Lord William Wallace

Could Trumpland reach Britain?

By Lord William Wallace | Tue 26th April 2016 - 2:43 pm

We all hope that Donald Trump will not be the next US President; even if he wins the Republican nomination, it’s unlikely that he will win over a majority of states and voters. But his astonishing success so far, in mobilising the embittered, marginalised and nostalgic, all those who feel they have lost out through rapid economic and social change, has lessons for British politics.

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Joe Otten

Inquest verdict: The 96 were unlawfully killed #JFT96

By Joe Otten | Tue 26th April 2016 - 1:04 pm

Today the Hillsborough inquest returned a verdict of unlawful killing of 96 people.

Errors and omissions by the South Yorkshire Police are ruled to have caused and contributed to the deaths on a number of counts, and also errors and omissions by the city council as the ground safety licensing authority, the engineers Eastwood and Partners, Sheffield Wednesday FC and the ambulance service.

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Posted in Op-eds | 72 Comments
Antony Hook

EURef Roundup: Obama, Clinton for Remain, Le Pen for Leave, Recruitment hit by Brexit risk, Bognor and Brighton compared

By Antony Hook | Tue 26th April 2016 - 12:05 pm

Obama issues trade warning.  Defending his right to express a view, the President said:

I don’t anticipate that anything I’ve said will change the position of those who are leading the campaigns in one direction or the other, but for ordinary voters I thought it would be relevant to hear what the president of the United States, who loves the British people and cares deeply about this relationship, has to say.

Hillary Clinton also “warns against Brexit vote”, reports the Telegraph.

Britons could need visas to visit Europe, says pro-Brexit Justice Minister.

Marine Le Pen is looking to come over …

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Posted in News | 10 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Farron: Government has dishonoured Britain’s humanitarian legacy

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 25th April 2016 - 10:22 pm

The Commons had the chance to help 3000 of the most vulnerable children on the planet tonight, children who are currently trapped in refugee camps in Europe.

It was close – only 18 votes in it. The opposition came heartbreakingly close to winning the vote. I feel utterly disgusted at the 294 MPs who supported the Government’s position.

Tim Farron was equally unimpressed:

The Lords has the chance to reinstate this amendment tomorrow. Let’s hope that they take it. Lib Dem Lords will all be voting for it. Baroness Meral Ece said on Twitter tonight:

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We shouldn’t just be the party of Remain; we should also be the party of Reform

By Ian Thomas | Mon 25th April 2016 - 6:05 pm

 

There is a strong chance that the Remain camp will win the EU Referendum. I say that because, through campaigning on the streets for Britain Stronger In Europe in the most Eurosceptic town in the South West, there has definitely been a shift in public attitude from a generally hostile view of the EU to the realisation of the potential damage to the UK a Leave vote would bring.

I am not saying that we are home and dry; a week is a long time in politics and there are several more weeks to go in the run-up to the vote, but this campaign is one Remain could easily lose rather than one the Brexit side could easily win.

With that said, the referendum is only the beginning in a new chapter on the debate over Britain’s relationship with the European Union, and we will make a fatal error in thinking that this vote will finally slay the dragon of anti-EU sentiment. In fact, the closeness of the vote we are more likely about the see the rebirth of a more wide-ranging UKIP party along the lines of the SNP after the Scottish referendum; rebranding itself as a Eurosceptic ‘Libertarian Party’ to draw together those involved in the Vote Leave, Leave.EU and Grassroots Out campaigns.

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The Voice

Congratulations to Suzanne Fletcher for winning ALDE’s Lifetime Achievement Award!

By The Voice | Mon 25th April 2016 - 4:38 pm

Suzanne Fletcher

In a ceremony earlier today Suzanne Fletcher was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE).

Suzanne is known nationally amongst Liberal Democrats for her tireless campaigns in support of refugees and asylum seekers, and in particular for setting up Liberal Democrats for Seekers of Sanctuary (LD4SOS).

