Category Archives: News

Tahir Maher

Knife Crime

By Tahir Maher | Wed 27th June 2018 - 12:00 pm

Tories cheered when a reduction in Police budget was announced. Conservatives were going to cut funding, and the Police were going to keep their coverage and levels of activities by better utilisation of their resources. Even when the Police warned that crime would go up with the proposed cuts, the budgets were reduced. The consequence has been an increase in crime. Eventually, the Tories will have an epiphany that if they provide more funding to the Police, they will have more resources to fight crime. They never learn.

Knife crime went down from 2011 to 2015. But in 2017 alone it went up by 22% from 2016, and this was across the country, the 22% equates to just under 40,000 offences. There are many suggestions as to why there has been an increase in knife crime. Government critics have sited reduction in stop and search, closing down of children centres and cuts in the number of Police officers. In England and Wales, there are 21,000 fewer police officers now than there were in 2010 and in that same period council spending on Youth services has fallen by more than £750 million.

Others suggestions relate to drug and gang wars being the reason why youngsters carry knife. Social media is another reason given because these youngsters can have a massive following on platforms like Facebook and with significant followers backing down is not seen as an option.

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Tahir Maher

Telling Tales

By Tahir Maher | Wed 27th June 2018 - 7:38 am

The government is keen to play up the supposed benefits of Brexit. We are now getting to the ‘business end’ of the negotiations and as expected all is not as it seems. The government is talking up walking away with no deal instead of an accepting a bad deal (a bad deal would be an admission of its failure to negotiate with the EU) with the Brexit dividend that will be used to provide the NHS with a birthday present. Regarding the dividend, the Institute of Fiscal Studies made it clear that this was twaddle.

Just over a year ago the Office for Budget Responsibility (the governments’ official forecaster) estimated that as a result of lower economic growth because of Brexit tax revenue would fall by 2020/21 by £15 billion. It should also be noted that UK’s growth has gone from the faster-growing economy in G7 to the lowest other than Italy’s. This fall in revenue significantly surpasses our net contribution to the EU. The Institute of Fiscal Studies notes that there will be less rather than more money for the NHS and other services.

If we take our commitment to pay the agreed £45 billion plus a long-term obligation to pay pensions identified (until the need is exhausted), government’s commitment to support agricultural and the scientific research in universities – where then is the dividend for the NHS?

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The Voice

Vince Cable outlines pragmatic steps to boost housing supply.

By The Voice | Tue 26th June 2018 - 12:03 pm

In a keynote speech today (below, in full) Vince Cable analyses the failures of the housing market in terms of the poor incentives to developers and banks, and the effect of the planning system, and offers some pragmatic solutions to boost supply and tackle the shortage of housing that is pricing many young people out of homes altogether.

The text below is quite long but you can use these links to jump straight to the analysis of the housing market, building for social rent, the compulsory purchase of housing land for affordable housing, existing stock, comments on the green belt, and homelessness.

Also reported in the Guardian.

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The Voice

Lib Dems condemn “betrayal” of Swansea Tidal Lagoon cancellation

By The Voice | Mon 25th June 2018 - 9:21 pm

It was a project which would power 150,000 households for 120 year, a program of lagoons at Swansea, Newport, Cardiff and Colwyn Bay which would create over 34,000 jobs in Wales alone. And Wales does need jobs. It was championed by the Lib Dems in Government, but, as has happened with so many Lib Dem ideas, it’s been cancelled today by the Tories.

Coming on the same day as the the vote on Heathrow expansion, you would be forgiven that the Tories really didn’t give a hoot about what David Cameron is alleged to have once described as “green crap” – and he was one of the more progressive ones.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have condemned the decision as a huge missed opportunity and another example of the Conservatives’ neglect of Wales.

The lagoon was strongly backed by the government commissioned Hendry review in January 2017 and is supported by businesses, councils, MPs and AMs from all parties. The lagoon would have acted as a pathfinder project for other lagoons across Wales including Newport, Cardiff and Colwyn Bay.

