more … ]]> Liberal Democrat leader Ming Campbell has launched a major campaign initiative this week, emailing all the party’s members about plans for a mass “community canvass” across the UK in the week after the party’s autumn conference:

I am a great believer in meeting people. Talking to them face-to-face. Having real discussions with real people about the issues that matter to them. Persuading them to back us.

We can’t let politics just be a Punch and Judy exchange of 15 second soundbites on the TV. We can’t let political decisions be about someone sitting in a distant office in Whitehall deciding what’s best for everyone.

That is why I am launching our first ever “Community Canvass Week”, for 22nd-30th September. Thousands of Liberal Democrats across the UK will be out calling on people, conducting surveys, hearing what people think on issues and recruiting new members and deliverers.

Our Community Canvass Week material will include ideas for carrying out door-to-door surveys, as well as more traditional canvassing or going out to recruit more members and deliverers.

I hope you will be able to join me and thousands of other Liberal Democrats around the country in taking part in this Community Canvass Week in your area.

Bringing a human face to politcs and building a larger team of supporters and helpers is vital – both for the long term health of our own party and also for the health of our democracy.

If Gordon Brown does call an October general election, a successful Community Canvass Week will give our general election campaign a flying start. If he holds on until the Spring, or perhaps even latter, then this week will set up our candidates and campaigners with more data and more helpers so we are even better prepared when the election comes.

All our local parties are being sent material and information about this week. You can also see the events that have been publicised already – and add your own – on Flock Together.

Hundreds of events are already being organised across the country. I will be out on the doorsteps during that week. I hope you can be too.

more … ]]> Liberal Democrat Leader Ming Campbell has written to party members about the plight of Iraqi interpreters seeking asylum in the United Kingdom:

The Government’s decision to review the cases of 91 Iraqi translators who have worked for the British may be welcome but their plight needs to be treated with far greater urgency. You can back our campaign at http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/interpreters

The sad fact is that all these people’s lives will be at great risk when the British concentrate all their resources at Basra air base and then, eventually, leave the country altogether.

There is no doubt in my mind that Britain has a moral responsibility towards them and it would be a betrayal of that duty of care if they were not better looked after and where appropriate given asylum in this country.

What I want to see is an immediate inquiry into their situation and that of all the hundreds of other workers who may also have put their own lives and those of their families in danger by working for the British.

Numerous interpreters have been kidnapped, tortured and killed by Iraqi militiamen who accuse them of collaboration with their country’s enemies and there is no doubt that once the troops have been withdrawn there is every chance they will be further victimised.

Unlike the British, the Danish government did not turn its back on its responsibilities and when it withdraw its contingent from Iraq it flew all sixty of its translators out of the country at the same time.

There is rightly fury and indignation from soldiers who have served alongside these people in Iraq. One tells of an interpreter whose wife and family had a gun held to their heads by the militia and ordered to leave the country within three days. Yet he was immediately turned down for refugee status.

That approach is utterly unacceptable and morally unsustainable.

Their difficulties highlight yet again the lack of foresight exercised by the British and American governments before embarking on the illegal invasion of Iraq. It has destroyed the lives of tens of thousands of people it was supposed to enhance. It has left millions in greater fear and danger than even under the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein.

Though we will continue to condemn the war, we also recognise as Liberal Democrats that those who have risked their lives in their work for the British government deserve a fair hearing and they deserve it now. You can help bring that about by backing our campaign at: http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/interpreters

Best wishes

Ming Campbell

more … ]]> Ming Campbell has today emailed party members and supporters urging them to lobby their MP about Friday’s freedom of information debate in Parliament.

In the email Ming wrote:

This Friday the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill will once again be debated on the floor of the House of Commons.

Liberal Democrat MPs at Westminster, spearheaded by Norman Baker and Simon Hughes, are working hard to stop it. You can help us by contacting your MP – via www.writetothem.com – and asking them to publicly declare their opposition to the Bill.

