Alix Mortimer

Tonight, 6.30pm: Tell Steve Webb what you reckon…

By Alix Mortimer | Mon 8th December 2008 - 9:22 am

Just a reminder that you should most definitely push aside that blurry to-do list and spend your Monday morning pondering over what to talk about with Steve Webb, the party’s energy and climate change spokesperson, here on our live Q&A session from 6.30pm tonight.

Short of ideas? Steve has a couple!:

I’m looking forward answering questions on any topic but would particularly value feedback on the following 3 questions:

– later this week, MPs will put their name into the ballot for a Private Member’s Bill;  if a Lib Dem comes out of the ballot, what Bill would

…

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Posted in News | 6 Comments
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Helen Duffett

Conservative party finances worsening

By Helen Duffett | Mon 8th December 2008 - 8:45 am

As Mark blogged here last week, Conservative Party headquarters are having to lay off staff and look more closely at their finances.

Now ConservativeHome reports that the situation is getting worse, with the headline: “Waste, over-spending and poor revenue strategies contribute to CCHQ’s deteriorating financial position”

To paraphrase George Osborne (and Fraser Nelson in the News of the World) the Tory leadership did not fix the party’s finances during the good economic times and are now facing very difficult decisions as a consequence.

Fraser suggests that overall income is down by 10%, that the number of £50,000 donors may have halved and

…

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 1 Comment
Alex Foster

EXCLUSIVE: More on The Tangerine Book

By Alex Foster | Sun 7th December 2008 - 6:38 pm

Last night at the bottom of Catchup, I exclusively revealed that Lib Dem Voice is publishing a book.

I even gave you a glimpse of what the cover looks like.

Now I can exclusively reveal it has a back page too:

Regrettably, a slight technology glitch means I am unable to tell you precisely when it will become available, but I can definitely tell you that it is soon.

Posted in Books | Tagged | 15 Comments
The Voice

Major Lib Dem donor, Lord Jacobs, quits party

By The Voice | Sun 7th December 2008 - 6:17 pm

The Times’s Sam Coates reports:

Lord Jacobs of Belgravia, a member of the party since 1972 and Liberal Democrat peer since 1997, told Mr Clegg he is leaving the party because he believes that its tax policies are too timid. … The former Liberal Democrat treasurer and strategist, who is worth an estimated £128 million from his involvement in the British School of Motoring, will now move to become an independent crossbencher in the Lords. …

Lord Jacobs,77, told The Times that Mr Clegg was too timid and should offer lower taxes both for the poor and the better off. Mr Clegg

…

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 52 Comments
Stephen Tall

NEW POLL: do you think it’s time for Speaker Martin to go?

By Stephen Tall | Sun 7th December 2008 - 12:24 pm

Take your pick of stories relating to the Commons Speaker Michael Martin today – here’s just three:

Martin ‘loses 32 MPs’ confidence’ (BBC)
I will go on and on, says defiant Speaker (Sunday Times)
Who Should Be the Next Speaker? (Iain Dale)

As I pos(i)ted yesterday, my guess is that this row will blow itself out. Labour MPs, whatever their real, private views might be, will have no wish to bring down one of their own. So any move against Speaker Martin is doomed.

But the Speaker’s wretched performance in the past week has undermined any credibility he might …

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Posted in Voice polls | Tagged | 8 Comments
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Helen Duffett

Nick Clegg’s speech at the National Climate Change March, London

By Helen Duffett | Sun 7th December 2008 - 10:11 am

Thousands of people, including many Lib Dems, marched in protest yesterday on the National Climate Change March in London.

Nick Clegg addressed the crowd (transcript below) at the rally in Parliament Square, and MPs Susan Kramer and Jo Swinson were also there.

I made a video of some of the day’s highlights, such as:

Susan Kramer – “If we’re going to have any commitment to climate change then surely the last thing we need are more flights” (00:49:00)

Nick Clegg addressing the rally in Parliament Square (01:14:00)

Jo Swinson on a global approach to tackling climate change (05:34:00)

And er, me, signing off. (06:30:00) Because, hashtags or no, we’re all roving reporters now.

