LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Wednesday 17th October 2007

Why foreign affairs sucks

One of the things which has been commented upon in discussion of Ming Campbell's fall as Lib Dem leader was the fact that before taking the top job, he'd been an accomplished foreign affairs spokesman. This is true, but possibly explains why Ming didn't exactly prove to be a successful leader. Foreign secretaries and spokespeople often tend to be lousy if they take over the top job. While all political careers usually end in failure, it seems foreign affairs is an especially poisoned chalice. There are 13 people who have been both Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister, of whom 3 ...

Best place to live in England

I’ve just watched the ‘Location, Location, Location’ programme about the ten best places to live in Britain - and Winchester has dropped to number two behind Edinburgh. However, we’re still the best place to live in England so I guess we shouldn’t feel too down! I watched the show and we lost points for our carbon emissions and our road safety - two areas we’ve been campaigning on for quite some time. Aside from our national commitments to a zero carbon Britain, I’ve already offered my time to Winchester Action on Climate Change and will be continuing with our campaign ...

The fatal blow to Barack Obama's presidential hopes

The news that Barack Obama is a relation of Dick Cheney's must have gone down like a lead balloon in the Obama household.

Is it just me or is the world mad ? (2)

A report out today tells me it's not my fault that I'm overweight. Apparently, it's the government's fault. Clearly I should immediately stop dieting (lost 16lbs so far) and sue the government for compensation.

How to piss of the Chinese...brought to you by the United States of America.

Today America added it self to a small, but growing list of countries that may just feel the wrath of China, because their leader publicly met with the Dali Lama. China states that the Dalai Lama, as a separatist and claims he seeks to destroy China's sovereignty by pushing for independence for Tibet. President Bush (who has become the first US President to publically meet with the Dali Lama), along House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi presented the Dali Lama, with the Congressional Medal of Honor, the highest award for a civilian within the USA. The Chinese government states that ...

Is it just me or is the world mad ?

The Metropolitan Police are being prosecuted for breaching health and safety regulations when they shot Menezes, not for murder or manslaughter. I wonder, does the Health and Safety Executive publish guidelines on the safe way to kill innocent dark-skinned foreigners on tube trains ?

Labour have taught the Metropolitan Police something - How to use photoshop to manipulate pictures

After Labour Minister James Purnell was caught out a few weeks ago when a photo was "photoshopped" to include him, even though he was not present when the photo was taken. it appears, quite disgustingly in this case, that the Metropolitan Police have been found guilty of "photoshopping" too, by altering the size, shape and colouring of the photo of Jean Charles de Menezes in order to make him look more like a suspected suicide bomber. Who ever was responsible for this should be disciplined and the Met's excuses are disgraceful. They should be co-operating with the court, not muddying ...

More pub closures and loss of more community facilities - Cllr Ray Farmer - Oct 2007

In recent years the number of pubs in the Wycombe Marsh area has halved. Starting off with the Papermakers Arms in Kingsmead Road, after a fire the building was demolished and then the land redeveloped for new housing. The second pub to dissappear was the Half Way House on the London Road, although the building is still there it has fallen into disrepair and is unlikely to ever re-open as a pub. Earlier this year the Red Lion and now the Rifle Butts both closed after the sitting landlord/lady could not agree new terms with the pub owners on a ...

I'm looking for the X - Factor?

John Harris asks in today's Guardian- 'Spot the difference', refering to 'front runner' leadership candidates, Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne. Both white, male and middle class, similar educational backgrounds, and clearly both very able men. Question for me: not male, white, (okay concede middle class bit), but a rare species in British politics, a female councillor from an ethnic minority background, who according to the Fawcett Society, make up a negligible 0.9% of all councillors, is, what qualities will the candidates for Leader have that will appeal to other woman and the UK's diverse communities? As a floating voter, my ...

I'm a fan of the BBC but ...

I have made no secret of the fact that I am a massive fan of the BBC. Many people who are perhaps happy with ITV Play or Sky One argue that the market can produce the same quality of TV that the BBC offers, although that is patently not the case from the several hundred channels on Sky Digital, and that the license fee should be abolished. Again, I disagree. However, I do think the BBC is bloated, duplicates its effort too much and needs to become much more streamlined. So it is in this context that I think the ...

