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Opinion: Celebrate 50 years free of the death penalty

By Antony Hook | Fri 15th August 2014 - 2:12 pm

This week marks half a century since the last executions in England.

Around the world, the death penalty has been reduced to a minority practice. Only 58 countries mow use capital punishment. Asia is its last redoubt, where ninety per cent of executions take place there. It may well be connected that the continent in which democracy is least prevalent is where execution is most common. Many new democracies created in the last 50 years abolished the death penalty when they threw off the yokes of military dictatorship, communism or apartheid.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged capital punishment | 13 Comments

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Last call: How to enter the LibDemVoice Fantasy Football League

By The Voice | Fri 15th August 2014 - 12:00 pm

The English Premier League kicks off tomorrow and LibDemVoice has revived its Fantasy Football League to mark the occasion. So if you fancy pitting your soccer selection skills against 100+ fellow party supporters, here’s your chance.

To enter all you have to do is click on this link.

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Posted in News | Tagged fantasy football | Leave a comment

Liblink: Paddy Ashdown on IS and Iraq

By The Voice | Fri 15th August 2014 - 10:43 am

Three years ago, when the world obsessed about President Assad, some of us warned that Syria was only one frontline in a wider sectarian war between Sunni and Shia; that the spread of militant jihadism among the Sunni community, funded by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, was a preparation for this. And that before long this movement, like the 30 years’ religious war of 17th-century Europe, would threaten to engulf the entire Muslim world

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged iraq and IS | 22 Comments

Opinion: What we leave behind

By Reg Yeates | Fri 15th August 2014 - 9:27 am

The death of Robin Williams is another tragic loss that at first assumptions has its roots in depression. He joins other illustrious public figures who took their own lives due in no small part to the Black Dog: Tony Hancock; Kurt Cobain; Stuart Adamson; Lord Sutch and Alexander McQueen. If it were not for a last minute change of mind, Stephen Fry in 1995: though it was again a narrow escape in 2012, when he downed pills and vodka, to be saved by the producer of the production he was filming. The Black Dog has little or no regard of fame, status, gender, or race: it is an equal opportunities illness that can strike anyone down, at anytime.

The statistics on suicide and mental health are worrying. Some key facts from Mental Health Foundation state that suicide is the most common cause of death in men under 35. The Samaritans Suicide Statistics for 2014 state that there were 5981 (UK) suicides in 2012 an increase of 291 on 2010 figures. Suicide is also more prevalent in men than women.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged featured and mental health | 5 Comments

Why Lib Dems shouldn’t keep schtum about tuition fees

By Stephen Tall | Thu 14th August 2014 - 8:35 pm

“University tuition fee rise has not deterred poorer students from applying”. That was the headline in The Guardian this week reporting new analysis by the Independent Commission on Fees chaired by Will Hutton:

The raising of tuition fees to £9,000 has not put off students from disadvantaged backgrounds from applying to university – although the gap in applications between those from wealthy and poor backgrounds remains wide, according to new analysis. …

The commission found that university application rates for 18-year-olds in England have continued to recover from their post-rise lows, with application rates for 2014 entry – including students who will receive their A-level results on Thursday – almost two percentage points higher than in 2010.

While students who are not eligible for free school meals – available for pupils from households earning less than £16,000 – remain more than twice as likely to go to university, the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students has narrowed from 30.5% in 2010 to 29.8% in 2013.

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Posted in News | Tagged david willetts, featured, higher education, independent commission on fees, sutton trust, tuition fees, universities and vince cable | 206 Comments

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An idea from Matthew Parris that will unite political activists everywhere

By Stephen Tall | Thu 14th August 2014 - 5:30 pm

The Lib-Con Coalition may have run out-of-steam, but Conservative MP-turned-columnist Matthew Parris has identified a policy around which the two parties could happily unite. Indeed, his proposal might even form the basis for a Rainbow Coalition of all the parties.

What’s prompted the idea is that Matthew’s been out delivering leaflets recently. And it has unleashed within him his ‘inner fascist’:

I want order. I want consistency. I want standards. And I want eye-watering penalties for property owners who try their fellow Britons’ patience and waste our time by making their addresses impossible to find. I am driven to distraction by the merry chaos of British residential and commercial addresses, and if I crick my back one more time stooping to try to force a flimsy paper envelope through a vicious ankle-level steel trap of a letterbox, I shall resign as a libertarian and howl for regulation.