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 24 Comments
Mark Pack

Christmas posting dates

By Mark Pack | Sun 7th December 2008 - 8:50 am

On the obviously very slim chance that The Voice’s activist readers haven’t already finished sending off all their Christmas cards to family, friends, deliverers, helpers, councillors, would-be candidates, favourite members of party staff (hint, hint) and so on – and are still stuck using that largely nineteenth century technology, the Christmas Card – the last posting dates for ordinary inland post are:

Posting Christmas cardsSecond Class: Thursday, 18 December
First Class: Saturday, 20 December

Details for other postal options, such as overseas post and special delivery, are on the Royal Mail website’s Continue reading »

Posted in News | 1 Comment
Alex Foster

Catchup, 6th December

By Alex Foster | Sat 6th December 2008 - 10:13 pm

Welcome to weekly catchup.  This week, the Voice saw the start of two of the big debates widely expected at spring conference next year, starting with the Lib Dem stance on student tuition fees.  On the pro side, Julian Astle and Tim Leunig.  Batting for the antis, Paul Holmes MP.  The posts attracted a huge number of comments, suggesting the debate is only just beginning. And at the end of last week, Susan Kramer MP used our pages to launch a policy paper that would provide seamless childcare support for families from the day a child is …

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Posted in A weekly catchup | 2 Comments
Mark Pack

Old habits linger on at Haringey Council as Labour block Baby P debate

By Mark Pack | Sat 6th December 2008 - 8:42 pm

This morning’s newspapers brought the news that the head of Ofsted is accusing Haringey Council of misleading her inspectors:

Ofsted’s assessment of local authorities’ children’s services last year consisted of a checklist of the information managers had to provide to demonstrate, among other things, that they had adequate social workers and were assessing children promptly. Managers in Haringey misled Ofsted by providing inaccurate data, the chief inspector said.

Tactics used by the council included claims that managers had assessed children promptly when the files revealed that those assessments were in fact incomplete. The same files showed that such assessments of children

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 3 Comments
Stephen Tall

Huhne’s list of “completely bizarre” offences: disturbing a pack of eggs etc.

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th December 2008 - 6:20 pm

As the House of Commons debates the Queen’s Speech, Lib Dem shadow home secretary Chris Huhne highlighted some of the more ludicrous examples of Labour’s legislative incontinence – here’s an excerpt from his speech as recorded by Hansard:

We are to have the 26th Criminal Justice Bill and the seventh Immigration Bill from this Government since 1997. Various of those Bills have been shovelled through this House so hastily that whole sections and clauses have not been considered at all and have had to be reviewed in the other place. We now know from parliamentary answers to questions tabled by

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Posted in News and Parliament | Tagged | 5 Comments
Stephen Tall

Speaker Martin is safe, says Ming. (But should he be?)

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th December 2008 - 5:26 pm

Ming Campbell, the former Lib Dem leader and a possible candidate to be the next Speaker, is in no doubt that Michael Martin will survive in post, despite the controversy surrounding Damian Green’s arrest. Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme this morning, Ming observed:

If the Speaker steps down, by convention he or she leaves the House of Commons and goes to the House of Lords. I can’t imagine Gordon Brown looks forward with any enthusiasm to fighting another difficult byelection in Glasgow. I think Mr Martin will remain in the Speaker’s chair until the end of this parliament.”

There is …

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 1 Comment
Stephen Tall

Are you on your way to the Forum?

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th December 2008 - 3:22 pm

Don’t forget, if you’re a party member you can register for the Lib Dem Voice members’ forum. You’ll be in good company: there are 854 registered members, all of whom have the opportunity to read and post on a rich variety of topics which don’t always make it into the public blog, as well as having the chance to vote in LDV’s monthly tracking surveys. Here’s a selection of the currently active threads to whet your appetites:

>> Parliament and the police
>> Locked doors and delivery
>> Menezes jury told it cannot give unlawful killing verdict.
>> Brain Paddick on I’m a celebrity
>>

…

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Posted in Site news | 1 Comment
Alex Foster

If you’re not at the Climate March…

By Alex Foster | Sat 6th December 2008 - 1:02 pm

Then the magic of hashtags brings you interesting news from those who are.

There’s a collection of updates from marchers, including the Voice’s own Kate Adie Helen Duffett, over at twemes or Twitter Search.

She’s also uploading pictures as she goes, including ones of Liberal Youth and Susan Kramer.

Posted in News | Tagged and | 2 Comments
Mark Pack

Row over struggling builder featured in Conservative TV slot

By Mark Pack | Sat 6th December 2008 - 11:18 am

This week’s Conservative Party Political Broadcast (PPB) featured a builder talking about how his firm is struggling due to the recession. However, it turns out he went bankrupt in 2006, at the height of the building boom:

Shane Prescott starred in the Conservative party broadcast on Thursday, claiming his business had struggled because of the recession.

But Companies House records show the 51-year-old father-of-four’s loft conversion firm actually went into liquidation at the height of the boom in 2006.

It is believed when his business went into liquidation he owed £240,000 to creditors and £174,000 to Revenue and Customs.

He was used in a

…

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Posted in News | 3 Comments
The Voice

Nick Clegg’s Eid greeting message

By The Voice | Sat 6th December 2008 - 9:00 am

Via Muslim News we have the text of Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg’s greeting ahead of next week’s Eid festival:

I offer my warmest greetings and best wishes for all Muslims on the occasion of Eid al-Adha.