The proposal is a private member’s bill, introduced by David Maclean, a Conservative MP. If passed, it would exempt both Houses of Parliament and all communications between MPs and public authorities from the scope of the Freedom of Information Act.

The effect would be to remove any obligation for details of MPs’ expenses to be made public. However, the expenses of other public figures and senior officials such as judges, councillors and civil servants would remain accessible under FOI legislation.

It would also mean that members of the public would not be able to find out the advice or policy opinions that their own MP had expressed to public bodies. For example, responses to public consultation exercises, representations to planning authorities and letters to NHS professionals on the provision of local health services would no longer be publicly accessible under the Freedom of Information Act.

Supporters of the amendment say that they are concerned about preventing constituents’ correspondence from being disclosed.

However, correspondence about constituents’ personal affairs which contains personal data is already exempt from the Act and also protected by the provisions of the Data Protection Act.

An unholy alliance of Conservative and Labour MPs is backing this attempt to water down public access to freedom of information. They have the clear support of the government, which, unusually, did not block the Bill at Second Reading and therefore seems happy to see its own Freedom of Information Act watered down.

This is unacceptable. Of all public servants, MPs have least right to be exempt from public scrutiny. We are elected to represent our constituents’ interests and to maintain high standards in public life.

The Freedom of Information Act is a vital tool for allowing members of the public to assess whether their MPs are doing so.

We must not allow it to be compromised.

Please contact your MP before Friday to make clear your support for the Freedom of Information Act and your wish to see David Maclean’s proposed Bill rejected for the reasons that I have mentioned. You can access your MP’s contact details at www.writetothem.com

more … ]]> From Ming Campbell’s email sent to party members today:

In a little under a month’s time, the Federal Party’s spring conference in Harrogate (2nd-4th March) will get underway. The Final Agenda and accompanying papers are now on their way to local party representatives.

This conference will signal a change of pace for the Party as we gear up for a crucial round of elections in May. We are approaching these elections with confidence – but there is no room for complacency. We are well placed to win more votes and more seats in Scotland and Wales, and in the English local elections. But this will depend as always on the hard work of our members getting our Liberal Democrat message across locally. My diary is now full with campaigning up and down the country. So if I don’t see you in Harrogate, I hope to see you in the months before May.

At Harrogate itself, the focus will be on crime and the community. We have two policy papers from the Federal Policy Committee to debate on crime itself and also community regeneration. (You can find these papers on the party website).

The message is straightforward. Crime is a liberal issue. Working together we can cut crime and reinvigorate our communities. If you want to get involved in this campaign visit the website www.wecancutcrime.com and take part in your local party initiatives.

Other debates include a campaign to save Britain’s historic waterways which remain a vibrant link to our past and a focus for some much-needed community redevelopment and economic growth. We will also be discussing motions on sustainable housing, and international development.

But perhaps the most interesting debate will be on the Federal Policy Committee’s proposals on the future of Britain’s nuclear deterrent (see our consultation website).

Conference will be asked to set a new Liberal Democrat policy to reduce significantly Britain’s nuclear weapons by 50% – bringing Britain’s warheads down to a maximum of 100. If approved these proposals mean that the Liberal Democrats would be pressing for a radical reduction in the size of the British nuclear deterrent so that Britain can take the lead in kick-starting the stalled international disarmament talks.

We are all committed to nuclear disarmament. Working towards global elimination of nuclear weapons is a central principle of our international and defence policies. By cutting Britain’s nuclear weapons by 50% and keeping our seat at the table, Britain has the best chance of driving forward the disarmament agenda.

The proposals are not only progressive, they are responsible too. They recognise the delicate situation that the world finds itself in 2007 with regards to proliferation. We must recognise the danger over the next decade of states such as Iran developing nuclear weapons, and the pressure this will place on other powers in their regions to acquire nuclear weapons themselves. Such proliferation could lead in the longer term to one or more such states possibly posing a threat to Britain, its neighbours or allies.

