The Voice

Get ready for Autumn Conference – papers published

By The Voice | Mon 4th August 2025 - 7:33 pm

It’s just six weeks on Saturday until we all gather in Bournemouth for Autumn Conference.

Over the past few days, the party has published the final agenda, Conference reports and the outcome of the Policy Review. You can read them all here.

The four days of Conference will see debates on topics ranging from youth work to climate change to emergency care, transport, reducing harm from gambling, helping contaminated blood victims, giving Ukrainian children certainty in the UK and protecting women’s rights across the globe.

On Monday afternoon the Policy Review will be debated. This is the outcome of a year’s work by a group chaired by Ed Davey. It seeks to identify any areas where they think our policy needs to be updated in the run-up to the next election.

From the forward:

The Liberal Democrats’ purpose in British politics, however, is much
greater than just vanquishing what’s left of the Conservative Party and
being the careful scrutineers of Labour’s actions – crucial though those
jobs are. Our purpose is as it has always been, as it is spelt out in our
party’s constitution: to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society,
in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality
and community, and in which no one shall be enslaved by poverty,
ignorance or conformity.

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Les Tarr

Community Councils – 50 years of being at the heart of our communities

By Les Tarr | Sun 3rd August 2025 - 11:55 am

They have been with us for 50 years, coming into existence in 1975, through the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973. Their value is becoming more important as local authorities funding is cut, local services are being withdrawn with local community groups picking up the slack.

What are they?

They’re the most local implementation of governance in Scotland, designed to be non-party political and non-sectarian, and inclusive regardless of gender, race, age, disability, nationality or sexual orientation.  

Their effectiveness can be shaped by their geographical nature and fit into three types.

  • Urban Community Councils: In cities like Glasgow or Edinburgh, community councils may represent densely populated neighbourhoods with complex issues. 
  • Rural Community Councils: In remote areas, such as the Highlands and Shires along with smaller coastal areas, their focus will be on issues like broadband access, transportation links and the sustainability of local schools. 
  • Island Community Councils: On islands like Orkney or Shetland, community councils often tackle unique challenges, such as seaboard transport links, access to healthcare, and depopulation. 

Why do we need them?

Their role is to provide:

  • Consultation: Local authorities by law are required to consult with communities on planning and licensing applications, roles where community councils provide that interface. Community councils also have a role in gathering residents’ views on local authority initiatives.
  • Advocacy: Community councils act as advocates, championing improvements and drawing attention to issues ranging from transport and housing to public safety and environmental concerns.
  • Initiation of Projects: Many community councils initiate and manage local projects, organise events, maintaining community spaces, supporting local clubs, and developing community plans.
  • Information Source: They have a role in keeping residents informed about local issues, changes to services, and opportunities for engagement through newsletters, social media, public meetings, and notice boards.
  • Partnerships: Community councils work with local authorities, police, health boards, and voluntary sector organisations to deliver services and enhance community well-being.

In truth not all community councils will fulfil these roles, their level of community activities will be shaped by the community’s profile and demographics

What challenges do community councils face?

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Tom Arms

Tom Arms’ World Review

By Tom Arms | Sun 3rd August 2025 - 9:18 am

Gaza

“There is no starvation in Gaza. There is no policy of starvation in Gaza,” so spake Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Well, just about everyone disagrees with him, including his good buddy Donald Trump.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) in July alone 63 Gazans died of malnutrition. Obviously many more are suffering from it and still clinging to life. Of those who died 24 were children and 38 adults. The adults were mainly parents who gave what little food they had to their children.

Death from malnutrition is one of the worst possible ways to die. It takes months and is extremely painful.

It usually starts with fatigue. Then the body—in its search for the energy it needs to stay alive—starts to break down muscle tissue from the organs, including the heart and lungs. The skin becomes dry and develops sores. Hair falls out. The victim suffers severe stomach cramps and joint and muscle pain. The victims become highly susceptible to other disease. In the final stages a malnourished person becomes apathetic, confused and then dies.

The worst affected, are children under three. They are more likely to become malnourished simply because they are at an age when their fast-growing bodies need more energy/fuel. They also have limited reserves of fat so they become malnourished more quickly.

Survivors can suffer long-term problems, dependent on how soon they can be treated high calorie foods such as “plumpy nut.” But they have to be treated in special centres over a period of many months or their bodies can suffer other problems.

If their state of starvation is too far advanced, then the children especially will suffer complications for the rest of their lives.

They will almost certainly be below height and weight and the onset of puberty will be delayed. The children will be more susceptible to diarrhoea, pneumonia, malaria, measles and chronic diseases. They will also have a lower IQ and have difficulty concentrating.  According to the WHO, children who survive severe malnutrition are 12 times more likely to die from a childhood disease.

If they survive to adulthood, they will suffer from depression and anxiety and find it difficult to forge relationships.

One of the main reasons for long-lasting damage is the permanent harm that malnutrition does to the synaptic connections. These are the tiny electrical connections between the body’s cells. Synaptic connections are most commonly referred to when talking about brain functions, but they are also vital in the nervous system and keeping the heart pumping.

Brazil and Canada

Trump’s tariffs are now a political weapon. Actually, they have always been in his political arsenal. He is just being a bit more open about using excise duties for political ends.

The two main targets this week are Canada and Brazil.

The latter involves Trump’s Brazilian friend Jair Bolsonaro. The former Brazilian president was known as the “Latin Trump” and the two men had a lot in common. Not only did their policies overlap, so did the way in which they left office.

Both men claimed that their second runs for the presidency of their respective countries were “stolen” by a “deep state” liberal establishment. Both men also allegedly organised coups to reverse the results of those elections and encouraged their supporters to storm federal buildings to keep them in power.

Trump got away with it. His 2024 election victory brought an abrupt halt to attempts to bring him to trial. Bolsonaro was not so lucky. First he was banned from running for office again until 2030 and then, in February of this year, he was told by Brazil’s Supreme Court that he must stand trial.

Trump’s says the charges against Bolsonaro are “a political witch hunt” and he has slapped a 50 percent tariff on Brazil. He also sanctioned the judge—Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes—leading the investigation of Bolsonaro with sanctions and blocked the justice’s access to US investments.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (Lula) has responded by telling Trump that if January 6 had occurred in Brazil, he would be in prison.

