Tag Archives: vince cable

Vince on living in Africa, love against the odds and helping people

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 19th May 2013 - 8:59 am

Vince Cable has been talking to the Telegraph about his varied and interesting life. From meeting his first wife while both were working in a mental hospital in York, to their romance meeting parental disapproval and succeeding despite that, to his empathy with his constituents’ problems, it charts the key moments of his first 70 years.

Illustrated with photographs of items which mean a lot to him, including a recording of his son Paul performing at a concert in Prague. HE also confesses a liking for James Blunt.

As former MP’s caseworker, I completely understood what he said about how he is …

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Posted in News | Also tagged the telegraph | Leave a comment

Michael Moore MP’s Westminster Notes

By Michael Moore MP | Wed 15th May 2013 - 8:55 am

Liberal Democrat Secretary of State for Scotland, Michael Moore MP, writes a regular column for newspapers in his Borders Constituency. Here is the latest edition.

Vince Cable’s visit to the Borders

Over the past weekend, Vince Cable, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, visited the Borders to speak at our local Lib Dem annual dinner and meet with businessmen and women from across the area.

On Saturday, we spent the morning at John Seed’s farm near Duns looking at the work he is doing, with his family, to diversify the farm and transform the way it generates and uses energy. It is hugely impressive to see the scale of what they have achieved through biomass and other initiatives. (Photo shows John Seed, Vince, his wife Rachel Smith, Mike Moore and Steve Jones)

Next, Vince and I met with a small group of Borders businessmen and women to discuss the challenges and opportunities that diversified farm businesses are currently facing. From issues such as bank lending to red tape, each member of the group raised their particular concerns and it was certainly a productive discussion. It was good to have the chance to show off some of our finest farms businesses and I will continue to work with Vince beyond this visit to get the best deal for Borders businesses.

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Posted in Op-eds, Parliament and Scotland | Also tagged Michael Moore and Westminster Notes | 2 Comments

Clegg leadership plot: Gove’s ‘crazy grenade’ detonates, briefly, before Tories revert to arguing about Europe

By Stephen Tall | Sun 12th May 2013 - 11:05 am

Hats off to Mr Gove! With the Tory party in its customary state of internecine warfare over Europe, the education secretary used his interview this morning on The Andrew Marr Show to allege a leadership plot to overthrow Nick Clegg. Here’s PoliticsHome’s account:

Michael Gove has suggested Nick Clegg’s opposition to increasing childminders-toddlers ratio is due to an internal Liberal Democrat plot to unseat him as leader.

Mr Clegg said last week that he was “yet to be persuaded” by the case for allowing staff to look after more children.

However Mr Gove today said the reforms, which were defended by

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged matthew oakeshott, michael gove and nick clegg | 32 Comments

The double dip recession that never was?

By Stephen Tall | Sat 11th May 2013 - 12:35 pm

Did the double-dip recession ever happen? It looks increasingly possible that it didn’t — the BBC reports the latest revision to the data:

A revision by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has cast doubt on the UK’s double-dip recession last year. Revised growth estimates now suggest the construction industry shrank in the first quarter of 2012, but by less than previously thought. Analysts say the revision may be enough to mean the overall economy narrowly avoided falling into recession for a second time. The ONS is due to give official confirmation of this in June.

In fact there was a …

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Posted in News | Also tagged featured, hamish mcrae, niesr, office for national statistics, peter kellner and recession | 17 Comments

Vince Cable talks sense on immigration

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 11th May 2013 - 10:34 am

Vince Cable has spoken up for the economic benefits of immigration in the Queen’s Speech debate, challenging the half truth and hyperbole in the illiberal rhetoric that’s doing the rounds at the moment. He reserved much of his ire for the Labour party:

I was hesitant about raising the subject because it is essentially covered by the Home Office, but substantial economic issues are also involved and it is important to refer to them. I was provoked into feeling that we should debate the issue in this context because a couple of days ago I was on the radio on the

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged ed davey, hansard and immigration | 23 Comments

Vince in not-so-coded call for Lib-Lab cooperation

By Stephen Tall | Fri 10th May 2013 - 7:55 am

Vince Cable published an interesting piece in the New Statesman last month (I missed it at the time): My advice to young Lib Dems — rise above the tribalism.

