Author Archives: Stephen Tall

Stephen was Editor (and Co-Editor) of Liberal Democrat Voice from 2007 to 2015, and writes at The Collected Stephen Tall. He writes a fortnightly column for ConservativeHome and 'The Underdog' column for Total Politics magazine. He edited the 2013 publication, The Coalition and Beyond: Liberal Reforms for the Decade Ahead, and is a Research Associate for the liberal think-tank CentreForum. He was awarded the inaugural Lib Dem ‘Blogger of the Year’ prize in 2006, was a councillor for eight years in Oxford, including a year as Deputy Lord Mayor, and appears frequently in the media in person, in print and online. Stephen combines his political interests with his professional life as Development Director for the Education Endowment Foundation, though writes here in a personal capacity.
Stephen Tall

4-in-10 Lib Dem members want to see the railways fully nationalised

By Stephen Tall | Tue 20th November 2012 - 7:45 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Just 1-in-20 Lib Dems opt for full privatisation

LDV asked: In general, would you like to see more or less government involvement in running the country’s railways?

    41% – I would like to see the railways fully nationalised

    34% – I would like to see more government regulation than there is currently, but

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged , and | 22 Comments
Stephen Tall

The Economist: ‘Grassroots Lib Dems are much keener on coalition than Tories’

By Stephen Tall | Mon 19th November 2012 - 12:30 pm

The Economist’s political commentator ‘Bagehot’ this week surveys the attitudes of Lib Dems towards the Coalition at the mid-term point — I particularly like its opening:

THE Somerset village of Chew Magna, with its sleepy pub and Georgian houses, seems an odd setting for prognostications about Britain’s political future. But prognosticate the local Liberal Democrats do. “In 40 years’ time, people will look back and ask: what was all the fuss about being in coalition?” says Dine Romero, a councillor. Her colleagues nod. Multi-party government, they agree, is here to stay. “I like coalition—on principle”, asserts a sprightly 91-year-old.

We all …

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged and | 12 Comments
Stephen Tall

4-in-10 Lib Dem voters inclined to leave EU, says poll – a reminder why our pitch should be ‘In Europe to reform the EU’

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th November 2012 - 4:20 pm

‘If a referendum were held on the UK’s membership of the European Union, how do you think you would vote?’ That’s the question posed by polling company Opinium and published today in The Observer — with the following result reported by the paper:

Almost four out of 10 Liberal Democrat voters support leaving the EU, according to a new poll which shows that hardline euroscepticism has taken hold in Britain’s most pro-European party. An Opinium/Observer survey has found that 39% of Lib Dem supporters

…

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Posted in Europe / International, Op-eds and Polls | Tagged and | 23 Comments
Stephen Tall

Nick’s third ‘Letter from the Leader’: “More freedom for parents and more rights for people with mental health problems”

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th November 2012 - 2:05 pm

The third of Nick Clegg’s Letters from the Leader series has hit party members’ email inboxes today — here’s what he has to say…

In a week when we saw a set of disappointing elections – with hard working Liberal Democrats not getting the results they deserved and turnout slumping to a new low – it’s worth remembering what we’re achieving in Government.

This week I had the privilege – and I really do mean privilege – to announce a change in government policy that I’ve been working

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , , and | 6 Comments
Stephen Tall

Teather: “Benefit cap is immoral and divisive”

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th November 2012 - 11:20 am

Lib Dem MP for Brent Central Sarah Teather makes the front page of The Observer today for a powerful interview slamming the Government’s plans to bring in a benefit cap. I’m quoting extensively from it, below, but it’s well worth reading the whole piece here.

This is clearly an issue that touches Sarah deeply, not least because of the number of her constituents she knows will be deeply affected by the changes. What impresses me most, though, is the way she acknowledges the way the arguments are being …

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Posted in News | Tagged , , and | 76 Comments
Stephen Tall

PollWatch: For which other parties would LibDem voters consider voting?

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th November 2012 - 10:30 am

There’s an interesting poll conducted by ComRes and published today. There’s no surprise in its headline voting intention figures, below — they’re in line with other surveys and indeed with what ‘Super Thursday’s elections found:

    Conservative 31% (-2)
    Labour 43% (+2)
    Lib Dem 10% (0)
    UKIP 8% (-1)
    Others 8% (+1)

But what is new is that ComRes has asked the following question: ‘Which, if any, of these parties would you seriously consider voting for at a General Election if it were held tomorrow? Please indicate all that apply.’

