You wonder how Gordon Brown does it. There is a yawning chasm of an open goal yet still he manages to miss. Yesterday, as anyone in the capital may have noticed due to the enhanced police presence, the Cabinet met in Cardiff. One of their many unelected members, Lord Drayson noted to his twitter followers this was the first ever meeting of the Cabinet in Wales. Ministers also met local groups and people and the PM a group of young people to whom he talked about votes at 16.
I joined the Lib Dem’s when I was 16 and have in the last ten years done more than the occasional talk in schools, freshers fairs and with young people about politics. It’s been Lib Dem policy to lower the voting age (and candidature) for years. Members of other parties have also agreed with this, Julie Morgan included. It’s a reasonably simple argument to make and win, especially with those who are denied a say they should be entitled too. After all why should someone be able to bring a new life into the world when they don’t yet have full control of their own.
So how on earth did Gordon Brown manage to leave a roomful of young people thinking exactly the opposite as today’s Western Mail reports?
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Why is there no mention on this site of Nick Clegg’s big announcement yesterday? The party is putting out a clear message about being serious on tackling debt and dropping previous commitments such as scrapping tuition fees yet there is no coverage at all on your site.
I covered it on my blog at http://peterblack.blogspot.com/2009/07/getting-real-in-recession.html and it was covered on the Liberal Democrat Voice site at http://www.libdemvoice.org/cleggs-fresh-start-for-britain-education-green-jobs-political-reform-15702.html
The fact is that this site mostly concentrates on Welsh politics and leaves the UK stuff to LDV. Having said that your interpretation of Clegg’s comments are wrong. The party have not dropped previous commitments on scrapping tuition fees. We have said that we still intend to do it but will not be able to do it straight away because of the dire state of the country’s finances.
Does this mean that if you were in government in wales and there was no money you would support bringing in top up fees?
If it does this is slightly hypocritical.
Wil_cc you are misinterpreting Nick Clegg.
Clegg is getting us serious about being a party of government so that we can have a fair crack at the next General Election. Especially if there is a Hung Parliament. This could be our biggest chance yet but it means we will be mature about what policies we can deliver.
Sometimes when there is a recession on you have to concede on some issues such as fees. It doesn’t mean we’re dropping the policy at all, just it won’t be deliverable at the present time.
No because we do not believe in top up fees and that is why we are pledged to get rid of them in England as well as in Wales. Top up fees are already in situ in England and (thanks to Plaid Cymru) in Wales. What we need to do is to cost an alternative and put it in place and that is what we are pledged to do.