by Peter Watt
For many in the Labour party one of the few pleasures of opposition has been that they have been able to indulge in a much loved pastime – Lib Dem hating. It is a visceral thing that stems from the scars of countless bloody local election battles. “They don’t fight fair and once you’ve got them they’re bloody hard to get rid of,” as one hardened Labour activist from a marginal seat said to me a few weeks ago. Their ranks are seen by many in Labour as a cynical but ragbag mix of the politically directionless, the anarchic and a sizeable chunk that are basically Labour or should be. Oh, and of course the odd orange Tory! Lib Dem politics is dismissed as opportunistic as opposed to Labour’s politics of principled idealism.
So the anger and betrayal was very real for many on the left when Clegg took the Tory shilling. Indeed according to the polls, many formerly Lib Dem voters felt the same as they quickly switched to Labour. Clegg went from hero-to-zero in weeks as he became Cameron’s Poodle and was widely ridiculed for having sold out his and his Parties principles for a stint in a Ministerial car. My particular favourite Calamity Clegg joke is:
“Q. What does Nick Clegg stand for?
“A. When David Cameron walks in the room.”
It may be cruel but it sums up the view of Labour party activists across the country. And to be fair, he did seem pretty determined to confirm this view as he was outmanoeuvred on the AV referendum and then clumsily supported the increasing of tuition fees allowing himself to be branded a hypocrite.
His party’s polling numbers went into free fall and Clegg’s personal ratings fell further still. He and his party often looked a bit amateurish and they were blamed over and over by Labour politicians for propping up Cameron’s cuts. The possibility of House of Lords reform came and went as once again the Tories scuppered a favourite Lib Dem policy. And then UKIP started occasionally, and then consistently, pipping the Lib Dems for third place in the polls. The consensus within the Labour Party has been that Nick Clegg lacks principle, is a busted flush, a bit of a joke and that his party should and will dump him before the next election.
But I think that this view is wrong and that Labour has let its own prejudice cloud its strategic judgement. Nick Clegg entered government with two very clear aims. Firstly to prove that the Lib Dems could be a responsible party of government prepared to take tough decisions. And secondly to deliver as much of the Lib Dem manifesto as possible.
And on both he has succeeded.
