Category Archives: Conference

Anything relating to the spring or autumn conferences

Ewan Hoyle

Opinion: my Guardian drugs surprise

By Ewan Hoyle | Tue 5th October 2010 - 1:28 pm

Cannabis stance is wrong, says Lib Dem drug campaigner

This was the surprising headline that greeted me on the guardian website just a few short hours after I’d made my maiden speech to conference.

I wasn’t planning to give a speech from the conference floor when I arrived in Liverpool. Having seen the latest motion I had drafted on drugs policy again be rejected by the Federal Conference Committee, I was instead concentrating on encouraging as many people as possible (without being too pushy) to attend the fringe event “It’s Time We Talked About Drug Policy” at which I was …

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Ramis Cizer

Opinion: Why the Diversity Motion caused a stir at Conference

By Ramis Cizer | Thu 30th September 2010 - 12:23 pm

I not a massive fan of the term “Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME)” and in an ideal political world it probably wouldn’t exist. But we don’t live in an ideal world and the term is required to designate certain segments of population in order to address inequalities – an uncontroversial statement in my opinion – so why does it cause such heated discussion? Too complex to answer here so I will leave it to someone else but I have some ideas on why the Diversity Motion caused a stir at the Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference.

Liberalism to me is a …

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Helen Duffett

Blog of the Year Awards: The movie

By Helen Duffett | Mon 27th September 2010 - 12:08 pm

The BOTYs were quite simply the glitteringest event of the whole Liberal Democrat conference last week, and Lib Dem councillor and blogger Jonathan Wallace was there to film them.

If you look carefully, you might just spot the tail feathers of the last flamingo, as it was startled away by popping flashbulbs. Alas, the heat of said flashbulbs also melted the ice sculptures before Jonathan could film those too, but the video’s well worth watching for the great speeches from winners and presenters alike:

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Mark Pack

Lessons for future campaigning from the 2010 election

By Mark Pack | Sun 26th September 2010 - 5:25 pm

The Wednesday lunchtime at Liverpool conference saw myself chairing the last of The Voice’s fringe meetings, this one looking at lessons from the 2010 general election.

Our guest speakers were Hilary Stephenson (Director of Campaigns), Duncan Hames (newly elected as MP for Chippenham) and Paul Holmes (former MP for Chesterfield).

Thanks to Alex for sorting out the recording and podcasting wizardry.

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Mark Pack

Conference: the full-time score

By Mark Pack | Sun 26th September 2010 - 9:20 am

Having blogged ten questions for Liberal Democrat conference, along with a conference half-time update, how do things look now the dust has settled from Liverpool for those ten points?

Party strategy

Love your coalition partner all the time in public: that was the clear line taken by Nick Clegg, reinforced by other senior party figures and not challenged directly in any high profile way during conference (save for one question during the Nick Clegg Q&A). And yet… whether or not the party should let its strong debates with the Conservatives within the coalition show a little more in public was …

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Stephen Tall

LDVideo conference edition (4): Paddy, Shirley, Trident and Stride

By Stephen Tall | Sat 25th September 2010 - 8:35 pm

Anyone starting to get conference withdrawal symptoms? For those of you who were there, here’s a few videos from the Lib Dem conference in Liverpool to help you catch up with what you missed by, erm, being there. And for those of you who weren’t there and saw it all on telly anyway… well, here’s another chance to enjoy some of the highlights.

(Please note, as most of these are BBC videos it’s not possible to link to them: they will therefore only be visible to readers viewing Lib Dem Voice directly through your web browser.)

Paddy Ashdown interviewed by Andrew Rawnsley


(Also available on the Guardian website here.)

LibDem anger over ‘Cold War’ Trident

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Kelly-Marie Blundell

Lib Dem Coalition IRL

By Kelly-Marie Blundell | Sat 25th September 2010 - 2:16 pm

Since the election it has seemed to me that the Liberal Democrats have been somewhat flagging. The exhaustion of the general election and Clegg Mania, the immediate return of Labour Squeeze in mainstream media and the relentless coalition debate have collectively reduced the Lib Dem enthusiasts.

