Tag Archives: nick clegg

Caron Lindsay

Liberal Democrats put mental health on the agenda in Holyrood and Cardiff

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 2nd April 2014 - 12:30 pm

Phrenology head - mental health - Some rights reserved by evansvilleWe know that mental health has always been one of Nick Clegg’s top priorities. His first major speech as Liberal Democrat leader was on the subject. In the coalition, he, Paul Burstow and Norman Lamb have been pushing forward improvements to mental health care from making sure people in crisis see health professionals and not the inside of a Police cell, to a massive expansion of talking therapies to action to tackle the stigma that still exists.

A friend of mine has recently had some time off work for Depression. She wrote on Facebook, and asked people to share, the following:

What I do want to say is that until being off work for eight weeks with depression is regarded on equal footing with the same period of time off with a physical ailment of any kind ( from a hip replacement, to heart attack,stroke, badly broken limb, severe diabetes, or any of countless medical conditions ) then we will all suffer individually and as a society.

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Ab Brightman

Opinion: Young people benefit from the EU. We need to persuade them to vote for the party of IN

By Ab Brightman | Wed 2nd April 2014 - 10:59 am

Youth on the Move in Volos 20Each one of us who was glued to a screen or radio for the Nick vs Nigel EU debate last Wednesday will have our own opinion of who lost and who won as facts, rhetorical points and the affection of the audience were fought over. But I’ll tell you whose affection wasn’t fought over – that of Britain’s young people. And I, along with friends in and outside the party, was disappointed.

The lives of young people in this country – your children, your activists, you …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , , and | 9 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Tim Farron “will withdraw party’s support for Bedroom Tax”

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 2nd April 2014 - 9:54 am

Bedroom tax demo , all the photos taken with a iphone 5Ok, so we’ll overlook the Guardian’s inaccurate headline. Have they learned nothing from years of watching our policy making process? Tim Farron doesn’t have the power to do what the Guardian says he’s done:

The Liberal Democrat president, Tim Farron, will withdraw his party’s support for the bedroom tax on Wednesday, saying it has caused “huge social problems.”

I think he’s right, of course. It might just about be ok if there were suitable smaller properties for people to move into, or if …

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Caron Lindsay

It’s #NickvNigel Round 2 and we have bingo and billboards

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 2nd April 2014 - 8:00 am

Nick v Nigel Round 2 poster

Today the second debate on EU membership takes place between our Nick Clegg and UKIP leader Nigel Farage.

The image you see before you will be beaming down on commuters and shoppers in Tottenham Court Road, one of London’s busiest areas from around now. At least I think that’s the case. I’m only from Scotland.

It’s also fair to say that no social media timeline will be safe from the image of Cameron and Miliband missing

…

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Caron Lindsay

Clegg slams Farage over “extreme” and “utterly grotesque” Putin comments

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 31st March 2014 - 3:15 pm

Nigel Farage MEPMost Liberals would have been choking into their Corn Flakes this morning upon reading that Vladimir Putin, who apparently has designs on Finland, is the object of Nigel Farage’s admiration.

I just think it is utterly grotesque that Nigel Farage apparently admires – and that was the question to him, ‘Who do you admire?’ – admires someone, Vladimir Putin, who has been the chief sponsor and protector of one of the most brutal dictators on the face of the planet, President Assad, who has blocked at every single

…

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Stephen Tall

Time for Nick Clegg to ditch the “Great Britain not Little England” line

By Stephen Tall | Sun 30th March 2014 - 11:45 am

england-flag“Great Britain not little England” – it was a line Nick Clegg used in his recent Spring conference speech, setting up the new political dividing lines between those who are optimistic, outward-looking, progressive pro-Europeans and those who are gloomy, isolationst, reactionary anti-Europeans.

It’s a line he used again in this week’s Nick v Nigel debate. “Great Britain, not Little England” was the subject line, too, of the party’s immediate post-debate email to supporters.

