Lord William Wallace

William Wallace writes: The contradictions of ‘Global Britain’

By Lord William Wallace | Thu 11th March 2021 - 11:51 am

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A year ago Boris Johnson promised that his government would undertake the most fundamental review of the UK’s international priorities since the end of the Cold War.   He promised that this would be the biggest review of our foreign, defence and development policy since the end of the Cold War, designed to maximise our influence and integrate all the strands of our international efforts.

Next Tuesday, March 16th, the first part of this ‘Integrated Review of Foreign and Security Policy’ will be published – several months later than planned.  Changes in those responsible haven’t helped: David Frost was made national security adviser, then threatened to resign, then became instead the Cabinet minister for (mis)handling relations with the EU.  Dominic Raab was distracted by the messy business of putting the FCO and the Department for International Development (DfID) together.  The Prime Minister as usual wasn’t thinking things through.  We expect a smoothly-written essay on ‘Global Britain’, without much detail on what that means in practice.  The implications for defence manpower and resources will appear in a separate paper two weeks later.

Johnson has rhapsodised on ‘Global Britain’, without ever explaining what exactly that implied.  Freed from the constraints of the EU, he saw Britain recovering its ‘buccaneering spirit’; he seems unaware that the buccaneers were licensed pirates.  He’s been ecstatic about sending a carrier task force past Singapore to the South China Sea, though he never explained what the strategy behind that would be.  Tory think-tanks have produced reports on ‘the tilt to the Indo-Pacific’, which others have labelled ‘the tilt away from Europe’.

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Tahir Maher

Today’s Announcements – 10th March 2021

By Tahir Maher | Wed 10th March 2021 - 5:15 pm

MP calls on Govt to address maternal mental health

Sarah Olney, Liberal Democrat MP for Richmond Park, has today held a Westminster Hall debate on the mental health of mothers during the perinatal period, with a specific focus on the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated systemic problems for vulnerable women.  

Sarah Olney MP commented:

“The sheer volume of responses we’ve had in just a matter of days signals just how significant an issue this is, and how critical it is we act quickly.

“Even before the pandemic took hold of public resources, this was a service that was chronically underfunded

…

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Keith Sharp

Wendy Chamberlain MP becomes LDER President

By Keith Sharp | Wed 10th March 2021 - 12:00 pm

Liberal Democrats for Electoral Reform have a new President – Wendy Chamberlain, our MP for North East Fife.

Since entering Parliament in 2019, Wendy has made her mark as an articulate, vivid advocate of electoral reform. Through most of 2020, as our Political and Constitutional Reform front bench spokesperson, she led the campaign both inside and outside Parliament. Last June, she initiated an adjournment debate on the need for reform. In August, she urged party members to join a Make Votes Matter (MVM) nationwide ‘virtual’ Action Day, which saw hundreds of Liberal Democrats get involved.

A strong believer in linking reform to improving peoples’ everyday lives, also last June, Wendy spoke alongside Klina Jordan of MVM at a Green Liberal Democrats’ conference session on Electoral Reform and the Environment. In September, she led LDER’s virtual fringe meeting, along with the Electoral Reform Society, Make Votes Matter and Unite to Reform.

Our Parliamentary Chief Whip and Work and Pensions spokesperson, Wendy, has maintained her commitment to electoral reform. In February, she became a Vice-Chair of the newly-formed All-Party Parliamentary Group on Electoral Reform. (Alistair Carmichael, Wera Hobhouse and Lord Paul Tyler are also APPG members). Wendy is also a member of the APPG on Deliberative Democracy.

Wendy said:

In an era of increasing identity politics, the place has increasing importance to many. With Covid-19, however, the straining of centralised decision making at Westminster, and better recognition of the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, could mean electoral reform’s time has come. It’s increasingly clear that the fundamental change required to ensure the future of the UK and a representative democracy starts with electoral reform.

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Sarah Olney

Liberal Democrats join 100 MPs in backing the Climate and Ecological Emergency (CEE) Bill

By Sarah Olney | Wed 10th March 2021 - 10:30 am

The Covid-19 pandemic has been a great revealer. It has exposed the sections of our society that work well – the kindness in our communities, the brave and vital roles of our key workers, and the life-saving potential of scientific technologies – while also revealing the elements that need fixing. As the world begins a process of renewal and reform, climate change and ecological renewal must be at the centre of that positive change.

