Labour’s welfare cuts are a choice – Liberal Democrats choose compassion

The welfare cuts – which according to charities are bigger than the Tories’ – are set to impact 15,000 disabled households here in Southwark alone, costing most thousands of pounds a year. That is not what people voted for. That is what Rachel Reeves and the Labour Party has chosen to do.

When people put their cross next to Labour in 2024, they did not vote to push 250,000 disabled people, including 50,000 children, into poverty. But that’s exactly what’s happening – not to fund hospitals, or schools, or social care – but because Labour refuses to tax tech giants and the super-rich.

This wasn’t a mistake. This was a choice.

Here in Southwark, I’ve seen the impact of these decisions firsthand. I’ve knocked on the doors of people waiting on disability assessments for months, carers juggling unpaid work with relentless bureaucracy, and families living with the daily pressure of foodbanks and fuel debt.

And yet, this Labour government is offering nothing but more of the same.

Southwark Labour councillors – who once campaigned against austerity – have twice voted unanimously against Liberal Democrat proposals to push for change. In November, they refused to call on the Government to reinstate the Winter Fuel Payment for pensioners. Then in March, they rejected our motion to scrap the two-child benefit cap – a cruel and arbitrary limit that is currently affecting 7,670 children in 2,170 families across Southwark.

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Tom Arms’ World Review

Pakistan and water

Pakistan is a water-stressed country. It is totally dependent on the Indus Valley Basin for survival.

That is why it has threatened war in response to India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty following the killing of 26 Indian tourists in Kashmir.

The 1960 Indus Waters Treaty is considered the most successful treaty of its kind in the world. Probably in the history of the world. It has held through three wars and numerous skirmishes between two countries whose religious difference mean that they truly detest each other.

There are six rivers in the Indus Basin (Indus, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Jhelum and Sutlej). India administers the three eastern rivers and Pakistan the three western rivers. Both countries use the network for transport, drinking water, hydro-electricity, agriculture and industry.

But here is the rub. The main headwaters for the Indus Basin are in India which gives it the power to control the flow of water downstream. And Pakistan needs the water more than India.

Ninety percent of Pakistanis live in the Indus Basin. The rivers provide 90 percent of the irrigation water needed for Pakistani farms which provide 24 percent of the country’s GDP and employ 34 percent of the labour force. Eighty percent of the water needed for domestic and industrial use comes from the basin and nearly a quarter of Pakistan’s electricity is hydro based.

Economists reckon that Indian withdrawal from the treaty would lead to a flight of capital from economically hard-pressed Pakistan and the destruction of the country’s economy. Even worse, it raises a spectre of a war for survival between the regions two nuclear powers.

The Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny played a centre-stage diplomatic role this week. When Donald Trump announced the death of Pope Francis this week he stood next to an actor dressed as the Easter bunny.

The juxtaposition was symbolic. Trump hated the Pope and wanted to demonstrate this by belittling the announcement of his death.

He has proven form for such occasions. When the widely-admired Senator John McCain died, Congress directed that America’s flags be lowered to half-mast. McCain and Trump were enemies. Trump ordered that the White House flag stay up.

Donald Trump and Pope Francis could not have been more different. The Pope lived a life of poverty. Trump lives a life of gilded ostentatiousness.

There was also policy substance behind the stylistic differences—mostly on the issue of immigration and migrants. The centrepiece of Trump’s first election campaign was a “big beautiful wall” to keep out illegal immigrants.

On a trip to Mexico, Pope Francis said: “A person who thinks only about building walls…and not bridges, is not a Christian.”

Pope Francis believed that Christian love required compassionate care for migrants. Trump called them “rapists, murderers and terrorists.”

After Trump’s second election victory, the Pope gave a television interview in which he said it would be a “disgrace” if Trump implemented his mass deportation plans. He followed that up with a letter to America’s Catholic bishops in which he said: “I exhort all the faithful of the Catholic Church not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters.”

The Pope’s last visitor before he died was Vice President JD Vance, himself a Catholic convert. What the two men discussed is not known. But it was reported that after the audience JD Vance was sent to a Vatican cardinal to be lectured on the responsibilities of a Christian leader.

Who benefits from the Chinese/American trade war?

South American farmers are delighted with the Sino-American trade war. Especially those in Argentina and Brazil.

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What is “biological sex”, according to the UK Supreme Court?

In its recent judgement on “biological sex”, the Supreme Court avoided defining what “biological sex” is. It says it is “commonly understood”, however the phrase does not appear in most leading dictionaries. 

This is of particular interest to me. As an intersex person, I am not, in UK legal terms, transgender, and I am comfortable presenting as a man in many contexts. I typically use men’s loos, and play men’s sports. But I would not call myself “biologically male”, except in some very peculiar contexts. Reading the recently released EHRC guidance, this seems to imply that I should not use men’s loos or play men’s sports. Does it?

Wiktionary, the only dictionary I have to hand that attempts to define the phrase, defines biological sex as “assigned sex”, that is, the documented sex one receives at birth from a brief identification of one’s observable sex characteristics. Unfortunately, this is clearly not what the Supreme Court intended, as it does not mention birth certificates or medical identification at all, and it explicitly distinguishes between “biological sex” and “certificated sex”. It also wouldn’t help intersex people, who have all sorts of fantastic claims made on their birth certificates.