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Tom Arms

Observations of an Expat: Project Esther

By Tom Arms | Sat 2nd August 2025 - 10:10 am

The Heritage Foundation is best known as the people who brought us Project 2025. Remember, that was the blueprint for a second Trump Administration which Trump denied he ever heard of and then implemented.

About the same time as Project 2025 was published, The Heritage Foundation produced another blueprint—Project Esther.

The paper is named after the biblical heroine who saved her people in ancient Persia. Its avowed purpose is “A National Strategy to Combat Anti-Semitism.” Its real purpose is to use the veneer of Jewish protection to introduce extraordinary governmental and legal manoeuvres to stifle left-wing dissent.

Like most Trumpian projects, fear is a central element. In the case of Project Esther it is fear of all things Palestinian and anything opposed to the government of Israel. The authors of Project Esther call the object of fear the “Hamas Support Network” (HSN).

In Project Esther’s playbook, HSN encompasses a broad swathe of organisations, student groups, and individual activists. Any far‑left, anticolonial and anti‑Zionist movements is dubbed the moral equivalent of terrorism.  It then goes on to say that because these organisations—that as anyone critical of Israel—are terrorists that they are an organised danger to American society as well as Jewish society.

The next step, according to Project Esther, is to use governmental instruments originally used to combat organised crime to pursue the alleged anti-Semites. The Heritage Foundation proposed using anti-racketeer statues (RICO) and the Foreign Agents Registration Act alongside counter-terrorism laws to prosecute individuals and groups aligned with, or sympathetic to, Palestinian rights.

Universities are key battlegrounds. Project Esther calls for the identification and purging of pro‑Palestinian faculty, pressure on administrations through funding threats, and the surveillance of student protestors. It encourages public firings and invites cutting off visa status or revoking student visas for non‑citizens participating in such activism.

Surveillance and data gathering is a big part of the envisioned infrastructure. Heritage proposes a vertically integrated apparatus linking private security firms, campus police, federal agencies and universities—with techniques including facial recognition, data mining and social media scraping to monitor affinity networks and anticipate dissent before it flourish.

Importantly, the project is rooted in Christian nationalist and evangelical Zionist networks. There is minimal participation from Jewish organisations. In fact, major Jewish groups declined involvement in discussions surrounding Project Esther. They are reportedly uncomfortable with Esther’s selective focus on left-wing anti-Semitism while neglecting the far-right, which they view as the true anti-Semitic threat.

The Heritage Foundation even identifies prominent Jewish figures—such as George Soros and J.B. Pritzker—as anti-Semitic political masterminds behind the pro-Palestinian movement.

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Liam Yip

ALDC by-election report, 31st July

By Liam Yip | Fri 1st August 2025 - 3:07 pm

In Barnstaple, we secured victory, successfully defending the seat. Well done to Josh Rutty and the local team for ensuring this seat remained in Liberal Democrats’ control.

North Devon DC, Barnstaple with Westacott
Liberal Democrats (Josh Rutty): 505 (40.5%, +0.5)
Reform UK: 383 (30.7%, new)
Conservative: 205 (16.4%, -6.1)
Green Party: 154 (12.3%, -2.4)

Liberal Democrat HOLD

Turnout: 22.27%

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Alastair Bowman

Markets work, but not for poor people

By Alastair Bowman | Fri 1st August 2025 - 12:34 pm

The economic concept of ‘demand’ was developed in the 19th century but merging our wants with our needs has its roots in Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nation (1776).  He observed that people were highly motivated to improve their own lives, spurring social progress.  Yet the mechanics of supply and demand mean that poor people lose out.

Smith believed that self-interest, combined with specialisation from a more complex division of labour, would unleash so much productivity and innovation that even the poorest benefit.  He claimed that markets are just because they advantage everyone, giving us permission to pursue our wants irrespective of other people’s needs.  Famously he wrote that markets are ‘led by an invisible hand’ though the end of that sentence is less widely cited: ‘to make nearly the same distribution of the necessaries of life, which would have been made had the earth been divided into equal portions among all its inhabitants’

With the benefit of hindsight we know he was wrong.  Today’s welfare state only exists because 19th century laissez-faire failed to address extreme poverty.  In reality, the market would fill a rich man’s swimming pool before quenching a poor family’s thirst given sufficient disparity in wealth.  Smith was right about capitalism’s productivity and innovation, but he was wrong to claim that market outcomes advantage the poorest.  He let us off the hook regarding the well-being of others, making selfishness consistent with the common good.  This is highly comforting for those who do well, but if something is too good to be true, it usually is.

Markets can be liberating, challenging established hierarchies and empowering people with choices through free exchange.  People facing acute need do not participate in this win-win.  Markets allocate on price and unequal bargaining power at the heart of every transaction systematically favours the stronger side.  Money exerts its own gravity, and tends to mass into fortunes as market prices suck wealth up from the poorest.

On the supply side, all workers sell their produce or their time, but those trading to meet their basic­ needs are forced sellers.  They must accept worse prices and lower wages because they have so little bargaining power.  When your children will go hungry or some other need will not be met, you are not just competing with others in the market but also racing against the clock, because needs get worse over time.  Those who survive this race to the bottom must tread water – they live to fight another day but are no better off.  They cannot afford any advancement, or enjoy any choice, through which the rest of us progress.

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What should the Liberal Democrats offer the British people?

By Michael Berwick-Gooding and Katharine Pindar | Thu 31st July 2025 - 2:55 pm

First of all, consistent policies based on our established and unchanging values. We seek a fair, free and open society balancing liberty, equality and community, in which every citizen is valued.

We have an economic vision rooted in our Liberal vision, based on being pro-EU and protecting the environment, emphasising green growth. We should be pro-growth, which requires there to be businesses and wealth creation. We are committed to ending deep poverty and promoting public services and local communities.

