Young people need liberal listening, not authoritarian threats

Young people, so says the DWP Secretary, must ‘learn or earn’ or lose benefits. Be warned, dear reader, this is an angry post.

This announcement by Liz Kendall has put three things in my mind. Firstly, never underestimate the excessive power of rhyme in policy creation. Secondly, the authoritarian parties will never resist the temptation to hammer young people with a mixture of higher expectations and the threat of less money. Thirdly, it reminded me of one of the formative experiences for my liberalism.

I have worked with young people during a couple of periods in a varied career. The young people …

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25-28 November 2024 – this week in the Lords

There are three Bills before their Lordships’ House this week:

It’s a good week for Liberal Democrat Oral Questions, with one on each day;

  • On Monday, John Russell asks the Government for its plans to increase the number of homes fitted with solar panels
  • Jonny Oates asks what representations are being made to the Israeli Government of visa restrictions on international aid workers to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories on Tuesday
  • Wednesday sees Dorothy Thornhill ask what is being done to encourage landlords back in to the long-term private rental sector
  • and on Thursday, Mike German will be seeking clarity on the Government’s plans to close the controversial Wethersfield site currently used to house asylum seekers

There’s an interesting debate on Thursday, on the case against politicisation of the Civil Service, at the behest of former Cabinet Secretary Lord Butler of Brockwell. Tom McNally, Claire Tyler and William Wallace are currently expected to speak from our benches, whilst David Frost will utter some idiocy or other from the Conservative benches. I suspect that the masses ranks of former mandarins might have a thing or two to teach him still…

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23-24 November 2024 – the weekend’s press releases

  • Three in five Brits expect food prices to rise because of family farm tax
  • Wendy Chamberlain appointed carer’s charity Vice President

Three in five Brits expect food prices to rise because of family farm tax

Shocking new research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats reveals that almost 60% of Brits expect food prices to rise because of the Family Farm Tax announced in the Budget. The Liberal Democrats have tabled an amendment to reject the government’s Finance Bill, given the impact of the budget on family farms.

The ways in which Brits are planning to cope with the price increase are even more worrying, with almost half (44%) of those expecting rises admitting they will buy cheaper alternatives if food prices do rise.

A further 35% of those expecting rises reveal that they will cut back on the food they buy as a direct result of the tax hike revealed by the government in the budget.

The poll reveals the serious effect food price rises could have on people’s health. With 18% of those expecting rises revealing they are likely to buy less fresh fruit and vegetables if prices go up because of the family farm tax.

The impact on small businesses and the high street is also apparent, with 20% of this group saying they will look to shop from bigger supermarkets. This is another hit to small businesses already concerned about the rise in employers’ NIC increase, and the impact the bus fare cap may have on people visiting their local high street.

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Tom Arms’ World Review

COP 29

COP 29 is in trouble. It was inevitable. This year’s climate change conference is in oil-producing Baku, Azerbaijan, and host president Ilham Aliyev is using the conference to push oil and gas as “a gift from God.”

This is encouraging the Saudis who are working hard to strike the phrase “transition away from fossil fuels” from previously agreed communiques.

Then there is the question of the transfer of money from the developed to the developing world; partly to compensate them from the effects of climate change problems created by the industrial north and partly to help them transition away from fossil fuels to clean, green energy.

Previous communiques talked about $100 billion. Now it is generally agreed that $1.3 trillion is a more realistic figure. A big fine, global figure which is facing the problem of devilish detail. What for instance, constitutes a developing country. Officially Saudi Arabia, China and India are all developing countries. The Saudis are as rich as Croesus, China has the second largest economy in the world and India the fourth and will soon be third.

And how will this transfer of $1.3 trillion be organised? Will it be hand-outs which might well end up in some dictator’s Swiss bank account? Will private investments which can create a return for the Western investor be counted in the $1.3 trillion, or research and development grants? All this is being negotiated as I type and will probably be unresolved long after the conference ends.

In fact, the protracted negotiations are proving to be an insurmountable hurdle for the understaffed Azerbaijani diplomatic service. They have been forced to turn to the British and Brazilians to help sort out the muddle and—hopefully—produce a communique.

Any real progress is likely to have to wait until the next COP summit. But that is unlikely to achieve anything because the world’s second largest polluter and the world’s largest per capita—the United States—will not be attending. Donald Trump has promised to withdraw from the COP summits and “drill, baby, drill.”

Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his sacked defense minister Yoav Gallant this week had arrest warrants issued for them by the International Criminal Court at The Hague. Hamas leader Mohammed Deif has also been charged but he is unlikely to ever appear in court simply because he has been killed by the Israeli Defense Forces.

There are 123 countries who are signatories to the ICC. This means, according to international law by which they have pledged to abide, if Netanyahu, Gallant or the ghost of Mohammed Deif, step on their territory, they must arrest them.

Britain and the Netherlands have confirmed that Netanyahu faces such a fate if he dares to visit them.

America has condemned the arrest warrants as “outrageous” and said that the Israelis are safe with them. Well, they have a legal out. The Clinton Administration signed up to the ICC and its obligations but George W. Bush “unsigned”, so the US is under no legal obligation to work with the court. Other countries which are not signatories are Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia and China.

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Observations of an Expat: One Down

One down. A lot more to go.

The infamous and totally unsuitable Matt Gaetz on Friday withdrew his name for consideration as Donald Trump’s Attorney General.

