Tag Archives: federal executive

Opinion: The Lib Dem leadership’s attitude to the Police Commissioner elections is baffling!

By David Hennigan | Published 15th November 2011 - 2:15 pm

“Liberal Democrats – soft on crime” was the headline that has often screamed off Labour leaflets over the last decade. Indeed, in the latter stages of the 2010 General Election, Labour strategists used that message to squeeze the Liberal Democrat vote when we were on 29%.

Looking at the partial, last-minute collapse in our vote, it’s difficult to argue that this line of attack didn’t work. The ‘soft on crime’ attack was used against us in the Oldham East and Saddleworth By-election. Labour’s Christmas Card to constituents in Oldham even featured a snowman with a police …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , , | 30 Comments

Opinion: What next for elected Police Commissioners?

By Chris White | Published 2nd November 2011 - 1:55 pm

In 1951, the Liberal Party fielded just 109 parliamentary candidates. 1959 was better with 216. And in 1979, shortly before the foundation of the SDP, we were fielding 577 – virtually a candidate in every seat.

Most of us have grown up in a political landscape in which our party attempts to field a full slate, at all levels. In the darkest days after the merger, in first-past-the-post European elections cynically rigged against us, we fielded candidates throughout Great Britain even though we knew we would likely win no seats at all. Indeed, I still remember my excitement at the prospect …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 17 Comments

Should the way members of federal committees vote be public?

By Mark Pack | Published 31st October 2011 - 12:57 pm

At the end of my post on the Federal Executive’s decision that the Liberal Democrats should (mostly) not fight police commissioner elections, a decision at odds with the views of party members we surveyed, I made reference to the fact that the details of such votes are not published and usually remain confidential. Sometimes news of who voted which way seeps out but, for example, you’re not officially meant to know that three members of the FE voted against that decision or who the three were.

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Posted in Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged , | 12 Comments

Opinion: The Liberal Democrats should contest Police Commissioner elections

By Tom King | Published 31st October 2011 - 9:24 am

Ask many people what they think of the Lib Dems’ approach to law and order, and you’ll be told – erroneously – that we’re a soft touch. Our approach, traditionally evidence-based and less punitive than the populist authoritarian policies of Labour and the Tories, takes longer to explain. When we fail to do so, we risk being seen as the party that panders to criminals.

Of course, that isn’t the case. We believe in policy that actually works to reduce crime and recidivism, using all possible means to rehabilitate those who resort to illegality, while reiterating the importance of the …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , | 19 Comments

Liberal Democrats decide to pass up on fighting Police Commissioner elections (mostly)

By Mark Pack | Published 27th October 2011 - 7:43 pm

The Liberal Democrat Federal Executive (FE) decided this week that the federal party will not be providing any financial backing to Liberal Democrats wishing to stand for election as Police Commissioners. The expectation is that instead the party will end up backing independent candidates, although it has been made clear that local areas can decide to field candidates if they wish to – albeit without any financial backing from the central party.

The strong preference given, however, is for Liberal Democrats to back independent candidates. As FE chair and Party President Tim Farron wrote to regional parties:

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Posted in News, Party policy and internal matters, Selection news | Also tagged , , | 35 Comments

Federal Executive recommends changes to allow more campaigning in party election contests

By Mark Pack | Published 3rd April 2011 - 6:27 pm

During the week the Federal Executive agreed to support a series of proposals from the party’s Acting Returning Officer, David Allworthy, to relax the restrictions on campaign in party internal elections. To quote the paper put to the FE:

These can be summed up in the following five areas:

- the introduction of  Acting Returning Officer (ARO) electronic communications as per Leadership and Presidential elections

- the introduction of an ARO published e-mail and telephone contact for each candidate to encourage voter candidate contact

- the removal of the no endorsements rule for the Interim Peers Election and bringing into line with the Committee,

…

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Posted in Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged | 8 Comments

Party looks to the US for new election database software

By Mark Pack | Published 30th March 2011 - 10:26 am

Excellent news from the Federal Executive this week with the decision to appoint a preferred supplier for a new election fighting computer database. Voter Activation Network, the US firm which services many Democrat Party candidates, has been selected with a view to signing a multi-year contract shortly.

Amongst the other bidders were the party’s long-running suppliers EARS (though they may still have a role to play as data suppliers, especially given the team’s expertise and experience in dealing with different electoral register formats).

