What I think
Brexit
The Labour and Tory parties are dead. For politically homeless centrists, that might be a good thing
While Corbyn has refused to adopt a clear position on Brexit, Johnson has reconfigured the party to the populist right. There’s no place for moderates in either camp.
How MPs can defeat no-deal Brexit this week, and pull the rug out from the No 10 fanatics
Too often the voices of sanity and reason have found themselves put on the back foot by a ruthless and determined No 10. Tomorrow, parliament can change that
Statement on my appointment as Liberal Democrat Shadow Foreign Secretary
I’m absolutely delighted and honoured to have been appointed by Jo Swinson as the Liberal Democrat’s new Shadow Foreign Secretary, scrutinising the work of Dominic Raab and the Foreign Office. In addition to my responsibilities as the Liberal Democrat Shadow Foreign Secretary, I will also be leading on the Department for Trade and Department for
Government flailing no-deal preparation shows scale of Brexit crisis
Following the Liberal Democrats forcing the government to release the figures that showed only three in ten businesses who export to the EU had registered for an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number, HMRC have today announced they will be automatically enrolling companies in an attempt to prepare for Brexit. In a no-deal Brexit,
Don’t let the reckless gamblers of Boris Johnson’s ‘do or die’ Brexit gang pretend they speak for the people
Brexiter Jeremy Corbyn has ruled out an emergency government, but Jo Swinson is ready to step up to stop no deal – and to stop Brexit itself
Tory Brexit plans crashing the UK economy
Figures released today by the Office for National Statistics show that the UK gross domestic product is estimated to have fallen by 0.2% in Q2 (April-June) 2019. Growth in the services sector output slowed to 0.1% in Quarter 2 2019. The production sector contracted by 1.4% in Q2 2019, providing the largest downward contribution to
Don’t let Boris Johnson’s puppeteers fool you – parliament can still stop no-deal Brexit
The prime minister wants to frame the coming months as a battle between parliament on one side, and his administration and the people on the other. This only works if he can credibly claim to speak for most of the country, which he clearly does not
Government forced to publish data showing less than 3 in 10 UK exporters are prepared for ‘no deal’ Brexit
New data obtained by the Liberal Democrats from HM Treasury shows less than 3 in 10 exporters to the EU are ready for a ‘no deal’ Brexit. Figures suggest most will not be ready until the beginning of 2021. In a no-deal Brexit, businesses that currently only trade with EU countries will need to apply
BoE confirms any form of Brexit increases recession risk
In its quarterly inflation report, published today, the Bank of England has warned that even with the smoothest possible Brexit there is a 1/3 chance of a UK recession. Also published today, the IHS Markit PMI for UK Manufacturing showed that production in the sector fell to its lowest in seven years. Today the Bank
Sajid Javid must end the Tory agenda benefiting the 1%
Following the appointment of Sajid Javid as Chancellor of the Exchequer, I have written a letter calling on him to protect the British economy from Brexit and to ensure it works for all Britons, not just the richest. The letter sent to Sajid Javid last night is as follows: Dear Sajid, Congratulations on your appointment
Jo Swinson’s victory is the real sign of progress in UK politics
As Tory MPs suck up to Boris Johnson, and Jeremy Corbyn goes from bad to worse, at least we can place our hope in the one Remain party