LibDem Blogs - Archived!

I have just got in from being on the panel for BBC Schools Question Time (well via a curry afterwards). Wolverhampton Girls High School got to the finals and held the event, the BBC were present and are judging them and the eleven other schools - so fingers crossed that they won.

The other day Wendy and I had the pleasure of meeting one of our new members in the Castlefield area. He was dismayed that the planned Green Street Community Centre has collapsed due to dithering by Wycombe Distric Council. In the Bucks Free Press this week, Bucks County Council blame Wycombe District Council for running out of time, while Wycombe District Council suggest Bucks are to blame for wanting too much for the land. Considering both Councils are stuffed to the rafters with Tories is begs the question 'don't they ever talk to each other?' Meanwhile the residents of the ...

...who's watching Channel 4's The Games purely because Julia Goldsworthy's in it? It'll be interesting to see whether she can she can raise the bar for MPs involved in reality tv shows this year... I notice that they've been calling her Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury - that's bound to wind up the Tories. I do hope no-one gets her confused with this delightful lady. It's nice also to see that Sheffield can host a national event of this calibre. I'd like to thank the Labour Party for giving us Don Valley Stadium - who said the World Student ...

by Simon A common argument for the First Past the Post electoral system in the United Kingdom is that it usually provides operational Parliamentary majorities for the winning party in a General Election, which in turn leads to stable government. It is true that in the period from 1945 to the present only one short-lived Parliament in 1974 has been without an overall majority from the outset and Governments have generally been able to get their legislation enacted. A common argument offered against proportional electoral systems is that sometimes they do not provide operational majorities for the party with the ...

According to a posting on the uk.politics.electoral group, nominations have closed and the three candidates are: Vince Cable David Heath Matthew Taylor Liberal England says: Vote Heath.

With a level of vitriol not seen since Betjaman coined his famous diatribe against Slough, Wales' National Poet unleashes her pen on the Welsh Rugby Union. A year after Gwyneth Lewis celebrated the Grand Slam in rhyme, she has hit out at the game's hierarchy for losing the Welsh team both their coach Mike Ruddock and their form. In her poem "A Wooden Spoon for the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU)", she sums up the bewilderment of many rugby fans at the decision to let Mike Ruddock go and the subsequent turmoil in the Welsh camp: I have consulted the ...

Today's House Points column from Liberal Democrat News. I am not sure I understand it either, but I wasn't well when I wrote it. Castro Clarke Highgate School, 1967. “Ah, Clarke. Thank you for coming. I have it in mind to make you Head Boy next year, but there are a couple of things that are worrying me.” “I see, sir.” “The first is that since you have come here you have increasingly looked like an elephant, but we can’t do a lot about that and Matron tells me that no one has been trampled ...

This saga continues as the based rural supporters of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra march into Bangkok. At least 10,000 of Mr Thaksin's supporters, mainly poor farmers, have spent more than two weeks travelling down from the countryside in the north and north-east, which forms the prime minister's main support base.

Kingston Council has just revealed its new-look website. I rather like it, especially the mysterious blue bridge. What do others think?

As more news trickles out about Labour's loan sleaze, it appears they took £14million worth of loans in the run-up to the General Election. Last night I watched Question Time and thought Margaret Hodge made a very bad attempt to defend what Labour had been up to. Don't get me wrong I have no doubt the Conservatives and (even the) Liberal Democrats have been doing something similar (though on a different scale - particularly the Liberal Democrats), but it really is quite outrageous that this can all be done in secret.

Post Office Card Account Q: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Birmingham collect their (a) pensions and (b) benefit payments through the Post Office card account.(John Hemming) A:holding answer UIN 53834 27 February 2006 The information is not available in the format requested. Information showing the number of DWP benefit and pension payment accounts paid

"That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves." Thomas Jefferson This may not be a bad watchword for the modern British Liberal Democrats- for certainly it would be good to see a clearer intellectual discipline behind their policies. In fact it is now becoming critical. The Liberal tide in British politics seems to be rising- with the prospect of good local election results this year and very good results for the Holyrood elections in 2007. If the party is to gain momentum, then the intellectually lazy aspects of taxation policy have got to be eliminated. ...

