Category Archives: Op-eds

Salford Council bans tweeting – is it right?

By Iain Roberts | Wed 17th February 2010 - 9:31 am

Councillors in Salford will be banned from using Twitter in meetings.

Gatherings of the full council at Salford’s town hall have been covered live by councillors via their micro-blogging profiles.

The debates have attracted hundreds of followers, but town hall bosses have now banned members from using the site during meetings.

I have to admit to being rather confused by this opposition to Twitter that’s creeping across a few Town Halls.

The argument is that councillors who are twittering can’t be paying attention, but how can you report on a meeting if you’re not paying attention to it?

At …

Also posted in Local government and Online politics | Tagged salford and twitter | 7 Comments

A new Conservative quango I quite like

By Mark Pack | Tue 16th February 2010 - 11:50 am

Despite their professed enthusiasm for having a bonfire of the quangos, in practice the Conservative Party keep on announcing new ones – and have rather run in to trouble when pressed to explain what’s going on the bonfire (both points I wrote about here).

The tally of new quangos the Conservatives is now at least 19, which sits rather oddly with the rhetoric about culling them. However, that doesn’t mean all the individual proposals are bad ones.

One in particular which appeals to me is an Office of Tax Simplification.

Regular readers may have noticed my love of tangling with bureaucracy. (I …

Tagged conservative party, economy, office of tax simplification, quangos and tax | 5 Comments

Opinion: From shipyards to wind turbines – Britain needs BETS

By Mike Guillaume | Mon 15th February 2010 - 1:14 pm

“Where have all the good times gone?” That old song by The Kinks often comes back to my ears when I am in Britain –quite regularly, that is. The economy is not only going down, it is just not up to what it used to be.

The Cadbury flop

The takeover of Cadbury by Kraft Foods is just the latest in a long series. In less than three decades Britain has lost many of the jewels in its industrial crown.

One of the most spectacular examples is of course the car industry. When The Times writes about Jaguar Land Rover as “the UK’s …

Tagged angela merkel and nick clegg | 56 Comments

The Saturday Debate: Equality of opportunity just isn’t enough

By Stephen Tall | Sat 13th February 2010 - 7:45 am

Here’s your starter for ten as we experiment with a new Saturday slot posing a view for debate:

Belief in equality is, as the preamble to the Lib Dems’ constitutions states, one of the fundamental values of the party. But, as with all values, equality can mean different things to different people.

There has long been tension between liberals who believe the role of government is to aim for equality of opportunity for everyone, and liberals who believe government must promote equality of outcomes. The former will tend to stress the importance of education as the chief means by which individuals …

Tagged poverty, redistribution, tax, tax credits and weekend debate | 63 Comments

Boris and Wolf: The two best arguments in favour of a hung parliament

By Stephen Tall | Fri 12th February 2010 - 2:30 pm

Two articles by broadsheet columnists on the prospect of a hung parliament bookended this week. In their contrasting ways, both made a convincing pitch for the attractions of neither Labour nor Tories ending up with an overall majority at the next general election.

First up is Martin Wolf from the Financial Times, writing today that Britain can love hung parliaments:

The bogeyman of a hung parliament is being used to terrify British voters. What is needed, it is argued, is a government with a strong majority, to rescue the UK from the threat of national bankruptcy. This is nonsense. The UK

…

Tagged boris johnson, david cameron, gordon brown, hung parliament, martin wolf, nick clegg and vince cable | 8 Comments

Opinion: The Avoidance of Embarrassment Principle

By Ed Randall | Thu 11th February 2010 - 8:50 pm

There is one principle that Labour politicians seem willing to test to destruction in the English courts. It is the avoidance of embarrassment principle. The Foreign Secretary has not only tried to apply that principle in court, in full public view – where he has looked increasingly ridiculous in the Binyam Mohamed case – but his legal representative has also tried to pursue the principle in private, in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to conceal his master’s shame and the
Government’s hypocrisy.

Even though the Government appeal in the Binyam Mohamed case was dismissed the Foreign Secretary told the House of Commons that …

How can we sell the Single Transferable Vote to the public?

By Stephen Tall | Thu 11th February 2010 - 10:25 am

The last 24 hours’ focus on voting systems – surely every Lib Dem’s dream come true? – have highlighted just how hard it will be to gain acceptance for the party’s preferred proportional voting system, the single transferable vote.

