Category Archives: News

Lib Dems gain a seat in Salford Quays – and most Council seats in past 5 years

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 5th May 2024 - 8:38 pm

The final results of the 2024 local elections are in and we had a fantastic result on ALDC’s doorstep in Salford. Cllr Jonathan Moore took a seat in Salford Quays. The result was:

Jonathan Moore: 39.2% (+13.1)

Lab: 37.4% (-9.8)

Green: 15.4% (-3.1)

Conservative: 8.0% (-0.3)

We finally have a brilliant piece of media coverage that I suspect we will be sharing far and wide between now and the General Election. Someone at HQ has crunched a lot of numbers and discovered that we have gained more Councillors than anyone else over the past five years. From the Guardian:

The Lib Dems have added more council seats than any other party over the last parliament, gaining more than 750 in the last five years, largely in the south-west and south of England.

As Ed Davey’s party won more seats than the Conservatives in the local elections last week, the Lib Dems said Tories would be “looking over their shoulder terrified” as the general election approached.

Data analysis by the party shows that the Lib Dems have gained 768 seats, Labour 545 and the Greens 480, while the Conservatives have lost 1,783.

That is pretty impressive given that Labour and the Conservatives are much better resourced than we are.

Whitehall Editor Rowena Mason writes:

The party’s strong gains in local elections suggests its strategy of focusing on building up votes in key strongholds could help deliver seats at the election

.

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Tagged 2024 local elections, featured, liberal democrats, local elections and the guardian | 2 Comments

And, finally – we have 2 Lib Dem London Assembly members

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 4th May 2024 - 9:47 pm

In this last round-up of the day, we bring news of the final London result, the 11 list Assembly Members who work alongside the 14 constituency members.

We have always had list members because until our Gareth Roberts won South West London this afternoon nobody other than a Conservative or Labour had won a constituency.

Once the list votes had been counted, the absolutely brilliant news is that Hina Bokhari has been re-elected. The rotten news is that Rob Blackie, our fantastic mayoral candidate who has run such a good campaign and took us to third place in that contest, missed out on a place. It would have been so good if all three of them had got in. It’s the tough aspect of these list systems. If Gareth hadn’t won the constituency, I’d have been as sad for him as he would not have got in on the list as he was in 4th place. Huge thanks to Rob for putting together such a good campaign with significantly less resource than the other parties.

The new Assembly comprises 11 Labour, 8 Conservatives, 3 Greens, 2 Lib Dems and 1 Reform.

There is still much number crunching to do, but it is way too late at night to start wrestling with spreadsheets.

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Tagged 2024 london assembly election, 2024 london mayoral election, gareth roberts, hina bokhari and rob blackie | 26 Comments

Great achievement in SW London

By Mary Reid | Sat 4th May 2024 - 4:48 pm

The BBC has shamefully ignored the London Assembly during this election. Nearly 9 million people live in Greater London – more than the populations of Scotland and Wales combined. And London does not have a Metro Mayor who is accountable to the local authorities that make up the Metro area. Instead it has a full blown Assembly with 25 Assembly Members. So it is inexcusable that the BBC is not reporting on it in its election coverage.

Rant over, because we do have some very good news to report. We have won our first constituency member ever for the Assembly for the SW London seat (which cover 5 Westminster constituencies). Gareth Roberts won decisively with 66,675 votes against Labour with 50,656 and Conservative with 49,981. This has been a Tory seat from the start.

Congratulations all round!

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Tagged featured | 5 Comments

London Mayor

By Mary Reid | Sat 4th May 2024 - 4:35 pm

Sadiq Khan has comfortably won the Mayor of London contest although it hasn’t yet been officially announced. We can be sure of the result because the votes have been counted across the fourteen super-constituencies and their totals have been announced, so it’s a simple matter of arithmetic to work out the final result.

This contest was always a two horse race between Labour and Conservative, and voting reverted to FPTP this time around. We know that many of our voters voted tactically to keep the Tory out. Under those circumstances it is very pleasing that the Lib Dem candidate, Rob Blackie, came in third, albeit by a narrow margin of 70 votes.

