Category Archives: Op-eds

Stuart Bonar

EU citizenship?

By Stuart Bonar | Thu 10th November 2016 - 3:00 pm

 

Since the vote to leave the European Union back in June, many of my friends have suddenly developed a keen interest in their Irish ancestry. Others have already bagged a German passport, a Cypriot passport, and permanent residency in Belgium. Everywhere, anyone with a parent or grandparent from elsewhere in Europe is clambering aboard a lifeboat out of Brexit Britain. Some of us however aren’t able to contribute to the big, post-referendum spike in applications to become new Danes, Italians and Swedes.

I was giving this a lot of thought last month. Sure, I want to keep my right to live, work, travel, study, retire, even start a business across the EU with the minimum of bureaucratic fuss and bother, but it’s more than that. I am a European. I feel it in my bones. I don’t want my EU citizenship ripped from my hands. I want to keep it.

A thought popped into my head. A solution that would allow those who wanted to leave to do so, whilst allowing those who feel they are EU citizens as much as British citizens to remain.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 36 Comments
Paul Carroll

“What part of ‘Leave’ don’t you understand?”

By Paul Carroll | Thu 10th November 2016 - 1:25 pm

gina-miller-on-andrew-marr

When Nigel Farage asked this of Gina Miller on the Andrew Marr show on Sunday she was far too polite and politically unseasoned to respond in kind to this patronising and arrogant question.

Well, Mr Farage, I would like to ask you what part of ‘Advisory’, ‘Parliamentary Democracy’ and ‘Independent Judiciary’, don’t you understand. Moreover I think your question should be directed more at the people who you persuaded to vote Leave in the referendum.

To the old man in the queue in front of me, the day before the referendum who said he “was voting leave because we were going to get a new hospital every week”. Don’t you understand that you were being lied to?  In fact there is probably going to be less money for the NHS as the economy ails.

To the pensioners: the government is already making noises about abandoning the triple lock in favour of linking pensions to earning only.  With inflation predicted at 2.7% next year and rising in following years. What you  don’t understand is that your pension could be worth 10% less in real terms in four years time.

Continue reading »
Tagged , and | 51 Comments
Paul Walter

Enough with the flagellation of the “liberal elite” – Hillary Clinton actually got the most votes!

By Paul Walter | Thu 10th November 2016 - 12:00 pm

In the wake of the US election, there’s been a lot of sneering condemnation of the “sneering metropolitan liberal elite” including under posts on this very site.

Perhaps just hold the horses on this condemnation for a second, eh?

What is the objective of a candidate in an election?

Go on.

Try it.

Ah yes, you say – to win the most votes.

Well Hillary Clinton won the most votes in the US election: 59.8 million to Trump’s 59.6 million.

Continue reading »
Tagged , and | 25 Comments
Dani Tougher

A dirty word

By Dani Tougher | Thu 10th November 2016 - 10:00 am

 

There has been an upswing in certain sections of the press of the condemnation of a particular demographic: the ‘liberal, metropolitan elite’.

When did ‘liberal’ become a dirty word? Why is it being used as a word to mock, or incite loathing? It is defined by the OED as a willingness “to respect or accept behaviour or opinions different to one’s own…” and as someone who is “open to new ideas“. That all sounds great. Perfectly reasonable.

It’s concerning, then, that the word is being twisted to suit an agenda that runs on stoking fear and hatred. When it becomes disgraceful to show empathy with those who are suffering, just because those people are not from your country of origin, that is scary. When people who have gained positions of responsibility are told that it is because they are part of the ‘system’ (alright, sometimes that’s correct!) rather than because of their own merits and work ethic, that’s disturbing. And when a politics of scaremongering, scapegoating and ‘other-ing’ becomes acceptable, and electable, rather than a politics of understanding, rationality and inclusivity, then I worry for the future of the world.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 31 Comments
Mark Valladares

Theresa May went to India, and all I got was a lousy T-shirt…

By Mark Valladares | Wed 9th November 2016 - 3:52 pm

I am one of those people who have often wondered why British governments pay relatively little attention to India. After all, it’s a big country, with an emerging middle class who want to travel, buy luxury goods and send their children to good universities overseas. Why wouldn’t we want to build stronger links with a Commonwealth country that is likely to be one of the world’s largest economies before too long? And yet, the attention of our politicians and diplomats often seems biased towards China.

