2006 Shelbourne Irish Open
The 2006 Shelbourne Irish Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor carpet courts. It was the 1st edition of the event, and part of the 2006 ATP Challenger Series of the 2006 ATP Tour. It took place at the tennis courts at the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club in Dublin, Ireland, from 3 through 9 July 2006.


2006 Shelbourne Irish Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2006 Shelbourne Irish Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2006 Shelbourne Irish Open – Doubles
Dutch pair Jasper Smit and Martijn van Haasteren won the title, defeating British pair Colin Fleming and Jamie Murray in the final, 6–2, 2–6, [10–8].


2006 Shelbourne Irish Open – Singles
Unseeded German Mischa Zverev won the title, defeating Kristian Pless in the  final, 7–5, 7–6(8–6).


2006 Shiga gubernatorial election
Shiga Prefecture held a gubernatorial election on 2 July 2006. Incumbent governor Yoshitsugu Kunimatsu was defeated by Yukiko Kada, a professor of environmental sociology at Kyoto Seika University. The victory of Kada, who had very little political experience was considered surprising.


2006 Shimizu S-Pulse season
The 2006 S-Pulse season was S-Pulse's fifteenth season in existence and their fourteenth season in the J1 League. The club also competed in the Emperor's Cup and the J.League Cup. The team finished the season fourth in the league.


2006 Shinagawa mayoral election
Shinagawa held a mayoral election on Sunday October 8, 2006.


2006 Shinjuku mayoral election
Shinjuku held a mayoral election on November 12, 2006. Hiroko Nakayama, backed by the LDP and New Komeito Party was re-elected. Polling turnout was extremely low, only 26% but still about 1% more than last election.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash
On 23 September 2006, a Shree Air Mil Mi-8 helicopter crashed on a chartered flight from Phungling to Ghunsa in Eastern Nepal. The accident killed all 24 passengers and crew on board, including an expedition of World Wide Fund for Nature.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash, Aircraft
The helicopter involved with the accident was a Mil Mi-8 MTV 1.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash, Crew and victims
On board the helicopter was an expedition of World Wide Fund for Nature returning from an conservation event in Taplejung District, where the Government of Nepal handed the management of the park around Kanchenjunga to the local people. The WWF team included Chandra Gurung and Harka Gurung. Other passengers on board the ill-fated helicopter included politician Gopal Rai.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash, Incident
The helicopter took off at 10:45 NPT on 23 September 2006. Shortly afterwards, the helicopter was declared missing. Two days later, the wreckage of the helicopter was found south-west of Ghunsa. Bad weather was assumed to have caused the crash at the beginning.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash, Investigation
The final report on the accident the committee of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal stated that the pilots entering cloudy areas in unfamiliar terrain as well as bad crew resource management were the main causes of the accident. It furthermore criticized the operating airline, Shree Air, on their training proceedings.


2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash, Aftermath
A day of mourning was observed throughout Nepal and schools and public offices were closed on 27 September 2006.


2006 Sicilian regional election
The Sicilian regional election of 2006 for the renewal of the Sicilian Regional Assembly and the Presidency of Sicily was held on 28 May 2006.


2006 Sicilian regional election
The election was competed by three competitors: Salvatore Cuffaro, incumbent President and House of Freedoms candidate; Rita Borsellino, candidate of The Union; and Nello Musumeci, MEP elected for the National Alliance and now leader of the autonomist movement Sicilian Alliance. In the end, Cuffaro won the election, despite a heavy loss of support compared with five years before, when he was elected with 59.1% of votes.


2006 Sicilian regional election, Candidates
Salvatore Cuffaro, 48, was first elected at the Sicilian Presidency in the July 2001 with 59.1% of regional votes; that election was held immediately after the national election which saw the centre-right win all the 61 Sicilian ridings. Cuffaro is a prominent member of Union of Christian and Centre Democrats, a Christian democratic party. Often associated to the mafia by his critics because of an open investigation by the magistrature of Palermo which brought to a trial commitment, Cuffaro will nevertheless head the regional UDC list of candidates for the April general election.


2006 Sicilian regional election, Candidates
Rita Borsellino, 61, sister of the late judge Paolo assassinated by the mafia, gained the centre-left candidacy after having won a primary election with over 67% of votes. She is not member of any party. If elected, she would be the first female president ever in Sicily.


2006 Sicilian regional election, Candidates
Nello Musumeci, 51, is a former member of the right-wing National Alliance party; he served as President of the Province of Catania from 1994 to 2003. He left National Alliance in September 2005 in order to found a new autonomist party, Sicilian Alliance, of which he is the leader. Despite his past political experiences, Musumeci is highly unlikely to have some actual possibility to win the election.


2006 Sicilian regional election, Candidates
Pollster claimed this election to be much closer than five years ago, and majority of surveys even put Borsellino to lead over Cuffaro. However, Sicily confirmed one more time in the April 2006 national election, in which the House of Freedoms obtained 57% of regional votes, to be still a centre-right stronghold. The election was in fact characterized by separate contemporary votes for centre-right parties and Rita Borsellino as president, as the sum of centre-right coalition parties obtained over 60% of votes. In any case, the disjoint vote was not sufficient to ensure Borsellino to win the election, and Cuffaro was confirmed president of Sicily.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship
The 2006 FIM Sidecarcross world championship, the 27th edition of the competition, started on 23 April and finished after eight race weekends on 17 September 2006 with Daniël Willemsen taking out the title once more.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
The 2006 season was the 27th edition of the sidecarcross world championship. It resulted in a fifth world championship for Daniël Willemsen, his fourth in a row and the second with his passenger Sven Verbrugge from Belgium. The two clearly dominated the season with 13 wins in the 16 races and an 83-point gap to the second placed Evgeny Scherbinin / Sergei Sosnovskikh from Russia. A close third came Marco Happich / Meinrad Schelbert, the German-Swiss combination.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
After ten seasons in the top ten and five world championships, it was the first time since 1995 for last season's runner-up Kristers Serģis not to finish in the top ten. Due to injury, the Latvian only took part in four races but still achieved three podium finishes.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
The eight races of the season were held in six countries, France, Germany, Croatia, Belgium, Latvia and the Netherlands.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Format
Every Grand Prix weekend is split into two races, both held on the same day. This means, the 2006 season with its eight Grand Prix had sixteen races. Each race is currently 30 minutes plus 2 rounds long.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Format
Teams go through a qualifying, usually on Saturday. Typically, around 50 teams compete for 30 spots on the starting grid, meaning around 20 teams miss out on the race altogether. Some teams did not actually get a race start all season, failing in qualifying each time.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Format
The first twenty teams of each race scored competition points, allocated accordingly to the following system:


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Retirements
At the end of the 2006 season a number of long-term competitors retired from the World Championship, the longest standing of those being German Josef Brustmann with 19 seasons in the competition and Belgian Geert Devoldere with 18 seasons, both first having raced in the World Championship in 1988.


2006 Sidecarcross World Championship, Classification, Riders
The final standings in the overall table of the 2006 season were:


2006 Silverstone Superbike World Championship round
The 2006 Silverstone Superbike World Championship round was the fifth round of the 2006 Superbike World Championship season. It took place on the weekend of 26–28 May 2006 at Silverstone.


2006 Singapore Open
The 2006 Singapore Open in badminton was held in Singapore, from June 5 to June 11, 2006.


2006 Singapore Open
It was a five star tournament and the prize money was US$170,000.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy
The Wee Shu Min elitism controversy occurred in October 2006 in Singapore. Wee Shu Min, daughter of parliament member Wee Siew Kim and a then eighteen-year-old student on Raffles Junior College's Humanities scholarship programme, found herself in controversy after posting on her blog what were viewed by some Singaporeans to be elitist, naïve, and insensitive statements against heartlanders.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy
Dismissing the  who voiced concerns on job security and age discrimination on his blog, she shot back with a take-no-prisoners diatribe, calling Derek a "stupid crackpot", belonging to "the sadder class" and overreliant on the government. Her post also called for Derek to "get out of my elite uncaring face".


2006 Singapore elitism controversy
Her response triggered an avalanche of criticism, as it came on the heels of the sensational suicide of an individual (said to be facing financial difficulties) at Chinese Garden MRT station. As a result, her name topped Technorati's search terms for a week. She has since appeared to have apologised on another blog and shut down her own.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy, Response
In response to the controversy, Wee Siew Kim stated that he supported Shu Min's point in principle and that "people cannot take the brutal truth," but he and Shu Min's college principal also expressed disappointment and counselled her to be more sensitive towards others. Wee also claimed that his daughter's privacy had been violated. Critics pointed out however, that he appeared to have endorsed her elitist remarks and failed to address values such as empathy and humility, and that he was apologising for the tone, but not the content of his daughter's response.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy, Response
In 2019, after a remark made by Raffles Girls’ School's staff on the school's relocation to a neighbourhood estate, concerns about elitist sensibilities, similar to Wee, were raised again.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy, Public backlash
Two days after Wee Siew Kim first spoke out in The Straits Times, he made a public apology to those who were offended by statements made in his interview, in particular Derek Wee. Commentators used the controversy as evidence that Singapore was suffering from increasing signs that political elitism, "smarter-than-thou" snobbery and class consciousness anxiety were creeping into its meritocracy model, a widening social stratification that will cause long-term implications for Singaporean society, and problems in the education system that need to be addressed.