However, there is nothing like a good Conference to cheer us all up.

This was the first conference I attended alone, but with much awaited enthusiasm due to growing Twitter feeds and Facebook friends.

The conference alone is a daunting and tremendous undertaking to the uninitiated. You are catapulted into fleeting and incredibly intimate friendships with people you may never contact again. Collecting business cards, advising, persuading, debating and challenging on every level.

Flipping from policy motion to speech, from fringe to training, it is a whirlwind of faces you may or may not recognise from those squares of modernity who tweet or chat or debate with alarming ease.

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Stephen Tall

LDVideo conference edition (3): Hughes, Huhne, Alexander and Browne

By Stephen Tall | Sat 25th September 2010 - 12:45 pm

Anyone starting to get conference withdrawal symptoms? For those of you who were there, here’s a few videos from the Lib Dem conference in Liverpool to help you catch up with what you missed by, erm, being there. And for those of you who weren’t there and saw it all on telly anyway… well, here’s another chance to enjoy some of the highlights.

(Please note, as these are BBC videos it’s not possible to link to them: they will therefore only be visible to readers viewing Lib Dem Voice directly through your web browser.)

Is Simon Hughes on the political left or right?

Chris Huhne’s ‘green deal to offset budget cuts’

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Olly Grender

Opinion: I always love Conference

By Olly Grender | Fri 24th September 2010 - 8:55 pm

I always love conference, in fact I love all three Party conferences. Because inspite of the fact that I am most comfortable with my LibDem tribe I am on the whole comfortable with people with a genuine interest in politics. Let’s face it all of us are such a small proportion of the population.

As I walked through Liverpool in the evening I strongly suspect that those girls dressed up to the nines, well kind of in nothing actually, had no idea they were hosting a party of Government in their hometown.

That is what is so great about conference, …

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Linda Jack

So how was it for you……..the highlights and lowlights?

By Linda Jack | Fri 24th September 2010 - 8:00 pm

As I mentioned earlier, conference is always a mixture of emotions, but none more so than this year. I thought it would be fun if we could do a meme in the comments thread and answer the following questions:

  • The funniest moment

  • The saddest moment

  • The most embarrassing moment (OK, so I know its only me has them!)

  • The most challenging moment

  • The moment I will remember most

    • And please feel free to add to the list.

    My answers? You’ll have to wait until the end of the day for those!

    And to start with I’m tagging Helen Duffett 🙂

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    Mark Littlewood

    Opinion: Looking through the tea leaves of Liverpool

    By Mark Littlewood | Fri 24th September 2010 - 4:50 pm

    What a strange few months it’s been for the Liberal Democrats. In Bournemouth a year ago, few LibDems would have truly believed that this was to be their last annual conference in opposition.

    My sense of the mood in Liverpool this year was that it matched the political and economic times we live in. Serious, but somewhat apprehensive. There seemed a lot of quiet satisfaction – although never smugness – that there were Liberal Democrats in government, but a nervousness about what the “end game” might be.

    A few things truly surprised me. Support for the principle of entering Coalition with the Conservatives was close to unanimous. A straw poll at the IEA’s fringe meeting showed about 95% felt that Nick Clegg had made the right decision in those tense few days after the General Election. The national media were, of course, on the look out for any sign of coalition-fatigue, but seemed initially disappointed – and then rather impressed – about the absence of much strategic dissent.

    But looking through the tea leaves of Liverpool, there are some longer term issues which the party will have to address.

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    Meral Ece

    Opinion: The last chance saloon on diversity?

    By Meral Ece | Fri 24th September 2010 - 3:24 pm

    I went to conference expecting something entirely different, perhaps influenced by the daily articles and news reports, that this conference was going to be like no other. That there was much unrest, and even anger amongst the Party’s ranks. Instead I found myself amongst many Lib Dem party members and friends who were upbeat and positive.