Clearly it’s a line the party believes encapsulates the main fault-line in British politics right now. …

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Caron Lindsay

In full: Nick Clegg’s contribution to the “sunshine strategy” at Scottish Lib Dem Conference

By Caron Lindsay | Sat 29th March 2014 - 9:04 am

Forth Railway Bridge at North Queensferry Fife ScotlandI’ve been saying for a long time that the pro UK side of the independence referendum campaign in Scotland needs to make sure that there’s a positive melody to go a long with the necessary deconstruction of the SNP’s arguments. Nick Clegg stepped up to that plate with aplomb yesterday in his keynote speech, saying that the case for staying in the UK must be as “thrilling” as that for independence.

There was one hilarious moment when he slipped up and talked about he and …

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Caron Lindsay

Call Clegg: Nick condemns morning after pill critics as misogynist, medieval and insulting to women

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 27th March 2014 - 11:42 am

call cleggI do love it when Nick gets all cross about things. He’s always been pretty open about his views but at times can come across almost too careful. Those occasions when he just lets rip are so good.

This morning, he did not mince his words about those “experts” (sorry for the Daily Mail link, but who they count as experts is really funny) who think that giving women access to the morning after pill will fuel promiscuity. It took me about 4 tweets to get it all in – misogynist, …

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The Voice

Three ways to watch #NickvNigel

By The Voice | Wed 26th March 2014 - 5:51 pm

It’s just over an hour to go until Nick Clegg takes on Nigel Farage to debate whether Britain should be in or out of the EU.

Here’s where you can watch:

It’s being streamed on both the Liberal Democrats’ website or over at LBC

If you have Sky News, you can watch the build up, debate and aftermath from 6pm.

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Stephen Tall

Your essential Nick v Nigel debate reader: 15 articles to get you match-fit ahead of tonight’s live encounter

By Stephen Tall | Wed 26th March 2014 - 1:00 pm

Today’s the day of the first Nick v Nigel debate. Here’s your essential reader ahead of tonight’s first encounter between the Lib Dem and Ukip leaders…

Three LibDemVoice articles…

First, let’s recall how the debate came about – Nick Clegg challenged Nigel Farage to the debate live on his LBC radio phone-in last month: “It’s a brave, maybe audacious move,” said my co-editor Caron Lindsay, “but Nick has never been one to shy away from a challenge. He’s also honed his already good debating skills since his success in 2010.”

And as I pointed out then, it was a smart …

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Caron Lindsay

#NickvNigel LibLink Special: Nick Clegg: Let’s keep Britain prosperous, safe and IN

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 26th March 2014 - 10:25 am

Well, today’s the day. The first Nick v Nigel debate takes place on LBC tonight. I’ve already been on the station this morning batting for Team Nick against a UKIP MEP who suggested that Nick using facts might be a problem and that Nick had agreed to the debate. Everyone knows it was Nick who actually issued the challenge.

Nick has been writing for the Mirror on the reasons why he believes Britain needs to stay in the EU.

He knows it’s not perfect but who’s going to invest here if we are not part of that much larger market:

Europe isn’t

…

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Pawel Swidlicki

The Independent View: Clegg can’t just take on Farage – he also needs to spell out his own vision for EU reform

By Pawel Swidlicki | Tue 25th March 2014 - 10:52 am

Like all political obsessives up and down the country I’ve stocked up on popcorn ahead of Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage’s upcoming duels over Europe in anticipation of some captivating political theatre. However, from my more sober perspective as a political analyst, such a binary, ‘all-or-nothing’ debate over Europe is fundamentally flawed as it does not speak to where the majority of the British public are at. Polls have consistently shown that when respondents are offered options beyond staying in on the current terms or leaving altogether, the option of staying in a reformed/slimmed down EU proves the most popular across the political spectrum.

People hold different views about how they would like to see the European Union develop. Which of these statements comes closest to your view?

