The major parties should boycott Farage's dodgy by-electionLiberal Democrat HQ doesn't need much encouragement to ignore unpromising parliamentary by-elections these days - it's worryingly reminiscent of the Nick Clegg years. But in the case of the Clacton by-election Nigel Farage has just engineered, we would be right to ignore it. We should not field a candidate. And the other major parties shouldn't field one either. In a move straight from the Trump playbook, Farage wants to turn his by-election into a people versus the Establishment election. He says the voters of his constituency should be the judge of his actions. The people of Clacton can vote how ... (more) |
Day 9319: Mr Froggy's Vanity ElectionTuesday It is four years to the day since Mr Bojo the Clown resigned but didn't actually resign as Prime Monster. Does anyone remember him? In a speech that many thought was so self-serving it would set all-time records, he told the assembled press that he would squat in Downing Street long enough to outlast his predecessor, Mrs Maybe, and - as a fake scholar of the Classics, taking his cue from the not-at-all-made-up diaries of Emperor Claudius as recounted to Robert Graves - long enough to install a successor who would be even worse. Don't know what made me ... (more) |
Government should block Nigel Farage's resignation - Ed DaveyHere is the Liberal Democrat response to Nigel Farage's announcement that he is going to resign and force a by-election in which he will stand again: Davey: We are calling on all parties to stand aside and refuse to give oxygen to Farage's vanity project Following Nigel Farage's decision to resign and trigger a by-election in Clacton, Liberal Democrat Leader, Ed Davey, said: "If this by-election does go ahead now, we are calling on all parties to stand aside and refuse to give oxygen to Farage's vanity project. "But the Government should just say no to Farage's ego-trip and block ... (more) |
The proud independence of the Isle Of ManRecently I had the great thrill of visiting the Tynwald – the Isle Of Man's parliament. The Isle Of Man is, of course, proudly a separate nation – a self-governing British Crown Dependency. Jersey has the same status, but there is something a little more accentuated about the Isle Of Man's independence – the distinctive flag with the motto of the three legs, which is seen everywhere; much evidence of a separate historical narrative etc. So, it was worth visiting the island just because of its independent status. The Tynwald tour was very interesting – we were told about the ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1544"The plunder of children's services by business is one of the big scandals of our time. Children's homes, special schools and foster care services are increasingly run for profit. Almost every time a child is removed from their family, somebody, somewhere cashes a cheque."Martin Barrow looks at one company that received £500m from local councils last year for the care and support of children and young people. Rory Jones finds that "England is beginning to develop a cooling divide, one in which access to protection from extreme heat increasingly depends on where people live, how much they earn and the ... (more) |
Let's be honest. Regeneration of some areas will take decadesI am sure that Andy Burnham is being both honest and hopeful when he says that he wants to bring improvements to every post code in the country. The way he proposes to do it involves devolution to Mayors and Combined authorities. Regrettably, what he is suggesting is not really new. Both Tory and Labour Parties tried elements of it in the 1990s and the first decade of this century. They produced an alphabet spaghetti of projects. Let's begin to play regeneration bingo. CATs (City Action Teams, (DCs) Development Corporations, CCs (City Challenges) SRBs (Single Regeneration Budgets), EZs (Enterprise Zones) ... (more) |
Why Plaid should not repeat their badger cull policyWhen Wales last tried to cull badgers it was under a Plaid Cymru rural affairs minister, so it is hardly surprising that experts and animal welfare charities are concerned that a new government will try to repeat the exercise. An article by Billie-Jade Thomas, the Senior Public Affairs Manager for the RSPCA, on the Institute for Welsh Affairs site reports that while it is still very much early days for the new Plaid Cymru minority government and the expanded Senedd, tackling Bovine TB (bTB) has already been raised in Plenary on several occasions, by parties for and against badger culling. ... (more) |
A Liberal England guest blogger shows us around Snailbeach MineGinger Beard Mark and the musician Eric Loveland Heath visit the old lead mine at Snailbeach in Shropshire. In its heyday in the second half of the 19th century, it was the most productive lead mine in the country. Eric Loveland once wrote a guest post for Liberal England about growing up in Snailbeach and his reaction to it today. And you can download his digital album Snailbeach Mines Trust. See? It's not just me who's taken with the place. (more) |
Mathew on Monday: Carl Cashman is a Liberal Hero - and his critics would love his media reachThere has been no shortage of criticism directed at Carl Cashman over the past few days following his appearance as the cover star of Attitude magazines Pride edition. Yet, looking at much of the reaction, I cannot help but conclude that there is more than a hint of the green-eyed monster at work. The truth is that many of those complaining would love to have Carl's reach, his charisma and his ability to connect with audiences far beyond the traditional Liberal Democrat bubble. His interview is an excellent one. He speaks about the importance of promoting positive masculinity to young ... (more) |
Parents shocked after children's paper hedgehogs found to contain pages from explicit novelThe Guardian wins our Headline of the Day Award for this worrying one from the Wirral. (more) |