2006 Singapore elitism controversy, Public backlash
The controversy was subsequently raised and hotly debated again in the opening session of the Parliament by fellow MP Sin Boon Ann, who pointed out that elitism was now an open secret in several aspects of Singapore society, including education, the military and the civil service, commenting that it is necessary "(to) break down the institution of snobbery within our society."


2006 Singaporean general election
General elections were held in Singapore on 6 May 2006. President S.R. Nathan dissolved parliament on 20 April 2006 on the advice of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong three weeks before the election. The People's Action Party (PAP), in its first election under Lee Hsien Loong, won 66.6% of the overall votes and gained 82 out of 84 seats. The PAP held the office of Prime Minister for a twelfth consecutive term. The general election was held under the first-past-the-post system. On Nomination Day, the PAP gained 37 seats in divisions which were uncontested by other parties. The main election issues included employment, cost of living, housing, transport, education, the need for an effective opposition voice in parliament, and the quality of the candidates.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background
The 2006 General Election was the 15th General Election in Singapore and the 10th since independence in 1965. The governing People's Action Party (PAP) sought to secure their twelfth consecutive term in office since 1959. This would be the first election since Lee Hsien Loong replaced Goh Chok Tong and became PAP's Secretary-General in 2004.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Political parties
Besides the ruling PAP, the other major political parties were the Workers' Party of Singapore (WP) led by Low Thia Khiang, the Singapore People's Party (SPP) led by Chiam See Tong, the National Solidarity Party (NSP) led by Steve Chia, and the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) led by Chee Soon Juan, who himself was ineligible to run in this election because of a 2002 conviction.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Political parties
Four parties, including the SPP and the NSP, contested the election as members of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA).


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Election deposit
For this election, the deposit for each candidate was set at S$13,500 (approximately US$8,590 or £4,620) which was about 8% of the total annual salary to a member of parliament in the preceding year, rounded to the nearest S$500. The regulations of the elections stated that the deposit was to be forfeited if the candidate failed to obtain at least one-eighth of the votes.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Electorate
All citizens at least 21 years of age, based on the Registers of Electors, were eligible to vote. The Elections Department had completed its revision of the Registers and made them available for public inspection from 17 January through 30 January 2006. There were 2,158,439 eligible voters. The 2006 election was the first election where more than half the electorate were of the post-independence generation, i.e., those born after Singapore's independence in 1965.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Electorate
For the first time in Singapore's election history, Singaporeans living overseas were able to vote at designated polling stations located within Singapore's High Commissions, Embassies or Consulates in other countries. To be qualified to vote overseas, they must have had either resided in Singapore for an aggregate of two of the past five years, or be overseas for reasons of employment or education related to the Singapore government. There were several overseas polling stations, namely Tokyo, Canberra, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, London, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco. 1,017 Singaporeans had registered for overseas voting by 22 March 2006, although only 558 voted, as the rest had a walkover in their constituencies.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Electoral divisions
On 3 March 2006, the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee published the updated list of electoral divisions. There were fourteen Group Representation Constituencies (GRC), each with five or six seats, and nine Single Member Constituencies (SMC). The total number of seats remained the same at 84 as the previous general election in 2001, but there are some minor changes and tweaks. The two opposition held SMCs, Hougang SMC and Potong Pasir SMC were intact. Also unchanged was the Chua Chu Kang SMC which saw a close contest in the previous election between the ruling PAP's Low Seow Chay and NSP's Steve Chia. The boundaries for the five Group Representation Constituencies (namely Bishan–Toa Payoh, Hong Kah, Jalan Besar, Jurong and Tampines) were also intact.


2006 Singaporean general election, Background, Election issues
As in previous elections, bread and butter issues including jobs, medical care and cost of living dominated the election campaign. Other major election issues are listed in the following.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Dissolution of Parliament
On 20 April 2006, Parliament was dissolved by President Sellapan Ramanathan on the advice of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Later that day, the President issued the writ of election and the government announced that the election would be held on Saturday, 6 May 2006, with nomination day on Thursday, 27 April 2006. The Returning Officer was to be Tan Boon Huat, Chief Executive Director of the People's Association.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, New/outgoing candidates
This election saw a large number of new candidates as the major political parties had undergone self-renewal in recent years. Many of the new candidates belong to the post-1965 generation. A total 49 candidates made their debut among which include notable PAP candidates include Grace Fu, Lui Tuck Yew, Josephine Teo and Masagos Zulkifli, while WP introduced their party's chairwoman Sylvia Lim (who would later become the first-ever female opposition MP-elect in the next election), as well as James Gomez (now SDP member) and Goh Meng Seng (now founder of People's Power Party).


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, New/outgoing candidates
A total 24 candidates did not seek re-election, among which were former cabinet ministers Lee Yock Suan and former Speaker of Parliament Tan Soo Khoon, as well as Tan Cheng Bock and Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Tony Tan, though they would later return to compete in the 2011 presidential election five years later in which the latter won; the former would later return to the political fray in the 2020 elections as a founder of Progress Singapore Party.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Budget day and progress package
On 17 February 2006, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was also Minister for Finance and Secretary General of the PAP, delivered the country's Budget Statement to the Parliament. He released details of a S$2.6 billion "progress package" including S$500 million for Central Provident Fund top-ups, S$400 million for workfare bonuses, and S$200 million bonuses for national servicemen. Largely due to this package, the 2006 Budget incurred a deficit of S$2.86 billion.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Budget day and progress package
Low Thia Khiang (WP) came out strongly against the progress package which he said was no more than a vote-winning tool for the PAP. Low called for greater transparency on how the government intend to finance the package and to compensate for the budget shortfall. Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng (PAP) later dismissed claims that the progress package constitutes a form of vote buying.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Workers' Party manifesto
The Workers' Party (WP) was the first party to launch an update to its manifesto on 14 January 2006. Among its policy proposals, WP called for the Presidency to revert to its former ceremonial role and the abolishment of the GRCs, the Ethnic Integration Policy for Housing and Development Board flats, the Resident Committees and the Citizen Consultative Committees. It also revealed its intentions to establish a central agency in the provision of public transport, set up of a national unemployment insurance scheme and a more comprehensive national health insurance scheme among a host of other things.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Workers' Party manifesto
On 21 January, PAP made various criticisms on the WP's proposals, describing four of their proposals as "four time bombs...[which] will weaken and tear Singapore apart". Khaw Boon Wan, revealed various changes in medical policies, including the Medisave scheme, which had been a constant target for criticism by opposition parties.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Workers' Party manifesto
He also chided the WP for its "failure to understand what makes inter-racialism work in Singapore and why we are different from the rest of the world", referring the four points brought up by Ng Eng Hen as "poisons" Workers' Party chairman Sylvia Lim released a press statement on 22 January, responding to each of the four "time bombs" criticised by Ng and adding that the party was standing firmly by its manifesto.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Goh Chok Tong's special assignment
On 19 March, Lee Hsien Loong said that PAP was aiming to win all the constituencies including the two opposition wards in Hougang SMC and Potong Pasir SMC, stating that "We want to win, this is not masak-masak [a Malay term meaning a child's game]". The PAP candidates for these two wards were respectively previously-contested candidates Eric Low and Sitoh Yih Pin respectively, and both candidates had been working the ground in these wards since along with assistance by Goh Chok Tong who had been given the special assignment to help the PAP win the two wards.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Goh Chok Tong's special assignment
Goh had suggested that if Eric Low and Sitoh Yih Pin won the election, they would be given extra latitude when speaking and voting in parliament and not be subjected to the political Whip. Goh also said that he would help Sitoh to gain a post in the new Cabinet if elected.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Goh Chok Tong's special assignment
Hougang and Potong Pasir residents were also been promised housing upgrades worth $100 million and $80 million respectively if PAP was to retake the two seats as both of these constituencies have not been selected for housing upgrades or provided with lifts that stop on every floor due to the constituencies being held by the opposition. When the PAP shaved Low's vote share from 58% to 55% in the 2001 General Election, Goh offered to upgrade Hougang estate if the share was reduced to 52%.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Remarks in The New Democrat
In April 2006, the SDP published an article headlined "Govt's role in the NKF scandal" in the SDP party newspaper The New Democrat regarding the National Kidney Foundation Singapore scandal. On 22 April, letters of demand were served on twelve members of the SDP and the publisher.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Remarks in The New Democrat
Drew and Napier, the law firm acting for Lee Hsien Loong and Lee Kuan Yew, said that the newspaper article had alleged that the two Lees were "dishonest and unfit for office", that Lee Kuan Yew "devised a corrupt political system for the benefit of the political elite", and that he managed the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation in a "corrupt manner".


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Remarks in The New Democrat
In addition, according to the letter of demand, the newspaper also alleged that Lee Hsien Loong had "perpetuated a corrupt political system for the benefit of the political elite" and how he and his Government "had access to the information which has now been unearthed about NKF but corruptly concealed and covered up the facts to avoid criticism". The letters demanded that damages be paid and an apology made in the media by 25 April.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Remarks in The New Democrat
Four of SDP's eleven committee members apologized shortly after, while the party's chairman refused to do so, as it would constitute "an admission of guilt". An apology had been formally rejected by the party, though the party would not oppose individual members making personal apologies. M Ravi, the lawyer representing most of the accused, had rejected claims made in the letters that allegations made in the paper were "highly defamatory", and he "[does] not see how a government or public body could be defamed".


