What a conference we've had!

From motions to keynote speeches to training, there was something for everyone and the quality of debate was, as ever, excellent.

We also got a huge amount of press coverage. Our stunning win in Chesham and Amersham has put us back in the spotlight - and the media are beginning to see that only we can dismantle the Tory Blue Wall.

Promises made. Promises broken.

It's time for this government to go. We have a delusional Prime Minister, full of fine words and empty promises. We have a Cabinet full of corrupt mediocrities at best and racist xenophobes at worst. This is not the Britain I grew up in, or even Thatcher's Britain that I left in disgust over 30 years ago.

England

Politics works in very different ways in different parts of the Country. And the picture is time dependent too. By the end of Saturday, Lib Dems were marginally down on the number of seats, with a net loss of 34 seats. But, by Sunday night, when all the results were in, the picture had become a small net gain of 7 seats and 1 council gained. On days one and two most of the council votes were in urban areas in the North. But later results tended to be from counties and districts in the South.

Phil Bennion candidate for the Lichfield Rural East division in the May 2021 Staffordshire County Council Election

Phillip Bennion was County Councillor for Lichfield Rural East from 2002-05 and Lichfield District Councillor for Mease and Tame from 1999-2011. A farmer from Haunton, Phillip also served as MEP for the West Midlands from 2012-2014 and 2019-20. Phillip was instrumental in raising the issue of the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinxiang by the Chinese authorities to public notice during his term of office.

Liberal Democrats in Lichfield, Burton and Tamworth constituencies started the new year refreshed and determined to do better in future elections.

A well attended and lively members and supporters meeting in February discussed the recent General Election - both national and our own local campaigns.

The meeting was led by Lichfield Councillor and GE candidate Paul Ray and East Staffordshire (Burton) Councillor Helen Hall. All three constituencies had increased their share of the vote but there was much to learn for us all. Views on the national campaign were to be passed onto the National Party review panel set up to learn from the 2019 General Election and the months leading up to it.