It’s a biographical reflection on his political journey — from Young Liberal to Mr Wilson’s ‘White Heat’ Labour to the breakaway SDP and finally to the Liberal Democrats, where he joined “some of the descendants of Grimond and Crosland”.

However, it also has a very clear political message. At least, I think it does. Tell me below-the-line if you think I’m …

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Posted in News | Also tagged new statesman | 6 Comments

LibLink: 160mph Vince Cable stands in for Jeremy Clarkson

By NewsHound | Mon 6th May 2013 - 6:55 pm

Yesterday’s Sunday Times carried a treat for those of us who are Liberal Democrats and petrolheads. Jeremy Clarkson being “away” is seen by some as a treat in itself, but his replacement for this week was our Vince Cable.

Vince took an £150,000 Aston Martin Rapide S for a test drive during which he reached 160 mph. His criticism was as follows:

The car was more capable and felt quicker than my favourite Aston — the DB9 — although I was disappointed that it didn’t have

…

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged aston martin, manufacturing and sunday times | 8 Comments

The Independent View: Rumble in the Jungle as Cable takes on Tarzan

By Ed Cox | Sun 5th May 2013 - 2:30 pm

After all the warm words and soft soap on Lord Heseltine’s No Stone Unturned report, in an interview with The Northern Echo, Business Secretary Vince Cable broke ranks this week and poured cold water on any great hopes of any significant new devolution deal.

In the Budget in March the Chancellor of the Exchequer offered general approval for Heseltine’s plans stating that more details of the government’s response, not least the amount of departmental funding that would be channelled into the Single Local Growth Fund, would be announced in June’s Spending Review.

Heseltine has identified departmental funding …

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Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Also tagged comprehensive spending review 2013 and michael heseltine | 3 Comments

Government changes its mind and makes caste discrimination illegal

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 25th April 2013 - 9:01 am

The BBC reports that Vince Cable has agreed to outlaw caste discrimination after the House of Lords twice voted on an amendment incorporating it into the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill.

Those proposing the change argued that those considered to be of lower caste in some communities were discriminated against in employment or even at school. A government report from 2010 argued that a change in the law was the most effective way of dealing with this issue.

Liberal Democrat peer Eric Avebury has been at the forefront of the campaign to outlaw caste discrimination and has written about …

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Posted in News | Also tagged caste discrimination, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill and eric avebury | 8 Comments

Vince Cable talks about helping regions

By NewsHound | Sat 20th April 2013 - 4:06 pm

From the Guardian:

The business secretary, Vince Cable, has highlighted the serious disparities between different parts of the country in economic performance and job prospects.

He was speaking at a conference designed to boost local enterprise partnerships, the government’s chosen vehicle for regional business growth.

Cable said: “There are worryingly high disparities between economic performance and employment prospects in different parts of the UK, and those areas that become highly dependent on the public sector face particularly difficult challenges.”

Liberal Democrat ministers have often talked of the need to ensure that all parts of the UK benefit …

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Posted in News | Also tagged economy and regional growth fund | Leave a comment

Cable: No room for complacency over getting more women on company boards

By NewsHound | Thu 18th April 2013 - 2:05 pm

The Guardian reports comments from Lib Dem business secretary Vince Cable, following evidence that the proportion of female appointments to FTSE 100 and 250 companies has reduced:

The Liberal Democrat business secretary and former chief economist at Shell is also clear that slow progress isn’t an indication of disregard for the agenda, instead he explains that the overall trend shows culture and practices are changing.

Earlier this year however, Boardwatch, part of the Professional Boards Forum, found that while female appointments to non-executive director roles are increasing, executive board promotions remain low. Cable admits

…

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Posted in News | 6 Comments

Vince Cable, One Direction, and a minimum wage rise for apprentices

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 17th April 2013 - 1:58 pm

There was a significant amount of chortling in LDV Towers over the Telegraph’s report of Vince Cable’s comments about One Direction’s earnings. One member of our team even suggested photoshopping his head onto this photo of the boy band wearing onesies. Mercifully, copyright and lack of photoshopping skills on my part spares you that sight.

