DavidCampanale4MP

And so here it is. Four years of nonsense but complete vindication. The Lib Dems have admitted my legal claim in full and have agreed to pay damages. This is the first report in the Independent. It would be nice to imagine my party would express remorse and apologise to the members in Sutton and Cheam who were lied to the moment I was democratically chosen as Lib Dem PPC in 2022. Let's see if it does do so. Thankyou to everyone who has been personally supportive and remain so, including members of Sutton Lib Dem Exec. On a day when Jews are targeted for their religion, I have this in perspective. To come through is a blessing and to endure is enough.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.”
Matt 5v 11

Lib Dems admit human rights breach after deselecting candidate over Christian views Exclusive: In a further blow to Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey, his party has been forced to concede that it breached the human rights of former award winning BBC journalist David Campanale over his Christian faith

Campaign in Spelthorne for the new unitary authority is going well. Both Surrey councils are going to have a lot of Lib Dem councillors.

As Christmas approaches my thoughts go back to my journey to Transylvania in December 1989 with Németh Zsolt and Miki Szabo. Our speeches during the Romanian Revolution were reported in the newspapers that had quickly sprung up. It’s 35 years later and I’ve only just had translated what we said!

These were extemporary remarks made in the trade union hall at a rally of young people in the city of Sfintu Gheorghe on the words of Christ in the Gospels, “whoever wishes to be the greatest must be the least and the servant of all.”

DAVID CAMPANALE – “SERVANT OF ALL”
Young Liberal Democrats, U.K.

“We Western young people, even deep in our souls, are thoroughly accustomed to comfort — the kind of material well-being that only prosperity can give. The prosperity of the West, the liberal democracy of the West, has separated us from you here in the East with brutal clarity. You have lived through a different path — through suffering and trials. Yet, your problems are the same as ours: the economic crisis, environmental devastation, the questions of health and everyday survival.

Now here you stand — from nothing, at the very beginning — and you must undertake tasks that demanded enormous sacrifices even in Western democracies. The end of Ceaușescu’s era must be followed by the breaking of the materialist ideology that he and the Soviets forced upon you. This is also a question of political culture — how to keep alive the human spirit, the non-material dimension. This is the key to all things. You have to free yourselves from the fear, the habit of waiting for orders, the passivity. The Bible says to young people: do not despise your youth, for you have the ability to transform.

Do not be afraid to step forward. Do not be afraid to trust yourselves. Do not wait for someone else to say what the future will be. Because the future belongs to those who dare to speak. Though I am a Christian, I must tell you that the Christian message also contains this: take your own lives in your hands, take responsibility for yourselves.

At this moment, only those things can come true which your people truly believe in. If you want to overthrow the old political order, you must now find those common denominators that unite you, which you can mobilise total trust around. Karl Marx once wrote about the Tőkebírálat (Critique of Political Economy) that the bourgeoisie fights not only with weapons but with ideology, and the stronger ideology wins. To this we can add: much more depends on the mindsets of your people than on the decisions of functionaries in the nomenklatura.

Ask yourselves why nothing happened earlier in this country, why the decades passed in paralysis — and why, all at once, everything accelerated in these last few weeks. “Wait a few days, wait a few weeks, wait a few months…” — this is what the old system always told you. But now it is you who must say: we cannot wait.

The challenge now is enormous: self-organisation, devotion, and honest work for the common good. These are the tools we must rely upon. Unify behind clearly defined goals, choose leaders whom you trust, and build the foundations of your future.

Do not think that economic chaos will automatically disappear. The factories will not run themselves. You must take responsibility for them. You must demand honest work and contribute honest work yourselves. If necessary, you must sit up through sleepless nights, but you must listen for the voice that speaks truth to you — the voice that says: you must go on.

And this voice is the most precious treasure — the voice of conscience.

For me, the main question now is the following: will the Romanian people be able to prepare themselves for a life of service? For a new public morality? Because every people must learn that freedom cannot be sustained without responsibility. And responsibility cannot be sustained without service.

Your revolution is now in your hands. Adults cannot tell you what to do; you must decide. But know one thing: in this struggle, you have no enemies except fear itself.”

This coming weekend, we will be remembering the life, work and witness of Ian Reid. A rock of his community and church in Hook in Chessington, Ian applied practical Christianity to politics - as without works, faith is dead - as the Bible says.

I have a folder of press cuttings from that period. Here are some of them, best summarised by that pictorial slogan of Focus Team action: ‘here are some Lib Dems, pointing.’
IBeyond the pointing though, was action borne of conviction, springing from Christian service.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BFS2LFQum/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Our fantastic candidate Laura Barker was announced as the new Councillor for Staines last night!

Laura and her team have spent the last 6 weeks knocking on doors in Staines, talking to residents about local issues and how to fix them.

Laura will join our great team on Spelthorne Borough council and hit the ground running to help make Staines a greener, cleaner and better place to live.

Thank you for all the support we have received, and thank you to the people of Staines for electing their local champion!

Full results below:

🔶 LDM: 37.9% (New)
➡️ RFM: 23.5% (New)
🙋 Ind: 12.3% (New)
🌳 CON: 10.9% (-4.7)
🌍 GRN: 7.7% (-27.8)
🌹 LAB: 7.4% (-17.1)
🧑‍🔧 TUSC: 0.4% (New)

https://www.facebook.com/share/14HAtqdPyRa/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Greg Neall is a terrific candidate and is winning on the doorsteps in Ashford! Time to come out and get behind his campaign to reform Spelthorne Council.

https://www.facebook.com/share/12L7JypGdsC/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Ashford Town Neall by election - Spelthorne Liberal Democrats Greg has lived in Ashford for 22 years and is committed to making the area a better place for everyone to live. Greg works as a volunteer and can regularly be seen climbing a ladder to decorate Church Road with flags for Armed Forces Day or Pride Month, and has also recently helped install the defib...

A welcome message from the King. Ahead of this year’s Maundy Service at Durham Cathedral, The King shared this Easter blessing.

Read His Majesty’s message in full on https://www.royal.uk/news-and-activity/2025-04-17/the-king-has-shared-an-easter-message-to-all-who-celebrate