LibDem Blogs - Archived! - Thursday 12th June 2008

David Davies - would he have resigned without Lib Dem support?

A conundrum........is it not? David Davies flounces out so what do we do? Now. It may not of have escaped your notice dear reader, but I tend to have Messrs Clegg and Hughes so far up the pedestal they are hardly visible to the naked eye. But on this decision I fear they have got it terribly wrong. So. Let me pose a question. Let's imagine that it was not David Davies taking this principled stand that we so agree with. Let's imagine it was Bob Spink (forget his actual position for a mo), who had taken the same principled ...

Cintra Avenue: fencing one step closer

Following Kirsten's recent update we had good news today from officers  who confirmed that fencing is on track to be installed in the next few weeks on Cintra Avenue. We have been pressing RBC for months to do more to protect the green area and at last there seems to be progress.

Thoughts on David Davis

Blood and Treasure: It seems to me that the choice available over this is to outsmart yourself by trying to uncover the "real reasons" behind his resignation or take him at his word and push the issue. The question that occurs to me is this: Who knew about this first - Nick Clegg or David Cameron? It seems that Clegg's agreement to not stand a Liberal Democrat in the by-election was required for Davis to go ahead and do it, so did he get the agreement from Clegg first and then present it to Cameron as a fait accompli?

Question Time: open thread

[Gets in from pub] Somewhat belatedly, Question Time started on BBC1 at 11.35pm and is bound to be a lively affair after today's events. David Dimbleby chairs the weekly political debate from London, with panellists Baroness Williams, George Pascoe-Watson, June Sarpong, and MP's Tony McNulty and Michael Gove. If you're watching, feel free to use the comments thread [...]

On a brighter note ...

David 'Call-me-Dave' Cameron's visit to Cornwall today has seen the press focusing on one thing ... here and video here more on this later ....

on the little people

Stephen Peterson. The man who today stood up to the government and more importantly to the Tory party. Echoing the fears of many around the country - that of a Tory government doing exactly the same as the current Labour government. At one point he looked set to be ushered away reminiscent of a scene from the Labour party conference, but this man knew how to stand up for himself, 'that's assault! he cried' and David Cameron duly listened. 'People of this country are fed up with empty words' was his theme, as he challenged David Cameron in the middle ...

Congratulations, Councillor Mark Mills!

There was a way more important by-election today in Oxford for a seat on Oxford City Council vacated by our own Richard Huzzey who is going off to the "Land of the Free" and the alma mater of the simian one. Congratulations therefore, to Councillor Mark Mills. I see he will be twenty tomorrow, Friday 13th. So happy birthday as well! Do we have any younger principal authority councillors at the moment? Particularly pleasing was to see Labour, who put in a whole load of work to try to gain the one seat that would have handed them a Town ...

David Davis - the Don Quixote of British politics

Well, I have to say it's been quite a day. Bizarre. I have just seen Iain Dale wetting himself on Newsnight about 'if David sparks a real national debate' on freedom then it'll be worth it. As if. I still see no other real interpretation of this Davis implosion other than that it is an act of pique and ego. I'm sorry. I am far too cynical, I know. But I think Davis is being pathetic. I think

London Jewellery Week

This week is London Jewellery Week, the first of its kind. Jewellery isn't just about bling. It's a specialist area of craft and design, for which London is a world centre. Most of the participants in London Jewellery Week are in the West End or Hatton Garden, but not all. Islington has its own sparklers: [...]

David Davis - the 'libertarian'

Bloody Hell! What a day. David Davis' bit of theatre seems to be having the desired effect. I have to agree that it is good to see some conviction politics and I am pleased that a politician feels so strongly about something that they are bold enough to take this rather strange and peculiar step. What I am not so sure about is our reaction to this in being so quick to announce that we will not be fielding a candidate. For several reasons. Surely, as Liberal Democrats who intrinsically believe in civil liberties, our own candidate should be speaking ...

Stiff upper lips 1, Americans 0

How perfectly splendid - it appears that an RAF fighter pilot on secondment to an American squadron has been able to wave the Queen's Regulations in the face of US officers who were trying to get him to shave off his handlebar moustache. Flight Lieutenant Chris Ball is normally based in Scotland but is currently in Afghansitan on an exchange with a US Air Force unit - and he seems to have chosen to while away the hours not spent in the air by cultivating a truly impressive example of the traditional fliers' facial decoration. Photos on BBC Online show ...

Update #4: Davis: A prima donna act & a pointless by-election

Update 22:47: Newsnight report the current SP for the Haltemprice and Howden by-election:Conservatives: David DavisLibDems: No candidateLabour: Likely to be no candidateBNP: Agree with Davis, so no candidateUKIP: Won't stand if Labour won't standThe Sun newspaper: Rumoured to be considering standing a candidate, but have said they won'tMonster Raving Loony Party: Eager and ready to standSo,

DUP - 'The Undertakers of every Government'

...so says Shirley Williams on Question Time. Nice phrase. Were I a truly principled Prime Minister I would thank the likes of Iris Robinson for her regards and tell her to go screw herself and take her vote with her. And if her husband stands by everything his wife says, he should go diddle himself with his voting lobby too. A real "progressive alliance" Gordo - well done!

David Cameron- clever or clown?

First thing first the BBC is reporting that the Liberal Democrats were a distance third in 2005, when in fact it was Jon Neal and the Lib Dems who were 5,000 votes behind the Conservatives and it was the Labour Party who were far far behind. So David Davis has resigned. I think this is a rather strange thing to do. Obviously, David Davis wants to keep the issues of the 42 days detention in the

Campaiging in Leyton

Either side of work today I was over in Leyton helping in the Forest ward by-election. This evening in between knocking on doors and encouraging our supporters to leave the comfort of their homes and spend ten minutes exercising their democratic right, I had an opportunity to speak to a couple of opposition members, including former councillor Simon Wright. All parties are talking up their

Environment Sunday

Last week we had Environment Sunday, at St Mary's at least. Our guest preacher was the splendidly mis-named Dave Bookless (author of at least two books) who is the director of the Christian environmental group A Rocha. To the strains of What a Beautiful World, he told us about A Rocha projects that work [...]

