Scottish Lib Dems respond to Regan quitting Alba Liberal Democrats respond to Plaid Cymru childcare announcement Jamie Greene selected as Scottish Lib Dem candidate for Inverclyde Rennie responds to EIS strike ballot Cole-Hamilton responds to BMA strike ballot Scottish Lib Dems respond to Regan quitting Alba Responding to Ash Regan quitting Alba, Scottish Liberal Democrat Lothians list candidate Jane Alliston Pickard said: Quitting two different political parties after failing to get elected leader is quite the political feat. It looks like Ash's dream of a giant independence readiness thermometer has been thwarted for good. That's bad news for parliamentary sketch ...
The Gold Edition interviews the crime writer Ann Cleeves, some of whose books have been adapted to make the television series Vera:What are the books from your childhood you'll never forget? All of Malcolm Saville's books. He wrote mysteries, but quite classy ones - definitely a step up from the usual Enid Blyton! I can remember writing him a fan letter and getting a handwritten letter back. It was very exciting. He had something called the Lone Pine Club, which you could join, and I recently found out that the crime writers Elly Griffiths and Mick Herron were both members ...
Ed Davey vows to defend Bank of England against Farage's threats to its independence after meeting with Andrew Bailey Mandatory Digital ID for 13 year olds: "sinister, unnecessary, and a clear step towards state overreach." McArthur sets out amendments to assisted dying bill Wishart submits 3,500-word ferry consultation response Ed Davey vows to defend Bank of England against Farage's threats to its independence after meeting with Andrew Bailey This morning Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey and Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper met with Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey to reaffirm support for the bank's independence. Commenting after his meeting, Liberal ...
Welcome to my summary of the latest national voting intention polls for the next general election, along with the latest MRP projections and party leadership ratings. If you'd like to find out more about how polls work, how reliable they are and how to make sense of them, check out my book, Polling UnPacked: the History, Uses and Abuses of Political Opinion Polls, or sign up for my weekly email, The Week in Polls: General election voting intention polls PollsterConLabLDGrnRefLab leadFieldwork Find Out Now 17% (+3) 17% (-2) 12% (nc) 15% (+4) 32% (-3) -15% (vs Ref) 8/10 GB YouGov ...
Embed from Getty ImagesJames Heale has just posted this on the Spectator website: The Spectator has seen a leaked memo drawn up by Dave McCobb, the Lib Dems' campaigns director. Addressed to senior staff in party HQ, it sets out plans for 'Operation New Home'. This initiative aims to 'reach out' to liberally-minded 'Conservative councillors across the country who would be open to joining the Lib Dems.' The Liberal Democrats are now trying to copy a model that Reform has exploited to great effect: luring Tory defectors to their side. According to McCobb, the party's troops have received intelligence that ...
So the party conference season has just drawn to a close. The Tories were kind enough to hold their event in Manchester, gifting me the opportunity to paraphrase Oasis and be rather smug that they hold 0 of the 96 seats on Manchester City Council. I credit them with the bravery of going into enemy territory, but two years ago they cancelled HS2 Northern at a party conference in Manchester and have offered precious little to the North ever since. You're more likely to see a follow up album by Milli Vanilli than a revival by the Tories in Northern ...
This week, there was seven by-elections, of which one was on Wednesday. Congratulations to Councillor Alex Drage and the local Liberal Democrat team for holding our seat in Hart, despite a strong showing from Reform UK. We were able to secure a majority of the vote, demonstrating that we are the only party who can compete against Reform UK. Hart DC, Yateley West Liberal Democrats (Alex Drage): 1,101 (54.7%, -20.4) Reform UK: 562 (27.9%, new) Conservative: 348 (17.3%, -7.5) Liberal Democrats HOLD Turnout: 30% Congratulations are also due to Councillor Kevin Smith and the local Liberal Democrat team, who managed ...
The Liberal Democrat History Group's fringe meeting at conference featured a fascinating discussion of the historical roots and present meaning of Liberalism. You can catch up on the meeting, which included talks from Professor Jon Parry (author of Liberalism (Agenda Publishing, 2025)) and David Howarth, the former Lib Dem MP for Cambridge, here on the History Group website. The meeting also launched our new booklet, Liberalism: the ideas that built the Liberal Democrats, an accessible guide to the key ideas underlying Liberal Democrat beliefs. The booklet opens with an introduction describing the six themes underlying British political Liberalism: liberty, equality, ...