🚨 BREAKING: Sadiq Khan has won the London Mayoral Election

🔴 LAB: 1,088,225 (43.7%)
🔵 CON: 811,518 (32.6%)
🟠 LDEM: 145,184 (5.8%)
🟢 GRN: 145,114 (5.8%)
🟣 RFM: 78,865 (3.2%)
⚪️ INDP: 47,815 (1.9%)

3.2% swing from Conservative to Labour

— Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) May 4, 2024

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Saturday afternoon round-up: Lib Dems win more Council seats than Tories for first time in 28 years

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 4th May 2024 - 4:13 pm

With just one Council left to declare, the Lib Dems will end the local election second to Labour in terms of Councillors, with 105 gains and 2 more Councils. The last time this happened was in 1996. Second place and a 25% gain is not a bad result for us at all.

The Tories have lost more than half of the seats they were defending and are languishing in 3rd place. The only consolation for them so far is that Ben Houchen held on as Tees Valley Mayor. Even if Andy Street clings on in the West Midlands, it looks as though the result will be pretty close.

Ed Davey had this to say about our success:

Up and down the country Conservative MPs will be looking over their shoulder terrified of the Liberal Democrats who have won more seats than them in this election.

This was the final test before the General Election and it’s clear Conservative MPs are on notice.

We’ve moved forward in blue wall battlegrounds and we’ve seen a real collapse in support for Rishi Sunak and his out of touch Government.

The choice for millions of people at the General Election is clear – they can get a fair deal with the Liberal Democrats or have 4 more years of Conservative chaos.

Just for the hell of it, we need to see those dinosaurs from yesterday again:

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Tagged 2024 local elections | 2 Comments

London waits

By Mary Reid | Sat 4th May 2024 - 8:14 am

It’s going to be a long day in London. The counting process began yesterday in fourteen venues across the region, one based in each of the Assembly super-constituencies. Votes on the three differently coloured ballot papers were being verified yesterday and then counted today.

To understand the scale of the process you have to remember that the population of Greater London is more than those of Scotland and Wales taken together.

Results will be announced this afternoon in this order: Mayor of London, London Assembly constituency members, London-wide Assembly members (from the top up lists). We already know that turnout was 40.5%. Previous turnouts have varied from 34% to 46%, so there is nothing particularly surprising in that figure.

Lib Dem interest is focussed on the SW London Constituency (Richmond, Kingston and Hounslow) which we are hoping to win. If we do then it will be the first ever constituency win for us.

The best place to follow the election results is on London Elects.

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The stragglers

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 11:03 pm

Catching up on a couple of councils that I was watching…

Gloucester has certainly seen an upheaval from a clear Conservative majority to a slightly awkward NOC. The good news is that the Lib Dems are the largest party with 17 (an increase of 7), compared with Conservatives on 11, Labour 7 and Others 4. Let’s hope our Council Group can find 3 others they can work with to make a working majority.

I have now moved the news about Elmbridge here. Our team in Elmbridge increased their seats but were just two short of the number needed for an overall majority. They will continue to run a minority administration, no doubt with the support of some of the Residents Associations, which has been working well for the past year.

And then we left Woking at the point where we knew they had won, but before all the results were in. And a great outcome – Lib Dems hold 24 out of 30 seats on the Council – and that included defeating Michael Gove’s election agent. No Conservatives left at all, in fact.

As we wrap up for the night there appear to be five councils that are nowhere near a result, or may not have actually started counting yet. None of them carry much interest for the Lib Dems.

In terms of control of Councils, Lib Dems have held 10, gained 2 and lost none.

And finally, here is the score line for the number of council seats won so far.

Feels good, doesn’t it?

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And we’ve gained Dorset!

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 8:54 pm

🔶🥳Liberal Democrats gain control of Dorset Council from the Conservatives.

We are back in the West Country.#LocalElections2024 pic.twitter.com/O1A19xwzAf

— Liberal Democrats (@LibDems) May 3, 2024

Brilliant result! We have an overall majority of 2. Lib Dems 42, Con 30, Others 10. A magnificent gain from the Conservatives. Congratulations!

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Lib Dems gain Tunbridge Wells

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 8:07 pm

Excellent news coming out of Tunbridge Wells – probably the archetypal Blue Wall area. We have taken control of the Council winning 22 out of 39 seats.

Congratulations to the team!

I’m incredibly proud my friends and colleagues in the Tunbridge Wells Lib Dems.

We have majority control of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council with 22/39 seats.

Our vote share was 8% ahead of the Tories and Labour are dust.