WE SHOULD WANT

  • to change the power structures of our society to make them more liberal
  • to raise the standard of living for everyone, promoting growth by government investment in infrastructure and giving the required assistance to SMEs
  • a fair deal for immigrants settled in this country, but to stop irregular migration by giving safe and legal routes on the Continent, with the chance to apply for asylum there
  • to combat the ill effects of climate change by supporting major home insulation upgrades, the widespread deployment of heat pumps accelerating the transition to electric rather than gas power, with expanded charging infrastructure for electric vehicles
  • to end the economic insecurity of too-high energy costs alongside promoting further inland and tidal wind and solar power and reforming the National Grid
  • to tackle the housing crisis by building 380,000 new homes per year of which 150,000 should be social homes including council houses, encouraging factory-built modular housing and backing major Council housing developments
  • to have an inclusive way of skilling people up including using AI and provide incentives for employers to employ disabled people
  • to ensure employees have a stake in the businesses they are employed in.
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John McHugo

The objections to recognising Palestine as a state

By John McHugo | Thu 31st July 2025 - 12:41 pm

Note that this post has been amended.

Now that it is Government policy (albeit conditional) to recognise Palestine, arguments are going to be raised against it – so be prepared!

Before yesterday’s announcement by Starmer, two arguments had been mentioned rather tentatively by the distinguished, retired diplomat Lord Darroch on Radio 4’s The World At One on 25 July. I say ‘tentatively’ because he felt it necessary to point out in the interview that many of his diplomatic colleagues, both serving and retired, disagreed with him. These arguments were picked up by our very own Lib Dem peer Baroness Sarah Ludford and disseminated on social media. She succinctly summarised them as follows – without, so far as I could see, any gloss of her own:

Since then a third argument has been made, namely that recognition would be “rewarding terror”. This seems to be gaining rather more traction than the other two, since it has been endorsed by the families of some of the Israeli hostages kidnapped on 7 October.

What weight do these arguments carry? The first argument is essentially political, while the second is legal and the third is perhaps best described as a moral argument. Let’s deal with the legal argument first, because it is also relevant to the moral argument, and then finally turn to the political argument.

As long ago as 2006, the  late James Crawford, the leading authority on statehood in international law, Cambridge professor and subsequently Australian judge at the ICJ, provided a cogent reply to the legal argument:

There may come a point where international law regards as done that which ought to have been done, if the reason it has not been done is the serious default of one party and if the consequence of its not being done is serious prejudice to another. The principle that a State (e.g. Israel) cannot rely on its own wrongful conduct to avoid the consequences of its international obligations is capable of novel applications, and circumstances can be imagined where the international community would be entitled to treat a new State (e.g. Palestine) as existing on a given territory, notwithstanding the facts.
Crawford, The Creation of States in International Law, 2nd ed, 2006, pp. 447-8.

This is crystal clear. Since Israel is in unlawful occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory and has frustrated the self-determination of the Palestinian People over many years, it is high time for the international community to apply Crawford’s reasoning and recognise Palestine as a state on the whole of the OPT alongside Israel. For that reason Sir Ed Davey got it absolutely right when he said that British recognition should have happened now, rather than waiting for UNGA in September as Starmer intends.

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Paul Hindley

Introducing the Radical Liberal Summer School

By Paul Hindley | Thu 31st July 2025 - 10:14 am

It is tempting to get caught in a doom spiral of negativity. From the cost of living crisis, the social crisis and the sewage scandal, to wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, a chaotic second Trump Presidency and a looming climate crisis, there is a lot to feel negative about. But liberalism is first and foremost a political outlook of optimism, positivity and goodwill. Conservatives, nationalists and hardline socialists trade in fear and division, whereas we liberals trade in hope. The hope that things can and indeed will get better.

Britain has never more needed radical liberalism. Liberalism when it is at its most radical challenges the political status quo, champions rights and freedoms across society and is tireless in the advancement of social justice and greater equality. Above all, we place our faith in the individual. That each and every individual shall have the power, resources and opportunities to maximise their life chances to the full. Liberalism is bold, ambitious, optimistic and radical, or it is nothing.

It is in this spirit that the John Stuart Mill Institute, alongside the Social Liberal Forum, shall be hosting an online Radical Liberal Summer School event from Monday 11th August until Wednesday 13th August 2025. The theme for our Summer School is “Power in the Liberal Tradition”. Across the three days, we will bring together some of the leading liberal and progressive politicians, academics and activists from across Britain (and beyond). They shall be discussing a range of topics including individual empowerment, the economy, liberal history, international affairs, local democracy and the natural world. The sessions of the summer school shall take the form of speeches, lectures, group discussion panels and seminars. Summer School attendees will have the opportunity to participate in the online seminar sessions, as well as to ask questions to our speakers and panel members.

We already have a large range of speakers confirmed for the event. Since the John Stuart Mill Institute is a non-partisan think tank, our speakers range from established Liberal Democrat names to those of other progressive parties and political campaign groups. We are delighted to be joined by the Liberal Democrat MP Bobby Dean, the Liverpool Liberal Democrat councillor Carl Cashman and the former MPs David Howarth and Michael Meadowcroft. From beyond the Liberal Democrats, we are delighted to be joined by a couple of senior representatives from the Green Party, the former Green Party leader Baroness Natalie Bennett and the former Green MEP Molly Scott Cato.

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Mark Valladares

30 July 2025 – yesterday’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 31st July 2025 - 7:30 am
  • Davey: Govt must launch full investigation into ATC technical fault
  • Greene responds to CalMac timetable updates during ‘storm’ of disruption
  • SNP are breaking another attainment gap promise

Davey: Govt must launch full investigation into ATC technical fault

Responding to reports that all outbound UK flights were hit by an air traffic control technical issue leading to delays, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

It is utterly unacceptable that after a major disruption just two years ago, air traffic control has once again been hit by a technical fault. With thousands of families preparing to go on a well earned break, this just isn’t

…

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Andrew Emmerson

Do voters get the politicians they deserve?

By Andrew Emmerson | Wed 30th July 2025 - 4:30 pm

Well, we’re about to test that maxim again in November. After all our hard work bringing out MPs to 72, I can’t help but feel we should be on Santa’s good list when it comes to electing the next Lib Dem President.

So, what do we need that next president to be?

Well history has broadly divided the legacies into 3 groups. The great orators who fire members up (Farron). The administrators who get things done (Pack) and the non-existent at best. The first two certainly have had their advantages at various points in our history.

Tim Farron largely kept us going during the coalition years. Whilst I’m sure Pack supporters would say his overhaul of Party structures has streamlined us and helped us win the seats we did at the General Election.

So, which now? Neither. We need to break the mould and brace against our biggest weakness. The complacent leadership of the Parliamentary Party.

