Lib Dem party membership grew by a remarkable 14% in the first half of this year, according to official figures released by the party in England. Thousands of new members have joined the party since the election and the coalition agreement was reached, with the party also having greater success in retaining current members than in previous years.
News that Defra's failure to implement the Single Farm Payment properly in 2005 has cost the UK taxpayer £161 million has been described by South Lakeland MP, Tim Farron, as "damning evidence" for a drastic overhaul of the Rural Payments Agency.
Senior politicians have hit back at Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk's recent comments after he severely criticised Rochdale Council's decision to support the extension of Metrolink into Rochdale town centre with an additional grant.
It is not unusual to be invited to a function and not to know what is about to happen - at least, not unusual for me! The description of the invitation was simply to support the Samaritans in a publicity event: what became clear later is that the date was the significant part of the invitation.
The annual Sandgate Sea and Food Festival will once again provide August Bank holiday entertainment.
Twitter, love it or loathe it, is a really good way of extending the work of our Focus newsletters : being able to act fast on local issues and get feedback equally quickly.
