Archive for norman lamb

My BBC interview about the health reforms

10 April 2011 ,
I popped over to TV Centre this evening to do a short interview about the NHS reforms and Norman Lamb’s comments for the BBC News Channel:

The party strategy debate: rolling highlights

Note: If you’re catching up with this post after it was published, read it from the bottom up. Final result – both amendment and motion passed overwhelmingly. The overall tenor of the debate was more good natured than might have been expected – people did not take the opportunity to express any unhappiness in strident [...]

Disability Living Allowance and NHS motions: the aftermath

There’s a common theme to the party’s official reactions to both the Disability Living Allowance (Mobility Component) and health reform motions being passed at conference today. That is to welcome the party staking out its own views on the issues, even where they clearly contradict those of Conservative ministers, and for two reasons. First, it [...]

Rolling news from conference: Saturday morning

Richard Kemp summates on motion, asking people also to back both amendments; i.e. cooperation rather confrontation to improve bill. Some MPs vote for amendment 1, some abstain. Amendment overwhelmingly carried. As is amendment 2. Lines 6-15 deleted from motion, amended motion carried. All MPs can spot voted for. Evan Harris summates on amendment 1. “It [...]
Paul Burstow MP

Health set to be the big issue for Liberal Democrats at their spring conference

The debate on the future of the NHS is shaping up to be the defining event at the Liberal Democrat conference this weekend in Sheffield There are other significant items on the agenda, but their outcome is almost certain – Nick Clegg will give a speech that gets a standing ovation, the strategy debate will [...]

Conference preview: consulting on the future, inequality and digital policy

This weekend’s Liberal Democrat conference in Sheffield starts on the Friday afternoon with three policy consultation sessions: Facing the Future, Information Technology and Intellectual Property and Inequality. The Facing the Future policy working group is chaired by Norman Lamb MP and, as Norman explained on this site last autumn, is intended to set the party’s [...]

Tuition fees: which way will MPs vote on Thursday?

Today saw a weird piece of media face with an impostor conning several news outlets into reporting that Edinburgh West MP Mike Crockart was going to resign as a PPS and vote against the tuition fees increase. The impostor even got as far as being interviewed by the BBC on the World at One before [...]

The Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Private Secretaries (UPDATED)

The appointments of various LibDem MPs to be PPS to ministers have been rather low-profile, so in case you have missed any here is the complete list: Gordon Birtwistle – PPS to Danny Alexander Mike Crockart – PPS to Michael Moore Duncan Hames – PPS to Sarah Teather Jo Swinson – PPS to Vince Cable [...]

What’s Norman Lamb up to?

18 July 2010 ,
The BBC Politics Show East today profiled Norman Lamb and his new role at the heart of government. As Norman says, “This is all extraordinary. We’re conditioned to being on the outside, looking in.” It gives an insight into how the party is adapting to government, what Norman thinks the big challenges are in his [...]

The Liberal Democrat plans for the NHS

7 April 2010 , ,
A few days ago Liberal Democrat spokesman Norman Lamb  (aka the man who beat Iain Dale by 10,606 votes in 2005) kindly gave up some time to be interviewed about the party’s plans for the NHS. Having previously pointed out that the party’s “four steps to a fairer Britain” doesn’t include how we will improve public services, [...]