Uk politics

Thursday

Alex Massie

Life in Modern Britain: Charity Duck Edition – Spectator Blogs

From our UK edition

A typical tale of nitwittery from modern Britain. And this, of course, is one of the problems with localism: it means giving more power to local councillors. That's still, on balance, a risk worth taking even though so many of them seem so utterly devoid of common sense. Quackers council chiefs have banned a bow tie-wearing duck from collecting cash for charity - unless it gets a permit. The bird - called Star - wears a dickie bow and waddles alongside his owner Barrie Hayman raising money for sick youngsters. Star and Barrie regularly visit businesses collecting cash from the public - already raising £6,500 for a children’s hospice.But Mr Hayman has now been told by several councils that his sidekick could be deemed 'irritating' and needs a permit. Mr Hayman [...

Wednesday

James Forsyth

Lib Dem conference: The significance of the Paddy Ashdown appointment

From our UK edition

The only line of Nick Clegg’s speech that drew whoops from the hall was the announcement that Paddy Ashdown was returning to run the 2015 general election campaign. The enthusiasm was testament to the affection that the grassroots of the party still have for their former leader. The appointment tells us several intriguing things about the internal state of the Liberal Democrats. That Clegg felt the need to announce who was running the next election campaign at this conference, more than two years out from the date of the next general election, shows he’s keen to do everything he can to demonstrate that he is going to lead the party into that election.

James Forsyth

This Lib Dem conference was about two subtly different speeches

From our UK edition

Nick Clegg’s conference speech wasn’t designed to be a barn burner. Instead, it was meant to tell the party that there’s no turning back, that they now have to become a Liberal, centrist party of government. The Clegg camp believes that up to 3 million of the 6.8 million votes they won at the last election might be gone for good. So, the party needs to go and find new voters. They believe these are to be found in the centre ground among those who don’t want to, as he put it, to ‘trust Labour with their money again’ and have doubts about whether the ‘Tories will make Britain fairer’. As one influential Lib Dem remarked to me earlier, this positioning would undoubtedly be the right strategy for a new political party.

Isabel Hardman

Key lessons from the Liberal Democrat conference

From our UK edition

Now the Lib Dems have finally reached the end of their autumn conference in Brighton, here's a summary of the most important points from the week: 1. The Lib Dems will struggle to work with Ed Balls in the event of a possible Lib-Lab pact in 2015. Nick Clegg made this clear in his speech this afternoon, repeatedly attacking the shadow chancellor by name. 2. Nick Clegg wants to pull his party with him into demonstrating that coalition works.

Isabel Hardman

Nick Clegg’s 2015 slogan: you can’t trust Ed Balls with your money

From our UK edition

Like the whole of this Liberal Democrat conference, Nick Clegg's speech to delegates did the job, but didn't exactly lift the roof from the Brighton Centre. Those watching were happy: they applauded warmly and laughed at all the jokes (which hasn't always been the case this week in Brighton), and they were utterly overjoyed when the Deputy Prime Minister announced that Paddy Ashdown will chair the party's 2015 general election team. He told members to 'go for it', and raised two laughs when he quoted Jo Grimond, saying that he could 'see generations of Liberal marching towards the sound of gunfire. And yes, I see them going back to their constituencies to prepare for government.

Isabel Hardman

Nick Clegg: ‘Vote Labour if you like protest politics’

From our UK edition

Nick Clegg's speech this afternoon will include a big push for his party to accept that they are a party of government, not of protest and that coalition is a good thing. He made some choice comments to that effect in an interview with regional journalists, which the Birmingham Post has covered. Clegg said: 'There are a group of people - they are perfectly free to do this in a free democratic society - who like to throw stones from the sidelines, who like to be associated with causes where there’s never a difficult decision needs to be made, who don’t actually like parties being in government. And who always scream ‘betrayal’ when any party goes into government. In other words, people who like protest but not the reality of power.

James Forsyth

Lib Dem conference: Is Jo Swinson the answer to the Lib Dems’ women problem?

From our UK edition

Jo Swinson has just given what, by my count, is her third platform speech of the conference. All of them have been competently delivered and got her message across. She has an impressive ability to carry the hall with her. One can see why so many of those around Nick Clegg view her as the solution to the Lib Dems’ women problem. At the moment, all five of the party’s Cabinet ministers are men. Given her qualities as a communicator and her age—she’s 32, one would be tempted to tip Swinson as a future leader. But her seat is a problem. Her majority in East Dunbartonshire is only a touch over two thousand with Labour in second place.

