The official Lib Dem statements on changes at party HQ

Here’s what Vince Cable has told the press about changes at Liberal Democrat HQ following reports in the media of job cuts being made:

Speaking in Edinburgh, Sir Vince Cable said there was no “black hole” within the party finances but said a lot of restructuring was having to take place.

He said: “We’ve been campaigning on Brexit, our resources have been going into that and some of the general activities have been cut back.

“All political parties have had this problem.

“It doesn’t affect our effectiveness as a political movement although obviously it’s difficult for the individuals if we’re having to scale back and there are fewer jobs … We are having to live within our means as any other organisation does.”

Questioned if the staff cut would cause problems if there was a snap general election, he said: “It’s partly because we’re needing to make absolutely sure that our campaigning activities are at full capacity that we have to readjust.”

A party spokesperson also said:

We are in the process of carrying out a reorganisation which will see a reduction in the number of staff at our headquarters.

We are focusing our resources to carry on leading the fight against Brexit and taking on power and privilege to build a country where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.

Since gaining seats in last year’s General Election the Liberal Democrats have been winning seats in council by-elections across the country and are leading the fight to stop Brexit through a People’s Vote.

An apology to readers: as I sit on a couple of party committees which have oversight of the changes happening at party HQ, it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to write about the stories in the news in the way I usually would. But hopefully the above helps puts them in some context.