Category Archives: Party policy and internal matters

Anything to do with Lib Dem internal business, including policy development, consultations, rules and constitutions.

Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Finance Officer: Rory Roberson

By Rory Roberson | Fri 3rd May 2013 - 4:00 pm

Writing this in the wake of running an election campaign in Worcestershire I can say with little doubt that money is absolutely vital for the smooth running of a campaigning force and Liberal Youth desperately needs to become a better campaigning force.

But first a little about myself, I have been involved in politics for a number of years now and have been involved in a full campaign a year since joining the party at Aberystwyth University in 2009, a trend that looks as if it will not finish anytime soon. As well as this I have …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… England Convenor: Stuart Wheatcroft

By Stuart Wheatcroft | Fri 3rd May 2013 - 3:30 pm

I have been a member of the Liberal Democrats since the end of 2005. Despite this, I had no serious involvement with Liberal Youth until early 2012. Liberal Youth was not an effective organisation nationally, and in my area it was non-existent.

A huge amount of progress has been made. Liberal Youth’s contribution to the campaign in Eastleigh has been widely recognised. The momentum has been continued through the Gold Guard project, with action days in key seats around the country and a huge membership engagement push at every level of the organisation. More must be done, but there has been …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013…England Convenor: Rich Clare

By Richard Clare | Fri 3rd May 2013 - 3:00 pm

It’s that time of year again – time for the young Liberals to choose their executive. I’m standing for Convenor of LY England and I have two main aims: to protect and expand Liberal Youth’s resources by promoting us within the Federal and English parties, and to turn us into more of a campaigning force across the country. Although I have two years’ experience as branch chair in Sheffield Hallam, I am not part of the LY ‘clique’ – if I become the new Convenor, I will be a fresh …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Chair: Callum Leslie

By Callum Leslie | Fri 3rd May 2013 - 2:30 pm

For the past 18 months, I’ve been wrestling with the possibility of leaving the party. As the party leadership continues to ignore party policy and members’ wishes, we have to sit through the bedroom tax, secret courts, the NHS debacle, shares for rights, tuition fees and more. The position of conference as the sovereign body of the party by which all are bound is all but extinguished.

About two weeks ago, I came to a realisation. Having been a party member since I was 14 and a candidate …

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Also posted in Op-eds | Tagged #lyelects, liberal youth and liberal youth elections 2013 | 5 Comments

Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Chair: Sarah Harding

By Sarah Harding | Fri 3rd May 2013 - 2:00 pm

Liberal Youth have worked hard this election. Across the country, young Liberal Democrats have been phoning, delivering and canvassing to ensure as many Lib Dem councillors as possible were elected.

In 2015, our party will face a bigger challenge, and Liberal Youth can make a huge difference.

My candidacy for Chair is based on what we need to do to help win in 2015: plan, recruit and train.

Plan: I will work with the membership to lay out our key goals up to 2015, liaise with the Federal Party and Strategic Seats to plan our on-the-group campaigning and expand the Gold Guard.

Recruit: I will widen recruitment avenues and …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Finance Officer: Tommy Long

By Tommy Long | Tue 30th April 2013 - 3:00 pm

Supposedly Liberal Youth’s funding is under threat. I’ve never seen anything official but I’m always being told by one person or another that our donors aren’t overly impressed with our performance and are seriously reconsidering whether to let us manage our own finances any more.

This has to stop. Uncertainty means that we cannot properly plan our spending. Perhaps it’s fair to say that we haven’t always done an incredible job with our money-management in the past but as liberals don’t we accept that people do their best when they’re trusted and supported to make their own decisions?

I strongly believe that …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Finance Officer: James King and Robin McGhee

By James King and Robin McGhee | Tue 30th April 2013 - 2:30 pm

Neither of us have ever had much to do with Liberal Youth. We are experienced activists and party officers who were impressed by the potential of Liberal Youth next year and thought we’d have a punt at being Finance Officer. We hope our experience and total lack of ambition will mean we can serve the organisation humbly and well, protecting and improving its finances as we have done together in our student branch.

We met at Oxford University where we eventually ascended to the co-chairmancy of the university branch of the party. In those dim and distant years (2011) Oxfordshire didn’t …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Non Portfolio Officer: Daniel Lewis

By Daniel Lewis | Tue 30th April 2013 - 2:00 pm

I am running for NPO because I believe I have the skills to help the rest of the exec out in a wide range of areas. My pitch runs on three themes: commitment, experience and ideas. For full details visit my website.