I know this is a very special time for family and friends coming together as you join in spirit with the millions gathered in Mecca to uphold the traditions of one of your most sacred feasts.

As Muslims in the UK celebrate Eid al-Adha, we are reminded of the contributions that Muslim communities have made to our religious and cultural heritage.

Posted in News | 20 Comments
Alex Foster

EXCLUSIVE: Monday: Live Q&A with Steve Webb MP

By Alex Foster | Fri 5th December 2008 - 4:14 pm

On Monday, Lib Dem Voice will be hosting a live question and answer session with our party’s Climate Change and Energy spokesman Steve Webb MP.

Steve will be here on the Voice from 6.30pm on Monday to answer your questions and emails. You can send in a question on the evening, or submit it in advance to LDV’s Alix Mortimer who will be hosting the event. E-mail questions to [email protected]

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Posted in News | 5 Comments
The Voice

New TV broadcast: Clegg lays blame on Government and bankers

By The Voice | Fri 5th December 2008 - 12:45 pm

We spy on the LibDem YouTube channel the party’s Queen’s Speech Broadcast, which airs tonight (17.55 on BBC2, 18.55 on ITV1).

But you don’t need to wait for it to materialise on your telly box because here it is:

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Posted in Lib Dem TV and News | 6 Comments
Mark Pack

Keeping your computer secure

By Mark Pack | Fri 5th December 2008 - 11:25 am

Having up-to-date anti-virus software is essential these days for PC users (though for Macs the question is a little more controversial). However, it’s not enough on its own to keep your computer clean and your data safe.

In November I blogged about some simple and easy good housekeeping tips for your computer (see the last part of this post), but in addition it’s important to keep your software up-to-date and so protected against the latest security problems. Making sure of this can be quite a hassle if you rely on the individual programs to either automatically check for you …

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Posted in Online politics | 6 Comments
The Voice

Lib Dems to boycott Speaker’s committee

By The Voice | Fri 5th December 2008 - 9:02 am

The PA reports:

Plans by Speaker Michael Martin to set up a committee to look into last week’s police raid at the House of Commons are hanging in the balance after Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg announced his party will boycott it.

Both Lib Dems and Conservatives are angry over Government plans to ensure Labour dominates the seven-member committee, as well as Leader of the Commons Harriet Harman’s insistence that it must not start its deliberations until the police investigation and any criminal proceedings are concluded.

Mr Clegg said that a “neutered” committee of this kind would not serve the public interest,

…

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Posted in News | Tagged | 16 Comments
Stephen Tall

BBC Question Time: open thread

By Stephen Tall | Thu 4th December 2008 - 10:20 pm

To Newry tonight, for a mainly-Northern Irish edition of the BBC’s Question Time (BBC1 and online, 10.35 pm GMT), which means there’s no Lib Dem on the panel tonight.

The panel will include the Health Secretary Alan Johnson, Conservative shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley, Northern Ireland Assembly Minister for Enterprise Arlene Foster, Northern Ireland Executive Minister for Regional Development Conor Murphy, SDLP leader Mark Durkan, and Ulster Unionist peer Lord Maginnis.

And for those who are staying up extra late for BBC1’s This Week, historian David Starkey, journalist Andrew Pierce, and comedian Mark Steel will be on hand to …

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Posted in Lib Dem TV | Tagged | 8 Comments
Jim Roland

Opinion: Who would hurt all mankind, just to save face?

By Jim Roland | Thu 4th December 2008 - 6:50 pm

Back in September, Geoffrey Payne asked here on LDV what green activists who berate the Lib Dems expect us to do. Well, we could start by ditching our indefensible commitment to biofuel targets.

Later this month, the Council of Europe and MEPs are due to approve the EU climate package, including a commitment to 10% ‘renewable’ fuelling of vehicles by 2020, most of which is expected to come from biofuels; 6% can be met by those from foodstuffs.

Lib Dem MEPs have worked for some improvements in the package, but (along with the other largest political groupings) still …

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Posted in Op-eds | 22 Comments
Richard Huzzey

Proposition 8: The Editorial and the Musical

By Richard Huzzey | Thu 4th December 2008 - 4:40 pm

LDV has previously mentioned California’s vote to ban gay marriage. The New Yorker has an article (one I find unduly rude towards Mormons’ own history in making its point), suggesting Prop 8 will be the last stand for homophobia in the USA:

Like a polluted swamp, anti-gay bigotry is likely to get thicker and more toxic as it dries up… This sort of sludge may or may not prove to be of some slight utility in the 2012 Republican primaries, but it is, increasingly, history … “We believe all families matter and we do not believe in discrimination,” Barb Young said. “Therefore, our family will vote against Prop 8.” It wasn’t enough this time. But the time is coming.