The world heaved a sigh of relief. Trump must have been furious. Gaetz was just the sort of MAGA loyalist he wanted as the nation’s top cop. As Gaetz has demonstrated repeatedly in the past, he would do whatever Trump told him to do.

The demise of former Congressman Gatez wasn’t a real surprise. He is one of the most unpopular lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He is regarded as a bombastic egotist tainted with allegations of drug abuse and under-age sex.

He resigned his seat from Congress in order to prevent publication of the Congressional Ethics Committee report which detailed his nefarious activities. The committee is not supposed to publish reports on former members of Congress. He withdrew from the Attorney General’s job when he heard that old and new allegations were about to surface anyway.

Gatez, however, is only one of many potential Trump appointees who expose the president-elect’s contempt for social norms and the rule of law. He sees his election as a mandate to disrupt the American government and then rebuild it again in his image. His choice of appointments reflect this.

Total control of the Department of Justice and the FBI is a top Trump target – Gaetz as Attorney General would have been in charge of both institutions who by convention work independently of the executive branch. The Department of Defense is another because he wants a loyal military to be used – if necessary – for domestic security.

That is why he has nominated Peter Hesgeth, a Fox News presenter, whose two qualifications for the job was that he served as a National Guard officer in Iraq and Afghanistan and – more importantly – he is a far-right Trump loyalist.

Donald Trump had problems with the military during his first term. They refused to become embroiled in politics. The generals, admirals and other senior officers, argued that their loyalty was to their personal oath to the US constitution rather than to an individual.

Hegseth wants to change that. He has proposed sacking generals who are not right-wing enough. In the Hesgeth playbook everyone who is not a Trump loyalist is a “Marxist” and must be “annihilated.” In his book American Crusade Hesgeth wrote chillingly: “The hour is late for America. Beyond political success, her fate relies on exorcising the leftist spectre dominating education, religion, and culture – a 360-degree holy war for the righteous cause of human freedom.”

And as for democracy, well Hegseth claims that the founding fathers did not want the United States to be a democracy and their views – or his interpretation of those views – should be respected.

Like Trump and Gatez, Hegseth has a sex charge allegation hanging over him. In 2017, a woman accused a drunken Hegseth of sexually assaulting her. She dropped the charges after being paid $10,000, but rest assured the issue will be raised during his Senate confirmation hearings.

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22 November 2024 – today’s press releases

  • Davey: NICs hit is creating a perfect storm for the care sector
  • Davey on Ofgem energy price rise: Freeze energy bills and reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
  • Chamberlain calls for energy bills to be frozen and Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated after energy price rise

Davey: NICs hit is creating a perfect storm for the care sector

Analysis released by the Nuffield Trust today (Friday 22 Nov) has found that the changes to Employer’s NICs look set to cost the adult social care sector over £900m next year, more than wiping out the extra funds allocated to social care at the Budget. The analysis by Nuffield Trust also estimates that the 18,000 independent organisations providing adult social care in England will be faced with increased costs of an estimated £2.8bn in the next financial year, meaning many businesses – especially smaller ones – are at risk of going bust.

Responding, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said:

These damning figures lay bare the devastating impact of the National Insurance hike on social care. The government must immediately do the right thing and exempt care providers from this ill-thought through tax hike.

This hit is creating a perfect storm for a care sector already damaged by the Conservative party’s neglect. Now there is a real danger small care providers will simply not survive.

Ultimately, it’s people in care who will suffer the consequences. The Chancellor must urgently act to help our social care sector before it’s too late.

Davey on Ofgem energy price rise: Freeze energy bills and reinstate Winter Fuel Payments

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has today called on the government to freeze energy bills so that Ofgem’s newly announced rise in the price cap will not go ahead.

He also called on the government to reinstate Winter Fuel Payments or risk pensioners being “left out in the cold” this winter.

Ofgem announced today that the energy price cap will rise by 1.2% to £1,738 a year in January, following the previous 10% rise in October. The Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to cancel this rise in energy bills so that households don’t face even higher energy costs in the new year.

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

Enough is enough. This further rise in energy prices cannot go ahead. As we enter another cold and difficult winter, many people simply can’t afford to see their heating bills go up yet again.

The disastrous government cuts to the Winter Fuel Payments coupled with this energy price rise will be a hammer blow for millions of vulnerable pensioners this winter.

The new government must step in now, cancel this bill rise and reinstate Winter Fuel Payments to stop families and pensioners being left out in the cold this winter.

This is a government that has pledged to bring down energy bills, it is time for them to live up to their word.

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Frustrating news from Edinburgh as double by-election looms

This time last week we were all celebrating the news of a stonking by-election win in Colinton/Fairmilehead in Edinburgh. We jumped from fourth place to first to elect Louise Spence after an intense campaign which saw activists from all over the city basically give up their lives for four months. This came just after the General Election, too.  We are a party that prides ourselves in campaigning all year round, but we know that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. We’ve been sprinting now for 6 months. And it’s not over yet.

We’d known Louise well for years. She’d fought the ward in 2022, narrowly missing out on a seat.

On Tuesday came the shock that there was to be another by-election in the ward, which we had just won. SNP Councillor Marco Biagi, a former MSP, had taken up a role in the Scottish Government and resigned his Council seat.

