Author Archives: Caron Lindsay

Caron Lindsay

Sarah Green makes her maiden speech

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 7th September 2021 - 5:36 pm

A wonderful sight for those of us who helped get Sarah Green elected as MP for Chesham and Amersham. A short while ago, she made her maiden speech. It was warm, generous, gracious and funny. She paid a lovely tribute to her predecessor Dame Cheryl Gillan, talked about her beautiful constituency with huge affection and got in a criticism of HS2, a description of the roads as an assault course for drivers and a takedown of the Government for its absurd plans for voter ID.

And here it is in full, thanks to the magic of me asking her office for a copy:

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dems will oppose Elections Bill in Parliament today

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 7th September 2021 - 11:00 am

How should decisions about how our elections are run be made?

You would hope that all the parties would get together and come up with something that we should all agree with. Or at least a truly independent body would annoy everyone equally by coming up with things that some like and some don’t.

Here’s how not to do it – let a Government which has more MPs than its vote share deserves change the rules to suit itself. That is far from democratic.

The Conservatives are looking to the example of the experts in voter suppression, the US Republicans, with their Elections Bill which comes before Parliament today. It is blatantly partisan in many aspects.

The first is that it compels voters to show ID to vote. They couch it in language around preventing fraud, which is pretty much non existent anyway. But you have to look at the impact that would have. Who would be most likely not to vote? People of colour, poorer people, younger people. In short, people who are less likely to vote Conservative.

The second is that it gives the Government more control over the Electoral Commission, which is supposed to be independent. Again, not a good sign.

The third is that it will constrain third party campaigners such as trade unions.

Don’t just take my word for it, take the word of someone who is both a former electoral commissioner and a Liberal Democrat. David Howarth was MP for Cambridge until 2010. He cautions us to make sure we don’t forget the other nasties the bill contains while we argue over Voter ID.

In an article for Open Democracy he sets out why the “poisonous” bill would cement Tory rule.

He describes how the Bill hands control of the Electoral Commission to Government ministers:

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Caron Lindsay

Christine Jardine: Government should pay for medicinal cannabis prescriptions for children with Epilepsy

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 7th September 2021 - 9:09 am

Surely any person, when the quality of life for a child is on the line, would quickly come to the conclusion that paying up is the right thing to do?

Ever since she was elected as MP for Edinburgh West, Christine Jardine has been pushing the Government to give access to medicinal cannabis particularly to children who suffer from rare forms of Epilepsy for whom it can make a huge difference.

She has seen at first hand how it can transform the lives of the children who take it. In her Scotsman column this week, she talks about Murray Gray, her young constituent, now thriving and living his best life. But a couple of years ago, the story was very different:

When his mum Karen first came to me, he was a very unwell little boy who was, as I explained, constantly in and out of hospital with dozens of seizures, and his family were worried they could lose him.

Now, since being prescribed cannabis oil, he is seizure free and a happy youngster who plays football with his dad and told me everything I needed to know about dinosaurs when he visited my office. This medication has given him a life he otherwise may not have had.

The problem is that although it is possible for children to be prescribed medicinal cannabis, the NHS is only paying for three of them. This means that parents like Karen Gray are having to pay ÂŁ1500 per month to ensure that their children can get the medicine that is giving them such a good quality of life.

Late last night, Christine led the first adjournment debate of the new parliamentary term in which she and others pushed minister Jo Churchill to ensure that in the short term, at least, the Government should pay for the children’s prescriptions until more clinicians are wiling to prescribe it. She outlined the problem:

When the then Home Secretary agreed that medicinal cannabis would be legal for use in the United Kingdom, I think we all believed that parents would no longer be forced to watch their children suffer, knowing that a treatment was available. What has happened since is heartbreaking. In the intervening years, they have been forced to source medication themselves, sometimes travel abroad—again at huge cost—to collect it, challenge the medical authorities and face rejection and repeated appeals for NHS prescriptions.

Surely no one in this place wants even to contemplate what it would mean to have a loved one—husband, wife, partner, brother, sister, friend or child—who had to pay for the medication they needed simply to go on with day-to-day life. Think of the diabetic without insulin or the asthmatic without an inhaler; this is no different, but it is new. With so much red tape and inflexible guidelines, too many people face being left alone, helpless and simply unable to afford life-changing treatment. In fact, since November 2018, just three NHS prescriptions have been issued for the type of medicinal cannabis that is life-transforming for these children.

