Mark Valladares

10 April 2026 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Fri 10th April 2026 - 10:30 pm
  • Cole-Hamilton comments on declining nursing applications
  • Cole-Hamilton comments on declining nursing applications

Cole-Hamilton comments on declining nursing applications

Responding to an embargoed report by the Royal College of Nursing about a falling number of applications for nursing courses, with over 1,000 fewer people applying to study nursing in 2025 compared to 2019, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

For nineteen years, the SNP have made a dog’s dinner of NHS staffing. These gaps stretch all the way back to Nicola Sturgeon cutting nursing training places and claiming that was sensible.

Such a drastic fall in the number of people applying to be nurses and

…

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Joe Nutt

ALDC by-election report, 9th April

By Joe Nutt | Fri 10th April 2026 - 5:07 pm

There was only one principal council by-election this week. The count took place on Friday morning, so the result didn’t filter through until later on Friday afternoon.

Kent County Council, Cliftonville

The Green Party has taken the seat of Cliftonville in Kent from Reform UK. This result was perhaps inevitable given the turmoil surrounding the previous holder; having only won the seat last year amidst a wave of Reform gains from the Conservatives, the incumbent councillor was suspended by Reform following a guilty plea in February regarding a domestic incident, which ultimately triggered this by-election.

Beyond the individual conduct of the former councillor, the wider Reform administration in Kent is increasingly defined by instability. The local leadership has been plagued by internal infighting with leaked footage online showing disputes between backbenchers and the leadership. This was followed by a series of defections to Rupert Lowe’s splinter group, Restore UK. They’ve also had to U-turn on their flagship pledge to cut council tax earlier this year.

Local commentators framed this contest as a referendum on Reform’s chaotic performance. In this instance, the Green Party successfully consolidated the anti-Reform vote to deliver that message, with the Liberal Democrats starting from an extremely low base in this particular ward.

A big thank you to Mo Shafaei and the team for their hard work in ensuring there was a Liberal Democrat choice on the ballot.

Green Party: 2,068, 38.8% (+26.7)
Reform UK: 1,767, 33.1% (-7.0)
Conservatives: 811, 15.2% (-4.5)
Labour: 557, 10.4% (-11.6)
Independents: 68, 1.3% (New)
Liberal Democrats: 63, 1.2%(-1.9)

Green Party GAIN from Reform

Turnout:  32%

A full summary of the results, and all other principal council by-elections, can be found on the ALDC by-elections page here.

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Mary Reid

Watch our party political broadcast for the local elections

By Mary Reid | Fri 10th April 2026 - 9:27 am

And here it is:

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Mark Valladares

9 April 2026 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 9th April 2026 - 10:40 pm
  • Cole-Hamilton sets out plan for a skills revolution
  • Scot Lib Dems call for investment in affordable housing in Mid Scotland & Fife

Cole-Hamilton sets out plan for a skills revolution

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today set out plans for a skills revolution as he met with young scientists at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh today.

The Scottish Liberal Democrats will:

  • Create a new industrial strategy that focuses on what we’re really good at and what we can be good at, and throw the weight and levers of government behind businesses that can help us achieve greater success in life sciences, energy, food and drink, fintech and financial services, defence and more.
  • Develop a new skills strategy, mapping where the gaps are and will be, and fitting training and education systems around it, so that the country secures the skills it needs in everything from social care to engineering and construction.
  • Repair Scotland’s colleges and vocational skills system, and safeguard the future of our world-leading universities.

In the recent budget negotiations, the party secured £70m to start to repair the damage that the SNP have inflicted on the college sector – a 10% budget increase. The party has also secured money to save Corseford College, Scotland’s first college for young adults with complex & additional needs and campaigned to save facilities for Scotland’s rural college in Fife.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

Scottish education just isn’t what it used to be. We used to have one of the best education systems in the world, but under the SNP it is now just average. The whole education system isn’t producing the range and depth of skills that businesses and our economy need. It’s ridiculous that the Scottish defence industry is having to hire 300 welders from the Philippines.

Our plan will invest in education at every stage, starting from a young age and continuing throughout adulthood. We want every child to get the support and attention they need at school, so they leave with the skills, confidence and resilience to be happy and successful, whatever they choose to do next.

We will repair Scotland’s colleges and vocational skills system, and safeguard the future of our world-leading universities so that we can deliver a skills revolution.

Unlike the SNP, Scottish Liberal Democrats would get ahead of the curve instead of waiting to pick up the pieces, making the most of Scotland’s homegrown skills, engineering supply chains and natural advantages.

If you believe Scotland needs change, then every vote for the Scottish Liberal Democrats on the second peach ballot will deliver change with fairness at its heart. Scotland deserves better. And with the Scottish Liberal Democrats, you can vote for it.

Scot Lib Dems call for investment in affordable housing in Mid Scotland & Fife

Scottish Liberal Democrat lead candidate for Mid Scotland & Fife, councillor Claire McLaren has today called on the Scottish Government to invest in affordable housing in Stirling, Perth & Kinross, Clackmannanshire and Fife as she revealed that the number of homes completed has fallen by a third over the past two years.

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Jack Meredith

It is time for a new social democratic chapter in Lib Dem thinking

By Jack Meredith | Thu 9th April 2026 - 2:40 pm

The Liberal Democrats have a habit of arguing through books. The Orange Book, the Little Yellow Book, the Green Book; each tried to say something important about the future of our party. But taken together, they still leave one tradition unnamed: liberal social democracy.

These books aren’t just publications, but attempts to define what kind of party we are.

The Orange Book laid out a deliberate statement of intent in 2004. It was a serious effort to restate one kind of liberalism and carve out a path that distinguished us from the Conservative and Labour Parties at the time.

The Little Yellow Book argued for a more socially liberal, people-centred direction, one that grounded us in progressive thought and provided us a home on the centre-left.

The Green Book widened the frame by placing environmental limits and stewardship at the heart of our party, providing us with a framework to tackle one of the greatest challenges of our time.

Yet for all this intellectual activity, the party still has not fully named one of its own inheritances: the liberal-social-democratic tradition that runs through Jo Grimond’s realignment vision, through the Alliance, the merger, and the best of the SDP strain in our history. This did not begin at Limehouse alone. Grimond had already begun to sketch out a politics that rejected the stale binaries of British public life and looked instead to a radical centre grounded in liberty, reform, and a fairer distribution of power.

