creeting St Peter Parish Council. I am, in parts, sad, relieved and proud. It has been one of the greatest honours of my life to hold the position but, whilst it might seem irrelevant to some, I’ve made a difference, and not everyone can say that.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

And to celebrate my final stop on this possibly crazy journey… I am, I think, worth it… #interrail2026

A bottle and goblet of Westmalle Tripel Blonde.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Und so… welcome to German-speaking Belgium, where I have stopped on my way from Eindhoven to Brussels. I’m in Eupen, the “capital” of the German Community in Belgium, which has its own rather tasteful looking Parliament. #interrail2026

The Parliament of the German Community in Belgium.

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

dropped off the Moenchengladbach passengers and are (hopefully) heading towards the Netherlands. Only @deutschebahn.com could do this with such an unGermanic sense of confusion… So much for German efficiency… #interrail2026

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Mark Valladares @honladymark.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

Well, this is amusing. My ICE train from Frankfurt to S’Hertogenbosch was due to stop at Moenchengladbach about 35 minutes ago, where it would then reverse before continuing its journey towards Amsterdam. However, we’re so late that we’ve stopped at Viersen, about four miles away,

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