💪Roll on the General Election💪 pic.twitter.com/5pksH47RIF

— Mike Martin 🔶 (@ThreshedThought) May 3, 2024

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Early evening results

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 7:32 pm

Since my last post we have held on to 3 further councils, making ten in all.

All three will be celebrating increased majorities. In Cheltenham we now have 36 out of 40 seats! And Mole Valley is not far behind with 31 out of 39. Woking’s results are equally pleasing – a win announced while there are still 7 more seats to declare.

Things were looking very hopeful in Wokingham, but the final result has us holding exactly half the seats, so it is officially No Overall Control.

Our eyes are still on Elmbridge and also Tunbridge Wells where we are doing well. I will update this as news comes in.

Over the last few hours we have been running neck and neck with the Tories in terms of the number of seats we have won in local elections this time. As I write both parties are on 433. Mind you, they have lost 416 and we have gained 80.

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Ed Davey and the dinosaurs

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 7:17 pm

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Afternoon results

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 4:16 pm

As I write we have made a net increase of 44 councillors. The Tories have lost 272 and these have been transferred across the parties with a sizable chunk going to Independents. We have retained control of 6 councils, adding Three Rivers, Watford and Gosport to Winchester, Eastleigh and Hull reported earlier.

I have been watching West Oxfordshire, Brentwood and Wokingham. In West Oxfordshire we are now the largest party but without overall control. In Brentwood, where all the council seats were up for election, Lib Dems increased theirs by 1 while the Tories lost 2, but that wasn’t quite enough to overtake the Tories – however it has gone into NOC. We are still awaiting results in Wokingham.

Again – do add further news in the comments.

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Overnight results

By Mary Reid | Fri 3rd May 2024 - 10:07 am

The results overnight were much as expected. Lib Dems held onto control in three local councils – Winchester, Eastleigh and Hull – and have made a net gain of 18 councillors. In Portsmouth we gained one councillor, which leaves us still running a minority Council.

This afternoon we can expect to hear from West Oxfordshire, Brentwood and Wokingham where we are hoping to increase our councillors and possibly take control.

Later this evening watch out for Elmbridge and Gloucester.

Please add any updates to the comments below.

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2 May 2024 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd May 2024 - 10:30 pm

OECD report: This Conservative government is economically illiterate
Polls close: Voters want an end to this appalling Conservative government
Cole-Hamilton responds to SNP leadership news
“End this nonsense and give the money back”- Welsh Lib Dems urge First Minister to return dodgy donations

OECD report: This Conservative government is economically illiterate

Responding to the OECD report which says that the UK will have the slowest growth of the largest developed nations next year, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson, Sarah Olney MP said:

This Conservative government is economically illiterate. Their no-growth policies have left the public enduring sky-high mortgage rates, the price of a weekly shop going through the roof, and stealth taxes hammering both pensioners and working people.

The only way through this quagmire of economic stagnation that the Conservative party has led us into is a general election. This Conservative government is out of touch, out of ideas and should be kicked out of office.

Polls close: Voters want an end to this appalling Conservative government

Responding to polls closing for this year’s local elections, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

The message across the country today was loud and clear. Voters want an end to this appalling Conservative government.

People are sick of the Conservative party’s endless infighting, unaffordable mortgages, an NHS in freefall and filthy sewage being pumped into their rivers and seas.

They want change and they want to see the end of Rishi Sunak’s Conservative party in office. That is why, up and down the country, so many lifelong Conservative voters backed the Liberal Democrats today, because they know Liberal Democrat councillors will never take them for granted and fight for the issues they care about.

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Also posted in Press releases, Scotland and Wales | Tagged Alex Cole-Hamilton, campaign funding, economic growth, ed davey, jane dodds, sarah olney and snp leadership | 6 Comments

It’s Polling Day

By Mary Reid | Thu 2nd May 2024 - 9:50 am

I don’t need to remind our readers to vote today. But I thought you might like to know when the results are likely to be declared.

It is a rag bag of an election with 10 Metro mayors (including the Mayor of London) on the ballot paper along with Police and Crime Commissioners, London Assembly members and local councillors where they are elected by thirds. On top of that there is a Westminster by-election in Blackpool South.

Most of the counts are taking place on Friday – and Saturday as well in the case of London, amongst others.

Overnight we can expect results from a number of local councils. We should keep an eye out for Portsmouth, where we run a minority administration, which should be declaring at around 2.30pm. The Blackpool South by-election result is also expected in the early hours.

