here are two really important events happening tomorrow at the Lib Dem Conference. One at the beginning of the day, and one right at the end. I normally spend the Friday and Saturday of Conference just encouraging people to buy tickets for the wonderful #LibDemDisco. It's a fantastic event, with wonderful guest DJs, and you really ought to be there on Saturday night. Tickets will be available! But there's something else I really need you to do - and the party needs you to do, at about 9.10 in the morning, inside the auditorium. I will be moving a suspension ...
As a basic step of self-esteem, learn to treat as the mark of a cannibal any man's demand for your help. To demand it is to claim that your life is his property—and loathsome as such claim might be, there's ... Continue reading →
Half Teletubbies, half The Prisoner, The Wintles stands on the edge of Bishop's Castle. It was developed by a decade ago by The Living Village Trust: We thought the best way of proving that it is possible to design a new village with the ambiance and attractiveness of a well loved place was to build it. We were very clear that we didn't want to create a pastiche of an old village which would be a pointless exercise. We wanted to build a contemporary village with a very human feel to it.It is not a village. It is part of ...
There has not been a Liberal Review at the Liberal Democrat Conference for a while now, but in a couple of its later appearances I did a Stanley Unwin tribute act. The first of these explained Vince Cable's taxation policy when he was our shadow chancellor. The second tackled Ming Campbell's call for a referendum.on Britain's membership of the European Union. I forget why he made it - it's all a long time ago. Anyway, my explanation went something like this. I have been asked - all polite and requesty - by Ming the Merciflold to explain to you our ...
Notable and welcome sustained trends in the polling on immigration, as highlighted in the Red Box email today.
The arrival of a new Liberator does not just mean a few tempting morsels from Radical Bulletin. It also means it is time to spend another week in the company of Lord Bonkers. I'm very sorry, but there is nothing I can do about it. Monday When I heard that Big Ben was to be silenced for four years, I wasted no time in telephoning the Director General of the BBC to suggest they broadcast the chimes from St Asquith's instead. Their tone is certainly distinctive and, though the clock is apt to run a little slow, that can easily ...
Further to my last post, FCC have thankfully reversed their decision to oppose suspension of standing orders in view of the reaction. BUT, in what those of a suspicious nature might see as yet another attempt to stack the deck, ... Continue reading →
Coming just days after the Feathers Hotel was closed after a guest died from Legionnaires' disease, this is a worrying development. What we know so far, we only know from the BBC. It is saying that this is a different strain from the Legionella at the Feathers and no one is at risk. I have been emailing public health and Shropshire Council officials since before 11am this morning. There has been no response. That's shameful. I am not a medical man. But I have been talking about Legionnaires' disease with medical professionals over the last few days. It is unlikely ...
One of the things that has been noticeably absent from this year's Conference agenda is much in the way of potential for a scrap. There are a few contentious points in some of the motions but nothing that is really going to generate much in the way of heat. All that may be about to change. Last month, I reported that Federal Conference would be given the chance to debate the revocation of Article 50. This, I felt, was a very sensible move as, let's face it, taking a clear position on the biggest issue of the day is always ...
Second paragraph of third chapter: The horses walked on, blowing nervously, eager to be worked and eventually given their head on the open hills. Mortenhurze, in the lead, gave Purwell and Diana only the barest of formal acknowledgement, as befitted his status as Master of the Hunt. Paul, riding at the rear of his host alongside Estelle, gave a more cheery, slightly mischievous wave, before breaking into a gentle canter and riding away. Purwell watched Diana's bright unseeing wave gradually falter as the departing horses were lost to view across the bright shimmer of parkland. He stopped waving, and holding ...