Chris Huhne is just Wrong, wrong, wrong!

From his Eastleigh website discussing the differences in pay between South East and other regions: `The first would surely be the besetting difficulties of running the same public services that other regions take for granted, simply because of the pressure of unfilled vacancies when we still have a largely ‘one size fits all’ structure of national pay bargaining. It is no wonder that teacher vacancy rates in the South East are double those in the North West: look at the relative cost of housing. Don’t just look at housing: even a pint of beer costs more in the South East, though scandalously ...

Was it baldness not oldness that did for Ming?

During the 1964 general election, Alec Douglas-Home was told by a make-up artist that he would never look good on television because he had a "head like a skull". In the television age no bald party leader has ever won a general election. Michael Foot. Neil Kinnock, William Hague and Michael Howard join Douglas-Home in the ranks of baldies who have lost. Iain Duncan-Smith never got as far as a general election. In each case there may have been sound political reasons for their failure, but the fact remains. Mark Oaten is known to have questioned whether the Lib Dems ...

Leadership thoughts

Is it a rule that leadership websites can’t have an `ask me a question` button until close of nominations? Nick C only has a nominating one, Steve W one would have to go to his Northavon address and Chris H to Eastleigh. I think that Nick C is doing the right thing by NOT putting a lot of stuff on his yet - I find Chris’s rather cliched.

Please Remember Burma

Before we all get totally focused on the leadership contest please spare a thought for the oppressed pro-democracy demonstrators and monks in Burma, some of whom are being subjected to appalling torture and conditions in prison. At least one person has died in detention. I hope that the leadership candidates will raise human rights concerns in the UK and internationally as part of their campaigns to raise the awareness of the British public. The regime in Burma is an absolute disgrace and I hope that international pressure will ultimately achieve genuine change and push the country and the path of ...

Bust of John Major unveiled at Westminster

Oh yes.

Is it a bad sign if you can't remember the play's name? (Moonlight & Magnolias - Tricycle Theatre)

I feel that it is probably a bad sign when 24hours after seeing a play I had to look up what it was called. That unfortunately is the case with Moonlight & Magnolias. Not that it didn't leave an impression. After a couple of hours with my knees rammed into the seat in front and my feet twisted underneath me by the lack of legroom in the Tricycle I doubt my legs are going to be pain free for a

Nick Clegg To Formally Put His Hat in the Ring

Nick Clegg will be launching his campaign in Sheffield on Friday according to press reports. Great news! Now let the contest begin! Go, Nick, go!

The Royal Wee

Romsey made the news today! I am still struggling to understand why the Queen has to have a new toilet wherever she goes but even more mind boggling (no pun intended) is the cost of the refurb! I only hope that the Town Council demanded some money for the story in order to restock the town coffers.

Shropshire sock garters

With public endorsements from Ming Campbell and Lord Bonkers, sock garters look set to be the must-have fashion accessory this autumn. Having carefully searched the net, I can recommend those supplied by Wood's of Shropshire. The firm is based in Church Stretton and there is a nice picture of the Stretton Hills on their website. I wore garters in the Cubs, but I suppose that doesn't count.

Mayoral ballot: is someone being vague, or telling porkies?

{Campaiging in a recent by-election} Until today, Brian Paddick was a shoo-in for my 1st preference. But now I’ve seen his election address, and three of my character faults have kicked in. One, I have a suspicious nature, two when I’ve had a bad day I tend to think the worst of people and three, I really really intensely dislike being lied to. I have never known a candidate for high office in the party be shy about the by-elections they’ve attended and helped out at. So the caption on the photo of Brian Paddick talking to a closed door in “a ...

Huhne and Clegg campaign websites in place

Which Westminster-educated former MEP to support? Chris Huhne has a website. So does Nick Clegg - just.

Question about MEP hustings - cock up or spectacular incompetence?

I have today received my ballot papers for the London Region MEP selection, and London Mayoral contest. The MEP election addresses contains this exhortation: {Hustings 6th October} I have questions. Is the date a typo? And if so, when is the hustings? If it wasn’t a typo, when was this posted (is it Royal Mail’s striking fault that I find about about the hustings eleven days late) If it wasn’t a typo, and if it wasn’t the Royal Mail, was an e-mail sent out advertising the hustings that I missed? If it wasn’t a typo, and it wasn’t Royal Mail, and ...