It also cannot refer to how “biological sex” is sometimes used in genetics, that is, to chromosomal sex. Chromosomal sex is almost never observed in humans, and when it is, it is observed to be only one of many factors that contributes to the meat (as it were) of what is observable “sex”.  

One must infer, therefore, that the UK Supreme Court intended to define biological sex as “some observable sex characteristic or characteristics at birth, which is typically recorded on a birth certificate”. And perhaps this is what they mean by “commonly understood” – that is, sex at birth is what is observable at birth to some common analysis. 

Now, nobody is a woman or man at birth – these are terms we use for adults – and trans people have all sorts of biological and biochemical characteristics, depending on their medical transition or absence thereof. Unless the Court imagined transgender people as springing like Athena from the mind of a god, one must therefore further infer that what they mean by “biological man” is “a person who was identifiable as male at birth due to some bundle of biological characteristics”, and the same for “woman” and “female”. 

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The ridiculous war on headphone dodgers

The Liberal Democrats have recently announced a new policy. A policy that transforms the political landscape, changes our society for the better and inspire millions… enforce a legal fine of up to £1000 on people who play loud music on public transport. Of course, I’m being sarcastic and quite frankly this is embarrassing.

Now don’t get me wrong, I believe that our party has come up with the right approach on lots of the big issues of the day, but this policy is a stinker for many reasons. Firstly, let’s look at the morals of this policy. Yes, I think we can all agree that when we use public transport and a fellow passenger plays loud music, it is annoying. Very annoying. However, this policy goes way too far.

As I referred to in my previous op-ed on Lib Dem Voice, My Journey from Socialism to Liberalism, I called for our party to go back to our core principle of freedom. Yes, so called ‘headphone dodgers’ may be irritating (to say the least) but they are in a public space. Whether we like it or not, they shouldn’t have to face the consequences of the law. Another reason why this policy is so bizarre, as referred to in the BBC article, is that people are already prohibited from playing loud music on public transport. So, this policy already feels redundant.

Let’s also look at the justifications made by our party. The BBC article also refers to a poll that are party created on this ‘issue’. 38% of respondents said that they have experienced other people playing loud music on public transport ‘often or sometimes’. I don’t want to point out the obvious but that is less than half. Our Home Affairs Spokeswoman, Lisa Smart said “Everyone deserves to feel safe and respected on public transport”. While I agree with that blanket statement, I would never say that I have felt unsafe when another passenger has played loud music on public transport.

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Observations of an ex pat: The big split

The possibility of a “Big Split” between Europe and America has taken another giant leap forward with a take-it-or-leave-it Ukraine plan from President Trump.

In addition, there are dangers of widening chasms opening up between EU and European members of NATO.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and chief negotiator Steve Witkoff were expected in London this week for talks on Ukraine with key European leaders. But at the last minute they pulled out, saying that the president was tired of negotiations and demanded that all sides accept an agreement hammered out in Moscow between Witkoff and Putin.

The proposal on the table is basically a sell-out to Putin: International recognition of the annexation of Crimea; defacto control of Eastern Ukraine; Ukraine banned from NATO and the end of sanctions. Ukraine gets undefined “robust security guarantees” the return of small slice of the Kharkiv Oblast and undefined sum to rebuild the country. The US gets a minerals deal with Ukraine; operating rights for Zaporizhia nuclear power plant and increased cooperation with Russia, especially in the energy and industrial sectors.

Trump’s proposal makes no effort to uphold any principle of international law. It turns back the diplomatic clock to pay homage to the pre-war axiom might is right.

Vladimir Putin must be turning somersaults. If this proposal is accepted by Zelensky and his European backers the Russian president will have won. As German Chancellor said, if the Russian-American agreement goes ahead, Putin can say: “I can afford such aggression. I will prevail and I will achieve my goals.”

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Russia sanctions ten Lib Dem Parliamentarians

The Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry have banned 6 peers and 15 MPs from entering the Russian Federation for:

Hostile statements and unfounded accusations coming from members of the UK Parliament, including public statements in favour of seizing Russian assets “immobilised” in Western jurisdictions

Lib Dems are very well represented on the list. Among the  peers are Lord Purvis and Baroness Smith (and Lord Alton, a cross bencher was a Liberal MP for 18 years ) and Russia has sanctioned no fewer than 8 of our MPs – Alistair Carmichael, Chris Coghlan, Helen Maguire, James Maccleary, Mike Martin,  Manuela Perteghella, Cameron Thomas and Will Forster.

Alistair Carmichael said :

“In all honesty, I wasn’t expecting to travel there anytime soon,” he said.

“On one view, it’s nice to know they hear the criticism, even if they don’t like it.

“I wear this ban as a badge of honour.”

James MacCleary said on X :

and

Helen Maguire said on X :

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Say hello to the Groper’s Charter

In delivering the Supreme Court’s ruling last week, Lord Hodge went to great lengths to stress that it should not be portrayed as a victory for one side over the other, and that the rights of trans people remained protected under both the ‘gender reassignment’ and ‘perceived gender’ clauses of the Equality Act.  He urged caution.

