The Lib Dem Ideology – And how to influence them

When approaching an MP or a political party, it always helps to understand what makes that party or party member tick. How can we frame our argument in a way that seems natural to the person we’re speaking to?
Many activists write off entire parties as ‘evil’ or ‘opponents’ when actually, the party wants the same thing as them – they just have different plans on how to achieve it.

Liberal democrat party leaders have, for decades, struggled to entrench on the national consciousness the answer to the most basic of questions.

“What do the liberal democrats stand for?”

Being the third party in a traditionally two party system has meant that the liberal democrats are often left without media attention, causing massive difficulties in getting their ideology and their policies heard by the general public.

The best place to start is with the opening paragraph of the lib dem constitution.

"The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community and in which no one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity"

Simply put, the liberal ideology is that state intervention should always be a last resort when tackling societal issues. The liberal democrats are firm believers in localisation and the empowerment of communities to make decisions without the interference of central government – but are unafraid to use government where necessary to create a fair and open society.

So how does one lobby a Liberal Democrat?

One must understand, when lobbying the liberal democrat MP or peer, that the basis of the liberal ideology means that often they believe that primary legislation is inferior to societal change through other means. While legislation is not completely off the cards(especially those identifying as social democrats or of the left of the party), lib dems are often try and find an alternative solution.

You also have to consider the ramifications of the Liberal Democrats’ current coalition with the Conservative party. Every new policy that the liberal democrats in government want to implement has to have the approval of the prime minister. Anything that we once the liberal democrats in government to do, must also be palatable to the Tory party. This complicates matters.
The most effective way of influencing the lib dems is Conference.
The Lib Dems work in such a way that national conference of party members decides policy by popular vote – and has power over the leadership that is not present in other parties. If the party leader or MPs act against the wishes of conference, conference has the ability to censure, rebuke, or withdraw delegated authority from the offending member.  Conference issues standing orders to the parliamentary party on matters such as policy, party composition, coalition negotiations and party identity.  You can, with a steady hand and a few passionate members, effectively lobby all LibDem MPs and Lord with one weekend’s work.

So how does one influence conference?
Any party member may bring a motion before conference – provided a similar motion has not been debated or past recently, and that the motion has the support of 10 voting representatives or the endorsement of their local party. This gives enormous power to party members to define policy, impact on governmental negotiations and influence the voting intentions of its MPs.

Any motion that is passed by conference immediately becomes Lib Dem party policy – but this does not automatically make it government policy. The relationship between the Conservatives and the Lib Dems in government is defined in the coalition agreement, and as such, any party policy passed in between agreements will not influence policy decisions. They will, however, give a clear mandate for the Lib Dem leadership to press for the changes within government.

If the Tory party finds your motion palatable, you may find that they are more than happy to enact it. Don’t bank on it though.

If you feel that your issue is one that the Lib Dem membership would feel passionate about your first step is to find a party member willing to sponsor a motion to conference. This party member must have been elected as a voting representative of their local party.

The answer is not just to approach random Lib Dem members in the hope that one will support your motion. That’s just creepy.

Raising a motion is not something to taken lightly. As a result, most party members will need reassurance about your intentions, your ambitions and what you hope to do if the motion is passed. The best way is to ask a members of your organisation if they are members of the LibDems. If a LibDem member can be the one suggesting the policy, then life will be much easier for you.
If you can’t easily find a LibDem member who is willing to carry a motion to conference, then chances are you not going to get the support you need to pass the motion.

I’ve given you all the information I can on conference – if you think you have the skills to leverage it, go for it. What can you lose?

Conference is not the bottom line, however.
You can lobby LibDem MPs just as you can all MPs.
I’d suggest backbenchers, ministers tend not to have a lot of time on your hands.
Just be passionate, be yourself and have a clear ask. Be able to explain why your idea will make the UK a more free, more transparent or fairer place, and provide breakdowns of how much all this will cost, and you’ll have a good ally.

Use that well – make sure that when you leave, the MP knows what you want – a Private Members Bill, a PMQ, an Early Day Motion, a tweet with some publicity – whatever.
Just be genuine. This is the best advice anyone can give.