15 Most Recent Stories From British Liberal Democrat News

Thu 11th Mar 2010:

We need a public inquiry into new nuclear says Hughes.

Commenting, Simon Hughes said: “It would be completely unacceptable for the Government to rush through new nuclear in its last days in office without a public inquiry.   “New reactors still haven’t been approved and no-one knows how we’re going to deal with the deadly waste.   “Ed Miliband has made himself judge and jury having already expressed a clear view on new nuclear.   “The Liberal Democrats are strongly opposed to a new generation of nuclear power. We must have an immediate full and transparent public inquiry before any decision is made.”

Social care commitment needed from Labour and Tories says Lamb.

Commenting following today’s cross party Age UK, at which the health spokespeople of the three main parties met to discuss the reform of social care, Norman Lamb said:   “It’s clear from today’s social care summit that voters want politicians to come together and solve one of the biggest social challenges facing our country.   “We need long-term solutions to this problem so that older people are treated with the respect they deserve. We cannot continue with the current system where people have to sell their homes to pay for care and the quality of care on offer is not up to scratch.   “There was broad agreement that solving the crisis in social care is going to require a partnership between the state and individuals and if the other parties are willing then there is no reason why the current differences in opinion should be insurmountable.   “Liberal Democrats want to put an end to the political bickering. We are willing to work with the other parties to solve this problem once and for all. There should be no preconditions and we are open to all ideas that seek a solution that will be fair, affordable and sustainable.   “Rather than shouting at each other let’s have a commitment from all three parties to start finding a solution now.”

Untitled.

Wed 10th Mar 2010:

We must rebalance our foreign policy that is over-reliant on the US.

Nick Clegg said:   “Gordon Brown and David Cameron want to pretend that foreign policy is not an issue at the General Election. Gordon Brown doesn’t want to remind voters of the disastrous decision to go to war in Iraq. David Cameron doesn’t want to remind voters that he is friendless in Europe.   “The real truth is that the future of British foreign policy is as much in the balance as the future of our economy, or the future of our political system.   “This election is an opportunity to turn the page on the Labour-Conservative consensus on foreign policy which has been in place since the Suez crisis: one of following what the White House wants rather than leadership in Europe and the world.   “Of course our relationship with the US is of immense importance, but that should not mean that Britain unquestionably does what America wants when it is not in our interests to do so. On Iraq, on Russia, on the Middle East, on the interrogation of torture suspects and many other issues our strategic interests have differed.   “Baroness Manningham-Buller’s admission that the US kept our security forces in the dark about unacceptable interrogation techniques only confirms the impression of an unbalanced and unequal relationship.   “That is why, in the same way we must rebalance an economy that is over-reliant on bankers, we must rebalance foreign policy that is over-reliant on the White House. It is time to repatriate British foreign policy by standing tall in our European backyard and pursuing a policy of partnership – not followership – with our friends in the US.   “At this General Election only the Liberal Democrats realise what is at stake and are prepared to spell out what a different foreign policy would look like.”

Liberal Democrats launch policy for young people.

Launching the paper at The Salmon Youth Centre in Bermondsey, the policy outlined how the Liberal Democrats will ensure that all young people have better access to after-school facilities, comprehensive support and training for those entering the workplace and legislation in place to stamp out homophobic bullying. The paper includes proposals to: Introduce a new ‘Paid Internship’ scheme allowing 800,000 young people to receive a ‘Training Allowance’ of £55 a week for up to 3 months Support schools, colleges and apprenticeship schemes to promote opportunities for disabled children and young people Immediately remove young people under 16 from the National DNA Database unless they have committed a sexual or violent offence Ensure that all schools include ways to tackle homophobic bullying and at least one teacher in every school has sufficient training to do so Cut back on bureaucracy and red tape so youth organisations are free to be creative and flexible Commenting, Lynne Featherstone said: “It is clear that Labour will continue to fail our young people and the Conservatives will ignore them completely. “While youth organisations are left to do their vital work on a shoestring, greedy bankers are bailed out by the taxpayer and flaunt their bonuses while we watch every penny. “Our young people will inherit an economy where it is tougher then ever to enter the work place. “It is high time that realistic measures are put in place to support the future workforce from mass unemployment and crippling debt. “Only the Liberal Democrats will give young people and those who work with them the chance for a real future.”

Brown is leading with a weak hand says Cable.

