After yesterday's revelations about how the party leaders want to be seen, what did we learn today? a) We learnt that David Cameron likes bare elbows on TV more than he likes George Osborne (plenty of clips of David Cameron with sleeves rolled up and elbows showing whilst Osborne appeared to be auditioning for the role of Lord Lucan) b) We learnt that the public think the Liberal Democrats have run the most impressive campaign so far* c) We learnt that Kevin Maguire doesn't like being quoted by Zac Goldsmith * Though as pointed out, the result is within margin ...
My daily pick of the General Election stories from the blogosphere again takes me to a local blogger, the excellent Malcolm Redfellow who tells us a lot more about David Cameron's choice of words in his Tory campaign launch. I have to say, Malcolm's Blog is always entertaining and truly educational.
If during the hard work and serious business of electioneering you feel like a good laugh, how about turning to the Labservatives? This is a really good spoof on how the two old parties go about their business, ending up with the same policies, ie. no clear water between them.
An exclusive tour of Nick Clegg's battlebus comes courtesy of A Lanson Boy. Jock's Place is damning about MPs' decision to make the use of mephedrone illegal: "in one of their last acts before dissolving their godforsaken legislative session before they come round begging for your votes, members of parliament from all parties have voted to add yet more predominantly young people, possibly your children and friends, to the list of those targeted for death by unscrupulous criminal drug dealers." The Greens like to pretend they are somehow above politics. Norfolk Blogger catches two of them being just as worldly ...
Everyone seems surprised that there is an election. Either that or no-one actually believed that Gordon Brown was actually going to go through it and actually call the election for May 6.Us Liberal Democrats were not caught unaware by the election. We have been warming up for the election since last year, knocking on doors, listening to local residents' concerns and delivering leaflet upon
they promised 13 years ago (or longer) with no intention. Unbelievable
Wed 7th
22:43
First full day of the campaign proper. It's been a long one! On doorsteps, in the office when it rai...
First full day of the campaign proper. It's been a long one! On doorsteps, in the office when it rained (helping and thanking the volunteers) and having a campaign review meeting.
The Lib Dem contender for the Redcar parliamentary seat today released a series of pledges to local residents. Ian Swales has pledged to be open and honest about his expenses - and publish details on his personal website. He said if elected as MP for the Redcar constituency he would not profit personally from the use of expenses and would not sit on any company board. He also promised to open an office in the constituency and hold regular advice surgeries for local people. Ian said: "People have been let down badly by politicians, especially on expenses. "I will always ...
Wed 7th
22:36
Why Labour Can't be trusted with Constitutional Reform (It doesn't Look good for Conservatives eithe...
So yet again we have another Labour election manifesto that includes Constitutional reform, It shouldn't be a suprise to anyone, after all they have had elements in all their manifesto's since 1997 yet there does seam to be a trend in their policies and what actually happends. in 1997 we had the following pledges Reform of the ...
Another well attended Acocks Green South Police Tasking meeting this evening. It was the last meeting for the old Police Team with Tom O'Keefe, who has done a great job in the past two years, moving on to look after Hall Green Ward. Dave Mirams, based at Acocks Green Police Station, will now look after all of Acocks Green Ward. The alignment of Police and Council boundaries will help coordinate the fight against crime, though it will no doubt take a few weeks for the new teams to bed down. Overall there was more good news, with crime in the ...
Since Valentines day Bath have been playing great rugby (In stark contrast to the season from September up to Valentines day) . The latest game against Quins was electric with scintilating movement and play. New returnee Ollie Barklay was my Man of the Match. And now the club is certainly moving with ideas and vision for the future. They have announced that they are seriously considering an option on Bath Wester Riverside. Most fans would dearly love to see a solution based at the Rec but if that is not possible then we certainly do not want to loose them ...
For most of the 20th century Dainite Mills (aka "The Rubber") was one of the major employers in Market Harborough. Then, a couple of years ago, most of the buildings were demolished so that flats could be built. When they started to go up, the taxi drivers told you - half wonderingly, half indignantly, that they were being advertised in London but not Harborough. This wasn't wholly true: one of the flashier local estate agents promoted them as ideal but-to-let properties, available for purchase off plan. Then the credit crunch arrived. Suddenly the prospect of loft living in Market Harborough, ...
Cllr Cherry Beath and myself recently went to visit Paintworks in Bristol to see how with imagination an old factory setting can be turned into a great living and working environment. We loved the zebra crossings in the site. Great fun. And paintworks is really thriving and creating jobs and community space that is widely used. [IMG: Cherry and Paul at Paintworks]
Day 2 of the campaign saw me getting on my personal battle bus the train and head for Cambridge. Sadly, it wasn't to help Julian Huppert in his campaign to ensure that the city remains represented by a sane MP who knows the meaning of 'evidence-based', but to attend a training session on what councils ...
Labour Foreign Secretary David Miliband remarks on disgraced Labour MP Margaret Moran; "She's the exception not the rule." He made the statement on a visit to Luton. More on this here; 'Miliband backs Mr Luton to hold on to Moran seat' Given the extent to which Moran took the taxpayer for a ride and the lack of representation given to the people of Luton South over the last months that is an extraordinarily weak and pathetic response. It is also not true.
Following the fallen tree issue in Tullideph Road I mentioned earlier today, I had confirmation this morning from the City Council that it will be removed tomorrow. To quote the Forestry Officer : "I am aware of this tree and it is programmed along with similar others in the area to be removed tomorrow morning. The main reason for the time taken is the actual high number of damaged trees in last week's wind when we had multiple trees blown against school buildings, houses and roads and we had to prioritise a programme of works, which is progressing well." This ...
During the election campaign Lib Dem Voice will each day be highlighting six blog-posts from the Lib Dem Blogs Aggregator which we think are well worth reading. Here's our pick from 7th April, the first full day's campaigning ... There's an election coming - hurrah! (Lynne Featherstone) Lynne on the joys of standing for re-election: "It's been an absolute privilege and a joy to be the MP in Hornsey & Wood Green, representing the constituency where I went to school, where I got married and where I have worked for many years." Stop Whinging, Big Business (The Futility Monster) Deeply ...
