Nick Clegg’s declaration that the Lib Dems will now concentrate on snaring 50 paticularly vulnerable Labour seats at the next election (see video above) is a puzzling one. Ok, it might – as Guido points out – seal the near-total defeat of Labour, as the Tories and Lib Dems carve up Labour territory between themselves. But that’s assuming Clegg’s party actually wins those seats – a very big ask, given how they’re currently polling.
Instead the potential’s there for Clegg’s new tactic to further divide the party, and perhaps even weaken their election efforts. You see, this is the same Nick Clegg who sold the Lib Dems as “tax-cutting” party only a couple of weeks ago – one assumes in an effort to nab votes from the Tories. But now the priority is nabbing votes from Labour, and Clegg will surely have to take his party leftwards in order to achieve that.
Of course, the sizeable Lib Dem left will be delighted. But – as James Kirkup writes over at Three Line Whip – the right-leaning elements of the party will be less than amused. The general feeling, though, will be confusion: “Which direction is Clegg taking us in? Where will we be next week?” Problem is, this is a sentiment which could well be shared by voters – leaving Clegg’s brand of pendulum politics as a “catch none” problem, rather than a “catch all” solution.
P.S. Do check out Jonathan Isaby’s neat list of the 50 target seats.
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