Tag Archives: letter from the leader

A very brief note this week, devoted to Nelson Mandela. Nick highlights his statement and points us towards the debate that will take place in the House of Commons tomorrow.  We also discover that Paddy spends time on his phone at the dinner table. He wouldn’t get away with that in LDV Towers.

A very sad week. I never met Nelson Mandela but, like many of you, I’ve also never known the world without him in it. This weekend it feels like an emptier place.

I was having dinner

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This week’s Letter from the Leader tells us something that members and supporters really should know already – that Liberal Democrats are responsible for raising the tax threshold, that the Tories in general and David Cameron in particular, trashed it publicly at the time. But now that the idea has turned out to be popular, the Tories are claiming it as their own. Keep this one in your bookmarks to show off who’s really responsible for this significant achievement. 

 

Remember this?

I know I don’t usually send

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Unsurprisngly, this week, Nick’s letter is about Syria. He highlighted his unprecedented Q and A session with members (embedded below if you missed it) and talked about the humanitarian aid that the UK is piling in to help the people of Syria and surrounding nations. 

This was a week in which we all grappled with a complex set of questions about Britain’s role in the world: our views on the scope of international law; on the place for humanitarian intervention; and on how to respond to war crimes committed on foreign soil.

My own views are well known: that there is a humanitarian case for the UK to be prepared to participate in multi-lateral, legal, targeted military action in Syria, aimed at deterring the use of chemical weapons. But there are no easy answers in this debate and I entirely understand and respect the misgivings that have led some colleagues and party members to oppose such action.

Last night, Parliament made its opposition to military action clear and of course, the Government will abide by that decision.

I held an online Q&A with members earlier today. If you weren’t able to join in, you can see it here.