Meanwhile, less seriously, a group of comedians and performers have provided their own musical, interpreting the voters’ choice.

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Posted in Humour and LDVUSA | 4 Comments
Alex Foster

Christmas ideas from Redcar

By Alex Foster | Thu 4th December 2008 - 4:03 pm

Redcar Lib Dems have a very reasonably priced calendar available for sale:

This A5 black and white calendar features famous Liberals and Liberal Democrats from the past and present. It also features Liberal Democrat Conference dates, Liberal Democrat organisations, with contact details, and County days for those counties which have them.

It is priced at £1 plus only 52p postage no matter how many copies you order.

Click here for full information and ordering details.  

And keep your eyes peeled here for exciting news about Christmas merch from Lib Dem Voice.

Posted in News | Leave a comment
Mark Pack

What will you be reading at Christmas?

By Mark Pack | Thu 4th December 2008 - 2:47 pm

The party’s published on www.libdems.org.uk what a selection of leading Liberal Democrats will be reading over Christmas, including Nick Clegg, Vince Cable, Ros Scott and Graham Watson.

If you’ve got any good reading tips, the comments box awaits you … and don’t forget, the party has an Amazon deal so purchases made through this link will raise money for the party, without you being charged anything extra.

Posted in News | Tagged and | 7 Comments
Alix Mortimer

Police DNA database “breaches human rights”

By Alix Mortimer | Thu 4th December 2008 - 2:00 pm

The Guardian has the story:

The European court of human rights in Strasbourg said that keeping innocent people’s DNA records on a criminal register breached article eight of the Human Rights Convention, covering the right to respect for private and family life.

Keeping DNA material from those who were “entitled to the presumption of innocence” as they had never been convicted of an offence carried “the risk of stigmatisation”, the ruling said.

Attacking the “blanket and indiscriminate nature” of the power to retain data, the judges said protections offered by article eight “would be unacceptably weakened if

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Posted in News | 9 Comments
Mark Pack

Applying the broken windows theory to moderating comments

By Mark Pack | Thu 4th December 2008 - 1:33 pm

Interesting post at kottke.org about how the broken windows theory (i.e. low level crime and grot in turn encourages more serious crime) may apply to the quality of online debate:

Much of the tone of discourse online is governed by the level of moderation and to what extent people are encouraged to “own” their words. When forums, message boards, and blog comment threads with more than a handful of participants are unmoderated, bad behavior follows. The appearance of one troll encourages others. Undeleted hateful or ad hominem comments are an indication that that sort of thing is allowable behavior and encourages

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Posted in Online politics | Tagged and | Leave a comment
Mark Pack

Fake phone calls, public nudity and a party saying ‘don’t vote for us’: the Saanich-Gulf Islands contest

By Mark Pack | Thu 4th December 2008 - 1:20 pm

Although I’m not exactly a stranger to writing about US elections, I do generally feel that they get too much attention compared with those of other countries. Canadian, Australian and New Zealand elections all potentially provide many campaigning lessons, have the convenience of being heavily covered online in those countries in the English language, and indeed are really better prospects for lessons for the UK as their electoral and political systems are much more similar to Britain’s than America’s is.

So in order to redress the balance a little, here’s a pointer to a controversial Canadian election which, I suspect, had …

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Mark Pack

Perhaps even I should think this is taking Twitter too far…

By Mark Pack | Thu 4th December 2008 - 7:55 am

Luddites may wish to mutter, “Really, why didn’t he just take two steps forward instead of doing this?”

PS Eagle-eyed viewers will notice the absence of a hashtag too 🙂

Posted in Online politics | Tagged | 1 Comment
Stephen Tall

The Queen’s Speech 2008: the Lib Dem response

By Stephen Tall | Wed 3rd December 2008 - 6:51 pm

As the Speaker pithily put it,

I have to acquaint the House that this House has this day attended Her Majesty in the House of Peers, and that Her Majesty was pleased to make a Most Gracious Speech from the Throne to both Houses of Parliament, of which I have, for greater accuracy, obtained a copy.

In other words, today was the day for the Government to spell out its legislative programme for the year ahead. Masochists can enjoy the whole darned thing courtesy of Hansard here; for those who prefer their information distilled by the BBC click here. …

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Posted in News and Parliament | 10 Comments
Mark Pack

A word of warning for councillors everywhere

By Mark Pack | Wed 3rd December 2008 - 4:25 pm

From the Ofsted report into Haringey and Baby P’s death:

The reliance on national and local performance indicators is too great and does not enable understanding of the quality and effectiveness of service provision on the ground.

A warning about what can go wrong which applies to many areas of councillors’ work, and not just the tragic circumstances of Baby P’s death.

Posted in News | Tagged | 11 Comments
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