LibDems more crap than incompetent

Early this month I blogged that rather than being unprincipled and duplicitious, the LibDems were simply incompetent. That they were out of their depth in government and that David Cameron had run rings around them.

After the relevations in the Daily Telegraph I know have to strengthen that view and state that they are just plain crap.

The Telegraph has given an interesting window upon their mentality and their complete lack of self-awareness. First we have the fantasy world of Norman Baker who likened himself to an anti-apartheid MP who fought to change from within. Er ... perhaps Fraggle Rock might be a more suitable place than the Houses of Parliament?

Then Michael Moore who admitted tuition fees were a car crash. Followed by David Heath who said he was "wholly against" tuition fees. Quite why neither in that case simply voted against them is not clear. As Eleanor of Aquitaine said to Richard in James Goldman's "Lion in Winter" = "Departing is a simple act. You put the left foot down and then the right." The "No" chamber is over there lads.

On a more serious note though, that the LibDems are so crap is a serious cause for worry. The Tories clearly do not expect to win the next election which is why they trying to enact what they hope is irreversible change at such a rapid pace.

The LibDems were unable to bring themselves to stop tuition fees so how on earth can we trust them to moderate or stop another Tory wheeze like Lansley's highly unpopular NHS reform?

If they cannot reign in the Tories and act as responsible Coalition partners then the LibDems should do the decent thing and step down. Now these Thatcherite policies are out in the open we should have another General Election and decide once and for all whether we want them.

Plus ca change

Albert Einstein once said something to the affect that to keep on doing the same thing yet expect a different result each time was akin to madness. Given Mike Ashley's Emporer Caliglua-like reign as owner of Newcastle United there must surely be a case now for Northumbria police to have him sectioned.

The only explanation the Toon fans can give, yet again scratching their heads at more inexplicable behaviour from Fat Ash, is that he must be a closet mackem whose only goal is to make Newcastle United a national laughing stock. A plant as part of a long running revenge plot run from the Stadium of Light as payback for the self-confessed Newcastle fan Lawrie McMenemy who delighted in sending Sunderland into Division 3 for the first time in their history.

So off goes Chris Hughton, an unassuming intelligent and low-key key manager who was well liked by the fans, dismissed for being er ... 11th in the league. This is two better than Souness who was sent on his way for being 13th. And one better than the great Joe Harvey, who was sacked for a solid 12th. In both instances relegation followed a few seasons later.

Whether the new manager is a promising Martin (Jol or O'Neill) or a laughable Alan (Pardew or Curbishley) makes little difference. The new manager will barely last longer than two years before getting their jotters from the Great Leader Ashley via his Beria-like right hand man Derek Llambias.

So what next? Gazza to return in a dream management team with Five Bellies? Timmy Mallett as Director of Football with Jimmy Krankie put in charge of youth development? Nick Clegg appointed Head of Communications to try to build back trust with the fans?

Ooer you dread to think ... still at least there's always the England team to seek solace in ...

LibDems more incompetent than unprincipled

Ever since Nick Clegg went into full coalition there has no been shortage of leftish detractors questioning his principles and integrity. With tuition fees that noise has now become deafening as the Lib Dems are widely pilloried as lying, duplicitious and dishonest.

There are may be a simpler explanation though, that plain and simple Nick Clegg and his LibDems are incompetent.

Nick Clegg was initially praised by political columnists for playing his hand well in the coalition discussions. With Brown or Cameron, Clegg, so the story goes, was a hard headed and tough negotiator. This view is completely wrong.

First Nick Clegg played his hand early in the election campaign. He stated that he would look to form a coalition with the party that won the most votes. This may have been honest of him but it was naive. It was clear that the largest party would be the Tories and as a disenchanted Labour voter I decided not to vote for him as a result. I'm sure others did the same which explains the now forgotten elephant in the room of election night - the poor showing from the LibDems.

Second, in the coalition negotations David Cameron ran rings around him. Cameron did indeed make him an offer - a third of all ministerial appointments - that Clegg just couldn't refuse. Cameron gave a lot but in return gained far much more - almost total control of economic, health and education policy. The result is that we have a programme of change that is being enacted as though the Tories won by a landslide. They did not.

Third, Cameron tied Clegg into a guaranteed fiver years and offered him a high profile job. This approach, rather than demand and supply, has meant that the LibDems have very little room to object or influence policy. In demand and supply the Libs could simply have voted down Tuition fees, it would have made them popular. They would have appeared serious political players, principled and worthy partners in coalition. But they would have less ministerial appointments.

Fourth, AV. This was Cameron's masterstroke. He made a big concession on this but by adding reform of electoral boundaries to the referendum has created change that he knows Labour cannot support. The LibDems will be completely isolated in their campaigning for AV and with 10% approval ratings, the wider electorate will be in no mood to do them any favours.

For a party that wanted to be in coalition for so long they have proved to be remarkably inept at being in one.

Nick Clegg and his colleagues were unable to resist the carrot dangled in front of them by David Cameron. Clegg has the distinction of being the first Liberal leader to take his party into government since Lloyd George. The price of that distinction is they are now seen as being without principle, truth or conviction. They are all of these things but most of all they are just plain incompetent.