Category Archives: News

Helen Flynn

We got the power – a song to inspire our campaigning

By Helen Flynn | Tue 25th April 2017 - 2:27 pm

It is great that we are in full swing so quickly for GE2017! Great organisation and planning by Lib Dem HQ all those months ago after the EU Referendum.

So, how do we campaign to get the best result for liberalism and the country? Focus leaflets, letters, memes, tweets, facebook posts, blogs are all vital parts of modern campaigning. But can I suggest a campaign song—a song that captures what we are about and is relentlessly upbeat?

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Paul Walter

Student hopes to become the Scottish Borders’ youngest councillor

By Paul Walter | Tue 25th April 2017 - 10:33 am

Following hard on the heels of our post about the Isle of Wight’s youngest candidate on Sunday, here’s news from Galashiels via The Southern Reporter:

A teenage student from Peebles is the youngest candidate standing in next month’s Scottish Borders Council elections.

Caledonia Bhatia, 18, a chemical engineering student at Edinburgh University, has been selected as Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for the Galashiels and district ward.

No stranger to political life, Caledonia is the daughter of outgoing Tweeddale West councillor Catriona Bhatia and granddaughter of Liberal Democrat grandee Lord David Steel of Aikwood.

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Caron Lindsay

Eluned Parrott selected to fight Cardiff Central

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 24th April 2017 - 9:15 pm

Former Welsh Assembly member Eluned Parrott has been selected to fight the constituency of Cardiff Central which, until 2015 was held by Jenny Willott.

Eluned fought the seat for the Welsh Assembly last year and came within 1000 votes of victory.

From the Cardiff Lib Dem website:

The Lib Dems are odds-on favourite to win Cardiff Central (at 4/6 with Betfair on Monday morning), and have been endorsed by pro-EU newspaper The New European as the clear choice in the fight against a hard Brexit.

Eluned Parrott said:
“I hadn’t intended to come back into politics, but Brexit changed everything. I can’t simply stand by and let our country be ripped apart by hatred and division.

“I want to represent Cardiff Central in Parliament to fight Theresa May’s divisive Hard Brexit, both for the majority here who voted Remain and the many who voted Leave but want to stay in the Single Market.

“Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party isn’t providing Britain with a real opposition to this Conservative Brexit Government. That’s why people are turning to the Liberal Democrats in droves – as you can see by the dozens of by-election wins we have had across Britain, including one right here in Cardiff.

“The choice in Cardiff Central is clear: Corbyn’s Labour party who rolled over to back the Tories’ Hard Brexit, or the Liberal Democrats who will fight for an open, tolerant and united country.”

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The Voice

Lynne Featherstone hits out at UKIP’s FGM policy

By The Voice | Mon 24th April 2017 - 7:43 pm

Lynne Featherstone has, rightly, reacted with horror to UKIP’s proposal to “implement school-based medical checks on girls from groups at high risk of suffering FGM. These should take place annually and whenever they return from trips overseas.”

Lynne, in her work as Home Office and International Development Minister, changed the law to tackle FGM. She said:

UKIP’s approach is horrifically heavy-handed and will alienate the very communities we are trying to reach out to. We should be training our teachers and other providers such as community experts to identify those at risk and teaching children themselves that FGM is wrong and to come forward if they fear for themselves or a friend.

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NewsHound

Daisy Benson stands aside as Yeovil candidate

By NewsHound | Mon 24th April 2017 - 6:56 pm

Lib Dem Newbies co-founder Daisy Benson has stood down as the Liberal Democrat candidate in Yeovil for personal reasons.

From ITV:

Daisy Benson has withdrawn herself as Liberal Democrat Parliamentary spokesperson for Yeovil citing personal reasons.

She appeared on The West Country debate less than a week ago but will not appear on ballot papers in June’s snap election because she’s “in the process of completing purchasing a house within the constituency.”

Her full statement reads:

With regret I’ve decided not to put myself forward to stand for the Liberal Democrats in Yeovil in the upcoming snap General Election.

Although I’ve been preparing for the past year, this election unfortunately comes at precisely the wrong time for me. I’m just in the process of completing purchasing a house within the constituency.

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News Meerkat

Tony Blair advises voters to consider supporting the Lib Dems or Tories

By News Meerkat | Mon 24th April 2017 - 12:42 pm

The Independent reports:

Tony Blair has advised those going to the polls to consider voting for the Conservatives or Liberal Democrats in order to weaken the Prime Minister’s mandate for a hard Brexit.

