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Gove a 'romantic idealist'?
June 20, 2010 6:11 PM
Plans for so-called ‘free schools’ announced by the Secretary of State recognise the need to improve the education for all pupils; harnessing the enthusiasm of new groups offers the chance to widen community involvement in education. But, like a 1960s child of the flower power revolution, Mr Gove seems more intent on letting a 1,000 flowers bloom than on ensuring a school system fit for purpose and offering value for money in a time of austerity. Schools in England have always been run by a di -
Autumn Conference motions 2 - feedback from comments so far
June 19, 2010 1:07 PM
Wordles aren't always as useful as they could be, but this summary of comments over the last few days about what topics the Social Liberal Forum should propose motions on at autumn conference seems quite clear: -
What motions should we table to autumn conference?
June 16, 2010 11:15 AM
Crossposted from the Social Liberal Forum social network. The deadline for autumn conference motions is looming (30 June to be precise), so we don't have much time. But what should the Social Liberal Forum be championing to get onto the agenda? Here are some ideas:- Secondary education - academies and free schools in particular - appears to be a simmering
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Stop wasting money Mr Gove
June 15, 2010 4:22 PM
Sign the petition. Ideology rather than efficiency seems to be the Watchword in Sanctuary Buildings, the home of Mr Gove’s Department for Schools. Not content with wasting money on changing the name of his department, the only minister to do so, Mr Gove has rushed out his Academies Bill, or Grant Maintained Schools (Academies) Bill as it ought really to be known. For the Tory academies are really o -
Hughes, Bruce and Oakeshott express concerns over Capital Gains Tax plans
June 14, 2010 11:05 AM
Following on from the Social Liberal Forum's open letter to Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander about the emergency budget, three prominent Liberal Democrat parliamentarians have echoed our concern on Capital Gains Tax. The FT reports that Lord Oakeshott, Malcolm Bruce and new Lib Dem Deputy Leader Simon Hughes also advisin -
Open Letter to Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander
June 14, 2010 12:01 AM
Following our mini-consultation a few days ago, we have written the following letter to Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander outlining our concerns about the upcoming Emergency Budget. Thanks to everyone who submitted their ideas, both on our website and privately by email.To: Nick Clegg, Danny Alexander cc. Simon Hughes Dear Nick and Danny, Next week, the coalition government is to produce its emergen
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Nominations open for Social Liberal Forum Council Elections
June 13, 2010 2:05 PM
Nominations are now open for the Social Liberal Forum Council Elections, which will be held over the next couple of months. Full details can be found on the elections page of this website. Anyone who is a member of the Social Liberal Forum is eligible to stand and membership of the SLF is free to all members of the Liberal Democrats. Register as a member on our -
Will we get fairer taxes under the coalition?
June 10, 2010 4:11 AM
[caption id="attachment_427" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The Liberal Democrat's campaigned explicitly against a VAT increase in the 2010 General Election."]
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A couple
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Profit motivation versus purpose motivation
June 04, 2010 2:07 PM
An interesting short film from the RSA about what really drives people and motivates them to do good jobs. It turns out that what motivates us is less the prospect of profit and more chance to make a difference. That finding challenges a lot of the preconceptions of both capitalists and socialists, although it has to be said that for menial tasks it turns out there is a profit motive. So, we should be giving factory workers financial incentives (and should be taxing demerit goods) but shouldn
