Quiz Clegg

Mike

Why did you abstain in the vote on the EU constitution, sorry treaty and not act a true Liberal to vote to allow the people a referendum as you promised in your election manifesto. You should be ashamed. P.S. Don't say that the constitution and treaty are different they are not it is sophistry and an insult to pretend otherwise. We all know they are materially the same. 2)

Austin Barry

What is the point of the Lib. Dems? You will never take power, notwithstanding the endlessly and witlessly asserted "breakthrough" years, except possibly in some squalid coalition, and you simply work to spoil the dynamics of a two party system. You are the party of and for self-righteous eunuchs.

Peter

If the Lib Dems hold the balance of power in 2010, which Cabinet portfolios are you after, and who would fill them?

Tim Hedges

You have made rather anti-government spending noises recently. Is there a figure for spending as a %age of GDP which you would regard as roughly about right - 35/40/45/50%?

mike

You joined the wrong Party. If you really want to be in power you need to look and sound less like Cameron and his clones. The public are having trouble sorting out who is who. Drop the jokes and insults, only MPs and the press appear to enjoy ridiculing the PM. Perhaps you should ask Gordon for a job, and grow a beard. Hope I've helped, oops nearly forgot my question. What do you want to do when you leave politics, as you will still be young enough to start a new career ?

Mark Heenan

Nick, In recent weeks I've had the impression that you're trying to position yourself as the natural party of choice for "stop the world I want to get off" heckling types. Why do you think this style of presentation will be successful?

Lee Jakeman

Nick Clegg suggested that corrupt MP's should be forced to resign and face a by-election. What does he mean by "corrupt"? He means, of course, financially corrupt, as in fiddling expenses etc. What about other forms of corruption? The Liberal Democrats promised a referendum on Europe and they have rneged on that promise. Isn't that a form of corruption? So when are all those Lib Dem MP's going to resign?

syllabub

I am a small "l" liberal. Why should I vote for the Lib Dems rather than the Conservatives?

ken from glos

why send a question to a nonentity who lied about the eu referendum? He is finished

Buckinghamshire Tory

Mr Clegg, do you beleive in free-market capitalism?

The Wonderful Jones

I have two questions: 1. The photo on the homepage of your website makes you look like a young Declan Donnelly from Ant and Dec. Isn't is time you changed it? 2. What's it like to be grilled by Jeremy Paxman?

Fergus Pickering

Would you and your wife, under any circumstances at all, send either of your two young sons to your local English comprehensive school? Do you know any of your colleagues who do this? Do you know any of your colleagues who do not do this? Is it, like religion, a matter for the individual conscience?

Graeme

Nick - do you agree with John Hutton who said this week, "So rather than questioning whether high salaries are morally justified, we should celebrate the fact that people can be enormously successful in this country. We want more millionaires in Britain not less."

Dave B

1. Other than MPs, can you name any other group who can use their expense account to buy houses?

2. Should MPs be able to make capital gains from investments paid for from their expense account?

Dave B

Are you in favour of using 'open primaries' to select parliamentary candidates?

IanY

Is trade the best way to improve China's human rights record?

Jonny Mac

Do you honestly believe your party will win a general election within the next ten years?

William Norton

When does Huhne take over?

Thomas Widmann

Were the LibDems in Scotland wrong when they refused to sit down with the SNP to discuss forming a coalition? Isn't it always worth sitting down with your opponents to find out whether there's common ground, rather than setting out preconditions that go against the other party's manifesto? If there was a hung parliament in Westminster, would the LibDems again set out preconditions that would have to be fulfilled before they would even sit down to talk?

Guy Incognito

Who is your favourite *Star Wars* character and why? My favourite is Han Solo, because he has the coolest space-ship.

Terry

I think you are on record as saying that if ID cards become compulsory, you will not comply and go to prison if necessary. Can you confirm this is correct. My decision whether or not to support compulsory ID cards rests on you answer.

Salvatore

Bearing in mind the low public opinion of politicians generally, which political system do you think is the sleaziest, and most abused by politicians, the British or the European version, and why do you form that view.

Max Kaye

Do you believe that manifesto promises should be fulfilled?

If yes, why did you not do so? If no, why should we ever trust you again?

(Note: Abstaining is not an option).

janjar

What single most important piece of legislation can parliament pass to show we have a distinct national identity seperate and different from Europe and The USA?

Ian C

What is it about the International Institutions such the EU and UN that convinces you we should allow them to control what we can and can't do in our own homes, streets, buinsesses and country?

MO

Why have the Lib Dems abstained from the vote on the Lisbon Treaty? Please do not try reply by calling for a referendum on our membership with the EU - focus the answer on the Lisbon Treaty.

Adam

You speak of your liberal concern at the onward march of the database state and the surveillance society, and yet at a local level Liberal Democrats are some of the most pro-CCTV people you can find. Apart from the fact that the Lib Dems are a federal and decentralised party, yadda yadda, what's your own view?

