Sean Davey

wandrlust: Kennedy Campaigning in California, 1968 — Steve...

Mon, 03 Sep 2012 19:11:12 +0100

Kennedy Campaigning in California, 1968 — Steve Schapiro

Sums up why I am a Liberal: we have never utilised the language...

Thu, 17 May 2012 12:30:45 +0100

Sums up why I am a Liberal: we have never utilised the language of liberty, freedom and smaller government in the same way US Presidents have managed to, and none more so than Kennedy and Reagan.

My manifesto for London Liberal Youth Chair

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 22:53:25 +0100

My manifesto for London Liberal Youth Chair

Campaigning around London

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 13:26:28 +0100

Campaigning around London

Breaking News: Liberal Democrats to "call it a day"

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 13:14:00 +0100

“Liberal Democrats to call it a day”

Following groundbreaking analysis from the Independent on Sunday, which shows fewer Liberal Democrat candidates standing in this year’s local elections, and a dwindling activist base, Britain’s third largest party have collectively decided to ‘call it a day’.

Rather than facing up to the challenge of a downward trend of political participation – with steadily declining year-on-year membership for all political parties – the Liberal Democrats are the first major party to concede to the wisdom of comment-authors in such papers as the Guardian, who have claimed they will be “consined to thee history books”

Membership officers in local branches across the country have breathed a collective sigh of relief, and many hope this will signal the end of media interest in the party sparked when Liberal Democrats took office for the first time in nearly a century in 2010. One South-West officer, who wished to remain anonymous, commented “the end of the road has finally arrived for many of us who have dedicated much of our lives fighting for the little things: civil liberties, a green economy and greater powers for local people… most of our members are getting on now, and this is our chance to just enjoy a quiet retirement”

Concerns have been raised about who will be left to govern Britain with many - from environmentalists to human rights lawyers - fearing that the Liberal Democrats leaving the national stage will leave the Tories in power unchecked.

But senior figures in the party have sought to dismiss these concerns. Thomas Hamm, editor of GreenLawns.org.uk, which unofficially represents the party at a grassroots level, said “there is a lot of misplaced anger towards the Tories… we might be fundamentally opposed to their view of society, and disagree over a few issues such as secret courts, email monitoring, electoral reform, party funding, the environment, equal opportunities – oh and gay marriage – but being in government is like being in a greenhouse… when things heat up its better to be on the outside p***ing in,”

Most appear to be happy with the decision, which is expected to be approved by a special “dissolution conference” to be called immediately – benefactors of this decision include UKIP who are picking up many of the votes of those who believe two-party politics is no longer the answer, and the Greens who are expected to take in a rag-tag of protest votes, and kind, sensible folk who like putting up posters during election times.

A small, radical group of activists including a handful of current MPs, councillors and young people who describe themselves as “fundamentally Liberal” have sparked a telling-off from bloggers and commenters across the internet for vowing to fight on seat-by-seat, vote-by-vote to defend a Liberal vision for the country. But with wildly ambitious targets such as recruiting at least 10 members each, it is safe to bid them rest in pieces…

Some pictures from London Liberal Youth campaigning & events...

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 09:37:59 +0000

Some pictures from London Liberal Youth campaigning & events - Simon Hughes at UCL, with Nick Clegg at Spring Conference in Newcastle

Reasons to be Cheerful

Sat, 17 Mar 2012 18:40:00 +0000

Originally published on Lib Dem Voice

Waking up to the encouraging string of headlines as I did on Monday, I’m suddenly wondering if this is the point where we as a party have started getting it right?

If there are three uncontroversial elements to Lib Dem identity then equal marriage rights, campaigning against Trident and defending the individual (Nick Clegg launching the #thisisabuse campaign) are surely good starting points?

Conference is this weekend, so you could be forgiven for thinking these brilliant policies appear pre-emptively in our packs – but no, it’s almost as if we are a party of government: the Deputy Prime Minister appearing on the BBC; CentreForum’s report featured in the Guardian and our calls for Equal Marriage igniting support across Twitter, and appearing as the Times (£) leader.

I’m very cautiously contrasting this to recent years of the party bemoaning the media bias against us; the constant struggle to show people that the policies they so agree with can be implemented if only they gave us power.

I think this might just be the start of our comeback.We had a Liberal Youth meal last week, and someone pointed out that this was probably the last parliament before all parties start turning their attention towards the fight of 2015. We’re nearly 2 years into a coalition government, and the Liberal Democrats are in power, playing a vital role in shaping the government’s identity and initiative.

Let’s make the most of it – playing a positive and influential role, celebrating our successes and being the engine of reform and progress in government. We’ve finally broken through the establishment to show the press, and the public that we can hold power and be effective, now we have to capitalize on it in local elections in May, and continuing to shape the government’s agenda for the rest of our time in power.