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Posted in Polls | Tagged | 7 Comments
Stephen Tall

56% of Lib Dem members urge secret courts plan to be voted down outright

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th November 2012 - 9:00 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Only 3% of Lib Dem members back current plans for secret courts

LDV asked: Parliament is currently debating Part II of the Justice and Security Bill which makes provision for closed material procedures (CMPs) – more commonly known as ‘secret courts’ – to be used in any civil proceedings (except, at present, …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 7 Comments
Stephen Tall

Your essential weekend reader — 12 must-read articles you may have missed

By Stephen Tall | Sat 17th November 2012 - 8:15 am

It’s Saturday morning, so here are twelve thought-provoking articles to stimulate your thinking juices…

Growth or bust (Financial Times) – Tim Harford on why there just aren’t enough companies going bankrupt in the UK: ‘The ability to fail quickly – and without much collateral damage – is a tremendous economic asset.’

On Managerialist Ideology (Stumbling and Mumbling) – In the wake of the BBC crisis, Chris Dillow questions the cult of management as a panacea for organisational failings: ‘the solution to sloppy journalism is, …

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Posted in News | Tagged | 2 Comments
Stephen Tall

My ‘Super Thursday’ Lib Dem post mortem

By Stephen Tall | Fri 16th November 2012 - 8:20 pm

A bad day for the Lib Dems, but not unexpectedly so. Call it sanguine, call it resigned…

Lib Dems Corby pressed

The party expected to get squeezed in Corby, and we were. I suspect we lost some ‘none of the above’ voters to Ukip and some left-leaning liberals to Labour (and many others who just didn’t vote). To forfeit our deposit by barely more than a dozen votes added an extra ignominy (although revived an old Liberal tradition). Though there is something practical we can do to lend a hand there…

…

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 60 Comments
Stephen Tall

Diary reminder: LibDemVoice Xmas Drinks, 17th December

By Stephen Tall | Fri 16th November 2012 - 10:25 am

Here’s a date for your diary… On 17th December, all LibDemVoice readers are invited to join us for festive drinks at 5pm in London, followed by (for those who wish) seeing Steve Richards’ Rock ‘n Roll Politics Christmas Special.

You can sign up for drinks on our Facebook page here, or via FlockTogether here.

Premiered at this year’s Edinburgh Festival, where it earned rave reviews, here’s how Steve’s show is billed:

Award winning BBC broadcaster and columnist, Steve Richards, takes you behind the scenes of British Politics and the media,

…

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Posted in Events | Tagged and | 2 Comments
Stephen Tall

What Lib Dem members say about Coalition policies on the economy, shares-for-rights and cutting Council Tax relief

By Stephen Tall | Thu 15th November 2012 - 6:00 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

61% support — with reservations — Coalition’s economic policies

LDV asked: The UK economy recorded growth of +1.0% in the third quarter of 2012, officially bringing the recession to an end. However, many economists including the governor of the Bank of England have warned that recovery will be a slow, faltering process. Which of these is closest to your view:

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 8 Comments
Stephen Tall

Wakey, wakey! It’s PCC election day in England and Wales. You hadn’t forgotten, had you?

By Stephen Tall | Thu 15th November 2012 - 10:40 am

Election day is usually a day when, if you’re at all interested/involved in politics, the pulse quickens, the blood pumps faster, the adrenaline kicks in. With all due respect to the sane candidates standing for the post of Police and Crime Commissioner (and naturally with very best wishes to those Lib Dems flying the party’s flag in England) today just doesn’t feel right.* In fact, it feels like a damp squib.

I think that’s a shame for two reasons.

First, voting matters. It’s perhaps the purest, most powerful way …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 16 Comments
Stephen Tall

Majority of Lib Dems support ‘No more page 3’ campaign (but big differences between women/men’s views on issue)

By Stephen Tall | Wed 14th November 2012 - 7:50 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

44% of party members back ‘No more Page 3’

LDV asked: The ‘No more Page 3’ campaign was recently launched urging The Sun’s editor to drop pictures of topless women from the newspaper. What is your view?

    10% – I support the ‘No more page 3’ campaign and would also support government regulation (either an outright ban or restrictions on the sale of

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged | 30 Comments
Stephen Tall

Two years on from the tuition fees U-turn – what do Lib Dem members think now?

By Stephen Tall | Tue 13th November 2012 - 2:15 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

7-in-10 say new fees system is fairer than old


LDV asked: Overall do you think the new tuition fees system introduced by the Coalition Government is fairer or less fair than the system it replaced?