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, Remarks in The New Democrat
On 27 April, Chee said that the threat of legal action was already seriously affecting SDP's campaign at Sembawang GRC: "Lawyers for Mr Lee Kuan Yew and Mr Lee Hsien Loong have gone as far as to sue the printer, so much so that he is so frightened he dares not publish our election material." SDP was still seen selling the publication, and the Lees were seeking aggravated damages. Only the Chee siblings have yet to make a public apology.


2006 Singaporean general election, Pre-nomination day events, SDP podcast
On 25 April, Elections Department warned SDP that it would take action against the party if they did not remove audio files and podcasts from the party's website, as they were against election advertising regulations under the Parliamentary Elections Act. Within hours after the notice was issued, SDP posted a notice on its website that the podcast service was suspended.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Planning for nomination day by political parties
As early as January 2006, when it became clear that the election would be held soon, the political parties began making definitive plans for Nomination Day.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Planning for nomination day by political parties
On 10 March 2006, major opposition parties hosted a meeting, after which they announced their intention to contest 57 of the 84 seats in Parliament, but full details of the opposition's plan was not revealed until Nomination Day itself. Steve Chia told reporters, "Any self-respecting politician will hold his cards close to his chest."


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Planning for nomination day by political parties
There were nine Single Member Constituencies for the election. For smaller political parties and independents who do not have sufficient candidates and resources to contest the GRCs, the SMCs were the only constituencies that they could afford to run; many analysts cited that opposition candidates stand a greater chance of winning in SMCs as compared to GRCs, and all nine SMCs were expecting contests. The opposition tried to avoid three-cornered fights by co-ordinating with each other. Chiam See Tong (SPP) said that "if we enter into one [three-cornered fight], we're only going to kill ourselves. We're not that stupid."


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Planning for nomination day by political parties
In March 2006, it was thought that there could be a potential three-way contest in MacPherson SMC, where both Mansor Rahman, Chairman of Democratic Progressive Party, and Sin Kek Tong, Chairman of Singapore People's Party, cited interest to run for that seat, but both members eventually chose not to contest. Tan Lead Shake, ex-Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member, later joined the National Solidarity Party (NSP) (under the banner in Singapore Democratic Alliance), and became a member of SDA's team contesting Tampines GRC.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Planning for nomination day by political parties
As of 26 April 2006, the opposition had indicated that they would contest at least half of the seats in the 84 member Parliament; 47 PAP candidates standing for election with 10 new candidates facing the opposition. Candidates standing for election had only an hour to present their nomination papers and must be accompanied by their proposers, seconders and assentors. Observers projected that the other 37 candidates from seven Group Representative Constituencies would return unopposed and the PAP would be denied a majority on nomination day, an eventuality that proved to be true.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Early announcement of intention by parties
Some of the opposition parties, such as Workers' Party and Singapore Democratic Alliance, adopted the strategy of announcing early their plans on which constituencies they intended to contest prior to announced changes in electoral boundaries, as a tactical move to earmark those divisions to discourage any third party from contesting in the same divisions leading to three-cornered fights. Another cited reason was that, if the Government electoral commission redrew those boundaries, the opposition would be able to exploit such actions by accusing the PAP of gerrymandering to avoid the ballot challenge.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Nomination day results
On nomination day 47 candidates representing the opposition (a large increase of 29 candidates from the previous election) contested 16 constituencies; all contests were between the PAP and one opposition party, which marked the first (and to-date, the only) election with no three-cornered fights. For the first time since 1980, no independent candidates participated in this election, which was a rare occurrence as independent candidates had participated in every election since 1955..


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Nomination day results
For the first time since 1988, the total number of uncontested seats (37) from the seven GRCs were less than the majority of the parliament (42 out of 84 seats), and the ruling PAP was not returned to power on nomination day. The Elections Department also announced that over 1.2 million Singaporeans, 56.6% of eligible voters, would be able to cast votes.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Diversity of candidates
Notably, all 18 candidates contested in SMCs were male Chinese. On 28 April, Lee Kuan Yew (PAP) referred to this fact when defending the Group Representation Constituency (GRC) system on the grounds that it ensures minority and women representation in parliament, although there is no prerequisites on GRCs having at least one female candidate.


2006 Singaporean general election, Nomination day, Diversity of candidates
Over the years, each GRC team has been steadily increased by the government from three to at least five members. WP had called for the abolishment of the GRC system which it considered as a means introduced by the PAP to make it difficult for opposition who lack sufficient resource to contest the large electoral division.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day
With the nominations completed, the opposition was contesting 47 seats with the remaining 37 returned to the PAP, resulting in PAP being prevented a walkover majority to form a government on nomination day for the first time since 1988.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day
Between 28 April to 5 May, a total of 50 political rallies were held by the parties at 24 designated sites during nine days of campaign. The "Lunchtime Rally Site" at Boat Quay, next to UOB Plaza, made a comeback in the election; it was removed from the list of rally sites in the previous election due to fears of terrorist attacks after the September 11, 2001 attacks.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day
The Workers' Party had put up their strongest team, consisting of its more prominent candidates led by chairman Sylvia Lim, to contest Aljunied GRC challenging the PAP team led by Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo. The constituency eventually had the fiercest GRC contest in the election. The strongest GRC team for the SDA was one contesting Jalan Besar GRC. It was led by Sebestian Teo and its members include former MP Cheo Chai Chen.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day
The hotly contested Single Member Constituencies include Chua Chu Kang SMC where incumbent MP and Minister of State for Education and Manpower Gan Kim Yong was challenged by NSP's secretary-general and then-NCMP Steve Chia. Low Thia Khiang (WP), the incumbent MP for Hougang SMC faced a strong challenge from PAP's Eric Low Siak Meng. Nee Soon East SMC was hotly contested with Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee against Poh Lee Guan (WP). Potong Pasir SMC, another opposition seat held by Chiam See Tong since 1984 was also hotly contested by PAP's Sitoh Yih Pin.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day
Workers' Party fielded a very young team in Ang Mo Kio GRC, with candidates mostly born after 1965, to compete with the flagship PAP team led by Lee Hsien Loong. On 29 April 2006, Lee referred to his opponents at Ang Mo Kio GRC as "敢死队" (suicide squad) adding that even the bookies would not take bets on the outcome in that constituency contest. In response, Low Thia Kiang said that it was better to be a "敢死队" (suicide squad) and not a "怕死队" (squad that is scared to die). WP's candidate Yaw Shin Leong added that his teammates and himself were mentally prepared to lose but they were not push-overs.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, James Gomez saga
Controversy arose during the election surrounding the application for a minority-race candidate certificate by James Gomez of Workers' Party. On 24 April, Gomez went to the Elections Department to fill up the minority-race candidate certificate application form accompanied by the chairperson Sylvia Lim. Instead of handing in the application form to election official, Gomez slipped the form in his bag and went off for an interview. At the time, Sylvia Lim had gone to a waiting area and did not witness the event.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, James Gomez saga
On the eve of Nomination Day, James Gomez went to collect his minority-race candidate certificate claiming he had submitted the application form. After failing to get the certificate, Gomez warned an elections officer of the "consequences". At 1 pm that day, an Elections Department staff called Gomez and told him that he did not submit the Indian and minority candidate certificate form. During the call, which was recorded, Gomez changed his story and said that he would get back to them. When the media asked him about the issue, Gomez initially refused to discuss about the issue, but later conceded. Following two days of dispute between both sides, the Elections Department was able to produce video evidence showing that James Gomez did not submit the application form; a day later, James Gomez apologised to the Elections Department at a Worker's Party rally saying he was distracted by his busy schedule.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, James Gomez saga
During the controversy, PAP raised questions about the credibility of Gomez. He was accused of attempting to discredit the Elections Department by claiming they misplaced the form. Two PAP leaders Wong Kan Seng and Lee Kuan Yew called Gomez a "liar" and Lee dared Gomez to sue him and Wong. George Yeo (PAP) also suggested that the Worker's Party should sack Gomez and field a four-member team for the five-member Group Representation Constituency. This was rejected by Low who asserted that PAP was trying to divert public and media attention from main election issues.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Party political broadcast
On both 29 April 2006 and 4 May 2006, the four contesting parties made their political broadcasts over television and radio in the four official languages – the English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil languages. Each party was given an allocated time based on the number of candidates it fielded. The People's Action Party (PAP) was given 12 minutes with 84 candidates fielded, the Workers' Party (WP) and Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) were given 4.5 minutes each with 20 candidates fielded, and the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) was given 2.5 minutes with 7 candidates fielded.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Party political broadcast
The SDP was represented by Chee Siok Chin, the Workers' Party by Sylvia Lim on the first broadcast and by Tan Hui Hua on the second broadcast, the SDA by Chiam See Tong on both broadcasts, with the PAP by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on the first broadcast and by PAP chairman Lim Boon Heng on the second broadcast.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Debate on housing and lift upgrading
The upgrading of public housing, including the Lift Upgrading Programme (LUP), was a major issue in this election. As in previous elections, PAP had tied the scheduling of housing upgrades to the number of votes the party received in the election. The PAP argued that government was successful in raising the standard of living in the country, and those who supported its various policies, including the upgrading, should be given priority.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Debate on housing and lift upgrading
In the hotly contested Aljunied GRC, George Yeo (PAP) placed lift upgrading the "top of [his] priority list" so that the lift would stop on every floor in as many blocks as possible. Sylvia Lim (WP) accused the PAP of being selective in its upgrading programmes, arguing that this was a divisive policy.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Large turnout at opposition election rallies
The election featured large turnouts at some of the election rallies of the opposition parties, which was unheard of since the 1980s. A report by Malaysian press The Star estimated that around 10,000 people attended the Workers' Party rally on 30 April at Hougang. At the last rally of the Workers' Party at Serangoon Stadium on 5 May, the audience filled up most of the field and even spilled outside the stadium. However, the local media did not report on the large turnout at all, prompting criticism of the credibility of the Singapore media on local political issues.


