Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael spoke on the opening day of the Party's Autumn Conference. In his speech he discussed Covid ID cards, Priti Patel's Home Office failures, the labour shortage crisis and refugees. I don't know if our Home Secretary lacks the empathy or imagination to put herself in the place of these desperate people who take these risks to get to our shores. But I DO know that her response to that growing crisis shames our country... This summer we saw Tory MPs queuing up to criticise the RNLI... for doing what they exist to do, ...
The Guardian's editorial to mark the start of Liberal Democrat conference is remarkably positive about the party: Electoral history is full of upsets, but few are as stunning as the Liberal Democrats' byelection victory in Chesham and Amersham, deep in the heart of Tory Britain... Boris Johnson's authoritarian and populist Tory party, designed to appeal to a new coalition of voters, has alienated large parts of its traditional base. When our correspondent canvassed with Lib Dems in the leafy Surrey marginal seat of the deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, not a single voter professed loyalty to the Tory MP. Voters ...
Announced at the Liberal Democrat federal conference, the winners are: Winner of Best Literature: The Cotswolds [IMG: ⭐] [IMG: ⭐] [IMG: ⭐] [IMG: ⭐] [IMG: ⭐] Congratulations to the whole Liberal Democrat team! pic.twitter.com/mbje7ChjZY — ALDC (@ALDC) September 17, 2021
This is the latest post in a series I started in late 2019, anticipating the twentieth anniversary of my bookblogging which will fall in 2023. Every six-ish days, I've been revisiting a month from my recent past, noting work and family developments as well as the books I read in that month. I've found it a pleasantly cathartic process, especially in recent circumstances. If you want to look back at previous entries, they are all tagged under bookblog nostalgia. A truly formative experience for me this month was attending the Los Angeles Doctor Who convention Gallifrey One. I had one ...
Current Set This House in Order: A Romance of Souls, by Matt Ruff Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction from Africa and the African Diaspora, eds. Zelda Knight & Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald Last books finished Felaheen, by Jon Courtenay Grimwood Rose, by Russell T. Davies Doctor Who: The Massacre, by John Lucarotti Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts, by Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martínez The Bloodline Feud, by Charles Stross "The Saturn Game", by Poul Anderson Next books The Rain-Soaked Bride, by Guy Adams Great Glowing Coils of the Universe, by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor
The Liberal Democrats have called for a total ban of conversion therapy in the UK, with no exemptions for religious practices. The party also wants to see a criminal ban on referrals, transportation of minors overseas, and advertising and promotion of any conversion practices as well as a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of conversion therapy. The call comes in the same year as the Government have met with the Evangelical Alliance and LGB Alliance, who advocate religious exemptions for gay conversion therapy, whilst failing to honour their promise to ban the practice. Liberal Democrat Equalities spokesperson Wera ...
The Journal of Liberal History is organising a fringe meeting on Friday at 17:30. Sir Graham Watson (Steel's former Head of Office) and Roger Carroll (former SDP Communications Director) will discuss what went wrong in the relationship between the Liberal and SDP leaders that led to the failure and break-up of the Alliance. Chair: Christine Jardine MP. The meeting coincides with the publication of the autumn issue of the Journal of Liberal History. The contents of the latest Journal of Liberal History include: Shirley Williams (27 July 1930 - 11 April 2021). Dick Newby recalls the life and political career ...
A Lib Dem press release brings the news from the party's Autumn Federal Conference: The Liberal Democrats have called for a total ban of conversion therapy in the UK, with no exemptions for religious practices. The party also wants to see a criminal ban on referrals, transportation of minors overseas, and advertising and promotion of any conversion practices as well as a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of conversion therapy. Their calls comes in the same year as the Government have met with the Evangelical Alliance and LGB Alliance, who advocate religious exemptions for gay conversion therapy, whilst ...
The Liberal Democrats have accused the Home Secretary Priti Patel of being "asleep at the wheel" in the fight against fraud, after the party revealed that over 22,000 investigations into fraud cases were dropped by police last year. Analysis of Home Office figures shows that between April 2020 and March 2021, 22,420 fraud cases were closed without a suspect being identified, an increase of 20% on the previous 12 months. Only 9% (4,853) of all the 51,870 cases closed in 2020/21 resulted in a suspect being charged. The Liberal Democrats are demanding an urgent government strategy to tackle the fraud ...
Liberal Democrat Newswire #152 came out earlier this week, including both a preview of the Lib Dem autumn federal conference and data on what people think 'Progressive Alliance' means.
The Financial Times today reports that Ed Davey will use his conference speech on Sunday to position the party as an unambiguously anti-Tory force. He will vow never help to help put Boris Johnson back into Downing Street. When asked if the Lib Dems would facilitate a Tory government at the next election, Davey replied: "No." Davey defended the decision to hold a virtual conference, arguing that planning was done well in advance before it became apparent what the coronavirus situation would be. According to the report, Davey will claim the Lib Dems will pose a "big threat" to the ...