So here’s his solution:

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Posted in News | Tagged leaflets and matthew parris | 25 Comments

Lib Dems pledge more tax cuts: after personal allowance raised to £12.5k will also increase National Insurance threshold

By Stephen Tall | Thu 14th August 2014 - 4:10 pm

Today’s big announcement from the Lib Dems has been the “plan to cut your tax bill further”. Here’s how The Guardian reports it:

The Liberal Democrats are to burnish their credentials as the tax-cutting party for the low paid by floating the possibility of cutting national insurance contributions for anyone earning below £12,500 a year.

In a challenge to David Cameron, who is facing pressure from Tory MPs to pledge bold tax cuts as the economy grows, the Lib Dems will promise in their general election manifesto to raise the level at which workers start to pay national insurance contributions.

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Posted in News | Tagged Danny Alexander, featured, income tax, national insurance and tax cuts (Lib Dem) | 36 Comments

Rennie on the SNP’s “dishonest, desperate and disgraceful” NHS scaremongering

By Nick T | Thu 14th August 2014 - 1:20 pm

Scottish Lib Dem Leader Willie Rennie delivered a passionate speech yesterday setting out his positive arguments for Scotland remaining in the United Kingdom.

A link to the whole speech is below, but he spent a bit of time rebutting some recent scaremongering by the SNP on the issue of the NHS:

And across the UK, few things unite people like our belief in the NHS.

Founded on the principles that it should meet the needs of everyone, that it should be free at the point of delivery, and that it should be based on clinical need not the ability to pay, it remains a source of pride in which each and every one of us has a stake.

These principles are unique and they are enduring.

For the Nationalists to claim that they are under threat is dishonest, desperate and disgraceful.

It is also factually wrong.

Despite the financial pressure of the global financial crisis, the NHS budget has been protected and NHS funding in England is now £12.7 billion higher than it was in 2010.

Private sector involvement in England’s NHS is paid for with public money, meaning that the cash equivalent is protected for Scotland – and the Scottish Government can spend it however they see fit.

The publicly-funded NHS was this year ranked best healthcare system across the 11 richest countries in the world – and we are determined to keep it that way.

But five weeks out from the independence referendum, and the SNP has suddenly started to pretend that funding is in doubt.

Standing on street corners, dripping poison about the NHS into the ears of passers bye is a sign of just how desperate they are becoming.

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Posted in News | Tagged NHS, Scottish independence referendum and willie rennie | 5 Comments

LibLink: Mike Crockart – Police don’t need arms for show of force

By The Voice | Thu 14th August 2014 - 9:08 am

Over at the Edinburgh Evening News, Lib Dem MP for Edinburgh West and former police officer himself, Mike Crockart, has a piece on an issue on which Liberal Democrats in Scotland have been leading the debate in recent weeks.

Here’s an excerpt:

Look up Edinburgh Division on the Police Scotland website and it proudly boasts that the city was ranked recently by YouGov as “one of the top five safest cities in the UK”. In 2013-14, officers in Edinburgh only had cause to present or discharge weapons, including Tasers and baton rounds, 13 times. There are nine such incidents for this year – roughly one per month.

Undoubtedly our police officers face very real dangers, but serious incidents make up a minority of police call outs. Are we really prepared to arm our officers routinely to deal with a tiny proportion of cases? As an officer I didn’t believe that we should and as a MP I certainly don’t.

The far-stronger case is to issue non-lethal options like CS or pepper spray to frontline officers. By doing that we answer the threat they face on our behalf without destroying Peel’s fundamental principle.

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged armed police and mike crockart | 8 Comments

Lib Dem donations in 2014, 2nd Quarter: £1.23m raised (but that’s less than Ukip)

By Stephen Tall | Wed 13th August 2014 - 7:25 pm

Today saw the publication by the Electoral Commission, the independent party funding watchdog, of the donations received by the UK’s political parties in the second quarter of 2014 (1 April to 30 June). Here are the figures:

And here’s how the BBC reported it:

UKIP have reported more in political donations than the Lib Dems in a quarter for the first time, according to the Electoral Commission. UKIP reported donations of £1.4m from April to June this year – £170,000 more than reported by the Lib

…

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Posted in News | Tagged annual accounts (Lib Dem), donations (Lib Dem) and ukip | 4 Comments

Lib Dem Chief Whip on David Ward: “I do not intend to take further action in relation to the tweet”

By Stephen Tall | Wed 13th August 2014 - 6:15 pm

Three weeks ago, Lib Dem MP for Bradford East David Ward tweeted: “The big question is – if I lived in #Gaza would I fire a rocket? – probably yes”. The following day he issued an apology, saying:

I utterly condemn the violence on both sides in Israel and Gaza. I condemn the actions of Hamas, and my comments were not in support of firing rockets into Israel. If they gave the opposite impression, I apologise.

