Activists for the two big conservative parties often pose the question: "what are the Liberal Democrats for?" in attempts to squeeze our vote at election time. I fear we have rather played into their hands in the current parliament in spending more time responding to current events than publicising our core beliefs or at least our unique political positions. I am as guilty as anyone in that, but at least I have emphasised that merely getting rid of the Conservatives in national government or breaking up the Labour fiefdoms locally is not an end in itself. One must have something to put in their place. "Oppositionism" is not enough.
That is why I was pleased to receive from federal HQ this link to a speech by Sir Ed Davey to a leading think-tank. To be sure, it is peppered with attacks on the last decade of Tory government, but its main point is that of improving democracy, something that Liberals and Liberal Democrats have always stood for. As Sir Ed said:
This year marks a century since the Liberal Party made its first commitment to proportional representation. One hundred years on, our Liberal Democrat commitment to PR is stronger than ever.
This may surprise you but I see electoral reform as part of our great patriotic mission. After all, it was the nineteenth-century Liberal John Bright who famously described England as the “Mother of Parliaments”. And for a long time, the world looked to British democracy as a beacon - as the quality standard. Regrettably, that’s no longer the case.
So as someone who wants my country to lead the world once more, in the quest to build strong, vibrant democracies, I firmly believe we have to strengthen our democracy at home. To re-establish Britain’s democratic reputation in the world.
I should note for historical completeness that John Bright also coined the phrase “flogging a dead horse” in relation to his own efforts to reform our electoral system.
So our job is to revive the horse, and finish the work!
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