It’s no surprise that almost all MPs from the two establishment parties, Labour and the Tories, are desperate to hold onto the electoral system that secures their cosy hold on power: just five Labour/Tory MPs voted to include STV in any referendum on voting reform.

But it will also be the case that a significant portion of the country will …

Tagged denis mollison, fabian society, featured, james graham, next left, proportional representation and single transferable vote | 42 Comments

Policing expenses a snip at £10,000 per MP

By Iain Roberts | Thu 11th February 2010 - 7:28 am

Radio 4’s Today Programme has revealed the cost of the new parliamentary body to police MPs’ expenses: around £6.5 million a year, with 80 staff and a boss pulling in £100k.

Nice work if you can get it, but surely it raises serious questions about the new system.

The total amount current and former MPs are being asked to repay, covering claims over several years, is a touch over a million pounds.

That means the new cost of checking those expenses and ruling whether they’re legitimate is many times higher than the amount the public purse was previously losing where …

Tagged mps expenses | 3 Comments

The Independent View: Liberal Democrats should oppose the Digital Economy Bill

By Jim Killock | Wed 10th February 2010 - 8:12 pm

Last week we reported that, following the concessions forced on the government, Don Foster MP is broadly happy with the Digital Economy Bill’s proposals on illicit downloads. Jim Killock of the The Open Rights Group has a different take on the situation:

The Digital Economy Bill should be opposed by Liberal Democrats. Mandelson’s Bill seeks to reduce illicit downloads by punishing innocent people, removing any chance of a reasonable defence, and by disconnecting people.

Let’s start with this first idea, of disconnecting ‘infringers’.

Let’s say you pay BT, for broadband and somebody else downloads a number of copyright music tracks. You, your family, and …

Also posted in The Independent View | Tagged digital economy bill, don foster and peter mandelson | 25 Comments

Opinion: saving General Election night – a mistake?

By Seth Thevoz | Wed 10th February 2010 - 5:27 pm

Democracy has been saved “at the eleventh hour” – that’s right, the cross-party “Save general election night” campaign has successfully lobbied the government to stop councils from delaying counting votes until a day after the election.

It seems many Liberal Democrats are welcoming the right outcome for the wrong reason.

There are two main possible justifications for this:

(1) Counting the votes as soon as possible, to minimise the risk of someone tampering with ballot boxes.

(2) Feeding the frenzy of wanting instant results broadcast as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, the campaign has been geared towards the latter, and most Lib Dem MPs who’ve supported …

Also posted in General Election | 19 Comments

We must defend the arts against right-wing cuts

By Chris White | Wed 10th February 2010 - 12:25 pm

Keynes was both a serious Liberal and a serious man. His work in two world wars and their aftermath is the stuff of legend. His contribution to economic thinking, recently somewhat vindicated, makes him a giant. Bertrand Russell found him intellectually formidable.

But he also built the Cambridge Arts Theatre and was the first Chairman of the Arts Council, created by the postwar Labour Government.

It would be too easy to say merely that a great man needs a hobby like anyone else. The Classical world and civilisation since have shunned the suggestion that somehow culture was an add-on, like sitting down …

Tagged nick clegg | 30 Comments

Opinion: A very modern problem – Cornwall Council, Sita UK and the incinerator

By Stephen Gilbert MP | Wed 10th February 2010 - 11:20 am

PFI has created a very modern problem – how should councils manage relationships with contractors when they stretch over decades and involve multi-million pound sums but also remain responsive to political change, advances in technology and moving priorities? It’s a problem that has come to the fore in Cornwall.

In 1998 consultants outlined a vision for Cornwall’s waste management that included incineration. In 2002 a waste plan was adopted by the council. In 2006 the council appointed a contractor, Sita, to run the contract in a £400 million 30-year deal. In 2008 Sita submitted a planning application to build an incinerator in …

Tagged cornwall council, pfi and sita uk | 2 Comments

An intriguing list – so get voting

By Mark Pack | Tue 9th February 2010 - 2:50 pm

Cross-posted from the Power 2010 blog:

If all it took to sort out our political system was to produce a list of proposals we’d have the best political system, ever.

Over the last few years, there has been no shortage of wish lists, most of which have promptly disappeared never to be thought of again.

So I’ll readily admit to being a little sceptical of Power 2010 when it was launched intending to, yes, put together a list of proposals.

