Toby Matthews

Opinion: Miliband, Piketty and the Liberal response

By Toby Matthews | Tue 20th May 2014 - 10:15 am

milibandThree weeks ago, Miliband crossed the Rubicon and entered the heartland of Tory ideology. His support for European-style longer and more secure tenancies — and by extension capping rent increases — runs roughshod over a hitherto post-Thatcherite consensus.

Grant Shapps led the Tory riposte with a quick and ludicrous barb: Labour were proposing “Venezuelan-style rent controls”. Most people won’t know the details of Venezuela’s housing policy, but will be sure it’s unlikely to be any worse than our own.

Times have changed. We can see this clearly in that most …

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Posted in News and Op-eds | Tagged , , , , and | 45 Comments
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Mary Reid

It’s election time

By Mary Reid | Tue 20th May 2014 - 9:04 am

Liberal Democrat posters - Some rights reserved by Brett PattersonIt’s election week, and all the workers volunteers at LDV towers are heavily involved in the action on the ground.

Not surprisingly many potential contributors are also either shackled to Connect or getting sunburn and blisters while out delivering and canvassing.

So you must excuse the rather thin offerings this week. We will do our best to provide you with some light reading while you are soaking your feet, but can’t guarantee quantity.

On the other hand, if you have something you are dying to say, and you are not needed in the battlefields, now might be a good opportunity for you. See our guidelines for contributors before you send anything in to us.

Good luck to all candidates and activists!

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Posted in Site news | 38 Comments
The Voice

Nick Clegg in Scotland: Liberal Democrats are guarantors of more powers

By The Voice | Mon 19th May 2014 - 12:59 pm

Forth Railway Bridge at North Queensferry Fife ScotlandNick Clegg is coming to Scotland today to lend his support to George Lyon MEP ahead of Thursday’s European elections. He’s also going to be speaking to the Scottish Chambers of Commerce in Edinburgh.

There has been hardly any mention of actual European issues in this election as politics up here is dominated by the independence referendum. Nick’s remarks will concentrate on the question of more powers for the Scottish Parliament. He’ll say that a no vote is a positive choice and will repeat his …

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 7 Comments
Joe Bourke

Opinion: Immigration and unemployment – an idea

By Joe Bourke | Mon 19th May 2014 - 11:48 am

Words.Two popular arguments deployed against immigration are that immigrant’s take jobs from British workers or that immigrants are a burden on the welfare state. Both arguments have been shown to be largely invalid: the Lump of Labour fallacy  has long been dismissed as economic bunkum; and existing evidence suggests that the net contribution of recent migrants to Britain’s public finances is positive. However, according to this evidence from  Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM) at University College London not all groups of migrants make a positive fiscal contribution …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , and | 50 Comments
The Voice

“Big job but low pay” moans Bristol’s Green Party Assistant Mayor about £32k salary

By The Voice | Mon 19th May 2014 - 10:25 am

SONY DSC£32,000 a year is well above the average wage. Many people earn significantly less. Yet Bristol’s Assistant Mayor Gus Hoyt has been moaning on Twitter about his low pay.

It all started when someone suggested on Twitter that he might like to go to New York. His reply was that he couldn’t afford it. When his correspondent suggested that was a shame, he replied:

Yeah, Big time. Am in big job but low pay…local government

When Liberal Democrat Councillor Alex Smethurst and his colleague Chris Martin questioned his view of low pay, and …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 41 Comments
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The Voice

Liberal Democrat MEPs are far too good to lose

By The Voice | Mon 19th May 2014 - 8:55 am

Screen Shot 2014-03-09 at 08.06.08 Liberal Democrats LibbyOne of the drawbacks of the way we vote for our MEPs is that so few people know who they are. You don’t vote for a person, you vote for a party and the party decides who goes to sit in the European Parliament. I’m not complaining about the PR nature of it, just that one of the drawbacks of the closed list system means that people don’t necessarily have that connection with an individual.

Our MEPs and candidates are all individuals with different things …

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Posted in News | Tagged , and | 17 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #376

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 18th May 2014 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 376th 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 (11 – 17 May 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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Libby Local

Libby Local Episode 19: I’ll plan your every move

By Libby Local | Sun 18th May 2014 - 3:15 pm

"Demsbury" - Bekonscot Model Village and Railway - London - Some rights reserved by bortescristian“As you all know,” Melissa said in a rather officious voice, “Maxwell Tarmac-Smyth has resigned with some haste and we have a by-election on our hands.”