So disarming completely now – just as the security situation looks more potentially alarming than for many years, when we have an effective deterrent with many years life left in it and when the need to take a final decision to replace Trident is some years away – would I believe be the wrong course to take at this time.

In reality, Britain doesn’t need to take a final decision on replacing Trident until well into the next decade. Tony Blair has jumped the gun on this because he wants the decision made while he is still Prime Minister. Liberal Democrats should not fall into his trap and be bounced into accepting his flawed logic. Scheduling the final decision for a more realistic date in the next decade would give Britain a number of years to try to create the circumstances in which replacing Trident could prove strategically unnecessary.

If Britain used all its influence to spearhead a renewed drive towards disarmament, and with a better American administration post-George Bush, we could encourage other countries considering nuclear development to sit down and discuss a non-nuclear future. This means keeping Britain’s options open for as long as we are able.

So our conference in Harrogate looks set to be an interesting and, I hope, successful event. If you are able to come to Harrogate and help us set the agenda for the elections in May, I look forward to seeing you there. If not, I hope to see you out and about over the next few months as we face the electoral challenge yet again, in Scotland and Wales and across England. Remember, where we work we win. Britain needs more Liberal Democrats at every level of government arguing for and implementing Liberal Democrats policies to cut crime, to save the environment and to make Britain a freer, fairer and greener place to live.

more … ]]> What were your New Year’s resolutions?

I’m probably one of the few people who hasn’t resolved to take more exercise!

But the New Year isn’t just about going to the gym more. After spending so much time and money on presents and celebrations at Christmas, I know many people decide the New Year is time to look beyond their friends and family to the wider community.

I can’t guarantee that being a Liberal Democrat will mean you lose weight.

But I can promise that it will make a genuine difference to the future.

We’re the only Party which is standing up against the Government’s compulsory ID card scheme: www.libdems.org.uk/noidcards

We’re the Party which first put the environment high up the agenda by making green taxes the core of our tax policy: www.greentaxswitch.com

And we’re the only Party which had the courage to oppose the Iraq war.

Perhaps these are the reasons why we start this year with 63 MPs – more than ever before.

We all know that Tony Blair will step down this year, and there’s a chance Gordon Brown will call a snap General Election. If there is, then every extra vote will mean a stronger voice for Liberal Democrat values in Parliament.

You might be one of the many people who back the Lib Dems. Perhaps you already vote for us – perhaps you already help us at election time.

Why not start your New Year as you mean to go on by joining the Liberal Democrats? In return, you get to have your say about the future of the Party – and a vote in all Party elections, for Leader, President and your local candidates.

The recommended subscription to join the Liberal Democrats is £45. Your generous support will help our election campaigns in the coming year and help build a fighting fund for the General Election.

And if that’s too much for your circumstances, the minimum subscription is just £9.

Join online or over the phone today via 020 7227 1335.

With many thanks for your support.

more … ]]> August 17, 2006: Ming Campbell emailed party members as follows:

Politics never stands still. Even in the short time since my election as Leader of the Liberal Democrats in March, the landscape now looks quite different.

Tony Blair is looking increasingly insecure as Prime Minister. His handling of the crisis in the Middle East has laid bare just how exposed he is in his party and in the country. His Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott clings to office despite the media ridicule. The Home Office is being overhauled after years of mismanagement. The Identity Card project is looking more and more expensive and less and less practical. Cash deficits in the Health Service continue to rise, leading to ward closures and cuts in frontline staff.

We are surely now in the dog days of the Blair premiership.

While Labour falters, the Liberal Democrats in Parliament have been getting on with our job as the real opposition to the Government. Our Shadow Home Affairs secretary Nick Clegg led the debate which uncovered so many of the failures in the Home Office. Our Shadow Pensions Secretary David Laws has exposed just how shambolic the Child Support Agency has become. Our Shadow Health Secretary Steve Webb has been fighting to protect the National Health Service in the face of crippling deficits and central government diktat.