Then tomorrow Lib Dems should be watching West Oxfordshire, Brentwood, Wokingham, Tunbridge Wells, Elmbridge and Gloucester.

Do tell us in the comments if you have any useful local knowledge.

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Tagged featured | 17 Comments

1 May 2024 – yesterday’s other press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd May 2024 - 8:30 am

Sadiq Khan’s record of failure exposed
Fiefdoms of filth: Scottish Lib Dems unveil new sewage league table
Lib Dems on verge of historic breakthrough in London
“Bringing truth back into politics”- Welsh Lib Dems back anti-deception proposal
Rennie speaks in motion of no confidence in Scottish Government

Sadiq Khan’s record of failure exposed

Sadiq Khan has once again failed to deliver on key manifesto promises, says Liberal Democrat London Mayoral candidate Rob Blackie.

On the eve of the elections he listed 2021 manifesto pledges that the London Mayor failed to implement:

Deliver a ferry at Hammersmith Bridge
End rough sleeping
Pilot a new City Hall housing developer to directly build

…

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Also posted in London, Press releases, Scotland and Wales | Tagged 2024 london mayoral election, Alex Cole-Hamilton, fake news, jane dodds, london assembly elections 2024, rob blackie, sewage dumping, vote of no confidence and willie rennie | 1 Comment

1 May 2024 – yesterday’s Federal press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd May 2024 - 7:30 am

Waters containing shellfish suffer from 200,000 hours worth of sewage
Conservatives “legalising car theft” as over three in four cases go unsolved
Up to 1 million pensioners in Tory seats to be dragged into paying income tax
Davey: Time for Sunak to face the music

Waters containing shellfish suffer from 200,000 hours worth of sewage

Amount of sewage spilled into shellfish water jumps by a fifth

South West Water and Southern Water sewage discharges into shellfish water doubles

Liberal Democrats call for urgent action and increased testing

This year saw a large jump in the number of hours sewage was discharged into waters containing shellfish, Liberal Democrat analysis of Environment Agency data shows.

Last year, high levels of E.coli were discovered in oysters and mussels In Cornwall, leading to the closure of 11 shellfish fishing waters, with the Environment Agency blaming sewage discharges.

Now, it has been revealed that water firms in England discharged 192,248 hours worth of sewage into shellfish areas, up 21% from the year before (158,797 hours).

The worst offender was South West Water, which doubled the hours of sewage dumped into shellfish water from 49,863 in 2022, to 98,149 last year. Their total sewage spills into these designated areas also rose to a staggering 12,927.

Southern Water also doubled the hours of sewage discharged into these areas, to 72,943 hours this year.

Since 2020, there have been 108,360 sewage spills into shellfish designated waters.

Some of the country’s best known fishing areas have been hit by these dumps. The longest spills recorded were:

Chichester Harbour: A total of 6542 hours of sewage discharged over 286 spills

Exe: A total of 4089 hours of sewage discharged over 214 spills

Morecambe Bay: A total of 3927 hours of sewage discharged over 223 spills

The Liberal Democrats have called for an urgent investigation into water quality in shellfish habitats, as well as a clampdown of sewage being discharged into waters used by the fishing industry.

Liberal Democrat Environment spokesperson, Tim Farron MP said:

This environmental scandal is putting wildlife at risk of unimaginable levels of pollution. The food we eat, and the British fisheries industry, must be protected from raw sewage.

The public will be rightly furious that England’s precious shellfish, including lobsters and crabs, are also being subjected to filthy sewage dumping.

We need the Environment Agency to carry out an emergency investigation into the water quality of shellfish habitat. Ministers need to clampdown on water firms polluting fishing waters. It is a national scandal that this Conservative government is letting water firms destroy shellfish habitat. It is getting worse on their watch and there will be real concerns for the fishing industry if this trend continues.

Conservatives “legalising car theft” as over three in four cases go unsolved

The Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservative Government of “legalising car theft” as new figures reveal that in 2023, three in four car theft cases went unsolved and police took up to 24 hours to respond to calls.

The Home Office’s own latest figures show that in 2023, a whopping 108,934 cases of car theft went unsolved – equivalent to 298 cases a day. This accounted for a staggering 77% of all car thefts recorded. Meanwhile, just 3% of cases resulted in a suspect being charged or summonsed.