2006 Singaporean general election, Events between nomination day and election day, Large turnout at opposition election rallies
The PAP dismissed the significance of the crowds, suggesting that crowd size would not necessarily translate into votes.


2006 Singaporean general election, Results
After polls closed at 8pm, vote counting began. Results were announced by the returning officer Tan Boon Huat. The first result was declared at 10.46pm on 6 May 2006 where PAP candidate Seng Han Thong won the Yio Chu Kang Single Member Constituency with a majority of 8,419. The final result to be declared was for the Sembawang Group Representation Constituency at 12.16am on 7 May 2006 where the six-member PAP team, led by Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan retained the constituency by a wide margin of 53.4%, or 90,633 votes.


2006 Singaporean general election, Results
The People's Action Party won a 12th consecutive term with its majority virtually untouched, but vote majorities were reduced island-wide. Goh's special assignment in which winning the two opposition-held constituencies were unsuccessful as opposition MPs were re-elected with swings toward their parties, among which Hougang won its largest share of 62.7%, by then it was second lowest votes received after Singapore's independence in any particular ward (which would later be superseded in the next election, where WP received 64.80% of the votes.) The record low for PAP votes in a ward was 30.4% in Potong Pasir SMC during the 1991 elections.


2006 Singaporean general election, Results
Apart from overseas voting for those who had resided in Singapore for two out of the last five years, this was also the first election where six-member GRCs were contested (among which the Prime Minister's constituency of Ang Mo Kio garnered votes below PAP's national average of 66.6%), and none of the candidates forfeited their election deposits. This was also the second election (after 1980) in history with no independents, likely due to new election laws requiring presence of assentors in Nomination Centres, posing difficulty for candidates without party machinery.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Victory parades
To continue with tradition, the winning candidates toured their constituencies to thank voters for their victory in the election. These parades were held in all contested seats as well as walkover Group Representation Constituencies. Victory parades are usually held in the late morning and early afternoon in conjunction with other events organised by the grassroots committee. The candidates were driven on trucks as they broadcast messages of appreciation to the residents. Some losing candidates also toured their constituencies to thank their supporters although their parades were usually smaller than those of the winning candidates.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Non-Constituency Member of Parliament
Elections Department announced that the Workers' Party team for Aljunied GRC received the highest share of votes among losing constituencies with 43.9%, and the party was allowed to appoint a member as Non-Constituency Member of Parliament, replacing Steve Chia. The Central Executive Committee voted for Sylvia Lim with nine in favour and one opposed. Lim would not represent any constituency but she said she was looking forward to the opportunity to fulfil her obligation to supporters and also to voice people's concerns.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Detaining and questioning of Gomez
On 7 May, Gomez was detained by police at Singapore Changi Airport when he was about to take a flight to Sweden for work. The police were investigating an "alleged offences of criminal intimidation and providing false information". The Elections Department had earlier filed a police report regarding the incident during the election period in which Gomez spoke to an election official in a threatening tone, an episode that was caught on closed-circuit television.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Detaining and questioning of Gomez
Gomez was brought to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at Police Cantonment Complex for questioning and to file his statement, after which he was released at midnight. His passport was impounded by the police to prevent him from leaving the country and his air ticket was forfeited as it was non-refundable. He also suffered a loss of income due to his absence from work.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Detaining and questioning of Gomez
On that night, Sylvia Lim and Low Thia Khiang were also asked to give statements at the CID. On 9 May, Gomez was called again to CID for a questioning session that lasted five hours. Gomez later told the media that he was giving the police "the fullest cooperation."


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Detaining and questioning of Gomez
After three questioning sessions, Gomez was let off with a stern warning by the police who issued a statement stating that the public prosecutor was satisfied that Gomez had committed the offence of using threatening words towards a civil servant but the police decided to release Gomez as he had no prior criminal records. His passport was returned to him and he left for Sweden on 16 May.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Chee Siok Chin's challenge of polling results
On 24 May 2006, SDP member Chee Siok Chin filed a summons on the High Court asking to declare the election results void. In her affidavit, Chee claimed that the PAP had used the HDB upgrading scheme and gave out shares and cash to induce voters to vote for the party and hence secure electoral victory. Chee also wanted the High Court to declare the ban on podcasting during election period as unconstitutional. Chee did not pay the $5000 security costs on time, and the Elections Department did not accept her payment as a result.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, Chee Siok Chin's challenge of polling results
Senior State Counsel Jeffrey Chan said her petition would be deemed to have lapsed the moment she failed to meet the deadline to furnish the security amount for costs and asked the election judge to dismiss the matter. On 22 June, Election Judge Andrew Phang dismissed her application and awarded costs to the Attorney General whom Chee had named as defendant. Her attempt to extend her security deposit payment time was denied by the High Court. As a result, a hearing scheduled on 27 June did not take place. Chee had not followed the rules of the Parliamentary Elections Act which requires them to pay the security deposit within three days after filing the petition.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, New cabinet
The new cabinet was inaugurated on 30 May 2006. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong reveal lineup in which Raymond Lim relinquished his roles as Second Minister for Finance and Minister in the Prime Minister's Office for a new ministerial portfolio for Transport succeeding Yeo Cheow Tong. Minister for Education Tharman Shanmugaratnam was given another role as Second Minister for Finance, while Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Vivian Balakrishnan was given a second post as Second Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts as he relinquished his Second Minister for Trade and Industry.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, New cabinet
Five new candidates, Lui Tuck Yew, Lee Yi Shyan, Grace Fu, Teo Ser Luck and Masagos Zulkifli, along with three returning MPs, S Iswaran, Amy Khor and Zainudin Nordin, were promoted as Minister of State or Parliamentary secretaries in political office.


2006 Singaporean general election, Aftermath, New cabinet
Senior Minister of State Balaji Sadasivan relinquished his position as Senior Minister of State for Ministry of Health for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, but remained as Senior Minister for State for the MICA. Heng Chee How took Balaji's place as Senior Minister of State for Health; he relinquished his appointments in the Ministry of National Development and Mayor for the Central Community Development Council. Zainul Abidin Rasheed was appointed Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Koo Tsai Kee as Minister of State for Defence.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet
The Internet played a much more significant role compared to previous general elections. Singapore has a large number of computer users, with 74% of households owning computers and 2 in 3 households having Internet access. Podcasts, blogs, and online political discussions have become common in Singaporean cyberspace. A blog called "SGRally" was set up to collect recorded rally speeches in this election. Opposition candidates had complained about insufficient rally sites allocated to them in past elections.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet
In August 2005, Singapore Democratic Party became the first political party in Singapore to launch a podcast called RadioSDP on its party website. Several members of the Workers' Party are active in blogsphere; the notable bloggers are James Gomez, Goh Meng Seng, and Melvin Tan.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet
On 25 February 2006, the Department of Political Science, National University of Singapore organised a public forum on politics titled "The (In)Significance of Political Elections in Singapore?" Among the speakers were 2nd Assistant Secretary-General of Workers' Party James Gomez, Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) Geh Min, and former NMP Chandra Mohan. A recording of the forum is available via podcast.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet, Regulations
Regulation of political content online was an issue throughout the election period. The Media Development Authority (MDA) had reminded Internet content providers to comply with the law of Singapore, including those relating to political content. Online bloggers and podcasts are subject to the Parliamentary Elections Act.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet, Regulations
In a notification issued by MDA under the Broadcasting Act, all political websites are required to register with the MDA. These websites include those belonging to political parties as well as to "individuals, groups, organisations and corporations engaged in providing any programme for the propagation, promotion or discussion of political or religious issues relating to Singapore on the World Wide Web through the Internet." A MDA spokesperson said that only a handful of websites have registered and that they mostly belonged to political parties or registered political associations.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet, Regulations
Political analyst Cherian George noted that the regulation would hinder the development of citizen journalism in Singapore. A number of bloggers and political commentators had noted that the rules are too broadly defined and were unsure how they would be enforced. They protested that this was a violation of freedom of speech. A candidate Goh Meng Seng (WP) refused to register his blog, saying "I don't see the need to do so as an individual citizen. We have our rights to our political views."


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet, Regulations
In a parliament session on 3 April 2006, Balaji Sadasivan, the senior minister of state for information, communications and the arts, made some clarification on the regulation in response to a question by Low Thia Khiang. Balaji said that podcasting and streaming of videos were prohibited during the election. On the other hand, pictures of election candidates, political party histories and manifestos were allowed to be used as election advertising on the Internet. He added that bloggers who persistently promoted political views had to register with the MDA.