The Liberal Democrats are stronger than ever. After the local elections in May we now have the highest proportion of Liberal Democrat councillors ever. The by-election in Gordon Brown’s back yard in Dunfermline returned the Liberal Democrat Willie Rennie as MP boosting our numbers in Parliament to an all time high. And in one of the Tories’ safest seats in Bromley we reduced their 13,000 majority to just 641 – so much for David Cameron’s appeal.

David Cameron has shown all the worst traits of modern politics – the spin, the obsession with headlines, the belief that you only have to change your image to get people to vote for you. Being green is not about inviting the cameras to film you cycling to work while your chauffeur follows behind. Being green takes the kind of political courage necessary to say to people that we can’t go on driving cars with big engines without paying the price and that polluting aeroplanes can’t get off scott-free either.

Politics is about substance. It’s about putting your values and principles into practice with credible policies. That is what our Party conference in September will be about.

The Liberal Democrat conference is unique among the major parties. The Liberal Democrat conference makes policy. Its debates are meaningful, and its decisions binding. It means that as the Leader of the party and chair of the Federal Policy Committee, I don’t just announce proposals and expect you to go along with them like the Conservative and Labour party leaders. I need to win members’ support for the platform on which we will fight the next general election.

At our conference, We will be debating and setting policy on a number of crucial issues – from international law to local government, from taxation to the environment – and we will be consulting representatives on the future of Trident, on crime and on measures to alleviate poverty and inequality.

We will also be debating the policy framework paper “Trust in People: Make Britain Free, Fair and Green” which is the result of the “Meeting the Challenge” process set in train by my predecessor Charles Kennedy. This paper is the product of the widest and most vigorous party consultation we have ever had. It lays the foundations for the direction of our party for the next few years and beyond.

We aim to make Britain a free, fair and green country. The UK is a liberal nation. British people are tolerant, energetic, enterprising and compassionate. But they are badly served by a centralised and failing political system that excludes the views of most of them. Britain is also an unequal society in which too many are prevented from making the best of their lives. And it has been burdened by governments which have failed to face up to long-term challenges such as climate change.

A different Britain is possible – one in which people and communities are able to wield real political power on their own behalf, where people are not shut out by a lack of income or wealth or respect, and where the environment is valued and protected.

Our democratic values impose upon our conference both power and responsibility. The message I want our conference to send to the country is that we are a mature and credible party – sure in our principles and ready for the rigours of government. That we are innovative and forward thinking – not just tackling the problems of today but looking ahead to the problems Britain and the world will face over the next decades and setting out practical liberal solutions that will help to make people’s lives better. We must be a party of substance not symbolism.

As Liberal Democrats we are ambitious, but not for our own sake. We are ambitious for Britain.

P.S. You can read more about our Tax Commission’s report, and watch a video interview, at http://www.libdems.org.uk/tax-commission.html

more … ]]> July 6, 2006. Ming Campbell emailed Liberal Democrat party members with news of the party’s September Conference in Brighton:

The debates lined up for this autumn’s party conference in Brighton on 16-21st September will cover a range of important issues where we will be setting out our stall for the years ahead. They include the results of the Meeting the Challenge consultation process, and also the important work of our Tax Commission.

You can register online by following this link »

Conference is not only about debates. We will be launching a major environmental campaign at conference with a campaign rally addressed by myself and Chris Huhne MP, our Environment Spokesperson. You will also have the chance to question me in a question and answer session.

In addition to a very busy programme of fringe meetings, there is a large range of top quality training available. There is no extra charge for the training which is provided by some of the country’s top experts. To get training from such experts would normally cost many hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds!

If you have not registered for conference, I really hope you do so and join us in what is always an exhilarating, thoughtful, exciting and fun occasion.

I look forward to seeing you in Brighton.