Citizens abroad and party strategyThere were many things to support in the party strategy motion. It includes confident liberalism, modern campaigning, and reaching new communities. However, there is one notable exclusion. In fact, around five million notable exclusions: citizens abroad. The strategy talks about reaching out to all communities in our country. These five million people are not in the UK, but they are served by our democracy. I live in Switzerland now, having moved for a job. Yet decisions made in Westminster continue to affect my life. The starkest of those in recent years was of course Brexit. Many of the million British ... (more) |
Children and their parents need holidaysTwo weeks ago, I was relaxing in Spain on what I consider to be a well-deserved holiday, and I started thinking about my life and how I shared that with my parents and sister, with my children, and now with my grandchildren. I quickly concluded the holidays had been important points in the whole of my family life. I can vividly remember holidays in the Isle of Wight, Tenby, and the Lake District with my mum, dad, and sister. I remember playing with my oldest grandchild in the warm sea pool on Crete as we tried to catch the little ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1581Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, argues that we must stop avoiding the subject of student finance if we are to win back younger voters. Margaret Hartmann reports that Trump's interference in the plans for his White House ballroom has produced a design that is a menace to public safety: "McCrery informed the White House that Trump's ballroom design did not meet fire safety codes, which require the majority of guests to be able to quickly exit through the main entrance during an emergency ... The architect also pointed out that alternative emergency exit routes out of ... (more) |
Jeremy Clarkson left red-faced over 'stolen' sheep that were never even missingSome sheep yesterday. The Mirror wins our Headline of the Day Award. In an outbreak of judicial witticism, the judges suggested that Clarkson fell asleep before he had finished counting them. (more) |
New party political - with the orange bench(more) |
Lib Dems come from third to win by-election in Katie Lam's constituencyWe had a rare Wednesday council by-election this week, in the constituency of high-profile Conservative MP Katie Lam. It's a multi-member ward where the Conservatives have topped the poll twice in a row, but the seat up in the by-election had been held by the Tunbridge Wells Alliance. Not any more though: TUNBRIDGE WELLS, Cranbrook, Sissinghurst and Frittenden – LD gain from Tunbridge Wells Alliance (seat not defended)LD 697 C 590 RUK 392 Grn 186Previous results: andrewteale.me.uk/in5yPreview: andrewspreviews.substack.com/p/previewing... — Andrew Teale (@andrewteale.me.uk) 2026-09-24T06:17:29.716Z Congratulations to new councillor Harry Wormington and the team. For what all this means for the running ... (more) |
Brexit was a 'unilateral declaration of political impotence'Ed Davey and the Liberal Democrats calling on the UK to rejoin the European Single Market at their recent conference, now a former Labour heavyweight has joined in to put pressure on Andy Burnham to reverse the insidious impact of Brexit on the economy and social policy. The Mirror reports that former Foreign Secretary, David Miliband has said Brexit was a "unilateral declaration of political impotence" adding that he has called on Andy Burnham to reverse the decision to leave the EU. The paper adds that Miliband said that Brexit has reduced the UK to "a bobbing cork in the ... (more) |
Ken Farnes: The forgotten England fast bowler who died in WWIII remember Trevor Bailey talking about Ken Farnes, but I don't think I've ever seen film of him before today. Farnes stood 6 feet, five inches tall, which made him a giant in the 1930s. In that decade he took 690 wickets at 21.45 for Essex and Cambridge University. He also played 15 tests for England between 1934 and 1939, taking 60 wickets at 28.64. Cricket Web has a good article about him, and describes his last days: Farnes joined the RAF and trained as a pilot, largely in Canada, and returned to the UK in 1941 where he was ... (more) |
Local campaigner wants to see the River Teme given rightsThe Teme at Leintwardine A Shropshire campaigner says the River Teme should be granted legal rights because it has become "unwell". Inspired by the way the River Wye has become the first river in the UK to be given cross-border rights covering it from source to sea, Sam Jones has started a petition which has so far been signed by more than a thousand people. Sam Jones told BBC News: "Over the years I've seen decline. I've been a swimmer, kayaked in the past, I'm an angler... you notice things around you. "It's 30 years since it's been designated a ... (more) |
WATCH: Max Wilkinson's speech to ConferenceCreep glasses and jokes at Robert Jenrick's expense were high on the agenda for Max Wilkinson in his speech to Conference. I am used to being disappointed by Lib Dem Home Affairs spokesperson's speeches. I'd rather a more positive message on immigration but this was better than we have had in recent times. I was glad to see him prioritise tackling violence against women and girls. While I had been worried about the packaging of the campaign about smart glasses,it's an important issue to tackle. Anna Sabine and Wera Hobhouse's amendment at Conference called for it to be very clear ... (more) |