Who can vote in the leadership election?

A clarification: In the Leadership election, anyone who is currently a member, or joins/rejoins by 16:00 (local time, ie GMT), 31 October 2007 will be entitled to vote. The deadline is for the membership form and fee to be at the Membership department in Cowley Street; if you want to join at the last minute, then do so online. Confusion has arisen because elections conducted under the rules of the Liberal Democrats in England only grant eligibility to vote to members over the age of 10 who have been members for at least a year and who have renewed their ...

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Stuck at Luton Airport with a 4 hour delay..............and its costing £1 for 10 minutes on the internet.........someone feel sorry for me! I am just hoping that Jo Hayes has her laptop in Berlin, otherwise signing off til Saturday. L x

If it goes on like this...

So, all credit to the silver-haired lethargo for having an organised campaign. Chris Huhne declared this afternoon and is already sending me an e-mail. Impressive, considering he couldn't have known this eventuality would arise before Monday. And it's not even as if it was a foregone conclusion that he'd stand: after all, as he tells me (and every other LibDem whose address is available), he talked about it with 'family and friends'. Groan. First misjudged cliche' of the e-mail. And what's this? 'It's disgusting that we live in a country where a child born into poverty has a life sentence.' ...

Steve Webb - Leader update

On Steve Webb's blog today he confirms that "I've consulted a few MPs about whether I should throw my hat into the ring, and have been able to establish that if I decided to go for it I would have enough nominations to take part in the contest". "I now need to decide whether this would be in the best interests of the party, my constituents and (not least) my family". Click here to read the full blog entry. Steve appeared on Newsnight last night - click here for Newsnight site (Thanks to Bloggers4Steve for that) [Note - the Newsnight ...

The Race Is On

Clegg versus Huhne - a 'bloody and bitter battle' may not be an inaccurate description before long. The two hate each other, as the result of a mixture of old grievances from the days of the 'Kennedy Assassination' and the subsequent leadership contest, and their personal rivalry. Many things link the two men - they're both white, middle class, Oxbridge-educated, formers MEPs who entered parliament in 2005. Their policy positions probably won't turn out to be all that different, although it is becoming more and more apparent that while Huhne wants to focus on the idea of a 'fairer, greener ...

PMQs: Vince v Gordon

As the party’s acting leader, it was Vince Cable’s turn to put the questions to the Prime Minister at this week’s pointless half-hour of theatrical nonsense. You can watch the exchange here. Here’s the transcript:

Who'll take the blame for England's failure ?

Should the FA take the blames for England's defeat in Russia because they failed to registera a protest with UEFA over the game being played on a plastic pitch ? Should Steve McLarent take the blame because he picked Paul Robinson, a player reknowned recently for his howlers, whose simple mistake led to Russia's winning goal ? One thing is for certain. The players, whose fault it really was will carry on regardless. Fingers crossed now for the Rugby team on Saturday.

Opinion: Time to revisit the Trident debate

In the coming leadership campaign, I would like to see a revisiting of the replacement of Trident debate where the party settled on a policy of fudge. Reluctantly I have to accept that we cannot do this before the next general election, but I am sure that whoever wins will be leader for at least [...]

Alternative Futures II : The United States

The United States remains the key economic and political player on the Planet. Nevertheless, we can see a series of changes that, if continued, could have very profound effects. In some senses the United States seems almost caught in a perfect storm: the economic, political and military preponderance that the end of the cold war seemed to have allowed to the US was challenged within a very short period. The dramatic economic growth of China, coupled with a drive for ever greater military and technological strength has already eroded the American military advantage. However the relationship between the largest country ...

Nomination time

Our three local MPs have ruled themselves out of the contest for the leadership of the Liberal Democrats. Ed Davey's wife Emily is expecting their first child next month so I wasn't surprised to hear from them yesterday that he probably wouldn't be standing. Susan Kramer would have been a welcome female contender, but she has decided not to run, and Vince Cable fears he will suffer...