Commitment

Throughout my time in the party I have shown myself willing to help out at short notice on all manner of tasks. From getting up at 5am one Sunday a month to make sure an entire ward was delivered in a day to upping sticks to Eastleigh for 2 weeks this February I have a record of …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Policy Officer: Will Dyer

By William Dyer | Mon 29th April 2013 - 4:30 pm

Over the last twelve months, as Liberal Youth’s Policy Officer, I served under four different Liberal Youth Chairs, on two Federal Policy Committee terms, though 3 different sets of Liberal Youth elections and worked with over 20 different executive officers.

It is fair to say that Liberal Youth has been through a turbulent time over the last 12 months but look what we have achieved.

Our increased involvement in major by-elections and the up-coming local elections, (which has not gone unnoticed by our minsters in government), an increased turnout at Liberal Youth elections and for the first time since I have been …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Policy Officer: Morgan Griffith-David

By Morgan Griffith-David | Mon 29th April 2013 - 2:30 pm

Liberal Youth can campaign. Liberal Youth can recruit. Liberal Youth can train.

But Liberal Youth cannot forget our crucial Policy portfolio.

Solid policy forms the backbone for all other work we do; our innovative policies attract new members to our cause, our campaigns endeavour to change policy and we get our candidates elected to implement liberal policy. This is why I am utterly committed to making Liberal Youth policy comprehensive, professional, and engaging; to provide us with strong foundations in the run up to 2015.

Liberal Youth’s policy independence from the federal …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013…Non Portfolio Officer: Linden Parker

By Linden Parker | Sun 28th April 2013 - 3:00 pm

My main reason for standing to be a Liberal Youth Non Portfolio Officer is that I know I can be a great asset to the rest of the executive. I want to ensure that all members have a big say in the way Liberal Youth is run – something which the current executive have been particularly strong on over the past few months.

As one of Liberal Youth’s two Non Portfolio Officers, I want to help support the rest of the executive in all areas, but particularly with campaigns, communications and events. I am keen to help with the organisation and …

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Tagged #lyelects, liberal youth, liberal youth elections 2013 and non portfolio officer | 1 Comment

Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Non Portfolio Officer: Andrew Emmerson

By Andrew Emmerson | Sun 28th April 2013 - 2:30 pm

When you get your vote for the Liberal Youth elections, please use it wisely, don’t just vote for friends. Liberal Youth in the past few months has taken some real strides forward. If we want a strong vibrant and attractive youth wing, then there are clear choices. One of those is voting #1 Andrew Emmerson for Non-Portfolio Officer.

For many years I have sat on the side-lines being vaguely critical of Liberal Youth, but not done a whole lot about it. Now is time to change that. I am the candidate in these elections whose experience is varied and wide. This …

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Liberal Youth Elections 2013… Non Portfolio Officer: Charlotte Curry

By Charlotte Curry | Sun 28th April 2013 - 2:00 pm

I am a caring, thoughtful teenager who has fought against unfairness, bullying and for those who have lacked the confidence to speak up for themselves. This is one of my strengths according to my form teacher.

I am currently on a recruitment drive in Darlington to increase the number of youth members. This will greatly reduce the average age for members in Darlington and hopefully increase the number of active members. This will also give the youth of Darlington a voice that can be heard. In 2013 I plan to set up the first Lib Dem Youth group in Darlington for …

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AD LIB digital edition – teething problems solved

By Helen Duffett | Thu 18th April 2013 - 10:20 am

Hopefully all of you have had the chance to have a play with the new AD LIB interactive digital edition which was launched this month.

If not, why not have a play now?

Remember, this issue is free to all party members.

As well as all the good stuff you get with the paper copy, the digital edition has a number of interactive elements. If you want to listen to Paddy’s conference speech while reading his cover interview, you can. If you’re intrigued about Eluned Parrott’s ‘On the Record’ music choices, you can click straight to the music videos. And if you …

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Tagged ad lib magazine, eluned parrott and paddy ashdown | 4 Comments

Reminder: Just 2 days left to respond to Independent Inquiry into culture, processes and complaints

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 3rd April 2013 - 10:25 am

If you wish to submit evidence to Helena Morrissey’s Independent Inquiry into the culture, processes and complaints within the Party, you have just two days left to do so. Do not miss your chance for your voice to be heard. Evidence must be submitted to [email protected] by Friday 5th April.

Helena explained what she was looking for in an article on this site last week:

With a week to go before the deadline for written submissions, I’d like to make a further call for any evidence that may be relevant to my independent inquiry. As previously indicated, the review covers three

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Local government reform: a progress report from Spring Conference

By Penny Goodman | Fri 29th March 2013 - 12:52 pm

Between the AV referendum and the House of Lords, the cause of electoral reform has taken a few punches recently. But this year’s Spring Conference showed that Liberal Democrats have far from given up the fight.