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Caron Lindsay

Has Justin Trudeau blown it?

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 5th September 2021 - 3:07 pm

Canada’s Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau might have done well to remember the experience of Theresa May before he called a snap election two years before he needed to.

In 2017, with soaring poll ratings, May decided to go the polls to get a bigger majority to neutralise the more excitable Brexiteer wing of her party. Pride came before a fall as she ended the night on June 8th with no majority at all. The campaign was hers to lose and she did that in style. Her claim to bring strong and stable government was in tatters after a u-turn on social care early in the campaign and things just went from bad to worse after that. The Tories thought they could easily trounce a far left Labour leader. Jeremy Corbyn, however, found himself unexpectedly popular with young people.

In Canada, Trudeau seems to be having a similar experience. He started the election 5 points ahead and is now round about 3 points behind. CBC’s poll tracker sets out the grim reality.

This is the second time Trudeau has had a poor campaign, so you think he might have learned from 2019 when he lost his majority and the popular vote after sliding through the campaign, losing 20 seats in the process.

And to make matters worse, one of his MPs has had to stand down after nominations close in Kitchener, Ontario in the face of sexual harassment allegations which he denies. Trudeau stood by him just a few days ago. This was quite clearly going to be an issue during the campaign and has cost the Liberals a seat. It’s at best careless.

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Caron Lindsay

Largest Lib Dem business organisations to merge

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 4th September 2021 - 9:43 am

The two largest and most active business groups in the Liberal Democrat community have joined forces to create an even larger, louder voice for sensible, liberal-minded business people.

From yesterday, the two are operating as one network under a new name: The LibDem Business Network, or LDBN.

Welcoming the merger, Paul Lucraft, Chair of Lib Dems in Business, said:

The Lib Dems in Business and the Liberal Democrats Business & Entrepreneurs Network have always been naturally aligned. This merger represents a significant strategic development, bringing greater joint influence and scope for both networks. It opens up exciting possibilities for the unified membership and for its mission to link the Liberal Democrats even more closely with the business community.

Simon Curtis, Chair of the Liberal Democrats Business & Entrepreneurs Network, stated:

The creation of LDBN helps us further promote the interests of fair-minded business at this crucial time. So many businesspeople are facing unprecedented challenges due, in large part, to current government policy. It helps us hone our message and expand, and support the only real party of business now, The Liberal Democrats.

Ed Davey, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, also welcomed the merger with warm words of support:

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Caron Lindsay

Scottish Lib Dems oppose vaccine passports

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 1st September 2021 - 6:04 pm

Today Nicola Sturgeon announced that Scots attending big outdoor and indoor events from later this month will need vaccine passports to get in – unless they are exempt because they can’t have the vaccine.

The BBC reports that you will have to show evidence of vaccination or exemption to access:

  • Nightclubs and adult entertainment venues.

  • Unseated indoor live events, with more than 500 people in the audience.

  • Unseated outdoor live events, with more than 4,000 people in the audience.

  • Any event, of any nature, which has more than 10,000 people in attendance.

So, does this mean if I want to …

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Caron Lindsay

Research highlights devastating financial impact of pandemic on young lower income women

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 31st August 2021 - 3:47 pm

It was clear right from the start that Covid shone a super trouper on the inequalities in our society. As older, more affluent office workers worked from home and saw their bank balances increase, younger, lower income workers kept us fed and cared for.

New research commissioned by a number of women’s organisations, including Close the Gap, Engender and the Fawcett Society has laid bare the impact on women on low incomes. Younger women were more adversely affected than older women andhit than lower income men.

Even before the pandemic hit, the report says that almost half of young women on …

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Caron Lindsay

How to get the most out of Conference – key deadline coming up

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 31st August 2021 - 9:40 am

Every year I swear I’m going to read all the Conference papers in good time, carefully craft speeches before Conference begins and be well prepared. I’d sort my diary well ahead of time so I knew what I’d be doing and when.

Every year the reality is somewhat different. For in-person conferences, I’d be reading the papers and motions and writing speeches on the train on the way down, having panic-thrown every item of clothing I possess into a suitcase to take with me. I suspect that I may be far from unique in this.

This year’s Conference begins in just 17 days’ time. You can find all the papers, including reports from the party’s committees, and policy papers on subjects such as the nature of public debate, federalism, universal basic income, tackling the climate emergency and what Liberal Democrats believe here.

