"From Stalin to Mr Bean"

Gordon Brown is on the rack. And one of the reasons is that the Lib Dem acting leader Vince Cable is putting in such a barnstorming performance. He's turning out to be the greatest temporary leader we've ever had.

He rejected a meeting with the Saudi king because of the horrendous human rights abuses committed by that state and because of the cancelled BAe corruption trial; he castigated the government mercilessly over Northern Rock in a way that Ming the Merciless would never have managed; and today he brought the house down at Prime Minister's Questions when he said that Gordon Brown had gone from being Stalin to Mr Bean in a matter of weeks.

Nice one, Vince. Any chance we can persuade you to stand as leader?

Brill Place - a zero carbon exemplar

The planning brief for the Brill Place site behind the British Library is surely right to highlight the need for a mixed development, that is a combination of housing, public services and jobs for local people. An animal testing laboratory or 100% social housing, to name two of the options that have been proposed, would not, in my book, fit the bill.

But there is a bigger possibility, one that answers both the planning brief (which was written under the previous Labour administration) and concern about climate change. We should use the site to build Camden's first zero carbon development, to deliver the maximum in energy efficiency, to produce its own renewable energy, to promote walking and cycling, to maximise green spaces and embraces our need for water - a project which, put simply, celebrates healthy living rather than fossil fuels concrete and pollution.

I would have liked to see the Kings Cross development secure the prize of Camden's first zero carbon development, but by the time our Development Control Committee understood the dangers of climate change it was too late to change the developer's plans. Now we have another chance.

If Gordon Brown means his rhetoric about building environmentally friendly homes, if Camden Council is to keep its promise to put sustainability at the heart of everything it does, if our community is to embrace with pride the fight against climate change, then Brill Place is the place for Camden's first zero carbon development.

I hope our national and local politicians will rise to the challenge.