Thanks to a sharp-eyed Liberal England reader, Politico wins our Headline of the Day Award.
Discontent with the Reform UK leader of Leicestershire County Council, Dan Harrison, is growing within his own party, reports the Harborough Mail. Reform councillors met on Tuesday to discuss the council's direction under Harrison and, the Mail says, a vote on whether they were happy with his leadership saw a majority of one in his favour:It is understood that, according to one source, discontent has been forming within Reform due to what is being called a "lack of direction" under Cllr Harrison. Recent by-election results have increased pressure on the party leader too.The paper quotes the leader of the Liberal ...
Six principal authority council by-elections this week, including Reform's first gain from the Lib Dems since May: Beechwood & Heath (Halton) Council By-Election Result: [IMG: ➡] RFM: 35.3% (-4.2) [IMG: 🔶] LDM: 26.3% (-18.3) [IMG: 🌹] LAB: 25.2% (New) [IMG: ◼] RES: 6.3% (New) [IMG: 🙋] Ind: 4.2% (New) [IMG: 🌳] CON: 2.6% (New)No GRN (-13.2) or LBT (-2.6) as previous.Reform UK GAIN from Liberal Democrats.Changes w/ 2026. — Election Maps UK (@electionmaps.uk) 2026-10-30T00:01:03.950Z Thank you to Douglas Macdonald for being the Lib Dem here, and scoring that promising first preferences increase. For what all this means for the running ...
Nigel Farage was absent from the House of Commons chamber for the budget speech on Wednesday and his claim that he failed to show to avoid a physical altercation with the Liberal Democrats has sparked the sort of storm on social media that you might expect. My favourite posts from that thread include; 'The famous violent thuggery of (checks notes) the Lib Dems. The trained orange ninja assassins from places like Wantage and Barnstaple. Yeah, right. He doth protest too much methinks.', plus 'Well, you wouldn't have wanted to start a fight with Paddy Ashdown, and we do have a ...
Here's the tally of seats changing hands in principal authority council by-elections held between the May 2026 and the May 2027 local elections: Con Lab Lib Dem Green Reform SNP Plaid Ind/ Other Net Con [18] +2 (+2/0) +1 (+3/-2) -1 (+3/-4) -6 (+3/-9) -1 (0/-1) – +3 (+4/-1) -2 Lab -2 (0/-2) [15] -1 (0/-1) -1 (+3/-4) 0 (+9/-9) +1 (+1/0) -1 (0/-1) 0 (+1/-1) -4 Lib Dem -1 (+2/-3) +1 (+1/0) [19] +1 (+1/0) +2 (+2/-1) -1 (0/-1) – +3 (+3/0) +4 Grn +1 (+4/-3) +1 (+4/-3) -1 (0/-1) [7] – +1 (+1/0) – – +2 Ref +6 ...
Gateshead Lib Dems are having yet another action day on Saturday. That meant I was in the office this morning printing the survey we are delivering. The printing machine worked without a hitch. That's a first for me!
The scarecrow festival is currently taking place in Sunniside and Streetgate. This is my favourite.
The actor Patrick Stewart died yesterday. This story from the Hollywood Reporter concentrates on his appearances in Star Trek and X-Men, while some of us will think first of his appearances in Smiley's People and I, Claudius. In both he was a uniquely powerful presence. Over the years I have posted a couple of clips of him from even earlier in his career. Here he is in Joby from 1975. This was an adaptation of the Stan Barstow's 1964 novel of the same name. It was filmed in and around Horbury, the village near Wakefield where Barstow himself grew up. ...
Thu 29th
18:33
For disabled people, a simple game of football comes with a terrifying price tag: their benefits
Disabled people are encouraged to exercise to protect their health and independence. Yet many fear that participating in sport could jeopardise the financial support they rely on. This is the Activity Trap, and it must end. For most people, playing football is an opportunity to exercise, enjoy themselves and connect with others. For some disabled people, however, stepping onto a football pitch comes with a frightening question: could this game cost me my benefits? Health professionals, ministers and sporting bodies regularly promote physical activity for its benefits to physical health, mental wellbeing and social connection. Adapted football and other inclusive ...
I have long believed that the annual Budget is over-hyped on the UK. Up to the middle of the last century some MPs would wear top hats and morning suites in the House of Commons of Budget Day in order to "recognise" its importance. Today we are bombarded for weeks before it with speculation on what might be in it, then for a couple of days the media concentrate on how various sections of the population are affected. After that, save for some monumental bloomers (Liz Truss) or foolish errors ( the Starmer government's decision to increase the tax on ...
Nigel Farage claimed he didn't show up to the Budget because he's afraid of another altercation with Lib Dem MPs. I was there at the incident he's referring to. He grabbed my colleague and tried to move her out of the way, trying to barge past to be front of the procession to the King's speech. [image or embed] — Alex Brewer MP 🔶 (@alexkbrewer.bsky.social) 29 October 2026 at 15:52And who that colleague? It was Caroline Voaden: Caroline Voaden, MP for South Devon, said in a social media post directed at the Reform UK leader that she was "still waiting ...
Thu 29th
16:15Budget verdict: A missed opportunity to tackle intergenerational unfairness and give working people ...
For the vast majority of people across the United Kingdom, this year's Budget may as well not have happened. After working through the Chancellor's announcements and examining the practical impact on household finances, it is striking how little has changed for ordinary working people. For many families, the only noticeable measures are a £100 payment for households in Council Tax bands A to D and the abolition of gas standing charges. Neither measure addresses the deeper challenges facing normal people. The £100 payment is welcome as far as it goes, but it barely touches the sides of the ongoing cost-of-living ...
I wrote this as Israel went to the polls. It could be weeks before any result because Israeli elections are extremely complicated and depend on coalitions. The one certainty is that little will change for the Palestinians. No candidates are interested in Palestinian self-determination, and all support the illegal settlements. The West Bank was locked down to ensure free movement and security for Israelis to vote. That prevents the Palestinians from moving from their Israeli designated areas for school, work, medical aid, anything. Israel locks the West Bank down for various reasons at will. The West Bank including East Jerusalem ...
[IMG: Christina Coleman] Christina Coleman Following the news earlier this week from West Berkshire of a councillor joining the Liberal Democrats, now there is also news of Christina Coleman in Sussex doing the same thing. Here is the local press release: Cllr Christina Coleman has announced that she is leaving the Green Party and will join the Liberal Democrats. Cllr Coleman, a county and district councillor and former parliamentary candidate, said the decision follows concerns about the party's direction under Zack Polanski's leadership and the recent conference motion on Zionism. While stressing her continued commitment to environmental protection, nature recovery, ...
Euro Weekly News wins our Headline of the Day Award. A beaver writes exclusively for Liberal England: I says to Reg, I says: "You know what that sign means? No more Kendal Mint Cake, that's what it means." So Reg says "Then it's got to go." And you know Reg: he gnawed right through the post"
Testing out policy changes with stakeholders and the public is always a challenge. It can be time-consuming and expensive, not only does it have to be done, but if councils and national governments want to avoid legal challenges, then it is compulsory. In many ways the dawn of an online society has made this process much easier, though there is the unresolved issue of the technically-challenged and those who do not have access to computers to contend with, something that nobody appears to have got to grips with yet. However, just how reliable is this sort of consultation? The Mirror ...