EARS has provided a valuable service to the party for many years, but the old model of individual databases …

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Posted in News | Also tagged , | 15 Comments

My question for the Federal Executive

By Mark Pack | Published 22nd February 2011 - 8:55 am

Here’s the question I’m submitting to the Report of the Federal Executive at the party’s spring conference in Sheffield:

The report makes only very brief mention of several important topics (e.g. the party’s KPIs  and review into the general election, for neither of which are details provided). Overall it is far shorter than previous FE reports, with for example less than a third of the words of that from the first spring conference after the 2001 general election. Will the FE consider providing more substantive reports in future?

The Federal Executive’s report is being debated at 5:30pm on the Saturday in the main …

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Posted in Conference, Party policy and internal matters | 1 Comment

Federal Executive elects people to key party posts

By Mark Pack | Published 23rd January 2011 - 4:55 pm

During the week, the Federal Executive elected the following:

Deputy Chair, Federal Executive – Alison Goldsworthy
Chair, Federal Finance and Administration Committee – Duncan Greenland
Treasurer – Richard Duncalf
Chair, Campaigns & Communications Committee- James Gurling
Chair, International Relations Committee – Robert Woodthorpe-Browne
Chair, Campaign for Gender Balance – Ros Gordon

Posted in Party policy and internal matters | 8 Comments

Wanted: one party locksmith

By Mark Pack | Published 21st January 2011 - 8:55 am

The Guardian‘s splash about the first meeting of the party’s newly elected Federal Executive makes for rather generous coverage of a completely unexceptional decision by the FE.

That the first meeting of the newly elected committee, faced with deciding what motion to put to the Spring Conferences, goes for saying that the party should fight the next general election as an independent party is about as unsurprising an outcome as you could expect. But if The Guardian wants to give heavy coverage to the Lib Dems and Conservatives not being one and the same, that’s not exactly the worst the …

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Posted in Op-eds, Party policy and internal matters | 10 Comments

New Lib Dem councillor representatives elected for party committees

By Mark Pack | Published 20th January 2011 - 12:50 pm

Via the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors (ALDC) comes the news:

Elections have taken place to elect the principal councillor representative on two Federal Party Committees for 2011-2012:

On the Federal Executive Committee the following have been elected:

Cllr Stan Collins (South Lakeland DC and Cumbria CC)
Cllr Keith House (Eastleigh BC and Hampshire CC)

On the Federal Policy Committee the following have been elected:

Cllr Louise Bloom (Eastleigh BC)
Cllr Stan Collins (South Lakeland DC and Cumbria CC)
Cllr Chris White (St Albans CC and Hertfordshire CC)

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Party reviewing internal election rules: you have until 21 January to send in your views

By Mark Pack | Published 12th January 2011 - 8:55 am

In November I blogged my suggestions for how the party’s internal election rules should be changed. In brief – fewer restrictions on candidates and voters being able to talk about the contests and who they support, more leeway for online campaigning and a series of steps to encourage more debate and discussion within the party about the elections and merits of candidates. The last point was fuelled by my experience of standing (successfully) for the Interim Peers Panel – and being asked almost no policy questions by voters in the process.

Following the federal committee, interim peers panel and …

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Posted in Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged | 4 Comments

More results: party committees and interim peers panel

By Helen Duffett | Published 13th November 2010 - 1:20 pm

Liberal Democrat Federal Conference representatives have voted for members of party committees for 2011-2012 and members of the panel from which future Liberal Democrat nominees for the House of Lords will be drawn.

The results are as follows:

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Posted in News, Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Live blogging: Reports of the Federal Executive and the Federal Finance and Administration Committee

By Mark Pack | Published 13th March 2010 - 5:43 pm

Federal Executive (FE) report moved by Ros Scott – “I hope it is a sign that you are all fairly happy with the party that the room is emptying so rapidly.” Explains FE meetings always start with a session with Nick Clegg and also gets regular updates on the general and local election campaigns.

Explains how FE has changed more to a scrutiny model (cf House of Commons select committees) and has paid particular attention to party membership/recruitment and to IT.

Update on the Bones Commission report – those within the FE’s remit have now mostly been carried out. Creation of the …

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Ros Scott writes… Party President’s report to members, November ‘09

By Baroness Ros Scott | Published 15th December 2009 - 10:30 am

The two months since the party’s last Federal Executive have, as usual, been pretty busy. In that period I have visited local parties in Aldershot, Altrincham & Sale, Winchester, Islington, Sutton, Wycombe, Amersham & Chesham, Swindon, Gloucester, Stroud, Cheltenham, East Dunbartonshire, Glasgow North, Edinburgh Pentlands, North & Leith, West, Ochil, and Consett. I have also attended the North West and West Midlands Regional Conferences.

The two meetings of the party’s Chief Officers Group which I have attended are reported separately to FE, but I wish to highlight the work done to develop the business plan and budget which were …

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