It must be said, this ground has not gone entirely uncovered. The Future of Social Democracy, published to mark the 40th anniversary of the Limehouse Declaration, made an important contribution to the argument of our inheritance. But commemoration is not the same as consolidation. The party still lacks a central statement of how its liberal social-democratic traditions fit together now, not just historically, but politically.

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Sarah Dyke

Improving our food resilience is essential to managing food price volatility

By Sarah Dyke | Thu 9th April 2026 - 11:34 am

Food prices have become one of the biggest pressures on family budgets in Britain. Yet behind the rising cost of the weekly shop lies a deeper problem: a food system that is failing households, farmers and the economy alike.

In the past decade, we have experienced the highest food price inflation in 40 years. UK production of some of our most nourishing foods, such as beans, fruit and vegetables, is stalling as they no longer offer a viable livelihood for farmers. Domestic fruit and vegetable production has dropped by 16% since 2015, and we see the largest trade deficits for fruit and veg – relying on imports for 83% of our fruit supply and 45% of our vegetables. New evidence from a cross-party Parliamentary report shows that, without urgent reform, this could exacerbate across the board, with domestic food production potentially falling by up to a third by 2050.

This increasing dependence on food imports at a time of heightening geopolitical instability and climate disruption has made us more exposed to these shocks than ever before. The outbreak of war in Iran reveals how successive government policy has left the UK’s food supply chain exposed to global factors.

The solution is clear: Britain needs a Good Food Bill. By setting long term targets for food security, production and affordability, legislation could give farmers the certainty to invest while protecting families from future price shocks. Supporting farmers to produce more fruit and vegetables is essential to our food security, while also helping to manage food price volatility in the long term. Too many families are struggling with the cost of the weekly shop as they are subject to volatile prices, making the job of feeding children that much harder for struggling parents. While short-term inflation may fluctuate, long-term forces are pushing costs higher.

The Prime Minister has made tackling the cost-of-living crisis his number one priority this year to rectify Labour’s falling position in the polls. Yet, addressing the challenges within our food system appears to be low on the Government’s agenda. Since the publication of the food strategy last summer, this has yet to be sustained into anything concrete despite 65% of the public supporting a Food Bill which would introduce duties and targets on government bodies to make healthy food more accessible and affordable. We cannot allow a system that delivers rising bills and diminishing domestic production to continue.

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Tanya Park

Cheaper fuel isn’t a liberal transport policy

By Tanya Park | Thu 9th April 2026 - 10:06 am

Last week, the party announced an emergency transport package: 10p off fuel duty, £1 bus fares, a 10% rail cut, lower VAT on public EV charging. And the reaction from members has been… pretty muted. I think that tells us something. There’s a shared instinct here that the package doesn’t quite land, and it’s worth working out why.

It’s not that responding to a crisis is wrong. People are paying more to get around because of a war they didn’t start, and a responsible opposition should have something to say about that. The question is whether what we’re saying is distinctively liberal, or whether we’ve produced the package that any of the three parties could have announced on any given Tuesday.

Start with the centrepiece: a 10p cut in fuel duty. This is, bluntly, a regressive measure wearing compassionate clothing. Higher-income households drive more, drive larger vehicles, and capture more of the benefit. The “parent in rural Devon” does real rhetorical work in the press release, but the primary beneficiaries of a universal fuel subsidy are people who drive a lot, and that correlates reliably with income.

More fundamentally, we are in the middle of an energy price shock caused by a war over fossil fuels. The liberal response to that should not be “let’s make fossil fuels cheaper.” You cannot credibly argue for the energy transition while subsidising the thing you’re transitioning away from the moment prices rise. Policy should help people through that shift, not reverse the price signal whenever it bites.

There’s also a basic supply-and-demand problem here. If the Iran war continues or escalates, fuel supplies could be seriously constrained. In that scenario, higher prices do useful if painful work: they reduce consumption, which is exactly what you need when there might not be enough to go around. Cutting duty does the opposite. It stimulates demand at the moment you most need to conserve. That’s not just bad climate policy. It’s bad crisis management.

The bus and rail elements are better. A £1 bus fare is genuinely progressive and I’d love to see it become permanent. A 10% rail cut is at least the right direction. But both are temporary, set for three months, and three months of cheaper tickets doesn’t restore a single cut route or reverse the structural decay that created the problem.

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Mark Valladares

8 April 2026 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 8th April 2026 - 11:20 pm
  • Cole-Hamilton takes on judo champ and pledges to restore Highland services
  • Cole-Hamilton: Time to beg UK Government and European operators for vessels for Dunkirk-style effort to tackle ferry crisis
  • Greene: Scottish Tory economy plans show they are the ‘nasty party’ again

Cole-Hamilton takes on judo champ and pledges to restore Highland services

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today tried his hand at judo alongside former Commonwealth medallist, British champion and Highland councillor Connie Ramsay, as he set out his party’s pledge to restore services to Highland communities.

In September 2025, Connie Ramsay won a Highland Council by-election for the Scottish Liberal Democrats with 38.8% of the vote, taking a seat previously held by the SNP.

In their forthcoming manifesto, the party will commit to “end the era of SNP centralisation” by:

  • Increasing the range of NHS services available locally;
  • Ensuring decisions about health services are taken as close as possible to the communities they affect and that any reform does not result in top-down centralisation;
  • Treating councils as equal partners with multi-year funding deals and new freedoms to innovate.
  • The party has continually campaigned for the restoration of consultant-led maternity services in the Far North. The party also forced the SNP’s bureaucratic ministerial takeover of social care out of the Scottish Budget after ministers threw away £30 million – equivalent to the annual salary of 1200 care workers, and money that could have been spent helping people like Margaret MacGill who Alex visited yesterday.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

Our country works best when decisions are taken as close as possible to those they affect. Right now, people don’t feel like they are being listened to or that they have the means to roll up their sleeves, do things differently and change their area for the better.

Almost two decades of SNP centralisation has drained local communities of the ability to shape their own future. Care homes and maternity services are just some of the facilities that have gone as a consequence. The viability of some rural and remote areas is being threatened by the lack of public transport, the ferries fiasco, the housing emergency and skills shortages.

