Liberal Democrat Voice

Duncan and Andrew Hames make history

By The Voice | Wed 16th July 2014 - 10:06 pm

Last week Harriet Harman said a rumour had been put round that she’d – shock horror- taken a baby through the voting lobby:

When I came back after having my first baby I was reported to the serjeant-at-arms for breaking the rules by taking my baby through the division lobby under my jacket.

What a difference 30 years makes.

Tonight, Jo Swinson tweeted:

A little bit of history… @duncanhames the first MP to take a baby into the House of Commons voting lobby during a division! #fb

— Jo Swinson (@joswinson) July 16, 2014

At least, we’re assuming that it …

Posted in News | Tagged andrew hames, duncan hames, Jo Swinson, making history and Parliament | 2 Comments

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Bedroom Tax review raises serious questions – abolition or serious reform is now essential

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 16th July 2014 - 7:00 pm

In amidst the excitement of the Cabinet reshuffle, the Government slipped out its first interim review of what is technically called the “Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy”. That’s the “Bedroom Tax” to you and me. The conclusions are pretty damning:

At the time of the research, four out of five claimants affected by the RSRS were reported by landlords to be paying some or all of their shortfall, although half of these had failed to pay in full. There

…

Posted in News | Tagged bedroom tax, housing and welfare reform | 15 Comments

LibLink: Lord Ken MacDonald: How the DRIP Bill will help us convict criminals

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 16th July 2014 - 4:44 pm

The Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill cleared its Commons stages last night after a long debate which saw Julian Huppert speak at every stage and in great detail. He was pretty much doing the job of a Minister and very clearly and rationally put the case for the Bill, at all times stating his own personal commitment to civil liberties.

Lord Ken MacDonald, who has been pretty sound on things like secret courts, the statelessness provisions in the Immigration Bill and the cuts to Legal Aid, has written an article …

Posted in News | Tagged civil liberties, Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill, lord ken macdonald and the guardian | 17 Comments

Michael Gove: The Case for the Defence. And also the Case for the Prosecution.

By Stephen Tall | Wed 16th July 2014 - 3:24 pm

Unlike most Lib Dems, I am not a Gove-hater. But nor do I share the adulation those one on the Right bestow upon him. The man we must now call the former Education secretary was more complex than his critics allowed and more flawed than his fans admitted.

No-one should doubt Michael Gove’s passion for schools reform, nor his sincerity. For him it is much more than political: it is also personal. Two men have shaped much of the education agenda in the last 15 years: Gove and Labour’s Andrew Adonis, …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged andrew old, ben goldacre, dominic cummings, featured and michael gove | 21 Comments

The Independent View: The pupil premium may be starting to deliver – but beware false dawns of the past

By Helen Barnard | Wed 16th July 2014 - 2:24 pm

Today Ofsted deliver their verdict on the Liberal Democrats’ pupil premium policy, four years into its existence – a pledge which was on the front page of the party’s manifesto. In straitened times, this was a welcome commitment to focus limited resources on poorer children, and an explicit attempt to break the cycle of poverty.

There are positive signs that the additional resources being put in through pupil premium are being used better to improve the education of children from low income backgrounds, but not yet evidence that they are …

Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Tagged david laws, education and pupil premium | 11 Comments

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Nick Clegg tackles the Daily Mail’s sexism with humour

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 16th July 2014 - 1:34 pm

So, this is the Daily Mail’s sadly predictable response to women being promoted to high or higher office.

I guess you can’t really expect better when 7 of the top 10 stories on their sidebar could be easily headlined: “Woman goes out in public wearing clothes.” That’s actually quite low for them.

Nick Clegg responded with humour in a tweet today.

What I wore to the office today. Fingers crossed the Mail approves. Hope I don’t look too ’80s cabin attendant’. pic.twitter.com/bVy7wCkfrG

— Nick Clegg (@nick_clegg) July 16, 2014

You …

Posted in News | Tagged daily mail, grazia, nick clegg and sexism | 29 Comments

Lord Paul Tyler writes…Progress in Magna Carta’s Birthday year

By Paul Tyler | Wed 16th July 2014 - 11:56 am

In a week when the big news is about changed faces in government, there is also much manoeuvring in the political undergrowth about the rules which govern government: our constitution.

