3 Comments September 25th, 2008 by ThunderDragon
Labour isn’t the only party to have lost a front bench spokesman in the last couple of days - the Lib Dems have as well. Ruth Kelly resigned from the Cabinet, and Lembit Opik has quit the Lib Dem front bench.
Opik, by far the most well-known Lib Dem, has quit to concentrate on trying to win the election to become the party’s president. This is widely seen to be a non-started, considering the seemingly unstoppable [in Lib Dem terms] lead that Ros Scott has built up. Just compare her website with Lembit’s, for example. And the fact that he is the least well regarded member of the Lib Dem “Shadow Cabinet” by the members.
What it seems to me, is like his resignation from the Lib Dem front bench is a bit of a challenge to Nick Clegg - saying “back me [or at least not campaign against me] or lose me, the best known Lib Dem, from your team”.
Despit the fact that he is quitting to campaign for an elected party position, I can’t help that think that it is a move not that dissimilar to Ruth Kelly’s - a resignation excuse.
1 Comment October 15th, 2007 by ThunderDragon
Ming had to go, sooner or later. In my last post I said “He’ll be gone by the end of the week, then. Within a month at the latest.” I just didn’t think that he’d go quite this soon!
It is clear that Ming has failed as Lib Dem leader. Under his leadership, the Lib Dem polls have plummeted by about ten points from their 2005 high. He really did lead them down the loo.
But what will happen now? We know that Nick Clegg wants to stand, and it is inevitable that Chris Huhne will as well. And since Lembit Opik has recently resigned as leader of the Lib Dems in Wales, it seems likely that he may well want to stand as well. There is also the likelihood that Party President Simon Hughes will want to stand again as well - as might Vince Cable. And what about Charles Kennedy? He was ousted for being a drunk but claims to have beaten the addiction, and has significantly refused to rule out standing again. Iain Dale thinks that he is the man to rescue the Lib Dems. I don’t think he has a chance of getting the job back.
But, really, whatever happens and whoever leads the Liberal Democrats, they don’t really make much difference. They are little more than a protest party. Hence why it makes little difference who is their leader - it is the effectively the actions of the other parties who decide how much support they get. Whether Clegg, Huhne, Kennedy, or whoever else wins the leadership election, it won’t matter much. They will get the traditional bounce in the polls - but then it’ll be back to politics as normal.
Of course, all of this is reliant on them being able to remain united after Ming the Figurehead has fully left the stage. This is their chance to decide where they will go and what it means to be a Lib Dem.
Source: BBC
Add a comment August 1st, 2007 by ThunderDragon
Ken v Boris v Lembit?
That is a potential London Mayoral race line-up, now that Lembit Opik has been floated as a potential Lib Dem candidate. This seems hypocritical of them since, if I remember correctly, the Lib Dems were making noises about the Tories having to look outside of London to find a high-profile candidate - since Henley is rather closer top London than Montgomeryshire.*
What this does show is the race to be London Mayor is lining up to be the battle of the mavericks. If Lembit is to be the Lib Dem candidate, it should make the race an interesting one. Lembit himself says: “Me, Boris and Ken would be a splendid contest. It would get a lot of interest and get the public voting as well.” And it would be - certainly a good thing for bloggers and sketch-writers!
However, Boris Johnson can easily beat those of these. Ken Livingstone has failed London in his two terms, and Lembit simply isn’t in the same league as Boris.
UPDATE: Lembit has says that he won’t run for Mayor. That’s a pity - it would really have livened up the race even more. Considering the stature of Boris and Ken, the Lib Dems are going to need someone big or just get buried.
*If I remember this incorrectly, I apologise to the Lib Dems. I’m pretty sure I haven’t, though.
Sources: The Telegraph, ePolitix
