Answers From Candidates #15: Duncan Brack, standing for FPC
Thursday, October 11th, 2012 12:18 pm![[personal profile]](http://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
miss_s_b
Duncan's answers:
1, Which of the following activities do you consider the most dangerous and why?
- taking a single ecstasy tablet
- taking an advanced motorcycle riding test
- giving birth
I would guess giving birth, but actually I don't know - I would need to take more time than I have available to research each scenario in detail. Clearly, in any case, it will also depend on individual circumstances, such as age, state of health, country, etc. (This seems an odd question to ask FPC candidates.)
2, What four pledges would you put on the front of the next Lib Dem manifesto?
These would need more work to develop specific policy proposals to support them, but in outline, I would like to see commitments to:
- provide more support (financial and regulatory) for low-carbon industries such as renewable energy and energy efficiency, generating jobs and exports and reducing emissions;
- reduce levels of inequality in society, by introducing wealth taxes (such as, but not necessarily limited to, the mansion tax), raising the income tax threshold to the minimum wage level and reversing some of the cuts in benefits;
- playing a positive role within, and getting the best out of, the EU;
- and reforming the voting system (to STV, ideally).
3, A genie appears and tells you that you can remove one law and make one law; what would you remove from the statute book and what would you add to the statute book?
I would introduce a law changing the voting system for Westminster elections to STV. It isn't strictly a law, but I would remove the prohibition on the Green Investment Bank borrowing before the government's debt target is met (a stupid restriction that will prevent the GIB benefiting from very low interest rates and severely limit its ability to leverage private sector finance.
4, What balance should the committee give to the views of the leadership, the parliamentary panels and the membership in setting policy priorities?
All of their views are important, as are those of outside groups, the party's campaigns department, the state parties, and so on. And even more important, FPC members should stick to the views they're putting forward to the electorate in this election.
5, How would you change the party’s procedures on gathering and analysing evidence when formulating policy?
I wouldn't; policy working groups do this extensively in any case.
6, Which is more important - freedom from ignorance, poverty or conformity?
They're all important, and there is no general answer to this question: it depends on the specific circumstances and starting points of whatever case you have in mind.
7, Are you a member of any (S)AOs or other pressure groups which might give us an insight into your policy priorities?
Green Liberal Democrats; Liberal Democrat History Group; Centre Forum; Social Liberal Forum; subscriber to Liberator.
8, Which external bodies would you like to see audit the manifesto to see if our policies are workable?
None.
9, What proposals do you have to improve the process of negotiating policy priorities for a coalition agreement in the event of another hung parliament?
Actually I think the procedure the party voted for at the spring conference is pretty good; unlike in 2010, that would involve input from the FPC. The key thing, though, is to be clear in the manifesto which are red lines and which are negotiable positions. In turn this will depend on how well we do in the election; the more MPs we have the more of our positions we should expect to see in the agreement.
10, If elected, how do you plan to engage with the wider party?
The procedure we followed during the 'Meeting the Challenge' policy review exercise of 2005-06 (for which I was Vice Chair) was, I think, a good one - an initial and fairly full consultation paper, a deliberate effort to encourage state, regional and local parties to discuss it, together with discussion materials for them; and a special policy conference at the LSE in January 2006 - and then the debate on the final paper at the 2006 conference. I'd like to see a similar process used in the run-up to the 2015 election manifesto (including a pre-manifesto, as usual, for the 2014 autumn conference).
11, Are you standing for any other committees, if so which ones, and if elected to more than one how do you plan to divide your time?
No
You can find links to all the other candidates' answers here
1, Which of the following activities do you consider the most dangerous and why?
- taking a single ecstasy tablet
- taking an advanced motorcycle riding test
- giving birth
I would guess giving birth, but actually I don't know - I would need to take more time than I have available to research each scenario in detail. Clearly, in any case, it will also depend on individual circumstances, such as age, state of health, country, etc. (This seems an odd question to ask FPC candidates.)
2, What four pledges would you put on the front of the next Lib Dem manifesto?
These would need more work to develop specific policy proposals to support them, but in outline, I would like to see commitments to:
- provide more support (financial and regulatory) for low-carbon industries such as renewable energy and energy efficiency, generating jobs and exports and reducing emissions;
- reduce levels of inequality in society, by introducing wealth taxes (such as, but not necessarily limited to, the mansion tax), raising the income tax threshold to the minimum wage level and reversing some of the cuts in benefits;
- playing a positive role within, and getting the best out of, the EU;
- and reforming the voting system (to STV, ideally).
3, A genie appears and tells you that you can remove one law and make one law; what would you remove from the statute book and what would you add to the statute book?
I would introduce a law changing the voting system for Westminster elections to STV. It isn't strictly a law, but I would remove the prohibition on the Green Investment Bank borrowing before the government's debt target is met (a stupid restriction that will prevent the GIB benefiting from very low interest rates and severely limit its ability to leverage private sector finance.
4, What balance should the committee give to the views of the leadership, the parliamentary panels and the membership in setting policy priorities?
All of their views are important, as are those of outside groups, the party's campaigns department, the state parties, and so on. And even more important, FPC members should stick to the views they're putting forward to the electorate in this election.
5, How would you change the party’s procedures on gathering and analysing evidence when formulating policy?
I wouldn't; policy working groups do this extensively in any case.
6, Which is more important - freedom from ignorance, poverty or conformity?
They're all important, and there is no general answer to this question: it depends on the specific circumstances and starting points of whatever case you have in mind.
7, Are you a member of any (S)AOs or other pressure groups which might give us an insight into your policy priorities?
Green Liberal Democrats; Liberal Democrat History Group; Centre Forum; Social Liberal Forum; subscriber to Liberator.
8, Which external bodies would you like to see audit the manifesto to see if our policies are workable?
None.
9, What proposals do you have to improve the process of negotiating policy priorities for a coalition agreement in the event of another hung parliament?
Actually I think the procedure the party voted for at the spring conference is pretty good; unlike in 2010, that would involve input from the FPC. The key thing, though, is to be clear in the manifesto which are red lines and which are negotiable positions. In turn this will depend on how well we do in the election; the more MPs we have the more of our positions we should expect to see in the agreement.
10, If elected, how do you plan to engage with the wider party?
The procedure we followed during the 'Meeting the Challenge' policy review exercise of 2005-06 (for which I was Vice Chair) was, I think, a good one - an initial and fairly full consultation paper, a deliberate effort to encourage state, regional and local parties to discuss it, together with discussion materials for them; and a special policy conference at the LSE in January 2006 - and then the debate on the final paper at the 2006 conference. I'd like to see a similar process used in the run-up to the 2015 election manifesto (including a pre-manifesto, as usual, for the 2014 autumn conference).
11, Are you standing for any other committees, if so which ones, and if elected to more than one how do you plan to divide your time?
No
You can find links to all the other candidates' answers here
