The Liberal Party welcomes the news that the Parliament’s Treasury committee will investigate the issue of Business Rates in this country.
 
Bricks-and-mortar retailers in this country face a perfect storm of rising business rates, unrelenting competition from online retailers and declining footfall.
 
The party welcomes the government previous undertaking of business rates relief for half a million small retailers, whose business premises have a rateable value of £51,000 or less, but this fails to assist larger retailers and chains.
 
These face a multiplier on their rates equivalent to a 50 percent tax on their properties in the next financial year.

The Liberal Party respects and welcomes that the majority of Latin American countries and Canada have called for democratic elections and a transfer of power to the elected National Assembly Leader Juan Guaido 

The Liberal Party values the environment, equally for its recreational value as its obvious commercial contribution to the economy.

We recognise that the landscape is a working landscape in many parts of our crowded island with crops and livestock,
but such activities can co-exist with great recreational opportunities and the therapeutic benefits of visiting rural areas.

We believe the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, should be re-invigorated to allow for a greater "right to roam" within responsible limits, thus providing greater access to the countryside.

We support the sustainable funding of low carbon energy research, the fitting of solar panels and energy efficiency initiatives such as free cavity installation for low income households

The party opposes fracking as an unproven and potentially environmentally damaging process. Its promotion not only re-enforces our addiction to carbon-based fuels but goes against all public opposition.

The party believes that all effects should be expended in reducing global Co2 emissions and restricting the rise in global temperatures and the inevitable rise in sea-levels.

Even if you do not believe in the phenomenon of Global Warming is it not simply common sense not to soil and degrade the world you live in and share with others? A failure to do so risks passing on a damaged legacy to future generations.

Greater efforts need to be expended to improve the air quality within the UK, particular in the most crowded urban areas.

We believe that the nations water resources should be manged responsibly in the interest of human consumption and the wider environment. Over exploitation of subterranean aquafers riskslong-term damage when so much water is lost between reservoir and consume through fault pipe networks.

This motion was referred back for further discussion after Octobers Assembly.

Constitutional Reform.

The Liberal Party wishes to offer the population of the current United Kingdom greater regional autonomy, with the aspiration to the adoption of a federalised structure.

The party offers the three options for constitutional change:

Greater regional devolution – a stepping stone to Federalism but lacking a English Parliament and written constitution.

A four Nation Federation – four home nation parliaments with an over-arching federal parliament

Three Nation plus English Regional Parliaments federation – each English region having equal status.

The party fully acknowledges that the last two option required considerable constitutional work and the formulation of a written constitution.

NB This motion was inspired by the following discussion document written on behalf of Common Weal:

We in the Liberal Party campaigned for the referendum on the United Kingdom remaining in the EU or leaving, giving the British people their right to determine our future.

Having all major parties agree to the referendum, the Prime Minister is absolutely right to suggest those MP's seeking to sabotage any deal are bringing Parliament into grave disrepute.

On Saturday 5th January 2019 Liberal Party members met in Birmingham and discussed the current Brexit plan at great length.

Those MP's who have concerns about article 132 locking us into the EU and our future being determined at their will are right to be nervous over this legally binding clause.

If the EU is able to declare that this clause is time limited, then there is no reason why this cannot and should not be written into the legal text.

Every businessman or woman will know declarations saying one thing and a legal agreement saying something else is a duplicity we should all avoid at our peril.

Cllr Steve Radford
President of The Liberal Party

Key Policy Decisions made were:

Support for abolishing House of Lords replace with a Senate of 300 members elected by STV across the UK.

This places us in line with the Electoral Reform Society Policy however the only addition we would do is give opportunity of each of the overseas territories to elect an additional senator.

We supported greater protection for leaseholders and those in shared ownership schemes.

We called for greater measures for sustainable energy to avoid fracking.

We welcomed the moves by Greater Manchester authorities, Wales and Scots Assemblies to prevent fracking.

In respect of the Ni Border we urged use of technology to avoid any need for a hard border.

