Two things are worth remembering about Labour's performance in opinion polls in the last Parliament. First, Labour went on to lose. Second, it turned out the polls were over-estimating Labour's support. So on both grounds, a Labour Party that's doing well should be doing better in the polls than it was doing at this time in the last Parliament. Here's how the July 2016 polls compared with the July 2011 polls (taking the last poll in the month where there was more than one comparable poll and going for polls whose fieldwork was all done in July): ICM: was 36%, ...
This is a reminder that I welcome guest posts on Liberal England. And as you can see from the list of the 10 most recent guest posts below, I am happy to consider a wide range of subjects. If you would like to write a guest post yourself, please send me an email so we can discuss your idea. A new hole in the safety net - AnonymousMemories of Snailbeach in the 1950s - Christina SamsonWe are all the poorer for soundbite politics - Tony RobertsonA few thoughts on walking - Phil SmithThe mad, mad world of Maghull Town Council ...
Embed from Getty Images All the way is a brilliant film about the first year of Lyndon Baines Johnson's presidency, from just after the assassination of JFK until the re-election of LBJ. Bryan Cranston is great as the irascible and passionate president. The film particularly shows how he was the ultimate Capitol Hill fixer – particularly as he gets the Civil Rights Act through despite stiff opposition from Southern Democrats. This is definitely worth a watch – and you can do so via Sky Atlantic for the next few days. Share
The new issue of Liberator has arrived. We have had a snippet from Radical Bulletin. We have had my article on Charles Kennedy, Iraq and the Chilcot Report. Which means there is nothing else for it: we have to spend some time with the old brute. Close textual analysis suggests these pages from Lord Bonkers' Diary were written round about the 12th of July. As they say in Rutland, a fortnight is a long time in politics. I'll be damned if I am going to pull out of Europe I write these words on the terrace of the Hotel Splendide, ...
Embed from Getty Images In May, the House of Lords select committee on the European Union published a detailed document on the process of withdrawing from the EU. Among other things, the committee concluded that: ...we have no reason to believe that the requirement for legislative consent for its repeal would not apply to all the devolved nations. -That is, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The committee also concluded that, once Article 50 of Lisbon Treaty has been invoked, it can be reversed before the end of the two year negotiating period: There is nothing in Article 50 formally to ...
Mon 25th
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Brexit: How we could be in the single market with greater control over immigration - the Adam Smith ...
Embed from Getty Images The words of President Hollande on Thursday reinforced the UK's apparent dilemma: It's the most crucial point... Britain will have to choose: stay in the single market and accept free movement or have another status. I have banged on about this since the referendum. There is a halfway house – that of being in the EEA and EFTA. The Adam Smith Institute have this week released a briefing paper entitled: "The case for the (interim) EEA option". In it, they point out the ability for the UK to "have greater control over migration" while being in ...
Last week Green MP Caroline Lucas tabled a '10 Minute Rule' motion in the House of Commons calling for proportional representation and votes at 16. It was defeated. In the Electoral Reform Society we are working together with colleagues from all parties except the Tories who are conspicuously absent from the organisation. It is therefore [...]
Embed from Getty Images In the run up to the EU referendum, former Prime Ministers John Major and Tony Blair visited Derry. With their deep understanding and appreciation for the nuances and sensitivities of Northern Irish conflict honed by their engagement with the topic for substantial periods of their respective premierships, they were both united in their bleak portrayal of a post-Brexit Northern Ireland. During their trip, Major and Blair posed for photos on Derry's Peace Bridge. Opened in Summer 2011, the Peace Bridge stands as an iconic focal point for the city's cultural and artistic centre. Both a literal ...
Second paragraph of third chapter: But here again, I can remember very little about the two years I attended Llandaff Cathedral School, between the age of seven and nine. Only two moments remain clearly in my mind. The first lasted not more than five seconds but I will never forget it. A rather charming short autobiography of Roald Dahl's childhood: he was the son of a Norwegian immigrants to Wales; his father died when he was only three; he attended boarding school from the age of nine to eighteen; and the book ends with him getting a job with Shell ...
Embed from Getty Images The referendum result came as a surprise to most people who naturally assumed that the electorate would seek to avoid the risks of change. However, as the Prime Minister has been reported as saying "Leave supporters were not just voting against Europe but were delivering a cry of frustration about a range of problems afflicting British Society ... Top among these concerns was the widening gap between working class voters who saw their wages stagnate..." The loss of millions of well-paid jobs in manufacturing has been caused by the extreme financialization of the UK economy that ...