To its credit, though, Power 2010 has put together an imaginative approach: trawling widely for ideas, then getting a cross-section of the public …

Tagged power2010 | 10 Comments

Why politics should be about personalities

By Mark Pack | Tue 9th February 2010 - 12:20 pm

Tony Benn’s lament that politics should be about issues, not personalities, is one echoed even by many who would struggle to find any issues on which they agree with him.

But it’s not a view I share. Why? Because the detailed policies of election manifestos or conference speeches frequently get swept aside in power by events. It’s not just the unexpected new event, it’s also the fallibility of forecasts which mean that decision making is often made from a very different perspective from that used to draw up pre-election policy promises.

Take the economy. It’s hard enough to know whether it is …

Tagged charles kennedy, featured and tony benn | 14 Comments

Tories’ policies recalled as economic model proves unroad-worthy

By Stephen Tall | Tue 9th February 2010 - 10:50 am

(With thanks to today’s Guardian).

The Tories were today forced to recall a consignment of hybrid policies following widespread complaints that their economic model failed when it encountered bumpy or slippery surfaces. The party is already facing criticism over the recent recall of many of its other policies, including marriage tax-breaks, which have been affected by the potentially dangerous acceleration towards an election.

The Tory leadership of David Cameron and George Osborne are due to give details of their latest recall today, and on most other days leading up to 6th May. “We’ve tried applying the brakes,” they admitted, “but the …

Also posted in Humour | Tagged featured | 5 Comments

Are the Tories resigned to pushing lobby fodder?

By Iain Roberts | Tue 9th February 2010 - 10:24 am

Look at a Lib Dem election campaign, whether it’s a sitting MP or target seat challenger, and you’ll invariably find a hard working local campaigner, a local champion, and leaflets full of local stories.

That’s not at all what you see in Conservative literature. Across many seats the Tories have all but given up promoting their local campaigning credentials, or selling their candidate as the best person to be the MP. True, you’ll always find a few token stories, but the vast majority of material hitting doormats promotes Cameron, and Cameron alone.

Most of their firepower pushes the message that …

Also posted in General Election and News | Tagged chris huhne | 6 Comments

The John Terry Plan

By Iain Roberts | Sun 7th February 2010 - 3:34 pm

Here’s the plan. We take a bunch of teenage lads. We pay them tens of thousands of pounds a week, tell them how wonderful they are and have 40,000 fans chant their names at football matches each week.

We eagerly follow their testosterone and cash-fuelled antics as they do the sorts of things lads in their late teens and twenties across the country do: get drunk, cop off and all the rest of it.

We happily encourage young women to see them as a meal ticket that’ll at the very least show the ladies a good time and …

Tagged john terry | 8 Comments

Pollwatch – State of the Leaders: Clegg +15%, Brown -31%, Cameron +10% (Jan. 2010)

By Stephen Tall | Sun 7th February 2010 - 2:15 pm

Yesterday, Pollwatch looked at the state of the parties in January; today it’s the turn of the party leaders. As with all polls, what follows comes with caveats. Only three polling companies – YouGov, Mori and Angus RS – regularly ask questions specifically to find out the public’s views of the three main party leaders. And each asks variants on the basic question – do you think Clegg/Brown/Cameron are doing a good job – to come up with their figures, so comparison ain’t easy. But, still, we don’t indulge in polls often, so here goes …

Here, in chronological order, are …

Also posted in News and Polls | Tagged david cameron, gordon brown and nick clegg | 1 Comment

Pollwatch – State of the Parties: Lib Dems 18%, Labour 29%, Tories 40% (Jan. 2010)

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th February 2010 - 11:15 am

A total of 13 polls were published during January. Now, as our readers know, LDV doesn’t cover them with the same breathless excitements as other parts of the media. Most poll movements are within the margin of error, so it is only looked at over a period of time that you can detect whether there has really been any significant movements between the parties. With those caveats in place, let’s succomb to the inevitable and start poll-obsessing …

Here are January’s polls in chronological order:

Also posted in Polls | 7 Comments

The Saturday debate: Let’s just admit it – our society actually is broken

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th February 2010 - 8:15 am

Here’s your starter for ten as we experiment with a new Saturday slot posing a view for debate:

Here’s what David Marquand had to say in a recent issue of the New Statesman:

The truth is that the left commentariat’s default position – social permissiveness combined with economic regulation; toughness towards bankers, but softness towards cannabis hawkers – was always incoherent and has now become disastrous. Of course, the right’s alternative – economic permissiveness combined with social regulation – is equally incoherent. But for the left to rely on that kind of yah-boo retort only deepens its current malaise. After all,

…

Tagged david marquand and weekend debate | 15 Comments

Opinion: will councillors watch over private companies?

