Article #236367

The country just can’t afford another three and half years of this dysfunctional soap opera. I say, get a grip or get thrown out

“It’s nice, isn’t it. The quiet.” The now-infamous social media post produced by a Starmer supporters at the start of his time in office is now written only in sarcasm beside yet another terrible news headline. Rayner resigns: “Nice, isn’t it. The quiet”; Mandelson sacked: “Nice, isn’t it. The quiet”; the prime minister loses his chief of staff – you get the picture.

Around the time of that post, we had our glorious first conference in Bournemouth after winning our best election result in a century, and a prominent BBC journalist said to me: “We won’t have to cover the soap opera like before – it’s going to be about policy.” Imagine being the leader of the Liberal Democrats, known for our torrents of policy, and being told this by a BBC journalist; the phrase pig in excrement comes to mind.

Ed Davey is leader of the Liberal Democrats

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.