The Radical Association proudly calls for both stronger ties with Europe and other democracies and reduced dependency on an increasingly autocratic, oppressive, and illiberal America.

At Spring Conference, she denounced the "despotic and psychotic hybrid regime" in Washington, called for decoupling our sovereignty from the US and ended the speech by tossing her US passport on the ground of the conference stage in defiance of the Trump regime.

Radicals at Conference (Part 2)

Christina Nowell has many roles within the party: Vice Chair of LGBT+ Lib Dems, membership officer for the Ealing Liberal Democrats, and exec member of Liberal Democrat Friends of the Armed Forces.

Trans pride flag with text reading TRANSGENDER DAY OF VISIBILITY

On today's Transgender Day of Visibility we call upon the leadership of the Liberal Democrats to end their shameful silence about the increasing attacks on and marginalisation of trans people, including by this government. Support in private isn't good enough if publicly you're a bystander to hate.

The Radical Association is passionate about fighting for trans rights and ensuring that the Liberal Democrats are loud and proud of their commitment to trans liberation.

Radicals at Conference (Part One):

Artie Khovanov is a member of the Radical Association and the Policy Officer for LGBT+ Lib Dems. At the Liberal Democrats' Spring Conference, they organised and moderated a hugely successful fringe panel on defending trans rights in the UK and the US.

The Lib Dems are at a crossroads – an open letter to the leadership About a month ago I wrote a piece on my blog examining the rhetoric coming from Ed Davey about appealing to One-Nation Conservatives, and found that his words didn’t actually align with our current po...

A collection of thoughts about Ed Davey's reaction to the Mansion Tax and how it's become representative of a larger problem in the Lib Dems.

www.libdemvoice.org/the-lib-dems...

Screenshot of a Lib Dem party social media post on instagram with the text "Sign our open letter if Ed isn't speaking for you" superimposed on top. The social media post is a picture of Ed Davey speaking in parliament with a quote from him reading "You can't tax your way to growth."

The signatures keep on increasing on our open letter to Ed Davey about his unilateral decision to u-turn on a Mansion Tax and position the Lib Dem budget response in defence of the wealthy.

Please sign and share!

radicalassociation.o...

Screenshot of a Lib Dem party social media post on instagram with the text "Sign our open letter if Ed isn't speaking for you" superimposed on top. The social media post is a picture of Ed Davey speaking in parliament with a quote from him reading "You can't tax your way to growth."

Ed Davey has u-turned on Lib Dem support for a Mansion Tax and has used Tory rhetoric in his response to the budget. If you don't feel he's speaking for you, if you're worried about direction our party is heading, please sign our open letter to Ed from grassroots members:

radicalassociation.o...

This is open until 23:59 UK time on Feb 12th. I *strongly* recommend taking your time to be as detailed as possible with your response to this submission. Make it *crystal clear* how badly wrong this is.

This is a disappointing response to Labour's vile policy of making refugee status temporary, which would lead to mass deportations of families and communities that had built a new life here.

The Lib Dems must forcefully oppose Labour's doomed attempts to appease the far right.

Beyond GDP: Reclaiming the Economy as a Tool, Not a Goal "Beyond GDP: Reclaiming the Economy as a Tool, Not a Goal" Jack Fleming writes about the pitfalls of using the metric of GDP as the ultimate government target, rather than measures focused on the actual wellbeing of society.

"Beyond GDP: Reclaiming the Economy as a Tool, Not a Goal"

Jack Fleming writes about the pitfalls of using the metric of GDP as the ultimate government target, rather than measures focused on the actual wellbeing of society.

If you haven't voted yet, you have until midday tomorrow!

I am pleased to have been endorsed by @pluslibdems.bsky.social, @radicalassociation.bsky.social and @youngliberalsuk.bsky.social

Please give me your first preference for FCC and Federal Council!

The text of our thread on an image of Big Ben with a rainbow and a trans flag.

The text of our thread on an image of Big Ben with a rainbow and a trans flag.