By Chris White | Thu 4th February 2010 - 3:06 pm

First Capital Connect has been in the news. Commuters have finally lost patience with poor service, high costs, questionable pricing policies and overcrowding. An overtime ban coupled with a feeble reaction to recent snowfalls has compounded the situation into one of genuine public anger.

Railways in many parts of the country are monopolies. You buy a house away from where you work, relying upon public transport to get you to and from your place of employment. The car is often not a realistic alternative. Other railway lines may well not be available.

What does the public do when faced with a monopoly? …

The Lib Dems and the 2010 general election … ‘The future’s bright, the future’s gold.’

By Stephen Tall | Wed 3rd February 2010 - 6:45 pm

I have an article published in the January edition of the Government Gazette, the monthly magazine of the Centre for Parliamentary Studies, looking at the Lib Dems’ prospects for the coming general election. Here’s what I say …

A missed opportunity. That was the consensus, inside and outside the Liberal Democrats, on the party’s general election results in 2005.

The disappointment was the greater as realisation dawned that the unique set of circumstances of that election – an unpopular government and an even more unpopular opposition – might never again be repeated. What could have been the Lib Dems’ breakthrough …

Also posted in General Election | Tagged featured | 17 Comments

Ros Scott writes … Party President’s report to members, January ’10

By Baroness Ros Scott | Tue 2nd February 2010 - 8:15 pm

In the two months since my last report, the election campaign has started in all but name.

After a phenomenal amount of work by the manifesto team – led by Danny Alexander, the party’s policy unit headed by Christian Moon, and the Federal Policy Committee – we have now established the broad outlines of our campaign:

Reform of the tax system to create a fairer base,
introducing the pupil premium to give all children a fairer start in life,
creating sustainable housing and jobs and
political reform to bring in a fairer voting system, and

…

Also posted in Party Presidency | Tagged anna werrin, chris fox, christian moon, Danny Alexander, dave hodgson, featured, federal policy committee, john sharkey, jonathan fryer, party reform commission, robert woodthorpe brown and roy thompson | 1 Comment

The second biggest fight in Wales: Ceredigion

By Huw Dawson | Sat 30th January 2010 - 4:50 pm

The Liberal Democrats have four seats in Wales. Everyone’s heard of Lembit Opik, MP for Montgomeryshire. Then you have Jenny Willott, MP for Cardiff Central. Roger Williams is the MP for Brecon & Radnorshire and Mark Williams is the MP for Ceredigion. Most people in Britain wouldn’t be able to find these places on a map, but that doesn’t really matter. I’m only going to talk about one – Ceredigion.

Mark Williams won a victory in 2005 that, quite frankly, was a complete surprise. You might have caught Kirsty Williams AM (Who is totally unrelated, I hasten to clarify) bursting into …

Tagged ceredigion and mark williams | 9 Comments

The Saturday debate: it’s no longer about market versus state

By Mark Pack | Sat 30th January 2010 - 8:50 am

Here’s your starter for ten as we experiment with a Saturday slot posing a view for debate:

For the last hundred years the big organizational question has been whether any given task was best taken on by the state, directing the effort in a planned way, or by businesses competing in a market. This debate was based on the universal and unspoken supposition that people couldn’t simply self-assemble; the choice between markets and managed effort assumed there was no third alternative. Now there is. Our electronic networks are enabling novel forms of collective action, enabling the creation of collaborative groups that

…

Tagged clay shirky and weekend debate | 12 Comments

Opinion: The Equality Bill & religious faith – Church v State? Not so much.

By Paul Walter | Fri 29th January 2010 - 2:42 pm

This has been, for me, a very sad and confusing week. Last weekend I received an email asking me to sign a petition about amendments to the Equality Bill “which potentially will take away the right of every citizen to live according to their religious faiths and consciences.” The email contained the phrase: “By not signing the petition you are inviting your own oppression” – aimed at church-goers.

