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Clegg targets mainstream appeal

by Dave Keating | September 12, 2008 at 02:15 am | 109 views | 1 comment | 5 recommendations

In the UK, the ruling Labour government has seen its public approval ratings take a dramatic slide in the past year. At the same time, the rival Conservative party remains unpopular with voters. UK voters seem to think they have no good option, which frustrates the third party, the Liberal Democrats.

The Lib Dems are rarely talked about as a serious third option that could ever govern the country. The aprty's leader, Nick Clegg, is attempting to change that with an aggressive push to sell the party to the public ahead of next year's elections.

Nick Clegg set out his ambition to establish the Liberal Democrats as a mainstream party of mass appeal, focused on the concerns of the ordinary voter.

In advance of his first annual Lib Dem conference as leader next week, Mr Clegg called on the party to demonstrate it is on the side of millions of families struggling against a worsening economy.

While past Lib Dem conferences have been mocked for their concern with controversial fringe issues, he urged the party to concentrate on people's real concerns.

In an interview with the Press Association, Mr Clegg said: "This conference is very much about making sure our policies are bang up to date, really answering the needs and the everyday challenges facing British families.

"And I think the whole party's very committed to doing that, the constant need to make sure we are on the side of the vast majority of British families who are now going to find life a lot tougher than it has been for some time."