Liberal Vision

Tipping one’s hat to the Welsh freedom fighters

An excellent post on the excellently named Freedom Central this morning highlights the far-Left clique’s activities in Wales.

The LD blog reveals a TUC hustings to which Labour, Plaid and NO2EU candidates were invited – but none from other parties, including the LDs. The alleged reason for this is that other candidates were deemed “not representative of trade unions.”

As FC argues back: “Surely it is up to Union members to decide who is representative of them?”.

Indeed, but that’s really not the way these things work, is it? Nonetheless, FC’s comments are so pertinent and well articulated that I’m simply going to copy and paste the lot:

“I suppose that the Cardiff TUC leadership believe they know what is best for their members. These undemocratic dinosaurs shouldn’t be allowed to keep their grip on Trade Unionism. At least Welsh Lib Dem candidates got to spend their time out on the doorsteps meeting real people for the evening instead of taking part in a stage managed puppet show.”

Hear and, indeed, hear again.

I actually received literature from the somewhat crazed “No2EU” party t’other day. Was considering a blog on’t, but am not sure if it warrants the effort. Will mull this one over. I do wonder who’s funding that party, though. Did we ever find out if Unison have donated £100,000 to Labourlist?

Is the Obama honeymoon over?!

Without a doubt, Barack Obama’s first days in office have been relatively placid. Questionable decisions surrounding the reform of Guantanamo Bay and the publication of further photos of Iraqi detainees have not left any significant cracks in the veneer he carefully crafted during his campaign. Every word he has uttered has been meticulously thought through and he is still seen as a placater (especially internationally), his rhetoric always calming and measured.

However, rumblings have recently started to grow louder voicing concerns over Obama’s “buy American” message. Among the latest to hit out at President Obama’s stimulus package are the Financial Times:

President Barack Obama and US congressional leaders are under mounting pressure to wind back the “buy American” measures in the $787bn (€562bn, £495bn) stimulus bill as complaints grow that they are hurting the US workers they were supposed to protect.

The provisions, which require that stimulus-funded projects buy only US-made steel, iron and manufactured goods, sparked outcry from America’s trading partners this year when Congress added them to the stimulus bill. At the White House’s urging, the bill was amended at the last minute to ensure that it would not contravene any existing US trade agreements, which eased many countries’ fears. But according to some businesses and officials, that amendment is proving virtually meaningless in practice.

This is because more than a third of the stimulus money is being disbursed at a local level by states and local authorities. Unlike the federal government, many authorities are not party to pacts such as the North American Free Trade Agreement and the government procurement pact of the World Trade Organisation.

The New York Times:

Exports from the United States declined 30 percent and imports 34 percent in the first quarter of the year from the previous three months. Imports into countries that use the euro from outside the area were down 21 percent compared with the first quarter of last year. At this rate, the World Trade Organization’s dire projection in March that global trade would decline 9 percent this year will soon start to look outright boastful.

And the Canadian Press:

Twenty-nine countries at the World Trade Organization criticized the United States on Wednesday for reintroducing export subsidies on U.S. dairy products, calling the handouts a dangerous retreat into protectionism and warning of “subsidy wars.”

The most aggressive criticism of President Obama has until now come from within his own country. The advent of growing dissaproval surrounding Obama’s trade policies, specifically from the international community, is the first sign that the ‘honeymoon period’ is coming to end.

Mellow Yellow Vince

With all the furore around the Snoutgate scandal, it’s worth remembering that one of the most trusted and respected politicians of recent times just happens to be LibDem Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor. Here’s Liberal Vision’s tribute to Vince Cable.

LibDems: “something went wrong” with the constitution

A debate is beginning to develop in the LibDem blogosphere about the opportunity –  provided by the Snoutgate scandal – to secure full-blown constitutional reform. 

This is surely the best oppportunity in years – if not decades – for the party to lead calls for the whole gamut of changes that LibDems have been so passionate about.

A tad worrying, then, that if you search for the term “constitution” on the party’s official website, the following message appears:

Hmmm…… Here’s hoping Nick Clegg and our frontbench are a little more forthright in their upcoming public pronouncements…

Cameron’s proposed constitutional reform package is timid and half-baked, but he is managing to set the media agenda on this issue.

UPDATE 2.45pm Weds 27th May : The website search now works!

Could British politics be ready for a Brawn breakthrough?

The sporting sensation of 2009 has been the astonishing performance of the new Brawn GP Formula One team.  Ross Brawn formed the outift from the ashes of the Honda franchise, and it only officially came into existence this March. Six weeks later, Brawn are running away with both the constructors and the drivers championship. Jenson Button started the season as a 300/1 rank outsider to finish as F1′s top driver, he is now a 1/3 nailed-on favourite, having taken the chequered flag in five of the first six races of the season.

Brawn GP have come from nowhere to shatter an establised duopoly.

The red half of this duopoly – Ferrari – have been especially dominant for the last decade, but now look like they may exit the sport all together. The other half – McLaren – have been immersed in career-ending scandals verging on farce (although seem to be able to dredge their own moats).

With psephological experts predicting more than half of incumbent MPs will be removed or defeated within the next twelve months, the parallels with the present political crisis are just too delicious to ignore.

Could a 300/1 outsider come from absolutely nowhere and sweep away a tired and jaded duopoly? At the moment, much concern is focused on the opportunities for the hard right. But isn’t the truth that the wider public are desperate for something – almost anything – that is markedly different from the current political order? This must represent a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for  a genuinely radical, liberal, reforming agenda. If the LibDems can’t or won’t seize this chance, somebody or something else surely will.