Sincere thanks for all good wishes! Will make decision re leadership race by Monday. This wknd, need to thank local team and support NCFC! — Norman Lamb (@normanlamb) May 9, 2015
It has taken me a few days to compile my thoughts on Thursday's results. As a Liberal Democrat it was Continue reading →
An email came out from Chief Executive Tim Gordon today outlining the timetable for the election of the new leader. I am in awe of these members of staff who have been working like mad for months on end and are still keeping going through this weekend. They are brilliant. I know this is utterly churlish on my part but I feel I must, though, point out that dates with "of" in them make me feel a tiny bit queasy. Here it is in full: Dear Caron, Following the agreement of the Federal Executive and the party's returning officer I ...
Dear Nick Can I start by saying that possibly unlike the rest of the party right now, I actually feel a surge of optimism. I have been a LibDem voter since the last election and an active supporter for all of 18 months. I started off sceptically. My husband had found a party that mirrored his values and so had divorced Labour and set his sights on the LibDems. I was a little overwhelmed. I hadn't been indoctrinated at my mother's knee so felt something of an outsider who didn't know the history, in jokes, culture, or people. However when ...
It hurts, doesn't it? We did everything right, we oversaw Britain's first peacetime coalition for a century, put 75% of our manifesto into practice, brought in same-sex marriage, made life easier for the poor and got the country back on track economically. We brought in the New Politics we've always wanted, the Left spent five years tearing us apart for it and let the Tories in. So much of our work will now be undone - huge ideological cuts that may never be reversed, trashing the Human Rights Act, a referendum on the EU that will leave Britain's future on ...
I suspect that the current flurry of posts about where the party goes from here are as much about helping their authors get their own thoughts straight as they are about joining an internal party debate, and if so then what follows shares that characteristic. I mention that at the start by way of an [...]
The count for Birkdale was much delayed and for a while we couldn't understand why until a super sleuth journalist got to the bottom of the story. Apparently a couple of UKIP guests to the count had arrived, and it being their first count didn't know the procedure. They proceeded to sit down at the Birkdale table and for some time helped to count the votes. Upon discovery we had to start all over again and had the equivalent of four recounts as they struggled to reconcile the votes. This count had the tightest 'security' I have ever encountered: letters, ...
I was the first of our delegation to reach Oslo, having concluded that there was little I could practically do to help at home by then and, arriving at the venue for the Friday evening fringe meeting, I was braced for the questions. "What went wrong? What will happen now? Who will be the new leader?". And yes, I expected some sympathy, although the offer of political asylum in Norway was unexpectedly kind. Perhaps, just perhaps, opening the event with a debate on the future of Liberal Europe was just a little too raw given events at home, but I ...
Daisy Benson reports her impressions of the election campaign: "So in two totally different constituencies two different political parties were campaigning against Lib Dem MPs - Labour as part of their narrow '35% strategy' and Tories for their own 23 seat strategy. Politically, we were caught between a pincer movement - left and right." "It's time for constitutional reform - of the Liberal Democrats. We need to redesign our party structures to make them fit for the challenges we face." George Potter suggests six ways of doing it. Phil Rodgers explains why he is rejoining the Liberal Democrats. "Farage's claim ...
From the Guardian: The rehearsals, portentous theme tunes, garish computer graphics, live links and guests had not prepared for such an SNP tsunami and the decimation of the Liberal Democrats As Baroness Hussein-Ece has pointed out, thousands of people have died tragically as a result of tsunamis. It is a terrible insult to their memory to compare a event where no one died to such tragedies. Decimation means the elimination of one in ten of a population. The Liberal Democrats lost nearly nine out of ten of their MPs. That is not decimation. (Although I admit the dictionary has moved ...
