Never Mind The Bar Charts

Giving the Liberals direction, purpose and ambition: lessons from David Steel's leadership

After the popularity of the previous discussion with Duncan Brack about lessons for the Liberal Democrats from Jo Grimond’s time as party leader, Duncan returns to discuss another former leader. This time, it’s David Steel.
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
British Liberal Leaders edited by Duncan Brack, Robert Ingham and Tony Little: Amazon / Waterstones.
David Steel: Rising Hope to Elder Statesman by David Torrance: Amazon / Waterstones.
The Pact: The Inside Story of the Lib–Lab Government, 1977-1978 by Alistair Michie and Simon Hoggart: Amazon / Waterstones.
A House Divided: The Lib-Lab Pact and the Future of British Politics by David Steel: Amazon.
Against Goliath by David Steel: Amazon.
Peace, Reform and Liberation: A History of Liberal Politics in Britain 1679-2011, compiled by Robert Ingham and Duncan Brack.
Our previous podcast episode looking at Jo Grimond.
The Liberal Democrat History Group.
Follow Duncan Brack on Twitter.
Music by Hugo Lee.
The photo with this episode is of David Steel opening the Washington Liberal Club in the 1970s. Photo courtesy of Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

Compulsory voting: how it happened in Australia, and could it happen in the UK?

Time for an international turn on Never Mind The Bar Charts, with Professor Judith Brett, author of From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia got compulsory voting.
It's a great book about how democracy developed in Australia. Not only how voting ended up mandatory but also why so many people eat sausages when voting, the flirtation with round ballot papers and the way British politicians accidentally gave the Australians more democracy than they realised.
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
Which places use compulsory voting (including those who have it but don't enforce it).
Talk of using weekend voting in the UK.
Optimising names at the start of the London telephone book.
From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia got compulsory voting by Judith Brett: Waterstones / Amazon (though watch out that Amazon's paperback prices seem very messed up and Waterstones will almost certainly be a much better deal).
I'll take any excuse to shoehorn in another link to the epic Bill Shorten interview, from before he became leader of the Labor Party and lost a general election.
Music by Hugo Lee.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

Where next for the Liberal Democrats? What the data says, with Tim Bale

Following the publication of the research report Where next for the Liberal Democrats?, I invited one of its co-authors, Professor Tim Bale, back on the show to talk about what the report found and the lessons for future Lib Dem strategy.
Show notes
Where next for the Liberal Democrats? - the report we discuss on the show.
Creating a core vote for the Liberal Democrats: my original pamphlet with David Howarth.
The previous interview with Cllr Anton Georgiou, by-election winner in Brent.
Follow Tim Bale on Twitter.
Music by Hugo Lee.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

Will British politics become less volatile, and how important is ideology? Interview with Professor Jane Green

I was delighted to be joined for the latest episode of Never Mind The Bar Charts by one of the most important political scientists in Britain, Professor Jane Green.
Amongst her many achievements, she’s co-director of the British Election Study, which is to British elections what Wisden is to cricket or Oxford is to dictionaries: that is, an absolutely essential source for anyone wanting to understand what has happened in our elections and why.
Among the many topics we covered were whether British politics is going to become less volatile and how important competence (as opposed to ideology) is in determining who wins elections.
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
The British Election Study website is full of news and data.
Electoral Shocks: The Volatile Voter in a Turbulent World: Amazon / Waterstones.
The Politics of Competence: Parties, Public Opinion and Voters: Amazon / Waterstones.
The report on Lib Dem prospects from The UK in a Changing Europe.
Follow Jane Green on Twitter.
Music by Hugo Lee.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

If the Liberal Democrats were to have an anthem, the song I'd pick is...

What makes someone a Liberal Democrat? What should the party's anthem be? Can you order cheese toasties via the internet? And can I avoid embarrassing myself in a quiz about chocolate?
Find out the answers to all these and more in my recent appearance on the excellent Politics of Sound podcast with Iain Carnegie.
Show notes
The Beautiful South music video with the elephant.
Subscribe to the Politics of Sound podcast.
Follow Iain Carnegie on Twitter.
Never Mind The Bar Charts music by Hugo Lee.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

What really happens at the grassroots when political parties push new ways of campaigning?

What impact is digital campaigning having on politics, and is it for the better or the worse? That's what I discuss in the latest episode of Never Mind The Bar Charts with Kate Dommett, Senior Lecturer in the Public Understanding of Politics at the University of Sheffield. We started off with her research into how new ways of digital campaigning do - or don't - take root at the political grassroots of parties.
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
Katharine Dommett, Luke Temple and Patrick Seyd, "Dynamics of Intra-Party Organisation in the Digital Age: A Grassroots Analysis of Digital Adoption", Parliamentary Affairs.
The relative failure of Barack Obama's 2008 campaign: a critique of my talk, the original talk and what the electoral data shows.
Report from the House of Lords Committee on Democracy and Digital Technologies.
Bad News has a section on filter bubbles.
Was the impact of Cambridge Analytica over-hyped?
Social Media and Politics podcast.
Exponential View podcast.
Government versus Robots podcast.
Retooling Politics: How Digital Media Are Shaping Democracy by Andreas Jungherr, Gonzalo Rivero and Daniel Gayo-Avello: Waterstones / Amazon.
Kate Dommett on Twitter.
Music by Hugo Lee.
New to listening to podcasts? Here are some tips on how to listen to podcasts.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