It’s a shame that nobody listened to him.

One of the first things I was taught in the first week of my archaeology and ancient history degree in 2006, was that it is impossible to accurately sex a human skeleton due to the chaotic and often contradictory combination of genetic, epigenetic, endocrine, physical and neurophysical factors that go into it, few of which survive very long – for instance, one thing that stayed with me was that up to 8% of the population have chromosomes inconsistent with their gender, and there are XY women who have given birth, and XX men who have fathered children.  (This, incidentally, is why the IOC stopped doing chromosome testing of athletes in the 1990s, and why chromosome testing is not done in schools, because halfway through your Biology GCSE is really not the time to find that out.)  The overlap between the ranges of typically male and female builds, proportions, skeletons, etc., is too broad to give any certainty either, particularly when one considers how many people were doing physical labour in historical times.

The scientific implications of attempting to define sex biologically aside, a very real practical consequence of doing so is coming down the rails towards us.  Within hours of the ruling, the British Transport Police announced that trans passengers would now be strip-searched by officers of their sex as registered at birth, rather than of their destination sex.  This was met with celebration from some, and much consternation from elsewhere.  Our own MP Tom Gordon has now written to the BTP to seek urgent clarification on the legality and presumption of this change.

But there’s a more insidious implication, and it’s lurking behind the ruling as a whole.

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Kashmir in Crisis: Navigating the Aftermath of the Pahalgam Attack

I write from Pakistan, where I’ve been visiting family and reconnecting with my roots. What began as a peaceful visit has been overshadowed by two tragic events that have shaken the region and pushed tensions to the brink.

On 22 April 2025, militants from a group calling itself the “Kashmir Resistance” carried out a brutal attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Twenty-six tourists—25 Indian nationals and one Nepalese—were killed, and 17 others injured. The group claimed the attack was in response to what they view as demographic change and “outsider” settlement in the region.

Just weeks earlier, on 11 March, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) hijacked the Jaffar Express, which was travelling from Quetta to Peshawar. Over 400 passengers were taken hostage. The standoff resulted in the deaths of 31 people—21 civilians and four security personnel among them.

These twin tragedies are not isolated; they are part of a deeper, escalating conflict across South Asia that risks boiling over.

The powder keg of South Asia

This region is on edge. Fear is palpable. Each attack deepens distrust and fuels calls for retaliation. But this is not just another regional skirmish—it’s a dangerous game involving two nuclear-armed states. Miscalculation could be catastrophic.

Retaliation is easy. Restraint, though harder, is the only way forward.

To New Delhi: direct your fury toward diplomacy, not retribution. To Islamabad: confront and curb extremism with sincerity, not just soundbites.

Military theatrics may please TV studios, but they don’t bring back the dead. Nor do they bring peace to the farmer who works beneath the looming threat of war.

The global community, particularly the UN Security Council, must not be passive. Kashmir is not only a political flashpoint—it is a humanitarian crisis. Years of international neglect have allowed violence to fester.

Pakistan’s power in uniform

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The responsibility of Parliament to act on the Gaza War

Following World War II, in which tens of millions of non-combatants were deliberately targeted and killed, internationally agreed laws were drawn up to safeguard civilians in future conflicts.  A heavy responsibility was laid on signatories, first to ensure that their own forces didn’t commit the newly specified war crimes, and second to take action to prevent others from doing so.  Sadly, the Israeli military action in Gaza since late 2023 has shown that the noble aspirations Great Britain solemnly signed up to have vanished into the ether.  Israel’s retaliation after the Hamas attack has turned into a one-sided slaughter which has been horrific to watch and has involved multiple breaches of humanitarian law.

The idea that the UK has had no power to stop the killing destruction in Gaza is totally false.  We could have ended verbal support and military assistance to Israel in November 2023, when it first became clear that for many of Israel’s military leaders the real target was the Palestinian people of Gaza, not Hamas.  We could, and should, have followed that up with sanctions – imposed not on a few of the West Bank settlers, but on the whole of Israel.  Such action by the British would have been welcomed and imitated by France, Spain and Ireland, putting pressure on the rest of Europe to follow suit.

Although it may seem too late, we can still do this now.  With Trump in the White House, those who feared challenging Biden’s US position have a much easier question to answer: do we want to be seen to side with Trump’s America and support a genocidal land-grab by Israel, or is it in our own interest to dissociate ourselves from it ?  Not only would we be doing right by the Palestinians, but a European refusal to continue supporting Israel would put Trump in a difficult position.  He might feel he had to follow our lead, but if he didn’t, the American public would find themselves isolated as supporters of what will very likely be officially declared a genocide; home support for Trump could be damaged as a result, which would be another win for the action I’m proposing.  

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William Wallace writes: How should liberals mark VE Day

Once the local elections are over, commemoration of the 80th anniversary of VE Day on May 8th – the end of the second world war – will provide a focus for public attention and local celebrations.  Many of us will be caught up in ceremonies, street parties or receptions.  I will be singing in a commemorative concert in Westminster Hall (with Mike German, Joan Walmsley and 100 others in the Parliament Choir; do listen to it, broadcast on Classic FM).  

