Author Archives: The Voice

The Voice

Vince lays down the gauntlet to Alex Salmond

By The Voice | Mon 8th March 2010 - 9:45 pm

Lib Dem shadow chancellor, Vince Cable tonight addressed Reform Scotland on the action that needs to be taken to reform banking and protect the economic recovery. LDV is publishing extracts from Vince’s speech, below, including his call to SNP leader and Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond to follow the Lib Dems’ lead and state clearly how the Scottish government will live within its budget in the years ahead:

Banking
We need to rethink our approach to banking. Successive Labour and Conservative Governments have left Britain vulnerable to an over-inflated financial services sector, where institutions became too big to fail.

On a UK level – where British banks are 4.5 times bigger in terms of their liabilities than the country’s economy – this is bad enough. But in Scotland, this has been still more pronounced. At the time they got into trouble, RBS’ and HBOS’ liabilities were 25 times the size of Scotland’s economy.

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The Voice

Lib Dems launch Campaign for Body Confidence

By The Voice | Mon 8th March 2010 - 7:15 pm

Congratulations to Lib Dem MPs Lynne Featherstone and Jo Swinson for helping to organise a panel debate this afternoon in Parliament – to coincide with International Women’s Day – on measures to tackle the harm caused by pressure to conform to unrealistic and unhealthy body image ideals. The event marked the launch of the Campaign for Body Confidence.

The panel featured Lynne (the party’s shadow equalities minister), Clothes Show presenter Caryn Franklin, psychotherapist Susie Orbach and Dr Helga Dittmar of the University of Sussex. Other attendees included Girlguides, Linda Papadopoulous and the world’s leading body image experts.

Here’s what Lynne had …

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The Voice

Nick: schools should raise their game in exchange for funding and freedom

By The Voice | Sat 6th March 2010 - 6:40 pm

Here’s how the BBC reports Nick Clegg’s speech today to the Association of School and College Leaders conference:

Head teachers have been asked to “raise their game” as part of a £2.5bn funding deal proposed by the Liberal Democrats. Party leader Nick Clegg called on schools to reinvent the curriculum, raise results and close the attainment between rich and poor.

He told the Association of School and College Leaders conference: “We will find you extra funding, even while elsewhere there are cuts.” In return, the “greatest expectations” will be placed upon them, he said. The Liberal Democrats are proposing a

…

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The Voice

Web blocking and the Lords

By The Voice | Thu 4th March 2010 - 10:57 am

The amendment to do with web blocking and copyright from Tim Clement-Jones and Tim Razzall in the House of Lords has generated much discussion online. Yesterday we ran a piece from Lord Clement-Jones explaining his reasoning:

There are websites which consistently infringe copyright, many of them based outside the UK in countries such as Russia and beyond the jurisdiction of the UK courts. Many of these websites refuse to stop supplying access to illegal content.

It is a result of this situation that the Liberal Democrats have tabled an amendment in the Lords which has the support of the Conservatives that enables

…

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The Voice

Nick puts schools at heart of vision for fairness

By The Voice | Mon 1st March 2010 - 10:45 pm

Nick Clegg today set out the importance of early years education in tackling inequality in a speech to the Salvation Army. Here’s how Politics.co.uk reports it:

Nick Clegg has placed inequality firmly at the centre of the Liberal Democrat’s education policy and attacked the Tories for not costing their plans for schools. In a keynote speech on education, Mr Clegg said his party’s ‘pupil premium’ policy would see disadvantaged children receive as much funding for education as private school pupil. Headmasters would then be able to spend that money on reducing class sizes.

Nick’s speech has earned the praise of Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers union:

The approach the Liberal Democrats have taken to education reform in a tough financial climate is genuinely refreshing. It would appear that the Liberal Democrats have understood that the last thing you do in times of financial hardship is cut back on the opportunities to boost support for education. Internationally the most far sighted countries are using their education system to prepare for the economic upturn. Nick Clegg appears to have understood this.”