That was nothing compared to the shock that hit Edinburgh Liberal Democrats just yesterday afternoon. A statement from Louise Spence explains:

I have had a sudden change in personal circumstances which meant I couldn’t in all conscience fulfil my role as a councillor.

At this time, my focus must be with my family. I have informed my Liberal Democrat colleagues of my changed circumstances and offered my resignation.

The Liberal Democrats rightly set high standards in terms of the service their local councillors provide. I myself argued that Colinton & Fairmilehead needed a local champion. While it would have been legally possible for me to continue as a councillor, I don’t believe it would be right to do so with my focus elsewhere.

This is why I have made the difficult decision to resign my council seat. With another by-election already due in the ward in February because of the SNP councillor’s resignation, my decision means this new vacancy can be filled at the same time; at no extra cost to the taxpayer. This is clearly the right thing to do for Colinton & Fairmilehead.

However, I know my decision will be deeply disappointing and frustrating for those who voted for me, for my council group colleagues and for all the Liberal Democrats who fought so hard to win the by-election. I am truly sorry at what has happened.

Group Leader Kevin Lang said:

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Attracting the youth vote

A poll conducted by YouGov after the last general election revealed that the Liberal Democrats won 16% of the vote of those aged 18–24-year-olds. As good as this may seem (especially compared to 5% of the same age group we won in 2015), this was still 2% behind the Green Party and 25% behind Labour. Traditionally, social liberal parties tend to score well amongst younger voters and this trend has continued in all elections this year. To further solidify our status as an electoral force this is the most likely demographic with which we could make advances in 2025 and beyond. As Labour plans to extend voting rights to those aged 16 and 17, there is no better time to run on a progressive platform aimed towards young people.

EDUCATION

The Conservative Party have broken education. We’ve seen this figuratively in the failure of Gove’s academy system and literally as our underfunded schools are cold, damp and falling to pieces. The current Labour government has a mountain to climb when it comes to, not only improving the quality of our state schools, but also to ensure that our education system is equipping our young people for the real world.

In our current secondary school education system, there is far too much emphasis on examinations. Students who may be talented engineers or mathematicians will have to re-sit an entire GCSE because they couldn’t describe a desert well enough in their English exam. On the other hand, our future doctors and surgeons may not be able to pursue their ideal course at Sixth-form or college because they forgot the exact trigonometrical value of sin, cos and tan. The problem is that our examinations are stripping away the value of our education system; damaging the progress and wellbeing of our students. Students will sit around 31 and half hours of exams, not only is this brutal on our young people but it’s incredibly difficult on our teachers who are working relentlessly to ensure that their students are equipped enough to get a certain number on a test.

To solve this, I propose a change to the way we go about education. First, and most importantly, we must change our broken and outdated examination system, specifically our current post-secondary GCSEs. Exams are becoming increasingly irrelevant with students having to learn a large amount of content which they won’t ever use again and can be easily replaced with fewer exams over a longer period of time. Japan and Canada have a small number of standardised tests every couple of years and both have a thriving education system with an improving number of satisfied students.

FOREIGN POLICY

The Erasmus programme was one of the less pronounced concessions we made when leaving the European Union. This was a scheme where students were able to study or do an internship in another EU country or one of the 6 ‘third countries’ associated with the programme. This was funded by the European Commission. We chose to leave the EU and not become a third country in the programme so, to put it simply, our students have less opportunities than others.

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Europe or USA: do we now have to choose?

The UK’s image of its place in the world since the Second World War has rested on the claim to act as the ‘Atlantic bridge’, as Tony Blair used to put it.  We were the USA’s closest ally within Europe, and one of the major players, alongside France and Germany, within Europe.  The end of the Cold War weakened that claim, as American attention turned towards the Pacific.  Brexit weakened it a great deal further.  But now Trump Republicans and their British supporters are insisting that we have to choose: follow America, or slide back towards Europe.

The Times on November 16th headlined the statement by Stephen Moore, advising Trump at his Florida base, that ‘Britain must decide – do you want to go towards the European socialist model or do you want to go towards the US free market?’  If the latter, then a free trade agreement would be available to avoid the tariff war Trump is threatening to engage in with the EU and others; if not, no deal.  This wasn’t a surprise; Daniel Hannan had an Op-ed in the Mail three days before, making the case for Britain accepting a trade deal with the USA and the extra-territorial regulations (on food additives and hygiene, etc.) that would go with it rather than moving closer to the EU Single Market.  There are even reports that some in the Trump camp want to extend the North American Free Trade Area to Australia and the UK, to form an Anglo-Saxon grouping (with Mexico as an anomaly) under American leadership.

Brexit was never really about re-establishing British sovereignty.  For romantics like Hannan about the superiority of ‘the English-speaking peoples’ and the ‘special relationship’ which was thought to offer Britain continuing global status it was about following the USA and accepting its economic and social model rather than what was seen to be the European alternative – yielding sovereignty to the USA rather than sharing sovereignty with our European neighbours.  Boris Johnson’s Churchill fixation pushed him towards the idea that Britain and America were and remain ‘special’ partners.  Nigel Farage is an even stronger advocate of Anglo-Saxon solidarity – assuming that the USA will continue to be run by Republican Administrations promoting free markets and a shrunken state.

