Tag Archives: nick clegg

Two new reports into online politics

By Mark Pack | Tue 12th January 2010 - 3:10 pm

First up, there’s a report from the Hansard Society which has surveyed MPs and their use of the internet (“A study into how MPs use digital media to communicate with their constituents”):

Posted in Online politics | Also tagged blogging, caroline lucas, david cameron, gordon brown, hansard society, tamar and twitter | 1 Comment

What to make of Nick Clegg’s four steps?

By Mark Pack | Tue 12th January 2010 - 12:29 pm

To recap, the four steps to a fairer Britain which Nick Clegg laid out yesterday were:

Fair taxes.
A new, fair start for all children at school.
A rebalanced, green economy.
And clean, open politics.

In terms of what’s there, no huge surprises. After the MPs’ expenses scandal, it’s no great shock (and very welcome to many members) to see political reform back in the list of top issues for the party.

The emphasis on early years education reflects a common theme of Nick Clegg’s speeches before and after becoming party leader. Expect that story about ‘a young child in Sheffield…’ to be said many, many …

Posted in General Election and Party policy and internal matters | 12 Comments

The Guardian’s approving verdict on the Lib Dems’ manifesto principles is correct … but for the wrong reasons

By Stephen Tall | Tue 12th January 2010 - 10:10 am

Nick Clegg will have enjoyed reading this morning’s Guardian editorial (Nick Clegg: Liberal parenting) over his breakfast porridge today. The paper commends Nick for yesterday’s launch of the principles which will underpin the Lib Dems’ election manifesto.

At the same time it betrays the Guardian’s usual unawareness of the party’s democratic decision-making principles. According to the Grauniad, Nick “ordered his party to drop some of its favourite policies”, issuing “instructions” in order to transform the Lib Dem manifesto from “a third-party wishlist” into “a credible agenda for directing a government”.

Hmmm, not so much.

In fact, all that …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged federal policy committee, general election manifesto, higher education, mansion tax, tuition fees, universities and vince cable | 13 Comments

Daily View 2×2: 12 January 2010

By Sara Bedford | Tue 12th January 2010 - 8:55 am

On this day in 2001, Sven Goran Eriksson took over as manager of the England football team. On the same day, the carers of eight year old Victoria Climbié, who died after being tortured and fed like a dog, were found guilty of her murder, leading to questions being asked of Haringey Social Services.

Today is the 281st anniversary of the birth of Edmund Burke. It’s also the 59th and 56th birthdays respectively of US radio ‘personalities’ Rush Limbaugh and Howard Stern.

2 Big Stories

Four steps to a fairer Britain

Yesterday saw Nick Clegg set out the priorities which will be at the heart of the party’s …

Posted in Daily View and General Election | Also tagged chris white, edmund burke, gina ford, howard stern, IKEA, isabel oakeshott, licensing, pavements, richard baum, rush limbaugh, sandy walkington, snow and ice, st albans, sven goran eriksson, taxis and victoria climbié | Leave a comment

Gina Ford vs Nick Clegg

By Mark Pack | Sun 10th January 2010 - 4:12 pm

It should be no contest, you’d have thought. Public spat between million selling child-care author and a politician. Who’s the public going to instinctively trust? And what’s the general tenor of online comments on the stories going to be like?

So when I saw the news that Nick Clegg has said that Gina Ford’s highly prescriptive and detailed child care instructions weren’t for him and his family, I expected the coverage to be at least mildly critical and the online comments to be far more so.

That’s not how it has turned out though. It’s both to Nick’s credit (the reasons he …

Posted in News | Also tagged gina ford | 21 Comments

Daily View 2×2: 10 January 2010

By Mark Pack | Sun 10th January 2010 - 7:00 am

It’s Sunday. It’s 7am. It’s time for an exclusive peak at the next Conservative Party election poster, but first the news.

2 Must-Read Blog Posts

What are other Liberal Democrat bloggers saying? Here’s are two posts that have caught the eye from the Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator:

Some Good News for Nick Clegg: Nick Thornsby mulls over some new poll findings on what attributes the public associate with each of the three main party leaders.
Community spirit alive and well in Bandon Rise: Jayne McCoy on how one group of residents took action rather than bemoaning what others have or haven’t done.

