Category Archives: News

The Voice

WATCH: Alex Cole-Hamilton demands action to help babies born addicted to drugs

By The Voice | Thu 9th January 2025 - 8:41 pm

At First Minister’s Questions today, Alex Cole-Hamilton implored John Swinney to do more to prevent babies being born addicted to drugs and to ensure that pregnant women had access to support to help them recover from addiction.

He said:

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Mark Valladares

8 January 2025 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 8th January 2025 - 11:45 pm
  • Children’s Wellbeing Bill: Conservatives using victims as “political football”
  • Davey: Adult Social Care Commission must be completed within one year
  • MP Calls for Greater Support for Off-Grid Homes

Children’s Wellbeing Bill: Conservatives using victims as “political football”

Commenting on the Conservative amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson Munira Wilson MP said:

The Conservatives are using the victims of this scandal as a political football.

The Conservatives alongside Reform, goaded along by Elon Musk will be voting for a motion which will not secure a national inquiry for victims of child sexual abuse, but instead it would kill these crucial child protection measures completely.

The Liberal Democrats will be putting forward our own amendment to take real action to tackle the child sex abuse scandal, by implementing the recommendations from the national independent inquiry in full.

Davey: Adult Social Care Commission must be completed within one year

Responding to the Health and Social Care Committee’s evidence session on Adult Social Care Reform with Sir Andrew Dilnot CBE, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

Andrew Dilnot is absolutely right that this review could be completed within one year.

The social care crisis is forcing patients to be treated in hospital corridors while elderly people sell their homes to pay for care. After years of being let down so badly by the Conservatives, they cannot afford to wait while the government drags its heels for another three years.

MP Calls for Greater Support for Off-Grid Homes

Liberal Democrat MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe David Chadwick has called for greater Government support to help those in off-grid homes deal with high energy prices.

During a debate on the decarbonisation of homes in Westminster today, David Chadwick highlighted that Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe has an extremely high number of homes not connected to the national gas grid, with most being reliant on heating oil to keep their homes warm.

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dems question Starmer at PMQs

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 8th January 2025 - 8:08 pm

Social care, political parties being funded by foreign oligarchs, pharmacies, the impact of the rise in National Insurance changes on health care providers, second homes in Cornwall, when will the Government do something for those people affected by the Budget changes, these were the issues raised by Lib Dem MPs at the first PMQs of 2025.

First up, Ed raised the issue of social care and the way that Labour has kicked it into the long grass. Then, he asked for action on foreign oligarchs funding UK political parties

Happy new year, Mr Speaker. I join others in offering my personal condolences to the Prime Minister on the loss of his brother. May I take this opportunity to express my sadness at the passing of a much-loved member of the Liberal Democrat family, Baroness Jenny Randerson?

Fixing the care crisis is urgent for the millions of elderly and disabled people who are not getting the care they need, for the millions of family carers who are making huge sacrifices to fill the gap, and for the NHS, when over 12,000 people are stuck in hospital beds and cannot get out of hospital because the care is not there for them. The Prime Minister is right to say that we need a cross-party approach, but as Sir Andrew Dilnot has said today, that need not take three years. Will the Prime Minister please speed up that work so that 2025 is the year we finally rise to the challenge of fixing care?

The Prime Minister
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for raising this important issue and thank him for his condolences. Yes, we do need to get this right. I want a cross-party consensus on the issue and I invite him to work with us, as I know he will. It is important and he is right to say that we need some action now. We have taken immediate action by providing £3.7 billion of additional funding in the Budget for social care and another £86 million to allow 7,800 more disabled and elderly people to live more independent lives, and we have increased the carer’s allowance. We have set this up in stages, so we can act and improve as we go along, while making sure we have consensus for the bigger changes that may be proposed in the review. I invite him and Members from across the House to work with us, so we can get this right and ensure what we put in place endures beyond just a few years.

Ed Davey
If the Government do not bring in long-term social care reforms this year, their NHS reforms in this Parliament will fail, so I hope the Prime Minister will revisit the timetable.