Wally Wallet

Why does your London mayoral candidate, Brian Paddick, get so little attention in the media when in local by-elections in London since he was adopted it is the Liberal Democrats who have scored over 38 per cent of the vote compared with 30 per cent for Conservatives and only 23 per cent for Labour? Shouldn't you be the front-runners?

UB

Are the Liberal Democrats still in favour of proportional representation? If so, why so silent on the issue?

J. Finnigan

Why don't you admit that you are a strong believer in the Bismarkian system of Healthcare which has proved so successful in Europe. You would be greatly respected by the party and the country if you advocated the dismantling of the outdated Centralised Beveridge System which disappeared from most of the Eastern European countries with the fall of the Berlin Wall. David Cameron knows it but daren’t say it. (and so, I suspect, does Ed Balls, Gordon Brown’s likely successor)

aadrian drummond

Why on earth is the Spectator magazine bothering with such a pointless exercise?

John

When you read the the other questions submitted Mr Clegg, do you think this sort of online Q+A is (1) an excellent opportunity for politicians to reach out to the public, (2) a display of how pointlessly rude and arrogant many people making comments on political websites are, or (3) something else?

BluePorcupine

What would you do to help those on lower incomes currently facing a massive tax hike when the 10% band rises to 20% next month?

Iain Rubie Dale

Following last week's euro vote fiasco will you continue to insist on a three line whip on absention in the future?

Rob Blackie

You mentioned the possibility of tax cuts in your conference speech. Can you elaborate on this?

Pete

Well done for agreeing to answer questions on here. Two from me- 1)The Lib Dems have, in the past, given the impression that their solution to everything was just to increase taxes in order to lavish money on problems. Now that New Labour have proved this to be ineffective, how would a LibDem government fund spending on education, NHS, defence etc? 2) MPs were already a devalued currency with the public following years of labour spin, expense fraud etc. Would you agree that their stock has diminished even further following the refusal of the government, helped by your party's abstention, to give a referendum on the Lisbon constitution? Can you understand why people are put off politicians by this cynical game of MPs putting party before country?

Matthieu

Mr Clegg, what in your opinion is the point of Austin Barry (see above)?

Paul S

How can you on one hand - block a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, and on the other call for a new type of government with an end to deals being "sewn up between a few chums in the Westminster bubble."

David

The Liberal Democrats have been observed to have a problem with regards to many of their seats being held in marginals where the Conservatives are in second place, yet having a broader membership base derived from those of the SDP-type persuasion, to the left of these constituencies. Further, the so-called 'Orange Book' group of liberals at the top of the party seems out of step with this base. How do you propose to deal with this discrepency? When it comes to the crunch, which would you consider to be the most important group to appeal to?

Bob Shaw

Did Shirley Williams threaten to resign from the party over the Lisbon Treaty?

Anthony

Why do you think some people are incapable of accepting that a two-party system is not the norm? (Austin Barry above being a good example of the "self-righteous eunochs" he refers to)

Dave B

Do you think it was a mistake for the British state to promote 'multiculturalism'?

Dave B

Do you think the Parliament Act should be repealed?

Alistair

Will you require Lib Dem peers to abstain on any Lisbon Treaty referendum vote by imposing a 3 line whip?

Dinti Batstone

How can we remove the poison from the debate about Europe in this country?

London Calling

Is your party or the Government prepared for the fact that America may go to War with Iran and if so what preparations are you making for the British people in the event of such action. 1) Would you support America as our Lone ranger Blair did or will you listen to the British people this time? 2)What are your views or plans if any ,to prepare and protect the British people from Islamic extremists within our shores when a backlash occurs in the event of America going to war with Iran.

Will Heaven

Your commitment to an independent Lib Dem party, i.e. one that is not part of a coalition, seems stubborn. Is you party determined not to taste real power?

aristeides

If a referendum on our membership of the European Union was held and won by the side advocating staying in, would you consider this a mandate to accept all current and future European treaties and constitutions without further referenda?

Nick Kaplan

If there were to be a hung parliament at the next election, would it not make more sense for you as an Orange Book Lib Dem, to align yourself with the Cameroons given their aims on education and the economy? And is the only thing stopping you from doing this the fact that the majority of your MPs Kennedy et al, are far more Labour inclined, if so are you not in the wrong party?

Cranmer

Mr Clegg, You recently stated unequivocally that he will ‘never join a Labour or Tory Cabinet’. Is not this a curiously dogmatic assertion, considering proportional representation demands precisely such cooperation? What kind of 'pluralism' commits itself to never collaborating in order to achieve its ends?

sara p

will you re-instate the lib-dem policy of increasing tax for top earners. without that you've lost my vote.

