On the 23rd of October, the Liberal Democrats Abroad and the Liberal Democrats European Group held a discussion session with Irish Senator Timmy Dooley about the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe’s contribution to the Conference on the Future of Europe. Mr Dooley underlined the importance of hearing British views on Europe’s future, to […]
Op-eds
The Elephant in the Room
I was once told I have a memory like an elephant! I didn’t realise what that meant, and the friend who told me explained. She said that elephants have long memories. They remember. It is true. I do. I remember a time when governments were at least able to behave in a way we could […]
UPDATED: Commons committees’ report says government’s Covid response was “one of the most important public health failures the United Kingdom has ever experienced”
Embed from Getty Images The “Lessons learnt to date” report has been published by two key House of Commons committees. It says the government’s early planning was based on a risk assessment that a pandemic would result in 100 deaths and be like flu: “the likelihood of an emerging infectious disease spreading within the UK […]
Dismissing Dysmenorrhea
So, if you have never had bad period pain, how can I convince you that it really is horrible? You know what bad toothache can be like? That sort of immersive pain experience that completely consumes you. There is very little you can do to get relief. Painkillers barely take the edge off. Concentrating on […]
World Review: Afghanistan, child labour and vaccine passports in France
In this weekend’s World Review, Tom Arms reports the Taliban is proving to be a loose coalition that is quickly falling apart along centuries-old tribal lines and more contemporary political axes. He turns his attention to the impact that Covid is having on child labour in the developing world. And he reviews how Marcon’s insistence […]
World Suicide Prevention Day: A councillor view from the hill farm
It is World Suicide Prevention Day. Tracey and Richard Huffer farm high on a hill in south west Shropshire. Tracey is also a health professional. Along with myself and four others, we are Lib Dem councillors in a very rural area. Sometimes it feels we can’t sit down for a chat without mentioning the “s” […]
No need to break any election pledges to fix social care
So, the Government is to pour more and more money into the first aid camp at the bottom of the cliff rather than building a fence at the top. Yesterday’s announcement on the funding for social care does nothing to enhance the quality of life of older people or reduce the demand for hospital treatment […]
COVID, holidays and vaccine hesitancy within Eastern European communities
If someone told me a few years ago that any other issue will divide our communities as much as Brexit did after the EU referendum, I would not have believed. This year, I was lucky enough to travel over the summer holidays. A lot of people like me, who live abroad, are often left with […]
Ed Davey: Johnson’s refusal to self isolate “Barnard Castle on steroids”
Boris Johnson’s blatant avoidance of self isolation as a staffer who tested positive for Covid further undermines confidence in this Government. I feel sorry for anyone who has to be around him over the next few days. He could pass a potentially deadly virus on to them or ultimately their vulnerable relatives. It is an […]
Pandemic restrictions are over… sort of… Where do we go from here?
You might find yourself wondering why, when the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Health are all self-isolating, and new cases have reached the peak levels seen last over the New Year, today is a good day to declare as “Freedom Day”. And yet, for all of the […]