Had a really good campaign meeting tonight. Positive reports from the canvassing and everyone working really hard to get the leaflets out.
With the Daily attacks from the right wing press misleading people about the Lib Dems policy on immigration, it is worth reading Bracknell Blog's explanation of the current 14 year rule (which Labour and Tory parties support) which allowed an amnesty for all illegal immigrants.
Here is a selection of issues making headlines during the past week: Dan's up for an election scrap - Goodbye Andrew Mackay campaigner is standing in Bracknell under Scrap Members' Allowances party Boundary changes bring Newbury MP into Wokingham Over 50s take a front row seat in the battle for Bracknell Election 2010 - Bracknell's candidates And a video taken by the Bracknell Standard at the Look In Cafe If you know of any other local political stories then please add them in the comments below. Todays link is to Green Gabbles has a very cool picture of Get Clegg ...
A great new website for the Lib Dems. You can choose snippets of speeches from the leaders of all three main political parties and compose your own personalised manifesto. I spent the last hour trying to use all the words available for Brown and Cameron in one speech – it's not possible, but it is a fun ...
Mark Reckons that David Cameron's words on coalitions during this election campaign may prove indigestible in the event of a hung parliament. While Always Win When You're Singing asks what would you call someone who followed an attractive woman as she purchased underwear. Pervert? No, it's a Daily Mail reporter. Our latest Idiot the Day is Keith Warnell, Tory deputy mayor of Bishop's Stortford. LibCync explains why he richly deserves his award. Paul Edie's Blog gives awards too. "Top Prize for the most surreal press event of the election goes to the Elvis impersonator who dropped into the Labour campaign ...
(source www.globalvisas.com) April 20 2010 by Niall J Rice Since Nick Cleggs remarkable rise to the top of most YouGov polls courtesy of the live TV debate shown last week, certain media outlets have started to delve deeper into the party's policies and proposals if they did in fact win the general election. This has brought about, unsurprisingly, condemnation ...
'The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools.' - Herbert Spencer It has of late become fashionable to de-canonise St Vince Cable. This is understandable, and probably something that he, as a level-headed Yorkshireman would approve of. In fact, he's complicit in it; he's freely admitted that he didn't see every aspect of the credit crunch coming, especially the US angle. The myth of 'soothsayer Vince' needs challenging, not least because it misses the point. Vince gets things right not because of some magical power of economic second sight, but ...
I understood BritPop: good tunes, guitars and harmonies. And in the great battle of the period there was only one winner: Blur. And comparing the subsequent careers of Damon Alburn and of the Gallagher brothers does nothing to make me think I was not right. If Blur had a fault it was their mockneyness. I suppose in Parklife they raised that to an art form - that albums' knowing that it was false being part of its point - but it can be a fault. A touch of the stage school brat clung to Steve Marriott in all but his ...
or at least Must flick throughs Blond's Red Toryism gets a good review. If you call this good: "for Blond, it is liberalism that is the chief enemy, for liberalism erodes liberty." Rawnsley's interview with David Cameron looks interesting. Hamish McRae argues for Growth as the way to fix Britain's problems. Hear hear, I cheer, ...
See here: The UK political party website usability report evaluates the websites of the 10 UK political parties with parliamentary representation in the House of Commons. The report builds on a recent online poll conducted by Webcredible identifying the main reasons why people would visit a political party website. Each website evaluation was conducted using 20 best practice guidelines and the results make an interesting pre-election read.
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Eleven or so days until Polling Day and we're still hanging in there. You Gov has us up one to 30%. The talk of the Steamie has all been about Labour coming third and whether Gordon Brown could credibly serve as PM if he emerged with the largest number of seats in those circumstances. Lots of hypothesis but Labour does seem to have thrown in the towel. I wondered if it is deliberate their campaign has been so astoundingly incompetent. Cameron refused to rule out electoral reform in an Observer interview. Game on. An interesting side effect of the 30%+ ...
Spare a thought for poor Alastair Campbell. Not content with having organised the tacky Elvis press event yesterday and Labour free falling in the polls his beloved Burnley were relegated this afternoon after only one season in the top flight. Up here Rangers won the League Title - again - beating the Mighty Hibernian 1-0 at Easter Road - the Home of Football. I really feel for Burnley. They stared so well beating Man Utd but they lost their inspirational Manager Owen Coyle to local rivals Bolton mid way through the season and they never really recovered.
Alex Massie thinks that Cameron's "six month rule" idea is a daft gimmick.John Rentoul draws our attention to something that keeps getting forgotten. Labour are pretty consistently in third place in the polls.And in fact as Mark Pack write on LDV, Labour might actually get their worst share of the vote not just since 1983, but 1918!Ewan Hoyle points out that the Telegraph's "expose" of Nick Clegg's previous eminently sensible comments on drugs policy simply echo what their own political darling David Cameron said around the same time.
So, the team in blue were leading throughout most of the campaign and seemed set to coast home easily. The red team, the defending champions, really didn't live up to expectations but a flurry of activity helped them out in a close close finish, though they still ended up in third place, with the final ...
Just one poll published tonight (so far at any rate): YouGov in the Sun ... CON 34%(-1), LAB 28%(+1), LIB DEM 30%(+2) So much for the charge – led by its sister-paper – that the Lib Dem bubble had burst. The poll suggests the party is continuing to hover at the 30% mark, and continuing to push Labour into third place. There was incidentally one other poll published we omitted to report last night: BPIX (the firm which refuses to comply with polling industry standards) showed CON 34%(+3), LAB 26%(-2), LIB DEM 30%(-2). It does seems as if the party ...