The climate and nature crisis is the most pressing problem facing the world. The question of how we can continue to sustain life on earth is existential. It would be easy to think that the pandemic has solved this quandary: as normal life ground to a halt, global emissions reduced by almost 8% in the first half of 2020 alone. But as the world begins to reopen, there is still much work to be done. 

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David Gracie

Scottish Independence

By David Gracie | Wed 10th March 2021 - 9:15 am

English nationalists made us vote blind on Brexit.  Our eyes are now well and truly open. The SNP ask us to vote blind on independence in May.  They offer no plan.  They can’t. For the foreseeable future, leaving the Union would be a disaster for the Scottish people.

Scottish Government figures for 2019/20 expenditure and revenue show a deficit of 8.6%, about average for the last five years.  Our expenditure per head at £1,633 was about 12% more than the UK, and we paid £380 or 2.5% less tax, including oil and gas.  The rest of the UK envy our free university education, prescriptions and home care.  UK subsidies by the Barnett formula underwrite our jobs, health, pensions, education, social security and other public services.  According to the 2018 SNP Commission, an independent Scotland would need 5 to 10 years of austerity to replace them.

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The Voice

Scottish Liberal Democrats secure hundreds of millions for mental health and education in budget deal

By The Voice | Tue 9th March 2021 - 8:55 pm

The Scottish Liberal Democrats backed the SNP Government’s budget today. The minority administration needs the support of opposition parties to get its budget through.

Leader Willie Rennie negotiated with SNP Finance Secretary Kate Forbes and, as you would expect, asked for more money for mental health, education, local government, environment, training and business support. He also asked for assurances that specialist eye treatments would be available in Lothian.

The full list of the Lib Dem gains in the budget are:

 

  • An extra £120million for mental health services to pay for new services in communities.
  • An extra £60million to help education bounce back with smaller class sizes.
  • Additional support for businesses and the release of money for local authorities.
  • Fair funding for the internal ferries in Orkney and Shetland.
  • An extra £20million to provide more in-class support to children who need it by topping up the Pupil Equity Fund. This is money paid directly to headteachers to provide additional support to pupils from less well-off backgrounds. This represents a rough 16% increase on the current year.
  • £15million in special allocations to the North East to pay for skills training, upskilling and business support in a region particularly under pressure given its reliance on fossil fuel industries.
  • The addition of compensation for the council tax freeze into the baseline of local government funding, worth around £90million, which will remove the risk that councils would face a cliff edge on funding next year.
  • £5million more for agriculture transition funding, which rewards farmers for environmental stewardship and helps our climate change priorities.
  • A clear commitment that specialised eye services in Lothian will be protected.

Willie said:

Scottish Liberal Democrats have been engaged with SNP ministers since the draft budget was published in January. We think that people expect parties to work together in the middle of a pandemic. Our focus has been to put recovery first.

“We have highlighted the need for business support, an education bounce back plan, and better mental health services, given the pressure we know that the virus crisis has put on people.

“As a result of those constructive discussions, the Budget Bill was substantially amended. Those changes were announced by the Finance Secretary in the stage one debate ten days ago and put onto the face of the Budget Bill at the parliamentary committee this morning.

“As a result of discussions since then, further changes have been agreed which allow Scottish Liberal Democrat MSPs to support the budget at its final stage tomorrow. This includes additional money for supporting pupils, training fund for the North East to support the just transition, a further £90m for local authorities and money to support farmers engaged in environmental stewardship.

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Michal Siewniak

VIDEO – European nationals and the importance of the local elections 2021

By Michal Siewniak | Tue 9th March 2021 - 1:01 pm

Local elections 2021, Thursday, 6th May

The UK has now left the EU, however did you know that:

  • You can still vote in the local elections as a European citizen?
  • Your vote hugely matters?
  • You can continue shaping the future of the local communities?
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Isabelle Parasram

What’s it like to be disabled in Britain in 2021?