Labour tampering with the system again

Posted by Glynis: This morning our hessian sack, that we have used for the three years that Redcar & Cleveland Council has been seriously into recycling, was taken away and a pack 10 clear plastic sacks was stuck on the door handle. A letter explained that we had requested this change (we most certainly did not). We are now expected to tie this bag up and fasten it to the weelie bin on collection days. That is okay in theory, but more often than not, my bin is emptied hours before the plastics and cardboard are collected. Once the wheelie ...

The race for the leadership: who’s in, who’s not

Here’s the current position as I understand it, with links where I have them. Declared: Chris Huhne John Hemming Actively considering: Nick Clegg Steve Webb Unlikely: Charles Kennedy Ruled out: Vince Cable Ed Davey Lynne Featherstone Julia Goldsworthy Simon Hughes Susan Kramer David Laws (For those interested, the current betting prices can be found here.)

Tose Proeski RIP

I was sad to see the death of the popular Balkan ethnic turbo folk singer. Readers of this blog will find out that i’m a Eurovisionista - ethnicturbofolk is the Balkan/Eastern European crossover pop/ethnic fusion genre. Tose, a beautiful 26 year old man, died in a car crash earlier this morning in Croatia. He sang `Life` in the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest.

Where's the aqueduct?

In May of this year, the county borough council announced that Ynysbwllog Aqueduct in the Vale of Neath was being restored to its former glory. Construction was expected to be complete by October this year. Leader of Council, Derek Vaughan, said, "When completed the aqueduct will stand as the longest unsupported single span aqueduct in the UK. "It will provide Neath Port Talbot with a major physical landmark which will have a national profile." Bob Minty, Manager of Neath Canal Navigation, added, "We are delighted that the aqueduct scheme is now underway. This project will not only restore a substantial ...

An unaccountable obsession with length

You’re here in the People’s Republic of Mortimer either because you know me, or you are a Liberal Democrat. (Unless of course you found me by accident, and I would like to extend particular apologies to the person who clicked through on the search term “Italian banker sex position” – did you find it, and how did it go? Or unless you are the person who has been googling me nearly every day for the past week, in which case would the right honourable gentleman please stand up.) Anyway. If you are in the same friendship group or party as moi, the ...

Huhne vs Clegg - Current situation

Let’s see where we stand at the moment - Technology - Huhne is ahead as Clegg seems to just have a nominating site against Huhne whose is properly up and running. Tories - they seem to be more scared of Clegg than Huhne My vote will go to the person whom i think will do the following three things: 1. Lead the party by persuasion and ,building on Ming’s work, to say the unsayable and to complete the reforms of the internal party 2. Creating from that a policy narrative that stands head and shoulders above the other two main ...

Want to join us?

We want Lib Dems for Chris to be a site that all Chris’s supporters can be a part of - we want people to write posts for the site, to help with design and graphics (someone must be able to do better than the banner I created that’s at the top right now!), to let us know what people are saying on other blogs and in the media, to make YouTube videos for the site, and whatever else you can imagine. If you want to join in then leave a comment here or email me (nick-dot-barlow at gmail-dot-com) - and ...

It’s Liberal Democrats you f’ing jerk

Has anyone else noticed the way Brown is so disrespectful by saying `The Liberals` at PMQ etc instead of the Liberal Democrats. Whoever I think can succeed in standing up for our party and giving him a right good pasting over issues such as this will get my vote in the leadership election. It’s Liberal DEMOCRATS Brown, you tosser, GET IT!

Frontrunners' Websites

They're both up and running now. Here for Huhne and here for Clegg. I'm still undecided and will wait to see what policies/focus the contenders will bring to the party because I simply don't know enough about any of the candidates at the moment to make a truly informed decision. Gareth Epps and James Graham have been doing some more eloquent soul-searching on their "wait-and-see" approach.

Speaker Ming?

Nick Assinder raises the prospect of Ming as Speaker of the House of Commons. I can think of no finer person for the job. There is, I suspect, no more suitable role to utliise Ming's undoubted sound judgment, parliamentary experience and integrity. There is a slight problem. The job is not currently vacant.

My Bid For The Leadership

Good of Gordon Brown at Prime Minister's Questions today to agree with me that more needs to be done to help seaside resorts regenerate their economies. Pity though that he continues, as he did...

