New sanctions list: Shutting the door after the private jet has bolted Responding to the government's new expanded sanctions list of Russian individuals, coming almost three weeks since Putin's invasion of Ukraine, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: This is shutting the door after the private jet has bolted. The Government has finally got their act together – but we should have been in this position weeks ago. This delay has given Putin's cronies a priceless window to firesale their assets. Now we need to go further. There are still too many associates of Putin getting away ...
I am here to support option 3, because I think it is the least worst option of those offered. It has guaranteed local government representation. Councillors need a louder voice in the party. They are used to doing scrutiny, and will be able to use that to our benefit. My lack of enthusiasm is not due to being resistant to change. It's that this is not the change I am looking for. Consider how professionally we approach campaigning – the training, the use of data, the effort that we put in. Consider how diligently we approach our policies – the ...
I had been intending to write a story a blog about American democracy having seen several claims lately that the USA has the strongest democracy in the world. As the old saying goes, "there's no delusion like self-delusion!" American democracy ... Continue reading →
I am no expert on energy and the environment, having spent the latter half of my career in information systems engineering; especially security, safety and automation. However, I have also worked as a trouble shooting systems generalist and it is this experience that I want to try to bring to the energy challenge in tackling climate change. Grangemouth refinery The government is committing to "Net Zero" greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. This is good news but the means of achieving it are critical. To tackle climate change innovation is still urgently needed and it must come quickly because implementation ...
She is the real deal:challenged, tested and found true.Celebrate fair hope!
News via Facebook: West Norfolk Independent Councillor Alan Holmes joins the Liberal Democrats. An Independent councillor has joined the Liberal Democrats, doubling the party's representation on the borough council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk. Mr Holmes, who represents Denver ward, said "I've been considering joining the Lib Dems since joining my parish council and then being elected to the borough council". Liberal Democrat councillor for East Downham, Josie Ratcliffe, welcomed the councillor's move and says she is looking forward to working with Mr Holmes on issues affecting the borough's residents. Last year the Lib Dems won a by-election for ...
Twenty-six years ago, Thomas Hamilton shot and killed sixteen primary school kids and their teacher, before turning the gun on himself. The weekend just past was the 26th anniversary of that dark day. I wasn't even two years old when it happened, growing up in a house just up the hill from the school. This is another piece I wasn't sure about writing, it might be even more personal than my last article. I may have been a toddler, but the news footage I've seen since – of my frightened parents haunts me to this day. I hope no one ...
Responding to the Government launching the "Homes for Ukraine" website for people to sponsor Ukrainian refugees, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said: "Families and communities across the UK have been crying out for the chance to sponsor refugees for years. It shouldn't have taken weeks of appalling humanitarian catastrophe in Ukraine for the Government to finally listen. "Even after the Government's welcome U-turn and side-lining of Priti Patel from this scheme, the vast majority of Ukrainian refugees trying to get to the UK are still trapped in bureaucratic limbo, unable to come here. Michael Gove couldn't even say ...
Mon, 12:56: Kyiv's hackers seize their wartime moment https://t.co/j42ZDVWC6B Mon, 16:05: RT @SluggerOToole: Elections, near and far - Nicholas Whyte @nwbrux speaking ahead of his @imaginebelfast talk in @ulsteruni on 25 March #i... Mon, 17:11: The politics of Scotland's bookishness https://t.co/bCE7MS9kaX Very interesting on the politics of reading. Mon, 18:43: After Atlas, by Emma Newman https://t.co/lFA6iT0xwc https://t.co/4w72sfrwc3 Mon, 19:12: Sad news. He was a great man. https://t.co/tGiy0p2CpO Mon, 20:03: Erhard Busek, 1941-2022 https://t.co/8T9eBgZcoY https://t.co/3VE3HkTGaM Mon, 20:48: Doctor Who: Peter Capaldi name-dropped on BBC set 39 years before becoming the Doctor https://t.co/5uYBT4kmN3 What goes around, comes around. Mon, 21:36: RT @KyivIndependent: ...
Tue 15th
09:42
Liberal Democrats need to be prepared for more than a change of government at the next election
Yesterday, Stephen wrote of the damage to our politics caused by the current Conservative administration. Today, he looks at how these might be repaired... Boris Johnson has damaged Britain: its cohesion, its standing, its reputation, its economy and its constitution. But what is increasingly apparent is that he has also damaged his own Conservative party. When the time comes to remove them from office, an electoral strategy will be insufficient; there needs to be a positive plan for long-term progressive politics that both fixes the mess left by Johnson's opportunistic populism and makes sure no future Prime Minister can act ...
Many thanks to the residents who contacted my colleague Michael Crichton recently about the dog bin near to Cambridge Street that had fallen over. The West End Focus Team reported this to the council and has had a positive response indicating it will be put back in its correct position.
The Guardian reports that Conservatives are blaming a "handful of very wealthy peers" who make up the shooting and hunting lobby over the news that legislation banning the import of hunting trophies is to be scrapped. The paper says that the animals abroad bill, which contained measures including banning adverts for holidays that feature elephant rides, was to be a flagship bill signalling to the world that post-Brexit Britain was a world leader in animal rights, legislating against animal cruelty abroad. Significantly, it included a commitment to ban the import of endangered animal parts and that has proven to be ...
