Chris Huhne’s national appeal December 10, 2007

As we head in to the closing four or five days of voting, I thought it was about time the leadership election had a Google Map!

I’ve taken a sample of 15% of the members of the Chris Huhne This Time Facebook group and plotted their geographic location in Google Maps – you can click through the results here.

The map shows that from Aberdeen to Aberystwyth, Chris Huhne is picking up support from Liberal Democrat members. Chris has national appeal.

The use of blue pins isn’t a subliminal message, it’s the default colour of the pins in Google Maps!

The map gives a flavour of  Chris’s nationwide support, though a few caveats should be noted.

• As the data is based on Facebook information, we can usually only show areas where there are Facebook networks or major universities, which explains why there is a big gap around the Scottish / English border, and in the Highlands and islands of Scotland. It also explains why there aren’t more pins around Chris’s constituency! If there are no pins in your area or county, this is the most likely reason.
• No exact addresses have been used, so someone who is in the Sheffield network has had their pin dropped somewhere on Sheffield, but the same is also true of Wales – a larger geographical area.
• If you’re pinned on the map and don’t agree with where your pin has been placed, please e-mail me and I’ll be happy to move it or remove it, but please note I will only accept e-mails directly from the individual(s) concerned.

Acting leader Vince Cable says leadership race is “very close” December 9, 2007

One of many things on which we can all agree is that Vince Cable has shone as acting leader of the party. This morning he gave a ten minute interview to Andrew Marr covering defence, the economy (including house prices) and the leadership contest which he described as “very close”. You can watch the interview here.

Video: Chris on the role of fathers in parenting December 9, 2007

Chris talks about school holidays, flexible working, paternity and maternity leave and more. From the party’s YouTube hustings.

Video: Chris on the European Charter of Fundamental Rights and a written constitution December 8, 2007

From the party’s YouTube hustings

Huhne describes ‘non-doms’ tax increase as a ‘pin-prick poll tax’ December 7, 2007

From today’s Independent:

A consultation paper issued yesterday said there could be additional taxes on those non-domiciled in Britain for tax purposes. In the pre-Budget report, the Chancellor, Alistair Darling proposed a tax of £30,000 a year on non-doms who had been living in Britain for seven years.

The Liberal Democrat leadership contender Chris Huhne said: “This is a scheme to levy a pin-prick poll tax of £30,000 a year on UK residents who come from overseas to keep their offshore earnings tax-free. The number of non-domiciled UK residents has doubled since Labour took power in 1997, and ministers must not be swayed by the substantial contributions to the Labour Party that many leading members of this community make. It would be much better for HM Revenue and Customs to negotiate individually with non-domiciled residents concerning the amount of tax they believe they should pay, as happens in Switzerland. This would land far greater sums from billionaires than a £30,000 levy.”

Green LibDem chair backs Chris to win December 5, 2007

Adam Carew, Chairman of the Green Liberal Democrats has given his backing to Chris. The full story is here. Adam has strong praise for Chris:

Chris is special – when people see and hear Chris they instinctively know he should be the next leader of the Liberal Democrats. I am delighted to nail my colours to the mast – and join his team. This is why.

Chris is our green champion – his record on green issues is unrivalled. We have less than a decade to take major action on climate change and as Chairman of the Green Liberal Democrats I know with Chris as leader the environment will stay at the very top of our political agenda.

We need a leader of real substance – Chris is a political heavyweight, he has maturity and experience on his side as is the perfect antidote to the lightweight froth and media gloss we have seen from David Cameron. As an expert economist Chris will run rings around Gordon Brown and his beleaguered chancellor Alistair Darling. A former MEP, Chris is pro Europe but a known enemy of bureaucracy.

People trust Chris. He is not vague. We know what he stands for. Chris hits all the right the right notes in terms of Liberal Democrat core values – social inclusion, civil liberties and empowering local communities. He is anti-Trident and a strong defender of keeping public services in the public sector.

Chris has set out a clear direction of travel for our party and I know the Liberal Democrats will be safe in Chris’s hands.

Chris has great charisma, energy and experience. An award winning journalist Chris knows how to project himself and our party in the media. He will project a clear and distinct Liberal message to the British people. Chris has the ability to reach out to people – to excite and really capture the public imagination.

Chris on Today December 5, 2007

If you didn’t hear Chris on the Today programme yesterday, you can listen again here.

The Spectator’s verdict?

“This morning on the Today Programme [Nick Clegg] let Chris Huhne comprehensively out muscle him. Indeed, at times it seemed like he was acting as the set up man for Huhne.”

Now Chris goes for Tories December 5, 2007

Fresh from meeting Durham police concerning David Abrahams, Chris has now turned his attention to the Tories, and specifically Lord Ashcroft. The Guardian reports:

Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat leadership challenger, wrote to Ashcroft yesterday demanding confirmation that he is paying tax and living in Britain, promises made when he received his peerage.

