More than any other British political party, the Liberal Democrats face an existential crisis. They have been reduced from 57 MPs in 2010 to just eight – the same number as the Democratic Unionists – and have become a byword for hypocrisy and opportunism following their role in the coalition government. The Scottish National Party, the UK Independence Party and the Greens have all, in different ways, captured the political territory they once occupied. An increasing number of commentators call for them simply to dissolve themselves, or to merge with Labour or the Conservatives.
Next month Liberal Democrat members will elect a leader to inherit what remains of their party. The two candidates, representing a quarter of their number in the Commons, are Tim Farron, the former party president, and Norman Lamb, the former health minister. It is Mr Farron (interviewed in this week’s magazine) who offers the Lib Dems their best hope of recovery. Unlike Mr Lamb, he is untainted by service in the Tory-led government and voted against policies such as higher tuition fees and the bedroom tax. He won his constituency of Westmorland and Lonsdale from the Conservatives in 2005, ending nearly a century of rule by a single party, and transformed it into one of the safest Lib Dem seats in Britain through Stakhanovite campaigning. He is devoted to the causes the Lib Dems must embody if they are to survive, let alone flourish: constitutional reform, civil liberties, environmentalism and social justice. Like his late mentor Charles Kennedy, he is a sincere and humane communicator. The revival of the Lib Dems will be the work of many years; Mr Farron is the best man to begin the long journey back across the wasteland.
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Now listen to George, Stephen and Caroline discussing Tim Farron’s leadership prospects on the NS podcast:
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