Author Archives: The Voice

The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #231

By The Voice | Sun 24th July 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 231st weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (17-23 July, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

Huhne ‘orders inquiry into fossil fuel lobby influence over Tory MEPs’

By The Voice | Sun 24th July 2011 - 1:20 pm

From the Guardian this week:

Chris Huhne has ordered a private inquiry into which fossil fuel lobbyists “got to” the Conservative MEPs who defied David Cameron and voted down an ambitious carbon emissions target in the European parliament on 5 July.

“I have asked for a full analysis of what happened,” said the energy and climate change minister, speaking at an event in parliament. “We thought the vote was going to be close, but it was not close. We want to see which lobby groups managed to get to the MEPs.”

New research by the Guardian and Greenpeace into lobby groups and

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 7 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 22 July 2011

By The Voice | Fri 22nd July 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. LibLink | Vince Cable: I declared war on Murdoch… now everyone agrees with me (25 comments) by Helen Duffett
  2. Police and Crime Commissioners: Lib Dem candidates start here (17 comments) by Helen Duffett
  3. Opinion: David Laws takes another step on the road to redemption (26 comments) by Mark Valladares
  4. Opinion: Stephenson resignation – the bar just got lowered (22 comments) by Richard Morris
  5. Opinion: Cameron’s ten big mistakes – more please! (21 comments) by Paul Walter

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. What’s your favourite Murdoch smear of the Lib Dems?
  2. The next battle after Murdoch?
  3. Materials for local campaigning – your views wanted!
  4. FOI requests er… request
  5. Elected Police Commissioners

5 from the LDV archive

(22nd July, 2007-10)

  1. An Interview with the Whips Office – comfy chairs will be provided… (0 comments) by Dominic Addington, from 2010
  2. Moving to an elected second chamber – a loss of expertise, or just privilege (9 comments) by Alex Runswick, from 2010
  3. Tall photographer stopped again by police (7 comments) by Helen Duffett, from 2009
  4. CommentIsLinked@LDV… Nick Clegg: MPs’ holiday betrayal (0 comments) by The Voice, from 2009
  5. Join us on Facebook! (1 comment) by Alex Foster, from 2008

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

Stephen Williams: Labour spent £38m taxpayer cash on News International advertising

By The Voice | Wed 20th July 2011 - 3:19 pm

From a party news release:

The Government spent nearly £38m on advertising in News International titles between 2005 and 2010, a Parliamentary answer to Co-chair of the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Treasury Committee, Stephen Williams, has revealed.

The figures show:

  • More than £17m was spent advertising in The Sun, including £4.5m between April 2009 and March 2010.
  • More than £7m was spent advertising in the News of the World, including £1.8m between April 2009 and March 2010.
  • £877,153 was spent advertising in all News International titles between April 2010 and March 2011.

Commenting, Stephen Williams said:

Despite the dire state of public finances, the Labour Government continued

…

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 10 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #230

By The Voice | Sun 17th July 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 230th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (10-16 July, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

What made the Mail, the Express and the Telegraph keen to see Nick Clegg doing more of his job?

By The Voice | Sat 16th July 2011 - 2:47 pm

An odd set of messages this week from some of the right-wing press: the Mail, the Express and Telegraph all ran pieces criticising Nick Clegg for taking his children to school, while being essential to the smooth running of the country.

In a classic bit of pandering/flamebait (delete according to taste), they variously criticise Clegg for not working 24 hours a day before concluding that he is “powerful”, “Co-Prime Minister” and “the second most senior politician in the land”.

The Express’s Virginia Blackburn likes to think of Clegg as “a commanding figure, a statesman, a diplomat representing his …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 8 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 15 July 2011

By The Voice | Fri 15th July 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. Opinion: Nick Clegg didn’t suck up to Murdoch – that’s why his minions tried to destroy him (28 comments) by James Percival
  2. Stephen Gilbert MP writes: UK housing policy in crisis (22 comments) by Stephen Gilbert MP
  3. In Praise of Nick Davies, the British Bernstein & Woodward to Murdoch’s Nixon (8 comments) by Stephen Tall
  4. Opinion: Liberal Democrats didn’t just avoid Murdoch, we tried to cut him down to size (37 comments) by James Percival
  5. Brian Paddick writes: The Lib Dem Guide to phone hacking (10 comments) by Brian Paddick

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. That old time zone issue
  2. Switching to renewable energy
  3. Generation Y – the key to community politics?
  4. News Corporation – Vince was Right – Dare we say it?
  5. Someone should send this guy a membership form…

5 from the LDV archive

(14-15 July, 2007-10)