Today John Barnett, Liberal Democrat candidate for Dundee West, joined St Andrews Liberal Democrat Councillor Robin Waterston on a day trip to Dunfermline to support the campaign of Willie Rennie, winner of a spectacular by-election in 2006, in Gordon Brown's home constituency. Speaking to Liberal Democrat activists later, John said: "There is no seat in which the Liberal Democrats are not able to mount a serious challenge, especially Labour-held seats where the voters have been taken too much for granted. A vote for the Liberal Democrats in Dundee West is a vote for fairness in politics."
Love them or loathe them, the debates seem to be having an effect. Out on the doorstep with Dad this evening more than one resident referred to them. If anything, the debates are putting trust back into politics. Voters are listening to what the three main parties are offering and using this to help them decide how they will vote. They are re-engaging with the process.And surely that is what
[IMG: Clegg We Can] The miserablist chant "but they're all the same" is often mistaken for voter apathy. It is no wonder that the electorate think that all politicians are the same when the media routinely feed us the false dilemma of two political parties. Well, welcome to Britain: a three-party democracy. It is astonishing what happens when the media are forced to give balanced coverage of all three parties - something that only happens during an election campaign. It is like the Dr Who style perception filter normally obscuring the Lib Dems is suddenly lifted. People see them, hear ...
What would you call someone who followed an attractive woman as she purchased underwear? In my book, that's a pervert, but apparently it's a Daily Mail reporter. According to the reporter, who is apparently too ashamed to give his/her name on the byline, 'The Liberal Democrat leader's Spanish-born spouse spent an hour-and-a-half in the famous Rigby ...
Cameron has been yet again, following the scandal with Chris Grayling, been placed in an embarrassing and untenable position by another of his front bench shadow cabinet members. This time it is Dr Julian Lewis, shadow minster for Defence and Tory candidate for New Forest East (Hampshire) who reportedly wrote to a constituent stating that ...
Elections used to about politicians. Then they became about politicians and their spouses. Now the Daily Mail introduces us to politicians, their spouses and their underwear choices with a "story" about where Miriam Gonzalez Durantez buys her underwear. As Next Left points out, the story doesn't have a name to it – just the generic "Daily Mail reporter" by-line. I wonder why? UPDATE: As pointed out by several people on Twitter, the News of the World ran a similar piece first. UPDATE 2: And as for Jan Moir's contribution: sigh.
My third appearance on Radio 4's The World Tonight last Friday, looking back at the second leaders' debate and forward to the campaign still to come. You can catch up with it via BBC iPlayer here, beginnin about 34 mins in. I mentioned last week my habit of jotting down 6 points I hope to be able to put across – of which I usually only manage to shoe-horn in one-and-a-half. So here they are in text, if not in audio: 1. A hung parliament is not a danger to the economy. It would be far more dangerous if either ...
On the day that Labour launched its green manifesto, it seems appropriate to highlight this video. Note the number (non-number!) of blue balloons. So much for Vote Blue Go Green - more If you vote blue you won't get green. More Tory spin and fake.
The poet Peter Porter has died. He was one of the firs poets I can remember studying in any depth at school, especially Your Attention Please. Some of us may die. Remember, statistically It is not likely to be you. I can also recommend Mort Aux Chats, probably best read in a voice that sounds somewhat like Nick Griffin.
Postal votes started hitting the mats of Islington South and Finsbury over the weekend. There's just 484 votes between the Liberal Democrats' Bridget Fox and failed New Labour candidate, Emily Thornberry. The Tories haven't got a hope – the Conservative candidate doesn't even live in Islington! So do the right thing. Vote for change that ...
Had a great meeting at Castle Hill Baptist Church this evening, met some great people and discussed many issues. One theme was to respect each others right of conscience, which lead to an interesting debate including the right of MPs to vote according to their consciences, which I totally agree and the right of people to celebrate their religious views which has been in the news recently on such issues as wearing religious symbols. I have yet to meet anyone offended by for example Christians wearing a cross so why should it be an issue.
In an otherwise negative article about the LibDems in today's Sunday Times, Jenny Hjul comes up with the following anecdote : Unscientific evidence suggests that in the former Labour or Nationalist strongholds of Dundee, octogenarians charmed by the telegenic alternative to Brown and Cameron are switching en masse. This is very good news for Clegg and Co because the elderly are the demographic most likely actually to go out and vote on May 6. I have news for Jenny. Those of us who have been chapping on the doors of Dundee households over the past few weeks know it is ...
Just heard of the death of Alan Sillitoe which saddened me a little. Sillitoe wrote one of my favourite short storie namely The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, and the character of Colin Smith, so beautifully played by Tom Courtenay in the film of the same name. In a memorable quote Smith says, "Do you know what I'd do if I had the whip hand? I'd get all the coppers, governers, posh whores, army officers, and members of parliament and I'd stick them up against this wall and let them have it 'cause that's what they'd like to do ...
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 166th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (18th – 24th April, 2010), together with a hand-picked quintet, normally courtesy of LibDig, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can now sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox – just click here – ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. Mail readers angry at ...
