LibDem Blogs - Archived!

Will this government please make up its mind about my pension? Naturally, I work in government (where else did you expect to find a liberal bureaucrat?) and I've been watching the public debate about my financial future with some interest. First the government proposes that I work until I'm 65, which I have no problem with, if truth be told. Then I'm told that nice Mr Johnson has agreed that,

I know that there have been at least two hits to this site this week over the Anti-Social Behaviour Order that has been placed over Mid Calder. I suspect that as my blog mentions both ASBO's and Mid Calder in the past that is why I am coming up high on the list. Here is my take on this issue as someone local to the area, involved in politics and known to frequesnt the area in the evening

There's a lot of interesting news coming out of Islington this week. From the Islington Gazette Roof protesters halt Blair speech GREENPEACE protesters caused a major security breach when they disrupted a speech by Tony Blair in Islington. The Prime Minister was due to address the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) conference at the Business Design Centre, in Upper Street, outlining energy

The Western Mail reports this morning on the results of a motoring intelligence test carried out by eBay Motors in conjunction with Mensa. They conclude:ASTON MARTIN drivers in Aberystwyth are likely to have the worst understanding of motoring of anyone in Wales, a study has shown.In fact, it may be for the best that the number of people who drive James Bond's car of choice in the coastal town is likely to be somewhat limited.Well yes! I do not drive that often in Aberystwyth but I am guessing that Aston Martins are not the main vehicle of choice in the ...

On Wednesday Assembly Members had another opportunity to debate their favourite subject, the Welsh railway network. What is more they were able to talk on the subject at length as the opposition were one short of the number of votes they needed to get their amendments through and so conducted a filibuster to enable Peter Law to get there in time to vote. The subject of this momentous debate was a delegation of functions under the Railways Act 2005 to the First Minister. The combined might of the opposition parties did not want to delegate all of the functions to ...

The Guardian is all very well, but here is my column from today's Liberal Democrat News. Paying up for pensions How much do the voters like public sector workers? Liberal Democrats like them very much. Labour loves them too. Neil Kinnock’s policy sometimes seemed to consist of little beyond a recitation of their job titles. “Doctors and nurses, nurses and doctors, lovely, lovely people,” as the Spitting Image parody went. But this affection may soon be tested to destruction. As things stand, the government intends to allow public sector workers to continue to retire at 60 while the ...

I had an article posted on the Guardian website this morning. It looks at how the Liberal Democrats may respond to David Cameron becoming Tory leader. My conclusion, as far as I reach one, is that we shall probably jog along much as we are now. Writing about the Liberal Democrats for a wider audience always leaves me torn. Should I dazzle the editor with my cruel wit and insight, or should I be loyal and talk up the party? I general end up somewhere in the middle as my native good humour breaks through. I am not Charles Kennedy's ...

Food for thought. Came across a website kind of blog - Pink News. Have to admit being slightly naive - should have realised the connection to the Gay & Lesbian community before clicking on the link. Must say it's a real eye opener - learned a lot just reading about the issues especially about the expected gay marriage ceremonies to be held after the Civil Partnership Act comes into force in

Being a quiz freak while attempting to answer the BBC New Americas weekly quiz I can across this story that I had somehow missed. What shocked me first is the arrogance of the USA who said on Monday: "With regard to what the United States is doing on climate change, the actions we have taken are next to none in the world," said US negotiator Dr Harlan L Watson, saying greenhouse gas emissions

Predictive Diallers (HMT) Q: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many calls were made by (a) his Department and (b) Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs in 2004–05 using predictive diallers; how many such calls resulted in contact being made with the recipient without a Government agent available to talk to them; and what assessment he has made of the likely impact of Ofcom's policy on silent

by Peter Three assorted articles worth looking at: a certain Jonathan Calder has a perceptive piece in the Guardian; the excellent Pickled Politics has a good post (and debate) on the sexual politics of Harry Potter (don´t worry - you can read it in the office!); the FT has a piece on the unreliability of league tables.

Yesterday Liz and Alan Taylor won the Herefordshire Council and Hereford City by-elections. The seats were previously held by an Independent but were gained by the Liberal Democrats after a full campaign, which benefited from help from across the whole West Midlands Region - well done to all that helped.

The head of the school that ranked top of today's primary school league tables attributed her success to "ignoring" most of the Government's flagship literacy and numeracy strategies. The problem with Tony Blair's central planning system is that it gets things wrong. There is no sense swapping things around all the time in accordance with the central fads. For example the real problem with

I wasn’t sure whether Martin felt ready to publicly announce this yet, but since he’s mentioned it on his blog, I’ll do the same. Flock Together is a new website aimed at helping to promote Lib Dem by-elections, meetings and social activities. Martin Tod has done a simply fantastic job at this and deserves some [...]

Okay, so first the government run around shouting about how their new plans will make all state schools independent and self-government. But then they introduce a one-size-fits-all system for teaching literacy? If it’s so good, then why not let the schools - and parents - decide for themselves? Could you have a better example [...]