The government and the media will want to make this a patriotic occasion.  What additional twist should Liberal Democrats add to this?  I suggest that we should emphasise what Britain and its American ally declared they were fighting the war for: for political and democratic values, for an open international order and for social democracy at home – all values that are now being challenged by President Trump in the USA and by populists in Britain and in other democratic states.

I’ve just re-read President Roosevelt’s ‘Four Freedoms’ speech, and the Atlantic Charter that he and Winston Churchill signed on a warship off Newfoundland in August 1941.   Together these set out the shared aims for which the UK and the USA fought the war.  Roosevelt’s speech to Congress on January 6th 1941 declared that:

 We look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression–everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way–everywhere in the world.

The third is freedom from want–which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants-everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear–which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor–anywhere in the world. …

The world order which we seek is the cooperation of free countries, working together in a friendly, civilized society.

Five months before, Roosevelt and Churchill had signed the ‘Atlantic Charter’ – drafted by the British, revised by the Americans – which set out their shared aims in the war.   ‘…their countries seek no aggrandizement, territorial or other; they desire to see no territorial changes that do not accord with the freely expressed wishes of the peoples concerned; … they desire to bring about the fullest collaboration between all nations in the economic field with the object of securing, for all, improved labor standards, economic advancement and social security;….’

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Last chance: Opportunities in our disciplinary and appeals system

A reminder of some vacancies for have been advertised for two important volunteer roles in the Party. The deadline for the Disciplinary Sub Group post is this Friday, 25th April at noon so get your applications in now.

Disciplinary Sub Group

The Disciplinary Sub Group ” is responsible for ensuring the independence, efficiency and effectiveness of the Complaints Procedure. As part of this it will monitor, review and amend the procedure and relevant guidance on an ongoing basis and support Party staff in their roles within the Complaints Procedure. The DSG is not involved in the handling of individual complaints.”

Applications are sought from party members who can:

demonstrate their affinity with the values of the party, as well as an understanding of its structures and the context within which the party’s internal processes operate.

A commitment to the Liberal Democrats is required but evidence of substantial prior involvement is not and induction and training will be available. The Party is keen to encourage new talent.

In making its appointments, the Board will take into account:

  • Specialist skills, knowledge and experience including in one of more of creating and delivering training; data recording and/or case management systems;, law, disciplinary matters or HR; drafting policies and procedures, including ensuring they embed best practice on diversity and inclusion; and specialist knowledge and/or training in addressing certain types of complaint (e.g. sexual impropriety cases, protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, religious representation or social media management);

  • All aspects of diversity, and the need to reflect the representation from all three State Parties;

  • Previous experience with the Complaints’ Procedure, or with similar procedures inside or outside of the party; and

  • The need for DSG members to, and to be seen to, exercise objective and impartial judgement in assessing the efficacy of the procedure.

The closing date for applications is 25 April 2025. Full details of how to apply are here.

Federal Appeals Panel

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A thief in the night

Imagine if you will that you are sitting quietly in your house when you hear the door open. A man comes in and starts helping himself to your possessions. You remonstrate with him and he pays no attention. A quick phone call brings in the authorities but to your astonishment they arrive, ignore you, congratulate the thief and tell him that to incentivise him in his good work he will get a series of tax breaks.

It couldn’t happen here. 

It is. 

We are a publisher and recent months have seen a growing swell of complaints from our authors about theft of their texts without any permission. At least 7.5 million books without license or recompense into Artificial Intelligence systems, tens of millions of articles and shorter pieces. The action of the UK government is not to defend the intellectual copyrights and property of its citizens but to legislatively legitimise this theft with a generous dose of cream in tax breaks on top.

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Pope Francis and his legacy

Fragile, unwell, but always determined to serve. After his long stay in the hospital, it was so nice to see the Pope yesterday on the famous Vatican balcony. It almost feels as if he wanted to celebrate Easter with Christians and Catholics around the globe, before he was ready to leave this earthly life.

This morning, the Mass at Our Lady Queen of Apostles Church was quite emotional. We were all quite sad and shocked. Father Norbert Fernandes, in his short homily, said something, which I think is really important; the role of the Pope is a difficult one. We should …

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A Vision for a Sustainable NHS Workforce in Scotland

Scotland’s NHS is under immense pressure. In 2023–24, the service spent £358 million on agency and locum staff. A figure, while slightly down from its peak, remains 45% higher than it was five years ago in real terms¹.

This spending designed to plug short-term staffing gaps isn’t creating long-term solutions. It’s not building a workforce. It’s not improving staff morale. And most of all, it’s not sustainable.

What Scotland lacks is not funding — it is a plan. This vision, developed independently by the author, proposes one possible approach to achieving NHS workforce sustainability within existing budget limits.

A Cost-Neutral Strategy for Rebuilding the NHS Workforce

It is a practical, financially grounded vision for how Scotland could transition away from dependency on expensive short-term staffing and toward a more resilient, sustainable NHS workforce.

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Tom Arms’ World Review

Trumpian chaos has dealt another blow to Ukraine.

The American president said that he would end the Ukraine war in 24 hours. He would bring peace to the region even before he was inaugurated.

Trump had a special bond with Vladimir Putin. The two men had chemistry and he could use it to the end war.

