Tag Archives: Alistair Carmichael

Alistair Carmichael and Richard Hughes from Keane tell the Independent about their friendship

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 6th May 2013 - 10:59 am

Yesterday’s Independent on Sunday carried an interview with Alistair Carmichael and Richard Hughes from Keane about the friendship they developed after they met on a trip with Amnesty to try to prevent the execution of American Troy Davis in 2009. Sadly, Troy was executed in 2011.

The article captures the bright and funny personality of one of our most popular MPs, along with his passionate opposition to the death penalty.

Richard Hughes sums him up like this:

Alistair is a passionate guy – it’s one of the things that makes him so charming. And he’s absolutely given me faith in the reason why

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged amnesty international, death penalty, independent on sunday, keane, richard hughes and usa | Leave a comment

Tales from the seaside…

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 12th March 2013 - 11:55 am

A few observations from the weekend in Brighton.

Lib Dem Voice luxury

The Liberal Democrat Voice office was the loveliest we’d ever had. Normally we are stuck in a broom cupboard in amongst bottles of Domestos. This time we had proper desks, bottles of water and sweeties. And do you know what else was lovely? The Conference Office had factored us in and booked us a room without us having to ask. Our thanks to the person who did that.

Rumour had it that the professional media’s quarters were not quite as plush. I’m not saying that there was straw on the floor …

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Posted in News | Also tagged conference gossip, glee club and mike thornton | 2 Comments

The surprising truth about that Lib Dem in/out EU referendum leaflet*

By Stephen Tall | Thu 17th January 2013 - 1:25 pm

On Monday morning, Nick Clegg was given a hard time on BBC Radio 4′s Today Programme by interviewer Justin Webb, who accused him of changing his position on an EU referendum on the basis of this pictured leaflet (click to enlarge**).

Nick brushed it to one side, correctly pointing out that the party has stuck to its 2010 manifesto pledge (my emphasis):

The European Union has evolved significantly since the last public vote on membership over thirty years ago. Liberal Democrats therefore remain committed to an in/out referendum the next

…

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Also tagged david heath, European referendum, european union, featured, george eaton, justin webb, nick clegg and tim farron | 33 Comments

The Carmichael Twinterview: Pandas, Coalition and Cake

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 9th January 2013 - 2:54 pm

Just before Christmas, Scottish Liberal Democrat members received a newsletter which contained a “Twinterview” with Chief Whip and Scottish Deputy Leader Alistair Carmichael. This is a chat he had with me – in which questions and answers had to be within 140 characters reproduced here for your amusement.

CL: You clearly enjoy social media despite the risk that it might get you into trouble some day. Why do you do it and what do you like about it?

AC: Despite? Because of the risk! Facebook allows me to stay …

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Posted in News | Also tagged pandas and twitter | 1 Comment

LibLink: Alistair Carmichael MP’s heartfelt appreciation of John Morrison

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 29th December 2012 - 3:00 pm

A week ago, former East Dunbartonshire Liberal Democrat Council leader John Morrison died soon after being assaulted in Glasgow. In today’s Herald, Liberal Democrat chief whip in the House of Commons Alistair Carmichael, a close friend of John’s for 30 years, has written an appreciation of his life. He takes us through John’s university days as a top debater, through his professional life as a solicitor, and his role as a senior councillor in rescuing East Dunbartonshire Council from a dire financial situation. For our chief whip, John was

a friend and a 30-year source of support, honest advice

…

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged john morrison and the herald | Leave a comment

Scottish Liberal Democrats mourn ex Council Leader John Morrison

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 23rd December 2012 - 5:30 pm

Scottish Liberal Democrats were shocked to learn of the sudden death of former East Dunbartonshire Council Leader John Morrison at the age of just 50. The Sunday Herald reports that John was found unconscious as the result of an assault in a Glasgow Street early on Saturday morning and died later in hospital.

John was affectionately known as Hobbit throughout the Scottish party. He had acquired that nickname while at Glasgow University and bore it with his customary good humour. He’d been a leading …

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Posted in News | Also tagged Jo Swinson, john morrison, Local government and Scotland | 1 Comment

Paddy Ashdown: “The time for action is imminent”

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 19th December 2012 - 9:29 am

If you thought Paddy Ashdown had been a bit quiet since he was appointed General Election chair, then I can confidently predict that our time of peace is soon to come to an end. Have a good break this Christmas, Liberal Democrat activist, because if our energetic peer has his way, it’ll be the last chance you get until May 7 2015.

