A Lib Dem team has been out in Bridges ward of Gateshead recently to deliver the latest Focus. The Lib Dems are now the only party campaigning in the ward. No other party is bothering to keep in touch with residents.
On Saturday 18th October 2025, Light Up Whickham held a race night to raise funds for Whickham's Christmas tree. A bunch of Lib Dems turned up. A good time was had by all. I lost a great deal of money for a good cause.
I grew up hearing how wonderful The Goon Show had been, yet when the BBC screened The Last Goon Show of All in 1972, I was hugely disappointed. But Lurgi Strikes Britain, which was first broadcast in November 1954, is more like it. Not only does it have new resonance after the Covid pandemic, the phrase "the dreaded lurgy" has entered the language. I also notice that the Goons hit upon the idea of dragging their BBC announcer into the programme long before Round the Horne did.
My Lady Dedlock has been down at what she calls, in familiar conversation, her "place" in Lincolnshire. The waters are out in Lincolnshire. An arch of the bridge in the park has been sapped and sopped away. The adjacent low-lying ground for half a mile in breadth is a stagnant river with melancholy trees for islands in it and a surface punctured all over, all day long, with falling rain. My Lady Dedlock's place has been extremely dreary. The weather for many a day and night has been so wet that the trees seem wet through, and the soft loppings ...
Incident number one: A Devon councillor at the centre of an election expenses row has been granted relief by a High Court judge who declared there had been "no bad faith". Councillor Neil Stevens accepted in his official written court submission that "mistakes had been made" but that he was "truly sorry" for this, and that he would "never make this kind of mistake again"... In Cllr Neil Stevens' written affidavit, he claimed that Cllr Hill had "underlined that in addition to his own experience and understanding of the rules, he had also checked his work using artificial intelligence, namely ...
"The Cabinet Office, Lord Gove and Ciga Healthcare were approached for comment but did not respond by time of publication."Byline Times has news of another alleged scandal in government procurement during the Covid pandemic. Max Sullivan on his experiences of introducing on-street bicycle hangars in the London Borough of Westminster: "Make decisions on merit. Objections that don't have merit can be listened to, but not indulged, if you want to move faster. Officers need to have the confidence in the need for the scheme (lack of space to park a bike is a major barrier to cycling) to give their ...
Editor's Note: In November party members will be voting to elect our next Party President. At Lib Dem Voice we welcome posts from each of the candidates - one to launch their candidature plus a maximum of one per week during the actual campaign. The news that our membership has halved in five years, is not simply a statistic to be dismissed or explained away, it's a call to action. As Liberal Democrats, we must confront this reality with both honesty and determination. It's been at the heart of my campaign as Vice President, because if we're going to improve ...
Today's by-election in Caerphilly isn't just about one seat: it's a canary in the coal mine for Welsh democracy. The surge by Reform UK demands urgent action from liberals, not only in turning out in force but also in seriously addressing the underlying shifts that are opening the door to populism in Wales. For decades, Caerphilly has been a Labour heartland. But the numbers now tell a startling story. A recent poll puts Reform at 42% and Plaid Cymru at 38%, with Labour languishing at 12%. Across Wales, Reform is reported to be opening up leads over Labour. This is ...
We are holding a Thursday street surgery tonight to speak with residents on any local issues or concerns they may have. Should you have an issue you wish to discuss with us, e-mail us at westend@dundeelibdems.org.uk or call Dundee 459378 and we will be pleased to meet you - many thanks.
Politicians from all parties are adamant that banning Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from watching their game against Aston Villa has anti-semitic implications. In the House od Commons, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport told MPs: this is not a decision to ban football hooligans; it is a decision to ban all away fans from a game, which a safety advisory group has not done in this country for nearly 25 years. It was a decision taken not on the grounds that he suggests, which was the risk posed by Maccabi Tel Aviv fans; it was a decision ...
How it's pronounced is the least interesting thing about Southwell. For what it's worth, one of my history teachers came from the town and said Suthull not South-well, so I do too. But just as in Shrewsbury, it doesn't matter. The video is right: Southwell Minster is one of England's least well-known cathedrals, but it's one of the finest. We don't even get to see it's glory: the medieval stone carving ("The Leaves of Southwell") in the Chapter House. Look below for an example. And it's a fine little town. I believe that when the Minster became a cathedral in ...
Reader's voice: Shall I say it? Liberal England replies: Go on then. Reader: That. Is. A. Disgrace. Liberal England: Thank you. Liz Truss flew to Tokyo to sign Britain's first post-Brexit trade deal five years ago this week. She took with her a small jar of Stilton cheese. The deal was largely a rollover of the one the European Union already had with Japan, but Truss had fought for better access for Stilton and cheddar. And, as a token of her appreciation of the liberalising of the Japanese market, she presented the Japanese foreign secretary Motegi Toshimitsu with the Silton ...
Tony Blair attended Fettes College in Edinburgh, which is often called "the Eton of Scotland". I've come across a footnote about the school's origins in Stiff Upper Lip by Tim Renton: Sir William Fettes founded the college with a bequest of £14m (in 2017 money) for the "maintenance education and outfit" of orphans and to help people "who from innocent misfortune during their lives, are unable to give suitable education to their children". In 2012 only five of 750 children enrolled were paying no fees. So it really is the Eton of Scotland. Eton College was founded by Henry VI ...
Editor's Note: In November party members will be voting to elect our next Party President. At Lib Dem Voice we welcome posts from each of the candidates - one to launch their candidature plus a maximum of one per week during the actual campaign. Reflecting in the days and weeks after another amazing Party conference, I've been struck by the number of discussions I had, whether at fringe events or (more often!) in the bar, about how we engage and inspire the next generation of Lib Dem members and voters. As Chair of English Young Liberals, this is something I ...
I heard this in 2008 on Radio 3's Late Junction, and thought I had discovered an obscure new band I rather liked. On further investigation, Vampire Weekend turned out to be about the trendiest band in the world just then. Their detractors called their music "Upper West Side Soweto" and "trust fund frat rock".
With thanks to volunteers from Dundee Westgait Church, there's Tea and Toast at the West End Campus on Thursday mornings. The volunteers welcome any parents or carers of pupils at St Joseph's RC and Victoria Primary Schools and Balgay Hill Nursery School between 9am and 10.15am each Thursday in the primary schools' hall. It is a great chance to meet other parents/carers and have a chat. All welcome!
The Mirror reports that Chancellor Rachel Reeves is looking at scrapping tax breaks, which allows cars leased under the Motability scheme to be exempt from VAT or insurance premium tax. The paper says that these tax breaks are worth around £1billion a year, and the measure will mean cutting an exemption which allows cars leased under the scheme to be exempt from VAT or insurance premium tax. BMWs, Mercedes and other luxury cars could also be removed from the scheme: Around 860,000 disabled people use the scheme, which is open to people who claim a qualifying mobility allowance, usually through ...