From the Telegraph:Mr Clegg will be boosted, however, by higher-than-expected levels of support for some of his party's more controversial policies. Some 46 per cent of voters backed replacing the Trident nuclear deterrent with a cheaper weapons system, 55 per cent were in favour of amnesties for illegal immigrants who have been in the UK 10 years and 49 per cent backed replacing prison sentences
The opening event for the Play Pathfinder equipment at Kensington Meadows is on Sunday 16 May at 2 pm. It is hoped that the weather will be kind and that we will all have a very enjoyable time. Exact activities not yet decided - however I am sure that The Friends of Kensington Meadows will motivate people into action!
I'm a keen user of Twitter, and from time to time I include my location in my Tweets. During the General Election campaign I've been doing this by geotagging them, or through the facility on Ubertwitter, which is the Twitter app I use on my BlackBerry. Sometimes I tweet photos via my Flickr or Twitpic accounts, which gives clues about my location, either from the map (on Flickr) or from the scene in the photo. I've even dabbled a little in Foursquare - though it's the informative rather than the competitive aspect of this that appeals to me. For me, ...
It's is interesting to see that the Conservatives have replaced a number of the poster boards that occasionally adorn the fields of Tory supporting farmers across the Broadland constituency. The boards that first went up followed the Tories policy this year of putting Tory candidates faces on to the poster boards. This is great when you have a photogenic candidate (Liz Truss) or are a well known local MP (Henry Bellingham), but in some cases it really does not work. In the first instance, the fact that you put your face on the boards really does mean you get only ...
Ever since the Lib Dem surge started nearly two weeks ago, David Cameron and any other Tory within hearing distance of a microphone has done their best to try and scare the bejaysus out of anyone listening that a "hung parliament" (I prefer to use the less pejorative balanced parliament) would be dreadful for this country. "It would be calamitous for the economy!". "It would lead to weak ineffectual government!". "It would be politicians behind closed doors stitching it up for themselves!". Etc. etc. etc. He was at it again today in a Q&A session I just saw a clip ...
David Pratt asks in Friday's Herald "How can we stem the tide of heroin flooding our streets?" He also seeks to "starve the Taliban of their financial lifeblood." Up to 50% of Taliban income comes from the opium trade, and Western governments can most easily end this funding by making heroin available for supervised consumption in clinics as is being done in a growing number of European states. All the evidence from overseas and from UK pilot studies suggests that this course of action will reduce the acquisitive crime, drug dealing and prostitution that addicts engage in to fund their ...
The British Conservatives have always considered themselves to be the natural party of government. Those years when the Tories have been out of power are seen as unfortunate interludes during which they have to hunker down and retrench. The 13 years of Blair-Brown rule have been something of an aberration (an assertion Socialists would agree with, for different reasons) and ...
It's now 10 days since Nick Clegg transformed this election with his stellar performance in the first leaders' debate. The Lib Dems are still riding high in the polls despite the best efforts of the Conservatives and their media pals and the rather pathetic sight of some Labour commentators (that's you, Polly Toynbee) making a case for them to cling on to power because they aren't the Tories. Here's what Liberal Democrat bloggers are saying about the campaign: Steph Ashley, in a passionate post that brought tears to my eyes, talks about her disappointment in 2005 and her hopes for ...
it is standard parliamentary practice to abstain when negotiating in private with your own leadership in an attempt to get them to change their minds. Really? Read more.
Nick Robinson has reported: I'm told that Labour has asked the two other big parties to sign a joint letter to broadcasters criticising them for covering the debates and the polls too much and claiming that the news bulletins had "failed to deliver the usual specialist examination of specific policy areas". The Lib Dems and the Tories have refused to sign. The BBC has yet to receive the letter. Here's the party's official response to the request from Labour: We have discussed your proposal, however, we do not think that it is appropriate for political parties to seek to dictate ...
From today's YouGov poll in the Sunday Times (one of the questions which I don't think was reported in the paper, though I've not seen a hard copy): The other parties have been targeting Liberal Democrat policies in recent days. What is your view of this? It shows the parties are doing their job – the Liberal Democrats need to be scrutinised: 34% It shows the other parties are rattled: 53% This one also looks to have been unreported: Newspapers have questioned Nick Clegg's personal financial dealings. What is your view on the basis of what you know about this? ...
A special Sunday treat: ten of the top political videos from the past week. But, annoyingly, spread out over three separate posts to help you keep checking out Lib Dem Voice's election coverage. Here are the final three ... Vince Cable is right about everything (Also available on YouTube here). The Lib Dems meet South Park: (Also available on YouTube here). A new surprise for the Leaders' Wives via the BBC's Comedy Blog: Gordon's the weakest link (Also available on YouTube here).
I should probably avoid speculation as to what happens after the election and focus my energies on getting as much support for the party. However, I would hope that, rather than make a decision on their own, the leaders of the Liberal Democrat party will hold a referendum to it's members as to which party to side with ...
There will be a chance to hear all the Parliamentary candidates for Kingston & Surbiton on Thursday. A hustings meeting will be held at the Kings Centre, in Coppard Gardens from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. Each candidate will be allowed to make a statement about their policies, then members of the audience will be able to ask them questions. Do go along if you'd like to hear what they want to achieve in the constituency.
In the past if you read something in a newspaper that you disagreed with, that was pretty much it. A very small number of people were moved to write to the paper and a few very rarely moved to stop buying it. But it was essentially a personal, private matter - grumble a bit, mention it over coffee to someone and then the world moves on. Courtesy of social media, there is increasingly a different pattern: grumble online, see other people also grumbling online, grumble some more and hey presto - the complaints reach a much wider audience as online ...
interesting
I took this last week off work and a very busy week it has been too. More media interviews, lots more delivering of leaflets, and lots more canvassing, around Sittingbourne and on the Isle of Sheppey - as well as catching up (slightly) on the emails. I am also delighted to have found many new members and supporters. We are all being exceptionally busy spreading the message as far as we can - and generally are getting a good response. Labour's campaign is rather puzzling. We were to have a church debate in Milton Regis, but the Labour candidate, Angela ...
