LibDem Blogs - Archived!

I have posted his lordship's latest diary to his website: Speaking in a purely personal capacity, I view the prospect of house arrest with equanimity – particularly if no one spills the beans about the secret passage that comes out in the cellar of the Bonkers Arms. To Scotland to enjoy that blissful period after it stops raining for the winter and before the midgies appear for the summer. Why, in a good year it can last as long as three days! When such dirty business is afoot, we would all do well to remember the sage counsel of ...

The trouble with the Guardian is that nothing - with the possible exceptions of Tony Benn and comprehensive education - is sacred to it. Take today's parody of Lassie Come Home by David Ward: Scene 1 Enter friendly collie dog, barking. Well-scrubbed child: "What Lassie? Granny has fallen down the mine shaft again? We'd better get help!" Scene 2 Lassie in phone box dials 999. Well-scrubbed police officer: Hi Lassie. Granny in the mine shaft? We'll be right there. Scene 3 Enter Lassie with Granny in mouth. All pat Lassie. We are not ...

A lot of Daily Mail readers and that sort tend to go on about how 'undemocratic' it is that we're 'being ruled from Brussels'. They might have a point, but not in the way that I think they'd like. Take today's news of the European Parliament's decision to scrap the opt-out for the maximum working week [...]

It is great news that the government has climbed down on plans to reduce the points and fines for motorists who break the 30mph speed limit by a fixed margin. That is not the only way the bill should be amended. In particular, there should be a national speed limit in villages of 30mph, This is already government policy, but they leave it to local authorities to set the limit for each village. which takes time and resources so that some villages will be waiting many years. A national limit would also reduce the need for ...

The period after an election is a good time to reflect on the big picture. Too often elections become battles of contending shopping lists. As I have argued here before, the Conservatives face a critical problem, which is deciding what are their core principles. The Conservative philosophy has been almost entirely eroded over the course of the past thirty-five years. The traditional social Conservatives were joined by the Thatcherite radical idealogues, and this coalition was ever uneasy. The downfall of Margeret Thatcher left the Conservatives bereft of leadership, but also bereft of guiding principles. The earthquake of Black Wednesday reduced ...

There's a small script that creates a changing icon linking the party campaigns to blogs(see black box in the right hand column)Wonder why others do not use it on their blogs and websites

"(Novum) - Nederland heeft woensdag een duidelijk 'nee' laten horen op de vraag of de Europese grondwet moet worden ingevoerd. Rond middernacht waren bijna alle stemmen gesteld. Daaruit bleek dat 61,6 procent van de kiezers de komst van de grondwet verwerpt, terwijl 38,4 procent voorstander is. De opkomst bedroeg 62,8 procent." What the referenda are showing is a clear lack of trust in the

Oh dear, they just cannot help themselves can they? Having spent a considerable amount of time last month asserting that their promise to deliver a free school breakfast to every Primary School child in Wales did not actually say that, the Labour Assembly Government have now been caught out distributing literature at the Urdd stating the opposite.The leaflet contains a pledge to "introduce free breakfasts for all primary school children" - a pledge that Labour has denied ever making.Labour claims that it always made clear that the promise of free breakfasts was conditional on schools agreeing to participate in the ...

More from the Institute of Welsh Affairs' magazine, Agenda, in today's Western Mail. The paper picks up on the article that suggests that Cardiff's economic growth is damaging the rest of Wales.Professor David Blackaby of the University of Wales, Swansea and Stephen Drinkwater of Surrey University write, "In recent years there has been a centralisation of public sector agencies and public facilities in Cardiff, such as the Millennium Stadium and Millennium Centre and of course the National Assembly, as well as the enormous investment in the Cardiff Bay regeneration project. This has led some to suggest that Cardiff has ...

Thursday June 2nd 2005 - After a suitable break for the General Election Dave's Knowsley Diary is back!! I hope you have missed it although I am not really sure how many people actually read it!! Maybe nobody has even noticed I was "off the air" so to speak!! Nevertheless I will continue to write regular updates in the hope some people like to know what I am doing as their elected

Bit behind in updating my blog this week - So much happening and so little time.Got a call from a close political associate who is an approved parliamentary candidate in the north west - could I find out 'discretely' what is the procedure for selection in parliamentary elections (rules are slightly different). He's interested in the Cheadle seat - knowing behind the doors, party wheels will be turning - he doesn't want to appear ghoulish or insensitive so soon after Patsy Carlton's death.If you want something go for it is my firm belief - there're already emails going round speculating ...