He emailed members yesterday to let them know 3 things.

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Posted in General Election and News | Also tagged Danny Alexander, general election 2015, kirsty williams and paddy ashdown | 2 Comments

Nick Clegg does PMQs in style

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 7th November 2012 - 6:55 pm

Nick Clegg did Prime Minister’s Questions today while David Cameron is schmoozing his way round the Middle East. He was so assured, confident and natural and spoke completely without notes. He even answered the question he was given and not the one he wanted to answer, too. He made David Cameron look like a complete amateur, to be honest, and Gordon Brown, too.

My Liberal Democrat Voice colleague Nick Thornsby reminded us on Twitter this morning that four years ago, two days after Barack Obama was elected the first time round, Nick, then a humble third party leader, questioned PM Gordon Brown, who put him down quite snidily. And the subject of his questions? Taxing the wealthy and cutting taxes for the poorest. Nothing if not consistent. Have a look here.

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Posted in News | Also tagged alan reid, harriet harman, nadine dorries, nick clegg, peter bone, PMQs and simon hughes | 7 Comments

“Liberalism shouldn’t be about the safe option, it should always be a risky thing to take on.” Alistair Carmichael on life in the Coalition as Lib Dem chief whip

By Stephen Tall | Tue 30th October 2012 - 2:15 pm

There’s a terrific interview with Lib Dem chief whip Alistair Carmichael in this month’s Total Politics magazine, in which he gives a typically candid view on what life is like as within the Coalition — and how the Lib Dem whipping operation differs from Labour’s and the Tories’. Here’s a few excerpts:

“I would say the difference between us and the other two parties in this place is that we can get to a position of unity. In fact, it’s much more important to be able to persuade a liberal,

…

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged anoosh chakelian, total politics and whip | 4 Comments

Conference: the good, the bad and the ugly

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 30th September 2012 - 2:39 pm

Now that I’ve had some sleep and recovered from the fun of Federal Conference in Brighton, I thought I’d share with you some of the highs and lows of a thoroughly enjoyable five days.

The Good

When Shami beat Paddy: You don’t often see Paddy Ashdown being completely bested in an argument, but Liberty director Shami Chakrabati managed it with aplomb. Paddy said in his speech to a packed Liberty fringe meeting that secret courts were fine as long as everything was overseen by a Judge. Shami went for him. She said she knew she was abusing the chair, but it was her meeting and …

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Posted in Conference and Op-eds | Also tagged jo shaw, Jo Swinson, nick clegg, peter andre and shami chakrabati | 28 Comments

Alistair Carmichael becomes Deputy Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 27th September 2012 - 10:25 am

To Liberal Democrat activists across the UK, chief whip Alistair Carmichael is one of the most popular parliamentarians. His sociable nature, wise head and sense of humour make him ideally suited for the challenges of being chief whip, but it means that one of our best media performers has been largely confined to the shadows of Westminster for the past two and a half years.

Now the MP for Orkney and Shetland has partially emerged from those shadows to take over as Deputy Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, succeeding Jo Swinson who stepped down after her promotion in the reshuffle.

Alistair’s …

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Posted in News | Also tagged Jo Swinson and scottish liberal democrats | Leave a comment

Conference calls for our parliamentarians to reject Secret Courts

By Mary Reid | Tue 25th September 2012 - 7:43 pm

At most conferences there is at least one debate which proves how different we are from the other main parties. Different because we entrust Conference to decide party policy, in open debate, even where that may be at odds with the views of our parliamentarians.

Today’s debate on the ‘Secret Courts’ motion was a good example. The full title was F41: No Government Above the Law – The Justice and Security Bill.

This motion, submitted by two local parties, called on the Coalition to withdraw Part II of the Justice and Security Bill, which would empower Ministers to allow civil hearings …

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Posted in Conference | Also tagged 2012 Brighton Conference, jim wallace, jonathan marks, julian huppert, justice and security bill, paul strasburger, robin meltzer, sarah ludford, secret courts and tom brake | 5 Comments

Grassroutes to Government – a new Lib Dem activists’ network launches today.

