Donnachadh McCarthy

The Independent View: Why the Lib Dems should put cycling at the heart of their transport policy

By Donnachadh McCarthy | Tue 3rd April 2012 - 11:06 am

More motorways, airports and cities, cried the leader of the “greenest” government ever. The Prime Minister is absolutely right that we need new infrastructure but what we need is not ever wider motorways but a modern cycling infrastructure, to get the ridiculous 50% of journeys under 5km that are currently taken by car, out of the way of essential business traffic.

Millions of UK citizens are too old, young, poor or eco-conscious to own a car. In countries from Denmark to Japan, their governments provide safe cycle-paths. Our roads however are not fit for purpose, as …

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Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Tagged and | 21 Comments
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Jonathan Hunt

Opinion: Gorgeous George steals our place on the Left

By Jonathan Hunt | Tue 3rd April 2012 - 9:54 am

Well done George Galloway for last week’s Bradford West by-election victory. He was astutely aware of the state of a vacuous Labour party lacking leadership and direction, and took full advantage of it.

Now, no-one can say that a Left-wing party is doomed to automatic failure. And it is little use Lib Dems complaining: “That’s our job.”

It is our job, but we have failed completely. A strong left-wing challenge from us, the true party of the non-socialist Left could have produced a …

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Posted in Op-eds and Parliamentary by-elections | Tagged , and | 52 Comments
Linda Jack

Opinion: 1984 and all that

By Linda Jack | Tue 3rd April 2012 - 8:32 am

If you wanted to pick an issue guaranteed to unite the whole party – protecting our civil liberties has to be it. So the last 48 hours have been a frenzy of claim, counterclaim, the candyflossesque spin of internal briefings and Lib Dems across the blogo/twitto/facebooko/forumosphere reaching dangerously apoplectic levels of disquiet.

Mark Pack, in his inimitable unflappable style offered an informative briefing via LDV – taking the optimistic view, reassuring us that “what the Home Office proposes is not the same as what Parliament will legislate. No matter how flawed the initial proposal put to Parliament by Theresa May are, they put the RIPA rules on the table – giving the opportunity to get them changed to meet what a liberal approach should be – as little intrusion as possible, only for the most serious of offences and with rigorous, independently verified safeguards”.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , , , and | 23 Comments
Paul Walter

“Reports about plans to snoop on your emails are complete nonsense” – Lynne Featherstone writes to Lib Dem members

By Paul Walter | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 7:27 pm

Lib Dem members received this email from Lynne Featherstone at around 5 o’clock this afternoon:

I wanted to write to reassure you that the current reports in the media about Government plans to snoop on your emails are complete nonsense.

Liberal Democrats have always been, and will continue to be, opposed to a centralised database that allows government to monitor your internet activity at will.

That is not going to happen under these proposals and never will happen in a government that includes me and the Liberal

…

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Posted in News | Tagged and | 39 Comments
Ed Wilson

Opinion: Government’s fuel top-up advice has been a serious miscalculation

By Ed Wilson | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 4:54 pm

My heart sank when I heard Ed Davey telling the nation to fill its petrol tanks. It seemed very likely, tipping over into obvious, that Ed Davey’s statements would feed into the kind of behaviour that we have seen in recent days, and it’s disturbingly clear that the coalition government had taken a position to promote the topping-up of tanks. That was a serious miscalculation of the likely results.

What proportion of motorists fill up less often than once a week? I suspect that …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 23 Comments
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Julian Huppert

Julian Huppert MP writes… Safeguards to control state surveillance

By Julian Huppert | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 4:19 pm

Stories came out yesterday, leaked as ever from some unknown source, which have led to justifiable outrage about proposals to capture all our online communications. We all know that one shouldn’t entirely trust what is in newspapers, especially when the security services are involved and there is a palpable lack of detailed announcements, but liberals everywhere are rightly anxious.

I’m extremely concerned about the extension of state surveillance, and have fought hard to stop it. Since I first got wind of the proposals in 2010, I’ve had a series of meetings with industry experts and others about it. I asked the Prime Minister about it in October 2010 and, while the details remain cloaked, I have some idea of what might be proposed.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , , , , , , and | 26 Comments
Mark Pack

Campaign Corner: How do we recruit more members?

By Mark Pack | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 3:20 pm

The Campaign Corner series looks to give three tips about commonly asked campaign issues. Do get in touch if you have any questions you would like to suggest.

