The new LDV members’ survey is now live. So if you are one of the c.1,500 registered members of the Liberal Democrat Voice forum — and any paid-up party member is welcome to join — then you now have the opportunity to make your views known.
Questions we’re asking this month include:
- do you agree with the party whip being withdrawn from David Ward for his controversial comments on Israel?
- what do you think about replacing Trident?
- do you support plain cigarette packaging and minimum alcohol pricing?
- are you in favour of HS2?
- would you support all-women-shortlists in Lib Dem target seats?
- do you think the next manifesto should promise an EU in/out referendum?
- your views on Nick Clegg’s leadership leading figures within the Lib Dems;
- and what you think of the Coalition’s performance to date.
It should take no longer than 10 minutes minutes to fill in. All registered members of the Forum should have today been e-mailed with a unique link to take you to the survey. If you haven’t received yours, or if you are signing up to the Forum now, please drop Ryan Cullen a line at [email protected]. Please do check your spam folder first, though, in case it’s ended up there!
We’ll publish the results in a few days’ time. You can access the results from our previous LDV members surveys by clicking here — and you can access a Google spreadsheet of our ‘Coalition tracker’ and ‘leading Lib Dems’ ratings here.
* Stephen was Editor (and Co-Editor) of Liberal Democrat Voice from 2007 to 2015, and writes at The Collected Stephen Tall.
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12 Comments
“what do you think about replacing Trident?”
Well, we are going to, and we should, but the question is with what?
Two boat or three boat successor is stupid; it will neither provide CASD and an assured second strike, nor too any significant saving.
The most significant consideration outside nuclear posture itself is preserving our Strategic industry in nuclear boat building.
Not nuclear weapons, but boat building. Regardless of whether they contain nuclear weapons or not.
To do this, to preserve a marginal yet vital industry, you do not create tiny classes of boats, i.e, two Trident successors instead of four.
You could, tho the report neglected to consider this, create twelve dual-use SS(B)N’s in classes of four, with a new design every nine years, a new boat rolling of the slips every 27 months, and a design life of 27 years.
The intention that they contain just four CMC tubes, and not necessarily even have them used as part of an active deterrent. CMC can be used for multi-packed cruise or special forces insertion.
Missed opportunity.
I appreciate you taking the time to create the survey, but there is no need for loaded questions and answers. The question on Maria’s report tried to make out that if you disagreed with aspects of the report then you denied much of a problem existed. The Trident question also tried to close down debate on the middle option and I fell for it.
@ Eddie – The Trident question replicated wording used by YouGov: it wasn’t devised by me. The Helena Morrisey report question options I think provide a fair span of responses to capture the range of opinions that exist. The comments boxes are included tho to enable people to nuance their views or object to the wording – and if enough people do so, I always try and reflect that in my reports of the survey results.
The bias is always subtle. For example, the decision after the 2010 General Election is offered as coalition with the Tories versus a great multiplicity of possible alternatives. This is designed to make sure “coalition” comes top, whether or not a plurality of respondents support it.
David Allen – what on earth are you talking about? The survey I took showed a symmetrical set of options – Con majority, Lib-Con coalition, Lib-Con confidence and supply, Con minority govt, and so on for the Labour side. I know you dislike Steven Tall as a ‘fundamentalist liberal’ or whatever, but please stick to the facts.
Amazing, create a survey and some people see conspiracy.
I don’t agree with all the questions and the set out of them, but at least Stephen Tall did it and it passed the time on filling it in, now we can spend days arguing about the results and what sinister plot is Stephen Tall working on
A good Lib Dem pastime
Although I have applied for my membership to be renewed and I have paid the membership fee – for some reason my renewed membership has not yet been confirmed.
This being the case I will give my views here:
– do you agree with the party whip being withdrawn from David Ward for his controversial comments on Israel?
what do you think about replacing Trident? David Ward – No – the Party has simply succumbed to the Jewish lobby. Trident – we should scrap our nuclear deterrent.
– do you support plain cigarette packaging and minimum alcohol pricing? Cigarette packaging – No – I do not believe in a nanny state. Although it is right that smokers are warned of the dangers, they should be treated like mature adults and left to decide for themselves whether they wish to take the risks – betting and drinking alcohol are probably equally risky. Alcohol minimum pricing is a difficult issue. I would probably prefer to see alcohol sales restricted to off licenses, pubs, clubs, hotels etc.
– are you in favour of HS2? No strong views
– would you support all-women-shortlists in Lib Dem target seats? No – men have already been too far demoted within our society – with fathers viewed as little more than sperm donors:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2342575/Fathers-treated-mere-sperm-donors-Captain-Corellis-Mandolin-author-hits-family-courts.html
– do you think the next manifesto should promise an EU in/out referendum? Yes
– your views on Nick Clegg’s leadership leading figures within the Lib Dems; The leadership is far and away the most important role in the Party – polls show that NC is not popular or respected by the electorate, in fact quite the reverse – if he was genuinely concerned for the Party’s future [not his own] – he would resign forthwith.
– what you think of the Coalition’s performance to date. Dreadful
With these views you would think my application to renew my membership would have been seized immediately!
Stephen,
I don’t seem to have received an invite this time. Can you check and resolve?
– do you agree with the party whip being withdrawn from David Ward for his controversial comments on Israel?
*Yes. He was given a direct order on the subject and ignored it.
– what do you think about replacing Trident?
*Scrap it, in the current economic climate we cannot afford it
– do you support plain cigarette packaging and minimum alcohol pricing?
*Cigarette packaging – yes, low alcohol pricing, no. The latter hits the poorest the hardest whilst it is proven that the drinking of the middle classes has more impact on the NHS
– are you in favour of HS2?
*Yes
– would you support all-women-shortlists in Lib Dem target seats?
*No – Everyone should have an equal chance of getting a decent seat
– do you think the next manifesto should promise an EU in/out referendum?
*Yes
– your views on Nick Clegg’s leadership leading figures within the Lib Dems
*He has destroyed the party I hold dear, turning it into a Tory light and should go just for that. Under his watch he has seen a massive reduction in membership and share of the vote. He has seen in draconian and illiberal policies and has ignored the needs of the armed forces community
– what you think of the Coalition’s performance to date.
*Appaling
Got it. It turned up in Spam.
FC, you’re talking about the 2015 question. My point was about the retrospective question about what we should have done in 2010. So, you’re the one who needs to stick to the facts.
– do you agree with the whip being withdrawn from David Ward?
The party has treated David Ward disgracefully. Yes- he was wrong to say ‘Jews’ when he meant ‘ the state of Israel’ but apart from that he is entitled to express his views about Israel and Palestine without being sandbagged by the Jewish lobby. I have long wondered why the State of Israel gets away with ignoring UN resolutions and human rights in a way that practically not other state could.