Tag Archives: nick clegg

Nick Clegg and Julian Huppert are Internet heroes

By Mary Reid | Tue 18th June 2013 - 1:47 pm

The Internet Service Providers’ Association (ISPA) has shortlisted both Nick Clegg and Julian Huppert for it’s Internet Hero award for 2013.

And why? – for the role they both played in preventing the communications data bill from reaching the statute books.

The other two nominees are Edward Snowdon, who was the whistleblower on the PRISM project, and Spamhaus, an IT security organisation who fought off a major denial of service attack earlier this year.

ISPA Secretary-General Nicholas Lansman noted that the Internet Hero award is “one of the most anticipated categories” at the ISPAs.

Given what has happened in the last year, it is no surprise

…

Posted in News | Also tagged communications data bill, ispa, julian huppert and theresa may | 3 Comments

Nick Clegg’s speech at tax and transparency G8 event

By NewsHound | Mon 17th June 2013 - 10:20 am

Nick Clegg took part in an “Open for Growth on Trade, Tax and Transparency” G8 event on Saturday. The event was attended by African leaders and the likes of Kofi Annan and the Managing Director of the World Bank Caroline Anstey. Nick hosted the sessionon extractives transparency and chaired the final panel of the day.

He said at the event:

We know why we’re here. People across the world want and expect us – governments, businesses and NGOs – to work together to deliver strong economies and fairer societies.

These issues affect those in both the developed and developing world. And we know

…

Posted in News | Also tagged extractives transparency and G8 | Leave a comment

Lib Dems set to name 7 new peers for House of Lords, says Sunday Times

By Stephen Tall | Sun 16th June 2013 - 11:30 am

Today’s Sunday Times front page (£) splashes with a ‘Cash for peerages row hits Clegg’ headline. The reality is slightly less exciting: Rumi Verjee, a prominent donor to the Lib Dems, is apparently top of the list of seven names put forward for peerages:

Rumi Verjee, a multimillionaire who brought the Domino’s pizza chain to Britain, is top of a list of seven names compiled by the Lib Dems who are expected to be awarded honours within weeks. He has given £770,000 to the party since May 2010. … Verjee

…

Posted in News | Also tagged alison suttie, brian paddick, featured, house of lords, ian wrigglesworth, interim peers panel, liz lynne, lords reform, olly grender, rumi verjee, sal brinton, sudhir choudhrie and sunday times | 37 Comments

Nick Clegg is on the Andrew Marr Show

By The Voice | Sun 16th June 2013 - 8:53 am

Your 10 minute warning: go and get yourself a nice cup of tea and settle down to watch the Andrew Marr Show.

There’s no long lie and being pampered for Nick Clegg this morning as he’s being interviewed. We’ll be back with full coverage later.

Posted in News | Also tagged the andrew marr show | Leave a comment

Nick Clegg holds firm on snoopers’ charter

By The Voice | Sat 15th June 2013 - 2:30 pm

Nick Clegg has indicated that he will not change his position on the so called “snoopers’ charter” despite calls for him to do so by four former home secretaries. A group of politicians, including Liberal Democrat peer Lord Carlile wrote to the Times (£) to say that the Bill was necessary:

It has always been a requirement, and always will be, that such intrusive intercepts are subject to time-limited warrants. Their use is guided by a strict criterion of necessity and proportionality, and are only permitted to protect national security and counter serious criminal conduct. We find it odd

…

Posted in News | Also tagged communications data bill | 5 Comments

Statement from Nick Clegg on the Morrissey Report

By The Voice | Wed 12th June 2013 - 4:05 pm

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg has made this statement following the release of Helena Morrissey’s independent report into processes and culture within the Liberal Democrats and her recommendations for change:

I’m very grateful to Helena Morrissey for her very thorough report.

It makes sobering reading. It shows that stretching over a 20 year period a series of mistakes were made which left a number of women feeling seriously let down and for that there is absolutely no excuse whatsoever.

The report also shows that the individuals who dealt with their complaints had the right motives, but there weren’t the right processes

…

Posted in Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged helena morrissey and tim farron | 3 Comments

The Lib Dem narrative dilemma: forget about 2010, start looking forward to 2015

By Stephen Tall | Wed 12th June 2013 - 9:50 am

We Lib Dems are past masters of the squeeze message. “The Tories can’t win here: vote Lib Dem to keep Labour out”; “Labour can’t win here: vote Lib Dem to keep the Tories out”.