Our leadership, whilst successful, have in my opinion failed to adapt to party growth. Ed Davey at times feels isolated in the “bunker” and small-c conservative.  As we lose ground to UKIP V.2… and now probably the Corbyn Experiment “your party.”

We as a party have become cowed to a point where we’re too afraid to vote against Conservative amendments in legislation in case we offend people. When one of our most talented and reliable MPs Christine Jardine voted against a cruel and horrible Tory amendment insulting people with Mental Health difficulties, she was summarily dismissed with nothing but contempt. I’m aware too of other MPs who have voted for good Conservative motions who match our own values and goals and have been disciplined by the whips too. We’re trying to have our cake and eat it. We need to vote for what’s good, vote down what’s bad and build cross-party alliances. Work with those we can and achieve things in Parliament. 72 is a nice number, but it’s also not enough. We shouldn’t isolate ourselves.

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Ruth Bright

Racism – the road less travelled

By Ruth Bright | Wed 30th July 2025 - 2:25 pm

A local outdoor arts event. As I brush past a family group sitting on the grass, I briefly meet the gaze of a man in his 30s and he speaks to me:

“Traveller?”

“What’s it to you?”

“Didn’t mean anything by it, just wondering”

“Half”

“Bishops Waltham?”

“No Bradley way, near Basingstoke – they were settled, way back, through my Dad”.

This does not happen often. I can actually date the last time this happened, July 1995, at Goodwood races with my late Dad.

Everyone understands what it means when someone is picked out for visible difference. It is common sense that some minorities are more visible than others. The hierarchy of pain is not the most helpful of devices but since so many (particularly in the Labour Pary) invoke it, let’s go there. The sickening racist abuse experienced by those from a visible minority is scandalous. An abomination. “Traditional” racism might be rife, but it is not, however, respectable; mainstream society does not buy into it. The use of the “n” word is rightly a major, career ending transgression.

Abuse against Romany, Roma, Gypsies and travellers (RGT is an imperfect acronym but it will suffice) is completely mainstream and accepted widely. The words “pikey” and “chav” are everywhere. If nomadic people alight almost anywhere at any time in the Home Counties (where incidentally they have lived since Tudor times) it is immediately a matter for the Police and local government to deal with. Nomadic people are criticized just for existing.

A very recent “unauthorized encampment” in Hampshire produced absurd comments in our local newspaper. Comments incidentally, which were not taken down. First of all, it is offered that all “likeys” are on benefits or sponge because they pay no council tax. But simultaneously the same commenters say they RGT people cannot be trusted so should not be given work if they call door to door asking to earn their keep by doing gardening or odd jobs!

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Tanvir Ahmad

Rebuilding Gaza: Britain must lead with action, not just recognition

By Tanvir Ahmad | Wed 30th July 2025 - 12:13 pm

This week, Britain made a historic announcement – Prime Minister Keir Starmer will recognise the State of Palestine by September unless Israel meets strict conditions, including a ceasefire and allowing the UN to resume aid deliveries.

It’s the boldest shift in UK foreign policy for decades. But recognition alone will not clear the rubble, feed starving children, or rebuild lives. That’s why I am calling for the UK to go further – to lead the mission to rebuild Gaza.

Recognition of Palestinian statehood is long overdue. Over 140 countries have already done so. But as the UN warns that “the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out” and aid convoys are looted amid chaos, recognition without a reconstruction plan risk being symbolic rather than transformational.

Why Gaza must be rebuilt

More than 60,000 Palestinians are dead, entire neighbourhoods are gone. UN experts report that over 1,000 people have been shot searching for food. The UK itself estimates 500 aid trucks a day are needed to reverse famine.

The humanitarian crisis isn’t just an emergency – it’s a moral and legal imperative. Under Article 43 of the Hague Regulations (1907), occupying powers and international actors have a duty to restore civil order and public welfare.

A Marshall Plan for Gaza

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Caron Lindsay

What I really want from our MPs this Summer

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 30th July 2025 - 9:25 am

MPs are now in their parliamentary recess. I know that for Lib Dem MPs, recess does not equal rest. They spend the time they aren’t in Parliament knocking doors, visiting every community in their constituency and generally working incredibly hard, as usual.  Yes, they might get home at a respectable hour more of the time and their inboxes get a bit more manageable – just a bit – but they are still on duty for well more than the average working week.

In the first year of the new Parliament, they have done wonders. Alistair, Jamie and Layla have all highlighted important issues as Select Committee chairs, Danny’s Bill has curtailed puppy smuggling, Roz has persuaded the Government to take climate and nature seriously, Max has been fighting for his sunshine bill, Christine has the promise of Government action to help bereaved children, David’s been standing up for coalfield communities,, Angus has been fighting for communities to reap the benefits of renewable energy. I could go on at length but you get the drift.

My hope for all of them this Summer is simple – please, please take a proper break.

A break where you go off-grid, mute everything and relax. Where you do whatever you need to do to switch off. I don’t care whether it’s hiking in the mountains, lying on a beach reading proper trash with no informational value whatsoever (see the Guardian’s advice for a perfect beach read),  participating in the family beach tennis tournament, playing Mario Kart in your pants, cycling around France, sailing in the Med, going to Disneyland or simply sleeping. And do this for at the very least two weeks at once.

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Mark Valladares

29 July 2025 – yesterday’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 30th July 2025 - 7:30 am
  • Davey on Southport attacks one year on: We are a caring country not one of thuggery
  • Davey calls for Lord Hermer to publish legal advice on Gazan aid blockade
  • Anglian Water fine: Lib Dems urge “No More Sewage, No More Excuses”
  • Lib Dems: “If Trump really loves Scotland, why is he hammering Scotch whisky with tariffs?”
  • Cole-Hamilton accuses SNP of serial failures on A&E, care and drugs
  • Cole-Hamilton responds to decline in healthy life expectancy

Davey on Southport attacks one year on: We are a caring country not one of thuggery

Reflecting on the one year anniversary of the Southport attacks, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said:

Today especially, we hold in our hearts Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar.

Three little girls, horrifyingly murdered at their Taylor Swift dance class in Southport. Three young lives, so cruelly cut short by a heartbreaking tragedy.

Our thoughts are with their families and friends, who still grieve such a cruel loss.

