Right leader, wrong time?

So, Nick Clegg has been elected as the leader of the Lib Dems by the slenderest of margins. He now has a monumental task ahead of him. How to make the Lib Dems a real force at a national level.

The Lib Dems are suffering from the classic two party squeeze and it will be difficult for him to keep the seats he has at the next election, never mind improve upon the present level of MPs.

The Lib Dems have for so long looked in two directions, not surprising given the merger of the old Liberal and SDP parties. The old Whig party of free trade now annexed to the social democrats. Nick Clegg now has to choose which horse to back and drag his party in that direction kicking and screaming. I think his instincts are for the Liberal wing, free markets and Libertarianism. Unfortunately most of his MPs are from the SDP wing, wanting more state control.

If the party continues in the current two faced approach they will continue to be a rump varying in size but never making the breakthrough.

Recently it looked like the best chances for Lib Dem success was to oust the Tories as a centre-right party based on the Liberal traditions. Now it looks likely that the best bet is the Social Democratic way on the left to outflank Labour. So it looks like Nick Clegg has just missed the boat, he may be right leader but 5 years too late.

Squiffy.