Author Archives: Anthony Hawkes

Opinion: Reflections of a first timer at Conference

What a first conference! From Friday evening through to Sunday afternoon it did not stop. Sleep seemed to be one luxury too many.

The organisation was far better than I expected. Every event started on time and there were stewards everywhere to help direct you and answer your questions. It was very smooth and professional throughout and everyone I met seemed friendly.

Friday was International Women’s Day and the first event I attended was the Conference rally. Nick Clegg came on and delivered a very good speech addressing the problems of recent weeks. The following speakers (Shirley Williams, Jo Swinson, Lynne Featherstone …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 9 Comments

Opinion: Where is evidence based decision making about the NHS?

One of the great things about growing old is that life becomes much simpler. Those raging passions of youth give way, very gradually, to an acceptance that, in the grand scheme of things, we are pretty insignificant. Imagine my surprise when I found my blood pressure rising and my normally equitable mood being replaced by a growing sense of outrage. What exceptional event caused this? Well, it was theĀ  Health and Social Care Act, 2012.

I am not sentimental about the NHS, or any other public body for that matter, and believe that we should constantly be trying to improve our …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 24 Comments

Opinion: War on Weltschmerz

A Liberal Youth training sessionWhen friends have lost their belief in religion, they usually describe not the freeing of bonds, but the emptiness left without a moral compass to guide them.

My youngest daughter popped in after work today looking rather sad. When I asked her the problem she described herself as feeling weltschmerz. Never having heard of this before, I got her to elaborate. She told me of the alienation, the resignation and the overwhelming sense of the cruelty of the world. This is not a woman prone to melancholy, …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 15 Comments



Recent Comments

  • User AvatarWilliam Jones 25th May - 7:55am
    You are right to raise the subject of R&D as an important component for a stronger economy. It is my experience of working on R&D...
  • User AvatarRC 25th May - 7:52am
    A further point I would like to add is what happens even if we do get from research to development and then a real, saleable...
  • User AvatarSimon McGrath 25th May - 6:29am
    Quite right. My local party submitted a motion on unpaid interns in the Party to the last but one Conference but it was not taken....
  • User AvatarPaul Reynolds 25th May - 4:27am
    Drawing conclusions from the melee which includes phone video footage, police and security service statements, and selected witness accounts is probably premature. For example, what...
  • User AvatarPaul Reynolds 25th May - 3:49am
    Policy on this subject matter was passed by Conference about 4 years ago. It was clumsily called 'UK response to Globalisation' or something similar. It...
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