Time to put Liberal Democrat Voice to bed for the night, unlike our Parliamentary Party in the Lords, who are preparing for a long night of voting to stop Conservatives filibustering. It's been a dramatic day in Westminster, although there seem to be no shortage of those these days. But the media operations continues regardless... Kicking the can down the road will not prevent Windrush-style scandal for EU citizens Lib Dems: We have a duty to stand with the people of Hong Kong Davey slams Spending Review as "fantasy figures" Jane Dodds delivers maiden speech in Parliament PM cannot be ...
Thanks to a reader for drawing this report in Historic Houses to my attention: Capability Brown's spectacular 'lost landscape' design for Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire now features in a number of new garden bus tours designed and narrated by Emma, Duchess of Rutland.I showed it to Lord Bonkers with the following result. Lord Bonkers writes exclusively for Liberal England: I don't know about you, but I have always found the Duke of Rutland's seat Belvoir Castle rather flashy. Nevertheless, when the Duchess showed me around I was he soul of politeness and remarked "Nice Belvoir." The gardens at Bonkers Hall ...
Wed 4th
22:19
Former Conservative deputy leader of York joins the Lib Dems over his party's shift to the far right
It's not just in Westminster that leading Tories are leaving the party says York Mix. The website reports that the city's former Conservative deputy leader Paul Healey has joined the Lib Dems. He was a councillor for eight years and has been a Tory activist for 28. He told York Mix: "Since the 2016 EU Referendum, the Conservatives have lurched to the far-right of British politics, squeezing out the space for moderate, liberal and pro-European Conservatives. "Like many other people across the UK I have been appalled at Boris Johnson's attempts this week to subvert parliamentary democracy and push through ...
Today saw Jo Swinson's first PMQs as leader against our incompetent and awful Prime Minister. She had intended to ask about a constituent's mother who was having a hell of a time getting settled status despite living in this country for almost half a century. Just before the end of PMQs, Slough MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi tackled the Prime Minister about his awful column in which he said horrific things about Muslim women. It's worth remembering that these comments are not consequence free. Every woman of colour I know, whether she wears a hijab or not, noticed an increase in ...
News reaches me from Shropshire that people living in and around the Stiperstones are being plagued with noise from passenger jets. Peter Phillips, the doyen of Shropshire Liberals, says: "From about 6 in the morning till 9.30 there is a constant stream of planes. As they take quite a few minutes to pass over, one is seldom free from their noise. Through the day, with less frequency, this continues and then another 'rush hour' in the evening."The planes, which are not visible, are flying from north to south. Peter suggests that this is a result of the governments total liberalisation ...
It's late in the evening, the time of the day during the work week when I usually FaceTime Ros and we catch up on each other's days. Except that, today, Ros's day hasn't finished, nor does it look much like finishing anytime soon. The debate on a business motion to secure time to debate what is now the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 6) Bill, has been scarred by the submitting of 101 amendments by Conservative Peers who have chosen now to conclude that, whilst they might well have been in favour of Parliamentary sovereignty at first, all they really want ...
Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Ed Davey, has slammed the Conservative Government's Spending Round as "fantasy figures" because of the economic threat to the UK posed by Brexit.Speaking in the House of Commons this afternoon, Ed Davey said: "Mr Speaker, Liberal Democrats have fought for more cash for our schools, police and NHS."But isn't it the case that headteachers, chief constables and hospital managers simply cannot rely on the Chancellor's fantasy figures, if Britain crashes out of the EU?"Mr Speaker, 2 months ago, the independent watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, warned a No Deal Brexit would cost the public purse ...
Nick Harvey has announced his decision to stand down as the Liberal Democrat Chief Executive: After the heat and dust of an election has settled, we will be at a natural change point. It will be the right moment for me to pursue new paths, and with a new Leader, a new President from January and a new Parliament, time for a new Chief Executive to complete the team to take the party forward for the next five or ten years. I have given notice so the party can plan ahead, but am here and very much up for excitement, ...
Jane Dodds has had an extraordinary introduction to Parliament. Yesterday she took her seat in the Commons, leading in Phillip Lee as he crossed the chamber. Today she gave her maiden speech in the Brexit debate. This is what she said: Thank you, Mr Speaker. May I start by paying tribute to my predecessor, Mr. Chris Davies. He worked hard for our local communities, raising awareness on the difficult issue of mental health and suicide in our farmers. I thank him for his service. Chris followed hard on the heels of the highly respected Liberal Democrat MP, Roger Williams. Roger's ...