I have now reviewed the case paperwork for the above case where I have been asked for further and better particulars of the situation with the final hearing and had a meeting with the grandparents. There is no judgment for the case. I have read the transcript of the hearing. This confirms that the hearing lasted of the order of 10 minutes as what was treated as a consent hearing. The
Fri 15th
15:14
Why Donald Trump is shaping up to be such an existential mistake for the American Right
Let it not be forgotten just how long the Republican old guard held out in regards to accepting Trump as the GOP presidential candidate – until the day they absolutely had to. Once the inevitable had been accepted, they did the only logical thing left to them and embraced the previously disliked character as wholeheartedly as would be believable. Yet they really did make one hell of a Faustian bargain in the process, something some of them are only coming to terms with now. The latest thing that will have Republican grandees wishing they'd just taken a dive and lost ...
Anyone want to join me? http://pinkfloydexhibition.com/
Can the UK exercise some degree of control on EU immigration while still having access to the European Single Market? This is maybe the most important question surrounding Brexit and the negotiations with the EU. We have argued that the British people did not vote to restrict immigration. Rather they voted against the perceived effects of [...] The post Why Brexit may kill Blair's hopes of an immigration deal appeared first on Radix.
This report relates to the meeting of the Federal Policy Committee which took place on 13th September 2017. The committee had not met for a few months. Its last meeting, which was scheduled for 12th July 2017, had been cancelled. There was therefore quite a lot to catch up on. Vince Cable Update on Priorities It hardly needs saying but, since the last meeting, a new Leader has taken over. Vince Cable attended the meeting to update the committee on his priorities. Vince said that he had been to eighteen meetings around the country as a substitute for leadership hustings. ...
'Walking Dead' star Daniel Newman is bemused by being labelled gay after coming out as bi ... because, of course, to the media if you're a man who has ever even looked at cock, you're 100% gay, whereas if you're a woman who is bi, you're straight really and just trying to excite your boyfriend. FFS. Adorable Gloomy Octopuses are adorable Stockport Council championing bisexual awareness hurrah! [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
Thu, 12:05: RT @Five_Rights: Update: New post on @Five_Rights website about the @UN 's #HRC https://t.co/pfz5Ch8q2j Thu, 12:18: RT @Rachele_ICT: @APCOBXLInsider latest blog on Juncker's State of the Union speech #SOTEU https://t.co/VKOBhbMtN5 Thu, 13:43: RT @constantinidesa: Juncker's Nautical Themed Momentum: A look at this year's State of the Union https://t.co/ZFZtYHe06t Thu, 13:51: RT @Five_Rights: New Blog! Qatar, Modern Slavery and the @UN's #HRC: https://t.co/qpzMYFzQmu #Qatar #QatarCrisis #HumanRights #UN #HRC36 ht... Thu, 14:08: RT @apcoworldwide: Our @EmmaBrux and @MariellevHeumen unpack the priorities outlined by Juncker at #SOTEU2017 https://t.co/R9FHkKDK0d Thu, 15:44: Time to govern our governments' actions online - on the international ...
As well as publishing the quarterly Journal of Liberal History (which features one of the esteemed editors of Lib Dem Voice on its Editorial Board), the Liberal Democrat History Group also publishes a range of books and short booklets on aspects of Liberal history. New out, just in time for Bournemouth conference, is the second edition of Mothers of Liberty: Women Who Built British Liberalism. This booklet contains the stories of the women who shaped British Liberalism - including Mary Wollstonecraft, Harriet Taylor Mill, the suffragist leader Millicent Garrett Fawcett, the first woman Liberal MP Margaret Wintringham, Violet Bonham Carter, ...
