Liberal Democrat housing policy does not add up.

On the one hand the Liberal Democrats want to set a target to build 1,500,000 new homes, and on the other hand they want to add VAT to new homes.

How is increasing the cost of new homes by £15,000 going to help when money is already tight?

For more see policy diffusion here, or some others here.

Liberal Democrat Godfrey Newton- a strong voice for Worthing West!

Liberal Democrat Godfrey Newton- a strong voice for Worthing West, the only problem is that he is the Liberal Democrat candidate for Horsham, where one suspects they might like their MP to represent them!

Oops.. You can see the details here.

Liberal Democrat councillor defects to Conservatives

Prominent Mid Sussex Liberal Democrat district, West Sussex County and East Grinstead town councillor. you can read the full details here.

In a statement she said:

I have become increasingly disillusioned with the Liberal Democrats who have little positive to offer people in East Grinstead and locally are running a campaign full of negativity and personal abuse.

Interestingly many Liberal Democrat activists get fed up with their relentlessly nasty campaigning and leave. You can read about another former Liberal Democrat here, who went left for the same reason and then got smeared when he stood as a Green candidate.

There have been many defections of activists from the Liberal Democrats to the Conservatives in Mid Sussex since Serena Tierney arrived a few months before the 2005 general election. I expect many more.

So the next time you hear Liberal Democrats claiming to be nice, you will know they are not. They are by far and away the worst of the 3 main parties.

Serena Tierney slammed in national press shocker!

Something most people don't realise about the Liberal Democrats is that they are the truly nasty party. Their campaign tactics are very unpleasant. Well, Serena Tierney's tactics have made it into the Daily Mail (Yes I know, not a paragon of any kind of virtue, but then what news paper actually is?)

The story leads with one of her local campaign tactics, which is to accuse Conservative councillors of deserting a sinking ship, because there is going to be 4 local by elections.

Well, one died, (Brenda Binge), one's husband's Parkinson’s disease has taken a turn for the worse so she has less time available to be a councillor, one has moved away and the other is about to.

Perhaps Serena thinks they should stay in post pocketing their allowances for doing little. Perhaps it is what Liberal Democrat councillors would do. Here in Mid Sussex, the Conservatives on the other hand do not.

Of course other Liberal Democrat nastiness is also covered in the article, and none of it surprises me.

If you have a story about Lib Dem campaign tactics, leave them in the comments or email them in.

Saint Vince Cable is skewered on his record

Much is made of the sage powers of Vince Cable. However as the Liberal Democrats are up in the polls, there record, or rather what they have said over the last few years have come under scrutiny.

Here is the result:

You decide.

Hat tip to Guido Fawkes, via Iain Dale.

Did Chris Huhne really win the Liberal Democrat leadership?

In a bizarre twist of events, Atticus in the Times has a snippet about the vagaries of the Christmas post winning Nick Clegg the leadership due to late ballots. He says;

The deadline for party members to have sent in their ballot papers was Saturday, December 15. But officials arrived the following Monday to find a pile of more than 1,000 late entries, according to insiders at party headquarters.

Lord Rennard, the party’s chief executive, asked Clegg and his rival, Chris Huhne, whether they wanted to include the new ballot papers. But the Clegg camp said no – after all, rules is rules – and he went on to win by 511 votes to become the party’s third leader in less than two years.

Rules may be rules, but who decided to hold a postal ballot this close to Christmas?

As Atticus continues:

It’s possible, of course, that every one of the late entries was a vote for Clegg. But it’s widely thought that Huhne was catching up.

Which is the way I sensed things. And to think that Jesus' birthday may have won Clegg the leadership and he doesn't even believe in God! Sheesh!

On a more serious note, this is a cockup of Scottish, if not Floridian proportions, drawing the whole ballot into question for the bitter for now, and for the doubters (and when things get tough, and they always do for a while, there will be doubters) later. It will make things much harder for Nick Clegg.

However Atticus finishes:

“Both camps have decided on a truce and have agreed not to mention this,” said a party source.

Well I am so pleased someone has!