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Millie Graham Wood

The Independent View: Obscure powers secretly used to hoover up our data

By Millie Graham Wood | Mon 25th April 2016 - 3:33 pm

 

If the question relates to section 94 of the Telecommunications Act, then I am afraid I can neither confirm nor deny any issues in relation to the utilisation or otherwise of section 94 (James Brokenshire, 18.3.2014)

As an MP, Julian Huppert spent considerable time pushing for information about the ‘astonishingly broad power’ of clause 94 of the Telecommunications Act 1984, a clause which enables the Government to require telecommunications providers to cooperate with them in very broad terms. He tried to find out how often these extra ordinary powers were used and who, if anyone, was checking they were being used appropriate. He got nowhere.

As a result of litigation brought by Privacy International, the staggering use of this power has been exposed. Huppert’s suspicions were on track – GCHQ and MI5 have used section 94 to collect our data in bulk. They have been using these powers for 19 years in total secret, without even the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament having any knowledge of the use of Bulk Communications Data, or that section 94(1) was being (ab)used.

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Judy Abel

It must be possible to be 100% pro-EU, but still question how things are run

By Judy Abel | Mon 25th April 2016 - 2:12 pm

 

I’m half Danish and consider myself to be a European. I have never really felt particularly English or British at all and if Denmark is playing England at football it’s a tough call, even though I’ve lived in the UK almost all my life and spent a total of only two years in Denmark.

I have always been pro-EU. I believe in political co-operation and the European ideal – and have often considered other European countries to be more enlightened when it comes to matters such as social justice and environmental protection. Without the EU, I am sure we wouldn’t have had Blue Flag beaches or the equivalent, tighter car emission regulations (although they’ve been flouted badly in recent years) and proper food labelling. Whereas, in my experience, Danish Governments of whatever shade tend to want to ensure the quality of life and wellbeing of their populations, that enlightened approach sadly hasn’t been a particularly strong feature of British life – although it does appear to be something Scotland wants to follow (hence no tuition fees and prescription charges).

Whilst agreeing with the provisions of the Single Market in terms of the free movement of goods, service and people, this doesn’t stop me asking certain questions about the efficacy of the EU and what we might be able to do better. All institutions need to adapt and evolve to changing circumstances and the EU cannot be an exception to that.

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Lindsay Northover

One year on from the Nepal Earthquake

By Lindsay Northover | Mon 25th April 2016 - 1:00 pm

 

It is one year since the earthquake in Nepal which killed nearly nine thousand people, injured tens of thousands, and left half a million families homeless. Even before this tragic event, Nepal was one of the twenty poorest countries in the world, and the estimated economic impact of the earthquake was around $10 billion, fifty percent of its entire GDP. There was no question that the UK would help Nepal in the aftermath of the disaster, both in terms of emergency humanitarian relief and also longer term rebuilding. Within a month of the earthquake, which happened when I was a DFID minister, we had released over £33 million of help, including match-funding the £5 million in donations given privately by generous people across the UK.

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Ab Brightman

Liberal Youth’s International Officer elected Vice President of the International Federation of Liberal Youth

By Ab Brightman | Mon 25th April 2016 - 11:53 am

IFLRY

From left: Sven Gerst, Tone Bjorndal, Pauline Kastermans, Danylo Korbabicz, Ab Brightman, Anders Rehnberg and Ahmad Al-Rachwani

Last weekend in Istanbul, at the General Assembly of the International Federation of Liberal Youth (IFLRY), I am extremely proud to say that I was elected Vice President!

For those unfamiliar, IFLRY is the Global umbrella organisation for liberal youth and student organisations around the world, of which Liberal Youth is affiliated to. IFLRY brings together an amazing community of young people, and has given so much to Liberal Youth members who get involved internationally, so I can only be excited at all the chances we get to repay it.

Liberal Youth has a long and successful relationship with IFLRY. I know that back in the days of LDYS we had members of IFLRY’s Bureau (that is, its Executive Committee) – and still today my election follows two years of our own Bobby Dean’s hard work as Vice President. Along with this, for the past two General Assemblies I have had the pleasure of leading one of the largest and most active delegations present, of Liberal Youth members.