    70% – Fairer
    21% – Less fair
    10% – Don’t know

A substantial majority of Lib …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged and | 24 Comments
Stephen Tall

Majority of Lib Dem members favour reform of party’s own voting rules

By Stephen Tall | Mon 12th November 2012 - 8:55 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

56% support reform of party’s internal democracy

This weekend saw the publication of the Lib Dems’ biennial internal elections to the party’s federal committees. Here’s what our survey of party members says about opening up the electorate to the whole membership, and/or allowing all members to vote at the party’s federal conferences.

LDV asked: Currently Lib Dem local parties elect voting representatives …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 9 Comments
Stephen Tall

In other news… Alexander’s ‘Ginger Rodent’ beer, Huppert’s new appointment, Moore’s push for new Scottish powers

By Stephen Tall | Sun 11th November 2012 - 4:45 pm

A round-up of stories we didn’t have chance to cover on the site this week…

Danny Alexander helps launch Ginger Rodent beer after redhead jibes (Metro)

The new alcoholic beverage shares the same name as an insult once fired at him by Labour rival Harriet Harman at the Scottish Labour party conference in 2010. … Ms Harman was forced to apologise for the controversial jibe at the time, while Mr Alexander responded with a message of his own on Twitter. ‘I am proud to be ginger and rodents do valuable work cleaning up mess others

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Stephen Tall

Entwistle quits BBC: what next?

By Stephen Tall | Sun 11th November 2012 - 12:20 pm

Another week, another day’s news headlines dominated by the media talking about itself… though this time with some legitimacy, as it’s not every day the Director-General of the BBC resigns within two months of being appointed to the post.

George Entwistle and the BBC’s Catch-22 problem

The BBC Director-General is editor-in-chief of the organisation, ultimately responsible for all content. The DG must also lead an organisation with 23,000 employees, a £4.8bn budget and multiple TV, radio and online outlets. I think it’s fair to say those are two …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , , , , , , and | 9 Comments
Stephen Tall

Your essential weekend reader — 12 must-read articles you may have missed

By Stephen Tall | Sun 11th November 2012 - 8:05 am

It’s Sunday morning, so here are twelve thought-provoking articles to stimulate your thinking juices…

Labour’s return to the right – John Kampfner’s spot-on piece should be compulsory reading for progressives who’ve deserted the Lib Dems for Labour: ‘The race to the bottom is on. Labour and the Tories are vying for the lowest common denominator, for the title of defender of Little England.’

David Cameron, Phillip Schofield and mob justice in the age of the internet – the Telegraph’s Tom Chivers points a pitch-fork at …

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Posted in News | Tagged | 3 Comments
Stephen Tall

Who’s up, who’s down? How party members rate the performances of leading Lib Dems

By Stephen Tall | Sat 10th November 2012 - 5:25 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

LDV asked: How would you rate the performances of the following leading Liberal Democrats and government ministers?

This was the second post-reshuffle survey of what members

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 1 Comment
Stephen Tall

Nick’s second ‘Letter from the Leader’: featuring PMQs, Leveson Inquiry & tax-cuts for the low-paid

By Stephen Tall | Sat 10th November 2012 - 12:30 pm

Nick Clegg’s second letter to members and supporters has hit my inbox… This week’s email focuses on two issues. First, the impending Leveson Report into what form of media (self-)regulation will be needed to ensure newspapers don’t continue to abuse their power in the way that was exposed so forensically during Sir Brian’s inquiry. And secondly, on re-inforcing the Lib Dems’ number one achievement from the Coalition: raising the income tax threshold so that millions of the lowest paid in society have more money in their pockets.

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , and | 8 Comments
Stephen Tall

++ SHOCK! HORROR! LIB DEM MP CAUGHT UP IN NEW EXPENSES ROW!

By Stephen Tall | Fri 9th November 2012 - 3:05 pm

I’m deeply grateful to the Manchester Evening News and its reporter Deborah Linton for exposing Manchester MP John Leech’s shameless attempts to exploit the taxpayer by…

(brace yourselves for the shock)…

… offering coffee to staff working at his constituency office and members of the public visiting him.

With unbelievable extravagance, Mr Leech has splashed out on two £34.99 coffee makers from Aldi for his Didsbury office. As if that weren’t shameless enough, he also bought coffee beans to actually put into the actual coffee makers!