Welcome news from the Electoral Commission who have agreed to make their reports of donations to parties clearer. As I blogged last week, the figures for donations to the parties during the first stage of the general election have been widely misreported. Media reports presented the figures as if they were the totals of actual donations received, but in fact: The numbers are misleading for two reasons: They are (only) for donations to parties. As I've previously pointed out, donations made direct to candidates during the election campaign period are excluded from these figures. The figures only include donations which ...
cos i'd missed sat mass so st cuthbert's first communion then bacon in Wicket Gate instead rock on hommy
This is the Tory policy that is getting people hot under the collars. Even the Tory who axed it looked a bit peaky when asked about it coming back in (aka Ken Clarke). In a society which aims to balance equality with fairness there cannot be a place for policies like this. The sentiment would drag us back to the dark ages. Adeela the other night showed her true colours at the Fawcett debate. This policy would affect: -single parents -those who are divorced through no fault of their own -those divorced because of estrangement (I partner sods off into ...
In March, we began in investigation into a bonus culture within NHS Tayside. You can read our initial investigation into it by clicking here. In the response received from NHS Tayside, we discovered that indeed there are bonuses paid to consultants that are not simply awarded in one year, but are permanent additions to their salaries. It now appears that NHS bosses are also in on the act, getting similar bonuses added to their salary, contributing to their pensions and completely unrelated to ongoing performance. Liberal Democrats investigation unearthed the matter which is reported in today's Observer: NHS boss earned ...
Around this time last year, in the local and European elections, I was at a church prayer meeting. We were discussing the elections and for which parties people had voted earlier that day. One man spoke up: "I went into the polling booth and I saw, on the ballot paper, the words 'The Christian Party: Proclaiming Christ's Lordship' so I thought they must be a good party to vote for." I remember wondering how many more of the 250,000 votes the Christian Party had received were based on a similar thought process. I also remember looking on their website at ...
This has been such a busy election, it's been tricky finding the time for blogging. However, I'm amused that both Labour and Conservatives have been trying to suggest that voting Lib Dem will let the other lot in, without any reference to the local situation. So, in Manchester, where no Conservative has been elected for 18 years, Labour assure us that voting Lib Dem will let the Conservative candidate through (even in Manchester Withington where there is a Lib Dem MP!) whilst the rather feeble Conservative leaflet which arrived via the Royal Mail seems to be assuring us that a ...
The Tory deputy mayor for Bishop's Stortford, Keith Warnell, has been caught out being offensive to local six formers on twitter (wlll they ever learn!). Mr Warnell saw two sixth formers out campaigning with the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate and tweeted: "Bloody sixth form canvassing in town today, good grief whatever next" Oops! The sixth formers in question saw the tweet and complained to the paper. Mr Warnell did not apologise for the tweet instead saying "he did not realise comments were public" The Bishop's Stortford Observer has the full story.
A special Sunday treat: ten of the top political videos from the past week. But, annoyingly, spread out over three separate posts to help you keep checking out Lib Dem Voice's election coverage. Here are the second three ... Dave Cameron – Nick Clegg's Mini-Me (Alos available on YouTube here). The truth behind the UK general election (according to The Independent): (Also available on YouTube here). #iagreewithnick on Tuition Fees: (Also available on YouTube here). Check out LDVideo part 3 later in the day.
Proper post tonight... Terence Eden, who describes himself as a 'natural Labour voter' who went into the election thinking he might vote for them, is joining the Lib Dems. I'm quite astonished at how many people I know, respect and like, but who have previously been non-partisan, are becoming active campaigners for the party this ...
Sunday: For four hundred years, Great Britain has had a Liberal Party that exists to set people free from arbitrary power of kings and churches and vested interests. And for the same time there has been a Conservatory Party that exists to try and hold on to power for those same interests. Then along came Hard Labour. The Conservatories are wrong and we will oppose them always. But Labour are an insane aberration, an authoritarian elite that believe absolutely that what they are doing is not just RIGHT but FOR YOUR OWN GOOD, and so they will NEVER, EVER STOP. ...
What a productive Sunday; 95 more leaflets delivered before the torrential rain came AND a replacement keyboard and battery sourced for my misbehaving laptop for a tenner all-in thanks to the power of sheer fluke. Go me. I was going to write something about Polly "£140k pa" Toynbee and her latest exhortation to don the clothes-peg again on May 6th, but further comment upon this is completely superfluous as James Graham has fisked her like a kippered lutefisk here. So instead of yet more election-related guff I'm going to talk about Life on Mars. Hey, it's Sunday after all. Now ...