DODINGTON NORTH EAST (4 seats) BOON Linda Ann - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 885 ELECTEDPARSONS Annette Maria Elizabeth - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 855 ELECTEDRUSH Adrian Samuel - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 793 ELECTEDSTEPHEN Gloria Elsie - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 861 ELECTEDWHITTLE Paul John - Conservative 623 DODINGTON NORTH WEST (8 seats) ADAMS Barry John - Liberal Democrat Focus Team ELECTED without contestBARRETT-WAINES Keely Amie - Independent ELECTED without contestFITT David John - Independent ELECTED without contestHULBERT Paul Aidan - Liberal Democrat Focus Team ELECTED without contestJONES Philip - Conservative ELECTED without contestLANE Dave - Independent ELECTED without contestPHELPS ...
We're really struggling right now, and I know that. Even the sorry few who managed to keep their seats are looking at a pretty rough time over the next 5 years. 2015 has been a bad year for us, as liberals, so what can we do to fix that? One of the best things about the Lib Dems is that we know we can bounce back in the face of adversity. Yes, it's not been as tough as this in a long time, but we're made of sterner stuff. We're not going to roll over and let this be it. ...
SODBURY NORTH EAST (5 seats)ALLEN Brenda Mary Osyth - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 679 ELECTEDBALL James - Conservative 687 ELECTEDGOUGH Jack - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 634 ELECTEDMORSE David Ivor - Independent 396O`ROURKE Philip Lawrence - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 614 ELECTEDRADMALL Desley Joy - Independent 400SMITH Paddy - Conservative 658 ELECTEDTUBBY Steve - Conservative 583 SODBURY SOUTH WEST (5 seats) BOON Linda Ann- Liberal Democrat Focus Team 631 ELECTEDCREER Rob - Conservative 644 ELECTEDHAYS Chris - Conservative 599 ELECTEDRUSH Adrian Samuel - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 557WHITTLE Paul John - Conservative 566 ELECTEDWHITTLE Wendy Anne - Conservative 558 ELECTED ...
YATE CENTRAL (3 seats) CAMPBELL Ben - Liberal Democrat Focus Team ELECTED unopposedGAWN John Henry - Liberal Democrat Focus Team ELECTED unopposedWALKER Sue - Liberal Democrat Focus Team ELECTED unopposed YATE NORTH (4 seats) DREW Mike - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1954 ELECTEDEDMONDS Chris - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1648 ELECTEDFORD John Paul - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1568 ELECTEDNORTHAM Kion Kevan - Conservative 1403 WILLMORE Chris - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1693 ELECTED YATE SOUTH EAST (3 seats) CHOWDHURY Aziz - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1225 ELECTEDKIRBY Cheryl Anne - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1356 ELECTEDMARSHALL Margaret Ann - ...
CHIPPING SODBURY (2 seats) BOON Linda Ann - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1862 ELECTEDCHANNON David Michael - Labour 429CREER Rob - Conservative 1736 ELECTEDLANGLEY Kathleen - Labour 448RUSH Adrian Samuel - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1614WARREN Callum Jake - Conservative 1630This represents a loss of one seat from Lib Dem Focus Team to Conservative. Thank you Adrian Rush for your valued service on South Glos Council. DODINGTON (2 seats) DAVIS Tony - Liberal Democrat Focus Team 1592 ELECTEDFLETCHER Ann - Labour 498JONES Phil - Conservative 879MARTIN Russ - UKIP 920SHAW Jon - Conservative 734STEPHEN Gloria Elsie - Liberal Democrat Focus ...
[IMG: VE Day memorial at Bootle Town Hall] Click on the photo to enlarge it. VE Day Memorial in Bootle Town Hall. The clock stopped at the time a bomb struck Bootle Town Hall during the Second World War. 2nd to 4th May 1941 concentrated bombing rendered 20,000 people homeless; killed or injured 1,000 and destroyed or damaged 74% of Bootle's houses. Bootle, Merseyside, UK. The photo is amongst my Flickr shots at:- www.flickr.com/photos/86659476@N07/
They don't use pencils in polling stations so they can run out your vote and give it to the tories. They use them because they don't run out of ink, don't smudge, and are generally reliable. If you WANT to take your own pen and use it, you are free to do so, but frankly I'm happy to trust in an indelible pencil for my vote, especially having seen the mess someone made of their ballot lappet by TRYING to rub it what they'd initially voted for. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Paddy Ashdown: doesn't he have some headgear to get his teeth into? It's a few days now since the voters of Great Britain gave us an election result that was as surprising as it was unpalatable for liberals (and I mean in all parties and none, rather than merely Lib Dems). I didn't wish to write anything in the immediate aftermath because, like many of my Liberal Democrat colleagues, the hurt was very real. I might have come across as too defensive, or unwilling to accept the verdict of the electorate. During the last few weeks I've asked myself some ...