Moving on, while the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) may miss out on his big allowance from Elon Musk, the spectre of the richest man in the world trying to buy a British political party should give us all pause for thought. After years of the Conservatives taking millions of pounds of Russian money, will the Prime Minister now work with us to bring in long overdue reforms to party funding, so that power in this country lies with the voters, not wealthy overseas oligarchs?

The Prime Minister
I think we all had a smile on Sunday when the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) said how cool it was to have the support of Musk, only for Musk to say he should be removed just a few hours later—that is the rough and tough of politics. Of course, we are looking at the question of funding more generally.

Marie Goldman raised the case of a pharmacist in her constituency:

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The Voice

Layla Moran asks Urgent Question on Northern Gaza

By The Voice | Wed 8th January 2025 - 3:43 pm

Yesterday, Layla Moran was granted an urgent question in the House of Commons on the humanitarian crisis in Northern Gaza.

She said:

Over 450 days on, we all know the statistics—45,000 Palestinians killed, 100 hostages missing, 2.3 million people desperate—but I want to tell a single human story. I have previously spoken about my friend, consultant surgeon Mohamed, who operated on me when I had sepsis. His family are trapped in the Jabalia refugee camp. They are elderly and sick. One is a three-year-old girl. He has described how there are bodies strewn in the street.

I am sorry to report that death did not come knocking this weekend. Rather, it was dropped by a precision drone as Mohamed’s brother and his son walked 10 metres to get aid. The son died of a brain injury, two 13-year-old girls and their mother have shrapnel wounds, and Mohamed’s elderly father, who was already ill, is in hospital. A three-year-old, her mother and Mohamed’s mother are alone in a house with no one to help them get food.

These were obviously not militants—they were sick. They are not legitimate targets of war. There is no excuse for this. Mohamed told me it feels like they are living in “The Hunger Games,” dodging drones and scavenging for the basics. Even if they wanted to leave, how can they?

What part of international law makes any of this okay? Where is the accountability? Where is the justice? What does the Minister have to say to Mohamed, who spends his days saving lives here in the UK while his family are slaughtered overnight?

And it is not just Mohamed. People in Gaza are trapped in a doom loop of hell—hospitals decimated, and ceasefires promised and never delivered. So I press the Government again: is this really everything the UK has got? Have we deployed everything to make this stop? When will we recognise Palestine? Why have we not stopped the arms trade to Israel? And when will the Government ban trading with illegal settlements?

The frustration is palpable. Our grief is fathomless. People across the UK are looking on in horror, and the horror in Gaza must stop now.

There were nine other Lib Dem contributors:

Our foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller:

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The Voice

Women’s Hour phone bank on 22nd January

By The Voice | Tue 7th January 2025 - 1:00 pm

London Liberal Democrats are holding a Women’s Hour London Phone Bank with Special Guest Councillor Rachel Bentley. They’ll be calling members from around London to see how they can get more involved. All are welcome to be involved. It’s fun and a chance to speak to our members and voters.

Please RSVP here so they know how many people are coming and so that they can send you the Zoom link.

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The Voice

Ed Davey says US Ambassador should be summoned to explain Musk’s “liberating Britain” comment

By The Voice | Tue 7th January 2025 - 11:44 am

Embed from Getty Images

Responding to Elon Musk’s latest post on X in which he suggested that America should “liberate the people of Britain” and overthrow the government, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

People have had enough of Elon Musk interfering with our country’s democracy when he clearly knows nothing about Britain. It’s time to summon the US ambassador to ask
why an incoming US official is suggesting the UK government should be overthrown.

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Mark Valladares

4-5 January 2025 – the weekend’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Mon 6th January 2025 - 9:45 am
  • Starmer NHS speech: Government risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” as 12-hour A&E waits soar
  • Just 38 upskirting cases a year being passed to Crown Office
  • 4 in 10 Scots go without recent dentist check-up

Starmer NHS speech: Government risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” as 12-hour A&E waits soar

  • Lib Dems warn that Government risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” by neglecting the crisis in emergency care and ‘bed blocking’ caused by the social care crisis.
  • Figures reveal almost 200,000 12-hour “trolley waits” in A&E since Labour took office last July.
  • Average of 1,330 patients a day are facing waits of 12 hours or more before being admitted to hospital from A&E.
  • Lib Dems have urged the Government to complete social care review by end of year rather than 2028.