We were sad to see in Blagdon Park that a couple of youngsters got hold of a bag of shredded paper and spread it all over the place. We have asked Somer and the Council to work together to clean the mess up and have also asked Somer to have have a word with the children that residents complained about. We need some work on parental responsibility on this as it is not acceptable behaviour even if...
We have again reported the overflowing waste bin in the lane from Blagdon Park to The Hollow. This heavily used bin really needs to be emptied by the Council on a more frequent basis than once a week. On the plus side it is good to see more and more people using the extra bins that have been put in around Southdown and we will continue to call for more.
As promised yesterday, an exclusive tour of the Lib Dem election battlebus. The bus has huge graphics on both sides with the campaign slogan and images of Nick and Vince. Nobody will fail to see us coming! Inside, the first face you see is Jock, one of the drivers who has so far got us everywhere precisely on time. Next up is the journalists area with power sockets, wi-fi and very luxurious seats. We can carry up to 16 journos under normal circumstances, but can fit a few more in the staff area if needed. (Most of the TV, radio ...
I don't know if anyone else heard Peter Mandelson being reprimanded on BBC 5 Live yesterday for eating crisps too loudly. Iain Dale was another of the guests at the time. His blog post is here. I thought the whole episode was hugely funny. I've now got hold of a packet of the Lib Dem version. I'm not too sure about the photo of Nick. If only they'd asked...
At last Gordon Brown has called the General Election - a date that was always obvious as soon as he decided against calling it in his first Autumn as PM. Here in Bath we have got of to a flying start with literature going out, posters going up and large numbers of doors being knocked. Its great to be canvassing with a real polling day in mind. So far I have canvassed in Walcot in Bath and Bathford in the NE Somerset constituency. There are still a large number of people who are angry about the MP expenses issue - ...
Guess who was snapped by Guido Fawkes "Guy News" on College Green outside of the Houses of Parliament appearing to be seeking someone, anyone, who would interview them yesterday ? Step forward Adrian Ramsay and Rupert Read of the Green Party. You know, the Green Party who like to appear to be different from everyone else (although if you live in Norwich you will know all they do is oppose everything and make uncosted promises about how everything will be better under the Greens). Desperate, desperate stuff and possibly as vain as any politician could be.
After 18 months of uncertainty, the Prime Minister has finally called a General Election. Here in North East Somerset, the Liberal Democrats have re-selected well respected political activist Gail Coleshill to contest the election, which will be fought under brand new parliamentary boundaries. Gail, who has worked for ten years on community projects and initiatives in the area, said: "A lot has changed here since the last General Election. Not just do we have new boundaries, but our Labour MP has become even more unpopular and the Conservatives have selected a candidate who has no track record of doing anything ...
Today was the last day with real Westminster activity for Nick Clegg and so our chance to get out and around the country was very limited. First up was the first press conference of the campaign. Nick talked about the dire need to clean up politics and the fact that both Tories and Labour were blocking any real change. He referred to Gordon Brown's promise of change after the election by likening it to buying a warranty off Del Boy Trotter. Then we had the final Prime Ministers' Questions before the general election and, as such, was not the most ...
Earlier this afternoon in the House of Lords... The Earl of Onslow: As I have conceded several times in your Lordships' House, I am the first to say that the reason I am allowed to boss you about is because one of my forebears got drunk with Pitt or Walpole—a form of "Thank you very much for that last bottle of port"—but that is not acceptable in a modern state. Call me old-fashioned, but I find this curiously reassuring...
Yes, as presaged last week, in one of their last acts before dissolving their godforsaken legislative session before they come round begging for your votes, members of parliament from all parties have voted to add yet more predominantly young people, possibly your children and friends, to the list of those targeted for death by unscrupulous criminal drug dealers. And if they don't end up in hospital or the mortuary, well, they could end up having their futures and careers summarily ended via a stretch at "Her Majesty's Pleasure" of up to five years. Notwithstanding the shambles that the Advisory Council ...
There's a strange story dominating the front pages of the local press about two women who allegedly tried to get a dead relative onto a plane in a wheelchair. With legal proceedings possible, suffice to say there seem to be two schools of thought - those who point out that the state of the deceased indicated that he'd left this mortal coil some time before his status was discovered by airline staff and the family members claiming that he was well and doing just fine, right until the moment of discovery. And then there was the Labour Party General Election ...
Liberal Democrat candidate Qurban Hussain visited Easyjet at Luton airport yesterday only to be followed by Conservative Shadow Chancellor George Osborne a few hours later. You can find out more about Qurban's visit on his blog; 'Campaigning for new jobs for Luton with EasyJet at London Luton Airport' "I was pleased to visit the airport at the time Gordon Brown was visiting the Queen to ask for a General Election. We do not have a minute to waste in fighting for a better future for our town and our families." And Osborne's visit from Luton Today; 'By George! Conservative big ...
29 days to election day - I'm starting with a picture of my family - just to remind me who they are! I'm not going to be spending much time here at home as the bookings pour in and every minute gets taken with appointments. We have just put our newspaper to bed, it's being printed tonight and we'll start delivering on Friday. Great time canvassing last night, I met an 86 year old lady who has seen it all. And finally she's come to the conclusion that Labour and the Tories have come to the end of the road ...
Over at the New Statesman, Simon Hughes, the Lib Dems' shadow secretary of state for energy and climate change, mounts a passionate defence of the party's call for an independent inquiry into nuclear power – a call which led pro-nuclear environmental campaigner Mark Lynas to far-fetchedly claim the lights could go out in the event of a hung parliament. First, Simon points out the need for an independent inquiry into the "justification" for nuclear power: "Justification" is the process of assessment of the health effects of nuclear power and is a legal requirement before any new nuclear plant can operate ...