We don't want Labour any more, but do we will really want the Tories back? Probably not. Of course I don't (Liberal Democrat and proud of it!). However I think more people are also coming to that conclusion... musically... Song for Democracy Common People Nick Clegg - Liberal Democrats Song Vince Cable Is Right About Everything - The Attery Squash Vince Cable's Way Liberal Democrats - dedicated song If you feel benevolent and particularly generous, this writer always appreciates things bought for him from his wishlist
Four blogs have recently joined Ryan's Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator: Ben Rathe - http://benrathe.squarespace.com/ Jason Kay - http://jaekaygoesforth.blogspot.com/ John Bridgen - http://www.johnbrigden.co.uk/blog/ Paul Edie - http://pauledie.blogspot.com/ Good luck to all the new bloggers, and why not take a moment to pop over to their blogs, take a read and post a comment? Whether you are a new or experience blogger yourself, you may also find our compilation of "how to blog" posts useful:
In #chelmsford cathedral for scouts St George's Day parade
[IMG: http://www.wikio.co.uk] Not one, but two former Tory members will be standing against John Redwood in Wokingham. I know this very well because it would seem that all CONservatives in Wokingham think that where I live is in their constituency - so I get all their propoganda through my door! LOL This should seriously split the CONservative vote just south of Reading. This coupled with the Lib Dem bounce may see Lib Dem Prue Bray taking the seat [IMG: :)] [IMG: mur] Seems it's a good time to be a Lib Dem in Berkshire! In Reading East Gareth Epps is ...
Meeting with local community group at Sha Jan restaurant. They are keen to hear more about the lib dems in #chelmsford
I am sorry but I could not resist the opportunity to comment on the phenomenal impact of the televised election debates and the Clegg-effect here in Sutton. Suddenly on the doorstep everyone wants to talk politics, and especially about the Liberal Democrats. People are hungry to know more about our policies and what we stand ...
Stuck in the wrong place due to the air travel disruptions? There is still time to apply for a proxy vote as the Electoral Commission explains: Voting by proxy means appointing someone you trust to vote on your behalf. To apply, go to www.aboutmyvote.co.uk and print off the application form, sign it and send it back to your local electoral registration office by the 5pm 27 April deadline. You can also call our helpline on 0800 3 280 280 if you have any questions. Registration officers should accept faxed application forms or scanned copies by e-mail, as long as the ...
Why vote LibDem on May 6th? Found the video on the feature section at the top of this page on YouTube – love it, it sums up what the LibDems are all about, why I am a member of the party, why I am standing as a local authority candidate (with as much chance as winning ...
I was too busy delivering for Zuffar Haq yesterday to get out of Market Harborough, so this week I shall be sharing a few curiosities from my files. This mud wall stands in my own village of Little Bowden, near the Rectory. While you will find dry stone walls in villages on the Northamptonshire Uplands, like Lamport and Draughton, in more low-lying parts of the county mud was often used as a building material. I don't have a photograph to prove it, but I think the heavy tiles on top - it is important to keep the rain off mud ...
Offer letters went out to parents of 4/5 year olds this week. I understand that a number of parents, particularly in Lee Green and Blackheath, haven't got the school of their choice, and have received offers of places at schools some distance away. This of course, is a legacy of the lack of places caused by the Mayor's decision to close Ennersdale Primary School in the first place. My colleague Cllr Chris Maines is collecting examples so he can put together the full picture. If you're a parent who is dissatisfied with your offer from the Council, please do drop ...
Some further research has shown just how desperate some Woking Conservatives are to get make a career in politics as MPs – not to serve the people that elect them, but to make a career in Westminster for personal gain. Lets take a look at the shortlist of candidates from the so called 'Open Primary' ...
The Evening Courier reports: A convicted fraudster has once again been questioned by police over illegal voting claims. David Ginley, who is hoping to be re-elected for the Conservatives in the Warley ward in next month's Calderdale Council elections, has been arrested by police on suspicion of election fraud. As reported in yesterday's Courier, the 60-year-old and a 39-year-old man were questioned on Monday. The 39-year-old is believed to be Mohammed Rashid, who is standing for the Conservatives in the Park ward. Both have been released on police bail pending further inquiries. You can read the full story here.
I had a phone call from a fellow member of Market Harborough Liberal Democrats this morning: "Did you take any photographs of the Battlebus yesterday? Some people at church had heard about it and wondered what kind of bus it was."Roman Catholic bus enthusiasts are an important interest group here in Harborough, so I shall be sending some photos over this afternoon.
Iain Dale quite rightly has queried why the prospect of Labour finishing third in the popular share of the vote isn't a big story being talked about in the media. But actually Iain is too kind to Labour. Because the voting abyss Labour is teetering on the edge of is more than simply coming third. More than simply doing worse than Michael Foot. It's on the verge of its worst share of the vote since 1918. In 1983 Labour scored 28.3% and in 1918 it was 22.2%. (Both of these are figures for Great Britain, i.e. excluding Northern Ireland, as ...
I thought yesterday evenings episode of Doctor Who was absolutely top notch. (And a big step back up after last week's below par effort) Dranatic, well-scripted, exciting, thrilling and full of suspense. The build up to the end of the the episode, the first of a tw-parter, was exceptional. Until, that is, the BBC decided that it would be an appropriate moment to inflict a cheerful cartoon that I assume was meant to be Graham Norton bouncing across our screens, in a feeble effort to get Doctor Who viewers to keep watching whatever rubbish they had scheduled after the top ...
Reflecting on the first two Party Leaders' debates something struck me which was perhaps not obvious at the time: Gordon Brown didn't look particularly worried about what must now be the approaching end to his turbulent Premiership. Regardless of how the election campaign twists and turns between now and 6th May, there seems little chance ...
On April 20th, Chris Grayling, Tory shadow Home Secretary, finally apologised for his 'off the record' comments about the gay B&B affair in which it was reported he supported the Christian B&B owners' (illegal) decision to turn away a gay couple. This is nothing more than a reluctant u-turn in my view, solely done in ...
