Harrogate - Day 3: Nick Clegg speaks (with commentary by Bob Russell MP)

And so, the Conference reached its climax, the Leader's speech. Naturally, the great and the good were positioned on the front row, and a camera panning it would have spotted senior frontbenchers, the Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, leading MEP's and the Party President. Oh yes, and someone in a lightly pinstriped suit with a dark tie with flowers. Must be a big donor, because the media would have no idea who he was. Perhaps he just found a spare seat and occupied it when nobody was looking?

But anyway, the Leader comes on, and delivers the speech that is the result of so much careful preparation. And it was a pretty good speech (I have always been known to be a hard marker), with plenty of 'red meat' and messages that really resonated with his audience. Indeed, there were elements that, I believe, will resonate far beyond the hall.

I have always wondered why the directors of the banks have been treated so leniently, especially given the amount of time I spend at work explaining to directors that they are liable for their compliance failures. Nick's call for them to be prosecuted under company law is, I think, entirely fair. They clearly didn't exercise control, for if they had, the inability to calculate their potential liabilities should surely have made them stop and think. It's not simply retribution, it's a clear sign that failure has its consequences.

One thing I like to do is to monitor reactions around the hall and, this year, my barometer was Bob Russell. Bob knows where his constituents live, so to speak, and I tend to respect his thoughts. He seemed to like the speech, and was never short of an approving comment.

And so the Conference was over, and it was time to go home...

Harrogate - Day 3: Clutching the symbols of power!

And so the moment I'd all been waiting for, the moment when Ros seized the symbols of ultimate power from the cold, dead hands of the ancien regime, the moment when everything became possible, when... oops, err... Let's start that again, shall we?

It is a tradition, passed down from the Liberal Party, that the outgoing President passes to his or her successor the symbols of office, the gavel and the sacred text, 'On Liberty' by John Stuart Mill. The book is obvious, the gavel perhaps less so.

In the 'old days', the President of the Liberal Party chaired every session from opening to closure of the Assembly. The gavel was used, and had a power. Of course, there is a entire Federal Conference Committee to do these things now, and the President's role is much more ceremonial, but symbols have their place in our memories.

It was left to Phil Willis to introduce Ros, and he was most gracious with his introduction, before El Presidente (outgoing), Simon Hughes, presented Ros with the gavel and the book. Ros made a gracious speech in praise of Simon before performing her first awards ceremony as President, honouring Greater Reading for the largest increase in membership by a Local Party. And she was right, all of the students who came on with Gareth and Daisy did make Gareth look a bit old and knackered... She then presented the award for biggest percentage growth to Leeds East before handing back to Phil for the financial appeal.

Whilst Tim Farron tried to distract him by folding his appeal form into a paper aeroplane and throwing it at him (nice craftsmanship, Tim), Phil extorted us to be generous in his own inimical style - "Give us your bloody money!".

Having so persuaded us, he noted that he'd better hurry up, as a young man was due on next to give us travel and weather reports for the journey home...

Harrogate - Day 3: Kirstymania sweeps Harrogate

I have, in the past, noted my respect for the newly elected Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, Kirsty Williams.

Winning an election is one thing, doing the job is another, however. Each 'first time' is studied by close observers of politics, analysed and picked apart to see if you're up to the job. It can be nerveracking, if you let it.

Kirsty's answer? To just let rip, to revel in the history and traditions of Welsh liberalism, to condemn the Welsh Assembly Government for their ineffectual, centralising approach, for their failure to take positive steps to help Welsh workers and Welsh communities. And not just the easy jibes, but philosophical, principled opposition, outlining our positive proposals to make Wales a better place, and proclaiming our role in delivering services to people across Wales.

She didn't stint on her criticism of Plaid Cymru, condemning the ease with which they sold their principles for seats in ministerial limousines.

Spirit, passion, everything you could possibly ask for, and rewarded with a thoroughly deserved standing ovation.

If you ever had any doubts, Kirsty, you shouldn't have them any more...

Harrogate - Day 2: Life is, apparently, a rehearsal

I gave the blogger interview a miss, on the probably sensible grounds that I have plenty of opportunities to ask my wife questions. On the other hand, I might not get as good a set of answers...

A few events in my role as Presidential consort, before we headed for the rehearsal of Ros's Presidential inauguration and presentation of the membership awards.

We arrived in the middle of what I presume was the final rehearsal of the Leader's speech. Naturally, I am not at liberty to report any details, that means any at all. However, I am sure it would be permitted to say that watching the process is very interesting. I'm also sure that my life expectation would be significantly shorter if I said anything more (the noble Lord Rennard's highly trained and extremely ruthless hitmen are still, I am assured, on duty...).

As past of the rehearsal, I now know who won the membership awards. Guess what? I can't tell you that either...

Harrogate - Day 2: English Candidates Committee meets my evil twin, Skippy

I've been working for some months with colleagues on the Selection Rules Working Group, and this morning saw us make a key presentation to English Candidates Committee on progress thus far. We clearly needed to get their approval in order to proceed and, for the most part, I think we have.

We are, as I have expressed before, keen to simplify the process where we can, reducing the burden on smaller Local Parties, and those where, to be blunt, our electoral prospects are not great. We also want to allow candidates to demonstrate a wider range of skills and techniques during the selection phase.

The sticking points are endorsements and campaign limitations. There is still a strongly held belief that endorsements are wrong, yet finding a way to police them is not emerging. On the positive side, I think that we have agreement on removing the rules as they apply to photographs, i.e. the 'implied endorsement' rules have been cast aside. I believe that the concept of verifying endorsements is acceptable and we will go back to see if we can steer a course that addresses the concerns of those who have reservations.

On campaign limits, there is resistance to the idea of spending limits. Concerns revolve around policing this, although I wonder why rules that work in public elections should be unworkable in an internal election.

Back to work, I think...

Harrogate - Day 1: In a darkened room with Howard Dean

At some point, I suspect that someone will realise that where Ros goes, they aren't obliged to let me follow. However, in the meantime, I get some opportunities that, how can I put this, might not be available to everyone.

The Liberty Network drinks reception with Howard Dean took place at a discreet venue, a little way from the Conference Centre. There was some very good wine served - no nibbles, unexpectedly - and a gathering of individuals who have, been generous to the Party in the past. Governor Dean spoke briefly but entertainingly before fielding questions from the floor.

I was keen to discover what he felt were the key aspects of his success as Chair of the Democratic National Committee. His enthusiasm for technology, his support for unfashionable State Parties and the purchase of their building laid a solid foundation for the success that followed. Interestingly though, involvement in more campaigns at more local levels, Mayoral and State House contests, has built a stronger, more permanent campaigning machine.

We were then shepherded out of the reception to a dark and shadowy room where a table was set for sixteen. It would be wrong if I suggested that it was, for the most part, a group of men smoking cigars, drinking the finest brandy and discussing world domination. For one thing, we're Liberal Democrats, so it was a non-smoking event...

It was a fine dinner though, and the conversation was extremely interesting. It would be impolite to report any details, as I would be the immediate target of Lord Rennard's highly trained team of ruthless killers. So I won't. I hope that you don't mind...

Harrogate - Day 1 : For Gawds sake, get me to the Rally on time

Alright, I've got the suit, my face is neat and smooth. Time to get to the Rally - after all, Ros is speaking.

So I set off, albeit a bit later than planned (but not much). Get to the Royal Hall and there's a queue. A queue that, unexpectedly, stops moving. "The hall is full!", we are told. Hmmm... The guy in front of me tries to pull rank with a steward. I joke that, "Look, I'm the husband of the Party President and I don't get special treatment...", and we are told that there might be room for a few more.

It turns out that they can get twenty more in, and I'm number 11.

So I'm here, and the Rally is about to start... Nice band...

50,000 somethings - a thank you to all my readers

My web counter, unnoticed by me until now, has clicked over the 50,000 mark. I have to admit to being slightly surprised by this, and kind of flattered. My family isn't that big.

However, I should take this opportunity to thank everyone who has read something I've written, commented on it or told me that they've read it.

It's been fun and, hopefully, it'll go on being fun.

Harrogate : Day 1 - Finding the perfect outfit

Of course, Ros is deep in preparation for Conference. Walk throughs, briefing meetings, rehearsals, committee meetings and all of those things that ordinary Conference attendees never even know about.