Chris Huhne is standing

Chris Huhne is standing in the leadership election - his official site with his declaration is Chris2Win.

Chris is a candidate!

Chris is announcing his candidacy for the leadership this afternoon. His official campaign site, Chris2Win, is up and there’s a full statement there - you can read it all by clicking on the ‘read more’ link. (more…)

Cut out and Propagate

There is an excellent first leader in today’s ‘Guardian’ setting out clearly why the EU Reform Treaty currently being negotiated is a good thing. As we are about to be bombarded by misinformation and prejudice from the Euro-sceptic media, UKIP and much of the Conservative Party, LibDems and other pro-Europeans might be well-advised to cut the article out, put it in their wallet/handbag and have it ready to spread the message!

Parliamentary Question 17th October 2007

Health: University Hospital of North Staffordshire: Research Q:To ask the Secretary of State for Health what studies were undertaken at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire involving children from overseas in the 1990s. A:The information requested is not centrally held by the Department. The NHS West Midlands strategic health authority reports that University Hospital of North

Parliamentary

Why i'm not backing chris huhne - or anyone yet

It is interesting to see the head of steam which is already building up behind Chris Huhne, which is not necessarily a bad thing: whoever wins the election needs to be popular among as wide a range of the membership as possible. While I remain open to persuasion on all the potential candidates I have two clear concerns about the apparent front runners – if there can be such a thing in a race which hasn’t even been formally declared. Silver-tongued eco-warrior Chris Huhne has made a sensational impact in the area of environmental politics since the last leadership election ...

Alternative Futures I Introduction

As any student of the ideas of Nassim Nicolas Taleb would know, the idea that we can accurately predict the future is laughable. Randomness is built in to the structure of the Universe, and certainly into the structure of society. This is not to say that we have no data about how some effects may come from specific causes. However, any prediction must be tenuous and solely made in broadest outline- the more detailed a forecast, the more inaccurate it tends to be. In addition, most systems, even on a planetary scale, are open- so that, for example an ill-timed ...

Scotland must have more than 1 hustings

Last time round there was only one leadership hustings in Scotland, which was held in Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh. Whilst Edinburgh has a large party membership it is simply not acceptable to the folks in Aberdeen, Inverness, Dumfies & Galloway, points North and West to traipse to Edinburgh for their only opportunity to hear the candidates. Whether this is done officially or by mutual agreement of the respective campaign teams it must be organised. Oh yes, can we have venues large enough for the turn out this time round please?

Blog-off time again

Just a quick note to say that I have to go off-line for the next couple of months. There is lots I would have liked to say now and during our leadership battle, but I will (possibly thankfully) be unable to comment through the process! I had been saving the video below for 5th November, but will share it now as it is my son's favourite Youtube video and I just love it. See you all in December and good luck choosing where your first preference is going to go!

Lib Dems for Chris

For those of you wanting to join in and show your support for Chris Huhne’s leadership campaign, I’ve created a new site - Lib Dems for Chris. If anyone wants to join me in writing for it, or generating any other content then let me know!

Thoughts at the start of the leadership contest

I’m genuinely a floating voter, who veers towards the left. So I thought I’d lay out my thoughts at the start of the leadership contest, and then see how they compare with my thoughts at the end. At the moment I’m thinking in personality and campaign terms, as there’s no real policy to debate. I hope there’s no suicide candidate from the left. We’ve been there, done that, there’s not enough support in the party for a lefty to win. At the moment I’m slightly switched off Nick Clegg because of the way that some of the least appealing, self ...

I’m a judge!

{Judge Graham badge} In their infinite wisdom, the Electoral Reform Society have asked me to be a judge for their blogging competition, which is currently going on. Don’t worry, I won’t let it go to my head. Top prize is £700, which isn’t to be sniffed at. So why not have a go? Share This

You are no longer responsible for yourself

Apparently we cannot be held responsible for what we eat, the state must intervene to stop us getting fat. This is one of the most obscene things I’ve read in a long time, but its just the continuing infantalisation of people. You cannot be trusted to choose a school for your children, or to spend your [...]

Why Chris?