David Davis should be applauded by liberals, attacking him only shows partisanship and anti-tory bitterness.

I don't think any Liberal Democrat would usually find themselves supporting David Davis, he hasn't shown particular liberal credentials in the past but whether a PR stunt or an ill though out leadership bid or perhaps even a serious moral stand, David Davis should be supported in his by-election bid. The reasons are simple. For one it raises publicity for 42 days detention and at just the perfect time as well. Floating Labour MPs need to be reminded that this is a deeply unpopular move by Gordon Brown amongst not only the country but to a deeper extent amongst their ...

David Davies - why am I not surprised at THIS development?

So suddenly, now that Nick Clegg and the rest of my party have agreed to not field a candidate against him, David Davies is broadening his platform from the single issue of 42 days and presuming to speak on all issues of civil liberty and making himself sound like he (and by extension, his party) are the sole defenders of liberty in this country... We're far too nice in our party, aren't we? How did nobody see this coming? We should have told the tory tosser to stuff it, stood against him, and said you don't honestly think you'd have ...

neighbourhood partnership meeting

a positive one held at fairfield school. i was chairing. i wanted to focus on opportunities for young people. we had a really useful discussion amongst the agencies and organisations about how to move this forward. sports coaching, youth clubs and violence against youngsters were all touched upon. a couple of groups have ideas for really good pilot schemes. they will meet and bring back to the next partnership meeting. i like positive proactive meetings. cant wait til the next one.

Are you a 'death enabler'?

See, some people think I am over the top saying that supporters of drugs prohibition are complicit in the murder of the victims of the illegal drugs trade, but I'm not the only one... Are you a death enabler? "If you support drug prohibition policies that make black market drug sales profitable, then you are encouraging violent behavior by criminals and supporting the funding of terrorists. This directly results in the deaths of thousands. You are a death enabler. If you support drug war enforcement..."[continues] drugs laws

42-day detention transcends party politics - Clegg

Commenting on David Davis's announcement that he will be resigning his seat to fight a by-election on the issue of 42-day detention, Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg said:

Guantanamo Bay setback for Bush

US courts sometimes seem to be weak and will back the government. But Bush faces a set back Supreme Court has ruled that those held at Guantanamo should be able to be tried in civilian courts. Before they have been tried in military tribunals, which is quite disgusting from a land that is supposed to defend liberties. There is absolutely no need for military tribunals, civilian courts are fully able to try terrorists, we've done it here in the UK. It allows the trial to be fully fair. This is brilliant news. To look on the positive side of having ...

Is Clegg a bit Authoritarian on this one?

When Nick Clegg didn't give a free vote on a referendum on the EU Lisbon Treaty, I saw him leading in a strong way that was necessary for that. However on this issue about David Davis's resignation and a by-election in Haltemprice and Howden, he made a quick slightly authoritarian decision. Or perhaps my wording is to strong, however I only mean slightly. It seems only regional leaders were consulted and the local chairman. The LibDem Candidate wasn't spoken to, local party members haven't been given a chance to give their opinions! Nick Clegg has made this decision far too ...

Thursday 5th June 7.30pm

Health & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee Main items on the agenda were Hospital Acquired Infections with a presentation from a representative of Mayday Hospital to provide comparative figures of MRSA & C Difficile incidences and to discuss their approach to tackling these problems. Mayday had managed to reduce their incidences of MRSA by 50% and provided us [...]

Thursday 5th June 10am

Health & Wellbeing Scrutiny Review Group Sutton Housing Partnership Audit Comission Report Cllrs. Stuart Gordon-Bullock, Jonathon Pritchard & I met to discuss our views on the action plan prepared in response to the Audit Commission's report. Stuart & I had made a few notes just to tighten up bits, but were generally happy that the plan addressed [...]

David Davies - the view from Strasbourg (well, Kehl actually)

What funny games appear to be going on in Westminster at the moment. First, Labour and the DUP redefine porkbarreling for the UK context (deny everything, smirk, smirk), then David Davies resigns - with Clegg's backing. In terms of the latter, I'm just confused by the whole business. It is a little moot about whether Clegg should have agreed to not field a candidate against the Tories or not on the basis that it is hard to see how Davies would have resigned if he hadn't. I don't think it makes the Lib Dems look particularly bad; by contrast it ...

David Davis: a Frank Capra moment

At the end of a Frank Capra film the hero makes a stand for decency, common sense and integrity. Think of Gary Cooper in Mr Deeds Goes to Town or James Stewart in Mr Smith Goes to Washington and James Stewart again in It's a Wonderful Life. And not only do they make a stand, they normally win. Much has been, and will be, written about what David Davis has done today. If you missed it, he has stood down from the Shadow Cabinet and is resigning his parliamentary seat in order to fight a by-election over the issue of ...

Have The Tories made a big mistake in Henley

Media coverage is speculating that the Tories confidence in calling the Henley bye election may be unfounded. It seems that local peoples support in Henley was more so a personal one for Boris and not for the Conservative Party. The Liberal Democrats are running a strong campaign in Henley and may well pull of the Shock win that will dent the Tories hopes of ever forming...

Fashion Museum prints are in full bloom at Oasis

Floral dresses from the world-class collection at Bath & North East Somerset Council's Fashion Museum have inspired a major fashion retailer to introduce a new range of dresses this summer. The Fashion Museum, at the Assembly Rooms, Bath, worked with Oasis last autumn to select five floral print dresses from the museum collection, which Oasis used as inspiration for its new range of...

Which Label Will David Davis Fight Under?

David Davis could hardly have caused more astonishment in the Westminster village had he stood up in the House of Commons debating chamber and taken all his clothes off. Many senior Tories are seething at his decision to cause this 'unnecessary' by-election, but they will be obliged to fall in behind him during the campaign. [...]

The parsley seeds of Cheswardine

Pity the poor souls who edit the Shropshire pages of the BBC website. They are up against the mighty new machine that is the Shropshire Star. Nevertheless, they do manage the occasional scoop. Try this for size: A shopkeeper who found a packet of seeds from the 1960s in a drawer said he was amazed when they germinated.Denis Moore had had the seeds since he moved into the village shop in Cheswardine, Shropshire, 31 years ago.There's more:He initially planted the parsley on cotton wool, but nothing happened so he put them in a tray of compost and left them for ...

