While some think the Lib Dem conference may not have much weight to it, I've still been following it with some interest. As I've done the reading I thought I might as well list what I think are the good and the bad sides of conference so far.
Feel free to add your own (I'd be interested to see Lib Dem members' pro-cons) and I leave it to you whether you feel they balance each other out or not. In no particular order;
| Ticks | Tuts |
| Taxing the richest homes | U-turn on Tuition fees |
| Scaling back the Severn Barrage | Dissing the Greens |
| David Howarth on civil liberties | Slash and burn public spending (but not the army) |
| Interesting debate on Gaza | Clegg demands Brown say something about Megrahi whilst saying absolutely nothing about Megrahi. |
| At least a little grassroots democracy | New council speak wonks |
| Lib Dems spurn Tory advances (although why Clegg had to make it a personal attack I don't know). | "The Lib Dems could not enter a coalition government with the Tories because of David Cameron's attitude towards the EU". Is that the fag paper? Bit thin. |
| Floella Benjamin, dreamy sigh. | Clegg's lack of va-va-voom |
Annie Leonard and co. (
Adrienne Mayor (
Ed Howker and Shiv Malik
Floella Benjamin (
Mark Watson (
Tim Jackson (
David Wilson (
Clive Lord (
Nickie Roberts
5 comments:
Nothing about Clegg's use of private doctors, instead of the NHS.
Mansion tax - a tick or a tut?
I'm not too worried about people's personal behavior unless it exposes some personal hypocrisy. Clegg's always been happy about private medicine so I don't feel very worked up about that to be honest.
The Mansion tax I ended up putting in tick - but it's being grasped with both hands by the left of the libdems as a redistributive tax measure - I think it's pretty thin in reality though.
Manson Tax is a form of LTV, and avoids the problem of the super rich moving their money overseas at the press of a button. The most important part is the tax cuts for the low and middle income earners to start redressing the income inequality. It’s hilarious to see Tories complaining about the ‘ability to pay’ didn’t they think of that when they introduced the council tax.
But Vince’s speech was more than the mansion tax, the ‘Financial Heart Attack’ metaphore was good, most people will understand after a heart attack, life styles have to change; we can’t go back to the diet of unfettered turbo-capitalism and business as usual. .
I’m looking at things through rose tinted glasses, but there seemed to be a nod towards Schumacher and Belloc in policies to kerb big supermarkets with anti-trust legislation, devolving power in the NHS and localism. However sadly not much on industrial democracy, co-ownership and co-operatives.
Savage cuts – stupid thing to say. Civil Liberties – Good. I don’t think Nick dissed the Greens so much as tried to pinch your voters – you should have called his bluff. Floella - great but sadly Big Ted didn’t attend.
Surely if the Greens are zero-growth (still?) then they will have to make the most savage cuts in public spending of all.
So it is a bit much criticising anybody else for it.
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