Member contributions at consultative sessions on Political & Constitutional Reform and the next General Election manifesto revealed a strong appetite for reform to local government elections in England and Wales. And the same issue was addressed in detail at a packed Saturday evening fringe entitled ‘Worst Past the Post: why local government desperately needs electoral reform’.

The event, jointly sponsored by Liberal Democrats for Electoral Reform …

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REMINDER: Call for evidence regarding independent inquiry into processes, culture and complaints relating to harassment

By Helena Morrissey | Thu 28th March 2013 - 4:15 pm

With a week to go before the deadline for written submissions, I’d like to make a further call for any evidence that may be relevant to my independent inquiry. As previously indicated, the review covers three overlapping areas:

Processes (and what did and did not happen)
Attitudes and culture within the Party
A blueprint for the future.

I am keen to hear from all those who have relevant experiences and views to help me form an accurate picture (whether Party members, staff or public). Thank you to those who have already submitted evidence.

I’d welcome any additional evidence around the …

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David Howarth responds on the question of secret courts

By David Howarth | Fri 15th March 2013 - 3:52 pm

Tom McNally has expanded his Brighton speech in favour of the Justice and Security Bill on Liberal Democrat Voice. He makes several assertions and assumptions that simply do not stand up to scrutiny.

The main objection to closed material proceedings is not, as Tom (and most of the media) claim, that they are ‘in private’ but that they are one-sided. Not only the public but also the other party is excluded. Even the other party’s lawyer is excluded. The other party is ‘represented’ by a special advocate who is not allowed to reveal the precise facts in issue.

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Call for Evidence: independent inquiry into processes, culture and complaints relating to harassment

By Helena Morrissey | Thu 14th March 2013 - 7:50 am

As I embark on my independent inquiry I would like to set out the structure of the review and how I am going to gather input. The review will cover three overlapping areas:

Processes (and what did and did not happen)
Attitudes and culture within the Party
A blueprint for the future

I am keen to hear from all those who have relevant experiences and views to help me form an accurate picture (whether Party members, staff or public).

This is a Call for Written Evidence for three questions around the areas outlined above:

Do you have examples of specific incidences where

…

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Candy Piercy replaces Jo Shaw on the Lib Dems’ Federal Executive

By Helen Duffett | Tue 12th March 2013 - 8:41 pm

Jo Shaw’s resignation from the Liberal Democrats on Sunday created a vacancy on the Liberal Democrats’ Federal Executive committee.

The votes from the original internal party election in 2012 have now been recounted and Candy Piercy has been elected.

Candy told Lib Dem Voice:

Although I am very glad to be on the FE again, I am very sad that the reason for this is the resignation of Jo Shaw. Jo was a fierce campaigner on the FE who always spoke up loud and clear for her principles.

I will do my best to carry on that approach. I will stand up

…

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Tagged candy piercy, federal executive, jo shaw and tim farron | 6 Comments

Conference report – Europe policy consultative session

By Joe Otten | Fri 8th March 2013 - 8:09 pm

Europe remains a political challenge for the UK and for the Liberal Democrats. Where the national interest clearly demands British membership of the EU to access and influence the single market, and to leverage British influence globally, the political debate often revolves around a caricature of the EU that brings no benefits and big responsibilities. Where the liberal reform agenda to make European institutions more accountable and cost-effective, to make Europe more economically competitive have widespread support in Europe, there is a danger that a repatriation narrative will fail at the diplomatic hurdle, and hand victory to those in Europe who …

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Also posted in Conference, Europe / International and News | Tagged europe | 2 Comments

Update on Party response to allegations of sexual impropriety

By Tim Gordon | Fri 8th March 2013 - 4:09 pm

The Liberal Democrats have today announced that Helena Morrissey has been appointed as the chair of the independent inquiry into culture, process and complaints within the Liberal Democrats.

The review will also look at attitudes towards women in the party, as well as the employment relationship between staff, elected officials and volunteers; training; and how to lead a wider change in Westminster.

Helena Morrissey has been a leading light in promoting women and breaking barriers as CEO of Newton Asset Management and Founder of the 30% Club, a cross-business initiative aimed at achieving 30% women on UK corporate boards by 2015. I …

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Tagged 30% club, alistair webster, helena morrissey and public concern at work | 4 Comments

The Green Book – new directions for Liberals in government

By Mike Tuffrey | Tue 5th March 2013 - 12:04 pm

Yesterday saw the launch of a book project that I’ve been working on with colleagues over the last year. Between us, we persuaded 27 authors to put pen to paper and say what should be in a programme for government, one that’s fit for the world we live in today. Some 70 people from business, NGOs, academia, think-tanks and political parties joined us in Westminster for the launch.