By Isabelle Parasram | Tue 9th March 2021 - 10:28 am

I’m in the midst of preparing for my forthcoming webinar: ‘What’s it Like to be Disabled in Britain in 2021?’ with speakers Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, Michelle Daley and Dan White.

And I have learned so much. – Especially from members of the public who’ve sent in descriptions of their experiences to me*.

Emma shared with me that being disabled in Britain for her is being anxious about an appointment she’s been to numerous times before, but never knowing if she’s going to be able to park safely. Or, even if she can park safely, being able to get out of the car.

It’s about never being spontaneous, because she has to spend hours on Google figuring out whether there’s a disabled toilet nearby or whether she can access a particular building. She described it as her freedom taken away from her.

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Paul Walter

Ed leads Lib Dems back onto the streets

By Paul Walter | Tue 9th March 2021 - 8:46 am

As stated on the Lib Dem website, yesterday was a major milestone for leaflet delivery and canvassing in England:

Delivery of leaflets by members and volunteers
Applicability: England from 8th March, Scotland from 15th March, Wales tbc
Volunteer delivery is permitted and has been risk-assessed. Volunteer delivery should be organised in line with the agreed party protocols, which can be found here on the Campaign Hub (Sign up here for access to the Hub).

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Caron Lindsay

International Women’s Day: Chloe Hutchinson on the difference of having more young women in politics

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 8th March 2021 - 6:50 pm

Chloe Hutchinson is one of the brightest talents in our party. She heads up the South Wales West list for the Senedd elections this year. She gave a keynote speech to Welsh Conference yesterday about the difference Welsh Lib Dems can make in May. Let’s hope Chloe is elected because she would be a powerful voice for liberty and equality.

We have just 8 weeks left in what is one of the most important, and probably strangest, elections that many of us have fought. COVID 19 has had a devastating impact on our communities and it is essential that the next Welsh Government puts recovery first. From calling people across your communities to check in, to supporting local foodbanks and leading volunteer groups – thank you for everything you have done.

Thank you too for everything you have done so far and are continuing to do to help us get our message out to voters and rebuild a liberal base, offering real choice to our communities ahead of this election.

It is a privilege to be standing for this party and to be supported by so many of you here. That support means even more to me as a young woman engaging in politics when the average politician does not look like me. Now things have been getting better, slowly. Following the 2019 election 34% of the MPs elected to parliament were women, the highest ever. In Wales, we were ahead of the curve – in 2003 50% of Senedd members were women. However only 28% of councillors in Wales are women, and a woman of colour has never been elected to the Welsh Parliament, and we are at real risk of electing even less women this May.

Whether you want to run for a parliamentary seat or local council, campaign to get others elected or on an issue you are passionate about – get involved. 

This May, we will also see 16 and 17 year olds in Wales being able to vote for the first time, something we have long campaigned for. Now, I first got involved in politics during the 2014 European election, researching the issues and debating with my friends. I decided that I liked what the Liberal Democrats stood for. It just made sense. Unfortunately, I was just 6 days too young to vote. 

A few months later, angry at the number of UKIP MEPs I was now represented by and inspired by a campaign run by fantastic young woman, I decided to go to a youth conference and quickly got involved in Young Liberals, or more specifically IR Cymru.

From campaigns for cheaper bus travel, a youth parliament, more inclusive and cheaper school uniforms, and a new relationship and sexuality education that is inclusive to LGBT+ people, includes consent, and empowers young people to have healthy relationships, it has been fantastic to see young Liberal Democrats bring these to conference and even better to see them put into practice by Welsh Liberal Democrats in the Senedd. 

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Wendy Taylor

“Pick a Ward and Win It”… in the 1950s…

By Wendy Taylor | Mon 8th March 2021 - 3:52 pm

Cllr Wendy Taylor offers us this story as a memorial to her late father, Brian. In his own words…

In the General Election of 1945 I voted Labour and I did this not in England, but in Lebanon, where I was stationed at the time. It was not until late 1947 that I was finally demobilised, moving to Bromley in 1948. The next few years were devoted to building up my dental practice and at elections during that time I continued to vote Labour. My wife Susan voted Tory, so we cancelled each other out.