Graph

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Posted in The Independent View | Also tagged | 25 Comments
Stephen Tall

Without a shadow of a doubt: Vince Cable should be the Lib Dems’ Shadow Chancellor at the 2015 election

By Stephen Tall | Sat 22nd March 2014 - 12:50 pm

Vincent CableOne of the quirks of being in coalition is the Lib Dems no longer have a shadow chancellor. But we shall need one in time for the 2015 general election – not least for the traditional televised ‘Ask the Chancellors’ debate.

There have been newspaper reports that there’s some jockeying for this position, with the Financial Times reporting that “Senior Lib Dems say the high-profile job is very likely to go to Danny Alexander, the Treasury chief secretary”.

Meanwhile, over at the New Statesman, Lib Dem blogger Richard Morris …

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The Voice

Nick Clegg’s tribute to Tony Benn

By The Voice | Thu 20th March 2014 - 10:43 pm

Tony_BennTributes were paid in the House of Commons today to the former Labour MP Tony Benn, who died last week. Deputy Prime Minister
Nick Clegg led them – here’s what he had to say…

The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Nick Clegg):
May I, on behalf of the House, commence the tributes to the right hon. Tony Benn, following the warm words from the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition yesterday?

As others have already commented, Tony Benn will be remembered as a dedicated constituency Member of Parliament, a tireless campaigner and, of course, an astute political diarist.

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Caron Lindsay

Call Clegg: Proud of Budget, help for parents, taking on Ed Balls and “silly” Shapps and keeping Scotland in the family

By Caron Lindsay | Thu 20th March 2014 - 1:30 pm

call cleggAnother good Call Clegg this morning with one question from Philadelphia on Scottish independence. The caller asked if David Cameron should resign if Scotland voted yes. Nick didn’t get into that, but he said he fervently hoped that Scotland would stay in the “UK family of nations” with more powers.

One criticism of the budget is that it only helps working parents, not those who choose to stay at home. Nick expressed his admiration for those who make that choice, but he said that so many had said to him that …

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Caron Lindsay

Some first thoughts on the Budget

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 19th March 2014 - 2:23 pm

George Osborne with Red Box, Budget 2012So the Chancellor has just sat down. Here are my first thoughts on the Budget.

Nick gets his Workers’ Bonus

The personal tax threshold rises to £10,500. I doubt it was anything to do with the petition being pushed on social media in the last few days. This was down to the hard work of our ministers staying on message, in volume, over time, in budget negotiations. Nick Clegg has stuck with this through the entire Parliament and given us a very tangible promise kept – and more. “I am proud of what we have achieved”, said Osborne. Aye right.

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NewsHound

Nick’s Netmums Q & A on childcare

By NewsHound | Wed 19th March 2014 - 8:55 am

imageOver at Netmums, Nick Clegg has been answering questions about the new tax free childcare system announced yesterday. He explains the three elements, including the extra help for families on the lowest incomes:

Firstly, if you’re a working family with children under 12, which doesn’t receive tax credits, Universal Credit or Employer Supported Childcare, but both parents are working or you’re a lone working parent, the government will provide 20% of your child care costs up to £10,000 a year.

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Stephen Tall

New poll: Voters credit low-earner tax-cuts to Lib Dems, Clegg’s ratings spike following Farage debate challenge

By Stephen Tall | Thu 13th March 2014 - 8:11 pm

Here’s a poll finding that will relieve Lib Dems and worry Tories – according to Ipsos-Mori more voters (45%) credit the Lib Dems with the Coalition’s tax-cuts than credit the Tories (33%):

tax cuts lib dme credit ipsos mori

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Posted in News and Polls | Also tagged , and | 31 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Nick Clegg at PMQs, with added Elvis

