Peace Through Ukrainian Victory - First Posted 24 Feb 2025

 Putin had peace, and he chose war. 

Putin chose to murder and terrorise innocent men, women and children. He chose to bomb schools and children's hospitals, and to send murderers and rapists into the homes of the peaceful, of the hopeful.

Putin's war was never just a war against Ukraine, but against the very ideas of freedom, sovereignty and choice. Against democracy, liberty and international order. Not only in Ukraine, but to everybody watching.

Be grateful that brave Ukraine continues to stand fast, holding Putin's terror machine within its own borders, because Putin does not recognise those borders and will continue westward if Europe allows him.

Putin does not want peace. If he wanted it, he would have kept it. He wants expansion of his territory, ideals and power. Putin does not respect you, and every sign of your weakness is an opportunity he will seize. In 2018 Putin deployed a chemical weapon on the streets of the United Kingdom. How foolish must one be, to believe he will respect your children's lives.

So send your best cowards to sue for peace. Send your infantile, verbally incontinent US President to bend the knee. Send Farage suckling desperately at his teat, for every drop of validation. Send Orban and Le Pen. Let them wave their piece of paper before the world. 

It will not buy you a peaceful sleep. It will reward Putin for his terrorism, and it will send him a clear message: that slaughter is a prosperous endeavour. Putin will rearm and then redouble, safe in the knowledge that neither NATO, nor Europe has the courage to stand up for their neighbours. Your piece of paper will wither under artillery as did Chamberlain's in 1939. 

Xinping is listening.

Europe must now come together as never before, operating as though a single, unified state: diplomatically, economically, defensively. With or without the United States, the United Kingdom must take its place at the table. Canada, Australia and New Zealand must be welcomed.

In 1945, the world came together to destroy Hitler's industrial murder machine. He died broken and afraid in Berlin. 

The cost was over 70 million lives.

You may yet have your peace for our time, but it will only last with Putin unseated, or with Ukraine as a member of NATO.

Cam.

On Assisted Dying - First Posted 26 Nov 2024

 One day, I am going to die. Worse still, everybody I have ever loved is going to die too. Hopefully they will do so contentedly and at peace, having loved and lived well and at length.

You are going to die too. That revelation can take some coming to terms with, given our species' unique capacity to contemplate mortality. I am unconvinced by promises of a second life, so I have opted to give this one a real go, and I hope to traverse my own timeline at a leisurely pace, in good health, of sound mind and of gratified spirit.

That might not come to pass, and not all of us are blessed to live in the type of comfort which most of us take for granted. Some of my constituents are among the thousands of people who endure constant discomfort, distress or even agony, without hope for cure or relief. Some are terminally ill and have expressed their heartfelt desire to die on their own terms - with dignity. Yet for years, their pleas have been ignored or dismissed by those of us who cannot truly grasp their suffering and, perhaps, would prefer not to confront it. It is particularly devastating that some individuals, after expressing their wish to die with dignity, later lose the capacity to make such decisions for themselves.

This month, Labour MP Kim Leadbeater will introduce the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (commonly known as the Assisted Dying Bill) to the House of Commons for its second reading. It is a bold undertaking for a Member of Parliament, given that the subject of assisted dying remains so politically contentious, despite significant public support. MPs will have the opportunity to vote for or against the bill on 29th November.

Death is an emotive subject, but it should not be taboo. As MPs we owe it to our constituents to approach this difficult subject courageously and well informed. I have been lobbied heavily since the bill was announced, and I share many of the concerns from each side of the debate. Any amendment to the law must not be made as an alternative to improvements in palliative care, and legislators must work meticulously to protect vulnerable people from exploitation. Those on each side of this debate speak from a position of compassion, and we all want for our terminally ill to live their remaining days free of suffering.

As a liberal and as a humanist, my principal concerns are for the freedoms and dignity of others, and that extends to their right to choose. I see this bill as a generational opportunity to help our society forward, and to bring hope to those who desperately want to end their own suffering. I would want that right for myself, should the worst befall me, but I would want it for my loved ones too, should they need it.