The House of Commons Select Committee on Political and Constitutional Reform (P&CR) has launched a debate on a written constitution for the United Kingdom. This has been a Liberal and Liberal Democrat objective for all my time in politics, but the question has always been how such a document would be drawn up, agreed and entrenched beyond the usual …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged constitutional reform, Scotland and Wales | 6 Comments

Opinion: Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill – A measure of humanity

By Toby Keynes | Wed 16th July 2014 - 10:25 am

When Lord Falconer put forward his Assisted Dying Bill, I had no idea it would generate so much interest. Similar bills have gone before the Lords before, and similar bills have failed, by a wide margin.

However, this bill is gathering a remarkable head of steam ahead of its second reading in the Lords this Friday, 18^th July .

The Church of England’s General Synod’s decision to reject the bill and call for a Royal Commission is reasonably predictable, but it’s becoming clear that opposition to the bill is far from …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged assisted dying bill | 18 Comments

Opinion: Violence And Peace In The Middle East – There Is Something We Can Do

By Jonathan Brown | Wed 16th July 2014 - 8:55 am

The recent murders of the Israeli and Palestinian children were in themselves terrible crimes but they also served to ignite the latest round of brutal violence in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Some media commentators are tempted to suggest that this is inevitable and un-resolvable but I don’t believe that to be the case.

I was surprised recently to discover – and then to find that I greatly admired – the Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine’s 9 point plan for peace and the three principles that inform …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged israel, liberal democrat friends of palestine, middle east, palestine and peace | 13 Comments

How you can support One Member One Vote for Party Committees

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 15th July 2014 - 9:32 pm

In March, Sue Doughty invited members to take part in a consultation on the idea of allowing one member one vote for party committee elections and on party policy at Conference. The Internal Democratic Reform Working Group, which Sue chairs, then looked at the submissions they received and the feedback at a consultative session at York Conference. They have now drawn up some radical proposals which will give every member the right to vote on policy at Conference and in Committee elections which they want to submit for debate at …

Posted in News | Tagged internal party democracy, one member one vote and sue doughty | 62 Comments

Lord Rennard remains suspended

By The Voice | Tue 15th July 2014 - 9:02 pm

According to the BBC, Chris Rennard’s challenge against his suspension from the party has been rejected.

The former chief executive of the Lib Dems had been suspended amid claims that he had brought the party into disrepute by failing to apologise over sexual harassment allegations.

…

Lord Rennard challenged his suspension from the Lib Dems, saying it was against party rules.

A Lib Dem source said: “His appeal against his suspension has been rejected. He remains suspended while the investigation continues.”

Please note that all comments will be moderated on this post.

Posted in News | Tagged chris rennard | 8 Comments

It’s Party awards time!

By Tim Farron MP | Tue 15th July 2014 - 5:06 pm

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.

Posted in News | Tagged featured and party awards | 7 Comments

Opinion: Assisted dying

By James Harper | Tue 15th July 2014 - 3:20 pm

The Assisted Dying Bill returns to the House of Lords this week following high-profile interventions by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby , and his predecessor-but-one, George Carey.

While the bill may receive a second reading in the Lords, it stands little chance of progressing in the Commons. This is because key MPs, including David Cameron and Nick Clegg, are firmly against it. I respect the sincerity of Cameron and Clegg’s concerns, but I also believe their stated views show that they have not approached the issue in the right way. It is vital that any debate in the commons is open and honest, and not skewed by prejudice or emotion. MPs could do worse than begin the debate by considering the views of the two archbishops, which actually advanced the quality of the public discourse quite significantly.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged assisted dying | 17 Comments

Opinion: The pressures of being a parliamentary candidate

By Phil Ling | Tue 15th July 2014 - 1:30 pm

It is with a sad, and heavy, heart that yesterday I heard of Sarah Yong’s decision to stand down as PPC for Somerton and Frome for personal reasons. What is even sadder is that people are demanding to know the personal reasons, either because the privacy of an individual is less important than what this means to the party or to show it’s not because of the party prospects. If an employee (even CEO) of an organisation stepped down for personal reasons it is normally respected and the organisation moves on.