Alex Massie

Who Cares About Andrew Mitchell’s Boorishness? – Spectator Blogs

From our UK edition

I've avoided commenting on Andrew Mitchell's problems with police officers and gates because, damn it, the whole affair has been saturated in so much stupidity that it scarcely seemed to warrant further examination. But James Kirkup has pushed me over the edge. He asks if David Cameron "trusts the word of the police who guard his house". Break. Give. Me. A. Never fear, however, because the indomitable lobby is on the scent and determined to pursue the Prime Minister on this, even to the ends of the earth itself: Sadly, I can't tell you the answer, because the PM's not saying; ministers are also being told by No 10 not to answer questions on all this.

Alex Massie

Shock Development: Scottish Labour Grows Up, Repudiates Own Past – Spectator Blogs

From our UK edition

Whisper it sceptically but something interesting may have happened in Scotland yesterday. It might even turn out to be an important something too. Even more remarkably, this was all because of a speech given by Johann Lamont, leader of Labour's bedraggled Scottish troops. I know, it all sounds too astonishing to be true. Be that as it may, Lamont's speech in which she argued it's time for Scotland to cease living on "the never never" and admit there will, probably, soon be a choice between raising taxes and cutting services was a rare move towards reality. Lamont's address was the kind of thing sarcastic types are supposed to call "brave" or "bold". That is, mad. Actually, it was quite brave not least because Lamont must have known that Tories would probably praise what she had to say.

Tuesday

Isabel Hardman

Lib Dem conference: Nick Clegg’s Proalition speech

From our UK edition

Nick Clegg will round off this week's Liberal Democrat conference with an announcement that neatly illustrates the 'proalition' phase that the government is in at present. In his speech this afternoon, he will tell delegates that every year seven child who does not meet required standards in English and Maths will qualify for catch-up tuition. For every child falling behind, a school will receive £500, which they can do what they wish with. Around 110,000 pupils are expected to benefit from this premium. I understand that the money was a specific request that the Liberal Democrats made as part of the negotiations over the English Baccalaureate.

Sebastian Payne

Lib Dem conference: Tories and Lib Dems may not be bound to vote together on press regulation

From our UK edition

Brighton was touched with a smidgen of stardust this evening as Steve Coogan surfaced with the Hacked Off pressure group. Having previously appeared as a public face for press reform, the comedian spoke to stress his role in the campaign is not a personal one, despite not being a ‘strong campaigning person’: ‘I'm just here to give voice to those who do feel strongly about this, having had their privacy invaded and the press behave in quite a despicable way and an abusive way — those people who haven't got the wherewithal to be here. I'm speaking on their behalf.  Clearly there are examples of where the press have exceeded their brief.

Isabel Hardman

Lib Dem conference: leadership defeated on Justice and Security Bill

From our UK edition

As predicted earlier, the Lib Dem leadership has just suffered an embarrassing defeat on the conference floor this afternoon on a grassroots motion on the Justice and Security Bill. The wrecking amendment which removed the call for parliamentarians to defeat the legislation received just a smattering of votes, and the overall motion was carried unamended. During the course of the debate, the amendment received support on stage from Julian Huppert, Alistair Carmichael and Tom Brake. That MPs were turning up to oppose the party's grassroots is not a good sign: remember that the pause in the Health and Social Care Bill came about because of a groundswell of anger within the Lib Dem membership that those in Parliament did not pick up on until much later.

Isabel Hardman

Lib Dem conference: rebellion brewing on ‘secret courts’

From our UK edition

The Liberal Democrats do love a good policy motion, and the tradition at most party conferences is for the attending media circus to stay well away from the debates and votes on the conference floor as they are rarely game changers. But this afternoon, the party's leadership could face its first defeat on the conference floor when delegates debate a motion on the Justice and Security Bill from 5pm. The motion itself says the proposals for closed court hearings 'did not form part of either the Liberal Democrat or Conservative manifestos in 2010, nor the Coalition Agreement', and calls on Lib Dem MPs and peers to press the government to withdraw part II of the Justice and Security Bill, or to vote against it in parliament.