42 Day deceit

Read Septicisle's excellent commentary on the 42 Days debacle, including the bribing of MPs and other unpleasantness.

We should put up a candidate against David Davis

Those tensions in the Conservative Party have become public far more quickly than I expected. David Davis is certainly sincere in his support for civil liberties. It is equally certain that someone like Michael Gove would much rather be supporting 42 days. Meanwhile the likes of David Cameron and George Osborne have no strong opinion on the matter: they just want to see a Conservative government elected. David Davis's decision to resign and fight a by-election is eccentric, but the announcement that the Liberal Democrats will not be putting up a candidate is bizarre too. If Labour has any sense ...

Against intervention

It has been argued that the neo-conservative doctrine should be welcomed by liberals and progressives. Firstly, it is helpful to pin down what we mean by 'neo-conservatism'. It's proponents would have us imagine that it is a doctrine that has the aim of spreading "liberty, justice and a constitutional government" which, as he rightly says, are things we all believe in; however, we have to be quite clear that this is not the aim of neo-conservative doctrine. Let's take a look at what Wikipedia says; "Neoconservatism emphasizes foreign policy as the paramount responsibility of government, maintaining that America's role as ...

The Haltemprice Hokey-Kokey

So its to be a by-election. Now, for an election to take place, a writ has to be moved and voted on in the Commons. This is normally moved by the chief whip of the party that held the seat. So the Tories have controll of the timetable and convention (again) says the writ is moved within three months of a vacancy occuring. If the vote goes against moving the writ (most unconventional) then it cant be moved again for some time in this session. Following Nick's decision to abstain the party from this contest, there is no danger (for ...

Nick Clegg in Shropshire

And in the Shropshire Star: Mr Clegg is on fact-finding trip to the county and Herefordshire to find out more about the problems facing rural schools and businesses.After visiting Lydbury North Primary School near Bishop's Castle, which Shropshire County Council is proposing should be amalgamated with Clunbury school, Mr Clegg was due to meet with farmers at Much Wenlock.Or as the old joke goes... My leader's gone to Shropshire.Much Wenlock?I wish you wouldn't keep dragging up that GQ interview just to get a cheap laugh.Later: Nick Clegg has just been interviewed on Channel 4 News with Lydbury North Primary School ...

David Davis' Empty Gesture

Before we all get swept away on a tide of hysteria about what a saviour of civil liberties David Davis is, we maybe want to take a long, hard look at his record. Here is a man who quite happily voted for 28 days' detention without charge not that long ago - a huge increase from the then 3 day limit. He is pro hanging. He has voted, as well as more recently created, the Tory line on immigration. I suspect that if he is re-elected he will continue to vote the Tory line on pretty much everything. I wonder ...

The right to free and fair trials

Whilst David Davis is resigning his seat in the House of Commons, the US Supreme Court has ruled that prisoners at Guantanamo bay have the same constitutional rights as American citizens do. The court ruled 5-4 in favour of the fact that the government has no right to break habeas corpus and imprison anyone without a fair and free trial. So if the United States most powerful court has ruled that detention without trial is illegal, why exactly is our government trying to push through a law which allows for exactly the same thing? Yesterdays vote was a victory for ...

David Davis - Genius or Clown ?

I guess everyone was slightly taken aback by the Tory Shadow Home Secretary announcing he would resign his seat in Parliament. At first I thought it was an inspired piece of martyrdom, with David Davis saying that he was so sicken by the actions of parliament and the government that he could no longer stomach it any more. But when I read on that he was going to stand in the by-election himself, I was somewhat confused. It seems the Tories are not averse to criticising other parties for calling unnecessary by-elections, and whilst I accept this is a matter ...

Very uncomfortable about not standing against Davis

The 'resignation' of David Davis has caught many by surprise. But us not standing against Davis is even more surprising. It certainly caught me by surprise when I read the email of Simon Hughes. In the email he gives Tatton as an example for when we have to stand down. Of course referring to Independent MP Martin Bell that neither Labour or LibDems stood against in 1997. But her was an Independent, it's a different issue. Davis has of course resigned over the 42-detention issue. But why should we give the tories a large stage to defend liberties! The reality ...

New Power of Information Blog

We have made public a blog site for the Power of Information Task Force. The plan is to use this to publish information about our work as it develops so that this becomes a useful collection of relevant snippets after a few months.

Simon Hughes: why the Lib Dems will not stand against David Davis

This is the text of the email just sent by Lib Dem president Simon Hughes explaining the party's decision not to contest the forthcoming Haltemprice & Howden by-election triggered by David Davis's shock resignation: Dear friend, You may have heard the news that David Davis, Conservative MP for Haltemprice & Howden, has announced that he will [...]

The Big Event - Chipping Sodbury Festival

Our largest community event programme is about to get under way. Chipping Sodbury Festival, which starts tomorrow (Friday 13 June), has something for everybody - brass bands and bikes, rock music and rocks in the quarry, tales from (antiques) roadshows and the ever-popular Last Night of the Proms. Oh, and a street fayre and a carnival procession and duck races and... The Festival has been running for over 20 years. There are almost 50 events in this year's programme, which runs until Sunday 22 June. Here are just a few of this year's events: Polysteel brass band concert - One ...

Lib Dem candidate in Haltemprice & Howden speaks out

The Voice has got its hands on the press statement from David Nolan, the Liberal Democrat candidate in Haltemprice & Howden: As David Davis is standing on the one single issue of opposing 42 day detention without charge and we happen to agree with him, the collective view of our Party is that we will not [...]

More on principles

Much anger in the Black household last night as we discovered that our Labour MP had voted in favour of the 42 day pre-charge detention period. Siân James had been one of those rebel MPs who had previously voted against the 90 day detention period and she took a fair bit of flack in the local media for her decision. Tonight's South Wales Evening Post reports that she was having doubts right up to the last minute and that it was only a last minute interview with Gordon Brown that led to her walking through the lobby on the side ...