On 29th November I will vote in favour of the bill.

Cam.

The Future of UK/US Relations Following the US Election - First Posted 9 Nov 2024

 Throughout my military career, and already in my role as a UK Member of Parliament, I have had the privilege to work alongside our brothers and sisters from the United States. From Exercising with the US Air Force in South Carolina, to operating alongside US Forces in Iraq and across the United States, to training with them here in the UK, I have always regarded them more closely than allies, rather as friends. 

I use the term brothers and sisters sincerely: Our forebears stood together – along with our European and Commonwealth allies – to defeat fascism and tyranny in the 20th Century. D-Day, so heavy in the minds of Americans and British alike, was planned and executed collaboratively from the South Coast of the UK.

The friendship and alignment of our two nations prevailed despite the debacle of the Suez Crisis in 1956, and through the frictions caused by the Falklands Conflict in 1982. Despite conflicting interests, US authority to use its airfield on Ascension Island enabled Britain to liberate the Falkland Islands. Our relationship continues regardless of our respective heads of state, bound by the strongest diplomatic, economic and military ties, and by intelligence shared right here in Gloucestershire.  

Millions of people across the world will have met the result of the US presidential election this week with fear and doubt. Will the President Elect continue to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion, or surrender under pressure from Putin? Will he continue support to or even maintain US membership of NATO, and will he honour the US’ commitment to Article 5, should a NATO member be attacked? What will be his impact on the UK economy? What does this result mean for the climate emergency and the global transition away from fossil fuels? 

Whatever the answers, our role in the UK will be to continue to work closely with the US toward our shared goals, British interests and those of our allies. 

Wherever the US may withdraw its leadership or investment, lies an opportunity for the UK and our European neighbours to fill that void. The most urgent contingency must be a meeting with NATO and European allies to prepare to support Ukraine regardless of the President Elect’s position. 

Here in the UK, the Liberal Democrats and I will continue to resolutely and vocally promote our liberal values of democracy, humanity, dignity and empathy.

Cam.

Gaza - First Posted 31 May 2024

 Since the General Election was called on 22nd May 2024, I've repeatedly been asked for my stance on the ongoing situation in Gaza.

If elected to represent the people of Tewkesbury Constituency in Westminster, I intend to do so in the spirit of transparency and accountability, so I will begin in earnest and present my position here. I do so as a retired military officer and compassionate human being:

"I am of the position that Israel should immediately cease its offensive military activity in Gaza. My position is consistent with that which the Liberal Democrats were the first major UK party to adopt."

The actions of Hamas against innocent Israeli civilians on 7th October 2023 represented some of the very worst human atrocities I have ever seen or read about. In the weeks which followed, it was clear that a military response from Israel would be necessary in pursuit of its mission to destroy Hamas as an organisation. After all, the bedrock of any state is its ability to defend itself.

Within weeks of the launch of Israel's military operation, it became clear that the Israeli PM would not and will not afford due consideration for innocent Palestinians in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. There have been several instances of journalists, aid workers and children being directly targeted, as well as countless civilians. It is unlikely that this activity is accidental - the pattern is too consistent. Even Israeli hostages have been shot by the IDF.

The fact that Hamas are still able to launch attacks at Israel from regions the IDF have 'cleared', suggests that Israeli military activity is failing to achieve its goal. There must be a diplomatic conclusion to this conflict, however long and arduous that process is. It will require multilateral cooperation and my preference would be that the UK recognises a Palestinian State.

It remains my position that Israel has every right to defend itself, and that Hamas is a terrorist organisation and should be conclusively defeated: militarily, economically, diplomatically, and internationally.

Cam.

Roland and Beulah Mauz: Awe, Gratitude and Regret - First Posted 10 May 2024

 Since I crept down the stairs at my Great Uncle's home one morning and pressed my parents' recording of Jaws 2 into the VCR, I have loved sharks. I draw the line at Jaws 3 of course, but I digress.