Scottish Liberal Democrats know that every place has its own character, its own needs and priorities. We will shift power out of Holyrood and into local hands, so you can get on with improving where you live without waiting for the say-so of ministers in Edinburgh. From city centres to remote islands, and everything in between, we’ll make sure your area has the services and opportunity to live, work and raise a family.

Wherever you are, every Scottish Liberal Democrat elected in target constituencies like Caithness, Sutherland & Ross, and through the peach regional ballot paper, will deliver change with fairness at its heart.

Cole-Hamilton: Time to beg UK Government and European operators for vessels for Dunkirk-style effort to tackle ferry crisis

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today said that John Swinney should be on the phone begging the UK Government and ferry operators around Europe for extra boats to alleviate the ferry crisis.

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Jack Wilkin

Trump may be about to burst the tech bubble. 

By Jack Wilkin | Wed 8th April 2026 - 11:29 am

Trump’s war on Iran is impacting more than just the price of oil. It is also impacting fertiliser shipments, which, combined with the UK government decision to tax fertiliser (being introduced in January 2027) will cause food prices in the UK and around the world to increase – hence why the government needs to seriously start looking at food security. Although both are incredibly important, the increase in the cost of oil and food resulting from Trump-Netanyahu’s attack on Iran and the Iranian retaliation is well known. What is perhaps less covered is its impact on the export of helium.

At first glance, the lack of gas that makes your voice squeaky at children’s birthday parties may not seem like a big deal. But it is the foundation of the modern global economy. 

The impact this disruption of helium will have on the global tech industry was brought to my attention by a recent video by Phil Moorhouse. The Gulf States don’t just export oil, gas and annoying influencer videos but also helium, with Qatar exporting 30% of the global helium supply. 

The US economy, for all its supposed strength, has been leaning heavily on one thing: tech. AI. Last year, AI-related capital expenditures were the second-biggest driver in US GDP growth, but all that might be coming to an end now. I do think the overvalued tech sector in the States was going to burst anyway, but Trump’s war might have sped the process up and made it far worse. 

The reason for it is that the tech sector needs helium for the production of microchips – something that is already being impacted by higher energy costs caused by Trump’s war. Chip fabrication involves extreme heat, particularly when lasers etch microscopic circuits onto silicon. Helium is used because it excels at absorbing and dissipating that heat, preventing defects and keeping production viable. Without it, yields fall, costs rise, and output slows.

Blocking Qatar’s helium exports (Qatar sits on the world’s largest single natural gas field) means that the price of helium will skyrocket anyway but repeated Iranian drone attacks on Ras Laffan, the world’s largest liquefied natural gas plant, state-owned QatarGas reported “extensive” damage that will take years to repair and cut annual helium exports by 14%. That means helium exports will continue to be 14% lower even if the Straits are reopened. 

This is already disastrous for microchip manufacturers. Worse still, helium cannot be stockpiled like oil. It leaks, it evaporates, and within weeks it’s gone. There are no strategic reserves to fall back on. This is a supply chain that only works if it keeps moving.  The clock is ticking on the helium in factories around the world. 

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Caron Lindsay

Updated: Should Lib Dems change our line on Trump?

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 8th April 2026 - 9:25 am

So, we can breathe again. For a few days at least.

But it’s more likely than not that we will be back up at the top of this hill again in a fortnight.

And if Trump’s behaviour over the tariffs is repeated, he’ll up the ante with even more offensive language and we’ll go from deadline to deadline.

To see the leader of the free world openly threatening genocide (“A civilisation will die tonight”) and war crimes attacking civilian infrastructure was horrifying.

The bit that made me gulp was when the White House denied that he was planning to use nuclear weapons. I lived through a fair chunk of the Cold War. I was too young for the existential terror of the Cuban Missile Crisis but I never felt that we were likely to experience the Four Minute Warning imminently however frightening the Protect and Survive videos were.

I’m wondering if the Lib Dems should develop what we are saying in response to a President who is threatening the unthinkable. Ed Davey could never be accused of being timid on Trump but our response to his expletive laden rant on Easter Sunday was two days late and issued at pretty much the same time as the Labour Government announced it would do as we were asking.

UPDATE: I have had my wrist slapped for the above for missing Ed’s comment put out on social media on Sunday evening so it is only fair to add it in here.

Should we be calling for the US Ambassador to be dragged in to Downing Street and given an absolute carpetting? Should we not be calling for the UK Government to introduce a whole list of sanctions, in concert with our European partners, if Trump goes any further? The US is a rogue state now and should be treated like one.

We should certainly renew our calls for the King’s State visit to the States at the end of this month to be at the very least postponed. It would not be a good look for our head of state to be receiving hospitality at potentially the same time as Trump is threatening or even committing war crimes?

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Mark Valladares

Cole-Hamilton: I want to fix delayed discharge, gain four new Highland and Island seats and send the SNP packing

By Mark Valladares | Wed 8th April 2026 - 7:30 am

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has used a visit to Wick to set out how his party can win four additional constituency seats in the Highlands and Islands from the SNP and to launch his party’s plans to tackle delayed discharge.

Mr Cole-Hamilton was in Wick to meet Margaret MacGill who is just home after being stuck in hospital for a year when she didn’t need or want to be there – a case he repeatedly raised at First Minister’s Questions.

Margaret was first admitted to Raigmore Hospital in November 2024 with a rare spinal condition, before moving to the Town and County Hospital in Wick in February 2025. Despite being assessed as fit to leave hospital, she was unable to do so because there were no carers able to drop in and help her. She finally returned home last month after her family arranged private care, having been told that otherwise she would have to remain in hospital for another year.

New figures published by Public Health Scotland show that at the February 2026 census, there were 1,939 people whose discharge from hospital was delayed. In February 2026, there were also 55,547 days spent in hospital by people whose discharge was delayed. This is 2% more than the number of delayed days in February 2025 (54,487).

