UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey declined to rule out a post-election coalition with Labour’s Keir Starmer, aiming to block Reform UK from government.
As reported by The Independent, Sir Ed Davey refused to rule out joining a post-election coalition with Labour to prevent a Reform UK government.
Ed Davey’s views on a possible coalition with Keir Starmer
At the Liberal Democrat conference in Bournemouth, the party leader said it is his moral responsibility to prevent Nigel Farage’s party from entering government.
When pressed repeatedly on whether this meant he would enter a pact with the Labour Party, Ed Davey did not give a clear answer.
He said,
“My moral responsibility as the leader of a party that has particular values is to speak up for those values and champion those values. And at the moment, we’re the only party championing those values.”
Mr Davey stated,
“I’ve been deeply disappointed by the Labour Government. I think they’ve failed so many people – pensioners, disabled people, small businesses, large businesses, the farmers. We need a voice that is offering real change and real hope for our country with a proper economic policy, rebuilding our relationship with Europe.”
When questioned if he would rule out an alliance with Mr Starmer, he responded,
“What I want to do is make sure we have as many Liberal Democrat seats and Liberal Democrat votes at the next election. And by the way, we’re on track because we got our best result for over 100 years.”
During a Sunday Q&A with Mr Davey, only a small fraction of the audience raised their hands in support of a Lib-Lab coalition when asked to take part in a straw poll.
He resumed his public feud with Elon Musk during interviews on the airwaves
The Liberal Democrat leader said,
“We think there is clear evidence that he and his company have broken the law.”
He stated,
“When he took it over, he got rid of teams who were there to protect our children, who were there to enforce the rules, and what’s happened on X, and I’m afraid it really is important people understand this, we’re seeing adverts for videos of child sexual abuse.”
The Lib Dem leader called on Parliament to question the billionaire over his ‘fight back’ or ‘die’ remarks at the Unite the Kingdom rally organised by activist Tommy Robinson.
What did Sir Nick Clegg say about Elon Musk’s comments?
Former deputy prime minister Sir Nick Clegg endorsed Sir Ed’s strong criticism of Elon Musk.
Mr Clegg, the Lib Dem leader who led the party into the 2010-15 coalition government, spoke at a fringe event during the conference.
He stated,
“Musk turning up on those screens in Whitehall, I thought, getting quite close to fomenting violence, is an outrageous intrusion into our sovereignty.”
How will the Lib Dems protect children online?
Ed Davey’s party will reveal new initiatives to protect children online on Monday.
The party’s science and technology spokesperson, Victoria Collins, urged cigarette-style health warnings on social media apps to protect children from harm.
The Lib Dems plan to protect young users online by introducing a ‘doomscrolling cap’ to curb endless social media feeds.
Key facts about the Unite the Kingdom protest
The rally, led by far-right activist Tommy Robinson, promoted anti-migrant views and the “great replacement” theory. It drew 110,000–150,000 participants, vastly outnumbering a counter-protest of around 5,000.
Clashes with police injured 26 officers and led to at least 24 arrests, as protesters threw objects and tried to break through barriers.