Britain's gas gamble: Why Jackdaw is a bad bet for our energy futureMinisters have approved a gas field that will create 27 jobs, while heat pump grants face the axe in next week's budget. They are backing the wrong horse. Gas is in terminal decline in British homes, and today's decision to approve the Jackdaw gas field will not change that. Every year, more developers and families choose clean electric heating over a gas boiler. My own home is one of them: it no longer burns any gas, thanks in part to the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme. That scheme is now under threat. With Whitehall hunting for savings to fund defence ahead ... (more) |
Hello and goodbyeOne of our newest peers, Dave McCobb, (Baron McCobb, of Kingston upon Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire) gave his maiden speech in the Lords last week. Appropriately enough for a former councillor it was in a debate on Local Government: Democratic Accountability, Participation and Electoral Reform – he even managed to include some poetry. The debate itself was opened by John Shipley (Baron Shipley of Gosforth), giving his valedictory speech. He was previously the Leader of Liverpool City Council and vice-president of the Local Government Association, so was eminently suitable to lead on the issue. Dave McCobb said: ... (more) |
Reform fined for illegal publicityThe Guardian reports: Reform UK has been fined more than £2,000 for failing to declare it was the publisher of campaign material seen by voters - including an additional penalty for failing to pay on time. Remember your imprints folks! It also reports: A former Conservative election candidate has been suspended from the party after he was seemingly filmed discussing the cost of hiring contract killers and offering to "broker" the services of a far-right activist with alleged paramilitary links. It is tempting to ask what it is about parties that talk tough on law and order... Sign up to ... (more) |
Vince Cable writes: The endless hunt for painless taxesFew expect Andy Burnham's extended political honeymoon to last beyond the October 28 budget. The fiscal position is precarious. The bond vigilantes are signalling their nervousness about the UK in the form of 10 year bond yields of 5.4% : the highest of developed economies (despite some nice comments from the IMF). The public will expect to see some evidence of the Prime Minister's commitment to spend more on defence, employment for young people, affordable housing, meeting the NHS and social care needs of an ageing population, together with some relief from high energy costs, which may spiral further if ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1595Ian Lucas argues that Andy Burnham has the opportunity to lead the fight against Russian interference: "The threatening alliances now emerging worldwide between the tech platforms, politicians not committed to democratic principles and donors committed to hard right views demand that those countries and individuals who are committed to democratic principles must act together now." Hannah Jane Parkinson reports from Teesside, where maritime livelihoods are under threat and, as a new documentary reveals, crews are sure the local freeport is to blame. "What makes school or college debating, and political debates on TV, exciting is the theatre. As such, debate ... (more) |
Sorry - not our faultApologies for our downtime yesterday, and the lack of posts! Our tech guru was sorting out the fallout from the PHP crisis, which affected our website as well as many others globally. * Mary Reid is a contributing editor on Lib Dem Voice. She was a councillor in Kingston upon Thames, where she is still very active with the local party, and is the Hon President of Kingston Lib Dems. (more) |
SAVE THE DATE! Announcing The 2027 Lloyd George Society Weekend!After this year's really successful Weekend, which included a change of venue, we're pleased to announce that the Lloyd George Society will be heading back to the Lake Country House & Spa in Llangammarch Wells. As you can see in the photo above, the hotel is in a stunning location, and we'll have it all to ourselves. The hotel is on the edge of Bannau Brycheiniog National Park (formerly known as the Brecon Beacons), just a stone's throw away from Builth Wells. We are just finalising the speakers, but a little birdy (ok, our Chair, Prof. Russell Deacon) has told ... (more) |
Senior Reform official casts doubt over legality of huge donationsThe Guardian reports that a senior Reform UK official raised questions about whether major donations from billionaire backers Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo would be legal under the proposed new foreign donors cap three months before they gave £72m to the party. The paper says that James Orr, who was then Reform UK's head of policy and a Cambridge professor, discussed potential difficulties around future donations from Harborne and Delo in undercover footage captured by the investigative reporting group Verbatim: A reporter was posing as a potential donor when Orr talked to him about "filling the war chest in anticipation" ... (more) |
Turning Point UK chief executive suspended by Tories over contract killing claimsHeadline of the Day has already been won by a penis-biting dog from Rutland, but this Guardian story is still worth your attention: Former Tory election candidate suspended over contract killing claims A former Conservative election candidate has been suspended from the party after he was seemingly filmed discussing the cost of hiring contract killers and offering to "broker" the services of a far-right activist with alleged paramilitary links. Jack Ross was filmed apparently asking an undercover reporter "What do you want done?" before listing the type of violent options that could be bought. Ross appeared to tell the Al ... (more) |
Queen Mary did not request the Agatha Christie radio play that became The MousetrapDorian Lynskey has written for The Nerve about the current production of Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap and the play's history: The Mousetrap began as a birthday present. Queen Mary, the widow of George V, was turning 80 in May 1947 and requested a half-hour radio play from Christie as part of the BBC's celebrations. Every source says that, but it appears not to be true. In his mammoth podcast on The Mousetrap (starting at 0:17:05), Kemper Donovan says: Now the company line on this radio play commissioned for Queen Mary's birthday is that Queen Mary herself specifically requested a play ... (more) |