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Antony Hook

Book Review: Big Tent Politics, the Liberal Party’s Long Mastery of Canada’s Public Life

By Antony Hook | Mon 25th April 2016 - 10:31 am

Recently, the Canadian Liberal Party’s sensational victory, to win its first General Election after three successive defeats and coming from third place when many thought it had no future as a party captured the interest of many Liberal Democrats and liberals throughout the world.  Justin Trudeau’s refreshing leadership, modern, likeable, down-to-earth without dumbing-down, inspires us.

big tent politics

I remember in 1993, the Liberals landslide win when the Conservatives reduced to just three seats. This followed Bill Clinton’s victory in 1992, which his opponents did not see coming (see Hunter S Thompson, “Better Than Sex”) and foreshadowed the UK Conservatives’ crushing, justified defeat in 1997. The 90s was a good decade for the centre-left.

I was travelling in Canada in 2002 when Jean-Chretien, the Liberal Prime Minister, announced his retirement.  Having just fought my first election, as the youngest Liberal Democrat PPC, it was fascinating to read in the Canadian press how a party so similar to ours ideologically grappled with the exigencies of government.

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Mary Reid

Demo for Democracy on 7th May!

By Mary Reid | Mon 25th April 2016 - 9:00 am

make votes matterOur friends at Make Votes Matter have organised a demo for proportional representation – Demo for Democracy – just after the May elections, while the fiasco of inconsistent, variable and non-proportional voting systems will still be fresh in our minds.

Party President Sal Brinton will be leading the Lib Dem contingent and you can join her at 11.30am on Saturday 7th May outside Lib Dem HQ at 8-10 Great George Street, London, SW1P 3AE. You can sign up on Facebook or on the Lib Dem website.

We are the party that has spoken loudly for electoral reform for many years, so let’s have a good turnout on the day.

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Caron Lindsay

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #456

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 24th April 2016 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 456th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere … Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (17 -,23 April  2016), together with a hand-picked quintet, you might otherwise have missed.

Don’t forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, let’s start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

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Caron Lindsay

WATCH: Two very different interviews for Willie Rennie

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 24th April 2016 - 4:51 pm

Scottish Lib Dem Leader Willie Rennie faced two very different interviews this week. The first was with STV political editor Bernard Ponsonby.

Willie said he thought we were going to grow because of our record as the strong liberal voice and because of our positive, uplifting plan for Scotland with its transformational investment in education and investment in mental health.

Before he was able to talk about all these plans though, he faced quite a grilling over coalition mistakes (he said the Bedroom Tax was one which should never have happened) and over Alistair Carmichael (he said he would still vote for him despite his mistake, which was an aberration and out of character for the Orkney & Shetland MP).

Ponsonby gave him a really hard time over tuition fees in Scotland. Liberal Democrats were responsible for their abolition, against coalition partner Labour’s wishes. He tried to make out that us supporting the Graduate Endowment – which was not a tuition fees, which didn’t go to pay for lectures or learning but simply to enable more students from disadvantaged backgrounds to go to university – and then voting to abolish it (when circumstances allowed) was inconsistent. Willie managed to get across that the Liberal Democrats had been the drivers behind free education.

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NewsHound

Welsh Lib Dems ask Labour supporters to vote Lib Dem on list to stop UKIP

By NewsHound | Sun 24th April 2016 - 3:03 pm

The Welsh Liberal Democrats are making a big play for Labour supporters to vote Lib Dem on the regional list to stop UKIP candidates like Neil Hamilton and Mark Reckless (really) from getting elected.

From Wales Online:

Jenny Randerson – the former Acting Deputy First Minister who became a Wales Office minister – has intervened in the Assembly election campaign to urge Labour supporters to lend the Liberal Democrats their votes on the regional list in a bid to stop Ukip winning AMs.

The former Cardiff Central AM who is now a member of the House of Lords argues that Labour voters have the power to “stop Ukip”.

Baroness Randerson said: “The truth is that Labour voters can stop Ukip gaining large numbers of Assembly Members. The power, so to speak, is in their hands.