On the 9th April 1690, the House of Commons sat. Even on that day was I top of the agenda. Fenwick’s Estate. A BILL, to enable Sir Rob. Fenwick to sell Lands, to pay Debts, was read the Second time. Resolved, That the Bill be committed to Mr. Fenwick, Mr. Blowfeild, Sir Rob. Davers, Sir Rob. Edon, Mr. [...]

Both thegrauniad and PoliticalBetting.com have got rather excited by this week's Economist leader, which they interpret as calling on Tony Blair to quit now. I've read the piece, and have to confess to not quite seeing it myself: ... Perhaps the most persistent problem for Mr Blair, however, is the growing perception that he is a lame-duck leader. He made it clear some time ago that he would not

David Miliband, the Minister for Local Government, is the first minister to start a blog. I admire his courage.

Look carefully

On this, the day of St Patrick, we ask ourselves; if we lived in the Republic, who would we vote for? Could it be Fianna Fáil: the corrupt populists who still pointlessly eulogise Dev, a man who signed Hitler’s condolence book? Or perhaps Fine Gael, the lads who used to be the blue-shirts and who still bizzarely eulogise Collins? Clearly, we'd have to go with the PDs, who are, after all, a member of the European liberal family. Whilst rather more overtly ‘orange book’ than the Lib Dems, their youth wing appear pretty hot on socially liberal issues. Thank Christ ...

Jonathan Calder highlights the Elect the Lords campaign’s website that invites people to buy virtual peerages in the wake of the scandal besetting the Labour party. I have long had a pleasing political fantasy that runs as follows. A Liberal Democrat government finds its plans for second chamber reform blocked by opposition placemen and placewomen in the House of Lords. To overcome this it decides on a mass ennoblement of loyal Lib Dems. And how better to achieve this than to award peerages to all the party's council group leaders? In order to satirise the whole system, those of us ...

Pull the other one. The problem is that they are doing too many things at once. They are trying to handle a financial crisis, introducing completely new financial rules, reorganising the commissioners of most of the services (64.309 bn of about 69). There will be costs from the reorganisation not savings. If they were serious about managing the service in a proper manner they would: a) Stop the PCT reorganisation apart from those where there is a local call for reorganisation.b) Either reverse the removal of PPA or change the tariff system for PbR.c) Stop moving as much ...

The minister for suspending local governemnt, David Milliband, has started a blog on his ministerial pages. Actually, my spoonerism isn't very nice. And I do think more of David Milliband than that - and for all I know he may even believe all the stuff about devolution he talks about! But resisting the temptation was no fun though...:)

Cuddly Ken Clarke has told the world he is ATTRACTED to young Liberal Democrats. The top Tory told the Spectator magaizine that the Tories would not win the next General Election - even if the Cameron Camp won more votes than the other parties. Menwhile the opinion polls showed the Tories DROPPING 3%. The Tory veteran said that he• LIKED David Laws, Vince Cable and Nick Clegg• Would be GLAD to be in a cabinet with the Liberal Democrats and• could WORK with Lib Dem Leader Ming Campbell.

The Manager Bank of Tony 10 Downing Street Westminster Dear Mr Brown, I understand that you have developed a new way of financing with hidden resources. These resources can be so cleverly hidden that not even the people with responsibilty for monitoring expenditure are aware that these sources exist. Can you please advise how the rest of the country can benefit from these new loans. I am

The Commission was established by Act of Parliament in 2002 and commenced work on 4th March 2004. The Commission consists of 10 Commissioners appointed by various bodies such as the local Councils, English Nature and the Open Spaces Society and 10 Commissioners elected by the commoners. At its first meeting I was lucky enough to be elected Chairman and I think it is fair to say over the last three years the Commission has achieved a lot. There is increased public awareness of the Greenham and Crookham Commons Act.The detailed Management Plan is well underway and a ...

Committee room 2, dynamic earth, the downstairs lavatory in Bute House, are all being considered by the corporate body as a temporary encampment for full parliamentary debate. Yet the only other purpose built parliament in Edinburgh has been left firmly on the shelf. The old Royal High School on Calton hill, has a debating chamber with [...]