I met my first shark while snorkelling in 2003, and several more a few weeks later, but it was another 5 years before I learned to dive in Cyprus. I spent several weeks later that year diving in Dahab and Ras Mohammed National Park, hoping to encounter some sharks, but to no avail.

There are a few places around the world which are legendary amongst the diving community, and one such place is Protea Banks. Famous for its electrifying encounters will large Tiger and Bull Sharks, I knew this was where I needed to go to get some face-time. I managed to rope my best mate 'S' into it too.

I didn't particularly trust the reputation of South Africa: I'd read plenty of stories about tourists becoming victims of crime and started planning my visit with trepidation. I looked online for some local dive operators and happened across African Dive Adventures. I e-mailed them to explain what I was looking for, which included just about everything but flights, and Roland set us up. S and I flew out in March 2010, only a few months before the World Cup was held in South Africa. To be honest, I half expected our entire arrangement to be some kind of scam, but as promised, Roland met us just outside Margate and escorted us the rest of the way. I had a diving knife large enough to give Crocodile Dundee nightmares stashed in my door storage, but I was pleasantly surprised to find Roland was indeed a very nice bloke. He put us up in an apartment in a secure compound and loaned us what equipment we didn't have from his storage at Shelly Beach, so all we had to worry about was food and trying not to get murdered. Actually, Roland told us that as long as S and I stayed off the beach at night, we were unlikely to find trouble. I can't remember if he advised me not to stop, but to roll up to traffic lights in our hired Nissan Micra, or whether I'd picked it up on a defensive driving course, but I adopted that policy throughout our 3 weeks.

Throughout those weeks, I found Roland and Beulah, to be some of the kindest people I'd ever met. One thing which has stayed with me since I visited, was how prevalent AIDS was in South Africa: motorways were lined with billboards promoting safe sex, featuring mind-boggling statistics. Roland had a small team working with his operation, and he told me that one of them had quite recently become seriously ill, and that he had paid for the man's medical treatment. In a country where public racist remarks hardly even seemed taboo, Roland just saw people as people. I recall how we'd land at the beach after diving, and Beulah would be under a gazebo, probably playing Bob Marley on the speaker, waiting for us to sit down and record our activity. The chemistry between Roland and Beulah was so legitimate, and it was obvious they adored each other completely.

I loved diving with Roland. He was completely at home under the water, and as comfortable as one could be in the company of sharks without falling into complacency. We dived from a boat, just a couple of miles from Shelly Beach. I remember suffering with agonising motion sickness. S and I had it so bad that we began eating water melon for breakfast every morning, so that it was soothing on its inevitable way back up. After 10 minutes rolling with the waves, we couldn't wait to roll backwards overboard. Some dives were 'exploratory' dives along the sea bed and into small cave systems. If we had arrived a few weeks earlier, those caves would have been full of Sand Tiger Sharks. In their absence, I enjoyed collecting their discarded teeth from the sea bed. Roland also led baited dives, during which he would tie a washing machine drum to the boat on a few metres of rope, and drop it overboard. The drum would be full of sardines and sponges saturated in fish oil. Tied to the drum would be several tuna carcasses. Only once or twice did such a dive fail to attract a shark. Often, Bull Sharks would be first on the scene and would circle several metres underneath the drum, waiting for the dive leader to open the drum, tear up some sardines and drop them. The rest of us (that might have been 2 of us, or 8 of us) would maintain buoyancy a safe enough distance from the drum so as not to threaten (or appear to challenge) the sharks, just enjoying the company of these magnificent creatures which would never allow you close enough to reach out and touch them. Quite regularly, we'd have the company of a Bull Shark, only to have it disappear on us. Moments later, we'd be joined by a larger Tiger Shark, which would eat the tuna carcasses and then chew on the drum. On one occasion, once the tunas had been eaten, Roland surfaced and then re-entered the water with more tuna carcasses. The very moment those tunas hit the water, the Tiger Shark turned and arrowed for them, while they were still in Roland's hands. It was equally hilarious and terrifying watching him descend while trying to keep a slender length of rope between him and a 5m Tiger Shark. After Roland had tied them off, he snapped the beautifully expressive photograph of the female Tiger Shark which you can see above.