By Jock Gallagher | Thu 12th April 2012 - 3:53 pm

A new network of grassroots activists under the leadership of the veteran peer, Roger Roberts, has been formed to develop communications with the party’s senior management. and parliamentarians.

Grassroutes to Government is drawn from across the membership and we launch today via a virtual launch on all the party’s social media platforms.

We can already point to a range of new lines of communication that will ensure the members have a clearer voice and we expect to have continuing discussions to underpin the importance of our activists.

Planning for the new group began soon after Federal Conference in Birmingham last September. Roger Roberts says:

“Pressure

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged grassroutes to government, internal communications, lorely burt, roger roberts, tim farron and tim gordon | 19 Comments

From Indian Dance, to Speed Mentoring to barnstorming speeches: Caron’s Top Ten Highlights of Scottish Conference

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 7th March 2012 - 3:56 pm

Scottish Liberal Democrats met in Inverness last weekend for a lively 3 day Conference. Here are my top ten highlights.

Leader Willie Rennie’s first ever Spring Conference speech, delivered with sincerity and passion. He implored the First Minister to make as much time for the dispossessed, as he does for billionaires such as Murdoch and Donald Trump. He spoke of the Liberal Democrats’ long record of fighting for home rule for Scotland which made us the true guarantors of change. He told of his desire to work constructively with others wherever possible, but how we would stand firm on liberal

…

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Posted in Conference and News | Also tagged katy gordon, kavya kaushik, malcolm bruce, scottish liberal democrats, scottish women liberal democrats and willie rennie | 4 Comments

Nick Clegg’s speech to Scottish Liberal Democrat Conference

By Helen Duffett | Sat 3rd March 2012 - 10:25 am

Scottish Liberal Democrat Conference started yesterday in Inverness and runs until tomorrow (Sunday). Nick Clegg addressed Conference yesterday afternoon; here is his speech in full:

Liberals from the Highlands and Islands have always been at the heart of our party. From the late great Jo Grimond and Russell Johnston, great leaders like Bob Maclennan, Charles Kennedy and Jim Wallace in Scotland, to our current team at Westminster, Highland and Island voices have shaped who the Liberal Democrats are.

In Danny Alexander and Alistair Carmichael, I have Liberals from the Highlands and Islands with me right at the heart of British Government. …

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Posted in Scotland and Speeches | Also tagged bob maclennan, carolyn caddick, charles kennedy, Danny Alexander, jim wallace, jo grimond, nick clegg, russell johnston and scottish liberal democrats | Leave a comment

The Beveridge Group announces its relaunch

By NewsHound | Tue 10th January 2012 - 12:18 pm

The Liberal Democrat Voice team have received a press release from John Pugh MP, which may be of interest to those in the Party keen to engage in debate on policy and philosophy.

With an eye to the new parliamentary year and forthcoming legislation, the Beveridge Group has reformed and a new updated website is already up and running. The initiative follows widespread concern inside and outside parliament as to where Coalition policy on public services may be going.

We want to prompt a proper debate as to where the …

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Posted in News and Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged beveridge group and john pugh | 14 Comments

Which four Liberal Democrat ministers have most improved their standings in 2011?

By Mark Pack | Wed 28th December 2011 - 11:55 am

Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 564 party members responded, and we are publishing the full results here over several days.

Jeremy Browne, Vince Cable, Ed Davey and Lynne Featherstone are the four Liberal Democrat ministers to have significantly increased their standing in the eyes of party members over this year, according to the surveys of party members carried out by Liberal Democrat Voice four times in the year.

When asked how satisfied or dissatisfied they are with a range of party …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Also tagged chris huhne, ed davey, jeremy browne, lynne featherstone, tim farron and vince cable | 3 Comments

The significant part of Tim Farron’s speech

By Mark Pack | Tue 20th September 2011 - 12:55 pm

Tim Farron is probably the Parliamentary Party’s best funny speech maker (though I’d pay good money to see him head-to-head in a laugh off with Alistair Carmichael), so it’s not a surprise that Tim’s speech to Liberal Democrat conference caught the headlines mostly for his humour and his stress-testing of political marriage analogies to destruction.

Yet there was a significant section about how Liberal Democrat ministers act and his own role:

There are 18 Liberal Democrats who don’t have the luxuries that I do.

