Iain Dale’s past comes to light

By Mark Pack | Tue 15th July 2008 - 2:41 pm

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Iain was, whisper it quietly, once a member of … the Liberal Party.

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32 Comments

Miranda 15th Jul '08 - 2:44pm

Well, Guido was a member of SDP Youth too, wasn’t he??
atropos 15th Jul '08 - 2:57pm

So we all know that the major quality of the human condition is to make mistakes when young. Iain has matured and joined a real political party. What is Mark Pack’s excuse?
Hywel Morgan 15th Jul '08 - 3:05pm

“So we all know that the major quality of the human condition is to make mistakes when young.”

Or alternatively to occasionally enjoy a bit of fun rather than being completely po-faced about things
Julian H 15th Jul '08 - 3:08pm

“So we all know that the major quality of the human condition is to make mistakes when young.”

Couldn’t agree more! Shame Iain chose to go the wrong way…
Laurence Boyce 15th Jul '08 - 3:09pm

This must be the first time Mark has dug up something about Iain that is genuinely embarrassing.
simon wilson 15th Jul '08 - 3:52pm

No work to do Mark?
Chris Paul 15th Jul '08 - 3:53pm

Iain’s sister and possible the rest of his folks are still libdemologists I think. So he’s got potty DNA.
Darrell 15th Jul '08 - 4:01pm

Not sure this is of any relevance at all…to be honest, peoples politics changes over time in various directions as they experience new things in life which change their perspectives…i have been a member of far-left organisations before…SO WHAT…it’s not as if Iain goes round trying to present himself as an ‘unbroken thread’…hack job
Tristan Mills 15th Jul '08 - 4:13pm

I’m sure he mentioned this on his blog.
I certainly remember reading something about this written by him.

Guido is also a member of LibDem sister party the Progressive Democrats in Ireland.
Mark Pack 15th Jul '08 - 4:34pm

Simon & Darrell: you are of course quite right. There’s no space anywhere on the internet for posts about midly interesting and amusing bits of news. See you back at the treadmill shortly 🙂
atropos 15th Jul '08 - 5:35pm

Hywel at 1505. That’s my point. To occasionally have a bit of fun, join the LibDems!
Darrell 15th Jul '08 - 6:07pm

Mark;

a) from what people are saying here it isnt exactly news and b) to be brutally honest I dont find it particularly amusing…maybe I am having a sense of humour failure but it reminds me of the Edward Timpson piece which I didnt like either….
Iain Dale 15th Jul '08 - 6:08pm

Je ne regrette rien. I was a liberal and remain a liberal. In the true sense of the word!
Chris Keating 15th Jul '08 - 6:18pm

facepalm.jpg
Martin Land 15th Jul '08 - 6:44pm

Well, I’m a life long Liberal and LD, but I still admit to being a little embarassed by having been a YL.

My argument with Iain is a failure on my part, no doubt, but I simply can’t understand how anyone like Iain, one of nature’s gentlemen, can be a member of the nasty, homophobic organisation that hides itself under the mask of Cameron.

Iain makes much of the way in which the Tory Party has changed. Not out here in the boondocks, squire!
Cheltenham Robin 15th Jul '08 - 7:11pm

Judging by his dinner guest list you can tell why he wasn’t a member of the Liberal Party for long.
Oranjepan 15th Jul '08 - 7:38pm

…so Iain’s reasoning for supporting the tories is that he believes democracy is wrong? Well if that’s what his magnificent leader tells him I’m sure he must know best!
Guest Speaker 15th Jul '08 - 11:32pm

And Vince was a long-standing member of the Labour Party – now THAT’S funny!
Iain Dale 16th Jul '08 - 12:25am

Oranjepan, if I knew what you were on about I’d attempt a response. Where exactly do I say I believe democracy is wrong, pray?!
passing tory 16th Jul '08 - 5:48am

Martin, given that my UK stomping ground is not very far from where you live, I can assure you that Iain is very far from being unusual or unrepresentative of Tories up your way too.

Mind you, given your propensity for rants (and general choice of language) about the Tory party it is possible that you don’t get the most favourable response from them.

Or, to echo your blog, yes … it is just because you are a Lib Dem 🙂
atropos 16th Jul '08 - 7:32am

Martin at 1844. We are now on to one of those irregular verbs so beloved of “Yes, Minister”. I am Gay, you are tolerant, he is homophobic. Have you read David Grey’s “The Two Liberalism’s” ? in this tome, Grey differentiates between PC and traditional, i.e. enlightenment, liberalism. I suggest that this book is almost requred reading for all who are essentially liberal in outlook whichever political party they support. I consider DD, Vince, who is a parliamentary jewel and the best leader the LibDems nearly had, Iain and the late and much-missed Glenys Dunwoody, all to be essentially liberal in outlook, though poles apart politically. Can anyone else add to the list?
Paul L 16th Jul '08 - 8:23am

Interesting – we are what we are / who we are / what we belong to or what we believe in?

Personally, I’d be more worried about the kind of people wants to be with – some of his dinner party guests are distinctly dubious!
Paul L 16th Jul '08 - 8:24am

Sorry I mean Iain’s choice of guests:

http://www.totalpolitics.com/politico.php?id=20
Julian H 16th Jul '08 - 9:41am

Iain, the ‘favourite footballer’ you chose is also somewhat illiberal (!)
Martin Land 16th Jul '08 - 11:00am

passing Tory. Don’t worry, if the Tories weren’t there I would have to invent them! After all, what gives me the most pleasure in life is beating them!
atropos 16th Jul '08 - 11:47am

Martin @1100. One must take life’s opportunities, however fleeting and quixotic.:)
Sesenco 16th Jul '08 - 12:45pm

Why are so many Lib Dems so inordinately interested in a total, utter nonentity like Iain Dale? There are so many IMPORTANT issues for Liberal Democrats to discuss – martial law, Bush’s possible attack on Iran, the proposed nationwide eavesdropping database, etc, etc. Leave the tittle-tattle to the tabloids.
Biodiesel 16th Jul '08 - 1:06pm

Actually, it was also once rumoured that he was a member of the Labour Party back in the early 1990s. But i will leave that for others to investigate….
passing tory 16th Jul '08 - 2:23pm

After all, what gives me the most pleasure in life is beating them!>/i>

Martin, I never had you down as a Max Mosely type 😛
Iain Dale 16th Jul '08 - 6:11pm

Biodiesel. That is almost libellous! I can assure you I have never been a member of the Labour Party.
atropos 16th Jul '08 - 8:41pm

Iain. He who is not a socialist at 18 has no heart. He who is STILL a socialist at 30 has no head. (As demonstrated every hour of every day in Parliament). I think this is a “three and fourpence” on your tale of waking up your parents to tell them why they should vote Labour.
Oranjepan 16th Jul '08 - 9:05pm

Iain, I’ll offer you an opportunity to respond – if you are a ‘liberal’ what are you doing supporting a ‘conservative’ party? If you are also a democrat what are you doing supporting the party of paternalism?

If you are both a liberal and a democrat then you should be a Liberal Democrat.

However from the answers you provide in the TotalPolitics piece you have far too much time to offer the opponents of your supposed cause to be clear in the head about how to go about it – just look at the dinner party guestlist. But then by all accounts you’re more interested in knowing which side your bread is buttered than spreading any jam.