2006 Singaporean general election, Influence of the Internet, Regulations
During elections, only political parties, candidates and election agents are allowed to advertise. Balaji warned that those who violate the rules would face prosecution, and said "In a free-for-all internet environment, where there are no rules, political debate could easily degenerate into an unhealthy, unreliable and dangerous discourse, flush with rumours and distortions to mislead and confuse the public." The regulation of political content on the Internet had previously led to the closing down of a popular discussion forum website Sintercom in 2001, after the owner refused to register with the authority and voluntarily shut down his website. Additionally, publication of election surveys during the election period or exit polls was banned.


2006 Singer Sri Lankan Airlines Rugby 7s
The 2006 Singer Sri Lankan Airlines Rugby 7s was the eighth year that the Singer Sri Lankan Airlines Rugby 7s tournament had been held. South Korea defeated China 24 - 19 in the final of the Cup.


2006 Sioux Falls Cougars football team
The 2006 Sioux Falls Cougars football team represented the University of Sioux Falls in the 2006 NAIA football season. The Cougars won the 2006 NAIA Football National Championship with a 23–19 victory over the top-ranked St. Francis Cougars. The team also won the Great Plains Athletic Conference championship with a perfect 10–0 record. This was the school's second NAIA Championship (1996). The team was coached by Kalen DeBoer.


2006 Six Nations Championship
The 2006 Six Nations Championship was the seventh series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 112th series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. This was the fourth edition sponsored by Royal Bank of Scotland.


2006 Six Nations Championship
This was the last Six Nations to be held before the redevelopment of Lansdowne Road into today's Aviva Stadium. Ireland played their 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 Six Nations home fixtures at Croke Park, also in Dublin.


2006 Six Nations Championship
In this year, France won the competition on points difference over Ireland. Ireland received the consolation prize of the Triple Crown Trophy, presented for the first time that year, by winning their matches against the other Home Nations: Wales, Scotland and England. Italy once more collected the Wooden Spoon, but showed considerable improvement over past years, earning a first-ever competition point away from home in a draw against Wales. For the first time since 2000, Scotland won the Calcutta Cup.


2006 Six Nations Championship squads, Wales
*captain in the first two games**captain in the third, fourth and fifth games


2006 Skate America
The 2006 Skate America was the first event of six in the 2006–07 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut on October 26–29. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing. Skaters earned points toward qualifying for the 2006–07 Grand Prix Final.


2006 Skate Canada International
The 2006 Skate Canada International was the second event of six in the 2006–07 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, British Columbia on November 2–5. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing. Skaters earned points toward qualifying for the 2006–07 Grand Prix Final.


2006 Sky Radio Tennis Masters
The 2006 Sky Radio Tennis Masters were held from 10  to 17 December 2006 in the Topsportcentrum Rotterdam in Rotterdam, Netherlands.


2006 Sky Radio Tennis Masters
Robin Haase won his first Masters title by beating defending champion Raemon Sluiter in the final. Michaëlla Krajicek won her third consecutive Masters title after beating Elise Tamaëla in a replay of the 2005 final. Krajicek, 17 years old during the tournament had not lost a single match against another Dutch player since she was 11.


2006 Sky Radio Tennis Masters
Prior to the tournament Thiemo de Bakker and Antal van der Duim were suspended by the Dutch Tennis Association because of bad behaviour after playing some tournaments in Israel in November. Both players were suspended for a month, while Van der Duim also was excluded from the association's youth project.


2006 Skyrunner World Series
The 2006 Skyrunner World Series was the 5th edition of the global skyrunning competition, Skyrunner World Series, organised by the International Skyrunning Federation from 2002.


2006 Skyrunner World Series, Results
The World Cup has developed in 8 races from May to September.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship
This is a round-up of the 2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship. The reigning champions, Coolera/Strandhill, who were surprisingly eliminated at the group stage, after losing a playoff tie to neighbours St. John's. Geevagh won the 2006 Sligo Intermediate Football Championship with a victory over St Patrick's and therefore will take part in the 2007 Championship. Curry won the 2006 title, claiming their 6th title in all, by beating Bunninadden in the final.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Group Stages
The Championship was contested by 16 teams, divided into four groups of four. The top two sides in each group advanced to the Quarter-Finals, with the remaining sides facing the Relegation playoffs to secure Senior status for 2007.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Group Stages, Playoffs
Two groups required playoffs to decide the remaining Quarter-Final places. In Group A St. Mary's, inspired by Mark Breheny, defeated Drumcliffe/Rosses Point to qualify to face Easkey in the last eight. The other playoff produced a major upset as holders Coolera/Strandhill crashed out, beaten by neighbours St. John's in the Group C playoff. Coolera had led by six points at one stage in the second half but St. John's scored two late goals, and booked a meeting with Curry in the Quarter-Finals.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Quarterfinals
The quarter finals of the Championship saw the exit of Tourlestrane, St. John's, Easkey and Tubbercurry. Eastern Harps, Curry, St. Mary's and Bunninadden qualified for the semi-finals. The quarter finals had one drawn game, Eastern Harps and Tourlestrane finishing level after a tense encounter. Harps won the replay a week later.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Semifinals
The Semi-Finals saw Curry and Bunninadden emerge victorious, and qualify for the 24 September decider. Bunninadden recorded a famous win over neighbours Eastern Harps, whom many expected to reach the final. In the second Semi-Final, Curry, with the Marren brothers, Jason and Adrian, both on form, saw off St. Mary's by a three-point margin.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Sligo Senior Football Championship Final
Team:J. DurcanP. WalshJ. HayesB. CollinsS. HaranJ. FeeneyS. MarrenG. MayeB. McDonaghS. Davey (0-3)K. Morley (1-1)K. GiblinJ. Marren (0-1)A. Marren (0-8)D. McDonagh


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Sligo Senior Football Championship Final
Match rules:60 minutes. Replay if scores still level. Maximum of 5 substitutions.


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Sligo Senior Football Championship Final
Team:D. FlanneryP. McGettrickS. RoddyT. GormleyB. GilhooleyE. GilhooleyS. LeamyP. Doohan (0-2)F. O'Flaherty (0-1)L. Óg GormleyMark Gormley (0- 1)Michael GormleyS. McHugh (2-0)K. Kerins (0-1)W. Gormley (0-3)


2006 Sligo Senior Football Championship, Relegation
Due to the restructuring of the Senior Championship, in order to reduce the number of teams to 12 by 2009, two teams were to be relegated from the 2006 Championship, with one being promoted from the Intermediate ranks. The loser of each game progresses to the next round, the losers of the relegation finals will play in the Sligo Intermediate Football Championship in 2007. Coolaney/Mullinabreena and St. Molaise Gaels were the two sides that made the drop.


2006 Slough Borough Council election
Elections to Slough Borough Council were held on 4 May 2006. One third of the council was up for election. This was the 121st Slough general local authority election (including both whole Council elections and elections by thirds) since Slough became a local government unit in 1863.


2006 Slough Borough Council election
Overall, the Labour Party gained three seats, the Conservative Party lost two and the Liberal Democrats lost one. This result was slightly unusual compared with the other UK local elections on the same day whereby the Conservative Party generally gained seats at the expense of the Labour Party.


2006 Slough Borough Council election
This election filled thirteen seats for the term 2006–2010. The remaining twenty-eight Slough Councillors continued in office. These seats were previously contested in the whole Council election of 2004 following the redrawing of the ward boundaries in the Borough.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
Slough has an unusual balance of political forces. In the twenty-first century the town has developed something that more resembles the party systems of countries like France and Italy, than that typical in England.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
The council has, since 2004, had no party in overall control. A coalition of the Britwellian, Independent, Liberal and Liberal Democrat Group (BILLD) and the Conservative Group form the current administration, with the Labour Group in opposition. There were (in April 2006) two non-Group affiliated Independents, one an Independent Conservative and the other an Independent Britwellian Residents Councillor, who is seeking re-election on a Slough Independents ticket.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
The BILLD Group is itself a local coalition, containing members from six parties or groups of Independent Councillors based on particular Wards. The existing members of the Group have an electoral pact for the current election, continuing electoral arrangements which started with the 2001 Slough Council election.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
A number of Independents and others, not affiliated to BILLD, contested the 2006 election.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
In April 2006, the composition of the 41 member council was:-


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Recent political history of Slough
In the 2006 election 51 candidates were nominated for the 13 seats up for election. The list is broken down by Party or group of Independents, with a residual category of Independent candidates standing without prefix or suffix and not affiliated to BILLD.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Summary of Council composition 2004–2006
Before the elections held on 4 May 2006, the composition of Slough Borough Council was as follows:


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Summary of Council composition 2004–2006
Note: The Others category in this table includes all non-Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat Councillors. Richard Stokes (Liberal-Haymill) is the BILLD Group Leader, which group includes the Liberal Democrats and all the Others category Councillors in 2004. By 2006 two of the Councillors in the Others category are not part of the BILLD Group. Two Councillors left the Conservative group between 2004–2006 (one of whom joined BILLD) and a third Councillor left BILLD, re-joined and then left again.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
Slough was first warded in 1930. The town was re-warded 1950, 1983 and 2004.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
Britwell and Wexham Court were added to Slough in 1973 (when the two new wards and eleven existing wards were allocated between two and nine seats, instead of the three per ward which had existed previously).


