LibDem Blogs - Archived!

Jonathan Calder has reported on how Durham Councillor Paul Leake has left his Lib Dem group - because of his blog. Paul said: Behind the scenes there has ... apparently been some disquiet from some of my Liberal Democrat colleagues who feel all communication with the electorate should be politically vetted – this has come to a head today with a rather brusque email from the Leader of the City

The BBC today called me an anorak, of this I am proud. It at least shows that they are either reading my blog, or more likely my LibDemBlog site. To answer their questions One internet blog from a conference visitor - if not a windup - details the excitement he experienced driving to conference. Nope it's not a windup, if the journalist wants to follow my progress, top right of this page shows

... Not a headline I thought I'd be likely to write. However, Mr d'Ancona has written a terrifically perceptive and judicious article in today's Torygraph analysing the Lib Dems' current prospects. Leaving aside his silly swipe that the German election deadlock proves PR would be a calamity (shock! horror! PR produces election results reflecting the way people voted), this is a first-class SWOT

This year's Lib Dem conference has been a frustrating paradox. There is an honest disagreement in the party between those, like me, who believe the private sector can deliver key public services equitably and at lower cost, both of which would further the cause of social justice; and the many (clearly the conference majority) who believe only the state can possibly provide citizens with the

KickAAS - Kill All Agricultural Subsidies - points us to an article on the Globalization Insitute's site advertising its new report: Green and Pleasant Land says that the CAP - rather than being the saviour of the countryside - has been an environmental disaster, creating pollution with no economic benefit, and requiring more chemicals and energy use than had market forces been allowed to run. By

Today's Scotsman carries a report that says that David Blunkett has admitted that Britain is facing a pension problem. This is something that the Lib Dem candidate Charles Dundas already knew and is seeking to address if elected. What is Labour's solution? "We need a debate right across Britain, firstly about the nature of the problem and the challenge of the future, but secondly about how

Napoleon was a reformer. He inherited a system that had been created by a revolution. The revolution had overthrown a Monarchy. Napoleon set about creating government structures, bringing the revolution into the nineteenth century while holding onto core values. He also tried to take over the world and was never elected. If Napoleon had worked for the American management consultancy

Surprisingly the conference supported the proposed change to effectively reduce the number of candidates in future leadership elections. I don't agree with the argument that we should reduce the number to fit comfortably into the Newsnight studios. However, the decision was made based upon that argument. It is rumoured that an MP can sign more than one nomination paper. Therefore a proper

Tonight sees the highlight of the Liberal Democrat Conference in Blackpool: the Glee Club. Party members will gather to sing political songs and enjoy the occasional turn from the great and the good. To enjoy the Glee Club to the full you need a Liberator songbook. And this year's songbook has an introduction by my old friend Lord Bonkers. With his permission I reproduce it below. I have long

Belatedly (in my case, not his), here’s Jonathan Calder’s piece about blogging from Liberal Democrat News. This blog got a mention, for which I’m very grateful. It has made me worry about the impression I give of myself though Will Howells’ No Geek is an Island reflects his status as a Dr Who nut [...]

This post from Ryan has been spotted by the BBC: Some bad news for those Lib Dem leaders who believe they have finally cast off the image of the party as full of anoraks and train spotters. One internet blog from a conference visitor - if not a windup - details the excitement he experienced driving [...]

by Phil GrantNo clever headlines or striking lead paragraphs – this is going to be an attempt at cooling down.Charles Kennedy made a very sensible observation on Monday regarding Liberal Democrat discussions on tax policy.“I don’t think people are going to resile over the course of the next three of four years in the Liberal Democrats from the idea that the very best off in society should pay that bit more than the most disadvantaged in society for the same public services we all share.“I would be flabbergasted if this party suddenly was to tear up that view.”It would be ...

Speaking of Ludditism… I made the mistake last night of watching a programme on the BBC about the MMR jab. It began as an apparently sensible documentary about vaccination but descended into stupidity. We had the presenter being given reams of paper saying that MMR was safe. He said he still wasn’t sure, blamed the [...]

It is unusual for me to come down on the side of backwardsness and tradition when these are pitted against modern technology, but I hope the authors suing Google win. Being a massive corporation doesn’t come with a free pass to ignore the law - whatever precedents various big businesses may have set - and this [...]

On the day that AMs and the Press were invited to view the new chamber building prior to it being fitted out, much of the early discussion in the Assembly Plenary seemed to centre on rats and other small furry animals. We had all convened after the summer recess, fresh and raring to go. I say all, but already there is a tendency for some opposition members to go missing when needed. David Davies AM MP was not in the chamber until later on. The rumour was that he was on a Parliamentary trip to Uganda, of which ...

So much to say, so little bandwidth. Internet connections at the Liberal Democrat conference have been at best inadequate, at worst non-existent. I shall report at more length shortly. In the meantime, one Blackpool story tells you all you need to know. A Liberal Democrat MP was travelling in a local taxi yesterday and struck up a conversation with the driver about Blackpool's plan to revitalise

by Jabez Clegg Norman Lamb takes his conference defeat over the partial privatisation of the Post Office on the chin and pledges to work hard to adress the concerns of activists. We welcome his continued enthusiasm in the face of considerable provocation - nil carborundum illegitimi, Norman!

News that the treachery of New Labour has plumbed new depths - the Council Tax revaluation is to be shelved until after the next election must be among the most cynical and self-serving of all U turns. As someone who lives in the South East - I expected my revaluation to hit me in the pocket. But in my former home in the West Midlands, house prices have risen far more slowly. Many people in the

Reading the press you could be forgiven for thinking that Blackpool has descended into a bloodbath. True, the defeat of the Post Office part-privatisation proposals yesterday are a sharp reminder to the leadership that this party has a democratic voice and is not afraid to exercise it. But images of normally mild-mannered Liberals going around stabbing each other between the shoulder blades would

By Lord James "Jimmy" Greaves There must be something in the bracing sea air in Blackpool. Instead of turning up in a mood of celebration, as party chairman Lord Razzall had bullishly predicted at the weekend, delegates seem determined to block any proposal the leadership puts its name too. Plans to limit the EU budget to 1% of GNP have already been defeated, provoking headlines which are surely even now being readied for inclusion in Tory "In Touch" leaflets across the land. Now plans for part-privatisation of Royal Mail have been mothballed just weeks in advance of the next, and ...

Why do I have a blog? Read an interview I gave to IDeA. (IDeA is the Improvement and Development Agency - a government agency that supports local government)

The Western Mail this morning reports remarks from Lembit Opik who believes that politicians have become 'too scared' to express ideas outside the mainstream of their parties' thinking. Lembit told a fringe meeting at Conference that politics was often dull because of politicians themselves and said that the Liberal Democrats is at risk of "painting itself grey".Lembit confesses that he only realised his own problem when Sian Lloyd found him watching a video of party political broadcasts. Truly, Lembit deserves to own the Electoral Commission's 'Political Anorak' far more than I do."What's wrong with us?" he said. "Are we so ...