The lawless riots that followed appalled us. Egged on by hate preachers and conspiracy theorists, thugs resorted to appalling racism and violence, targeting some of the most vulnerable in our society.

But last summer also saw the best of the British people. Everyone who came together with love and compassion to mourn the deaths of Bebe, Elsie and Alice. And all those who stood peacefully in solidarity against the riots. Who powerfully rejected racism and Islamophobia.

That is who we are: a caring country, not a country of thuggery. A nation of laws and decency, not hate and lawlessness.

As we grieve today – as we remember Bebe, Elsie and Alice – let us also remember that.

Davey calls for Lord Hermer to publish legal advice on Gazan aid blockade

Commenting ahead of a Cabinet recall on the conflict in the Middle East, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has called for the Attorney General Lord Hermer to publish his legal advice to the Government, saying:

There can be no denying that Israel has egregiously breached international law through its devastating blockade of Gaza.

The Australian Prime Minister said this two days ago. And yet the UK Government continues to drag its feet on describing these acts as anything more than merely “risking” a breach.

Actions speak louder than words. It’s time for the Attorney General to publish the legal advice he has given to the Government on the Netanyahu cabinet’s grotesque restriction of aid to Gazans.

Anglian Water fine: Lib Dems urge “No More Sewage, No More Excuses”

Liberal Democrat MP Pippa Heylings has condemned Anglian Water’s repeated failings, following Ofwat’s damning £62.8 million fine for the company’s illegal dumping of raw sewage into rivers and coastal waters.

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The Voice

A Celebration of the life of David Boyle

By The Voice | Tue 29th July 2025 - 11:19 am

There will be a Celebration of the Life of David Boyle on Wednesday 10th September at the Cocktail Bar of The Bedford Balham, 77 Bedford Hill, London SW12 9HD from 7pm.

You can read a tribute to David here.

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Mark Valladares

Water companies with hosepipe bans leaking over one billion litres of water a day

By Mark Valladares | Tue 29th July 2025 - 7:30 am
  • The four water companies with hosepipe bans in place are leaking an average of 1.068 billion litres of water a day
  • Equivalent to 400 Olympic sized swimming pools a day being lost to leakages at firms with hosepipe bans
  • Lib Dems demand water bosses at companies with hosepipe bans give up their bonuses and eye-watering salary increases

The four water companies with hosepipe bans in place are leaking over one billion litres of water per day, analysis of the latest figures by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

The party’s Environment Spokesperson Tim Farron said it was a “scandal” and called for water company bosses to forgo their bonuses and big salary increases while hosepipe bans are in place in light of these failures to invest in infrastructure

Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, Southern Water and South East Water have all issued widespread hosepipe bans due to water shortages, leaving millions of customers without water for their gardens this summer. Yet between them, the four water companies are leaking an average of 1.068 billion litres of water a day, enough to fill 400 Olympic sized swimming pools.

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Mark Valladares

28 July 2025 – yesterday’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Tue 29th July 2025 - 12:20 am
  • Lib Dems call for PM to confirm Honours for Lionesses
  • Starmer must not take Trump at his word on Ukraine and the Middle East
  • SNP must do more to help more than quarter of a million Scots on long term sick back to work

Lib Dems call for PM to confirm Honours for Lionesses

Following the Lionesses’ victory at the Euros last night, and ahead of the reception being hosted for the team at Downing Street this evening, the Liberal Democrats are calling on the Prime Minister to commit to Honours for the whole squad, including confirmation of a rumoured honorary Damehood for coach Sarina Wiegman.

The party is also calling for a statue of team captain Leah Williamson to be displayed at Wembley Stadium.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Culture, Media and Sport, Max Wilkinson MP, said:

The Lionesses have swept us all away with their record-breaking performance, accomplishing back-to-back Euro victories, while making us all proud every step of the way.

It is time for the Prime Minister to formally recognise this historic moment by confirming an honorary damehood for Sarina Wiegman, and appointing the whole squad an MBE for their momentous accomplishment. This formal recognition would be a fitting display of the pride and gratitude the Lionesses have given the nation.

It would also be more than fitting for a statue of Leah Williamson to be proudly displayed outside Wembley – the home of English football.

Starmer must not take Trump at his word on Ukraine and the Middle East

Commenting on Starmer’s meeting with President Trump this afternoon, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

Warm words from Donald Trump on ending Putin’s war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza are welcome, but the Prime Minister would be naive to take him at his word.

We know Trump’s unpredictability all too well by now. In both Ukraine and the Middle East the situation is utterly intolerable and the Prime Minister needs to work with our allies to put a proper plan in place, so that we can lead even if Donald Trump continues to refuse to act. That should start with us recognising the state of Palestine, and seizing frozen Russian funds in the UK.

SNP must do more to help more than quarter of a million Scots on long term sick back to work

Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson Jamie Greene has today called on the Scottish Government to do more to help the 269,000 people who are long-term sick or disabled to find work, including investing more in tackling mental health conditions, autism and ADHD.

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Posted in News, Press releases and Scotland | Tagged , , , , , and | 3 Comments

We have a duty of care to speak out against the Online Safety Act

By The Board Of Liberal Reform | Mon 28th July 2025 - 6:30 pm

We are the party of civil liberties – that is what, we would argue, should be an uncontested fact. From the Snoopers Charter to campaigning for equal rights for minority communities, it is the raison d’être of the Liberal Democrats and the Liberal Party before us to stand up for civil liberties, recognising that the role of the state is not to micromanage or infringe on people’s core rights.

This belief is why we at Liberal Reform are so opposed to the Online Safety Act (OSA). Fundamentally, legislation should seek to make a positive difference to the lives of people it effects.

So why is this legislation so flawed?

There are a range of reasons why the OSA is so flawed.

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Posted in News | Tagged | 40 Comments
Mathew Hulbert

Mathew on Monday: Head in my hands time!

By Mathew Hulbert | Mon 28th July 2025 - 5:13 pm

So, God love our party but aaarrrggghhh sometimes it drives me crazy.

