Tag Archives: john ashton

Richard Wingfield

Opinion: Why Liberal Democrats should support lowering the age of consent

By Richard Wingfield | Sat 23rd November 2013 - 2:30 pm

Liberal Democrats have long-championed the rights of young people. We were the first major party to call for the voting age to be lowered to 16. We were the only party in 2010 which committed to incorporate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into UK law. In government, we have ended the detention of children for immigration purposes. But in one area of personal freedom and development, we remain distinctly illiberal: the age of consent.

In response to the recent calls from Professor John Ashton, president of the Faculty of Public Health, to lower the age of consent …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged and | 29 Comments
Nick T

“Take AV seriously: it has advantages over PR”

By Nick T | Mon 2nd May 2011 - 4:25 pm

One of the common criticisms of the alternative vote is that it doesn’t produce parliaments that proportionally represent the wishes of the people, which is largely true. Such a criticism rests, of course, on the premise that proportionality is the most important facet of an electoral system. However it’s also worth pointing out that there are things that the alternative vote delivers which proportional systems do not, which is the subject of a recent post by John Ashton.

Here’s a sample of what John has to say:

You don’t get far in a discussion of the merits of AV before somebody

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Posted in News | Also tagged and | 27 Comments
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  • AM
    It's been slightly odd & nostalgic - this sense of pride and belonging. Very grateful to all those MPs, and to Ed & Josh for leading from the [united] f...
  • AM
    Wholeheartedly agree. It has been refreshing to hear Liberal Democrat leadership and parliamentarians taking a strong and unapologetic stand that is unequivocal...
  • Ben Wood
    It is such sad news. I was lucky to get to know Micheal over the last few years (working on a book project for the John Stuart Mill Institute). He reaffirmed fo...
  • Ed Sanderson
    Very sad news. I remember many a lively evening of erudite discussion in Leeds - Michael was a true intellect - and a genuinely warm soul. My condolences to his...
  • Jack
    This is bang on. What is the point of a liberal party that won't stand up for rights, especially when both government and opposition want to make hay out of div...