“Even Labour insiders know, in their heart of hearts, that it’s unlikely that they will pick up regional Assembly Members. Therefore, Labour voters must consider lending their regional vote to the Welsh Liberal Democrats to stop Ukip.

“We are confident we can win constituency seats, but in some regions the battle for the fourth seat is between Ukip and the Welsh Liberal Democrats. It’s a clear choice.

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The Voice

LDV’s Sunday Best: our 7 most-read articles this week

By The Voice | Sun 24th April 2016 - 12:26 pm

7 bestMany thanks to the 11,000  visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here’s our 7 most-read posts…

Paddy has Brexit campaigners floundering on Question Time (21 comments) by Caron Lindsay

How the Scottish Liberal Democrats are winning the campaign (26 comments) by Caron Lindsay

In conversation with David Laws (21 comments) by York Membery

Review: Coalition, by David Laws (19 comments) by Nick Thornsby

Who makes the decisions in the EU? (26 comments) by Liz Lynne

Undeclared Conservative election expenses unearthed by Channel 4 News (18 comments) by The Voice

Is liberalism dead? (37 comments) by Andrew Venning

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Caron Lindsay

WATCH: Tim Farron on the Andrew Marr Show

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 24th April 2016 - 10:56 am

Tim Farron was on the Andrew Marr Show this morning, putting in an other strong performance. What was unusual is that he was on the studio rather than the gorgeous Lake District countryside.

You can watch what he has to say here:

He talked about the “joyful challenge” of leading the party, of the party’s success in terms of seats and vote share in local government by-elections, of how Labour, “the worst opposition in history” were letting the Tories away with forced academisation of schools, an attack on junior doctors and dismantling all the good things on climate change that Lib Dems had done in Government.

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Caron Lindsay

Federal Conference Committee so far fails to extend unfairly implemented early bird discount for Autumn Conference

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 24th April 2016 - 10:15 am

It’s been four days since registration for the Autumn Conference opened. It’s three days until the initial early bird discount expires on Wednesday, 27th April. If you want to register, click here.

I suggested last week that having a discounted period that expired a) before payday for most people and b) in the middle of an election.

The party should not be handing out a double whammy to those on lower incomes. More affluent members will be able to take advantage of unbudgeted expenditure before they get paid. Those who are struggling at the end of each month will not – and they’ll be charged an extra £13, a premium of over 20%. There’s an inherent injustice here. I’m sure that this must have been an oversight and I’m sure it can be changed quickly. Let’s hope that there’s a quick rethink.

We know from the comments to my post that there was discussion amongst the Federal Conference Committee about whether that early bird discount rate of £60 should be extended at least until payday. We haven’t yet heard the outcome of those discussions and time is running out.

I still think that an extension to the end of May would be appropriate, but as a bare minimum it should be extended until a week after polling day.

The key points of the FCC’s defence are that there is another early bird discount rate of £73 that will then last until the end of May. That is true, as the table taken from the party website shows:

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James Davis

After a year of Tory rule, we have the chance to show our disapproval

By James Davis | Sun 24th April 2016 - 9:01 am

When Labour has moved to the unelectable far left (however admirably unpolitician-ish Corbyn may be) and the Tories are hell bent on ruining the lives of teachers, junior doctors and the disabled, just to shrink the state, we need a party that actually will do good for the country more than ever.

Look at Canada, electing the inspiring Justin Trudeau, and implementing that shared liberal idea of making life better for everyone. protecting the disadvantaged, and the disabled, caring for the environment yet -here in the UK – being able to save the economy from the worst recession since the 1930s whilst being pro-business and pro-aspiration.

Increased mental health funding? Lib Dem legislation. £11,500 tax free income? Lib Dem legislation. We should also mention 5 years of stopping the worst Tory policies, which are now being enacted unopposed by the divided squabbling mess that Labour has become. Whilst the Lib Dems made a grave mistake with tuition fees, they’ve actually admitted they were wrong, learned from that, and fought to make life better for all of us during the recession despite knowing they would lose the next election and their work wouldn’t be praised by the press. How often can you say that about politicians? And happily, more disadvantaged people are now going to university thanks to grants which the Tories are now scrapping.