As I explained here a couple of days ago, last week's election count in Birkdale Ward was much delayed for one of the most bizarre reasons that any of us could ever recall. This was that a couple of UKIP guests to the count ended up "helping" to sort and count hundreds of Birkdale ballot papers. For those who want to know more, here's my (shortly to be re-elected) colleague Cllr Simon Shaw, explaining in the middle of Friday's count, what had gone wrong:
The demands of campaigning meant I did not have time to prepare a pre-election post on trans* candidates prior to the election, but now that I am no longer delivering leaflets or knocking on doors, we can have a look at both who was standing and how people fared. Prior to the elections, there were no full-time openly trans politicians in the UK at a District Council level or higher – May 2014 having been the first time in at least 14 years that this has been the case. We now have (at least) two elected trans politicians, back up ...
About an hour after Nick Clegg resigned I received a long letter by email on behalf of SLF essentially blaming the 'Orangebookers' for the poor Lib Dem results. I would like to suggest that all sections of the party consider the possibility that it was not an issue of left or right. Maybe neither the left or right of the party were to blame, but that, with benefit of hindsight, there were other factors. My top 5. Other views ? 1. Obviously being in Coalition was difficult especially with our more anti-Tory supporters and Labour-facing seats...Tory 'bedroom tax' and 'work-ready' ...
After the grim night of 7 May 2015 Federal Executive and other colleagues must think radically as we look forward..... 1) CONSIDER ALTERNATIVE LEADERSHIP MODELS We could learn from the Greens and SNP and have a leader (perhaps one of the women MPs that lost their seats?) that is not in the Commons. This might also help address the chronic lack of diversity in our team in the Commons; and provide more capacity to reach out through the media. (This would require a caretaker leader as it would demand reform to Clause 10 of the party constitution.) I agree with ...
This Assembly of the Liberal Party, indignantly aware of the grossly unequal distribution of property (wealth) in this country, believes that the greatest possible measure of personal ownership, with the independence and security it brings, should be enjoyed by all. It also believes that the opportunities of a full life hitherto open only to the rich should be placed before all. It recognises these twin ends as the inspiration of its domestic policy and pledges its whole strength in urging on the nation far-reaching reforms to achieve them Liberal Assembly, Buxton. ( Guess the date?) We do not have ...
When I joined the Liberal Democrats towards the end of 1995 it had 24 MPs. I've often said that fortunately I wouldn't see that few Lib Dem MPs again. Even reading the worst opinion polls for the party over the last parliament I didn't believe I would see that few. Yet here we are, on [...]
[IMG: Sarah Dyke-Bracher out campaigning] In Thursday's elections Sarah Dyke-Bracher regained the Milborne Port ward of South Somerset for the Liberal Democrats with a majority of just one, Her win made the council itself 29 Liberal Democrats to 28 Conservatives (with 3 independents). Every vote really can count.
The 2015 election is certainly not one to remember for the Liberal Democrats. Losing many great MP's like David Laws and Vince Cable will certainly take a long time to recover from, but what exactly went wrong and why did we do much worse than forecast. Triumph of fear over hope. There is no doubt that the Conservative tactics of pitting England against Scotland worked for them. The idea of a Labour-SNP coalition was too much for many centre ground floating voters who voted tactically for them. Instead of defending their record and talking about the real issues the Conservatives ...