LGBT+ Liberal Democrats condemn our party's decision to base internal gender quotas on sex assigmed at birth.

This trans-exclusionary decision is an attack on one of the most vulnerable groups in our society.
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Please sign our open letter to the @libdems.org.uk party asling for the awful decision over diversity quotas to be scrapped. 👇
lgbtlibdems.org.uk/civicrm/peti...

If you're a candidate in the @libdems.org.uk internal elections, or ever have been, please revoke the party's right to use or hold your sex assigned at birth. We have a handy form: 👇
lgbtlibdems.org.uk/civicrm/peti...

An important thread on the debacle of the last minute upending of gender balance rules in the party's internal elections:

Radical Association Voting Guide 2025 The Radical Association's voting guide for the Lib Dem internal elections, with recommendations for candidates who'll fight for a distinctive, radical and liberal identity for the party.

Polls are now open in the Lib Dem federal elections! We recommend votes for these excellent, radical candidates, who can be counted on to fight for a distinctive, bold and liberal identity for the Lib Dems.

Why am I running? We need a clear liberal platform for the coming years, based on our core values and a strong evidence base. I want to help us change the narrative and change our country, with policies that challenge the other parties and set the terms of the discussion across policy areas. We need to understand the digital age and how to tackle big tech in ways that protect our data and civil liberties. As a humanities data specialist with years of experience running online communities, I’m well placed to be that needed voice on FPC. We need some more radical policies that tackle the root causes of problems. We can’t maintain credibility by approaching the biggest problems like climate change, disinformation, and inequality in a way that’s too timid to be useful. On the policies I’ve been motivated to run again because civil liberties are under threat, especially online. I want to see us tackling the business models of tech titans rather than resorting to unwieldy paternalism and the processing dangers of feeding huge quantities of personal information to “AI” data models. Labour and Tory policies like the botched Online Safety Act are putting people at risk—we need a liberal answer. I want us to be a strong voice for social liberalism in Britain. We have a duty to make policy that speaks for and amplifies the voices of people often marginalised by society, including trans people and migrants who are under particular threat right now. I want us to articulate a more distinct liberal economic policy, focusing on cooperative and social business models, rejoining European free movement and trade, strong standards and social security, and tackling rent-seeking, wage theft, and other unfair, unproductive and unequal practices. Endorsement by Welsh Lib Dem Leader Jane Dodds

Who am I? I’m a historian, based in Vienna at the Iranian Studies institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. My specialisms are in digital data, how computers affect our understanding of history and identity, and the history of the Caucasus region. I’ve worked with digital creative communities making space for hobbyists and small businesses over the years, and I’m keen to ensure we properly tackle digital policy and support the innovative, economically dynamic world of small creators & artists. I grew up in rural Norfolk: rural issues and strong pro-environmental, pro-biodiversity policies matter strongly to me. That’s why I successfully campaigned for Nature Recovery Networks to become Lib Dem policy, and why I’m committed to building a liberal platform that works for rural towns, not just for London suburbs. What I’ve Achieved I co-wrote the policy motion that committed the party to back a Universal Basic Income in 2020, and drafted the subsequent party report on UBI implementation. My successful amendments to conference motions have included strengthening our commitments to restorative justice, keeping LGBT+ rights at the heart of our campaigning themes, and supporting immigrants by rejecting income and social security limitations for partners immigrating to join spouses in the UK. Outside the party, I’ve campaigned on a range of issues, most recently leading a parliamentary petition effort against censorship by payment processors where businesses use their near-monopoly power to block clients’ or third party content. How do I find out more? You can check out my blog, https://thoughtsofprogress.wordpress.com: contact me there, at @JubalBarca@bsky.social, Mastodon at @JubalBarca@Scholar.Social, or by email to james@wavcott.org.uk. I’m happy to answer any questions - and hope you’ll support my candidacy for FPC. Endorsement by Steff Aquarone, MP for North Norfolk

Another #LibDems internal election post: I'm running to be a member of the party's Federal Policy Committee, and here's my pitch for why you should vote for me.

Questions, boosts, and support are all very welcome!