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21 November 2024 – today’s press releases

  • John Prescott: his legacy will be remembered far into the future
  • Ofwat on water bill rises: once again the regulator is proving itself unfit for purpose
  • ICC arrest warrants for Hamas and Netanyahu: UK government must uphold ruling
  • Carers UK research: Government must recognise the critical role carers play
  • Rennie comments on long-awaited Glen Sannox delivery
  • Minister refuses to apologise for wasting £30m on social care failure

John Prescott: his legacy will be remembered far into the future

Responding to the news of John Prescott passing away, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

I am deeply saddened by the news of John Prescott passing away and my thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family.

John Prescott will be remembered as a towering figure in British politics and his unwavering tenacity on the causes he championed should be a lesson to us all.

His influence on our modern society will still be felt for years to come and his legacy remembered far into the future.

Ofwat on water bill rises: once again the regulator is proving itself unfit for purpose

Responding to comments by the Ofwat Chief Executive on the Today Programme this morning where he said that water bills will likely go up by more than initially expected, Liberal Democrat Environment spokesperson Tim Farron MP said:

Customers have been forced to watch whilst filthy sewage wrecks their local environment as they pay through the nose for the pleasure.

Once again the regulator is proving itself utterly unfit for purpose.

The whole industry needs to be ripped up from top to bottom, overseen by a new regulator with real powers to clamp down on these polluting firms.

ICC arrest warrants for Hamas and Netanyahu: UK government must uphold ruling

Responding to the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing arrest warrants for both Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Hamas leader Mohammed Deif, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Calum Miller MP said:

The previous Conservative Government denigrated the International Criminal Court and undermined the UK’s standing on the world stage. It is vital that the new Government complies with our obligations under international law by committing to upholding this ruling, including enforcing arrest warrants.

The ICC must be free to conduct its work without fear or favour. This is a very significant decision by the court. It reflects the devastating impact that the war between Hamas and Israel has had on many civilians.

We urgently need an immediate bilateral ceasefire to put a stop to the humanitarian devastation in Gaza, get the hostages home and open the door to a two-state solution.

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Lib Dem Voice is now on Bluesky

Last week I reported that many Lib Dems are migrating to Bluesky.

And now Lib Dem Voice has taken up residence – you can find us at: https://bsky.app/profile/libdemvoice.org, so pop over and follow us.

Hello! Liberal Democrat Voice are the most read independent website for Lib Dem members and supporters. Our team, including @honladymark.bsky.social, @charleyhasted.bsky.social and our editor @caronmlindsay.bsky.social are on too. Read more www.libdemvoice.org

— libdemvoice.org (@libdemvoice.org) November 18, 2024 at 10:02 AM

We also have some more starter packs to share with you.

Charley Hasted has set up two:

Lib Dem Local parties

Liberal Democrat Affiliated Orgs

These are in addition to:

Mark Pack’s Liberal Democrats’ Starter Pack – includes MPs and Assembly members

Jennie Rigg’s LibDem Starter Pack – covers members as well as organisations.

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Captain Tom and the NHS

The late Captain Tom Moore is back in the headlines but not in a good way. A highly critical Charity Commission inquiry report concluded that the family members who set up the Captain Tom Foundation in 2020 repeatedly blurred their private interests with those of the charity while gaining “significant” personal benefit.

However disturbing this may be, there is in my view a much more dangerous blurring which made me feel very uneasy when Captain Tom was doing his impressive and very media friendly walking in the garden. It is the blurring of the distinction between raising money for the NHS and raising money for NHS charities. NHS staff and the charities themselves are well aware of the difference but most of the mainstream media gave the impression that donation to Captain Tom’s fund was helping the NHS or saving the NHS.

I was born a couple of years before the advent of the NHS. The GP who supervised my mother’s home birth waived his fee. This was not just because we lived in the poorest part of Newcastle upon Tyne. He had huge respect for my father who had spent five years of the war in a Polish prison camp as well as for my mother to whom he got engaged before he was called up for military service.

I was brought up hearing stories about hospitals that were dependent on charitable donations and doctors “on the panel” who devoted less time to the healthcare of panel patients than they gave to private patients. The limited National Health Insurance scheme oversaw the payment by workers of a small sum deducted from weekly pay packets but the dependents of insured workers did not have a right to consult panel doctors. Sometimes friendly societies could offer help to those who paid a weekly subscription but for many in Newcastle’s West End paying the subs was a luxury they couldn’t afford.

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21 November 2024 – the overnight press releases

  • Carers UK research: government needs to recognise the critical role carers play
  • Health survey reveals impact of Long Covid on Scots
  • Cole-Hamilton comments on Audit Scotland report

Carers UK research: government needs to recognise the critical role carers play

Responding to Carers UK research putting the economic value of care provided by unpaid carers at £184 billion a year, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

I have been a carer most of my life, first for my mum when I was young and now for my severely disabled son John, so I know how challenging it can be, but also how rewarding.

These findings show just how much carers contribute to our society, but also how hard it is for carers to get the support they need.

While the Liberal Democrats helped to secure a new right to carer’s leave, the last Conservative government took carers for granted and left them to fend for themselves. It even hounded thousands of carers for repayments of Carer’s Allowance caused by the DWP’s own broken system.

The government now needs to fully recognise the critical role carers play and end the years of neglect under the Conservatives. That includes helping carers to juggle work with caring responsibilities, by introducing paid carer’s leave and fixing Carer’s Allowance so it doesn’t penalise work.