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Caron Lindsay

WATCH: Alex Cole Hamilton on the SNP’s “smog and mirrors” and singing the recycling song

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 4:55 pm

This week, Edinburgh Western and Lothian list candidate took part in a Scotland 2016 debate on energy and the environment. After his success at getting in John Swinney’s face on tax, expectations were high, and he didn’t disappoint.

Here are some of his highlights:

Pointing out that the SNP consistently miss its climate change targets while they cut the budget for measures to tackle climate change.

“There is no question in the climate change challenge which shows that tracking is part of the solution”

Describing SNP MInister Fergus Ewing’s justification of a planned cut to Air Passenger Duty as a “smog and mirrors approach”

Outlining the Liberal Democrat plan to make sure houses are energy efficient and warm.

Explaining how good habits on recycling are being embedded in today’s children – and singing the song his 4 year old sings every day at nursery. Whether that latter part was entirely necessary, I’ll leave to your judgement.

You can watch Alex’s highlights below:

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NewsHound

LibLink: Getting real about tackling London’s air pollution

By NewsHound | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 3:24 pm

Greenpeace has been asking the London Mayoral candidates about how they would tackle air pollution in London, where air quality is one of the lowest in Europe.

Here is Caroline Pidgeon’s response:

It was not long ago that understanding about air pollution was pitiful, especially amongst MPs. Just 18 months ago a poll of 100 MPs revealed that hardly any recognised that air pollution the second biggest public health risk, with only smoking posing a greater risk.Thankfully things are changing. Yet while the greater recognition of the horrific consequences of air pollution is welcome, the real challenge is to ensure action is actually taken.My manifesto is quite clear that real action is needed straight away.

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The Voice

What’s being debated in our members’ forum this week?

By The Voice | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 1:54 pm

members forum wordleLibDemVoice has two parallel sites. The first is our public blog, the thing you’re reading now. The second is our private members’ forum, which only current Lib Dem members can access.

If you’re a member and want to chat with fellow party members about any issue that’s on your mind, then why not sign up? In addition, you’ll be included in our regular surveys’ of party members’ views.

Here’s some of the most active discussions this past 10 days:

TTIP

Local election results to watch

What is our …

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Caron Lindsay

WATCH: Joe Otten interviewed on Sunday Politics

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 12:24 pm

Joe OttenGiven half a chance, Liberal Democrats would get rid of Police and Crime Commissioners. While the positions exist, though, it’s important that voters have the chance to choose a Liberal Democrat.

It’s good to see that the party is putting more effort into contesting these positions than we did four years ago. Two members of the LDV team are even standing, Chris White in Hertfordshire and Joe Otten in Yorkshire.

Last Sunday, Joe was interviewed, along with the other candidates, on BBC Sunday Politics. Have a watch here.

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Paul Walter

The USA: The clue is in the title – and it is the greatest example of pooled sovereignity between states

By Paul Walter | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 10:50 am

Four of the USA’s founding fathers: (l to r) Adams, Morris, Hamilton, Jefferson

There was a rather strange moment on Thursday’s BBC Question Time. There was a discussion about President Obama’s intervention in the EU referendum debate.

Liam Fox was waxing lyrically about how the USA has great democracy, and all we want is the same democracy ourselves without our country being, he posited, controlled by “Brussels”.

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Mike Biden

St George for Europe!

By Mike Biden | Sat 23rd April 2016 - 9:22 am

Let’s celebrate – it is St. George’s Day! St George is not only England’s but one of Europe’s most popular patron Saints. Today he will be celebrated across Europe, especially in Portugal, Malta and Romania where he is their national saint as well.

Far from being a unique icon of Englishness he is the very embodiment of how European the English are. He is celebrated and venerated by all the Christian traditions including Greek Orthodox, Catholic and the Church of England. He is also venerated in Islam and is therefore perfect for a modern forward looking internationalist country like England.