Sebastian Payne

Lib Dem conference: police remain unhappy about Mitchell and elected commissioners

From our UK edition

'I can see there are several journalists here, so we might as well get Andrew Mitchell out of the way'. Channel 4's Michael Crick decided to kick off his lunchtime fringe session with the big political row brewing far away from the Brighton Centre. Irene Curtis, president-elect of the Police Superintendents' Association, began by venting her frustration that the matter remained 'unresolved', highlighting the integrity of the police force and its officers as her key concern. Sir Hugh Orde, president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, took the view that there is little else for police to say since the officer has accepted Mitchell's apology. But like the other panelists, Orde said it was not up to him whether the Chief Whip should be sacked.

Isabel Hardman

Lib Dem conference: Oakeshott calls for Cameron to take one for the team on universal benefits

From our UK edition

Nick Clegg's attack on universal benefits such as the winter fuel payment and free bus passes this afternoon was a nice little morsel of red meat to his party, as he said it would be 'difficult to explain' a failure to reform these payments when other benefits are being slashed. He told the World at One: 'My own view is for the future that it would be very difficult to explain - and it would be quite interesting if you could ask the Labour party for this, because they appear to be saying that at a time when people's housing benefit is being cut, we should protect Alan Sugar's free bus pass.' But I've just had a chat with Lord Oakeshott, who is impatient that the Lib Dems should be looking at this sort of thing while they are in government rather than discussing their next manifesto.

Melanie McDonagh

The one thing worse than universal benefits? Means-testing them.

From our UK edition

There’s nothing, but nothing, easier than for politicians to sound off about universal benefits, and sure enough, Nick Clegg was complaining on the World at One today about the iniquity of, as he says, paying for Alan Sugar’s bus pass. He was being asked about the sustainability of universal benefits and perks following Don Foster, one of his MPs, grumbling about it being absurd that someone like him is entitled to a winter fuel allowance. Mr Clegg went on to make clear that as part of the coalition deal for this parliament there wouldn’t actually be any fiddling with things like the fuel payment for oldies, but after that, these universal perks would be up for grabs.

Douglas Murray

Lib Dems in Brighton: the prattling of the pointless

From our UK edition

Are there any words in the English language more soporific or depressing than: ‘Liberal Democrat Party Conference’? My paucity of blogs in the last few days can be put down solely to this fact. Even the many fascinating and disturbing things occurring in the world are somehow made damp by the knowledge that this annual general meeting of the bogus is going on. I suppose it comes down to one thing in particular. There is simply no purpose in the Liberal Democrats. There never has been. It is just a collection of people who for various reasons – understandable dislike of the other parties, hilarious opportunism or simple ignorance – wandered into a party and then tried to agree on what the people they find themselves among could be said to agree on or believe in.

Alex Massie

Schools Do Furnish A Nation – Spectator Blogs

From our UK edition

Also elsewhere today, I've a piece for the Scotsman arguing that Andrew Adonis was the third-most important person in the Blair-Brown governments and that, by god, Scotland could do with some of his reforming zeal too. Most sensible people in England agree academies have been a success (though there's still a long way to go); unfortunately most people in Scotland seem to think there's precious little need for reform. This complacency is unwarranted. Adonis has written a memoir – Education, Education, Education: Reforming England’s Schools – that should be read by every MP and MSP. It’s probably the most important political book of the year.

Alex Massie

This Scotland Small? Why, Yes, Actually It Is – Spectator Blogs

From our UK edition

Saturday's Rally for Independence in Edinburgh was such a non-event that, as best I can discover, Getty Images doesn't even have any pictures of the march. Hence the tat illustrating this post. But, in a way, that's the point. A march that even on the most generous estimate attracted no more than 10,000 people is a flop. This is so even if those who were present enjoyed themselves and thought it a braw occasion. They're not the whole audience for this kind of caper. I write about this at Think Scotland today: Watching foorage of Saturday's march for independence in Edinburgh I found myself contemplating Hugh MacDiarmid's waspish assertion that the chief problem with Scotland is that there's no-one worth shooting. It often seems as though we are an apathetic nation.

Isabel Hardman

Leaked Lib Dem briefing: ‘We have no evidence our tactics are working’

From our UK edition

Lib Dem internal documents leaked to the Spectator warn that the party has no branding strategy, staff 'lack research literacy' and campaigns are based on 'received wisdom' rather than any evidence that current tactics are working. I've been passed a presentation seen by aides close to Nick Clegg, staff at Lib Dem HQ, MPs and SpAds over the past few months which is damning about the party's preparations for 2015.