There are several ways you can participate in Conference. The first is to make a speech in any of the debates that you are interested in. If that sounds daunting, just pick a paragraph in any of the motions and try and think of three points to make about it. You don’t have to take up all the time. In fact, the Chair of the debate will probably thank you if you don’t, because they will fit more people in.

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Caron Lindsay

Afghans and their loved ones pay the price of a UK PM who doesn’t care

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 29th August 2021 - 11:47 am

Jo Swinson was right about many things. Just after she became leader in 2019, she told Iain Dale that the worst thing about Boris Johnson is that he just doesn’t care about anything other than himself.

Nowhere has that been more obvious than in the way he has behaved over the evacuation from Afghanistan.

The way you act when you are in a leadership position is a powerful signal to those below you about how important you think something is. If you are passionate about getting something done, it’s very clear.

There’s a reasonable expectation that, at times of crisis, your leaders are going to look a bit like they are devoting everything to sort things out. You want to see a bit of worry, empathy, stress on their faces. We, instead, have a carefully dishevelled Prime Minister looking like he doesn’t have a care in the world, asking stressed staff at the Foreign Office if they are the ones being inundated by emails. I mean, I am sure that if Armando Iannucci had suggested that scene for The Thick of It, they’d have binned the idea as being too far-fetched. Ed Davey said that the video showed Johnson in his true light:

These flippant remarks show Boris Johnson in his true light, uncaring and unable to master the detail during this awful crisis.

The emails he refers to are from desperate family and friends worried that the Taliban will kill their loved ones.

Perhaps if Boris Johnson had understood and planned for the dangers of the Kabul evacuation, thousands of people would not be at crisis point.

Wendy Chamberlain added on Twitter:

Our MPs have been really good at supporting their staff with the emotional impact of this work with Ed taking time to message his appreciation.  Their caseworkers work alongside MPs supporting worried loved ones and all of them really care about the people they are trying to help.

And then we discover from the Observer today that many of the emails sent to the Government from MPs were not even read.

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Caron Lindsay

Alex Cole-Hamilton announces new, young spokespeople team

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 28th August 2021 - 12:18 pm

Alex Cole-Hamilton has announced the spokespeople team he thinks will bring “new hope” to the party and to Scotland.

One of the most striking things about Alex’s team is that it is very young. I am positively ancient in comparison to all but about four others. It is fantastic that of the 18 spokespeople, 4 are in their 20s, and are members of the Young Liberals. They are Molly Nolan, who really closed the gap in Caithness, Sutherland and Ross in May. She is such a powerful advocate for our rural communities. Ben Lawrie, one of the youngest councillors in Scotland will be holding the Government to account on its handling of the drug deaths crisis. Joe McCauley, who stood in Glasgow in May takes on culture and Jack Norquoy, the youngest spokesperson at 22, speaks for young people. An Orcadian, now living in Edinburgh, he understands the issues they are facing in rural areas as well as in our cities.

Alex said:

Scotland needs new hope and this team can offer it. They are crackling with talent and ideas, ready to inspire people. We will focus on the issues that matter to people across the country every day, from the NHS to the climate emergency. We will oppose the centralising SNP and stand up for human rights at home and abroad.

“Over the coming weeks I will be setting out a series of proposals to give people new hope, from the environment to the future of our communities and the prospects for young people. Scottish Liberal Democrats have so much to offer the people of Scotland.

I was surprised and delighted to be asked to return to the role of Social Security spokesperson which I had until 2019, before moving to Housing and then Equalities.

Alex phoned me when I’d nipped into Morrisons last Saturday afternoon and I took his call standing next to a stack of lager. Fighting poverty and inequality is so important to me and we need to use every single power we have in Scotland to make life better for people who are really struggling to put food on the table and heat their houses. I’m thrilled to be working with Wendy Chamberlain, who has the DWP Westminster portfolio.

The team in full is as follows:

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Caron Lindsay

Zoe Franklin selected to dislodge the Guildford brick in the Blue Wall

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 25th August 2021 - 8:44 pm

Good news from Guildford:

Zoe is bright, energetic and inspiring. I remember her speaking at a Scottish Lib Dem conference fringe meeting a couple of years ago giving lots of ideas about local campaigning. She closed the gap last time and could regain the seat which was held by Liberal Democrat Sue Doughty between 2001 and 2005. Sue was the only non Conservative to hold the seat since 1906.

