The party is advising candidates tonight that, while national campaigning remains suspended, local campaigning can resume tomorrow.
The advice came in an email from Federal Campaigns and Elections Chair James Gurling who said:
Further to our advice this morning following the terrorist attack in Manchester, national campaigning will remain suspended tomorrow.
Like other parties we have agreed that local campaigning may resume with due sensitivity and at the discretion of local campaign managers.
We will continue to review the advice given on national and local campaigning.
So, take the lead from your local campaign manager and act accordingly.
We will have another quiet day tomorrow and resume normal coverage when the national campaign gets back under way.
* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social
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Judy Abel
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2 Comments
It might be helpful if this advice about sensitive restart actual went out to more than the select few seats. I got the email yesterday saying stop from James Gurling (and also from Willie Rennie). I have had nothing overnight. I assume the idea is to say to everyone that they should only be in target seats who can judge the sensitivity. Hmm.
One of our local tories has written to all the candidates saying that the pause should go on. I am with due sensitivity going to allow delivery but not canvassing today. But I want to do some canvassing on Friday evening (at the weekend people may be able to go to North Norfolk but that is not realistic after work).
But I repeat, it would be nice if the centre had sent out an overnight email updating the rest of us on what they felt was appropriate.
I have been out today delivering in Edinburgh West and met quite a few people for a chat. I did wonder if anyone would express any concerns about campaigning and the Manchester bombing.
My own view is that we should carry on the national campaign after a short break and that sadly such events happen all to often during elections in other parts of the world, where people regularly risk life and limb to express their votes. Murderers, of any sort, in any country, should never be allowed to disrupt the democratic process.
It is worth remembering that people are still receiving their regular mail – including their postal votes and paid for deliveries and election communications from all parties, so delivering something else by hand is not much different.
Nobody expressed any concern and everyone was glad to see me and discuss the forthcoming election. With postal votes having gone out it is essential that we maximise our impact on the many who will have voted by tomorrow.
If the very non random sample of people I met this morning is reflected elsewhere in the constituency, Christine Jardine will be the new MP for Edinburgh West in a few weeks time.