What do you think of the new blog design? #bbcqt is on a Wednesday this week and with a later start than normal (10:55pm), hence the Live Chat starts here at 10:50pm. The panel includes Foreign Secretary David Miliband, shadow work and pensions secretary Theresa May, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Menzies Campbell, the historian Simon Schama and Daily Telegraph columnist Janet Daley. It's from Woking this week about 10 miles from where I live and yes, I did apply for tickets but was unsuccessful. However I do know that Woking Lib Dem Lisa Harding who blogs ...
Wed 7th
20:22
Meanwhile, back in the Lords - "It's time for a futile sacrifice, ladies and gentlemen"
Ah yes, the joys of a wash-up which has been stitched up by the Labservatives in advance. Today sees four bills go through the committee, report and third hearing stages, driven through the Lords one after the other by an unholy alliance of Labour and Conservative benches; the Crime and Security Bill the Energy Bill the Children, Schools and Families Bill, and; the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill In the enabling debate that allowed this abortion of a democratic manoeuvre to go ahead, Paul Tyler moved an amendment to the enabling motion suspending Standing Orders. There was a debate, and ...
According to the BBC the Thai Prime Minister has declared a state of emergency in Bangkok to deal with the ongoing anti-government protests. A couple of days ago protestors were occupying key up market shopping centres and now they have marched on parliament as part of their campaign to get the government to resign and call ...
Just in case you think you've stepped into somewhere unbiased and impartial, I should tell you that this blog does wear its Liberal Democrat heart on its sleeve. What you are about to read will be fair, but it's going to have more than a smattering of subjectivity. That said, it doesn't take too much investigation to unravel where each of the main parties is coming from on political reform. These include issues like cleaning up party funding, so that parties aren't beholden to their paymasters. The Labour Party is bankrolled to the tune of millions by the Trade Unions, ...
...sometimes it can be pretty funny :) Spotted on my way into work on South Parade, Oxford.
A Highly Placed Source sends me some impressions of the first couple of days of the campaign: spirits are really high, and our activists are really keen to be up and at them where we have a chance of winning;finance is looking good although, as ever, any extra money would be appreciated;support from the centre has been effective thus far;Labour campaigning is patchy, and they seem to be overly reliant not just on union funding but union shoe leather too - the first Labour leaflet in Bradford East was apparently pretty amateurish;we're getting a decent hearing on the doorstep, although ...
I hardly need add anything...quite brilliant what this "creativity" comes up with: ...and don't forget, if you live in Birmingham, this man wants to run your fair city as its elected mayor. Make sure you get out o 6th May and vote him into the political wilderness! Advertisement: read more
Varied day today. Our local manifesto was given the final sign 0ff this morning & I then went to open a conference on Autism and employment. Media work regarding the closure of a factory in the area followed by leaflet delivering in East and North Hull. I quite like delivering.Its a case of thinking time and I-Pod time. My Album of the day was the Divine Comedy's secret history and my motivational song was welcome to the jungle by guns n roses. The poster war started in full today & the roads in North Hull are looking fantastic. The team ...
Luton Today reports that Margaret Moran's house in Luton has been sold; 'Sicknote MP's home snapped up for £260k' "Rarely seen since her shameful expenses abuse was revealed last year, the MP's house in Alexandra Avenue has now been sold by Luton estate agents Haart after being put on the market for £259,950. A member of staff at the Haart's Wellington Street branch would not comment on whether the MP had asked for a quick sale."
Gordon Brown has today announced one of his election pledges: Labour has no plans to make our tax system fairer. Or has he put it: Labour will hold the basic income tax rate at 20 pence in the pound. Lib Dems, too, are committed to keeping the basic rate of income tax at 20p. But, unlike Labour, the party would make a priority of lifting the personal tax allowance to £10,000, ensuring millions of low-earners and pensioners will stop paying taxes altogether. As Danny Alexander emphasised in an article for Left Foot Forward last week, this would cut the income ...
This video is indeed something that could be trapped by the DE Bill. The BBC and/or parliament own the copyright for this video which has then been sampled and changed.
Whilst the agenda appeared short, this meeting may have set records. It started at 6.30 on 1/04 and finished around 8pm on 6/04! It was presided over by 3 different Mayors. The first issue of note was the process for selecting the Mayor for this year and future years. I have blogged on this topic before here. In the latest council meeting, the Tories rejected plans to make sure future mayors were selected on the 'longest serving is the most deserving' principle. For this year, an indicative vote for Mayor elect has taken place, the true vote will take place ...
Over at The Guardian's Comment is Free website, Lib Dem Voice Co-Editor Mark Pack has some wise words of advice for those who are going to spend the next four weeks poll-watching obsessively: track trends over time, and beware random fluctuations that 'plunge', 'soar' or 'collapse' in a headline. Here's rule number one: Rule one: carrying out an opinion poll is like flipping a coin. Flip a coin 10 times. Then do it another 10 times. And again. Chances are the number of heads each time will vary. But that doesn't mean someone's swapped the coin for a loaded one ...
I've been asked to write a few pieces for the Nottingham Evening Post as a political kinda person who isn't actually standing for election this time. The brief was to try and be wryly amusing and illuminate some of the more arcane bits of political life for the wider readership. My first is in today's Post and, erm, well, doesn't manage the wryly amusing bit terribly well, and clearly I went over the word count, as they've cut two bits, including the one that makes the headline they chose make sense. Here's what the article looked like before the subs ...
A while ago a friend asked me why the western media ignored the Naxalite rebellion. I confess I looked at them in some bemusement. They gave me a quick briefing and I went to read more. Yesterday the Naxalites killed 74 Indian para-military forces in a huge gun battle in Chatisgarrh, bringing to over 200 the number of Indian security forces they have killed this year - before we get into the officials and landlords they have killed. A Muslim suicide bamber killing six Pakistani civilians makes broadcast media on every channel. The Naxalites are fighting a burgeoning civil war ...