The Liberal Democrats have warned that the Government’s plan for NHS waiting lists due to be announced today risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” unless it also tackles the crises in both emergency care and social care that are backing up A&E.

It comes as analysis by the party of NHS estimates has revealed there have been almost 200,000 12-hour “trolley waits” in A&E since the start of July, when the Labour government took office. That means that an average of 1,330 people a day had to wait more than 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E between July and November.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has predicted that there will be at least 14,000 unnecessary deaths due to delays in A&E this winter.

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Caron Lindsay

Lib Dem Peer Jenny Randerson dies at 76

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 5th January 2025 - 2:57 pm

We’ve just heard the sad news that Lib Dem peer Jenny Randerson died yesterday at her home in Cardiff at the age of 76.

Welsh Lib Dem Leader Jane Dodds said:

I am deeply saddened by the news of Jenny Randerson’s passing.

Jenny dedicated her life to serving the people of Cardiff and Wales. From free entry to Wales’s national museums to the decision to build Wales Millennium Centre, her work as a minister left an indelible mark on our politics and society.

She will be deeply missed by her family, friends, colleagues, and the many individuals whose lives she touched through her public service.

The Lib Dem Lords tweeted:

Our hearts are full of grief and sadness today at the passing of our own Jenny Randerson. Jenny was a great friend and colleague to us all, and worked so hard for the Lib Dem group in the Lords, as she’d done for the Party the whole of her life. She was one of the very best.

Jenny was kind, wise and had immense judgement – which she used for good throughout her life. We were so lucky to have her as part of the Lib Dem family – in Wales, in the Lords, and nationally. Salutes and love, Jenny. Diolch yn fawr iawn.

We send our love and sympathy to Jenny’s husband Peter, their children and grandchildren and wider family and all who were close to her.

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The Voice

Lib Dems call for faster action on social care in England

By The Voice | Sun 5th January 2025 - 12:06 pm

Senior Liberal Democrats have expressed concern that the Labour Government has finally done something about social care, but that Louise Casey’s review will not report until 2028. This has all the hallmarks of this crucial issue being kicked into the long grass, with potential for it to be lost in even deeper foliage beyond then.

Ed Davey told LBC that he was sceptical on the timing. He says that we should have cross party talks, but we have all the information we need so that they should be completed within a year.

He told Channel 4 News that this process should be done within the year. If we do sort out social care, it brings huge benefits to families and savings to the NHS.  Without proper care, people end up in hospital unnecessarily and that is a huge cost to the NHS.

He also pointed out that we need to value care workers, with a higher minimum wage.

He also called for greater support for family carers.

We won’t, he said, solve the wider crisis in the NHS without resolving social care, which is why a faster timescale is essential.

Layla Moran, as Chair of the Commons Select Committee on Health and Social Care, said:

This announcement from the Government on a commission to look at social care is welcome, however this cannot be an exercise in kicking the can down the road. We urge bravery and courage from the Government and all political parties to work together to act boldly and urgently.

We are concerned that any further delay perpetuates the hardship for individuals and their families, as well as the cost to the NHS and local authorities.

The first inquiry our Committee launched is investigating the costs resulting from delays to reform of the social care sector. In the first evidence session of this inquiry next week we will hear from experts on the subject, including Sir Andrew Dilnot and we will ask what impact inaction has had, fourteen years on from the Dilnot Commission’s recommendations to reform social care.

