Nick Perry

Opinion: Where we work we get a pasting

By Nick Perry | Tue 27th May 2014 - 3:08 pm

Blackadder Quote From DVDAfter another bruising local government election in Hastings & Rye – a parliamentary target back in 1997 – the Liberal Democrats remain without any councillors on Hastings Borough Council and notched up a pallid 7% of the vote across the town.

This is pretty much a re-run of the 2012 result. Once again, targeting just one Council ward, we achieved a swing from Labour to Lib Dem, but did not come close to a gain.

This is one of the foremost bellweather constituencies of the South East, and is already a key Tory-Labour battleground for the 2015 General Election.

We have a functional local party here, with committed folk, many of whom have been members for a very long time.

I know that we have worked like stink for as long as I have lived down here (since 2007, when I was first selected as PPC) trusting in the leadership and the old slogan of ‘Where we work, we win’. Except it’s not true.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 23 Comments
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Caron Lindsay

Well, that’s one way to wake up in the morning: “Can you come on the Today Programme in 5 minutes”

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 27th May 2014 - 2:35 pm

This morning I was in bed at that stage when you start to get that vague inclination that there is a world beyond the cosy warmth and snuggliness of the duvet but can still pretend it isn’t really happening.

When my phone started ringing, I had to come to rather faster than I’d planned. It was a producer from the Today Programme on Radio 4 asking if I’d talk to Jim Naughtie about the election results and Nick Clegg’s leadership pretty much there and then. Now, when I’ve done these things before, I’ve always got up early, mugged up on what’s …

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Paul Burstow

Paul Burstow writes … How can we achieve the home care workforce that we all deserve?

By Paul Burstow | Tue 27th May 2014 - 1:35 pm

Care in the home Some rights reserved by British Red CrossA couple of weeks ago the diary of a home care worker shone a light on highs and frankly far too many lows that care workers all around the country face, day in, day out.

When we have all heard too many shocking stories of neglectful, malicious, taunting “carers” which now dominate perceptions of social care, this is the antidote. It was been truly inspiring to read the dedication, compassion, and genuine care motivating this fantastic woman.

But it is also deeply depressing …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 7 Comments
Paul Reynolds

Opinion: Six reasons why Lib Dems need to support the leader

By Paul Reynolds | Tue 27th May 2014 - 12:20 pm

Nick Clegg Q&A 8(Warning. This is not comfortable reading)

The decline in popular support for the Lib Dems since 2010 has been painful, culminating in Sunday’s near-wipeout in the European elections – and being beaten in the popular vote by the Greens.

We are a year away from the general election. The improving economy and Lib Dem policy successes like the Pupil Premium and larger tax allowances have not fed, so far, into electoral success. Can and should anything be done to recover the situation in the coming year ? Is ‘holding one’s nerve’ (or as critics might say, ‘doing nothing different’) a viable option ?

There have been a few calls for the leader to resign.  Uncomfortable though the reasons are, here are six why the leader should stay beyond the general election:

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 44 Comments
John Abrams

Opinion: we lead when we’re brave

By John Abrams | Tue 27th May 2014 - 10:47 am

UKIP logoLike many others I was a sub-agent for the European Elections. My ‘chosen’ borough was Tameside where we stood precisely zero candidates at the local elections. A bizarre contrast compared to Lib Dem led Stockport just down the road where I live.

It will come as no surprise from the North West results that one of my samples was devoid of any Lib Dem votes at all – a first after 30 years in politics. (Luckily there were samples that were a bit rosier!)

Once proceedings were complete something troubled me: there were Labour, Green and Conservative sub-agents and little old me. What was missing: ah yes, good old UKIP. I wonder if this is a sign of how they’ll be acting in the European Parliament? For a party who came second to absent themselves at a count so as not to represent the democratic process let alone their own voters is baffling and perhaps a little alarming.

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Mike Biden

Opinion: The messenger or the message?

