An Interesting Letter From Vince Cable

On 7th April, Sunder Katwala, General Secretary of the Fabian Society, published an open letter to London's eight Liberal Democrat MPs - plus their one MEP and Nick Clegg - which sought to persuade them to cast their second preference votes for Ken Livingstone and to urge their supporters to do the same. He has now received a reply from the most senior of them, Vince Cable. It reads as follows:

"I am sure you will understand that we do not want to be side tracked from promoting Brian Paddick as a first preference candidate. He is building up support as people look for an alternative and it isn’t helpful for attention to be focused on a debate about his second preference votes.

I also think you are mistaken in believing that I or other MPs can deliver Lib Dem votes to Ken Livingstone. I don’t think our voters see themselves as a vote bank which can be steered in that way. Nor is the choice as clear cut as you suggest.

To be sure, Johnson is utterly unsuited to be Mayor and I cannot envisage voting for him. His endorsement by the BNP is a further disqualification. But Livingstone is now a seriously flawed Mayor with the good ideas of this first term on transport giving way to arrogance and cronyism. I am horrified at the thought of him sloshing around billions of taxpayers’ money on his Olympic vanity project. I haven’t yet seen any indication of a willingness to change direction or style. His problem is not Lib Dem voters but disillusioned voters who, are I see locally switching in a serious numbers.”

It's interesting that Sunder received a reply from Vince at all. And is it just me or might - just might - that final paragraph contain a glimmer of a hint? A hint that while Johnson is indeed totally beyond the pale, if Livingstone were to provide some "indication of a willingness to change direction or style" - perhaps especially on the matters of "arrogance and cronyism" and his attitude to Olympic costs - then maybe Mr Cable would judge the Labour candidate just a little less "utterly unsuited" to be mayor than his Tory opponent? What do you think, dear reader?

Comments

[The Tory Troll]

I think the value of a potential Paddick/Lib Dem endorsement for Ken has been overplayed. Polls show that Paddick hasn't even been able to get his voters to vote for him, let alone anyone else.

[Diversity]

Who could trust an "indication of willingness to change" from Ken? Does a newt change its' spots permanently?

Boris as Mayor would be a disaster waiting to happen - and we would have less idea of when to expect it than we have for tsunamis. Ken is a disaster that has begun to happen, one that shows every sign of getting worse.

[Londoner]

1. Brian said he could work with Johnson but not Livingstone
2. Barnbrook (BNP Mayoral candidate said (BBCR4) he was not putting Johnson #2
3. Johnson has said he doesn't want a single BNP 2nd vote