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds was furious that the opportunity to make Wales a world leader in green energy had been thrown away:

The Conservatives’ rejection of the Swansea Tidal Lagoon is a disgrace. The Swansea Tidal Lagoon would be a vital first step in making Wales a world leader in green energy, bringing untold environmental and economic benefits to the community, Wales and the UK.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have consistently supported the Swansea Tidal Lagoon as a key part of our plans to develop an innovative, radical and ambitious green economy in Wales. It is deeply disappointing the Conservatives do not share our ambition.

When Ed Davey was Secretary of State for Climate Change he was totally behind the project. He called the cancellation an “historic mistake.”

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Catherine Royce

Assisted dying – an expression of individual freedom

By Catherine Royce | Mon 25th June 2018 - 11:08 am

This resolution proposed by PLC, Partido Liberal de Chile and supported by D66 of Netherlands and LIBG Liberal International British Group was hotly debated during the Human Rights Committee session at the 200th Executive Committee meeting of Liberal International held at the headquarters of the Free Democratic Party of Germany in Berlin this weekend.

Despite strong reservations from several delegates to the original wording and a proposal to refer back, a ŷlast minute re-write during the session which addressed all of the reservations expressed led to success, with a large majority of delegates voting for the resolution during the following …

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Also posted in Europe / International | Tagged and | 7 Comments
Mark Valladares

Welcome to my day: Monday 25 June – it’s not the despair, it’s the hope that gets you…

By Mark Valladares | Mon 25th June 2018 - 7:50 am

England win 6-1, a huge march against Brexit. Anyone would think that we might be entitled to good stuff for a change. We’ll see if anything comes of either event, but it is nice to have something that offers hope, rather than the despair that has been so wearing of late.

There’s been a lot of hope in the past week for supporters of the NHS, but the Conservative proposal of an extra £20 billion for health spending turned to dust pretty quickly when it became clear that there wasn’t much actual money, and that what there was would be coming …

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Caron Lindsay

Watch: Jane Dodds on Welsh Lib Dems’ vision and campaigns

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 24th June 2018 - 10:16 am

Yesterday, I caught up with Jane Dodds briefly at the People’s Vote rally in Parliament Square. Wales voted to Leave in the referendum, so I wondered if people there were now starting to wonder if they had made the right decision.

Jane is offering a vision of hope and optimism to Welsh people with particular focus on tackling inequality and loneliness so we talked a bit about how that’s going.

Here’s our chat:

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Caron Lindsay

Vince: Keep fighting, keep hoping. We will win

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 23rd June 2018 - 11:28 pm

Here’s the Lib Dem contingent at today’s People’s Vote march. There were lots of us there. It was an incredible atmosphere as we filled Parliament Square and beyond to listen to speeches from Tony Robinson (who actually said “I have a cunning plan”), David Lammy, Caroline Lucas and our own Vince Cable.

This event seemed like a real step up from previous ones. 100,000 people turned out demanding a People’s Vote. The key message was that this is not a done deal and we absolutely can get out of it.

This kicks off a Summer of campaigning across the country.

Here’s Vince speaking:

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NewsHound

LibLink: Wera Hobhouse: Upskirting will prove to be a meteorite to Westminster’s political dinosaurs

By NewsHound | Sat 23rd June 2018 - 1:30 pm

Wera Hobhouse has written for the Huffington Post about how Christopher Chope’s objection to her bill to outlaw the awful practice of upskirting brought people together, cross party, to fight for change, giving the bill a new lease of life. She describes how, last week, working with the Justice Minister, the Bill was ready for presentation in the Commons. Then came a bombshell:

The following day we found out that none other than the honourable member for the Jurassic Coast, Sir Christopher Chope, was planning to object to the bill. I lobbied his peers, they lobbied him, I even cornered him and tried to change his mind, but all to no avail. The sad reality is that Chope is sitting on a majority of 25,000, and with no governmental ambitions, feels secure in doing whatever he pleases without fear of retribution. He will block any Private Members Bill on principle, regardless of the bill’s content and merit. On the same day as upskirting, he blocked a bill to make it illegal to stab police dogs, to give carers free parking at hospitals, and has previously blocked a pardon for Alan Turing. The list goes on. True to his word he objected and was subsequently vilified for exactly what he’s been doing for the last 20 years. For a long time he has deliberately restrained progress in this country, and my sympathy for him is limited at best.