By Mike Biden | Tue 27th May 2014 - 10:07 am

nick_clegg_vince_cable_budget_2009_bCoalition government is very tough on the junior party.  No surprise there. The prize, in our case, was lots of our favourite policies implemented – something we haven’t achieved for 100 years. The downside is a massive amount of negative media coverage.

Your coalition allies hate you because they see you as imposing policies on them. The opposition see it as an open goal, a chance to squeeze you out of the next election.  It is a two party nut-cracker with the potential to crush us.  The voracious appetite of the press pack has a constant supply of stories.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 37 Comments
Andrew Garratt

Opinion: A perspective on the 2014 European elections

By Andrew Garratt | Tue 27th May 2014 - 9:13 am

European Union flagThe Lib Dems have suffered their worst European election performance for 25 years.

In 1989, that election was fought by six parties – Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem (as SLD), Green, SNP and Plaid Cymru – which also fought the 2014 election.

Of those six parties, five got fewer votes in 2014 than they got in 1989. One got more. Can you guess which one?

Let’s look at the figures:

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Mary Reid

Research on impact of change of leader on four key seats

By Mary Reid | Tue 27th May 2014 - 8:25 am

Nick Clegg, Danny Alexander and Vince Cable vote for the Make it Happen resolutionThe Guardian today leads with a sorry tale headlined: Clegg taking Lib Dems to wipeout.

An unnamed Lib Dem supporter has commissioned ICM to carry out research in four key Lib Dem constituencies, including Nick Clegg’s own seat, and the report has been leaked to the Guardian.

Voters were asked how they would vote in a General Election if the party were led by Nick Clegg, Vince Cable or Danny Alexander.

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The Voice

WATCH: Clegg – “the easiest thing in politics is just to walk away. I’m not going to do that”

By The Voice | Mon 26th May 2014 - 8:20 pm

A shattered-looking Nick Clegg has spoken today of the “gutting and heart breaking” European election results, but said he would not “walk away” from the leadership nor from the Coalition. You can read the full transcript of his interview with the BBC’s Vicki Young below.

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Posted in YouTube | 45 Comments
Iain Roberts

Opinion: We need to stop helping the other parties and change our message

By Iain Roberts | Mon 26th May 2014 - 7:03 pm

The Liberal Democrats have achieved many good things in Government and stopped the Tories doing many bad things. As with every government, there have been mistakes and much that could have been done better, but with fewer than one in ten MPs the party has punched well above its weight and, as a result, many good Liberal Democrat policies are now being put into practise.

And yet the party is being hammered in the polls and we’ve just seen a disastrous set of local and European elections with the Liberal Democrats down to just a single MEP.

What’s gone wrong, above all …

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Posted in Op-eds | 40 Comments
David Schmitz

Opinion: Political scalps grow back

By David Schmitz | Mon 26th May 2014 - 5:34 pm

Nick Clegg listening York Some rights reserved by Liberal DemocratsUntil Friday, I was a Lib Dem Councillor in the London Borough of Haringey, where I enjoyed a reputation as an effective local representative. As one constituent put it

I have never been able to fathom why for example, people express their anger at the government in Westminster by voting out of office the guy in  the next street who gets your drains unblocked or your broken windows  fixed. And the same here is true of David. I hope that when election time comes around, people

…

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The Voice

++ Breaking.. Vince Cable: There is no leadership issue

By The Voice | Mon 26th May 2014 - 4:46 pm

Vince Cable speaking to mediaStatement from Vince Cable who’s away in China on Government business:

These were exceptionally disappointing results for the party. Many hard working Liberal Democrats, who gave this fight everything they had and then lost their seats, are feeling frustrated and disheartened and we all understand that.