Nick’s speech in full appears below:

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The Voice

Green Party candidate abandons Westminster bid to help Lib Dems win in Weston

By The Voice | Mon 1st March 2010 - 6:45 pm

The Weston Mercury has the story:

THE Green Party’s Weston candidate has withdrawn from the General Election contest before it has even begun – because he wants the Liberal Democrats to win. Dr Richard Lawson had been nominated by his party to fight the Weston seat currently held by Conservative John Penrose. But Dr Lawson has today announced his decision to withdraw his candidacy ‘to increase the chance of the Liberal Democrats taking the seat’. …

said: “”My candidature was founded on the idea that Weston was a safe Conservative win. That platform becomes shaky if Weston becomes vulnerable to

…

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The Voice

Lib Dem MEP spurns Golden Penis

By The Voice | Wed 24th February 2010 - 6:16 pm

North West Lib Dem MEP Chris Davies has blogged about how he’s rejected a nomination as Politician of the Year for the 2010 Erotic Awards.  The Flying Golden Penis award will, it would seem, be flying elsewhere this year.

It’s an honour to be considered but it’s not justified. I organised a fringe meeting to give sex workers a voice at last year’s party conference, and more recently I put out a press release defending sex workers from prohibitionist government policies. But it’s not enough.

Whether this spurs Chris to even greater heights to be worthy …

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The Voice

By the way, the word you’re looking for is, “Whoops”

By The Voice | Tue 23rd February 2010 - 5:35 pm

Or there’s the alternative headline the Voice decided not to use: The six Lib Dem MPs who were in favour of devolution before they were aginst it …. The BBC reports:

Liberal Democrats say an “error” led to several of their MPs supporting an attempt to block new powers for the Welsh assembly. Six signed an amendment to a new law that would have stopped the assembly acquiring powers over home education.

The Lib Dems are in favour of more devolution, and their Welsh education spokeswoman Jenny Randerson said her colleagues had signed in error. They will now remove their names

…

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The Voice

Vince: the Lib Dems’ plan for the banking sector

By The Voice | Tue 23rd February 2010 - 1:35 pm

Vince Cable has today set out the Lib Dems’ plan for the banking sector. We’re publishing his speech in full below, but for those who just want the skinny, Vince:

  • Confirmed that the Liberal Democrats are not anti bank or anti banker.
  • Stated that his day one, hour one objective as Chancellor would be to devise a fresh and consistent mandate for the nationalised and semi nationalised banks.
  • Argued that RBS and Lloyds are key to supporting the British economy and are currently falling well short of their lending agreements.
  • Challenged Alistair Darling to give a full public account of these agreements on their respective anniversaries.
  • Reiterated the Liberal Democrat commitment to splitting up the banks, unilaterally if necessary.
  • Argued that so long as Northern Rock was re-mutualised in such a way to guarantee that it would continue to repay the Government, there is no reason – at least in principle – why it could not do so as a Building Society.

The full text of the speech is below:

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The Voice

The LDV Saturday caption competition – the “Lembit pops his cork” edition

By The Voice | Sat 20th February 2010 - 1:45 pm

There’s no prize at stake – just the opportunity to prove you’re wittier than any other LDV reader …

Here’s Lib Dem MP for Montgomeryshire Lembit Opik celebrating the saving of Abermule Post Office from closure. What do you think Lembit, or those surrounding him, might be saying to each other, or thinking about each other?

The winner of our most recent caption competition, the “mine’s a large one” edition a fortnight ago – according to The Voice’s judging panel of one – was this one from Andy Mayer; with …

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The Voice

Lamb’s challenge to Lansley: let’s get to grips with social care

By The Voice | Wed 17th February 2010 - 4:20 pm

Lib Dem shadow health secretary Norman Lamb has today written to his Tory opposite number Andrew Lansley to urge him to attend this Friday’s conference on social care.

The Tories are refusing to attend the cross-party conference – following last week’s tribal spat – on the basis that the Labour Government will not rule out a compulsory levy. This is despite earlier indications that Mr Lansley accepted that the issue of voluntary versus compulsory schemes was one of the key points to be resolved in a consensus building process.

