30% of the vote in Witney – the fifth safest Tory seat – above UKIP and some other stragglers.

Not bad for a forgotten party

Tim Farron looked in good fettle last time i saw him. Not sure who the other one is but more power to him/her for keeping going.

Not forgotten, but not getting the coverage they once did. I’m encouraged by this, they did go all out, but it suggests that when people have the party platform presented to them it does strike a chord and have some appeal.

Sad that being a united, coherent party with a solid message makes for lousy ‘news’.

I live in Witney and the Lib Dem’s have obviously spent a lot of time and money on this one, we’ve had piles of letters and flyers through the door in the last couple of weeks and more than half of it has been Lid Dem!

Yes, noticed that too. I think they’ll pick up a lot of anti-Brexit Tory votes (and there are a lot of those at least in the South) and a lot Labour voters dismayed by Corbyn. Not seen much of Farron but Clegg comes across well on TV.

I think they have the potential to do well next time around.

jimdubleyou – Member

I think they have the potential to do well next time around.

Wonder what would happen if they went full-bore “we’re not leaving Europe”

Surprising.

I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

But then we’ve learned how stupid the UK public really are in recent months.

Not seen much of Farron but Clegg comes across well on TV.

yep, he’s achieving “statesman” like status…

legend – Member
jimdubleyou – Member
I think they have the potential to do well next time around.

Wonder what would happen if they went full-bore “we’re not leaving Europe”

POSTED 1 MINUTE AGO # REPORT-POST SHARE

Agreed, what would happen..

chakaping – Member

Surprising.

I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

But then we’ve learned how stupid the UK public really are in recent months.

In the absence of any sensible option….

I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

Hmmmm you mean the “unpricipled weasels” who, whilst part of a coalition, stopped the Tories from going full-Tory? I think now they have sole, uncontested power, we are seeing the Tories in their true colours.

I, for one, would be interested to see what they have to say at the next round of elections.

If the next General Election doesn’t happen before 2020, there will be a lot of questioned asked if Article 50 has not been invoked by Theresa and then another party like the Lib Dems miraculously got into power with a manifesto that included staying in Europe whole-heartedly.

It’s very hard to believe that ~100 years ago, the Whigs were the party in power.

unprincipled weasels

Principles are useless without power, as Labour will prove after the next general election.

The Lib Dems get/got hammered for being in coalition with the Tories, but people forget that many of the achievements that the Tories take credit for (like the £10k+ tax allowance) were actually Lib Dem policies. And they only got those policies accepted by compromising on other things (like tuition fees). That’s what you get with coalition; compromise. And there’s never a perfect compromise.

*edit* and what Mikey74 said

I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

TBH Tim Farron is the only politician I’d let into my home without searching them on the way in and out, have met him a couple of times and he seems a genuinely good bloke, I don’t share all his views but would venture that as a human being he’s a different proposition to the oxbridge by the numbers blair clones of the rest of the centre ground

He even stoppped for a chat when I snapped my Grapil

UKIP no longer represent a protest vote, as there seems to be the perception they might actually achieve something, leaving the Lib Dems clear to take back their rightful place as the party people vote for when they don’t want to vote.

I’ve said in another thread, now more than ever, there is a place for the Lib Dems, a pro-Europe, centre ground party is exactly what we need with the Tory’s pushing right and Labour pushing left. There are a lot of people at the moment who don’t feel they fit with either of the main parties, I for one would like to see a resurgent Lib-Dems do well.

Agree with IHN. LibDems were the brakes on the Tory bandwagon in the coalition and somehow – combination of the Tory press and the ignorance/lack of experience as to what a coalition had to be – got made the whipping boys for having given up on one part of their manifesto.

Whereas every other politician in history has always delivered exactly what they promised, obviously.

corroded – Member

Not seen much of Farron but Clegg comes across well on TV.

TBH mostly what Clegg’s done lately is tell us all the things he should have said and done when he was in government. It’s interesting, but if he’d done it then it’d have been important. Instead it’s basically a list of mistakes and regrets with his name on top.

Well the student fees issue was unfortunate but they still align closest with my own views. They’re the only party opposed to the snoopers charter for example.

“I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

But then we’ve learned how stupid the UK public really are in recent months.”

Steady. People like Binners still need someone they can vote for. 😉

So what’s the Libs’ stance on Trident, then? Because they have a lot of persuading to do in Scotland after the Blatant Liar episode.

Now that the Tories have effectively morphed into UKIP, and Labour has become has become the Socialist Workers Party (comrade) its almost as if normal, non-deranged people are looking to find someone who isn’t completely ****ing insane to vote for…..

binners – Member
Now that the Tories have effectively morphed into UKIP, and Labour has become has become the Socialist Workers Party (comrade) its almost as if normal, non-deranged people are looking to find someone who isn’t completely ****ing insane to vote for…..

its a big hill for them to climb though, still a lib-lab coalition is a reasonable prospect

what I dont understand is why the Tories are going even further right atm, UKIP has managed to completely implode, they dont need to appeal to the racists anymore!