So, before I rant (I know…not like me at all, right?; LDV Editor: “Er, if you say so Mathew”), let me say that I do indeed love our party. I’ve been a member for fifteen years, I’ve been a Borough and Parish Councillor, am now a regular ‘Lib Dem commentator’ on various national broadcasters; the family that is our party has helped see me through the death of both of my parents and indeed my own near death illness earlier this year (special thanks to my friends and local Lib Dem Councillors in my patch Stuart Bray and Michael Mullaney for all of their support), and so when I’m sometimes critical-even very critical-of the party, it’s precisely because I love it that I want to see it at its best, defending the least, the last, and the lost, standing up against vested interests, overturning the tables of the establishment, defending LGBT+ equality and our hard earned civil liberties.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 2 Comments
Mo Waqas

What we’ve lost in a world obsessed with conflict: Reflections from South Asia to Southeast Asia

By Mo Waqas | Mon 28th July 2025 - 10:45 am

When I was seven years old, I watched as India and Pakistan stood on the brink of war. Tanks were deployed. News anchors looked panicked. People stocked up on food, and entire communities braced themselves for the worst. Even as a child, I understood something terrible could happen. That fear never really left me.

A few years later, I witnessed Iraq descend into chaos. The fall of Saddam Hussein didn’t bring peace, it created a power vacuum. The West celebrated regime change. But on the ground, it was the start of endless suffering for ordinary Iraqis. I was just a teenager …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 8 Comments
Mark Valladares

26-27 July 2025 – the weekend’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Sun 27th July 2025 - 10:30 pm
  • Davey: PM must show Trump that the UK will lead the way in recognising Palestine
  • Jardine challenges Government over long waits for driving tests
  • Cole-Hamilton presses Health Secretary over long waits for cataract surgery

Davey: PM must show Trump that the UK will lead the way in recognising Palestine

Commenting ahead of Keir Starmer’s meeting with Donald Trump tomorrow, where the PM is expected to raise the situation in Gaza, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said:

Starmer must urge Trump to use his influence with Netanyahu to end the unconscionable suffering in Gaza through securing a ceasefire and getting much needed aid in. But it’s clear that only proper recognition the of Palestinian state by the international community will finally make way to a two-state solution and a lasting peace.

The Prime Minister should make clear to Trump that the UK will lead the way in recognising the state of Palestine.

Jardine challenges Government over long waits for driving tests

Edinburgh West MP Christine Jardine has today challenged the UK Government to cut long waits for driving tests and do more to block the reselling of block-booked driving tests as she revealed that three quarters of Scotland’s test centres have longer waits than the national average.

Media reports and constituents have raised concerns over long waits for practical driving tests and unscrupulous booking practices where individuals or companies buy up available driving test appointments and then resell them to learners, often at inflated prices.

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Posted in News, Press releases and Scotland | Tagged , , , , , and | 1 Comment
Caron Lindsay

Lib Dems need to be less nice, more radical says Politics Home article

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 27th July 2025 - 4:44 pm

An article on Politics Home suggests that some activists want to see us using similar tactics to Reform UK to get noticed.

Based on snippets from the Social Liberal Forum conference last weekend, and an interview with Bobby Dean, the article provides some useful insight into discussions happening not just in St Albans but across the party.

I’m repeatedly hearing people who want us to stop hand-wringing and actually stand up for our values. Abstentions in Parliament on issues where we should take a stance come in for particular disapproval.

I’m still seething from our response to Keir Starmer’s disgraceful speech on immigration, which even he admits he regrets, which basically amounted to “we need to train British people to do jobs.”  We should have been much more robust, as I said at the time:

We should ride a coach and horses through Labour’s plans and we should be bold. We should not give a damn about what the Daily Mail says or thinks.

We should shout about the benefits of being an open, liberal, generous-spirited country and we should not put up with yet another Government failing to meet the needs of our communities by investing enough in public services and housing and then using people who choose this country to live as scapegoats for their failure.  We need big picture emotional language that reflects our values as Liberal Democrats. It’s time to challenge the language of prejudice with good, solid practical ideas that will improve the quality of our lives.

At last week’s Social Liberal Forum conference in Daisy Cooper’s St Albans constituency, our treasury spokesperson heard similar views according to Politics Home.

A Lib Dem councillor later told PoliticsHome: “What are we actually known for? People know what Reform stands for… I don’t think we would consider ourselves to be wishy-washy or centrist, but that is where lots of people have us.”

We are too nice, said one member:

“We’re too nice,” one party member exclaimed during the conference. “Nick Clegg  was unbelievably nice in the coalition, and we got screwed. It is time we start saying it how it is. We can politely say, look, that is an absolute load of bullshit.”

SLF Chair John Shreeve is quoted as saying:

Why is it that Nigel Farage, with barely any policy detail, is dictating the traffic?” he asked.

He’s doing it from a vision perspective, and we are not doing enough to promote our vision.

I think he’s getting away with it because he is not being challenged. While Labour and Conservatives pander to him, there is clear space to call him out on his nonsense. We are perfectly placed to do this and in fact have a responsibility to do so. If nobody comes out with a clear anti populist narrative, there will be a continued rightward drift in policy and government which will harm people.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , and | 29 Comments
Caron Lindsay

What were you doing 30 years ago today?

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 27th July 2025 - 11:55 am

30 years ago today, I woke up before the crack of dawn to go and deliver Good Morning leaflets for the Littleborough and Saddleworth by-election.  I spent the rest of the day knocking up  – and getting chased and shouted at by Labour people in the process.

I also remember spending some time telling and chatting to some lovely people from other parties, including a young Conservative who had a huge cut on his neck from what I understand was a shaving incident.

It was a great experience.

Bob and I had been there several times during the campaign. We had nipped in for a couple of days at the start of our Summer holiday which we had planned to spend touring around the North West and we actually spend the whole week there under the watchful eye of the wonderful and inimitable Pat Wainwright. Before we left, we went and bought some plates and cutlery for the HQ because they had none.

We made several return trips during the campaign and I took the last few days off work.

That campaign was when I really got to know the much loved and missed Erlend Watson. The day before polling day, I walked into HQ and, after they checked I could drive, I was handed the keys of a transit van and sent out with Erlend to repair and replace our posters which had been vandalised by nefarious forces. Now, a transit van was way beyond my comfort zone. At that time I had a mini metro and I was such a nervous driver that I’d often do whatever I could to avoid turning right.

But with Erlend beside me, we set off in this massive transit van and, miraculously, after much hilarity, returned in one piece.