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 12th March 2014 - 9:55 pm

Clegg_PMQsNick was standing in for David Cameron, who was visiting Israel, at Prime Minister’s Questions today. The half hour was, of course, punctuated with the usual pantomime and point-scoring, but it seemed a lot more relaxed and good humoured than it usually is. Cameron acts sometimes like the event is beneath him. Nick just took all the jibes, responded with a fair bit of patience and humour and even seemed amused by some of them. The Labour spin doctors must have been up all night thinking of Elvis puns after we were beaten by the Bus Pass Elvis party in a council by-election in Clifton in Nottingham last week. The best they could manage was “You ain’t nothing but a lap dog.” You could see Nick trying not to laugh but he didn’t quite manage it as he responded:

At least we are not the lapdog of the bankers, which is what Labour was in office. At least we did not crash the British economy. At least we did not cost every household £3,000. At least we did not preside over an increase in relative poverty. At least we did not preside over an increase in youth unemployment. We are creating the stronger economy and fairer society that the Labour party failed to create.

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NewsHound

Rachel Smith talks to the Telegraph about the Coalition, being a politician’s wife, and how she’s a fan of Nick

By NewsHound | Wed 12th March 2014 - 10:46 am

In 2001, Rachel Smith, went along to a local meeting in the New Forest at which Vince Cable was speaking. She asked him a question and the rest is history. They were married in 2004. Last year about this time, she gave an interview to the Telegraph. This year, she’s done it again. She comes over as very warm, human and honest – just the same as she does when you meet her.

She had this to say about Vince’s supposed leadership ambitions:

She pre-empts questions about her husband’s alleged bid to oust the Lib Dem leader. “When people mutter about

…

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Stephen Tall

Miliband on in/out Europe referendum: I agree with Nick

By Stephen Tall | Wed 12th March 2014 - 9:45 am

Ed Miliband has decided, once and for all, what Labour’s position is be on an in/out EU referendum – the same as the Lib Dem policy.

Writing in today’s Financial Times, the Labour leader has said his party’s manifesto will commit to a referendum on whether the UK should be in or out of the EU only if there is a proposed transfer of more powers from London to Brussels.

This is subtly different from the Government’s ‘treaty lock’ agreed within the Coalition Agreement: that promised there should be a referendum on any future treaty that proposed a transfer …

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The Voice

“By the way this orange juice is corked” – Mac on Nick Clegg’s free school lunch plan

By The Voice | Wed 12th March 2014 - 7:24 am

We reported last night on the attacks on Nick Clegg’s plan for free school lunches for infants by the Daily Mail and by former Tory adviser Dominic Cummings – and the Lib Dem counter-attack. Here’s the lighter side of things, courtesy the newspaper’s cartoonist Mac:

daily mail free school lunches - mac

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The Voice

Lib Dems hit back against free school lunch attacks. Clegg on Mail: “utterly wrong”. Laws on Cummings: “utter balls”

By The Voice | Tue 11th March 2014 - 8:19 pm

daily mail free school lunchesToday’s Daily Mail front page was dominated by an attack on the Lib Dem plans to bring in free school lunches for all infants: “Free school meals fiasco,” it screamed.

Nick Clegg quickly refuted the Mail’s attack in a lengthy post on the party’s website – here’s an excerpt:

The Liberal Democrats are never going to be loved in the pages of the Daily Mail: our open, liberal and progressive brand of politics tends to be at odds with their editorial worldview (to put it mildly). However,

…

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Mary Reid

“I love how proud we are to be modest” and other things that Nick Clegg did not say

By Mary Reid | Tue 11th March 2014 - 5:21 pm

Craig Brown has written a parody of Nick Clegg’s speech to conference in the Daily Mail. Here is a short extract:

The same nation that came up with the Curly Wurly is now developing Oscar-winning visual effects; cutting-edge design; theatre, fashion, music, film, deputy leadership — you name it, we do it, and we’re up there with the best.

I love our weather forecast, and the way it tells you what the weather might be like tomorrow.

I love the sea, and the way it can be rough one day and calm the next.