Today’s Campaign Corner question: How do we recruit more members?

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Posted in Campaign Corner | Tagged | 7 Comments
NewsHound

LibLink: Nick Clegg – Don’t dally, I want big money out of politics fast

By NewsHound | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 1:54 pm

Writing in yesterday’s Sunday Times (£), Nick Clegg says:

Politics in this country was left in the gutter by the expenses scandal of the last parliament. Even with this government’s ambitious programme of political reform, it will take a long time for us to climb out. Unless we reform our discredited and distrusted system of party funding, we may never restore that public confidence and trust that is the lifeblood of our democracy.

Posted in LibLink | Tagged | 42 Comments
Mark Pack

The web snooping plans: time to get campaigning

By Mark Pack | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 12:45 pm

The Queen’s Speech will contain legislation on the interception of communications. Should Liberal Democrats (and indeed liberals) be alarmed?

I treat this question with some initial caution because in one respect many liberals have been – rightly – calling for more use of interception by the government for many years. That is in making intercept evidence admissible in court, so that more cases of alleged terrorism and the like can be brought to court , curbing the (claimed) need for legal powers to allow people to be restricted or restrained without a court case happening.

The other reason for treating the question …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 31 Comments
Mark Pack

What would you fix: 500 potholes or a private road for council use only?

By Mark Pack | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 12:24 pm

You have £35,000 to spend.

Do you:

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Posted in News | Tagged | 5 Comments
Sam Phripp

Opinion: Lessons from Bradford

By Sam Phripp | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 10:40 am

In the aftermath of the Bradford West by-elction result, it is increasingly clear that Labour didn’t have the slightest grip on what was actually happening. Comments and discussions on Labour blogs show us that Labour assumed that simply because certain areas (for example, areas with a dense Muslim population) were voting; they had to be voting Labour. This kind of complacent assumption really is an insult to voters.

The reason I joined the Liberal Democrats and became an active campaigner was because I saw that whole swathes of my area were taken for granted by the Conservatives. We need to be …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 15 Comments
Stephen Gilbert MP

Steve Gilbert MP writes…Government must wake up to the flood insurance risk

By Stephen Gilbert MP | Mon 2nd April 2012 - 9:24 am

In 1952 a flood ripped through the Devon village of Lynmouth wrecking scores of homes, taking the lives of dozens of people and costing millions in rebuilding work. In 2010 Cornwall was hit by flash-flooding with hundreds of homes and businesses devastated across the south of my constituency.

In the 50-odd years between the two events most parts of our country were hit by floods at some point. Over five million people in the UK are now at risk of flooding from …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 6 Comments
The Voice

Top of the Blogs: The Lib Dem Golden Dozen #267

By The Voice | Sun 1st April 2012 - 7:00 pm

Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 267th 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 (25-31 March, 2012), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, 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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Posted in Best of the blogs | Leave a comment
Stephen Tall

In other news… Jo on Easter eggs, Brian interviewed, Dr Pack post-budget wallchart, and more…

By Stephen Tall | Sun 1st April 2012 - 4:45 pm

Here’s a round-up of stories we haven’t had time to cover on the site this past few days…

Confectionery giants ‘not doing enough’ to reduce Easter egg packaging (Daily Mail)

Easter egg manufacturers have been criticised for not doing enough to reduce packaging and improve how much can be recycled. Currently, an estimated 3,000 tonnes of waste is produced in the UK every year just from Easter egg packaging alone. And an annual survey by Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson has found the percentage of Easter egg boxes actually filled by chocolate was 38 per cent – the same figure as

…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , , and | 4 Comments
Stephen Tall

LDV Caption Competition: Clegg & Obama “Seoul Brothers” Edition

By Stephen Tall | Sun 1st April 2012 - 1:59 pm

There’s no prize at stake – just the opportunity to prove you’re wittier than any other LDV reader…

As I mentioned yesterday, Nick Clegg has been busy this week doing some real work. Here he is meeting US President Barack Obama, together with Denmark’s Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. What do you think might be being said or thought by or about them?

And the winners of our last caption comp is…

Some fantastic entries for our most recent caption competition, Cameron & Miliband “We’re in this together” Funding Scandal Special Edition.