Health survey reveals impact of Long Covid on Scots

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP today said the SNP’s response to Long Covid has been ‘almost non-existent’ despite sufferers telling a government health survey about the toll it was taking on their lives.

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20 November 2024 – today’s press releases

  • Dentists left in the dark as government fails to assess impact of NICs hikes
  • Thames Water: we need to see an outright ban on exec bonuses whilst sewage scandal drags on
  • Cole-Hamilton attacks national insurance impact on GPs and care providers

Dentists left in the dark as government fails to assess impact of NICs hikes

The Liberal Democrats have revealed that the government made no assessment of its recent tax hike on NHS dentists.

Responding to a parliamentary question from the Liberal Democrats, Labour government minister Stephen Kinnock responded that “no assessments have been made yet on the potential impact of an increase in employers’ National Insurance Contributions on dental practices’ finances.”

The government announced at the budget that it would increase employers’ National Insurance Contributions (NICs) next year but has faced a backlash from health and care providers who will receive no extra support.

Whilst the government has confirmed that NHS hospitals and secondary care will be exempt, GPs, pharmacies, hospices and NHS dentists will not. This is putting financial pressure on these vital services and could force them to cut appointments and staff numbers.

The British Dental Association has slammed the move and the government’s failure to carry out an impact assessment, commenting that “it’s utterly reckless to heap new costs on struggling practices without even considering the impact.” NHS dentists across the country are warning that they will have to cut services for patients or even reduce staff numbers.

One practice in Tyneside has said that “it’s another nail in the coffin of NHS Dentistry.” Another practice warned “the recent changes to Employers NI and raising of the living wage will lead to bankruptcy and breakdowns.”

The Liberal Democrats are calling for the government to exempt NHS dentists and those providing vital health and care services, including GP surgeries, social care providers, hospices, charitable providers of health and care, and pharmacies, from this tax rise.

Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson, Helen Morgan MP said:

The government has pulled the rug out from under crucial public health services without thinking twice.

It’s shocking that this careless decision has been taken with no regard to the impact it would have on NHS dentists. Many will have no choice but to cut services and staff numbers.

NHS dentists and other health and care providers must be exempted from the Chancellor’s tax increase. Without reversing the hike, the government’s plan to rescue our health service is a plan in name only.

Chair of the British Dental Association, Eddie Crouch said:

When millions can’t access NHS dentistry it’s utterly reckless to heap new costs on struggling practices without even considering the impact.

The Treasury failed to grasp that primary care is delivered by thousands of small businesses. Each requires immediate answers on how they’re expected to balance their books.

Thames Water: we need to see an outright ban on exec bonuses whilst sewage scandal drags on

Responding to reporting that the regulator Ofwat is expected to say on Thursday a £195,000 bonus awarded to the boss of Thames Water should not be paid for by customers, Liberal Democrat Environment spokesperson Tim Farron MP said:

The fact that Thames Water is paying out any bonuses in the first place is an utter disgrace.

It is a welcome shock that Ofwat is actually acting to protect bill paying customers for once after proving completely toothless in cracking down on these polluting firms for years.

Even when the regulator does act against this broken industry it does so in the meekest possible terms. A Chief Exec receiving hundreds of thousands of pounds in bonuses whilst the firm they run is on the brink of collapse is beggars belief.

We need to see an outright ban on water company bosses bonuses whilst this scandal drags on and Ofwat replaced by a new regulator with real teeth to crack down on this industry once and for all.

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Lib Dems mark Transgender Day of Remembrance

The Liberal Democrats have marked Transgender Day of Remembrance, saying on social media:

Today on Trans Day of Remembrance we remember those who have lost their lives to transphobic violence, and reflect on how we as a society can end this loss of life. Liberal Democrats will always stand up for the rights of everyone in the LGBT+ community.

Sadly, there has been another rise in the number of trans people who have been killed because of who they are. We’re getting on for 1 person a day – 350, mostly trans women of colour.

From Pink News:

The number is one of the highest death tolls since the monitoring project began in 2008, which could be caused by the “concerted efforts of anti-gender and anti-rights movements that instrumentalise and vilify trans people”, according to TGEU.

“We have seen a consistent rise in the levels of online and offline hate speech and hate crimes, especially from political actors and religious and faith leaders, public figures,” a spokesperson for the group said.

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Daisy Cooper challenges Labour on National Insurance rise at PMQs

The text of the exchange is below:

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Mark Pack’s November 2024 report: A guaranteed way to lose votes

The importance of next May

A blessing and a curse of a democracy is that elections keep on coming around. So while this year has been an exhausting one of election campaigns already, we also need to be turning our eyes to the local elections coming up in May.

Most of the seats up in May were last contested when the Conservatives were still on an electoral high back in 2021. Therefore they provide us with an important opportunity to follow up on our major gains from the Conservatives at both local and Westminster level since 2021. They also provide us with an important opportunity to continue to grow our strength more broadly, especially in areas where, now with a Labour government in Westminster, new possibilities are opening up.

But there is one sure-fire, 100% guaranteed, rock-solid way of repelling voters from us, and it is one we use far too often.

It is not having a Liberal Democrat on the ballot paper. Zero votes for the party guaranteed.

Both Labour and the Conservatives, for example, get very close now to having a full slate of candidates in local elections. We do not.

The good news is that since in the last Parliament we have collectively started focusing on really raising our candidate numbers in council contests, we have made good progress, both for by-elections and for the May rounds of elections.