So, why am I backing Chris Huhne for leader of the Liberal Democrats? We’re at a crucial point in our party’s history. Just over two years ago, almost 1 in 4 of Britain’s voters backed us at the General Election. Now, opinion polls tell us that we might be backed by as few as 1 in 10 of the voters. It’s my belief that in 2005 we succeeded so well because we were different from the two main parties and our party connected with a populace who were tired of the same old lies and broken promises from the two ...

PMQs: SAME OLD, SAME OLD...

Having had Gordon on the back foot last week, Dave decided to go try an attack on the NHS, always a dodgy decision for the Tories. Dave asked about targets and quoted various people who considered them to be limiting their work, Gordon defended targets and quoted other people. This went on for four questions as their voices increased in volume and nothing new was learned. Dave asked why Gordon wouldn’t listen to the people who worked in the NHS, Gordon responded that it was precisely because he listened to the British people that….and then I lost consciousness. Then Dave ...

EXCLUSIVE: Iain Dale will choose the next LibDem leader

Fun and games over at Iain Dale's Diary. "The LibDems must not copy Cameron" he says. There appears to be a tone of desperation in there. I can imagine dear Iain stamping his foot as he wrote the words "must not". Excuse me while I recover from the laughter..... This was the man who a few days ago was telling us to re-elect Charlie boy as leader. Such great advice. By "must not copy Cameron",

Lib Dem Leadership Contenders in Full

A complete run-down of all those MPs that could stand for the Lib Dem leadership, with my notes on a few: Danny Alexander, Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey: MP since 2005, he could throw his hat into the ring because he sounds a bit like "Douglas Alexander". The resulting confusion could garner votes on the left of the party. Norman Baker, Lewes: Well known for his Sunday paper like

Kennedy wants to run but knows its probably not a good idea!

At least thats the impression I got from this morning's 'The Daily Politics'. I don't usually watch 'The Daily Politics' (especially now I'm at university), but listening to the hosts trying to lure Kennedy into saying he would stand was rather interesting. Kennedy gave the same line he had previously, that one should never say never in politics, but this time he also said it was highly unlikely he would run even though thousands of supporters had apparently been in touch to encourage him. However, there was a glint in Kennedys eye, a little spark of ambition perhaps? He probably ...

Exclusive: mark oaten spotted in westminster

OBN can exclusively reveal that Mark Oaten was spotted outside Portcullis House on Monday 15th October 2007, around 5:30pm. OBN protagonist "Julian H" was walking with girlfriend "Gigi" when Oaten passed, walking along the "pavement". Julian remarked to Gigi: "That was Mark Oaten". Gigi replied: "Who's Mark Oaten?". In the ensuing explanation, Julian narrated the most well-known aspects of Oaten's life; namely that he comes from Watford and wrote some stuff about crime in the Orange Book. Two weeks earlier Julian walked passed Lembit Öpik in Charing Cross underground station (Bakerloo Line). Julian smiled, and Öpik looked at him suspiciously. ...

Guardian leadership commentary 3 - Steve Bell, makes paying 80p for the Guardian worth it

Priceless Can all my 80p go to Steve Bell please.

Guardian leadership commentary 2 - if one more paper quotes Benn Ramm I will scream!

In a G2 article John Harris uses a load of comparisons, and some carefully selected pictures to give the impression that Nick clegg and Chris Huhne are clones. This story does nothing to scratch beneath the surface. But there is one particular quote: "says Ben Ramm, a party activist and the editor of the Lib Dem-aligned magazine the Liberal." A quick perusal of The Liberal's website takes you

Guardian leadership commentary 1 - what is Simon Jenkins for?

Simon Jenkins 9 May 2007, What are Liberal Democrats for? Simon Jenkins 17 October 2007 I could never see the point of the Liberals Well Simon Bonkins (lets face it if you can't get our name right...), if you can't work out the answer to that simple question yourself, you really shouldn't be paid to be a political commentator.

World thrown into crisis as Menzies Campbell resigns

Well it made me laugh.

No, paxman, no

It was wonderful to watch Steve Webb and Jeremy Browne on Newsnight last night agreeing on 99% of what Paxman blurted out at them, desperate for an argument in that lazy BBC way. Sadly for TV’s greatest ego, the two MPs were content to hear each other out and when they did disagree, it was entirely amicable.