But since 2010 we have become the victims of a just-as-vicious squeeze message. Labour says: “Lib Dems are propping up a toxic right-wing Tory government pushing through disgraceful policies (which we will quietly sign up to later — viz cutting child benefit for wealthier parents — once we’ve capitalised on public anger).” …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged featured, narrative and neil stockley | 53 Comments

Well done, Ed Balls. He’s opened up space for a proper welfare debate. Lib Dems now need to claim that space.

By Stephen Tall | Mon 10th June 2013 - 3:45 pm

Ed Balls has done us all a favour. His announcement last week that if he were Chancellor he would put a stop to winter fuel allowances for well-off pensioners means Labour has joined the Lib Dems in saying we need to focus the welfare budget where it’s needed most, not keep on re-distributing from the worse off to the better off in the name of universalism. It’s why I chose him as my 38th Liberal Hero.

And yesterday he was at it again, highlighting quite how much of the welfare budget the state pension represents — some £74 …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged bedroom tax, ed balls, housing benefit, legal aid, pensions, steve webb, triple lock, welfare, welfare reform and winter fuel allowance | 13 Comments

The Tories’ biggest headache

By Joe Otten | Mon 10th June 2013 - 12:46 pm

Iain Martin in the Telegraph asks “Is Nick Clegg the Tories’ biggest headache?“. Once you get past the heartwarming bitterness, Nick is roundly praised with not-so-faint damnation, for blocking one right wing policy after another.

Mr Cameron remains pragmatic about the antics of his deputy, say colleagues. Some other Tories are much less relaxed. “Our backbenchers have really had it with Clegg now,” admits one minister. An MP from the Tory Right said that Number 10 was “supine” and far too eager to please the Deputy Prime Minister. “Why does our leadership spend so much of its time placating Clegg

…

Posted in News | 36 Comments

Call Clegg highlights 6 June – “I was lucky, but it’s not about luck, is it?”

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 6th June 2013 - 6:55 pm

So, if you haven’t got time to sit through the half hour of Call Clegg, here are my highlights of today’s session.

On his Opening Doors initiative

But to be honest I think what this is about is what about those kids who aren’t lucky enough to have, I don’t know, families or parents who can help or can try and help them, who just don’t have the contacts, who don’t have the support they need to live out their dreams….

…I actually do think there are so many young children today …

Posted in News | Also tagged call clegg and lbc | 4 Comments

Are employment levels one of the “better stories” of the Coalition, as Fraser Nelson claims? Not really.

By Stephen Tall | Thu 6th June 2013 - 2:15 pm

The Spectator’s editor Fraser Nelson is — rightly — very hot on politicians being accurate in their use of stats. For instance, he’s — rightly — called out both Nick Clegg and David Cameron for confusing (whether accidentally or deliberately) the terms ‘debt’ and ‘deficit’, claiming the former is falling when they mean the latter.

However, Fraser is sometimes a bit casual with facts himself — for instance, wrongly claiming that an old report for the Department for Education ‘proved’ the pupil premium was flawed when it did no such thing.

And today he makes a point of highlighting …

Posted in News and Op-eds | Also tagged david bell, david blanchflower, david cameron, employment rate, fraser nelson, niesr, ons and unemployment | 10 Comments

Clegg says no to childcare ratio changes. My question is: why’s it the Government’s job to dictate them?

By Stephen Tall | Thu 6th June 2013 - 9:45 am

Nick Clegg’s statement is categorical — the Coalition is abandoning plans to allow nurseries and childminders in England to look after more children. Revealed in January by Conservative children’s minister Liz Truss, the idea that the ratio for under 2s, for example, could increase from 1:4 to 1:6 was always going to be controversial. Here’s Nick:

“One of my absolute top priorities in government is to deliver better quality, more affordable childcare for parents up and down the country. I will relentlessly champion and pursue policies that deliver that –

…

Posted in News | Also tagged childcare, children, liz truss, nursery premium and ofsted | 29 Comments

Registers and recall: I support them both. But they’re not going to clean up our democracy

By Stephen Tall | Wed 5th June 2013 - 7:25 pm

The weekend’s revelations that two Labour peers and an Ulster Unionist were filmed offering to lobby ministers for cash, following hot on the heels of Tory MP Patrick Mercer’s resignation of the Tory whip over similar allegations, has re-ignited the question of how to clean up Parliament.