Nick did a bold thing in standing up to the eurosceptic wave which has engulfed much of continental Europe. We are the only party to have taken that on and he personally deserves tremendous credit for that. There is no leadership issue. We

…

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Benjamin Mathis

Opinion: An open letter to Nick Clegg

By Benjamin Mathis | Mon 26th May 2014 - 4:16 pm

Nick-CleggDear Nick,

When I joined the party in 2006, one of the first things I did was to hit the streets of Dudley, my hometown, delivering Focus and canvassing voters. I’ve been an active, campaigning party member ever since.

Another of the first things I did was to locate and read a copy of the Orange Book. And I liked it. I agreed with a lot of it, and “Orange Booker” has been a badge I have worn with slightly perverse pride ever since.

I like what you’re doing, Nick – and I like …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 73 Comments
Rabi Martins

Opinion: Chase BAME votes or face wipeout

By Rabi Martins | Mon 26th May 2014 - 2:43 pm

Campaigning on the doorstep - Lynne FeatherstoneI make no apologies for returning to my old hobby horse – the need for our Party to actively do more to actively win over the support of BAME communities.

Not only is this the right thing to do for a Party that projects itself as the Party that champions diversity and equality it is also the politically expedient thing to do.

According to research published by Operation Black Vote (OBV) the outcome of the election results in 168 parliamentary seats in the hands of Britain’s black …

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Caron Lindsay

Some quick questions for LibDems4Change

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 26th May 2014 - 1:44 pm

In the interests of transparency, a key Liberal Democrat value, it would be good if a representative of LibDems4Change could answer the following questions about their campaign:

1. Who registered for and paid for the domain name and website?

The website was registered either late on Thursday evening/early Friday morning, but who set it up and who financed it?

2. Where did you get the email addresses from? Which email lists did you use and what are the Data Protection implications of this?

In 2012, I signed up to the No to Secret Courts campaign. I expected to receive correspondence on that campaign, not …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 151 Comments
Stephen Tall

Ouch. My first thoughts on the European election results for the four main parties

By Stephen Tall | Mon 26th May 2014 - 11:55 am

The results are all but in (Scotland will formal declare later today) and the scores on the doors make depressing reading for the Lib Dems – here’s the BBC’s breakdown:

euro elections 2014

Here are 5 quick points:

1) A good night for Ukip

Fair do’s to Farage: he inverted the usual expectations management game by vowing Ukip would top the poll, and they did. Their share of the vote, 27.5%, means they become the first party since 1906 to beat both the Conservatives and Labour. They’ve gained at least 10 MEPs, and may …

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Posted in Op-eds | 62 Comments
Jonathan Russell

The Independent View: Positively fighting back online

By Jonathan Russell | Mon 26th May 2014 - 11:07 am

Circuit Bending Orchestra: Lara Grant at Diana Eng's Fairytale FWith the seemingly endless news of global and domestic extremism –  whether about the 250 girls kidnapped in Nigeria, the 500 Britons reportedly waging jihad in Syria, or the worrying allegations made against several Birmingham schools – it is rare that a report devoted to countering extremism should fill us with positivity. However, research released last week by Quilliam about the state of online extremism should encourage us all, not …

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Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Tagged , , , and | 3 Comments
Stephen Tall

Special post-election LDV members’ survey now live

By Stephen Tall | Mon 26th May 2014 - 10:34 am

imageThe new LDV members’ survey is now live. So if you are one of the 1,600+ registered members of the Liberal Democrat Voice forum — and any paid-up party member is welcome to join — then you now have the opportunity to make your views known.

This is a brief survey, focused on the performance of the Lib Dems and party leader Nick Clegg at the most recent set of local and European elections. It should take no longer than 5-10 minutes minutes to fill in. All registered members of …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 25 Comments
Jess Key

Cambridge Liberal Democrat Sarah Brown up for a National Diversity Award

By Jess Key | Mon 26th May 2014 - 8:44 am

Sarah_Brown_(politician)Voting is currently underway for the National Diversity Awards 2014. These annual awards, whose headline sponsors are Microsoft and The Guardian, are a celebration of those in the UK who have shown an outstanding devotion to enhancing equality, diversity and inclusion.

