Author Archives: Paul Walter

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Lib Dems win every council seat in Southport for the first time since 1858

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 4:05 am

I think this should say “Lib Dems or predecessor parties”….

Lib Dems win every council seat in Southport for first time since 1858

— John Pugh (@johnpugh2017) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | 10 Comments

19.9% vote increase for Tavish Scott in Shetland

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 3:54 am

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Posted in News | 2 Comments

Lib Dems gain seat in Rochdale from Labour

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 3:50 am

Congratulations to Irene Davidson and the Rochdale #libdems team, who have gained Milnrow & Newhey ward from Labour. pic.twitter.com/72BGOSqG7U

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | 1 Comment

Lib Dems gain Portsmouth’s Nelson ward from Labour

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 3:48 am

Leo Madden gains Portsmouth's Nelson ward from Labour; Fratton and Baffins wards both held #libdems. pic.twitter.com/ACljou0TSN

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Lib Dems gain seat in Sunderland

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:26 am

…and the first #libdems GAIN is Sunderland's Millfield ward. Congrats to newly-elected Cllr Niall Hodson & team! pic.twitter.com/URnBJRNmfI

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 5, 2016

Posted in News | 3 Comments

Lib Dem gain from Labour in Bury

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:25 am

Great news from Bury, where #libdems Steve Wright has beaten Labour to become our third cllr in Holyrood ward. pic.twitter.com/bgcUlhz1O3

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 5, 2016

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Lib Dems hold control of Eastleigh

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:23 am

Congratulations to @CllrKeithHouse and the Eastleigh team, who have held control of the council. #libdems pic.twitter.com/7jSWaXBalY

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Mark Hunter storms to victory in Stockport

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:20 am

That's what you call a win. Well done Mark. @nwLibDems @LibDemsTeam2016 pic.twitter.com/ja9Vy3ZQ1M

— Dave Goddard. (@davegoddardsk2) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | 2 Comments

Lib Dems gain two seats and hold seven seats in Hull

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:16 am

Seven Holds and two Gains over in Hull – a great night for the Hull #libdems team, well done to all! pic.twitter.com/uXli65LwFA

— ALDC (@ALDC) May 6, 2016

Posted in News | 3 Comments

16% swing from SNP to Lib Dems in Orkney

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:13 am

The BBC reports:

Orkney was the first constituency to declare in the Scottish Parliament election, with the Liberal Democrats holding the seat.

Posted in News | 1 Comment

Spectacular by-election win – Lib Dems take seat from Tories in Newbury

By Paul Walter | Fri 6th May 2016 - 2:03 am

Elizabeth O'Keefe and team

Elizabeth O’Keeffe (centre) with some of her team in Newbury

Posted in News | Leave a comment

The last risk I expected on polling day was sunstroke

By Paul Walter | Thu 5th May 2016 - 11:00 pm

Well done and thank you to everyone who has done anything for the Liberal Democrats in our campaigns culminating today.

What a glorious day it was here in the south of England! – and apologies if the weather in your area wasn’t as great.

My straw hat got its first outing of the year and, as I tramped round the streets of Newbury, I couldn’t believe how lucky we were to have such glorious sunshine and warmth.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged polling day | 5 Comments

The USA: The clue is in the title – and it is the greatest example of pooled sovereignity between states

By Paul Walter | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 10:50 am

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Four of the USA’s founding fathers: (l to r) Adams, Morris, Hamilton, Jefferson

There was a rather strange moment on Thursday’s BBC Question Time. There was a discussion about President Obama’s intervention in the EU referendum debate.

Liam Fox was waxing lyrically about how the USA has great democracy, and all we want is the same democracy ourselves without our country being, he posited, controlled by “Brussels”.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged eu referendum and United states of America | 40 Comments

Is being an MP a rubbish job?

By Paul Walter | Sat 16th April 2016 - 7:54 pm

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Nigel Morris in the i reports:

Lonely MPs are finding it almost impossible to balance their jobs with ordinary family life, according to a survey of politicians who quit Parliament at last year’s election.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged house of commons | 15 Comments

Timely reminder – when the Guardian’s attempt to influence US politics backfired spectacularly

By Paul Walter | Sat 16th April 2016 - 11:54 am

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Owen Jones in the Guardian recently wrote an article entitled: “I signed an open letter to Donald Trump, and you should too”:

Trump’s unapologetic embrace of racism, xenophobia and misogyny vindicates all of those ugly prejudices the world over. And millions of Americans are horrified about Trump. They deserve our solidarity and support. There is, after all, another United States, one forged by immigrants and transformed by courageous Americans who fought racism, sexism and homophobia. That is a United States millions of us believe in. And that is why we should sign this letter.

Posted in LDVUSA and Op-eds | Tagged george w bush, guardian and us presidential elections | 9 Comments

Is Leeds showing the way forward on prostitution?

By Paul Walter | Wed 13th April 2016 - 1:50 pm

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Considering our own forward-thinking policy on prostitution, I wonder if readers approve of the scheme currently being run in Leeds. The BBC reports:

A suburb in Leeds is the first place in the UK where it is permitted for women to sell sex between specified hours. The “managed approach” was introduced to try to control the trade.