[IMG: Awards web image] The ALDC Campaigner Awards embody excellence in campaigning and we don't give out awards to just any local party - the winners are the best of the Liberal Democrat campaigners across the Country. Categories this year include Best by-election campaign Best fightback Best Innovation Best Literature campaign Best Squeeze campaign Best Community Campaign Overall Campaigner [...]
As the scandal over alleged state-sponsored doping rocks the sports world, we look back at the worrying 2010 case of Norwegian athlete Erik Tysse The allegations of systematic, state-sponsored doping by Russian athletes have rocked the sports world on the eve of the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the core of the allegations are alleged efforts by Russian government and sports officials to subvert the science of drug testing in order to enable doped athletes to appear clean and then win medals. Recent weeks have seen a focus on what to do about the eligibility of Russian athletes for the upcoming ...
[IMG: The LGA Lib Dems support Liberal Democrat council groups across England & Wales] The Liberal Democrats on the Local Government Association have been in contact with the Royal British Legion Industries – which supports local government to fulfil their commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant. There are two ways local authorities can work with the RBLI: 1) By advertising an RBLI LifeWorks course which helps Veterans into employment, education [...]
[IMG: The LGA Lib Dems support Liberal Democrat council groups across England & Wales] Liberal Democrats on the Local Government Association have urged its members to sign Liberty's pledge urging central Government to invest in the regional infrastructure necessary to meet the needs of all unaccompanied refugee children. Cllr Chris White (Hertfordshire), who speaks for the group on refugee issues, said: 'Liberal Democrats have been arguing for some time [...]
Embed from Getty Images In a couple of previous posts I have looked at the effects of Brexit and possibilities for LibDem positioning and policy that may emerge. In many ways the EU is a distraction from the key political battles we face. The most pressing problem we have is inequality in its many manifestations and an economic and social system that works very hard to maintain and increase inequality while we try to redress the balance. That is the case whether we are in the EU or out of it. This is an opportunity to consider some key parameters ...
This is an odd one. It's about the surface of the car park at Maghull Square shopping centre which has recently had its car parking bays remarked out. Trouble is the surface of the car park is poor, with pot-holes and a great deal of loose stone. [IMG: WP_20160724_16_57_18_Pro] Why mark it out again instead of addressing the poor surface first? And what has happened to the latest plan to redesign the car park and enlarge it? [IMG: WP_20160724_16_57_30_Pro] The previous owners got planning permission to refurbish the shopping centre years ago but nothing happened and now the new owners ...
The possible roads to recovery for the Liberal Democrats were discussed on Sunday night's The Westminster Hour, including Tim Farron talking about the circumstances under which he might be the last ever leader of the Liberal Democrats
Embed from Getty Images Let's take a brief look at the list of things that are on my Letter to Santa: Artificial intelligence Quantum computing In-vitro meat and vertical farming Mass-commercialised 3D printing Transparent solar panels Li-Fi and 5G Male contraception Autonomous cars and electric cars And so, so much more... Yeah, I'm a nightmare to buy presents for. Some of these are already causing stirs in the legal world. Just the other week there were reports of telecoms companies promising 5G sooner if the EU crippled net neutrality. That's a fairly clear statement of their desire that we need ...
Scottish Liberal Democrats have today called on councils to ensure that homophobic bullying is recorded accurately as new figures showed nearly half of local authorities do not hold records on incidents of homophobia in schools. Freedom of Information requests by the Liberal Democrats found that 14 of the councils responding do not record information on [...]
[IMG: The Lion otherwise known as the Titfield Thunderbolt!] The Lion otherwise known as the Titfield Thunderbolt! My first posting on this subject is available via the link below:- It concentrated on the 'Whiston' colliery loco now based at the Foxfield Railway in deepest rural Staffordshire and the long-term refurbishment project of the former Merseyrail Class 502 EMU in a warehouse in Burscough. This posting is about an historic locomotive and a LOR motorcoach both of which are in the care of NML (National Museums Liverpool) and on display in the new Museum of Liverpool. The first is the ...
Members of Parliament naturally think they are very important and deserving people. They have worked hard to gain their parties' selection for one of the 80% of seats that are "safe", or to win and retain one of the marginals. Until recently both Labour and Conservative MPs had the exclusive right to determine who would be their Leader - who would, if and when the party gained a majority, become prime minister and dole out the plum jobs of government. MPs feel themselves at the very centre of the political maelstrom. They make and listen to speeches in the Commons ...
