Special expediency
Nine months ago Nick Clegg vowed to remove government special advisers’ salaries from the taxpayers burden. He is now spending £165,000 on his two spads.
Liberal Democrats
New warning coalition could split the Lib Dems
David Cameron’s old politics tutor and leading constitutional expert Vernon Bogdanor warned that the Liberal Democrats risked being split and “swallowed up”.
Labour membership up 13,000 as angry Lib Dems desert
The Labour Party’s membership has shot up since election day, rising by more than 13,000 to 167,000 – a rise of 8.5 per cent.
Lib-Con deal: support but also real anger among Lib Dem grassroots
Some Liberal Democrats have voiced concern, over the eagerness with which their leaders gave life to a Tory government and the consequences for themselves.
Labour should withdraw candidates in Lib-Con marginals
Labour should withdraw its candidates in the 30 seats where there is a clear fight between the Tories and the Lib Dems.
Lib Dem tax policy “fails the fairness test”: IFS says so too
New research by the IFS outlines that “income tax cuts are not well targeted to help the poorest in society”. It corroborates research last month by Left Foot Forward.
Liberal Democrat immigration policy: liberal and democratic?
Immigration isn’t attracting the same kind of attention in this election campaign that it has in the past (or at least it wasn’t until ‘bigot-gate’…)
Lib Dems ‘get’ climate change (but do the sums add up?)
The Liberal Democrats’ £3 billion green stimulus package has much to commend it. It shows they understand the need for a new, populist approach to climate issues.
The Lib Dem manifesto: a progressive perspective
The Liberal Democrats’ plans contain a number of progressive priorities. But their tax plans are regressive and the funding is “highly speculative”, say the IFS.
Lib Dems: Our tax plans are fair and progressive
As the person responsible for drafting the Lib Dem manifesto I wanted to respond to the report on our proposal to raise the income tax threshold to £10,000.