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Category: Nick Clegg

Cameron and Clegg The New Blair and Brown?

Cameron and Clegg The New Blair and Brown?

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Yesterday John Rentoul wrote a fascinating piece on the Dave and Nick relationship.   I am told that [David Cameron] has recently had a lot of “quite angry” meetings with Nick Clegg. Where once civil servants liked to compare the polite and mutually respectful dealings of the coalition leaders with the storms of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s dysfunctional “coalition”, insiders now say that there are similarities after all. I understand that one of Cameron and Clegg’s disputes was over…

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Which party leader will be the first to step aside?

Which party leader will be the first to step aside?

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Which leader do you think is most likely to go first? David Cameron Ed Miliband Nick Clegg Nigel Farage      Up to the end of July I thought that Ed Miliband was the leader most secure in his post with Cameron and Clegg fighting it out for second place. Now that has changed quite rapidly as we saw with the “Labour Insider’s” guest slot a couple of days ago on how EdM became much more vulnerable with the exit…

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How do the Tories balance their electoral coalition?

How do the Tories balance their electoral coalition?

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Is the immigration debate symptomatic of a larger problem? The furore that has blown up among those who’ve noticed the two news stories connected to immigration this week is a good example of the problems the Conservatives face in winning an outright majority at the next election. On one level, the challenge is not too difficult, despite the boundary review not being completed.  If the economy continues to recover, with either living standards improving or at least the prospect of…

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Nick Clegg’s ratings move from the negative to the positive with LD members

Nick Clegg’s ratings move from the negative to the positive with LD members

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55% of LD members polled want Clegg to lead the party into GE2015 while 38% want him to stand down before then. — Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) July 26, 2013 58% of LD members polled by LD voice say they're satisfied with Clegg’s leadership a net +18. A year ago the same poll had a minus 2 rating — Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) July 26, 2013 Maybe this just reflects declining membership Every year in the run-up to conference season the LD Voice…

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In spite of his current travails the betting markets make EdM the leader most likely to hang on to his job during 2013

In spite of his current travails the betting markets make EdM the leader most likely to hang on to his job during 2013

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Dave deemed to be most at risk party leader during 2013 according to PaddyPower See odds expressed as percentages pic.twitter.com/WDp7dFiJiu — Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) July 6, 2013 Dave is the one most at risk As a general rule I think that we over-estimate the chances of leaders being booted out when the going gets a bit tough. Time and time again we’ve seen people hang on even in, apparently, the most difficult of circumstances. The basic fact is that once someone…

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Will Nick Clegg lead the Lib Dems at the general election?

Will Nick Clegg lead the Lib Dems at the general election?

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It has been a difficult few years for the Lib Dems and Nick Clegg in particular since they formed the coalition, Electorally, they’ve had three years of successive net loss of councillors in the local elections, finishing seventh and eighth in some by-elections, losing the AV referendum, House of Lords reform foundering, and that’s before we move onto the opinion polls, which has seen the Liberal Democrats consistently polling in single digits/behind UKIP, even with the most recent ICM poll, they slipped into fourth place, seven points…

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The real message from Nick Clegg this morning – the now loveless marriage has got another 23 months to go

The real message from Nick Clegg this morning – the now loveless marriage has got another 23 months to go

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If the coalition is to end prematurely then it won’t be because the LDs quit. Clegg response.goo.gl/FRdUp twitter.com/MSmithsonPB/st… — Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) May 22, 2013 Tories are being told: There’ll be no supply & confidence In a speech this morning Nick Clegg’s making it very clear that his party will not quit the coalition ahead of the general election. So the blues factions who would like to see the arrangement ending prior to 2015 have got a problem. For Clegg…

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