Yesterday Caron Lindsay posed some questions for the More Reunited project. Here is Paddy Ashdown's reply. Caron, these are serious and weighty questions and deserve a proper answer. Please forgive the long posting. You ask: How does this work in a First Past the Post system? If they are going to fund every candidate who signs up to their principles, surely they could end up funding every candidate in a seat. There are some, if few, moderate Tories who could qualify. However, what if the manifesto of the party a candidate is standing for is in direct conflict with this. ...
miss_s_b | The Blood is the Life for 24-07-2016 posted The Blood is the Life for 24-07-2016 on #dreamwidth Twitter RT @nixcraft: This is so funny and sad too #sysadmin #life #IT VIA @Spiceworks Twitter RT @scattermoon: Yes it's definitely ancient genetics, not things like it being safer for men to wander around alone at night. [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
[IMG: Martin Thomas] Martin Thomas, who sits in the House of Lords as Lord Thomas of Gresford, is our Shadow Attorney General. I mentioned his title because he hails from a small town near Wrexham and has been actively involved in Welsh politics since the 1960s. So who better to call out Andrea Leadsom's bizarre assertion that farmers with "big fields do the sheep, and those with the hill farms do the butterflies". In a speech in the Lords last week he said: It is with a fine sense of irony, mingled perhaps with some contempt for farming interests, that ...
In November 2014, an application was made for 20 retirement homes at Elm Lodge, on the goods yard beside the mini golf course. The application was rejected. The developer resubmitted the plans and the were rejected again. And now a planning inspector has finally thrown out the scheme (16/02414/REF). I have largely kept out of... Continue reading Plans for 20 retirement homes at Elm Lodge in Ludlow rejected for the third time →
When the history of post-Brexit Britain comes to be written historians everywhere will be scratching their heads over the decision by Prime Minister May to appoint Boris Johnston to the role of Britain's leading diplomat. Diplomacy has never been one of my strengths but at least I try and engage my brain before I speak. Doing a Boris shall henceforth be the term applied to those who have been promoted above their ability and who speak out in a way that offends the maximum number of people. As the Guardian reports the latest such gaffe comes from the master himself. ...
There I was coming into Victoria Station on the train. It was almost on time (no complaints there). Then, over the loudspeaker, the guard told us that: "Southern Trains managers will be available on the station concourse if you want to talk to them." "Wow," said a man next to me with a smirk. "They're brave." They certainly were, and they were also getting an earful from the travelling public. Even Govia Thameslink's chief executive Charles Horton was there, taking my advice to come down from his office in Monument Street and see for himself. And I met a manager ...
** UPDATE ! Please note that the start time for this event below has been altered to 2pm **The Friends of Wighton lunchtime recital tomorrow features the excellent Fèis Rois Ceildh Trail - it takes place at 1.15pm tomorrow (Tuesday 26th) in the Wighton Heritage Centre, Central Library and admission is free. The 2016 Ceilidh Trail takes place from 11th July to 13th August. The project provides summer employment for 15 outstanding young musicians. They perform at almost 100 gigs during this busy summer period in July and August so its great to see Dundee as part of the trail. ...
Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP yesterday backed calls from a think tank for reforms to boost local accountability in Police Scotland. A new briefing paper from Reform Scotland called for local authorities to be given a new role in the oversight of policing in Scotland. Commenting, Mr McArthur said: "Reform Scotland were [...]
Two groups of responses to the launch of the cross-party progressive political movement, More United, have particularly caught my eye. More United: Paddy Ashdown's new political movement launched todayFind out about Paddy Ashdown's new cross-party political movement, More United, what causes it will promote and how it plans to change British politics. more First, the warm response from group of people who would describe themselves mostly as centre-left, have voted Liberal Democrat on occasions in the past, especially when they have liked the Lib Dem candidate, but do not currently think of themselves as Lib Dem supporters. They generally did ...
Clinton campaign — and some cyber experts — say Russia is behind email release Moscow helping Assange? (tags: wikileaks uspolitics russia ) The Mandela Effect When memory collectively cheats. (tags: psychology ) A British asylum seeker's guide to Europe Gaining second citizenship (aimed at British Eurocrats). (tags: eu migration )
Paddy Ashdown - along with several other Westminster luvvies - have launched MoreUnited a 'new movement setting out to change British politics'. Using the power of the internet and social media it will crowd fund and provide volunteers for certain candidates that agree with its rather fuzzy centrist -yet progressive - values. Caron Lindsay on Lib Dem Voice asks some pertinent questions about this project which Paddy and his ilk need to answer quite quickly if many Lib Dems aren't to think this is just a vanity project for an out of touch elite trying to 'get with it'. But ...