Press roundup

Wow... quite a lot to go at today... The TimesLeader - Situation VacantAlice Miles - Sir Menzines Campbell wasn't too old. He was too old-fashionedFriends and confidants told Campbell to go The old friends who turned on their leaderPeter Riddell - Roll up for most frustrating job in politicsWhodunnit? It was the socks-obsessed press Rivalry of former allies began at the Commons The TelegraphSimon Heffer - Lib Dems would be better with Nick Clegg Two outsiders may run for Lib Dem leaderDignified Ming's most undignified exitMing hoping for a job offer from Brown The IndependentLeader - A new leader must ...

West End parking

I'm pleased to say that the report to Planning & Transport Committee to allow for consultation with communities on extending residents' parking is being considered at committee next Monday - click on the headline above to view more. Having received many concerns from residents in the West End about the parking situation, I am pleased to see this report come forward, and it will hopefully lead to an improvement too in other areas adjacent to the City Centre.

Gore rules out another Presidential run

Al Gore has announced that he has no plans to run for the White House. Gore won the Nobel peace prize last week for his work on climate change and had not previously ruled out another run.

Martyn Smith's funeral

Yesterday I attended Martyn Smith's funeral. Whilst I knew Martyn I learnt much more about him and his past including he has also been a Councillor in Newcastle-under-Lyme as well as in Sandwell.

Vince Cable will not stand for the leadership either

First David Laws, now Vince Cable. The BBC reports: Acting leader Vincent Cable, who will take Sir Menzies' place at prime minister's questions, will not stand.Mr Cable, 64, said he had concluded that an older candidate would not be electable because of the "irrational prejudice" about age that dogged Sir Menzies' leadership.

Lord Bonkers on sock garters

Paul Walter traces the origins of the claim that Ming Campbell wears sock garters. Lord Bonkers adds: I am devoted to sock garters. One is not dressed properly without them and they can be used to fire ink pellets to any part of the House if a speaker is Going On A Bit.

I Sought The Laws and the Laws Didn't Run

Dear God Almighty, please forgive the headline. Jesus Christ. Anyway - as stolen from the excellent 'Liberal England' blog by Jonathan Calder: David Laws, in the Chard & Ilminster News: "I believe that the Party will now have an excellent choice between a number of high quality candidates for the leadership of the Party."I will announce who I am supporting when the candidates have announced their intentions to stand. I have decided not to put my own name forward for the leadership, but will instead concentrate on my work as local MP and on my new responsibilities as Shadow Secretary ...

Nominations and the Leadership Election

During the last Leadership election I found that the rules permitted nominators to sign more than one paper. The rules have, however, since been changed. I do have one person other than myself willing to sign my own paper. However, I can see that there is going to be a challenge getting nominated. It is, however, important to have a debate about the party's direction. The two front runners

Paxo stuffs himself

There was a priceless interview on Newsnight last night. Paxo got Jeremy Browne on with Steve Webb and seemed to be endeavouring to set up a sort of policy "rats in a sack" debate. You might call it an attempted "wonks in a sack" argument. So, Paxo raised about three points of policy and seemed to be expecting Jeremy and Steve to be at each other's throats and tearing each other's hair out within

A hole in the sock market

For those of you who were wondering, the Ming sock thing seems to have started in the Times and continued via Kevin Maguire in the News Statesman (unless you know of an earlier reference). Strictly speaking, the articles centred not on Ming's socks but on whether he wore what I believe are called "sock garters". I think there are still a few tailors who will supply such articles. Anyway, it is

Friends of Magdalen Green and TACTRAN ...

Attended the Friends of Magdalen Green committee meeting last night. The Friends have organised a coffee morning to raise funds on Saturday 27th October in St Peter's Church Hall Dundee from 10am - 12 noon - click on the headline to read about it on their blog. I'm representing TACTRAN (the Tayside & Central Scotland Transport Partnership) at the official launch of the Kinross Park and Ride facility later today. The facility was funded by TACTRAN using Scottish Executive Capital Grant which was provided to the Regional Transport Partnership to support the delivery of strategic transport improvements which support emerging ...