Liz Elliot-Pyle

How can you regain any trust that electors may have had in your party after your shamefull behaviour over the Lisbon Treaty vote? Are you going to force your members in the House of Lords to abstain on this vote as well?

James Lees

Will you whip the Lib Dem Peers to abstain on the Lord's Lisbon Treaty referendum amendment? [and if they defy you to vote for or against a referendum will you sack them?]

Elf

Shirley Williams did threaten to resign if you backed a referendum didn't she? Is it not the case that you showed a lack of strong and decisive leadership, given that you chose to give into someone who is now a political irrelevancy rather than honour a manifeto promise?

Water

In a word referendum, what happened do you think anyone will vote for your now considering your actions.

Water

To second the comment by Rob Blackie how will you be cutting taxes?

Simon Lamb

Why do you send your own children to a faith school in Putney, when you profess to being an atheist?

Matthew Turnbull

Will having an in/out referendum on Europe be in your next manifesto and be a precondition of you joining a coalition government? I only ask because I suspect that this policy was only invented to get you out of your Lisbon promise and you will now discard it. Tell me I am wrong.

Vincent McKenzie

What policies do you have which stand out from the other lying bastards? I can't think of any!

James Lees

Do you still believe in an amnesty for illegal imigrants?

David Tarbuck

Who do you like more: Bart Simpson or Dennis the Menace?

Dave B

With the benefit of hindsight, is there any way the Liberal Party could have halted, or prevented, the rise of the Labour Party?

Paul Evans

One of the Liberal Democrats largest donors, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, complains that the gap between the poorest and richest in society is at its widest for decades. Do you believe it would be a moral good to reduce this inequality, as opposed to simply eliminating absolute poverty? If yes, what can a liberal government do to promote this without needlessly penalising society’s wealth-creators?

The Wonderful Jones

Did you or your aides have a nickname for Chris Hulme during your leadership campaign, and was it as catchy as Calamity Clegg?

A Ellis

Why did you allow yourself to become complicit in an act of Treason, by reneging on your menefesto promise, and abstaining on the EUSSR's constitutional treaty referendum.

Stepehn Bonner

As an oversea's voter I am curious as to your opinion on the influx of Eastern European's into the U.K. and if they are there legally will this affect your voting stance on issues within the Eastern Euopean nations and their internal affairs.

James Lees

What do you think of Gordon Brown's proposed plan for getting rid of first past the post for Commons elections, and has your party ever discussed this with the Government? Secondly was this the pay back for your abstaining on the EU Treaty?

Dave B

Should refusal to pay the BBC TV license fee be a criminal offence?

Dave B

An "ex Whitehall paper-shuffler", commenting on the Burning Our Money website, said:

"I have long been of the opinion that utterly brutal surgery is the only option for civil service reform. You need to take a long hard look at whole departments and ask "do we need these" two that spring to my mind are DCMS (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) and DCLG (Department for Communites and Local Government), I cannot see anything useful about either of those departments - do we really need some-one sitting in Whitehall, pondering the state of the premier league, the lack of decent tennis players or whatever. Do we really need to pay hordes of civil servants to produce centrally directed policies for local governments? If the answer is no, then Central Gov and the Whitehall machine should pull out of those areas completely and lay off the staff involved. No meaningful cuts will ever be made by tinkering round the edges."

http://www.haloscan.com/comments/mikedenham/3997258201261246034/#262117

Is this an approach you will consider, when, as you said in your recent conference speech, you 'look for new ways to hand it [tax revenue] back'?

Dave B

Direct Democracy's proposal to solve the West Lothian Question is that:

"the powers that are currently exercised by the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly would, in England, be devolved to a much more local level or else removed altogether from the orbit of the state. MPs from throughout the United Kingdom would therefore find themselves on an equal footing. "

http://www.direct-democracy.co.uk/display_page.asp?section=policy&id=10

Is Direct Democracy's proposed solution to the West Lothian Question, one that you could support?

Simon Maynard

1. With the prospect of third party squeeze at the next election, how do you plan to rebrand your party to carve out a distinctive identity?

2. You had the courage publically to declare that you are an atheist. How does your secular outlook affect your political views?

Fluffydogmummy

Would you consider changing the party's name to "The Calamities"?

Fluffydogmummy

When Vince Cable comes on the T.V. everyone listens.

Does this worry you at all?

Ed

Isn't it ironic that your party portrays itself as internationalist and pro-EU yet at the same time many of your MPs and PPCs make great play of candidates from other parties who live a few miles outside of a constituency?

Robert El;-Cid.

Would Mr. Clegg agree that the Swiss appear to use their system of public participation in important democratic matters by Referenda exceptionally well, and the system is readily accepted by the public in all the Cantons. Rather strange that a country at the very epi-centre of Europe chose to remain outside the European Union, and still remain merely trading partners. Why can't you support a similar set up for the UK????

Roy68

Discuss proper etiquette and social graces. ,