Posted in Op-eds | 13 Comments

Women bishops – at last

By Mary Reid | Tue 15th July 2014 - 11:49 am

All liberals, of whatever political persuasion, will welcome the news that the barriers to appointing women bishops in the Church of England have now been removed. There has been a lot of misinformation flying around, with the glib portrayal of the bishops as a crowd of geriatric misogynists, so a few facts might help to improve the debate.

The General Synod, which is the governing body of the Church of England, first approved the appointment of female bishops in principle in 2008. Since then it has been trying to agree on the provisions to be made for those local churches which will not accept them, just as it did when women were first ordained as priests.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged church of england and women bishops | 19 Comments

Opinion: The Rawnsley Challenge

By David Allen | Tue 15th July 2014 - 9:57 am

Andrew Rawnsley, in the Observer, describes the rumoured Westminster paedophile scandal and asks the question: “Whom do you trust? Comes an answer that is as popular as it is succinct: trust no one.”

Rawnsley wearily summarises why we have lost trust in bankers, doctors, intelligence services, police, bishops, supermarkets, media and celebrities – and above all, politicians of all sides, from Blair onwards. Then he gets more original. He identifies judge-led enquiry as a means of establishing who we can trust – and then shows how that option was kyboshed. When Hutton exonerated Blair (and when Blair recommended the Hutton process to his friend Rebekah Brooks), judge-led enquiry was discredited. Government, as often, has been slow to recognise the problem – as evidenced by the recent proposal that the sister of a previous Attorney-General should lead a historic child abuse enquiry.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged citizens juries and truth and reconciliation | 21 Comments

Reshuffle: One Nation Toryism has gone to meet its maker

By Stephen Tall | Tue 15th July 2014 - 9:10 am

David Cameron’s extensive reshuffle of the Tory ministerial ranks will continue today. Last night we learned of the casualties; today will be dedicated to the winners. But there’s no doubt at all about the biggest casualty: moderate, One Nation Toryism.

Ken Clarke, famously dubbed the sixth Lib Dem cabinet member, has gone. Too sensible to be left in charge of the Justice ministry he was exiled to the Cabinet’s fringes in 2012; now he has been retired completely. William Hague – transformed …

Posted in News | Tagged featured | 30 Comments

UPDATED: Sarah Yong stands down as Lib Dem candidate for marginal seat of Somerton and Frome

By Stephen Tall | Mon 14th July 2014 - 7:55 pm

It’s six months since Sarah Yong was selected as the Lib Dem candidate for Somerton and Frome, held by David Heath since 1997. Today she’s announced her decision to stand down. Here’s the letter she’s sent to her local paper, announcing the news:

Dear Editor,

I just wanted to let you know that it is with great regret that I’ve decided to stand down from my role as Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Somerton and Frome. I have made this decision for personal reasons and as a result of changes in

…

Posted in News and Selection news | Tagged david heath, paddy ashdown, Sarah Yong and somerton and frome | 13 Comments

Norman Baker MP writes…Why the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill is compatible with human rights

By Norman Baker MP | Mon 14th July 2014 - 5:15 pm

As a party we care deeply about human rights. Left to their own devices, the Conservatives would have pulled us out of the European Convention. Thanks to the Liberal Democrats, we have stopped that from happening.

So I am concerned by some suggestions that the emergency legislation we published on Thursday isn’t compliant with the ECHR. This is simply not true.