Every Lib Dem Member can vote on policy at our national and regional conferences. That's why there will loads of us invading Bournemouth this weekend Yes, it's that time of year again. The Party Conference season is with us again ... Continue reading →
In my last post I urged the Lib Dems to think beyond Brexit. I suggested that the party should develop radical new ideas on the politics of information and technology, following a recent essay by Paddy Ashdown. But that was all very abstract. What does this actually mean? Information and technology are throwing up difficult ... Continue reading Liberals must address the politics of information or sinister forces will prevail →
The West of England Combined Authority is consulting on its high-level plans for delivering economic growth for all, under three pillars: Businesses that succeed World class skills for employment Infrastructure fit for the future They are keen to get the views of businesses, organisations and individuals - you can find out more and comment here
Tejo is the Colombian version of horse shoes. It is also a reflection of the national psyche. The target is packed with gunpowder. When it is hit, it explodes with a loud and violent bang. The game was adapted by the Spanish from a gentler pre-Columbian version. Their conquest was cruel, violent and involved large quantities of gunpowder. Colombia has followed that route ever since. It is now trying to change. It will be difficult. It is not impossible. Its history has been one civil war after another. In 1948 the murder of reforming presidential candidate Jorge Eliecer Gaitan sparked ...
IT4Work&Life offer from the City Council :
Tracey Huffer, Shropshire Councillor for Ludlow East and a practising nurse, is calling for Shropshire Council to hold an urgent scrutiny meeting to review the deadly outbreak of Legionnaires' disease. She says: "This is a very rare event. The hotel has responded by closing for the time being. But we need to ensure that lessons are learnt and there is no repeat anywhere else in Shropshire. "To the best of my knowledge, this is the first outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in the county. I desperately hope that no one else that stayed at the Feathers has been affected by this ...
The new £10 note has been launched today, complete with a portrait of Jane Austen on the reverse. Ironically, the fact that it is 15% smaller than its predecessor also reflects the fact that it is 16% less valuable. As the Independent points out, since the referendum on 23 June 2016, the pound has lost 16% of its strength as measured against Britain's main trading partners. As a result today's new tenner is only worth £8.60 of pre-referendum money on the international markets. As Eloise Todd, CEO of pro-EU campaign group Best for Britain, says: "Since the referendum on 23 ...
Commenting on Theresa May's attack on the 0.7% aid target in relation to the UK's response to Hurricane Irma, Liberal Democrat International Development Spokesperson Shas Sheehan said: "It is shocking to see Theresa May using a natural disaster to launch a political attack on the 0.7% target. "The UK should be doing everything it can to help people affected by Hurricane Irma, both in UK territories and in the rest of the region, and which budget that comes from is frankly irrelevant. "The European Union's Development Fund has given millions of euros in funding to a number of the British ...
Vince Cable has warned that hiking interest rates would hurt indebted households, after the Bank of England hinted today it may raise rates in the coming months. The Bank of England's nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee voted today by 7-2 to keep interest rates on hold at 0.25%, amid sluggish growth and a squeeze on household spending. However, the nine policy-makers then stated that "some withdrawal of monetary stimulus was likely to be appropriate over the coming months." Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable commented: "The Bank of England's decision today shows that the UK economy is still too weak to be ...
The Liberal Democrats have challenged the government for making police forces fund their own pay rise without providing any additional cash. In an urgent question in Parliament before the conference break, Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Alistair Carmichael warned that requiring police forces to spend more without increasing their budgets risks leading to cutbacks to services. Home Office Minister Sarah Newton responded by claiming that police forces are "sitting on reserves" and that these could used given the "extraordinary circumstances." Liberal Democrats say that asking police forces to raid reserves to fund their own pay rise is insulting and threatens to ...
Commenting on reports that the total bill for the snap general election was over £140 million, Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat Chief Whip said: "Not only has Theresa May spent over £140 million of public money on an election she promised not to call, her failure in that election forced her to bung £1 billion more of our money to the DUP. The British taxpayer is paying for May's mistakes. Yet she tightens the purse strings when it comes to paying for our essential services or giving nurses a pay rise. "She takes lessons from Ebenezer Scrooge when it comes to ...
It is hard to believe that the news of the death struggles of Northern Rock first surfaced a decade ago. I remember the time well. Gordon Brown had recently undergone his coronation as Labour Leader and PM. He was deliberately dropping hints of a snap general election and then backed off. His ratings nosedived and his twisting and turning led to Vince Cable's "Stalin to Mr Bean" quip. Northern