I really find it hard to avoid revulsion from the election. Bland inanities and staged photo-opportunities, minutely stage-managed encounters with real people in situations where their behaviour is strictly controlled, like their employment. Yesterday it started so awfully I thought it could not get worse. Brown walked through St Pancras station, past groups of people we were supposed to believe were just the general public who chanced to be there, who remarkably kept bursting into "spontaneous" and enthusiastic applause of Gordon Brown and stepping up to shake his hand as he passed. The chances of Brown being greeted by near ...
It's nice to be back after a short break, and just in time for the General Election, now that's good timing. Looking over the Wirral blogs it's obvious that the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate has what can only be described as a very short memory. In her latest posting entitled, At last! Gordon's gone to the ...
With the general election called, we are now well and truly into the General Election and of course, in Ceredigion, we're facing a straight fight between the Liberal Democrats and Plaid Cymru. And during the "phoney-election" period, we've seen a quantity of literature come out of Plaid with some claims that I've already been over ...
This business about Labour's proposed increase in national insurance contributions, the Conservatives' 'promise' to abolish it, and the 'support' of a couple of dozen business leaders for the Tory position is really doing my head in. And if this is a sign of how the election is going to be fought, then one of the most exciting elections in living memory will soon turn into a tawdry round of bitching over empty promises and shabby tactics. Let's get one thing absolutely clear: the Conservatives' sums don't add up. All the political commentators agree this, it's why Vince Cable was able ...
The recent announcement by the Conservatives that they will provide cutting edge cancer drugs to those that need them is, as usual, pretty good politics. Yet it is another spending commitment which indicates that, whilst flashy rhetoric is a strong point, financial management and an understanding of basic bureaucracy is still sadly lacking. I was, however, moved to see what else the Conservatives have to say on health... There are some apparent contradictions between their stance on devolved decision making and their stance on access, for example; they will 'devolve decision-making closer to patients' they will 'create an independent NHS ...
Cross-posted from the International Business Times. It's a question that's been playing on the minds of Lib Dems for some time: how can the party translate the popularity of the party's deputy leader and shadow chancellor Vince Cable into votes for the Liberal Democrats? Of Vince's popularity there is no doubt. Two recent opinion polls (one for PoliticsHome.com, the other by Ipsos Mori) showed him well in front of his Labour and Tory rivals for the Treasury post, Alastair Darling and George Osborne. And it's not just members of the public. Just this week, a group of non-Lib Dem business ...
BBC Radio Norfolk phoned me up today as "one of the pre-eminant bloggers in the region" (I exagerate, they never said that) to discuss the role that I thought blogging would play in this election and campaigning. I am going in to do a piece with them next week about this and I have my own views of the relative unimportance of blogs. Aside from the Uber Bloggers (Iain Dale, et al), do the rest of us make a difference ? Blogs are, I know, a very good way of getting news out fast, which was evident from Chris Grayling ...
Cameron's Conservative defence chap Liam Fox proved the Conservatives were still out of touch with Scotland. When he arrived in Edinburgh South, where the Conservatives are in third place, Liam Fox said "We're here in Aberdeen South" before correcting himself - "Edinburgh South even". Spot on Liam, the Conservatives are in third place in both seats! It is a good job that the Liberal Democrat challengers, Fred Mackintosh (Edinburgh South) and John Sleigh (Aberdeen South), who are both in second place know their seats well enough unlike the Conservatives.
Wed 7th
15:59
Will Kensington & Chelsea roll over again, or are they finally getting the message about local s...
I have written on this blog before about this council's absolute panic about the scale of the public and press reaction to the replacement of a historic part of Portobello Road Antiques Market with a branch of a fashion chain store. There has been widespread disbelief and downright anger on the part of local residents that RBKC has allowed the developer of the All Saints store to pierce the historic flanking wall of one of the most prominent buildings in a Conservation Area. Now, an application for retrospective planning permission for the shopfront is about to come before the Council. ...
Budgets have been set, Council Tax bills have gone out, Council officers are evaluating how they will be delivering services in the current financial year, whilst Councillors and other politicians continue to squabble over some of the very difficult decisions that have needed to be made to make the books balance. A quick web search reveals a scene of such devastation that one would be forgiven for thinking that the public sector is on the verge of collapse. Nothing could be further from the truth, but what is clear is that the very deep cuts that many Councils have made ...
Only a week ago I was at the LGA's Culture Conference, hearing praise and promises of eternal co-operation from political spokespeople and quangos alike. Yesterday I was attending Nick Clegg's campaign launch in Watford (I was one of the big Sal Brinton placards at the back). Campaigning is a great leveller and hurrah for that. But there is more to this transition than a move from day job to unpaid postal worker. What is said at conferences to the conference hosts differs starkly from the reality on the ground. The current government is unlikely to last and so the limited ...
Before the Iraq War, we stood under a banner of "Not in My Name" in the two giant demonstrations in London against it. This YouTube video from WikiLeaks shows the video footage from a US helicopter gunship in Baghdad in 2007. The US soldiers believe that a group of men have weapons, including AK47's and an RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade launcher). They open fire, killing most of the men, leaving only one alive, but injured. In fact the men were all civilians, gathered around a Reuters photographer and his driver. The weapons were cameras. A van comes to try and ...
A car drew up outside my house this morning. Out stepped a man who came to my front door and popped something through the letter box. I watched this from upstairs. Time for a break, I thought, and a chance to find out what had been put through the door. So I went downstairs and saw that it was a Tory leaflet. Through my front room window I then saw the person heading back to his car without
Interestingly, I had several emails from both Labour and Tory political hacks, asking why I was wasting my time standing as a 'paper candidate'. After a thoughtful pause, I looked up the statistics of the polling figures for the past 5 elections, in which the LibDem's consistently received between 9.5 – 11.5 (on average) of the cast ...