Our 2024 manifesto outlined our plans for social care in England. We will:

Provide truly personalised care that empowers individuals by:

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Mark Valladares

3 January 2025 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Fri 3rd January 2025 - 11:35 pm
  • Shocking research reveals almost 4 in 5 car thefts go unsolved
  • Davey: Social care commission “long overdue”
  • Davey: social care review should be “done and dusted within a year”
  • Flu admissions: alarming consequences from lack of winterpoofing
  • SNP have starved local communities of funding for public toilets

Shocking research reveals almost 4 in 5 car thefts go unsolved

  • Shock data reveals that on average 78.5% of all car thefts go unsolved, a grand total of 24,837 in the quarter ending June 2024.
  • Liberal Democrats are urging the government to restore proper community policing, where officers have the time and resources to properly respond to neighbourhood crimes like car theft.

Data from the Home Office reveals the extent of the car theft epidemic in England and Wales, with almost 25,000 car thefts going unsolved in just three months.

The Metropolitan Police force reported the worst figures, with a staggering 90% of all reported car thefts going unsolved. South Yorkshire followed closely behind with 85% of theft going unsolved, Essex, Wiltshire, Sussex and Hertfordshire also all reported that at least 80% of car thefts were unsolved in the quarter ending June 2024.

By contrast, only 2.8% or just under 900 cases on average end with the criminal being charged or summonsed across the whole of England and Wales.

It follows previous Liberal Democrat research that revealed last year, police did not even attend the scene in over 70% of car theft cases.

The Liberal Democrats have blamed the previous Conservative government for these figures, arguing that years of ineffective resourcing has left frontline policing decimated. This includes the decision to take over 4,500 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) off the streets since 2015.

The party is calling on the government to urgently restore proper community policing, where officers have the time and resources to properly respond to neighbourhood crimes like car theft.

Commenting on the data, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Lisa Smart MP said:

Tens of thousands of victims across England and Wales are being left without the justice they deserve, with a staggeringly high number of car thefts going unsolved, and thieves getting away scot free.

This cannot continue. Every victim of a crime deserves to feel safe and protected by the police, but unfortunately after brutal cuts to community police officers that is far from the truth.

We urge the new government to change the course by getting tough on crime, investing properly in local neighbourhood policing and keeping communities safe.

Davey: Social care commission “long overdue”

Commenting on the Government’s annoucement of an independent commission into adult social care, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

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Mark Valladares

2 January 2025 – today’s press release

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd January 2025 - 10:30 pm

One in two Brits not confident police would turn up if their home was burgled

  • Poll reveals almost one in two adults would not be confident the police would turn up if their home was burgled or they were the victim of a car theft
  • Some Brits are putting off calling the police because they worried it will take too long for them to arrive or they won’t take the incident seriously
  • Lib Dems warn of “crisis in confidence” in police and call on government to restore public trust in policing

Nearly half of people say they are not confident that the police would turn up and properly investigate if they were the victim of crimes such as burglaries or car thefts, shocking new polling by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

46% of adults reported that they were not confident that the police would turn up and properly investigate if their home was burgled. This was even higher among those who were 65 or older, with 54% saying they were not confident.

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Mark Valladares

1 January 2025 – today’s press release

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd January 2025 - 1:22 am

Over 1 million people were unable to contact their GP in the past month

1.1 million people who attempted to contact their GP in the past month could not get through, accounting for one in 20 of all people who tried, research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

Analysis of the latest ONS survey on health care by the Liberal Democrats found that in just one month, 4.8 million people who tried to reach their GP could not make contact on the same day. This accounts for close to a quarter (23%) of all people who tried.

Of these, 2.2 million patients had to wait several days to make contact, while over 1.1 million were completely unable to access their NHS GP in the month.

More than 2 million people said that they found it difficult to contact their GP in the past month, equating to 10.8% of all people who tried. The percentage of people who said they had a difficult experience rose when looking at those who tried making contact by telephone to 13.3%, or 1.2 million people.

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The Voice

Alex Cole-Hamilton’s New Year Message

By The Voice | Tue 31st December 2024 - 2:00 pm

Alex Cole-Hamilton sets out the issues the Scottish Lib Dems will be campaigning for in the coming year.  They won’t come as a surprise to party members – social care, housing, carers, insulation, additional support needs and health services.