Our choice of the title “Green Book” is a very conscious nod towards the Orange Book of a decade ago and indeed Lloyd George’s Yellow Book – really authored by John Maynard Keynes – 85 years ago. Last week I wrote how times have changed since then.

Each author has a specific point of view but all were united in saying we can’t go on as we are, both as a country and as a party. As editors, we were clear that the LibDems are now a party of national government; we need a programme to put before the voters that’s frank about the challenges Britain faces: the first industrialised nation that has largely exhausted its natural resources and now has to compete for energy, food and raw materials with the burgeoning economies of India, Brazil and China.

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Also posted in Books and News | Tagged featured, green book and liberal philososophy | 10 Comments

Women Liberal Democrats and sexual harrassment allegations

By The Voice | Tue 5th March 2013 - 8:53 am

We have received this statement from the Chair of Women Liberal Democrats, Miranda Whitehead, which has been sent to all their members. In view of its subject matter we have decided to reproduce it in full.

Women Liberal Democrats ( WLD) are very concerned by the sexual harassment allegations involving the party .

Of equally serious concern is the implication that the party did not deal appropriately with these complaints when they were first raised and failed to offer support.

We are also aware that it appears WLD was not seen as a place to turn for people with concerns. As some of these allegations are historical we are having to look back through our records, to be certain that these issues weren’t raised to the SAO, but whatever the case that is a failure on the part of WLD, and for that I am personally very sorry.

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Tagged public concern at work, sexual harassment and women liberal democrats | 17 Comments

Lord Rennard allegations: the processes now in place

By Tim Gordon | Sat 2nd March 2013 - 3:25 pm

I want to keep you informed on where we stand in the various processes that have started following the allegations against Lord Rennard.

There are now three processes in place:

Inquiries by the Metropolitan Police to ascertain whether criminal activity might have taken place. This is still at an early stage and there is no set time limit on when they must decide whether or not a criminal investigation should take place.
An internal investigation by the Party, headed by Alistair Webster QC, to establish whether disciplinary action under the Party’s rules is due. This whole process must take no

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Tagged alistair webster, chris rennard and public concern at work | 4 Comments

Yellow, orange, green… time for new book, and a different approach

By Mike Tuffrey | Fri 1st March 2013 - 10:51 am

Back in 1928, publication of The Yellow Book – the report of a party inquiry “Britain’s Industrial Future” – provided the basis for Lloyd George’s 1929 general election programme “We can conquer unemployment!”. It put the party firmly in the camp of an interventionist economic strategy, with John Maynard Keynes as its intellectual lodestar. With the Great Depression ranging, the party firmly rejected laisser-faire liberalism.

Come 2004 and the Orange Book -subtitled Reclaiming Liberalism and edited by David Laws and Paul Marshall – challenged what some were calling nanny-state liberalism. It promoted choice and competition and argued that the Liberal Democrats …

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Also posted in Books and News | Tagged liberal philosophy | 8 Comments

Update on the Party’s processes following the allegations concerning the conduct of Lord Rennard

By Tim Gordon | Mon 25th February 2013 - 5:03 pm

I want to update you on three developments to the processes I outlined in my post on Saturday.

Arrangements for victims and witnesses to come forward

Firstly, we have sought the assistance of Public Concern at Work, the UK’s leading whistle-blowing authority, to ensure that the whistle-blowing arrangement is sufficiently independent to provide the required support to those wishing to come forward in relation to the alleged behaviour of Lord Rennard.

Public Concern at Work have agreed to take over the role, temporarily filled by Kate Parminter, as the main point of contact for anyone wishing to come forward with further allegations or information.

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Allegations regarding the conduct of Lord Rennard: a statement from Jo Swinson MP

By Jo Swinson MP | Sat 23rd February 2013 - 4:44 pm

My focus throughout has been to protect the women who confided in me and, our shared objective, to prevent other women experiencing this kind of behaviour. All the time I was careful to respect their wish for privacy and, for that matter, their right not to be harassed by the press .

I took action and ensured that others took action. I told the women who had confided in me what I had done to try to put a stop to any inappropriate behaviour, and encouraged them to let me know if they became aware of any further incidents.

I …

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Allegations regarding the conduct of Lord Rennard and the Party’s response

By Tim Gordon | Sat 23rd February 2013 - 3:01 pm

Many of you will have seen and heard the various media reports alleging serious misconduct by Lord Rennard while he was Chief Executive of the Party and pointing to a failure of the Party more widely to adequately deal with complaints made about this behaviour. It appears that we did not fully live up to our political ideals, and I regret that.

I want to assure you that the Party, and I as Chief Executive, are taking these questions very seriously – both as regards the specific allegations that were made, but also about the Party’s procedures for handling complaints …

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