Conference Watch

Opinion: The things to watch out for in Brighton

I’m off this morning to Lib Dem Conference in Brighton. It seems to me that this has the opportunity to be one of our most interesting and engaging conferences for a while. There are some really quite interesting discussions which it’s quite difficult to call which way they will go. It has been a criticism that I and others have made in the past of conference that sometimes too much of it could be predicted in advance and isn’t saying anything too much new. But that certainly can’t be said of this year, which contains plenty of new and strong thinking.

Lib Dem Voice

In praise of conference

I said to someone earlier this week that by going to conference you see both the best and the worst of the Liberal Democrats. You see the party at its most organised, professional, intelligent, thoughtful and enthusiastic. You also see the party at its most bizarre, argumentative, dishevelled and disorganised. I suppose by being that it is also a real cross-section not only of the party, but the country as a whole. People may see politicians and politics as unrepresentative and out of touch. In reality, a political party is a pretty diverse set of people and I have certainly met far more people from far more different backgrounds by being active in the Liberal Democrats than I would have done otherwise.

Anders Hanson

The Politics of Envy

Scotsman.com News - I'll hammer the rich who earn £70,000 or more, declares Ming (salary £60,227) SIR Menzies Campbell yesterday pledged to "hammer" households earning more than £70,000 with higher taxes. The Liberal Democrat leader said the rich have done "too well" under Labour and agreed the wealthiest 10 per cent should pay more taxes.....

An Englishman’s Castle

My Two Cents...on the Lib Dem Conference

The Liberal Democrats are in Brighton this week, languishing in the polls and seemingly rudderless. Ming Campbell is desperately trying to find a way to make his party relevant at a time when its two key issues - Iraq and environmentalism - have been neutered. Troops are steadily leaving Iraq, thereby neutralising the war as a political issue. And the Tories have become the party of environmentalism, no matter how uncomfortable that makes many of us feel.

Blaney’s Blarney

LibDems reveal their city of the future.

Ming Campbell is calling for Britain to become entirely carbon neutral by 2050. I wonder what the weather is like for Ming in cloud cuckoo land.

Daily Referendum

Live from t’internet cafe in the West Bar of the Brighton Centre…

The Zero-Carbon Britain debate is starting shortly, although there are huge queues outside the Centre for anyone with a bag. My top tip to any other delegates is to carry your big pile of papers instead of taking a bag. This satisfies the stewards you’re not a terrorist, even if you look a bit odd, and lets you jump the bag check.

Lib Dem Voice

A question of leadership

It is the question on everybody's lips but only the media and the bloggers are talking about it openly, what do we do with a problem like Ming? Here we have a leader who is fostering a Team Ming approach by encouraging young talented MPs to come forward and show what they can do, who has refocussed the party's organisation to the extent that we are even paying Conference stewards this year (it is the small things that matter), and who has directed a fundamental policy review that is putting the party at the radical edge of debate on taxation, the environment and civil liberties. Despite all of that the public are still not warming to him and we continue to underperform in the polls.

Peter Black

Make Votes Count Fringe

As a long standing supporter of electoral reform I decided to make my first proper fringe of conference the Make Votes Count fringe held a lunch-time today. It was basically a snapshot discussion of "where now" for electoral reform given the new Gordon Brown government.

Process Guy

Ming meets leading Lib Dem bloggers

This morning, Ming Campbell met with leading Liberal Democrat bloggers in Brighton, giving them the chance to question him on a variety of issues.
Official website of Ming Campbell