In 1955 I began to become disillusioned with Labour and sought information from the Liberal Party. I was sent some literature and decided it was the party for me. My enquiry was passed on to the local Bromley Association and soon after, a rather nondescript little man, who announced himself as Mr Parker, came to see me, enrolled me as a member and invited me to a committee meeting few days later in central Bromley.

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Mark Valladares

The Party’s disciplinary processes – justice delayed is justice denied?

By Mark Valladares | Mon 8th March 2021 - 12:46 pm

It sometimes seems as though the Party has been adjusting its internal conduct and discipline system since its foundation. And, of course, you have to have one because not everyone is reasonable, and people don’t always behave reasonably towards each other in an organisation where the idea is to convince people of the rightness of your views, to win the argument, if you like.

The problem is that, with any process, you have to supply the resources to make it work, and if the experiences of too many people are to be believed, that simply isn’t the case currently. It would be very easy to blame the professional staff responsible for managing the system but, from painful personal experience, I can vouch that they are too few in number to manage the flow of complaints, and too dependent on volunteers to fill all of the roles that the process requires.

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Caron Lindsay

International Women’s Day: Beatrice Wishart on gender balance going backwards at Holyrood

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 8th March 2021 - 11:00 am

Today is International Women’s Day. And if you are one of those people who find it necessary to ask if there’s an International Men’s Day, it’s 19th November.

So today, I’ll be making the occasional intervention on Mark’s day to report on what senior Liberal Democrats are saying about International Women’s Day.

Beatrice Wishart, Lib Dem MSP for Shetland got in early with her speech in the Holyrood International Women’s Day event last Thursday. She highlighted the problems women were facing juggling work and caring responsibilities during the pandemic. She also spoke about the exodus of young women MSPs who  have found it too difficult to combine raising a family with their parliamentary duties. One of the women stepping down is Gail Ross, the SNP MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross. If the Parliament had got its act together on hybrid proceedings before the pandemic, maybe she and others might have felt able to stay. Happy International Women’s Day, everyone!

Equality is one of the four founding principles of the Scottish Parliament.

It should be at the core of everything we do here.

And yet, 20 years into this Parliament, so many challenges remain. We undoubtedly still have work to do.

In November we spoke about problems around violence against women. The life ruining crimes. The hideous harassment. Problems that just have to be addressed, globally and closer to home.

Of course, those are not the only challenges women face.

Many have said that the pandemic “turned back the clock” on gender equality.

It is certainly true that negative impacts have fallen disproportionately on women.

Job losses and income reductions have been widespread. An International Monetary Fund report highlighted how women are more likely than men to work in social sectors including retail, tourism, and hospitality where lockdown has been most widely felt.

The true value of care has come into the limelight, both professionally and domestically. 

And the responsibility to manage home schooling all hit women harder, without question.

Many people found themselves between a rock and a hard place, juggling impossible burdens and expectations. 

These problems are not new. There is nothing unfamiliar in what I’ve just described.

The relationship between women and work has always been fragile.

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Michael Wallis

Let’s talk about transport

By Michael Wallis | Mon 8th March 2021 - 8:52 am

For some reason, people often seem surprised that whilst I own a house and have a driving licence I choose not to have a car. I could afford to buy and run a car, but I choose not to, because I don’t need one. The public transport network where I live isn’t perfect and the walking and cycling infrastructure could do with some improvement, but it’s more than enough for me to get around.

Transport accounts for around a third of UK greenhouse gas emissions, with most of this coming from road transport. Therefore, given the government’s commitments made at the Paris climate summit, the government should be seeking to do whatever it can to help us reduce the amount of traffic on the roads. And inevitably when this government fails to take any action, the opposition parties should be making a fuss about it!

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Mark Valladares

Welcome to my (International Women’s) Day – 8 March 2021

By Mark Valladares | Mon 8th March 2021 - 7:30 am

Heavens, is it Monday already? Apparently so, and not just any Monday, but International Women’s Day, so there’ll be some content to reflect that, courtesy of our Editor-in-Chief.

I should take this opportunity to point readers towards Parliament’s celebrations of both International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month Although, somewhat curiously, both Houses will be marking it with debates on… Thursday.