From the Huffington Post:

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Caron Lindsay

Heartbreak, humility and humour – Alex Cole-Hamilton talks to Matt Forde

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 24th August 2021 - 6:55 am

A wee treat for your commute today, or to have on in the background while you work from home.

New Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton was the guest on this week’s Political Party podcast hosted by Matt Forde.

It’s a brilliant chat, incredibly serious and moving in places, absolutely hilarious in others. At the start, Matt Forde warns us that it includes Alex’s account of a man who died by suicide in front of him a few years back. It’s one of the reasons he has been so persistent in questioning the Scottish Government on their lack of a suicide prevention strategy or lack of mental health support.

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Caron Lindsay

Maddy Planche: Young people do care about politics

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 22nd August 2021 - 2:21 pm

This weekend we’re publishing all the speeches from Alex Cole-Hamilton’s launch event as Scottish Lib Dem leader. Maddy Planche, a student and activist from Edinburgh, who is definitely one to watch for the future, introduced Alex and talked about how he had listened to her and taken her seriously when she first got involved.

For as long as politics has been around, there has always been the assumption that young people just don’t care enough about it. It doesn’t take much to notice that at this current point in time, you could not be further from the truth. In fact, I’m the third young person to be speaking today.

Young people, just like the rest of society, look at the world and are worried. We’re worried about the ever-impending climate crisis, worried about whether we can be treated equally to our peers, worried about a lack of meaningful action.

We’re frustrated but that doesn’t mean we don’t care. We are constantly watching a wheel that is not turning fast enough and we cannot wait to jump at it and push it ourselves. So, we do, in our droves.

That is why I first got involved in politics, because I want progress and I want it to come faster. It’s what drew me to the Liberal Democrats. We do not create policies simply for the sake of being palatable. What underpins our liberalism is our belief that everyone should have the freedom and choice to make in life what they want of it, but they are not always given the right tools to do so.

We fight tooth and nail for this belief. That is why we’re the party best placed to get the wheel turning.

When I did first get involved, I didn’t quite know what to expect. When I turned up to my first canvassing session (eighteen, very nervous) I half expected to hate it, never go to another session but at least tell my university tutor on the Monday morning that I had tried politics in the ‘real world’.

Instead, I was pleasantly surprised. People that I was worried would not take me seriously enough because of my lack of age and experience instead appreciated my presence and made it vocal they did so. One of these people was Alex Cole-Hamilton.

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Caron Lindsay

Kevin Lang: Council elections are the key to winning again

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 22nd August 2021 - 12:15 pm

This weekend we are running all the speeches from Alex Cole-Hamilton’s rally on Friday after he was declared Scottish Lib Dem leader. Next up is his best friend and the architect of Alex’s, Christine Jardine’s and Wendy Chamberlain’s successful election campaigns. From his speech you get quite an insight into their relationship and into Alex as a person.

Alex may have the biggest vote of any MSP, but Kevin gained the highest number of first preferences of any councillor in Scotland. This man knows how to win elections and he’s on a mission to make sure we win as many council seats as possible next year.

So, about 10 days ago I got ap hone call from ACH. Now this is not an infrequent event but it was a conversation like we’ve never had before.

“Kevin, ” he said, if I’m fortunate enough to be chosen as party leader on 20th August, it would mean the world to be if you would come and speak at the announcement of the result. Can you do it?”

And I said to him, of course, you are my best friend. Of course I  want to be there for you. But tell me, what is the format going to be? Who are the speakers?  What role do you want me to have.

And then with all of the classic understatement that we associate with Alex Cole-Hamilton, he said:

“Well, Kevin, Jack Norquoy is going to be speaking. And this is going to be Jack’s Obama moment. Remember when Obama spoke for the first time at the Democratic National Convention, well this is Jack’s Obama moment.

I said, this is exciting. What role do you want me to have?

And he paused: Well, he said, do you remember when Pete Buttigieg rolled out his old high school classmates, that’s you.

Right, so Jack’s Obama and I’m  Pete Buttigieg’s high school classmates. If ever anything told me that I was the future once, it was that.

But here’s the truth. I have known Alex for 20 years. I know him about as well as anybody. And I can tell you with. You will struggle to find a more decent person and you will struggle to find a truer liberal than him. So for the last 20 years I have been proud to call him my best friend but today I am proud to call him my party leader.