Frankly though, after Theresa May’s trip to New Delhi and Bengaluru, I almost wish that she …

Continue reading »
Tagged , and | 9 Comments
Mark Argent

Opinion: the shock from across the Atlantic – the bigger picture

By Mark Argent | Wed 9th November 2016 - 1:30 pm

A few days ago Trump was describing the prospect of being “like Brexit but more”. That catches my sense of shock today — though I wouldn’t want to take the parallel as far as he does. I’ve just been exchanging emails and Facebook messages with shocked friends in the US.

Perhaps the system will right itself. Perhaps he won’t be as bad as I fear. Perhaps he will be as bad as I fear, and be forced from office (he faces a civil case arising from alleged child rape on 16 December).

People are right to say that the American political system …

Continue reading »
Tagged , and | 23 Comments
Helen Flynn

Opinion: It’s the Inequality

By Helen Flynn | Wed 9th November 2016 - 12:11 pm

Gary Lineker has been coming out with some pithy, relevant comments recently on Twitter, and much like an essential feature of the game he professionally played, the result of the US election reveals a country of two halves.

Like Brexit, this result and the corresponding lurch to the right, stem from inequality. Unfortunately, and quite to the contrary of what these dispossessed people have voted for, the resulting administration now has the propensity to make their situation far worse.

It is one thing to be a demagogue and stand up and say what you think people want you to say. …

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 27 Comments
Douglas Oliver

On the other side of silence

By Douglas Oliver | Tue 8th November 2016 - 5:52 pm

If we had a keen vision and feeling of all ordinary human life, it be would be like hearing the grass grow and the squirrel’s heart beat, and we should die of that roar which lies on the other side of silence. As it is, the quickest of us walk about well wadded with stupidity.
– George Eliot, Middlemarch, Chapter 20.

With the US Presidential election upon us, there has been scant defence of the “competence” let alone the “intelligence”, of electorates around the world in 2016, but I think it needs more thought. For all that is said about the …

Continue reading »
4 Comments
The Voice

If we had a vote we would vote Clinton

By The Voice | Tue 8th November 2016 - 12:06 pm

It has become a truism of this campaign that Clinton and Trump are the two worst presidential candidates of all time. We don’t buy it.

Yes, Donald Trump is an ignorant narcissistic bully who would be an embarrassment to any self-respecting Parish Council; a serial groper, liar, and corrupt businessman whose response to these sound charges is generally to accuse his opponent of the same with no evidence. He is happy to fan the flames of racial tension for personal advantage, and as we saw with Brexit, if he wins (promising Brexit+++), supporters will feel justified by this majority in meting out hatred and violence to whoever around them doesn’t fit in.

Continue reading »
37 Comments
Teena Lashmore

BME or BAME LibDems?

By Teena Lashmore | Tue 8th November 2016 - 10:06 am

I presented this question to peers, fellow Liberal Democrats and members of EMLD (Ethnic Minority Liberal Democrats), after seeing the launch of our Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Manifesto in 2015, and I continue to raise this debate while holding office as London Region Vice Chair – because sometimes an acronym is important.

BAME is the acronym for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, whereas BME is the acronym for Black and Minority Ethnic.

The intellectual argument that ‘Black’ is a socially constructed political identity – a way to challenge the racism in England – became absorbed into ethnic and cultural identity politics.  Caribbean people felt their skin was not black but shades of brown.  Their post colonial ‘classification’ had evolved through a range of terms that included ‘coloured’, arriving at the destination term ‘Black’ at a similar time as ‘Afro-Americans’, or ‘African Americans’, or ‘Black Americans’.  The battle to maintain a dual identity, such as Barbados Brits, was less successful and the internalized dislikes of our Africanness during this time made ‘Black’ the compromise that most people could sign up to: one term – serving two purposes.