We were clustered in the back room of the Market Tavern at a hastily convened meeting of our local campaign committee. Melissa had been my campaign manager for the 2013 election and had called the meeting as soon as the news of the by-election reached Demsbury.

Before she could continue with her introduction, …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 4 Comments
NewsHound

LibLink: Nick Clegg – Coalition is not ‘betrayal’, it’s grown-up politics

By NewsHound | Sun 18th May 2014 - 2:00 pm

Clegg on tv camera Some rights reserved by Liberal DemocratsNick Clegg takes to the comment pages of the Telegraph today to make the case for Coalition, first taking a swipe at critics on both Left and Right:

For the Left, the very act of coalition is condemned as heinous moral treachery; for the Right, the Lib Dems have far too much clout, thus frustrating the birthright of the Conservative Party to do what it wishes. Unprincipled powerlessness on the one hand, ruthless power-play on the other. Both can’t be right. In my

…

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Posted in News | 136 Comments
The Voice

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

By The Voice | Sun 18th May 2014 - 1:21 pm

7 ver 4 fullMany thanks to the 17,300  visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here’s our 7 most-read posts…

New ICM Poll: Do you want the okayish news or the bad news? (48 comments) by Stephen Tall

WATCH: Nigel Farage come a cropper at the hands of LBC’s James O’Brien (37 comments) by Stephen Tall

Opinion: The Bedroom Tax: A great socialist policy (39 comments) by Patrick McAuley

“Label the behaviour not the person”: why we shouldn’t call Ukip a racist party (107 comments) by Stephen Tall

Are the …

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Caron Lindsay

Clegg on Marr: Liberal Democrats are the guarantors of fairness and home rule for Scotland

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 18th May 2014 - 12:45 pm

st Andrews flag saltire scotland Some rights reserved by Fulla TNick Clegg was interviewed by Andrew Marr this morning. It was wide ranging. It appears he’s back on the cigarettes again, but that’s hardly surprising given his hectic schedule. He also said he wanted the Chilcott report into the Iraq War published as soon as possible, “s the leader of the party who opposed the headlong rush to war.”

Here’s my Storify thingy of the event – and a few additional comments.

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Stephen Tall

Lib Dem MP on post-22 May leadership speculation: “Ashdown would cut my balls off if I criticised Clegg”

By Stephen Tall | Sun 18th May 2014 - 11:45 am

Paddy Ashdown talks on "The global power shift" in Brussels March 1st 2012 - Some rights reserved by PhOtOnQuAnTiQuE Lib Dems are braced for a tricky week. This Thursday will see the first UK-wide election since 2010, with voters choosing who represents them in the European Parliament. Many voters across England will also get to decide who runs their local council.

Votes for the local elections will be counted on that night and throughout Friday. If this year follows the pattern of the previous three years, the Lib Dems could …

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Caron Lindsay

Caron’s Sunday Selection: Must-read articles from the Sunday newspapers

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 18th May 2014 - 10:36 am

Papers - Some rights reserved by NS MewsflashHere are a few of my favourite articles from the Sunday papers to challenge, infuriate and inform.

First of all, the Scotsman reports that support for independence has fallen in the last four months, with barely a third of those now in favour. Women’s support for leaving the UK is also dropping like a stone, down 8 points in a month. No room for complacency, though. The polls are generally all over the place and every vote needs to be fought for.

The Sunday …

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Posted in News | 4 Comments
The Voice

North East Liberal Democrat MEP candidate Angelika Schneider follows in the footsteps of women’s rights activists Emily Wilding Davison

By The Voice | Sun 18th May 2014 - 9:11 am

Make sure you have your say in the elections on Thursday. Remember what some sacrificed in order to secure your right to do so.

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The Voice

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

By The Voice | Sat 17th May 2014 - 6:20 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:

…

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Newsmoggie

Huppert on Astra Zeneca takeover’s threat to jobs, the European elections and the living wage

By Newsmoggie | Sat 17th May 2014 - 12:55 pm

Medical Drugs for Pharmacy Health Shop of MedicineJulian Huppert has been talking to Cambridge student magazine Varsity.