  1. What a difference three months makes #nickcleggsfault (16 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2010
  2. Opinion: With Liverpool in my mind (26 comments) by Ed Randall, from 2010
  3. CommentIsLinked@LDV: Chris Huhne – Fresh questions for the News of the World (0 comments) by the Voice, from 2009
  4. Channel 4 News: Zac Goldsmith has “questions to answer” about election spending (17 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2010
  5. Nick gets the Twitter-bug (0 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2009

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

“Liberal Way Forward for the Press: Free, Accountable, Plural” – Nick Clegg’s speech in full

By The Voice | Thu 14th July 2011 - 3:15 pm

This morning Nick Clegg gave a speech on freedom, accountability and plurality of the media at the Institute for Government in London.

Here’s the full text:

This has been one of those weeks in which it really feels like something big has changed. Pillars of the British establishment have been put under the spotlight – the media, politicians, the police – with public confidence in each crumbling before us.

As the Prime Minister explained yesterday, the Government has set up an Inquiry into these events. A two-stage, judge-led Inquiry looking, without delay, at the culture, ethics and practices of the British

…

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Posted in News and Speeches | Tagged , and | 12 Comments
The Voice

“Yates must go” – Dee Doocey exposes News International and Met Police’s cosy relationship

By The Voice | Tue 12th July 2011 - 5:18 pm

A Freedom of Information Request has revealed that the then Met Deputy Assistant Commissioner Andy Hayman and Assistant Commissioner John Yates had lunches and dinners with News of the World and executives of News International while investigating alleged criminal allegations against the News of the World.

Dee Doocey, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly policing spokesperson and member of the Metropolitan Police Authority said:

Such a cosy relationship between the News of the World, News International and senior Met police officers who were leading an inquiry into the News of the World phone hacking allegations goes to the very heart of the

…

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Posted in London and News | Tagged , , , , , and | 2 Comments
The Voice

Clegg urges Murdoch to reconsider BSkyB bid

By The Voice | Mon 11th July 2011 - 2:08 pm

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Posted in News | Tagged , , and | 16 Comments
The Voice

“The pillars of the British establishment are tumbling” – Clegg

By The Voice | Mon 11th July 2011 - 8:53 am

The Independent features an interview with Nick Clegg, given on Friday during his visit to Paris.

He speaks of “politicians falling to their knees ingratiating themselves with media moguls”, “too many vested interests tied up with each other” and “a culture of arrogance and impunity” as he lists the casualties of recent crises: journalism and hacking, MPs’ expenses, and banking.

Here’s an extract:

The deputy prime minister senses a rare opportunity in the hacking scandal to carve out a separate niche. The Liberal Democrats have never wooed or been wooed by the media moguls. Unlike David Cameron and Ed Miliband, Mr Clegg

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , and | 12 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #229

By The Voice | Sun 10th July 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 229th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (3-9 July, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

Video: Clegg says PCC is “a busted flush” and “needs to be replaced”

By The Voice | Fri 8th July 2011 - 5:55 pm

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Posted in News | Tagged , , and | 23 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 8 July 2011

By The Voice | Fri 8th July 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. What does the Inverclyde result mean for the Scottish Liberal Democrats? (25 comments) by Caron Lindsay
  2. John Hemming MP: Why I’m calling for a review of the smoking ban (70 comments) by John Hemming MP
  3. Labour holds Inverclyde with reduced majority (27 comments) by Helen Duffett
  4. LDVideo: That Ed Miliband TV interview car crash in full (8 comments) by Stephen Tall
  5. Tim Farron MP writes: Out of the Westminster bubble (7 comments) by Tim Farron MP

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. “I’ve only just moved in”….
  2. Switching to renewable energy
  3. Same-sex marriage
  4. Google+
  5. Selling the brand “Liberal Democrats”

5 from the LDV archive

(8th July, 2007-10)

  1. Opinion: A Cornish perspective on the Budget and VAT (18 comments) by Andrew George MP, from 2010
  2. Vince: “This is not so much a White Paper as a blank paper” (0 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2009
  3. It’s a three-way contest for next Scottish Lib Dem leader (1 comment) by The Voice, from 2008
  4. Opinion: Why we should back liberal Free Schools (71 comments) by Christopher Leslie, from 2008
  5. Isn’t this perfectly reasonable? (6 comments) by Geoffrey Payne, from 2007

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

Revealed at last? Labour’s low carbon policy thinking

By The Voice | Wed 6th July 2011 - 11:41 am

There’s one less blank sheet of paper at Labour HQ as the party gets ready to reveal how its policy review is progressing.

Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary Meg Hillier is to give a keynote address to green executives and industry leaders which will “for the first time offer a detailed insight into the opposition’s low carbon policy thinking.”

Looking forward to finally hearing what Labour think, 9 months and 7 days after first appointed as Chris Huhne’s shadow!

Posted in News | Tagged , and | 2 Comments
The Voice

Green Party called it wrong on phone hacking

By The Voice | Wed 6th July 2011 - 8:49 am

Just a month ago, London Green AM and Mayoral candidate Jenny Jones criticised the Metropolitan Police for spending too much time investigating phone hacking:

Jenny Jones, the Green Party member on the authority, said that the investigation, which is being handled by the Met’s serious crime directorate, was diverting officers away from more important crimes.

“Although this is not a victimless crime it is not something we should be spending a huge amount of time on,” she said.

“There are murders, child abductions and rapes that these officers could be investigating. All these people have to do is not use the

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , , and | 7 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #228

By The Voice | Sun 3rd July 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 228th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (26 June-2 July 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 1 July 2011

By The Voice | Fri 1st July 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. Why Simon Kelner is wrong to defend Johann Hari (19 comments) by Stephen Tall
  2. What can the Lib Dems do about the Coalition’s ‘Northern problem’? (55 comments) by Stephen Tall
  3. Brian Paddick writes: Why I want to be Lib Dem candidate for London Mayor in 2012 (22 comments) by Brian Paddick
  4. Opinion: Stephen Williams is right to support the criminalisation of squatting (33 comments) by Tom Papworth
  5. Opinion: Why today’s strike action is wrong (21 comments) by Steve Middleton

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. Same-sex marriage
  2. Where do you get membership forms from?
  3. Higher Education White Paper
  4. Generation Y – the key to community politics?
  5. VAN cost?

5 from the LDV archive

(1st July, 2007-10)

  1. Opinion: General Election 1.5 – 2010, the almost Internet Election (6 comments) by Charlotte Henry, from 2010
  2. Nick Clegg launches “Your Freedom” (23 comments) by Helen Duffett, from 2010
  3. Clegg to announce AV referendum date “next week” (4 comments) by Helen Duffett, from 2010
  4. Six (count ‘em) families now benefitting from Labour’s mortage rescue scheme (4 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2009
  5. Opinion: The devil is in the detail (5 comments) by Martin Land, from 2008

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

“Speaking rights only” for unelected peers – Hames

By The Voice | Tue 28th June 2011 - 12:27 pm

Another barnstorming speech on Lords reform, this time by Duncan Hames MP in last night’s Commons debate.

Duncan reiterates the suggestion he made earlier in the debate, that unelected peers should have speaking rights only:

Does the right hon. Gentleman think that bishops voting in the House of Lords adds in any way to the expertise they are able to offer through what they say in that Chamber, and might they find it easier to remain in that Chamber if they were to desist from taking part in Divisions?

The speech in full:

It is a privilege to follow Rory Stewart, not

…

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Posted in News, Parliament and Speeches | Tagged , , , and | 4 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #227

By The Voice | Sun 26th June 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 227th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (19-25 June, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 24 June 2011

By The Voice | Fri 24th June 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. Opinion: Taxpayer foots £6.7m NO 2 AV leaflet bill (26 comments) by Stuart Bonar
  2. Thank you EARS, but the VAN is coming (52 comments) by Iain Roberts
  3. “It was a virtuoso performance” – Viscount Astor on Lord Ashdown on Lords reform (14 comments) by Helen Duffett
  4. LibLink | Danny Alexander: Make no mistake: we will reform public sector pensions (52 comments) by Helen Duffett
  5. What’s the difference between Ryan Giggs and Ed Miliband? Nick Clegg tells all… (16 comments) by Stephen Tall

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. Circus animals defeat the Tories
  2. SLF conference. Did you go? What did you think?
  3. Assisted dying
  4. Answering your questions about the move to VAN
  5. Giving people shares in the nationalised banks

5 from the LDV archive

(24th June, 2007-10)

  1. At last…a Welsh Prime Minister (13 comments) by Iain Roberts, from 2010
  2. How solid is the Tories’ ‘extreme and ragbag’ Euro grouping? (8 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2009
  3. Sir Cyril Smith on his 80th! (1 comment) by David Hennigan, from 2008
  4. Opinion: It’s deja vu all over again (0 comments) by Chris Keating, from 2007
  5. Harman beats Johnson to Labour Deputy spot (23 comments) by Richard Huzzey, from 2007

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #226

By The Voice | Sun 19th June 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 226th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (12-18 June, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

Top Cornwall Conservative councillor defects to Lib Dems

By The Voice | Sat 18th June 2011 - 4:25 pm

Jeremy Rowe’s blog has the news:

Jan Powell, the widely respected Chair of Cornwall Council’s Health Committee, has joined the Liberal Democrat Group at County Hall. This has been as a result of the continuing disintegration of the Tory-led administration at the Council and also the work the Lib Dems have been doing locally and nationally to protect the NHS from Andrew Lansley’s controversial ‘reforms’.

