My Federal Conference Speech, Bournemouth 20th September 2009

Conference,

In my mind there is no question that Scottish Devolution has been a resounding success.

As the preamble of the Calman Commission Report highlights,

‘The Scottish Parliament has embedded itself in both the constitution of the UK and the consciousness of Scottish people.’

Furthermore it has delivered for the people of Scotland.

My reason for addressing Conference this morning however, is, in urging Conference to support this motion, to urge The Scottish Liberal Democrat Party, and, in turn the Federal Party, to take its support of the Calman Commission Report to its rightful conclusion – to undermine the SNP campaign to bring Independence to Scotland.

As the constituency organiser for Edinburgh West where we are witnessing the rise of a largely unidentifiable Nationalist vote, I think it is imperative that we as a party work together to devise a clear message in promoting the recommendations of Calman.

The bottom line is, Scotland doesn’t need Independence, doesn’t want Independence, and won’t benefit from Independence.

Let’s cut the jargon, shelve the phraseology ‘Greater Fiscal Autonomy’ and ‘Home Rule’ and be more articulate in telling the voters of Scotland how the Liberal Democrats will benefit their lives.

As the Calman Report states,

‘It is possible to have a distinct Scottish political identity, and differing Scottish policy choices, without undermining the essential unity of the United Kingdom in relation to matters that are critical to all its people.’

I urge Conference to support the motion.

Time for another holiday

Following my trip to Vienna and Bratislava, I have been up to my neck in European Election campaigning. It was some of the most frantic weeks I've ever experienced - worse than my Masters write-up! There are so many things to keep on top of when you're coordinating an election campaign, no matter how insignificant the electorate consider it to be. It really did challenge my sanity and patience to the max. Nevertheless with the undiminishing help of some key stalwarts and a lot of hard work the Lib Dems won in Edinburgh West. That is such a strong position to be in going into a General Election.

Anyway, enough about that. Within two days of the election result announcement I was boarding a flight to Malaga with my mum. We were heading on a roadtrip along the south coast of Spain and then north towards Granada. I was the driver at the helm of the rental car, driving on the wrong side of the road for the first time in my life. It was a fun experience in the end, even mum complimented my driving! The first three days of our trip were spent in the resort town of Nerja. It was a very pleasant place and it felt great to spend so many mind-numbing hours lazing by the pool. We even managed to find somewhere there to watch Lions match going on during that week. It was a shame about the cabaret in the evenings of our Fawlty Towers-style hotel. At its worst, a blonde Dot Cotton wearing a baggy one-piece Andrex-peach outfit bleated out 50s classic that even my mum was struggling to identify!

To me, the latter part of the holiday was better. I'm definitely a city person. We were staying in an uber-modern hotel on the outskirts of Granada. The swimming pool was gorgeous. After the heat of the midday sun mum and I spent time acquainting ourselves with the city centre, a really lovely place with lots of character and so much to see. I particularly liked the Arab influence in parts of the city centre like Albaicin. One night we took my Baedecker's advice and searched out a wee Moroccan restaurant where I had my first authentic Tagine, it was a real treat. Of course the highlight of the city trip was the day at the Al Hambra palace - a stunning place and yet so tranquil despite the number of tourists there.

Vienna via Bratislava

Shortly after the wedding I managed to take a few more days off work and spend a few days on holiday with my flatmate Fiona. We took a rather special Ryanair flight to that well-known central European airport, Vienna-Bratislava! We spent a night and the following morning enjoying the sights of Bratislava though this didn't really take all that long. Visually it's a gorgeous city but the sights only took a morning to tick off. In truth, we were both itching to get to Vienna anyway. In a break from the norm of travelling by bus or train to Vienna, Fiona and I took a boat along the Danube from Bratislava to the centre of Vienna. The sun was shining the whole day and it was a really nice journey.

There was lots to do in Vienna when we got there, even a city marathon if we felt so inclined! We managed to get some tickets to the opera, Der Rosenkavalier, to see Klimt's The Kiss, to visit a cafe Hitler once preached in, to eat lots of strudel and Sachertorte and drink the local ale. All in all Vienna made a really good impression on me. It is a city that has a lot going on and the atmosphere is really appealing - it's definitely somewhere Id like to return to, if for no other reason than to speak more German.