However, there are responsibilities for the First Spouse too. I have to look fragrant, smile sweetly and look as though I am delighted to meet everyone. The latter task is easy, as there are very few people in the Party that I would cross the street to avoid (and most of them don't know who they are either...).

However, when one is more walrus-like than sylph-like, the 'looking fragrant' role is more complex. Of course, I could cheat and send my kid brother to take my place - a kind of stunt double. He's taller, better looking, has a quirky style which sounds like a train wreck but works for him (we are talking about someone who managed to look good in a Black Watch tartan suit). He's kept his hair and is going grey in a glamorous, interesting way. I should hate him but he's a great guy.

However, I'm told that people can tell us apart and, worse still, too many people know who I am. Besides, I couldn't send Kirk to English Candidates Committee. He doesn't deserve that kind of punishment...

So, it's time to polish up. First to Steca's for a haircut. At least my hair will be in good order, and I enjoy the banter of a good barber.

Next, an suit. I've brought one with me but need a new one anyway. Yes, it's an expense, but I'm having dinner with Howard Dean this evening and so I need to look like an adult. Not blue, but grey, I think. Dark grey for preference, as I'm not sure that light colours really suit me. Time to go shopping, methinks...

A call to arms in the world's largest democracy

The front page of yesterday's 'Times of India' carries this message, as part of its Lead India '09 campaign;

I swear.
I swear that this time I will stand up
Not for what I believe in, but for what I don't.
This time I will vote. Not for, but against.
Against my own helplessness.
Against my own laziness.
Against two words called Chalta Hai*.
Against short cuts in queues.
Against cheating in exams.
Against Kharcha Paani** in offices.
Against powerless enquiry commissions.
And powerful vote banks.
Against religion in politics.
And politics in religion.
Against illegal constructions.
And legal loopholes.
Against every cynic. Every non-believer.
Against the belief that nothing will change.
Against the feeling that my
vote cannot make a difference.
Against every excuse for not voting.
And I will do this without fear or shame.
Because only by voting against all that
is destroying our today, will I give my
children something to vote for tomorrow.

I have to say that this expresses why voting matters better than anything else I've seen lately.

* a Hindi expression which reflects a careless attitude
** bribes

Congratulations to Henry - a father at last!

Alright, our scaly friend here isn't particularly cute, or spectacular but he is unusual. He's a tuatara, the last remaining descendent of a species which walked with dinosaurs, apparently.

Five years ago, I travelled more than 12,000 miles to see a tuatara, ending up at the Southland Museum in Invercargill, New Zealand. Their most famous exhibit was, and remains, Henry, an elderly (although not in tuatara terms) fellow.

In the past, he hadn't been of much use to the museum's tuatara breeding programme. Indeed, he'd bitten the tail off of Mildred, one of their female tuatara when introduced to her. However, having recently undergone surgery, he has experienced a bit of a renaissance, and finally managed to father eleven babies in January. Not bad for a 111-year old...

It's democracy, only bigger

Courtesy of the BBC, news reaches 'Liberal Bureaucracy' of democracy's 'Biggest Show on Earth'. Yes, it's time for India to elect a new Lok Sabha and the vast task of organising 828,804 polling stations is well under way. The BBC has some useful analysis, if you're interested.

The logistics are truly staggering, and polling will take place over a period of more than a month, every Thursday, starting on 16 April. To complicate matters for observers, different states will vote in different patterns, with some states using just one date, whereas Jammu and Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh are using all five dates. The count itself will take place on 16 May.

In terms of Party organisation, the impact of events must be incredibly difficult to manage, especially for those political parties that operate nationally. And whilst the banning of exit polls last year will prevent the impact of information of actual votes influencing the outcome of later stages of voting, there is little doubt in my mind that information will seep out.

To make the whole thing more interesting, a number of regional parties will attract significant shares of the vote and, if recent history is repeated, will have significant influence on the formation of a working administration afterwards.

However, there is one really easy job in this election. A polling station will be open in the Gir Lion Sanctuary in Gujarat. Electorate? One. Vote early, and let the presiding officer go home, that's my advice...

Taking blogging more seriously

I've been blogging for more than three years now and, apart from the occasional burst of interest, my readership figures have been steady, rather than spectacular. I've not been terribly disciplined, and at one point could easily go a whole week without posting anything. In January, however, I was invited to be one of the contributors to GlobalPost, and began to take this blog a bit more seriously. I bolstered the advertising a bit, starting to blog more frequently and waited to see what would happen.

Unsurprisingly, my readership figures rose and, in the month to 2 March, my monthly readership has reached over 2,500 unique visits and very nearly 3,000 page views. Now, compared to the 'big boys' of political blogging, these figures barely register but, given that it's taken nearly three and a half years to reach 50,000 visitors, I'm quite pleased.

Of course, the more people reading your blog, the more money you make from advertising. I'm not going to get rich from the advertising revenue that 'Liberal Bureaucracy' brings in, but given that I'd earned $4.61 in two years, $4.31 in the past two months is riches indeed. By comparison, Iain Dale gets about 34 times as many unique visits. Whilst I guess that he earns more than $70 per month, I also suspect that he isn't making anything resembling a good living from it.

However, I'm curious to know whether or not there is any data on the amount of money earned by bloggers from advertising, and whether there are any reports on successful advertising campaigns which have used bloggers as anything other than a peripheral part of a wider strategy.

Anyone got any suggestions?

Executive remuneration: the opposite of a virtuous circle

Of course, one of the reasons why bankers are now deeply unpopular is the monopoly money salaries that were being bandied about.

But throughout the rise of traders and bankers into the big money league, the United Kingdom has seen Executive salaries massively outpace wage inflation amongst most of the rest of the workforce.

Personally, I place much of the blame for this into the hands of the City. An ever more short-term approach to investment means that companies are under greater pressure to achieve better results quickly, and the churn of senior executives accelerates in response to that. It's a bit like football management in that sense.

Therefore, a senior executive will want higher compensation to take on the enhanced risk of unemployment and reputational damage. That, sadly, is what the free market is all about.

Part of that compensation package will be designed so as to provide for a future beyond employment, and the tax benefits that arise from investing money in a pension fund are undeniable. For Sir Fred Goodwin, for every £3 that RBS put in, the government put in £2. Now, if my memory serves, a limit was recently placed on the size of a pension pot, but such a limit was not retrospective.

It just shows that, if proof were ever needed, that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and that economies are more complex than most people, myself included, can really comprehend.

The great pension debate - an uneasy civil servant writes...

I've watched the debate over Sir Fred Goodwin's pension with increasing unease. I suppose that this stems from two things, firstly my belief that a contract is a contract. Secondly, when a government claims that it will take retrospective action, then bad law is likely to result.

There is little doubt that the pension pot available to Sir Fred is absurd and, to many people, an outrage. Many will argue that the level of risk borne by him has been rewarded way beyond what can be justified. However, a deal is a deal.

One of the great attractions of the United Kingdom as a place to do business is the robustness of our legal system, especially that pertaining to company law. A contract, if breached, can be contested through the courts and the historic probity of our legal system makes it likely that any party acting legally will receive justice.

If, however, the Government decides that, just because the public don't like something, you should just override the law, the question arises, just what else might they override in pursuit of popularity? Is the legal framework reliable? Should we be moving our business to a more secure jurisdiction?

Indeed, if Sir Fred's legal entitlement to a pension can be taken away from him by the Government because it is unpopular, who else is at risk?

I'll declare an interest here. As a civil servant, I benefit from what is perceived to be a rather generous pension scheme which is often the subject of attack by the Press and by politicians. For more than twenty years, I've been told that this pension provision is factored in when considered an appropriate level of pay. And, I have to say, I'm not expecting to be as rich as Croesus when I qualify for it (I've just had an update of what I can expect on retirement). It would, however, be popular amongst the public if it were to be taken away.

Liberal Democrat Voice has now launched a humourous campaign to 'shred John Prescott's pension'. I'm not entirely convinced that it is funny, but it does make a point.

No, if you really want to deal with the issue of Sir Fred, use the existing law to see if he has done anything illegal, and punish him accordingly. Whilst stupidity is not an offence punishable by the State, and there is no doubt that the various boards of the banks made some very foolish decisions, if the banks had been allowed to go bankrupt, Sir Fred would have got nothing.