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Also posted in Press releases | Tagged Alistair Carmichael, car thefts, Conservative chaos, ed davey, pensioners, sarah olney, sewage dumping, tax threshold and tim farron | 4 Comments

30 April 2024 – yesterday’s (other) press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 1st May 2024 - 11:00 pm

Suspected drug deaths up by 11%
Welsh Lib Dems criticise Tata’s “heavy handed” approach to steel workers concerns
Cole-Hamilton speaks in abortion safe access zones debate
UK Governments Rwanda plans are “cold and callous”- Welsh Lib Dems
Blackie: scrap business rates, boost our high streets

Suspected drug deaths up by 11%

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today warned that the country’s drugs crisis continues to “end lives and blight communities”, as new quarterly statistics revealed that suspected drug deaths have increased by 11%.

Figures published today show that between December 2023 and February 2024, the total number of suspected drug deaths was 278, which is 11% higher than the previous quarter in which 267 suspected drug deaths were recorded.

Public Health Scotland also confirmed that: “Based on the latest post-mortem toxicology testing, nitazenes were detected in 38 deaths (from the first detection in June 2022 to 31 December 2023).”

Mr Cole-Hamilton said:

Scotland’s drug deaths emergency continues to end lives and blight communities.

We are also seeing increasing evidence of nitazenes, a synthetic opioid 50 times stronger than heroin, contributing significantly to that crisis.

I have joined with campaigners in warning that these substances represent a growing part of the drugs death crisis, highlighting that their presence in Scotland will require an immediate response. That’s why I asked Humza Yousaf about nitazenes during First Minister’s Questions in early January.

Despite these emerging threats, the Scottish Government have delivered a brutal real-terms cut to drug services.

Well-meaning words and promises just won’t cut it. As well as delivering radical and transformational action to help all those suffering, I want ministers to protect and strengthen the drug and alcohol budget so that everyone can access care when they need it.

Welsh Lib Dems criticise Tata’s “heavy handed” approach to steel workers concerns

Today in the Senedd, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have called out Tata Steel for threatening to withdraw redundancy packages from workers at their Port Talbot site if they decide to go on strike over potential job losses.

The company also rejected plans submitted by the unions which would have kept at least one of the blast furnaces running at the site.

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Also posted in London, Press releases, Scotland and Wales | Tagged Alex Cole-Hamilton, buffer zones bill, business rates, drug addiction, jane dodds, rabina khan, rob blackie, rwanda and tata steel | 1 Comment

30 April 2024 – yesterday’s (Federal) press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 1st May 2024 - 10:00 pm

Uber Ambulance: Thousands in need of urgent care making their own way to A&E
Homelessness figures: Ban no fault evictions before more families made homeless
Ed Davey says voters are fed up with “out of touch Conservatives” on visit to Tunbridge Wells
First Rwanda flight is “cynical nonsense”

Uber Ambulance: Thousands in need of urgent care making their own way to A&E

Patients in need of “very urgent emergency care” making their own way to A&E increased by nearly 40% since 2019

The number of elderly patients in need of emergency care going to A&E not in an ambulance has shot up by more than 20%

The Liberal Democrats warn Conservative government is creating an “Uber ambulance crisis”

There has been a near 40% increase in the number of patients in need of “very urgent emergency care” making their own way to A&E over the past five years, Freedom of Information requests (FOIs) by the Liberal Democrats have revealed.

NHS Trusts were asked for the number of patients who arrived at their A&E departments not in an ambulance, broken down by the urgency and severity of their condition.

504,276 patients classed as Code 2, meaning they were deemed to be in need of “very urgent emergency care”, arrived at A&E not in an ambulance in 2023. This was up 11,500 (2.4%) compared to the previous year, and up 141,000 (38.9%) compared to 2019.

The Liberal Democrats warned the Conservative government is creating an “Uber ambulance crisis” and called on ministers to urgently invest in ambulance services, staffed hospital beds and social care to reduce delays.

The figures also show there has been a particularly sharp rise in elderly patients making their own way to A&E despite needing urgent care. 96,000 patients aged over 65 in need of “very urgent emergency care” made their own way to A&E last year, up 45.4% since 2019.

53 of 140 NHS Trusts responded with complete data meaning the true numbers of patients needing urgent care making their own way to A&E is likely to be far higher.

Some Trusts saw staggering rises in the number of patients arriving in A&E not in an ambulance with very urgent emergency care needs. In York and Scarborough there was a more than eight-fold rise in Code 2 patients coming to A&E not in an ambulance with the figure last year reaching 7,669, up from just 808 in 2019.