The former Prime Minister said it was important to vote for candidates who had an “open mind” on the final deal and that people should not limit their votes to just Labour because the issue was “bigger than party allegiance”.

…Speaking on Sunday on the BBC’s The World This Weekend programme he said: “The absolutely central question at this general election is less who is the prime minister on 9 June, and more what is the nature of the mandate.

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The Voice

Liberal Democrats expected to surpass 100,000 members today

By The Voice | Mon 24th April 2017 - 12:02 am

The Liberal Democrat membership surge is about to take the party to a landmark 100,000 members – thanks to a staggering 12,500 joining since Theresa May announced the snap General Election last Tuesday.

Reaching six figures makes the party bigger than it has been since the mid-1990s and puts it on course to reach its highest membership ever within days. The biggest the party has been since its formation is 101,768 in 1994.

It means that more than 50,000 members have joined since last year’s European referendum and more than 67,500 since the 2015 General Election.

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron pledged to build the party to 100,000 members by the end of the parliament as a key pledge during his 2015 leadership campaign – but at that point everyone expected the end of the parliament to be 2020.

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Paul Walter

Lib Dems put forward youngest candidate on Isle of Wight

By Paul Walter | Sun 23rd April 2017 - 2:31 pm


The Isle of Wight County Press reports:

A FRESH face will be taking the reigns in the Isle of Wight Liberal Democrats’ fight for parliament on June 8.

Nicholas Belfitt, 24, of Shanklin, was selected as the parliamentary candidate at a local party meeting today Saturday.

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Paul Walter

Former Labour MP Bob Marshall-Andrews joins the Lib Dems

By Paul Walter | Sun 23rd April 2017 - 12:02 pm


MedwayCLPBob and Big Ben

The BBC reports:

Former Labour MP Bob Marshall-Andrews has defected to the Lib Dems after describing Jeremy Corbyn’s party as a “political basket case”.

Mr Marshall-Andrews told The Times he had jumped ship in light of the Brexit campaign and Labour’s refusal to stand aside in the Richmond Park by-election.

The QC and barrister was MP for Medway from 1997 to 2010.

A Labour spokesman said: “Bob Marshall-Andrews has not been a member of the Labour Party for some years.”

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said he was “coming over to the only party that is offering a credible opposition to a divisive Tory Brexit government”.

Mr Marshall-Andrews used to sit with the socialist group of Labour MPs alongside Mr Corbyn and shadow chancellor John McDonnell.

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Paul Walter

The ‘hit list’ of Pro-EU Tory MPs the Lib Dems are targeting in Brexit election purge – Telegraph

By Paul Walter | Sun 23rd April 2017 - 10:30 am

The Telegraph reports:

The Liberal Democrats have drawn up a hit-list of pro-EU Tory MPs who they want to unseat as they plot a Brexit purge for the election campaign.

The Telegraph can reveal that four Conservatives in parts of the country which most voted to stay in the European Union have been singled out.

Among those targeted will be Tania Mathias MP, whose Twickenham constituency overwhelmingly backed staying in the EU at last year’s referendum.

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The Voice

Rennie: Liberal Democrats have the momentum

By The Voice | Sun 23rd April 2017 - 8:55 am

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has  declared that momentum has given the Liberal Democrats the upper hand in the snap general election.

Since the announcement on Tuesday of a snap election 8,000 people have joined the party with membership more than double than what it was before the election in 2015.  The party also raised £500,000 in just 48 hours.

In an email to members, Willie wrote:

Nobody was expecting the announcement on Tuesday but the calling of the general election has given the Liberal Democrats real momentum. A staggering  8000 new members joined the party in the 48 hours after the election was called as people have flocked to us in a bid to change the direction of this country. No other party has seen such a surge.

The upcoming election comes on top of the 30 council by-elections that the Liberal Democrats have gained since last year, including in Scotland. And who could forget that historic by-election victory in Richmond, overturning a Tory majority of 23,000 to be the voice against the Conservative hard Brexit.

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Caron Lindsay

Encouraging poll news for the Liberal Democrats

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 23rd April 2017 - 8:01 am

The first Scottish opinion polls since the General Election was announced have been published and there’s mixed news for the Liberal Democrats.

