It is very sad to learn that a number of senior Liberal Democrats (most of whom were Members of Parliament) aided by the Media, have secured the resignation of Mr Charles Kennedy.  Mr Kennedy was a significant asset to his Party.  Not only was he liked and admired by grass roots Liberal Democrats, but the General Public as well.  He was affable, capable and trusted. He could at times be wishy-washy on policy, often appear to be all things to all men as suited the situation but most importantly he always got away with it.  I suspect his successor will not be so lucky.  The Parliamentary Party has several high quality candidates who can step into Mr Kennedy’s shoes but by being of that certain “ministerial quality” they will not have the electoral appeal of cheeky Charlie amongst voters of all political persuasions.  The Liberal Democrats have always been able to take Conservatives Parliamentary seats in Southern England but under Charles Kennedy they were also able to defeat Labour consistently in its heartland.  Liberal Democrat successes in local elections against both of the major parties should not be overlooked, either.  It would be a setback for the Party if the new leader, whilst proving very effective against Mr Brown[1] and/or Mr Cameron in the years leading to the next General Election, secured less Parliamentary seats at that election than the current tally of sixty-two. Lacklustre performances by the new leader or poor local election results would prove disastrous to the moral and in consequence, the effectiveness of the Party. 

The next few years are going to prove critical to the future of the Liberal Democrats as a significant Parliamentary force and losing Mr Kennedy has made things that bit harder.  Too many Liberal Democrats seem to assume that is a natural state of affairs that the electorate inherently dislike the Conservatives, rather than it being an indifference arising as a natural consequence of the latter having been in Government for eighteen long years.  The Conservative Party’s time in the political wilderness is coming to an end; it has “paid its debt to Society”. Notwithstanding large sections of the Media (particularly elements in the Murdoch press and the BBC) consistently minimising the setbacks and talking up the fortunes of New Labour and the Liberal Democrats whilst playing down the significance of advances by the Conservatives, there is a new optimism in Conservative ranks. In the next few years, more and more local Labour and Lib Dem associations are going to find that winning or retaining Conservative seats local or Parliamentary, instead of being like taking candy from a baby, will be more akin to snatching a dog bowl full of meat from a rottweiler. By way of example one need look no further than to the 2005 General Election result in the Guildford constituency where the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP Sue Doughty, supported by a very effective Party machine, increased her share of the vote but still lost against the underwhelming (according to Liberal Democrat supporters and fellow travellers) Conservative candidate, Anne Milton. 

To many Conservatives, Mr Kennedy’s appeal to the electorate was infuriating.  However, most will share the sentiment of Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik expressed during an interview on the BBC Television News on Saturday evening, 7^th January 2006 concerning the unfortunate manner of Mr Kennedy’s political demise.  Mr Opik expressed his opinion in his usual reserved, considered, polite way. I am not bound by such constraints. Mr Kennedy deserved much better.  The conduct of some of his erstwhile Parliamentary colleagues was shameful.