‘Ethnic Minority’ is used because white-on-white hating is actually xenophobia, but that could not fit neatly into our Race Relations Act because the Act was for the protection of victims against racism.  In order to protect cultural groups like the Irish and Jewish communities from hate, we needed a noun that encapsulated the common experience of all ethnic groups and we arrived at ‘Ethnic Minority’ and with our European countries (Germany), we also arrived at ‘Hate Crime’ to define the offending behaviours.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 17 Comments
Sarah Noble

Urgent questions to our MPs regarding Article 50

By Sarah Noble | Mon 7th November 2016 - 4:31 pm

 

There was rather worrying news from the regional conferences this weekend in which several parliamentarians, including Chief Whip Tom Brake, implied that the party would not vote against an Act of Parliament triggering Article 50 and/or repealing the European Communities Act 1972.

I and many other members are increasingly concerned about this turn of events. Less than two months ago, we passed a policy at Conference that committed the party to remain inside the European Union. Our reputation for many years has been that of a Europhile party, and nearly all of our votes are aware of this fact. So too are the thousands of new members who joined after the referendum. To not vote against would not only be betraying party members, it would be betraying our voters too. After a bruising period in coalition in which we lost the trust of many of our members, I fear that retreating from our pro-European principles poses an existential threat to the party.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 77 Comments
Joe Otten

What do you want from Parliament’s Article 50 debate?

By Joe Otten | Mon 7th November 2016 - 2:57 pm

With the issue of whether Article 50 needs parliamentary approval currently before the courts, there is some discussion of what Parliament ought to do with the process if it gets the chance.

While clearly there is no majority for simply blocking article 50, it is quite reasonable for MPs to put constructive amendments to the proposal, respectful of the mandate from June, and to vote against if those amendments are not accepted – as one would with any other bill before Parliament.

One amendment should be to give the people a vote on the final deal, so that we can choose, once …

Continue reading »
33 Comments
Rob Parsons

I want to stay in the EU

By Rob Parsons | Mon 7th November 2016 - 12:20 pm

 

There has been a bit of a sea change in British politics in the last couple of weeks.

Since June 23rd Remainers have had to put up with their lot, accept the referendum result as if it were a binding expression of democratic will and start preparing for a post Brexit world, or face howls of outrage. I guess that is still the likely outcome, despite today’s court ruling.

But it has become more possible than it has at any time since the referendum to say publicly that I want to stay in the EU, and I hope very much that we find a way to get out of the fix that the vote for Brexit has put us in. Partly it is a matter of courage. Any expression of dismay with the result has been met with a explosive mixture of nastiness, aggression, scorn and abuse ever since. The level has not abated but I have begun to summon up the courage to take it on. Partly that comes from having worked out more firmly the reasons why I stand where I stand:

Continue reading »
Tagged | 59 Comments
Joe Bourke

Donald Trump’s very liberal plan to pay off the US national debt

By Joe Bourke | Mon 7th November 2016 - 10:07 am

 

In April this year, Donald Trump was proposing to pay off the US national debt of $19 trillion over two presidential terms.

He laid out his initial proposals in an interview with Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, suggesting that he could pay off the national debt by renegotiating trade deals.

As the Washington Post explained, eliminating a trade deficit does not mean the money ends up in government coffers. The post goes on to explain that before the debt can be reduced the current budget deficit needs to be tackled. So the task is not $19 trillion, but nearly $26 trillion over eight years.

By May, Trump was backtracking on the idea of paying off the debt over 8 years and was promulgating a new plan.  The New York Times reported that this new plan was based on persuading creditors to accept something less than full payment. The Times goes on to recall the consequences of a potential default scare back in 2011, when federal borrowing costs climbed as congressional Republicans refused for a time to increase the federal government’s statutory borrowing limit, raising doubts about the government’s ability to repay its debts. The Bipartisan Policy Center calculated that the resulting higher rates cost taxpayers about $19 billion.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 9 Comments
Paul Walter

We need to stop the drift towards self-destruction

By Paul Walter | Sun 6th November 2016 - 8:48 am

It is more in sorrow than anger that I review the events of the last few days.

And if you want sorrow rather than anger done beautifully, then watch this wonderful piece of James O’Brien’s LBC show. He patiently asks why the caller asked for British law administered in Britain by British judges but is now angry about British law administered in Britain by British judges.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 126 Comments
Chris White

The new revolutionaries threaten our constitution

By Chris White | Fri 4th November 2016 - 8:18 am

Yesterday evening I gave an interview to BBC local radio about the High Court judgement. It emerged that the station had been receiving emails from listeners saying it was time to take to the streets to protest.

