• Five Radical Policies for the Liberal Democrats in the General Election

    April 19, 2017 7:41 AM

    With an early general election called for 8 June, it is vital that the Liberal Democrats offer a radical policy platform to the country. Europe will obviously be a central issue in the election campaign. However, it is not enough just to be an anti-Brexit party. The Lib Dems must once again be an anti-establishment party, which draws on the radical liberal heritage of Mill, Lloyd George, Beveridge and Grimond.

    Here are five radical policies that will transform Britain and gear it more towards opportunity, empowerment and social justice.

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  • What the Brexit vote tells us about the state of the parties in parliament

    April 10, 2017 8:00 AM

    Even though the Liberal Democrats were defeated on the final Brexit Bill, they showed themselves, in both Houses, to be united and principled in their opposition. A far cry from most Labour MPs and Peers. 

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  • Trident: still useless, expensive and dangerous

    March 17, 2017 7:31 AM

    Liberal Democrat Spring Conference will debate nuclear weapons again on Saturday. David Grace has tabled an amendment to end Trident and cancel its replacement, below he explains why. 

    Would you buy an explosive, poisonous device to protect your house against intruders (when there aren’t any) or would you first fix the roof, repair the boiler and get a new car? If it was hard to make up your mind, what if you were told that the device would take 10% of your income for 30 years and might not work? No brainer, eh?  So why the hell do the Tories, Labour and the establishment of the Liberal Democrats want the device? It’s called Successor and it’s the replacement for Trident.

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  • Why we should seek to bring religious selection by schools to an end

    March 15, 2017 7:01 AM

    On Sunday, Liberal Democrat Federal Conference will consider a motion about state funded faith schools and is invited to choose from three options regarding religious selection in faith school admissions. Liberal Democrat members should support Option A - which seeks to phase out religious selection - to signal that the party opposes discrimination and support improved integration.

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  • SLF Response to the Budget

    March 09, 2017 8:29 AM

    While making many hat tips in the right direction, unfortunately, this was mainly a Budget of half measures and missed opportunities. 

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  • In Defence of Freedom of Movement

    March 03, 2017 7:46 AM

    Since the EU Referendum, much of the debate about Brexit has revolved around European freedom of movement. With Britain poised to embark on a ruinous hard Brexit, progressives must not pander to the casual xenophobia and nativism of UKIP and some on the Tory right.

    Given the vitriol of the political right towards immigration, it has never been the easiest thing for progressives to defend. However, it is essential that we do defend it. Hard Brexit will do nothing to heal the deep divisions caused by the referendum. If you believe in a free and a fair world then you must support freedom of movement. It boggles the mind how any liberal or social democrat could oppose it.

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  • How to campaign in a “post-truth” world

    February 13, 2017 10:36 PM

    I am going to tell you a story.  It happens to be true.  But bear with me, there is a point to it.

    The “Swinsty cormorant” was usually there, perched on a float around 100 metres out from the dam wall at Swinsty Reservoir in North Yorkshire, whenever I ran round it with my dogs.  I used to be fascinated by the lone bird and would always look out for him to see if he was there.  My imagination ran riot with why he was always there on his own with no mates in sight.  I was captured by the romance of his loneliness, I suppose.

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  • Economic Empowerment: The Social Liberal mission

    February 08, 2017 8:34 AM

    The hopes and dreams of the 21st century have faded away. Britain awaits Theresa May’s hard Brexit, Donald Trump is American President and fear of nationalism is sweeping across continental Europe. The Western world is in the grip of a huge identity crisis. Identity politics is the nationalistic fuel behind both Brexit and Trump. The populist right present themselves as anti-establishment, while traditional social democratic parties sink into the electoral abyss. Decades of market fundamentalist policies have hollowed out our politics and our communities. 

    Into this crisis of progressive politics and liberal democracy come social liberals. Internationalism is under attack and British society continues to have vast inequalities of wealth and power. Social liberals have the ability to revive progressive politics, but in-order to do so we must change the political narrative and reclaim our biggest and most radical ideas. 

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  • Liberal Democrats: The way Forward

    January 19, 2017 10:12 AM

    Whilst the Liberal Democrat Brexit Policy is a good short-term policy, it is one that will have to adapt as the fast moving situation changes. The Liberal Democrats are in danger of becoming a single-issue party with Tim becoming a Brexit bore. 

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