A very Russian conspiracyNation Cymru carries an extensive review of the new book by Luke Harding and its various revelations about former Wales UKIP leader. UKIP Welsh Assembly Member, Farage buddy and Reform UK leading light, Nathan Gill. In Betrayal: Trump, Putin and The New Age of Conquest, Harding, who has described Putin's Russia as a "Mafia state", suggests that Nathan Gill was part of a bigger pro-Russian network than has previously been reported. The website notes that Gill is serving a 10 and a half year sentence after being paid £40,000 by the pro-Russian Ukrainian diplomat, Oleh Voloshyn to ask questions in ... (more) |
Welsh Lib Dems: Burnham must back Wales with more than wordsResponding to Prime Minister Andy Burnham's comments in Port Talbot today, Welsh Liberal Democrat spokesperson David Chadwick MP said: Burnham says his visit to Port Talbot sends a powerful signal to the community, but he still hasn't actually committed to Wales receiving its fair share of the £2.5 billion steel fund, the single biggest decision that could benefit Port Talbot and the wider economy. Our priority is securing the powers that will make the biggest difference to people's everyday lives, from rail and infrastructure investment to research and development funding to the Crown Estate. Most fundamentally, Burnham is still refusing ... (more) |
Growing up at Foxton Locks around 1910Another video from Bob Trubshaw. He writes on YouTube: My maternal grandmother - known as a child as Dorothy Durran and in later life as Sarah Dallaston - spent her junior school years living at Bottom Lock Cottage at Foxton Locks. Her family were the lockkeepers at Foxton in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. I interviewed Sarah in 1988 and this video mostly uses these recordings. In 1991 I published edited transcripts of the interviews, along with family photographs, as a booklet called Around Foxton. In 2016 that booklet was revised and made available as a free PDF. ... (more) |
A polling advantage for the Lib Dems (LDN#213)Liberal Democrat Newswire #213 came out on Monday and you can now also read it in full below. But if you'd like to get future editions emailed direct to you as soon as they are published, sign up now: Welcome to Lib Dem Newswire #213, which takes a look at party approval ratings, news about Lib Dem target seats, a new think tank, the first female Minister of Education and more. First, though, congratulations to the new Lib Dem councillors since last time – Jim Paine, Rebecca McManus, Paola Davies, Rhys Wallis and Ian Taylor – along with their campaign ... (more) |
Happy 20th birthday to Liberal Democrat VoiceCongratulations to Liberal Democrat Voice, which is celebrating its 20th birthday today. And hello to Mary Reid, a fellow York philosophy graduate. I find that I first mentioned Lib Dem Voice here on 14 September 2006: Welcome and congratulations to Liberal Democrat Voice, which already seems to be establishing itself as the place for Lib Dem discussion on the net. Natural selection operates pretty ruthlessly there, so it is obviously doing a lot right. I recommend in particular Alex Wilcock's dissection of Trust in People: Make Britain Free, Fair and Green and the debate in the comments on Rob Fenwick's ... (more) |
GUEST POST Doctor Who: The Most Golden Era?Peter Chambers weighs the Doctor Who era I remember from my childhood and does not find it wanting. No Doctor Who fan is without an opinion on which era was a golden era. This is evident in that someone who professes otherwise is not a true Doctor Who fan. Douglas Adams would have understood. And gone for lunch. It is a truth universally acknowledged, here in Liberal England, that our host remembers that the Pertwee era was the best, because he remembers Pertwee as "my Doctor". Is he right? Can we adduce evidence for this? Or are we condemned to ... (more) |
The Absence of War: David Hare's fictionalised version of the 1992 general electionThe latest edition of the email newsletter for my podcast, Political Fictions, is out and you can also read it in full below. But if you'd like to get future editions emailed direct to you as soon as they are published, sign up now: The Absence of War, with John Cotton [IMG: John Thaw in the House of Commons] John Thaw stars as the Neil Kinnock-like party leader hoping to win a general election. Our first emergency episode! We'd been pondering doing the televised version of David Hare's play about the 1992 general election. But spotting that it is available ... (more) |
Happy Birthday to us!Lib Dem Voice was launched 20 years ago today, on 27th August 2006. In that time we have published 38,490 posts and 530,761 comments, and each has been lovingly read and edited by our team. Our Founding Editors were Mark Pack, Rob Fenwick and Will Howells and they were joined in by Stephen Tall and Richard Huzzey. You can see a full list of current and past editors here: The Liberal Democrat Voice team. Over the years more than 3000 people have contributed posts. Our current Editor, Caron Lindsay, has penned an astonishing 4311 posts for LDV, just beating Mark's ... (more) |
Burnham's betrayal on political fundingThe Guardian reports that Andy Burnham has dropped his support for capping political donations, causing anger among activists and Labour MPs who have long campaigned for change to the way parties are funded. The paper says that the prime minister has decided not to back amendments to the elections bill, which would cap the amount a person or an organisation can give in a single donation: The decision comes after a lobbying campaign from Labour's trade union backers, who said amendments to the bill, which returns to parliament for its remaining stages next week, could undermine their ability to donate ... (more) |
The two skills politics forgets to teachThe latest edition of my email newsletter about work in Parliament, A Lord's Eye View, is out and you can also read it in full below. But if you'd like to get future editions emailed direct to you as soon as they are published, sign up now: Welcome to my latest update on work in the House of Lords, this time taking the opportunity offered by recess to talk about something more general than usual. The two key skills politicians need, but aren't taught or talked about [IMG: brown wooden chairs on gray concrete floor] Chairs awaiting the arrival of ... (more) |