Spotted any other great posts in the last day from blogs that aren’t on the aggregator? Do post up a comment sharing them with us all.

2 Big Stories

New Karzai cabinet snubs warlords

Posted in Daily View | Also tagged afghanistan and hamid karzi | 1 Comment

LDV readers say: Televised leaders’ debates will be great help to Lib Dems

By Stephen Tall | Sat 9th January 2010 - 3:30 pm

A fortnight ago, LDV posed the question, What difference, if any, do you think the televised leaders’ debates will make to the Lib Dems’ standing in the polls? Here’s what you told us:

60% (258 votes) – They will be a real help to the Liberal Democrats
24% (105) – They will make only a marginal difference either way
8% (34) – They will backfire for the Liberal Democrats
8% (33) – They will be utterly irrelevant to how people vote
Total Votes: 430 Poll ran: 26th December 2009 – 8th January 2010

So, a convincing majority of you – six …

Posted in Voice polls | Also tagged leaders tv debate | 2 Comments

Daily View 2×2: 7 January 2010

By Alex Foster | Thu 7th January 2010 - 7:27 am

Good morning and welcome to Daily View on 7th January. Waking up to a cold frosty reception this morning are Prime Minister Gordon Brown, former Labour ministers and fellow East Midlanders Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt – and, well, pretty much the rest of us as temperatures are set to stay below freezing for most of the country for most of the day.

The 7th January in history saw a trio of firsts: Galileo Galilei first observed the largest moon of Jupiter; the first use of the modern Italian flag; and the first transatlantic telephone call.

A trio of Nicks have birthdays today: Nicholson Baker, the American novelist; Nicolas Cage, the tax defaulting American actor – and our own Nick Clegg MP, who is 43 today!

And in misogyny news: today is Distaff Day, when traditionally, women, who’d had a break from household work over Christmas, began their domestic tasks again.

2 Big Stories

Today we have one nice story and a load of links poking fun at the Labour party.

Lord Mandelson plans street parties for Queen’s diamond jubilee

Mind you, even this story in the Telegraph, ostensibly about something else entirely, can’t help but speculate on Gordon’s much-demanded departure. Here’s the Lib Dem relevant paragraphs:

Lord McNally, for the Liberal Democrats, had to cough to get himself heard, for Lord Mandelson had risen too soon. This faux pas prompted Lord McNally to say, “That’s a bad start to the year,” before demanding street parties and mugs to celebrate the jubilee.

A lesser performer would have been thrown by the embarrassment of forgetting the genial Lord McNally, but Lord Mandelson recovered without apparent effort, declaring himself strongly in favour of street parties and mugs.

Yay, street parties and mugs! Woo!

Posted in Daily View | Also tagged colony, diamond jubilee, distaff day, east midlands, galileo galilei, geoff hoon, grit, jupiter, lord mcnally, maureen rigg, nicholas cage, nicholson baker, patricia hewitt, peter mandelson, salford, steve middleton, stockton, street party and woman's work | Leave a comment

Nick: Labour and Tories stand for ‘corrupt politics’

By Stephen Tall | Wed 6th January 2010 - 5:15 pm

In his hardest-hitting attack yet on the Labour and Tory parties, Nick Clegg has used an interview for BBC News’s Hard Talk programme to denounce both parties for colluding in ‘corrupt politics’. You can watch a three-minute clip from the programme here, in which Nick discusses Afghanistan.

The Guardian reports Nick’s comments here:

Clegg uses an interview today on the BBC’s Hard Talk programme to publish a list of “progressive” policies Labour and the Tories have blocked. He says: “A vote for Labour or the Conservatives is a vote for corrupt politics. A vote for Labour or the Conservatives is a vote for tax dodgers in politics. A vote for letting guilty MPs off the hook. A vote for an unfair voting system.”

