Lib Dem leader candidates just handed by-election voters a great excuse NOT to support their party
Jo Swinson and Ed Davey: True blue?
How kind of Liberal Democrat leadership candidates to tell us all that they would cheerfully jump into bed with the Tories again – but wouldn’t enter a coalition with Labour.
Voters in the August 1 Brecon and Radnorshire by-election should draw the obvious conclusion: that a vote for the Liberal Democrats will not keep out the Tories.
In fact, only a vote for Labour will guarantee that the Conservatives will not benefit from the by-election.
It seems that, for once, the Liberal Democrat election merchandise really isn’t lying and it is a two-horse race!
But their horse has been lamed by the party’s leadership hopefuls. The Tories and the Brexit Party are both fielding donkeys, as we know.
That means Labour’s candidate should be the odds-on favourite.
If he isn’t, we’ll need to examine the reasons voters are being misled.
Here’s what Ms Swinson and Mr Davey said:
Liberal Democrat leadership hopefuls Jo Swinson and Sir Ed Davey have both ruled out propping up any future Corbyn-led Labour government.
Speaking in a Sky News head-to-head debate, the two MPs hoping to lead the Lib Dems said they would not join a coalition headed by Jeremy Corbyn.
“Absolutely not,” said Jo Swinson. “He’s a Brexiteer and is a danger to our country.”
“No coalition with Corbyn and Labour,” agreed Sir Ed.
“Partly because of his position on Brexit… but also he’s a very far left politician.
“The far left have their grasp of the Labour Party – they’re moving it to the far left – and that’s a really damaging threat to our economy.”
Labour chairman Ian Lavery told the Mirror:
“The bedroom tax, the tripling of tuition fees and the public sector pay freeze are just some of the disastrous policies that the Lib Dems and Conservatives shamefully imposed on our country.
“For Jo Swinson to suggest that her party could go back into coalition with the Conservatives tells you all you need to know about whose side the Lib Dems are really on.”
Let’s not stop at the bedroom tax, tuition fees and the public sector pay freeze, though! Why not list some other examples of Lib Dem collusion with the Tories?
There are a lot. This list is from Pride’s Purge:
- Allowing private companies to cherry pick plum NHS contracts
- Tax cuts for the rich
- Increase in VAT
- Sale of school playing fields
- Secret courts
- Closing libraries
- Cutting education budgets
- Privatisation of Royal Mail (Vince Cable’s personal project)
- Closing Sure Start centres
- Demonising the sick and disabled
- Benefit cuts for cancer patients
- The badger cull
- Cuts to the Social Fund for people in financial crisis
- Removal of employment protections for workers
- Removal of legal aid
So the Lib Dems have already helped the Tories cause misery – and have admitted they may do it again. Why would anybody vote for them?
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I may be missing something but where is the quote where they say they will go into coalition with the Conservatives? They say they won’t support Corbyn because of his position on Brexit, given Boris Johnson’s position on Brexit it seems fairly likely they won’t support him either!
I’ve answered this in a reply to someone else’s comment.
Yesterday’s battles. Bye-bye, Labour party.
Bye bye Liberal Democrats, you mean.
Tut tut that’s selected reporting, they also said they would not deal with Johnson/Hunt or indeed any leader promoting Brexit
It isn’t, you know. They ruled out any Labour coalition categorically but refused to do the same with the Tories.
That isn’t true, they ruled a coalition with Corbyn as he’s a brexiter. They also ruled out a coalition with brexiter tories. Dump Corbyn or get him to do what his members want and it’s a different picture.
If I recall correctly, Jo Swinson ruled out a coalition with Labour altogether but only said she was not envisioning a coalition with the Conservatives at the moment. She didn’t rule that out altogether. And Ed Davey didn’t rule it out at all.
Not forgetting their jubilant glee of ‘winning’ a 5p charge on carrier bags in exchange for tougher benefit sanctions
Unfortunately, both candidates said on Ch4 news last night that they would be willing to use nuclear weapons.
And so it is great to see Edinburgh being the latest city to voice its support for nuclear weapons abolition:
http://www.nuclearban.scot/edinburgh-backs-ican-cities-appeal/
Back in 2017 a LibDem canvasser asked if they could count on my vote in Theresa May’s upcoming General “lets increase my majority” Election. I said no, explained that I was a Labour Party member and brought up the issue of the LibDems after the 2010 GE when a vote for them became a vote for the Tory party. He quite flippantly replied “Oh, we won’t have to do that this time, she is going to win easily”.
Interpretation: We are really Tories and we will always side with them.
I have no words.