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
Colnbrook & Poyle was added to Slough in 1995 and became a fourteenth ward, with one member 1995–1996 and two from 1997.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
For 2004 Slough Council election the Borough was re-warded. There were still fourteen wards, but only Colnbrook with Poyle (formerly Colnbrook & Poyle) and Haymill had unchanged boundaries.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
For brief notes on the individual wards used since 2004, see the individual ward sections below.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
The turnout box figures given below include a number of spoilt ballots – see the official results on the Slough Borough Council website for further details.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results
As the 2004 Slough Council election was for the whole Council, with each ward returning multiple Councillors, no plus or minus percentages are given for individual candidates or majorities nor a swing figure.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Baylis & Stoke
Baylis & Stoke (born 2004) is a three-member ward in the north of the Borough, to the west of Central ward and to the east of Haymill. It broadly combined the former Baylis and Stoke wards. Baylis was named after Baylis House and the estate of Baylis, which from the sixteenth century was a sub-division of the parish of Stoke Poges. Stoke ward was named after the parish, southern parts of which were included in Slough, as part of the 1900 and 1930–1931 extensions of the district boundaries. The Liberal Democrats, (building on the Liberal tradition of the Liberal-Labour marginal Stoke ward) overcame the Labour leanings of the former Baylis ward, to win all three seats in 2004. In 2006, with a new Liberal Democrat candidate, one of the seats was lost to Labour.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Britwell
Britwell (born 1973) is a three-member ward in the north-west of the Borough. It includes Britwell parish, although since 1983 some unparished territory was added. Britwell elected some Liberal Councillors in the 1980s but was otherwise safely Labour until 2000. Since then Britwellian and Independent Britwellian Residents Councillors have become increasingly successful. In 1997 Labour won all three seats, but in 2004 the Residents took the three seats. Patl Janik, the incumbent IBR Councillor, stood for re-election in 2006 as a Slough Independents candidate in opposition to a new IBR nominee, who was elected.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Central
Central (1930–1950 and 1983–) has had different boundaries during the three of the four Slough redistributions in which it has existed (it was divided between Central North and Central South wards 1950–1983), but it has always been a three-member ward with Wexham to the north, Langley to the east, Upton to the south, Chalvey to the south-west and Baylis & Stoke to the west.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Central
It was part of the original parish of Upton-cum-Chalvey, although the hamlet of Slough (a few scattered houses and coaching inns along the Great West Road and Windsor Road) was smaller than the villages of Upton and Chalvey until the Great Western Railway arrived in the 1840s. It was a safe Labour ward under the 1983 boundaries, but in 2004 the Conservatives won two of the three seats of the revised ward. In 2006 there was a straight fight between the Conservative incumbent and a Labour challenger, which the Labour candidate won. It is noticeable that he was the only Councillor elected in 2006 with more than 50% of the votes cast in his ward.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Chalvey
Chalvey (born 1930), (in the south of the Borough) is a three-member ward. It was part of the ancient parish of Upton-cum-Chalvey and was an original ward of Slough. The ward has existed in some form continuously since the district was first warded in 1930. Before 1970 Chalvey was Conservative but since then it has been safely Labour. The Liberal Democrats came within ten votes of winning the last seat in the ward in 2004. Labour retained the seat with an increased majority in 2006, so they still hold all three seats.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Cippenham Green
Cippenham Green (born 2004) is a three-member ward in the south-west of the Borough. It was one of the two wards based on the old Cippenham Ward, which was a Labour/Conservative marginal (six Conservative and eleven Labour wins between 1983 and 2003). This area is the western part of the previous ward, incorporates the old Cippenham village area (now a suburb of Slough). This ward includes the village green, which it is named after. In 2004 it elected 1 Conservative (since defected to UKIP) and 2 Labour Councillors. One of the Labour councillors was re-elected in 2006.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Cippenham Meadows
Cippenham Meadows (born 2004) is a three-member ward in the south-west of the Borough. It was one of the two wards based on the old Cippenham Ward, which was a Labour/Conservative marginal (six Conservative and eleven Labour wins between 1983 and 2003). This area is the eastern part of the previous ward, incorporating the Windsor Meadows development. This estate caused the large population growth in the area, since the 1983 redistribution of wards. Presumably these are the Meadows which the ward is named after. The ward elected 3 Labour Councillors in 2004. The Labour incumbent, up for election in 2006, was re-elected.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Colnbrook with Poyle (no election 2006)
Colnbrook & Poyle (1995–2004), Colnbrook with Poyle (born 2004) is a (since 1997) two-member ward in the furthest east part of the Borough between to the M4 motorway and Greater London. Labour elected some Councillors here, in 1995 and 1997 (1 seat), but by 2004 the ward was safely Conservative. There was no election in this ward in 2006.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Farnham
Farnham (1930–1950 and 1983–) is a three-member ward in the west of the Borough, to the south of Britwell and west of Haymill. It was named after Farnham Royal parish, the southern part of which was incorporated in Slough as part of the 1930–1931 boundary extension. This was an original Slough ward. It was split between Farnham North and Farnham South wards 1950–1983. This was a safe Labour Ward, in 2004 as before. Labour won in 2006, but may be vulnerable to a less fragmented opposition in future elections.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Foxborough
Foxborough (born 1983) is a three-member ward in south-east Langley in the eastern part of the Borough. It is named after a 4-acre (16,000 m2) area mentioned in connection with the inclosure of Langley Marish parish in 1809. This was the ward where the Liberal Democrats won their first election to Slough Borough Council in 2000 and the party held all three seats after the 2004 election. The Liberal Democrats retained one of their seats in 2006.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Haymill
Haymill (born 1983) is a three-member ward in the west of the Borough (to the east of Farnham ward and west of Baylis & Stoke), which was left unchanged by the 2004 redistribution. It is a safe Liberal ward having last elected a non-Liberal Councillor in 1984. The Liberal Councillors and activists, for this ward, did not join the Liberal Democrats in 1988. In 2006 the Liberal Councillor up for election held his seat, so all three Councillors are still Liberals.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Kedermister
Kedermister (sometimes locally pronounced Keddermeister) (1983–) is a three-member ward in south-west Langley, in the eastern part of the Borough. The ward was named after Sir John Kedermister (or Kidderminster), who was Warden of Langley Park and founded some almshouses in Langley in 1617. It is a safe Labour ward and the party held its seat in 2006.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Langley St Mary's
Langley St Mary's (born 1983) is a three-member ward in north Langley, in the eastern part of the Borough. St Mary's is named after the church in Langley. This has been a Labour/Conservative marginal ward, but in 2004 the Independent Langley Residents won two seats and tied for the third (which the Conservative candidate won on a roll of dice, so he was credited with an additional vote). The Conservative Councillor increased his majority to seven in 2006 (over Labour, with ILR in third place), for the only Tory victory of the 2006 Slough election.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Upton
Upton (born 1930), part of the original parish of Upton-cum-Chalvey (in the south of the modern Borough), is a ward which has existed in some form continuously since 1930. It is a three-seat ward. In the early nineteenth century Upton was a village about a mile and a half south-west of the hamlet of Slough (see Central ward). This was the most Conservative area of Slough until demographic change made Labour competitive. Labour won the ward for the first time ever in 1990. In 1997 Labour won two seats and the Conservatives one. At the 2004 election the Conservatives won all three seats, although one Councillor has since become an Independent Conservative. Labour gained a seat from the Tories in 2006.