THE Wedding 2009

As promised I'd better let you know how the wedding of the year went in St Andrews. Well, to keep you in suspense a little longer by telling you all about the hen party first! So I arrived in St Andrews early on the thursday morning to make sure the bride-to-be was alive and kicking and ready to take on my day of fun. Surprisingly, Danielle was both awake and dressed! That's not to say there was plenty of dithering to be done before the festivities began though. First stop was to Danielle's parents so that she could try on her wedding dress for the last time before the big day and Aunty Yvonne could make any last-minute adjustments. After having faffed for a wee bit, we dashed back to Danielle's flat to collect two other hen-party-goers and headed on into town. It was a really nice girlie reunion in Starbucks from where proceedings commenced. Isn't it magic that all of a sudden so many people from such far-away places congregate in the same place? Activity one was a town treasure hunt. It was never meant to be taken too seriously, but the weather was very kind and it was a good wee jaunt to spend the morning partaking in. The twist to the treasure hunt was when the girls made it to the final straight to be met with a gazebo of champagne and relatives. For the first time I've ever known, there was not a breath of wind on West Sands and it was a lovely treat.

Activity two was a surprise trip to The Old Course Hotel for some afternoon tea. The tea list was vast, the sandwich crusts were off and the cakes were delicious! It had been pretty jammy when I booked this as the lady at the hotel kindly offered us the fourth floor bar lounge with the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Old Course - you couldn't beat it!

Activity three was another surprise to Danielle - we took her to the aquarium to feed the seals. Sadly the seals decided they weren't too hungry when we got there but nevertheless we girlies made the most of our aquarium entry ticket and spent ages admiring the fish. That's what happens when you take biologists to a 'fish museum'! As an afternoon treat we walked across town to Jannettas for some yummy ice cream.

The final activity of the day was evening dinner and drinks. We went for dinner at Nahm Jim, the best Thai restaurant I know! Incredibly, the Harris sisters managed to be a massive 45 minutes late - always heartening when it's their responsibility to get Danielle to the church in time for her wedding! Plenty of wine and food was consumed and slowly Danielle's 4 inch heels felt a bit comfier. On a full tank, we headed over to The Rule (better known as the Gin House to most of us) where we lounged around the upstairs area like we owned the place. The table where I was sitting quickly went through the pitcher list like we were drinking juice, I think I have a liver made of steel. It was really nice to finally meet Ben's mum who eventually turned up to the hen soiree, she was so friendly it felt as if we'd met already from what we knew about each other. At closing time, contrary to all hen party rules we all headed over to The Russell where the stags were all hiding out. In fairness we were all itching to get over there to see who had all arrived over the course of the day. We didn't stay too long though. Eventually we four amigos (ali, helen, danielle and myself) found ourselves crashed out in Danielle's lounge reminiscing and discussing the finer points of wedding etiquette for the big day! In true Greenside Court style we revitalised our slightly tired bodies and hazy minds the next day with Eggy Bread.

And now to the wedding day! While the weatherman (it couldn't have been Rob McElwee) didn't quite match the wedding day weather with the hen day weather, all in all the rain stayed off for the most important parts of the day. It was so grown-up seeing all of us in our glad rags arriving at the wedding. It was a far cry from our uni days! The service was really lovely, despite a couple of microphone hiccups and a blip from the priest which led to me touching his robe (is that illegal or something?! I'm not sure but at least I gained the respect of Mr Harris who said he wouldn't have dared do what I did!). The meal and the reception were also great (although it was taking place in a hall many of us had previously taken exams in) and the ceilidh was fab! It was a pleasant surprise to see Ben Murray rock up late, albeit looking a tad underdressed, and it meant that we could keep our Strip the Willow battle. Not content with the evening we'd already enjoyed many of us then moved on to The Greyfriars (better known as The Tudor) for a nightcap or two. We even managed to kidnap the happy couple for a wee while. Finally, Helen and I made it back to our hotel room where we chatted into the even weer small hours.

It was a really great long weekend in St Andrews. It was fab to meet up with close friends and slightly more distant friends. I'm so lucky to have so many friendships in which, after having not seen each other for ages, we can pick off from where we left off and immedately feel so comfortable around each other. Maybe that's the result of going to such a cosy uni like St Andrews or maybe it's because I'm picky with friends :-)

Really? Has three months passed already?

Since my last post I have been busy busy busy - when am I not?! I spent New Year in Edinburgh with friends, tried my hand at snowboarding on real Scottish snow at Nevis Range in February and got promoted to Vince Cable's taxi driver in March - who else can boast such a list?!

Obviously the highlight of the last few months for me has been the Six Nations. Although I may be a Scotland supporter I still find enjoyment in watching the successes of other teams and carrying out post mortems on the slightly more mediocre performances of Scotland. Now we, in the Scottish rugby fraternity, are awaiting two announcements: when's Hadden going to be sacked and who's going to replace him? Personally, I'm confident I know the answer to both of those questions but in the event I don't I've blagged a meeting with some SRU bigwigs as I accompany John to a constituency meeting on Thursday!