Here’s the party’s evidence for Nick’s verdict:

Posted in News | Also tagged bbc hard talk, conservative party and labour party | 4 Comments

Nick: fairness is the Lib Dems’ core value

By Stephen Tall | Wed 6th January 2010 - 10:15 am

‘It’s all about fairness’, is the refrain we can expect to hear a lot from Nick Clegg in the next few months, leading up to the 2010 general election. It was noticable that the word ‘fair’ was deployed in each one of Nick’s four key policy areas set out in his Times article yesterday on the Lib Dems’ approach to a ‘hung parliament’:

fair taxes;
a fair start for all our children;
a fair and sustainable economy that creates jobs; and
fair, clean and local politics.

And it’s the word which recurs in this BBC interview, where Nick states his belief that the core value of the Lib Dems is fairness:

Posted in News | Also tagged bbc | 3 Comments

Is this the laziest piece of political journalism ever?

By Stephen Tall | Tue 5th January 2010 - 8:05 pm

Well, no, it’s probably not. But it must at least qualify for the laziest piece of journalism this decade. I refer to today’s Independent article, ‘Clegg faces party backlash over Tory alliance’, by Nigel Morris and Michael Savage. Oh, go on, then, here’s a link if you must; though I begrudge handing them the traffic. The opening para gives a flavour of the kite-flying, unsourced speculation:

Nick Clegg faces a backlash from grassroots Liberal Democrats if he moves his party too close to the Conservatives in a hung parliament.

Well, yes, he probably would. Which is why he won’t. Unless the …

Posted in News | Also tagged christopher lovell, hung parliament, jane watkinson, michael savage, nich starling, nigel morris, steve richards and the independent | 9 Comments

LibLink … Nick Clegg: The Liberal Democrats are not for sale

By Stephen Tall | Mon 4th January 2010 - 11:50 pm

Over at The Times, Nick Clegg has penned an article setting out, perhaps in the clearest detail yet, exactly how the Lib Dems will respond in the event of a ‘hung Parliament’. He begins by noting the heat-without-light debate that the new year has brought:

Much of what we have heard so far is unsurprising: absurd pledges on spending, vitriolic attacks on cuts. But one development is new: both the old parties now claim to be almost identical to the Liberal Democrats. David Cameron and Gordon Brown are ostentatiously flirting with Liberal Democrat voters, clumsily trying to woo them —

…

Posted in LibLink | Also tagged hung parliament and the times | 7 Comments

Parties on a war footing – but what are they fighting for?

By Helen Duffett | Sat 2nd January 2010 - 7:35 pm

New Year, old sabre-rattling. Gordon Brown and David Cameron are parading their leadership credentials, with a view to capturing an entire nation – the UK, that is.

David Cameron made a speech (transcript here) in Oxfordshire today saying that the country needs a change of direction and a new leadership:

“We can’t go on in these difficult times with a weak prime minister and a divided government.”

You can almost hear the Tory munitions factory roar as they forge this, strengthen that and defeat the other.

And here’s Gordon Brown on New Year’s Eve:

“The Detroit plot thankfully failed. But it has been a wake-up call for the ongoing battles we must wage not just for security against terror but for the hearts and minds of a generation.”

It’s a common political (and journalistic, and marketing) technique to play to people’s fears, but what next in the Prime Ministerial arms race – Brown and Cameron appearing on the decks of rival aircraft carriers, squeezed into military uniform à la George Bush?

Neither leader, for all their fighting talk, seems to have heard of liberty.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged darrell goodliffe, david cameron, george bush, gordon brown, liberal revolution blog, stephen glenn and terrorism | 1 Comment

Nick Clegg’s New Year message: “2010 must be the year we press the political reset button”

By The Voice | Tue 29th December 2009 - 12:40 pm

In his New Year message, Nick Clegg, Leader of the Liberal Democrats has laid down a challenge to other party leaders to tell people what they really believe in, rather than what they think people want to hear.

Here’s the full text of Nick’s message:

I have a confession to make: 2009 tested my belief in politics to breaking point.