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Also posted in Press releases | Tagged Alistair Carmichael, ambulance services, daisy cooper, ed davey, helen morgan, homelessness, no-fault eviction and rwanda | Leave a comment

Lib Dem MPs contribute to Commons debate on assisted dying

By The Voice | Wed 1st May 2024 - 9:21 am

On Monday, MPs debated a petition, supported by Esther Rantzen, aimed at changing the law to allow assisted dying. Several Lib Dem MPs contributed to the debate, all making points in favour of changing the law.

Here are their contributions in full:

Christine Jardine

I was thinking today about all those evenings when I was allowed to sit with my parents and watch “That’s Life!”, and how I could never have envisaged this moment. With all the successful campaigns in which Dame Esther Rantzen has been involved in her astonishing career, there can surely be none that has touched a nerve with the British public in so widespread a way as this one. Her involvement with this petition, which 555 people signed in my constituency alone, shows me that there is a momentum among the British public: a desire to see a national debate on the subject and for their Parliament to reflect their view, which we see in so many opinion polls nowadays. It is not a party political issue, but for the record my party, which believes in the freedom, dignity and wellbeing of individuals, has long supported the idea of a free vote in Parliament and would welcome a free vote in the next Parliament for us all to make the choice.

I find myself in the strange position where my colleague Liam McArthur is currently steering a private Member’s Bill on this issue through the Scottish Parliament. If he is successful, I would hypothetically have a choice denied to so many other people in this room—a significant choice. Another Bill that is about to be introduced to the Scottish Parliament by a Conservative MSP is about improving palliative care. Liam and Miles Briggs are working together, because the two are not mutually exclusive. We should see it as a choice between assisted dying or palliative care not for us, but for the individuals affected. They should have the choice.

The time has come when we need to recognise that there is momentum; other parts of the UK will make decisions on this shortly. I must be honest with Members and say that I do not know what decision I would make. I saw my parents die very different deaths: my father suddenly from a heart attack when very young, and my mother very slowly of a horrible asbestos-related disease. I do not know what they would have wanted. I do not know what I would want, but I do know that I want everybody to have the choice that they want. The time has come when we should recognise this petition and what it asks us to do, and look at a very narrow form of agreement to assisted dying when someone has a terminal diagnosis and has made that decision at a time when they were mentally capable of doing it, and when a medical intervention is involved. Ultimately, they get to make the last, perhaps most important and most personal decision that they could make.

Sarah Dyke

It is an honour to serve with you in the Chair, Mrs Latham. I thank the hon. Member for Gower (Tonia Antoniazzi) for bringing forward this important debate. I also thank the petitioners, including 645 in Somerton and Frome, and everyone who reached out to me ahead of the debate. Your experiences have touched me deeply, as have the experiences of hon. Members here.

One constituent wrote to me about her son, Jonathan, who died in a hospice at the age of 46. His family told me that the tragedy of his death was made so much worse by the lack of provision for assisted dying. Jonathan’s mother, Denise, gave me a quote that I think sums up today’s debate very well:

“It’s not about ending life, it’s about shortening death”.

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Tagged Alistair Carmichael, assisted dying, christine jardine, Sarah Dyke and wera hobhouse | 2 Comments

Alex Cole-Hamilton calls for Scottish election

By News Meerkat | Tue 30th April 2024 - 11:15 am

Embed from Getty Images
Responding to the resignation of Humza Yousaf as First Minister, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said:

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Tagged humza yousaf and Scotland | 2 Comments

29 April 2024 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Mon 29th April 2024 - 10:30 pm

Lib Dems: Protect swimming pools and leisure centres from closure with “critical health infrastructure” status
Welsh Lib Dem leader meets Aber student union following scrapping of teacher training

Lib Dems: Protect swimming pools and leisure centres from closure with “critical health infrastructure” status

The Liberal Democrats have called for swimming pools and leisure centres to be designated as “critical health infrastructure” to protect them from closure.

It comes as new analysis by the party shows 266 local authority swimming pools and 261 leisure facilities have been closed since 2015.

Once new openings are taken into account, there has been a net loss of 31 local authority swimming pools and 19 leisure facilities since 2015.

A series of Parliamentary Questions from Helen Morgan MP to Ministers showed year on year closure of swimming pools across the country alongside the loss of leisure centres.