Naturally I was very alarmed by this email and commenced research on this subject.

Demurring from signing the petition, I watched the relevant House of Lords debate very closely.

Quite frankly I am still confused …

Tagged equality bill and religion | 13 Comments

The Independent View: Why Lib Dem, Labour and Green progressives must work together

By Anneliese Midgley | Fri 29th January 2010 - 10:20 am

Anneliese Midgley of Progressive London argues that 2010 is a crucial year for all progressives, regardless of party label, to stand up to the right.

Given the sheer scale of the issues facing our society – from the worst global economic crisis since the second world war through to the enormous challenge of climate change – it is essential if we are to move forward that we discuss those issues where we can forge a common progressive agenda.

In London our different electoral systems for the mayoralty and the London Assembly have already driven a debate about the …

Also posted in The Independent View | 47 Comments

If Gordon’s a “glum optimist” and Dave’s a “perky doom-monger”, can Nick be the “honest optimist”?

By Stephen Tall | Thu 28th January 2010 - 1:55 pm

Here’s how The Economist’s Bagehot characterised the performances of Gordon Brown and David Cameron at their respective press conferences this week:

On Gordon Brown: “… was his usual funereal self (even if he did manage a decent joke about the date of the general election). I thought he looked exhausted. But what he had to say was relatively upbeat: the recession is over; the government has plans for the “job-rich prosperity” that is just around the corner and an expanded middle class.

On David Cameron: “… was his usual breezy self, cracking jokes, remembering journalists’ names, etc. But what …

Also posted in General Election | Tagged bagehot, david cameron, gordon brown, leaders tv debate and nick clegg | 5 Comments

Social media’s impact on politics, part one: the groups that face extinction

By Mark Pack | Thu 28th January 2010 - 10:20 am

Welcome to a two-part series about the real impact social media (or social networking) is having on politics in Britain. In part one I look at the groups which face extinction, whilst in part two I will look at why pundits searching for the impact of social media on politics in 2010 are looking in the wrong place.

What impact has the introduction of cheap colouring printing technology had on British politics? Almost none. Certainly many more leaflets are colour than used to be the case, more target letters contain colour inserts and a generation of amateur designers have had the …

Also posted in Online politics | Tagged #trafigura, clay shirky, featured, shami chakrabati and social networks | 8 Comments

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The financing timebomb in Sub-Saharan Africa: What Britain should do — and isn’t (Rupinder Singh)

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Category Archives: Op-eds

Salford Council bans tweeting – is it right?

A new Conservative quango I quite like

Opinion: From shipyards to wind turbines – Britain needs BETS

The Saturday Debate: Equality of opportunity just isn’t enough

Boris and Wolf: The two best arguments in favour of a hung parliament

Opinion: The Avoidance of Embarrassment Principle

How can we sell the Single Transferable Vote to the public?

Policing expenses a snip at £10,000 per MP

The Independent View: Liberal Democrats should oppose the Digital Economy Bill

Opinion: saving General Election night – a mistake?

We must defend the arts against right-wing cuts

Opinion: A very modern problem – Cornwall Council, Sita UK and the incinerator

An intriguing list – so get voting

Why politics should be about personalities

Tories’ policies recalled as economic model proves unroad-worthy

Are the Tories resigned to pushing lobby fodder?

The John Terry Plan

Pollwatch – State of the Leaders: Clegg +15%, Brown -31%, Cameron +10% (Jan. 2010)

Pollwatch – State of the Parties: Lib Dems 18%, Labour 29%, Tories 40% (Jan. 2010)

The Saturday debate: Let’s just admit it – our society actually is broken

Opinion: will councillors watch over private companies?

The Lib Dems and the 2010 general election … ‘The future’s bright, the future’s gold.’

Ros Scott writes … Party President’s report to members, January ’10

The second biggest fight in Wales: Ceredigion

The Saturday debate: it’s no longer about market versus state

Opinion: The Equality Bill & religious faith – Church v State? Not so much.

The Independent View: Why Lib Dem, Labour and Green progressives must work together

If Gordon’s a “glum optimist” and Dave’s a “perky doom-monger”, can Nick be the “honest optimist”?

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William Wallace writes: The case for higher taxes

ALDC’s By-Election Report 09.07.26

William Wallace writes: What do Liberal Democrats have to offer the…

“Build, baby, build” but don’t lower our ambitions on…

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