Are the Lib Dems about to lose an MP? Never Mind The Bar Charts Episode #6
Welcome to the latest edition of Never Mind The Bar Charts, in which Stephen finally gets me to talk about Brexit. But only after discussing the Newport West by-election, the reliability of the national opinion polls, the likely Liberal Democrat leadership contest and whether the party might be about to lose Norman Lamb from its ranks.
Listen and enjoy…
Show notes
- Norman Lamb’s comments about his future can be read about here.
- The Lord Ashcroft polling discuss was covered in more detail by me here.
- One small fact correction on myself: the second Brexit Party person to have to stand down was the party’s treasurer.
Did Liberal Democrats commit to a referendum in 2015? I do not think we did. I think we did agree with Conservatives that any treaty that transfers powers to the EU should require a plebiscite.
I do not see Stephen Tall’s point.
Perhaps there were votes in parliament that I would regard as ill-advised, maybe it is this that he is referring to.
Hi Martin – I don’t think I claimed the commitment was made in 2015; it dates back to Maastricht (1992) and then continues through to Lisbon (2008) – ie, rather than a public vote on an individual treaty, it should be a simple in/out referendum. So my point was that the Lib Dems have a long history of championing the referendum that took place in 2016.
You’re right that we didn’t – when the party was in government – repeat the pledge in 2015. However, now we’re back in opposition, the Lib Dems are once again backing a People’s Vote. There is a patter here…