Yesterday my bill, which has been adopted by the government, was passed by the House to proceed to the Second Reading Committee. This means the second reading will be much earlier than expected, Tuesday 2 July. This type of legislative journey is very rare and reserved for legislation that is deemed uncontroversial. The decision to move so quickly is testament to how widely the bill is supported, both in Westminster, and across the country. I was glad to see no-one objected yesterday and now that sufficient progress has been made by the government, I have withdrawn my own bill.

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Caron Lindsay

Wendy Chamberlain selected for Lib Dems’ most winnable seat

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 23rd June 2018 - 11:46 am

In 2017, we were a heartbreaking two votes behind in North East Fife.

It was such a disappointment – but it is a hell of a bar chart for next time.

Last night, the local party selected the person who will fight the seat at the next General Election.

Wendy Chamberlain joined the party after the 2015 General Election. She’s a former Police Officer who now works as a training manager where she has won recognition for her work on diversity.

After her selection she said:

I am delighted to have been chosen as the Scottish

…

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Caron Lindsay

A duo of Lib Dem GAINS and a good hold

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 22nd June 2018 - 7:46 am

There was quite a crop of by-elections last night. Three were of particular interest to the Liberal Democrats.

You thought you’d seen big swings to us before but Abigail Medina produced a stunner in Whittlewood in South Northamptonshire:

My eyes are watering from that one.

Sorry, new Cllr Hawkins, because on any other day, your 39.2% from a standing start gain from UKIP would be at the top of this post:

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The Voice

Update on ‘upskirting’ Bill

By The Voice | Thu 21st June 2018 - 6:49 pm

(R-L) Vince supports the “upskirting” bill with campaigner Gina Martin, sponsoring MP Wera Hobhouse and Ms Martin’s solicitor, Ryan Whelan

We reported on Tuesday that the Justice Minister had agreed to take Wera Hobhouse’s Bill through Parliament after it was sabotaged by Christopher Chope.

We now have the details about how it will be progressed.

It seems that the Government is using a rare parliamentary procedure to progress the Voyeurism Offences Bill. It will have its first reading tomorrow and is scheduled for its Second Reading debate in a couple of weeks time.

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Sal Brinton

Lib Dems are very clear about the rights of transgender people

By Sal Brinton | Thu 21st June 2018 - 4:05 pm

Embed from Getty Images

Once again transgender issues are making media headlines – sadly for all the wrong reasons. Arguments are being made that are based on misunderstanding and fear, rather than facts and tolerance.

As a party the Liberal Democrats are very clear about the rights of transgender people. We had a debate, and passed party policy on this, at conference in September 2015. The motion starts:

“The transgender and intersex communities are too often marginalised, with little or no emphasis on their needs from government or third sector organisations. Transgender and intersex individuals experience similar levels and types of discrimination within society, including but not limited to hate crime, health discrimination, and difficulty obtaining documents in the correct gender.

Legislation concerning the transgender population often does not fully advance – and sometimes actively hinders – transgender equality. Transgender and intersex people are at a higher risk of mental health issues and suicidal ideation than the general population and the rest of the LGBT+ population, especially among BME transgender and intersex people.”

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Mary Reid

Gosport findings ‘shocking and devastating’

By Mary Reid | Thu 21st June 2018 - 2:24 pm

We have all be shocked by the revelations about the inappropriate treatment of elderly patients at Gosport War Memorial Hospital. Here is Norman Lamb talking about the way the NHS closed ranks when he was Health Minister, and how he called for the enquiry that has just been completed.