    I didn’t speak to anyone – nor as far as I can gather did the media – who was vehemently opposed to the Coalition Government. Yes, this conference was like no other. It was the largest conference we’ve ever had, and our Leader is …

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    Linda Jack

    Making LGBT History – An Interview with Adrian Trett

    By Linda Jack | Fri 24th September 2010 - 1:38 pm

    Adrian Trett is Chair of DELGA, the person responsible for the Equal Marriage motion and someone I am proud to call a dear friend. Following the success of the motion I interviewed Adrian about his feelings about conference in general and the motion in particular

    Q: What was your overall impression of conference?

    A: I was really pleased, I thought it was exhilarating, everyone was so enthusiastic. On the way to conference I thought there may be arguments, but I found it to be a pleasing atmosphere and was thrilled to be there.

    Q: How did you feel when you left?

    A: I left …

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    John Howson

    Opinion: Nobody ever said government was easy

    By John Howson | Fri 24th September 2010 - 11:59 am

    I attended my first Liberal Party Conference at Blackpool in 1968, in the days when our MPs could all fit in a taxi, rather than needing a rather large bus. Work in education prevented me attending regularly again until 1998, but I have been at every autumn conference since.

    For those with long memories, 1998 was the year of the community school motion when, despite an impassioned speech by Phil Willis, the leadership lost the day, just as they did with amendment 2 on Monday: more about that later.

    When I arrived in Liverpool on Friday afternoon, I detected a palpable …

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    Paul Reynolds

    Opinion: Subtly different

    By Paul Reynolds | Fri 24th September 2010 - 10:54 am

    The Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference this year was subtly different from all others I have attended.

    Being part of the Coalition of course meant a larger UK and international press contingent, and a greater diplomatic representation from around the globe. Lib Dem ministers talked of the problems of persuading their Conservative colleagues of the benefits of key Lib Dem policies and approaches, as well as the more general problems of working with the slippery inflexibilities of government administration.

    However by far the more significant difference was for me something unseen, almost unconscious. It affected every conversation, every fringe meeting, and …

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    Stephen Tall

    LDVideo conference edition (1): Nick Clegg special

    By Stephen Tall | Thu 23rd September 2010 - 8:45 pm

    Anyone starting to get conference withdrawal symptoms? For those of you who were there, here’s a few videos from the Lib Dem conference in Liverpool to help you catch up with what you missed by, erm, being there. And for those of you who weren’t there and saw it all on telly anyway… well, here’s another chance to enjoy some of the highlights.

    (Please note, as these are BBC videos it’s not possible to link to them: they will therefore only be visible to readers viewing Lib Dem Voice directly through your web browser.)

    Nick Clegg addresses UN on poverty    : here’s why Nick left the party conference early

    Nick Clegg defends Lib Dem coalition decision:

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    Stephen Tall

    Lib Dem conference 2010: open thread #ldconf

    By Stephen Tall | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 7:30 pm

    The thousands of Lib Dem members who made it to Liverpool this week for the party conference will be arriving home now, probably tired, in need of a healthy square meal, and perhaps a tad hungover. Here’s your opportunity to tell Voice readers what you made of it all: the highlights (and any lowpoints), the surprises (and disappointments)… in fact, anything you like.

    The Guardian’s Andrew Sparrow, who’s been live-blogging the conference all week, has set out his ’10 things I’ve learned from the Lib Dem conference’ here (you’ll need to scroll a bit down the page). They’re well worth …

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    Alex Foster

    PODCAST: Cabinet Minister Q&A

    By Alex Foster | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 5:14 pm

    Our final podcast from the conference floor was the penultimate session, a Q&A with cabinet ministers Danny Alexander, Chris Huhne, Michael Moore and Vince Cable.

    The last session at Lib Dem conference is usually reserved for the Leader’s Speech – but that was not possible this time as Nick Clegg had to fly out to the UN.