Norman has also called for the talks to be held in the open, …

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The Voice

Conservatives get the numbers wrong – again

By The Voice | Mon 15th February 2010 - 8:20 am

Getting the numbers wrong seems to be becoming a habit among Conservatives.

First we had those dodgy crime statistics, with the Conservatives claiming wrongly that violent crime had massively increased over the last decade.

Today we discover the Conservatives have inflated tenfold the number of girls getting pregnant in deprived communities. What’s a tenfold increase between friends?

As the Guardian reports:

The Conservatives launched the attack document, called Labour’s Two Nations, to try to show the rise in inequalities under the current government. It claimed – three times – that women under 18 are “three times more likely

…

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The Voice

Clegg sacks Jenny Tonge

By The Voice | Fri 12th February 2010 - 9:35 pm

The BBC has the report:

The Liberal Democrat leader has sacked his health spokeswoman in the House of Lords after comments she made about alleged organ trafficking in Haiti.

Jenny Tonge told the Jewish Chronicle there should be an inquiry into claims that Israeli troops sent there after the earthquake were trafficking organs.

Nick Clegg said the comments were “wrong, distasteful and provocative” and dismissed her from her post.

He said she apologised “unreservedly” for any offence she had caused.

Full story here.

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The Voice

Clegg on torture allegations: this goes “to the very top of Government”

By The Voice | Fri 12th February 2010 - 8:34 pm

As The Guardian reports:

The political storm over allegations of MI5 complicity in torture escalated tonight after Alan Johnson, the home secretary, accused the media of publishing “groundless accusations” and commentators of spreading “ludicrous lies” about the Security Service.

As defence lawyers prepared to challenge the government’s success in suppressing severe criticism of MI5 officers made by one of Britain’s most senior judges, the Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg, pointed the finger at the “very top of government” saying senior ministers had probably known about claims of Britain’s involvement in torture but failed to take action to stop it.

Here’s Nick’s statement …

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The Voice

Wide backing for radical reform of Parliamentary scrutiny function

By The Voice | Thu 11th February 2010 - 2:20 pm

So reports a news release from Liberal Democrat MP Evan Harris:

An amendment to the Government’s resolutions on reform of parliament following the report of the Wright Committee due to be debated on the 22nd of February, which calls for the establishment of a House Business Committee has attracted widespread support, including that of Sir George Young, its backers announced today.

The Select Committee on Reform of Parliament (the Wright Committee) was set up in July 2009 as a response to the expenses scandal to bring forward recommendations on how Parliament could be reformed to carry out its functions better. The Government …

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The Voice

How you can help Liberal Democrat Voice

By The Voice | Wed 10th February 2010 - 1:50 pm

The Voice is only a success because of the interest and support from our readers. For many people just lurking and reading the site is all they want to do – and that’s fine, we’re grateful for people taking the time to read the site.

You can though help us continue to produce interesting content for a growing audience. Here are three simple ways:

1. Let us have your tips for stories. Perhaps there’s something outrageous going on in your local council? Or you’re an expert in a particular area and have spotted a story other people have missed? Or you’ve seen …

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The Voice

Nick’s challenge to Labour/Tories: sign up to to restore public faith in politics

By The Voice | Tue 9th February 2010 - 8:15 pm

Nick Clegg’s metaphors are on fire. At the weekend we filletted some of the great quotes from his Telegraph interview – and yesterday he came up with another … Speaking of Gordon Brown and David Cameron’s joint refusal to sign up to real political reform, Nick commented:

Listening to the two of them anyone would think they were powerless backbenchers rather than the leaders of the two parties in Parliament which have proved to be the real roadblocks to reform. It’s like a couple of cowboy builders coming back to your house to tell you how bad their workmanship is.”

The …

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The Voice

Electoral Reform Bill must give voters real choice – Howarth

By The Voice | Sun 7th February 2010 - 12:19 pm

A news release from the party reports:

The Liberal Democrats have tabled amendments to the Government’s proposals for a referendum on electoral reform that would:

  • Offer voters a real choice between first-past-the-post and a truly proportional system (Single Transferable Vote), rather than AV
  • Bring forward the date of the referendum to next May
  • Close a loophole allowing the next Government to kill the proposals without an Act of Parliament

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice Secretary, David Howarth said:

“Voters deserve a real choice – between the discredited status quo and a system where every vote matters and there are no safe seats.

