Blogs are supposed to be a topical and pithy commentary on the news of the day, so it might seem strange to be talking about a Cornish MP, who was elected 40 years ago this year. However, students at Exeter University in Cornwall are building a fascinating political history project that will record local and national memories of this famous Cornishman.
I met David only once, when I was 16, at the Knowsley North by-election, where the Liberal/SDP candidate was Rosie Cooper in a by-election caused by the resignation of Robert Kilroy-Silk. I wonder what ever happened to them… but I walked into the HQ to see the rather odd sight of a man, with his shirt sleeves rolled up with his head inside an old offset litho printing press. I assumed he was just a bloke come round to mend the thing which was clearly in a poor state of repair. You can perhaps imagine my surprise when I discovered he was the MP for Truro.
There are hundreds of memories of David like this one and from people who knew he much better up and down Britain and the project intends to record them over the next year in the run up to the 40th anniversary of his election in October 1974.
Because the students want to make the website accessible, so that people who met him can upload their own memories of David, as well as conducting some of the interviews themselves, they have launched a crowdfunding project to finance the cost of this bespoke website.
Liberal Democrats up and down Britain owe David a great debt for helping to bring Focus and community politics to British streets so I hope you will take five minutes to pledge a contribution or take one of the rewards on offer. These include a specially commissioned picture of David or a recent book which includes an article about David by the Director of the Institute of Cornish Studies, Dr. Garry Tregidga, who is a well-known author on Liberalism in the West of England.
The website is www.crowdfunder.co.uk/david-penhaligon – please give the project the support it deserves.
* John Ault is a member of the Liberal Democrats, a former Cornwall County Councillor in Cornwall and works at the Penryn campus of Exeter University as an Associate Lecturer in Politics. He blogs at johnault.wordpress.com.