We've all heard about the poor (and that's being polite about it) devolution deal which came down from our Conservative Government and was enthusiastically embraced by Merseyside Labour. I was not for swallowing 3rd rate devolution though and said so at the time (see previous postings on this blog site) as a Mersey Metro Mayor was in effect forced upon the Liverpool City Region. I think it also fair to say that we've not exactly been overtaken with initiatives by our Metro Mayor who sadly often seems to be in the slip-stream of Manchester's Metro Mayor, Bandwagon Burnham. But actually ...
Second paragraph of third chapter: 'Do you think you should, Mr Chorley?' the landlord asked. 'You've been acting a bit... odd lately. And my name's not Joe, it's Thomas.' Another rollicking good yarn in the recent series of spinoff books about the life of Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart between the events of The Web of Fear and The Invasion. Peel is an old hand at this, having written the very first in the Virgin New Adventures series of spinoffs, almost thirty years ago. This story invokes Triffids, The Seeds of Doom and Fury from the Deep and boils up the elements to ...
Parliament is back - and humming with rumours of plots about hijacking the order paper, conversations with disillusioned Conservatives, and speculation about when the election will get under way. Outside (on Tuesday afternoon, and into the evening) there are hundreds of demonstrators, the overwhelming majority of them opposed to Brexit. The arrival of the Yorkshire for Europe group, marching behind a tuba down the middle of the road, was a highlight for me; but when I went out to greet them I found Devon for Europe flags, a piper playing the Ode to joy on his bagpipes, and sustained chanting ...
The former Liberal Democrat-held constituencies of Eastleigh and Montgomeryshire have just selected new Lib Dem Parliamentary candidates.
One of the most common comments I have heard in the past few months about Brexit is, "I just want it to be over". This sentiment has come from people who want to leave and people who want to remain. ... Continue reading →
After a smooth train trip, helped by the debut of my senior railcard (yes, I know I only look 90!), I arrived in Sheffield on Monday evening. I'm staying in a "super budget" hotel in the city centre, with which I am greatly impressed – mainly due to the price tag of £20 a night. Yesterday morning I walked out to the Sheffield Hallam Lib Dem HQ, which took me well over an hour. This allowed me to marvel at the splendid cathedral, the Cutlers' Hall and an array of fascinating old buildings. I was also able to take in ...
Responding to chief executive Carrie Lam's withdrawal of the Hong Kong Extradition Bill, Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Alistair Carmichael MP said: "It is welcome news that this dangerous Bill has finally been withdrawn, but long overdue. Carrie Lam should have done this six weeks ago. The Bill was a threat to human rights and the rule of law in Hong Kong and a direct contravention of the Sino-British joint declaration. "The Conservative government must help to ensure that there is a full, independent investigation into police violence during the protests. We have a duty to stand with the people of ...
This is the second of a five-part series of pieces highlighting the issues of concern to Liberal Democrat members beyond our shores. For the first in the series, click here... Liberal Democrats Overseas are an active Lib Dem group who support British citizens who live outside of the UK and Europe. We meet via video-conference, we operate online, but we also champion liberal values via events and meetings in countries throughout the world. One of many areas we support is that of the British Overseas Territories Citizens. One of six types of British Citizens, who are individuals from the British ...
By welcoming Vladimir Putin face-to-face in Brégançon on 19 August, by restoring diplomatic realism in his speech to the Conference of Ambassadors on 27 August, by relaunching summit negotiations on Ukraine, Emmanuel Macron has clearly marked a new turn in France's Russian policy. Contrary to what members of the small, but very influential, neoconservative "Sect" at the Quai d'Orsay thinks, the President of the French Republic believes that it is more important to engage in dialogue with Russia than to try to isolate it. Donald Trump feels the same way, but he is hampered in his efforts by Congress and ...
Tue, 12:43: Trenchant conclusion to a good thread. https://t.co/MieLY6Nbxi Tue, 12:56: Fiasco: the inside story of the Brexit talks https://t.co/7QgHAWccPZ @pmdfoster on the disastrous path that has brought us here. Tue, 13:09: RT @BledStratForum: @ErjavecKarl @DamirCrncec @sakkov @Sekerinska @Scott_M_Weber @JelkoKacin @eu_eeas @GLOBSEC @ICDS_Tallinn "Just two year... Tue, 14:42: RT @Simon_Nixon: Cummings appears to have landed Johnson in the most gigantic hole and it is not at all clear how he is going to get him ou... Tue, 15:44: RT @UkNatArchives: On 3 September 1939, Britain declared war on Germany. The British Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax, penned this notificat... Tue, 15:45: ...
Responding to reports the Government is planning to announce a 3-year temporary leave to remain for EU citizens, Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary Christine Jardine said:"The Liberal Democrats have long been warning that Brexit will create another Windrush-style scandal for EU citizens. Kicking the can three years down the road will not prevent it. "Instead of taking away the rights of the 3.6 million EU citizens in the UK at the end of 2020, the Conservatives now want to take away their rights at the end of 2023. That's hardly much better. "This plan will only cause huge confusion and ...