Chris’s main site adds more details from Chris:

Great reasons for voting for Chris December 3, 2007

Rob Fenwick, aka A posh sounding Northumbrian, has written an excellent blog posting, outlining his reasons for backing Chris Huhne. It’s well worth a read:

Chris is ready to be leader now. Every time I see Chris he has something new to say, while still reinforcing his core message. He launched his leadership campaign by effectively answering the question ‘what is the Lib Dem narrative?’ – a fairer society and a greener society where we put people in charge.

Nick has gone down the Menzies Campbell route of having a Smörgåsbord of soundbites from which to pick and choose an answer to any question. This is fine as far as it goes, but I’ve seen him muddle up his soundbites more than once – the latest example being on Sky News this morning when he got his “tweedle dee and tweedle dum” and “eeny meeny miny mos” muddled up.

Chris is a phenominally intelligent man who really understands the issues behind the questions he’s asked. You get the sense that when he answers a question it’s the result of a prior analysis of the situation, and there is depth behind his answer which he can easily go in to if needed. He knows what he believes, and he’s prepared to fight for his belief. Nick hasn’t quite shaken off that blank canvas feeling.Chris’s in-depth understanding of issues is an asset in a leadership contest when you’re being asked the same questions day-in-day-out, but he will have to learn to take trusted advice at face value as leader – you don’t have the luxury of reading up on every subject that crosses your desk.Chris undoubtedly has work to do to become a better leader, but he has the stronger ideological and intellectual foundations on which to build.

Guardian: Huhne to speak with Police November 30, 2007

The Guardian reports that Chris Huhne will be speaking with the police to help them piece together the Donor-gate investigation:

Police are to speak to Liberal Democrat leadership contender Chris Huhne over his complaint about Labour Party donor David Abrahams and his business dealings.

Durham Police said senior officers would be contacting the Lib Dem MP in the “near future” following a letter he sent to Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair.

Mr Huhne raised questions about the decision to allow a company controlled by Mr Abrahams to build a business park in County Durham.

A Durham Police spokesman said: “A senior officer from Durham Police is to speak to Mr Chris Huhne MP in the near future in regard to the contents of a letter he sent to the Metropolitan Police Service earlier this week.”

Spectator: Huhne demonstrates his credentials with Donor-gate performance November 30, 2007

In the Spectator Coffee House blog, Fraser Nelson observes:

 A big winner of donor-gate is Chris Huhne. He’s been the face of the Lib Dems on this, as Vince Cable continues to hound Northern Rock. The ability to jump on a news issue is a key skill required for a Lib Dem leader, and he’s demonstrating his credentials here…I’ve just come out of a Radio Scotland phone-in I agreed to do ages ago. It was a good laugh, sparring with taxi drivers and MSPs. And then: “we’re now joined by Chris Huhne who joins us on his mobile from the back of a cab in London”. The man is inexhaustible.

Blanket media coverage for Huhne’s successful call for police investigation November 30, 2007

Chris has a whole slew of mentions in the press and on web sites this morning, for his successful call on the police to investigate the Labour donations imbroglio:

The Sun: “Police are at the door of No 10″

The Guardian: Harman implicates Brown 

The Independent

The Daily Telegraph

The Times

The Scotsman

The Herald

BBC News Online

Bloomberg

Sky News

Scottish Daily Record

The Belfast Telegraph

Politics.co.uk 

London Evening Standard

Peninsula Online, Qatar

Wall-to-wall Chris Huhne continues on BBC News24 November 29, 2007

Chris is appearing on BBC News24 again today, being interviewed by Ben Brown about the Labour donations imbroglio. The interview is being shown repeatedly.

In the interview, Chris:

• Welcomes the calling in of the police by the Electoral Commission
• Calls for much tighter controls on political funding
• Vehemently rejects Angus Mac Neill’s attempt to draw comparisons with the Michael Brown donation to the Liberal Democrats, on which matter, says Chris, the Electoral Commission confirmed that the party had carried out all necessary “due diligence”.

There are BBC Politics Show videos available of a very relaxed and animated Chris calling for the police to be involved here and reflecting on yesterday’s PMQs here.

Chris answers viewers’ question on BBC News24 November 29, 2007

You can see Chris answering viewers’ questions on BBC News24, with Huw Edwards, here.

Chris calls for police probe into Abrahams’ donations November 28, 2007

Chris Huhne has today told the BBC‘s Daily Politics  he had written to Metropolitan Police chief Sir Ian Blair asking him to look into the events and any breach of the law over donations given to Labour by property developer David Abrahams.

Mr Abrahams gave £663,975 to Labour, but under four other people’s names. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has already said that was “unlawful” and said it must not be allowed to happen again.