I remember once looking round the House of Commons during another Punch and Judy session of Prime Ministers Questions. In the real world, youth unemployment had just reached its highest level ever, our brave soldiers were facing extraordinary dangers in Afghanistan, the

…

Posted in News | 11 Comments

LDV readers say: we least want David Cameron to be the next Prime Minister

By Stephen Tall | Mon 28th December 2009 - 1:30 pm

A few weeks back, I posed the question here on LDV: In the event of Nick Clegg not forming a government after the next election, who do you *least want* to be Prime Minister in a year’s time? And to give our poll that little added piquancy I offered only two options: Gordon Brown or David Cameron.

Over 1,000 LDV readers (who, I never tire of reminding folk – especially any journos on the look-out for an easy story – may or may not all be Lib Dems) voted, and here’s what you said:

Gordon Brown: 42% (468 votes)

…

Posted in Voice polls | Also tagged david cameron and gordon brown | 9 Comments

LibLink … Nick Clegg et al: An appeal for the victims of Gaza

By NewsHound | Sun 27th December 2009 - 3:30 pm

Nick Clegg is a lead signatory for a letter in today’s Observer calling on the international community to exert pressure on Israel to abide by UN security council resolution 1860 and bring an end to the suffering of the people of Gaza. Here’s what it says:

One year on from Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli government continues to imprison 1.5 million Palestinians and prevent the rebuilding of its shattered infrastructure.

Israel’s blockade of Gaza, described by the UN fact-finding mission as “collective punishment”, stops reconstruction materials and humanitarian aid from reaching those who so desperately require it.

As a result

…

Posted in LibLink | Also tagged gaza, israel, palestine, the observer and united nations | Leave a comment

NEW POLL: will the TV debates make any difference to the Lib Dems?

By Stephen Tall | Sat 26th December 2009 - 6:37 pm

We now know the UK will see its first ever televised debates between the leaders of the three major UK-wide parties in the run-up to the 2010 general election. The consenus is there have been two winners: Sky News, which, with brilliant audacity, put the issue front and centre, and by so doing ensured that (i) the debates will happen, and (ii) it muscled in on the act, instead of being excluded by the BBC and ITV. (There’s a lesson there for Channel 4, which had been comprehensively outmanoeuvred).

The second winner, according to the commentariat, is Nick Clegg. Here’s Andrew …

Posted in Voice polls | Also tagged andrew grice, featured, jonathan calder, leaders tv debate and steve richards | 12 Comments

What the papers say…

By Philip Young | Sat 26th December 2009 - 3:43 pm

Civil servants are as bad as bankers … The Telegraph trumpets Gladstone’s anniversary … Tories support Labour’s school Sats Tests … Another dodgy Tory donor exposed … Labour split on voting reform … Lords skim expenses cream … BBC to make film on Thorpe tragedy … what Chris Huhne thinks of Prince Charles … Unions sit on money for Labour … look at who says Hauge is Vauge …and the only thing the final polls of the year can agree upon is that Liberal Democrat support is holding up

Now Civil Servants join bankers in ludicrous bonuses – Daily Mail,, 24.12.09

…

Posted in News | Also tagged abdelbaset ali al-megrahi, chris grayling, chris huhne, david cameron, ed vaizey, electoral reform, essex county council, fouad makhzoumi, george osborne, jeremy thorpe, julie kirkbride, michael gove, norman lamb, peter mandelson, sion simon, theresa may, tony greaves, universities, vince cable, what the papers say, william gladstone, william hague and willie rennie | Leave a comment

LibLink … Clegg on Gaza

By NewsHound | Thu 24th December 2009 - 2:01 pm

Writing in the Guardian two days ago, Nick Clegg highlighted Palestinian suffering in Gaza:

On 27 December last year, Israel launched Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, an overwhelming exercise of military force aimed at silencing the Hamas rockets which had terrorised Israeli towns and villages. The immediate effects of the invasion are well known: 1,400 Palestinians dead, mostly civilians, with many more wounded or displaced; 10 Israeli soldiers and three civilians killed, dozens more injured; and thousands of families in southern Israel forced to flee to other parts of the country. The rocketfire from Gaza into Israel has slowed but

…

Posted in LibLink | Also tagged gaza, israel, operation cast lead and palestine | 4 Comments

Lib Dems will fight for fair bank charges in Parliament – Clegg

By Mark Pack | Wed 23rd December 2009 - 7:51 am

From a party news release:

Commenting on the OFT’s decision to drop its investigation into the fairness of bank overdraft charges, Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg said:

“This is extremely disappointing and a blow for millions of bank customers.