Another world

I have come to the conclusion that I have slipped into a parallel universe. This is an alternative world where Tory MPs resign to fight by-elections on matters of high principle and the Liberal Democrats decide not to contest the election because they agree with him. Perhaps a better solution would be if David Davis fought the by-election as a Liberal Democrat. At least then we might be able to restore some balance to my political world.

Chipping Sodbury Library to close for refurbishment

Chipping Sodbury Library will be closed from Monday June 16 until Monday August 5 for major refurbishment and redecoration. Readers can return and borrow books at Yate Library instead. Books can also be renewed by phoning 01823 334334, or you can renew them online. Read more library details from the Gazette here.

Back home, minus kitchen

We have finally moved back into our house, 10 months after last years flooding. We do have a new floor, stair carpet, internal doors and it is all nicely decorated. Unfortunately we are still without a kitchen - something of an issue as we have three children (well two children and one teenager!) to look after. We are not bet pleased, although we are glad to be back home and will cope, no doubt.

If I were thinking of joining the Libertarian Party...

...this is one reason that would give me pause. There has already been much written and said about David Davis's decision to stand for re-election to his own seat. Lots still seems uncertain - whether he will stand as a Tory or an Independent and so on. His stance on the 42 days issue and what I would call our constitutional liberties is all very well and good, but I cannot see him as a truly classical liberal or libertarian. Indeed he has been quite the opposite on all sorts of touchstone issues for a libertarian - drugs and sexuality ...

Back at the by-election we are fighting ...

Lots of excitement here in Thame today due to media coverage of the Conservative candidate's links with property developers. (An issue because he is making a big play of the Green Belt issue.) Peter Henley of BBC South news has been here to do an interview on the subject. Once again we've had a good turnout and we are shifting piles of literature. We've also had more MPs today - including Sandra Gidley, Andrew Stunnell and David Howarth. We're looking forward to another visit from Nick Clegg over the weekend. One of the best things about by-elections for me is ...

NEW POLL: should the Lib Dems stand in Haltemprice & Howden?

By popular demand... following David Davis's shock decision today to quit both as Tory shadow home secretary and MP for Haltemprice & Howden - and force a by-election over Labour's 42 days detention without trial policy - Nick Clegg has announced the Lib Dems will not stand against Mr Davis at the subsequent by-election. Nick's [...]

David Davis: Why I am resigning

The name of my constituency is Haltemprice and Howden - Haltemprice is derived from a medieval proverb meaning noble endeavour.

Historical civil liberties from the US (or Happy Loving Day)

41 one years ago today, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against the state of Viriginia in the case of Loving v. Virginia over turning all US race-based legal restrictions on marriage. Mildred Loving died earlier this year, but the legacy of her love for for her husband and her battle to let it [...]

Gimmick or not we should be on the side of civil liberties.

Much has been written about this issue; the initial surprise of Davis's decision, comments on the leaderships decision not to run a candidate against him and so on. It is little surprise that the idea of supporting or at least not fighting the conservatives in a by-election proves to much to stomach for some in the party. In my opinion this by-election has to be seen as a single issue campaign, almost a referendum on the issue of 42 days which is exactly what it is. Davis has made it clear that it is a personal decision based solely on ...

What's going on in the Conservative Party?

The media are increasingly turning to reporting strains within the Conservative Party over David Davsis's dramatic resignation. For example, Nick Robinson on David Davis's resignation: David Cameron has lost control of his strategy. This was not his decision. He was not asked for his agreement. He was informed late last night by David Davis that he [...]

Has 800 years of British Freedoms been auctioned off with our tax payers money?

I was appalled by yesterdays vote on the extension to 42 days of detention without charge. Partly because I believe this the extension to 42 days is totally unnecessary, unworkable and the Government has presented no remotely convincing evidence that it is needed. The protection of British subjects not to be detained without charge dates back almost 800 years. It was set out in the Magna Carta, forming the backbone of legal systems right across the globe. Yet Britain's current limit for detention without charge, at 28 days, is already the longest pre-charge detention period in the world. Detaining someone ...

Thirty pieces of silver anyone?

If the C&N and local elections were the beginning of the end of New Labour last nights' tawdry goings-on must have surely spelt the very end of the end for them. Has it really come to this? That the Prime Minister of Britain forced a vote for legislation that is unlikely to be passed or to [...]

An ode to streetlights...

{Poetry Lampost} One of the most frequent complaints I get from residents in Lee Green is about streetlights that remain on all day - what is apparently known in the trade as 'day burning'. Residents (rightly) worry that it's bad for the environment, costs the Council money and makes the area looked uncared for. One example is on Taunton Road, where I reported two dayburning lights in February this year. They were fixed shortly afterwards - however, one of them is now day-burning again (along with a third streetlight) and it's moved a resident to poetry - see pic right. ...

In other Civil Liberties news:

The US Supreme Court has ruled the Guantanamo detainees have the right to habeas corpus. A 5/4 split is disappointing, but good news overall. ScotUSBlog has live coverage of all the decisions being released before the court goes into recess. Us hard core civil libertarians are also waiting for the 2nd amendment case District of Columbia v. Heller. [...]

A Tighter Border for Great Britain? - Roger Helmer

Do Open Borders Benefit All? - Viv Regan

Panic on Victoria Street

Seems like the Tories have managed to blow the huge moral authority of the Davis resignation pretty quickly. Cameron says that he wants a 'permanent' from bench team (according to Sam Coates on the Times) and, with Dominic Grieve appointed to the Shadow Home Sec post, it looks as though DD will have to moulder on the backbenches when he is re-elected. DD appears to have chosen this tack to try to head off moves by Michael Gove and George Osborne to lessen the Tories opposition to 42 days. He will now try to force Cameron to pledge to repeal ...

Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath Anyone?

