Murnaghan Interview with Tim Farron, Liberal Democrat leadership candidate, 17.05.15

ANY QUOTES USED MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO MURNAGHAN, SKY NEWS

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: We have got Tim Farron coming to us from Kendal, there is a bit of a problem with the line so it might go away so just ten days since the Lib Dems suffered their worst election result for many decades, never before have so many sitting cabinet ministers lost their seats for instance so with Nick Clegg’s resignation as leader the race has begun to find a new one.  The man tipped for the job is Tim Farron, he joins me now from Kendal and a very good morning to you Mr Farron.  Have you decided what your platform for renewal is going to be yet?    

TIM FARRON:   Well yes, my view quite clearly is that the party’s survival in previous difficult eras, in the Jo Grimond, David Steele, Paddy Ashdown, has been won from the bottom up and the nature of the Liberal Democrats and the Liberal movement has been that we are a grassroots organisation and with 12,500 new members in the last week, which is frankly stunning, we now have the basis on which to build from the bottom up so it is about targeting a decent, realistic number of parliamentary seats but you start first by winning council seats, winning councils, making sure that in the Scottish and Welsh elections next May we are able to regain seats that we lost four years ago.  So my job is about making sure that we harness the belief and the passion I think there is for liberalism in this country which we have seen in the outpouring of shock and almost grief since the Liberal Democrats had what was frankly a devastating result ten days ago and turn that into action on the ground.  We have had an election result and we have got to be gracious towards the winners and I want to be but nevertheless that contest was based on fear, fear of the other, fear of the English, fear of the Scottish, fear of Brussels, fear of immigrants, fear of the idle poor, the idle rich.  A lot of people have been having blame placed upon them and the only answer is to have a strong Liberal movement which brings Britain together and is tolerant and decent and so that’s what I want to be majoring on and …

DM: It seems a bit patronising though, doesn’t it Tim Farron, oh what a foolish electorate, you need the Lib Dems to wisely guide you on the way.

TIM FARRON:   Well no, when all said and done, the SNP and the Conservatives who were the victors in that election fought very effective campaigns but they fought them on the basis of being each other’s bogeyman and that has been very, very effective but very damaging to British politics as well.  It seems to me that the short term electoral gain Mr Cameron and Ms Sturgeon have been able to put national, long term national damage on the agenda and that is deeply troubling.  If you look at what’s happened in the last week, we’ve seen the Human Rights Act being prepared to be repealed, we see the Snooper’s Charter being brought outs, 12 billion extra cuts in welfare, extremism orders – all terribly illiberal things and we are all now being reminded very starkly why the Liberal Democrats matter and it’s one of the reasons why our membership has gone up by more than 20% in just a week and a bit because I think people think hang about, we need this Liberal movement not to die and from my perspective, through energy, through organisation, through a commitment to our beliefs, I am determined to build this part, to rebuild this party from the grassroots up because Britain has never needed a Liberal movement more than it does today.

DM: You are seen in some quarters as the candidate from the left, I don't know if you accept that characterisation but whether you do or not, how are the Lib Dems going to attract back those Lib Dem voters who moved to the Conservatives and we’re not just talking in small numbers, in hundreds of thousands, and UKIP?

TIM FARRON:   Well look, the reality is I think people who have left one party  for another do so because they are not provided with a welcome in that home and the reality is for the Liberal Democrats, we have got to do what we’ve done here for example in Westmoreland and that is to love our communities to death almost, you’d be immersed in the community that you represent or wish to represent and you do proper traditional – updated to modern tactics and techniques – community politics, Liberal community politics.  You care for individuals therefore you serve them and I think where parties lose voters they lose them because they’ve taken them for granted and I am determined that Liberal Democrats will not be taking our supporters for granted and we’ll be going out to win back those people who have thought affectionately towards us, thought perhaps they saw some affinity towards us but at this last election, perhaps because they wanted to keep out nurse for fear of something or vote for nurse to keep out something worse, decided not to vote for us this time round.  I know election are very often easily won with negative messages, pointing to the bogeyman and that’s what happened this time round.  I am desperate to make sure that this country votes at the next election not against fear but for hope.

DM: There you go again, that somehow the electorate can’t be trusted to make their own judgements, they are motivated by fear, they haven’t fully analysed the arguments and it needs the wise Lib Dems to help them.  

TIM FARRON: I am not saying that at all …

DM: When it comes to those thousands and thousands of Lib Dems who voted for UKIP they are going to say well you won’t offer us a referendum, you won’t let us even have a discussion about staying in the European union.  

TIM FARRON:   There is now going to be a referendum and the reality is another very important …

DM: Not if you had your way.  

TIM FARRON: That is a very important reason for the Liberal Democrats to exist and to thrive because someone needs to make the positive case for our membership of the European Union.  The great I guess is that David Cameron said vote for us to avoid chaos and we may now have for two years absolute chaos as our economy and our business position is threatened by a needless internal navel gazing episode but it’s going to happen and we’ve got to make sure that Britain’s place remains where it needs to be for its own self-interest and for its standing in the world and for jobs and our economy, within the European Union, in the driving seat of it, not in the back seat whingeing.  

DM: Okay, last question, about celebrity endorsements, your rival for the leadership Norman Lamb, he’s got Dappy from N’Dubz in his camp, have you signed up Dizzy Rascal yet?  I bet he has and that’s why he’s not telling us!  Tim Farron there, as I told you there was a bit of a problem with the satellite connection there so our thanks go to Tim Farron there joining us there from Kendal.