I've just sent off to the drafting advice service a possible amendment to a motion up for debate at the party's Autumn Federal Conference in Brighton. The drafting advice deadline for amendments and emergency motions this time around is 1pm on Tuesday 25 August 2026. More information and the link to the advice form is on the party website. I've asked for the drafting advice even though the amendment is on a topic which falls within my area of responsibility in the House of Lords, and even though I've therefore also already checked it with relevant Parliamentary and staff colleagues. ...
So, what is happening with the market for flats in Liverpool? In June, the property website Zoopla issued data showing that the average price of a house was up 43% since 2016 across the UK, but flats had increased by only 10% over the same period. Zoopla said, "uncertainty around leasehold in England is affecting the pricing of flats versus houses" and that flats were taking longer to sell as a result. Most flats listed for sale in England are leasehold. And the long list of scandals and controversies associated with this form of ownership - from high service charges ...
[IMG: Iain Dale and Zack Polanski] My weekend at the Edinburgh fringe continued with Iain Dale's All Talk event with the Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, Zack Polanski. I'm usually one of the younger people at Iain Dale's shows. This time I felt positively geriatric. The audience was very young. The event didn't have to be moved to the bigger theatre, like Nicola Sturgeon's earlier that day, but the smaller theatre was full. Polanski talked about his decision to change his name to one that reflects his Jewish heritage. He had thought originally that his family ...
This is wonderfully bleak. So bleak it reminds me of Vanbrugh College snack bar on the original campus at York.
The remains of a lost Rutland village can currently be seen because of the drought, reports ITV News: Low water levels at Rutland Water reservoir in the East Midlands have uncovered the remains of the buildings which were once part of the village of Nether Hambleton. Residents in the hamlet, along with other small villages including Middle Hambleton, were relocated to other areas before the buildings were demolished and the area flooded in the 1970s to create the reservoir. Lord Bonkers has been known to give those who believe the reservoir dates from the 1970s the disparaging label "Rutland Water ...
The Guardian reports that the businessman and Reform UK backer Arron Banks is facing calls to lay out the extent of his surveillance of journalists, described by an industry body as an "attack on our democracy". The paper says that the News Media Association (NMA), which represents regional and national media, has raised concerns after Banks appeared to admit over the weekend to hiring private investigators to spy on a Sunday Times journalist. They quote New Statesman who have said that Banks instructed Precision Risk and Intelligence, a private investigations company he once owned, to examine Gabriel Pogrund, the editor ...
[IMG: The view from the cafe at Bedfords Park Nature Discovery Centre] The view from the cafe at Bedfords Park Nature Discovery Centre. It's been a while since one of these, so time for another cafe with a view, this time over in east London. It's the cafe at the Bedfords Park Nature Discovery Centre (Broxhill Road, Romford RM4 1QH, but best reached by a walk through Bedfords Park itself). The cafe itself is a fairly standard, small park cafe. But the views are anything but standard, giving you a vantage over the Thames estuary and all the way through ...
Here's the great Stanley Unwin on Pebble Mill at One in 1985. He had the sense to know that his unique act worked best in short doses. That way he kept his audience comftybold, two-square on their botties. The latest news from Long Buckby is that a blue plaque has been installed on the bungalow in the High Street where Unwin lived for many years. I once went to the village to photograph his and his wife's grave. I feel another journey coming on.
Embed from Getty ImagesI've a memory of Eddie Waring, the BBC's rugby league commentator between 1949 and 1981, referring to the "Dark Satanic Mills End" at one ground. I thought it was Leigh's and, having found the picture above, I think I was right. The photo was published in Picture Post in 1949, and the caption on Getty Images says: A group of young supporters accompany Rugby League players Bill Kingdon and Cec Ryan across allotments to the Kirkhall Lane rugby ground in Leigh, Lancashire. In the background is the Parsonage Pit. In 1947 Leigh Rugby League Club started playing ...
I love publishing guest posts here on Liberal England. Why not try writing one yourself? It could be on where the Liberal Democrats should go from here, on politics more generally or... anything really. Why not an article about a local campaign or quirky piece of history? Please drop me an email if you'd like to discuss your idea first. I'd hate you to spend time on a piece I really wouldn't want to publish. Here are the last 10 Liberal England guest posts:Understanding the views and worries of the city of Oxford Lib Dem - William LaneLocal councillors changing ...
Given how popular (and lengthy!) my list of Reform councillor departures after the May 2025 elections turned out to be, here is a new list, this time for councillors elected under the Reform banner on 7 May 2026, or in by-elections after that date, who have already departed the party for one reason or another. Jay Cooper, Sefton: declared "not welcome" by Nigel Farage following reports of him calling the Holocaust a hoax and then resigned from the party (May 2026). Stuart Prior, Essex: expelled by Reform and resigned as a councillor after "he was accused the week before the ...
It started fresh: its playful fingers bringing light relief from days of searing heat and nights of tropical oppression; and then turned gradually cool, a friendly face (but false), relentless, like the wife you've wronged ...who's next inexorably chill, that morning on a damp hillside whose thin sun promises but does not burn the mist which penetrates your bones Then sharply roused it veers and backs, now half a gale itself with Baltic louring at its shoulder, scouring every crevice of your shelter, scraping grit across fresh wounds on skin chafed raw ...until the vagaries have gone; until true north ...
Liberal Democrat Voice is only a success because of the interest and support from our readers. For many people just lurking and reading the site is all they want to do – and that's fine, we're grateful for people taking the time to read the site. You can though help us continue to produce interesting content for a growing audience. Here are four simple ways: 1. Let us have your tips for stories. Perhaps there's something outrageous going on in your local council? Or you're an expert in a particular area and have spotted a story other people have missed? ...
"Every week I read of people seeking planning permission for children's homes whose backgrounds are in real estate, building, motor dealerships, pubs, caravan parks and light engineering. The one thing they don't have is experience in the care of children and young people." Illegal children's homes are thriving because profit has broken the care system. argues Martin Barrow. Russell Brandom says Mark Zuckerberg's AI manifesto shows exactly why people don't like AI: "Even as Zuckerberg tries to paint a picture of the wonderful future abundant superintelligence will bring, he keeps reminding us of all the ways it's likely to go ...
We are sick and tired of being told by those in power that tackling violence against women and girls is a priority, while women and girls continue to be failed by the very systems that are supposed to protect them. The case of Simon Levy is yet another devastating reminder of what can happen when warning signs are missed, information is not properly acted upon, and agencies responsible for protecting the public fail to learn from previous mistakes. This cannot continue to be treated as a series of isolated incidents. For years, women have been told that lessons are being ...
I've already blogged a few times here about Ianto's memorial wall, a place in Cardiff Bay where devotees have posted momentos concerning a fictional character from the Torchwood TV series. The posts are here, here, here, and here. Now there is another example of how seriously people take their entertainment. Metro News reports that Harry Potter fans have proven there's clearly power in numbers, as their joint outrage forced the diversion of a multi-million-pound energy project. The paper says that plans for a £430million Greenlink interconnector to carry solar and wind power to Ireland from the UK sparked fury from ...