Here it is in full:

This new year comes at something of a critical hour for Scotland.

After more than 17 years of SNP mismanagement, so many people feel like nothing works anymore. Many of them are tearing their hair out trying to see a GP or an NHS dentist. Parents are worried about their children’s educations and futures. Businesses are struggling to make ends meet, held back by crumbling transport links and staff forced off work by long NHS waiting lists.

People are fed up, but they also want to see those they have elected to parliament doing something about it. As their elected representatives, we have a duty to try and unpick some of the damage wrought by the SNP.

Liberal Democrats know that the only thing that will bring about the change that Scotland needs is a change of government. The election at which we can deliver that change is now less than 500 days away.

But it is not good enough to simply wait for that election. That’s why my party and I have sought to improve the lot of our constituents in the forthcoming budget, and you can see significant Liberal Democrat demands backed into the pages of the first draft.

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The Voice

Ed Davey calls on Government to “act faster and be bolder’ in delivering reform

By The Voice | Tue 31st December 2024 - 11:58 am

In his New Year message, Ed Davey has looked back to the fun and success of 2024 and promises more smiles alongside the hard work in 2025. He calls on Labour to get on with delivering the “change that people are yearning for.”

The text is below:

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The Voice

Lib Dems honoured in New Year list

By The Voice | Tue 31st December 2024 - 9:51 am

The traditional New Year Honours list has brought recognition for SIX Liberal Democrats.

Hina Bokhari AM is on her second term as a London Assembly Member. She has a great record within the party for campaigning on diversity and inclusion. Her OBE is given for “services to young People, to charity and to inter-faith relations.” Now is a good time to remind you of the articles she has written for us over the years which are full of tips for bringing people together and encouraging understanding.

Janet Grauberg is a Lib Dem campaigner in Camden. She lost by only 38 votes in West Hampstead in 2022.   She also has a long career in education and has been given her OBE for “for services to the community in North London and to education.”

Cllr Gareth Ratcliffe has represented his community on Powys Council since he was 21 years old. He gets an MBE in recognition of his “charitable Services to Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons).” Gareth talked to the Powys County Times about how he found uut:

I was deeply touched to receive it,” said Cllr Ratcliffe. “It came on my birthday a letter arrived, my boy rang me and he said there is a letter from the cabinet office.

I chaired the national park authority through the change of chief executive and also through the pandemic.

He talked about his long  public service:

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Caron Lindsay

Merry Christmas, Everyone

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 24th December 2024 - 4:55 pm

We are planning on taking a Festive Break from now until 2 January, but don’t be surprised if I have some opinions I feel moved to inflict on you during this period. We won’t be publishing submissions before then but if you feel inspired to write something for us, please feel free to send it in.

Also, if you would like to send some Christmas cheer our way, you can donate here.

It’s been quite the year for the Liberal Democrats. We’ve come through an election where nothing went wrong, our bubble didn’t burst and we have more MPs than we’ve had for a century. Our leader is now well known and well liked and we’ve shown that we can offer strong opposition to Labour as well as the Conservatives. Here’s the party’s look back on a brilliant and happy year.

As always, I am incredibly grateful for the hard work of all the Lib Dem Voice team. Ryan, our technical guru regularly performs miracles to keep us on the internet. Alex keeps us on track financially and  Mark, Paul, Mary and Charley are a never ending source of wisdom, sanity and fun.  They put so much effort into supporting authors and producing their own material to keep this site going.

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Caron Lindsay

Alex Cole-Hamilton’s Christmas message – 500 sleeps till the Holyrood elections

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 24th December 2024 - 2:55 pm

Here is Scottish Leader Alex Cole-Hamilton’s Christmas message. Listen to his summary here.

The full text is below:

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The Voice

Ed Davey’s Christmas Message

By The Voice | Tue 24th December 2024 - 10:00 am

Ed Davey has released a Christmas message which contains a clip of him performing “Twas the night before Christmas” with his “Love is Enough” partners, the Bath Philarmonia at a concert in Bath last month.