There is going to be a by election in Haltemprice and Howden following the shock resignation of David Davis the Conservative Home Secretary. It takes one back to the days when the House of Commons was a place of principle, and top hats and tail were in abundance in the lobbies. Prime Minsters would call a general election if the commons went against them on an important vote. Minsters upon

Lib Dems should fight Haltemprice and Howden

I don't often say this about a Conservative politician, but David Davis is to be applauded for his bold move in triggering a by-election on the 42 days detention issue. For a politician to put their own career on the line for a cause they believe in is admirable. But I'm puzzled and annoyed by the announcement that the Lib Dems won't be fighting the by-election. OK, maybe Davis wouldn't have resigned if he'd thought we would be fighting the by-election, and I'm sure he'd have checked this in advance. But despite his excellent record of opposing 42-day (and before ...

Well Done Nick Clegg

I'm so proud of Nick Clegg for his decision that Liberal Democrats will not contest David Davis' by-election. Jon Neal, our superb candidate there last time, came so close there last time that I am sure we could win the by-election; even after the human and financial burdens of Crewe and Henley. Detention without trial is a [...]

DAVID DAVIS, MAN OF PRINCIPLE. Or...

So David Davis has resigned and will stand again for his seat. He will stand on a ticket of the Tory Party not committing to repeal the 42 day limit if it gets elected and he will be elected. Golly, what a statement! Two possible disasters for the Tories could occur: (i)if he is unopposed he will be elected without a vote. The result, an utterly pointless display (ii) if he is opposed but the good voters of Haltemprice and Howden decide that this really is just a gimmick and don't bother to turn out, he could have a lower ...

David Davis

Well, well! Quite a turn of events with him resigning to fight a by-election on the 42 days issues. It was clear in Parliament how strongly he feels on the issue. Good to see Nick Clegg and the party saying that we won't stand a candidate, so that the by-election is a clear verdict on Labour's authoritarianism. There are some issues - and some principles - which are far more important than passing electoral advantage. Much though I think many Lib Dems would have liked the idea of fighting a by-election against David Davis, this way we get a clear ...

David Davis

I have long admired David Davis's stance on civil liberties. He is definitely on the liberal end of the Tory party, preferring to oppose state intrusion into people's lives (although like most politicians he fails to take this that far). This is an interesting move on his part, and one which clearly signals his discontent with [...]

Menzies Campbell's Speech to Parliament in '42 Days' Debate

{Ming in Chamber} I shall vote against the Government—not because I am soft on terror or because I fail to recognise the seriousness of the threat, but because I believe that the Government's proposals are profoundly mistaken, and that they are wrong in both principle and practice. Much of what I might have said has already been eloquently expressed by my hon. Friend the Member for Eastleigh (Chris Huhne) and the right hon. Member for Haltemprice and Howden (David Davis). In approaching this matter, we all have a responsibility to show independent judgment, and we must exercise that judgment in ...

The David Davis resignation: what it means

Lib Dem Voice yesterday highlighted the contrast between David Davis's passionate opposition to Labour's attempts to bang up citizens for six weeks without telling them why, and the rather more lacklustre opposition of the Tory leadership: I don't doubt for one second the integrity of David Davis, the Tories' shadow home secretary, in opposing Labour's draconian [...]

Dominic Grieve is the new Shadow Home Secretary

Dominic Grieve has been appointed by David Cameron. He said it wasn't the choice of the leadership or the party to trigger a by-election. I think I could detect just a hint of anger at the position he has been put in by Davis. I wonder what is bigger, Mr. Davis's cojones or his ego. UPDATE: I've put a poll up if you want to vote on that.

Dave stuns Dave?

It's not often that I'm surprised by developments in domestic politics, but this one has had me spitting tea all over my keyboard. David Davis' decision to resign his seat and contest a by-election on the issue of 42 days detention has come as a shock to some more than others though. Whilst the Lib Dems had a position and statement from Nick Clegg declaring that the party is not to contest the by-election within minutes, the surprise of it seemed to have initially caused the Conservatives website to go into spasm, and then re-appear without comment. Could it be ...

David Davis resigns — Clegg does right thing

David Davis (Tory Shadow Home Secretary) has resigned on a point of principle and as I start writing this I hear that Clegg has announced the Lib Dems won't stand against him (ETA: confirmed at the Spectator). Clegg is 100% correct That was what I was going to suggest should happen, Labour were a distant third last time but as this is a single issue resignation in order to reinforce there is no mandate for the use of the Parliament Act, and Lib Dem party policy agrees completely with DD's stance, Clegg is correct to suggest no candidate. I believe ...

David Davis resigns from Parliament

In an unprecedented decision, Conservative shadow home secretary David Davis has announced he plans to resign as an MP, trigger a by-election in his constituency of Haltemprice and Howden, and stand in that by-election. According to his press conference just minutes ago, he's planning to campaign on the issue of 42-day detention, and give the people an opportunity to vote against the erosion of our civil liberties. The BBC suggested that the Lib Dems (in second place in the constituency) had agreed not to stand against him. Right now, it's very hard to analyse what's going on. The announcement seems ...

Rare moment of admiration for a Tory

Watching the statement by David Davis a few minutes ago, I couldn't help feeling just a tinge of admiration. Don't worry - I'm not about to go blue on you all! But Mr Davis did speak passionately about the way in which this government has ridden roughshod over our traditional freedoms. The gamble he has taken is huge. By election voters can be a fickle lot. If the reports are correct, and we don't field a candidate against him, that will have removed his biggest obstacle to re-election. One thing is for sure, we will at least see this vital ...

Well done David Davis

Shadow Home Secretary David Davis is resigning as an MP over the issue of 42 days and will fight the by-election on the issue. Whilst I have not always agreed with Davis, it is nice to see a politician standing up for his principle are resigning.

David Davis resigns - but Lib Dems won't fight the by-election

David Davis has resigned as an MP to fight a by-election on the principle of 42 days detention. In his statement outside Parliament he invoked the Magna Carta saying that the Government was gradually withdrawing our freedoms. Nick Clegg has announced that the Lib Dems won't be contesting the seat and the Guardian says that Davis will be fighting as an independent in the contest.

David Davis resigning as an MP? Blimey!