“Having come so close to overhauling an unfair system of charging that penalises vulnerable groups of people, I know that the campaign will not just stop.

“The Liberal Democrats will continue the fight for fair bank charges in Parliament and push for a change in the law if necessary so that high street banks cannot keep ripping off their customers.”

Posted in News | Also tagged bank charges and oft | 2 Comments

Opinion on Nick’s second anniversary: Mark Thompson – The next few months the biggest test of Clegg’s career

By Mark Thompson | Mon 21st December 2009 - 6:30 pm

Last week saw the second anniversary of Nick Clegg’s leadership of the Liberal Democrats. LDV marked the occasion by inviting three Lib Dem bloggers to assess Nick’s contribution to date, and to look ahead to what the future might hold. You can read Neil Stockley’s post here, and Iain Roberts’ here. Today is Mark Thomspon’s turn …

The first thing I would say is that had I have been a member in 2007 I would have voted for Chris Huhne. I think his politics are closer to my own personally and I felt he had the higher profile. …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged clegg+2 and featured | 6 Comments

Televised election leaders’ debates are on

By The Voice | Mon 21st December 2009 - 5:30 pm

Posted in News | Also tagged leaders tv debate | 4 Comments

Daily View 2×2: 21 December 2009

By Stephen Tall | Mon 21st December 2009 - 10:15 am

Morning, all, and welcome to the 355th day of the year, a date which marks the 21st anniversary of the Lockerbie bombing, and the 47th anniversary of the British decision to buy nuclear missiles from the US. Today is also, you may like to know, the birthday of Thomas Becket, Jane Fonda and Tina Brown.

2 Must-Read Blog-Posts

What are other Liberal Democrat bloggers saying? Here’s are two posts that have caught the eye from the Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator:

And a very Merry Christmas to you too Eurostar & BA … (Lisa Harding)

So, to the people that run and work

…

Posted in Daily View | Also tagged climate change, copenhagen summit, giles wilkes, greg stone, guido fawkes, lisa harding and simon hughes | Leave a comment

What the papers say…

By Philip Young | Sat 19th December 2009 - 10:21 am

Vince makes the front page of the Daily Express, Nick scores two page leads in the Mail, Huhne forces a Tory U-turn, Paddy bazookas a Brigadier, Bob Russell biffs a Bishop and The Telegraph’s Deputy Editor says George Osbourne is a childish prat … A few press clippings you may have missed, in our Newspaper Review of the Week.

“Tories lack clarity” – Simon Heffer, columnist: Daily Telegraph, 16.12.09

“Do the Tories enunciate a clear alternative that will benefit not merely their supporters, but also the country? Not yet. It’s not just that George Osborne seems to have no clear plans to …

Posted in News | Also tagged bob russell, chris huhne, george osborne, paddy ashdown, vince cable and what the papers say | 6 Comments

Party’s policy committee agrees to axe tuition fees

By Mark Pack | Fri 18th December 2009 - 2:33 pm

From an email from Nick Clegg:

This week the Party’s federal policy committee agreed a way to deliver one of our most important policies, the scrapping of unfair tuition fees. We’ve developed a plan to phase out tuition fees over the course of the next six years, to ensure this vital policy is affordable even at this time of economic crisis.

Labour and the Conservatives refuse to address the issue of fees and there is a real danger that both of them would lift the cap on fees which could mean even more debt for students when they leave university. We think

…

Posted in News and Party policy and internal matters | Also tagged fpc, higher education, tuition fees and universities | 23 Comments

Opinion on Nick’s second anniversary: Iain Roberts – Nick finds his voice

By Iain Roberts | Fri 18th December 2009 - 2:18 pm

Writing this piece, I started by looking back at what was written on Nick’s first anniversary a year ago.