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Monroe Palmer

Lord Monroe Palmer writes…The Government has back-pedalled and tenants have won

By Monroe Palmer | Fri 22nd April 2016 - 2:10 pm

This week the Housing Bill has continued in its long worn out path through the Lords. The Liberal Democrats have been battling to make changes to a Bill which will currently only worsen the housing crisis, reducing the availability of housing and moving the first rung of the housing ladder even further out of reach.

Across the past fortnight, facing the threat of multiple humiliating defeats at the hands of opposing peers, the Government have been forced to back pedal on a number of measures. This week they made a significant concession on protections for tenants at the hands of rogue letting agents. An amendment with my name on it had been put forward which ensured that money belonging to tenants for use as holding fees, deposits, rent, or service charges by letting agents, was protected.

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Caron Lindsay

LibLink: Tim Farron: The Government’s latest capitulation to take up to 3000 more refugees is welcome but not enough

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 22nd April 2016 - 12:40 pm

Well, it serves me right for not reading something properly. I was on the train yesterday on my way to a hot date with lots of blue envelopes and leaflets when I saw the BBC announce that the UK was going to take thousands of child refugees. I thought that they had agreed to the request that had been made repeatedly by Tim Farron over the last few months.

I should have known better that this was just a re-hash of an earlier announcement ahead of a key parliamentary vote on Monday. Tim Farron saw through it straight away, and explained in the Huffington Post why it fell far short of what is needed:

If I was cynical I’d remark on the fact that this latest announcement comes just days before a crucial vote in the Commons which would force the Tories to take 3,000 vulnerable child refugees from Europe and it seems that the Government are trying to buy off MPs ahead of that.

Of course the Government’s latest capitulation to take up to 3,000 individuals from the Syrian region over the next four years is welcome but it is simply not enough. When I travelled to Greece earlier this month I saw thousands of refugee children languishing in camps that were overstretched and understaffed. Tens of thousands of vulnerable children travelling alone arrived in Europe last year – this latest announcement will do nothing for them. Instead they will continue to live on food rations, without access to education and without hope or fall prey to traffickers and those who would exploit them.

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Caron Lindsay

Paddy has Brexit campaigners floundering on Question Time

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 22nd April 2016 - 11:08 am

Paddy Ashdown has been in very combative form on the EU Referendum. Actually, the one debate I would love to see would be Paddy vs Boris. Our former leader would show up the Mayor’s vacuous, disingenuous rhetoric for what it is.

Paddy is truly getting out there and taking the fight right to Brexiteers in a way that nobody else has managed. He’s been pretty punchy on Twitter for the last few weeks:

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Antony Hook

EURef Talking Points: being positive. Hope-mongering.

By Antony Hook | Fri 22nd April 2016 - 9:39 am

I have taken part in hundreds of debates, canvassing sessions and media interviews about Europe. At the moment I am doing several debates per week. My experience is that to be persuasive you have to be positive.

Leave campaigners try to suggest that we are campaigning in a negative, “scare mongering” way.  The best way to disprove this is to be positive.  Speak about what has been achieved and can be achieved in future by Britain in Europe.

This article sets out some words, phrases and points that I find work for me. I hope they may work for you too.

BETTER IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE

The risks …

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Caron Lindsay

LibLink: David Steel: We need liberalism more than ever

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 22nd April 2016 - 8:48 am

David Steel has written an article for the Scotsman explaining why liberalism is needed more than ever in the face of both domestic and international challenges. He praises both Tim Farron and Willie Rennie and urges liberals to “re-assert themselves and support them.”

His comments about the SNP also struck a bit of a chord with me. It’s not just that they stitched up the Scottish Parliament with their majority, giving themselves control of the committees so that they couldn’t be effectively scrutinised, it’s their general attitude to politics. They are reminiscent of Labour in the ’80s and ’90s, with such a sense of entitlement to power and objection to even the mildest, most evidence based criticism. Yesterday, we had three shouty nationalists in the space of a couple of hours in our office. Clearly such intimidatory tactics are designed to spook us. Actually, we enjoy the fact that they are clearly rattled by the scale and success of our campaign. It is very like the days in Derbyshire when Labour thugs would shout at you as you delivered leaflets and it’s sad to see that kind of politics.

Anyway, back to David’s article. He wrote:

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