Standing candidates is not only about credibility and relevance. It is also the way to get more people into the habit of regularly voting for the Liberal Democrats – a crucial step in building the sort of larger core vote for the party that will help us succeed more often.

With us having regained our third place in the House of Commons, continuing that progress in candidate numbers to help further establish ourselves is even more important next May.

If you have local elections coming up in your area, there are great training materials and supporting documents on how to increase your candidate numbers, and how to run a proper approval process. Drop me a line if you need help finding the support you need.

Good luck!

A 15th century technology still reigns supreme

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Lib Dem MPs are wrong to campaign against farming inheritance tax changes

With the ‘Tractor Tax’ protests filling the news for several days, yesterday delivered an email from Lib Dem HQ informing me that our MPs are demanding that the tax be axed. I was both surprised and disappointed to see our MPs siding with some very wealthy vested interests on this issue. It is clear that investment in farmland is being used by some as a deliberate ploy to dodge inheritance tax, and beyond romanticising the “family farm” and way of life, I’ve yet to hear a convincing moral or economic argument as to why farmers uniquely deserve a better deal on inheritance tax than you or me. And even after Labour’s proposed changes, the IHT regime for farms still remains far better than that available to almost anyone else.

Ed Davey and Tim Farron tell us that farming is vital to the country, that rural communities have been taken for granted, and that Brexit and trade deals that undercut British farmers with food produced to lower standards is a disaster for them. All that is true, but it has absolutely nothing to do with inheritance tax, and even if Labour change their minds tomorrow, the very real challenges that British farmers face will remain. I find it curious (or perhaps not) that tax is the issue that has brought out farmers to protest, whipped up by some multi-millionaires and a right wing press that is ideologically opposed to all inheritance tax in principle.

If we accept that genuine farming families are deserving of special treatment to allow farms to be passed down tax-free within the family, there are ways that Labour’s plans could be amended to ease that, but Lib Dem MPs are siding with tax-dodging multi-millionaires to reverse the change entirely. They are wrong to do so.

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New ideas at Scottish Conference

Scottish Conference took place in Perth on Saturday. The 300 year old Salutation Inn near the river has been putting up weary travellers for over 300 years and has been holding Lib Dem events for just about as long. I don’t think the decor has changed in all the time I’ve been going there since we moved back to Scotland in 2000 so it’s a wee bit dated but it serves decent pub food and the staff can’t do enough to help you. And the big win for me is that they make the toast for you at breakfast. You don’t have to stand for ages and watch helplessly as the slow moving toast machine burns your bread.

I shall cover the controversial debates – and there were a couple where we disagreed really well with excellent speeches – in another post, but I wanted to tell you about an innovation or two.

You know how quite often we get motherhood and apple pie motions which state the obvious Lib Dem position on an issue and nobody is ever going to vote against? Rather than give them half an hour’s debate, they have a party spokesperson present them in a report, speak for five minutes or so about the ideas and then have Conference vote. Housing spokesperson Paul McGarry, also the Conference Convener, was the first to trial this. His policy proposals were:

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Prisoner mentorship schemes are transformative for individuals and communities alike

The Scottish Liberal Democrats conference this past weekend was quite something. It was fantastic to be in a room full of likeminded people and to play a part in some truly compelling debates.

We stayed true to that time honoured Lib Dem principle of disagreeing well, as shown by the thoughtful discussions on gender balance in selections and the policy motion, which I brought to conference, on further restrictions around smoking. Both motions were passed after fantastic input from both sides of the argument.

However, I wanted to reflect on something particularly close to my heart: the mini-motion I proposed, which was debated on Saturday morning. I called for mentorship schemes in every Scottish prison to help tackle the twin crises of reoffending and overcrowding.

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Big Gay Wedding with Tom Allen – a great look back & celebration of equal marriage

Embed from Getty Images

This BBC film came out in March to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the first UK equal marriage. So I am catching up a bit. I started watching it because it was re-shown on BBC1 on Sunday. If you haven’t seen it, it is very much worth watching.

It’s partly a reflection back on the history of the campaign for equal marriage in the UK, and partly an entertaining look at the planning and realisation of the wedding of Adam and Dan of Brighton.

Tom Allen is an amusing and articulate host. He traces the history of equal marriage with guests Peter Tatchell, Sandi Toksvig, David Cameron and Lynne Featherstone.

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Is it time to remove party politics from local government?

It was a very moving and poignant moment for all who attended the Remembrance Sunday services, which are held across the country in the last week or so. As an EU national, who has lived abroad for more than 20 years, it is quite an important month for us too as Poland celebrates re-gaining its independence on 11 November.

As I was walking back to my car, I bumped into a former Councillor, who stood down at the last elections. Although we sat at the opposite benches of the Council Chamber, I also had a lot of time for him. He was never confrontational, he always tried to put his views across well, in a constructive way, without a need to score cheap political points. When I asked him whether he misses his role as a Councillor, he said no. Some of the things that he mentioned were obvious and yet so hard to implement, even at the local level. In my experience, far too often, we have no ability to accept that our opponent or Council colleague might have equally good legislative ideas. We reject motions only because they come from the other side of the Chamber. Our former Welwyn Hatfield Councillor didn’t like this “democratic ping-pong”, which “empowers” party politics and doesn’t recognise our individual or collective contribution. Is this the fault of the system? Why is it so hard for elected members, Councillors or MP’s, to simply admit that someone might have a good point? Why is it so hard for us to listen to understand and not only listen to respond?