News just breaking that the Tory shadow Home Secretary David Davis is resigning - not just from the shadow cabinet but from the House of Commons. This will - of course - trigger a by-election in a key Lib Dem target seat. And the BBC report, sparse though it is, suggests that's not just a side-effect of Davis' decision, but the whole point of it. This is what the Beeb's report says at the moment (no doubt it will soon be expanded). Shadow home secretary David Davis is set to resign as an MP, the BBC understands. It is thought ...

Haltemprice and Howden by-election

Sorry to sound like a vulture, but the Lib Dems have a clear chance in this by-election campaign. Davis will not have the financial support of the party. The Lib Dem by election machine can really go to town here. He will command the media spotlight however. Yet it looks like Labour may actually be able to exploit this by-election campaign. Davis has said that he will base his campaign upon the issue of 42 days. Clearly Labour's intellectually vacuous position on this is also the most popular one. Here are the 2005 results: Haltemprice and Howden General election 2005 ...

David Davis - WTFF??

Either David Davis thinks the Conservatives are going to backpedal on 42 days. Or it's a manouvre to prove the popular case against 42 days. Though it looks drastically like an unauthorized one.... Is he resigning from the Conservative party? Is another by-election, this time in a genuine Con-LD marginal, what anyone in the Conservatives needs?

42 days Pig Hoooo-eeey!

Its Pork time on the banks of the Thames! Over in the USA getting 'pork' (spending of taxpayers funds on local projects) for your district is an essential, even respectable, part of a Congresscritters job. They boast about how many millions they claw back in their re-election literature and if they didn't bring in the money they would be out. Members of our blessed Parliament don't have the same tools as their US counterparts. Here, only a minister of the Crown can introduce a motion instructing how to allocate public funds. And in any case amendments to Westminster legislation have ...

'Listen very carefully, I may need to repeat myself...'

Ros was working late at the 'office' yesterday, voting on the Lisbon Treaty and, in particular, the Conservative amendment seeking a referendum (her vote can be found in Hansard for those who take an interest in such things), so I joined her for dinner. On arrival at the House of Lords, the result of the division was expected imminently, and Ros was keen to find one of the television screens

David Davis quits as MP to force 42 days by-election

The BBC says: Shadow home secretary David Davis is set to resign as an MP, the BBC understands. It is thought he wants to trigger a by-election in his Haltemprice and Howden seat. Mr Davis has been a passionate opponent of plans to extend the terror detention limit to 42 days. It is thought he has privately threatened to [...]

Davis quits!

Unbelievable breaking news, David Davis to RESIGN. The Telegraph Blog actually predicted that the vote on 42 days would affect his standing in the Shadow Cabinet, but this is well beyond even that. I actually thought their predictions were totally over-egged. Completely dumbfounded by this. I've not been a fan of Davis in the past by any means, but I was extremely impressed by his resolute stance, and performance opposing the extension of detention without trial. I wonder whether the Tory leadership was waiting for even the smallest chance of knifing him in the back. Perhaps Davis like Spellman, wasn't ...

The Spectator's verdict on Conservative sleaze

The Spectator writes: It is especially damaging, then, to learn that Tory MEPs have pressed their noses deep in the European trough ... What impresses no one is the conduct of Sir Robert Atkins, an MEP [Conservative] for the north-west ... As far as Conservative party chairman Caroline Spelman is concerned, the nature of the secretarial [...]

Chris Huhne to be the only Shadow Home Secretary

BBC News are running the story that David Davis, currently Conservative Shadow Home Secretary, is to resign as an MP - causing an interesting by-election in Haltemprice & Howden.

One councillor down

One of our councillors, Ali Demirci, has gone over to Labour. It's only two years since Ali was elected on the Liberal Democrat ticket. Was his belief in fairness, equality and community so transitory? Or have Labour's overtures and love-bombing simply turned his head? With his family links to Labour - perhaps he just took the easy road. Anyway - it will make the political contest in Bounds Green (which already had both Liberal Democrat and Labour councillors) all the more interesting!

David Davis to answer my question?

I've been wondering recently what would happen, procedurally, if an MP resigned and then stood in the by-election they caused. Members of Parliament can't resign from the seats, so they have to take another job that disqualifies them. For example, Boris Johnson sparked the Henley by-election by becoming Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. When an MP defects between parties, it's often suggested that they should resign and fight a by-election to get a new mandate (not that this ever happens). So I was wondering how they could fight a new by-election if they held an office ...

Back on the Scrutiny train

Tonight is the first meeting of the Resource and Performance Scrutiny commission of the new municipal year. I was on the commission last year, as the sole Lib Dem, and here I am again, this time joined by our newest Councillor Mary D'Albert. Many of the other faces will be the same though. This appears to be the commission Councillors come to and never leave. A bit like a retirement village. Tonight isn't entirely a normal meeting, because much of the agenda is devoted to discussing what we're going to do in meetings for the rest of the year. I ...

Ministerial lie of the week: PM on DUP 42 days deal

Bit of an obvious one this week, but it has to be Gordon Brown at his routine Downing Street press conference NOW, claiming that there were no inducements and 'no deal' that brought all 9 DUP MPs into the Government lobby last night to support 42 days. The last time he lied so blatantly was at his No. 10 press conference the day after cancelling the election that wasn't. Well we all know how the media felt about that...

Abortion and terrorism

From The Guardian on how Gordon Brown won last night's vote on 42 days detention without trial: It was privately acknowledged the DUP had also pushed for a financial package to lift the burden of new water charges, speed up asset sales and exclude Northern Ireland from the Abortion Act.

David Cameron versus the Conservative Party, again

How close did the Conservative Party come to backing Gordon Brown over extending detention without trial to 42 days? From the voting figures (only one Conservative MP backed Labour, Ann Widdecombe) you might think that the party was pretty united and firm in its opposition. But that would overlook the disputes within the Conservative Party on [...]

Preview: Building Liberal Communities

This Saturday, the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors are holding their second annual local government conference at Birmingham's ICC. Find out more on their website. There was a real buzz about this event last year, so we are all looking forward to the event again this year. The programme is jam-packed with sessions, with many events [...]