JS Mill on Universities: "Their object is not to make skilful lawyers, or physicians, or engineers, but capable and cultivated human beings"

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:55:01 +0000

JS Mill on Universities: "Their object is not to make skilful lawyers, or physicians, or engineers, but capable and cultivated human beings"

Video

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 11:50:06 +0000

Party Groups and our Liberal identity

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:10:00 +0000

When Roy Jenkins left the Labour party in the early 80s rather than defecting to the Liberals, David Steel encouraged him to form the SDP in order to capitalize on a wider base of support for a future alliance.

Three decades on the Liberal Democrats are a merged, centrist party in government for the first time. With a hugely diverse membership base we are (proudly) the most democratic party in British politics, and recently this has formalized into a number of groups within the party.

Longest standing is the libertarian group Liberal Vision. Last week Liberal Left were making headlines calling for us to work with the Labour party. Arguably these two are fringe groups, but nonetheless represent valid opinions and ideas from party members.

More influentially the Social Liberal Forum are doing excellent work in promoting our fight against inequality, and acting as an internal party brake on the pressure exerted by our coalition partners.

Today the launch of Liberal Reform completes a span of the spectrum. Describing itself as “defending four cornered freedom in the Liberal Democrats: social, political, personal and economic” Liberal Reform is seeking to promote & expand economic Liberalism as a key aspect of the Liberal party’s historic identity.

All of these groups represent different core elements of Liberal ideology. Whether it is social or economic, there is much room for overlap. David Laws recently claimed “we are the party that best fuses social justice and economic liberalism”. And of course as Nick Clegg made clear in his conference speech last year “we are not on the left, and we are not right, we have our own label: Liberal”.

But there is a risk that commentators will fail to understand this. To be fair to them the internal workings of the Liberal Democrats are complex enough as it is, but these groups have an important role to play in shaping the party’s policy and identity. The more debate & discussion we have, the more we can claim to be a truly diverse and representative party.

Committed campaigners may rightly wonder why we aren’t spending more time out on the doorstep, but don’t underestimate the ability of internal debate and democracy to motivate and engage our membership. It is important that people feel engaged and able to influence party policy, and these groups can play a key role in membership development & recruitment if they gear their efforts towards it.

So a challenge to those joining & co-ordinating these groups: yes engage on party policy, on shaping our identity and celebrating our unique ideology. But also endeavor to be inclusive: encourage co-operation and good-natured debate between the groups; use them to expand our membership both internally and externally whether it is through media presence, affiliations or targeted campaigns.

And finally the most obvious, but undoubtedly most important: remember we are all Liberal Democrats. We are members of the same party, fighting from the same political base. Each of these groups will succeed if and only if they are united in seeking to take our party forward and expand our membership, not divide it.

Video

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:36:00 +0000

Who are the Liberal Democrats?

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:25:00 +0000

What are the Liberal Democrats doing in government & what do we stand for?

Reflecting on the coalition after 18months am I happy with what my party are doing in government? Do I feel like I am in the right place? Absolutely.

I would characterise the fundamental, and often controversial thrust of the coalitions agenda as opening up the state. But it is not just to private providers & market principles as the Left fear, it is devolving power to communities, to customers, to citizens - heavily guided by Liberal principles.

Having seen Ed Davey speak a number of times last year, and the opportunity to speak to him directly I am encouraged and inspired by the hugely innovative steps he (and others) are taking to introduce co-operative policies, empower workers & shareholders and totally re-invent business practises in this country.

After 13 years of New Labour throwing money at problems and running up the colossal debt now hanging over us it really is a breath of fresh-air to have ministers ushering in innovation, parallel to public services & welfare reform to slim down the burden of the State.

I have no doubt that Conservative motivations alter from our own - indeed our Liberal approach to market principles is a recognition of how they can encourage competition, diversity & growth but (unlike the Conservatives) a recognition of the self-interest aspect which can characterise free market interactions.

And with strong left-Liberal voices like Simon Hughes we remain steadfastly committed to reducing inequality and extending responsible capitalism. Ed Miliband’s rump of a Labour party have tried to pull Vince Cable’s language & policy away from him more than a year after he staked out our position as the party of social justice.

The coalition, guided by the intellectual influence of Orange Bookers like David Laws, Ed Davey & Nick Clegg is really carving out a core Liberal Democrat identity as “the party that best fuses social justice and economic liberalism” (Laws 2011)

This is the innovative, centrist Liberal identity which will secure our influence in British politics.

I believe we are slowly winning over the confidence of markets, businesses, commentators and eventually voters by showing that we have something significant - and different - to say for how Britain should be run.