In respect of the current governments Brexit Plan we called for article 132 to be dropped or clearly time limited so the UK is not locked into the EU without meaningful and equitable negotiations. We accepted Brexit is a process that will evolve over time.

On Hate Crime we look for it to be replaced by more equitable magistrates’ discretion to look at all motives and impact of crime. The motion passed by a margin of 1 has been deferred so we have the opportunity to set out a clearer reasoning and alternative to be put to members on 22nd June at Tuebrook Hope Centre, Christ Church Buckingham Rd (12.00-4.00).

The annual LIberal Party Assembly will be Saturday 5th October Briar Rose, Bennett's Hill Birmingham,  12-4.00.

I read with interest the latest reported incursion into Reading by the Traveller community (7th Nov).
 
Unfortunately, despite the fortune spent by RBC these incursions will continue until such a time as a properly structured local response to these arrivals has been developed.
 
The council has perpetually failed to provide the hard standing it was advised it should provide 11 years ago. Until these are available, travellers have the excuse to park where and where they like with a contempt for the law, driven by an abrupt cycle of arrival and eviction.
 
Assigned parking places gives the authorities the ability to control arrivals and reduce conflict with the residents of the borough.
 
Once the traveller community has no need to impose itself on urban areas, then the issues of rubbish dumping, anti-social behaviour and unlawful activity can be tackled.
 
This will require a robust response currently lacking amongst the Police, courts and local authority to encourage responsible behaviour, and punish transgressions promptly.

The Liberal Party notes with despair the latest series of knife related murders in the UK capital, which brings the total so far this year to a heart breaking 119, with 5 fatal stabbings in the last 6 days.
 
The unrelenting nature of such fatal stabbing’s points to the development of an unchallenged youth culture characterised by a disengagement from society and a lack of respect for the fragility of human life.
 
Remorseless cuts to police budgets nationally in the name of austerity have curtailed engagement with local communities and a lack of local intelligence gathering as forces attempt to balance demands on their time and resources.
 
The party welcomes local initiatives to engage with the youth of the capital such as London Violence Reduction Unit, recently launched  to reduce the availability of bladed weapons and to fund a meaningful and sustained increase in police numbers.

The Liberal Party calls upon the UK Government to immediately halt arms sales to the Saudi Coalition, recognising the destructive impact on the Yemeni population and the actual limited military and political impact the bombing is having in restoring a recognised government.
 
In fact, extensive bombing has intensified calls for partition of a country now racked by over 3 years of civil war resulting in 8500 to 13000 deaths and exposing 13 million people to the dangers of famine.
 
The independent newspaper (31st Oct) quotes Marwa Baabbad of the Oxford Research Group, calling for an “immediate” end to arms sales. Attending an International Development Committee, she said “we are seeing air strikes resulting in the deaths of civilians”, and alleged they had even bombed water sources provided by the UK.
 
The party believes more ethical commercial avenues exist for UK companies to do business in the region, as opposed to the estimated £1.13bn pounds of arms exports to Saudi Arabia approved by the UK
government last year.

The Liberal Party notes the temporary suspension of fracking operations by Cuadrilla at their Preston New Road site following recent subterranean tremors, the latest on the 27th October.
 
These seismic events have occurred less than 2 weeks after a final legal challenge to fracking was rejected, and the Government permitted operations to commence, despite widespread public opposition.
 
The current disturbances have occurred as water, sand and chemicals are pumped into the ground at high pressure, a recipe for subterranean disturbances.
 
Comments by Cuadrilla that the UK has set a lower threshold’s for seismic activity, 0.4 on the Richter scale as opposed to 2.5 in Europe or 4 in Canada is both insincere and selfish.
 
This fails to acknowledge the simple fact that on the Richter scale each step up in the scale is a multiple of the previous one, not a simple increment, and Cuadrilla are effectively asking people to accept intrusive and potentially damaging levels of disturbance.
 
The Liberal Party yet again reiterates its opposition to fracking, sighting environmental factors and questions the economic justification and value of such operations.