Panelbase has us on just 5% (but that’s still up since January) and Survation has us up 1 from the 2015 election at 9%. If we go up at the rate that we have done in every election other than 2015, we could be on for a fair few gains up here. Edinburgh West and North East Fife, both gained from the SNP at Holyrood last year are the top targets but seats like Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross and Charles Kennedy’s old seat of Ross, Skye and Lochaber are definitely in play. Winning back those highland heartlands from the SNP would be a marvellous thing and it is eminently doable.

On a UK level, we’ve gone up 4 points to 12% in a YouGov poll.

And there has been another important development:

UKIP are on the way down, and they certainly don’t seem to have learned any lessons about candidate approval, if one of their Glasgow council candidates is anything to go by. It’s quite something when being in favour of the guillotine and flogging are the mildest of your bizarre views. From the Herald:

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dems will not go into coalition – Farron

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 22nd April 2017 - 10:31 pm

Tim Farron has done what I’d been hoping and ruled out the Liberal Democrats going into coalition with either Tories or Labour.

This means that the Tory argument that Corbyn, Sturgeon and Farron will get together and do a deal with the Loch Ness Monster to crash the stock exchange (ok, maybe the last bit of that was an exaggeration) is shown to be nonsense. People can vote Liberal Democrat with confidence knowing that we will do everything we can to oppose the Tories and Labour on Brexit.

It also has the advantage of putting to bed at the earliest stage of the campaign the endless questions about who we would go into coalition with and what would we compromise on. This has dominated questions to Lib Dem leaders in past elections and it is good that we have eliminated it. There is no way that we could credibly do a deal with either. Providing serious issue by issue opposition is what we will be doing.

Here’s what Tim said in an email to party members:

I want to make this clear.

The Liberal Democrats will not enter into any coalition deal with either Theresa May’s Conservatives or Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party.

On Thursday 8th June, every vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote to change the direction of our country and stop a hard Brexit.

The reasons for this decision are simple.

Under no conditions can we sign up to Theresa May’s Hard Brexit agenda; a hard Brexit will be a disaster for Britain. It risks crashing our economy and leaving us isolated on the global stage.

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Paul Walter

+++Tim Farron’s pledge to voters: Lib Dems won’t make coalition deals

By Paul Walter | Sat 22nd April 2017 - 9:56 pm

The Observer reports:

The Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron has ruled out any form of coalition with the Tories or Labour after the general election as he sets out a bold ambition to attract enough Remain voters to form the main opposition party in parliament.

In a dramatic shift of strategy for a party that entered coalition with the Conservatives in 2010 in the “national interest”, Farron said in an interview with the Observer that there will be “no deal, no deal with anybody” under any circumstances.

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Paul Walter

Tim Farron: Trump putting the UK at the ‘back of the queue’ is a devastating blow to May’s hard Brexit

By Paul Walter | Sat 22nd April 2017 - 2:05 pm

Responding to reports Donald Trump will put the EU ahead of the UK in trade talks, Liberal Democrat Leader Tim Farron said:

This is a devastating blow to Theresa May’s hard Brexit plans.

Yet another claim by the Brexiteers, that Britain would be at the front of the queue for a trade deal with US, now lies in tatters.

Theresa May should now make clear she will prioritise a trade deal with the EU over one with Trump.

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The Voice

WATCH: Nick Clegg on Newsnight giving a clue about our election strategy

By The Voice | Sat 22nd April 2017 - 10:55 am

Nick Clegg appeared on Newsnight on Wednesday night at the end of a feature on Tory/Lib Dem marginals in the South West.

He said that Theresa May had called the election for cynical and opportunistic reasons, to try and “hoover up a huge majority” before the effects of Brexit hit and capitalising on the weakness of Corbyn.

He said that issues like the chronic underfunding of the NHS and schools were also important and were being overshadowed by Brexit.

In an interesting glimpse to our election strategy, he said that it was clear that Theresa May would still be PM and the Tories would still be the party of Government and the key test now was how to provide effective opposition to that Government. We are not going to sustain Theresa May in power to “implement a self-harming hard brexit” and we certainly aren’t going to help Jeremy Corbyn into Downing Street.