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Caron Lindsay

Welcome to our new Green overlords

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 22nd August 2021 - 10:48 am

As the Scottish Greens go into what looks very much like a Coalition with the SNP, taking 2 yet to be announced ministerial positions, it would be tempting to treat them with exactly the same kindness and empathy they showed us when we were entering coalition at Westminster in 2010.

Before we had even done anything, they were turning hyperbolic abuse into an art form.

But we should be bigger people here. We are, after all, in favour of electoral systems which encourage coalition and cross-party working.

We will have to judge the Greens by their actions.

And it’s not as if this development is anything particularly new. The SNP has relied on their votes for most of the past 14 years. I do have to wonder why they think that now is the right time to join a failing government and start to get the blame for the decline in our public services that the SNP has presided over.

The Greens in Scotland are very much of the watermelon kind rather than the mango. They are socialist in nature rather than liberal, and their support for independence risks them putting nationalism above the climate emergency.

I really don’t get why, with a decade to save the planet, any Green would want to spend at least a quarter of that time faffing about with the constitution. The planet is not going to be saved by us putting up barriers, that’s for sure.

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Caron Lindsay

Alex Cole-Hamilton: Liberals see the best in things. We celebrate diversity and nonconformity and if something isn’t working we try to fix it or we fight for reform.

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 20th August 2021 - 5:42 pm

One sentence to sum up the Liberal Democrats:

Liberals see the best in things. We celebrate diversity and nonconformity and if something isn’t working we try to fix it or we fight for reform.

Here, in full, is Alex Cole-Hamilton’s first speech as leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats. It was a belter that brought a tear to my eye. He started by talking about Maddy Planche, the young activist who introduced him. Another couple of decades and we might well be holding a big rally when she takes over the leadership.

Alex paid tribute to Willie Rennie’s 10 years of service, highlighting his achievements in getting more mental health support, expanding childcare and ensuring that disadvantaged kids get more money in school.

Then he set out the reasons Lib Dems offer new hope to Scotland. In a powerful section he invited people who shared our vision to come to us.

If you want a party that will fight the climate emergency with ferocity but without the baggage of nationalism, come with us.

If you want Scotland to make things again and capture the imagination of the world, through industry and innovation, come with us.

If you want to live in a country which offers the best education in the world, which values its carers and those they care for, then come with us.

If you want a party that stands for human rights at home and abroad. One which fights for the women fleeing Kabul and protects young people from gay conversion therapy, come with us.

If you are affected by the mental health emergency come with us.

If you are worried about state intrusion or big centralising government then come with us.

Come with us and I promise you, that Liberal Democrats in the villages and towns of Scotland will show you the meaning of the word hope once again.

 

Read the whole thing here:

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Caron Lindsay

WATCH: Ed Davey’s Afghanistan speech: Boris Johnson is a national liabilty

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 18th August 2021 - 7:15 pm

Ed Davey had a tough slot today, coming just after Tom Tugendhat’s powerful speech.

He did well, though. He laid bare Boris Johnson’s share of the responsibility for what had happened:

I cannot hold President Biden to account in this House, but I can hold our own Government to account. Our Prime Minister and his Cabinet cannot escape their culpability for this disaster—for both the mistaken decision to withdraw, and how the withdrawal has turned into such a catastrophe. From the Prime Minister’s self-evident lack of influence and clout in Washington, to his negligent inability, yet again, to master his brief

…

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Caron Lindsay

What should Liberal Democrats be saying about Afghanistan?

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 15th August 2021 - 10:07 am

Ed Davey called for Parliament to be brought back from its Summer holidays to discuss the growing crisis in Afghanistan. His comments two days ago seem even more urgent now as the Taliban advance on Kabul in an entirely predictable consequence of the withdrawal of US and UK troops from the country.

I am not a fan of military action. There have been very few deployments of our troops I have been in favour of because we often seem to ultimately make things a lot worse. There have been a few exceptions to this, for humanitarian purposes, such as intervention in Kosovo, but it does take a lot to persuade me of the need for it.

On this occasion, our withdrawal before there is a strong enough political and physical  infrastructure to bring stability,  and a better life for the people has put the population in huge danger. Not only that, but the Taliban has form for stoking international terrorism so their presence makes the world less safe.

Joe Biden is in a difficult position. Surely he must know that Afghanistan and the world have become less safe because of the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw US forces, but he is basically worried  of Trump in three years’ time if he sends them back in.  The Trump administration’s peace agreement with the Taliban in February last year was a disgrace with no guarantees on human rights or even a mention of women’s rights. Subsequent talks aimed at finding a political settlement for Afghanistan between the Government and the Taliban had few women in the room.