As many of you will know, in April this year the European Court of Justice overturned the EU Data Retention Directive. They did so on the basis that this …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged DRIP and norman baker | 38 Comments

Laws: “99% of schools now have a plan in place to deliver universal free school meals in September”

By Stephen Tall | Mon 14th July 2014 - 4:30 pm

I’ll be honest. If I had the choice over where to direct £500 million a year of taxpayers’ money, universal free school meals for infants would not be top of my priority list.

That said, the sheer desperation of right-wing newspapers like the Daily Mail for the policy to fail just to spite Nick Clegg strikes me as pretty mean-spirited. It’s a policy which is highly popular with headteachers, and will be with parents too. Perhaps more surprisingly, it’s possibly the only Lib Dem policy ever to attract the support of …

Posted in News | Tagged david laws and free school meals | 7 Comments

Opinion: Post 16 transport: It’s time to change the law to enable everyone to get on in life

By Julie Pörksen | Mon 14th July 2014 - 3:30 pm

For many 16 year olds across the country the post-exam, pre-result time in the summer should be a time of freedom, working a summer job to save some money or hanging out with friends and family, sure in the knowledge that come September they will be on track to take the next steps in life.

Northumberland’s young people are facing uncertainty this summer. The previous Liberal Democrat administration at County Hall had guaranteed the right of free post-16 transport to the most suitable accessible course. This has been taken …

Posted in News | Tagged education, school transport and young people | 9 Comments

Opinion: Just remember we’re all human

By Marisha Ray | Mon 14th July 2014 - 2:30 pm

When young adults, who may even at the time have been members of prestigious universities and their more infamous clubs, became intoxicated and indulged in aggressive or loud and disturbing speech, violent actions or were simply careless and destructive, did we automatically assume that when they matured they would behave that way for the rest of their lives? We did not. Indeed some may still be thought fit to take part in the running of our country.

When young adults or older youths indulge in isolated incidents of unwise pyromania, do we say that they will be pyromaniacs for life? We do not, and in general they are not.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged civil liberties, Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill and surveillance | 11 Comments

Opinion: DRIP under the microscope – should Liberal Democrats support this Bill?

By Mark Pack | Mon 14th July 2014 - 12:59 pm

Unusually for me, I’m starting writing this piece without knowing what conclusion I’ll come to by the end of it. Normally it’s straight forward enough to marshal evidence, decide on view and then write it up (unless the curse of writers’ block strikes of course).

But the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill (DRIP) takes the usual perils of journalism turning most stories into a simple good versus bad dynamic, throws in the paucity of expert mainstream coverage of many technical issues and adds a dash of juggling different uncertainties.

Certainly if …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged civil liberties, Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill and featured | 29 Comments

LibLink: Stephen Tall: Early stages of Labour

By NewsHound | Mon 14th July 2014 - 11:45 am

Our Stephen Tall has written a column for Total Politics in which he suggests that the Liberal Democrat manifesto next year will have much more in common with Labour than the Conservatives.

First he sets the scene in the wake of the European and local election results and the Oakeshott coup:

Clegg knows he needs to do more than just survive. Limping towards 2015, acknowledged to be a survival election for the Lib Dems, won’t be good enough. He must inspire the troops that a great liberal victory is possible (or, more realistically, that a truly awful defeat can be avoided).

So Clegg’s sought to re-focus the party’s sights on the 2015 election.

Posted in LibLink | Tagged stephen tall and total politics | 24 Comments

Lord Brian Paddick writes: The difficult balancing act between privacy and security

By Brian Paddick | Mon 14th July 2014 - 10:45 am

As a Liberal former police officer I am acutely aware of the difficult balancing act the government has to perform between keeping us safe and keeping our personal data safe. At the same time I see both the anxiety that those concerned with civil liberties have over the new legislation and the Government’s need to act to prevent a valuable crime detection tool slipping from our grasp.

So why the need and why the rush?