Thu, 12:56: RT @alexvtunzelmann: Absolutely obsessed with this thread of sexy ladies with model planes https://t.co/wwYHxgNFZ5 Thu, 16:32: TV alert: I'll be on Al-Jazeera's @AJInsideStory show in 3 hours, talking about the concept of an EU army. Repeated 10 hours from now; and again 17 hours from now; and one last time 23 hours from now. Thu, 17:34: RT @apcoworldwide: NEWS: @DecKelleher Strengthens APCO Worldwide's Advisory Capabilities in Europe: https://t.co/piQ7NeMyET Thu, 18:13: Zodiac Station, by Tom Harper https://t.co/uofgizVsvO Thu, 19:24: The Return of the Discontinued Man, by Mark Hodder https://t.co/qsfVGn1HdO Fri, 09:23: Me on Al-Jazeera on the question, "Can the ...
Boris Johnson has certainly surprised some commentators with the ruthlessness he employed in reshuffling his cabinet, however, his failure to scrutinise the views of some of his new senior ministers is par for the course, unless that is he doesnt really care. As the Independent reports, the new Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, has a whole raft of unpopular opinions to her name. She is a long-time critic of the BBC, has argued that "left wing snowflakes are killing comedy" and "dumbing down panto", and isa strong opponent of gay marriage. So far, so Tory. More controversial however, must be the ...
[IMG: Sabina in new dress holding chicken (Marianne (Haslegrave) gorillas@commat.org)] Through the generosity of those who either bought from the stall or 'Went up the Tower' at Ullyett Cottage during the Sandgate Safari Sale, Sabina now has a new dress. With the funds raised Commat (the Commonwealth Medical Trust) was able to buy a treadle sewing machine for the women in the remote village of Nkuringo, in Western Uganda and they have since been busy learning how to use it. They have made skirts for themselves and clothes for their children, and will now start making school uniforms for young ...
The September 2021 issue of Liberator, Alistair Carmichael writes on vaccine ID cards, Norman Baker writes on trains and David Grace suggests we have a strategy without a strategy. Claire Tyler questions whether we are brave enough to pay for social care and Rebecca Tinsley writes on Sudan, Islamists and women. Alan Sherwell champions Universal Basic Income, Robert Brown says federalism could keep the UK together and Geoff Reid introduces us to green carrots. Liberator 409 can be downloaded here. Click on 409 at the top of the list. This is the September 2021 issue and we hope you enjoy ...
Sadly, in modern society it is all too frequently our marshmallow brain that ends up in the driving seat. Continue reading →
Four council by-elections this week and, hooray, a return to a full slate of Lib Dem candidates continuing the pattern of several weeks until the dip last week. Even better, that's up two on the last time these wards were contested. By just 41 votes the Lib Dems missed out on gaining a seat from Labour in Sheffield: So close in Sheffield an incredible campaign and a huge swing Sheffield Firth Park Lab 1091 40.2% -16.5% LD 1050 38.7% +34.1% Con 258 9.5% -14.7% Green 162 6.0% -3.8% Ind 155 5.7% +1.0% Lab hold pic.twitter.com/WQDIgcOKDS — ALDC (@ALDC) September 16, ...
As we Liberal Democrats begin our annual conference, held entirely online for the second year, we must recognise that we do so in the context of existential threat to the political system that gives our party its name. 30 years ago, Francis Fukuyama declared the victory of liberal democracy, and "the end of history". But now history is very much back, with authoritarianism on the rise in Britain and across the world. This context, we believe, means that it's now time for the Liberal Democrats to stand up as the party of liberal democracy - and for leader Ed Davey ...
Friends of the Earth Tayside is organising the Dundee Green Walk tomorrow - Saturday 18 September - in conjunction with the University of Dundee Botanic Garden, where it will start (at 10 am) and finish. It is being held to highlight the Climate Emergency in the run-up to the COP26 UN Climate Conference in November, and is supported by the Tayside COP26 Coalition. It's free to take part and is 6 km (3.7 miles) with only a couple of gentle slopes. There will be speakers to welcome you to the Ninewells Community Garden and the Riverside Nature Park, and tell ...
Speaking ahead of the opening of the Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference today (Friday 17 September), Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said: "The Liberal Democrats go into this conference feeling energised by our recent successes and determined to stand up for people who are sick and tired of being taken for granted. "Our stunning by-election win in Chesham and Amersham showed we are the party that can take on Boris Johnson's Conservatives and deliver a fair deal for families around the country. "Already we have forced the government into watering down their undemocratic planning reforms imposed on communities and U-turning on ...