So the weekend before last was Scottish Conference in Lib Dem land. It was held in Perth this year, somewhere I haven't spent a whole lot of time. Day one for me was quite a hectic one, as I zoomed up and down the M90. The main reason for this was that I ended up being asked to chauffeur Vince Cable to-and-fro for the day. Obviously, it goes without saying that this was an absolute privilege but, as with every 'VIP' visit, time-frames are tight and there's a lot of pressure to deliver your 'VIP' with care! Vince and his wife Rachel were absolutely lovely. They are now the latest LibDem royalty in a long line who have been subjected to my chauffeurial services - I am afterall the local choice! (petty LibDem joke there, sorry for all you non-LibDems!)

Yesterday was Mother's Day - I hope you all remembered?! In a twist of fate it was agreed that Granny, Grandpa, Mum and Dad would all come over to mine to have sunday roast. The catch was that Granny and Grandpa weren't prepared for this, dad having told them that 'a table in an exclusive restaurant had been booked'. I got up at the crack of dawn (which for a sunday equates to 8:30am) and donned my 'domestic goddess' hat - a metaphorical hat. First I cobbled together a semi-complicated Apple sponge from my Dr Oetker baking book. As with everything in this book it was all in the presentation, however I felt my efforts had been vindicated when dad remarked 'gosh it looks just like the photo in the book!' Then it was onto the timing intricacies of cooking a roast. Roast lamb was on the menu following a somewhat surreal visit to my local butcher who explained to me about the finer points of Black-faced Techsol cross-bred sheep. It all went to plan as the morning progressed and ultimately the mystery restaurant was guessed by Granny, who arrived promptly with the rest of the crew at 1pm. I think Granny and Grandpa were quite chuffed to have finally visited Chateau Bev after having heard various reports from other family members.

This evening I'm sitting doing work of all things - a terrible state of affairs. I think I've slightly overdone it with annual leave in April and I'm going to be really pressed for time on my current projects if I don't forego a few evenings. Nevermind. The evening has been fairly relaxed though, having enjoyed an episode of Ballykissangel, Mrs Henderson Presents and now Notting Hill. 'This yoghurt tastes funny...!' The holidays I speak of are two forthcoming events that I am very much looking forward to: first comes Danielle and Ben's wedding, which is gonna be an awesome reunion and then comes my wee city break to Vienna - somewhere I've wanted to visit forever.

Seeing as I've been sitting with a keyboard on my lap for the best part of five hours now, excluding my desktop at work obviously, I think I'll stop there for now. At least I've finished from somewhere I can start off from next time though - tune in next time for the wedding and holiday banter!

Edinburgh 39-6 Glasgow

The festive period in the Hope household was a quiet, relaxed one this year. One notable reason for this was the absence of Brian round the Christmas dinner table - he's currently serving in Iraq. This aside, Christmas is generally low key with the day consisting of slobbing and eating - this year was no exception.

Following Christmas day, Box day was positively energetic as we hit the sales in Tillicoultry. While the sales seemed to be very competitive, it was disheartening to see so many of the outlets were 'closing down' sales rather than just seasonal ones. Once we found our way home, with the help of mum and dad's new toy Gertrude (their SatNav), or rather hindrance thereof, we quickly grabbed a bite to eat and readied ourselves for the age-old grudge match between Edinburgh and Glasgow at Murrayfield.

I met mum and dad in our usual seats close to where the Edinburgh subs sit. Oddly however, I had to straddle across a Glaswegian couple sitting beside them before I took my seat. Ordinarily I'm happy for the odd interloper to sit in the season ticket seats. The fact is that the security is so relaxed that it's easy for away support to err into the home support seats. Tonight though, the security men were a bit more lively, asking to see my season ticket before letting me into the stadium. Therefore, finding two Weegies alongside my parents was somewhat baffling. What added to my dismay at this aged couple sitting beside me, and to be honest, what almost ended up in me releasing my bitten tongue, was the fact that they had clearly not made the trip east to have a good time! Mrs Weegie's banter was appalling. It's all very well for a Weegie supporter to turn against the Edinburgh team and support, but when she began booing some of her own team (namely Colin Gregor and Johnny Beattie) I predicted the first half would be hard work!

Nothing pleased her. The limited edition Edinburgh shirts offended her as she commented 'did someone design that as a dare?'. Simon Webster was an 'eejit', Phil Godman was an 'idiot', and when confronted by a 'Gunners' chant by the Edinburgh supporters she gasped 'what on earth are they chanting?!' - has she never been to a derby match before?!!! It didn't stop there. She couldn't understand the east-side MC and so took to telling him to 'put a sock in it'. It was utterly exhausting. The funniest bit came when at halftime a man behind her stood up and accidently velcroed her hair to his jacket. Considering it was ACCIDENTAL she went ape! Needless to say, at halftime when dad went to the loo, I quickly relocated to his seat, letting him return to sit beside her!

