Just about second best: the latest Lib Dem polling

The latest polling figures on the standing of the Liberal Democrats and Tim Farron nicely capture the ‘recovered a bit but only a bit’ theme running through my warnings about Premature Stakhanovite Optimism.

Tim Farron is less unpopular than Jeremy Corbyn, but a long way behind Theresa May. The party overall, meanwhile is just (within the margin of error) less unpopular than Labour, SNP or, by some margin, Ukip. But again behind the Tories.

That’s the sort of background against which local council by-election campaigns can sparkle. But it’s not the sort of background which suggests a sustained, major recovery in the party’s fortunes is on its way.

To achieve that, the party has to do more and better – and hence my point about how the conference agenda shows how much more there is still to do.

The solution? A core votes strategy, of course supplemented by wise, winning election campaigns.