I also met Pam Tilson, who then worked as an organiser for the party. We had a particularly fun afternoon off from campaigning in the pub. We recently caught up when she was over in Edinburgh and had a good reminisce about those golden times.

Colin Rosenstiel and his family were there, too and I think he persuaded me on to Cix.

Gina Ford, who then worked for Malcolm Bruce, and I drove round one of the most rural delivery rounds during the Wimbledon final, catching snippets of the tennis on the radio when signal allowed.

That was a by-election with no minivan, no internet, no smartphones, no Google maps. We had paper canvass cards – although I’m fairly sure they were generated by EARS, the predecessor to Connect rather than pasted on bits of the electoral roll as we had to use in my first campaign.

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Posted in News | Tagged | 10 Comments
Caron Lindsay

UPDATED: Dear Feds, if you want my money, treat me with more respect

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 27th July 2025 - 10:01 am

I posted this in a private group on Facebook and had a comment from a senior party staffer who I won’t name here because it was a private group. Anyway, they commented that they acknowledge the problems with the email and it is already being redrafted for future releases. This is extremely helpful and more than I had expected and I am impressed that they took the time. I think that in future, though, I should restrict my throwing toys out of the pram to weekdays. 

I have just about managed to calm down after receiving the following email  from  Lib Dem HQ on Wednesday.

Dear Caron,

Thank you for choosing to be a member of the Liberal Democrats.

The General Election result, electing 72 MPs, was our best result in 100 years.

In May’s local elections, we got a higher national vote share than the Conservatives, and we now run more councils than the Conservatives for the first time in our history.

We have done extraordinarily well, thanks to your support.

But the danger our country now faces is real. Reform are surging and we are the only party that is consistently beating them in by-elections.

We are going to be up front with you: the first year of a Westminster Parliament is the hardest for us financially. We have a huge amount of work to do, digging in where we have won, and building teams in places where we can stop Reform and win more seats.

There is a huge opportunity in front of us, and huge danger for the country if we do not take it. And the biggest thing holding us back right now is lack of funds.

>We are asking you today to increase your membership contribution by by 8.9%, the equivalent of £8.59 a year.

If you are happy to help: thank you. You don’t need to do anything else. We will automatically increase your payments, starting from your next billing date on 1 April 2026. If you change your mind, you will have 10 days thereafter to let us know.

If you would like to increase your membership by more than the amount stated above, please contact us at [email protected] and one of our team will be happy to help you.

If you want to opt out of this change, please complete this short form and your membership contribution will stay the same as it is now.

(You can change your contribution at any time, if you change your mind either way.)

Whatever you decide – we appreciate everything you do for the Party, Caron.

Thank you.

Best wishes,

The Liberal Democrats

I have to be honest, I am not a fan of this sort of opt-out membership uprating.

Our membership subscription rates are set by Conference and, while I have no objection to people being asked to pay more, I feel that there is a sneakiness to this, requiring you to opt out of an almighty triple inflationary cost. Sending them out in the middle of the Summer also ensures that some people will miss them until they get a nasty shock at their next renewal time.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 28 Comments
The Voice

Housing expert selected to represent Scottish Lib Dems in Central Scotland and Lothians West

By The Voice | Sat 26th July 2025 - 12:04 pm

Scottish Liberal Democrats have today announced homelessness and community campaigner Paul McGarry as their candidate for the Central Scotland and Lothians West regional list at the forthcoming Scottish election.

Made homeless at the age of 16, Paul was driven into politics by a desire to tackle the root causes of homelessness and support some of the poorest communities in his area.

For several years, he worked in youth projects across Scotland, including Lanark, Motherwell, East Kilbride, Falkirk and Hamilton.

He now works a senior Business Development Manager at a national training provider, helping organisations across the UK improve health, safety and wellbeing.

As the Scottish Liberal Democrat spokesperson for housing and homelessness, he is a longstanding campaigner for new schools, new community centres and more affordable housing.

Paul McGarry said:

I got into politics to make a difference. Becoming homeless at 16 showed me how fragile the system can be, how easily people can fall through the cracks and how vital it is to have someone fighting your corner.

Living in central Scotland, I see how much people are struggling. They feel like they’re stuck on a permanent waiting list, from NHS treatment to affordable housing.

As a Liberal Democrat, I am committed to giving people the representation they deserve. That means fixing our broken health service, tackling the housing crisis, lifting up local economies and delivering the best education for our children.

I don’t consider myself a typical politician. I’ve seen life’s challenges up close and personal, and that’s what motivates me as a parliamentary candidate. I want to change things for the better and get results for the people of Central Scotland and Lothians West.

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Tom Arms

Observations of an Expat: Epstein – The History

By Tom Arms | Sat 26th July 2025 - 9:40 am

Theories, threats, counter-threats and conspiracies are flying thick and thin around the name of convicted paedophile and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and the nature of his relationship with Donald Trump.

Were the two men friends? If so, how friendly? Did Trump know that Epstein was a paedophile before his conviction? If so, how much did he know? Did he, himself have sexual relations with under-age girls? Is Donald Trump part of the deep state cabal of paedophiles who have been running the country according to QAnon and others?

All questions now being hourly discussed within and without the MAGA world and Donald Trump’s political future may hang on the answers.

It is therefore worth reviewing the known historical facts.

Jeffrey Epstein was born in Brooklyn in 1953 to working class parents. He was extremely clever and graduated high school two years early and went on to study physics and mathematics at New York University. However, for some reason, which remains unclear, he dropped out after two years.

Despite not having a degree, Epstein landed a teaching job at the posh Dalton School on New York’s Upper East Side. Former pupils there said that he was known for his “inappropriate behaviour” towards under-age female students and that this may have been the reason for his being fired in 1976. The official reason was “poor performance.”

While at Dalton, Epstein became friendly with one of the parents; Alan Greenberg, CEO of Bear Stearns. He quickly hired Epstein as a junior assistant and within four years the former teacher was a limited partner. The following year he set up his own finance house and was soon attracting billionaire clients such as Adnan Khashoggi and Victoria’s Secret CEO Leslie Wexner. He used his connections with Wexner to recruit models for Victoria’s Secret, many of them underage girls.

Epstein’s mathematical genius earned him a reputation as a Wall Street wizard and millions upon millions of dollars. His wealth went on a 78-acre private island in the Caribbean, a New York mansion, a West Palm Beach mansion and wild parties for the rich and famous and – under-age girls.