Sun 10th
14:36
Lib Dem leadership election timetable published: people have until 3 June to (re)join to get a vote
Here's the timetable just agreed by the party for the Liberal Democrat leadership contest: Opening of nominations: 13th of May 2015 Close of nominations: 3rd of June 2015 Dispatch of ballot papers: 24th of June 2015 Deadline for ballot papers to be returned: 15th of July 2015 Count and declaration of the winner: 16th of July 2015 This is the swifter of the different options considered by the Federal Executive. Declaring a new leader on the day of my birthday was considered leaving it too late. You'll just have to get me chocolate rather than a new leader instead. June ...
Does any Liberal Democrat with computer graphics skills fancy redrawing the Bird of Liberty for this week? I've got two ideas for you. On Friday Sal Brinton, President (and acting Leader) of the Liberal Democrats, told members: "Our symbol, the Bird of Liberty, is also our phoenix. Since midnight last night to teatime today more than 650 people have joined the party on our website. The phoenix is already rising from the ashes of last night's elections. "Together we can rebuild the party that we love. Now more than ever this country needs the Liberal Democrats."Since the General Election, over ...
[IMG: Folkestone Forresters Way Car Park] Folkestone's Forrester Way car park was recently resurfaced by Shepway District Council: really welcomed and not before time. However, following the resurfacing, the parking spaces that were previously set at an angle to allow easy pulling into and out of the spaces into the narrow service lane have now been painted at right angles. Is it just me, or does this make getting into and out of spaces - especially when the car park is mainly full - much harder, without creating many more spaces? Which Shepway Council committee discussed, considered and agreed the ...
[IMG: Lib Dem membership 50,000] About 80 people an hour have been joining the party since the polls closed on Thursday, taking membership levels back up to those last seen in about 2011. Even the 2010 surge following the leaders debate only took membership up to just over 60,000, so if these extraordinary increases continue we may find ourselves completely reversing all the decline that occurred in the first couple of years of the coalition. Party chief executive Tim Gordon has just emailed members with the timetable for the leadership election that will now take place (see below) and all ...
A lot of Lib Dems have been defining the party and themselves as "centrists" over the past few years. Nick Clegg has frequently referred to us as the party of the "radical centre". The whole election strategy was based on taking up a defensive position between Labour and the Conservatives: "look left, look right, then [...]
Like many Liberal Democrats I've been doing a lot of thinking today, and I've come up with an idea I'd like to share – It's something a bit different but given the situation some 'different thinking' is going to be required. So I'm sharing my idea here to see if people think it's a go-er and maybe one or two other places, while the idea is still fresh in my mind. Then I may write to the Party Presidents office with the idea. I'd better start by saying that I am a wannabe writer in my spare time and have ...
Our constitution is very clear - the party leader must come from the massed ranks of our representatives in the House of Commons. So there are just 8 names in the frame. And in reality probably 3 - Tim, Alistair or Norman (I had heard Alistair had ruled himself out but cannot now find the article I thought informed me of this - so I may be wrong). This makes perfect sense when you have 50, 60 or more MPs to choose from - and indeed even now we are fortunate that with just 8 MPs ,we still find ourselves ...
[IMG: Streetlight] A streetlight repainting project in Sandgate High Street broke local tradition by starting the day AFTER election day. The repainting of the columns is funded by a grant from Shepway District Council but being carried out by Kent Highways. Columns have been stripped of hanging brackets and light fittings, being repainted then brackets and fittings being put back. Sandgate Parish Councillor Tim Prater commented: "The repainted columns look really smart, and with the annual hanging basket display and now traditional flags going up in Sandgate High Street in the next few weeks it will all look great. "The ...
The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community, and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance and conformity."Thinking about the last few days, I take a look at my membership card and read [...]
Sun 10th
12:03
Opinion: We need a positive and distinct liberal identity. And then we must burn it into the conscio...
Voters have rewarded parties with strong, positive messages and punished those with more equivocal positions. The two clear winners of the election were the Tories and UKIP, which more than quadrupled its share of the national vote compared to 2010. Most voters pay very little attention to politics, but even they knew what these two parties stood for. Vote Tory for an economic plan that is working and to avoid instability under Labour and the SNP. Vote UKIP to cut immigration and reclaim our national sovereignty. Labour and the Lib Dems, the two main losers, both had messages that were ...