They can’t just sound off if they don’t like government policy or trot through the no lobby on

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Posted in Conference | Also tagged Danny Alexander, george osborne, michael gove, sarah teather, tim farron and vince cable | 4 Comments

So you think you know how to improve campaigning? Come to Conference Dragons’ Den

By Mark Pack | Mon 22nd August 2011 - 1:55 pm

Autumn conference in Birmingham will see a new type of campaigning event which sounds rather fun: a Dragons’ Den style fringe meeting at which people pitch their ideas for new approaches to campaigning.

The panel will be Alistair Carmichael MP, James Gurling (Chair, Campaigns & Communications Committee), Hilary Stephenson (Director of Elections and Skills) and Kirsty Williams AM. It will be on Sunday 18th September at 1pm in Room 103 of the Jurys Inn.

Submissions are open to any party member except for Campaigns Department employees.

Step one is to submit your idea by Monday 12th September to Tim Pollard on [email protected]. …

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Posted in Conference | Also tagged hilary stephenson, james gurling and kirsty williams | 10 Comments

Interview: Alistair Carmichael Part 2 – The Life of a Whip

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 7th April 2011 - 6:55 pm

Welcome to the second part of my interview with Liberal Democrat Chief Whip and Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael.

Most of us who are interested in politics have either read House of Cards or watched it on DVD and think we know how a Chief Whip operates from watching the dastardly Francis Urquhart at work. I said to Alistair that I really didn’t think pushing people off buildings or lacing their heroin with rat poison was quite his style – so what was a typical day in the life of a Chief Whip like?

Caron, that’s one of the nicest things …

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Posted in Blogger Interviews | Also tagged caron lindsay and guest editor | 1 Comment

Carmichael moves to end MP-MSP dual mandates

By Mark Pack | Wed 24th February 2010 - 3:20 pm

Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat Shadow Scotland Secretary, has tabled amendments to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill aimed at bringing an end to MSPs and MPs holding both jobs at the same time.

The amendments follow legislation backed by both the Government and the Conservatives which seeks to end ‘double jobbing’ by Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLAs) who are also MPs. They offer two options:

a measure which would end the ability of MPs who are also MSPs to receive salaries from both jobs, along the same lines as the Government and Conservative-backed legislation on MLAs and intended to act as

…

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Posted in Election law, Parliament and Scotland | Also tagged constitutional reform and governance bill | 6 Comments

Welcome to the new bloggers…

By Mark Pack | Sat 6th February 2010 - 4:20 pm

Four blogs have recently joined Ryan’s Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator:

Alistair Carmichael - http://alistaircarmichael.wordpress.com – the MP for Orkney and Shetland is a very welcome addition to the ranks of blogging Lib Dem Parliamentarians.
Daisy Benson - http://daisyscampaigndiary.blogspot.com – our Reading West candidate gets stuck into local issues.
Dave Page - http://davepage.focusteam.org.uk – good to see a new local blog using the excellent ALDC MyCouncillor system.
Mike Finn - http://histospeak.wordpress.com – a blog from a former historian; my views on the virtues of that are of course completely unbaised.

Good luck to all the new bloggers, and why not take a moment to pop over to their blogs, take a read and post a comment?

Whether you are a new or experience blogger yourself, you may also find our compilation of “how to blog” posts useful:

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Posted in Online politics | Also tagged blogging, daisy benson, dave page and mike finn | 3 Comments

Lib Dem MPs split on Euro referendum?

By Stephen Tall | Thu 21st January 2010 - 9:50 am

Almost two years ago, in the early weeks of Nick Clegg’s leadership, the Lib Dem parliamentary party managed to tie itself in knots over the question of whether to support a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. In the end three frontbenchers, David Heath, Tim Farron and Alistair Carmichael, quit after defying the party’s three-line whip to oppose a referendum.

Well, Sky News has the interesting story that the party still hasn’t managed to get its line straight and agreed, re-opening that split:

Now it seems to be deja vu all over again, with a new Lib Dem split in voting

…

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Posted in Europe / International | Also tagged david heath, ed davey, European referendum, john hemming, lembit opik, lisbon treaty, mike hancock and tim farron | 9 Comments

Interning for MPs: exploitation or experience?