This year I nominated fellow Lib Dem Sarah Brown for the LGBT Positive Role Model Award. Sarah has just ended a term as a Cambridge City Councillor and headed up their leisure and community services as the councillor in charge. She was one of the only openly trans elected …

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The Voice

European Election Results: Open Thread

By The Voice | Sun 25th May 2014 - 9:32 pm

Caron Lindsay 9:25pm

I am not sure how long I will last tonight, but I thought I’d at least start an open thread to bring news and views as things unfold tonight. It’s not, I fear, going to be a very good night, hence the large box of tissues next to me and cushions to hide behind. There’s emergency malt whisky in the cupboard, too, if I need it.

I’m starting off this Election Results night listening to Iain Dale and Duncan Barks on LBC. Tim Farron has already been on saying much as he did this morning, that he’s proud of …

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Paul Scriven

Opinion: Let’s not throw away all we have worked for just as it’s starting to pay off

By Paul Scriven | Sun 25th May 2014 - 7:36 pm

nick clegg rally 1

As a working-class Northern lad it would be fair to say that in terms of personal background I don’t have much in common with Nick Clegg. And like Carl Minns and Richard Kemp I’ve been on the wrong end of some tough election results in recent years.  But I totally disagree with George Potter – I passionately believe Nick should lead our party into the next General Election and beyond.

 I’ve probably had more arguments with Nick than most commentators on

…

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Caron Lindsay

Now THAT is how to write an email to supporters

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 25th May 2014 - 6:32 pm

imageOn Friday night at 18:42, we sad Liberal Democrat election geeks were almost feeling punch drunk as the results came in from London. It was bad enough at a distance of 400 miles to hear of wipeout after wipeout, of decades of hard Liberal Democrat representation on councils coming to an end. Heaven knows what it must have been like to have been there. Actually I do know what that feels like, having gone through the Scottish elections in 2011.

Just as all that horror was unfolding, into my inbox came an …

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Posted in Op-eds | 31 Comments
The Voice

Paddy Ashdown: This is moment we need to campaign through Summer and get good message out for the General Election

By The Voice | Sun 25th May 2014 - 5:59 pm

paddy ashdown - paul walterPaddy Ashdown, not surprisingly, came out strongly in Nick Clegg’s defence on the Sunday Politics this morning.

He said that we had a good message to proudly proclaim in the run up to the General Election.

Ditching Nick now would irreparably damage the party, he said, as it would show that we can’t hack being in Government.

He reminded us of his drubbing 25 years ago at the first European elections the party fought where we ended up as an asterisk.

He has upset some of the people who are unhappy at the moment by appearing to trivialise their concerns by suggesting that more people had signed up to Lib Dem Friends of Cake than had signed the letter. However, he later clarified on Twitter that he thought they were wrong but respected them:

You can watch the whole interview here.


–> Get Adobe Flash player–>

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Adrian Sanders

Adrian Sanders MP writes…Let’s have a respectful debate about how we persuade voters to support us again

By Adrian Sanders | Sun 25th May 2014 - 4:32 pm

Autumn 2012 conference - Some rights reserved by Liberal DemocratsHow we engage with a sceptical electorate before they cast their votes in the General Election next year is the critical question facing the Liberal Democrats.