In their forthcoming manifesto, Scottish Liberal Democrats will set out plans to make careers in social care more attractive and value experienced staff to improve retention by:

  • Creating new dedicated key worker housing for carers and other eligible workers, so the housing crisis doesn’t stop people taking up posts.
  • Rewarding care workers through national bargaining on pay and conditions, fair work and a career ladder that boosts their skills and respects their experience at every step.
  • Change to a 7-day discharge model so people aren’t kept in hospital just because it is a weekend.
  • Using the NHS App to help people to arrange welfare power of attorney, so they don’t become trapped in hospital down the line.
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Mark Valladares

7 April 2026 – today’s press releases (part 2)

By Mark Valladares | Tue 7th April 2026 - 11:25 pm
  • Greene: Tories too chaotic to stand up to Swinney
  • Chamberlain: UK at risk of complicity in war crimes
  • Islanders will not be fooled by Swinney in “full on panic mode”

Greene: Tories too chaotic to stand up to Swinney

Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson Jamie Greene has said the Scottish Tories are “too chaotic” under Russell Findlay’s leadership to stand up to the SNP.

His comments come after Findlay launched his party’s manifesto in Edinburgh.

Mr Greene resigned from the Conservatives in 2025, accusing Findlay and his leadership of pandering to the far-right in his attempts to compete with Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

Greene, …

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Mark Valladares

7 April 2026 – today’s press releases (part 1)

By Mark Valladares | Tue 7th April 2026 - 10:55 pm
  • Cole-Hamilton: Last chance for Parliament to address ferry fiasco
  • Greene: Scottish Government must get a grip on MV Glen Sannox fiasco
  • “Dangerously naive” Green candidate wants to abolish prison
  • Worst February ever for A&E waits
  • Greene comments on defence jobs warnings

Cole-Hamilton: Last chance for Parliament to address ferry fiasco

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today said that this is the “last chance” for MSPs to convene at Holyrood and find a solution to Scotland’s acute ferry crisis, which has seen multiple vessels out of service all at once.

His call comes ahead of the Scottish Parliament officially dissolving for this year’s election on Thursday morning.

Four major ferries have been called in for technical works in the last few weeks, leaving several key routes almost entirely unserved and cutting people off from supplies, services and jobs — and just yesterday, CalMac cancelled two services because the just-reintroduced Glen Sannox is experiencing fuel pump problems.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

That so many ferries have been forced into repairs at the same time is an outrage, and a sorry demonstration of the SNP’s dire neglect of the ferry fleet.

The point of having a Scottish Parliament is to be able to tackle the problems facing our country, but the SNP have refused to come back to Holyrood to sort out this fiasco.

Liberal Democrats believe that parliament should be the place to get things done for people. This is the last chance for John Swinney to come back to Holyrood and help these communities through the crisis the SNP have left them to face.

Alan Reid, Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Argyll and Bute, added:

As someone who was themselves nearly left stranded by the recent breakdowns, I want to see the Scottish government step up and sort this crisis out.

While it is good news that MV Lord of the Isles is set to return to service, this near-collapse of the fleet has left folk who depend on ferries worried that the same could happen again with little or no warning.

The ferries fiasco is the result of 19 years of incompetent and unaccountable government under the SNP. As Scotland prepares to pass judgment on his legacy, John Swinney has a chance to prove that he cares more about coastal and island communities than he does about his own re-election campaign.

Whether or not he reconvenes parliament, the Scottish Liberal Democrats have a plan to fix our broken ferry system and mak(e sure the government is held to account for its performance. That’s what we’re offering Scots the chance to vote for on 7th May.

Greene: Scottish Government must get a grip on MV Glen Sannox fiasco

Scottish Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson Jamie Greene has called on the SNP to finally get to grips with the troubled MV Glen Sannox ferry service between Troon and Arran.

The Glen Sannox has been put out of action again with reported engine trouble, described by CalMac as a “recurring technical issue,” leaving coastal and island communities stranded.

The vessel has been plagued with problems and cancellations since finally coming into service in 2025, seven years later than scheduled and four times over budget.

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The Voice

Campaigner to take part in Kiltwalk to raise money for Scottish Autism

By The Voice | Tue 7th April 2026 - 4:41 pm

Lib Dem campaigner, Michael Gregori, is taking part in the Glasgow Kiltwalk on Sunday, 26th April, in support of Scottish Autism — one of Scotland’s leading charities dedicated to supporting autistic people and their families.

The Glasgow Kiltwalk brings together thousands of participants from across Scotland each year. Walkers take on routes through the heart of the city to raise funds and awareness for causes close to their hearts. Every penny donated and every mile walked goes toward strengthening local charities and the communities they serve.

By participating in the event, Michael Gregori aims to raise vital funds and shine a light on the invaluable work Scottish Autism does every day to enhance the quality of life for individuals on the autism spectrum. The charity provides essential care, education, advocacy, and support services to both autistic people and their families across Scotland.

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Chris Bowers

We need to learn to respect the Greens

By Chris Bowers | Tue 7th April 2026 - 9:32 am

This column is going to make me very unpopular in parts of the party, but there are times when the elephant in the room needs calling out: we have to learn to respect the Greens.

I’m not saying we should love them, I’m not advocating standasides, certainly not a merger; I’m also all for highlighting how we’re different as parties. But I am getting irritated at the number of cheap shots coming from our party that denigrate the Greens. The fact is: Lib Dems and Greens perform a similar function in British politics. We need them, and they need us.

Much is made of the current realignment in politics. This realignment is and isn’t happening. It is in the sense that Reform and the Greens will have a much bigger presence at the next general election – even if their current poll ratings aren’t sustained – which will create a five-party system, or six in Scotland and Wales. It isn’t in the sense that there will still be two main blocs: the progressive/centre-left made up of Labour, Lib Dems and Greens, and the regressive/far-right made up of the Conservatives and Reform.

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Tom Arms

Tom Arms’ World Review

By Tom Arms | Sun 5th April 2026 - 10:07 am

Sir Keir Starmer should be Britain’s Foreign Secretary. His handling of foreign policy is first-class.

Unfortunately, for a country’s foreign policy to be effective, it needs a strong economic and political base and Sir Keir — as Prime Minister — has failed to produce that.

But the world economic crisis created by Trump’s attack on Iran and Iran’s closure of the Straits of Hormuz means that the British Prime Minister now must focus on world affairs.

He has decided that he — along with French President Emmanuel Macron — should take the lead in trying to find a diplomatic solution that would re-open the Straits of Hormuz.

