Lib Dem endgame as party pushed into 5th place behind Greens
I reckon we can expect the Liberal Democrat Party to collapse after the 2015 election. In that event, I think the Orange Bookers would defect to the Conservative Party (which is where, ideologically, they belong – one of my commenters talked about them all being adherents of traditional Whig “power of new money uber alles” thinking and I like his description of the current government as “Whiggery-pokery”). There might be a rump Liberal Party left behind – the LD MP in my own constituency, Brecon and Radnorshire, is a former Labour Party member so I don’t expect him to join the Tories – but they’d be a spent force.
Beastrabban, reblogging this, wrote the following: “In some ways it’s sad that Clegg’s opportunism has brought the party close to extinction, thus marginalising the party that did the most in the 19th century to develop modern civil liberties and the tradition of democratic government, and produced one of the greatest Prime Ministers this country has ever had in the figure of Gladstone. However, their conduct in joining the Tories and willingly supporting their programme of welfare cuts, privatisation and the persecution of the poor and sick in favour of a Neoliberal economic programme means that they are getting exactly what they deserve. And students in particular have not forgotten or forgiven Clegg for the way he broke his promise not to raise tuition fees, and then his glib excuse afterwards for so doing. The tripling of the fees has led to all but the richest being further in debt. About a quarter of students will suffer from depression during their time at university, and increased worries about money won’t help. They feel bitterly betrayed, and Clegg rightly has earned their hatred and contempt.”
I wanted to flag up the line about students suffering from depression during their time at university – many of them because Nick Clegg has put them into debt.
The Lib Dems are hopefully doomed now.