An altercation in the HouseThe media are reporting an "altercation" in the Commons between Nigel Farage and Caroline Voaden. It happened at the State Opening of Parliament last May when MPs were queuing on a staircase to leave the chamber. Caroline told the Guardian: He was trying to get out of the chamber and instead of just asking if he could go past, he said: 'Let me past'. I turned round and said: 'No, you can wait your turn like everyone else'. He grabbed me by the arm or the shoulder, pushed me to one side and tried to push past me. One of ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1599James Graham reads Roz Savage's pamphlet for Compass, Liberalism Alive: "Whether you are the biggest Ed Davey fan or not, the fact is that the hard work to develop a post-Davey vision for the Liberal Democrats needs to begin. Whether he stands aside on this side of the election or not, he will not go on forever." "What is unfolding before us at national government level, reminds me of what has happened to local government over the past decades. For different reasons, the obligations - the things local govt had to do - became more and more onerous, precisely at ... (more) |
Europe's coffin-makers warn Chinese imports could be death knell for industryThanks to a sharp-eyed Liberal England reader, Politico wins our Headline of the Day Award. (more) |
Reform leader of Leicestershire County Council under pressureDiscontent with the Reform UK leader of Leicestershire County Council, Dan Harrison, is growing within his own party, reports the Harborough Mail. Reform councillors met on Tuesday to discuss the council's direction under Harrison and, the Mail says, a vote on whether they were happy with his leadership saw a majority of one in his favour:It is understood that, according to one source, discontent has been forming within Reform due to what is being called a "lack of direction" under Cllr Harrison. Recent by-election results have increased pressure on the party leader too.The paper quotes the leader of the Liberal ... (more) |
Reform's first gain from the Lib Dems since MaySix principal authority council by-elections this week, including Reform's first gain from the Lib Dems since May: Beechwood & Heath (Halton) Council By-Election Result: [IMG: ➡] RFM: 35.3% (-4.2) [IMG: 🔶] LDM: 26.3% (-18.3) [IMG: 🌹] LAB: 25.2% (New) [IMG: ◼] RES: 6.3% (New) [IMG: 🙋] Ind: 4.2% (New) [IMG: 🌳] CON: 2.6% (New)No GRN (-13.2) or LBT (-2.6) as previous.Reform UK GAIN from Liberal Democrats.Changes w/ 2026. — Election Maps UK (@electionmaps.uk) 2026-10-30T00:01:03.950Z Thank you to Douglas Macdonald for being the Lib Dem here, and scoring that promising first preferences increase. For what all this means for the running ... (more) |
Farage in hiding from the 'orange ninjas'Nigel Farage was absent from the House of Commons chamber for the budget speech on Wednesday and his claim that he failed to show to avoid a physical altercation with the Liberal Democrats has sparked the sort of storm on social media that you might expect. My favourite posts from that thread include; 'The famous violent thuggery of (checks notes) the Lib Dems. The trained orange ninja assassins from places like Wantage and Barnstaple. Yeah, right. He doth protest too much methinks.', plus 'Well, you wouldn't have wanted to start a fight with Paddy Ashdown, and we do have a ... (more) |
Council by-election results scorecard 2026-2027Here's the tally of seats changing hands in principal authority council by-elections held between the May 2026 and the May 2027 local elections: Con Lab Lib Dem Green Reform SNP Plaid Ind/ Other Net Con [18] +2 (+2/0) +1 (+3/-2) -1 (+3/-4) -6 (+3/-9) -1 (0/-1) – +3 (+4/-1) -2 Lab -2 (0/-2) [15] -1 (0/-1) -1 (+3/-4) 0 (+9/-9) +1 (+1/0) -1 (0/-1) 0 (+1/-1) -4 Lib Dem -1 (+2/-3) +1 (+1/0) [19] +1 (+1/0) +2 (+2/-1) -1 (0/-1) – +3 (+3/0) +4 Grn +1 (+4/-3) +1 (+4/-3) -1 (0/-1) [7] – +1 (+1/0) – – +2 Ref +6 ... (more) |
Printing againGateshead Lib Dems are having yet another action day on Saturday. That meant I was in the office this morning printing the survey we are delivering. The printing machine worked without a hitch. That's a first for me! (more) |
The orange one is in SunnisideThe scarecrow festival is currently taking place in Sunniside and Streetgate. This is my favourite. (more) |
Two early screen appearances by Patrick Stewart (1940-2026)The actor Patrick Stewart died yesterday. This story from the Hollywood Reporter concentrates on his appearances in Star Trek and X-Men, while some of us will think first of his appearances in Smiley's People and I, Claudius. In both he was a uniquely powerful presence. Over the years I have posted a couple of clips of him from even earlier in his career. Here he is in Joby from 1975. This was an adaptation of the Stan Barstow's 1964 novel of the same name. It was filmed in and around Horbury, the village near Wakefield where Barstow himself grew up. ... (more) |