This is right. Britain and France are — after the United States — the two biggest Western powers in the Gulf Region. But it is difficult to see how they can achieve their goal.

For a start there is a war and Trump could escalate or declare victory and suddenly pull out. It is almost impossible to predict what this mercurial Sir Keir Starmer should be Britain’s Foreign Secretary. His handling of foreign policy is first-class.

Unfortunately, for a country’s foreign policy to be effective it needs a strong economic and political base and Sir Keir—as prime minister—has failed to produce that.

But the world economic crisis created by Trump’s attack on Iran and Iran’s closure of the Straits of Hormuz means that the British Prime Minister now must focus on world affairs.

He has decided that he—along with French President Emmanuel Macron—should take the lead in trying to find a diplomatic solution that would re-open the Straits of Hormuz.

This is right. Britain and France are—after the United States—the two biggest Western powers in the Gulf Region. But it is difficult to see how they can achieve their goal.

For a start there is a war and Trump could escalate or declare victory and suddenly pull out. It is almost impossible to predict what this mercurial President will do next.

Next, in the closure of the Straits of Hormuz, Iran has discovered a new political weapon with which to beat the West and at the same time create an attractive revenue stream. It has declared the 20-mile-wide maritime chokepoint Iranian waters and says it will close it at will and/or levy toll charges on the oil tankers that pass through every day.

To prevent such a move Sir Keir and President Macron are talking about sanctions and everything short of Trump’s insistence that other western powers despatch warships to replace the American Navy and take control of the Straits of Hormuz.

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Tom Arms

Observations of an Expat: Nuclear Questions

By Tom Arms | Sat 4th April 2026 - 9:55 am

The nuclear deterrent must be at the centre of Europe’s security policy. For nearly 80 years that deterrent has been in the hands of the US through its membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).

Britain and France have also had nuclear arsenals. But they do not come close to countering the stockpile of Russian weapons. Their purpose is to give heft to the political power of the two former European colonial powers.

That is changing. It must change. Trump’s repeated threats to withdraw have made it necessary. The most recent is the most worrying. The US president went to war without consulting his NATO allies and without a clear goal or exit strategy. He inevitably ran into difficulties and called upon his NATO allies to extricate him from what looks like an unwinnable conflict. Not wanting to be dragged into a “forever war” in the powder keg Middle East, the NATO allies refused. Trump responded by heaping insult on insult and issuing his clearest threat yet to withdraw from the “most successful military alliance in world history.”

Of course, a Trumpian withdrawal from NATO would not be a simple matter of signing an Executive Order. Marco Rubio saw to that shortly before he was appointed Trump’s Secretary of State. While still in the Senate he co-sponsored a bill which requires a two-thirds vote of the Senate for US withdrawal from the NATO Treaty.

Trump has a one-seat majority in the Senate. But even if it were larger, it is unlikely that he could twist enough Senate arms to secure a two-thirds majority. Fourteen Republican senators — including his sycophantic ally Lindsey Graham — have said they would vote to stay in the alliance. So that route appears blocked.

But the president could still severely damage the alliance. As commander-in-chief he has operational control over all military units so he could simply order the 70,000 US troops in Europe to come home. It would be a stupid move and put him on a collision course with his party in the Senate, but it is just the sort of thing Trump would do.

Such a move would immediately put a big question mark over whether America’s nuclear umbrella would stay in place. Which is why the European members of the alliance are discussing how they could replace the American deterrent.

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Joe Nutt

ALDC by-election report, 2nd April

By Joe Nutt | Fri 3rd April 2026 - 1:51 pm

There were four principal council by-elections this week, of which all but one had a Liberal Democrat candidate on the ballot. One council seat was being defended by us.

North Devon Council, Fremington

In North Devon, the Liberal Democrats gained a seat from the Independents in Fremington. It should be noted that in 2023, both seats were won by Independents, before Councillor Frank Biederman joined the Liberal Democrats. The by-election was triggered by the sad passing of his ward colleague, who remained as an independent.

Without any independents standing this time, it would seem there was a lot of unknowns in where the vote would go for this time. In this context, not only did the Liberal Democrats manage to fend off Reform and prevent the Greens from establishing themselves as the progressive alternative, but they also increased their vote share by more than any other party. This is particularly impressive when we’re used to seeing these big swings to Reform in other by-elections from a standing start.

A huge congratulations to Cllr Jayne Mackie and the team on running such a successful campaign.

Liberal Democrats: 752 – 49.9% (+42.4)
Reform UK: 496 – 32.9% (new)
Green Party: 131 – 8.7% (New)
Conservatives: 116 – 7.7% (-4.4)
Labour: 12 – 0.8% (-7.8)

Liberal Democrat GAIN from Independents

Turnout:  34.7%

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Chris Perry

Cost of Living crisis

By Chris Perry | Fri 3rd April 2026 - 10:01 am

Never a day goes by, or so it seems, without mention of the cost of living crisis and programmes on the television helping people to make their money go further. And yet according to the new Forbes billionaire list Elon Musk added $373.5billion dollars (or £373.5billion) to his fortune in just one year. That is £3.5bn more than the £370bn it was estimated the entire COVID pandemic cost the UK. And according to the Equality Trust, this is the biggest ever increase in one year with Elon Musk’s total worth now the 22nd largest economy in the world, beating Belgium.

According to Oxfam global billionaire wealth increased by £1.5 trillion in 2024. In contrast according to the Office of National Statistics the median household income in the UK for the year ending 2023 was £34,500. This was a 2.5% decrease on the previous year

Widening income inequality and increasing poverty are the great social evils of our time and the root cause of so many of today’s problems. It will, therefore, be very difficult for the Government to achieve its objectives whilst operating within the present system and abiding by the rules when it is the system itself which needs changing.

Unless Government addresses pay differentials, bonuses and excessive profits within the larger corporations, utilities and banks, chasing inward investment in search of growth will make the rich richer and create low paid jobs for the masses as it has for at least 40 years. There needs to be a fairer distribution of income within organisations so that everyone gets a fair and proportionate return for their hard work. Extensive studies by the Equality Trust have found that people are becoming increasingly aware that the economy is a human-made system that can be changed,

In April 2024 there were 4.5m children being brought up in poverty, 70% of whom had a parent in work. Although the removal of the two child cap on child benefit will help it should never have been imposed in the first place as it is a child and not a parent benefit. And although the provision of free school meals is to be welcomed this will not reduce child poverty. The definition of poverty is an income of less than 60% of median household income. Free school meals are not an income which is available if the child is off school.