…in this specified network of roads, street prostitutes can sell their services from 19.00 to 07.00 BST, without being stopped by police.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged leeds and prostitution | 16 Comments

Africa’s Super Sunday

By Paul Walter | Wed 13th April 2016 - 12:20 pm

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Recently on holiday in West Africa, I was somewhat torn. There was a strong temptation to leave my political conscience in a left luggage locker at Gatwick. Indeed, I think I did to an extent. I was, after all, on holiday and, being in a rural “eco lodge”, I was able to mix with ordinary Africans and provide some support to the local economy.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged africa | 3 Comments

St Ives referendum – Is this the way forward to stop seaside idylls being ghost towns?

By Paul Walter | Wed 13th April 2016 - 10:50 am

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The idyllic, but seagull-dive-bombed, seaside town of St Ives is holding a referendum, as the BBC reports:

On 5 May, the council will ask residents to vote on a new town plan, which includes a promise to restrict second home ownership.
If the vote is passed, new housing projects will get planning permission only on condition that the homes are reserved for people to live in full-time. Developers will not be allowed to sell the buildings to anyone who has a residence elsewhere.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged cornwall and devon | 7 Comments

The government’s EU “remain” booklet hits the doormats…and it is spookily reminiscent of its 1975 counterpart

By Paul Walter | Wed 13th April 2016 - 9:50 am

P1010392 (2) Here’s the very booklet I received yesterday from Her Majesty’s government. It’s a rather dry looking document, but the message is clear, as it is repeated, more or less, three times on the cover of the booklet:

Why The Government believes that voting to remain in the European Union is in the best decision for the UK.

…on the front and:

The Government believes that voting to remain in the European Union is the best decision for the UK.

and

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged eu referendum and european union | 21 Comments

Could the Republican party save the world from Trump, but split apart?

By Paul Walter | Sun 10th April 2016 - 11:55 am

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Things have changed since my last post on this. Last time, I thought it was relatively certain that Trump would be the Republican US Presidential nominee. I am not so sure now. First, we had Mitt Romney’s extraordinary, unprecedented excoriation of Trump. Then we had that unheard of event: the Trump gaffe machine gun finally fired a round which rebounded on him – I refer to his rapidly recounted suggestion that women who have abortions should be punished (which, lest we forget, was followed by a casual grunt to confirm that he thought it inconceivable that the men involved should even be considered for equal treatment).

Posted in LDVUSA | Tagged donald trump, ted cruz and us presidential election 2016 | 14 Comments

What really is “Kafkaesque”?

By Paul Walter | Tue 5th April 2016 - 5:13 pm

I’d heard the word “Kafkaesque” being bandied around for years, but only had a vague idea what it meant.

So, upon recently renewing my local library card, I was emboldened to take out their copy of “The Trial” to try to find out what “Kafkaesque” really means – or should mean. (Often words, which are misused, metamorphisise officially to their misused meaning. “Literally” is now accepted as often meaning “used for emphasis while not being literally true”.)

A friend commented: “Ahah! Starting with the light reads, eh?”

In fact, I was greatly impressed by the attractive narrative style of Franz Kafka. There are two horrendously violent incidents in the book. Apart from that, the story proceeds in a very charming and engaging way. The narrator and the subject seem to be intertwined.

Posted in Books | 9 Comments

Book review: Charles Kennedy: A Tragic Flaw by Greg Hurst

By Paul Walter | Tue 5th April 2016 - 11:45 am

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I had a chance to read this recently updated book while on holiday in West Africa. It is a remarkably fine volume. Painstakingly researched and impeccably sourced, it offers a skillfully balanced portrait of a remarkable and inspiring man. As the title suggests, the author does not hold back on the human frailties of its subject but these are, nevertheless, presented as part of a rounded, fair and endearing commentary. I feel this book helps us to inch forward a little further in understanding the rather enigmatic Charles Kennedy, while deconstructing a few myths along the way.

I’ll pick out a few parts of the book which particularly caught my attention:

Posted in Books | Tagged alcoholism, charles kennedy, glasgow university union, john morrison, Scotland, social democratic party and tim razzall | 8 Comments

Enforced academisation plan is “bonkers”

By Paul Walter | Sun 3rd April 2016 - 12:14 pm

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The chairman of the Conservative 1922 backbench committee and Tory councillors are reported to be angry with the government’s plan to force 17,000 schools in England to become academies by 2020.

Melinda Tilley, cabinet member for education in Oxfordshire said:

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged academies, education and enforced academisation | 27 Comments

A good quote from Margaret Thatcher

By Paul Walter | Fri 1st April 2016 - 3:15 pm

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BBC 2 are repeating some of Terry Wogan’s programmes at lunch time. They’ve been showing “Terry and Mason’s great food trip”, where our Tel went round Britain with a cabbie. I think it’s the best thing he did. There is no greater spectacle than the great Irishman bantering away and tucking into good old fashioned grub.