It would have been easy to dismiss the emails as hysteria from a few right wing extremists but this morning’s tabloids clearly show that the British constitution is under attack from much of the traditional right.

The Daily Mail never ceases, of course, to push the boundaries of the unacceptable, as it has consistently since the 1930s. Today’s headline has the three judges (wigged, of course, but that it how they like to be photographed) over the headline ‘Enemies of the People’.

The Sun attacks the plaintiff as part of a ‘loaded foreign elite’. The Telegraph, which can know better, has ‘The Judges versus the people’.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 71 Comments
Paul Walter

Article 50 ruling follows a monumental misjudgment by Theresa May

By Paul Walter | Thu 3rd November 2016 - 6:30 pm

It is difficult not to see today’s High Court ruling as anything other than a disaster for Theresa May. The first big decision she made as PM turns out to have been a monumental misjudgment. She has been ruled out of order and, unless an appeal is successful, she’ll have to go cap in hand to Parliament.

Mike Smithson of Political Betting put it very well:

Tim Farron commented:

Continue reading »
Tagged , , and | 69 Comments
Paul Walter

We must all examine our consciences regarding mobile phones in cars

By Paul Walter | Thu 3rd November 2016 - 5:30 pm

geograph-3292071-by-david-dixonIt’s a local stretch of the A34 I know well. On August 10th we were all stunned and horrified by the terrible accident which occurred there, as reported by the Guardian:

A lorry driver who killed a woman and three children when his vehicle ploughed into their stationary car while he was scrolling through music on his mobile phone has been jailed for 10 years.

Tracy Houghton, 45, her sons, Ethan, 13, Josh, 11, and stepdaughter, Aimee, 11, died instantly when Tomasz Kroker drove his lorry into their car at 50mph. Their car was shunted underneath the back of a heavy goods vehicle and crushed to a third of its size.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 5 Comments
Paul Walter

Phew! Thank goodness for the High Court ruling

By Paul Walter | Thu 3rd November 2016 - 2:27 pm

Today’s High Court ruling is quite a relief.

Up until now, the government’s approach to Article 50 has been rather like that of a load of drunks in a speeding train carriage, intent on pulling the emergency cord to jump off the train in the middle of nowhere.

To embark on Article 50 without parliamentary consensus, and with a confused government position, would have been disastrous for this country’s interests.

The High Court ruling is based on the key constitutional principle that parliament only decides UK domestic law. By invoking Article 50 via royal prerogative, the government would have been ending all the …

Continue reading »
41 Comments
Mike Bell

Supporting vision rehabilitation

By Mike Bell | Wed 2nd November 2016 - 11:57 am

All councils in England provide a service called vision rehabilitation which offers crucial training and advice to people living with sight loss. Evidence shows that many blind and partially sighted people are failing to receive vital vision rehabilitation support. RNIB’s current campaign, See, Plan and Provide, is calling for improved access to vision rehabilitation assessments and support.

Vision rehabilitation provides crucial training and advice to people experiencing sight loss. This includes support to help them live in their home safely and negotiate the many obstacles and risks in the external environment. It gives people the skills and confidence to maximise …

Continue reading »
Also posted in Local government and News | Tagged , , and | 4 Comments
Alistair Carmichael MP

Alistair Carmichael writes: for allowing mixed sex couples into civil partnerships

By Alistair Carmichael MP | Tue 1st November 2016 - 2:00 pm

The late great Groucho Marx once said, “Marriage is a wonderful institution – but then, who wants to live in an institution?”

I have no problem in answering “I do” – coincidentally the same words I spoke on September 19th 1987 when my wife and I got married.

Like everyone else, our marriage has had its ups and downs but when we got married I had no doubt that it was the right thing to be doing and I have never doubted it for a second since. I like being married. For us, marriage is a good thing. In fact I …

Continue reading »
15 Comments
Joe Otten

Fighting fun politicians in the age of entertainment news

By Joe Otten | Tue 1st November 2016 - 10:57 am

Yes, this is another “how do we fight back against the politics UKIP/Brexit/Trump” type of article, though I hope a different one to the rest.

I read two articles yesterday, both illuminating, but doubly so when read together. This on the BBC explains a cultural difference between the UK and Germany that may be hobbling diplomatic understanding. British are liable to say “oh no I couldn’t possibly” to mean yes, to which Germans will consider the matter settled at no. Swashbuckling overpromising bluster is far more tolerated in British political culture than in German, which values consistency much more highly and is to our ears extremely dull.