His message celebrates young carers.

Enjoy:

 

Ed said:

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Matthew Ma

ALDC By-Election Report 19th December

By Matthew Ma | Fri 20th December 2024 - 7:32 pm

The results for the final by-elections of the year are here! It was Labour defences across the board for this week’s three contested seats. Labour held on to only one, suffering a huge loss of vote share to the Lib Dems, while the Tories and Reform each gained a seat from the ruling party in Westminster.

Starting off with Greenwich LBC, Steve Day stormed into second place in West Thamesmead, where we were fourth last time voters went out to the polls. Labour’s support while dropped from over 60% to under half while the Lib Dems almost quadrupled their vote. Well done and thank you to Steve and the local team for running such a great campaign, we have not got momentum in Greenwich for a long time, and this serves as a monumental first step towards putting us on the map!

Greenwich LBC, West Thamesmead
Labour: 464 (45.1%, -16.7%)
Liberal Democrat (Steve Day): 336 (32.7%, +24.2%)
Reform: 92 (8.9%, new)
Conservative: 82 (8.0%, -6.8%)
Green Party: 55 (5.3%, -9.6%)

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Mary Reid

Shaffaq Mohammed and Mark Pack join the Lords

By Mary Reid | Fri 20th December 2024 - 5:41 pm

Congratulations to Shaffaq Mohammed and Mark Pack who have been appointed to the House of Lords!

Cllr Shaffaq Mohammed has been Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group on Sheffield Council for 13 years and was a former Member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and the Humber. He was a youth worker before he got directly involved in politics.

Back in 2011, he wrote about his story, from a boy in Kashmir to Leader of Sheffield Lib Dems. More recently he has been chairing a Carers’ Commission for Ed Davey, developing policy which has been so prominent in our campaigning as a party.

Dr Mark Pack has been no stranger to Lib Dem Voice, having been one of our founding editors and a prolific contributor over the years. His term of office as President of the Liberal Democrats comes to an end next year.

His early involvement with the party was at Lib Dem HQ where he served as Head of Innovations, bringing the party into the digital age. Although Mark has never stood for political office, he has acted as an energetic campaigner behind the scenes, developing real expertise in political campaigning, polling and electoral law.

There is a more detailed account of our two new peers here.

Mark and Shaffaq join Caroline Pidgeon, former Leader of the Lib Dems on the London Assembly, who was made a peer earlier this year.

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Caron Lindsay

Ed questions Starmer on young carers

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 18th December 2024 - 4:30 pm

Ed Davey used the final PMQs of the year to ask the Prime Minister for more support for young carers. Keir Starmer’s response combined warm words with no promises of action and a bit of gentle teasing about Ed’s Christmas single.

The text is below:

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Caron Lindsay

Oh look, another leopard…

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 18th December 2024 - 7:37 am

Last week, we brought you news of a consultation on the party’s internal election regulations which opened in mid December and closes on 3 January.

It’s clearly Consultation Season in the Party because members have had an email inviting them to contribute to the Federal Policy Committee’s Policy review by 6 January.

In the email, Ed Davey says:

In July, millions of people put their trust in the Liberal Democrats, many of them for the first time. They have handed us an exciting opportunity and a humbling responsibility.

So now we must continue to lead the way, with big, bold policies to tackle the challenges facing our country in the years ahead. Not just clearing up the enormous mess left by the Conservatives, but building the fair, free and open society we all believe in.

That’s why our Federal Policy Committee (FPC) has set up a new working group to develop a strategic programme for renewing our policy in the years ahead.

We want to hear from you, to help chart our course towards a policy platform that serves us well as we tackle the priorities of the British people; be a responsible opposition to the Government; finish the job against the Conservatives; and paint a clear vision of the more liberal Britain we want to build.

As a first step, we want to hear from you what are the most important areas for us to focus on, to help guide our work over the coming months.

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Lord William Wallace

Harmony in politics

By Lord William Wallace | Tue 17th December 2024 - 4:50 pm

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if politicians from different parties sang, in harmony, from the same hymn sheet?  That may seem like a Christmas thought but a workday impossibility.