Hat Tip to UKPaul on Politicalbetting.com.

Nick Clegg does not believe in God

God does not believe in Nick Clegg!

Sorry, couldn't resist :)

The BBC has this.

Nick Clegg scrapes Liberal Democrat Leadership

Nick Clegg has, I see just scrapped in as the new Liberal Democrat leader, by 20,988 votes to 20,477 for Chris Huhne.

I am little bit gutted as I had traded into quite a good betting position on Huhne, particularly by laying Clegg at very short odds, but I am more than pleased as a Conservative that they have elected Nick Clegg as he will not have anything like the media presence of either Vince Cable or Chris Huhne, as has been shown in the last few weeks by Nick Cleggs almost complete absence from TV.

The BBC has this.

Prime Ministers Questions, My thoughts so far.

I did not catch much of Cameron so I can't comment there, but I have to say that Vince Cable got the better of Gordon Brown, by firstly asking what, when Gordon is eating his Brussels sprouts, he would consider what the Labour governments biggest disaster of the year was?

Gordon Brown replied with some flim flam ending with a comment about the Liberal Democrat leadership and how Vince Cable could well be back there soon.

Vince replied that given Gordon Brown's own position he should not speculate on leadership bids!

The only problem for the Liberal Democrats is I have trouble seeing either Nick Clegg or Chris Huhne doing better than Vince Cable.

The BBC has this.

Update 14:23

The BBC also has this on Cable's killer punch!

Calamity Clegg and Cockup Chris!

I am sorry to any Liberal Democrats out there but when I heard this story break I did have to laugh.

The one thing that has so far characterised the latest Liberal Democrat Leadership campaign has been its sheer dullness and an almost complete lack of media interest...

That is until there is some dirt about, and now there is in the form of a "briefing note" sent out on Friday by "team Huhne" which caused a bit of a stir on this mornings politics show. That note was entitled "Calamity Clegg" and was sent out on Friday. Cockup Chris has been forced to apologise blaming the title of the document on an overzealous researcher, whilst standing by the contents highlighting policy "flip flops" Nick "Calamity" Clegg. Does that fill anyone with confidence? A choice between a flip flopper and a man whose team let the teas boy put titles on serious press briefings?

Well, it doesn't impress me, though it did make me laugh!

The BBC has this.

Is the Liberal Democrat leadership going to be the most boring ever?

Well, you do have to ask. It looks like it will be s straight fight between Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne. Or dull verses duller.

It is not that I think anyone else stands a chance, it just would be nice for a third or fourth candidate to add some interest to the competition. It would make the betting more interesting as well.

The two candidates did go "head to head" today, I would have taken some interest but alas fell asleep. The BBC has this here.

So will Charles Kennedy stand for the Liberal Democrat leadership?

Well, the question has to be asked. Will he be back? has Chat show Charlie kicked the habit or got it under control?

There is no doubt that having Charles Kennedy back as Liberal Democrat leader would be a big risk, but perhaps the bigger one would be not having him back?

The Liberal Democrats made the wrong choice last time. That much seems clear. They can't afford to repeat the mistake.

Sir Menzies Campbell resigns as Liberal Democrat leader!

Well, you could knock me down with a feather. It looks like the Liberal Democrats have knifed another leader Ming Campbell, the second time in this parliament.

Now don't get me wrong, I like to see a bit of infighting in Labour and the Liberal Democrats, but if anyone thinks this is going to help them they are much mistaken. Unless your party is led by a psychologically flawed dithering Stalinist control freak* perhaps you should ask not what your leader can do for you, but what you can do for your leader.

Still, I'll sit back and watch the fireworks, munching popcorn.


The BBC has this.

* Come on, if you are in that party, you know who you are :)

Liberal Democrats tearing themselves apart over Ming Campbell!

Well, there have been mutterings about Sir Menzies Campbell and his leadership of the Liberal Democrats for some time. It appears the dissenters key worry is the party's slide in the polls.

The thinking seems to go that if they had a different leader he could get more media coverage and hence get them up in the polls. As an example of such speculation see this on Lib Dem Voice.