The 3 weeks I spent with Roland, Beulah and African Dive Adventures included some of the best diving I ever experienced, as well as excursions to Riverbend Crocodile Farm, Pure Venom Reptile Park and the Wild 5 Adventures Safari Park. Roland and Beulah made a lifelong impression on me, and their smiles are etched into my personality 13 years later. I remember joking with Roland about leaving the RAF and going to work with him. He told me he'd employ me in a heartbeat, which was kind, though I never took him up on it.

After I left South Africa, I probably messaged Roland and Beulah a few times over social media, but I never saw them again.

In February 2024 I decided to reach out to them, to see how they were doing. I typed 'Roland Mauz' into Google, and saw his obituary. He had died only a few months previously, with Beulah having passed just 2 years earlier. 

Honestly, I'm struggling to deal with the guilt. I wish I had been able to remind them how much they had meant to me.

Cam.

Straight Faced Support - First Posted 9 May 2024

 Since I confirmed my candidacy for the coming General Election, every word of encouragement and every testimony to my character has helped me to bear up to the challenge ahead. I am grateful for, and humbled by each of them, and those which have come from my serving brothers and sisters carry a special weight. In the Armed Forces, support generally comes dressed as varying degrees of banter, so when the message comes 'straight-faced', you know it's sincere.

The expeditionary lifestyle of the Armed Forces isn't for everybody, but it throws up a great many fleeting friendships, some lifelong friendships, and many of those people you're grateful to cross paths with down the years.

I met 'M' while living in Cyprus around 2006 or 2007. On a Venn diagram of our social groups, we just about overlapped.

I left Cyprus in 2008 and the next time we met, M and I were deployed together in the Falkland Islands for a few months in 2011. As an Acting Sergeant, he was senior to me, and I came to know him as supremely professional, up-front, humble but resolute. We worked and socialised in small groups for those few months and though we weren't exactly 'close', I liked and respected him.

After I left the Falkland Islands, we lost contact until a chance meeting in 2023, when M attended a Focus Group I led with the RAF Climate Assessment Support Team. He offered me back to his office later to catch up, so I went to find him, and we did. Amongst other chatter, I told him about my plan to stand at the General Election.

M got back in touch yesterday. He told me that I'd started him thinking about politics. Like me, he recognised that the country needs change. He'd done some research and had then voted for the Liberal Democrats in the recent local elections... and will do so again at the General Election. He signed off telling me I'll "do great" for my community "and hopefully, the country", and that he was proud to have served with me. Honestly, I've always thought him to be the better of us.

If you're reading this M: it means a great deal to me, and it was an honour to have served with you too.

To a better future.

Cam.

The Opportunity of Neurodiversity - First Posted 26 Feb 2024

 The concept of Social Mobility is now well recognised, across both society and industry. It is defined by the UK Government as:

“… the link between a person’s occupation or income and the occupation or income of their parents. Where there is a strong link, there is a lower level of social mobility. Where there is a weak link, there is a higher level of social mobility.”

It is driven by the need for diversity of thought and experience in order for enterprises and even states to achieve an advantage over their rivals. It appeals to me personally, because it is also a reflection of a fairer society.

If diversity of thought and experience is the desired outcome here, then it’s time we began to consider how to harness neurodiversity in a similar manner... Neuro-mobility, if you will. A societal system which embraces and values neurodiversity, and is supported by a curriculum and education system which enables neurodiverse children to achieve their potential. Our current UK curriculum and education system is failing neurodiverse children and their teachers terribly, but if we in the UK can implement these systems now, then within a decade we can harness the diversity of skills and thought we will nurture.