Well, some of the time some of us do.  20 years ago, a Labour peer who knew how many of us were singers but found that the parliamentary timetable prevented us from being in the same church or hall at the same rehearsal time each week suggested that we form a choir within the Parliament estate.  I was sceptical of the idea, but turned up in the crypt chapel just off Westminster Hall for the rehearsal, and have been singing with it ever since.

There are many good voices among the several thousand people working in and around Parliament.  After all, one of the basic skills shared by singers and politicians is the confidence to stand up before an audience and project your voice.  David Lammy, like me, was a boy chorister (he in Peterborough Cathedral, me at Westminster Abbey).  Bernard Jenkin almost became a professional singer; his sister did become a professional, and has been a soloist with Parliament Choir concerts.  Sarah Teather, who sang with the choir when a Liberal Democrat MP, was a wonderful soprano; she also sang solos for us.

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Nick da Costa

Labour’s devolution plans: centralisation in disguise

By Nick da Costa | Tue 17th December 2024 - 3:23 pm

Labour’s new devolution plans promise to “transfer power out of Westminster,” but don’t be fooled – this isn’t about empowering communities. Instead of genuine decentralisation, Labour is un-devolving power, stripping it from local councils and concentrating it upwards into the hands of regional “super mayors.” Far from fixing local democracy, this plays into Labour’s increasingly authoritarian approach, where control is centralised under a single figure while local voices are sidelined.

The plans follow the government’s review into local government organisation and devolution, but they take entirely the wrong approach. Labour wants to abolish smaller district councils—the ones closest to residents, who understand local issues like planning, housing, and bin collections—and replace them with vast mega-authorities. Bigger doesn’t mean better. It means more bureaucracy, less accountability, and decisions made further away from the communities they affect.

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Mark Valladares

16 December 2024 – the overnight press releases

By Mark Valladares | Mon 16th December 2024 - 7:30 am
  • English Devolution plan: Deafening silence on social care
  • Revealed: 15 years of NHS ambulance time wasted already this winter – up from 10.5 years last year

English Devolution plan: Deafening silence on social care

Commenting ahead of government’s English Devolution plan, Liberal Democrat Local Government spokesperson Vikki Slade MP said:

The deafening silence from the government on the social care crisis is hugely concerning.

Council budgets are on the brink. The previous Conservative government pushed so many local authorities to the edge of bankruptcy.

Without properly investing in social care more of the vital services that councils provide will disappear to those who desperately need them.

Revealed: …

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Tom Arms

Tom Arms’ World Review

By Tom Arms | Sun 15th December 2024 - 8:30 am

Trump vs FBI

Trump clashed with FBI director Christopher Wray from the start. So much so that he didn’t bother to turn up for his swearing-in ceremony in 2017.
Wray led the investigation into Russian collusion; refused to condemn his agents as products of the “deep state”; attacked the January 6 riots as “domestic terrorism” and started the probe into the Mar-a-lago documents case.
When Wray refused to do as ordered during the George Floyd riots, Trump tried to fire him. He was blocked by the Attorney General. “Over my dead body,” said Bill Barr.
This week Wray bowed to the inevitable and resigned three years before his term of office was due to expire. Trump and his MAGA-supporting Republican claimed that even though Trump appointed him, Wray was  weaponisng America’s federal law enforcement agency against thim.
Kash Patel—the man who Trump wants to replace Wray—has served notice that that he wants to weaponise the FBI in the service of President Trump.
Patel is the fiercest of fierce critics of the FBI and the Department of Justice. The title of his book about the bureau speaks volumes: “Government Gangsters.”
In it he calls for the “eradication of government the tyrant” within the FBI by firing the top ranks.” More recently he has said that he wants to sack all but 50 of the agents in the bureau’s Washington office, which employs the bulk of the FBI’s 37,000 employees.
Patel is known for his blind loyalty the president-elect in a variety of offices ranging from the Pentagon, to the Department of Justice, to the National Security Council and various campaign positions. He does, however, break with a long-standing tradition of never having served in a senior position in the FBI.
Patel has promised Trump’s opponents: “We’re coming after the people in the media and the courts and the civil service and congress who have lied to American citizens; who helped Joe Biden to rig presidential elections…. We’re going to come after you whether its criminally or civilly. We’ll figure that out. But, yeah, we’re putting you all on notice.”
Kash Patel still has to be confirmed by the Senate. That confirmation is not a foregone conclusion, but It is becoming increasingly difficult for The Republican majority to keep rejecting Trump’s nominees.

