Author Archives: Greg Judge

Greg Judge

Opinion: Wanting zero suicides and dignity in dying are neither contradictory nor hypocritical

By Greg Judge | Mon 2nd February 2015 - 2:01 pm

DADiDMany Lib Dems may not have been aware of the fact that amongst disabled activists recently, the Party has been at the centre of a hotly debated issue over suicide prevention and the legalising of assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent dying people.

Earlier this month, Leader Nick Clegg hosted a mental health conference with Liberal Democrat Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb. Together, they announced the admirable ambition of the NHS working towards ‘zero suicides’ – a key target for suicide prevention of people with mental health issues.

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Posted in The Independent View | Tagged | 6 Comments
Greg Judge

Opinion: Presidents, mops and turkeys – The future of House of Lords Reform?

By Greg Judge | Mon 16th July 2012 - 3:53 pm

Whilst recalling the successes of the 1997 General Election, in which the Liberal Democrats earned a net gain of 28 seats, Paddy Ashdown brought his speech at a commemoratory reception hurtling into the present with talk of the now embattled Lords Reform Bill.

In a manner delivered only by a character such as Paddy, he proclaimed that the current proposals were of Lincolnian proportions in that they existed to

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 14 Comments
Greg Judge

Opinion: Accessing the Leader’s speech – incomprehensible and exclusive

By Greg Judge | Tue 4th October 2011 - 2:56 pm

What do the Fukushima Earthquake, Christchurch Earthquake, Queensland Floods, Libyan Revolution, Egyptian Jasmine Revolution and the ongoing struggle in Syria all have in common? If your answer was death then unfortunately you would be correct, however, a more inspirational and uplifting answer would be Sign Language!

In all of these cases, the elected officials of Public Office have been broadcasted with a Sign Language Interpreter at the side of them as they make statements on life and death events. This breakthrough in accessible information is crucial for Deaf people who need to know what to do in an emergency and how …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 5 Comments
Greg Judge

Opinion: What the US debt ceiling crisis can teach Britain on coalition and compromise

By Greg Judge | Thu 4th August 2011 - 1:51 pm

The crisis in the US Congress has finally come to an end and President Obama was able to raise the country’s debt ceiling without invoking the 14th Amendment. It has been a weekend of worry and apprehension as to how far extremist factions such as the Republican Tea Party were willing to go and whether they were prepared to bring the country to the lowly depths of economic default.

Neither major party had seemed prepared to give up what means most to them; the preservation of continued support for Medicare and Social Security (Democrats) or the need for heavy fiscal cuts …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 14 Comments
Greg Judge

Opinion: London 2012 Paralympics – A real legacy for people with disabilities?

By Greg Judge | Mon 1st August 2011 - 7:42 pm

I was watching Newsnight last week and saw a discussion on the diversity and legacy potential of London 2012 with respect to the UK’s disabled population. Some of the remarks made by Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson I was in complete agreement with, whilst others left me perplexed and feeling somewhat cut off from whatever the organisers are trying to achieve.

She is right to say that legislation alone will do nothing to change the mindsets of the majority in our society who see disability as something to be scared of. The reason for this, as with many people’s fears, is because …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 12 Comments
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