Liberal Democrats: Power Hungry Opportunists

…and the Liberal Democrats

A former Lib Dem member writes.

The enlightenment idea of Liberalism is based on equality before the law, consent of the population, and on liberty. ‘Liberalism sought to replace the norms of hereditary privilege, state religion, absolute monarchy, the divine right of kings and traditional conservatism with representative democracy and the rule of law.’ (Wikipedia)

The foremost exponent of liberalism historically is John Stuart Mill who was a British contemporary of Karl Marx. Mill rejected the labour theory of value of Karl Marx (and economists Adam Smith and David Ricardo) and the class struggle. The class struggle aspect was elucidated in our 1911 pamphlet ‘The Socialist Party versus the Liberal Party’ (www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/pamphlet/should-working-class-support-liberal-party) where we also said ‘society to-day, with its rules and regulations, is shaped by those who are in possession of political power, and … Parliament. It is here the crux of the situation lies … The control, therefore, of political power means the control of society’.

The Liberal Democrat Party today adopts the mantle of liberalism. In theory party policy is

made democratically by conference, but in reality, by the Federal Policy Committee chaired by the leader. If that seems cynical, readers are invited to recall the Lib-Dem-Tory coalition government between 2010 and 2015 and their abandonment of their pledge to abolish student tuition fees. The Socialist Party is committed to hostility to all other political parties and the fullest democracy, and this is important because without it, backroom-deals are made behind the backs of ordinary members. Expect the current Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson (who was former leader Nick Clegg’s Private Parliamentary Secretary and later a junior minister in the Coalition government), despite her denials, to politically trade principles for power too. We will not.

DJW