42 days - the morning after the travesty before

So Gordon Brown won his vote, but he had to rely on the support of the Gay-Hating Bible-Basher Fundamentalist party to do it. I think this is possibly going to do him more damage than losing the vote would have. There might well be support for this in the Tory press-reading public, but the Tory press-reading public have been misled into thinking that after the time limit, a suspect has to be let go. As we know, this is emphatically not the case. This Labour government has, under the threat of terrorism, continually and systematically done exactly what the terrorists ...

Three wise women

I don't blog about work much, but this is exciting news you all ought to share! Last year, here at Oxford Brookes University we got terribly excited about being only the 17th UK Higher Education Institution to have appointed a female Chief Executive , in the form of Vice-Chancellor Janet Beer, who's now had her feet under the desk for nine months or so. Shami Chakrabarti, new Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University Originally uploaded at Flickr by martinstabe In the interim we've been looking for a chair designate of the Board of Governors (I am one of the two elected ...

Change You Can Believe In

The Government narrowly won the key Commons vote to extend pre-charge detention of terror suspects to 42 days. After weeks of arm twisting and a series of concessions, the power for ministers to exerc...

Henley: guess what? it's a two horse race!

From the local Herald newspaper today: 'Liberal Democrat Stephen Kearney is the only candidate likely to beat the Conservatives in the race to succeed Tory Boris Johnson as Henley MP, according to Ladbrokes bookmakers. 'They have put the parliamentary hopeful at 6-1 to win the by-election on Thursday, June 26. The Liberal Democrats came second at the General Election in 2005...Ladbrokes see Mr Kearney 49 as the clear challenger to Conservative John Howell, and have rated Labour candidate Richard McKenzie's chances at 100-1.'

Ode to a window view

Ode to a window view... Glass is a gateway to another world Flanked on all sides by chairs and tables A dull and drab world Fulfilled only through functionality Through the gateway is a different world Unfolding with a lake golden with sunshine Lined by trees either side of a snaking path Straight ahead rolling plains Ending in mountain peaks clothed in cloud A right turn takes you further into man's domain Tall buildings, specks against looming mountains Looking through the window gives you wings Your mind can make incredible journeys Soaring to mountain tops or skirting lakes edge As ...

Goldsmith 1 Carlile 0

It was interesting hearing Lord Goldsmith and Lord......(I can hardly say the word)........Carlile (there you are) debating the 42 days issue on Today this morning. Lord Carlile is an excellent champion of liberalism. So I therefore find it very difficult to fathom why I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him on these matters. Lord Goldsmith is likely to feature very prominently in the

Who do you trust?

The Select Committee inquiry into media ownership and the news is finally close to being published. Our magnum opus has taken us since last summer,;sifting through and analysing evidence from dozens of sources and agreeing our recommendations has not been an easy task, but it has been fascinating. One of our stalwart specialist advisers, Steven Barnett (Professor of Communications at the University of Westminster) has recently written an article for the British Journalism Review analysing the results of a BJR/YouGov poll on confidence in journalism. In a league table topped by family doctors ( 87% of respondents saying they trust ...

A playscape for King George

For the last couple of years the Council has been working with young people around here to design a new adventure area on King George's Field. Sue Baker, my fellow ward councillor, was Play Champion when the project kicked off and she was instrumental in getting a substantial Lottery grant to pay for it. The plan that emerged was way beyond anything I had imagined, and...

Relying on the BBC

The conclusions of the Professor Anthony King review of the BBC's network news coverage was no surprise to those of us who live in Wales. He reported that the BBC's news and current affairs coverage did not reflect the transformation that has taken place in Welsh politics and national life: Researchers from Cardiff University identified 136 stories on the BBC pan-UK network that dealt with education and health - all 136 dealt with England alone. None dealt with education or health in one of the devolved nations. The Cardiff University research found that for every one story located in Northern ...

Intellectual Lemmings

PMQ's yesterday was quite special. It's impossible to be Draconian and Useless at the same time, says Brown. Wrong, says everyone else. It's hard to believe Brown still pins his political destiny on using legislation to create wedge issues. What am I saying. Of course it's believable. But will it work? This whole game, this whole 42 days business, is about one thing: 'They're soft on Terror! Ha!' The end. Doesn't matter if it goes through. Doesn't matter if it's useless, if it's draconian, if it's morally wrong, if it abuses human rights... none of these things matter to Brown. ...

Tories in full retreat on Parking Charges.

Wansdyke Tories are in full retreat on their parking charges in the city of Bath. A call in of the increased charges organised by opposition Liberal Democrat councillors triggered a massive public outcry about the fleecing of Bath residents. The Conservative cabinet has now announced its intention reduce the charge for parking in Avon Street and Charlotte Street car parks...

'Grade A hypocrisy' from Tory Henley candidate

John Howell's biography on the web site of WriteAngle PR Interesting. The Conservative candidate in Henley, John 'Biggins' Howell, has been voicing off about protecting the countryside but now it transpires he earns money as 'a consultant to the management team of Dialogue, a leading communications firm in the planning sector, and to Savills Hepher Dixon where he also provides communications

Irish Jokes

On the terrace last night people were working on a number of Irish jokes. These, of course, relating to Northern Ireland such as: Ulster says: Yes Ulster says: How much? No surrender - well for £1.2 billion that's a different issue A little bit of extra scrutiny is likely to be given to the minutae of the arrangements for the financing of the Northern Ireland Assembly. It remains, however,

Executive Committee 11 June 2008

Last night was the regular meeting of the Council's Executive Committee. This is made up of nine members of the majority Conservative Group on the Council, myself and the Leader of the Labour Group attend as non-voting members. The decisions reached were as follows: Local Area Agreement The final submission to Government on the targets for Bury's "Local Area Agreement" were finally agreed. Bury will now be monitored on how well it achieves on these targets over the coming year. The final agreement includes the target to reduce CO2 emissions in Bury as a whole, something that was hotly debated ...

Kings Cross station: no entry for locals?

The Kings Cross community website has been updating us on the the campaign to keep pedestrian acccess to the north-east end of the station from York Way. For years, pedestrians have been able to reach platform 1 at Kings Cross from York Way opposite its junction with Wharfdale Road. This has huge benefits for the [...]