Perhaps that offers a way forward...

Monday morning - Colchester Station

Somehow, I'm not convinced that Simon and Garfunkel would have been especially inspired by such a scenario although, as if in consolation, the sun is shining.

Unusually, my inward journey from mid-Suffolk is delayed by both a signal failure at Colchester and a bridge strike at Kelvedon, so I may be pretty late this morning.

My fellow passengers this morning in seats B9, 10, 13 and 14 are a Chinese couple and their astonishingly cute child, and a young lady reading a book entitled 'Situating Postcolonial Studies'. Me, I'm just reading The Times, doing the puzzles and thinking about ringing my boss to tell him how late I'm going to be...

James Graham vs Paddy Ashdown - not exactly King Kong vs Godzilla but...

Just before Lib Dem Voice went down for a little while as part of an upgrade, James Graham wrote a piece about David Omand's report on the necessity of big databases to protect us all.

The report itself is pretty alarming, and as a member of Unlock Democracy and a Liberal Democrat, I thought that it was entirely appropriate to tip ordure on the report itself. And, if James had done so, I suspect that most of us would have said something along the lines of "quite right too!", harrumphed a bit and moved on.

Unfortunately, James felt that it was necessary to play the man. Curiously, not the man who wrote the report, but he played the man nonetheless. There are those amongst us who might be hesitant to 'play' a man capable of killing with his own hands in multiple languages but James is rather more robust than many of us. Perhaps a little less robust after placing the following words in the public domain:

"Otherwise, you risk being a party to the sort of lazy, whitewash journalism that the Guardian article above exemplifies."

At the bottom of page 2 of the report, the following paragraph appears:

"The views in this paper are those of the author alone and are being published here in the hope of advancing public debate. They do not represent the views of the Commission panel or the views of any sponsoring organisation."

I can't help but feel that James has made a bit of an ass of himself here. At this point, I could just emphasise that this neatly demonstrates the point I made a few days ago about playing the ball rather than the man. However, there is a little more to this story than meets the eye.

And so, Paddy has responded, with the sort of crushing riposte that Machiavelli would have been proud of. There is, after his assault, little left but the smoking ruins of James's credibility as a reliable source, for the time being at least.

If only he had focussed on James though. His opening salvo was, to my mind, a misunderstanding of how an operation like Liberal Democrat Voice works.

"What sort of Lib Dem organ is it which makes the outrageous charges made in this piece about a fellow Lib Dem without even asking the Lib Dem concerned to comment before hand?

What sort of Lib Dem organ is it which, having published this kind of article, then closes the comment column so that a response is impossible and forces me to contact the Editor directly to provide a response facility?

What sort of Lib Dem organ is it which prefers to indulge in wild speculation about a colleague’s integrity – but hasn’t even bothered to look at what he or she has said on the record about, in this case, the Government’s plans to establish an “all seeing IT system”."

Actually, what sort of respondent doesn't check the fact that this is an opinion piece written by an individual? Well, apart from James, that is... Liberal Democrat Voice does clearly explain that;

"Views expressed on this website are those of the individuals who express them and may not reflect those of the party."

Ironic really, that James should be right to address the report but choose to attack the innocent bystander, and Paddy should be right to attack the article but choose to attack the... innocent bystander. Is this a new trend, 'tough on innocent bystanders, tough on the causes of innocent bystanders'?

Me, I blame the trees that were cut down so that the Orange Book could be printed...

A (European) Returning Officer's work is never done

One of my more pleasant tasks over the past ten years has been the five-yearly job of being Returning Officer for the South East European Regional List. On each occasion, I have enjoyed working with the Selection Committee, met and worked with a wide variety of applicants, and interacted with local members everywhere from Newbury to Canterbury, and from Oxford to Haywards Heath.

Curiously, with a list election, the Returning Officer remains in post until the close of nominations, so I am still technically on call. David Grace, who was selected to fill the tenth and final slot, and I have a running gag about a 'Kind Hearts and Coronets' scenario whereby candidates above him drop out, and he gets elected.

Frankly, I'd quite like to see David in Brussels, as he is one of the most forthright proponents of a European vision I have encountered. He's not pro-Europe for the sake of it, but has an acute understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the structures and policies of the Union.

As I've previously posted, I've already been called into action once, and, even at this late stage, anything can happen. So it was convenient that Ros was the keynote speaker at the South East/South Central Regional Conference, giving me the opportunity to touch base with members of the Selection Committee.

I also took the opportunity to discreetly lobby members of the English Candidates Committee in support of some of my proposals for reform of the candidate selection rules. Whilst the working group is now of the same view, we still need to convince English Candidates Committee and then English Council.

It's only a whimsical notion, to fly down to Reigate tonight...

Ah yes, another dinner beckons, this time in Reigate. It's been a pretty enjoyable day so far, having found time to meet my father and kid brother for lunch.

My father is celebrating his birthday over the weekend and, due to the difficulty in getting the family together, I grabbed the opportunity to spend a little time with him, with my brother, talking about family and stuff.

Given the difficulties on maintaining any sort of diet or exercise regime - I don't usually get to pick the menu, my routine is almost non-existent, I'm trying to develop the art of picking the least damaging options when I actually do have a choice. So I took the smoked chicken Waldorf salad which, I have to say, was very good. It was accompanied by two bottles of Viru, an Estonian beer which comes in curious octohedral bottles. Very nice, slight hint of vanilla, according to the tasting notes.

Best of all, I managed to avoid that 'I'm full and all I want to do is sleep' sensation that lunch often generates in me. Given the amount of work that needs doing, that's probably a good thing.

And now I'm on my way to Reigate. You know, I could really enjoy some fish. I wonder what they'll serve...

A 'strong leader' for London?

According to today's Evening Standard, the Labour Party have made a secret approach to Sir Alan Sugar to see if he would be willing to be their candidate for Mayor of London in 2012. Indeed, so secret is it now that most of London is either aware of it, or haven't left their offices yet.

Now I have no personal axe to grind against Sir Alan (although I'm guessing that Arsenal fans probably do...) but one does wonder what qualifications he has to run a city. In particular, does he have the skills required to work with a variety of local politicians, representing at least five political parties, whilst under public scrutiny? It isn't as simple as giving an instruction and expecting something to happen.

The job of Mayor requires diplomacy, tact and persistence. It needs someone who understands the art of the possible and that hard choices come with moral and ethical consequences, not just economic ones.

Oh yes, and you'll have to beat Ken Livingstone just to get the nomination...

Eighty years old - and still going strong

I have, from time to time, touched on the wonderfully collegiate feeling amongst the Parliamentary Party in the Lords, and last night was one of those occasions that brings a bit of a lump to the throat.

To mark the eightieth birthdays of four of our Peers, a party was thrown to mark the occasion. Naturally, given the difficulty of pinning everyone down to a date, it evidently took a little while to arrange, but a glittering array of Liberal Democrat Peers and their spouses, partners and family members gathered to celebrate the continuing lives of Lord (Eric) Avebury (born 29 September 1928), Lord (Bill) Rodgers of Quarry Bank (born 28 October 1928), Lord (Dick) Taverne (born 18 October 1928) and Lord (Geoff) Tordoff (born 11 October 1928). A pretty good month, I think you'd agree...

I have to admit to being a bit starstruck, as all four were political celebrities at one time or another, and I am a bit of an 'anorak' in that sense. Ros and I were at a table with Eric and Geoff, plus the noble Lords Dholakia and McNally, and it really was a lovely evening.

Eric is in astonishingly good form, having just got back from Bangladesh, and we had an opportunity to talk about his blog. Amazingly, it has never been part of the Lib Dem Blogs aggregator and I asked him why that was. The answer? He didn't know who to ask, which just goes to show.

After an excellent dinner, the four octogenarians made brief speeches. Eric started by telling the story of how he became our by-election candidate in Orpington - I'm still not sure that if someone had published it as fiction, it would have any credibility at all... Bill then gave a speech which is unreportable, if only because it only really made sense if you were there (and I'm not wholly convinced that being there helped). Let's just say that I can claim to have met the unknown Python, and that Bill might be an undiscovered comic genius.

Dick waxed lyrical about the joys of being in the Lords, and listed the warning signs that you should look for to see if it might be time to retire gracefully, before Geoff told some stories of former Leaders and Chief Whips in the Lords.

