Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has insisted he is not just aiming to be a junior partner in a coalition government, saying: “I am a candidate to be prime minister.”
He also backed the controversial Jackdaw gas field, which the government is expected to green light later this month, saying it had “passed the climate test” and was compatible with a transition to renewables.
Sir Ed has faced criticism from some in his party that he lacks ambition and the vision needed to cut through in a crowded political field.
He acknowledged the “frustration” felt by some of his MPs that the party was not making a bigger impact – and vowed to set out bold policies in his conference speech on Tuesday.
Sir Ed led the Lib Dems to a record 72 MPs at the 2024 election, making big gains at the expense of the Conservatives in southern England, but the party has since slipped to fourth or fifth in national opinion polls, behind Labour, the Tories, the Greens and Reform UK.
Despite this, the Lib Dem leader claimed his party had an “historic opportunity to do far better than anyone imagines at the moment” at the next general election.
“Because the right wing is split,” he said, “and fragmented like it’s never happened before in over 200 years of British parliamentary elections.
“If we take that opportunity, and I believe we’re showing how we can, we’ll be a massive force in the next parliament.”
Asked if he wanted to be the kingmaker in the next government, providing support for a party falling short of the 326 MPs needed for a majority, Sir Ed said: “I’ve got no ceiling on our ambitions.
“I’m a candidate to be prime minister, but what we need to do is make sure that we build on that [election success], area by area, constituency by constituency.”
He made clear he will not go into a coalition government with Reform UK and has dismissed suggestions he could do a deal with the Conservatives.
“We’ve got a moral responsibility to stop Nigel Farage – and indeed stop Kemi Badenoch giving the keys to No 10 to Nigel Farage – I think there could be that sort of coalition on the right and we’ve got to stop that,” he told the BBC.
Asked if he would form a coalition with Labour, he said he did not deal in “hypotheticals”.
He said he wanted the Lib Dems to win support across the UK, but the BBC has been told his party’s strategy is focused on the 27 seats where they came second in 2024. Of those 27, 20 are held by the Conservatives.