Over 2008 the party was averaging around 16% in the polls and whilst showing a great deal of promise, the consensus was that Clegg still had some way to go to fulfil his potential, with the Lisbon Treaty confusion and that Piers Morgan interview being two of the more memorable moments.

2009 has been a very different story. It’s still been a struggle to get our voice heard in the national media – that’s not going to change anytime soon outside …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged clegg+2 | 2 Comments

Opinion on Nick’s second anniversary: Neil Stockley – People are listening, now’s the time for Nick to tell our story

By Neil Stockley | Fri 18th December 2009 - 12:15 pm

I came across an old Liberal Democrat Voice post the other day. In May 2007, Nick Clegg called for the party to develop a “narrative” to accompany its policies. Just over six months later, Nick was elected Lib Dem leader and was thus in the best possible position to make such a narrative happen.

During the leadership campaign, his abilities as a communicator were the most frequently heard point of “the case for Nick”. So, after two years as leader, how is he doing?

Well . . . there were more misses than hits in …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged clegg+2 | 7 Comments

And it’s a happy Christmas from the Clegg family

By The Voice | Thu 17th December 2009 - 7:15 am

The Guardian yesterday compared the Christmas cards sent by the leaders of the three main parties, so we thought LDV readers might appreciate seeing the festive missive despatched from Nick Clegg to those lucky people who’re on his list.

Here’s what The Times had to say about it:

…Nick Clegg’s card, drawn by his sons Antonio, 8, and Alberto, 5, is so touchy-feely and brimming with yuletide innocence that one worries it might be delivered with a free hug from the Liberal Democrat leader himself. Is the man in the red suit Uncle Vince?

“It is very sweet,” mused Mr

…

Posted in News | Also tagged christmas | 9 Comments

Derby North: hung parliament territory?

By Peter Welch | Sat 12th December 2009 - 11:20 am

Let’s start with a health warning. My first-hand knowledge of Derby amounts to changing trains there once a decade ago. But the press are keen to help us find out more. Derby North qualifies as a three-way marginal (Lab 39.5%, Lib Dem 30.6% and Tories 25.9% according to Antony Wells). And not one but two national papers descended on the seat to find out how the public saw the PBR.

Slightly bizarrely, they both report on the seat as a Conservative prospect. (It is number 130 on the Tory hit list, number 30 on the Liberal Democrat list of targets.) …

Posted in General Election and Op-eds | Also tagged david cameron, derby north, lucy care, southend west and vince cable | 16 Comments

LDVideo … Nick’s PMQs, ‘Unparliamentary language’ and Jon Stewart’s take on ‘Climategate’

By Stephen Tall | Sat 12th December 2009 - 10:05 am

Welcome to the latest LDVideo instalment, featuring three of the most memorable video clips doing the rounds on the blogosphere.

I missed covering this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions, so here to make up for it is Nick Clegg’s contribution – taking to task (with some passion) Gordon Brown for Labour’s failures to put fairness at the heart of their policies:

Posted in YouTube | Also tagged climate change, jon stewart and PMQs | 3 Comments

Op-eds

Good luck Scotland and England (Caron Lindsay)
We need a tax rise to fund additional defence spending (Simon McGrath)
Putting Liberal values into practice in the heart of London (Victor Chamberlain)
Sanctions against Israeli settlers welcome – but inadequate (Jonathan Brown)
Protecting children shouldn’t mean abolishing their right to privacy (Tara Foster)

Advert

Josh Babarinde writes…The Lib Dem Summer of Strategy

Alison Suttie writes: Thank you to our volunteers

What’s going on with party strategy?

A strange but welcome feeling

Tag Archives: nick clegg

2 Big Stories

Four steps to a fairer Britain

2 Must-Read Blog Posts

2 Big Stories

2 Big Stories

2 Must-Read Blog-Posts

Subscribe

Most Read

Search

Op-eds

Recent Comments