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged civil liberties, communications data and Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill | 37 Comments

Vince Cable shows why Liberal Democrats need him to be our Economic Spokesperson for the General Election

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 14th July 2014 - 9:55 am

Vince Cable was interviewed by Andrew Marr yesterday. His confident and credible manner and his clear explanation of Liberal Democrat priorities make it very clear to me that he should be our Chief Economics Spokesperson during the election campaign. He can take the fight to both Conservatives and Labour in a way that nobody else can. Stephen Tall has been saying this for a long while. I have to confess that while my heart was …

Posted in News | 16 Comments

Opinion: Welcome to Bournemouth – eventually

By Lawrence Fullick | Mon 14th July 2014 - 8:55 am

At last our party will have a proper seaside conference again in 2015. Bournemouth is the ideal spot for it.

The town has a remarkable story; from almost nil population in the present town centre area in 1810 it has grown to 180,000 today. It first developed as a place where the wealthy came to spend the winter.

Some would say that the rot set in with the arrival of the railway in 1870.

Posted in News | Tagged bournemouth and liberal democrats autumn conference 2015 | 5 Comments

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #382

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 13th July 2014 - 7:00 pm

EaWelcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 382nd 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 (6-12 July, 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:

Posted in Best of the blogs | 1 Comment

The Independent View: Lib Dems have cause to be concerned about the data retention bill

By Jim Killock | Sun 13th July 2014 - 2:50 pm

Many Liberal Democrats are congratulating themselves on a ‘sensible compromise’ on the emergency data retention bill, DRIP. I am afraid they are deeply wrong, and want to explain a little about why.

The first, most important point, is that DRIP doesn’t answer any of the points made by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) about data retention laws. Most importantly, they ask for an end to blanket retention, saying that retention must relate to specific threats, and be confined by specific criteria, such as a time period, …

Posted in The Independent View | Tagged Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill and open rights group | 15 Comments

Op-eds

Are the men of violence back in British politics? (Chris Nelson)
London needs more social homes – and Liberal Democrat boroughs are determined to deliver (Gareth Roberts)
Andy Burnham’s devolution reforms go only half-way (Mark Corner)
Reform donations row shows how facts get trampled at Westminster (David Vigar)
The Independent View: Turning back the tide on free speech (Jack Coulson)

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Bobby Dean MP writes: The resilient state

Sarah Olney bids to become candidate for Mayor of London

Going for four in a row in Scotland

Observations of an Expat: Canada

Duncan and Andrew Hames make history

Bedroom Tax review raises serious questions – abolition or serious reform is now essential

LibLink: Lord Ken MacDonald: How the DRIP Bill will help us convict criminals

Michael Gove: The Case for the Defence. And also the Case for the Prosecution.

The Independent View: The pupil premium may be starting to deliver – but beware false dawns of the past

Nick Clegg tackles the Daily Mail’s sexism with humour

Lord Paul Tyler writes…Progress in Magna Carta’s Birthday year

Opinion: Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill – A measure of humanity

Opinion: Violence And Peace In The Middle East – There Is Something We Can Do

How you can support One Member One Vote for Party Committees

Lord Rennard remains suspended

It’s Party awards time!

Opinion: Assisted dying

Opinion: The pressures of being a parliamentary candidate

Women bishops – at last

Opinion: The Rawnsley Challenge

Reshuffle: One Nation Toryism has gone to meet its maker

UPDATED: Sarah Yong stands down as Lib Dem candidate for marginal seat of Somerton and Frome

Norman Baker MP writes…Why the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill is compatible with human rights

Laws: “99% of schools now have a plan in place to deliver universal free school meals in September”

Opinion: Post 16 transport: It’s time to change the law to enable everyone to get on in life

Opinion: Just remember we’re all human

Opinion: DRIP under the microscope – should Liberal Democrats support this Bill?

LibLink: Stephen Tall: Early stages of Labour

Lord Brian Paddick writes: The difficult balancing act between privacy and security

Vince Cable shows why Liberal Democrats need him to be our Economic Spokesperson for the General Election

Opinion: Welcome to Bournemouth – eventually

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #382

The Independent View: Lib Dems have cause to be concerned about the data retention bill

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Bobby Dean MP writes: The resilient state

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