This morning I had the privilege of addressing and speaking with members of Neurodiversi-TEA Natters, a social group facilitated by local Tutor Kate Morris and Drama Teacher Emily Hastings, for the parents of neurodiverse children. I shared my own experience of neurodiversity, from my complex childhood and throughout my military career, and I learned of the experiences of some residents whose own children are being let down in a society built by and for neurologically uniform people. Many of these parents are themselves neurodiverse, and have had to overcome their own battles with organisations and establishments which ought to be more open-minded with regards to neurodiversity; a member of my family was diagnosed with dyslexia back in 1990, yet there are educators who refuse to acknowledge its existence even in 2024.

I want to see a government which leads from the front on neurodiversity and recognises it for the opportunity that it is, which is why I am standing with the Liberal Democrats for election to the House of Commons.

A Deliberate Assault by our Government Against our Rights - First Posted 27 Jan 2024

 On Saturday 27th January, I marched with Liberal Democrats amongst hundreds of demonstrators, at the Protect the Right to Strike march, in Cheltenham. As a Liberal, I consider this defence of our liberty to be both a principal obligation, and an honour.

What we are facing in the United Kingdom in 2024 is a deliberate and sustained assault by our government against our rights.

In May 2023 the Conservatives passed their Public Order Act 2023. The Joint Committee on Human Rights reported that the bill extended police powers to disrupt protest, even where there were no grounds for suspicion. Even Conservative Baroness Cavendish called the Act "... an affront to civilised society".

In July 2023 the Conservatives passed their Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023. Absent from the 2019 Conservative Party Manifesto and therefore without mandate, this Act was designed to stop employees from standing together, so that they would be unable to challenge employers or government over pay and conditions.

Even our right to vote them out has been impacted. The Conservatives have implemented ID checks at polling stations, knowing very well that younger voters are both less likely to have identification, and less likely to vote Conservative.

As 2023 drew to a close, the Conservatives increased the election spending allowance by 80%, without a Commons vote, and are the only party with the financial capacity to have ever neared the limit as it previously stood. This policy will directly advantage the Conservative Party.

Those who dare to challenge the government are publicly undermined or criticised by ministers and throughout national media. I will stand against them regardless.

The Conservatives do not want us to stand together. 

It is time to stand together.

Holocaust Memorial Day - First Posted 27 Jan 2024

 Today is Holocaust Memorial Day.

I want to mark down a few of my thoughts, but in doing so I risk a disservice to a monumental human event; an indelible stain on our species.

As survivors and witnesses diminish with time, I worry that referring simply to ‘The Holocaust’ risks undermining its severity, so I’ll expand here on what it was: Industrial Genocide – the extermination of groups of people seen as “less worthy” than their oppressors, by such means as to remove all dignity, empathy and emotion. The mechanism of extermination was so inhumanely engineered that its executors sanity was spared burden – this was not murder, this was a logical solution to a problem. These were not frightened children, they were Jews.

For those 6,000,000 victims of the holocaust: Jews, homosexuals, gypsies, disabled and black people, political opponents, the horror of the Holocaust was fully realised at concentration camps such as Auschwitz, but Auschwitz was only ‘The Final Solution’ - the terminal point on a decades-long scale of dehumanisation which had begun with ignorance, fear and divisive rhetoric. 

The type of rhetoric we continue to hear on a daily basis.

There is also a risk I fear, that in contemplating The Holocaust in its sheer scale, we neglect the individual human tragedy. A social media account connected to the Auschwitz Memorial does an excellent job of remembering individual victims daily. I also thank Italian author Primo Levi who remained an emotional prisoner of Auschwitz until his sudden death, many years after he was physically liberated. His book ‘The Drowned and the Saved’ makes for depressing, but crucial reading.

In 2017 and 2019 respectively, I had the privilege (I struggle to find an appropriate synonym – the experiences were sobering to my very core, yet gratefully received) to visit Dachau and Sachsenhausen camps.

Their legacies must not be forgotten.

Why I Am Standing for Parliament - First Posted 8 Jan 2024

 I attended various state schools throughout a modest childhood, which was spent moving between military units, before joining the RAF at 17. 