That wasn’t quite the end of the matter, though. The Lib Dem disciplinary process required a meeting between the party’s Chief Whip, Don Foster, and David. That’s now taken place, and it’s been decided there will be no further action. The Yorkshire Post has published the statements issued by both:

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Posted in News | Tagged braford east, david ward, don foster, gaza, hamas, israel, middle east, palestine and yorkshire post | 34 Comments

Steve Webb: Lib Dems will introduce “fair warning” for job-seekers who break benefit rules before sanctions imposed

By The Voice | Wed 13th August 2014 - 2:55 pm

The Lib Dems are taking advantage of the quiet weeks in August to drip-feed a number of new policies likely to make it into the party’s general election manifesto. Alongside reforms to police stop-and-search and fairer funding for Wales, Lib Dem work and pensions minister Steve Webb has outline plans to introduce a ‘fair warning’ before benefits sanctions are imposed against job-seekers who break the rules. The Guardian reports:

The Liberal Democrats will pledge in their general election manifesto to introduce a new “yellow card” system to give

…

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Posted in News | Tagged benefits, jobs (Lib Dem) and steve webb | 12 Comments

Opinion: An Open Challenge to Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel

By John Kelly | Wed 13th August 2014 - 10:00 am

In recent months a number of Lib Dem Voice readers have suggested that there should be a dialogue, if not a merger, between the Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine and the Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel. This week one person highlighted the objectives of each organisation as shown on their websites as follows:

Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel:
“We exist to support and promote policies which lead to peace and security for Israel in the context of a comprehensive and lasting Middle East peace settlement”.

Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine:
“ exist to fight for the rights of the Palestinian People through the medium of the Liberal Democrat Party”

When I became Vice Chair of the Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine (LDFP) last autumn I had the same thought and suggested to my (somewhat sceptical) colleagues that our common Lib Dem values should give us a fair amount of common ground – even if not complete agreement.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged friends of israel (Lib Dem), friends of palestine (Lib Dem), gaza, israel, middle east and palestine | 90 Comments

Something stirring in the heart of England

By Paul Walter | Wed 13th August 2014 - 9:54 am

Newbury, Berkshire, is a relatively prosperous place which tends to mind its own business. “O little town of Newbury, how still your ruins lie”, goes the song in the Liberator song book. Occasionally the town has been at the heart of protests, such as those at Greenham Common and against the Newbury by-pass.

There is nothing more British than the public meeting. It is a great expression of our democracy.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged gaza, israel, palestine and richard benyon | 21 Comments

ICM poll: Labour leads Tories by 7%, Lib Dems in third place on 12%

By Stephen Tall | Tue 12th August 2014 - 9:00 pm

What a difference a month makes. In July, the Guardian’s ICM poll – the ‘gold standard’ – showed a narrow 1% Tory lead over Labour. Fast forward to August and Labour enjoys a solid 7% lead over the Tories, by 38% to 31%. The Lib Dems are in third place, unchanged on 12%, with Ukip trailing on 10%.

Three brief points:

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Posted in Polls | Tagged antony wells, boris johnson and icm | 55 Comments

Ryan Coetzee switches from Clegg’s Director of Strategy to Lib Dems’ General Election Director of Strategy

By Stephen Tall | Tue 12th August 2014 - 8:05 pm

It’s almost two years since Ryan Coetzee was appointed as Nick Clegg’s director of strategy, replacing Richard Reeves. His experience as a liberal politician and campaigner with South Africa’s Democratic Alliance meant that he was welcomed, even by many of those often sceptical of advisers and their worth.

One of his first actions was to start identifying the Lib Dem ‘market’, those voters who would consider voting for the party. His research, backed up by the party’s first major private polling operation about which I wrote here, has informed much of the national party’s campaigning since, including its “Stronger society, fairer economy” strapline.

