This isn’t an article about who would win a second EU referendum and why (or why not) I believe that to be the case. That in itself is a prime example of Remainer complacency. No, this runs much deeper than that.
Remainers have started in what looks like their millions to turn away from Corbyn and his promise to consider to look into the possibility of the option of whether or not keeping another EU referendum with Remain as an option “on the table” might be a good idea. This is a positive step. Yet there is much to worried about beyond the wildly Brexity promises now being made by both of the men in the final two to be the next Tory leader.
I don’t wish to be overly churlish about the Lib Dem leadership contest. I like both Ed and Jo and think either will be a decent leader. However, I have to admit that if I had been in a coma for the last year and had only the leadership hustings to go by in terms of trying to guess where the Lib Dems are in the polls, I would guess that the 7 or 8% rating had stayed exactly where it was. Both of the candidates still sound like they are running to lead a fringe party, not one who could even in the current crazy environment win a majority.
“Yet there is much to worried about beyond the wildly Brexity promises now being made by both of the men in the final two to be the next Tory leader.”
Nick, you have missed the significance of your above comment. It seems to me from the various reports this past weekend, and from the previous week or so, that a discernible Brexit consensus for a swift EU exit is forming right across the top of the Conservative party – whoever wins the leadership contest: Boris Johnson or that nice Mr Hunt. The MSM seems behind-the-curve on recognising this.
The European election has acted like a galvanising electric shock to Conservative MPs and to some Labour MPs as well. Which is why Boris and Jeremy are saying what they are saying. And Labour MPs like Jon Cruddas, Caroline Flint and Stephen Kinnock are sending Brexity-sounding round-robin letters to the party leader and writing articles for newspapers for anyone who cares to read them.
Nick
For a start not everyone has forgotten swinson or Davey part in that slasher movie called the orange coalition
I know you would like to
Or that might have led directly to the brexit vote by squeezing everybody’s nuts with austerity
Labour comes out for remain at the election
As soft cell would say say hello wave goodbye to liberal vote
I think most people haven’t a clue who Swinson and Davey are to be honest. A firm of solicitors?
No the muppets who allowed a tory government to function through austerity and are now being held up as our saviours
That’s who
You know, there is a serious point here. If the Lib Dems hadn’t gone into the coalition, then there would have been a minority conservative government, which would have meant another general election in 2010 or early 2011 (no Fixed-Term Parliament Act, remember).
That probably would have resulted in a Conservative maority government.
Without the excuse of keeping the Lib Dems happy, Cameron wouldn’t have been able to do all the things which annoyed his grass-roots (same sex marriage etc). Which means he might not have had to promise an EU referendum to keep them on-side for 2015.
Things might now be very very different.
NICK CLEGG
WHAT WERE YOU DOING
A drunk Charles Kennedy had more insight god rest his soul
He got both Iraq and tory collaboration right
Both were crimes