Responding to the Prime Minister’s economic speech this morning and the announcement of the Budget date, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Vince Cable said: “Gordon Brown’s speech shows he is leading with a weak hand. “It’s very difficult to see how the man who claimed to have abolished boom and bust can campaign on his stewardship of the economy after the greatest bust for decades. “The only reason he is, of course, is because the Conservatives are even worse. The only consistent thing about their economic policy is that they have been consistently wrong. “The Budget must clearly spell out where Labour intend to make spending cuts in order to tackle the budget deficit.  All we have seen from the Prime Minister today is more waffle. “Gordon Brown admits that there are bumps in the road ahead.  The public know that and expect all parties to follow the Liberal Democrat lead and tell them where the bumps are and how we will be navigating our way over and around them.”

Half of schools not good enough says Laws.

Commenting on today’s Ofsted figures, which show that half the schools they inspected last term were considered to be no better than ‘satisfactory’, David Laws said: “Labour has had 13 years to get a grip on education, but thousands of children still attend schools which are not considered to be providing good standards.   “In spite of the controversy about whether these figures can be compared with earlier years, the bottom line is that half of schools inspected were not good enough.   “We need more well-led and properly funded schools if we are to address the disadvantages faced by so many young people in Britain.”

Tue 9th Mar 2010:

Cameron in complete disarray over NI deal says Carmichael.

Commenting after a vote at the Northern Ireland Assembly, Alistair Carmichael said: “It’s time for David Cameron to come clean about the position of his new alliance on policing and justice. “With the UUP saying one thing, and the Tories saying the complete opposite, voters will struggle to understand what exactly joint Tory/UUP candidates stand for. “What we’re seeing is the Tories in complete disarray. When it takes George Bush to step in as the voice of reason, it’s clear that David Cameron has dug himself a very big hole. “This raises serious questions about David Cameron’s judgement. If he can’t manage to steer a straight course in opposition, how on earth would he cope as Prime Minister?”

Lord Taverne requests House of Lords investigate Ashcroft.

The Honours Scrutiny Committee withdrew its objections to Lord Ashcroft becoming a peer on the basis of his clear undertaking that he would “take up permanent residence in the United Kingdom again before the end of the calendar year”.   Commenting, Lord Taverne said:   “If Lord Ashcroft’s undertaking was broken, or significantly changed without the House of Lords being informed, that would be a serious breach of the Code of Conduct.   “Lord Ashcroft does not appear to have been straight with the Lords. This directly contravenes the principles of standards in public life and therefore raises the question of his suitability for public office.   “Transparency and honour are vital to maintain the standing and good name of the House of Lords. The opaque and secretive nature of Lord Ashcroft’s behaviour risks bringing the House of Lords into disrepute.”

Export figures are deeply alarming says Cable.

Commenting on the news that UK exports took their biggest plunge in more than three years during January, Vince Cable said: “These are deeply alarming figures which suggest that British exporters simply haven’t been able to take advantage of the big devaluation which occurred in the last year. “They suggest that the long term decline and neglect of British manufacturing has taken its toll and that an awful lot more needs to be done to rebalance the economy to make it more competitive.   “It is wrong to suggest that the British economy can escape from this recession by just relying on exports. It just isn’t happening. “Exports are one modest part of the national economy. We need an economy that is strong and secure across the board – and the Liberal Democrats are committed to delivering that.”

Tory social care ‘poll tax’ will only help the wealthy says Lamb.

The figures, released ahead of tomorrow’s cross-party social care conference, undermine Conservative claims that their plans would enable older people to pass their homes on to their children as two thirds of pensioner households would have to sell or release equity from their homes to pay for the private insurance scheme. The figures reveal that: 63% of pensioner couple households (1.4m) do not have non-housing assets of £16,000 (cost of insurance to cover both pensioners) 71% of single female pensioner households (1.6m) do not have non-housing assets of £8,000 64% of single male pensioner households (600,000) do not have non-housing assets of £8,000 Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said:   “The reality is that Conservative social care plans are unworkable, unfair and unaffordable for the majority of pensioners in this country and do nothing to pay for the costs of care at home.  “This is basically a ‘poll tax’ and many people on modest means will be wondering how the Tories could think it’s fair that they should pay the same amount for care as multi-millionaires. “David Cameron needs to start being honest with older voters. Most couples don’t have a spare £16,000 to cover an insurance premium and it’s incredibly dishonest to say this will stop people from having to sell their homes to pay for care.  “The Tories need to explain how they’re going to get the numbers to add up on this plan especially as the private insurance market has failed to get people interested. Perhaps this is yet another example where the Tories need a little help when it comes to using a calculator. “Whoever wins the next election cannot avoid the fact that we’re facing a crisis in funding for care. What we need is a long-term solution which is both fair and affordable in the long-term.”

Police must be able to monitor sex offenders on social network sites.

