The headline "two new MPs so far in this Parliament" is a welcome one. Winning, especially winning with record swings, is what we all want. Underneath the headline is a lot of hard work, plenty of tough decisions, and a drive to improve. We should all be thankful to our activists, staff and supporters. It is clear to me that the diagnosis and recommendations my team and I set out after the 2019 disaster were right, and that they are being taken seriously. Not least among them was that a Federal Board of 41 members cannot, and should not, be ...
The Derby Telegraph reports news of another switch* to the Lib Dems in Derby: A Derby independent councillor has decided to join the Liberal Democrat group on the city council. This means that Councillor James Testro, who was originally elected as a Conservative councillor for Derwent ward in 2019, will continue in his present position representing the ward as Lib Dem councillor until he is up for re-election in 2023... He will join fellow Derwent ward councillor, Stephen Willoughby, who was also elected to the ward as a Conservative, but is now a Liberal Democrat after joining the group two ...
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. This was the month that I changed jobs, hosting a big farewell party in my favourite local to Schuman (the 1898, ...
Liberal Democrats have welcomed the change of heart by Liverpool Labour councillors who will now recommend to the meeting of the City Council that we begin a consultation process on the future of the Elected Mayoralty between March and May ... Continue reading →
Who would have thought that 2021 would bring the Liberal Democrats two extra MPs? Not me, for sure. The question now for the Liberal Democrats is what lessons to learn from last year's unexpected bounty and how to build on it this year.
When I joined the Liberal Party, as a young Liberal, in 1964, I joined a party that wanted to build a society where all possessed liberty and none should be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity. The party expected broad agreement with the ideas of a Liberal society but tolerated people who had a variety of views on the issues of the day. So, whilst the majority view in the party was against capital punishment, in favour of legalising abortion, divorce law reform, decriminalisation of consenting homosexual relations between adults and of joining the EEC, there were those who differed ...
Tue 18th
15:44
'Elections Bill makes it harder to vote and undermines our democratic rights' - Alistair Carmichael
The BBC reports: MPs have backed proposals to introduce mandatory voter ID for elections, a major change to the electoral process in the UK. Voters will be required to show photo ID at polling stations under measures in the Elections Bill. Labour says the plan could reduce turnout at elections and discriminate against marginalised groups. But the government said the measure was supported by election observers and was necessary to prevent voter fraud. Voters would be able to show ID cards including driver's licences, passports and photographic travel passes. The government's Elections Bill cleared the House of Commons on Monday ...
We all know that without knocking on doors we just won't get the election results in May. Here in Wales every seat is up for election this May and that's why I've made it my priority to lead from the front and set myself a challenge. I've promised to canvass for at least 10 hours a week, every week, between now and polling day on 5th May. According to my quick calculations, I think I'll be able to knock on around 2,500 doors before the election. I'm calling it the Dodds Doorstep Challenge. It would be fantastic if party members ...
BBC News reports: The government has suffered a series of defeats in the House of Lords over its plans to clamp down on disruptive and noisy protesters. Opposition peers voted against a range of measures in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, with Labour calling some of the plans "outrageous". Peers also voted to make misogyny a hate crime in England and Wales in another government defeat. Baroness (Liz) Barker tweeted: So let's just check. Yep. That's 14 (yes, FOURTEEN) defeats for the Government on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill today [IMG: 👀] This awful piece of ...
The Leicester Mercury reports: Postal voters will have to resend their ballots in an upcoming by-election after a printing error. Charnwood Borough Council has said it is getting in touch with anyone who is registered for a postal vote for the upcoming Shelthorpe by-election after a candidate's name was left off the ballot. The Conservative candidate, Christopher Stewart, of Beaumont Road, Loughborough, did not appear as an option for voters... It is believed that only three people had already cast their votes, but the council will be contacting all postal voters by email or letter to inform them of the ...
Sheffield Hallam, previously home to the notorious Labour MP Jared O'Mara, was held by Labour in 2019 by just 712 votes.
Mon, 18:38: Using the method of two words with totally different letters for my first two guesses. Woordle 212 3/6 ⬜🟨🟩⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Mon, 18:57: Where Was the Room Where It Happened?, by BdotBarr [Bryan L. Barreras] https://t.co/lkF2drjTLx Tue, 09:00: RT @Dominic2306: Updated blog: PM was told about the invite, he knew it was a drinks party, he lied to Parliament https://t.co/J3jslbQV9A h... Tue, 10:45: How I Attained Persistent Self-Love, or, I Demand Deep Okayness For Everyone https://t.co/mfcifjsJ1D Long but very interesting.
At last some good news as the House of Lords has delivered a major rebuff to the government by amending significant clauses in their Police Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. The Guardian reports that amongst the changes was a vote to make misogyny a hate crime in England and Wales. The law change would enable judges to impose stronger penalties if prejudice against women is proved to be the motivation, and would also require the police to record whether crimes were motivated by a hatred of someone's sex or gender. They add that the vote came during a debate in ...
Tue 18th
07:00
Taking action to get the council to remove controversial car parking charges #dundeewestend
Following my strong criticism of Dundee City Council's lack of action to suspend parking charges in residential areas of the West End, despite the First Minister's instruction to work from home if possible due to the latest COVID situation and the Omicron variant, I have now placed an item on next Monday's council City Development Committee (24th January) to allow me to move that the charges are suspended meantime. The council's current position on this is ridiculous. The West End car parks are the only Dundee car parks in residential areas with parking charges but without any form of residents' ...
Liberal Democrat peers worked across the political divide tonight to defeat a number of controversial Conservative Government amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. The Government had attempted to forcibly rush through anti-protest measures without the appropriate time afforded for the House of Lords to scrutinise them - and without any consideration by the House of Commons at all. But nearly 70 Liberal Democrat Lords voted into the early hours of today to ensure the provisions were roundly defeated. Such provisions included a potential 51 week prison sentence for chaining (attachment to objects) and a proposed new offence ...