I have just listened to quite a lot of open speculation on BBC Radio 4's World at One. Interesting.

I think that what the Liberal Democrats need to do is to wake up and smell the coffee. Firstly the government (currently Labour) makes most of the political weather, followed by the Conservatives as the largest opposition party in the commons, (and largest party in the land) then the others. At a time like this the Liberal Democrats are always going to struggle to be heard.

Change your leader if you feel like it, it wont make any difference.

Besides which us Conservatives like Ming Campbell.

The BBC has this.

The BBC also has this.

Salman Rushdie's Knighthood at an insensitive time!

I have just watched Question time on the BBC, one of the guests was Shirley, now Baroness Williams, former labour party minister and leading light of the SDP and now a Liberal Democrat peer.

On the question of the Knighthood given to Salman Rushdie, she said she thought the timing was insensitive.

All questions aside about whether or not his work merited a knighthood, or indeed whether given the offence supposedly caused (if indeed that should be a consideration) the question surely arises when would be a less insensitive time? Next week rather than last? next year rather than this?

The statement implies that it was appropriate to give the honour, just not now. Well if not now, when?

Trouble at mill for Ming Campbell

It seems that yesterdays revelations to the Guardian about possible jobs for Liberal Democrats in a Gordon Brown administration has had the brown stuff hitting the fan.

This morning the Guardian follows up with this article which indicates how bad it is getting in the party. Some choice quotes:

The disclosures in yesterday's Guardian threw the Lib Dems into turmoil with one frontbencher describing it as a "hand grenade" which had destabilised the party.

"A lot of people are angry, but no one knows who to be angry with," said one Lib Dem frontbencher. A furious colleague described it as "politically toxic", playing into the hands of the major parties.

His claim that for Lib Dems to join the government was never an option was disputed by government sources.

One cabinet minister predicted yesterday's revelations would hasten the Liberal Democrat leader's departure.

I do hope Ming can hang on, he is doing us loads of favours!

Gordon Brown did offer ministerial jobs to the Liberal Democrats!

There was a story in this mornings Guardian saying that Gordon Brown and Menzies Campbell met and discussed offering some Liberal Democrats ministerial posts. What has been clear over the course of the day is that a meeting did take place and jobs were on the table. They were, we are told refused.

This offer was apparently refused, and the Liberal Democrats have also that they did not know that was the subject of the meeting.

We do know that Ming Campbell is closer to Labour than the Conservatives, after all he was on record as setting 5 tests for Gordon Brown and making it clear that he wanted nothing to do with the Conservatives or David Cameron. It would be electoral suicide in my view though as it would make it clearer than ever that a vote for the Liberal Democrats would be a vote for Labour.

Even if it was secretly Gordon and Ming's ambition to form of coalition neither Labour or Liberal Democrat activists would wear it, and Ming now knows that.

So who told the media? And why?

Benedict Brogan of the Daily Mail raises some interesting lines on this on his blog, saying that the Westminster rumour says it was Paddy Ashdown, one of the people in the frame for a job.

Is he so hungry for a ministerial job that he would leak this sort of information or has he got a terminally big mouth? If it was not him could it be one of Brown's team upset at being spurned? We don't know for sure, but it is fun watching the strife it causes.

This is causing much internal strife in the parliamentary Liberal Democrat party (and probably beyond), which is something that grieves me deeply*. Tomorrow's Guardian carries an article to that effect (an update will be made later).

All interesting stuff.

The Times also has this, and Nick Robinson has this on his blog.

*Only joking!

So what future for the Liberal Democrats

It is interesting to observe the musings of the Liberal Democrats as they ponder what was a bit of a stuffing.

In Mid Sussex the Liberal Democrats seemed to have a plan, which someone may have communicated to Indigo Public Affairs, who predicted Mid Sussex would be taken by the said Yellow Peril.

The only problem with that of course is that we had one too, and ours worked oh so much better than theirs.

However if they are looking for someone to blame in their own ranks, and on the day of the count some clearly were, it seems that they will pin it on the people in their party, particularly in Burgess Hill, who went independent over "disagreements".

