Is Labour's success in curbing immigration harming the economy?As we move closer to John Healey and Andy Burnham's first budget, it is worth revisiting this article in Prospect magazine from December last year. The article refers to home secretary, Shabana Mahmood's immigration strategy which has restricted the rights of asylum seekers to stay in the UK and extended the time that legal migrants would have to wait for permanent residency. It argues that this policy is undermining the drive for economic growth, in this case for Rachel Reeves, but now Healey: Here is the unpalatable truth for Labour strategists. In 2024, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which ... (more) |
Should the Grimond Society Become an Associated Organisation?Yesterday I received an email in my inbox asking whether the Grimond Society, a pressure group supporting cooperatives within the Liberal Democrats, should become an Associated Organisation to the Party. I had presumed this had been a long-term goal anyway based on meetings held, but I appreciate it has been put to vote to let us have our say, which feels very much in the spirit of co-operative organisation, and as such I felt it would only be fair to make clear my own thoughts on the matter. The benefits of becoming an Associated Organisation are perhaps somewhat obvious; the ... (more) |
An interview with Bodhana Sivanandan, the youngest woman grandmaster of all timeBecause of her performance as top board for the England women's team at the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand - she played all 11 rounds, recording six wins, four draws and one loss - Bodhana Sivanandan has qualified as the youngest ever holder of the women grandmaster title. This video lists her many other achievements, except one: she is now two-thirds of the way to the full international master title, which is open to both men and women. This is the grade below grandmaster status. There is already talk of how soon she will play for the open England team at ... (more) |
Mathew on MondayBrighton was wonderful but I'm still left asking: what are the Liberal Democrats for? There is much I love about Lib Dem Conference. Brighton last week reminded me why. Seeing friends and colleagues from across the country, some of whom I only ever see at Conference, was wonderful. There were fascinating fringe meetings, including the one on Assisted Dying that I was honoured to chair on behalf of Dignity in Dying, passionate debates and the reassuring experience of spending a few days among people who, whatever part of the party they're from, share a belief in liberalism, internationalism and social ... (more) |
GUEST POST Is Isaac Asimov's psychohistory fiction or reality?Peter Chambers mixes science fiction with computer games, the numerical simulation of history, computer games and a take on political warfare. The term 'psychohistory' originated in the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. He started writing this in the 1940s, and after a long gap following the first three books continued to the end of his life. They sold very well. Psychohistory is the concept that the future of societies can be predicted - in outline - given a lot of data and a lot of computer power. At the time in which Book 1 was set, a Galactic Empire existed ... (more) |
You can't elect a Community Champion without a communityAs Liberal Democrats, we pride ourselves as being "local champions". It's on every Focus leaflet, in every direct mail. Our spatulas, fitbits and our friends and family who are oft abandoned in favour of doorknocking on a Saturday morning can attest to the fact that we are community people who believe in community politics. But how can you be a champion of a community that doesn't exist? This is the question that has been running around my head after speaking to hundreds of residents in my ward of Waterloo and South Bank, the most central ward in London, in the ... (more) |
Words matter, use them carefully!There are any number of slogans linked to the Palestine / Israel conflict that mean different things to different people. Accordingly we must be incredibly careful in how we speak. Our words can have a different meaning for those who hear them from the meaning we intended to convey. Some well known examples spring to mind. Those who shout "Free Palestine" at demonstrations, marches or concert stages may well mean a free Palestine alongside a secure Israel. However, to many Jewish Israelis and British Jews these words are heard as a call for an attack on all Jewish residents between ... (more) |
Does money buy votes?I have been reading in today's papers that the Republican Party are about to spend $880 million to try and win back the support that they are obviously using in the US midterm elections. This dwarfs the £72 million which two offshore crypto business people have put into Reform UK in recent weeks in the United Kingdom. As I have read these announcements I have been amazed at two things. Firstly, that vast amounts of money can buy votes, and secondly, that in neither the United states nor United Kingdom There are few mechanisms in place to adequate adequately control ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1583The New World warns that Rupert Lowe is coming for your parents: "Lowe's success exemplifies how Facebook has weaponised the anxieties and concerns of millions of Britons to drive its increasingly older, isolated users into unreality." "Monday's judgment ... means that unless the client agrees to release the material, those private conversations are now beyond the regulator's reach. This is particularly bad news for the SRA's ongoing attempts to tackle SLAPPs, the abusive legal actions used by the rich and powerful to shut down scrutiny."Nathaniel Peutherer analyses a judicial ruling that threatens efforts to curb Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. ... (more) |
Inside the refurbished libraryWhickham Library is currently being refurbished. On Saturday I was able to see inside. It's looking great. Doors reopen on 30th September. (more) |