Otherwise, I’ll be offering some thoughts on the Party’s disciplinary processes – which reflect some comments I’ve received from others who will remain nameless but may recognise the points that I’m making.

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Caron Lindsay

Your last chance to apply for the Ethnic Minority Future MPs Weekend

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 7th March 2021 - 5:57 pm

One of the great successes of the Campaign for Gender Balance has been its (still ongoing) series of Future Women MPs weekends. I know that Layla, Christine, Daisy and Wendy at least – and I think others – all went on one. Some even went to the same one.

The Racial Diversity Campaign is adopting the same model and is having an Ethnic Minority Future MPs Weekend next Saturday and Sunday and there are still places available. From an email sent round today:

The Lib Dem Racial Diversity Campaign would like to invite you to apply to the Ethnic Minority Future MPs’ Weekend to be held Zoom on 13th – 14th March 2021.

With sessions delivered by our MPs and more, the event is a free intensive training weekend for aspiring ethnic minority candidates, designed to equip you with the knowledge you succeed as a Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate.

Daisy Cooper (MP for St Albans and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats)
Munira Wilson (MP for Twickenham)
Baroness Lynne Featherstone (former minister and MP for Hornsey and Wood Green)
Margaret Joachim (Chair of the English Candidates Committee)

As well as expert advice on your political career, the weekend will give you:
Information and advice on all aspects of the process from how to apply for approval, through to planning and winning your selection on your way to standing for Parliament
An opportunity to formulate your Personal Development Plan
Key skills on strategically planning your career in politics
A fantastic opportunity to network and make useful contacts with other aspiring ethnic minority candidates within the party

You can apply here – but hurry because the applications close tomorrow.

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The Voice

WATCH: Jane Dodds’ speech to Welsh Lib Dem Conference

By The Voice | Sun 7th March 2021 - 2:15 pm

Welsh Liberal Democrats have been holding their Conference this weekend, also online.

In her leader’s speech, Jane Dodds talked about making Wales the green economic power house of a reformed UK, of the need for greater mental health support and investment in housing and tackling poverty with a Universal Basic Income trial. She talked of the importance of both people and planet to Wales’ recovery.

Watch it here:

The text is below:

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Tracey Huffer

NHS pay rise of a measly 1% is too little to reward the health heroes of our nation

By Tracey Huffer | Sun 7th March 2021 - 12:18 pm

We have stood on the streets and applauded our front line NHS staff. We have wondered at their resilience in the biggest health crisis of our lifetimes. We have sympathised with them when they have fallen ill and with their families when they have died.

The reward health service workers will get for their efforts is a measly 1% pay rise. Ministers seem not to recognise that those who have worked themselves into exhaustion, taken on extra shifts, faced danger every working day need a boost. With tax allowances frozen, the lowest paid staff and frontline nurses should at least get the 2.1% pay rise they were promised.

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The Voice

Ed Davey’s speech to Scottish Lib Dem Conference – Independence is Brexit 2.0

By The Voice | Sun 7th March 2021 - 10:45 am

Ed Davey spoke to Scottish Lib Dem Conference on Friday. Here is his speech in full:

One of the things that gives me great hope for our Party is seeing so many brilliant rising stars like Joe.

In the year of COP26, Glasgow will be in the global spotlight, and I hope that talented young activists like Joe can be at the forefront of making liberal voices heard. In the crucial debate of our generation – the climate.

I had hoped that by now the Government would be on top of this pandemic. That I would be speaking in person and with you able to knock on doors to get as many Liberal Democrat MSPs elected as possible.

Instead, I was delighted to join some of you for the recent Maraphone event that took place on Six Nations weekend.

You may not have beaten Wales on the pitch, but on the phones Scotland reigns supreme. And please don’t mention the Calcutta Cup.

But seriously, if you haven’t yet had a chance to join one of those Maraphone events, I would highly recommend it. It feels pretty good to connect with voters again.

When I spoke to you last, I was in the middle of my listening tour, travelling up and down the UK.

I talked of our internationalist values and our unwavering pro-European commitment.

And Brexit is already the disaster we said it would be – with huge costs for business.