A lot of people have contracted me over the past week offering support and encouragement.It has been hard work balancing a full time job and campaigning, taking part in public debates, radio and TV interviews and answering hundreds of emails. I finished work on Friday for the election so I now have some time to catch up. It has been a fantastic time getting around our towns, meeting some tremendous people involved in all aspects of life here in Warwick, Leamington & Whitnash. It reminds me why we are so lucky to live here. Over the past couple of weeks ...
I received my postal vote on Saturday. No, I'm not going to be away on polling day, but it saves me having to trek to the polling booth on what is going to be one of the busiest days I've had! The day will start around 5am and won't end until probably well after midnight ...
The Telegraph has uncovered Nick Clegg's past support for drug policy reform http://bit.ly/bxJNC2, but has it uncovered David Cameron's http://bit.ly/c8a9ee The party leaders are both very sensible on the issue of course... at least they were before they had an election to fight. I suppose the Telegraph was intending to put Clegg on the back foot with this. He should express no regret. Rather he should ask why David Cameron expressed similar opinions in the past and has chosen to retreat back to the supposedly populist standard political position. Only the liberal democrats are willing to consider evidence on drugs ...
(Hat-tip: Andrew Sparrow's Guardian live-blog, this chart originated on b3ta.com).
That volcano erupting in Iceland—coincidence? Or a sign that something seismic is indeed occurring in our politics. The dust clouded the air for days, but now that the dust is beginning to settle—we can see a very different political landscape emerging. The polls confirm that in all probability we Lib Dems will garner something like 30% of the vote—and perhaps more. The fact that this translates into a much smaller pro rata share of seats will surely signify the decisive nail in the coffin for our out-moded and ridiculous voting system. Cameron talks of the fact that PR does not ...
Even the BBC website has reported Southport's triumph yesterday you can even hear an interview with manager Liam Watson. BBC radio Merseyside were promising an interview with Haydn Preece somewhere around 5.15pm yesterday-which I missed and is not yet on iPlayer.So Southport are back in the Conference one stop short of the football league after their win against Eastwood yesterday. The only thing I know about Eastwood is that it is where D H Lawrence came from. I've already met several people this morning who spent yesterday afternoon with their computers following the Visiter's live coverage. It would be interesting ...
The most startling result of this general election is not the huge reversal in the polls, but the power of the e-lectorate. Many Liberal Democrats have known for a long time that their poll ratings would dramatically improve given an equal footing - polls have for decades shown that most voters support their policies and trusted their political candidates. Even though in America social networking and expensive websites were thought to have contributed to the campaign, it is here in the UK that the challenge to the old media has been most pronounced. Attacks by the right-wing press, which dominate ...
On Thursday I went to a women and politics event at the council house. A good turn out. On the dais were Kerry McCarthy (labour) Adeela Shafi (Nasty Party), Barbara Janke (Lib Dem), Nicky (Bristol W PPC Green) and a couple of academic. To be fair the event was good with balanced questions and excellent chairing from Helen Mott who is moderate and assertive. This helps as it sets the tone as a considered debate. First up were the academics. One from UWE which held strong views about who would be winning where which did not even mention the lib ...
In some ways the argument's moved on from the Tories' plans to give a £150 tax break to newlyweds. Partly because it's been eclipsed by the surge in support for the Liberal Democrats and partly because they're not really talking it up because it is, to coin a good bit of Scottish vernacular, pish. A couple of weeks ago, Nich put huge amounts of work into producing this cartoon which illustrates very well how rubbish the Tories' plans are on their own, but also how our's are much, much better: There's far too much work gone into this for it ...
Lynne Featherstone has a balanced piece in the Jewish Chron this week: In Hornsey & Wood Green in North London, there is a strong pro-Israel lobby and a strong pro-Palestinian lobby. When Jenny Tonge made her disgraceful and ignorant comments in the JC, calling for an inquiry into Israel taking organs in Haiti, I got emails from the pro-Israel lobby saying that the Liberal Democrats were pro-Palestinian. When Nick Clegg then rightly sacked Baroness Tonge from the front bench, I received emails claiming that he had only done so because the "Zionist conspiracy" had got to him. Both were symptomatic ...
The April Pact produced the following three priorities: 1. Youths gathering outside the Beehive Surgery2. Damage being caused to vehicles when delivery vans are travelling down the slip road near Mount Road (close to the surgery).3. Road surface at Roundhill Park. We also had a Cllr Charles Gerrish - the cabinet member responsible for Highways - attend and answer...
Twitter has been used by political campaigners around the world but we are now seeing it come into its own in the UK general election. During the leader's debates there has been a huge about of comment on Twitter by political activists of all parties. But we are seeing something else as well. When the press decided to turn the spotlight on Nick Clegg, the Twitter community responded with a hash tag and messages that blamed anything that has happened to them on the leader of the Liberal Democrats. The often funny and always absurd claims made a point about ...
There has been many stories about the the Liberal Democrat Policy on Immigration which I blogged 'Immigration - What to say on the doorstep'. I Think I should point out the current so called 14 years residence rule. As far as I can find out, no main party has a plan to remove this rule. This is why Nick Clegg has been saying that the other parties are not being honest with the public. The current 14 years residence rule works like this. If you have remained in the United Kingdom lawfully for 10 years, or have been here for ...
