Edd Bauer's arrest shows that Liberal Democrats must stand up for protest at our conferences.
Judging by the debate, some students at Birmingham disagree with Mr. Bauer's protest, and many of his supporters ignore the fact that Liberal Democrats are very much the smaller partners in a coalition but have moderated Conservative policy. Labour policy would likely have been similar to the Conservatives. Those points do not detract from the fundamental one that those who support civil liberties should speak out against police and Crown Prosecution Service overreaction to a successful protest action.
This appeared as a Guest Post on the site of my friend, Gareth Epps, Liberal Democrat policy maker and campaigner.