Two proposals are being pushed, both of them originally pledged in the Coalition Agreement.

Register of lobbyists

First, there’s a register of lobbyists, intended to bring greater transparency to the way in which professional lobbyists seek to influence government decisions. This is one of Unlock Democracy’s top campaigns:

If we don’t know

…

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged alliance for lobbying transparency, david cameron, douglas carswell, john rentoul, parliamentary reform, register of lobbyists, right of recall, unlock democracy and zac goldsmith | 12 Comments

Labour and Tory MPs have a new twist on an old game. Block democratic reform. Then criticise lack of democratic reform

By Stephen Tall | Wed 5th June 2013 - 10:25 am

Labour and Tory MPs have a new favourite hobby. It’s one they’ve been practising for decades, but they’ve really refined their art in the last three years.

Basically it works like this…

A political scandal happens. Abuse of expenses by MPs or cash-for-questions/honours/favours, that sort of thing. Everyone demands reform. This must never happen again, they say. Cross-party talks are immediately convened. Then re-convened a few months later once the pressure’s off a bit. And finally they’re abandoned once they’re sure people have got bored with it all and …

Posted in Op-eds and Parliament | Also tagged kevin brennan, lobbying, lords reform and party funding | 10 Comments

Lib Link… Nick Clegg: Sadly, I’m not surprised by these revelations. Westminster is crying out for reform

By The Voice | Mon 3rd June 2013 - 12:45 pm

I know that the absence of the register from last month’s Queen’s Speech raised some concerns. So let me be clear: it will happen.

That was Nick Clegg writing in the Telegraph following accusations that an MP and three peers were engaging in paid lobbying.

Also on the table is the power of recall of corrupt MPs – something also raised by Tories Dan Hannan and Douglas Carswell elsewhere in the Telegraph. The point at issue between the two positions: whether there must be wrongdoing, or whether recall is at the absolute discretion of the petitioners and …

Posted in News | Also tagged featured, lobbying and recall | 15 Comments

Letter from the Leader: It won’t be easy

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 3rd June 2013 - 8:55 am

This week, Nick emphasises that despite all the fuss in the media, the Government is getting its head down and delivering good things. He points out that although things like Europe and equal marriage dominate the newspapers, they take up a relatively small part of parliamentary time. He also says that he thinks coalitions will become more frequent as people’s dissatisfaction with “the old two party politics deepens.” Over to Nick

“It won’t be easy: there will be bumps and scrapes along the way.”

That’s what I said three …

Posted in News | Also tagged letter from the leader | 3 Comments

Mercer affair can only help Nick Clegg’s quest for lobbying transparency and recalling MPs

By The Voice | Sat 1st June 2013 - 8:51 am

As more embarrassing revelations come out about Newark MP Patrick Mercer’s conduct, momentum is bound to build behind Nick Clegg’s quest to introduce both a register of lobbyists and a right of recall so that constituents can get rid of an MP accused of serious wrongdoing.

He has talked about both issues recently. Firstly, on recall, reported in the Guardian:

The proposals included in the coalition agreement appeared to have been stalled partly because there was disagreement on what behaviour by an MP could trigger a constituent’s right to petition for a byelection.

Clegg is proposing there has to be agreement

…

Posted in News | Also tagged lobbying and right of recall | 9 Comments

Andrew George MP writes…Liberal Democrats must defend green promise

By Andrew George MP | Fri 31st May 2013 - 1:46 pm

It’s crunch time for parties across the political spectrum: will parliamentarians do the right thing for our climate and the UK economy or will they let the sceptics drive investors overseas?

The Energy Bill returns to the Commons next week, just as the Conservatives are retreating to their traditional political stomping grounds in the face of competition from the right. Writing in Lib Dem Voice last month, Nick Clegg noted that: “Compassionate conservatism has been sidelined…the blue team used to claim to have gone green, yet have now publicly denounced the importance of environmental protections”. It’s up to the Liberal Democrats to …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged chris huhne, climate change, decarbonisation, ed davey, energy bill and environment | 3 Comments

Call Clegg highlights 30 May 2013 – the best one so far

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 30th May 2013 - 6:55 pm

Today’s Call Clegg was quite extraordinary. We know that there’s been a big push by some of the more authoritarian figures in the country to try to build a case for the so called Snoopers’ Charter over the past few days. It was obvious Nick was going to be asked about it. The caller, Vince (no, not that one) from Kingston was very supportive of Nick’s position. What happened next was that Nick Ferrari played recorded messages from former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Ian Blair and the Secretary …

Posted in News | Also tagged call clegg | 13 Comments

No Liberal Democrat on Question Time again – who will speak up against the Snoopers’ Charter?