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Posted in News | Tagged ryan coetzee and tim snowball | 48 Comments

LDVideo: Interview with Ben Fearn, “youngest ever Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate”

By The Voice | Tue 12th August 2014 - 4:15 pm

Ben Fearn, the 21 year-old Manchester University graduate selected earlier this year as Lib Dem parliamentary candidate for Derbyshire Dales – seat of the Tory transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin – has been interviewed by Digital Journal (hat-tip Charlotte Henry). You can watch a 3-minute video below, which includes the announcement of his selection, and read a fuller interview with him here. Incidentally he’s billed as the “youngest ever Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate”, but are there rivals to that title? Let us know below-the-line…

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Posted in News | Tagged ben fearn, derbyshire dales and patrick mcloughlin | 10 Comments

A reminder: It’s Party awards time!

By The Voice | Tue 12th August 2014 - 1:00 pm

A quick reminder of this message from Tim Farron, originally posted last month…

It’s that time of year again when members decide who should be in line for an award at Conference.

It could be someone who has worked tirelessly in their local area to elect Liberal Democrats or implement our policies or someone who has given years to our cause by working hard as councillors or candidates.

Maybe a political assistant to a councillor or someone who has supported a local MP in the hard work that they do.

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Posted in Party policy and internal matters | Tagged awards and tim farron | 1 Comment

Fairer funding for Wales: “Lib Dems will actually do something about it,” vows Kirsty Williams

By The Voice | Tue 12th August 2014 - 10:00 am

Yesterday we reported plans from Lib Dem home office minister Norman Baker to restore the public’s trust in the police. Another policy within the party’s ‘pre-manifesto’ is reported by BBC News Online – to reform the funding arrangement that has long been criticised for short-changing Wales:

Wales could benefit from hundreds of millions of pounds under Lib Dem plans to change the way funds are allocated to devolved nations, it has been claimed. The current system, known as the Barnett formula, is based on population levels and has long been criticised for short-changing Wales. Suggestions to re-draw the formula have been fiercely resisted in Scotland.

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Posted in News and Wales | Tagged kirsty williams | 8 Comments

Caroline Pidgeon AM writes… Why subsidising gun owners must come to an end

By Caroline Pidgeon | Tue 12th August 2014 - 8:15 am

Today is the “Glorious Twelfth” which is the start of the shooting season, especially of Grouse.

I would suggest today, of all days, is a good day to look at the issue of why people who own guns are actually subsidised by the taxpayer.

From the outset, let me put a few points on record, on what I know is an incredibly emotive issue.

Firstly, I don’t shoot or have any desire to do so, but secondly I understand just how important shooting is throughout the UK for some people, with a recent report suggesting that at least 600,000 people in the UK shoot live quarry, clay pigeons or targets.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged gun control, gun licensing and mayor of london | 46 Comments

Norman Baker: “The Lib Dems want to restore the public’s trust in the police”

By The Voice | Mon 11th August 2014 - 8:04 pm

Today’s London Evening Standard front page splashes on the news that the Lib Dems intend to tighten the laws on stop and search, and require some police officers to wear body cameras when they stop someone:

Armed police, riot squads and officers carrying out some stop-and-search in London would have to wear body cameras under Liberal Democrat proposals unveiled today.

The law and order reform, which will be in the party’s 2015 general election manifesto, will also require police to get a judge’s approval to carry out controversial Section 60 stop-and-searches. The existing law lets a senior officer authorise the stopping and searching of individuals in a certain area without suspicion of wrongdoing if he or she believes violence is about to erupt or that people are carrying weapons without good reason.

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Posted in News | Tagged home office, norman baker, police and stop and search | 10 Comments

LibLInk: Lord (Paul) Tyler – Just Deserts?

By NewsHound | Mon 11th August 2014 - 7:35 pm

Over at Lords of the Blogs, Lib Dem peer Paul Tyler gives short shrift to the complaints of his parliamentary colleagues complaining that the red benches cannot accommodate the 22 new peers appointed last week:

What a nerve! If on 10th July 2012, having given the Government’s Bill a huge second reading majority, those very same MPs had allowed it to make progress, this alleged problem would have been solved. Egged on by Peers and journalists, they broke their manifesto promises to bring democracy to the Lords by playing party games. Had the Reform Bill passed, political appointments would have ceased by now and we would be preparing for the first election of 120 members representing every region and nation of the UK, next year. The choice was theirs two years ago: popular election or party patronage. They are now getting what they asked for.

