In all my 25 years in the Liberal Democrats I never imagined that we would reach a point in 2019 where not just our membership of the EU but parliamentary democracy itself would be under threat, with us as the only UK party offering any sane solutions. People are flocking to us, as our fantastic local and European election results show. They are looking to us to provide hope and to stop the mad descent into the nightmare that British politics is rapidly becoming. It is absolutely crucial that we continue to rise to the challenge. We have had a ...
David Gower is in the news today because Sky Sports have let him go. Many readers will know him as a classy and latterly avuncular broadcaster, but I am lucky enough to remember Gower the batsman. When he pulled the first ball he faced in test cricket for four, John Arlott exclaimed "Oh, what a princely entry!" And 'princely' describes the young Gower of those days so well. There were times, such as the summer of 1985 when he captained England to victory over Australis and scored a double century and two centuries in the process, that he appeared invincible ...
And so another week at Bonkers Hall draws to its close. If any reader in Mid Wales is accosted by a sheep begging them to ring Lib Dem HQ in London, please take pity on it. Wednesday Ever since I played old Jofra in the early episodes of The Archers, I have taken a keen interest in the wireless. I used to be a major shareholder in the pirate stations that broadcast from the middle of Rutland Water - who can forget Susan J. Kramer and the Dakotas? - and am now Chairman of Radio Rutland. It happens that I ...
A little sign of how much politics and the Liberal Democrats are changing: A much more Lib Dem line-up than it's have been recently [IMG: 🙂] https://t.co/cNGBMCFTAC — Mark Pack [IMG: 🔶] (@markpack) September 15, 2019
I arrived at Lib Dem Conference at about 3pm today. I am a day late as I was at the Bowes Agricultural Show yesterday. We do this show every year so Conference had to take a back seat for a day. My train left Newcastle at 7.54 this morning and I am feeling the effects now! I missed the big debate today on Europe because of my late arrival. It went the way the party leadership wanted. A majority
I recently discovered a Facebook group sharing old pictures of Finaghy, the Belfast suburb where I grew up. Two pictures caught my eye, of the same building, taken in the early twentieth century from the look of it. In the first picture, it is labelled "Finaghy Cash Stores" with advertisements for cocoa (Finaghy is unusual among Irish settlements for having no pubs, due to the landowner's strong views about alcohol). I guess the woman in the doorway is the owner of the store, with a little girl looking at the camera in bemusement. Only fields are visible in the background. ...
Sun 15th
13:30
Could we at least be told which particular disused Cornish tin mine our donations to the party are b...
My wife and I once gave a small donation to a Nuns' mission in Kenya that helps the desperately poor. A week or so later we received a hand drawn card which had been signed by all the nuns in that mission, thanking us most effusively for our donation. It was the nicest thank you we have ever received and we treasured that card for months. Recently I made a donation to a re-wilding project in Scotland. I received not one, but two personally signed thank you letters, one from the treasurer and one from the chair of the project. ...
The convention that an outgoing Leader gets a valedictory speech at Conference was adhered to. It was a gentle, self-deprecating affair, but it attracted a thoroughly deserved standing ovation... Thank you for your warm welcome. It is one of our traditions that former leaders have a last hurrah at Conference before we leave the stage. It gives me a chance to thank people who have helped me along what has sometimes been a rocky road and to answer those people who are asking me "what are you doing next". On the precedent of previous leaders I should be expecting an ...
This Billy Bragg song was released on one of his albums in 1983 and, with an extra verse he wrote for her, was a hit single for Kirsty MacColl the following year. This is a good chance to recommend the BBC Radio 4 Great Lives programme on MacColl.
Sun 15th
11:54
I feel a bit like a child who has wandered into a chocolate shop, bubbling with excitement...
I feel a bit like a child who has wandered into a chocolate shop, bubbling with excitement at what they can see all around.
For those of you who follow my occasional posts this probably won't be news, but for everyone else, yea, I've made a motion. On Tuesday, at 11:10 I will be in the auditorium, moving a motion with a simple call, for our party to back the removal of Section 21 of the Housing Act (1988). For a small piece of legislation S21 (as we like to call it...) has a big impact. It's the cause of many evictions, including so called 'revenge eviction', where landlords quite legally turf out tenants that they no-longer want with only two months' notice... and ...
Sat, 12:31: RT @CharlesTannock: @nwbrux Sadly even in the decade before when I was an MEP with some exceptions like Bob Walter & Alistair Burt few even... Sat, 12:50: RT @MEKSchlachter: This is the key! And it also prevented Cameron from attending the pre-summit EPP events with Merkel, Sarkozy and other l... Sat, 12:56: Luxembourg's cannabis legalisation is EU opportunity https://t.co/66nhCT1UZU Interesting. Sat, 13:13: RT @janemerrick23: What https://t.co/NkpXFtxSiV Sat, 14:37: RT @pmdfoster: Anyone pondering this No 10 spin operation should carefully x-ref what is negotiable in Brussels with what is saleable in Lo... Sat, 14:48: Ministers Reflect | David Ford ...
I was trying to work out yesterday how many main Spring and Autumn Federal Lib Dem Conferences I have been to. I gave up because it's a hell of a lot! In 52 years, I have been to most of ... Continue reading →
Yesterday, climate change spokesperson Wera Hobhouse delivered this keynote speech to Conference. Here it is in full. "Being a Liberal Democrat and an environmentalist go hand in hand" Wera, we couldn't agree more. #LDConf pic.twitter.com/GuiGjkQdCM — BathNES Lib Dems [IMG: 🔶] (@bathnesld) September 14, 2019 Good morning everybody It is wonderful to see you all here at the start of a great conference. We are in a very good place. Look at what we have achieved since our last conference only 6 months ago. Number of councillors UP Number of MEPs UP Number of MPs UP Membership UP Polling UP. ...
This morning's Observer contains a shocking statistic about the homeless crisis facing the UK, with the revelation that one in four households in England found to be homeless or under threat of homelessness last year were in paid work at the time. There is no reason to think that this does not also apply to Wales and Scotland. The paper says that data published last week showed that, of more than 260,000 households facing a homelessness crisis, more than a quarter of applications for council support were made by a household member who was in paid employment at the time. ...
I've always be fascinated by the Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway, which ran from Aintree Central Station to Southport Lord Street Station, and I've blogged about it many times before. The other day I had the opportunity to purchase an old and undated photo of the former Altcar and Hillhouse Station on the line. I took the opportunity up and the photo is above:- I should add that I do not know who, if anyone, holds the copyright to this photo but would be happy to acknowledge them if I receive information. The station was the next one north ...
A few hours before his stunning unveiling as the latest Liberal Democrat MP, Sam Gyimah told The Observer why he has joined the Liberal Democrats: Centrists are being cast out of both main parties. Lots of people are politically homeless. Who can you work with to build a movement? When I spoke to Jo I thought this is a project that I can be part of. I'm not looking for a harbour in a storm. I'm attracted to a project to defend liberal democracy and make sure our country does not drift into the nationalistic, populist politics that we see ...