Zelensky meanwhile was a “dictator”. Ukraine started the war. Zelensky needed to sign over his country’s mineral rights to pay an inflated price for past help.

And then, Putin isacting unreasonably. He is sending in missiles and killing children when there is supposed to be a limited ceasefire. The Russian leader is stalling.

Then finally, on Friday—exactly one month after US and Russian teams gathered in Riyadh, Secretary of State Marco Rubio tells his European counterparts that Donald Trump has decided that talks are taking too long and he is considering pulling out of the negotiations that he initiated.

Ukraine is just another example of chaotically disjointed governance which is leaving the world’s leaders standing around scratching their heads in Trump’s destructive wake

Tariff Hokey Cokey

Liberation Day, tariffs on everything and everyone except Russia, Belarus and North Korea. No, tariffs off. No, tariffs still on China. No, tariffs off some goods from China.

America is committed to NATO, says Rubio. No, NATO is full of freeloading Europeans and we should exit the alliance as quickly as possible, says Vice President JD Vance.

Trump’s anti-woke ideology harnessed to his 19th century economic policies, short-termism and demand for instant solutions to complex problems has created a crisis of confidence in America and its position in the world. It has also created a vacuum for China to step into.

China traces its civilisation back nearly 5,000 years. The United States will next year celebrate its 250th birthday.

Short term planning for China is a decade. Long term is… well, forever.

Short-term planning for the United States is until the next mid-term congressional elections held every two years. Long-term is the presidential elections every four years.

Governments in China stay in power until the “Mandate of Heaven” falls from their shoulders. American governments last four, maybe eight years if they are lucky.

Chinese people have no experience of democracy. Like their governments they live in the present and think not of tomorrow but of a future well beyond tomorrow. They are the standard bearers of an ancient well-ordered and established civilisation

American people think of themselves as the standard bearers of democracy. Their society is thrusting, fast-moving, exciting and constantly changing at a sometimes exhausting pace.

Which of these two countries is best equipped to deal with the economic hardships that Donald Trump is inflicting on both of them?

A rock and a hard place

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The Supreme Court Judgment will inspire more people to campaign for LGBT+ rights

Following the horrendous and mortifyingly scary Supreme Court judgment on the Equality Act, after a couple of days to breathe, look after and protect our trans and non-binary friends and colleagues, we are starting to talk to various colleagues to start a plan to challenge this outrageous decision. 

This judgment has not only created more inconsistency, confusion, and downright removal of  hard won trans rights but has landed several unintended consequences not only to the lives of trans men in particular, but actually to other key legislation where companies could with this judgment circumvent laws on equal pay for example. 

As we sit on the shoulders of giants, who have paved way for our own liberty, we have to do the same for generations to come and this is an opportunity not only to strike through the ridiculous Supreme Court  judgment removing trans women’s rights to be recognised as a women in all areas of life, but to legislate for third gender (non binary and intersex protections) formally and to eliminate any incongruous definitions between the Gender Recognition Act, and the Equality Act – essentially tidying up all the wording whilst not using any biological or gender critical terminology, 

As we all know, the passing of the excellent policy paper “Free to be who you are” from our equality spokesperson Christine Jardine at our recent Harrogate conference  gives us the means to challenge the Government, insist on clear guidance for trans and non binary people and to revise our laws to be trans and non-binary inclusive. 

As many Lib Dem Voice readers, will know – as an openly non binary person, this week has been incredibly stressful and sad, seeing friends and colleagues really suffer from the judgment on Wednesday. 

I understand why the party leadership has to acknowledge the Supreme Court’s decision, but it doesn’t have to endorse or accept it and be contrary to the party policy we passed so recently. I also acknowledge that we have exceptionally important local elections in two weeks, and we want to do well, but from LGBT+ Lib Dems perspective, as one of their Honorary Vice Presidents we need to see the party hierarchy recognise the anxiety and stress that this decision has had on its members and on LGBT+ folks who should be among our most natural supporters.

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Observations of an ex pat – MAGA vs the Liberal Elite

Cometh the hour. Cometh the university. To be more specific, that bastion of American liberalism—Harvard.

The defeated Democratic Party is worse than useless. The lawyers are frightened of threatened retribution. The media are curbing their criticisms in face of mounting law suits. The courts are hard at work, but they take time and the ultimate legal arbiter — the Supreme Court — has a decided conservative bent.

However, Trump may have met his match in Harvard University. In America money talks. Harvard has money. A $53.2 billion endowment fund. This money is a shield against all the arrows — mainly financial — that Trump is raining down on them.

The reason for the attacks on Harvard and other Ivy League universities is alleged anti-Semitism on campus.In reality it is because Harvard—and most of the other American universities are citadels of open-minded, free-thinking, liberalism of the sort that has made America great. It represents everything that the current president opposes. As Trump publicly said: “I think Harvard is a disgrace”

The liberal elite of academia is a top target. If Trump can crush liberalism and force open the university doors to MAGA thinking then he will have changed America for generations. Harvard is America’s top university. If he can succeed there the others will follow.

