Rotherham & Barnsley Liberal Democrats

Rebecca Taylor MEP, who local members will remember as our candidate for Rotherham in the 2010 General Election, has a new website and you can see and read about what she's been up to by clicking here.

What results we're having this "Super Thursday"! Gold medals in cycling, shooting and canoeing and a first ever medal in women's judo: well done Team GB!

Events like the Olympics seem to me to show just how much Britain can acheive when we all work together. Labour won the Olympics, Boris Johnson delivered it and Liberal Democrats are in the coalition government. Never would I have belived such things could be.

On a cold dark winter's night in February 2010, I left work (in a small think-tank in central London) early and caught a train to Barnsley. In the Town Hall, I met with members of Barnsley and Rotherham Liberal Democrats to see if they would be happy for me to be the Parliamentary Candidate for the Labour safe seat of Rotherham. They decided I was acceptable and after a quick bite to eat, I caught a train back to London (had to go to work in the morning!).

I am glad to report that my visit to old friends in the Barnsley and Rotherham local party last week was a bit less rushed. Also, being a sunny evening in July, the stunning Barnsley Town Hall was being shown off in its best light.

The informal meeting with our new Liberal Democrat MEP on Weds 18th went really well, over-running by over 30 minutes!

A very new member from Rotherham will always remember meeting Rebecca at his first ever political meeting (you don't always get Natchos though...). A second member who joined in the last few months found time to attend: thanks for the willingness to help out expressed by both people.

Commenting on Ed Miliband's speech to Labour Party conference, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader, Simon Hughes said:

"One speech can't wash away his record as a key part of the New Labour government that trampled on our civil liberties and left our economy in ruins.

"Ed Miliband was special advisor to Gordon Brown when he was Chancellor and voted for ID cards and 90 day detention without charge when he was in government.

Commenting on the IMF's report on the British economy released today, Co-Chair of the Liberal Democrat Treasury Parliamentary Committee, Stephen Williams said:

"The IMF's strong backing of the Government's economic plans shows that the Coalition's approach to sorting out the economic mess we inherited is the right one.

Simon Hughes comments on the election of Ed Miliband as the new Labour Leader

Commenting on the election of the new Labour Leader, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader, Simon Hughes said:

"I want warmly to congratulate Ed Miliband on becoming the new Labour leader.

"It is good to hear that he intends to practise a new politics of working across party boundaries in the national interest.

Annette Brooke, MP for Mid Dorset & North Poole, has won MP of the Year in the Dods & Scottish Widows Women in Public Life Awards.

The panel of judges, which included Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty, Dame Suzi Leather, Chair of The Charity Commission and Dame Barbara Stocking, Chief Executive of Oxfam chose Annette because of her efforts "tirelessly lending her wisdom, position and huge skill to help hundreds of children's organisations, and by association, many thousands of children."

Today Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg launched Liberal Democrats Abroad, a network of branches for party members living outside of the UK.

Commenting, Nick Clegg said:

"In response to requests from our many supporters overseas and reflecting the Party's internationalist outlook, we have decided to set up a new organisation called Liberal Democrats Abroad to connect with our members and supporters living overseas.

Diana hosted a meeting in the European Parliament recently to discuss a moratorium on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic.

Diana was one of the speakers along with Frederic Hauge from the international environmental group Bellona and Paul Nemitz, Head of Unit, Maritime Policy for the Atlantic Ocean, the Arctic and the Outermost Region in DG Mare in the European Commission. The meeting was chaired by Riikka Manner, Chair of the Arctic Subgroup in the European Parliament