    It’s quite a shock for Liberal Democrats to get to quizz cabinet ministers, but it’s something they took in their stride with relative ease. This was taped from the reserved press section – and it’s interesting that over a dozen journalists had stayed till this …

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    Tom Paul

    Opinion: Do the media now ‘get’ Liberal Democrat conference?

    By Tom Paul | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 4:31 pm

    Recent years have seen a consistent stream of conference reports on ‘splits’ within the party. With Coalition, and more interest in the party than ever before, has the media finally learned how to read our public disagreements? Do the media now ‘get’ conference?

    Whilst Labour and Tory conferences are stage-managed affairs, with policy arguments taking place behind closed doors, the liberal approach is to discuss and debate in the open. The way Liberal Democrats make policy – and the power we members have to shape our movement – is reflective our commitment both to transparency and to democracy.

    But public debates …

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    The Voice

    Lib Dems pass motions on Trident and diversity

    By The Voice | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 3:27 pm

    News of two motions passed by Lib Dem conference today…

    Diversity: Hughes to propose “radical changes” to promote candidate diversity

    Simon Hughes, the party’s deputy leader, commented:

    “I am glad that Conference agreed today that there will be a full set of proposals for candidate diversity and that we will have the chance to take decisions to change the face and mix of the Liberal Democrats.

    “I will be presenting a paper to the Party’s Federal Executive next month which will propose radical changes in the way we select our candidates.

    “This proposal will include the aim that half our candidates will be women …

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    Stephen Tall

    What did you make of Vince Cable’s speech?

    By Stephen Tall | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 2:30 pm

    It was the speech which revived the Lib Dem conference, oddly listless after Nick Clegg’s speech on Monday: Vince Cable’s rallying final day speech gave members and activists a real lift, and provided plenty of red meat for the media to chew on. Here’s my first impression…

    Perhaps what was most impressive about Vince’s conference speech was how unchanged it was from his usual fare: uncompromising, wise-cracking, punchy, intelligent.

    The right-wing media has focused on Vince’s attacks on capitalism, with the Daily Mail in typically shrill mood, and ConservativeHome giving it the silly billing of ‘Red Vince Day’.

    That’s the thing about some right-wingers: too often they are unable to see past their own dogma which assumes Big Business must always be right. It’s the same blind spot left-wingers have about the unions.

    Liberals — and I’m not using that as a party label because it also encompasses Adam Smith — understand that unfettered capitalism is not the same thing as the free market, and capitalism does not automatically promote market competition. That is why liberals, and Liberal Democrats, believe in a regulated free market, to curb the excesses of capitalism and to promote the interests of healthy market competition from which individuals and society can benefit.

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    The Voice

    Vince Cable speech to conference

    By The Voice | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 12:28 pm

    Speaking at the Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference today, Liberal Democrat Business Secretary, Vince Cable said:

    I have come to account to you, Conference, for the work I have been carrying out in the Coalition Government.

    I have managed to infuriate the bank bosses; acquire a fatwa from the revolutionary guards of the trades union movement; frighten the Daily Telegraph with a progressive graduate payment; and upset very rich people who are trying to dodge British taxes. I must be doing something right.

    But I am told that I look miserable. I’m sorry, conference, this is my happy face. ‘Aren’t you having fun?’ …

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    Lynne Featherstone

    Lynne Featherstone’s speech to conference

    By Lynne Featherstone | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 11:56 am

    Liberal Democrats.

    I look around and I see the faces of so many friends, colleagues, Cabinet Members. Yes – I did just say that – Liberal Democrat members of the Cabinet.

    Now conference, I was pretty clear at the time as to just what I thought of having an all male all pale team sent to negotiate on our behalves in May. Often for some of us women we get frustrated when we see mediocrity promoted above us.

    But in this case, they weren’t mediocre – our negotiating team did one hell of a job and I thank them all …

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    Alex Foster

    PODCAST: Equal marriage debate

    By Alex Foster | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 10:24 am

    After a brief hiatus during which our podcast host migrated us to an account we hadn’t asked for during our busiest week, we can now bring you, in full, the debate on LGBT marriage from Tuesday’s conference floor.