I have to say it helped, but we were not counting on it.

It seems though that elsewhere they are looking for bigger blood. Word reaches me that the leadership is being blamed both nationally and in Wales.

The Arsembly blog has a series of articles here on the ructions in the Welsh Liberal Democrats who have yet to make any progress since their first election of 6 AM's here, and here.

Meanwhile Ordovicius has this tale of blame here and coalition trouble for the Liberal Democrats here.

Then of course there is the slow bubling of noises about Ming Campbell's leadership. Iain Dale has round ups here and here.

I know that in Mid Sussex their PPC Serena Tierney (who rather ridiculously styles herself as Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesman*) was surprised at some of our results, particularly in Lucastes because I heard her say so. That made me laugh!

That said they obviously had high hopes and were looking to improve their seat numbers in the council and went backwards instead.


So should they blame Ming, their own internal divisions, their campaigning technique or what?

Frankly I don't care as long as they rip themselves apart, but then again I might be biased!

* To be fair at least the English language has not been garbled here. Spokesman is correct and can apply to both men and women. Spokesperson would have caused a rant on my part!

Liberal Democrats panicking in Ashenground!

As I said earlier, I was out on the campaign trail earlier today canvasing in the ward in which I am standing. (My running mate is Katy Bourne.)

If the frantic leaflet delivery is anything to go by, and yes Ashenground is getting more deliveries from the Liberal Democrats than it has before, including some expensive ones, they are in a bit of a panic!

I like a good campaign and a good fight, and that is what is happening!

Liberal Democrats on the run in Ashenground!

Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that I am standing for the local council elections on May the 3rd in Ashenground ward, in Haywards Heath, for the Conservative party.

I have been out on the campaign trail and delivering leaflets along with the rest of the Ashenground team for some months now, and it appears that the Liberal Democrats have only just noticed. It is currently held by the Liberal Democrats at both town and district level, but up until a couple of days ago they had only delivered one election leaflet.

Well, now all that has changed. They have now rushed out a big A3 glossy leaflet and appear to be running around like headless chickens!

I would not mind quite so much though, if they were not so sailing quite so close to the wind in terms of the truth, or rather implied lack of it.

Lets be clear. Their leaflet tells no lies, but it is close. For example in one of the candidates biographies, Richard Bates is said to have campaigned against changes in waste collection. The quote is:

Richard campaigned against black sack refuse scheme and says that the 2 weekly wheelie bin collection will make the streets even less appealing

Grammar aside, (after all you would expect them to proof read a leaflet) the problem with this is it implies the Liberal Democrats are against the 2 weekly collection doesn't it? It does not actually say that though. The problem is they are not. All party groups are behind the scheme and this is nothing more than cheap political point scoring.

Then there is this, on defending services, and in particular the services at the Princess Royal Hospital, (under a picture of a very small number of banner waving Liberal Democrats amongst 7,500 members of the Conservative group, Labour group and members of the public)

Lib Dems at last years rally in support of the PRH. Liberal Democrat councillors have been in the forefront of the fight to preserve local health services in Sussex. As Christine McLean says, "We have fought for many years under both both Labour and Tory governments for adequate funding and locally accountable health services"

Where is the problem? Well all party groups have been out campaigning in support of the Princess Royal Hospital, a lot of the work has been done by the Conservative group, including the setting up the Support the PRH website. You will note that the front page of that website you will see a picture of the 3 MP's who are backing the campaign, Nick Herbert, (Arundel and South Downs) Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex) and Norman Baker (Lewis). Nowhere does it mention parties, nor should it, as it is a cross party campaign.

Lastly there is this on supporting local groups:

"Grants to the CAB increased due to campaigning form (sic) the Lib Dem Town Cllrs. Lib Dems argued for more help for community groups. Steve Griffin says "All this can be funded from within the present budget without the need for tax rises"

What he does not say is that it is Liberal Democrat policy in the town to give town councillors an allowance, or where that money will come from!

Still, that is what I have come to expect from Liberal Democrat campaigns.