As Eric noted, old age begins ten years beyond his current age, so most of us have a while to go before we're old. Except, of course, that Lord (Derek) Ezra celebrated his ninetieth birthday over the weekend, and Lord (George) Mackie of Benshie will reach the same age in July. And they're all still turning up at the Lords, still voting, still speaking, still asking questions, and still doing their bit for a more liberal society. We are very lucky to have them...

A question for the Daily Mail: second generation Englishman or fourth generation Nazi appeaser, which should you celebrate?

I'll be honest, when it comes to the Daily Vile, I yield to no one in my revulsion for a newspaper whose core readership is people who think that they're smart enough to have an opinion of their own yet believe everything they read in it. And so, when they announce that, if one of your parents is a immigrant, you aren't really British, it really is time to put the boot in.

Unlike the 1st Viscount Harmsworth, there is no record of my great-grandfather flirting with support for the Nazis, championing the British Union of Fascists or calling for alliance with Germany. Indeed, my great-grandfather was almost certainly less judgemental, more truthful and more measured in his language and tone than the average Daily Mail leader article is.

And these idiots would like to imply that I am somehow less than English? I am deeply proud of my status as an Englishman, proud enough to feel that I am privileged to be one. This does not mean that I am any less proud of my heritage, and given the behaviour of some of the people that qualify under the criteria of the Daily Mail's 'Britishness test', I thank my lucky stars that I have the diverse background that I have.

The day on which a Prime Minister tells the editor of the Daily Mail to go boil his head cannot come too soon...

Barry Gardiner MP - embarrassed yes, repentent no

Once a year, whether I want it or not, I get a missive from my MP. It's usually a sign that Labour are thinking of going to the country - I never hear from him otherwise. His two leaflets have plenty of glossy pictures of him with various people, although there is little evidence that he belives in much apart from getting re-elected.

So I thought that I ought to find out what he actually does believe in. Let's start with MP expenses... As a member of the Council of Unlock Democracy, I obviously believe that their expenses should be a matter of public record. Barry doesn't. When he does turn up, he votes against, but his attendance record is a bit thin on issues pertaining to 'transparency of government'. In fact, he achieves a score of 12.5%, with three votes against and five no shows. Curiously, he doesn't seem keen to mention that in his correspondence - no pictures of him consulting the 'John Lewis list' to see what sort of television he can get.

Of course, Barry represents a constituency which is 30 minutes by Jubilee Line train from Westminster (Kingsbury is in the heart of Brent North), so naturally he claims the Additional Costs Allowance in full (£22,110 in 2006/07). He needs a serious diary planner to make sure that he gets all of the photographs needed to fill his once a year glossy leaflet, so he claims the largest allowance for staffing costs of any MP (£119,193 in 2006/07, up 96% since 2001/02).

So I can see why he isn't keen on having his expenses published. He was, in 2006/07, the 19th most expensive MP, despite representing a constituency close to the Palace of Westminster (for comparison, Alastair Carmichael, our man in Orkney and Shetland, comes in more than £3,000 per year cheaper despite having to commute in from Kirkwall). He's even more expensive than Dawn Butler, his fellow second home owner from Brent South (she's more expensive than Alastair too)!

If only he spent the money on communicating with me, I might not begrudge it as much. But he doesn't, so I do. Remind me to put out a leaflet in my area in the run-up to the General Election...

Candidate selection reform - coming to English Council soon?

When a working group was set up to look at the Selection Rules by which we choose Prospective Parliamentary candidates, I was abuzz with ideas, many gleaned from the experiences I had had, and the comments that my previous writings on the subject had attracted. However, I wasn't exactly confident that much would change, especially given how conservative English Candidates Committee can be.

That all changed on Monday night, as the working group met to agree its proposals to be discussed at ECC's next meeting on 7 March. We've decided that we want to move to a new set of rules based on some key principles:

• a two-tier system whereby weaker seats have a stripped down timetable
• opt-up for Local Parties who are ambitious
• greater involvement of stakeholders
• Returning Officers as disciplinarians rather as police
• freedom for candidates to campaign in new and innovative ways

We believe that this will make the Returning Officer's job easier and less bureaucratic, enable candidates to demonstrate the skills that need to be tested, reduce the burden on weaker Local Parties and connect up the work of the Campaigns Department and the English Candidates Committee in a way not achieved previously.

If approved by ECC, we'll then look to draft some new Rules and place them before English Council for approval. With luck, they'll be in place by the General Election...

Ivan Cameron: reminding us why you should play the ball and not the man

The sad loss of Ivan, David and Samantha Cameron's eldest child, should act as a reminder that, regardless of what we might think of individual politicians, we should never forget that they are human beings.

I have often commented as to the damage done to our politics by the sheer vileness of the abuse, especially that from some of the more right wing commentariat. I still firmly believe that such behaviour denies us the talent of those who would rather not be attacked for merely existing as opposed to being attacked for what they believe in.

When such tragedies as this occur, it is customary to note one's regret and pass best wishes to the bereaved, and it is good to note that so many of my fellow Liberal Democrats have already posted along such lines. However, those amongst the blogosphere whose stock in trade is personal abuse should be wary of doing likewise. It's called 'hypocrisy' where I come from.

And sadly, those who have been so abusive in recent years will continue as though nothing had ever happened...

The Camerons will have a particularly tough road over the coming months, with little opportunity to grieve away from the ever-prying eyes of the media. I wish them well, and hope that they are able to find time to deal with their loss in their own way, amongst those whom they love. The best we can do is leave them to it, and it would be nice if journalists gave them a little respite. Sadly, I don't think that they'll be that fortunate...

Heathrow - Susan Kramer strikes a blow for the forces of reason

Parliamentary anoraks may well be a bit excited, after a Liberal Democrat Bill was successfully given its first First Reading yesterday afternoon. Susan Kramer rose at 4.31 p.m. to speak, moving a Motion for leave to introduce a Bill under Standing Order No.23. So far, so dull. Such speeches tend to have the success rate of the Charge of the Light Brigade.

However, this one, seeking to amend the Planning Act 2008 to require parliamentary approval for proposals for the building of new major airports and additional runways at existing major airports; and for connected purposes, was the subject of an ambush. A brief speech in opposition by David Wilshire, the Conservative MP for Spelthorne, a vote called and, by a margin of 247 to 203, victory was gained.

Here is Susan's speech, and we can look forward to another uncomfortable moment for the Government on 20 March at Second Reading. I suspect that they will do everything they can to remove this obstacle, but with a number of Labour MP's supporting it, they may not find it as easy as they would like.

Congratulations to our Parliamentary Party in the Commons, and hopefully voters in Richmond Park will know who to thank in due course...

Conservatives - freedom of information if it embarasses Labour, unless...

it might embarrass us too!

Just as I was beginning to worry that the Conservatives might be able to fake a concern over our civil liberties long enough to fool enough of the people just once, Dominic Grieve kindly demonstrates that all they really want is to be in power so that they can use the cover of national security to keep key information nicely hidden, away from the public eye. In the midst of a pretty lame whinge against the Government, he gave the game away, saying;

"The code of practice on access to Government information introduced by the Major Government specifically and deliberately excluded minutes of Cabinet and Cabinet Committees, for the very reasons that the Secretary of State sets out in the statement of reasons he placed in the Library, and which plainly extend to all Cabinet minutes in general. Given what the Secretary of State has resorted to today, would it not be sensible to reintroduce that rule?"

So. let's see. His Party supports an enquiry into the Iraq War and the 'dodgy dossier' but wants the key information, the minutes of the relevant Cabinet meetings, to be secret. Is he not bright enough to see the contradiction, or is he an example of the distance the Conservatives have to travel before they have sufficient credibility to be a real governing Party, not just a pale imitation.

There you have it. Conservatives don't actually believe in civil liberties and freedom of information, they just want your votes. Hell, even Iain Dale thinks that they're wrong... albeit for an equally unprincipled reason.

Homelessness - pausing for thought

On Friday night, Ros and I paid a visit to the campaign headquarters in Bradford East, to meet a group of young people who were raising funds for Bradford Nightstop by sleeping in the office.

As part of the event, they had invited Bev Johnson, one of the Nightstop organisers, to give a talk on the work that they do to get young people off of the streets and into a place of safety. It turned out to be rather more thought provoking that I might have expected.