The Government of Afghanistan’s record on human rights is far from exemplary. Amnesty’s 2020 report on the country said:

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Caron Lindsay

Alex Cole-Hamilton: Everyone loses if choice is Boris vs Nicola

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 14th August 2021 - 8:30 pm

See, I’ve fixed the problem with the Times headline this morning.

A mischievous headline writer gave the impression that Alex Cole-Hamilton as new Scottish Lib Dem leader was prepared to work with the Tories to save the Union. That’s not quite what he said.

He was talking about offering something very different to the Boris and Nicola show:

If the choice boils down to Boris Johnson’s vision of the union versus Nicola Sturgeon’s of independence, then everyone loses. We don’t need to settle for that.

Scottish Liberal Democrats have never been satisfied with the union as it currently stands. Alex says that he is prepared to work with the Conservatives if they “recognise our union of nations is imperfect, is in need of reform and could do so much better.”

On Labour, he says that while we have much in common on issues of social justice, their instincts on things like ID cards mean that there are significant areas where we disagree. While he’s happy to work with them, we will pursue our distinctive liberal message.

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Caron Lindsay

Double by-election GAIN in the Highlands

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 13th August 2021 - 7:34 pm

Today is one of those days when it is amazing to be a Lib Dem.

We have two new Liberal Democrat Councillors in the Highlands, gaining seats from Independents in Wick and East Caithness and Inverness West.

The Wick result was particularly pleasant because our 2017 result saw us in 9th and last place with 172 votes. New candidate Jill Tilt topped the poll on first preferences by 35 votes today. I’m fairly certain we got at least that many people out to vote in our polling day Maraphone today.

On paper, Inverness was a better prospect as we already have a well loved local councillor in the ward, Alex Graham. I went canvassing there at the beginning of July when I was up on holiday and it felt promising. It was great to see the fantastic Colin Aitken become our youngest councillor in Scotland.

Thanks to the Liberal Democrats in coalition with Labour, we have STV for Council elections in Scotland, which means AV for by-elections. The SNP were ahead by 40 on first preferences, but Colin won it on transfers.

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Caron Lindsay

Should we boycott the Beijing Winter Olympics?

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 8th August 2021 - 10:24 am

As the Olympic Games in Tokyo draw to a close and we look back on two weeks which has laid bare serious issues of wellbeing of athletes and blatant sexism in sport funding, as well as some brilliant performances in an incredible range of sports.

I hadn’t realised negotiating complicated climbing walls at speed was an internationally recognised sport but I swear I didn’t draw breath as I watched people take their lives in their hands.

And the cross country cycling was brutal with all sorts of obstacles thrown in the path of the riders.

I hadn’t been particularly invested in these Games but got drawn in.

Preparing to compete in the biggest of international sporting events is hard enough in the best of circumstances.  Athletes have to endure crushing physical and mental pressures and make huge sacrifices. Behind every length in the swimming pool in an Olympic final are years, maybe decades of getting up at 5am to do a couple of hours in a pool before school and evening training. But the pandemic added an extra layer of complexity to their preparation with athletes having to lift weights in their gardens rather than the gym.

Because of the year’s delay to the 2020 Olympics, it’s just six months until the Olympic circus starts up again for the Winter Olympics. I may be petrified of snow and ice in all its forms if I have to walk on them, but I’m quite happy to watch people lie down on tea trays and speed down helter skelters at amazing speeds, or jump off a high ramp on skis.

The problem with this event is that it takes place in Beijing. Would our participation in these Games in the wake of the brutality of the Chinese Government towards the Uyghur Muslims be in any way appropriate?

Ed Davey thinks not. In February, he called for us to boycott the Games. From The Guardian:

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Caron Lindsay

Ed Davey: Johnson’s refusal to self isolate “Barnard Castle on steroids”

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 7th August 2021 - 10:38 am

Boris Johnson’s blatant avoidance of self isolation as a staffer who tested positive for Covid further undermines confidence in this Government.

I feel sorry for anyone who has to be around him over the next few days. He could pass a potentially deadly virus on to them or ultimately their vulnerable relatives. It is an anxious time for them.