Year of the Dragon dinner with Chinese Liberal Democrats - huge...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:52:00 +0000

Year of the Dragon dinner with Chinese Liberal Democrats - huge thanks to Merlene Emerson & Lord Tim Clement-Jones who sponsored a London Liberal Youth table.

London Liberal Youth Parliamentary Reception with Tessa Munt MP...

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:28:00 +0000

London Liberal Youth Parliamentary Reception with Tessa Munt MP & Brian Paddick

Lib Dems leading on the environmet

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 20:40:00 +0000

The Liberal Democrats have shown that the environment can be at the heart of policy-making by including it in every section of their manifesto.”

The Liberal Democrat party has always been the party willing to commit to green investment and environmentally responsibly policies. Following the release of the party Manifesto, eco-group ‘Friends of the Earth’ have strong praise for the Liberal Democrats for renewing this commitment and their willingness to take the steps needed to create a sustainable environment and save the world’s resources.

Read the release here

"To live is to change, and to be perfect is to change often. —John H. Newman"

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 11:00:16 +0000

“To live is to change, and to be perfect is to change often.
—John H. Newman”

- (via altroa)

marmitejars: “Time flies, but you can get younger every day”

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:30:25 +0000

marmitejars:

“Time flies, but you can get younger every day”

Opinion: Why conference season is showing us up

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 16:50:00 +0100

Published in Lib Dem Voice 15th October 2011 - 10:45 am

“Tory bashing” has been a key phrase this autumn as the Liberal Democrat rank and file use conference to let off some steam. The Daily Politics’ Andrew Neil notably dropped his warm, fuzzy style when grilling Tim Farron over his premonitions of ‘divorce’ – but we seem to be retreating back to ours. “Cuddly Liberal Democrats,” as the Prime Minister put it to his own party conference.

And David Cameron may be outlining the message of the Conservative party for 2015 – with a theme of “Leadership for a better future,” his party are opening up a dialogue between the country and its political leaders, whilst we are having a ‘Tory-bashing’ paddy on the sidelines of British politics.

My concern is that the difference between us swiping at the Tories while they outline a pro-business, forward-looking message is not simply one of placating members: it is an entire divide in the mentality, the strategy, and the maturity of both our parties.

Whilst George Osborne explicitly acknowledged the role of the Liberal Democrats on delivering a stable economy, and keeping our debt interest down, we grimaced at Sarah Teather’s puns on his past. Our general-election critique of ‘Punch & Judy politics’ seem distant now, and instead of taking ownership of the coalition as the ‘new politics’ Nick Clegg promised, we are being dragged down into the kind of tribalism which crushes us between the two larger parties.

The way forward is not just about how we perceive ourselves, but how we communicate with the public. We need to learn to be a party of government, of responsibility and communicate what we are achieving in power, rather than using conferences to be self-congratulating about every time we’ve thrown ourselves on the pavement and stopped a Conservative policy.

With current and upcoming debates on issues which form our core identity, such as human rights and Europe we have the platform to portray ourselves as equals – the voice of sensible, centrist Liberalism – and set out our case from within government, to the country, or else show ourselves up as the squabbling younger sibling of British politics, throwing a paddy at the very mention of something we disagree with.

And it is on these sorts of issues – where public opinion is broadly against us – that if we don’t set out a rational, well-reasoned case, the Conservatives will dismiss us as holding them back, and ask the public for a majority in 2015.

Our infidelities with the Labour party, and talks of an alternate coalition at this early stage will only increase perceptions of a petulant child, playing our parents off against one another. We can’t hope to pick up soft-Conservatives and swing votes if we’re perceived as opportunistic, and willing to ditch our partners at the nearest possible opportunity.

One of our greatest strategic gains from this coalition must be to show we are competent and mature – a party of power, not simply a pressure group – if we are ever going to advance beyond third party status. I felt in the minority when I was willing to give Nick Clegg the benefit of the doubt when he talked about an 18 month ‘ownership’ strategy of coalition policy: overlooking our Leader’s extensive experience in Europe, and knowledge of coalition politics, the party were more keen to hear what we’re stopping from happening, than what we are achieving.

The issue I’m raising here is fundamentally one of strategy and communication: put simply we must be outward- and forward-looking as a party if we are to advance in the polls, and develop our public perception. The alternative is navel-gazing conferences, where our ministers attempt convince us of tussles at the cabinet table, and predict our inevitable ‘divorce’ from a volatile marriage. Just don’t be surprised when the public blames us, and take the Tories’ side…

Noel Gallagher on politics & the UK riots - "It was hardly the French Revolution, was it?"

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 12:29:00 +0100

Noel Gallagher on politics & the UK riots - "It was hardly the French Revolution, was it?"

Video

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 20:08:29 +0100