I read in the papers this morning that Labour 'Trotsky to Gordon Brown's Lenin', Ed Balls, has said that the Lib Dems and Labour could work together to keep the Tories out of power. I am finding the increased speculation from the two old parties on their futures amusing as they are clearly rattled, with Labour moving rapidly into meltdown and the Conservatives consolidating rather than moving forward but the notion that the tribal Ed Balls could be relied upon to keep to the terms of any agreement is quite laughable. It is a fool's game to make predictions about ...
Marsden Road We have reported the potholes to the Highways Dept and asked for them to be fixed. Haycombe Drive We have reported potholes to the Highways Drive and pointed out that at the entrance from Mount Road there is more than the one pot hole that is white lined that need repairing. We are pleased with the new plastic...
Here's a column I wrote for the Jewish Chronicle: Lib Dems are only on one side: the side of peace The blame game is the real obstacle to Middle East peace In Hornsey & Wood Green in North London, there is a strong pro-Israel lobby and a strong pro-Palestinian lobby. When Jenny Tonge made her disgraceful and ignorant comments in the JC, calling for an inquiry into Israel taking organs in Haiti, I got emails from the pro-Israel lobby saying that the Liberal Democrats were pro-Palestinian. When Nick Clegg then rightly sacked Baroness Tonge from the front bench, I received ...
I am somewhat bemused by the statements on your leaflet, and those of your Labour council candidates. You appear to be telling voters in Garston and Halewood that in the General Election the Liberal Democrats are in third place. This is odd because five years ago you stood next to me on the stage at the count when the result was read out. And unless you are suffering from severe memory loss you will remember that you won, I came second (yes me the Liberal Democrat) and the Conservatives were third. It wasn't even close for second and third was ...
The Hampshire Chronicle reminds us that there are also local elections on 6 May and talks up Liberal Democrat chances in Winchester.
[IMG: torycunt.jpg] Can someone make up a nice "Vote Cameron, Get Murdoch" button we can embed on our blogs?
[IMG: Tom with town council candidates Linda Gates, Liz Byrne, Katherine Bird and Barbara Long.] Tom McCann joined candidates for Andover town council campaigning at yesterday's Saturday market. Shoppers were overwhelmingly in favour of a town (parish) council for Andover and strongly supported the Lib Dem stance on and program for the new council. Many residents expressed dismay at the fact that local Tory and County councillors were seeking election to the town council. "These (Tory) councillors have already let Andover down by selling off our Guildhall and destroying the bandstand" one man said. "We need new councillors to represent ...
We have asked for this to be cleaned, it is complicated as part of the land is owned by Somer and part by the Council
Posters matter in election campaigns, because they show people that a party has plenty of support. Knowing that a party has lots of support in turn encourages other people to vote for that party. So last Sunday's Daily View was a poster special with one you can print off and put in your window. Today it's the turn of the virtual poster. Take this graphic – also at http://bit.ly/ldvirtual – and use it to as your Facebook profile picture / Twitter avatar etc. That way we can help turn the 49% who say they would vote Lib Dem if they ...
Martin Bright suggests over on The Spectator that Gordon Brown needs to manage the next 12 days with dignity given that Labour may well end up third in terms of vote share. He also says that this is an election that Labour should not have lost, and that given the mountain Cameron has to climb he likely expected it would actually take two elections. We are not at the finishing line yet. It is just possible that things could still change. However, I find it difficult to believe that Labour can come first (or even anything like close to first) ...
I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite tweets from the massive thread on Twitter which takes the mickey out of the way the Tory press is going for Nick Clegg. "my betterware catalogue is taking the words classy and stylish to new levels. must be #nickcleggsfault" from rachelogerisso "Nick Clegg was seen two weeks ago poking Eyjafjallajokull with a stick #nickcleggsfault" from urbancyclist Just thinking, next Thick of It eps will be even better! #nickcleggsfault alexaamy was going to take the girls to the beach tomorrow but now it's going to rain, that's #nickcleggsfault Yes, Mammy Dalby, ...
You've heard the Tory scare stories: A hung parliament will lead to us calling in the IMFA hung parliament will lead to the UK losing its triple A credit ratingA hung parliament will lead to financial insecurityA hung parliament leads to ArmageddonNot necessarily so. There are 16 countries with a triple A rating and as the Independent points out 10 of those had coalition governments. Indeed many of the governments that took the toughest action. Indeed Arnaud Mares, lead UK analyst for Moody's ratings agency, said: "A hung parliament does not in itself have direct implications for Moody's UK rating. ...
....I've got no problem with people living their lives as they see fit. I'm anti-religious in terms of religion having any part in Government or control over our legislation. I dislike the idea that someone's unproven beliefs can influence Government policy. Policy should be based on proper research and scientific findings. But I am never more repelled than when people attack others because of their personal choices. For instance... the idea of banning certain styles of Islamic dress, such as the burqa, is one born from sheer hate. There are those who argue for such a ban on feminist terms, ...
A week last Thursday, the political lay of the land shifted. The mini earthquake thanks to Nick Clegg has resulted in people thinking differently about this election. I do wonder why no pundits expected this. Didn't they recall when, a couple of months ago the three Leaders agreed to these TV debates, everyone said that whatever ...
A special Sunday treat: ten of the top political videos from the past week. But, annoyingly, spread out over three separate posts to help you keep checking out Lib Dem Voice's election coverage. Here are the first three ... Cameron and the Common People (Also available on YouTube here). Cameron v Clegg (with a dash of Cleese) (Also available on YouTube here). Clegg in Nazi Slur on Britain (Also available on YouTube here). Check out LDVideos parts 2 + 3 later in the day.
