The Lib Dem conference closes

As the Liberal Democrat leadership leaves Birmingham, it is a contented bunch. Their conference has gone as well as could be expected. There were no embarrassing defeats for the leadership and no gaffes by any of their ministers.

But conference was yet another reminder of how much of a gap there is between where those around Clegg want to take the party and where the activist base wants to go. When I asked one of Clegg’s allies about this discrepancy, he told me that the important thing to remember was that the membership, who elect the leader, take a different view from the activists. As evidence of this, he cited how activists’ darling Simon Hughes actually came third in the 2006 leadership race and how Clegg managed to squeak past Huhne in 2007.

If Clegg does manage to take the Liberal Democrats to the liberal centre, he could achieve what the third party has long dreamed of: breaking the mould of British politics.