To that end, Trump’s administration has written to the university with a list of demands to be met with the implied threat of further action if they are not. They include subjecting the university to government oversight of Harvard’s admission and hiring policies. The university must provide personal details of all foreign students, monitor their activities and report on those activities to a federal authority. Anything that smacks of DEI (Diversity, Equality and Inclusion) programs must end along with any criticism of Israel which the Trump Administration has conflated with anti-Semitism.

And finally, Harvard University must agree to the government approving the university curriculum to ensure that faculty are promoting “American values.” Exactly who decides what those values are is needlessly left unspoken.

Harvard–in polite legal terms– has refused to comply.

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Christine Jardine requests meeting with Minister over LGBTQ+ rights

Official portrait of Christine Jardine @HouseofCommons/Roger HarrisLib Dem Women and Equalities Spokesperson Christine Jardine has written to Women and Equalities Minister Bridget Phillipson to ask for an urgent meeting to address the implications for the LGBTQ+ community in the wake of this week’s Supreme Court judgement.

On social media, Christine said:

I am increasingly disappointed that the concerns of the #LGBTQ+ community over what the Supreme Court judgement means for them are not yet being addressed. I have written to the Government asking them to make clear how trans and non binary rights will be protected.

In her letter, she asks that before any decisions are made, trans and non binary people are fully comsulted. She said:

I therefore urge your government to bring forward urgent guidance on how existing legislation will protect those rights, whether fresh legislation is envisaged and how the ruling’s practical implications will be resolved.

This must include significant steps to provide trans and non-binary people with the reassurance they deserve. To do this, the guidance must ensure rights that trans people have freely used for decades are not overturned.

These steps should also include open consultation with trans and non-binary communities, to better understand the ruling’s impact and whether any further legislative or policy change is needed to ensure that everyone’s rights are protected.

The full text of her letter is below.

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We have just entered a civil rights emergency

As the shockwave of Wednesday’s bombshell Supreme Court decision has landed, we are now seeing the rapid erosion of some civil liberties in the UK. Although the court’s decision itself ruled on a fairly narrow part of Equalities Law, we are now seeing huge confusion as people pore over the full implications of the ruling and some seem to capitalise to restrict the rights of trans people, without regard of the side effects on the wider LGBT community, or women.

We have now seen initial responses from people like the chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission Baroness Falkner, which appear to be taking a worst case interpretation of the ruling which does nothing but erode hard fought rights for trans people, claiming that we should be excluded from spaces we have existed in without issue for decades.

The British Transport Police have been fast off the mark to change their policies regarding strip searching of trans people. Male police officers can now strip search women if they believe they are trans (regardless of what genitalia that person might actually have). As a councillor I have seen officers in my council take weeks at the fastest to fully evaluate the impact of changes like this before introducing them, so find it impossible to believe that this policy has been introduced as a result of careful consideration of the implication of the ruling given the speed at which it has been done. It is clear that systemic transphobia remains embedded high in many public institutions, which are now rushing to bring in policies which harm vulnerable trans women.

I have no doubt that we will see more transphobic policies introduced under the guise of this ruling, rather than as a result of any careful consideration of the implication of it. These policies will hurt not only trans people, but be harmful for society in general as an erosion of liberty. Women in particular will be hurt by these decisions, shamefully championed by transphobic hate groups which masquerade as “women’s rights” campaigners, when inevitably authorities may make a judgement about their sex which turns out to be wrong. This has happened in the US through other trans-exclusionary definitions of women in bathroom bans. Legal recourse after the fact for redress is no compensation, and will remain open only to those with the pockets to fund it.

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The Pathway to Peace for Israel and Palestine: the West Bank is Critical Too

While the devastation of Gaza dominates the headlines, Israeli settlers have been ramping up  violence against Palestinians in the West Bank and stealing ever more of their land. The illegal settlement project has long been recognised as undermining the viability of a Palestinian state and as an impediment to peace. Lib Dem MPs have rightly spoken out in favour not just of a lasting ceasefire but of a sustainable way out of this crisis for both peoples. But as we try to find a way to a better future, we need to take another look at what is happening in the West Bank right now.

On the night of Saturday 29 March this year, around 140 Israeli soldiers and settlers raided the Masafer Yatta Village of Jinba in the West Bank. Windows were smashed, homes ransacked, and a school and health clinic damaged. This followed an earlier attack in which settlers beat six residents with batons, hospitalising five – including a 15-year-old boy – before soldiers arrived and arrested 22 villagers accused of attacking a settler Shepherd.

Just days earlier, Palestinian film director Hamdan Ballal was attacked by armed settlers in his village, Susya, also in Masafer Yatta. Ballal was surrounded and beaten outside his home, sustaining injuries to his head and stomach. Israeli authorities subsequently arrested Ballal and two other Palestinians, detaining them in a military facility overnight. The attack came mere weeks after Ballal was presented with an Oscar for his film ‘No Other Land,’ a documentary depicting just such state-backed settler violence.

These attacks are not isolated incidents, nor the actions of ‘bad apples’. They are part of an entrenched strategy to dispossess, displace and oppress Palestinian communities and, in so doing, accelerate Israeli settlement expansion across the illegally occupied West Bank. Since 1967, over 700,000 Israelis have transferred into the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), while hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been forcibly displaced through a combination of discriminatory policies and military and settler violence. Home demolitions, movement restrictions, land confiscation and punitive residency revocations all function within a system Amnesty carefully but justifiably characterises as apartheid. Violence, harassment, land theft and destruction of property by settlers – often carried out with support and assistance from Israeli authorities – adds to the pressure.