“The Alternative Vote system is …

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The Voice

The LDV Saturday caption competition – the “mine’s a large one” edition

By The Voice | Sat 6th February 2010 - 3:15 pm

There’s no prize at stake – just the opportunity to prove you’re wittier than any other LDV reader …

Here’s Nick Clegg on a recent visit to cheer on Burnley Lib Dems and their candidate Gordon Birtwistle, as they attempt to unseat Labour and stop the BNP. (With thanks to Hywel Morgan for the picture). What do you think they might be saying to each other, or thinking about each other?

The winner of our most recent caption competition, the ‘never work with children’ edition just six weeks ago (ahem) …

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Posted in Caption Comp | Tagged , and | 14 Comments
The Voice

“A Liberal believes in the raucous, unpredictable capacity of people”

By The Voice | Fri 5th February 2010 - 7:20 am

That’s the striking quote from Nick Clegg which opens The Power of Creativity, a set of new proposals for the arts and creative industries published today by the Liberal Democrats. The paper goes on to make the point that,

The first chairman of the Arts Council was that great Liberal John Maynard Keynes. His vision as set out in 1946 remains ours in 2010: “to create an environment, to breed a spirit, to cultivate an opinion, to offer a stimulus to such purpose that the artist and the public can each sustain and live on the other in that union which

…

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The Voice

Clegg pledges “A fair start for every child”

By The Voice | Tue 2nd February 2010 - 7:10 pm

Plenty of media coverage today of Nick Clegg’s announcement that the Lib Dems will pledge to give every child a fair start in life by investing an extra £2.5bn in schools which could be used to cut class sizes, offer one-on-one tuition and provide catch-up classes.

Once again we see the renewed Lib Dem emphasis on that f-word, Fairness; and in this case, a policy which has long been championed by Nick, the ‘pupil premium’. Here’s Nick describing it in ‘just a minute’ in a BBC interview:

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The Voice

Three Lib Dem MPs fighting Legg’s expenses judgement

By The Voice | Sun 31st January 2010 - 10:20 pm

Three Lib Dems are among the 70 MPs who lodged appeals after being told to pay back some of their taxpayer-funded Commons expenses by Sir Thomas Legg, reports today’s Telegraph:

At least 35 Labour MPs and former Labour MPs have appealed against Sir Thomas’s findings, as well as 30 Conservatives, three Liberal Democrats and two independents. Among them are MPs who made some of the highest-profile claims exposed by the Telegraph investigation, including £1,645 for a duck house.

Sir Thomas’s 30-page report is thought to identify more than 300 MPs — nearly half of those in Parliament — whom he found

…

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The Voice

Jeremy Browne wins expenses appeal – acted “openly and honestly”

By The Voice | Thu 28th January 2010 - 8:58 pm

The BBC has the story of how Lib Dem MP Jeremy Browne has won his appeal against repaying £18,000 of expenses.

Taunton MP Jeremy Browne complained after auditor Sir Thomas Legg ruled he must repay the cash claimed for mortgage interest on his second home.

Sir Paul Kennedy, who was appointed to hear appeals, said he had acted “openly and honestly” when making his claim.

Mr Browne said he felt “relieved” and “vindicated”, but “not elated”.

He is the first of the 80 MPs who challenged Sir Thomas’s requests to repay money to make the results of his appeal public.

Labour’s Frank Cook, Frank

…

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The Voice

Lamb urges tighter rules for foreign doctors

By The Voice | Thu 28th January 2010 - 6:45 pm

The Telegraph reports Lib Dem shadow health secretary Norman Lamb’s proposals to tighten rules on the employment of foreign doctors after the death of a 70-year-old man treated by a doctor from Germany:

Norman Lamb, the party’s health spokesman, called for a series of reforms including a national language and competency test for every doctor wishing to work in Britain.