Trump vs Canada

The master of the insult—Donald J. Trump—has struck again. This time his target is Canada and all things Canadian.
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Matthew Ma

ALDC by-election report 12 December

By Matthew Ma | Fri 13th December 2024 - 8:53 pm

Is it déjà vu? Or are there six principal council by-elections again? What’s different this week is a majority of seats sees holds in lieu of changing hands. The Tories defended their two seats, while the Lib Dems and the independents held on to their own. It was, unsurprisingly, another bad night for the governing party in Westminster, as Labour saw a collapse in vote share across the board, barely holding on to one seat and losing the other to Reform.

Starting with the good news, it was a run-away win for Cllr Andy Waters in the Dodworth ward in Barnsley MBC. The vote for the Lib Dems held steady as we secured close to half of the electorate. Here we see the Labour vote over halved, dropping them down to third overall. Congratulations to Andy and the team for all the work put into winning the seat!

Barnsley MBC, Dodworth
Liberal Democrat (Andy Waters): 1029 (49.7%, -1.7%)
Reform: 503 (24.3%, new)
Labour: 334 (16.1%, -18.5%)
Conservative: 147 (7.1%, -6.9%)
Green Party: 57 (2.8%, new)

Similarly, Labour’s vote also plummeted in Featherstone, Wakefield DC, but managed to defend their seat. Here, Christopher Howden established themselves as the definitive opposition, hopping into second place despite the lack of Lib Dem presence in the ward last time around. Thank you and well done to Christopher and the local team for the effort, this sets us up well to winning here next election!

Wakefield DC, Featherstone
Labour: 893 (42.1%, -30.7%)
Liberal Democrat (Christopher Howden): 548 (25.9%, new)
Reform: 463 (21.8, new)
Conservative: 141 (6.7%, -8.8%)
Green Party: 74 (3.5%, -8.3%)

The other amazing performance by the Lib Dems comes from Ronan McCaughey in the Ottershaw ward in Runnymede BC. The independents, who used to hold all three seats in the ward before this by-election, won with over 40% of the votes. Despite such a strong presence, however, the Lib Dem vote tripled. Thank you to Ronan and the team for the astounding result, you’ll get them next time.

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The Voice

Watch: Christine Jardine on BBC Question Time yesterday

By The Voice | Fri 13th December 2024 - 5:34 pm

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Mary Reid

Do you want to see Ed Davey do a sky dive?

By Mary Reid | Fri 13th December 2024 - 2:46 pm

He has rashly pledged that he will do a sky dive if his Christmas single with the Bath Philharmonia Young Carers’ Choir gets at least 10,000 downloads next week.

“Love is Enough” can be downloaded here. You all know what to do…

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Mary Reid

Ed Davey on Have I Got News For You

By Mary Reid | Thu 12th December 2024 - 12:22 pm

If you follow Have I Got News For You then you will have noticed that jokes featuring Ed Davey have featured for several weeks now. So perhaps it is no surprise that he will be appearing as a guest panellist this week. Expect some gentle (and maybe robust) ribbing from the two regulars and Stephen Mangan who will be in the chair. You can watch the episode tomorrow at 9pm on BBC1 or on iPlayer.

And the panel for this evening’s edition of BBC Question Time will include Christine Jardine, bringing her usual common sense to the programme that can be so irritating. She shares the table with fellow MPs Wes Streeting and Tom Tugendhat, plus writer Emma Dabiri and Piers Morgan.

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