In a letter to the Home Secretary, Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary Chris Huhne called for both the failures of conventional monitoring and the inadequacy of internet monitoring to be put right. Commenting, Chris Huhne said: “Our procedures are still lagging behind the development of the internet, since we do not even require the registration of IP and email addresses of sex offenders, which has now become typical in the United States. This would allow police to monitor social networking activity.   “It is also disappointing that Facebook, which was used by Peter Chapman to make contact with Ashleigh Hall, is the only big social networking site not to install the button that allows users to get advice on, and to report, suspicious on-line activity from so-called friends. “If Bebo and MSN can install the button from the Child Exploitation and On-line Protection Centre, then so can Facebook.   “Until Facebook acts on this, its protestations that it cares passionately about the safety of people who use its site will look like empty words. Facebook urgently needs to take this clear, simple and practical step.”

Mop cupboards no place to treat patients says Lamb.

Commenting on today’s Nursing Times survey which revealed nurses are being asked to treat patients in mop cupboards, Norman Lamb said: “It is absolutely unacceptable that patient care is being compromised in this way. “Labour’s failure to put patient care above its obsession with targets has meant that nurses are being forced to treat people in completely inappropriate places. “Labour seems to have lost sight of the basic importance of dignity and care. “A mop cupboard is no place to treat a patient.”

Vince Cable delivers speech to Reform Scotland.

Extracts from the speech are below: We need to rethink our approach to banking. Successive Labour and Conservative Governments have left Britain vulnerable to an over-inflated financial services sector, where institutions became too big to fail. On a UK level – where British banks are 4.5 times bigger in terms of their liabilities than the country’s economy – this is bad enough. But in Scotland, this has been still more pronounced. At the time they got into trouble, RBS’ and HBOS’ liabilities were 25 times the size of Scotland’s economy. We have to break up the banks, in particular the vast Lloyds group, and bring the Bank of Scotland home. This would not only help protect us from the threat of banks that are too big to fail – it would also increase diversity in Scotland’s financial sector and competition on the high street. Until the banks are split up, the Liberal Democrats believe that they should pay for the guarantees they receive which is why we would introduce a 10% levy on banks’ supplementary profits. The publicly-owned banks have an important role to play in ensuring credit is available to the sound and solvent small and medium sized businesses who are the drivers of our economic recovery. Worryingly, the FSB estimates that around 1/5 of small businesses in Scotland are reliant on credit cards to finance their business. This suggests RBS and Lloyds are not living up to their obligations - obligations which Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling are meant to enforce. The Government needs to get a grip on these banks, which after all are publicly owned, and ensure they provide credit to sound small and medium sized businesses so that they can survive and expand. This will protect jobs and ensure that growth isn’t damaged. This is where RBS’ money should be being spent, rather than being thrown away on extortionate bonuses. What has to emerge from the current crisis is a sustained recovery not an ephemeral or unstable one; not another bubble; not a boom which depends on the fickle fortunes of the banking sector. And that is why the Liberal Democrats want to underpin stable, sustainable growth by maintaining the operational independence of the Bank of England, investing in education and by supporting private institutional investment in Britain’s infrastructure through the creation of an Infrastructure Bank. We do not approach any difficult spending decisions with relish. We realise that we are dealing with staff who have a real sense of public service and with services which are valued. What is needed is a calm and rational plan, a proactive rather than reactive approach, identifying the priority steps which need to be taken to reduce government spending. There are fundamental changes that need to be made to how the British state operates- axing much of the command and control system overseeing local government and NHS administration, scrapping expensive Home Office projects like ID cards and some substantial reductions in defence procurement such as Trident. I have to tell you that I have had the pleasure of receiving not one but two letters from Alex Salmond regarding the Scottish Government’s spending plans for 2010-11. As is the case in all elections, we will be laying out plans for tax and spending for each year of the next Parliament in our manifesto and have assured Mr Salmond that Liberal Democrat plans would not reduce the Scottish budget but in fact increase it. Mr Salmond acknowledged in his correspondence that from 2011-12, the public sector will face several years of fiscal austerity in Scotland, as well as the rest of the UK. The Liberal Democrats have led the way on coming up with a credible and rational plan to deal with the deficit - its time that other parties displayed the same openness and honesty with the British people. To that end, I have asked Mr Salmond if he will follow our lead and set out how the Scottish government intends to meet higher budget controls in the coming years.

Mon 8th Mar 2010:

Miliband and Brown trying to rewrite history says Davey.

Commenting on David Miliband’s appearance before the Chilcot Inquiry, Edward Davey said: “David Miliband and Gordon Brown are on a PR offensive to rewrite the history of the Iraq War.   “The idea that the UK upheld international law by invading Iraq is pure Labour doublespeak.   “Iraq diminished our standing in the Middle East and the wider world and divided us from our natural allies.   “Nobody will listen to Labour when it comes to restoring Britain’s reputation abroad.”

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