Are the Lib Dems spurning Tory advances?

Rhoda Klapp

Will you go with me for a million quid?

Yes.

Will you go with me for ten quid.

No, what do you take me for, a whore?

We decided you are a whore, now we're negotiating the price.

That's the Lib-Dems for you. Negotiating the price of their principles.

(Stale old joke repeated in case someone hasn't heard it. Rather like the lib-dems.)

fulcanelli

Let them join Labour. Then both will be lost in the sinking ship of this pitiful, shambolic excuse for a government. They're perfect for each other. Both useless!

John Wilkes

There remains the risk of a hung parliament. Are the Liberal Democrats really trying to give out the signal that they would prop up the current government? That ought to make them really popular up and down the country.

Chris the Owl

I've always regarded the Lib Dems as Labour Party outriders.

Westminster Watch

Does the Liberal Party also think Thatcher was responsible for the South Sea Bubble, The Charge of the Light Brigade, Every penalty missed by England in a penalty shhot-out, etc. Whereas I assume they are responsible for every economic success for the last 300 years, England winning the rugby world cup, etc.

what a bunch of idiots!

Mitch

They are irrelevant so who cares? they will be wiped out at the next election and they know it.
Everyone wants Brown gone and any party who offer to prop him up will not get any support.

Bernard from Horsham

Are there not two factions in the LD's? Clegg is more right of centre and Cable more left?
Its a classic problem for the LD's... two messages trying to please both factions.

RW

The LibDems are all about political posturing. It's hardwired into their collective psyche. They've done it for more than 80 years, man and boy, locally and nationally. It's so cheap and easy, and being an LD, you never have to do the hard stuff, like putting it into effect in power.

The LDs could no more stop posturing than Gordon Brown could start apologising. Unthinkable.

Rhoda Klapp, I for one hadn't heard that joke before - most apt.

Susan Hill

We do need Vince Cable-so-able ..he ought to join the Cameroons. The rest of them can vanish - there'd be no trace.

Chris

I'd be interested to see one iota of evidence that the Conservatives demutualised as much as a paperclip when in government. The building societies demutualised the building societies. Liberal Democrats - not liberal, not democratic, but above all, unprincipled liars.

Anan

How convenient to blame a Right wing party for all the ills of the country, whether they are in power or not. The fact that this mess has happened under a Left wing bosom buddy party of Liberal Defeatocrats, not the Conservatives who haven't been in power for 11 years, is of no consequence to these fools. If Labour and the colluding Liberal "tactical vote" Dems didn't like the policies so much, why didn't they CHANGE them? They had a public mandate to do so in 1997! Why will no one in the press or media just call Labour and LD up on this simple fact? Too busy sucking up to Labour I guess...

David Ossitt

They (the Lib Dems) will be very fortunate if the win more than eight or nine seats more than the BNP at the next general election.

In all truth they are an irrelevance in todays politics.

DCA

Of course in Harrogate - where this conference is most likey to be reported, they are in a fight with the Tories.

The lib dems can bash away at the Tories - but if they cosy up to Labour - they will split their own partY.
Mike on PB has already said - if they throw their lot in with Labour, he and others will leave and fight tooth and nail against their own former party.

Fact is they should never have wedded themselves to the SDP.
They have a philosophical split that threatens to rent them apart.

stereodog

Why are people getting so angry about this? Regardless of what the Liberals intend to do in the event of a hung Parliament they have to assert themselves as an independent party. Even if the Liberals intend to work with the Conservatives it doesn't mean they should act like a sub division of them.

Mike, Brighton

Never forget "Vince's law" in the city. Whilst the BBC loves anything the BBC-resident economic sage come genius utters and garland petals at his feet as he is interviewed; the concensus of economic analysts is the Vince is woefully out of date and anything he says to the media it probably wrong.

Love the "[The Tories] have been completely caught flat-footed by this crisis ... They didn't anticipate it."

Er like the LibDems did! Not.
I can vaguely remember Vince moning about the level of debt but he failed to mention sub-prime mortgage backed securities or CDOs!
And the LibDums planned to spend even more money that Labour, like that would reduce the public deficit!

Rob C

I predict that if GB holds on to the last possible moment for an election, Labour will be wiped out and after another 10-15 years in opposition will themselves become the minority party to the LD's gain. This will leave more traditional politics with the Liberals left of centre and the Tories right of centre. Labour will be a minority socialist grouping to the far left. Centre-ground will however move to the right as society becomes less keen on big state and big dependence. The alternative is ugly - a civil war as 'real' employment (non-state, wealth generating) falls and a tax paying minority will resent carrying an ever larger burden...

strapworld

If the TORIES were caught flatfooted, what about the great Seer and bloody know all, the twinkle toes of the Lib Dems Vince Cable, who now tells us it is all Maggie's fault. Shame he did not highlight the dangers at the time, or at anytime since!

The man is a total bore! Let him go home and prepare....for the Tango!

With a bit of luck, after the general election he might, just, be able to form a Country Barn Dance eight!!! They are going to lose big in the South West and they take their conference to Harrogate and not Cornwall!! Great Planning Lib Dems!!

John

RBS was never a building society!

Colin

Who is behind the "bigging up" of cable?

He told one mildly funny joke about brown and all of a sudden he's a cross between Gladstone, Tommy Cooper and the prophet Isiah.

His latest joke is to call for all private sector employes on high salaries to disclose the details. If he announced that he'll be disclosing exactly where he spends OUR money, in terms of expenses and other perks, I'd listen to him.

If he reads this blog, perhaps he'd like to take the lead and publish in detail by lunch time Monday the 9th?

Go on Vince, otherwise you just come across like the hypocrite poseur you've become...

Nick C

Oh dear the same old bleating about the Lib Dems, if they are so Completely Irrelevant why on earth do all these Tory-Bores bother even lifting a finger to type such Irrelevant Tat ??
My pediction: the Lib Dems will come out of next election with approx 75 seats + there will be a Hung-Parliament. Does anyone from Conservative Central Office have anything remotely sensible to say on this ?? Or do we just get more of the "Tired Old Politics" ?? YAWN ?????!!

Nick Cotter

PS - My name is Genuinely Nick C - Nick Cotter !!!!

David Ossitt

Nick C.

What planet are you from, I predict that they will lose at least half of their present seats.