Thereafter, I travelled extensively, worked with and befriended people from myriad backgrounds, and gratefully shared in their cultures. I came to stand up for others, as well as for nature and the environment, joining conservation initiatives from the UK to South America. I learned to respect public service, diversity and responsible leadership, and later commissioned as a RAF Police Officer so that I could inspire those values in others. Looking back, I had travelled my entire life before my career took me to Imjin Barracks. Only once I arrived in our piece of Gloucestershire, did I feel ready to raise my family.

Over the past decade I had proudly served our country whilst irresponsible politicians undermined our most courageous and selfless public servants. I watched ministers treat public money recklessly whilst I delivered food parcels to struggling families. I saw friendships and families fragmented by divisive language and irresponsible leadership. Eventually I felt I could no longer serve our people under this government. In December 2023 I resigned my RAF Commission to stand up for our people alongside the Liberal Democrats.

I am standing to give Tewkesbury a fresh start. Our people deserve a dynamic Member of Parliament who is available and ready to serve, will proudly represent them to the country and celebrate and support our communities across our constituency. I will fight to resource local authorities to invest in General Practices and support the families of SEND children. I will tirelessly work cross-party to end the sewage scandal and bring down the cost of living, and I will fight relentlessly for electoral and education reform.

To my neighbours across Tewkesbury, I offer this: I will proudly represent you with courage and integrity, however we may agree or disagree. Not as a career politician, but as a public servant. However you have voted in the past, a vote for Cameron Thomas is a vote to return our faith in politics and to transform the future of our country.

Thank you,

Cam.

A Safe Space for Liz

 A Safe Space for Liz.

Spare a thought for Johnny Mercer. As newly installed PM Liz Truss was filling her Cabinet with sycophants and servants, Johnny came face to face with a revelation we all arrived at in 2016: that there is no room for principles in today's Conservative Party. It is in fact, conservative in name only.

Johnny and I share a military background and for this reason, despite questioning some of his choices (he was the first to Boris Johnson's side in the outgoing PM's leadership campaign) I had to believe that deep down, he was a man of integrity. As the Johnson Government cast our right to protest into the fire along with the environment, ministerial standards, the NHS, Northern Ireland and the energy price cap, Johnny cut a lonely figure. Now, the circus remains but Johnny leaves town.

Truss' Cabinet picks are very revealing. Theresa May's premiership was a series of calamitous events and her fate was sealed from the very beginning, with the promotion of Boris Johnson to the Office of Foreign Secretary. Keeping her enemies closer than her friends was a courageous act - it showed a willingness to reconcile and work through differences - but Johnson's resignation, expertly timed, spelled the end of her leadership.

Those who have observed Truss from the side lines recognise her Cabinet selection as being in keeping with her character. That is to say it is entirely risk averse. In the safe space she has built of her allies, she is as unlikely to follow Julius Caesar to the metaphorical grave as she is to follow Margaret Thatcher in stoic integrity. It also condemns the Conservative Party to continue its Orwellian path, with no room for alternative voices. The jump from liberalism to this authoritarian government is impossible to make for one with genuine principles, but Liz has achieved a seamless transition and in doing so, has become the antithesis of Paddy Ashdown. She was far more likely to secure a parliamentary future with the Conservative Party than she was with the Liberal Democrats. The switch represented the safe bet, and probably wasn't the first time she'd sacrificed principles at the altar of advancement. It certainly wasn't the last. In 2016, she famously campaigned to remain in the European Union, along with her PM, David Cameron. Fast forward only a couple of years and Liz could see that the tide had turned. Thus, Remain too, found itself bound at the altar. Truss claims now to be one of the strongest advocates for Brexit, but who'd believe her? In her position, it is simply the safest bet. It was again, for the woman who claimed she'd stand up to Vladimir Putin, the safest bet to cancel an interview with Andrew Neil, during her leadership campaign.

It has always been clear that in this drawn-out Conservative leadership campaign, Liz Truss represented the continuity candidate. She will not deviate from the destructive course set by Boris Johnson - to do so would risk the wrath of the true power behind the party. No. It's far safer to surround herself with friends and have them say nice things to her.