The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames . .

. . returns one Liberal Democrat MP to Parliament [Vincent Cable] . .

. . and has 24 [out of 54] Lib Dem councillors.

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• NEWS, including the PARLIAMENTARY speeches of Liberal Democrat ministers from http://www.theyworkforyou.com/ . The House rose on Tuesday 27 July and will return on Monday 6 September for two weeks. The House will rise again for the Conference recess on Thursday 16 September and will return on Monday 11 October.

Opinion: so you want to be Chancellor? New! Fri 3rd Sep 2010 • [Sep 03] George Kendall writes: THIS thread is for you to say what you think should be done about the deficit:

Treasury secretary Danny Alexander defends budget cuts as coalition comes under fire Sun 29th Aug 2010 • [Aug 29] Anushka Asthana and Toby Helm write: IN his first newspaper interview since becoming the government's axeman-in-chief, Danny Alexander says making tough economic decisions does not make him any less of a Liberal Democrat

Fairness should never be a numbers game Thu 26th Aug 2010 • [Aug 25] Nick Clegg writes: THIS government has put delivering fairness at the heart of our agenda and, like the British people, we have a clear sense of what we mean by the word. Fairness is about every child getting the chance they deserve, regardless of their background . .

Save Our Ticket Offices! Tue 24th Aug 2010 • [Aug 24] Caroline Pidgeon* writes: THE Mayor has announced that from February 2011, nine out of ten London Underground stations will have their ticket office opening hours reduced.

' . . driving an Aston Martin has always been a dream of mine . . ' - Cable Tue 24th Aug 2010 • August 24: A LONG held wish to drive an Aston Martin came true for Business Secretary Vince Cable when he visited the test track facilities at Gaydon near Warwick today. Dr Cable also test drove Jaguar's green car - the electric and petrol hybrid known as the Limo Green. This innovative prototype project is a collaboration with Lotus, Caparo and research organisation MIRA and has received funding from the Technology Strategy Board. The chance to test drive the cars formed part of a wider visit to the West Midlands where he met business groups and toured a multi-disciplinary research centre. At the test track the Business Secretary talked to apprentices and engineers from both companies about the progress being made by the UK to enhance its low carbon vehicle capabilities. He said:

Facing the future - the Lib Dem policy approach Mon 23rd Aug 2010 • [Aug 22] Norman Lamb* writes: NOW is an exciting time for Liberal Democrats. We have the chance to implement ideas in Government - an opportunity denied our predecessors for many decades. For the next five years, instead of contributing ideas from the national sidelines with no real prospect of them ever being adopted, we have a real chance to realise key elements of our agenda. We have all come into politics to make a difference, to be effective. Liberal Democrat Ministers know that they carry the weight of the party's principles and expectations as they work in coalition with Conservatives.

30 mins 'free' parking will cost £2.50 to activate Fri 20th Aug 2010 • [Aug 20]: CONSERVATIVE claims that they will give residents 30 minutes free parking have been labelled a 'con-trick' by the Liberal Democrats, after it has been revealed that drivers will need to pay £2.50 to register for the scheme.

Liberal Democrats Policy Consultation: Facing the Future Fri 20th Aug 2010 • THIS consultation paper is presented as the first stage in the Facing the Future review. It does not represent agreed Party policy. It is designed to stimulate debate and discussion within the Party and outside; based on the response generated and on the deliberations of the working group a full policy paper will be drawn up and presented to Conference for debate.

CO2 based parking charges Wed 18th Aug 2010 • [Aug 15] Cllr Jerry Elloy* writes: CONSERVATIVES are continuing to spread misinformation about the borough's CO2-based parking scheme, introduced by the Liberal Democrats in 2007. They are repeatedly describing the scheme as 'unpopular' and saying that the public rejected it in public consultation. Quite the opposite is in fact the case.

Nick Clegg on social mobility Wed 18th Aug 2010 • [Aug 18] Nick Clegg: 'AS of today, the new Coalition Government is 100 days old. Inevitably there is a plenty of discussion about our performance to date. Everyone will have their own view about the start we have made. I am proud of our achievements so far, from civil liberties, to political reform, to steps to reshaping our public services. And of course, our first Budget, which set out our plans to repair the public finances.

Nick Clegg: My vision for a new political map and voting system Wed 18th Aug 2010 • [Aug 17] Nick Clegg writes: IT'S 99 days since the new Coalition Government formed. The heat and fury of the General Election have already faded into memory. Voters have a full five years before they again decide who gets their support. If, by polling day, you felt worn down by the relentless advances of the political parties, even 2015 may seem too soon.

Wheel clamping on private land to be banned Tue 17th Aug 2010 • [Aug 17] Lynne Featherstone* writes: WHEEL clamping on private land (and towing away) is to be banned by the coalition government. We had a commitment to tackle rogue wheel clampers in the coalition agreement - and now we are able to take this forward.

'Judge us on five years, not a 100 days' Sun 15th Aug 2010 • [Aug 15] Nick Clegg writes: ALL new governments claim that they are governing for the long term: most end up being pushed around by short-term events. All claim they have a plan: most end up with no plan at all. All say they're going to ignore headlines: most end up driven round the bend by the press. So I understand why people might react with scepticism to the claim that, this time, this government will be different. But as this new coalition government approaches its first 100 days in office, I believe the claim is a strong one: we will govern for the long term and we'll stick to our plan.

Shirley Williams: 'If you give up what you care about, you start dying' Sat 14th Aug 2010 • [Aug 14] Simon Hattenstone writes: 'SHIRLEY Williams has just turned 80. Yes, there was a little birthday party, and lunch with her daughter, but nothing more. "That's enough to be going on with, thank you," she says. There's no time to waste for Baroness Williams of Crosby, now that her party's finally got a share of government.

Peddling myths over London's bike hire scheme Sat 14th Aug 2010 • [Aug 14]: Caroline Pidgeon* writes: IN London one of the most exciting developments this year has been the long awaited launch of the bike hire scheme.

The Lib Dems in the Lords: the Chief Whip reports Wed 11th Aug 2010 • [Aug 01] David Shutt* (Lord Shutt of Greetland) writes: THIS is an unusual report in that it covers the activities of the Lords group in the final days of the Labour government until Spring 2010. This includes the period of 'wash-up' when decisions were made on the future of several bills that had not completed the normal scrutiny, and deals were done to get important but perhaps less contentious bills on to the statute book. The report then covers the first couple of months until mid-July of our activities in the coalition government

The Lib Dems in the Commons: the Chief Whip reports Wed 11th Aug 2010 • [Aug 01] Alistair Carmichael* writes: THIS is my first report to Conference as Chief Whip of the Liberal Democrats. It is also the first report that a Liberal Democrat Chief Whip has made from the government benches. It has been a long journey from April 12th, when the House was dissolved and the 2005 Parliament struggled to a close. Very few would have anticipated that just six months after the last Parliamentary Party report to Spring Conference, that the Liberal Democrats would be in Government.

The Lib Dem Diversity Engagement Group: Progress to July 2010 Wed 11th Aug 2010 • [Aug 01] Vince Cable* writes: THE Federal Executive Committee meeting of 17 March 2008 agreed to accept the strategy document presented by the National Diversity Adviser: 'Meeting the Diversity Challenge - From Barriers to Benefits'. In addition, the Executive also agreed to set up the Diversity Engagement Group (DEG) to oversee achievement of the Party's equality and diversity priorities. This initiative was to involve nominated 'Champions' from all sections of the Party in leading the new strategic and accountable body responsible for every aspect of delivering our diversity agenda and for reporting back to FE.

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