Ultimately, the full-time score brought a great deal of satisfaction, having sat beside such an unbearable woman: Edinburgh 39-6 Glasgow and a bonus point for 4 tries! I'll be looking out for her next week a Firrhill.

Britain's favourite view

After another season of by-elections is over, I am taking some time out and have escaped to the country. More specifically, I have come to visit my friend Fiona who is currently working in Whitehaven, Cumbria, as a doctor. In fact Fiona lives in a wee place called St Bees on the west coast of Cumbria. She lives in a pretty, wee cottage in a courtyard where ducks roam and there's a pet rabbit in the back garden. It's just what I need. For those of you who know me well, the absence of a tele is somewhat of a culture shock, but by and large I'm coping just fine!

Yesterday we spent the day in and around the Wastwater area. It was recently voted 'Britain's Favourite View' - and it's not hard to see why. Not content with a waterside view of the valley, Fiona and I donned our hiking boots and headed for the hills. We aimed high and set out to climb England's highest peak, Scafell Pike. Standing at 978m, it is some 366m short of Ben Nevis but nevertheless the climb was very challenging - a lot of scree and very little shelter from the valley gales. Once we got past the constant 'climbing the stairs' stage of the climb, the climb became more exciting as we scrambled and rock-hugged! By the time we reached the top we had gone through umpteen weather systems and felt very satisfied with our achievement. The views in every direction appeared and disappeared as the clouds moved over the area. They were spectacular views when they revealed themselves though. We could see across to Coniston Water in the east and over to the Irish sea in the west - it was beautiful. Our satisfaction was short-lived, however as, faced with now 60mph gusts and horizontal snow, we tried to find the easiest and safest route down. We quickly realised there was no 'easy route down'. After a solid 40 minutes of keeping low to the ground and scaling some icy rock faces we returned to the comfort of 'climbing back down the stairs' - a welcome relief. As Wastwater became bigger in our sights we were greeted with increasing signs of civilisation, not least the little hill sheep who were gazing by the mountain burn. Once safely back to the car we headed for the nearby inn for a celebratory pint (well...one half pint and a cup of tea!) and metaphorically patted each other on the back after our achievement!

After years of doing Duke of Edinburgh's Award expeditions together, my dad would have been proud to see his girls still climbing hills of their own volition!

By-election Binge

Summer is over, my holidays have been taken and now my life is due to be consumed by by-elections - lucky me! The huge pile of washing on my bedroom floor tells me that either I've been really lazy lately or I've not been spending much time at home, and while ordinarily, the former would be the case, in fact it's the latter on this occasion. In quick succession I've been away in Germany, at Conference in Bournemouth and then on holiday in Poland. September has been a really fun month.

Bournemouth conference started at 3:45am on a chilly Friday morning for me. For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to book some flights from Prestwick southwards, the only problem being that the early morning flight meant that departure from Edinburgh was EARLY! Starting conference with a sleep deficit is not clever. Nevertheless I admirably managed to get through the days with plenty of coffee and remain perky enough in the evenings to dutifully schmooze and network. The one reassurance in keeping to this intolerable timetable came every morning between 8:15am and 9am when Fiona and I went down to breakfast and joined John and Cheadle MP Mark Hunter, who were equally bleary-eyed!

Following a short one-day post-Bournemouth working week, I found myself again packing my things, this time for a week's holiday in Krakow with mum. Not really sure of what to expect from the city itself, I was pleasantly surprised with what I saw. The touristy part of the city is quite compact and made visiting the medieval squares, churches and the market hall very easy. Having said that, getting there from our hotel was a bit of a mission. Public transport in Krakow is mainly the tram network - an attractive and historical yet unreliable and downright dangerous mode of getting about! Once you've mastered the tram network however all(!) you have to master is the street names and the Polish vocab. Needless to say it took me and mum a few trips before we felt completely confident of where we'd end up.

It was no secret that the real reason I'd chosen Krakow as a holiday destination was because of my desire to visit Auschwitz. It's not everyone's first choice tourist attraction but for me, having spent so many years studying German history, the Third Reich and the Holocaust, visiting Auschwitz added another dimension to all that I'd learned during my degree at St Andrews. The experience of Auschwitz didn't disappoint.

Now i'm back from my galavanting I'm feeling refreshed, upbeat and ready to tackle the next 'term' of work until Christmas. Immediately I have the prospect of fighting a very winnable Council by-election in Forth ward where Cllr Elizabeth Maginnis died so suddenly at the start of the month. While no-one feels comfortable about fighting elections in such circumstances, I'm relishing the campaign. There's also the lure of the Glenrothes by-election, although the date of this is still uncertain. All in all, October looks set to be an exciting month of electioneering and campaigning.