By Helen Duffett | Fri 13th November 2009 - 5:24 pm

Donal MacIntyre and Hannah Barnes have reported on MPs’ interns for BBC Radio 5 live:

MPs could be breaking the law by not paying their parliamentary interns. Hundreds of young graduates are putting in thousands of hours of unpaid work at Westminster. This practice is excluding many young people without independent financial support from a route that many see as the first step on the ladder to a political career. But, this is not just a question of pushing the bounds of fairness. Minimum wage regulations require that some of these interns should be paid.”

You can listen to the podcast of last Sunday’s show “Parliament’s unpaid workers” here.

Among Liberal Democrat MPs, practices vary: Phil Willis and Alistair Carmichael pay their interns the national minimum wage while others pay only travel and lunch expenses.

I spoke to Alistair Carmichael, MP for Orkney and Shetland, who puts his interns on a contract as part-time researchers:

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged donal macintyre, hannah barnes, internships, lynne featherstone, mps expenses and phil willis | 22 Comments

Times: Tavish Scott expected to see off Lib Dem rebellion on opposition to referendum

By Stephen Tall | Sat 31st October 2009 - 1:00 pm

A week ago, LDV asked the question, Is it time for the Scottish Lib Dems to back an independence referendum?, amid suggestions in The Sunday Times that there was “a growing rebellion within the party’s ranks over its opposition to Alex Salmond’s Referendum Bill.” Today’s Times reports that Scottish Lib Dem leader Tavish Scott will win overwhelming backing for the leadership line:

Senior Lib Dems were increasingly confident that a minority of “referendum rebels” would not succeed in forcing Mr Scott into a U-turn that could pose serious question marks over his continued leadership.

The issue of the Scottish government’s

…

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Posted in Scotland | Also tagged scottish independence, Scottish independence referendum, snp and tavish scott | 12 Comments

Is it time for the Scottish Lib Dems to back an independence referendum?

By Stephen Tall | Sun 25th October 2009 - 3:05 pm

The Sunday Times reports:

Senior Liberal Democrat figures will hold talks in an attempt to halt a growing rebellion within the party’s ranks over its opposition to Alex Salmond’s Referendum Bill. Party managers will meet on Monday to decide the best way of tackling the revolt, which could seriously undermine Tavish Scott’s leadership of the party.

Strategists have yet to decide whether they will allow the issue to go to a vote at a special conference being held in Dunfermline next Saturday to confirm the party’s stance. It is understood that several of the party’s Westminster candidates are preparing to join

…

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Posted in Scotland | Also tagged Scottish independence referendum and tavish scott | 20 Comments

Unemployment: Lib Dems on the bleak national picture

By Stephen Tall | Thu 15th October 2009 - 6:50 pm

Three separate Lib Dem press releases ping into the Voice’s inbox, each of them them telling a depressing story about the human impact of the recession.

First up, Lib Dem shadow work and pensions secretary Steve Webb on the doubling of long-term unemployment in the last year alone:

Ministers try to spin the slower rise in headline figures as progress, but long-term unemployment has doubled in a year and if it is not tackled now it will be a devastating legacy of this recession.

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Posted in Scotland and Wales | Also tagged jenny randerson, recession, steve webb and unemployment | 3 Comments

Lib Dem MP: Where’s my nearest railway station? In Norway.

By The Voice | Tue 13th October 2009 - 9:50 am

The Voice enjoyed this snippet from Hugh Muir’s diary in today’s Guardian:

Alistair Carmichael, the Liberal Democrat MP for the distant seat of Orkney and Shetland, received a parliamentary travel expenses form, which asked: “What is your nearest mainline railway station?” He contacted the Fees Office to explain that his constituency is in the middle of the North Sea but was told he had to answer. OK then, he said: Oslo. The member for Smarty-pants west.

Posted in News | Also tagged hugh muir and mps expenses | 8 Comments

LDV post-conference members’ survey (3): what you thought of the Lib Dem conference

By Stephen Tall | Sun 11th October 2009 - 4:30 pm

Over the last week, Lib Dem Voice has invited the members of our private forum (open to all Lib Dem members) inviting them to take part in a survey, conducted via Liberty Research, asking a number of questions about the party and the current state of British politics. Many thanks to the 200+ of you who completed it; we’ve been publishing the results on LDV over the past few days. You can catch up on the results of all our exclusive LDV members’ surveys by clicking here.

First up, we asked how many of you had actually …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Also tagged bournemouth 2009 conference, chris huhne, edward davey, evan harris, sarah teather, tim farron and vince cable | 1 Comment