I’m no expert in psephology but even I can tell we are heading for a worse General Election result in 2015 than in 2010 when we often forget we actually lost seats.  In fact we have been losing elected representatives 6 years in a row, a trend that started before we entered Government.  Thankfully Party leaders are …

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The Voice

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

By The Voice | Sun 25th May 2014 - 3:38 pm

7 ver 4 fullMany thanks to the 33,765 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here’s our 7 most-read posts…

Not everything you read on the internet about UKIP and Nigel Farage is true (28 comments) by Caron Lindsay

About that UKIP earthquake…Farage’s party national vote share DOWN on 2013 (39 comments) by Stephen Tall

Local Elections: Overnight results roundup (updated) (73 comments) by Caron Lindsay

Opinion: Why I was persuaded to back Lib Dems 4 Change (298 comments) by George Potter

Local Elections 2014: Friday afternoon Roundup (Updated) …

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Nick T

Now is not the time for a bitter and bloody leadership battle

By Nick T | Sun 25th May 2014 - 2:10 pm

Nick Clegg addresses Birmingham Liberal Democrats conference. Photo courtesy of the Liberal DemocratsOne of the most interesting (and logistically challenging – though that’s another story) conference fringe events I have had a hand in organising through my involvement with Liberal Reform was a panel of fellow liberals from across Europe talking about their experiences of being members of a coalition.

I wanted to hold such an event to counter the all too prevalent assumption that the problems facing the Liberal Democrats are somehow unique to us. Because they are most certainly not.

Where parties enter …

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The Voice

Nick Clegg’s leadership: What are Liberal Democrat bloggers saying? (updated)

By The Voice | Sun 25th May 2014 - 1:47 pm

TypingWe’ve heard what the papers have had to say about Nick Clegg’s future, and we’ve had some reports of tv interviews with senior party figures. But what’s the Liberal Democrat blogosphere say? As you might expect, there is a wide range of opinion. Here are some snippets.

Senior Liverpool councillor Richard Kemp, who gave one of the best speeches at Federal Conference last Autumn against the Bedroom Tax,  says that Nick should stay:

I believe that Nick Clegg is a thoroughly decent man who has made the best of a bad deal for

…

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The Voice

Sandra Gidley: “We can’t make our case because Nick is associated with negative aspects of coalition”

By The Voice | Sun 25th May 2014 - 12:14 pm

Sandra Gidley speaking at Lib Dem Conference, Brighton 2007One of the most prominent party figures yet to sign the letter calling for Nick Clegg to step down as party leader, Sandra Gidley, former MP for Romsey, was interviewed on the Murnaghan programme on Sky News this morning.  She said that Nick was holding us back from being able to make our case.

This is not about pros or cons of the coalition, it’s more about howe we’ve handled it and how we should be making more of a case about the good

…

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 21 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Farron: I understand why people feel bruised, but it would be foolish to turn in on ourselves

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 25th May 2014 - 10:47 am

Tim FarronTim Farron has done a stonkingly good interview on the Andrew Marr Show. He struck absolutely the right tone, showing great empathy to those activists who are concerned, anxious and fearful. He was clear, though, that the last thing we need to do is to turn in on ourselves.

First of all, he said that Liberal Democrats need to be looking to the General Election under Nick Clegg’s leadership, proudly defending the good things we have done in government.

He added that we were always going to suffer as a result of going into government – that much was predictable at the time. However, “it was the right thing to do for the country.” He added, though, in what appears to be a bit of a rebuke to the party’s email writers, that you can’t just treat people who have lost their seat as “collateral damage”. They are human beings who have worked their socks off and served the party and their communities well. And the absence of this “where we work we win” narrative will be appreciated by many.

He also emphasised the patchy nature of some of the results. While there were some true horror stories in London and Manchester, there were also good results in Eastleigh, St Albans and other places in Hertfordshire, Hull, Newcastle and Southport.

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Caron Lindsay

Nick Clegg’s leadership: A summary of the coverage

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 25th May 2014 - 9:37 am

Nick Clegg visits Manchester VelodromeWell, there was a certain inevitability that poor election results would lead to calls for Nick Clegg to resign. Today, the papers are full of comments from activists and MPs critical of the Deputy Prime Minister.

John Hemming, John Pugh and Adrian Sanders have all gone public with their criticism of Clegg. It should be noted that none of them are particularly noted for being his biggest fans. There is a certain irony that where there were elections on their patches, they did reasonably well. In Pugh’s Southport …

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