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Posted in Caption Comp | 19 Comments
Mark Pack

+++ EXCLUSIVE: Government to bring 2013 local elections forward to last Thursday in February

By Mark Pack | Sun 1st April 2012 - 7:00 am

According to a series of leaked memos secured exclusively by The Voice, the Government will bring the 2013 local elections forward from May to February.

The change is being heavily pushed by the Department for Communities and Local Government, which wants to see councillors elected in enough time to be able to influence the coming year’s budget.

“Currently a council can change control in May, but often the fresh policies of the new administration are delayed because the council’s financial year has already started and the council tax level has already been set. We believe elections which settle the control of councils …

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Posted in News | 26 Comments
NewsHound

LibLink: Norman Lamb – Business can be a powerful force for good

By NewsHound | Sat 31st March 2012 - 9:50 pm

Over at PoliticsHome, Lib Dem business minister Norman Lamb says business can be a powerful force for good in society, and insists responsible practice is central to his vision. Here’s an excerpt:

Business is not just about turning a profit and creating wealth. It can, and should also be a powerful force for good in our society. Through responsible behaviour, business can help regenerate communities, develop people’s skills, and produce the innovative products and services that improve our wellbeing.

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged | 6 Comments
Stephen Tall

Politics in pictures: How Cameron, Clegg & Miliband led from the front this week

By Stephen Tall | Sat 31st March 2012 - 6:40 pm

It’s been a tumultuous week in the political world. So let’s have a look at how the three main party leaders led from the front in statesmanlike fashion…

David Cameron played badminton in a suit…

Ed Miliband bought sausage rolls in Greggs…

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Posted in News | Tagged , , and | 6 Comments
Mark Pack

Did Ken Livingstone break tax rules over Labour donation?

By Mark Pack | Sat 31st March 2012 - 3:25 pm

The Evening Standard has reported:

Ken Livingstone was under fresh pressure over his alleged tax avoidance after he was forced to admit using his private company to make a sizable political donation.

Mr Livingstone had previously claimed to have personally made a donation to the Labour Party of £19,202 in December for “staff costs” during his election campaign.

But he has now confirmed to the electoral commission that the donation came from his private company Silveta Ltd, through which he allegedly avoided at least £50,000 in tax by benefiting from corporation tax at 20 or 21 per cent rather than paying income tax

…

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Posted in London and News | Tagged | 4 Comments
The Voice

The LDV Friday Five: 30 March 2012

By The Voice | Fri 30th March 2012 - 5:00 pm

It’s Friday. It’s five o’clock. Here’s a fistful of lists that sum up the LDV week:

5 most-read stories on LDV this week

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Mark Pack

Gurkha: The true story of a campaign for justice by Peter Carroll

By Mark Pack | Fri 30th March 2012 - 4:05 pm

The Gurkha Justice campaign, seeking to give those who had served in the British army the right to settle in Britain afterwards, is a classic and heartwarming story of how a small number of people can bring justice and joy to many.

For many years Gurkhas and others had raised the injustice of ex-soldiers being told ‘thank you for your bravery, now go and live elsewhere’. It was, however, only when Peter Carroll got involved that an effective campaign really started to take shape and then took off after a chance remark from a passing member of the public tipped him off to Joanna Lumley’s potential backing.

As Peter Carroll puts it in this account of the campaign:

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Mary Reid

Nick Clegg and Ming Campbell add their tributes to David Walter

By Mary Reid | Fri 30th March 2012 - 2:55 pm

From Nick Clegg:

 This is such sad news. I knew David for years and he was widely loved and admired in the party. He was a gentle and patient man with great integrity and an impressive career in journalism. 

I will always remember him for his great sense of humour at the most difficult or challenging times. He will be hugely missed by all of us in the party and our thoughts are with his family.

From Ming Campbell:

David Walter was a professional to his fingertips. He was universally respected and admired by his fellow journalists and held in great affection by the Liberal

…

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Posted in News and Obituaries | Tagged , and | Leave a comment
Mary Reid

LDVideo: Jenny Willott joins Platform 51’s Glad Rags campaign

By Mary Reid | Fri 30th March 2012 - 1:51 pm

Jenny Willott MP talks about her wedding jewellery as part of Platform 51’s campaign to raise awareness of the widespread use of depressants by women.

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Posted in YouTube | Tagged and | 2 Comments
NewsHound

LibLink: The Lib Dems’ policy shortage

By NewsHound | Fri 30th March 2012 - 12:06 pm

Lib Dem Voice’s ubiquitous co-editor, Mark Pack, has been writing for Total Politics.