Posted in The Arts | Tagged margaret thatcher and terry wogan | 11 Comments

Must-see TV series: Inside Obama’s White House

By Paul Walter | Fri 1st April 2016 - 11:40 am

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While I was on holiday, BBC 2 sneaked out the first episode of a fantastic series: Inside Obama’s White House. You can currently watch the first three episodes of the series here on BBC iPlayer.

This is a brilliant series produced by Brook Lapping for the BBC. They’ve got some truly sensational behind-the-scenes footage. So, as they tell the story of Obama’s presidency, they are able to show specific video of that event behind-the-scenes – advisers emerging from a crunch meeting or whatever. And they have a remarkable parade of players giving their retrospective view on events: from Rahm Emmanuel, Obama’s chief of staff, to John Kerry, Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner and chief adviser David Axelrod.

Posted in LDVUSA | Tagged barack obama, bbc and obamacare | 13 Comments

VIDEO: Watch the “Electing Diverse MPs” (incl. All Woman Shortlists) debate

By Paul Walter | Sun 13th March 2016 - 5:07 pm

You can watch today’s “Electing Diverse MPs” (including All Women Shortlists) debate from the York conference in full below. Just click on the central arrow:

Posted in Conference | Tagged electing diverse mps motion and liberal democrat conference spring 2016 | Leave a comment

Watch the Spring conference sessions on You Tube

By Paul Walter | Sun 13th March 2016 - 4:49 pm

You can watch the Spring conference debates on You Tube:

The Saturday sessions are here.

The Sunday sessions are here.

Posted in Conference | Tagged liberal democrat conference spring 2016 | Leave a comment

It’s time to focus on real life – Tim Farron’s conference speech in full

By Paul Walter | Sun 13th March 2016 - 3:48 pm

Here is the full text of Tim Farron’s keynote speech to the Liberal Democrat Spring conference in York today:

You will be unsurprised to hear that I was recently interviewed by Stylist magazine.

They asked me lots of exciting questions regarding my colossal sense of glamour.

They also wanted me to write about a woman who had been my hero.

I wanted to be completely honest, and pick the woman who was indeed my hero.

Posted in Conference | Tagged liberal democrat conference spring 2016 and tim farron | 7 Comments

Party adopts All Women Shortlists after Tim Farron’s plea: ‘The time for excuses has gone’

By Paul Walter | Sun 13th March 2016 - 12:11 pm

The Liberal Democrat federal party conference at York this morning passed the “Electing Diverse MPs” motion without amendment 1, meaning that the party has adopted All Women Shortlists along with a slew of other major diversity initiatives.

Posted in Conference | Tagged electing diverse mps motion and liberal democrat conference spring 2016 | 36 Comments

Watch Tim Farron’s keynote leader’s speech to conference here at 11:45

By Paul Walter | Sun 13th March 2016 - 10:35 am

By clicking on the arrow below, you can watch this morning’s session of the Liberal Democrat spring conference in York, including Tim farron’s keynote leader’s speech at 11:45am. It should be a corker.

Posted in Conference | Tagged liberal democrat conference spring 2016 and tim farron | Leave a comment

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Author Archives: Paul Walter

Lib Dems win every council seat in Southport for the first time since 1858

19.9% vote increase for Tavish Scott in Shetland

Lib Dems gain seat in Rochdale from Labour

Lib Dems gain Portsmouth’s Nelson ward from Labour

Lib Dems gain seat in Sunderland

Lib Dem gain from Labour in Bury

Lib Dems hold control of Eastleigh

Mark Hunter storms to victory in Stockport

Lib Dems gain two seats and hold seven seats in Hull

16% swing from SNP to Lib Dems in Orkney

Spectacular by-election win – Lib Dems take seat from Tories in Newbury

The last risk I expected on polling day was sunstroke

The USA: The clue is in the title – and it is the greatest example of pooled sovereignity between states

Is being an MP a rubbish job?

Timely reminder – when the Guardian’s attempt to influence US politics backfired spectacularly

Is Leeds showing the way forward on prostitution?

Africa’s Super Sunday

St Ives referendum – Is this the way forward to stop seaside idylls being ghost towns?

The government’s EU “remain” booklet hits the doormats…and it is spookily reminiscent of its 1975 counterpart

Could the Republican party save the world from Trump, but split apart?

What really is “Kafkaesque”?

Enforced academisation plan is “bonkers”

A good quote from Margaret Thatcher

Must-see TV series: Inside Obama’s White House

VIDEO: Watch the “Electing Diverse MPs” (incl. All Woman Shortlists) debate

Watch the Spring conference sessions on You Tube

It’s time to focus on real life – Tim Farron’s conference speech in full

Party adopts All Women Shortlists after Tim Farron’s plea: ‘The time for excuses has gone’

Watch Tim Farron’s keynote leader’s speech to conference here at 11:45

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Vince Cable writes: A budget of small things

Chadwick launches leadership bid

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Vince Cable writes: The endless hunt for painless taxes

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