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Edinburgh book launch – all invited

Following on from the events at the National Liberal Club and at the party’s Harrogate Spring Conference, the John Stuart Mill Institute is completing its trio of book launches at the Scottish Liberal Club, 4 Clifton Terrace, Edinburgh EH12 5DR, at 7.30pm, Friday, 25th April. All colleagues are warmly welcome.

The Institute has sponsored the book “When We Speak of Freedom – Radical Liberalism in an Age of Crisis” as the definitive current publication on Liberal philosophy and values. The twenty chapter writers include a number of respected politicians, academics and specialists, including Sir Vince Cable, Professor Sir Lawrence Freedman, Professor David Howarth and Bob Marshall-Andrews KC. The editors are two young academics, Paul Hindley and Ben Wood, who will be happy to answer any questions you may have – contact details are below.

Of particular importance to the Scottish media launch is the chapter on “Federalism from a Scottish Perspective” by Ross Finnie, former MSP and, at Holyrood, ex-Minister for Rural Development, 1999 to 2007. Previous to his time in the Scottish parliament he was a Councillor for twenty-two years. Ross will be present at the media launch.

Another leading Scottish Liberal Democrat, Denis Robertson Sullivan, has contributed a chapter on “Ending the UK Housing Crisis”. Denis is a former Treasurer of the Scottish Liberal Democrats. He was the Chair of Scotland Shelter and the Vice-Chair of Shelter UK.

If you would like more information about the John Stuart Mill Institute please consult our website which is www.jsmi.org.uk or get in touch with me: Michael Meadowcroft, JSMI Trustee, [email protected].

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Yes, Liberals can and should be proud to be British

I feel compelled to begin this article with a confession of jealousy. Since joining the Scottish Liberal Democrats, I’ve met many wonderful people who can say that they are lifelong liberals. I always wince with envy when I hear it.

As I’ve told those who have asked, I was a member of the Scottish Conservatives for some years, including a brief stint working in their press office in Holyrood. I’m not ashamed of that per se, and nobody in the party has even hinted that I should be, but facts are facts.

Especially given the right-ward march of the Scottish Tories in recent years, I remain one of our most repentant sinners, comforted by the fact that the Tories left me every bit as much as I left them.

If I cannot carry the card of the from the cradle liberal, I can at least offer to be of use. With the foothills of the 2026 Holyrood elections in view, many liberal-adjacent Tories will be looking for a new home, one that combines fiscal responsibility with their open, tolerant, pre-Boris social views.

For an excellent rendition of this point, I highly recommend watching the speech our new MSP, Jamie Greene, gave at our conference in Inverness. Jamie spoke with candour, grace, humour, and clarity on this subject. He has walked the walk and very much has the talk to go with it.

Those expecting this article to be a shopping list of things that Liberal Democrats should abandon will be disappointed. Instead, I mean to encourage something that is going very well, especially with disillusioned Tory voters in mind. Our appeal to patriotism.

There is much to like so far. Ed Davey has been leading the effort, encouraging us to buy British goods where possible and taking a strong line on Russian aggression and the destructive nature of the Trump administration’s disastrous, miserly, and self-defeating tariffs.

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Official Lib Dem reaction to today’s Supreme Court judgement

It’s been a tough day for trans and non binary people and for those who love them. The Judgement handed down by the Supreme Court on the definition of a woman throughout the Equality Act 2010 has understandably caused significant anxiety about what this could mean for the rights of trans people.

For me there seems to be an inherent contradiction between

The unanimous decision of this court is that the terms woman and sex in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex.

and

the legislation gives transgender people “protection, not only against discrimination through the protected characteristic

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Opportunities in our appeals and disciplinary processes

This week vacancies have been advertised for two important roles in the Party.

Disciplinary Sub Group

The Disciplinary Sub Group ” is responsible for ensuring the independence, efficiency and effectiveness of the Complaints Procedure. As part of this it will monitor, review and amend the procedure and relevant guidance on an ongoing basis and support Party staff in their roles within the Complaints Procedure. The DSG is not involved in the handling of individual complaints.”

Applications are sought from party members who can:

demonstrate their affinity with the values of the party, as well as an understanding of its structures and the context within which the party’s internal processes operate.

A commitment to the Liberal Democrats is required but evidence of substantial prior involvement is not and induction and training will be available. The Party is keen to encourage new talent.

In making its appointments, the Board will take into account:

  • Specialist skills, knowledge and experience including in one of more of creating and delivering training; data recording and/or case management systems;, law, disciplinary matters or HR; drafting policies and procedures, including ensuring they embed best practice on diversity and inclusion; and specialist knowledge and/or training in addressing certain types of complaint (e.g. sexual impropriety cases, protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, religious representation or social media management);

  • All aspects of diversity, and the need to reflect the representation from all three State Parties;

  • Previous experience with the Complaints’ Procedure, or with similar procedures inside or outside of the party; and

  • The need for DSG members to, and to be seen to, exercise objective and impartial judgement in assessing the efficacy of the procedure.