So what’s the Libs’ stance on Trident, then? Because they have a lot of persuading to do in Scotland after the Blatant Liar episode.

They’re officially against.

after the Blatant Liar episode.

I thought that was an anagram of Tony Blair for a moment.

I was hoping these unprincipled weasels would be consigned to the dustbin of history.

Really? You could see the coalition with the Tories as blatant opportunism and selling out. Or you could see it as putting your moral duty to mitigate the worst of Tory policy before your own long term political future. Or you could see it as a pragmatic mix of the two.

But as you say chakaping some members of the public really are stupid aren’t they 🙂

what I dont understand is why the Tories are going even further right atm, UKIP has managed to completely implode, they dont need to appeal to the racists anymore!

I think a lot of them are rather enjoying themselves, and have taken the referendum resultas a sign that they don’t have to pretend any more, and are now positively revelling in showing their true colours.

And from inside their little bubble, they can’t see how repellent this is to most moderate voters

mikey74 – Member
Hmmmm you mean the “unpricipled weasels” who, whilst part of a coalition, stopped the Tories from going full-Tory? I think now they have sole, uncontested power, we are seeing the Tories in their true colours.

I, for one, would be interested to see what they have to say at the next round of elections.

IHN – Member
unprincipled weasels
Principles are useless without power, as Labour will prove after the next general election.

The Lib Dems get/got hammered for being in coalition with the Tories, but people forget that many of the achievements that the Tories take credit for (like the £10k+ tax allowance) were actually Lib Dem policies. And they only got those policies accepted by compromising on other things (like tuition fees). That’s what you get with coalition; compromise. And there’s never a perfect compromise.

*edit* and what Mikey74 said

Quite right.

Your typical educated, “centre-left-leaning” (if such labels mean anything) STW forum user would be far better served by Lib Dem ideas than modern Labour. Since when was “extremism” useful for running a country?

The Tories’ mask has fully slipped now and it isn’t pretty.

Your typical educated, centre-left-leaning STW forum user would be better served by Lib Dem ideas than modern Labour.

Indeed, I’ve always voted LibDem (and not through blind allegiance, just because at each election they are the party that aligns with my thoughts the most)

Actually, that’s no quite true, I voted Tory in ’97. Yep, I was the one 😕

Agree with IHN. LibDems were the brakes on the Tory bandwagon in the coalition and somehow – combination of the Tory press and the ignorance/lack of experience as to what a coalition had to be – got made the whipping boys for having given up on one part of their manifesto.

Unfortunately they were the people who enabled the tories to do very much what the lib dems had said they would not do

its true they tempered them

Its true they enabled them
IMHO clegg was very naive -0 as NW notes he seems to agree- and they were rghtly stomped on by the electorate

TBH Tim Farron is the only politician I’d let into my home without searching them on the way in and out, have met him a couple of times and he seems a genuinely good bloke

went to college with him and agree but he has found god and I dont trust politicians who have a higher authority that is not real

Since when was “extremism” useful for running a country?

What is sextreme in relation to labour

Lazy tabloid trope – where is ernie when you need him?

What is sextreme in relation to labour

Well, Corbyn and Abbot making the beast with two backs for one thing 🙂

😳

😆

I think Junkyard has not got over the Kylie thread yet with his ‘sextreme’ views.

I voted Libdem for years until that Godless Philanderer took over and like Blair promised everything and delivered nothing, made for TV good looking suited white boy when are we ever going to learn.

What they should do next, merge with the Greens, kick out the mentally retarded tree hugging nutters and present a solid Green opposition, oppose the fossil fuel lobby at every turn and call this so called Green Tory party (they did say they were green once I recall) to account.

I don’t think the LibDems have made massive ground here. Witney was the fifth safest seat because the PM was the incumbent. New candidate, mid-electoral term, and a similar majority to what Cameron got first time around.

Nice to see them edging away from oblivion though. God knows we need some effective opposition.

“God knows we need some effective opposition.”

And you genuinely think the LibDems will offer that? 😆

Do you not remember what happened when they were in the coalition?

Low turnout, comfortable Tory hold. Just a few days ago articles where speaking of a Lib dem win 😯

Lib Dems: Unprincipled indeed. AV was a “grubby little compromise” and Student Fees for a start

I see Corbyn was actually invited to campaign there so that’s a step up from “please stay away”

Bernie Saunders brother stood for the Greens

What’s extreme with Labour ? A leader in favour of no Nukes (unilateral), veherminantly anti NATO and US, Marxist Chancellor, pro nationalisation. Protest politics

“normal, non-deranged people”

People like you, Binners? 😀

“Your typical educated, “centre-left-leaning” STW forum user…”

..would understand that Labour are nowhere near being ‘extremists’, and that such labels are only applied by desperate/deluded/ignorant/paranoid right-wingers.