Posted on: 18th May 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Labour grandee refuses to oppose restrictions on migrant care workers

The Conservative government and a senior member of the Labour Party have tonight voiced their support for moving the Immigration Bill onto its next stage in Parliament. The Bill, put forward by wildly unpopular Home Secretary Priti Patel, would effectively ban unskilled migrants earning less than £25,600 from coming to the UK – which could stop foreign care workers, refuse workers and vegetable pickers who have shown their heroics during…

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Charles Kennedy
Posted on: 17th May 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Lessons from 2005: regaining our Kennedian edge

The pinnacle of Liberal Democrat success was in 2005. Standing loudly in opposition to the Iraq War, and with Charles Kennedy leading us, we were a constant thorn in the side of an authoritarian Labour government, and reaped the electoral rewards. But while Iraq and our opposition to it is what most people remember of the Kennedy era, our success can be more broadly attributed to our anti-establishment attitude and…

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Posted on: 6th May 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Finnish UBI experiment reduces unemployment and stress, increases wellbeing

Finnish authorities have today released the final report analysing Finland’s 2018 universal basic income experiment. The results show that those in receipt of the basic income payments experienced lower unemployment, lower stress and anxiety, and greater wellbeing than a control group who were not in receipt of UBI payments. According to Kela, the Finnish Department of Social Security, “The basic income recipients trusted other people and the institutions in society…

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Posted on: 1st May 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Moran makes UBI political priority

Layla Moran, one of the frontrunner candidates to be the next leader of the Liberal Democrats, has today honed in on UBI, investment in public services, and wage increases for frontline workers as political priorities moving forward. In a pair of tweets responding to today’s news that coronavirus death rates are disproportionately in deprived parts of the country and amongst BAME communities, Moran pledged to tackle inequality and poverty. One…

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Posted on: 22nd April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Lib Dem minister secures Welsh free school meals during summer

The Liberal Democrat Education Minister in Wales, Kirsty Williams, has today made £33million of extra funding available to local authorities in Wales for the provision of free school meals during the summer holidays. In what ITV is reporting as a “UK-first move”, the Welsh Liberal Democrat minister will ensure that eligible children receive the equivalent of £19.50 a week in free lunches, with various public health-compliant methods for delivering the…

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Posted on: 22nd April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Lib Dems support Universal Basic Income

Interim acting co-leader of the Lib Dems, Sir Ed Davey MP, has today signed a cross-party letter to the Chancellor calling for a Universal Basic Income (UBI) to be implemented post-lockdown.  The letter, signed by over 100 MPs of different parties and today published in the Financial Times, will put pressure on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to implement the basic income scheme, which would see regular, unconditional payouts made to every…

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Posted on: 21st April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Government prioritises Brexit over medical equipment

Sir Simon McDonald, the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office, today revealed that the Government had refused vital equipment from the European Union in what he described as a “political decision”. Responding to questioning from MPs before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Sir Simon revealed that ministers had been briefed about the EU procurement scheme for personal protective equipment, but that the government had made a “political decision”…

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Posted on: 20th April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Lib Dems propose £200-a-week pay rise for NHS staff

The Liberal Democrats have proposed a whopping pay rise of up to £200 a week for frontline NHS staff dealing with the coronavirus crisis. The “frontline service reward” would mirror the deployment allowance given to armed forces personnel serving on active duty, and would be valued at £29 a day. Based on the median salary of nurses, this could represent as much as a 50% pay rise. Acting Lib Dem…

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Posted on: 20th April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Labour infighting threatens party finances

Savage infighting in the Labour Party, caused by the release of leaked emails and WhatsApp messages, threatens the party’s financial stability, according to a report in The Guardian. The dossier, leaked by figures sympathetic with the Corbynite left, details trenchant factional infighting within the party, with one source telling The Torch that “it’s like half of the party hates the other half”. The report also confirms the sheer scale of…

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Posted on: 20th April 2020 Posted by: thetorch Comments: 0

Lib Dem board overruled on leadership election delay

The Liberal Democrats are set to hold a leadership election closer to the originally intended timetable after their chief executive body, Federal Board, was overruled last week. Since the loss of Jo Swinson’s seat at the 2019 general election, the party has been due to hold a leadership election. It was originally timetabled for May 2020 by Federal Board, but this was punted all the way until May 2021 due…

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