We also have some quotes from him:

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Caron Lindsay

All the best, Jo…

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 20th June 2018 - 10:15 pm

This afternoon, MPs who really shouldn’t have been in the House of Commons, either through very advanced pregnancy or serious illness, had to go in and vote on that Brexit amendment.

One of them was our Jo Swinson, who is two days past her due date with her second baby. It is entirely unsurprising that she made it in to vote. Anyone who knows how committed and determined she is will know that unless she was in fairly advanced labour, she would made it. She still deserves respect for doing so. Most women have stopped going into the office …

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The Voice

Know about crime and policing or how to share benefits of economic growth?

By The Voice | Wed 20th June 2018 - 3:55 pm

The Federal Policy Committee is looking for volunteers to serve on two working groups which will bring forward new policy on crime and policing and on sharing the benefits of economic growth:

The FPC is looking to appoint members of these groups to develop policy in each of these areas.

Both working groups will take evidence in the second half of 2018, run consultation sessions at Spring Conference 2019 and prepare their final drafts over March-June 2019. These will be presented to FPC for amendments and approval. Subject to this approval, the final papers will be published in July 2019, and debated

…

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John Kelly

Compassion and Trust in Politics

By John Kelly | Wed 20th June 2018 - 12:37 pm

What is the matter with Theresa May?  Is she really the untrustworthy and uncompassionate minister she has been portrayed, or does she just surround herself with advisers who are like that?

This morning on the Today programme Dominic Grieve spoke with barely veiled anger at the way he and others were let down by the PM last week over Europe amendments.  Well, that’s politics you may say.  But this interview followed soon after John Humphreys interviewed a mother who had been trying to get special cannabis oil for her epileptic child.  Not the mother who was interviewed by him yesterday who had just got Sajid Javid to relent and let her keep the cannabis oil she had brought back from Canada. Both families had spent tens of thousands of pounds having their children treated abroad and met uncompassionate and callous resistance from ministers and officials – especially in the Home Office.

Coming back to Theresa May – she apparently met the mother interviewed this morning, in March, and promised her that she would sort it so that her child could use the oil.  Her officials have still not approved the special licence and been deeply unhelpful to the mother concerned.  Theresa May’s flash of compassion has not been followed through – again showing she can’t be trusted.

Who presided over the Home Office and is responsible for the Windrush debacle: the families split up, the heartbreak of so many mistreated people?  This was no isolated case as readers of the I newspaper, and the Guardian know from reading week in and week out of bad uncompassionate decisions being made by Home Office ministers and civil servants.  The Law Society recently published a report that didn’t get nearly enough attention, in which it highlighted that the Home Office loses over 50% of immigration appeals.  This is a scandalous waste of public money.  Meanwhile, so many individuals and families are put through while uncompassionate civil servants mount ridiculous challenges to the most deserving asylum seekers for example.  The Law Society suggested that there might be institutional racism at the Home Office. That has been rather obvious to me for a long time.

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Tahir Maher

Radical Drugs Reform Needed

By Tahir Maher | Wed 20th June 2018 - 7:30 am

“The case of Billy Caldwell who needed cannabis oil for his severe epilepsy again highlights legalising cannabis not only for medical but recreational use. Although the Home Secretary (Sajid Javid) made an exception for Billy (by allowing cannabis oil use for 20 days) cannabis is still banned for recreational use. Sajid Javid said this week in the commons the position “We find ourselves in currently is not satisfactory”. Cannabis contains active ingredients called cannabinoids. These are used to relieve the pain of muscle spasms in multiple sclerosis or used to relieve sickness in people having chemotherapy for cancer. Other ingredients from cannabis help children with epilepsy. Cannabis does have medical benefits.