2006 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2006 results, Wexham Lea
Wexham Lea (born 1983) is a three-member ward in the north of the Borough, to the north-east of Baylis & Stoke and the north of Central ward. It combines Wexham Court parish and an area known as Upton Lea. The ward was formerly safely Labour but is now securely held by Independent Councillors who won all three seats in 2004. The Mayor of Slough for 2005–2006 was re-elected in 2006.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash
On 19 January 2006 an Antonov An-24 aircraft operated by the Slovak Air Force crashed in northern Hungary, near the village of Hejce and town of Telkibánya. The airplane was carrying Slovak peacekeepers from Kosovo. Of the 43 people on board, there was only one survivor. The crash remains the deadliest in Slovak history.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Background
The airplane involved in the crash was an Antonov An-24V, the 50-seat version of the Antonov An-24, a twin turboprop transport aircraft. The aircraft was manufactured on 31 October 1969 in the Soviet Union with the serial number 97305605.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Background
The airplane was carrying Slovak peacekeepers who had finished a six-month tour of duty in NATO’s KFOR mission in Kosovo. The airplane was flying from Pristina International Airport in Pristina, Serbia and Montenegro to Košice International Airport in Košice, Slovakia.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Crash
At around 19:38 CET (18:38 GMT), the aircraft disappeared from air traffic controllers’ radar screens. The aircraft crashed in snowy and forested terrain on Borsó Hill at an elevation of 700 meters (2,300 feet) near the Hungarian village of Hejce and the village of Telkibánya. The crash site is about 20 km (12 mi) from Košice and about 3 km (1.9 mi) from the Slovak border.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Crash
According to the Hungarian Disaster Management Agency, the plane hit the tops of trees before catching fire and crashing. Tibor Dobson, of the disaster prevention unit of Hungarian Ministry of the Interior, was quoted as saying that bodies and wreckage were scattered over a large area, and Hungarian police spokesman László Garamvölgyi was quoted as saying that it was −18 °C (0 °F) at the crash site and that the fuselage was completely burnt out.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Crash, Emergency response
Emergency workers who arrived at the scene were tasked not only with looking for survivors, but also with putting out the fire at the crash site. Hungarian authorities reported that the heavily wooded and steep terrain, as well as the low temperatures, contributed to the destruction and hampered rescue efforts. It was also reported that helicopters were unable to land at the crash site. Access was also made difficult because the road leading to the site was covered in snow.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Crash, Emergency response
Michaela Farkasova, the wife of the sole surviving passenger, reported that she received a cellular telephone call from her husband, Martin Farkaš. She said that she received the call around 19:30 EET (18:30 GMT). She is quoted as saying that her husband told her that his plane had crashed in a forest. Shortly before the line went dead, he asked her to alert rescue services and the police.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Sole survivor
The sole survivor of the crash was Slovak Army First Lieutenant Martin Farkaš. He suffered minor brain swelling and lung injuries in the crash and was transported to Košice for further treatment afterwards. He was put into a medically induced coma, but he was soon reported to be in a stable condition.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Sole survivor
According to rescuers, his survival was pure luck as he was found in the aircraft's lavatory, which received little damage.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Reactions and aftermath
United States Ambassador to Slovakia Rodolphe Vallee released a statement on 30 January expressing his condolences to the families and friends of the victims, to the Slovak Armed Forces, and to the Slovak Republic. Secretary General of NATO Jaap de Hoop Scheffer issued a statement hours after the incident in which he expressed his condolences.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Reactions and aftermath, Memorials
Immediately after the crash, flags were lowered to half-staff and sirens sounded as a tribute to the victims.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Reactions and aftermath, Memorials
On 30 March 2006, the United States Army Major General R. Martin Umbarger, Commanding General for the Indiana Army National Guard, presented a memorial to Slovak Army Major General Peter Gajdoš at a ceremony at the Slovak Ministry of Defense building in Bratislava. On 27 March the memorial travelled to Prešov and on 29 March to Trebišov before returning to Bratislava.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Reactions and aftermath, Memorials
On 18 September 2006, the government of Slovakia allocated 1.5 million koruna from its reserve fund to build a memorial in the Hungarian village of Hejce, near the crash site. The Defence Ministry of Slovakia was able to raise 1.496 million koruna through fundraising. The Slovak Cabinet committed to match public donations and earmarked 1.5 million koruna. The memorial cost around 4.5 million koruna.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Reactions and aftermath, Memorials
On 19 January 2007, the first anniversary of the crash was commemorated by the victims’ loved ones, Martin Farkaš and his wife, and the Slovak and Hungarian militaries. Among those attending was Slovak Defence Minister František Kašický, Slovak Army Chief of Staff Ľubomír Bulík, Hungarian Defence State Secretary József Bali, and Hungarian Deputy Army Chief of Staff János Mikita. The attendees laid wreaths and flowers and lit candles at the crash site. Also in the ceremony, Slovak and Hungarian clergy blessed the cornerstone of a monument to the victims that will be near a local church in the Hungarian village of Hejce.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Investigation
According to Tibor Dobson of the disaster prevention unit of Hungarian Ministry of the Interior, the aircraft had strayed 3 km (1.9 mi) off the flight path outlined in the flight plan after Slovak air traffic controllers had taken over the flight from Hungarian controllers.


2006 Slovak Air Force Antonov An-24 crash, Investigation
The investigation indicates that the pilot descended too early in the dark towards the lights of Košice.


2006 Slovak Cup Final
The 2006 Slovak Cup Final was the final match of the 2005–06 Slovak Cup, the 37th season of the top cup competition in Slovak football. The match was played at the Pasienky in Bratislava on 8 May 2006 between FC Spartak Trnava and MFK Ružomberok. Ružomberok defeated Spartak Trnava on penalties 4-3, after match ended 0:0.


2006 Slovak Figure Skating Championships
The 2006 Slovak Figure Skating Championships (Slovak: Majstrovstva Slovenska seniorov a juniorov 2006) were held in Košice from December 17 through 19, 2005. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles and ladies' singles on the senior and junior levels, and pair skating on the junior.


2006 Slovak parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Slovakia on 17 June 2006. Direction – Social Democracy emerged as the largest party in the National Council, winning 50 of the 150 seats. Its leader Robert Fico was appointed Prime Minister on 4 July 2006, leading a three-party centre-left populist coalition.


2006 Slovak parliamentary election, Background
Originally the election was planned for 16 September 2006. However, on 8 February the government proposed calling an early election after the Christian Democratic Movement left the coalition government. This proposal was passed by the Parliament on 9 February and signed by the President on 13 February. For the first time Slovak citizens living abroad could vote, using absentee ballots. A total of 21 parties contested the elections.


2006 Slovak parliamentary election, Aftermath
On 28 June Fico announced that the government coalition would consist of his Smer-SD party, together with the Slovak National Party and People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia. The Party of European Socialists (PES) criticized this decision because of nationalist statements of the leader of the Slovak National Party and subsequently suspended Smer-SD's membership.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs
The Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs of 2006 were a series of ethnic and diplomatic affairs between Slovakia and Hungary.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning
The situation escalated further after the parliamentary elections in June 2006, after which the party of the Hungarian minority SMK was not invited into the new government coalition. After a series of bitter comments from both sides, a short movie presumably depicting a group of Slovak nationalists instigating against the Hungarian minority by burning the Hungarian flag appeared on YouTube.com, which at the day, when it has been announced, it has been removed from YouTube due to . A day later, anti-Slovak graffiti appeared on Slovakia's embassy in Budapest.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
In August 2006 in a few days time the following incidents were reported: In Komárno a man was severely beaten because he spoke Hungarian on the street. In the smaller towns of southern Slovakia a woman was allegedly harassed by the hospital staff because of the same reason. This was reported from Nové Zámky, Šaľa and Veľký Krtíš. In Nové Zámky a graffiti saying "Hungarians (should go) to the other side of Danube" appeared on a Hungarian family house.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
In Bratislava, the statue of Sándor Petőfi, the popular Hungarian poet (of Slovak origin), was damaged on August 24, which has happened many times in the past decades. According to Béla Bugár, a politician of the SMK, such incidents weren't typical in the past 8 years (when his SMK was in the government), and the Slovak government has to take seriously the worsening ethnic tensions.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
After these incidents another film was uploaded to the Internet, which was made in April at a Slovak second division football match between Slovan and Dunajská Streda, showing a Kingdom of Hungary map for some seconds, then it was creased and savaged, then started hailing Jan Slota and shouted "101% anti-Hungarian", "Slovakia is the Slovak's" and several fascist slogans. The attempt by the Hungarian diplomacy to delete it from the Internet was successful, but soon Slovak football fans protested against local Hungarians in Bratislava(Pozsony) with slogans: "Fucking Hungarians go home!" .


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
After that there was an anti-Slovak protest as a response by football fans in Budapest (they said "Fucking Slovakia", "Slovaks, you will always remain our slaves", "Slota must die" ), six protesters were arrested. On August 25 an ethnic Hungarian female university student called Hedvig Malina was severely beaten and the statements "SK (probably means Slovakia) without parasites! ", "Hungarians to the other side of the Danube!" was written on her clothes in the town of Nitra. On September 12, the police concluded that this was a staged attack what the girl denied. According to Új Szó, some pictures and more evidence was found and attempted to pass to the local police about the incident, but they refused to take them.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
According to this, a bit later, on a Banská Bystrica football match a transparent was handed out, with "Death to the Hungarians!" written on it.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
On 26 August a 19-year-old Hungarian man was seriously beaten in Sladkovičovo. According to Slovak sources this had no ethnic background, but was a usual crime. The victim said that before he was beaten the assailants asked him: "Do you know where Ján Slota lives?"


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
For a response on August 29, the statue of Friedrich Habsburg in Mosonmagyaróvár was damaged and an anti-Slovak graffiti appeared there. On August 29–31, several name tables of towns and villages inhabited by the Slovak minority in Hungary were destroyed or damaged.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
As a response to this series of attacks, the Slovak Police announced that it would use its special forces to fight political extremists. The deputy prime minister of the Slovak Republic Dušan Čaplovič officially met with Béla Bugár to discuss the new measures against extremists and he publicly supported SMK-sponsored declaration against the recent violent attacks. In late August, several Slovak persons (football hooligans having held anti-Hungarian inscriptions) have been sentenced to prison in Slovakia for "inciting ethnic and racial hatred". In addition, police investigations in all the above-mentioned cases are in progress.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
Slovak authorities promised to take action, but they also accuse Hungarian counterparts of overreacting to these incidents, saying similar accidents do not usually get attention of government.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Flag burning, Ethnic conflicts
According to the mainstream Hungarian and Slovak media, this series of incidents was encouraged by the fact that Ján Slota's party joined the ruling coalition government or by his anti-Hungarian statements, described by the Hungarian Human Rights Foundation as ultra-nationalist, made in early summer.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Political affairs and statements
On 26 August Hungarian Prime Minister, Ferenc Gyurcsány said there is a direct connection between the governmental role of Slota's party and the incidents. According to Gyurcsány: "The Ghost is already out of the bottle". Gyurcsány said that guaranteeing the safety of the Hungarian minority in Slovakia is the personal responsibility of Slovak PM Robert Fico who signed the coalition with Slota. The Slovak ambassador's deputy in Budapest was called to the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs where he received an official note of protest from the Hungarian Government.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Political affairs and statements
In the last week of August negotiations between the Slovak and Hungarian government somewhat eased the tensions between the two countries. Both Prime Ministers condemned any kind of ethnic violence. On the other hand, leading politicians of the Smer, ruling party of the Slovak government, blamed the Party of the Hungarian Coalition for internationally discrediting Slovakia. On 4 September, Boris Zala, deputy president of the Smer accused Hungarian minority politicians with disloyalty to Slovakia.