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Mark Valladares

2 April 2026 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Thu 2nd April 2026 - 10:30 pm
  • SNP set to miss key child poverty target
  • Welsh Lib Dems urge Reeves to scrap fuel duty hike as global instability drives rising petrol prices
  • Cole-Hamilton sets out mental health plan with visit to therapy llamas
  • Greene: Reform set to lose 26 constituency candidates by polling day, figures show
  • Murray: Lib Dem 10p fuel duty cut will get Scotland moving again
  • Welsh Lib Dems slam Reform’s “fantasy” coal plans as a threat to jobs, bills and climate
  • Reform candidate’s Ukraine comments spark outrage as Lib Dems warn of “dangerous” pro-Kremlin rhetoric

SNP set to miss key child poverty target

Responding to IFS analysis which indicates that Scotland is on course to miss its target to reduce relative child poverty to below 10% by 2030-31 “by a considerable margin”, Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson Jamie Greene MSP said:

Despite the grand rhetoric from the SNP, they have left thousands of children in poverty.

For the past nineteen years, the SNP have failed to use the powers they have had at their disposal to move the dial.

Just like Nicola Sturgeon broke her promise to close the attainment gap, John Swinney has broken his promise to reduce child poverty. They simply cannot be trusted.

Scottish Liberal Democrats are focused on tackling the root causes of child poverty, and everyone in Scotland has the chance to vote for these plans by backing us on your peach, regional ballot paper in May.

Welsh Lib Dems urge Reeves to scrap fuel duty hike as global instability drives rising petrol prices

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have called on Labour to cancel their planned fuel duty increase, warning that continued instability in the Middle East is already driving up global oil prices and risks placing further pressure on households and businesses across Wales.

The intervention comes as forecourts begin to reflect rising wholesale costs, with industry experts warning that sustained geopolitical tensions could keep prices elevated in the weeks ahead. Edmund King, President of the AA, has previously warned that such instability would “inevitably lead to price hikes,” with sharp increases often feeding through to drivers within days.

Labour’s planned changes would see fuel duty rise for the first time in 15 years, beginning with a 1p increase in September, followed by further rises through to 2027. The Welsh Liberal Democrats have warned that pressing ahead with the increase at a time of heightened global uncertainty would compound cost-of-living pressures, particularly in areas where people have little choice but to drive.

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Tom Reeve

Fly me to the moon – reflections on the overview effect  

By Tom Reeve | Thu 2nd April 2026 - 8:07 pm

There is a moment, presumably, just before the engines ignite, when even the most committed astronaut thinks: what on earth am I doing? But then, if they take a moment to look out of the portal at what is happening on the surface of this ball of rock and water we call home – well, who can fault them for wanting to get as far away as possible?

Four astronauts left Earth yesterday, climbing aboard what is, in engineering terms, a controlled explosion and trusting it to hurl them away from the planet at speeds no living thing was designed to tolerate. You could call it brave or foolish. But consider the alternative. They could have stayed. They could have watched the climate data worsen quarter by quarter while the machinery of international response grinds and stalls. They could have followed the wars – the missiles falling on Ukrainian cities, the devastation in Gaza, death and destruction in Iran, chaos in the Straits of Hormuz and more – and felt that familiar mixture of horror and helplessness. They could have watched democracy, that fragile and still-young experiment, being stress-tested by autocrats in countries big and small.

Strapped to a rocket for a journey further from Earth than any human has ever gone before, suddenly, looks sensible.

I imagine that what they will find up there is not escape. Not safety. Something closer to its opposite.

From orbit, Earth looks like a thought someone had and then left out in the dark. A thin blue film stretched over rock and water, suspended in a universe that is almost entirely lethal. No atmosphere. No liquid water. No margin for error. The cosmos does not negotiate, does not hold summits, does not issue statements of concern. It simply is – vast, indifferent, and hostile to everything we are made of.

Astronauts who have seen this tend to describe the same thing. Not relief at the distance, but a kind of vertigo at the stakes. The overview effect, as it has come to be known, is the sudden, visceral understanding that borders are invisible from up there, that conflicts look like nothing against the curvature of a planet, and that the arguments consuming us – which party, which nation, which version of the future – are being conducted on a single, fragile, irreplaceable rock.

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Mo Waqas

Trump has shown us who he is. It’s time Britain started acting like it.

By Mo Waqas | Thu 2nd April 2026 - 12:35 pm

Let me be blunt. Donald Trump wants to pull America out of NATO. And my honest reaction? Let him.

I’m not saying it doesn’t matter. I’m saying we need to stop acting like heartbroken teenagers waiting for Washington to text back. The special relationship is dead. It’s been dead for a while. Trump just had the decency to say it out loud.

So what now? We do what Britain has always done when its back is against the wall. We get serious. We get moving. And we stop relying on people who have made it crystal clear they don’t care whether we sink or swim.

Britain needs to re-industrialise, and I mean urgently not as some vague manifesto pledge buried on page forty-seven, but as a national mission. We need to open arms factories. We need to build capacity to manufacture what we need to defend ourselves and our allies, on our own soil, with our own workers. If we cannot produce the steel, the ships, the ammunition, and the technology to keep this country safe, then we are not a sovereign nation. We are a theme park with a nuclear deterrent.

And yes, I said steel. We need a nationalised steel sector. I know that makes some in our party uncomfortable. Good. Comfort is what got us here. Thirty years of comfortable orthodoxy, comfortable assumptions about the end of history, comfortable faith that the Americans would always be there and the markets would always provide. The peace dividend has been spent. Every last penny. It’s time to invest again, and if the private sector won’t do it, then the state must.

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Lord William Wallace

Defending Local Democracy

By Lord William Wallace | Thu 2nd April 2026 - 9:20 am

While we are all campaigning in this year’s local elections, Liberal Democrats need to be aware of the implications of the ‘English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill’, which has already passed the Commons and is now close to completing its passage in the Lords.  It’s designed to complete the project the Conservatives began of imposing elected mayors and ‘Combined Authorities’ all across England, with larger unitary authorities to replace remaining district and county councils.