Vince thought he was being asked about, I presume, a director’s £5 million salary, which he described as “mad”, “downright immoral” and “grossly offensive”. It would be hardly surprising that he would take that view given his actions to curb executive pay. He added, …

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Posted in News | Also tagged apprentices, executive pay, minimum wage, one direction and telegraph | 8 Comments

Vince increases the minimum wage. It’s the right decision, but we do need to get local about it.

By Stephen Tall | Mon 15th April 2013 - 8:25 pm

This was the Mirror (and many other news outlets) two weeks ago:

Minimum wage cut fears: Fury as Government considers ‘kicking’ low-paid workers

The reality? The Government has accepted the independent Low Pay Commission’s recommendations to increase both the adult and youth National Minimum Wage rates. The BBC reports:

Minimum wage to increase to £6.31

To be clear, the 1.9% increase is below the expected rate of inflation — so this is a real-terms cut. The increase is, however, higher than either public sector workers or those on benefits will receive. The only recommendation of the Low Pay Commission that was rejected …

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Posted in News | Also tagged featured, local pay, low pay, low pay commission and minimum wage | 33 Comments

Lib Dem ‘mansion tax’: the right policy AND a vote-winner, say 69% of party members

By Stephen Tall | Wed 3rd April 2013 - 12:15 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 650 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

The Lib Dems are committed to levying a new household tax (known as the Mansion Tax) of 1% on the value of properties over £2m. Which of these statements best represents your own view?

69%

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Also tagged mansion tax | 12 Comments

Opinion: How I helped develop our £10,000 tax threshold policy

By Elizabeth Jewkes | Mon 25th March 2013 - 11:55 am

When Nick Clegg was first elected leader, he announced a new tax policy – to reduce the percentage paid from 20% to 16%. The policy was duly passed at the 2008 Conference. Another delegate mentioned to me that he would prefer to see the Income Tax threshold raised taking the lowest paid out of tax. ‘Too late now’ he said.

I took this as a challenge and looked for a way of changing tax policy. I didn’t have to wait long. Jo Swinson MP sent an email to Women Liberal Democrats asking for policy ideas for the Manifesto Day at the …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged nick clegg and tax threshold | 8 Comments

2013: The Year of Vince

By Joe Otten | Sat 23rd March 2013 - 4:27 pm

Following Vince Cable’s gentle call for more capital spending – now reflected in the recent budget – Politics Home talks to the Business Secretary. In suitably glowing terms…

In many ways, his allies think 2013 is The Year of Vince. His once lonely call (in the Coalition at least) for more capital spending and reliefs has been heeded. His ‘responsible capitalism’ agenda will bear fruit this year with boardroom and shareholder changes. He’s outmanoeuvred the Treasury by getting a £1bn business bank – in return for a Tory policy on employee share rights that has been gutted by the

…

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged business bank and green investment bank | 6 Comments

No braking at Gambon – a monetary policy guide for petrolheads

By Bill le Breton | Fri 22nd March 2013 - 11:48 am

If you had to choose a person from the following list, and only this list, to be Chancellor of the Exchequer, would you choose James May, Jeremy Clarkson or Richard Hammond? Tough choice, but go on: indulge me!

The last time I wrote here, I predicted that the Quad had reached a turning point on monetary policy. I did this not on the evidence of Vince Cable’s New Statesman article, but on a report in the Financial Times that Osborne was set to change the regime imposed on the Bank of England.

Well, …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged economic policy and top gear | 10 Comments

My highlights of Scottish Liberal Democrat Conference

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 20th March 2013 - 11:56 am

I’m a bit bleary eyed today. One conference is exhausting, two on successive weekends is positively foolhardy. Following that up with a trip to London for Federal Executive is craziness.

I spent the weekend in Dundee where Scottish Liberal Democrats held their main Conference. Over three days, there were no fewer than twelve policy debates, some of them incredibly powerful or controversial. Here are my highlights.