Some countries have regulated legal markets for the non-medical use of cannabis. There are Cannabis Social Club, sometimes called a Teapad, that control the cannabis market as non-profit organisations for the purpose of relaxing or for social communion that are only accessible to members. These can be found in Spain and also in the US. There are also cannabis coffee shops that are operating as coffee shops where cannabis is openly sold. These are usually found in the Netherlands.

Also in the US to regulate cannabis they have cannabis enterprise set up like businesses that are tightly controlled and sell cannabis. Uruguay’s has the government-controlled system for cannabis regulation. These are some examples of models for regulating non-medical cannabis being used around the world.

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The Voice

Victory declared for ‘upskirting’ Bill

By The Voice | Tue 19th June 2018 - 7:16 am

(R-L) Vince supports the “upskirting” bill with campaigner Gina Martin, sponsoring MP Wera Hobhouse and Ms Martin’s solicitor, Ryan Whelan

The Liberal Democrats have declared victory in their bid to make ‘upskirting’ a specific criminal offence.

Following Tory MP Christopher Chope’s shocking move to block Wera Hobhouse’s Bill last week, the Justice Minister met Wera Hobhouse this afternoon and, on behalf of the Government, agreed to take her Bill through Parliament.

Wera said:

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Mark Valladares

Welcome to my day: 18 June 2018 – now you see it, now you don’t?

By Mark Valladares | Mon 18th June 2018 - 7:47 am

I was told on Saturday that there was going to be an announcement of £20 billion for the NHS, and my first response was incredulity. “Where does that come from?”, was my question.
But sure enough, the announcement has come, and whilst the proposal for finding this sum is, how can I put it, less than entirely concrete still, it has complicated the arithmetic of opposition to Brexit. I’ll take an initial look at the numbers later.

It’s expected that the Lords could be sitting as late as midnight, as the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill returns for consideration of Commons amendments. Will …

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Caron Lindsay

Christine Jardine: Why I support equal marriage and transgender rights

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 17th June 2018 - 10:55 am

Here’s Christine Jardine speaking to Edinburgh’s Pride march yesterday. One of these days, I’ll remember to hold the phone round the other way.

She was speaking at the Mercat Cross on the Royal Mile to a vast, sparkly and bright crowd. As always the atmosphere was incredible.

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Sarah Green

Could you help take the Party’s training to the next level?

By Sarah Green | Sat 16th June 2018 - 7:38 pm

Last year I became Chair of the new Federal Training Committee, set up to make sure the Party’s training meets our long term needs. I have to admit that delivering training is one of the most fulfilling things I do as a Liberal Democrat. Whilst winning elections is intoxicating, there’s nothing quite like bumping into someone months after a training event and hearing them excitedly tell you about the next steps you’ve inspired them to take.  

Do you have ideas about how to take the party’s training up a notch? Do you want to ensure the party offers the training you need, when and where you need it? Then why not join us to make sure we all have the skills needed to win elections and deliver Liberal values to our country at a time when they are so desperately needed.

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The Voice

Vince’s message for Eid al-Fitr

By The Voice | Sat 16th June 2018 - 6:28 pm

Apologies for not putting this up yesterday – it appeared after we had set up for the day – and it was one of THOSE days where we couldn’t get online.

So, a belated Eid Mubarak to all who have been celebrating.

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The Voice

Triple win in deferred Council election for Lib Dems

By The Voice | Sat 16th June 2018 - 9:12 am

Good news from Southwark:

Well done to our new councillors.

In Doncaster, …

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Radical Liberalism and Taxes

By Joe Bourke | Sat 16th June 2018 - 8:00 am

Radical Liberalism is a distinctive philosophy that presents a superior alternative both to capitalism in its established form and to socialism. Existing capitalism, as propounded by the Conservatives, and socialism as proposed by Labour, are systems both based on the concentration of property and power in few hands.
The central principles of capitalism in its purest form are the free exchange of goods in an unregulated market; limited taxes to pay for limited government, and
private ownership of property.
The central principles of socialism are government control or regulation of the market; high taxes to pay for expanded government services; and government ownership …

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Paul Walter

Wera Hobhouse slams lone Tory MP for pointlessly sabotaging “upskirting” bill

By Paul Walter | Fri 15th June 2018 - 7:10 pm

Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse has slammed an ‘out of touch’ Tory for sabotaging her Bill to make upskirting a specific sexual offence today.