A Kylie Minogue film

I was dragged, admittedly only partly kicking and screaming, to see a film about Kylie Minogue last night. Apparently it was a one off showing of the film, covering the lead up to her return to touring and performing after her illness. I did go to one of the London concerts in January. I always remember it for getting called by Radio Newcastle to do an interview whilst waiting in the queue to get

Takeover Day

As Carrick's Children and Young people's Champion I have been busy working on Takeover Day, an initiative from The Children's Commissioner whereby he hopes that on the 23rd November Children and Young People will takeover important jobs and roles , throughout the country. The point of this is that there are 11 million Children and Young People, some 20% of the population, and we seldom hear their voice. I've arranged for the Mayor's of Truro, Falmouth and Penryn to hand over their chains for the day. So the next step is to find some likely children. Sounds a bit like ...

The race to succeed Ming starts today

Who will run? That will be the fascinating question which will be answered in the days ahead. Here’s some of the press speculation today: Lib Dem leadership bids expected (BBC) Charles Kennedy May Run For Leader Again (Glasgow Daily Record) Two outsiders [Julia Goldsworthy & John Hemming] may run for Lib Dem leader (Daily Telegraph) Huhne [...]

Thatcher the liberal…

Much of what Mrs Thatcher and Sir Keith Joseph say and do is in the mainstream of liberal philosophy. Jo Grimond - The Future of Liberalism

Fame at last?

It's been a whirlwind 48 hours since Ming Campbell decided to stand down as leader of the Lib Dems. I think we were all taken aback by the speed of Ming's decision, but I think it reflects with great credit on him that he took the view that with 18 months or more to an election it was a good time to allow the party to elect a new leader to take us through to that election and beyond. Inevitably, there has been a lot of speculation in the media about who might succeed Ming. Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne ...

Welcome to Lib Dems for Chris

Welcome to Lib Dems 4 Chris, a blog for everyone who wants Chris Huhne to be the next leader of the Liberal Democrats.

Arian i'r chwipiaid?

The row about proposals to pay party whips in the Assembly continues to rumble on with an article in the Western Mail this morning. This is not a new controversy of course. If first appeared on Betsan Powys' blog on 21 September. Glyn Davies wrote about it on the 11th October. It was only when the BBC picked up the story properly yesterday that things started to kick off with the Welsh Liberal Democrat and Conservative leaders accusing the First Minister of misrepresenting them. In truth, shocking as the proposal is, the whole mess owes a lot to Rhodri Morgan's ...

LEADERSHIP ADVICE: Back the elephant, not the dog

Thank you for all the phone calls, text messages and letters urging me to stand. But this time I am not throwing my bone in the ring. The elephant is the one for me.

Rose of Kingston opening in January

I wanted to share some terrific photos of the work going on in the Rose of Kingston theatre. You can see that it is well on its way to being ready for the opening in the New Year. At my last viewing the whole of the main auditorium was full of scaffolding, so it's great to see the shape emerging again. I can't claim any credit for the photos...

My leadership dilemma

At the moment, it looks as if the main candidates in this race will be Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne. Caveats cannot be stressed enough: remember when Mark Oaten looked like a real challenger and Chris Huhne a mere also ran? We can’t dismiss the other potential challengers; Steve Webb, Ed Davey and Susan Kramer are all serious prospects in my book, although I doubt the latter will stand with that be-cheekboned and be-millioned Tory dilettante parked on her lawn. Looking at Huhne and Clegg, I suppose I have to declare my hand here. Chris Huhne was the only candidate ...

Day 2479: The New Leader Speaks! aka So, Farewell then, Sir Mr the Merciless

Monday: I do not know what has left me more SHOCKED: the suddenness of Sir Mr the Merciless' departure, or the speed with which I have found myself being talked up as a potential PARTY LEADER alongside Mr Clogg and Mr Hewn. (Within minutes of the announcement, Mr Kiss-me Guru-Murphy was trying to get me "live" on the Channel Four News, and know-nothing numbskull Mr Nick "Mate of Dave" Robinson wanted me on Parson's Green for the "Ten".) But I have to ask: if 66 is too OLD to lead a political party, is 7 [R: 6] too YOUNG? Personally, ...

Wednesday 17th October 2007

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