Firstly, Bev was convinced that the best option is to enable young people to return to the family home - as long as it is safe to do so. She strongly believes that long-term exposure to the hostel system tends to lead to worse outcomes and, indeed, I see her point.

We are all aware of the lack of prospects for young people who fall into homelessness. Job opportunities are harder to come by, education is harder to pursue, and both of these things can make it so much harder for someone to go on to live a happy and fulfilling life.

Her network of volunteer hosts provide a safe, hopefully one-off, place of safety, allowing the organisation to work with the whole gamut of public and private sector groups to find the best solution for the individual concerned.

She raised a whole range of issues, large and small, which demonstrate the problems that ned to be addressed. For example, they like to provide clean underwear, something that most people take for granted, yet if you have left home with only the clothes on your back, it is something to be valued.

On the macro level, Bev noted that funding for local councils to address the issue of rough sleepers is based on the number of people found sleeping in the open. As Jeanette Sunderland, our Group Leader on Bradford Council noted, she can easily find half a dozen young people sleeping at Bradford Interchange, who are clearly homeless but don't count because they have a roof over their heads. It's another example of well-intentioned Government failing to properly address a glaring need.

I was impressed, both by Bev and by the group of young people, whose initiative in organising the event and in working with the Regional Party to gather underwear (all new) for distribution to Nightstop hosts will make a difference in the lives of a few young people when they really need it.

Jacqui Smith - lying about points-based immigration isn't how you deal with the BNP

No sooner do I write about the BNP 'threat' and Labour's woeful response to it but we see another example of how not to address it.

Jacqui Smith is talking about the new proposals for a points-based immigration system, similar to that successfully employed in countries such as New Zealand. It is probably the best way of regulating the flow of migration into this country and, as Liberal Democrats, we are minded to support it. However, Jacqui has clearly not used the funds gleaned from claiming a room in her sister's house as her main home to study elementary logic.

Her view is that such a system will support the notion that British jobs should go to British workers. Sorry, Jacqui, but that just isn't true, and if you're hoping to persuade those disenchanted souls considering a vote for the BNP, you're just lying to them. Firstly, most foreign workers in this country come from within the European Union, and won't be affected by it. Second, whilst wage levels are higher here, people will come from Lithuania or Slovakia or wherever because they can send money home.

If only the issue were that simple. We are now paying the price for generations of neglect in a range of areas that, in isolation might not seem that important, but when added together create a competitive disadvantage that is only apparent at the level of the individual.

The people most impacted by a competitive jobs market are those who have less in the way of marketable skills, and the BNP taps that sense of vulnerability. They are undercut by people who have lower financial expectations and who have no long-term intention to stay. Unlike the Lithuanians and others, they can't go to other countries in search of work because they have a language gap to overcome, salary levels are lower and their outgoings higher.

The appalling level of competence in foreign languages, which first became apparent under a Conservative administration whose only thoughts in education revolved around the three R's, selling off playing fields and increasing central control over the curriculum, means that most people lack confidence that they can function adequately in Europe. As a result, they are loathe to seek out, and take up, potential opportunities in France or Germany, for example.

Our economy is not our own any more. Nearly 40% of the 800 largest employers in this country are apparently owned by foreigners, and that interdependence means that telling an Italian owned company to employ only locals is absurd. We need, as a nation, to understand that protectionism is a double-edged sword, and given our traditional reliance on exports, retaliation would be fatal to our economic prospects.

On the other hand, our service sector does well in terms of competitiveness in Europe. Workers who make their living from the use of their brain and creative flair benefit from the freedom that the Single Market offers and they see Europe not as a threat, but as an opportunity. But then, they're not likely to vote BNP.

Politicians who suggest that a change to the immigration laws will make everything better are fools, and the consequences of such foolishness risk driving voters further into the waiting arms of the BNP and other fringe groups. Jacqui Smith might succeed in drawing attention away from her domestic arrangements by such attention-seeking dishonesty, but our democracy is not served by such a mendacious approach.

Labour urged to take action to stop the BNP winning Euro seats... hello, is there anybody out there?

According to today's Independent, 'senior Labour figures' are said to have told Gordon Brown that the BNP are likely to win two seats in June's European elections. Oh dear, are we to see another attempt by Labour to hype the threat from the BNP so as to drive voters back to the shelter of the Labour Party?

It is true that the BNP have has a series of good by-election results, and this week's result in Swanley, where the Labour vote collapsed to allow the BNP to win, has highlighted what they are capable of in a small, highly targeted one-off campaign. What we haven't seen is any evidence that they have the capacity to fight anything larger against meaningful, engaged opposition.

It takes a lot of money to fight a Region-wide election. You need a pretty big bankroll even to put out an election address across the entire North West, for example, and given the media's tendancy to focus on the political big beasts, and their general lack of interest in European elections anyway, the ability to raise awareness in their policies might be limited.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that they are not a threat. Their message is easy to articulate and requires a response which is more multi-layered. However, they tend to do best where local democracy is fairly moribund, where one party is dominant to the exclusion of others, and where the black and minority ethnic community is comparatively small.

From the perspective of the major parties, the best form of defence is attack. Not an attack on the BNP, per se, but an attack on the sense of alienation from politics and the authorities. Voters who feel isolated from the decisions that impact on their day to day lives are more likely to vote for someone who comes along and says, "We know how you feel, we agree that your local politicians don't care about you, vote for us for something different.". It only needs to work once.

The challenge to Labour, the Conservatives and ourselves is to find ways of giving people a sense of personal involvement and a stake in what happens to their communities, their counties, their country. Technology potentially helps us to do that, but without an honesty of intent, it will take more than better PR to convince those who have given up on voting, or who vote for fringe, extremist parties of the left or right, to engage in the more complex debates that stem from genuine large-scale participation in our democracy.

Duncan Borrowman has noted the importance on running candidates everywhere - we failed to run one in Swanley for reasons unknown - and he is absolutely right to do so. If you don't give voters a choice, you risk having them vote for an option they're not so keen on as a means of expressing their disapproval of other parties. That sounds a bit negative, but there are plenty of voters who will vote on that basis. Some of them will vote for us.

Unfortunately, Labour just don't get that. They argue that the BNP are vile racists and that we, the established parties, must work together to stop them. There is a core of BNP support that is overtly racist, it is true, and there are others whose view of the world is guided by fear of difference. However, many of those now voting for them have been conditioned to do so by the stream of inaccurate reports from the Daily Mail and the Daily Express, implying that immigrants get priority for housing, that all new jobs are being taken by foreigners, and that if only we could achieve Gordon Brown's 'nirvana' of 'British jobs for British workers' and throw off the yoke of Brussels, we would all live happily ever after.

No, in order to defeat the BNP, we have to win the argument, making our case, campaigning in the community and addressing the day to day issues that affect it. Politicians talking in glib terms and implying easy solutions don't help that. Promising the Earth and delivering little visible change doesn't help either. And emphasising the threat from the BNP without addressing the root causes behind their support certainly won't help...

What is this cliche I see before me?

Now I'm not a great believer in the cliched 'it's grim oop North' stuff.

On the other hand, here in Bradford, it's a bit chilly, it's dark and it's raining. The shops seemingly all closed at 5.30 and it all feels a bit desperate. There are a whole bunch of dead shops in the city centre, which can't help. Nice branch of Waterstones though, with a statue of Cobden in it.

It'll be much nicer in daylight, with the sun shining, won't it...

A quick visit to our friends in the North

I write this entry from the comfort of a National Express East Coast service to Leeds. The free tea and light refreshments are very nice, and my first class seat is very comfortable. Curious, isn't it, that I generally have nice experiences on NXEC and Jonathan Wallace always has such awful ones. I still think that Jonathan should book his tickets under an alias... We're even on time...

Ros and I are on our way to Bradford as part of Ros's programme of visits to Regional Conferences, as promised in her manifesto. Unfortunately, we're not doing as many events as we might have wished, as it proved difficult to organise an itinerary in good time, but I'm sure we'll be back in due course.

I'm still asked if I enjoy these trips and, so far, I have to admit that I am. My past roles within the Party have allowed me to meet, and work with, people across the country, and it's always nice to run into them again, even if I have to reminded occasionally (I'm getting old, and the memory isn't what it was...).