By The Voice | Thu 30th May 2013 - 10:48 am

Another week, another Question Time with no Liberal Democrat on the panel. Tonight’s episode, from London, will feature Conservative health minister Anna Soubry, former Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson, the New Statesman’s Mehdi Hassan, Downton Abbey author Julian Fellowes and UKIP’s Diane James.

This is the second week running that there hasn’t been a Liberal Democrat on the panel. The reason it’s serious is because ever since last week’s horrific murder in Woolwich, there has been a clamour of voices in the media, one of the loudest being Alan Johnson’s, saying …

Posted in News | Also tagged bbc, call clegg and question time | 47 Comments

“Lib Dems give Mansion Tax threat over terror bill” says Times

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 29th May 2013 - 11:28 am

Today’s Times carries a story (£), with not very much substance to it, that the Liberal Democrats have threatened to team up with Labour to vote on the Mansion Tax if the Conservatives team up with Labour to force through the Communications Data Bill so loved by Theresa May and which has been rejected by Nick Clegg on 3 occasions now. The first was when he refused to let it in last year’s Queen’s Speech as a full bill, ensuring it received detailed scrutiny by a parliamentary committee. The second was when the Parliamentary Committee rejected the measure out of …

Posted in News | Also tagged communications data bill and the times | 20 Comments

Nick Clegg announces the Chair of the 2014 Election Campaign

By Mary Reid | Tue 28th May 2013 - 5:09 pm

Members have just received this email from Nick Clegg:

The 2014 local and European elections are hugely important, so I’m putting one of our best campaigners in charge – Tim Farron.

The dust may have barely settled since this May’s local elections but it’s never too early to start work on the next set. No one embodies that more than Tim, a true 24/7 campaigner, working hard all year round – just ask the people of Westmorland and Lonsdale.

Given the critical importance of these elections for Liberal Democrat representation at a local …

Posted in News | Also tagged local elections 2014 and tim farron | 19 Comments

Nick Clegg’s Letter from the Leader: “Coming together”

By Mary Reid | Tue 28th May 2013 - 11:04 am

Nick Clegg used his Bank Holiday weekend letter to members to reflect on the deeply disturbing Woolwich murder, as well as progress with the Equal Marriage Bill.

This was a week that put things in perspective. I know I speak for all Liberal Democrats when I say that our thoughts are with the family and friends of Drummer Lee Rigby – the British soldier attacked and killed in Woolwich on Wednesday. And I’ve made it clear, on the party’s behalf, that we are immensely grateful to our police,

…

Posted in News | Also tagged woolwich attack | 3 Comments

Is it time for retailers to lose the lads’ mags?

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 27th May 2013 - 3:56 pm

Every time you go into a supermarket or newsagent to buy a magazine, you are likely to be confronted with the following:

A women’s section, which contains magazines on, mainly, celebrity froth, sewing, cooking and child-rearing;
Everything remotely interesting,like current affairs, photography, fishing, sport, computers and science fiction being displayed elsewhere;
Magazines with pictures of half naked women prominently displayed in a way that you can’t miss.

What does this tell children about the world in which they are growing up? The message seems to be that women are there to keep everyone else fed (while keeping themselves unrealistically thin, of course), …

Posted in News and Op-eds | Also tagged Jo Swinson, lose the lads' mags campaign, lynne featherstone and sexism | 38 Comments

Two politicians having dinner together – they must be plotting the leadership succession…

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 26th May 2013 - 10:28 am

GQ shows its ignorance of just about anything to do with the Liberal Democrats:

Now that Clegg is in the most stable position of all the party leaders – Cameron has overseen fractures with gay marriage and Europe; Miliband is facing his Waterloo over whether or not to accept Coalition spending plans – this Balham tête-à-tête sparked some mischievous speculation. With Alexander’s star rising, did the Italian dinner involve a Granita pact for the 21st century? If so, it would – in the event of a hung parliament in 2015 – see Clegg step down for Alexander to take over

…

Posted in News | Also tagged Danny Alexander and GQ | 14 Comments

Don Foster writes: A powerful meeting where all faiths spoke with one voice

By Don Foster MP | Fri 24th May 2013 - 3:08 pm

Today I attended an interfaith meeting, chaired by Nick Clegg and attended by representatives of the other political parties, following the terrible events in Woolwich on Wednesday where soldier Lee Rigby was brutally murdered. The event was incredibly positive, with representatives of many faiths coming together to denounce the attack, condemn those who bring terrorism to our streets, and agree that we have to stand together in the face of it.