The Guardian has the story and Ed Davey’s reacton:

The group were tested upon landing, and the official’s result was positive so they went into isolation. Some whose result came back negative were told to make their own way home, while others, including Johnson, finished the tour. The prime minister was then pictured meeting the business secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, the Scottish Tory leader, Douglas Ross, and the Conservative MP Andrew Bowie.

Johnson and several members of the No 10 contingent are not isolating – but a government source said “the whole lot should be”. The Downing Street spokesperson also refused to say if he had been tested since the positive case was discovered.

Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, also called on Johnson to confirm he had not been asked to isolate again. Referring to the excuse Dominic Cummings used for breaking lockdown rules last spring, Davey said of the prime minister: “If it turns out he has scorned his own government’s policy on self-isolation again, the public reaction will be Barnard Castle on steroids.”

This is the second time in 3 weeks that the PM has tried to get away with not isolating after being in contact with someone who has tested positive. It’s not acceptable. If anyone becomes ill as a result of his behaviour, then he will have to take responsibility.

This comes close on the heels of the story about Alok Sharma, our climate change minister, dotting back and forth around red list countries and not quarantining despite being in risky situations of indoor mixing.

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Caron Lindsay

Ed Davey: Government is failing Afghan people

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 4th August 2021 - 7:41 am

The idea of the Taliban getting closer to power in Afghanistan is very worrying indeed. That it comes at a time when we are withdrawing troops and slashing foreign aid by 78% shows astonishing irresponsibility on behalf of our government.

You can’t just walk away and leave people in the lurch as we are doing.

Ed Davey has spoken of his concerns about the advance of the Taliban:

As the Taliban take swathes of territory on their advance towards Kabul, millions of women and girls are facing the prospect of a new era of injustice, inequality and brutality – while the

…

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Caron Lindsay

UPDATED: Humza Yousaf challenges nursery which refused to take his daughter

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 2nd August 2021 - 9:25 am

Today’s Daily Record reports that a Scottish nursery refused three separate applications for children with names that might indicate they were from a minority ethnic background while simultaneously offering places to children who appeared to be from white backgrounds. The first of those was for the two year old daughter of Scottish Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and his wife Nadia. The Record subsequently conducted its own investigation.

After being contacted in July by Nadia, the Record made its own inquiries using fake names. Under Aqsa Akhtar we asked Mill on July 7 for any afternoons free for a three-year-old daughter Amira. Five days later after prompting, on July 12, Mill replied there was “no ­availability for a three-year-old” and in contrast to the non-ethnic cases there was no offer of a registration form, a tour of the nursery or an unprompted option of a waiting list.

That evening, we emailed under the name Susan Blake about a couple of afternoons at any point for Sophie, three. The next day, Mill sent a registration form and leaflet.

She said she wanted to see where Sophie “would fit in on our ­registers” and to “let you know of availability and arrange a suitable time for a show round for you”. This was in contrast to her ­statement the day before to Sara that there was resolutely “no ­availability for a three-year-old”.

On July 19, we asked for specific availability before filling in the ­registration form. Three days later, Mills apologised for a delay as she had not been in the office but said she could “accommodate any afternoon apart from a Friday”.

Humza said on Twitter:

He and Nadia have asked  the Care Inspectorate to look into what has happened and establish if there is evidence of discrimination on the grounds of ethnicity or religion. The nursery denies this.

It got me thinking about what I would do if I had a child at that nursery. I wouldn’t feel comfortable about standing by and keeping silent. I would certainly ask the nursery what was going on and I would not be fobbed off with the really poor response they gave to the paper, which amounts to “we can’t be racist, we have Muslims here.”

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Caron Lindsay

Highland Lib Dem by-election candidates set out their stalls

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 1st August 2021 - 11:41 am

It’s great to have local government by-elections back, especially when we have as good a night as we did last Thursday.

We have a really good chance of gaining two new councillors in the Highlands on August 12th.

Colin Aitken is hoping to gain the Inverness West seat from Independent and Jill Tilt is hoping to gain Wick and East Caithness, also from Independent.

Liberal Democrat councillors are currently in administration with the Labour and Independent groups in this vast council which stretches from the north coast to Skye , Lochaber and more than 50 miles south of Inverness.

It takes a good 2.5-3 hours to drive between the two wards, although the journey is much easier than it was when I used to do it frequently in the 80s.

Colin and Jill have been setting out what they want to achieve as Councillors for their areas.