As the Liberal Democrat group’s Cabinet Office spokesman, I had not intended to get actively involved in the Bill beyond its constitutional significance for the governance of the United Kingdom – which is almost ignored in the Bill.  Sitting alongside our Bill team as we moved from Second Reading through eight days of committee and two days of voting on amendments at report stage (one more to come on April 13th), I’ve become more and more appalled – like my colleagues – of what it means for local democracy.

Its title itself is fraudulent.  It’s about decentralization, not real devolution, and it empowers mayors, not communities.  Its underlying assumption is that the minimum size for efficient local administration is a ‘community’ of half a million people, with ‘strategic’ decisions taken above that level by mayors in ‘Combined Authorities’ responsible for 1-2 million or more.  Just for comparison, there are two sovereign European states with populations of half a million – Malta and Iceland, each with subordinate tiers of democratic government.  Luxembourg is slightly larger.  The larger combined authorities cater for populations approaching those of the Baltic and Nordic states.  They are to be governed by executive mayors, who will appoint a substantial number of ‘commissioners’ as responsible for specific areas – Parliament is still contesting how many they may appoint.  Councillors from the unitary authorities below them will have limited powers of scrutiny.

London is both a model and an exception for this reform.  Its 32 boroughs (plus the City of London) range from 150,000 to 390,000 people, with an elected Assembly to counterbalance the executive Mayor and his appointed deputies.  But there are murmurings that ministers and officials regard London boroughs as ‘outdated’ and wish as soon as possible to shrink their number to some 6-8.

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Mark Valladares

1 April 2026 – today’s press releases

By Mark Valladares | Wed 1st April 2026 - 10:30 pm
  • 9 in 10 new primary teachers don’t have full-time permanent work
  • Cole-Hamilton: We will save small business from SNP rates wrecking ball
  • Welsh Lib Dems urge Government to put small and local firms first in public contracts

9 in 10 new primary teachers don’t have full-time permanent work

Scottish Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Willie Rennie MSP has today said that the SNP have “broken promise after promise to teachers and children”, as new figures show that 9 in 10 post-induction primary school teachers didn’t have full-time, permanent employment in 2025.

New figures show that between 2018/19 and 2024/25:

  • The percentage of post-induction primary teachers in full-time, permanent employment dropped from 30.3% to 10.8%.
  • The percentage of post-induction primary teachers in part-time, temporary employment has increased from 16.8% to 38.1%.
  • The percentage of post-induction secondary teachers in full-time, permanent employment has fallen from 57.9% to 42.5%.
  • The percentage of post-induction secondary teachers in part-time, temporary employment has increased from 2.9% to 5.3%.

Willie Rennie MSP said:

It is abysmal that 9 in 10 new primary school teachers can’t get full-time, permanent employment.

The SNP have broken promise after promise to teachers and children, with huge numbers of secondary and primary teachers now stuck on temporary contracts.

What a huge waste of talent when young people need good teachers more than ever, when their schooling was turned upside down by Covid and when far too many pupils with additional needs are not being properly supported.

I have met so many teachers who have been forced out of the profession because they can’t make ends meet and are tired of lurching between short-term work.

Scottish Liberal Democrats have got a realistic plan to give teachers proper, stable contracts, instead of short-term and zero hours work, so we can get Scottish education back to its best. You can vote for that by backing us on your second, peach-coloured, regional ballot paper in May.

Cole-Hamilton: We will save small business from SNP rates wrecking ball

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today used a visit to the Far From The Madding Crowd book shop in Linlithgow to set out how his party is standing in the way of the SNP’s business rates wrecking ball and to reveal a package of new measures to support high streets.

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Max Wilkinson

Max Wilkinson writes….Free speech, X and immigration – FAO Katie Lam

By Max Wilkinson | Wed 1st April 2026 - 3:07 pm

Free speech is an important principle in Britain. It’s one of the things that gets me out of bed in the morning. It’s why I so strongly believe we must remain in the ECHR, which protects in law our right to free expression. I am a supporter of free speech because whether I agree with you or not, as a liberal I’m always keen to hear what you think.

That applies as much to the vexed question of immigration as it does to anything else. I take a nuanced view on the subject, just like the majority of British people. Do I believe in open borders? Of course not. Do I think we should aim for zero net migration or pursue the harmful approach of ‘remigration’ (AKA kicking people out who currently have the right to be here)? Absolutely not.

I believe strongly that immigration has a role to play in our nation, just as it always has. We can’t pretend our public services would work without a level of immigration – not least in the health and social care sectors. We can’t pretend that our economy will thrive unless we have a level of immigration to ensure private sector vacancies are filled in sectors where we have a skills shortage. And with a birth rate below the replacement rate and falling, we cannot pretend things are going to work without a level of net migration to ensure we have enough people paying tax to fund public services like the NHS and our growing pensions bill.

On asylum, of course we need to prevent dangerous small boat crossings and have a fair, safe and controlled system. The way to do that is to work with our European and international partners, not to follow the doctrine of the Tories and Reform by pretending we can withdraw from the world.

These nuanced, commonsense positions based on reality rather than dogma often get lost in the battle between the simple arguments made by those either side of us. Consequently, I’m grateful that something I’ve said on the subject of immigration has been noticed. Indeed, it hasn’t simply been noticed – it’s gone round the world. Many users of X, right wing commentators, the Conservative Party MP Katie Lam and the US Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy have leapt upon some comments I made on (checks notes) December 8 last year.

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Tom Reeve

Exclusive: Lib Dems to ditch yellow – and party name – in secret rebrand 

By Tom Reeve | Wed 1st April 2026 - 11:27 am

The Liberal Democrats are planning to abandon the iconic yellow colour scheme in favour of mauve, following a review by a boutique consultancy to “help the party live its best life”. 

The party is also thinking of changing its name to something more “on trend”. A spokesperson denied rumours that the party was suffering a midlife crisis. 

A slide deck, marked “Secret – but we’ll have to tell them eventually”, recommends a phased transition to a “trust-forward colour ecosystem”.