He says:

Performers who make the leap from stage show to the TV very often run into a simple problem: TV eats up material at a fearsome rate. A stage show can be repeated around the country for months with only a few tweaks as events or audience feedback requires it. TV, however, requires completely new material each week.

A similar problem has befallen the Liberal Democrats when it comes to policy. In opposition sticking to saying only a few things repeatedly was an advantage;

…

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Posted in LibLink | Tagged and | 9 Comments
Mary Reid

David Walter

By Mary Reid | Fri 30th March 2012 - 10:25 am

Yesterday, sadly, David Walter lost his battle with cancer and died in the Royal Marsden Hospital.

He was widely known in the party, having served as Director of Communications for the Liberal Democrats at Cowley Street.

Chris Rennard writes:

David was widely respected as a decent, principled and trustworthy person.

He was always positive and encouraging to work with as well as being professional and completely loyal to the party that he always supported. He had to be discreet about his party allegiance whilst working for the BBC and ITN and he was greatly respected by both those organisations and friends

…

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Posted in News and Obituaries | Tagged , and | 29 Comments
Stephen Tall

Bradford West by-election: 5 initial thoughts on an astonishing result

By Stephen Tall | Fri 30th March 2012 - 9:45 am

Here are some inital reflections on George Galloway’s stunning by-election win in Bradford West…

Devastating for Labour…

It is not simply the fact that Labour lost a seat they’ve held at every election since 1974. It is not simply the fact that they’ve become the first opposition party since William Hague’s Tories at Romsey 12 years ago to lose a by-election. It is not simply the fact that Labour must have thought they’d enjoyed a good fortnight in which the Tories have been given a good pasting. It is not simply the fact that this by-election suggests Labour’s current national lead …

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Posted in Op-eds and Parliamentary by-elections | Tagged , , and | 53 Comments
Mark Pack

The problem with the pasty tax? It’s not had enough media coverage

By Mark Pack | Fri 30th March 2012 - 7:25 am

No really. Despite the rush of politicians to recall when they last had a pasty or to be photographed eating one (me? south London, last weekend, Greggs, branch still open, no photo available), the problem is we’ve not had nearly enough media coverage of the pasty tax proposals.

“What?!?! Not enough coverage?!?!”, you might well wonder. But bear with me.

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 8 Comments
Stephen Tall

+++ Labour crashes to sensational Bradford West by-election defeat to George Galloway

By Stephen Tall | Fri 30th March 2012 - 6:19 am

In a sensational result, George Galloway has won the Bradford West by-election for the Respect party. The former Glasgow and east London MP secured victory with more than half the votes cast, and a majority of more than 10,000.

The result will be a body blow for Labour leader Ed Miliband, who had appeared to have the Tories on the defensive in the past 10 days over the ‘Granny tax’, the resignation of Tory treasurer Peter Cruddas, and so-called #pastygate.

But none of these were enough to stop Labour losing a previously safe seat, though they will take some small consolation that …

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Posted in News | 36 Comments
Lorely Burt

Lorely Burt MP writes… Freelancers: championing and protecting the little guy

By Lorely Burt | Thu 29th March 2012 - 6:54 pm

You don’t need me to tell you that things are tough out there for small businesses. I know: having run several small businesses and having previously been our party’s Small Business spokesperson. The UK’s 4.5 million Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) make a huge contribution to our economy, but today they are caught in a perfect storm between contracting markets, a failure of banks to lend, and late payments.  The result of these problems is that many viable small businesses have sadly failed.

There is however one sector of small business that is growing. Over the last three years we have …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged , and | 5 Comments
Annette Brooke MP

Annette Brooke MP writes… A much improved national planning policy Framework

By Annette Brooke MP | Thu 29th March 2012 - 4:28 pm

Back in October 2011, I submitted a response to the National Planning Policy Framework consultation on behalf of the Lib Dem Parliamentary Policy Committee on DCLG issues which I co-chair with Lord Graham Tope. The response was robust, so much so that The Telegraph claimed it as a huge Lib Dem rebellion. But, I believe that the committee was right to submit its concerns in an honest and straightforward way. Our role within the coalition must be to offer constructive criticism when we feel it is necessary! And I am very glad that we did. The document which was published …

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Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 4 Comments
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