Charlotte Henry is an author, journalist and broadcaster who creates and runs The Addition newsletter and podcast, an award-winning publication looking at the crossover between media and technology.
‘They tried to stop us and look what it did. The thing I love most is being a yid.’ So chanted the Tottenham Hotspur fans 44 seconds into their side’s 4-0 thrashing of Everton last weekend. That often-repeated song refers to previous, unsuccessful, attempts to try and stop Spurs fans using the ‘Y-word’. The bile
It has been quite a 14 years for the Liberal Democrats – from the coalition in 2010 to near total wipe-out in 2015. Things barely improved in the two elections after that. They even managed to lose then-leader Jo Swinson’s seat in 2019. Five years on, the party has secured 71 seats, a gain of
The Lib Dems have had a much more enjoyable campaign than their rivals. Sir Ed Davey has been splishing and splashing all over the country. On Monday he jumped off a crane attached to a bungee cord while imploring people to ‘do something you’ve never done before: vote Liberal Democrat!’ A few days before he was
General elections are strange things, particularly for the Lib Dems. For a few weeks, broadcasters are compelled to actually give them attention. This time around, the party has decided not just to wait for outlets to fulfil their legal obligations. Instead, they are making a splash, literally, with leader Sir Ed Davey taking part in
Whether it is tuition fees or local development, the Lib Dems are generally not known for their consistency. Trust me, I campaigned for them during the coalition years. This week, things took an almost surreal turn. Party leader Sir Ed Davey, along with his deputy and health spokesperson Daisy Cooper and three other colleagues, voted
‘Yes… But…’. It is a phrase that Jews in Britain and around the world have become accustomed to hearing since the 7 October Hamas terror attacks on Israel and the subsequent war. It is a twisted attempt to contextualise atrocities, to justify the unjustifiable. When you hear, as I have, the stories of those who
‘When the facts change, I change my mind,’ John Maynard Keynes is (wrongly) claimed to have said. Whatever the origin of the quote, Theresa May seems to be taking it to heart – and, as a floating voter, I’m delighted. But it seems there aren’t many who share that view, given that May’s shifting stance on certain
After Zac Goldsmith’s decision to step down as an MP and trigger a by-election in Richmond Park, the Liberal Democrats are excited. They’re getting hot under their collars because they think they can snatch back a seat they lost to the Tories in 2010 and add to their lowly tally of eight MPs. A new poll
After May’s general election, both Labour and the Lib Dems needed a new leader, but the contrast between their leadership elections could not be starker. Labour is in the midst of a full-blown civil war. To outsiders, it appears to be a party in total meltdown, as veteran left-winger Jeremy Corbyn continues to poll ahead
Vince Cable will tomorrow lose his job as Liberal Democrat economy spokesman for the election, Coffee House understands. The party is set to announce its team of leading spokespeople for the General Election and I have obtained names in advance. Cable’s demotion in favour of Danny Alexander has been expected for a few months now. The
Ukip are desperate to build on the momentum from their Rochester win as the general election looms ever closer. At the very top of the party figures including leader Nigel Farage and Deputy Chairman Suzanne Evans have made no secret of the fact that they’d like their next major defector to come from Labour. So,
Speaking at a south London primary school this morning, Nick Clegg firmly reiterated the Lib Dems’ equidistance between the two other major parties. Before an assortment of public-sector workers, Clegg attacked the potential ‘reckless borrowing’ of Eds Balls and Miliband, as well as George Osborne asking ‘the working poor to bear the brunt’ of cuts.
There has been a rumbling row for a while about Sheffield United footballer Ched Evans. He was found guilty of rape and has served his time, but now many people say he should not be able to resume his career as a professional footballer. This is based on the idea that being a footballer is
The Liberal Democrats have always been a party of contradictions. In the time I’ve been a member, as well as a journalist covering the party, few of its contradictions have baffled me more than the fact that it is called the Liberal Democrat party but it unequivocally fails to support the only liberal democracy in
Lord Oakeshott has gone under the radar, as speculation mounts about his involvement in a bid to oust party leader Nick Clegg. Many believe he is responsible for commissioning a poll that appeared in today’s Guardian, showing that Clegg and other Lib Dems could lose their Commons seats if he remains leader. Looking through the
Why did Nick Clegg bother debating Nigel Farage? The Ukip leader bagged two decisive victories in the battles. But that doesn’t mean the Lib Dem leader has failed to set out what he wanted to do. Clegg needed these debates to reach out to his base, to motivate them to go out campaigning and vote
Alistair Webster QC has decided that the threshold for disciplining Lord Rennard for sexually inappropriate behaviour could not be met, and that the allegations could not be proved beyond reasonable doubt. Webster’s statement can be read on Lib Dem Voice, as can a statement from Lord Rennard. It is the stomach turning arrogance with which
The election of the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrat parliamentary party is hardly hold the front page stuff. However, whoever wins the contest, triggered this week by Simon Hughes’ surprise elevation to ministerial office, will give us a good indication as to where the party currently sees itself. The election is decided by a
Anyone mulling how the government can save a tidy sum of money could do a lot worse than to sift through the slew of data released this week by the Cabinet Office on how much government services cost. It sounds a bit techy, but the breakdown of costs underlines how important the ‘Digital by Default’ approach
The Coalition Agreement states: ‘We will be strong in defence of freedom. The Government believes that the British state has become too authoritarian, and that over the past decade it has abused and eroded fundamental human freedoms and historic civil liberties.’ The Justice and Security Bill, which returns to the Lords on Monday, contains measures
