The motion on Europe to be debated at the forthcoming Liberal Democrat conference in Brighton has now been published. The one selected for debate is the motion put in by the Federal Policy Committee (FPC) setting out the party's continuing pro-European stance. The Brighton motion can be summarised as:
Recently I was out with some Bishop's Stortford Liberal Democrats, gathering signatures on a petition for citizens of other EU nations currently in the UK to be allowed to remain in the UK. In a few hours we gathered just over 250 signatures on a not-that-busy street. Some were delighted to sign. Some were relieved that we were not taking the opposite position. Some said their businesses would struggle without people from other parts of the EU. More worrying was the small minority who disagreed, loudly wanting foreigners to "go home". A prize for confusion goes to the person who said that, and then added that she wanted to retire to France.
On 3rd June 2016, Michael Gove drew ridicule when he stated "People in this country have had enough of experts". However, Theresa May's announcement that her government are now seeking to actively support1 the reintroduction of selective schools goes against all evidence-based expert opinion. We mocked Mr Gove but the reintroduction of selective schools may well prove he was right. There appears to widespread support across the right-wing press and the Telegraph website is currently indicating 77% of their readership support the policy.
The recent increase in hate crimes against Eastern Europeans in the UK has rightly been met with condemnation from across the political spectrum. Some dismiss this is a post-referendum spasm which will quickly ebb away. I fear that may not be the case and the Brexit decision may cause long-term damage to community cohesion and open a Pandora's box of nasty populist politics. Let me explain why. Brexiteer leaders - Farage, Fox, Johnson - made promises which are already unravelling. They told voters that leaving the EU would lead to better NHS services, improved job prospects and smaller class sizes. Those promises were largely based on migration myths which, unfortunately, many people believed.
The conference policy paper on "Mending the Safety Net" contains lots of good stuff on a wide range of welfare policy, even if I say so as a member of its working group. But, at Conference and beyond, I think it's important not to get distracted from the big issue of the £13bn of cuts planned by the Conservatives. Reversing these - and indeed going further - is what will make the biggest difference to people's lives, to UK inequality and even to the economy (and hopefully win a few votes in the process). Within this, here are three goals that the party should be fighting for. Increasing working-age benefits in line with inflation - and ultimately earnings George Osborne announced that most non-pensioner benefits would be frozen at their 2015 levels for 4 more years. Even before the Brexit vote, this was expected to be a massive drag on living standards. But inflation over the next few years is now expected to be higher than previously predicted - driven by rising import prices due to the weaker pound - and un
A veteran European federalist, Belgian ex-Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, will be the European Parliament's negotiator in Brexit talks with the UK. Mr Verhofstadt, leader of the liberal MEPs, tweeted that the parliament would play a "central role" in the talks "and any future EU-UK agreements".
The Liberal Democrats are committed to rebuilding the trust and compassion that the UK was once known for. We believe that our country has a responsibility to support those in need, no matter where they are in the world.
For too long, years of neglect and mismanagement by the previous Conservative Government have pushed our prison system into a deep crisis.
The Liberal Democrats have long championed proportional representation, advocating for a voting system where every vote truly counts. We believe that reforming our electoral system is crucial for a fairer democracy and better governance.