This evening includes a visit to Bradford East, where there is an event to highlight homelessness issues. There will, I'm promised, be students and young people involved, so my Liberal Youth hat will be in evidence... If only I could have made the Brighouse quiz night... (I did see if it was possible, honest...)

Sarah T goes to Peckham

Yesterday evening was Local Party Executive night, so I arrived at a bungalow in Kingsbury to do my Secretarial duty and, I am pleased to report, it was a short meeting. This allowed me to get home in time to watch Question Time, not something I generally do, but on this occasion, Brent's very own Sarah Teather was on. It's not often that the media do anything in Peckham that doesn't mention crime, deprivation or racial tension, so I was intrigued to see what sort of audience turned up.

I have to confess that Sarah had not made a huge impression on me as a South Londoner, even as a South Londoner on the Regional Executive. Slightly fierce looking, a bit of a workaholic, not really the sort of person I would naturally warm too. If she knew who I was, she probably wouldn't be likely to warm to me either. Apparently, I was on her Parliamentary approval panel, although I don't claim to remember it (admittedly, there are dozens of people, good, bad and indifferent, whose assessment days I was on, and I don't remember them either).

However, once I moved to Brent, and become Secretary of the Borough Party, I realised just what loyalty she had instilled. My colleagues are almost fanatically dedicated to making sure that she wins Brent Central, and are determined that nothing will get in the way. I'm impressed, I admit, and I'm not easily impressed.

I was intrigued to see how she would get on with a Peckham audience, especially given the highly diverse one that turned up. Peckham has a large and lively Afro-Caribbean community, with an increasing emphasis on the Afro bit. I used to joke that there was more Sierra Leonean politics done in Peckham than of any of the British political parties. It is part of the Labour heartland in Southwark, although there were Liberal Democrat successes south of the railway tracks in the nineties.

So I was delighted to see her strongly civil libertarian, socially conscious views get a warm response from the audience. In an area that has voted Labour as consistently as Peckham has over the years (and look how much good that's done...), if a Liberal Democrat can draw such a response, it can only augur well for our prospects.

It does need to be borne in mind that Brent Central has a significant Afro-Caribbean population, particularly in Harlesden, Stonebridge and Kensal Green wards. In the past, these were not areas that saw much political activity. Labour took the vote for granted, and other parties lacked resource to challenge that. It's different now, as the boundary changes have made the new seat a battle to the death between two women, Dawn Butler, the increasingly paranoid Brent South MP, and our Sarah.

Dawn has struggled to adjust to life in a marginal seat - Brent South was pretty safe - and has repeatedly demonstrated that she is not in Paul Boateng's league. The Obama endorsement unleashed a wave of ridicule upon her that, whilst possibly harsh, showed that she doesn't understand why people are so cynical about politicians. The second home allowance claim didn't help either...

Sarah, on the other hand, has good relations with the local press, has worked hard to learn a second language so as to better interact with the sizeable South Asian community and is everywhere (and I mean everywhere). Her campaign to seek proper treatment of a Brent resident imprisoned in Guantanamo was very well received by constituents, and her consistent championing of issues that really do impact on voters has resulted in a tremendous level of name recognition and personal support.

I had a few private concerns that Brent Central would be a tough, uphill struggle too far. Not anymore, I don't. We have the team, we have the message, we have the candidate. I'm not saying we will win, but I'll be really disappointed if we don't...

Dreams of a Wembley double

Meanwhile, my more traditionally beloved football team, Luton Town, have been struggling to overcome a thirty point deduction (thanks a million, Lord Mawhinney...). The Hatters have made it into positive numbers (slightly less points than a triangle, but there you go...) but, despite that, have managed a cup run in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, the hard way.

Wins against Brentford (currently top of League 2) and Division 1 sides Walsall and Colchester United (I'm really sorry, Bob...) were enough to reach a two-legged Area Final against Brighton. It took penalties, but Luton Town are going to Wembley! Alright, it may be to play Scunthorpe United in a cup competition that most football fans don't notice but I don't really care.

Of course, that leaves Luton on track for two unusual achievements. Firstly, the first team to win a Wembley final and lose their place in the Football League. Second, they'll join Oxford United as League Cup winners playing in the Conference. Unless, of course, they manage the escape act of all time...

It's Cup fever deja vu all over again...

Last season, I found myself in an unexpected dream of footballing glory as plucky Needham Market FC made their way through the rounds of the FA Vase to the semi-finals, where they were eventually beaten by the eventual winners, Kirkham and Wesham FC, over two legs. It was a great dream whilst it lasted, but a small town with a population of less than 5,000 at Wembley? Unlikely, eh?

But the team won't lie down, and they're clearly up for another tilt this year. In November, the campaign started with a narrow 1-0 win over Northampton Spencer in front of 175 hardy souls. St Neots Town fell 4-3 in the third round in front of 219, before the draw everyone dreaded, AFC Fylde (formerly Kirkham and Wesham FC). At least it was at home, but the Lancastrians snatched a 0-0 draw in front of 320 spectators and an away game didn't look promising. And yet, and yet... with enthusiastic travelling support, and the game moved due to problems with the Fylde pitch, the gallant Reds stole away with a 2-1 victory to stun a crowd of 457, earning yet another home draw against Ridgeons League rivals Dereham Town.

At the second attempt, the match was played on something of a gluepot, but Needham Market were worthy 2-1 winners in front of 448 mostly happy fans. And so to the quarter-finals. Joy of joys, another home draw, this time against Chalfont St Peter on 28 February. 

Unfortunately, I won't be there, as I'll be at the South East/South Central joint Regional Conference, but my thoughts will stray towards Bloomfields at about 3 p.m...

Liberal Youth: in adversity, strength

I have to admit that I'm suddenly rather impressed. I comment on Liberal Youth and, as if by magic, they demonstrate exactly why one could be optimistic about their future.

I have been approached by a number of key Liberal Youth personnel, each of them pointing out some element of recent efforts that address some of my concerns. It seems that there are all sorts of things going on to streamline processes, improve communication and increase delivery capacity. As an office holder of Liberal Youth, albeit a somewhat elderly one, I'm pleased to see this.

My Deputy Returning Officer, the estimable Erlend Watson, tells me that he was impressed by the qualities displayed by candidates in the hustings, and I am told that I can look forward to seeing them for myself in due course.

My only disappointment is that there are those who seem to take great delight in stirring things up. Why is someone called Tory Bear being fed a somewhat partial version of events, designed to discredit the organisation? Indeed, who is doing it and to what end? It must be assumed that such an individual is not a friend of Liberal Youth, or hopelessly naïve, to supply the enemy with information in such a manner.

We also have a RON (reopen nominations) campaign, it appears. I'm often troubled by such campaigns, as they tend to be negative by their very nature. However, it is permitted to run such a campaign, as long as it doesn't breach the anti-negative campaigning rules laid down by Liberal Youth's constitution, so I await events with a keen interest.

Preparations are well under way for the issue of ballot papers and manifesto booklets, so the debate over who is best qualified to take Liberal Youth into the future will widen further. I hope that we'll see the best of Liberal Youth in the coming weeks, and after the events of the past week, I'm quietly confident that we will.

Derek Draper vs the blogosphere

The latest development in young Draper's war against the blogosphere is an interesting one, if worrying to defenders of free speech.

The first salvo, accusing Iain Dale and Guido Fawkes of racism or, at the very least, pandering to it, seemed to be cliched but effective. It got everyone talking about him, put Iain and Guido on the defensive to some extent but rallied support for his opponents. So far, not so good.

Now don't get me wrong, there are some fairly vile people posting comments on Guido's blog in particular. I tend to the view that Guido's view of the world coarsens political debate to the point where you might wonder whether there were any principled individuals left at any level of government. Further, I am convinced that the fact that most of these individuals post under pseudonyms frees them to be far more offensive than they might be if their identity was known.

Many of them are, however, not racist, or at least, not overtly so. If there were more ethnic minority members of the Cabinet, we might see a different 'face', but, whilst their language is pretty ugly, there is little evidence of what one might definitively describe as racism. The problem is that, by tolerating such abuse, Guido does effectively provide a platform for them.

Iain doesn't permit such behaviour. Whilst he is pretty partisan, so am I, so nothing wrong there. Occasionally, his sense of humour goes astray, mostly when he hasn't quite worked out all of the implications of a posting but he's pretty quick to offer an apology when he's wrong and honest enough to hold his hands up.