Saving the party from disaster: lessons from Jo Grimond for the Liberal Democrats

I've tried something a little different for this episode of Never Mind The Bar Charts: taking a look at the career of a previous party leader to see the lessons for the current Liberal Democrats.
I picked Jo Grimond, who saved the Liberal Party from disastrous election results and had a plan for a realignment on the left of British politics. You might be able to spot some parallels there...
No surprise that for my guest, I'm joined by the closest thing the party has to an official historian, Duncan Brack.
Hope you enjoy the show and do let us know what you think of it; would you like more shows looking at the lessons from other party leaders?
Show notes
Mark Egan’s book Coming into Focus: The Transformation of the Liberal Party 1945-64.
The Orpington by-election.
Jo Grimond campaigning for Britain to join the European Economic Community (EEC).
Why I am a Liberal Democrat, edited by Duncan Brack: Waterstones / Amazon.
Great Liberal Speeches, edited by Duncan Brack and Robert Ingham: Waterstones / Amazon.
Liberal Lion: Jo Grimond, A Political Life by Peter Barberis: Waterstones / Amazon.
Jo Grimond: Towards the Sound of Gunfire by Michael McManus: Amazon.
Peace, Reform and Liberation: A History of Liberal Politics in Britain 1679-2011, compiled by Robert Ingham and Duncan Brack.
The Liberal Democrat History Group's pieces on Jo Grimond.
Duncan Brack on Twitter.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

What we can learn from Republicans campaigning against President Donald Trump

Laura Shields and Dirk Singer, communications consultants, members of Democrats Abroad and authors of an excellent piece “Swimming with the sharks: What progressives can learn from Republicans Against Trump” join me for the latest episode of Never Mind The Bar Charts.
You may recall an earlier show had Rob Blackie on talking about what the party can learn from how Trump himself communicates. This time with Laura and Dirk, the show looks at what can be learnt from those campaigning against Trump.
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
Swimming with the sharks: What progressives can learn from Republicans Against Trump.
Rob Blackie episode on learning from Trump.
The Lincoln Project and some of its adverts.
The Meidas Touch group and some of its adverts.
Republican Voters Against Trump and some of its adverts.
The Taliban bounties story.
My book about trusting - or not trusting - the news.
Donald Trump boasting about slowing down coronavirus tests.
Boris Johnson boasting about shaking the hands of coronavirus patients.
Donald Trump drinks and throws away a glass of water.
The Remainer Now story.
Lindsey Graham loves Joe Biden advert.
Laura's political ad pick.
Dirk's political ad pick.
Follow Laura and Dirk on Twitter.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Share the show's website, www.NeverMindTheBarCharts.com.

The virtues of Marmite: Tim Farron's advice on being a Liberal Democrat party leader

Welcome to a special re-run of a previous, but once again very relevant, edition of Never Mind The Bar Charts. It is from June 2019, which feels a long time ago now but the calendar says that was only 12 months ago. It was the time of the party’s last leadership election, and I did an interview with Tim Farron about his experience as leader of the Liberal Democrats. We focused on his advice for the next party leader as well as tips on what members should ask in hustings meetings.
Both Tim’s advice and tips are still very relevant, so here is that episode again. And do also take a listen to the episode I did recently with Tim Bale, where we also cooked up great hustings questions.
Hope you enjoy the repeat.
Show notes
Jonathan Calder's David Steel versus John Pardoe categorisation for Liberal Democrat leadership contests.
Paperclip design.
Vince Cable's Stalin to Mr Bean moment at Prime Minister's Questions.
The Lib Dems did indeed, as Tim Farron mentioned, once hit 4% in the polls after the 2015 election.
Tim Farron's response to the European referendum result.
You can watch the first Davey-Swinson hustings from the 2019 contest here. Here is Stephen Bush in the New Statesman on those hustings.
Information about the 2020 leadership contest, including hustings where you can ask the questions mentioned in the show, is on the party website.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.

Making the Liberal Democrats win more elections - with Cllr Lisa Smart

Apologies if you got a truncated version of this episode first time around. The podcast host has been playing up a bit but you should now be able to hear the interview all the way through to the end.
How must the Liberal Democrats change in order to win more often? Listen to me discuss this with Lisa Smart, chair of the party's Federal Communications and Elections Committee (FCEC).
Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it.
Show notes
Lisa Smart's election to chair the party's main elections committee.
The show with Tim Bale talking about what opposition parties must do.
The independent review into the 2019 general election.
Support electoral reform? Join the Electoral Reform Society.
The Star Trek reference.
The pros and cons of Steve Webb's approach to being a minister.
How to make targeting work.
Lisa Smart on Twitter.
Enjoy the show? Spread the word
Follow the show on Twitter.
Like the show on Facebook.
Subscribe, rate or review via your favourite podcasting platform - links here.