I’ll warn you up front that I’m not going to use this post to make political …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged woolwich attack | 10 Comments

In Full: Nick Clegg’s remarks at inter-faith event in London: A message of hope over fear, of community over division

By NewsHound | Fri 24th May 2013 - 2:38 pm

Nick Clegg attended an inter-faith event in North London, designed to show solidarity between the diverse communities in the capital, in the wake of the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby. He didn’t have a script, but thankfully someone was taking notes. Here is the full text of his remarks:

Can I thank you all very, very much for being here and can I thank, particularly, everybody at the Centre, all the – all the volunteers here, everyone from the Peabody operation. You – you’ve helped us to organise this at very, very short notice indeed.

It was a suggestion made to me

…

Posted in News | Also tagged woolwich attack | 2 Comments

Nick Clegg: Terrorism has no religion

By NewsHound | Fri 24th May 2013 - 2:08 pm

The BBC reports that Nick Clegg has been speaking at an interfaith event in London set up after the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich on Wednesday. He told representatives of a number of faiths:

Terrorism has no religion because there is no religious conviction that can justify the kind of arbitrary, savage random violence that we saw on the streets of Woolwich.

He concluded his remarks by quoting a verse from the Koran:

If anyone slays a human being, it shall be as though he killed all mankind; whereas, if anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he

…

Posted in News | Also tagged terrorism and woolwich attack | 16 Comments

Nick: "Jobs are right at the heart of the Lib Dems’ agenda"

"Lib Dems set to name 7 new peers for House of Lords"

EU in/out referendum bill - will Lib Dem MPs abstain?

The Morrissey Report: "No excuses" says Caron Lindsay

Tag Archives: nick clegg

Nick Clegg and Julian Huppert are Internet heroes

Nick Clegg’s speech at tax and transparency G8 event

Lib Dems set to name 7 new peers for House of Lords, says Sunday Times

Nick Clegg is on the Andrew Marr Show

Nick Clegg holds firm on snoopers’ charter

Statement from Nick Clegg on the Morrissey Report

The Lib Dem narrative dilemma: forget about 2010, start looking forward to 2015

Well done, Ed Balls. He’s opened up space for a proper welfare debate. Lib Dems now need to claim that space.

The Tories’ biggest headache

Call Clegg highlights 6 June – “I was lucky, but it’s not about luck, is it?”

On his Opening Doors initiative

Are employment levels one of the “better stories” of the Coalition, as Fraser Nelson claims? Not really.

Clegg says no to childcare ratio changes. My question is: why’s it the Government’s job to dictate them?

Registers and recall: I support them both. But they’re not going to clean up our democracy

Register of lobbyists

Labour and Tory MPs have a new twist on an old game. Block democratic reform. Then criticise lack of democratic reform

Lib Link… Nick Clegg: Sadly, I’m not surprised by these revelations. Westminster is crying out for reform

Letter from the Leader: It won’t be easy

Mercer affair can only help Nick Clegg’s quest for lobbying transparency and recalling MPs

Andrew George MP writes…Liberal Democrats must defend green promise

Call Clegg highlights 30 May 2013 – the best one so far

No Liberal Democrat on Question Time again – who will speak up against the Snoopers’ Charter?

“Lib Dems give Mansion Tax threat over terror bill” says Times

Nick Clegg announces the Chair of the 2014 Election Campaign

Nick Clegg’s Letter from the Leader: “Coming together”

Is it time for retailers to lose the lads’ mags?

Two politicians having dinner together – they must be plotting the leadership succession…

Don Foster writes: A powerful meeting where all faiths spoke with one voice

In Full: Nick Clegg’s remarks at inter-faith event in London: A message of hope over fear, of community over division

Nick Clegg: Terrorism has no religion

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Nick: "Jobs are right at the heart of the Lib Dems’ agenda"

"Lib Dems set to name 7 new peers for House of Lords"

EU in/out referendum bill - will Lib Dem MPs abstain?

The Morrissey Report: "No excuses" says Caron Lindsay

Tag Archives: nick clegg

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