A few days ago Liberal Democrat spokesman Norman Lamb (aka the man who beat Iain Dale by 10,606 votes in 2005) kindly gave up some time to be interviewed about the party's plans for the NHS. Having previously pointed out that the party's "four steps to a fairer Britain" doesn't include how we will improve public services, I started by asking him how the Liberal Democrats would improve the NHS. He explained that whilst the four steps are a plan to transform Britain, for the NHS the priority over the next few years would be "making sure it doesn't get ...
Wed 7th
14:37
Labour and Conservatives (Labservatives) combine to stop reform and truncate debate on Digital Econo...
Two interesting votes occurred moments ago. The debate was about the "programme motion" for the washup.All of the figures will be on publicwhip tomorrow. I was one of the tellers for both of the votes (in both cases for No).Firstly, the government voted to stop Bob Smith and I from speaking on the programme motion. I was going to make the two key points about the lack of time for looking at
Plymouth artist Steve Clement-Large (read his blog HERE) asked the city's prospective MPs recently about what each will do about the arts if successful at the election. Our focus, even as MPs, would be the city itself. What the city's Lib Dems would like to do, and Lib Dem councillors will push for this, if elected on 6th May, is establish a new arts prize, aimed at city artists. We'll work with the city museum and art gallery with a view to part of the prize being a specially-curated exhibition at the gallery, with the winning entry as its centrepiece. ...
Yesterday I joined up with some other NO Mega TESCO campaigners to hand in a 500 strong petition to the Government Office of the North West. The petition against the proposed TESCO asked for the planning decision to be 'called in' by the Secretary of State. This would allow the Communities Secretary to hold a public inquiry to properly assess the impact of this proposed development on the surrounding communities and district centres such as Chorlton. Because of the controvers and scle of the development the GONW has extended the deadline for submissions. As a result there is still time ...
I've commented before on some of the poll findings that papers pay for but then don't report (all for reasons of space you understand; never because they don't meet the desired editorial line; not at all; no way). Here's another one, courtesy of The Sunday Times and YouGov: A group of 23 business leaders have written to the Daily Telegraph newspaper backing the Conservative announcement that they will shelve part of next year's rise in National Insurance. Do you think that the business leaders are... Speaking out in the country's interest 18% Speaking out in their own interest 50% Both ...
I was intrigued to hear Jeremy Hunt, the rather telegenic Conservative frontbencher for Culture, Media and Sport, say in the Commons yesterday that the Conservatives would allow a poor Bill to pass, and would amend it after the next General Election. This isn't the first time that the Conservatives have used this line, and it amazes me that they would accept the introduction of such a flawed piece of legislation. Effectively, they will try to find time to amend it after a General Election that they have won. Given the crisis that they allege this country is in, will a ...
PRESS RELEASE 7th April 2010 For Immediate Release LIB DEMS CHOOSE YOUNG CANDIDATE TO FIGHT ELECTION James Taylor, a 32 year old businessman and community campaigner has been selected by the Liberal Democrats as their candidate for Ayr, Carrick & Cumnock at the forthcoming Westminster elections. James Taylor, who was brought up in Dalmellington & Ayr and was ...
The last PMQs before the election - cross-posted from Liberal Democrat Voice. Even before it started, one was expecting a 9-9 score-draw - you know the sort of thing, arguments posited which pass each like ships in the night at a distance of one full nautical mile, angrily blasting their fog-horns at each other but not actually coming close enough for any meaningful interchange via Aldis lamp or semaphore. Also, before it started, a guess as to the first question from Cameron? Could it just be on National insurance perchance? A friendly Labour MP spiked the guns of Cameron by ...
I have had a conversation with Peter Huntley, Managing Director of GO North East today. It was a very positive discussion and we got through a few topics of concern for residents in a relatively short space of time. GO North East has rcently taken over the majority of former Arriva services in the area, namely the 602,604,673, 684, 687, 688, 801, 804 and the x66 (now the X12), the buses on these routes are of a poor standard and are not accessible for disabled people. Peter reassurred me that they are to be replaced this year, eiother by new ...
Even before it started, one was expecting a 9-9 score-draw - you know the sort of thing, arguments posited which pass each like ships in the night at a distance of one full nautical mile, angrily blasting their fog-horns at each other but not actually coming close enough for any meaningful interchange via Aldis lamp or semaphore. Also, before it started, a guess as to the first question from Cameron? Could it just be on National insurance perchance? A friendly Labour MP spiked the guns of Cameron by asking about the "£6 billion gap" first of all. So Brown could ...
I had my latest meeting with First Capital Connect (FCC) about Thameslink on Tuesday evening, following the misery caused by problems on Thameslink within the last few months. Based on what I heard last night, FCC does appear committed to improving the service, with a new team ringing the changes. I was pleased to hear that FCC plans to introduce some 12-car trains from December 2011, but concerned to hear that they might not stop at Hendon or Mill Hill Broadway stations! OK, so even if the new, larger trains don't stop locally, they will still reduce over-crowding on the ...
Newport East Candidate Ed Townsend signs the code watched by Kirsty Williams The Welsh Liberal Democrats are kicking off our General Election campaign by seeking to restore confidence and trust in politics. Following the controversy surrounding MPs allowances last year, all Welsh Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidates agreed to my request to sign a Code of Conduct on Elected Members Allowances and Transparency. The Code of Conduct states that no MP should profit from the tax-payer with regard to their allowances and that there should be complete transparency in how allowances are spent. Our broken political system desperately needs to be ...
Things are hotting up in the media as they seek to drum up some enthusiasm amongst the electorate for the General Election. The Daily Mirror in particular is not letting itself be accused of sitting on the fence as this Kevin Maguire column illustrates: Millionaire Zac Goldsmith has put me on a Tory leaflet to attack his Lib Dem opponent. What an indignity! So, to even things up, here's my view of him for her to use as she sees fit. "Whatever my political differences with Susan Kramer, I admire her integrity. She's respected in Westminster and works incredibly hard ...
