The Guardian view on the Lib Dem conference: speaking for parts of England | Editorial

Sir Ed Davey’s party has plenty to look forward to, but also difficult choices to makeThe two largest parties in the House of Commons approach the 2025 autumn conference season with trepidation. Both Labour and the Conservatives are spooked by collapses in voter support and by the rise of Reform UK. Party anxiety, internal disagreements and even grassroots revolts seem possible at both of their conferences.The third-largest party, the Liberal Democrats, have no such worries at all. They start their conference in Bournemouth this weekend in resilient mood. Having won 72 Commons seats in 2024 – the best result by any third party for a century – Sir Ed Davey’s party cemented those gains in the 2025 English local elections. While Labour and the Tories lost both votes and seats to Reform UK, the Lib Dems did the reverse, gaining seats and capturing three county councils. As a result, Sir Ed claimed the Lib Dems were now “the party of middle England”.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. Continue reading...

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