Author Archives: Stephen Tall

As LDV’s readers will know, the site took an extended day and a bit’s break on Friday and Saturday while Ryan Cullen was working wonders with our servers to ensure the site doesn’t continue to be suspended the moment we experience a spike in visitor traffic. Here then is the second part of our guide to the stories we would have featured if we had been able to (Part I can be found here):

The Convention on Modern Liberty

Lib Dems up and down the country took part in Saturday’s Convention on Modern Liberty to protest against government incursions of civil and human rights, and to promote positive action to win back our freedoms. LDV’s Alix Mortimer live-blogged her way rather deliciously through the London Convention at her People’s Republic blog here and has high praise for (among others) Brian Eno, Ben Goldacre, Vince Cable and David Davis.

The Economist’s newbie blogger Bagehot was also at the Convention, and articulated his own thoughts:

My main conclusion, however, was this: the Conservatives are heading for a big and not-too-distant bust-up over this whole agenda (which David Davis, the ex-shadow home secretary, immodestly but perhaps not unreasonably describes as the “Davis agenda”).

As LDV’s readers will know, the site took an extended day and a bit’s break on Friday and Saturday while Ryan Cullen was working wonders with our servers to ensure the site doesn’t continue to be suspended the moment we experience a spike in visitor traffic. Here then is our guide to the stories we would have featured if we had been able to:

Liberal Democrats proposed scrapping ministerial veto on FOI

Last week, Justice secretary Jack Straw took the unprecedented decision to over-rule the independent Information Commissioner, and block the publication of the minutes of the cabinet meeting at which it was decided the UK would declare war on Iraq. This was, I believe, a bad decision in principle, but then I believe in transparent, accountable government in which politicians feel able to put forward the same reasoned arguments in public as in private (though Matt Bowles mounts a spirited defence of Mr Straw’s actions over at Liberal Conspiracy here, which is well worth reading). What was undoubtedly a disgrace was that Jack Straw chose to make this decision himself: as Foreign Secretary at the time of the Iraq invasion, he very clearly had a conflict of interest in making the decision. A cabinet minister with an ounce of integrity would have recused themselves from such a decision.

On Friday, the Telegraph noted the Lib Dems’ proposals (part of Chris Huhne’s Freedom Bill) to prevent further abuses of power by egregious politicians like Mr Straw:

Ministers will lose the right to veto embarrassing documents being released through Freedom of Information under proposals from the Liberal Democrats. … The Liberal Democrats said their proposals would “roll back the authoritarian laws passed by both Labour and Conservative governments which have undermined civil liberties”.

MSP defies party on independence vote

John Munro, MSP for Ross, Skye and Inverness West, has gone on the record to back a referendum on Scottish independence, despite the unequivocal rejection of the position by Scottish Lib Dem leader Tavish Scott:

I think the sooner it happens, the better, so … we find out whether we are going to go ahead with an independent Scotland.”

Be careful what you Facebook

Two Facebook stories surfaced.