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WATCH: Alex Cole-Hamilton’s speech to Scottish Conference

Scottish Lib Dems met in Perth for their Autumn Conference on Saturday. Alex Cole-Hamilton was in buoyant mood after a stonking by-election win on Thursday in Colinton/Fairmilehead in Edinburgh. We took the seat of new Labour MP Scott Arthur, going from fourth to first place. Winning 36% of the vote was incredible. Alex also had another by-election win in Perthshire itself to gloat about. A few weeks ago, Alan Watt had a similar meteoric rise after a superb and intense campaign.

We will have more about the Conference later. There were some brilliant and highly controversial debates, possibly some of the best I have heard in my long history of attending Conference.

But first, here is Alex’s speech. He spoke in the same room where David Bowie once performed.

The audio is at best not great, so you will need the text below.

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Christine Jardine’s message for Trans Awareness Week

Lib Dem Women and Equalities spokesperson Christine Jardine has issued a message for Trans Awareness Week which runs until Thursday. She said:

Today is the beginning of Trans Awareness Week. It’s an opportunity for us to celebrate trans people, acknowledge the challenges they face, and reflect on how we as a society can work together to improve trans people’s lives.

In decades past, the UK has led the world in advancing equality for all LGBT+ people – with the Liberal Democrats playing a particularly key role in driving that progress forward.

However, too many trans people still face discrimination and hostility simply for being who they are. Sadly, the fight for equality must go on.

The figures are stark. The number of hate crimes recorded against trans people have skyrocketed by 52% since 2020/21. Young trans people face the highest rates of homelessness among the LGBT+ community. Not to mention the shocking reality that on average, trans people are being forced to wait more than 7 years to get the specialist healthcare they deserve.

Let me be clear – Liberal Democrats will always stand up for the rights of everyone in the LGBT+ community, including trans people.

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ALDC by-election Report, 14th November

This was an incredible by-election week for the Lib Dems, as we held both seats in Milton Keynes and have made gains from Labour in West Oxfordshire and Edinburgh. Labour held their other 7 seats and did not make gains; the Green Party failed to defend their only seat up for election this week, losing it to the Conservatives.

The headline win for Lib Dems this week goes to Cllr Louise Spence who stood in the Colinton/Fairmilehead ward in Edinburgh Council. She came out ahead in the sea of candidates (there are in total 12!) and nearly tripled the previous first preference votes for the Lib Dems compared to the last election. Congratulations to Louise and the team for taking this win from where we originally placed fourth! This couldn’t have been easy.

Edinburgh Council, Colinton/Fairmilehead (1st preference votes, Liberal Democrat elected at stage 11)
Liberal Democrat (Louise Spence): 2683 (36.3%, +23.8%)
Conservative: 1454 (19.6%, -10.3%)
Labour: 1441 (19.5%, -13.9%)
SNP: 800 (10.8%, -6.4%)
Green Party: 393 (5.3%, -0.1%)
Reform: 268 (3.6%, new)
Independent: 173 (2.3%, new)
Independent: 57 (0.8%, new)
Scottish Family Party: 51 (0.7%, -0.9%)
Independent: 50 (0.7%, new)
Independent: 22 (0.3%, new)
Libertarian Party: 9 (0.1%, new)

In West Oxfordshire DC, the Lib Dems have also grown their support in Chipping Norton from fourth place to first, gaining the seat from Labour. Labour’s vote in the ward plummeted over half from 61.4% to 27.2%, while Cllr Mike Baggaley more than tripled the Lib Dem vote share. Congrats and well done to Mike and the team for running an amazing campaign and gaining the seat.

West Oxfordshire DC, Chipping Norton
Liberal Democrat (Mike Baggaley): 403 (31.3%, +24.6%)
Conservative: 383 (29.7%, +9.0%)
Labour: 350 (27.2%, -34.2%)
Green Party: 152 (11.8%, +0.5%)

The team in Milton Keynes City Council have also been working hard to defend the Bradwell and Broughton ward from by-election. Both Cllr Kerrie Bradburn and Cllr Clare Tevlin posted a massive vote share of over 50% and comfortably won their respective ward. Well done and congrats to Kerrie, Clare, and their teams for securing the seats for the Lib Dems!

Milton Keynes City Council, Bradwell
Liberal Democrat (Kerrie Bradburn): 1129 (56.1%, +2.3%)
Labour: 329 (16.3%, -8.6%)
Reform: 228 (11.3%, new)
Conservative: 226 (11.2%, -2.5%)
Green Party: 101 (5.0%, -2.5%)

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Lib Dems migrating to Bluesky

A number of prominent (and not so prominent) Lib Dems have deserted Twitter/X for the alternative platform Bluesky.

The party itself can be found at https://bsky.app/profile/libdems.org.uk

Now more than ever, we must stand up for core liberal values—equality, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

Join us in defending these values: http://libdems.org.uk/join

— Liberal Democrats (@libdems.org.uk) November 13, 2024 at 5:42 PM

Bluesky looks and feels very similar to the one we will not mention again. It has one very useful extra feature – starter packs – which are lists of related accounts. The official Lib Dem Starter Pack includes a growing number of MPs, plus the Party President, Mark Pack.