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NewsHound

Theresa May doesn’t want to do debates because of Tim Farron – Paul Staines

By NewsHound | Sat 22nd April 2017 - 8:53 am

Every so often, the right wing talk shows come up with something a liberal wants to hear.

“Sharp, witty, self-deprecating, a pleasure to interview, a polished media performer.” Who said this about our Tim?

None other than Julia Hartley-Brewer on Talk Radio, chatting to Guido Fawkes’ owner Paul Staines about the lack of leaders’ debates in the forthcoming General Election. She even started to say that he was likeable but then apparently thought better of it.

Staines said that it wasn’t Corbyn May was bothered about, it was Tim Farron. Hartley-Brewer then came out with the compliments above.

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The Voice

It’s Friday, there’s an election on, there must be a funny story about Willie Rennie and livestock

By The Voice | Fri 21st April 2017 - 8:20 pm

You just need to Google “Willie Rennie and pigs” to find the funniest moment of last year’s Holyrood election campaign. 

Well, there’s another election on and Willie put the past behind him and went to see some lambs.

So far, so cute:

What could possibly go wrong?

Apart from the odd unfortunate camera angle.

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The Voice

Lib Dems raise almost £10,500 an hour since election called – more than double Labour’s effort

By The Voice | Fri 21st April 2017 - 6:55 pm

The Lib Dems have raised more than £500,000 in individual donations since Theresa May called for a General Election on Tuesday morning.

From the BBC:

All parties have made cash appeals to supporters after Theresa May’s surprise decision to hold an election on 8 June.

The Lib Dems say they raised £500,000 in 48 hours.

A similar Labour fund-raising drive is reported to have raised £200,000. Labour has yet to comment on the figure, reported by the FT.

The Conservatives have been contacted for details of their fundraising efforts.

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron claimed activists and donors were “flocking” to his party on the back of its distinctive anti-Brexit message.

The party, who are arguing for another referendum on the final Brexit deal, say they have seen their membership jump to 95,000, attracting 8,000 new members since Tuesday alone.

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The Voice

Alex Cole-Hamilton to chair Scottish Lib Dem General Election Campaign

By The Voice | Fri 21st April 2017 - 10:27 am

One of the party’s best ever campaigners has been chosen to chair the Scottish Liberal Democrats’ General Election campaign. Alex knows a lot about winning seats from the SNP after sensationally grabbing Edinburgh Western from them last year.

Alex  said:

I’m honoured to take on this important role for my party. We have a great grassroots organisation that is hungry for victory.

We have the wind in our sails and a hugely motivated activist base, keen to bring the party back to strength.

I can’t wait to get my teeth into the campaign.

Willie Rennie explained why he had chosen Alex:

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The Voice

GE 17: Key dates

By The Voice | Thu 20th April 2017 - 7:33 pm

The Electoral Commission have got off the mark pretty quickly and published their election timetable.

Key dates are:

Close of nominations: 4pm on 11 May 2017

Register to vote by: midnight on 22 May 2017

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dem Membership: 8000 newbies in 48 hours

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 20th April 2017 - 5:02 pm

I think I’d better revise my “Guide to the Lib Dems for new members” post!

Welcome to all 8000 of you who have joined the party since the snap election was announced on Tuesday.

We hope you enjoy the next seven weeks which are bound to be intense. There is nothing like the whirlwind of an election!

This now means that party membership now stands at 95,000. If just 5000 more people join us, then that’s Tim Farron’s membership target for 2020 smashed.

Sal Brinton, our Party President, had this to say:

People are flocking to the Liberal Democrats as we are the only party who are offering effective opposition to this Conservative Brexit government.

Theresa May: we have the troops for this fight and they are raring to go.

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Caron Lindsay

Daisy Cooper “ready for snap election” in St Albans as local pro EU group backs her

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 19th April 2017 - 8:33 pm

The energetic Daisy Cooper, whose spirited campaign made her runner-up in the Party’s Presidential Election in 2014 despite a late entry into the contest, is now the PPC for St Albans.

Since her selection last August, she has been campaigning strongly on the issues that matter to the heavily Remain voting citizens of St Albans.

This is in contrast to the local Brexiteer Tory MP Anne Main, whose greatest contribution to recent national debate was encouraging countryside walkers to flick away their dog poo. Her advice was contradicted by people who know about these things – the South …

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Caron Lindsay

Gorton election will now take place on 8th June

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 19th April 2017 - 6:27 pm

It’s just been announced that, subject to approval by MPs, the Gorton poll will be cancelled as a by-election and will now take place along with all the other seats on 8th June.