I am very sorry to hear of the death of the Leicester artist Rigby Graham. The other day I blogged about my sixth-form Saturday job in a second-hand bookshop in the late Seventies. Rigby Graham was one of our regular visitors and was a lovely man. Once I had been poured a tiny whisky by the owners and he complained it was just a dirty glass. You can read more about Rigby Graham on the University of Leicester site and see his painting on the Goldmark Gallery site (from which I have borrowed this picture.)
"Why not start a blog?" So I did. I hope that you enjoy reading what I am planning to write more than I will writing it – apologies in advance for the random rambling that will ensue. All the best, Nicholas
[IMG: Lib-Dem-logo] This is a long post – the version in my head is even longer – but it's been gestating in various forms for a while and I wanted to get it out there while we're thinking about the future of the party. To make it slightly easier, I've divided it into three parts – the first about the decisions the party made about its political positioning before 2010, the second about the decisions made with coalition and the effects they had, and the third about where we go from here. Part 1: How did we get here? 'Those ...
Unexpected but great – the huge surge in Liberal Democrat membership since 10pm on Thursday. [IMG: Total Lib Dem membership] Labour's post-May 2010 surge in membership didn't foretell great things for the party as it turned out, so the wise reaction to the huge growth in Liberal Democrat membership is enjoyment followed by recognition that it puts the party in a much stronger place for the big struggles ahead – but that it's no more than a warm up to what will need doing. More on that in the latest Liberal Democrat Newswire. You too can join in that task ...
I'm back in! My constituents in Whickham South and Sunniside kindly returned me to Gateshead Council with just over 50% of the vote and a majority of 1199. And whilst I would rather have my teeth pulled out without anaesthetic than rerun the general election outcome, the local election results in the wards were were defending in Gateshead were, relatively speaking, shining examples of hope. We
The Tall Ship "Haabet" which is to be renovated in Blyth will be arriving on 30th May The arrival is to be marked with a family day, it would be great to see you there .....
The pain of Thursday night and Friday morning will take a long time to heal. But politics, like time, is an ever-rolling stream, and while our party's dreams may have died long before the opening day, there is never the luxury of standing still or turning inwards. Already, and encouragingly, this already seems to have been reflected in a groundswell of renewed support from more than 2000 party members. I myself, as a formerly rather passive Liberal Democrat, feel deeply ashamed of my lack of active campaigning when it was needed most. We absolutely need to turn those feelings of ...
The other day I picked up Cosmo Landesman's Starstruck from the sale table in Waterstones. In it he mentions that his mother wrote this song, I think it makes a good tribute to defeated candidates everywhere.
Conservative seat. Cause: Resignation. LD prospective candidate: Christopher Brown
You've thrown your toys out the pram and now you've got 5 years of the Tories - Martin Belam - Mirror Online (tags: ) James Graham is dead on in this blog post - especially the last two paragraphs. (tags: ) Do you want to help choose the next leader of the Lib Dems? Here's what to do (tags: ) Every major British political party - except the Conservatives - currently led by a woman (tags: ) We don't see it, but our arrogance stops us from listening - interesting Labour Uncut article from 2010 (tags: ) 7 Laws the ...
Hindsight makes us all experts, but the problem with the Liberal Democrats supporting tuition fees was not just that it involved breaking a pledge. That decision also alienated many of the natural supporters of our values.. David Howarth puts it well in a new post for the Social Liberal Forum: One of the most disastrous aspects of the Clegg era was that just at the point the party was starting to develop a loyal core vote - roughly speaking, graduates, prospective graduates and the parents and grandparents of graduates - it launched an all-out attack on those very voters. But ...
WOW... My feet have just about touched the floor again (and the cramp in my legs from pounding the streets is wearing off, not to mention the 48 hours of sleep deprivation). I am humble and proud that the people ... Continue reading →
Disengagement in politics is a growing concern, especially for my generation. Many claim they don't know how the system works, who to vote for or don't feel that their vote can make a difference. Thus, action needs to be taken to engage young people in politics and the as a Lib Dem member I am convinced that they are the right party for the job. The problem stems from schools, there is a lack of political and economic education, which I feel should be made compulsory. No one told me what first-past-the post was or how the House of Lords ...