2006 Slovak–Hungarian diplomatic affairs, Political affairs and statements
After the Slovakia elections of 2006, the victorious left-wing party, Smer, formed a coalition with the right-wing nationalist party, SNS (Slovak National Party), whose leader, Ján Slota, is notorious for anti-Hungarian statements (see Ján Slota and ). Ján Slota himself is not in the government (a condition for the inclusion of his party in the government has been that he will not himself be a member of the government). The program of the new government explicitly says that it will maintain the status quo of the minority institutions and rights. The new government, however, refused to distance itself from the extremist statements of Slota on the grounds that he is not a member of the government and his statements are not official.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 4 May 2006 to elect members of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
Before the election there had been two by-elections resulting in Conservative holds, and a Liberal Democrat defection in Shirley West, with Howard Allen changing to Independent. As such the Conservatives ran the council with 27 seats, compared to 14 for the Liberal Democrats, 8 for Labour and 2 independents. This meant the Liberal Democrats only needed to gain 2 seats to deprive the Conservatives of a majority, with predictions in the press that they could achieve this, after gaining the parliamentary seat at the 2005 general election.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
The Liberal Democrats campaigned against cuts to Solihull's Music Service, opposed windfall developments and brought the president of the Liberal Democrats Simon Hughes to Solihull to open their local election campaign. The Conservative leader of the council Ted Richards predicted their record would enable them to stay in control and the party supported the expansion of Birmingham Airport and the bringing of a Super Casino to the region, both of which the Liberal Democrats opposed. Other issues in the election included proposals for the regeneration of Shirley and Chelmsley Wood, and a plan to transform northern Solihull. Apart from the 3 parties with seats on the council, there were also candidates from the British National Party, Green Party and 2 independents in Shirley, both of whom former incumbent Conservative councillors for the old Shirley seats.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
All 3 of the main party group leaders from the Conservatives, Liberal Democrat and Labour parties signed a pledge to avoid damaging race relations during the campaign.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
The results saw the Conservative keep control of the council, but with their majority reduced to just 1 seat. The Conservative majority was reduced after the Liberal Democrats gained Shirley South from the Conservatives, meaning the Conservatives had 26 seats compared to 15 for the Liberal Democrats. The British National Party won a first seat on the council after winning Chelmsley Wood ward from Labour by 19 votes after a recount. This reduced Labour to 7 seats, while the 2 independent councillors were not defending seats at the election. Overall turnout in the election was 38.4%.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
The successful British National Party candidate George Morgan described his win as a victory for the ordinary working man and put his success down to disillusionment with politicians, immigration and local social issues such as rubbish. Meanwhile, the defeated Labour candidate blamed recent events involving the national Labour government for his defeat. Following the election the other councillors from the Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Labour parties said they would have nothing to do with the British National Party councillor.


2006 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
This result had the following consequences for the total number of seats on the council after the elections :


2006 Solomon Islands National Club Championship
The 2006 Solomon Islands National Club Championship was the 3rd season of the National Club Championship in the Solomon Islands. Marist FC won the league for the first time. All matches were played at the hillside ground called Lawson Tama Stadium, with an approximate capacity of 20,000.


2006 Solomon Islands general election
General elections were held on 5 April 2006 in Solomon Islands. No party won more than four of the fifty seats, while thirty seats went to independent candidates. A number of those subsequently formed an Association of Independent Members of Parliament, with Snyder Rini as their leader. Rini was elected Prime Minister by Parliament on 18 April, amidst "widespread street protests" in Honiara, which caused particular damage in the city's Chinatown. Rioters "alleged corruption and insisted that Mr. Rini had been unfairly favouring Chinese businessmen".


2006 Solomon Islands general election
While the riots ceased with the arrival of Australian and New Zealand peacekeeping troops the next day, the opposition soon lodged a motion of no confidence in Rini's premiership. Rini resigned on 26 April, having been Prime Minister for just eight days. Opposition parties united in a coalition and succeeded in having Manasseh Sogavare, of the Solomon Islands Social Credit Party, elected Prime Minister on 4 May.


2006 Solomon Islands general election
Australia sent a ten-member observer delegation to monitor the election, led by Senator Marise Payne, and comprising MPs Bob Sercombe and Michael Ferguson, former Queensland Electoral Commissioner Bob Longland, and six experienced officials from the Departments of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Defence and AusAID. The Australian observer delegation was joined by other international observer teams from New Zealand, Japan, the USA, the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. The United Nations Electoral Assistance Division coordinated the consolidated international observer effort. The international observers' interim assessment said the polling process was transparent and well-conducted, and voters were able to exercise a free and secret vote.


2006 Solomon Islands general election
Twenty-six women candidates stood in the election, but none were elected, making the Solomons' Parliament one of the world's few all-male legislatures.


2006 Somali warlord offensive
Between May and July 2006 an offensive took place against the Islamic Courts Union by an alliance of warlords who were trying to seize control of Somalia's capital city, Mogadishu. The Warlord Alliance was funded by the United States. This offensive led to the 2006 Battle of Mogadishu, following which the Islamic Courts Union expanded further in Somalia.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Criticism of United States support for ARPCT Warlords
Michael Zorick, the U.S. State Department's political officer for Somalia, who had been stationed in Nairobi, was reassigned to Chad after he sent a cable to Washington criticizing Washington's policy of paying Somali warlords. The Times stated, "The American activities in Somalia have been approved by top officials in Washington and were reaffirmed during a National Security Council meeting about Somalia in March."


2006 Somali warlord offensive, US Failed Policy
The New York Times declared the US backing of Warlord Alliance a failed policy. A Reuters report cited that the plan had backfired and destabilized the nation.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Timeline
On 4 June the ICU gained control of Balad, 30 miles north of Mogadishu. Balad had previously been under the control of Musa Sudi Yalahow a warlord whose gunmen fled towards Jowhar. Another warlord named Mohamed Qanyare Afrah had started heading toward Balad with a dozen battlewagons, but changed course for Jowhar.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Timeline, 6 June 2006
On 6 June 2006, the ICU claimed it was in control of all the lands up to 100 kilometers (62 mi) inland from Mogadishu. The US backed warlords were reported to have either been captured or to have fled the city, abandoning most of their weapons, with the majority fleeing to Jowhar, which was taken by the ICU militia on 14 June.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Timeline, 7 June 2006
The Republic of the Congo's president and current African Union head, Denis Sassou-Nguesso, criticized the United States for its involvement in fighting in Mogadishu following his meeting with President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Timeline, 14 June 2006
On 14 June 2006, following a stand-off that lasted for approximately eight days, the ICU militia reportedly attacked the remaining forces of the US backed Warlord Alliance in Jowhar, routing them and seizing the town.


2006 Somali warlord offensive, Timeline, 14 June 2006
Jowhar was the most important warlord stronghold outside of Mogadishu, ruled by Mohammed Dheere. After securing allies in the town, the ICU advanced on Jowhar in early June, forcing Mohammed Dheere to flee north to Ethiopia on 14 June and capturing the town.


2006 Sonora state election
A local election was held in the Mexican State of Sonora on Sunday, July 2, 2006. Voters went to the polls to elect, on the local level:


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open
The 2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open was a Tier 3 Women's WTA Tennis Tournament held in Bangalore, Karnataka, India from 13 - 19 February 2006.


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open, Finals, Doubles
Liezel Huber /  Sania Mirza defeated  Anastasia Rodionova /  Elena Vesnina, 6–3, 6–3


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open – Doubles
Yan Zi and Zheng Jie were the defending champions, but chose not to participate that year.


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open – Doubles
In the final, Liezel Huber and Sania Mirza defeated Anastasia Rodionova and Elena Vesnina 6–3, 6–3 to win their title.


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open – Singles
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by 122.57.243.2 (talk) at 08:52, 25 June 2020. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open – Singles
Sania Mirza was the defending champion and top seed, but was stunned by Camille Pin in the second round.


2006 Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open – Singles
In the final, Mara Santangelo defeated the Jelena Kostanić to win her title 3–6, 7–6(7–5), 6–3.


2006 Sony HD 500
The 2006 Sony HD 500 was a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series stock car race held on September 3, 2006 at California Speedway in Fontana, California. Contested over 250 laps on the 2-mile (3.23 km) asphalt D-shaped oval, it was the twenty-fifth race of the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season. Kasey Kahne of Evernham Motorsports won the race.


2006 Sony HD 500, Background
The track, California Speedway, is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2 miles (3.2 km) long. The track's turns are banked from fourteen degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at eleven degrees. Unlike the front stretch, the backstraightaway is banked at three degrees.