Now here is a very interesting contrast between France and the UK. The UK seems to be in the grip of an unreasonable fear of upsetting people. We could take a lesson from the French. Lib Dems have been worried that a rational examination of migration might upset migrants, they have been worried that an […]

It is irritating and confusing that David Cameron and UKIP, who now seem to be in partnership, are making the case that the immigration problem is something to do with the EU. This is totally misleading. There was a net inflow of 260,000 migrants last year, nearly all of this was accounted for by the […]

I have just read of the theft of lead from the roof of Emmanuel Church in Forest Road, together with thefts from other church roofs. It has been clear for years that scrap metal merchants should be prohibited from dealing in cash payments for scrap, and should pay by cheque into a bank account associated […]

John Major joins the ranks of the ill informed with a bullying speech on migration. He argues that we have to put limits on people migrating to the UK from other EU countries. Immigration to the UK from other EU countries is not the issue. Look at the evidence! Evidence: 1. Less than half the […]

What is the problem with the Conservatives??? The problem is that the Daily Mail and the Sun (inspired by the Australian/American Rupert Murdoch) are determined to undermine the biggest, most successful, most liberal and most worthwhile achievement of the last century… the creation of the European Union. This is a move which must be stopped. […]

I am old enough to have met William Beverage. His name is now being cited as we all, but particularly Lib Dems, discuss issues of the welfare and of the state. Beveridge’s report was part of a long and continuing concern for the welfare of those who do not have money for food and shelter. […]

All praise to the Lib Dems for the work that they have done to remove the ridiculous situation of levying income tax on people on low incomes. However there is more to be done. Cutting off benefits to people who fail to turn up for an interview with benefits staff sounds simple justice, but it […]

It is a disgrace that there are people who need to use food banks in a country as rich as the UK. Lib Dems have been tackling part of the problem of poverty by raising the tax threshold. But this does not solve the problem of food poverty. As research by the Centre for Research […]

Yesterday morning Abigail Davis of the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) at Loughborough University gave an excellent account of recent research on Minimum Income Standards. The report on this research will be launched on Monday, and is embargoed until then. I will therefore not discuss any of the findings, only to say that […]

I was very impressed by the presentation by Radoslaw Sikorski on the Andrew Marr show on Sunday. He moderated his comments that he might have made about the really stupid decision of the British Conservative Party to leave the European Peoples Party Grouping in the EU parliament. It was a really bad move. The EPP is […]