Then to …

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Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , and | 22 Comments
Stephen Tall

Revealed: What Lib Dem members think of Ed Miliband and David Cameron

By Stephen Tall | Fri 9th November 2012 - 7:55 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Miliband overtakes Cameron among Lib Dems for first time

We’ve been asking this question for a little over a year now — a year which has marked quite a reversal in fortunes for the two party leaders, as this graph illustrates:

Here’s the detail from this month’s survey…

LDV asked: Do you think Ed Miliband is doing well or badly as leader of the Labour party?

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged and | 3 Comments
Stephen Tall

What Lib Dem members make of the Coalition: our half-time survey summary

By Stephen Tall | Thu 8th November 2012 - 2:15 pm

Throughout the life of the Coalition to date, we’ve been surveying party members to ask what you make of the party’s performance in government. There have been five questions we’ve asked each time. Here’s how views have changed in the past two-and-a-half-years…

Do you support or oppose the Lib Dems being in the Coalition Government with the Conservatives?

Do you approve or disapprove of the Coalition Government’s record to date?

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 21 Comments
Stephen Tall

Why there isn’t a British Nate Silver

By Stephen Tall | Thu 8th November 2012 - 8:22 am

A skim-read of Wednesday morning’s headlines might have left folk confused as to who had been declared the victor of the US presidential election: Barack Obama or Nate Silver.

For those who don’t know Nate Silver, he’s the analytical guru behind the FiveThirtyEight blog (named after the number of electoral college votes), now housed at the New York Times, which scrutinises and filters opinion polls. He first rose to prominence four years ago after predicting the winner in 49 of the 50 US states during the Obama-McCain presidential contest, …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , and | 17 Comments
Stephen Tall

76% of Lib Dems reject elected police commissioners – but 73% want there to be Lib Dem candidates

By Stephen Tall | Thu 8th November 2012 - 7:55 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Three-quarters of Lib Dem members oppose new PCC posts

LDV asked: Elections will be held on 15 November to choose Police and Crime Commissioners who will replace police authorities currently in charge of 41 forces in England and Wales. Do you support or oppose the introduction of elected PCCs?

    15% – I support elected Police and Crime Commissioners
    76% – I oppose elected

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged | 2 Comments
Stephen Tall

Measuring what Lib Dem members think the party is achieving in Coalition

By Stephen Tall | Wed 7th November 2012 - 7:55 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Party members split on Lib Dem influence achieved within Coalition

How would you rate the extent of the Liberal Democrat influence within the Coalition Government, where 10 is highly influential, and 1 indicates no influence. (Comparison with September’s figures in brackets.)

    1: 1%
    2: 7%
    3: 17%
    4: 15%
    5: 11%
    Lacking influence = 51% (-2%)
    6: 17%
    7: 23%
    8: 8%
    9: 2%
    10: 1%
    Achieving influence = 49% (+2%)

This …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 3 Comments
Stephen Tall

When will the Coalition end? Here’s what Lib Dem members say…

By Stephen Tall | Tue 6th November 2012 - 5:15 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Three-quarters say Coalition will be bad for Lib Dem prospects in

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 6 Comments
Stephen Tall

Lib Dem chief whip Alistair Carmichael wins Tweet of the Day

By Stephen Tall | Tue 6th November 2012 - 8:40 am

Here’s the Lib Dem chief whip, Alistair Carmichael, responding to this morning’s bombshell news that Tory MP Nadine Dorries has signed up to take part in the new series of I’m A Celebrity… Ge Me Out Of Here:

Here’s a brief reminder of how Lembit’s spell on the show finished up: ‘I didn’t want this to end’: Lembit Opik becomes the second star to be evicted …

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Posted in News | 7 Comments
Stephen Tall

85% of Lib Dem members back votes for prisoners

By Stephen Tall | Tue 6th November 2012 - 8:15 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Majority favour votes for some (but not all) prisoners

LDV asked: The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that the British Government cannot maintain its blanket ban on prisoners being disqualified from voting. What is your view?

    30% – I support votes for all prisoners
    55% – I support votes for some categories of prisoners (eg, for non-violent offences and/or in the lead-up

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 11 Comments
Stephen Tall

At Coalition half-time, 77% of Lib Dem members continue to back deal with Tories

By Stephen Tall | Mon 5th November 2012 - 8:15 am

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

Support for Coalition edges up to 77%

LDV asked: Do you support or oppose the Lib Dems being in the Coalition Government with the Conservatives? (Comparison with September’s figures.)

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Tagged | 28 Comments
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