The other was this at the Washington Post expressing bemusement at the “corrupt Clinton” narrative that exists, when “Trump’s history of corruption is mind-boggling.” A list of Trump’s corrupt activities is given. Each has been reported and then we move on. Journalists shrug. The Florida attorney general takes a donation from Trump and drops an investigation into his “university”. Hillary, meanwhile is investigated to within an inch of her life, and even when nothing is found, the investigation is used to support a narrative of guilt.

Continue reading »
34 Comments
Mary Reid

Ten questions about the Richmond Park by-election

By Mary Reid | Mon 31st October 2016 - 1:05 pm

 

1. What is the correct name for the constituency? That question we can answer. The constituency is called Richmond Park. But all the parties seem to refer to it locally as Richmond Park and North Kingston, because it is easy to forget that four of its wards lie within Kingston Borough rather than Richmond Borough.

2. How posh is Richmond Park? Well someone did have the task of delivering our tabloid to a certain Royal elector who actually lives inside the park – you can’t get much posher than that. But the constituency also includes council-owned estates and relatively modest housing in well-established communities, as well as large secluded private houses.  In Richmond itself the average house price is not far short of £900k.

3. Zac Goldsmith has resigned as an MP, as he had promised to do if the Government backed the expansion of Heathrow. Has he resigned from the Conservative party as well? No-one seems to know.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 8 Comments
Jamie Dalzell

The Ebola crisis – we need to hear about the heroes

By Jamie Dalzell | Sun 30th October 2016 - 9:25 am

Two years ago, I was quarantined. Following a trip to Nigeria (and the privilege of working with the DFID funded ESSPIN programme), I returned feeling a little unwell and, before I knew it, people in biohazard suits were bundling me into an ambulance. Fortunately it was not Ebola and, in fact, just a slightly embarrassing case of man-flu. However, I was still extremely grateful for a responsive NHS keeping me safe.

At the time, the Ebola epidemic was a terrifying prospect with a wide range of possible outcomes. One of the worst scenarios I heard was that the largest annual gathering of people in the world, two million Muslims (including many from West Africa) attending the Hajj, could have become a focal point for a sudden and rapid spread of this deadly disease.

Fortunately, this did not happen and we have been blessed to see the Ebola epidemic contained, controlled and eradicated, with the MSF closing their final projects (supporting survivors) earlier this month. We were lucky, but it was not by chance that a pandemic was prevented; it was due to the bravery, commitment and skill of the medics and military who risked their own lives to prevent a disaster. 

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 1 Comment
Katharine Pindar

Oppose Brexit – it’s bad for the country

By Katharine Pindar | Sat 29th October 2016 - 11:45 am

Why do we accept that leaving the EU is going to happen, when we believe that doing so is harmful to our country? Why do we pussy-foot about, saying that we want a referendum on the terms of our leaving, when we could say, if the people who want to stay in are perceived to be becoming a majority, then there should be another referendum? And there are plenty of reasons to suggest that sufficient leave voters could change their minds in the next few months.

We know that misleading and untruthful information was knowingly peddled by Leave leaders, such as the claim that much of the money currently paid by Britain to the EU could go to the NHS if we leave. In fact, those funds are being promised widely elsewhere now.

We know that Scotland and Northern Ireland had majorities for Remain, and their leaders along with the Welsh are demanding a say in the terms of leaving. Nicola Sturgeon insists that Scotland must keep access to the EU’s single market.

We know that the country’s economic prosperity is threatened by leaving, that Theresa May herself saw the dangers of doing so and the advantages of staying, and that price rises which will hit the poorest first can be expected soon. Staying in the single market seems vital for our economy.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 87 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Dear Readers, Please be patient

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 29th October 2016 - 9:27 am

As you know, this site is run by a team of dedicated volunteers who fit in responding to submissions, comments, occasionally, to hilarious effect, spam and other correspondence. It takes some effort to keep LDV on the go.

