The benefit of more MPs, part 1

Who gets to present a Private Members’ Bill in the House of Commons with enough debating time to have a decent chance of passing is all down to luck. There is a literal ballot of MPs to see who gets to go first, who second and so on… All luck – except each party makes its own luck, because the more MPs it has, the more of its MPs can enter the ballot and the better the chances of some of your team coming up high in the ballot.

So it was both luck and election winning leaflets festooned with bar charts that meant two Lib Dem MPs came out very high up in the ballot for Private Members’ Bills in the House of Commons.

We now know what they are going to use their slots for. Max Wilkinson, who came second, is going to promote solar power. Roz Savage, who came third, is also promoting an environmental measure by reviving the Climate and Nature Bill.

The two other Lib Dems in the top twenty are Danny Chambers, with an animal welfare bill, and Wendy Chamberlain, previously successful with her Carer’s Leave Act, with a bill to lift the limits on fundraising through charity lotteries.

Good luck to them all.

The benefit of more MPs, part 2

Whatever the timing, it would always have been welcome news that the government is commissioning an independent review into the scandal of draconian penalties imposed on carers for innocent errors in benefit claims.

But it is no coincidence that it came the day before the Liberal Democrat instigated debate on this very topic in Parliament.

How many such opportunities we get – whether it is opposition day debates, questions at Prime Minister’s Questions or similar – is very closely and formulaically linked to how many MPs we have.

More MPs, more opportunities.

Budget and strategy

Our November Board will, hopefully, put the finishing touches to the Federal Party’s budget for 2025. Consolidating our huge general election gains is a new and very welcome challenge. But our priorities are not just about holding what we already have. In addition to supporting our MPs’ incumbency efforts, we also need to support our campaigning on a broader basis, repeating our success from the last Parliament of seeing each round of devolved and local elections as a major objective too. Alongside that, we need to retain and grow a high quality staff team, while also continuing to develop our membership and improve our diversity so that we have strong foundations for future success.

All of which makes for quite a challenge to squeeze within our financial resources, still significantly less than either Conservatives or Labour have. So particular thanks are due to both our financial staff at HQ and to the members of the Federal Finance and Resources Committee (FFRC) who prepare a budget to recommend to the Board.

The priorities going into our budget will also be further developed as part of our work on a new party strategy for this Parliament. Those strategy ideas will also be based on the work of our General Election Review, chaired by Tim Farron, which is on course to report by the end of the year. More details about its work and how to contribute your views to it are on the party website.

In praise of targeting, post-election

You might think that targeting is all about maximising the number of seats when the election results are declared, and then it is over. But there is an important part of targeting which comes after polling day: returning the campaign favours.

It has been great to repeatedly cross paths with our MPs when helping in council by-elections since general election polling day. I think we would have all understood if our new MPs in particular had concentrated just on getting their new Parliamentary teams up and running, getting to grips with their new roles – and catching up with a bit of family time too.

But they have also been repeatedly hitting the campaign trail, returning the help they received in the general election by making return trips to help other places with their council by-elections. Thank you to them all.

Developing our LGBT+ policies

Writing on the party website, our equalities spokesperson Christine Jardine says:

Social justice is at the heart of everything we believe in as Liberal Democrats.

Not just social justice for some, but for everyone.

That is why we work so hard to ensure that we can deliver positive change for our often victimised and vulnerable LGBT+ community … But sadly there is still more to do…

I will be producing a spokesperson’s paper, in my capacity as Women and Equalities Spokesperson, to outline what steps we need to take to make this a reality.

I am consulting widely – both across the party, and with external groups and experts, and consulting fellow MPs, and spokespeople who cover crucial issues such as Health and Social Care, Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs.

You can read more and take part in her consultation survey here. The closing date is 1 November.

Black History Month

The party’s website also has a message from Christine Jardine to mark Black History Month: “It feels particularly timely given this year’s theme of ‘Reclaiming Narratives’, which encourages us to challenge how we perceive history and the world around us. We owe an enormous amount to the Black British community for their contributions to our society – not least the Windrush generation’s key role in building the NHS.”

Congratulations to…

At the recent ALDE (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe) Congress, Sal Brinton was successfully re-elected as a Vice President of ALDE.

Volunteers needed

The party is currently recruiting volunteers to be Adjudicators in our independent complaints system. Details of the role and how to apply by 25 November are on the party website.

* Mark Pack is Party President and is the editor of Liberal Democrat Newswire.