So what would Derek do next? Now this is where a sense of evil genius kicks in, the idea of a multi-layered attack on the lifeblood of the really serious bloggers, cutting off the income stream. First, pressure advertisers by threatening them that their association with known racists will damage their brand, then threaten those behind the conduit of advertising to a range of bloggers, in this case Alex Hilton, 'Recess Monkey' and key player behind both LabourHome and Message Space.

It's classic in its simplicity, entirely consistent with the boycotting tradition of the radical left and guaranteed to keep Derek in the public eye. Labour have maximum deniability due to his somewhat damaged credibility (sorry Derek, but you did get a bit above yourself in the early days...), and the likes of Iain and Guido find themselves on the back foot (sorry guys, but you really are, at least for the time being...). Given the weakness of the Labour blogosphere, combined with the increasing lazy 'dead tree media', the idea of causing Conservative bloggers to at least ponder a degree of self-censorship can only serve to take a little pressure off of the Government. Not much, I suspect, as Labour activists don't really comprehend the real influence of bloggers - not as much as some of our number would have you believe.

The problem is that such a strategy only really succeeds from a position of moral strength against an idea or group who are generally accepted to be beyond the pale. Of all people, given Derek's career highlights, he probably fails to meet the moral strength criteria. A self-confessed Labour insider with a record of pressurising journalists is less than likely to seize the moral high ground.

If it was just Guido, his target might just be deemed as being beyond the pale by the court of public opinion, if it wasn't for the fact that he strikes gold just often enough to establish a degree of credibility. Besides, in attacking a government which seems to know no bounds in its efforts to take away our basic freedoms, he is reflecting a popular zeitgeist.

So I find myself in the uncomfortable position of wanting to defend the right of an individual to launch an advertiser boycott whilst despising his attempts to threaten a fellow blogger or two, whilst also defending the right of a fairly unpleasant individual to propagate a message of destructive cynicism which, if left unchecked, devalues our political culture and weakens our society.

Ultimately though, principles have to rise to the surface. Derek, you're wrong in your approach, wrong to use threats against individuals to attain your goals and wrong in your desire to silence a voice which makes you and those you purport uncomfortable. In a free society, we establish laws which delineate the types of behaviour which is offensive to the broader community. If Guido breaks them, use the law to stop him. Otherwise, leave him to his own devices.

The problem, you see, is that two can play at this game. A political movement on its way out is far more vulnerable than one on the rise and, if you've spent any time looking at the sheer hatred displayed by some of the more rabid Guido posters, you will realise that, given the opportunity, they will do anything to stop you, and your colleagues, from regrouping after your defeat at a General Election.

I have been increasingly saddened by the vitriolic tone of politics in this country in recent years, and maintained a fond, if increasingly forlorn, hope that the Internet could encourage a renaissance of ideas and substance over spin and soundbite. If all it does is release the restraints of civility that demonstrate our qualities as human beings, there is little hope for the civil society that so many of the protagonists in this conflict claim to be fighting for.

Make mine a bottle of badly labelled beer

As a Valentine's Day treat, Ros arranged for us to take a tour of the St Peter's Brewery in St Peter South Elmham, one of a clutch of hamlets named after their church - there are five South Elmhams in close proximity, south of Bungay, near the Norfolk border.

The tour itself is pretty basic, although our guide, John, was excellent value and great entertainment. For those who don't know much about how beer is made, it was sufficiently informative for Ros to learn the meaning of 'cask conditioned' but not so technical that you needed an 'O' level in Chemistry to understand it.

The tasting session afterwards was very pleasant, with a variety of the brewery's products available for tasting, and very good they were too. So much so that we were inclined to buy some of their fine products for further research later. We were then introduced to one of the benefits of visiting a brewery.

Labelling machines do go wrong from time to time and, naturally, supermarkets and the like don't want to have poorly labelled products on their shelves. So the brewery boxes up these rejects and sells them in boxes of eight at a notably reduced price. Frankly, as long as I know what it is, the state of the label doesn't matter, so Ros and I are now the proud possessor of twelve bottles of Old Style Porter plus eight each of Golden Ale, Ruby Red Ale and Grapefruit Fruit Beer.

That should keep us going for a while...

25 random things about me... the Empire strikes back

Mark tells me that this is all the rage, so here goes...

1. My middle names are Serena Isabella Caterina Grimnar - when your family has links to most other royal families, you tend to want to keep in with them...


2. In 1957, I won the European Under-18 whitewater rafting championship, aged 8.


3. My first pet was a marine iguana. I called him Iggy.


4. When Ludwig and I awarded Mark the Knight Cross of Amaranth with oak leaves, I had drunk so much champagne that I called him Franz all evening. He was very good about it.


5. I took skiing lessons some years ago. My ski instructor was a young man called Nick but he didn't last very long...


6. I love madrigal singing, and am a stalwart of the Amaranth team at international events.


7. My cousin Jaime was the junior member of the military junta that ran a small Latin American country. He has never admitted which one it was.


8. Amongst my directorships is one for the company that owns the exploitation rights for Stephen Tall across Oceania.


9. Rupert, my eldest son, has been treated for his psychopathic condition. Apparently, the most successful treatment was to join the Conservative Party...


10. My father-in-law owns a large tract of rainforest in Central America with the aim of protecting the giant sloth.


11. I zorb, therefore I am.


12. In my spare time, I sit on the Amaranth Electoral Commission. We haven't found a way to introduce plurality into national politics here because the Authentic Radical Liberal Party repeatedly gain over 99% of the vote.


13. I was forced to take tennis lessons as a child - it didn't work because I couldn't understand why someone was hitting the ball back at me.


14. My favourite job was the one I did for a few years in the mid-eighties as the SDP MP for Greenwich - you wondered what had happened to Rosie Barnes, didn't you. The rabbit was delicious.


15. I like to hunt endangered animals... with my camera... My friend Carol then paints them - it makes it easier to recognise them later but I'm not sure that a tiger should be purple.


16. My doctoral thesis was on peach schnapps and innovative uses for it - I met my future husband, Ludwig, in the course of my research.


17. I share a hair colourist with a leading Liberal Democrat blogger.


18. My favourite traditional Amaranth event is the feast day of St Catherine, marked with virgins, garlic and red wine. We import the virgins from Romania, but I'm not sure about the quality in recent years - they have a terrible urge to sing... terribly.


19. I have a gall bladder called Rex.


20. In 1965, I was chosen to fill a vacancy on the Security Council of the United Nations, aged 16.


21. I have an intern to help me with answering my post. His name is David Milliband and his hobbies include being Foreign Secretary of your country. At least, that's what he tells me.


22. In the 1970's, I ran a spy ring from an office in the Kremlin. If the Soviets had found out who I was spying on, they would have been somewhat upset.


23. When I am stressed, I like to take my pet monitor lizards, Martin and Huw, for a walk. They may have a nasty habit of biting and killing people, but they're big softies really.


24. Every Saturday afternoon, at half past two, come rain or shine, I put on any old clothes and I'm an ordinary person...


25. I am part of a secret team of celebrities who write Iain Dale's blog

Liberal Youth: campaigning hots up

Well, it's been less than three days since nominations closed, and much has happened already. I've been bombarded with invitations to join Facebook groups, questions about process and general organisational stuff. And I'm the Returning Officer...

The Spring Conference takes place this weekend at the University of Warwick, just outside Coventry and, if you're a member of Liberal Youth, try to get along if you can. There will be hustings, although I encourage members to put their questions directly to the candidates whenever an opportunity arises.

After the Conference, the formal ballot will take place, with a manifesto booklet and ballot papers for members to peruse and complete. At the end of March, the count will take place in Cowley Street, and I will announce the result as soon as I can after it is concluded.

Let the best candidates win...

Boris blows a fuse...

It would appear that Keith Vaz has managed to upset Boris Johnson to the point where, in a telephone conversation between the two men, the latter "launched an X-rated tirade" at the former.

Now I freely admit that Keith Vaz frequently irritates me, it's something about his style, I suppose, but he was quite legitimately seeking clarification after Boris's stellar performance in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee. This is only to be expected after Boris fluffed his lines as badly as he did, providing a series of variations on the facts.