Not surprisingly, the subject of Pfizer’s proposed takeover of Astra Zeneca came up. Why should students be bothered?

It will have a direct impact on the prospects for people in particular disciplines, and will be a longer term issue about the future of Britain”, he replies. “This matters for students who work in STEM subjects, natscis, chem-eng, all of those subjects, because this could be their employment – even if you don’t work directly

…

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NewsHound

LibLink: Nick Clegg: UKIP would rather turn the clock back on LGBT rights

By NewsHound | Sat 17th May 2014 - 11:13 am

rainbow flag on white background : harvey milk plaza, san francisco (2012)In an article to mark today’s International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, Nick Clegg has told readers of Pink News what the Liberal Democrat MEPs have done for LGBT rights both within Europe and globally:

Your Liberal Democrat MEPs have already been fighting for the rights of the LGBT community in Europe. For example, they have supported a European Parliament campaign for the recognition of equal marriage, civil partnerships and cohabitation in EU countries, as well as for

…

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged , , , , and | 12 Comments
Caron Lindsay

From the reading pile: Alan Beith’s year of three elections

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 17th May 2014 - 9:34 am

Alan Beith book March 09I have this massive and growing pile of stuff I want to read but don’t have time for at the moment. I’m sure I’m not alone in that.

Yesterday, though, a spell in a hospital waiting room gave me the opportunity to catch up with this article from February’s Total Politics. Alan Beith was interviewed about first becoming MP for Berwick. He won the by-election in November 1973 and then had to defend the seat twice within the space of a  year.

He described his disappointment at contesting …

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Posted in Op-eds | 2 Comments
Stephen Tall

Ed Balls is as unpopular as the Conservative Party with Lib Dem members.

By Stephen Tall | Sat 17th May 2014 - 8:00 am

Ed Balls MP, Denton - (Labour Leadership Campaign) - 2010Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum  to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. More than 830 party members responded – thank you – and we’re publishing the full results.

95% of Lib Dem members view Ukip unfavourably, compared to 85% for Tories, 71% for Labour and 37% for the Greens

I’m a fan of the polling company ComRes’s ‘Favourability Index’, which asks the public whether they view the …

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Posted in LDV Members poll | 15 Comments
Stephen Tall

WATCH: Nigel Farage comes a cropper at the hands of LBC’s James O’Brien

By Stephen Tall | Fri 16th May 2014 - 1:15 pm

Nigel Farage was interviewed by LBC Radio’s James O’Brien today: it didn’t go well for the Ukip leader. Watch here as he’s asked about the racist comments of elected Ukip representatives, the extremist views of its far-right European allies, its mis-use of dodgy stats to whip-up immigration fears, and its refusal to sign up for an audit of its MEPs’ expenses…

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Caron Lindsay

Nick Clegg: on standing up to UKIP, modern men and Russell Brand

By Caron Lindsay | Fri 16th May 2014 - 10:42 am

Russell BrandNick Clegg is certainly getting about at the moment.  From the Today programme (where his cactus burning past was brought up like it wasn’t something that has been well known for years), to Good Morning Scotland to Call Clegg to Pink News, he’s rarely out of the public gaze.

One of my favourite interviews, though, was published in Shortlist earlier this week.  When was the last time you saw a politician using the word “hard-arsed” in an interview? I thought his response to a question about whether men were …

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Posted in News | 4 Comments
John Coburn

Opinion: The General Election is near – are we ready?

By John Coburn | Fri 16th May 2014 - 9:12 am

polling dayHaving taken a break from frontline campaigning in recent months it’s given me time to observe the party as a voter, if not an impartial one.  The European and local elections are undoubtedly important, but the big challenge is a year away and we still have time to make the Liberal Democrat case.

I’m instinctively pro-coalition and Nick Clegg and the leadership have to take great credit on what has been achieved on area such as tax, the pupil premium, pensions and gay marriage.  Without our party in coalition, there would …

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Posted in Op-eds | 27 Comments
Stephen Tall

Who’s up, who’s down? How party members rate the performances of leading Lib Dems

By Stephen Tall | Fri 16th May 2014 - 8:00 am

Liberal Democrat Conference 2011Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum  to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. More than 830 party members responded – thank you – and we’re publishing the full results.

