During the 2024 General Election, someone asked me for the best thing the Conservative government had done. I said transition planning. Or at least putting the wheels for transition planning in motion. It's also one of the reasons I knew I'd joined the right party in the Liberal Democrats soon after becoming a member in early 2019. It was in our 2019 manifesto. It's firmly in the 2025 climate paper passed at Autumn Conference just passed. Transition planning is the single most important piece of regulation missing to tackle the climate and broader sustainability emergency. It's now back up for ...
I have worked with all the Presidents of the Liberal Democrats since Ian Wrigglesworth took the job in 1988. The Job Description is broad and the Person Spec non-existent. There are two explicit jobs for a President: The "voice of Party members", recently downgraded from "the principal public representative of the Party" The Chair of the Federal Board with the clear implication of a "Chair of the Board" role for the Federal Party. Very few Presidents have had the skill, experience and ability to fulfil both roles with anything like equal success. Ian Wrigglesworth and Bob Maclennan came the nearest. ...
Hissing buckling shields pressing hot against my skin; Trapped in my defence
When working for a health charity recently, we were made aware of a new type of company offering private 'triage' services to the NHS. These companies are intermediary providers offering services such as blood tests and health assessments. However, if a patient needs hospital care, then they generally join the NHS queue, where the same tests are often repeated. What we were told by a few concerned doctors approaching the organisation was that some of these companies end up offering little additional value when it comes to actually treating patients – potentially diverting staff and money away from the NHS ...
The stunt by campaigners Led by Donkeys to rename Michelle Mone's yacht 'Pandemic Profiteer' finally secured an official nod yesterday, when the High Court ordered the company linked to the Tory peer to pay the government almost £122m for breaching a contract to supply millions of surgical gowns during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Independent reports that the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) had sued PPE Medpro at the High Court, claiming the company had breached the deal because the 25 million gowns it provided were "faulty" by not being sterile: The company, a consortium led by Lady Mone's ...
We are holding a Thursday street surgery tonight to speak with residents on any local issues or concerns they may have. Should you have an issue you wish to discuss with us, e-mail us at westend@dundeelibdems.org.uk or call Dundee 459378 and we will be pleased to meet you - many thanks.
This just in from BBC News: A black swan has been removed from a historic town after it spent nine months "terrorising" other birds and tourists. The bird - named Reggie by locals - was captured by swan warden Cyril Bennis in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire and will be rehomed at a centre in Devon. Mr Bennis said the capture was "what has to be done" after the bird's behaviour, which included disrupting nesting swans. A town resident added: "He's terrorised everyone else but we love him so it will be sad to see him go, but it's probably better for the ...
Yesterday Ed Davey reshuffled his top team ahead of the new parliamentary term and added 5 new roles meaning that 38 out of our 72 MPs now have spokesperson roles. There aren't very many huge surprises. Probably the biggest is the replacement of former Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council leader Vikki Slade as housing, communities and local government spokesperson. She was a champion for local government and had experience of handling massive budgets and delivering services and it is hard to understand why she has found herself as a backbench MP. She is replaced at local government by Zoe Franklin, ...
In November party members will be voting to elect our next Party President. At Lib Dem Voice we welcome posts from each of the candidates - one to launch their candidature plus a maximum of one per week during the actual campaign. In all the 30 years I have been a member of the Liberal Democrats, there has not been a time like this. The rise of Reform, the resurgence of racism and hate, populism, nationalism and refusal to acknowledge facts are taking our country to a very dangerous place. Never has it been more important for us to be ...
With a great fanfare (well a Facebook post actually) Gateshead Council have announced the opening of its brand new car park on the Gateshead Quays. At a cost of over £20 million, the multi-storey car park was meant mainly to serve the needs of people coming to the international convention centre. There's only one teeny weeny problem. After years of waiting, the convention centre is still
"Gill and Farage remained close. When the latter quit UKIP in December 2018, Gill followed him two days later. In the following February Farage announced his new Brexit Party. Gill was one of six former UKIP MEPs to join immediately."Angus Young traces the journey of Nathan Gill, former leader of Reform UK in Wales, from Hull to Moscow. Jo Elvin writes about her experience of applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain: "It took the Home Office four weeks to come back to me and tell my application had been rejected. I was informed of this in a short, cold letter ...
I left our recent federal conference in Bournemouth, the first I've attended, with my head abuzz. Only a small part of this was due to the cumulative hangover that happens when a man in his late thirties boozes as he did in his late twenties. The overwhelming majority of the remaining buzz is a result of the optimism, confidence, and positivity of everyone I met and the warm welcome that was shown to us repentant sinners, formerly of other political parishes. Key points like Tim Farron's barnstorming speech, making the defiant and full-throated case for patriotism and liberalism, and Jamie ...
I feel no shame at having liked Wizzard when I was 13. They made great singles, Roy Wood is a genius and they were the continuation of The Move by other means.
Residents will recall that we recently highlighted that the wall in Pentland Avenue - near City Road junction - in front of housing and adjacent to the public pavement was requiring repair. We were promised repairs and are pleased to report this has now taken place.
The Mirror reports on demands by the GMB union that the UK employs enough carers to look after our aging population. They have argued that Britain needs 350,000 more social care workers to hit international safe staffing levels to care for our elderly: The GMB union has highlighted staff shortages after experts warned lack of formal social care is driving people to quit their jobs as the numbers providing over 35 hours of unpaid care a week have increased by 70%. Increasingly middle aged women are left filling the gaps to look after parents, spouses or their disabled adult children. ...