There is also a useful LibDem Starter Pack (note the subtle difference), run by Jennie Rigg, which includes lots of party members.

How can you tell that lots of Lib Dem MPs have started appearing on here?

By the fact that the Chief Whip has popped up to keep an eye on them 🙂

Welcome @wendychambld.bsky.social !

— Mark Pack (@markpackuk.bsky.social) November 14, 2024 at 2:57 PM

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Using the influence of the Liberal Network to push for peace: reviewing ties with Israel’s Yesh Atid

In September, Liberal Democrat Conference passed an emergency policy motion on Gaza and the wider Middle East conflict. We were proud to reaffirm our support for UNRWA, for international courts, and for our policies to suspend arms exports to Israel, cease trade with illegal settlements, and immediately recognise the state of Palestine.

There is, however, an unfortunate final clause in the emergency motion passed: “Conference further calls on Liberal Democrats to engage with all their ALDE and Liberal International sister parties to secure a two-state solution based on 1967 lines in the region, including Israel’s Yesh Atid party.”

Unfortunate, because Yesh Atid stands against almost everything the motion calls for.

Many Liberal Democrats will look to Gaza and think: ‘what difference can we make?’ But even in the absence of meaningful action by the government, and even from our position in opposition, there is something that we can do as an influential member of the family of liberal parties.

We can show that ‘business as usual’ cannot continue for and with those parties which completely disregard everything liberals believe in. We can and should begin moves to end Israel’s Yesh Atid party’s observer status within Liberal International.

In October 2024, the Israeli Knesset passed two Bills outlawing the operations in-Israel of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), responsible for the co-ordination of aid programmes for Palestinian refugees.

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The Timorese in Taunton: an unexpected migrant community

12 November in Timor Leste or East Timor, is National Youth Day, which commemorates the massacre of dozens of young pro-independence activists by Indonesian troops in the Santa Cruz cemetery in Dili in 1991. Like Sharpeville in South Africa in 1960, during the struggle against apartheid, Santa Cruz was a pivotal event in highlighting atrocities in the former Portuguese colony, which Indonesia had invaded and occupied in 1975, declaring it the Republic’s 27th province.

Back then, I was in correspondence with Lord Avebury, previously the Liberal MP Eric Lubbock, a supporter of East Timor’s right to self-determination, in the years when it seemed a lost cause. Yet by 1999, things in Jakarta had changed, with it agreeing to a UN supervised referendum, in which 78 per cent voted for independence, though the backlash from Indonesian-backed militias saw most of the infrastructure destroyed. This led to the deployment of the Australian-led InterFET peacekeeping force, to which the UK contributed the HMS Glasgow and the Gurkha regiment in Brunei.

Many of the young activists I met living in exile in the UK and Ireland would return home after independence in 2002, becoming parliamentarians, ministers, diplomats or civil servants, with others joining NGOs. However, there was a flow of people out of the country, for economic reasons, just as there were in the Philippines, and even Indonesia; unlike citizens of those countries, however, the East Timorese had the advantage of being entitled to Portuguese, and hence EU, citizenship, which at the time, enabled them to live and work in the UK without needing work permits.

As a result, East Timorese migrant communities sprung up in towns around the UK, like Oxford, Peterborough and Crewe, as well as Dungannon in Northern Ireland, which I visited in 2006, nicknaming it ‘New Dili’. While the Republic was far more supportive of their homeland’s struggle for independence than the UK, as a small nation itself, it was Northern Ireland, or rather the Moy Park chicken factory in Dungannon, which proved a far greater pull than Dublin.

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Ed Davey “devastating” at PMQs

Ed Davey’s performance at PMQs today was described by New Statesman journalist Rachel Cunliffe as “devastating” to Keir Starmer. She compared and contrasted Kemi Badenoch’s mis-steps with Ed making Starmer “awkward” when faced with questions about the NI rise for GP practices.

At the very start of PMQs, Jardine set up the topic of the NI rise with a straightforward question on support for GP practices. Ed Davey then picked up the theme once Badenoch was finished, asking for a further commitment that GPs, pharmacies and other healthcare providers would be protected from the tax rise. His tone was mild, his question factual rather than aggressive. But it made Starmer more awkward than he had been at any point facing Badenoch. After the Prime Minister had answered, Davey said quietly: “I think patients and GPs listening to that will want more reassurance”. It was devastating.

Christine Jardine asked the very first question at PMQs today, on that NI rise, having spent last week meeting worried GP practices in her Edinburgh West constituency.

In the two weeks since the Budget, several GP practices in my constituency of Edinburgh West, including my own, have contacted me with their genuine fears that the impact of the changes to national insurance employer contributions will threaten their ability to continue to offer the public the same standard of health service that they currently receive. And they are far from the only ones struggling, particularly in the health and social care sectors. Can the Prime Minister explain to me—perhaps he and his Chancellor would like to come to my constituency and explain to GPs, charities and others—how they are meant to cope without extra support from the Government?

The Prime Minister
Because of the tough decisions that we took, we have put forward a Budget with an extra £25.6 billion for the NHS and for social care. That includes an increase to carers’ allowance and £600 million to deal with the pressures of adult social care. We will ensure that GP practices have the resources that they need, and the funding arrangements between the NHS and contractors will be set out in the usual way.

Ed followed up with his first question

His second was on the importance of working with European leaders to support Ukraine given the impending Trump administration:

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