Govt must not be allowed to forget unacceptable five week wait for UC Govt must get a grip on coronavirus crisis to prevent further deaths Govt needs to get a grip of care home crisis Govt pledges to look into Lib Dems' Mental Health plan for NHS & care staff Lib Dems oppose Govt's Trade Bill Govt must request an extension to the transition period now Govt must not be allowed to forget unacceptable five week wait for UC Responding to ONS statistics out today which reveal a rise in unemployment and a six fold increase in the number of ...
Wiltshire Man and his bike take us to some of the county locations associated with the 19th-century nature writer Richard Jefferies: Swindon's Old Town, Coate Water and Liddington Hill.
The Ashmoleon Museum site announces the death of the art historian DrJon Whiteley: Jon joined the Museum in 1976 as Assistant Keeper in the Department of Western Art. In a career of 38 years at the Ashmolean he was a dedicated teacher to generations of Oxford students; one of the country's most distinguished art historians; and a well-loved colleague and friend to everyone who knew and worked with him.But well before that he was a child film star. In the 1950s he appeared in two films with Dirk Bogarde (Hunted and The Spanish Gardener), in Fritz Lang's Moonfleet and in ...
Tue 19th
19:30
Former Labour councillor who joined Lib Dems before announcing she was defecting to The Brexit Party...
Ladies and gentlemen. we have our Headline of the Day and our Councillor of the Day. Well done to Rochdale Online and Cllr Kath Nickson.
The long awaited General Election review has been published. It talks about many of the points disgruntled Lib Dem activists have been making for the last six months (the revoke policy, the 'I can be your next PM' message, the over ambitious targeting) and also looks in much more detail at the structural and staffing problems which were haunting the party. It's a good read, which makes many important points. I think activists find it comforting, in a weird way, to look at the short and long-term mistakes we made and think – 'if only we had done a few ...
[IMG: Sandgate Chain of Office] I'm hugely honoured to have been elected as Chairman of Sandgate Parish Council. Thank you all for your support: I can only promise to do my best. Since the formation of the Parish Council in 2004, there have been four Chairman - Joy MacMillan, Jonathan Greenwall, Geoffrey Boot and Robert Bliss. Robert has been Chairman since 2011 and served longer than all other Chairmen combined. We've known each other since I stood in my first election in the area to Kent County Council in 2005 against him. He won. We've evened up that score since ...
Second paragraph of third chapter:One problem with our donors was that several of them were not only financiers of the process but also had interests in its outcome, whether those were pressures from past and potential investors in the DRC or concerns about the cost and availability of suitable troops to deploy as peace-keepers. Thus three of them, the USA, France and the UK, were permanent members of the Security Council and one, Belgium was the former colonial power. Within the EU, our largest donor for the first two years, some officials clearly felt it should have more say in ...
I haven't attended a ballet class since I was 12 years old – until yesterday, that is. I have discovered (via another Lib Dem in isolation) that, in normal times, the Royal Academy of Dance runs classes across the country for 'Silver Swans', that is, people over the age of 55. They have been posting weekly online Silver Swan ballet lessons during lockdown that are suitable for complete beginners. There are seven sessions available now, so I tried the first one yesterday, and repeated it today, and I am planning to revisit it several times before moving on to the ...
A press release from the Liberal Democrats brings the news... Today the Health Secretary has confirmed that he will look into Liberal Democrat proposals which include providing a 24-hour mental health phone-in line for all care staff, as well as fast-track access to a professional mental health service. The proposals, announced earlier this week, seek to ensure the health and care workforce, who have gone above and beyond to tackle this virus get the support they need. Munira Wilson, Liberal Democrat Health, Wellbeing and Social Care spokesperson, said: COVID-19 will leave a deep scar on our health and care workforce, ...
Construction of the Prince of Wales Fort, at the mouth of the Churchill River on the Hudson Bay in Canada, started in 1731. Things didn't go well from there.
While debating other liberals about Universal Basic Income (UBI) it occurred to me that UBI isn't a voter winner, certainly outside of London. Nor is it actually workable. One policy, suggested on Lib Dem Voice by Darren Martin, was to pay a £830 Univeral Basic Income to each citizen age 15 and over. This would be an increase to average incomes for those aged 15-24, but when you study the policy closer you begin to see huge faults with it. This policy would actually have a negative impact on those aged 25 and over who claim some support at the ...
Photo: Toni Mac / SWOU (dazeddigital.com) This piece was contributed by Jade O'Neil. When writing and defending the Scottish Lib Dems' decriminalisation policy, few people 'got' the importance of tackling the definitions used by the Scottish Government for the sex industry in their own documents. It seems semantic, but sex worker lead organisations told us they were being excluded from consultations as a result of this documentation which classed all sex work as "violence against women" (and associated organisations as complicit in that violence).This meant it was difficult for them to have their voices heard. Silencing people is just one ...
I told myself I was going to avoid joining in the whole narration of the General Election review, but this part really hits home for me. We are as critical of ourselves as we are of others; many talk of being under 'friendly fire' from our own members or colleagues, with mistakes viewed as personal failures. Members who have previously held office frequently contact staff - at all levels - offering views, advice and criticism. They expect to get heard and are disappointed if they are not. Staff feel that 'no' is an answer that cannot be given. During my ...
It is difficult at this stage to determine who will suffer the most financially as a result of COVID-19. Certainly, the UK Government is going to take a big hit, with debt levels equivalent to those during the Second World War, but how they manage that debt will be crucial for the economy as a whole. If the government seek to repay loans through austerity measures or taxation, then the likelihood is that we will spiral into a recession. So many businesses are already going under, many more are on their uppers, that once we are anywhere near to normality ...