From the BBC:

A by-election for the Manchester Gorton constituency has been cancelled after the House of Commons backed Theresa May’s call for a June general election.

The Cabinet Office said the election for the vacant seat, planned for 4 May, would now take place on 8 June as part of the nationwide polling day.

MPs will be asked to formally overturn the writ for the poll.

The proposed by-election

…

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The Voice

John Pugh to stand down as an MP

By The Voice | Wed 19th April 2017 - 5:23 pm

John Pugh has announced that he won’t be fighting the General Election in his Southport constituency.

From the BBC:

John Pugh, MP for Southport, said he planned to retire next month, but “did not bank on the prime minister’s opportunism” in calling an election.
He said he did not want to work through “the nightmare chaos of Brexit” in the next parliament.
The local constituency party will now choose a new candidate from an all-woman shortlist.

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The Voice

+++Breaking: Jo Swinson to stand for East Dunbartonshire

By The Voice | Wed 19th April 2017 - 4:29 pm

Great news:

In a statement, she added:

This next Parliament will be pivotal for our country, both for Scotland’s place in the UK, and the UK’s relationship with the rest of Europe.

I’m standing in the general election because I’m passionate about keeping Scotland in the UK, and averting the disaster of the Tories’ hard Brexit. Most people in East Dunbartonshire agree – 61% voted to stay in the UK and 71% voted to remain in the EU. They deserve a pro-UK, pro-EU MP.

East Dunbartonshire is the SNP’s second most marginal seat, with a majority of just 2,167 over the Liberal Democrats. The result last time makes it absolutely clear: this is a fight between the SNP and the Liberal Democrats, and one I fully intend to win.

I helped her get elected the first time round in 2005. She put so much work into it over the preceding two years. She worked part time and every morning she’d go out delivering. Every afternoon and evening she spent canvassing. She was disciplined, organised and effective. And she turned out to be a brilliant MP and Equalities Minister.

Her announcement comes after her old boss at the then Business, Innovation and Skills Department, Vince Cable, announced that he was standing for Twickenham:

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Caron Lindsay

Tim Farron campaigns in Richmond Park

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 19th April 2017 - 12:50 pm

The first big photo-op of the election campaign saw Tim Farron return to the scene of our most audacious recent triumph – Richmond Park, where Sarah Olney beat Zac Goldsmith.

Here’s a reminder of her stunning victory speech just 4.5 months ago.

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The Voice

Why Nick Clegg will defend his Sheffield Hallam seat

By The Voice | Wed 19th April 2017 - 11:06 am

Nick Clegg has announced this morning that he will defend his Sheffield Hallam seat. He explained why:

Theresa May has called a General Election out of opportunism and intolerance: opportunism in seeking to exploit the weakness of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour party; and intolerance in seeking a landslide majority to bring about ‘unity’, by which she means the ability to impose whatever interpretation of Brexit she wishes without meaningful scrutiny from Parliament.

Meanwhile, her Brexit-obsessed Government is failing to provide the decent schools, hospitals and social care which communities, including those I represent in Sheffield, rightly deserve.

This General Election once again places the interests of the Conservative Party ahead of the daily needs of the British people.

I will be re-standing as the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate in Sheffield Hallam – a constituency I have had the immense privilege to represent in Parliament for twelve years – because I vehemently oppose the direction that Theresa May wishes to drag our wonderful country.

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The Voice

Carmichael: If you don’t want to come out of the single market, the Lib Dems are the only party who will speak up for you

By The Voice | Tue 18th April 2017 - 10:50 pm

Here’s Alistair Carmichael talking to BBC News earlier, saying that the Lib Dems are “optimistic and confident” about what we can achieve in this election:

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Paul Walter

There are now twice as many Lib Dem members as at the 2015 general election – and more than 5000 people joined today!

By Paul Walter | Tue 18th April 2017 - 9:55 pm

A very warm welcome to the 5000 new members who have joined us since Theresa May announced she would ask parliament to call a general election this  morning! What a breathtaking number!

The party has now more than doubled in size since the May 2015 general election.

Tim Farron commented:

This election is a chance to change the direction of our country and thousands are joining our fight.

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