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Posted in News | Tagged alternative vote, house of lords, paul tyler and robert methuen | 10 Comments

Opinion: time to break the blockade of Gaza

By Andi Ali | Mon 11th August 2014 - 12:18 pm

For the last seven years, Israel – despite no legal mandate – has been imposing a naval blockade on Gaza’s sea port, leading to widespread poverty and starvation in that small coastal enclave.

The British government claims that it is doing all it can to end the blockade but, so far, its actions have proved fruitless. This is partly because the government has never pushed this matter as forcibly as they should, partly for fear of upsetting the powerful pro-Israeli lobby, both here and in the US Congress, and partly because it knows Israel will refuse to lift the blockade, as …

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Posted in Europe / International and Op-eds | Tagged gaza, israel and middle east | 48 Comments

ALDE sets sail for a new world from a old port

By Mark Valladares | Mon 11th August 2014 - 10:43 am

The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Europe (ALDE) have confirmed that they will be holding their next Annual Congress in Lisbon, Portugal, a country not known for its liberal politics in recent years.

However, as part of ALDE’s efforts to encourage the growth of liberal forces across the continent, links with a new group in Portuguese politics, Nos Ciadados (We Citizens) have been established, and it is hoped that, by meeting in Lisbon, that those links might be strengthened and nurtured.

In the light of the recent European Parliamentary election results, …

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Tagged ALDE and ALDE congress | 1 Comment

LibLink: Shirley Williams on a role for Europe in solving the Gaza crisis

By NewsHound | Mon 11th August 2014 - 9:16 am

Many thanks to Paul Walter for bringing our attention to this piece, written by Baroness Shirley Williams for the Guardian last week.

In it, she calls for a more activist stance by the European Union, given her view that America is not, and cannot be, an effective mediator between the two sides in the Gaza crisis.

The EU, as the main financier of the Palestinian Authority, is in a position to influence the PLO and to work with the Arab League on a settlement. The US remains Israel’s essential ally, but as a mediator is hobbled by the dependence of its

…

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged gaza, middle east and shirley williams | 2 Comments

Welcome to my day: 11 August

By Mark Valladares | Mon 11th August 2014 - 7:59 am

Just another day at Liberal Democrat Voice, as the day editor re-enacts a scene from Beau Geste…Yes, it’s me again, I’m afraid. And after last week’s controversy over an article that never did get resubmitted by its author, we have more comment on Gaza. This time, I’ve published it, as I think each has something new to say. Do remember though, we pre-moderate all such stories given the propensity of some to make comments which …

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Posted in Site news | 4 Comments

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #385

By The Voice | Sun 10th August 2014 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 385th 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 (3rd-9th August, 2014), 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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LibLink: Tessa Munt – Why I’m boycotting Israeli goods and services

By NewsHound | Sun 10th August 2014 - 4:15 pm

Tessa Munt, Lib Dem MP for Wells in Somerset, has explained over at her own website why she’s taken the decision to boycott Israeli goods and services:

This summer, the majority of people I meet out and about are disturbed, upset and angry. It’s clear that Israel has crossed a line. It’s not ok to drop bombs on civilians and the sight of parents carrying the remains of their small children in plastic bags is sickening. Bombed hospitals and schools, an entire population stunned and damaged is criminal. It simply cannot be justified.

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged gaza, israel, middle east, palestine and tessa munt | 74 Comments

How to enter the LibDemVoice Fantasy Football League

By The Voice | Sun 10th August 2014 - 2:30 pm

The English Premier League kicks off this Saturday and LibDemVoice has revived its Fantasy Football League to mark the occasion. So if you fancy pitting your soccer selection skills against fellow party members, here’s your chance.

To enter all you have to do is click on this link.

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Posted in News | Tagged fantasy football | 4 Comments

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

By The Voice | Sun 10th August 2014 - 12:30 pm

Many thanks to the 14,050 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here’s our 7 most-read posts…

Six new Lib Dem peers named (47 comments) by Stephen Tall

Linda Jack writes… Why I am standing for Party President (53) by Linda Jack

Julian Huppert’s Tory opponent in Cambridge next May will be… an ex-Lib Dem London mayoral hopeful (36) by The Voice

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Posted in Site news | Leave a comment