Labour dinosaurs are holding Wales back - Black

Labour AMs have blocked proposals to devolve new powers to Wales, powers which could have lead to a shake up of the way Wales elects its councils. South Wales West AM Peter Black won a ballot in the Senedd to bring forward the legislative competence order (LCO) which would have devolved more powers to the Assembly. He said he was disappointed that Labour AMs - some of whom have previously spoken in favour of electoral reform - vetoed the proposal. No Labour AMs spoke in the debate. Mr Black said: 'Labour AMs should be ashamed with themselves. They have vetoed ...

Welcome to the real world!

Reading Lynne's Parliament and Haringey Diary this morning, I have to say I'm not that surprised some voters still perceive the Lib Dems as being out of touch with reality. On Monday Lynne wrote how 'completely unacceptable" it was that a Fathers for Justice protest took place at the home of a "public elected person's house". Self interest maybe? On Tuesday, she wrote about the unfairness of the good guys always being the fall guys. It seems in Lynne's world its ok to park illegally so long as you say you forgot about the time. And yesterday, Lynne wrote of ...

When a Week Lasts 9 Days...

Q. How long is a week? A. At least 9 days if you are the Passport Service. My passport was stolen so I had to apply for a replacement. I did this by visiting a passport office on Monday 2nd June. I filled in the forms and paid for the 'Guaranteed One Week Fast Track' service. The guy who served me suggested I would receive the passport on Monday of this week or perhaps last Saturday if I was lucky. Monday came and went with no passport so on Tuesday I called the (expensive) helpline. The phone operator told me ...

When Irish Ayes Saved Gordon's Bacon

Gordon's Majority for 42 Days detention without trial So last night by a majority of 9 (see above) Gordon Brown managed to squeeze the victory that was so important to him. We know have the right to hold suspects without charge for 5 days more than China, 4 times as long as in Australia and 24 times as long as in the USA. Although as Tony Benn said afterwards in so doing he had handed over '

Post Office Card Account

Thank you very much to all residents who have contacted me about their concerns at the proposed Post Office closures of the Lochee Road and Nethergate branches. I am submitting a detailed objection to Post Office Limited, but I thought I should also highlight concerns about the future of the Post Office card account. The Liberal Democrats are very keen for the contract for the new card account to be awarded to the Post Office. Only the Post Office has the network to allow people from all over the country to access a card account of this kind. It is ...

Are we seeing some Police backsliding going on?

It's a difficult situation and it's ongoing but it's Hampstead Police Station again. But is it possible that this picture of the number 26 house on Rosslyn Hill is in fact the entrance to what will be Hampstead Police Station? In all of the discussions and debates the police have all been slightly coy about the reality of what is being looked at and explored. I am worried, and others are too, that the Police Estates Team intend to sell the current police station for a large capital reciept and decant into the house next door. The fundamental problem is ...

The Daily Twits

Whatever thoughts crossed my mind that weren't worth a whole post.18:22 315 to 306, Govt needed DUP votes to get it through. FFS that's bad. #Microblogging using LoudTwitter and Twitter. {[info]} matgb_twitter is there if you're mad enough.

Making Bede Walk safer

I'm pleased to say that it looks as though my campaign to make Bede Walk, off Northumberland Avenue, a safer more pleasant place to live is finally getting somewhere. I have been in close touch with residents living there over the past year about a range of issues which have caused them frustration:from flooding to flytipping. Residents have been very supportive, sending emails to officers and signing petitions to help get things need to be done. Last week officers confirmed that funding is likely to be made available for 6 additional lighting columns on the Walk, as well as an ...

Saying goodbye to Alan

There were hundreds of people at the funeral service today for my ward colleague Councillor Alan Ord. Residents, members, school governors, councillors and officers were present. I had asked Marilynn, my other ward colleague and Alan's wife, on Monday if I could take a photo outside the church of people attending the service. This is the photo of just a few of those who came to pay their last

Lee Green's first local assembly

Lee Green's first local assembly took place last night. There was a great turn-out - well over 100 people gave up a lovely summer's evening to get together and talk about how we can improve our local area. The ward assembly replaces the old area forum - which we used to share with Blackheath and Lewisham Central wards. It'll meet up to 4 times a year (the forum was only held once a year). Issues raised by local people in the workshop session included: The Leegate Centre - need for regeneration Parking and traffic issues Manor Park Need for more ...

Grubby deals signal the end of the Labour's term

Labour buying off MP's from nationalist parties reminded me of the sort of grubby deals that sustained Labour in the 1970's where deals with Northern Irish MP's, the SNP and others kept the labour Party in power through from 1974 to 1979. Let us not forget that those years were stained with strikes, a collapse in Britain's economic position and a real sense that Labour were in power but did not actually wield any power. This sort of deal over 42 days detention has all the signs of a morally bankrupt Labour Party and just like the 1970's, shows why ...

Licensing application - Burnt Ash Hill

Dhanvik News, 15 Burnt Ash Hill, has applied for a new/variation licence under the Licensing Act 2003 for the sale of alcohol off the premises Monday - Saturday 08:00 - 23:00 and Sunday until 10:00 - 22.30.The four criteria under which you can support or object to this application are: Prevention of Crime and Disorder Protection of Children from Harm Public Safety Prevention of Public Nuisance You can email the Licensing Team - licensing {at} lewisham.gov(.)uk var mailNode = var linkNode = document.createElement('a'); linkNode.setAttribute('href', tNode = document.createTextNode('licensing {at} lewisham.gov(.)uk'); linkNode.appendChild(tNode); linkNode.setAttribute('id', 'emob-yvprafvat@yrjvfunz.tbi.hx-89'); mailNode.parentNode.replaceChild(linkNode, mailNode); or write to: The ...

George Robertson's Tim Garden Memorial Lecture

Relatively early votes in both Houses of Parliament tonight meant that a good cross-section of LibDem MPs and peers were able to join members of Liberal International British Group and other interested parties at the inaugural Tim Garden Memorial Lecture, given by Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, former NATO Secretary General. He urged people not [...]

Thursday 12th June 2008

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