Tue 19th
12:16
For Mental Health Awareness Week, let's remember Mill's mantra and campaign for better wellbeing mea...
We are living in a time that's taking its toll on different people in different ways. And we have required changes in our approach to contend with this new reality. Now more than ever, I find myself reflecting on JS Mill's mantra, that "actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness." My modern interpretation of this philosophy is that we should be considering wellbeing metrics and indicators in all Government decisions and policymaking. And, if a policy would worsen people's wellbeing, it should be dropped. It's time ...
Mon, 12:56: RT @PersianPoetics: Thread: The Orientalizing of Moulana Rumi Many of you may be familiar with the 'Rumi quotes' that circulate the intern... Mon, 13:31: RT @hiramjmorgan: @BobbyMcDonagh1 @simoncoveney @pmaceinri @fotoole @BrigidLaffan @davidmcw @SluggerOToole @nwbrux @EamonnMallie Isn't i... Mon, 16:07: An Oxford Professor, a Hobby Lobby Collector, and a Missing Gospel of Mark https://t.co/A7Ku9DWxoS I know I keep li... https://t.co/VAls1mA6U0 Mon, 17:11: RT @AlexArrelia: Fuck it. I'm doing it: Men of Middle Earth as bad ex boyfriends who ruined your life: Mon, 18:29: June 2006 books https://t.co/JObz1Bukn8 Mon, 20:05: RT @JP_Biz: Very much enjoying the new government line which ...
I'm a British citizen, living in Malaysia and have been married for nearly ten years to a Malaysian citizen. I have a stepson and a daughter both of whom hold Malaysian passports and my daughter is also eligible to have a British passport (however, Malaysia does not recognize dual citizenship so she would eventually have to choose one or the other). For a long time, my wife and I have mulled over the pros and cons of staying in Malaysia or moving to live in the UK. There are lots of factors to consider but one of the big ones ...
This promotional Merseytram bookmark is about all that Liverpool City Region has to show for its previous big tram ideas. The Liverpool Echo has an interesting article on its website – see link below:- One of the major reasons Merseytram was killed off was because the first line proposed to be constructed was NOT to John Lennon Airport. Those that followed the Merseytram saga/fiasco will recall that Merseytravel, in trying to chase government grants/support, decided the first line was going to be built to Kirkby. And this despite it being a community which already had and still has a ...
The Social Democrat Group is a grassroots organisation which seeks to promote the social democratic, as well as the liberal, tradition in the Liberal Democrats. In response to the publication of the party's 2019 Election Review, the group has issued a statement broadly supporting the report. In particular, the group welcomes the references in the report to the need for the party to concentrate on the issues that really matter to normal people. We believe that if we are to start winning back people's trust we need to emphasise the big ticket issues of health, education, transport, housing, the environment, ...
The Liberal Democrats are calling for the new online system enabling MPs to vote remotely to be made permanent, after the successful first vote under the system this week.The system, using the online "MemberHub" portal, has been introduced in the House of Commons as a temporary measure to allow MPs to vote on legislation and other motions from home during the coronavirus pandemic.However, Liberal Democrat Political Reform Spokesperson Wendy Chamberlain says making it permanent would "put an end to MPs having to choose between going into Parliament when they're ill or leaving their constituents unrepresented on key votes."The Party believes ...
Responding to today's coronavirus press conference, Liberal Democrat Health, Wellbeing and Social Care spokesperson Munira Wilson said:"Any progress on a vaccine to fight coronavirus is welcome, but we must not solely base all our hopes on this one trial, nor should we turn our backs on international cooperation should we be successful."We have seen the importance of international cooperation, whether it has been sourcing ventilators, processing tests when our own laboratories could not process them all, or in working with others to fly back citizens stuck abroad. Whether we are the first to be successful, or another country is, it ...
We've got a busy day ahead, here at Liberal Democrat Voice. There are a wide range of views regarding the General Election Review, as you might guess, and they're still coming in, so you can expect a number of articles today and tomorrow... 2 big stories The Immigration Bill has had its Second Reading in the Commons and, unsurprisingly, was passed by a majority of 99 votes. It's a pretty shoddy, rather unpleasant piece of work from a Home Secretary who clearly believes in pulling up the drawbridge that her own family (and mine) used not so long ago. But, ...
The Liberal Democrats are at the forefront of a cross party call to protect pubs in the face of the "unique combination of challenges" created by the Covid-19 crisis. Liberal Democrat MP Daisy Cooper, alongside MPs from the Tory, Labour, SNP, Plaid Cymru and Green parties, are calling for Ministers to ensure pubs - a "cornerstone of British culture" - are in a position to reopen once social distancing measures are eased. The group have written to the Chancellor to demand bespoke support for the industry including calls to: Scrap the £51,000 Rateable Value cap for pubs, allowing pubs to ...
With thanks to Ninewells Community Garden, don't forget to book your free place for the next online workshop - "Gardening with young children." It's on tomorrow - Wednesday 20th May - at 1pm. There will be a short presentation followed by a Q&A Session. Top tips welcome! Another team effort from Ninewells Community Garden, PLANT and Andrea from Green Wellies Gardening - all welcome! You can book at
Responding to reports that civil servants dealing with coronavirus have been redeployed to no-deal planning, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:"The Government's continuing rejection of calls for an extension to Brexit talks is reckless and flies in the face of the current efforts by everyone to tackle the coronavirus crisis. The reports that civil servants are being diverted from dealing with the virus to no-deal planning, as well as Michael Gove's stubborn response this morning, shows the Government is determined to see the British public go from one crisis to the next."As we witness coronavirus continue to ...