The expected onslaught against the Liberal Democrats in the Sunday papers has largely failed to happen. Instead, many have put aside the vituperation of Wednesday and Thursday to take stock of the campaign. This does not mean that there are no juicy insights. The Sunday Telegraph for example, rather predictably turns its sights onto Labour with a story about civil war within the party as they slump in the polls: As recriminations over Labour's performance grow, with signs that the party has changed its strategy and in future will encourage Mr Brown to meet more "ordinary" voters, Ms Harman, the ...
Last night Sir Richard Branson was reported as demanding compensation from the British government or the EU for the losses his Virgin airline has experienced during the ban on flights. His justification for the claim is that the authorities were over cautious in banning all flights for five whole days. Clearly these authorities are in the same position as social workers: damned if they do and damned if they don't. If flying had been permitted earlier and a plane had crashed there would have been outrage (and demands for compensation from the relatives of victims.) As an occasional air traveler ...
[IMG: http://www.wikio.co.uk]
The spectacular breakdown of the financial industry and the drastic economic upheavals that have followed, left most politicians struggling simply to keep up with events. The exposure of a ramshackle, and slightly corrupt system of expenses in Parliament has hugely discredited the political class. All of this left voters very angry, fearful and frustrated. The general feeling is one of contempt for politicians in general and -as they were in government- for Labour in particular. So, despite the fact that Conservatives were more guilty than most on the expenses farrago, and despite the fact that George Osborne has earned little ...
While I am proud to be a Liberal Democrat, and for the most part agree with our manifesto, there was one part that really stuck in my throat. We've got a 'firm but fair' policy on immigration. Firm but fair. FIRM but fair. That sounds like a policy about crime, about tax evasion, about *bad ...
If you want to have your chance to come and hear what myself and the other candidates have to say on matters that affect you before you cast your vote on May 6th, then why not come along to one of the hustings that are coming up. There are two more before the election, details ...
I was struck by the news this evening that Gordon Brown is, according to Labour sources, going to take on a more active role in the Labour campaign and will get out to meet more people. It made me think, "Does Brown appear in Labour literature in Blaydon constituency?"I got out my file of leaflets and checked through them. I could find no mention of Brown and no pictures of him either. Rather odd
I don't like to be rude, but just how ignorant do you have to be to write a sentence like this? Step forward Sunny Hundal: Identifying Lib Dem pockets of voters and organising activists to start knocking on doors on polling day to get them out would be another strategy Cowley Street is or should be thinking about.What does he imagine we normally do during election campaigns and on polling day? I shall study Mr Hundal's writings more closely in future. I may have been missing a comic treat. Thanks to Nick Barlow.
The `extremists` always seem to find some conspiracy theory to twist their own agendas probably to themselves. So it's the Lab/Con/LD who are the real extremists because of `the extraordinary amount of Ministers and Shadow Ministers who could be described as being of Eastern European (Marxist) extraction.` I know of the Milibands, Mandelson but not ...
Top Prize for the most surreal press event of the election goes to the Elvis impersonator who dropped into the Labour campaign this afternoon. I am amazed any professional Press Officer allowed this to go ahead. It is such a gift for the headline writers. Are You Lonesome Tonight? (snap of Alistair Darling) We Can't Go On Together With Suspicious Minds (snap of the PM and, well, any member of his cabinet). Heartbreak Hotel. Mustn't forget - All Shook Up - and then there is - Way Down - which looking at the polls this week seems apt! Headline ...
The latest unemployment figures are out and show unemployment continued its slow fall in March. Seasonally adjusted unemployment fell, during the month, from 12.7% to 12.5% in Birmingham, while the new UK figure is 5.6%, also down 0.2%. However compared to the other big UK cities, Birmingham continues to have the highest unemployment - the differential with Liverpool, the city with the next highest unemployment has increased from 0.3% to 0.4% during the month. The unadjusted unemployment figure for Acocks Green fell from 1,365 to 1,328 during the month, a welcome improvement. It is hard to be sure what will ...
Such a lovely day today. All the better to be out in the sun, enjoying the fresh air, getting in a bit of exercise and, yes you guessed it, delivering leaflets. I did a couple of patches in my own ward this afternoon. My face now feels it caught the sun.Anyway I returned home to write yet another leaflet and whilst tapping away at my pc, I heard the clunk of the letterbox. Anything coming through
Some interesting details from tonight's ComRes poll, as picked out by Andrew Hawkins, the firm's chairman: · Overall it looks like the Lib Dems had a very modest boost from Thursday night although Gordon Brown's performance has clearly boosted his party's rating · Turnout looks set to be really quite high - 66% say 'absolutely certain' to vote, the highest registered of this campaign · The number of people who are 'absolutely certain' to vote but who are undecided about who to vote for now stands at 3.3million British adults. This compares with 2.5m last week and 5m the previous ...
I bought my manifestos a few days ago. I went to a bookshop in Lancaster and asked for them and I was told that even though they had been published a week earlier the shop had not received them yet. I went to another bookshop and they had them. The person behind the counter said "which would you like?" I don't know what you think of this question but why would anyone want one manifesto? So that they could attack the policies of that particular party? Highly unlikely. So that they could confirm their beliefs in their favoured party? More ...
Unfortunately there are issues between LibDemBlogs and MyCouncillor blogs. I hope to have these fixed in the next few days.