“Yellow, in stakeholder sentiment analysis, was described by participants as ‘loud,’ ‘a bit much,’ and ‘like being shouted at by a lemon’,” the report states. “Net Promoter Score for yellow among C2 swing voters in target marginals: minus 14. Recommendation: discontinue.”

It identifies a “colour equity gap” between the party’s current visual identity and its desired positioning as a “calm, competent alternative in a fragmented political landscape”. 

A slide headed “Emotional Resonance Mapping,” states: “Mauve occupies a unique position in the colour spectrum. Neither red nor blue, it simultaneously gestures toward both.” A footnote on the slide adds: “In a fragmented political landscape, this ambiguity is not a weakness. It is the brand.” 

Focus group participants described mauve as “quite pleasant”, “inoffensive” and “the colour of my nan’s bathroom”. The report notes: “These are strong trust indicators.”

The document recommends a three-phase transition: digital and social assets first, then print and physical materials, and ‌what the report calls “the lived clothing experience of members”, which it concedes “may require sensitive change management support”.

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Caron Lindsay

The Davey Dilemma

By Caron Lindsay | Wed 1st April 2026 - 9:49 am

Party strategists are pondering an offer from the BBC which could have a serious impact on our party’s fortunes.

Ed Davey has been invited to appear on this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.

Those in favour of the move argue that appearing on the programme could boost Ed’s popularity and, with it, the party’s electoral success as well as cheering up the nation.

It’s ten years since his namesake, former Labour Cabinet Minister Ed Balls, achieved national treasure status after his hilarious efforts on the show, performing Gangnam Style with great aplomb.

It’s just over fifteen years since our then Deputy Leader Vince Cable performed a stunning foxtrot in the Strictly Christmas special with professional dancer Erin Boag. At the time, Euan Ferguson wrote in the Guardian:

Vince was the man who made sense of the downturn: had warned, had made even more sense of it than Robert Peston. A Liberal Democrat with cojones and charisma, and a fine line in ballroom dancing. His appearance on the special should have been a coronation, a culmination: the most astounding year in living memory for his party and then a foxy foxtrot with Erin Boag.

The BBC hope that Ed’s appearance could help revive the show, retaining and increasing its audience after a time of instability following negative media stories and the departure of popular hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly. The surprise news that several audience favourite professional dancers including Karen Hauer and Nadiya Bychkova are leaving also poses another threat to the show.

However, Ed’s dancing at Spring Conference in York came in for criticism amongst a small but vocal minority of party members, so our version of the Tories’ “men in grey suits” are concerned that they could become a distraction and there could even be an attempt by critics to submit an emergency motion calling for his withdrawal at his Party’s Autumn Conference  which would be launching at the same time as the rally.

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The Voice

Depeerage packages

By The Voice | Wed 1st April 2026 - 7:30 am

House of Lords. Photo: Parliamentary copyright images are reproduced with the permission of Parliament

Ninety-two hereditary Peers of the Realm are packing up their ermine and saying farewell to their traditional home from home. As Liberal Democrats we are pleased that Parliament has taken one more step towards the full reform of the House of Lords – although we won’t rest until we have a fully elected Upper House.

But spare a thought for those departing peers. They are the product of families who have served this country for many hundreds of years, with many lifetimes of experience in scrutinising legislation. Many of them have been highly effective members and will be missed as individuals. Some will, no doubt, be returning as appointed life peers but the majority will just have to leave that exciting life behind them and go back to their mundane homes and families. We should acknowledge the contribution they have made to our country and help them to make the transition.

Liberal Democrats are proposing that departing hereditary peers should be offered a Depeerage Package. The exact contents are under debate but are expected to include the following:

  • Free lifetime access to the bars and dining rooms in the Palace of Westminster
  • Counselling services and yoga therapy for withdrawal symptoms
  • Access to a specialist private care home if needed
  • Severance lump sum calculated as two daily allowances for each year of service in the Lords.
  • Dedicated 24 hour help line – at least for the first year.
  • A farewell goodie bag containing aromatherapy oils, Jaffa cakes and a House of Lords teddy bear.

If you have any suggestions for additional items please tell us in the comments below.

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Mark Valladares

31 March 2026 – today’s press release

By Mark Valladares | Tue 31st March 2026 - 10:30 pm

Recall Parliament to address ferry crisis say Scottish Liberal Democrats

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today called for the Scottish Parliament to be recalled to address the crisis engulfing Scotland’s ferry network as communities in Argyll & Bute and up and down the west coast face yet more upheaval, with up to eight ferries out of action.

The Scottish Parliament can be recalled up until 8th April.

Mr Cole-Hamilton made the comments as he and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey visited the key target seat of Strathkelvin & Bearsden to play tennis with community activist and candidate Adam Harley and local …

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Tanya Park

My existence is not an ideology

By Tanya Park | Tue 31st March 2026 - 9:11 am

I don’t usually write in the first person like this. But some arguments are better made from inside the experience than at a careful analytical distance. This is one of them.

There’s a phrase that’s been circulating in certain corners of British public life for a few years now. You’ll have heard it. Gender ideology. Sometimes trans ideology. It gets deployed with a specific kind of confidence: the confidence of someone who believes they are simply describing reality, neutrally, accurately, from nowhere in particular.

I am, apparently, an ideology.

I’ve tried to sit with that rather than immediately reaching for the rebuttal. To actually feel what it means to be told that your sense of self (the thing you have lived with, quietly and not always easily, for your entire life) is a belief system. A set of propositions. Something that can be adopted, spread, and ideally resisted. It’s a strange kind of alienation. Not painful in the sharp way that overt hostility is. More like being told that the room you’re standing in doesn’t exist.

But I’m a policy person as well as a trans person, and I can’t leave it at the feeling. Because the feeling is pointing at something real: a genuine category error that matters beyond the personal offence it causes.

An ideology is a systematic set of beliefs about how society should be organised: about who should have power, what values should govern public life, and what kind of world we should be building. It makes prescriptive claims. It tells you what ought to be true, not just what is true about someone’s experience. Ideologies have premises and conclusions. They identify threats. They generate political programmes. Liberalism is an ideology. Conservatism is an ideology. Socialism is an ideology. They are contestable positions in a debate about collective life. Keep that definition in mind, because we are going to apply it to a couple of things.

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