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Caron Lindsay

The National really doesn’t like Alex Cole-Hamilton…

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 31st July 2021 - 12:38 pm

Alex Cole-Hamilton has done a brilliant job of keeping his constituents informed about the constantly changing Covid restrictions over the past 17 months. As soon as things change, he sends out an email to his constituents to let them know.

In over 40 updates since March last year, there have been two typos. I am slightly miffed that they didn’t pick up the one last year when he referred to the Caronavirus. I mean what could the symptoms of that one be? A sudden obsession with Doctor Who and Eurovision?

He got a date wrong for the lifting of one aspect of the Covid restrictions in Scotland in his most recent bulletin. Someone pointed it out and he issued a correction in minutes. So far, so not very dramatic.

But Scotland’s nationalist newspaper, The National, never Alex’s biggest fan, decided to give this the full front page headline treatment. Clearly they see him as a threat.

It’s really bizarre when you consider that yesterday Scotland yet again a new high of drug-related deaths. We should all be talking about that and sharing ideas to sort this out. It’s not something that a newspaper that is little more than an SNP Government mouthpiece should relegate to a side story.

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Caron Lindsay

Liberal Equality – David Howarth delivers Social Liberal Forum’s annual Beveridge Lecture

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 29th July 2021 - 9:13 pm

You always come away from a David Howarth speech with your brain fizzing with excitement. Our former MP for Cambridge did not disappoint tonight as he delivered the Social Liberal Forum’s Beveridge Lecture in a hybrid event hosted online and at the National Liberal Club. Our newest MP, Sarah Green, a former Director of the SLF, was in the Chair.

The theme for tonight’s talk was Liberal Equality – what should the liberal attitude be to equality.

He started out by pointing out that unequal societies are unhealthier and unhappier – even if you have above average income. The financial crash and the pandemic have hastened an already growing inequality.

He talked about the threat posed by the super rich to our democracy and liberal values.

He looked at how John Stuart Mill’s idea that “the best state of human nature” involves nobody being poor, nobody having the desire to be richer and nobody fearing that they could be thrust back into poverty.

He had some ideas about how we could break up concentrations of wealth and power – capping political donations, state funding political parties by giving citizens vouchers to spend on the party of their choice, capping the amount you could inherit. Before anyone in a blue wall seat has to lie down and grab the smelling salts, the amounts would be beyond the incomes of all but the ultra rich – the sort of amount it would take to buy a national newspaper.

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Caron Lindsay

Alex Cole-Hamilton’s day in the media – New hope, right now

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 28th July 2021 - 8:16 pm

Since his announcement of his leadership bid last night, Alex Cole-Hamilton has been on a bit of a media whirlwind.

He held a press call near the beach in Cramond:

BBC News highlights his interview on Good Morning Scotland:

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dem researcher discovers proof that the Queen lobbied ministers to change climate change law

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 28th July 2021 - 7:26 pm

Lily Humphries is one of the Lib Dem team in the Scottish Parliament and the brains behind many of our scoops with her freedom of information requests.

She features in in today’s Guardian which reports that Lily discovered that the Queen had successfully lobbied Scottish Government ministers to get an exemption from a new law which “requires landowners to facilitate the construction of pipelines to heat buildings using renewable energy.”

That’s not bad for someone who owns as much land as Her Majesty does. As the Guardian reports:

Her lawyers secured the dispensation from Scotland’s government five months ago by exploiting an obscure parliamentary procedure known as Queen’s consent, which gives the monarch advance sight of legislation.

The arcane parliamentary mechanism has been borrowed from Westminster, where it has existed as a custom since the 1700s.

The article explains:

The new documents, uncovered by Lily Humphreys, a researcher for the Scottish Liberal Democrats using freedom of information laws, disclose how the monarch used her special access to Scottish legislation to intervene in the parliamentary process as recently as February.

Not only that, but the Government didn’t tell Parliament about this as Willie Rennie pointed out:

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Caron Lindsay

BREAKING….Alex Cole-Hamilton makes his move

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 27th July 2021 - 10:25 pm

Alex Cole-Hamilton has tonight announced he is standing to be Scottish Lib Dem leader. The contest is taking place after Willie Rennie announced he was standing down two weeks ago.

Alex throwing his hat into the ring is the most surprising thing since the sun rose in the east this morning.

He announced the news in video posted on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/agcolehamilton/status/1420132996053704706?s=20

 

He is brilliant on all the touchstone liberal issues of human rights, civil liberties and social justice.

In his weekly column for the Edinburgh Evening News, he set out his stalll:

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