A Liberal theory of power How do you change modern Britain for the better? Answering this question requires an understanding of power in modern Britain, as only by having power can a movement understand what is causing the problems undermining a country, and how best to change it for the better.

Article: How do you change modern Britain for the better? Answering this question requires an understanding of power in modern Britain.

Update:

bsky.app/profile/radi...

We are very glad to see that Lib Dem MP Angus MacDonald appears to have deleted his repost of a statement blaming Gazans for the genocide inflicted upon them.

If the repost was an accident then we sincerely hope he will soon explain as much. Mistakes deserve forgiveness, as long as they're genuine.

Hamas are a terrorist organisation whose crimes can and must be condemned. But it is perfectly possible to condemn Hamas without blaming the innocent victims of genocide in the process.

Genocide is never, ever, justified, no matter what any terrorist group has done.

Screenshot of Angus MacDonald MP reposting an X post by Lee Hurst saying "Next time don't unilaterally launch a mass murder, kidnap, rape spree on your neighbour you total twats" above footage of devastation and ruined buildings in Gaza.

The Lib Dems have, rightly, condemned Israel's genocide in Gaza. Here we have Angus MacDonald, one of our MPs, reposting and endorsing a statement blaming innocent Palestinian civilians, including 20,000 murdered children, for what happened to them.

He needs to lose the party whip. No ifs, no buts.

Federal Council Manifesto Why am I running? - Because I think good scrutiny makes for great leadership and I'm the right person to hold party leaders accountable - Because I want Federal Council to be an effective and unafraid scrutiny body and would support constitutional changes to empower its role - Assessing evidence is core to my work and core to this role What sort of party do we want? - Open to everyone, especially focusing right now on immigrants & trans folk who are under threat and on working class people who are very underrepresented in politics. - Better internal communications and giving the microphone to more people more of the time, especially specified associated organisations - Looking after campaigners and staff better to reduce burnout

Who am I? I'm a professional historian, living and working in Austria. I'm outside the bubble of Westminster politics but engaged with what needs doing: that's the right perspective from which to be the good critical friend our party leaders need to get things right. I'm from a rural community in Norfolk, and whilst | now live abroad I've kept my membership with the Breckland & South West Norfolk Liberal Democrats. | want to make sure Federal Council properly represents the rural communities that make up so much of our voting base across the country. I've helped run digital communities for over half my life, chairing the Exilian creative society and being co-convenor of the Medieval Caucasus Network among other roles. Building spaces, working with constitutions and volunteers, and designing the right social rules and tools for the job is something I've spent my life doing. That gives me a wealth of experience that | can apply to party governance as well. How do I find out more? My blog, https://thoughtsofprogress.wordpress.com; @jubalbarca.bsky.social; @JubalBarca@Scholar.Social; james@wavcott.org.uk. I'm happy to answer any questions - and hope you'll support me for our Federal Council. Endorsements follow from former Lib Dems in England chair Alison Rouse, and former Federal Board member April Preston.

Lib Dem friends: internal party elections going on, here's my manifesto for Federal Council. Boosts welcome, if you can vote please vote for me, if you know a Lib Dem then please ask them to do so!

And please feel free to ask questions (whether you're a voter or not) about what all this is about :)

This is absolutely the right stance and it is great to see party HQ saying so quickly and so strongly. Much more of this please.

The Lib Dems have the opposite stance to Reform on basically every conceivable issue. The "none of the above" voters currently leaning towards Reform will not be won over by us triangulating in a Reform direction, they'll be won over by the LDs setting out a clear vision for how to improve the UK.

The kind of people who voted Conservative in 2024 and who are now flirting with Reform are people who have absolutely nothing in common with the Lib Dems and who will never vote for us. By trying to appeal to them we will lose the votes of far more people who actually *would* vote for us.

Lib Dem gains from the Conservatives last year were based primarily on increased progressive tactical voting plus a drop in Conservative turnout and 1 in 4 Con voters switching to Reform.

Direct Con to LD switching was only critical in a very small number of LD seats.