The Secret Courts debate

Yes, I’m biased as I proposed the motion rejecting the Government’s proposals, but the debate itself was very high quality. Liberal Youth co-chair Kavya Kaushik won the Russell Johnston award for the best …

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Posted in News and Op-eds | Also tagged mental health, Scotland, Scottish liberal democrat conference, secret courts, tavish scott, wilie rennie and willie rennie | 2 Comments

Opinion: Is Vince writing for the Economist?

By Joe Otten | Wed 13th March 2013 - 8:13 am

A leader in the latest Economist offers the UK a growth plan that involves structural reforms, infrastructure spending and monetary policy changes while maintaining fiscal discipline. Particular highlights include a more welcoming attitude to talented immigrants, and Land Value Taxation.

The tax system could also be changed to promote growth. One reason why companies sit on development land is because they do not pay taxes until the offices and warehouses are built. It would be much better to tax the land value: that would make hoarding expensive and force owners to sell to someone who can use

…

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged economy and the economist | 1 Comment

Opinion: Cable’s New Statesman article presents a classic Liberal Democrat dilemma

By David Thorpe | Tue 12th March 2013 - 9:05 am

The reason Vince Cable stood so far above his Labour and Tory counterparts during the financial crisis was his unique combination of economic subtlety and political guile; his rivals possessed those attributes the reverse way around.

In his much mentioned essay in the New Statesman entitled ‘When the facts change should I change my mind?” Cable shines a light on the dilemma serious politicians face in trying to balance the economic and political concerns inherent in policy making.

The essay, which takes its title from a famous JM Keynes quote, debunks a number of the left’s cherished myths, and delivers …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged economy | 6 Comments

Vince Cable on Labour’s opposition day debate on Mansion tax

By Helen Duffett | Mon 11th March 2013 - 8:55 pm

This evening, the Liberal Democrats have confirmed they won’t vote for Labour’s mischievous Opposition Day debate on mansion tax, instead tabling a Coalition amendment stating our support for the mansion tax and the Conservatives’ opposition to it. Vince Cable, architect of the mansion tax, has issued a statement explaining why:

This amendment allows Liberal Democrats in Parliament to back our long-held policy of the mansion tax. We created it and will continue to champion it.

The amendment also makes it clear that although we are in coalition with the Conservatives, we have different views on the desirability of a mansion tax.

…

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Posted in News and Parliament | Also tagged featured, labour and mansion tax | 66 Comments

LibLink: Vince Cable – budding Asian entrepreneurs help create thousands of UK jobs

By Mary Reid | Tue 5th March 2013 - 3:45 pm

The Telegraph has published a supportive report of a speech by Vince Cable at the launch of the National Asian Business Association yesterday. He referred to the 50,000 British Asian businesses in the UK which together generate more than £60bn nationwide, which in turn help to create thousands of jobs. He claimed that British Asians are probably “the most entrepreneurial section of the British public”

He said:

The stereotype of Asian businesses is changing rapidly; while that stereotype is still there – 30pc are in the retail sector – it’s rapidly diversifying. Their growth is essential to job creation and national economic recovery,

…

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Posted in LibLink | 3 Comments

A hole in his sock

By Mary Reid | Tue 19th February 2013 - 4:44 pm

The Telegraph has a lengthy profile of Rachel Smith, Vince Cable’s wife.

If cows can be considered to have a casting vote, then Hopeful and Caramel have done their bit to make sure Rachel Smith sees more of her husband in the future. The wife of the business secretary, Vince Cable, is a farmer with a dwindling beef herd in the middle of the New Forest. For months she has been trying to get these two Dexters in calf. The bull has visited; the artificial insemination man has

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged rachel smith | 4 Comments

Eastleigh by-election: your essential round-up of all the weekend’s news (18 Feb)

By Stephen Tall | Mon 18th February 2013 - 8:25 am

The penultimate weekend’s campaigning was frenetic at the Lib Dems’ Eastleigh HQ…

Over 530 Lib Dem volunteers passed through its doors in just this weekend (to add to the 1,000+ who’d visited in the previous week). Visitors included an upbeat Nick Clegg (BBC report and video here) and others — as this video shows:

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Posted in Parliamentary by-elections | Also tagged eastleigh by-election, john o'farrell, Maria Hutchings, mike thornton and nick clegg | 2 Comments

Eastleigh by-election: your essential round-up of the week’s campaign news

By Stephen Tall | Fri 15th February 2013 - 3:45 pm

It’s only just over a week since the Eastleigh by-election was called. But this first Lib Dem / Tory by-election battle of the parliament has attracted a lot of interest. One aspect that hasn’t been noted much in the media is the level of enthusiasm within the Lib Dems to fight this by-election, and fight it to win.

As the party’s weekly briefing itself noted, Mike Thornton’s campaign has broken the party’s by-election records, with “more volunteers, more money raised and more campaign literature delivered in the opening days of the Eastleigh by-election campaign than any other”.

Here a few of the stats:

Well over 1,000 Lib Dem volunteers have visited the by-election HQ since it was officially opened on Saturday morning.
On Thursday alone, 2,200 phone calls were made to prospective voters and activists knocked on 1,700 doors.
More than 650 individual donations have been received through the party’s website and through email appeals in the last six days.
21 of the party’s 57 MPs have already visited: Nick Clegg, Danny Alexander, Ed Davey, Vince Cable, Sir Malcolm Bruce, Sir Nick Harvey, Tim Farron, Jo Swinson, David Laws, Duncan Hames, Andrew Stunell, Simon Wright, Sir Robert Smith, Stephen Gilbert, Tom Brake, Roger Williams, Don Foster, John Leech, Tessa Munt, Mark Williams, John Pugh and Adrian Sanders.

Huge amount of action this morning at our HQ! Amazing turnout. #eastleigh instagr.am/p/VtMPkhhtpR/

— Mike Thornton (@Mike4Eastleigh) February 14, 2013

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Posted in News and Parliamentary by-elections | Also tagged andrew sparrow, Danny Alexander, eastleigh by-election, ed davey, featured, julian huppert, liberal youth, matt downey and mike thonrton | 11 Comments

IFS verdict: Labour’s 10p tax idea “has no plausible economic justification”

By Stephen Tall | Fri 15th February 2013 - 8:00 am

Ed Miliband’s announcement yesterday that Labour will re-introduce a 10p starting rate of income tax paid for through the introduction of Vince Cable’s mansion tax has received a tepid response from the Institute for Fiscal Studies. The IFS put out a note yesterday headed simply, Better options exist to help low earners than 10p tax rate:

A 10p tax rate would reduce taxes for those on low incomes and strengthen their work incentives. A far simpler and more sensible way of achieving these aims would be to spend the same

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged ed miliband, featured, income tax, institute for fiscal studies, mansion tax, national insurance and tax | 12 Comments

Rejoice! Labour has a policy. Even better it’s a Lib Dem policy.

By Stephen Tall | Thu 14th February 2013 - 11:35 am

Yesterday at PMQs Ed Miliband channelled Ronald Reagan. Today he’s channelling Vince Cable:

Labour does have a policy after all. Two in fact! It’s just that they’re both Lib Dem policies: tax cuts for low-paid funded by mansion tax.

— Stephen Tall (@stephentall) February 14, 2013

Here’s what Ed has just announced:

Let me tell you about one crucial choice we would make, which is different from this government. We would tax houses worth over £2 million. And we would use the money to cut taxes for working people. We would put right a mistake made by

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged Centre for Policy Studies, ed miliband, featured, ronald reagan, ryan bourne and tax | 31 Comments

LibLink: Vince Cable – Investors deserve red carpet, not red tape

By Mary Reid | Tue 12th February 2013 - 10:56 am

In the Telegraph, Vince Cable writes:

Britain is open for business. What we say to the emerging economies of the world is that, more than other Western countries, we welcome their investment, ideas, talent and visitors. We are not economic nationalists. We are not inward looking. That is a powerful message in São Paulo, Moscow, Mumbai and Shanghai.

In the article he concentrates on our trading relationship with China.

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged china and invest | 2 Comments