Author Archives: Chris Pallet

The coalition and the leadership contest

The legacy of the coalition seems to be a big part of the debate around our leadership election. Those arguing the most important thing is that we move on from the coalition will tend to favour one of the two candidates not around during the coalition. And visa-versa. I assume contributors to Lib Dem Voice are not allowed to write direct endorsements of their preferred candidate, but they can signal their preferences by proxy in this way.

So, in that vein, here are my thoughts on what factors we should consider when choosing our next leader. You will note that many …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 48 Comments

Keir Starmer should be good news for all of us

I for one am mightily relieved that Labour now have someone in charge who looks credible and authoritative. I say this as a citizen and as a Liberal Democrat.

As a citizen…

having a weak opposition party is in no one’s interest. It opens up space for a weak government. We’ve seen that happen in recent years and are living with the consequences now.

There is no getting away from it, under FPTP Labour are the alternative government. We should all care about what sort of government they might form.

And Starmer is clearly a big improvement. Corbyn, the lifelong backbencher who …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 42 Comments
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  • Mick Taylor
    @ColinMurphy. Yes and you could close all the tax loopholes and greatly reduce the huge number of pages in the tax codes that take a highly qualified accountant...
  • colin murfin
    There are numerous untried ways to generate more tax Heres a few 1. Change NIC for employers to a tiered system like PAYE ie 0% for low paid 200% for hi...
  • Ernest
    I agree. We need to explain the bases of liberal democracy. To build a fair,free and open society with the values of liberty, equality and community and to w...
  • Tim
    It just isn't true to say we used to tax the rich more. The richest 1% now pay more than twice the proportion of income tax that they did in the 1970s. Although...
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    For recent recruits to the party, Lib Dem MP Alan Beith played a leading part in establishing base rate changes to be under the Bank of England....