A lot happens in a week!

On Friday, the 2019 Election Review was published, and last night, the Federal Board decided to hold the leadership election this summer, with the winner to be announced in August.

The election review was tough reading. It was tough because it was honest, and I’m very glad that Dorothy Thornhill and her team had the strength and the determination to write it. If you haven’t read it yet, you can do so here.

For me, a significant take away was that at the last election (and in the months preceding it), we failed to make a strategic decision.

On the one hand, we could have done everything to stop Brexit. It should come as no surprise that this was my favoured tactic, and one I argued strongly for both internally and externally.

Or we could have tried to get as many seats in Westminster as possible, which could well have meant watering down our Brexit position.

In the end, we didn’t choose either, believing we could win an election outright. We shouldn’t have made this mistake, and the consequences have been huge. The Liberal Democrats have to learn from this.

My position for a New Direction for the party is simple. We need to abandon the principle of equidistance, and fight from the centre left. We need to build a winning, progressive alliance with other parties who share similar values to us.

My detailed view on that is here, but that’s the vision.

The election is happening, and will now seriously ramp up. I will continue to release detailed policy positions in my six key areas over the coming weeks.

If you (or indeed anyone you know), would like to volunteer on my campaign, or to hear more, please fill in the form below.

We must build a strong, progressive movement in this country.