Having secured the Government’s support for her Bill to make upskirting a specific offence, it was expected to pass through the House of Commons today. The Bill comes off the back of Gina Martin’s campaign, which she started after falling victim to the crime last summer.

However, in a shocking move Tory MP Christopher Chope, known for objecting to the second reading of the Alan Turing (Statutory Pardon) Bill, defied the Government and Number 10 by opposing the Bill, preventing it from proceeding to the next stage.

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The Voice

Wera Hobhouse wins Government support to make upskirting a specific sexual offence

By The Voice | Fri 15th June 2018 - 10:25 am

Good news from Westminster – Wera Hobhouse’s Bill to make upskirting a specific sexual offence could closer to becoming law today when it receives its second reading in the Commons. Wera has won Government support for the measure but it requires to get through today without objection before it can proceed.

Wera has been working with campaigner Gina Martin and her lawyer Ryan Whelan on the details of law reform with the Ministry of Justice.

Wera today said she was “delighted” as the Government agreed to support her legislation to close any potential loopholes, in order to better protect victims and increase convictions:

I got involved in politics to change things that my constituents and I care about. I am incredibly grateful to Gina Martin for starting this campaign, and for giving me the opportunity – in my first year in parliament – to do exactly that.

The fact that the Government has listened to our calls is testament to the widespread consensus that there was a gap in the law that needed to be addressed. By working with Gina and ministers on the detail of my Bill, we have demonstrated that when we work together successfully we can make a difference on issues that really matter to people.

We all made the case for common sense. Now if someone is to fall victim to upskirting, the law will recognise them as the victim, and the police will be able to act immediately and bring the perpetrators to justice.

Gina Martin explained how she built her successful campaign:

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Caron Lindsay

19% swing from Labour to Lucy Salek in Lewisham East

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 15th June 2018 - 3:18 am

Nice when your canvass returns are bang on, isn’t it?

We briefed the media this week that we were on 25% – and that is almost exactly what we delivered. Last year we lost our deposit in Lewisham East. This year we got a quarter of the vote.

Our actual number of votes went up by 2.5 times, too, from 2086 votes last year, although the turnout was less than half. Labour’s vote dropped from 32000 to 11000 and the Tory vote dropped from 11000 to 3000. That vote share bar chart is going to look very good.

And, courtesy of the wonderful Jon Ball making this Facebook post public, we have the Sky News one plus a picture of a very happy looking Alistair Carmichael.

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Caron Lindsay

Lewisham East…what can we expect?

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 14th June 2018 - 10:00 pm

First of all, a massive thanks to all the staff who have worked so hard to deliver a stellar campaign in Lewisham East. Then to Lucy Salek who has done so much to get herself known in the community. To get such name recognition on the doorstep in just over 6 weeks is incredible.

And also to people who have gone to help and those who have made phone calls.

So, sometime in the middle of the night we’ll find out the result. What would be a good one?

Well, given that we got 4.4% just over a year ago, which …

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Legacy of Grenfell

By Joe Bourke | Thu 14th June 2018 - 3:00 pm

One year on from the tragedy of the Grenfell fire a public inquiry is underway to ascertain how such a thing could have happened in a modern building in the middle of London.

What has struck me about this whole event is the frustration and powerlessness that tenants and leaseholders express over the ability to control their own lives and safety.

Property tenure has changed greatly in recent decades. Right to buy has changed the composition of public housing developments. They will frequently include a mix of leasehold apartments, shared ownership and traditional …

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