    This debate may not necessarily be of interest to the wider public, but certainly anyone who loves Lib Dem conference will recognise many of the aspects of the debate.

    Highlights for me include Dr Evan Harris’s explanation, in the opening minutes of the debate of his stint as the only openly gay Lib Dem MP despite not actually being gay; the Voice’s own Sara …

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    Alex Foster

    Help spread the word about our lunchtime fringe

    By Alex Foster | Wed 22nd September 2010 - 8:19 am

    LibDemVoice are hosting four events at conference – fuller details are available here.

    Our final event falls this lunchtime as Mark Pack takes the chair to explore the party’s general election campaign. With Hilary Stephenson, Duncan Hames MP and Paul Holmes.

    If you’d like to come along, why not click here to let your twitter friends know.

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    Mark Pack

    A good analysis of conference so far…

    By Mark Pack | Tue 21st September 2010 - 11:39 pm

    … is to be found over on Left Foot Forward: Party democracy alive and kicking at Lib Dem conference. I don’t agree with all of it – such as the use of “indefensible” 🙂 – but it’s a good post that shows an understanding of how parties work and makes good use of details of what has happened at conference.

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    Stephen Tall

    What Lib Dem party members think of Trident

    By Stephen Tall | Tue 21st September 2010 - 8:25 pm

    Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of the early race for the party presidency, the London mayoral selection, Trident, and the Labour leadership. Over 400 party members have responded, and we’re currently publishing the full results.

    Tomorrow, Wednesday, the Lib Dem conference will be debating an emergency motion on Trident, which states that: “The exclusion of Trident from the Strategic Defence and Security Review is now untenable; it should be included and receive the scrutiny which strategic, political and financial circumstances demand.”

    Our members’ survey asked identical questions to those …

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    Stephen Tall

    Clegg: Lib Dems ‘misunderstand’ schools policy

    By Stephen Tall | Tue 21st September 2010 - 7:35 pm

    That’s the Channel 4 News headline tonight, and it seems a fair reflection of Nick Clegg’s interview with Jon Snow this evening:

    As I tried to explain in my speech yesterday, some of the misgivings expressed in the conference hall I genuinely think slightly misunderstand what the government policy is going to do. I think there is a misunderstanding bluntly between what the free schools proposal is alleged to be trying to do and what it will actually do. It won’t be taking resources and people and attention away from other schools… and crucially, as I stressed in my speech yesterday, it won’t do what would be genuinely divisive. It won’t be introducing selection through the back door, which I’m staunchly opposed to.”

    You can see Nick’s interview here:

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    Alex Foster

    Contribute to Lib Dem Voice’s coverage of conference

    By Alex Foster | Tue 21st September 2010 - 3:03 pm

    Just a quick reminder that LDV welcomes contributions from all, and none more so than during conference.

    Our team is trying to provide a variety of different perspectives of how the conference works, but it is an enormous endeavour, and we welcome pieces from our readers with your experiences of conferences.

    Have you been to an interesting fringe you’d like to review? Do you have a different view of what happened in the main hall from how we recorded it here?

    You need no experience to submit a piece to the Voice, and neither do you need to have your own blog. …

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    Iain Roberts

    Top Trump politicos – who’s the most fanciable of them all?

    By Iain Roberts | Tue 21st September 2010 - 10:53 am

    Politicos Top Trumps Specials – conference 2010 – are here. The chance to do top-trumpy battle with MPs well known and not so well known from across the political spectrum.

    And alongside the fairly cut-and-dried majority and years in parliament categories, there are three that may cause a little more disagreement amongst the onlookers, not to mention the all-important write-ups of each member.

    “Millionaire environmentalist” Zac Goldsmith may have the top fanciability – a storming 100 – but may be a little disappointed to be given a potential of just 3/10.

    Even Eric Pickles might find it hard to …

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