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Also posted in Press releases and Wales | Tagged daisy cooper, health policy, helen morgan, jane dodds, leisure centres, mark williams and welsh language | 12 Comments

29 April – 2 May: this week in the Lords

By Mark Valladares | Mon 29th April 2024 - 4:10 pm

Before I move on to the week ahead, I thought that I couldn’t do so without mentioning last week’s debates on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act which saw its final stages in the Lords last Monday. Dispiriting though it was to see such a ghastly piece of legislation passed, I take some (very) slight comfort in the fact that Liberal Democrat peers were in the forefront of the attempt to first defeat the Bill at Second Reading and then to salvage what could be salvaged from the wreckage that ensued, as outlined by Mike German in his speech.

I’m going to try something a little different this week, focussing on my own personal highlights for the week ahead, rather than simply reciting the week’s events. If that’s what you’d like, why not look here?

Liberal Democrat intervention of the week

Jonny Oates is essaying a Motion of Regret over the Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules (HC 556), published on 19 February. As he rightly notes, the changes will deprive migrant care workers of the basic right of caring for their own children, increase workers’ dependency on their sponsors by removing the safety net of a partner’s income, and make it harder for workers to report and change sponsors, increasing the risk of exploitation.

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Alex Cole-Hamilton responds to Humza Yousaf’s resignation

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 29th April 2024 - 2:15 pm

Humza Yousaf bowed to the inevitable this lunchtime. Knowing that he could not win the vote of no confidence due to take place this week, he announced his resignation as First Minister and leader of the SNP. He will stay on until his successor is chosen.

This should mean that there is no 28 day limit to when the SNP choose their next leader. The rules of the Scottish Parliament state that if there is no First Minister, the Parliament has 28 days to choose another and if they can’t agree, there’s an election. But if Humza stays on, as Nicola did, the SNP can take longer to run its leadership contest.

There’s a lot of talk about John Swinney, the former Deputy FM, standing. Potentially, Kate Forbes, who came within a whisker of winning last time, could stand as well. Swinney would have a decent chance of getting the support of a majority of MSPs – the Greens would probably either back him or abstain. His major challenge would be getting a budget through next February or March. Kate Forbes would be unlikely to get the support of the Greens, given her socially conservative views, so we could be looking at a Scottish Parliament election on or round 4th July if she were the new First Minister.

Alex Cole-Hamilton’s comments on Humza Yousaf’s resignation struck the right note between hammering the SNP Government for its many failings and also being dignified and respectful to the outgoing First Minister. This is in contrast to the rather distasteful gloating coming from the Tories.

Alex said:

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Dr. Who? Poll finds half of Brits rarely or never see the same GP

By The Voice | Mon 29th April 2024 - 9:42 am

Government told “the family GP is a thing of the past” as GP crisis worsens

Older people most likely to never see the same GP despite warnings from health groups

Lib Dem Leader calls for over-70s and those with long-term health conditions to see the same GP for every appointment

New plans would cover around 19 million patients across the country, and be crucial for people with long-term care needs

New polling commissioned by the Liberal Democrats has led to the government being warned “the family GP is a thing of the past”, with people reporting to never see the same GP for every appointment.

Almost half (47%) of UK adults who have been to see their GP more than once in the last couple of years say they have rarely or never seen the same GP for every appointment. Of these, almost one in five (18%) say they have never seen the same GP in the past few years.

This number rises for those aged over 65, with a staggering quarter (27%) never seeing the same GP. This is despite research showing that seeing the same GP helps the elderly avoid hospital admissions and improves the quality of treatment.

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Also posted in Press releases | Tagged GPs | 8 Comments

Cole-Hamilton to Humza Yousaf: Your actions have eroded any trust you had

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 28th April 2024 - 11:52 am

Scottish Lib Dem Leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has declined to help Scotland’s beleaguered First Minister Humza Yousaf.

We need to remember that Yousaf’s predicament is entirely of his own making. He would not be facing a confidence vote this week had he not unceremoniously handed the Greens their jotters and booted them out of the Government on Thursday this morning, just two days after saying they were worth their weight in gold.

Alex understandably responded to Yousaf’s invitation to talks by asking him how on earth he could expect anyone to trust a word he said, given the way he had acted.