I love the sun for the way it

…

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Paul Walter

Opinion: Making friends with Nick Clegg again…

By Paul Walter | Mon 10th March 2014 - 1:15 pm
In 2012 I got the hump with Nick Clegg after a series of, what I thought were, misjudgements by him. I am pleased to say that I have been humpless with Nick for quite a while now. I feel that he is a confident, passionate and (now) sure-footed party leader and DPM.This feeling was cemented by his Sunday speech and Saturday Q&A.With half a dozen other bloggers I interviewed Nick at Portcullis House during the 2007 leadership contest. Despite being a Huhne supporter, I found myself carried away on a helter-skelter ride as Nick went on flights of passion about

…

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Posted in Op-eds | 19 Comments
The Voice

What the media say about the York Conference, part 3

By The Voice | Mon 10th March 2014 - 9:09 am

Nick Clegg’s speech at the end of conference was covered by some, but by no means all, media outlets – you can read the full text of the speech here, and view a brief extract here. The Independent highlights Lib Dem Conference: ‘Rivals are airbrushing our role in recovery’ warns Nick Clegg,:

In a policy-lite closing speech to the Lib Dem spring conference in York on Sunday, the Deputy Prime Minister signalled the start of the long campaign to next year’s general election by emphasising the party’s achievements in government.

…

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Caron Lindsay

5 things you didn’t know Nick Clegg loves – another clever use of Buzzfeed by LDHQ

By Caron Lindsay | Mon 10th March 2014 - 8:57 am

Screen Shot 2014-03-10 at 08.53.06Back in January, when a character from Sherlock was analysed as a disillusioned Lib Dem, those clever people at Party HQ came up with a Buzzfeed thingy giving 1o reasons why she should come back to us.

They’ve now done the same with five of the things from Nick Clegg’s speech that he loves about Britain.

I liked that part of his speech – here’s a reminder:

I love that a country capable of extraordinary pomp and ceremony can still retain a spiky irreverence towards its establishment. A

…

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Stephen Tall

Nick Clegg’s speech to the Lib Dem spring conference in full

By Stephen Tall | Sun 9th March 2014 - 12:10 pm

Clegg SpeechNick Clegg is just about to begin his speech to bring to a close the Lib Dems’ Spring Conference in York. You can read the full text below.

The speech is most striking for its aim to reclaim patriotism. “I love Britain” is the refrain of its opening section (much of which reads a lot like the popular Twitter account, @SoVeryBritish – eg, “I love that we insist on queuing when we go abroad, even when the locals don’t.”), with Nick listing the things that make him proud to …

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The Voice

What the media say about the York Conference, part 2

By The Voice | Sun 9th March 2014 - 10:55 am

The Observer carries two major stories about the conference today.  They comment on the key messages in Nick Clegg’s Q&A yesterday afternoon under the headline: Lib Dem conference: stuck in the middle – but with whom?:

It is really quite difficult being a Lib Dem these days. In pre-government times, when they were merely the protest party, they could say almost anything that would get them votes. Now, after several years of enjoying power and wanting more, it is all about positioning between two polar opposites while trying at the same time not to lose the party’s own identity.

But in an article headed Northern Lib Dems rebel over cuts the Observer reports that a group of eight Northern Lib Dem MPs, including Tim Farron,  have handed Nick Clegg a document titled ‘Grim up North?’

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Stephen Tall

Six points I took from Nick Clegg’s Lib Dem conference Q&A

By Stephen Tall | Sat 8th March 2014 - 7:45 pm

Here are six points that struck me listening to Nick Clegg’s Q&A at the Lib Dem conference today (actually, a few more did, but I haven’t time to cover them all…)

Nick Clegg is more comfortable than his party with positioning the Lib Dems in the centre of British politics

The party’s slogan, ‘Stronger economy, fairer society’, captures Nick Clegg’s message: the Lib Dems can civilise the Tories’ ruthlessness, and we can rein-in Labour’s spending excesses. I’ve written many times before that I think this is the only strategy available to the party given we won’t form the next government on our …

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