Very discerning in their reading, I think. [IMG: New member] You too can join the 4,000+ others who have joined the party since 10pm on polling day here.
The Ed Miliband experiment has definitively failed. The 35% strategy was a wash out; the idea that the country had moved leftwards in big enough numbers to secure a parliamentary majority under the current voting system, proven wrong. The more I think about Thursday's result, the more it brings into view what the country actually wants. Large portions of English voters do not like the Tories but vote for them if they feel scared of a Labour government. How Labour won in 1997 was to dispel that fear. So England got to vote for Labour, which in their heart of ...
Sun 10th
08:36
Lydiate Parish Council becomes Labour but let's not forget the efforts of one former councillor in p...
9 member Lydiate Parish Council is now 6 Labour with 3 opposition Lib Dems from the declared results of yesterday. [IMG: cropped-Lydiate-Parish-Council-Logo-e1372273297819] No one could have been more surprised than me when I retained my seat on this Parish Council; it was certainly not expected. And I say that based on the fact that at the Borough election count for Park ward, which includes all of Lydiate Parish, (held last Friday) I was firmly removed from office as a Borough Councillor after my 16 years run. So you can imagine how surprised I was when the electors of Lydiate then ...
A consolation of no longer being in government is that I feel that I am able to read the Guardian again. And tucked away at the bottom of this article about the need to reclaim the Liberal Democrats for the progressive left is a tantalising proposal that is well-worth further discussion. Although I associate myself with the progressive left of my own party I do not necessarily agree with the analysis that says that Clegg and his fellow Ministers led the party down a 'centrist blind alley'. The discipline of government and the difficulties of coalition meant that we inevitably ...
People have responded to the shock Tory victory by flocking to the Liberal Democrats. They are still joining the party every few minutes. Since close of polls on Thursday up to 6pm yesterday over 4,000 new members have joined the party. Join the fight-back by clicking on www.libdems.org.uk/join, or phone Huw Evans on 01792 852735/07856 549753. In addition to helping us add to Kirsty William's great team in the Senedd in next year's Welsh general election, anyone who joins now will be able to vote in the election for the new leader of the Federal (UK) Liberal Democrats to replace ...
From the City Council : THE ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14(1) THE DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL AS TRAFFIC AUTHORITY being satisfied that traffic on the road should be prohibited by reason of road safety improvement works being carried out HEREBY PROHIBIT the driving of any vehicle in Riverside Drive / Riverside Avenue roundabout (including all approaches), Dundee. This notice comes into effect on Sunday 17 May 2015 for one day (0900hrs to 1700hrs), then on Monday 18 May for 4 nights (1900hrs to 0600hrs). Pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained. Access to Riverside Inn will be maintained. Alternative routes ...
A new planning application has been received in Holyrood Ward as below: Application Number: 58618 Registration Date: 20/04/2015 Location: 315 Bury Old Road, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 1JA Proposal: Notification of flexible change of use of ground floor from public house (Class A4) to office use (Class B1a) for a period of up to two years with effect from 1st July 2015 Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you require further information or help with this. The details will be on the Council's website here. Tim
Many people have already rushed to judgement on the debacle for the Lib Dems of May 7th. In fact some did not wait for the election but started denouncing and predicting what would happen in May 2010! I have never ... Continue reading →
With a slender Tory majority now confirmed, the narrative is that David Cameron has been 'unleashed'. That's a little misleading - the Conservative backbenchers have been unleashed. Since 2010 they've been frothing at the mouth goading Cameron into adopting ever more right wing and authoritarian policy positions, partly as a reaction to the rise of UKIP. Cameron gave in to some of these calls but resisted most by blaming the Liberal Democrats. His junior coalition partners, he would say, would never allow it. Scrapping the Human Rights Act, an arbitrary cap on immigration, a spontaneous in/out EU referendum, the Snoopers' ...
