Tag Archives: political parties

Paul Reynolds

Opinion: UK democracy and political parties – as seen from space

By Paul Reynolds | Tue 2nd April 2013 - 10:53 am

EarthHow would non-partisan observers see the condition of UK democracy over the decades as viewed from above the  stratosphere ?

With Labour they might see a political party that replaced the Liberals as the party of reform in the 1930s and after WW2, based on representing the ‘working class’ – then working mostly in industry. They might contrast this with today’s Labour party – now mostly funded and controlled by public sector unions – both a strength and weakness in terms of the progression of democracy. A public sector union is a very peculiar animal. Without the constraints of industrial competition, and with senior ‘two-hatted’ civil servants facing conflicts between the public interest and the interests of their unions, one can understand why the Labour party has certain weaknesses as part of the democratic system. Hence their conflation of the public interest with ever-expanding public employment, usually couched in the language of additional benefits to the public, (and a policy cohabitee with Tory centralization). Therein lies Labour’s key weakness as well as its strength.

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 8 Comments
Mark Valladares

This week in Europe… 26-29 November

By Mark Valladares | Fri 30th November 2012 - 3:50 pm

Lib Dems welcome the launch of free trade negotiations with Japan

UK Liberal Democrat MEP Catherine Bearder, the party’s European spokesperson on international trade, today welcomed the Council’s decision to authorise the launch of a free trade agreement with Japan, saying it could deliver additional EU exports to Japan worth €43.4bn (around £35bn). She said:

It is time to tap into the huge potential of a free trade agreement with Japan. It is the world’s third largest economy and crucial export market for the

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Also tagged and | Leave a comment



Recent Comments

  • User AvatarPaul Pettinger 23rd May - 12:42am
    Liberal Tory's moved back a while ago - see Nick Clegg
  • User AvatarMartin 23rd May - 12:18am
    I'm really sorry to go off on a tangent but somebody was BUTCHERED in London today by two lunatics. What has the Lib Dem party...
  • User AvatarA Social Liberal 22nd May - 11:25pm
    This government has condemned even more to at least a lifetime of fear and quite possibly death at the hands of the Taliban because only...
  • User AvatarEddie Sammon 22nd May - 11:14pm
    Very well put Helen.
  • User AvatarAlex Harvey 22nd May - 10:53pm
    Your leader is rubbish, and I hope you guys keep him :D
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