Jeremy reproduces Jan’s letter explaining her decision, which concludes:

There has to be openness and transparency in everything we do and consultation must mean exactly that. Over the last 12 months there has been a marked contrast

…

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Posted in Local government | Tagged , , and | 2 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 17 June 2011

By The Voice | Fri 17th June 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

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The Voice

LibLink | Danny Alexander: Make no mistake: we will reform public sector pensions

By The Voice | Fri 17th June 2011 - 10:22 am

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander writes in the Telegraph today on public sector pensions reform, calling the Government’s offer “by far the best that is likely to be on the table for years to come”:

This debate is often polarised between two extremes. There are some trade unions who seem to believe that pensions for public service workers should not change. Then there are those equally misguided voices who seem to think that the public services should be the front-runner in a race to the bottom.

Between these two, I believe there is an indisputable case for reforming public

…

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged , , and | 53 Comments
The Voice

LibLink | Shirley Williams: Lib Dems should take credit for thwarting Lansley

By The Voice | Mon 13th June 2011 - 10:19 am

Shirley Williams, writing today in the Independent, says that the Liberal Democrats can be proud of their influence on NHS reforms:

Liberal Democrats, from our party’s grassroots to its leadership, can be proud of the influence we have exerted to change the Government’s NHS plans. It is clear now that the proposals that will be taken forward are dramatically different to those originally proposed.

The implications of Andrew Lansley’s massive health proposals, setting England’s health system on the path to a market in health care rather than a public service, were very slow to sink in. The complex, extensive and sometimes almost

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 13 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #225

By The Voice | Sun 12th June 2011 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 225th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (5-12 June, 2011), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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The Voice

Mike Tuffrey says he will run for Mayor of London

By The Voice | Sun 12th June 2011 - 5:37 pm

Interviewed by the BBC today, London Assembly member Mike Tuffrey said he is throwing his hat into the ring to be the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor:

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Posted in London | Tagged | 21 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 10 June 2011

By The Voice | Fri 10th June 2011 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

  1. Andrew Reeves passes away (37 comments) by Mark Pack
  2. Response: Chair of Federal Conference Committee on increased security measures (153 comments) by Andrew Wiseman
  3. Opinion: Why you should be taking Lembit Opik seriously (57 comments) by Richard Clare
  4. Opinion: The problem with Lib Dem conference security arrangements (27 comments) by Dave Page
  5. The perils of projecting the impact of boundary changes from previous election results (12 comments) by Mark Pack

5 sample LDV Members’ Forum threads

  1. Inverclyde Byelection
  2. Tim Farron at glee club
  3. Pension age increase and unemployment in the over 50s
  4. Vince Cable speaks to the GMB
  5. Freedom of speech

5 from the LDV archive

(10th June, 2007-10)

  1. Nick Clegg declares “Ich bin ein Berliner” (10 comments) by The Voice, from 2010
  2. The results of the other Lib Dem Parliamentary contest – Lords Dholakia and Alderdice elected (4 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2010
  3. Judgement Day for Boris Johnson’s first year in office (3 comments) by Helen Duffett, from 2009
  4. NEW POLL: should the Lib Dems support AV? (36 comments) by Stephen Tall , from 2009
  5. Key communications staff to leave Lib Dems (0 comments) by Stephen Tall, from 2008

5 top reader search returns to get to LDV

(excluding Liberal Democrat Voice or its variants)

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The Voice

LibLink | Paul Tyler: Lords’ Question Time is a “farcical free-for-all”

By The Voice | Tue 7th June 2011 - 12:42 pm

Lord Tyler writes over at e-Politix today about the way Question Time is conducted in the Lords:

As the House’s membership has increased in recent months, Question Time has become an ever more farcical free-for-all. There are a large number of Members who wish to contribute at any one time. Newcomers are rightly mystified by the absurd way in which one has to jockey for the opportunity to speak. You have to pop up and start bellowing, ‘My Lords’, in the hope that your bellow will be more thundersome than those of competing Members, or that some Lordly recognition

…

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