Of the many ways First Past the Post fails as a voting system, the way it punishes a split opposition is the most enduring. To recap: recent Tory polling leads, on a uniform swing, would see the Conservatives returned with a governing majority – quite a hefty one, if the Brexit Party disarms. But such [...]
I caught your image forming: A half-seen shadow in the dust... then outlines etched across a page, now substance carved, creating depth; Growing features, wrinkles, names with movement, hints of nuance, breaths of agency, and time; I began to know a person. Advertisements
Wed 4th
10:38
Good news as more than 80 potholes to be repaired in Ludlow overnight next Monday to Wednesday
Good news on the pothole front. Our town is riddled with potholes and a bumpy ride is quite normal. While a few of the big potholes have been patched, the backlog remains large. The council's consultants have now identified 82 defects within Ludlow that require repair. These are shown on the map below. They will be repaired overnight on 9-11 September. Shropshire Council's highways contractor, Kier, will be using a new technique to quickly repair potholes. Under the process, which the highways team says is "extremely quiet", potholes are cleaned out, filled with a material called Texpatch and covered with ...
Yesterday was a bad day for Boris Johnson. In the chamber, he looked and sounded terrible; a performance that could be described as sub-May, and I didn't even think that could be a thing 24 hours ago. I liken it to a rap battle in which MCs like Dominic Grieve and Yvette Cooper were spitting flows while Boris responded with "My name is Boris.....I need a chorus.....I like to build buses.....shit, that didn't rhyme". Jacob Rees-Mogg made up for it a little with better flow even if his rhymes didn't make any sense – and in imagining Rees-Mogg as a ...
Lord Dick Newby, Lib Dem leader in the House of Lords, turned up for work today with some extra equipment. Best of luck: Arriving in Lords with duvet, change of clothes and shaving kit. Could take us a while to see off 86 wrecking amendments on timetable motion today/tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/Knbxu1Odlf — Dick Newby (@RichardNewby3) September 4, 2019 If you sign up for my blog posts digest you'll get a handy one-a-day email with links to all the latest posts. You can also sign up for a range of other lists, including Liberal Democrat Newswire – a monthly newsletter about the ...
This infographic captures the state of British politics and the shrinking Conservative majority very nicely.
Needless to say, I have been busy lately! As have been PPCs and candidate selection teams up and down the country with the threat of looming General Election. Exciting times! This uncertainty plays havoc with our mental health. We all have mental health, as we all have physical health. Not knowing whether one's life is going to be put on hold in a few hours time for the next six weeks can be extraordinarily stressful. At our local exec last night our team well-being was raised by a wise and concerned seasoned campaigner. He wanted us to first of all ...
Today's Guardian contains an interesting (and rather disturbing) footnote to the problems caused for EU citizens living in the UK as a result of Brexit. The paper reports on concerns expressed by campaigners that the Home Office is taking rapid steps to resolve the problems experienced by high-profile European nationals applying for settled status who have gone public with their difficulties, whilst leaving millions of others in the lurch. They say that on Monday night the television star and manager of a Michelin starred restaurant Fred Sirieix, who has lived in the UK for the past 27 years, expressed frustration ...
Some 16 years ago the then Labour government launched an initiative to try to tackle the problems of some northern urban areas where the housing market had all but failed. On Merseyside schemes were brought about to tackle this problem in Liverpool, on The Wirral and in the Bootle part of Sefton Borough. The Liverpool scheme and the demolitions and controversy surrounding it still rumble on to this day but Bootle did not hit the national headlines so profoundly. So why am I looking back on it now? Well the memory jogger was an out of the blue approach from ...
Australians recently went to the polls and elected a Liberal government. Unfortunately, Down Under the Liberal Party is a conservative body firmly fixed on the centre right of Aussie politics who with their allies the Nationals (previously known as the Country Party) have been in power for the majority of the country's history. If it isn't them in office, it's Labor. So what is the current state of our particular brand of liberalism in this part of the Commonwealth? Australia uses AV for the lower houses of its Federal and State parliaments while Upper Houses or Senates use STV, and ...
Wed 4th
07:35Dancing Chorley flasher 'balanced pie on head' before exposing himself at road junction
Congratulations to the Lancashire Post, winner of our Headline of the Day Award.
Following complaints from residents about the state of the pathway at the north end of Paton's Lane that runs to Perth Road - including weeds and dumped shopping trolleys - I raised this with the City Council and the Area Manager in Neighbourhood Services' Environmental Management Section has since advised : "The path has been treated with weedkiller and the shopping trolleys ... removed."