The demand comes after David Gray, from Manea, Cambridgeshire, died after he was given more than 10 times the recommended daily dose of diamorphine by Daniel Ubani, a locum doctor from Germany.
Dr Ubani, 67, had been on his first

…

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The Voice

Lester QC vs Goldsmith QC: Lib Dem peer says “He didn’t give the correct legal view”

By The Voice | Thu 28th January 2010 - 6:10 pm

Channel 4 News asked top lawyer and Lib Dem peer Lord Lester for his view on former Labour attorney general Lord Goldsmith’s evidence to the Chilcot inquiry into the war against Iraq. You can see the eight-minute video below, together with C4’s news report:

Lord Lester QC, a leading human rights lawyer and expert in international law, believes Lord Goldsmith failed in his responsibilities on Iraq. “He didn’t give the correct legal view,” says the Lib Dem peer.

As Britain went to war in March 2003, 16 out of

…

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The Voice

Baker: time to refund passengers forced on to rail replacement buses

By The Voice | Wed 27th January 2010 - 6:50 pm

Ah, the joy of train travel – you buy your ticket, possibly costing you a small fortune unless booked in advance, only to discover you’re chucked off the train and onto a bus if there are repairs being made to the line. Well, no more, says Norman Baker, the Lib Dems’ shadow transport secretary.

Stormin’ Norm is proposing that the Lib Dems would radically overhaul Network Rail, replacing its executives with a ‘Public Interest Board’ made up of representatives of customer watchdog Passenger Focus, the Local Government Association and independent experts. They would be charged with putting the interests of passengers …

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The Voice

Clegg on suppressed Iraq documents: “this has all the hallmarks of a cover up”

By The Voice | Wed 27th January 2010 - 6:25 pm

Sir John Chilcot, who is chairing the inquiry into the Iraq war, today expressed publicly his “frustration” that the Government has refused to declassify certain information. The BBC reports:

The Lib Dems have accused the government of trying to “gag” the inquiry by refusing to publish them.

The documents include letters between Mr Blair and President Bush. The Cabinet Office said no documents had been withheld from the inquiry but some needed legal clearance before they could be released to the public.

Nick Clegg has called – once again – for those documents requested by the Chilcot inquiry to be published, and …

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The Voice

Oaten reduced to tears in new Channel 4 documentary

By The Voice | Tue 26th January 2010 - 9:50 pm

The Sun reports today, with unsubtle snideness, on a new Channel 4 documentary, Tower Block Of Commons, in which ‘four pampered MPs were reduced to tears and tantrums when they swapped their grace and favour lifestyles for eight days living on a council estate.’

One of the MPs who took part is Lib Dem MP Mark Oaten, who is standing down at the next election. Here’s how the paper reports his experience:

In the first of the four-part series, the programme begins with Winchester MP Mark Oaten cleaning out his pool at his Hampshire pile and musing about what life on

…

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The Voice

Vince on 0.1% growth: “We are not out of the woods yet”

By The Voice | Tue 26th January 2010 - 11:03 am

So, it’s official: the UK has at last emerged from the most sever recession in 90 years … just. Figures released today show the economy grew by 0.1% in the last three months of 2009, lower than many analysts had predicted, says the BBC.

Here’s what Lib Dem shadow chancellor Vince Cable had to say:

The markets will be surprised that growth has been markedly slower than expected. Far from the quick recovery the Chancellor has been praying for, the economy is only just staggering back into growth.
 
“The British economy has had the economic equivalent of a heart attack

…

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The Voice

Vince: Lib Dems are the only party of genuine economic reform

By The Voice | Mon 25th January 2010 - 2:08 pm

Here’s what Lib Dem shadow chancellor Vince Cable had to say today when speaking to the think-tank Demos, launching their Politics 2010 series …

What do LDV readers think of Vince’s speech?

I want today to set out how the Liberal Democrats plan to deal with the aftermath of the credit crunch and recession and the pillars of the manifesto that we will be putting to the British people in the future.

The British economy had a massive heart attack when the arteries of the banking system seized up. The good news is that the patient is still alive, albeit in

…

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