When our leader, Ed Davey, invited One Nation Conservatives to join the Liberal Democrats, he tapped into something important: the collapse of moderate conservatism and the hunger for decency in politics. Yet, this appeal has left some party members, myself included, uneasy. There is a fear that in trying to welcome disillusioned Conservatives, we risk softening our liberalism into a kind of managerial centrism, one that mistakes moderation for vision. However, the truth is that Britain doesn't need a return to One Nation Conservatism. It needs to rediscover One Nation Liberalism. The phrase "One Nation" has always carried emotional power ...
Good news. BBC4 is repeating Bryan Magee's 1987 television series The Great Philosophers. The first three programmes - on Plato, Aristotle and medieval philosophy - are being broadcast late on Monday evening, prefaced at 22:30 by a new introduction to the series by Professor Angie Hobbs. This is just the sort of television that they don't make any more - there's now a strong aversion to "talking heads". But if the heads are interesting enough, there is nothing more riveting. And what are podcasts but talking heads? They've even proved that two is the ideal number for the format. A ...
October is Black History Month. Our new Women and Equalities Spokesperson has issued this statement: This year's theme, 'Standing Firm in Power and Pride', speaks to a long and ongoing history of courage, resilience and leadership – of driving change in the face of injustice – and to the pride, purpose, and strength found in Black communities around the world. We owe an enormous debt to the Black British community. From the Windrush generation's foundational role in building the NHS to the countless trailblazers who pushed boundaries in politics, the arts, science, and activism, their legacy is woven into the ...
As we enter into our Federal elections, I though it might be helpful for voters to better understand what the Federal International Relations Committee (FIRC) actually does and how it fits into the Federal Committee structure. The Federal International Relations Committee (FIRC) plays an important role in the Liberal Democrats, a political party proud to have internationalism as one of its core values. It is the body within our party responsible for shaping and overseeing the party's international and foreign affairs policy.The eight elected members ensure that the voice of party members and their priorities are heard, respected and taken ...
Seven principal authority council by-elections this week, with one unusually on a Wednesday. Let's start with that one: [IMG: Alex Drage with Alex Brewer and Martin Tod] Leader of Winchester Council Martin Tod (front row, left), local MP Alex Brewer (front row, second left) and new Lib Dem councillor Alex Drage (front row, third left) with the local Lib Dem team. Yateley West (Hart) Council By-Election Result: [IMG: 🔶] LDM: 54.7% (-20.4) [IMG: âž¡] RFM: 27.9% (New) [IMG: 🌳] CON: 17.3% (-7.5)Liberal Democrat HOLD.Changes w/ 2024. — Election Maps UK (@electionmaps.uk) 2025-10-08T23:26:20.357Z The Lib Dem here was Matt Jones; thank ...
From the City Council : Dundee City Council proposes to make an Order under Section 14(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 for the purpose of facilitating Scottish Water mains repair works. The Order is expected to be in force for 10 days from 15 October 2025. Its maximum duration in terms of the Act is eighteen months. The effect of the Order is to prohibit temporarily all vehicular traffic in Tait's Lane from its junction with Hawkhill to number 6 Tait's Lane. An alternative route will be available via Hawkhill, Peddie Street, Corso Street and Tait's Lane. If ...
As if it isn't bad enough that valuable police resources are being utilised to arrest peaceful protestors expressing their views on a questionable decision by the UK Government to outlaw Palestine Action, the Prime Minister has now stepped in to add to his government's suppression of free speech. The Guardian reports that Starmer will be ordering the home secretary to look at further curbs on protests including potential powers to take action against specific inflammatory chants at pro-Palestinian protests. The paper says that the prime minister told reporters that he is looking at going even further than the measures announced ...
Kemi Badenoch's speech at the Tory conference was interesting, not so much for its content, as the direction she is proposing to take her party in. As the Independent reports, the biggest headline-grabber in her speech was her vow to axe stamp duty if the Conservatives win the next general election: Figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies show it would cost around £4.5bn to axe the tax as it stands, but the Conservatives offered a "cautious" estimate that it would cost £9bn by the end of the decade. The party said this would be paid for out of a ...