From the record increase in red tape hitting our exporters to the loss of the Erasmus scheme, Boris Johnson’s Conservative Government’s response to the worst economic downturn in 300 years is – to make it more difficult to trade. More difficult to do business. More difficult to keep your job. The Tories seem determined to make us smaller, poorer and more isolated.

They didn’t write that on the side of their bus.

To take just one example: Scottish seafood exporters are losing £1m every day – when the Government could have followed Christine Jardine’s advice and secured a grace period for their trading arrangements.

The UK deserves better than this. I have never been more convinced that being part of the European Union must be part of our country’s destiny.

Sadly Brexit is not the only challenge facing the Scottish economy.

The UK Government has been no more successful at selling the best of Scotland across the Atlantic than it has at keeping the free flow of goods to the continent.

Scotch Whisky exports are now at their lowest levels for 10 years — a product in which Scotland is the utterly undisputed world leader. The Conservatives spent years cosying up to Donald Trump and now we are paying the price.

As we come out of the pandemic, I want to see a green recovery with high skilled, high wage jobs for people in every corner of the UK. I want to see our world leading industries flourishing with hundreds of thousands of good jobs.

That will never happen under Boris Johnson’s cruel and incompetent Conservative Government, whose budget this week threatens to cut off the recovery before it has even got started, letting down small businesses and allowing far too many people to fall through the cracks.

Nor will it happen under a hapless SNP government who would impose independence – Brexit 2.0.

Liberal Democrats want to put recovery first. The SNP want to break-up first.

Liberal Democrats have plans to recover the health and jobs of the Scottish people, SNP plans would harm the NHS and hit jobs across Scotland.

We Liberal Democrats want to see a society richer in more than just material terms. I want to see a society that is fairer, greener and more caring.

That’s why last year I pledged to be the voice of the 9 million carers in our country.

If you’ve heard my story before you will know that this is a deeply personal subject to me. I’ve been a carer throughout my life – for my mum during my teens, then for my wonderful Nanna, and now for my disabled son.

Our Stand up for Carers campaign aims to make sure that carers are no longer forgotten or left behind by those in power.

I have been inspired by Willie Rennie, who has pressed the Scottish Government for months over carers and the situation in care homes.

From exposing the lack of tests and PPE, to pushing for safe visiting to be allowed once more. The people in these homes have spent months apart from their families.

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Tom Arms

Tom Arms’ World Review – 6 March 2021

By Tom Arms | Sun 7th March 2021 - 8:55 am

In this weekend’s look at world politics our foreign correspondent Tom Arms looks at political events in the UK, Boris Johnson cutting aid to Yemen, politics in the EU shifting to the left, a bad week for ex-French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and ASEAN foreign ministers pushing for the release of Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the return to democracy in Myanmar.

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Caron Lindsay

Willie Rennie reaches out to disillusioned SNP voters in speech to Scottish Conference

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 6th March 2021 - 6:36 pm

In his speech to Scottish Spring Conference, Willie Rennie reached out to disillusioned SNP voters who may be upset by the division in their party and the SNP Government’s failures in so many areas. He set out what I reckon is the Scottish Liberal Democrats most bold and radical offer for 22 years. It really has that vibe of reform about it. Free human rights based social care, a job for every teacher on the register if they want it, a housing first approach to homelessness, economic regeneration are all part of the package to put recovery first.

He also shared memories of Charles Kennedy after last week’s documentary.

He was introduced by Cllr Liz Barrett, who won a fantastic Council by-election victory at the end of last year.

The full text is below:

Councillor Liz Barrett.

Councillor for the ancient capital of Scotland.

Victor over the SNP in John Swinney’s back yard.

Winning from third place.

Thank you, Liz.  You are a true liberal champion.

Conference, it’s almost six years since we lost our Charles, Charles Kennedy.

But last week we were treated to a wonderful tribute to his life in that BBC Alba documentary: A good man speaking.

We all have our own personal recollections of Charles.

Mine was the extraordinary courage it took, just days after acknowledging his alcoholism and resigning as Leader of the Liberal Democrats, to come to Dunfermline.

He came to help me win that by-election.

He would have been forgiven if he had chosen to hide away, to recuperate, to nurse his wounds, but instead he chose to face it up.

