Oh I do like to be beside the seaside

It's conference time and the Lib Dem's kicked the 2009 conference season off with their shindig at Bournemouth.

The conference didn't get off to the best of starts with Vince Cable embrassingly admitting in an interview with Andrew Neil for BBC programme straight talk that he made some 'errors of judgement' in the way the economic crisis panned out blowing poor Vinny's reputation as the 'best handler of the economic downturn'.

We also saw the unedifting site of one time Lib Dem leadership challenger Mark Oaten promoting his autobiography presumably trying to cash in on his rent boy sex scandle a few years back.

Lib Dem conference's always make interesting affairs due to their obsession with trivia. The best example was when a conference motion was passed making it party policy to abolish the sale of goldfish at fairgrounds.

Trying to make the Lib Dem's look more sensible Nick Clegg spoke of 'savage cuts' needed to public spending and the now under fire Vinny Cable announcing the flagship policy of a tax on homes over £1 million.

After being rounded upon by his own MP's the 'savage cuts' line was droped and Vinny was having round the clock 'talks' with MP's to get them to back his tax increase.

If things couldn't get any worse the Scottish MSP's were openly talking of backing the SNP in holding a referendum to break up the union.
The Scottish Lib Dem leader even accused his MSP's of spending too many late nights at the bar and having too much sea air.

We were then treated to the unedifying specticle of Nick Clegg in his unmemorable speech practically begging for anybody to vote for the Lib Dem's.

There was aslo a sinister side to the conference that went almost unreported. At the start of the conference The Times reported that an anti conservative attack unit was set up. This not the first time that the Lib Dems campaign techniques have been somewhat suspect. I posted yesterday of the disgusting Lib Dem leaflet which was produced for a by-election in Harlow but it is also worth a look at what their campaign manuals tell party activists to do.

The guide advises:

“Go into the middle of a council estate and shout at all the kids ‘any of you lot want to help deliver all these?’.
Then proceed pied-piper like doling out badges, toffee’s and leaflets with the last to be pushed through the door by the shouting, squealing quarrelsome horde.”

Thier campaign guide is also worth a close look as well. It tells activists and candidates to:

“Be wicked, act shamelessly, stir endlessly” (p.21)

“Oppose all service cuts...No cut is going to be popular and why court the unpopularity that goes with the responsibility of power.” (p.25)

“Positive campaigning will NOT be enough to win control of the council.” (p.4)

“Don’t beafraid to exaggerate. For example, responses to surveys are always ‘massive'.” (p.23)

Let's hope we do not hear of any Lib Dem moaning about dirty tricks. As the saying goes, what goes around comes around.