Exactly how many under-age girls were recruited for his parties is unclear. The Florida indictment named 26. The Miami Herald interviewed 60. One Department of Justice document said the figure could have been as high as a thousand.

The rich and famous included Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. He introduced Trump to Melania and attended their wedding. In a 2002 profile of Epstein in New York Magazine, Trump was quoted as saying: “I’ve known Jeffrey for 15 years. He is a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them on the younger side.”

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 3 Comments
Mark Valladares

25 July 2025 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Fri 25th July 2025 - 10:30 pm
  • Ed Davey calls for UK airdrops to get aid to Gazans
  • Davey urges PM to pressure Trump on ending the humanitarian disaster in Gaza
  • Doctors strike: Lib Dems call for patients to be sent to private hospitals to ease impact
  • Lib Dems call on RAF to ‘lead the way’ on Gaza airdrops
  • Lib Dems call for Family Farms Tax U-turn as record number of farms close

Ed Davey calls for UK airdrops to get aid to Gazans

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has called on Keir Starmer to launch a UK airdrop operation over Gaza, in response to the reports of mass starvation and the mounting number of deaths related to malnutrition.

The operation would involve RAF planes supplying aid into Gaza from the air. Similar operations were undertaken by British pilots in Spring 2024, delivering hundreds of tonnes of aid to support humanitarian relief efforts in the Strip.

The call comes as over a hundred humanitarian organisations have warned that the population of Gaza is at risk of mass starvation as a result of the Israeli Government’s failure to comprehensively reopen aid supply routes across the occupied territory.

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

It is simply inhumane that the entire population of Gaza is at risk of starvation as a direct result of Israel’s aid blockade. The time for words is over – now we must act. That should include the UK Government conducting a fresh set of aid airdrops over Gaza.

Aid delivered by the air is no substitute for the reopening of supply routes by land. But the extent of the humanitarian catastrophe we are now witnessing requires us to leave no stone unturned in our efforts to get aid to Gazans.

The Prime Minister should secure agreement from other international partners that they will follow the UK’s example and conduct their own airdrops. This must be alongside a redoubling of our collective effort to secure the total reopening of aid supply routes on the ground – the most effective and sustainable way to alleviate the suffering of Gazans.

Davey urges PM to pressure Trump on ending the humanitarian disaster in Gaza

Ed Davey has written to the Prime Minister urging him to work with President Trump to bring an end to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza ahead of the US President’s visit to the UK this weekend.

In his letter, Davey emphasised that Starmer has a “crucial window” to persuade President Trump to take decisive action to end the conflict in Gaza. Davey condemned Trump’s grotesque previous comments on Gaza, while acknowledging the US President’s significant sway over Prime Minister Netanyahu.

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Liam Yip

ALDC by-election report, 24th July

By Liam Yip | Fri 25th July 2025 - 5:39 pm

In Berkhamsted, we secured an overwhelming victory, successfully defending this seat. Well done to Cllr Will Jankowski and the local team for ensuring this seat remained in Liberal Democrats’ control.

Dacorum BC, Berkhamsted West
Liberal Democrats (Will Jankowski): 643 (56.4%, -2.0)
Conservative: 357 (31.3%, +8.5)
Green Party: 99 (8.7%, -0.4)
Labour: 41 (3.6%, -6.1)

Liberal Democrats HOLD

Turnout: 24.47%

In Rutland, the Conservatives were able to secure victory, gaining this seat off the Green Party. Well done to Jonathan Nichols and the local team for ensuring that we finished in second place.

Rutland Council, Barleythorpe
Conservative: 209 (35.9%)
Liberal Democrat (Jonathan Nichols): 136 (23.4%)
Reform UK: 123 (21.1%)
Independent: 114 (19.6%)

Conservative GAIN from Green Party

Turnout: 29.3%

In Swanage, the Conservatives secured yet another victory, with an exceedingly high by-election turnout of over 45%. Well done to Poppy Maltby and the local team for increasing our vote share by over 10%.

Dorset Council, Swanage
Conservative: 1254 (35.3%, -0.4)
Reform UK: 748 (21.0%, new)
Liberal Democrats (Poppy Maltby): 737 (20.7%, +12.8)
Independents for Dorset: 415 (11.7%, -7.7)
Labour: 400 (11.3%, -19.4)

Conservative HOLD

Turnout: 45.4%

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Posted in News | Tagged | 3 Comments
Alastair Bowman

How to save hundreds of billions of pounds

By Alastair Bowman | Fri 25th July 2025 - 2:41 pm

Central banks raise interest rates to control inflation.  UK debtors have paid a ballpark £500 billion since rates began rising in November 2021, mostly through higher mortgage and credit card payments, averaging 7% of GDP each year.  The banks keep a chunk, and the rest goes to their clients, with taxes collected along the way.  The average UK saver is getting a few hundred pounds in interest each year but the vast majority of that half trillion (and rising) is going to the already rich.

Yet over half of UK owner-occupation is outright ownership.  Their savings grow from any interest rate increase intended to curb inflation by making us poorer.  The pain inflicted on mortgage holders and other debtors (including government) is all the greater to compensate for the extra purchasing power going to the already rich.  Their higher propensity to save reduces demand temporarily, later adding to the annual £100 billion in inflationary inheritances that the debtors must also counter.

There is a better way.  Inflation management requires pain, but if we inflict it through higher taxes instead of higher interest rates we can use the money to pay off the national debt and restore public finances.  £500 billion exaggerates the savings we have missed in recent years if less pain is needed because tax changes are more immediate and better targeted, but less pain is its own reward.  Paying off the national debt locks the money away, instead of redistributing it to the already rich, which is both counter-productive and highly regressive.

Later in the cycle, as tax rates are cut to stimulate the economy, tax revenues would still accrue relative to the position pre-tightening, only more slowly.  Interests rates would remain the backstop against inflation, deflation, and government profligacy.  Good fiscal governance could see the interest rate unchanged throughout the economic cycle, increasing stability and reducing costs.  Corporations would invest more, easing inflationary pressures.  Currently investment is often cut when companies are hit as collateral damage by interest rate hikes aimed at changing consumer behaviour.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 33 Comments
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