As we walked down the High Street, surrounded by the mass ranks of the media, a voice from a pensioner at the back shouted – “we love you Charles”.

As quick as a flash he retorted: “now madam, I am in enough trouble as it is”.

But that lady spoke for us all.

And if there is a lasting legacy from Charles Kennedy’s life it should be the conduct of the debate, of elections, of political life.

That would be a good way to remember our Charles.

I think Charles would be pleased with how the Liberal Democrats have conducted ourselves over the last year through the pandemic.  To put recovery first.

We set aside our differences to work together.

Working constructively with the government to deliver funds for business, tourism, fishing; an expansion of testing; access for parents of new borns; and a faster roll-out of the vaccine.

Ministers have recognised the part we have played from the First Minister to the Health Secretary to the Economy Secretary.

We rolled up our sleeves to get us through this pandemic.

There was a lovely sight this week that has made all that work worthwhile.

After months of separation, families are safely back together again in care homes.

It was certainly the right thing to do.

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Katharine Pindar

Which kind of equality do the Lib Dems value most?

By Katharine Pindar | Sat 6th March 2021 - 11:46 am

Considering here just everyone living in Britain, all of whom Liberal Democrats value, what kind of equality should we seek for them? And what matters most for public policy?

Equality of treatment in health and social care, I suppose we expect and the nation demands, not just our party. So far there is no disagreement. But equality of educational opportunity for all children and young people? We haven’t got that in our country, far from it. For Liberal Democrats to campaign for it when we aren’t prepared to reduce the privileges of the private schools perhaps limits our efforts, but we will surely try to help.

Do we seek equality of income for all? Hardly. Or of wealth ownership? Scarcely. But we do want nobody to live in poverty. 

Then, how about equal freedom for everyone to have satisfying lives? Yes, certainly. Equal freedom to ensure our children have good lives? Yes, surely. However, both those last two aspects of equality depend on freedom, which to me is the greatest good.

Well, equality is a Liberal Democrat value as well as freedom. We as a party wanted everyone to have the equal provision of a basic citizens’ income when we passed the UBI motion at the last Conference. However, is it not possible, if that is the only income-related equality we seek, that the nation might in achieving it become more unequal? Because there could be large swathes of the working-age population in future subsisting on the basic income, whether out of necessity or to relish the freedom it represents. Perhaps we will stop trying to help everyone who wants a job to find one. Perhaps we will stop bothering about them not having a home of their own, rented or privately owned? Well, no, you will say, of course we want everyone to have a secure and affordable home – equality in that. So housing benefit must continue.

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Tom Arms

Observations of an Ex Pat – Why is America Great?

By Tom Arms | Sat 6th March 2021 - 7:03 am

Trump supporters continue to sport MAGA hats and shout “Make America Great Again” at rallies. It is a catchy slogan which has captured the conservative American imagination. It is here to stay whether Donald Trump is in or out of the White House.

But what does it mean? What makes America great and, perhaps more importantly, what makes it un-great?

The answer is complicated by the difficulty of wedding individual perspectives to universal truths. But I think it is important to search for it, so I have asked the opinion of a number of people with whom I have worked with over the years.

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Jane Dodds

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader pledges to “Put Recovery First” at forthcoming Senedd election

By Jane Dodds | Sat 6th March 2021 - 12:01 am

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds will today address her party’s Virtual Spring Conference, vowing to “Put Recovery First” by focusing on the economy, people’s mental health and the environment as Wales begins to emerge from the current pandemic.

Addressing the party’s virtual conference, she will say:

“At this critical moment in our future anything other than securing our recovery from Covid and the havoc it has reigned on every aspect of our lives would be foolish.”

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 1 Comment
Andrew Parkhurst

Tory Budget Targets Lowest Earners for Greatest Pain

By Andrew Parkhurst | Fri 5th March 2021 - 3:19 pm

On first sight there seems little in Rishi Sunak’s budget to scare the horses. With tax threshold increases delayed and Covid support continuing for the time being, Sunak has avoided an immediate hit to families’ wallets.

Look below the surface though and what becomes apparent is that those on the lowest incomes will suffer the most once the measures outlined in the budget kick in.