Boris may not have been my choice for Mayor, but his eccentricities added to the gaiety of nations. Now, however, we discover that he is a foul-mouthed oik, perhaps ill-suited to the role as chief diplomat for London. I expected him to be harmless if ineffectual. I also expected a series of gaffes. I didn't expect him to interfere with police investigations and abuse Members of Parliament.

It's high time that the gloves came off, and that we really test Boris to see who he really is, methinks...

Liberal Youth elections: Returning Officer ruling no.1

As part of a move towards improving the transparency of elections within Liberal Youth, there follows the full text of my first communication to candidates...

Dear All,

Firstly, may I welcome you to the process of electing the new Officers and Executive Committee of Liberal Youth. As the Returning Officer, my job is to steer you all from close of nominations to declaration of the results on 31 March.

I attach a copy of the Constitution of Liberal Youth, and refer you to Article 9 which defines the framework within which these elections will be run. Failure to read them will not be accepted as an excuse if you breach the Rules, I fear, so do take the time to familiarise yourselves with them.

Now that nominations have closed, I must advise you as to a series of rulings that have been sought as follows:

Membership Lists, access to

It had been my intention to make these available to candidates, subject to completion and return of a data protection certificate. Unfortunately, Article 9.15 (a) forbids me from doing so. For the record, I believe that this restriction may have implications in terms of equality of access to information, but the Constitution is quite explicit. I may return to this point after the elections are completed.

Endorsements

I am currently involved in reviewing the Parliamentary Candidate Selection Rules, which gives me an opportunity to use you as guinea pigs. I intend to take that opportunity by declaring that the inclusion of Party 'celebrities' etc in photographs in manifestos is not deemed to represent endorsement unless explicitly stated. It is my intention that a statement be included prominently in the manifesto booklet to this effect.

Please note that there is one exception, the Liberal Youth Administrator, Paul Pettinger. It is the convention that Party staff remain neutral in internal Party elections, and it is my intention to protect that neutrality as far as I can.

Explicit endorsements shall be vouched and, if challenged, written evidence provided to me as Returning Officer. Any unverifiable endorsement shall be treated as a breach of Article 9.15 (h), and lead to disqualification.

This means that endorsements are allowed, especially given that the Constitution does not rule them out.

Facebook

Candidates may set up Facebook groups in support of their candidacy, and are asked to invite me to join, so that I might monitor them in the event of a complaint.

Hustings

I will rule tomorrow on the amount of time available for speeches following consultation with Paul, bearing in mind the availability of time within the agenda for the weekend.

That's it in terms of general rulings thus far. There are some other issues but I will take these up individually, as they are issues pertaining to accuracy, or application of a specific Rule.

If you have any questions, I can be reached by any of the means below. I would be grateful if you could keep contact during work hours to a minimum, as I do have a full-time job drinking blood and eating babies on behalf of HM Revenue & Customs...

Good luck to all of you. I will post a full list of candidates on my blog and on the Liberal Youth website in due course.

The unbearable lightness of Liberal Youth: the Returning Officer's cut

Having just completed a lengthy review of the Liberal Youth constitution and then issued a bunch of election rulings, I am a mite weary this morning, especially as my rulings were issued in the early hours.

It is interesting to operate with a set of rules which leave vast areas of doubt and uncertainty. There is no guidance about endorsements, and given the apparently general assumption that these are barred - indeed, they are in most internal Party elections and selections - the ensuing debate about the use of photographs with celebrities in them rather misses the point in this instance.

I have therefore chosen to assume that inclusion in a photograph does not imply endorsement unless said individual explicitly endorses the candidate whose manifesto it is in. It is my intention that this assumption is clearly stated in the manifesto booklet. The flip side of this ruling is that, if an explicit endorsement is claimed, it must be vouched by the endorser on pain of disqualification. And yes, for the avoidance of doubt, I really mean it.

Use of Facebook is in. I want candidates to use the free tools available to them. I want members to be able to engage with candidates. I want experimentation, initiative and imagination because these are the sort of skills that can make radical organisations work more effectively, achieve more and make more of an impression.

It hasn't all been as I would wish. The Rules explicitly prevent the membership list from being made available to candidates for purposes of campaigning, and I'll be looking at this again after the conclusion of the elections. I do think that this hands some individuals a potential advantage but my hands are tied.

Lastly, what I would like to see is a campaign of ideas, of proposals and of commitment. What I don't want to see is negative campaigning, abuse and cheap shots. I don't approve of it and, of course, I have the authority to do something about it.

So watch this space, as I'll be using this blog from time to time to report on the campaign...

Local Government Review - Norfolk and Suffolk: County elections likely in June as Boundary Commission accidentally shoots itself in the foot

We were expecting to hear the final proposals for Norfolk and Suffolk this month but, following a partly successful application for judicial review of the review process in Devon by East Devon District Council, the Boundary Commission will now report to Hazel Blears on 15 July.

It appears that the Boundary Commission were of the view that they could only offer one proposal. Surely they haven't been influenced by the New Labour version of choice, have they?

Braving the elements in North East Hertfordshire

I have to admit that Friday night's Presidential visit was not necessarily ill-starred, but it felt like it at times.

The original plan had been to drive from London, attend the dinner, and then drive to Suffolk. However, last Monday's snow put paid to that idea and, instead, we were forced to improvise.

Continued snowfall on Friday had led to the early closure of the Revenue & Customs office in Hitchen, which hardly boded well for either attendance or our ability to get there and back, but we set off optimistically, Ros from Watford and I from Euston. Our journeys coalesced at Stevenage and we were only four minutes late at Baldock, where John and Linda White were there to pick us up and convey us to Cottered, where the village hall was our venue.

A very good meal was served, a lentil soup followed by roast lamb with stuffing, roast potatoes and some well-cooked but not overdone vegetables, before Ros spoke to those present.

John then ran us back to Baldock, where we caught the train back to London with seconds to spare. When we got back to Kingsbury, we discovered that Arriva had suspended all bus services in Hertfordshire.

A great night out though, and many thanks to all in North East Hertfordshire Liberal Democrats for making it happen!

How many countries does Mozambique have a border with?

Wednesday night saw Ros and I in Brentford for the Brentford & Isleworth Quiz Night, fish and chip supper thrown in. Ros was there to give a speech and I was there... because I could be. Besides, I should be there to make sure that she gets home safely, right?

After the speech, the quiz got started, and I have to say that the difficulty of the questions was notable. I normally fancy myself at a quiz night, but these were tough ones, almost as tough as the evening I spent with Duncan, Grace, Jessica and David in Lewisham and Beckenham North two years ago. Luckily, because of the journey home, we couldn't stay long enough to take part, so my reputation in such things remained unblemished.

I was impressed by the fish and chips though. Served in individual boxes, and delivered straight from the shop, they were warm, tasty and filling. I've never seen anyone attempt that before, but it's certainly a good idea.

The journey home was much smoother than one might have feared. We just caught a bus to Gunnersbury, just caught the connecting train to Brondesbury, before just catching the number 32 bus to home.

On our way, we also ran into the new Chair of Camden Borough Liberal Democrats, Elizabeth Stanton-Jones. She has recently celebrated the award of an OBE to her son, Nick, our Leader on Southwark Council, for services to local government. Well deserved, if you ask me...

Another day, another unfunded mandate. Say goodnight, Mr Burnham...

In the excitement following our various Olympic triumphs, the Government decided that we should encourage swimming as a means to improve the health of the nation. Free swimming for the under-16's and over-65's, that was the plan.

And now, surprise, surprise, we discover that the funding is only guaranteed for two years and is so paltry that 143 local authorities have decided that they cannot take up the offer because the resultant loss of income exceeds the proposed grant. Best of all, irony of irony, Mansfield, the home of double Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington, is one of those opting out in the face of a £400,000 shortfall.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm entirely in favour of encouraging greater fitness and better health amongst the populace. However, this is yet another instance where the Government makes an announcement in pursuit of a cheap, favourable headline, without any real thought for the consequences. Their hope, it seems, is that local councils will take the rap - how many councils does Labour run now? - and the Government can walk away, regretting their unwillingness to cooperate.

Government is about taking hard decisions. It is also about honesty. When Government ministers forget these two self-evident truths, it's time to go. The Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport doesn't get that. Time to go, Andy...