At the moment, I am having to take a lot of time away from the site. My husband is still seriously ill in hospital and the next couple of weeks are going to be intense, particularly when he is moved from a hospital five minutes down the road to one an hour away. Before anyone says it for me,  I know that’s not that far. Back in the 80s, my Dad had surgery in Aberdeen when we lived in Wick and my Mum just got to see him at the weekends. The travelling time, however, will impact on the time I have to work on the site.

That effectively means that if you email me on a day I’m editing the site after midday, I’m not going to get to it till the next day.

The rest of the team have been fantastic in covering for me over the past month and I so appreciate their help. If it hadn’t been for them, the site would have been very sparse. Inevitably, though, there are going to be greater delays. Similarly, comments may take longer to be moderated. That’s inevitable and at this time, there is not a lot we can do about it.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 29 Comments
Paul Walter

Nissan announcement – did May promise any cash for Qashqais?

By Paul Walter | Fri 28th October 2016 - 1:55 pm

At the end of the day, we’re all Brits together. I rejoice that Nissan have announced the production of the new Qashqai and X-Trails at Sunderland.

Tim Farron has commented:

The commitment to Sunderland by Nissan is obviously very welcome. Ensuring that jobs are protected at the plant is vital for Sunderland and our economy.

However, it is utterly ridiculous that Theresa May is having to give special assurances to key manufacturers in order to deal with the Brexit fallout her government is creating.

Continue reading »
Tagged , , and | 31 Comments
Leon Duveen

How can Lib Dems support the movements for peace for the people of Palestine & Israel?

By Leon Duveen | Fri 28th October 2016 - 11:00 am

Israeli children visit Palestinian village of Tuwani and participate in bilingual activities together - Some rights reserved by delayed gratficationThe departure of Jenny Tonge from the party will not come as a surprise to many nor, if I am honest, will there be many tears shed over it. She has, at best, been semi-detached for some time after resigning the Party Whip in the House of Lords.

However, her departure has made me think about the best way forward for the Liberal Democrats to support a peaceful resolution of the Palestine/Israel conflict.

Continue reading »
68 Comments
Chris Key

Reasons to doubt Zac Goldsmith will be re-elected

By Chris Key | Thu 27th October 2016 - 2:53 pm

So we have the first by-election test in London for the Prime Minister who wants a country that works for everyone. How does Zac Goldsmith stack up against this mantra (even if not the official Tory candidate)?

Firstly he voted to cut disability benefits by £30 a week, resulting in him being dumped by a local disabled charity.

Secondly he has never railed against the lack of affordable housing in his own area as Richmond Council allows more and more luxury flats to be built in a form of Bosnian style ethic cleansing as his friend Boris described the London housing crisis. He also supported the sale of precious social housing stock.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 18 Comments
Phil Aisthorpe

Brexit is a war already lost

By Phil Aisthorpe | Thu 27th October 2016 - 1:23 pm

Is she or isn’t she? Since her accession, the public has been puzzled by Theresa May’s stance on Brexit. Was her lukewarm support for Remain merely self-preservation, just wanting to keep out of the fray? Was she a closet Leaver? Well now we know. The Guardian suggests that she is indeed a Remainer, but not just any old Remainer, but a Tory Remainer and so quite happy to switch sides. Paddy Ashdown summed it up in this Tweet.


But what does this tell us about the Tory mind? Well it tells me that the Conservatives are a party unencumbered by the constraints of values and principles, a party where politics is merely a game to be won or lost. Not for the Tory are there any of the questions of morality or conscience that exercise the minds of other parties. The Tory has become Nietzsche’s Übermensch, the self-mastered individual contemptuous of namby-pamby liberalism.

Continue reading »
Tagged and | 62 Comments
Advert

Recent Comments

  • Peter Hirst
    If the political make up of the eu changes significantly would we be better to have stayed in? It probably depends whether you are more interested in global or ...
  • Peter Hirst
    An agreement with other countries to coordinate action when their interests collide would be a useful addition to the array of groups, organisations and bodies ...
  • Peter Hirst
    Our political strategy as I understand it does not make it easy for us to have a single message that gives us the publicity we need. We can talk about empowerme...
  • Mahmood Faiz
    As someone from the Kashmiri community and Chair of the Liberal Democrat Friends of Kashmir, I believe there is a significant opportunity for the Liberal Democr...
  • Peter Hirst
    Our defence policy should be centred around fostering our relationships with countries that have shared interests, values and where we can make a meaninful cont...