Tag Archives: monarchy

Mathew Hulbert

Opinion: Liberal Democrats for a republic

By Mathew Hulbert | Mon 27th May 2013 - 8:52 am

Liberal Democrats believe in democracy. Indeed ‘Democrats’ is in our title.

We believe in representative democracy, from parish councils to (though we’re still fighting for it) the House of Lords.

We believe those who make the laws of our land should be voted for by the people of our land.
Government of, for and by the people.

We believe this should be extended to those occupying the highest positions in British Government.

If we believe, as we rightly do, that no peer of the realm should be able to be a legislator just because of who they were born to or who …

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Posted in Op-eds | 52 Comments
Geoff Crocker

Opinion: Should the Queen speak out on the Belfast flag issue?

By Geoff Crocker | Mon 31st December 2012 - 9:54 am

Queen Elizabeth IIThe pictures of the Queen joining the Cabinet meeting were charming. They conveyed a reassuring image of a stable democracy with a historic back-stop. Almost always we want the democratic element to prevail, but there are perhaps very limited issues and occasions when the monarchy can make a difference. The Queen inviting Harold Macmillan to form a government rather than Rab Butler in 1957 is the occasion often quoted. It did actually make a political difference, since Harold Wilson was later reported as having feared that Rab Butler may well have won the 1964 election.

Northern Ireland may be another occasion when the monarchy could make a

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 12 Comments
Kevin McNamara

Opinion: The case for a Republic – and why Lib Dems should support it

By Kevin McNamara | Mon 9th July 2012 - 12:53 pm

This is a long fought argument and, maybe, one that everyone that will read this is tired of hearing. Nonetheless, it is an argument that all liberals should support.

As liberals, we oppose the arbitrary concentration of power – and you don’t get more arbitrary than your head of state being hereditary!

As a short disclaimer, I do not intend to go into arguments about cost et cetera, but rather the principle of having a monarchy.

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Posted in Op-eds | 23 Comments
Adam Corlett

Opinion: The lottery winner who would be King or Queen

By Adam Corlett | Thu 14th June 2012 - 5:48 pm
Hereditary monarchy has no place in a “fair, free and open society” but royalists and republicans seem to be talking different languages. To bridge the divide we need to choose our head of state by lottery. I agree with William Summers who recently wrote herethat he “cannot support a system of monarchy whereby power is inherited and all but one family is excluded from being head of state.” This is on top of questions of transparency, corruption and political influence, or of historical connotation. But republicans have failed to make the case for any alternative. Arguments from principle

…

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Posted in Op-eds | 15 Comments
George Kendall

Opinion: Why I am a royalist

By George Kendall | Wed 6th June 2012 - 4:25 pm

There’s nothing democratic about the royal family. They are the descendants of a thug who defeated another thug to become the despot of these Isles. If that was all there was to them, I would be the first in the queue to get rid of them.

The greatest invention in the history of the world is not the wheel, or fire, or the scientific method: it’s democracy and the rule of law. What’s wonderful about democracy is he principle it establishes, that everyone, no matter their colour or creed, is of equal worth. That each person has the same number of …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged and | 24 Comments
The Voice

Nick Clegg’s praises Queen’s dignity, calm and wisdom

By The Voice | Wed 6th June 2012 - 8:55 am

It’s now time to pack away the bunting and force ourselves back to the daily grind after the double bank holiday.

The Voice thought you might be interested to see Nick Clegg’s official message on the Diamond Jubilee, though, which is available on his You Tube channel here.

He says she is a Queen famous for her quiet steeliness but he’s always been struck by her great warmth and her rare ability to put everyone she meets at ease.

He praises her wisdom, calm and dignity in a rapidly changing world – and wishes us all a good time celebrating.

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Posted in News | Also tagged , and | Leave a comment
William Summers

Opinion: Liberal Democrats should make the case for an elected head of state

By William Summers | Fri 1st June 2012 - 9:05 am

I’m proud to be in a party that values freedom and democracy above all else. We passionately campaign for equality of opportunity, and a world in which success is based on a person’s own merits rather than privilege and nepotism. We want to reform the outdated electoral system, and object to an unelected House of Lords, described by Nick Clegg as “an affront to the principles of openness which underpin a modern democracy”.

That is why I, like many other Liberal Democrats, cannot support a system of monarchy whereby power is inherited and all but one family is excluded from …

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Posted in Op-eds | 94 Comments



Recent Comments

  • User AvatarEd Shepherd 20th Jun - 7:29am
    An interesting perspective from Steve Way. He makes some very good points.
  • User AvatarDominic 20th Jun - 6:13am
    FTT is indeed a dumb idea - just look what it did for Sweden's financial services industry when it tried it out some years back....
  • User AvatarDavid 20th Jun - 3:42am
    I'd be interested -- in fact, fascinated -- by this whole debate if I thought that the question were really up for decision. Since, however,...
  • User AvatarIan Patterson 19th Jun - 11:37pm
    Quelle Horreur. Nearly choked when reading liberator article today. we do not need more millionaires in ranks in lords, however 'active' they have been in...
  • User AvatarTim13 19th Jun - 9:45pm
    Interested to hear a comment from candidates' Office at HQ on the numbers of PPCs in place. For the 2005 and 2010 the party made...
  • User AvatarRoland 19th Jun - 8:29pm
    @Keith - Actually, I overlooked a couple of important points: Firstly Caron did say 'qualifies' rather than 'receives' - so apologies to Caron if I...
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