We've been treated today with another 30 "business leaders" signing the Tory-orchestrated campaign to cancel the planned National Insurance rise from 2011. The drip-drip of this campaign clearly illustrates that someone is behind it; even more so that they're making sure the signatories are not and have never been Tory donors. I find it hard to ...
For many years the researchers Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett have been investigating the relationship between wealth, inequality, and measurements of a good society. The measurements of a good society would be low levels of crime, low levels of teenage pregnancy, good health in terms of long life expectancy, low levels of obesity – and many other measures besides. During their research they have published books on this, and finally they published the book "The Spirit Level", which has had the biggest impact of all. There are many countries that are poor, and clearly they need economic growth in order ...
"Wash-up", for those who don't know, is a convention of the UK Parliament by which, when an election is announced, the Chief Whips agree to rush a large number of Bills through their remaining stages with either a truncated debate or none at all. Since I've just compiled the complete list for work, and it's all from public information, here are all the Bills that as far as I can determine have currently completed this process or are expected to do so (offered largely without comment, because y'know, At Work): Completed yesterday Equality Bill [incl. religious civil partnerships, yay!] Expected ...
Had a very interesting email from a resident of Winlaton Mill. His daughter, a student travelling to Newcastle College got a leaflet from Nexus stating that the Teen Travel card is being got rid of and replaced by a 16-19 ticket. It says that this is "a saving of 25% on our standard ticket". That may be true but it represents an increase of 25% on the cost of a 4 weekly ticket when compared to a Teen Travel Ticket. This means an extra £10 a month for a teenager to travel to college, a lot of money and I ...
A really exciting day for me yesterday with the General Election being called. This is the first time I've stood for Parliament and however much you prepare for it when the day arrives I'd defy anyone to feel some trepidation - even old timers. All very exciting though and I'm very much up for the fight. We were delighted to get a visit from South East MEP Sharon Bowles. I helped Sharon and her colleague Catherine Bearder during the European Parliament Election campaign last year and it was great to have her support for our campaign in Reading West. First ...
Wed 7th
10:40
Labour's hypocrisy on political reform: kill it off then claim you'll resuscitate it later, maybe
General election campaigns are, perhaps, the worst possible time to judge politicians: they're frantic, break-neck affairs when serious thought takes a back-seat. But, still, you really do have to wonder at the sheer breath-taking effrontery of Gordon Brown's decision to trumpet his political reformist credentials on the very same day as his government kills off measures to improve our democracy. Compare and contrast. Here's today Guardian: Gordon Brown tonight sanctioned the abandonment of measures on constitutional reform including the alternative vote, reforms to phase out hereditary peers, and plans to give the backbenches powers over the parliamentary agenda. And here's ...
Supermarket firm Asda is getting into the general election with an initiative reported by PR Week: The supermarket giant is recruiting 'Asda mums' to keep an online diary on a new Election 2010 website, which is due to be launched this week. The idea follows Asda's dec ision to open up its website to online Q&A sessions with politicians from the three main parties. Each party's leader will also be posting a video on the website... The political activity follows the steady rollout of the Your Asda social media website over the past year, along with an expanded presence on ...
Anybody doubting that Mark Williams is on course to retain his Ceredigion seat with an increased majority need only look in this week's Cambrian News. Acccording to their columnist, Patrick O'Brien Mark was head and shoulders above the other candidates at a recent hustings meeting: "Even a visitor from Mars would have left the Morlan knowing why the election in Ceredigion is between the Lib Dems and Plaid Cymru and why, on this showing at least, the Lib Dems have a stronger candidate. Mark Williams showed a vigour missing in his rival, left few loose ends than Penri and produced ...
Simon Wright, Norwich South's Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate, has made a pledge to his future constituents should he be elected as an MP on May 6.
A mere couple of weeks since announcing it the Government have scrapped their 10% tax rise on cider. So their attempt to write off the West Country has.. er.. been written off. The BBC has more; "Ministers drop plans for 10% increase in cider tax". The Wurzels are, apparently, "delighted". So here is a video to celebrate:
Pushed for time, but want to keep up-to-date with how the campaign's going? Here are today's must-reads .... Nick Clegg spearheads election strategy of 'northern offence, southern defence' (Guardian) Highlighting the launch of the party's campaign in Watford, where the Lib Dems' Sal Brinton is aiming to oust Labour. (You can donate to her campaign here). The Guardian cannot resist a journalistic stand-by cliche, though, claiming the launch was "overshadowed" by Nick and Chris Huhne appearing "to suggest they had conditions for who they would support should there be a hung parliament." Overshadowed is journalese for: this is the story ...
My Conservative opponent is now attacking the Lib Dems for taking Non Dom money! Well I suppose attack is the best method of defense! According to him we have taken £680,000 over the past 6 years from people not resident in the UK for tax purposes. I'm afraid it does somewhat pale into comparison with the £6,779,076.33 the Tories have recieved from Lord Ashcroft alone None of our parties non dom donors have major roles in the parties campaign, unlike Lord Ashcroft, and we have proposed a number of measures to tax non dom residents more heavily, ie the ...
Well, the election has finally been called, which is good. I can't say I don't feel a certain amount of trepidation. But there are real grounds for optimism. The last time we were poised for a hung parliament in February 1974, the Liberals saw their share of the vote surge. In the 1970 election we attracted 7.5% of the vote and got just 6 seats. In the 1974 February election, which produced a hung parliament, our support rocketed to 19.3% of the vote and we got 14 seats, a 233% increase! Now imagine if we could replicate that situation now--I ...
[IMG: Poll piechart] Prepare to face a daily blizzard of opinion polls from now until the election on 6 May - which is, as politicians will never tire of telling us, "the only poll that counts." This, of course, is not true, and everyone involved in the election will be poring over weekly, daily and hourly poll numbers for clues of how the election itself will turn out. Unfortunately, this requires more analysis than just totting up a few numbers to get a clear picture of what is going on. So, here are ten tips for making sense of the ...