He also then outlined a few of the biggest failures of the Scottish Government before saying that the best solution would be for the First Minister to resign and for there to be a Scottish election. Here’s the text of his letter in full:

Dear First Minister,

Thank you for your letter. Scottish Liberal Democrats have always believed in working together in the national interest and building consensus across all political traditions. Our history speaks to that and we will continue to do so in the change that is coming for Scotland. However, I have decided to decline your offer of talks at Bute House.

Successful minority administration must be rooted in compromise and a spirit of mutual trust with other parties. However, your actions this past week have eroded entirely any remaining trust that you enjoyed across the chamber. They suggest that rather than being motivated by the national interest, you are presently motivated only by your own self-interest and by political survival.

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Tagged Alex Cole-Hamilton, holyrood, Scotland and snp | 2 Comments

ALDC by-election Report 25th April

By Charles Quinn | Fri 26th April 2024 - 4:10 pm

The final 2 council by-elections of the 23/24 civic year took place this week.

In Scotland, there was a by-election on Angus Council in Arbroath West, Letham & Friockheim ward. Thank you to Sandra O’Shea for not only standing for the Liberal Democrats here but working hard to secure an increase in Lib Dem vote share and a healthy 333 votes. The by-election was caused by the resignation of an Independent councillor. With no Independent standing this time the Conservatives gained the seat.

Thank you once again to Sandra and the local Lib Dem team in Angus for working so hard and moving the Lib Dems forwards here.

Angus Council, Arbroath West, Letham & Friockheim
Conservative: 1682 (41.9%, +10.5%)
SNP: 1175 (29.3%, -6.9%)
Labour: 644 (16.1%, +9.6%)
Liberal Democrats (Sandra O’Shea): 333 (8.3%, +3.9%)
Green Party: 176 (4.4%, +1.1%)

In Wales, there was a by-election on Cardiff Council in Grangetown ward. Thank you to James Bear for flying the Lib Dem flag in this election and making sure Lib Dem voters had someone representing them on the ballot.

Labour held the seat with a reduced vote share.

Cardiff Council, Grangetown
Labour: 1470 (47.5%, -5.6%)
Plaid Cymru / Green: 573 (18.5%, -9.3%)
Conservative: 387 (12.5%, +3.5%)
Propel: 292 (9.4%, +6.2%)
Independent: 205 (6.6%, new)
Liberal Democrats (James Bear): 123 (4%, -0.9%)
Independent: 44 (1.4%, new)

A full summary of all results can be found on the ALDC by-elections page here.

Next week there are over 70 principal council by-elections that have been called to coincide with local election polling day. Some are ‘double vacancies’ in wards that have existing local election contests. ALDC will report the results of these by-elections in the week following the local election and results will be recorded on our by-election results webpage.

Good luck to everyone standing in a by-election or local election contest next week.

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Tagged aldc local government by-elections | 1 Comment

Christine Jardine fights for improved consular assistance for Brits abroad

By George Cunningham | Fri 26th April 2024 - 1:00 pm

Apologies – this post has been postponed

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Graham Watson to stand in European Elections – in Italy

By NewsHound | Wed 24th April 2024 - 9:04 am

Many of us are sad that we are not participating in the elections to the European Parliament for the first time since 1979.

However, one longstanding liberal Europhile is heading up ALDE party United States of Europe’s list in North East Italy.

Our Graham Watson, formerly Lib Dem MEP for the South West between 1994 and 2014 is seeking election to the European Parliament. He has joint Italian and British nationality and his wife is Italian.

From ALDE:

On 20 April, ALDE Party members Più Europa, libdem europei and Radicali Italiani in Italy presented their joint list “Stati Uniti d’Europa” (United States of Europe) for the European elections.

At an event in Rome with other parties on the list, partners unveiled the list’s official logo and selection of lead candidates for each of the five Italian constituencies.

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Tagged 2024 european elections, eu and graham watson | 3 Comments

Another chief constable makes a formal apology to the LGBT+ community #ApologiseNow

By News Meerkat | Tue 23rd April 2024 - 12:00 pm

The Peter Tatchell Foundation, a registered charity, is running a campaign called “#ApologiseNow” which has this petition statement:

Demand all UK police services apologise for their past persecution of the LGBT+ community: raiding bars, clubs, saunas and even private birthday parties. Plus, officers arrested same-sex couples for mere kissing, cuddling and holding hands, and they abused LGBTs as ‘poofs’ & ‘queers’.

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Tagged LGBT rights and peter tatchell | 2 Comments