Voting opens this week for Lib Dem members to choose the next leader of their party. One figure has overwhelmingly dominated the race so far, both during public hustings and behind the scenes. Unfortunately, it has not been Ed Davey nor Layla Moran – but Keir Starmer. Both candidates are essentially engaged in a battle to see who would work more effectively with the new Labour leader.
As one Lib Dem donor put it to me: ‘I was worried about Ed but then in speaking to him I could see that he was keen on getting as close as possible to Starmer. That alleviated any fears I had.’ The Lib Dems seem to have decided that their next leader, whoever wins, will openly aim to help make Keir Starmer the next prime minister of Great Britain.
This raises the question: why don’t the Lib Dems just fold into the Labour Party? If you have decided that under any circumstances a Labour prime minister would be preferable to a Tory one, why not just join the red team for real and be done with it? The advantages would be plentiful if your aim is to get Starmer into Number 10, as well as personally helpful to sitting Lib Dem MPs and top 2019 candidates.
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