From the joint BBC / ITV / Sky news release: All three debates will be broadcast in mid-evening slots in front of a studio audience selected by ICM. Members of the audience will be able to put questions to Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg directly. Viewers are also able to submit their own questions in advance by email via the addresses below. Each of the programmes has a pre-determined theme for half of its airtime, with the remaining time open to questions on any election issue. The First Election Debate will be broadcast on ITV1 on Thursday 15th ...
Dear Nick,Your interview this morning on the Today Programme was disappointing. OK, James Naughtie, in the worst tradition of Today, interrupted almost every answer before you had completed one sentence. But, Nick, you know that's going to happen. I nominated you for leader. I defend you against your detractors. I think you are a gut Liberal. But since you became leader, you have often
No, not another comment on the Labservatives - though that would still be justified. It's that I've got a meeting in March today, so I've had to download the new bus timetable. We had changes to the timetable from Stagecoach on 14 February, now it's another set of changes starting from Easter Sunday. With timetables chopping and changing like this, it's hardly going to incentivise people to ditch their cars and switch to public transport, especially when the service is so sparse to begin with. Playing Spot the Difference between the February and April versions, I see the last bus ...
The front page of last week's Jewish Chronicle reported that, in Hendon: "...after a series of allegations about his expenses, (Labour's Andrew Dismore) faces a tough fight with the Tories' Matthew Offord and Matthew Harris, secretary of Lib Dem Friends of Israel." OK, so I'm actually Vice-Chairman, not Secretary, but who am I argue with the Jewish Chronicle? This follows the Hendon Times' declaration that my Conservative opponent: "faces current Labour MP Andrew Dismore and Lib Dem rival Matthew Harris for the seat, which is predicted to be one of the tightest parliamentary contests at the next general election."So that's ...
Tuesday: What this country needs is an ELEPHANT in charge! Attention Party HQ! [IMG: Posted by Picasa] Welcome to the 2010 General Election. Apparently I can't just be Prime Monster, but at least I can help out at Liberal Democrat headquarters, and my Daddies and I will be writing from there throughout the General Election campaign. So how's it going? View from HQ: The opening of the campaign has gone really well, with hugely positive responses to Nick and to Vince from the public and even pretty good coverage from the media. YouGov/Sunday Times reports that Nick is the most ...
Last year, I wrote about how Colchester – along with many other Councils – is having to decide whether to stick with our current system of annual elections and electing the Council by thirds or change to an 'all-up' system of four-yearly elections. Well, the Council is now holding a consultation on the issue and you ...
Liberal Democrats in Redcar constituency - led by prospective MP Ian Swales - swung into action today after months of waiting, the moment that Gordon Brown announced the General Election has been called. Ian Swales, Lib Dem candidate for Redcar said: "At long last, people will get the chance to decide who they want for their local MP - and choose the person they think is best placed to fight for our area. "The Liberal Democrats will be fighting this election calling for real change and a fair deal for our area. A vote for the Liberal Democrats is a ...
I have today launched my April 2010 update to West End Community Council. Subjects covered include : ■ Bridge on Riverside Drive ■ Crossing at Blackness Library ■ Unadopted Footways Programme ■ Graffiti cleaned up ■ Road repairs The Community Council meets next Tuesday (13th April) at Logie St John's (Cross) Church Hall at 7pm. You can download the update by going to http://tinyurl.com/weccapr2010.
So we're off! The general election will be the chance to cast a verdict on my record as your MP over the last five years - and in the local elections - on Labour's record running Haringey Council for the last 40 years. It's been an absolute privilege and a joy to be the MP in Hornsey & Wood Green, representing the constituency where I went to school, where I got married and where I have worked for many years. I've helped over 28,000 residents with their issues - from those that affect the many like the threatened closure of ...
As reported in today's Courier, I have reported to the City Council's Forestry Officer and the Area Housing Manager a fallen tree in Tullideph Road - opposite the shops near the junction with City Road. The tree has fallen right across the footpath, resulting in pedestrians having to trail through the muddy grass to get past. I have asked the council to have it removed as soon as possible.
Yesterday I posted some questions/ponderings on twitter over what was about to change over MP and PPC useage of twitter and other social media in the run up to the next election (I also pondered a few other things like which MP will get egged first). My expectation was that usage would see a big change from how ...
Call me old fashioned, but I do like to see some minimal standards maintained during an election campaign. Honest disagreement, I can cope with, sweetening your case whilst brushing aside the negatives, fair enough. However, the sort of inane inaccuracies that spill from the lips of Eric Pickles make me want to spit. Last night, Eric got his campaign off to a flying start by claiming that David Cameron was more popular amongst Liberal Democrats than Nick Clegg. Apart from the nonsensical nature of such a claim (err, doesn't Nick have a higher personal rating that Dave? You know, I ...
In the build up to the 2010 General Election schools and colleges up and down the country are holding mock elections. Mock elections are a great way to get involved in politics, learn about the various parties' policies, and gain some experience of being a candidate. If you are on this website you are probably running as a Liberal Democrat, so thank you! It is people like you that will help make a fairer Britain. How we can help The youth and student wing of the Liberal Democrats has produced a pack for people interested in running in a mock ...
Liberal Democrat member Andrew Mayer gives his thoughts on Chris Graylings recent comments: Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling's unwise comments on access to Bed and Breakfast accommodation, where he suggested (based on a recent news story) that as private homes, owners were at liberty to bar gay couples, although he did not believe the same was generally true for private businesses in general, shines a much overdue light in this campaign on the differences between liberals and social conservatives. It raises questions about Grayling's personal judgement. It highlights how much and how little the Cameron has changed the Conservative ...
The Welsh Lib Dems have refreshed and relaunched their website. This is all part of the Welsh Lib Dems ramping up their online presence – an area where the party has a record it can be reasonably proud of. A Welsh Lib Dem AM, Jenny Randerson, was the first AM on facebook. Kirsty Williams was the first (and I think still only) Welsh party leader to use twitter. Peter Black, well he's got his blog and it is a pretty long running one at that. Peter did a handy round-up of PPC's from all parties on twitter the other day ...