The closing date for applications is 25 April 2025. Full details of how to apply are here.

Federal Appeals Panel

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Politics must change

Now that the United States has abdicated from its position of leader and protector of the “free world” politicians of all parties are in agreement that ”the world has changed” and we must change with it.  I believe that, looking backwards for half a century or so rather than just from  the accession President Trump, and forward for another fifty years rather than to the next election, we need a fundamental shift in the political debate in at least the following  areas.

Physical Standard of Living

For a least a century and a half there has been an assumption that each generation should enjoy a better material standard of living  their parents.  In our developed economies we must abandon his idea.  Yes, there will be advances in medicine and other scientific areas, in arts, music and leisure pursuits,  which improve our quality of life, but we already have the capability of affording everyone a decent material standard of living, provided we share more equitably.

Climate Change

We have to take this very seriously indeed: it is not just an optional add-on but must be central to our policies.  The current Labour government seems to be prepared to postpone or even ditch policies to limit damage to the environment if they impede short run physical growth and employment. We need to find other ways of “ raising all boats” to an acceptable standard.  Better sharing is the obvious one.

Inequality

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My journey from Socialism to Liberalism

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I have always been fascinated with politics and how the world works. Our history, our present and our future. How we co-exist in society. Being a young idealist, I first felt that the answers to the issues that we faced were through Socialism. I remember seeing Jeremy Corbyn’s rise to the leadership of the Labour Party, a weary looking man who somehow was able to connect to people of different generations and backgrounds. I was inspired. I joined the Labour Party in 2016, hoping for a better future.

Looking back at that time, I did see the world through a one-dimensional lens. Rich versus poor, the bourgeoisie versus the proletariat. Back then, when asked on how to solve the issues of the day, I would always resort to “just raise taxes on the rich”. It was the magical answer I had to any issue on the economy, never looking at the potential consequences that major tax rises could have to both businesses and workers.

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Lib Dem led Councils shortlisted for top Award

The Local Authority publication the Municipal Journal has shortlisted a number of Lib Dem-led Councils for their ‘Local Authority of the Year Award’.

The Award recognises “councils who, through a collective effort, drive innovation and are delivering the best outcomes for their communities”. What is really striking is that, of the seven finalists, all but one are either Lib Dem-run or with Lib Dems involved in running the councils.

One finalist is the Lib Dem-run Council of Watford. Peter Taylor, the elected Mayor of Watford said :

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Who is Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue: AI art and Neo-Fascism

For being such keen environmentalists and anti-fascists, the Lib Dems need to be far more critical of generative AI than we currently are. But as opposed to talking about the obvious and well-known environmental damage that AI causes, I’d like to focus on the much less talked about the latter: AI art as the contemporary fascist aesthetic.

This should be glaringly apparent if we just take a short look at the people who are pro-AI art: from Trump and his administration using Ghibli-style AI images to publicise their illegal and inhumane deportations, to Elon Musk generating a drawing of …

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Mark Pack writes: The biggest prize in May’s local elections

Lib Dems in sunshine with Mike Ross, Mark Pack and Shaffaq MohammedThere are hundreds of important prizes at stake for us in the May local elections.

Wards where we are standing our first candidate in years. Wards where winning would give us our first breakthrough in an area. Wards where winning would make us the main opposition on the council. Wards where winning could give us leadership of the council for the first time. Wards where winning would cement our record in power locally.

But perhaps the biggest prize at stake for the Liberal Democrats is one that has never been on offer before: the new Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority Mayor.

It brings together two areas with impressive local Liberal Democrat teams: the Hull team that took power from Labour even while the Conservatives were in power in Downing Street, and the East Riding team that has ridden an impressive run of by-election wins to be a growing political force locally.

There is important political power at stake to improve the lives of residents in the area.

For the party more widely too there is the chance to show our relevance in northern England, to get a new Liberal Democrat in important local and regional media markets and to show how we can win against Labour.

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Welcome to my day: 14 April 2025 – wouldn’t a bit of boredom and a nice cup of tea hit the spot right now?

As you see this, gentle reader, I’ll be back in the United Kingdom, but, as I write this, I’m on a Eurostar heading back after a week of looking out of train windows, eating local food, drinking local beers and wines, and admiring the architecture (or not, in the case of Wiener Neustadt) of a variety of European towns and cities. It has been reassuringly relaxing, if not exactly dull.

But beyond the cocoon of a train, the world has been a tempestuous place, with on again, off again tariffs, all sorts of previously unthinkable actions, and a sense that, perhaps, putting someone in charge of the world’s largest economy who is, let’s put it politely, somewhat mercurial, may not be entirely the best strategy. It is a reminder that solid competence, whilst not likely to inspire campaigners, might actually have long-term benefits.

One of the criticisms of the European Union was the glacial speed of its decision making. Yet it was almost entirely predictable, because when you have to achieve unanimity or, at least, rather more than a simple plurality, the deal making is easy to assess. And business, and the markets generally, like that. The alternative, as is being demonstrated currently, is not quite as popular (unless you have an inside track…). Predictability also has its advantages when it comes to things like the law and how it is applied, as it really does help in agreeing contracts if you know that they can be enforced if necessary.

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