LDV asked: How would you rate the performances of the following leading Liberal Democrats and government ministers?

Full results are published below, but here’s two key lists for those who want to cut to the chase… (with comparison to December 2013 ratings in brackets)

Top 5 Lib Dem performers in the Government:

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Caron Lindsay

Are the Liberal Democrats any closer to embracing all-women shortlists?

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 15th May 2014 - 3:50 pm

Womens shortlistsIt’s nearly 31 years since I joined the SDP. When I was first involved, a hot topic of conversation was how to improve the representation of women in the House of Commons. At that point, there were just 23 female MPs, or 3.5% of the total.  We are still having these discussions today. Now there are 22%, but the total has only risen by 4% in the last 3 elections. The biggest leap we have ever had came in 1997 when the numbers doubled from 60-120, with more than half …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , , and | 132 Comments
Caron Lindsay

LibLink: Mark Pack: There’s rather more to the story of “Police call on someone who tweeted criticism of UKIP”

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 15th May 2014 - 2:00 pm

There’s been a fair bit of discussion online about the incident last weekend when two Cambridgeshire Police Officers visited Green Party member Michael Abberton over a tweet which contained his edited, fact checked version of an anti-UKIP poster designed by someone else.

He told the whole story on his Axe of Reason blog.

Julian Huppert, as you can imagine, expressed concern about the and …

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged , , , , , and | 8 Comments
Adrian Kamellard

The Independent View: The innovation revolution: How small banks and building societies are playing a significant part in creating competition through innovation.

By Adrian Kamellard | Thu 15th May 2014 - 12:30 pm

Obama taking donations via Square mobile payment systemUp and down the country there are small but significant banks and building societies playing an important part in the day-to-day lives of customers and businesses. Yet they are not only helping customers locally, they are also changing the way we bank. The Cumberland Building Society will be familiar to Westmorland and Lonsdale’s Tim Farron MP, and despite a relatively small customer base compared to the traditional big banks, it is leading from the front when it comes to payments innovation and technology, offering …

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Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Tagged , and | 4 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Gove and Laws write for Times: We are committed to free school meals policy because evidence shows it helps kids achieve more

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 15th May 2014 - 10:55 am

20120907-FNS-LSC-0544On his various media appearances this morning, Nick Clegg has been asked whether he ordered Michael Gove and David Laws to write an article setting out the background to the free school meals policy. He  said on Call Clegg that he had suggested it to them that they clarify the situation to reassure parents that the policy will be delivered on time.

This comes after a febrile few days when Dominic Cummings, Gove’s former Special Adviser, has been telling everyone who will listen that this was a policy drawn up pretty much …

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Nick T

LibLink: Lord Wallace – EU membership is essential for Britain’s national security

By Nick T | Thu 15th May 2014 - 9:34 am

European FlagWriting on the European Movement UK blog, Lord (William) Wallace has some interesting thoughts on the importance of European cooperation to Britain’s strategic and security interests.

Here’s a snippet:

The 2010 National Security Strategy stood out from its predecessors by its inclusion of a number of non-military threats among the most serious it sees as facing Britain: global epidemics, organised crime and cross-border terrorism , the impact of climate change, and cyber-attack.

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged , and | 6 Comments
Lord Roger Roberts

Lord Roger Roberts writes…We must unite against the scaremongering of the far right

By Lord Roger Roberts | Wed 14th May 2014 - 7:00 pm

Manhattan Central Park - Imagine MosaicThis week the BNP released its party political broadcast in the run-up to May’s local council and European elections. The BNP youth has also made its own poisonous contribution to the debate. The BNP have released a hurriedly edited version following complaints from the BBC that the broadcast did not meet its editorial guidelines, which state that such broadcasts have:

An obligation to observe the law (for example on libel, copyright and incitement to racial hatred and violence) and the BBC Editorial Guidelines on harm and

…

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 12 Comments
Caron Lindsay

New Liberal Democrat campaign video: Powerful stuff, but we need Part 2 – why you should vote Liberal Democrat

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 14th May 2014 - 3:58 pm

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 53 Comments
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