So, is the East Lothian Labour Party versus Anne Moffat MP saga finally over? Anne Moffat MP and Iain Gray MSP traded insults and counter insults over recent weeks. Anne Moffat MP threatened legal action, where is that now? Maybe more to come? Then yesterday amongst all of the razzmattazz of the election being announced a smaller announcement was sneaked out by the Labour Party in Scotland that Fiona O'Donnell had been selected as the new candidate. Over on the BBC, Fiona is described as; The 50-year-old mother-of-four was previously a campaign specialist with the Labour Party based in the ...
......promptly went campaigning in another seat where they won't win either. Amanda Harvie has been parachuted in as the Aberdeen South candidate following the shock resignation of Mark Jones. Given their placing in third, over 6,500+ votes behind the Liberal Democrats we always knew this was a long shot for the Conservatives, as is any seat in Scotland, but they have written off their chances here long ago. It isn't on their list of 11 target seats and given it is the Liberal Democrats who are just 1,348 votes behind the Labour Party, they have realistically just shut up shop ...
I'll be at the Hanbury Turn on Sunday 11 April 3-6pm to answer any questions you may have, or just a chance to get to know me. There'll be tea and cakes provided so do pop along if you get a chance. The pub is on Hanbury Road, just outside Bromsgrove.
So yesterday finally yesterday morning we had the starting pistol in sight and the finish line also. The news has leaked out, through the media and the Internet, the night before that Gordon was going to visit the Queen, as Mark Pack says not like days of yore. We didn't realise that Her Majesty was going to have to helicopter in specially to Buckingham Palace though. And where was I? Well the necessities of work meant that I had to finish off the job I had started on the first and get the quarterly reports completed and out to the ...
So, picture the scene, you've done your time, whatever it was for, and in the process you have managed to get yourself off of the drugs that probably helped put you inside, and you're probably quite pleased with yourself and then, just before you are ready for release, the prison medical officer starts to get you hooked all over again. Welcome to the Orwellian named "retoxification": Drug-free inmates put on methadone Prisoners who have beaten their drug dependency while incarcerated are being given substances such as methadone - the highly addictive heroin substitute - before their release, according to reports. ...
...or you might suffer the same fate as this very unfortunate German tourist in London: Tourist raped as she left London hotel for cigarette A tourist was dragged from a central London street into an alley and raped. The 25-year-old German woman had left her hotel to have a cigarette and was standing outside the Paradiso E Inferno restaurant on The Strand. She was grabbed and dragged down Southampton Street and into an alleyway off Maiden Lane where she was assaulted at 2300 BST on Good Friday. So there we go. We have one in ten staff in hospitality establishments ...
Assertion: Turnout is affected by the likelihood your vote will make a difference and the amount of campaigning the parties are doing in the area. In areas that are considered to be "safe", a) voters are less likely to be interested and b) parties are less likely to run competetive campaigns, targetting resources and activists on marginal seats they may gain or lose. Electoral Reform Society: Election already over in nearly 400 seats: The Society has listed 382 seats which are 'Super Safe' in that they will not change hands even with a landslide on any conceivable scale. The Society ...
I'm doing a regular podcast about the election, more lighthearted than serious. Beauty sleep disturbed by leaflet nightmares, the Focus cock-up and watch out for signs of dragons. It must be day 1 of the campaign.
Well the worst kept secret is out of the bag and the general election is on the same day as the local elections on May 6th. After work at the CAB I manage, it was on the campaign trail delivering some of our leaflets to kickstart the local and general election campaigns. A lot more supporters and helpers came out tonight. I then went back to our office to do some printing and then went to various campaigners houses and on my way home popped into my Agent Noel Rippeths house to check in. Noel and Ione (his wife) are ...
Brilliant news by Norman Baker, our transport spokesperson on our plans to EXPAND the railways. The suggested Rail Expansion Fund would help transform our railway system, making it fit for the 21st century. Already we have drawn up a list of ...
Absolutely loving this song. To be honest I wouldn't be surprised if it swept the board. Clues: 1. It's jaunty pop at its best and although it's Eurovision it's kind of new and stretches the genre a little. 2. It's a masterpiece like the winning UK entry `Making your mind up!` 3. She's a great performer 4. It's ...
Lib Dem Voice doesn't usually obsess about polls – we round them up on a monthly basis when you can see trends, but we don't try and read huge significance into every statistical blip. General elections, however, are different. Like it or not, all of us who are political obsessives will be slavishly following every twist 'n' polling turn for the next four weeks. If we move up a single point, it will be because the public loved Steve Webb's latest pension proposals. If we drop a point, it will be because the media has been ignoring us (again). Ignore ...
After such a fantastic event yesterday I was delighted to see a poll conducted by the Luton and Dunstable Express put the Liberal Democrats and myself in the lead in Luton South on the first day of the election campaign. May I thank everyone who is backing my campaign and has declared their support for the Liberal Democrats. For local residents to back my campaign is truly a great honour and I am humbled by your continued support. While some candidates want to represent us but don't even want to live here, I am proud to call Luton home. I ...
I saw a poster in Lancaster yesterday. It was one that I had not seen in Morecambe but I will take a photo and add it to this blog. It is a picture of Gordon Brown and the comment is about releasing prisoners early. As it is paid for by the Tories I take this comment as an adverse criticism. The first problem with this is that it is negative campaigning and it just doesn't go down well. It may be that some people cast their vote for negative reasons but there are those who like to consider what they ...
M's story: I have used Whittington A&E since 1983, when my son was born. He had bronchial asthma and we often had to rush there when he was two or three years old. It's hard to put into words how reassuring it was to know that he would be seen by a doctor after he'd been unable to stop coughing for hours. Recently he used it again when he needed stitches in his hand on Christmas Eve: he was given antibiotics and a tetanus shot and his hand is healing well. I can't believe that such a valuable institution could ...
