Welsh Liberal blogs

At sunset today, Jewish communities in the UK will come together to celebrate Rosh Hashanah , the Jewish new year. For the millions observing, this is a time of self-examination, reflection and personal change. For the millions observing, this is a time of self-examination, reflection and personal change. For decades, British Jewish communities have profoundly shaped our culture and national way of life. Our country wouldn't be the success it is today without their ongoing and immeasurable contributions. Sadly, the pervasiveness of anti-Semitic sentiments is something we cannot ignore. And it is particularly concerning when these attitudes seep into the political mainstream, as witnessed recently. It is our duty to stand up to those who seek to forment and provoke division of any kind. We each have a responsibility to be custodians of kindness and compassion and we must vow to always stand up to the forces of bigotry and hate. To those celebrating, I wish y...

Today, Jo Swinson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats closed Conference with a rousing speech outlining her vision for a Liberal Democrat government winning the next General Election powered by the surging Liberal Democrat movement across the county. Tribute to Paddy Ashdown We remember a man who was bold, fearless, determined Jo started with a warm tribute to former Liberal Democrat Leader, Paddy Ashdown following last week's memorial service in Westminster Abbey. Speaking of his incredible energy and passion, she said: "As I sat last week at his memorial service with thousands of others, we remembered a man who was bold, fearless, determined. A man who brought people together. A man whose impatience to create change was undimmed into his seventies." The growing Lib Dem movement To you all I say welcome. And thank you. She reflected on the success that we've seen in recent months, from our new MSP Beatrice Wishart to our 16 MEPs,...

Conference, I don't know about you, but when you knock on doors canvassing, and people say "Oh, you're all the same", it can be quite frustrating. Brexit has changed all that. Everyone now knows, we are very different from Johnson's Conservatives and Corbyn's Labour. Only the Liberal Democrats want to stop Brexit. Let's face it. Our great country could be just 46 days from economic catastrophe. The Government's own Yellowhammer report could not be clearer: Food and medicine shortages, a hard border in Northern Ireland, jobs moving abroad. Is this what Conservatives now stand for? Gambling away our children and grandchildren's futures? Forcing Britain into years of economic chaos? What shocking irresponsibility. Is this what Conservatives now stand for? Gambling away our children and grandchildren's futures? Britain deserves better. And Liberal Democrats demand better. First, we want an economy that wor...

Hearing about our 700 council gains. 15 European gains. Chuka, Sarah, Angela, Philip, Luciana and Sam joining from the Conservatives and Labour. The Brecon win for the wonderful Jane Dodds against the Conservatives. It's happening in Scotland too. Councillor Fiona Dryburgh left Labour to join us. And Councillor Mark McGeever left the Conservatives to join us. And there will be more to come. We are on the up and you better get used to it. When you look at Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, the answer has to be Jo Swinson It's time for the old to make way for the new. When you look at Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, the answer has to be Jo Swinson. So Boris and Jeremy watch out, Jo is on the march. We must stop a no-deal Brexit, but we also must stop Brexit. Full stop. We knew straight away that we would need to escape this looming chaos. And we were right. The value of the pound has plummeted. The cost of imports is up. Prices are up. The cost of you...

Catch up with Chuka Umunna's maiden conference, it is an honour and a pleasure to be addressing you as a Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament and as your Shadow Foreign Secretary. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for making me feel so welcome.  I could not be more at home in the wonderful Liberal Democrat family. The truth is, all the incredibly difficult decisions I have made on the journey I’ve been on this year were routed in my values and principles. I joined this party out of conviction. As you know, I am a Remainer and proud of it - we have spent far too long apologising for being pro-European in this country.  Because you cannot be pro-Britain and put our national interest first without seeking to put Britain at the heart of Europe. Be in no doubt: this is the battle of our time and it goes far beyond Britain’s borders. In essence, the society we seek to build is one where if you work hard and play by the rules, you should be free to lead a happy, prosper...

Hear from the leader of the Welsh Lib Dems and one of our newest MPs, Jane Dodds! Jane started by thanking everyone who came to help in Brecon and Radnorshire... Whether you came during the recall petition or the by-election or even both – thank you.  Without all of you, and the wider party and beyond, I would not be standing here today as the MP for Brecon & Radnorshire. She moved onto our recent wins: This victory was a team effort, and one which signalled to both Wales and the UK, that the Liberal Democrats can win.  This victory was a team effort, and one which signalled to both Wales and the UK, that the Liberal Democrats can win. Winning council seats. Winning our largest ever group of MEPs. Winning Parliamentary seats across the country. Conference, there has never been a better time to be a Liberal Democrat. She talked about some of our recent recruits... One week after I was elected, we were joined by Sarah Wollaston. The day I took my ...

Missed Sal Brinton's conference speech at Autumn Conference in Bournemouth? Catch up here! Well, hello Conference and hasn’t everything changed since we last met in March! Wow! Just wow! We asked you to all go on the Stop Brexit march on 20 March to make it clear we are the strongest Remain party. You did that. It was my privilege to help lead thousands and thousands of Liberal Democrats along with Vince Cable at that march that had over a million people on the streets of London. We asked you to go out and give us the best results ever in the local elections. You did that.                           We made over 700 gains, and now control 18 councils. We’re still making gains in by elections too. We then said please go out and campaign for our best ever European Elections results, in a snap election, with very little time. You did that. 16 MEPs. Then we said (after ...

Wera Hobhouse's conference speech! Wera started by talked about everything we've achieved in just the time since the last conference. "Number of councillors UP Number of MEPs UP Number of MPs UP Membership UP Polling UP . Is there anything that can stop us now?" She then talked about the scale of the climate crisis The Climate Crisis is the biggest challenge of the future and we have a moral duty to solve it "The Climate Crisis is the biggest challenge of the future and we have a moral duty to solve it " Being a Liberal Democrat and being an environmentalist go hand in hand. She addressed the fraught political climate we find ourselves in. "The rise of populist and nationalist leaders across the world directly threatens our democratic values." And spoke about how populism is thriving on environmental chaos and social instability. They build a climate of fear, and fear is a powerful e...