The most glaring example of this is the cruel decision to reduce universal credit at the end of September by £20 per week, just at the time when unemployment is expected to rise. This will hurt the poorest families the hardest and shows the lack of compassion and empathy that is at the heart of Tory thinking.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 26 Comments
NewsHound

LGBT+ people across Wales need answers from Plaid over trans rights, say Welsh Lib Dems

By NewsHound | Fri 5th March 2021 - 2:42 pm

A press release from Welsh Lib Dems.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats challenged Plaid Cymru on the eve of their conference to provide clarity on their position on LGBT+ rights and equality.

Last week a young trans woman of colour was removed from a hustings meeting after protesting about her inability to question a panel member and sitting Plaid Cymru Senedd Member Helen Mary Jones, over her previous comments on trans rights. The young woman has since blogged about her experience.

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Posted in Wales | Tagged | 6 Comments
NewsHound

Win for women’s pensions after Steve Webb and media campaign

By NewsHound | Fri 5th March 2021 - 1:55 pm

After a campaign by the former Lib Dem pensions minister Steve Webb, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has agreed to investigate underpayments of state pensions over the last 20 years. That could lead to back-payments averaging about £13,500. The problem is thought to affect 200,000 women who retired before 6 April 2016 and received the old state pension.

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Posted in LibLink and News | 1 Comment
Jane Dodds

Small businesses will be the engine of recovery say Welsh Lib Dems

By Jane Dodds | Fri 5th March 2021 - 9:49 am

The Welsh Liberal Democrats hold their on line conference this weekend – the last before the Senedd – Welsh Parliament – elections in May. The Party is ambitious in its aim to win seats across Wales in both urban and rural areas and the conference this weekend will focus on putting the recovery first through policies on the environment, mental health and rebuilding our economy. The party has focused on businesses and green economic growth.

Wales is a nation of towns and villages, and small businesses. We know our small businesses will be the engine of our recovery from Covid, and will be key to rebuilding a resilient, strong and sustainable economy, putting right the failures of decades of under-investment in Wales.

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Posted in Conference | Tagged and | 2 Comments
The Voice

Spring Conference is next weekend. Got something to say? Let everyone know through LDV

By The Voice | Fri 5th March 2021 - 7:18 am

Our Spring Conference begins next Friday and continues across the weekend. There is, as always, a busy agenda. Among the topics on Friday are local government, Covid-19, lifting barriers to work for disabled people and a speech from Jane Dodds. Saturday there will a Q&A with Ed Davey, debates on utilities, the Russia Report, Covid-19, Brexit and a speech from Willie Rennie. Sunday will see the leader’s speech and debates on autism, international development, accessibility in education and on refugees.

If you have views on these topics why not write an article for Lib Dem Voice? We expect to publish several articles towards the end of next week.

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Posted in Conference | Tagged | 7 Comments
Mary Reid

Jane Dodds selected as candidate for Senedd

By Mary Reid | Thu 4th March 2021 - 5:43 pm

Jane Dodds, the Leader of the Welsh Lib Dems, has been selected as the top name on the Mid and West Wales list for the Welsh Parliament. At the last Senedd election in 2016 we came very close to winning a seat in this region.

Jane was briefly MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, winning a by-election in 2019, but sadly lost the seat in the bloodbath that was the General Election later that year.

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 9 Comments
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    David Allan, you build a whole argument on something I didn't say. The issue with electoral reform is who can you trust? I only made the point that you CAN trus...
  • Pawel Urbanski
    The value here is what we learn, not just where we finish. This is a constituency with a lot of independent businesses and a lot of urban liberal-minded voters,...
  • Hywel
    "I agree. We are not in the running for this seat." But as pointed out in the OP, the Lib Dems are in second place in only 27 seats. You could wait the whol...
  • David Allen
    "Sorry Jana, but the only people we can trust to deliver electoral reform are ourselves." Sorry Mick Taylor, but the Lib Dems acting alone don't stand a sno...
  • Peter Davies
    "Low Pay Commission research shows that the UK minimum wage has caused little to no overall job loss." It is part of the Low Pay Commission remit to recommend a...