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It's time for open conferences: Liberal Democrats Conference event

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18 September 2009

The debate dominating the conferences this year is the future of politics itself, and ippr will be hosting a key event at each of the three main conferences where leading figures will discuss how to renew trust in politics and the crucial issues facing us in the coming general election.

In the current climate where faith in politics, political institutions and our politicians has been battered, we intend to bring people in to the heart of the debate. In this instance that means not just the people who usually attend conference or the people on our panel. We want to include your views directly in the discussion. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ippr and send us your questions for our Liberal Democrats Conference event on Tuesday 22 September.

To open up the debate, ippr and Lib Dem Voice asked party members for their ideas and opinions on how politics needs to change and the challenges facing the party and country. These results will influence our panel discussion at the conference event.

Q1: To what extent do you think the Liberal Democrats have been damaged by the MPs’ expenses scandal compared to Labour and/or the Conservatives?
Answer	Percentage
Damaged more than Labour and/or Conservatives	0.85%
Damaged less than Labour and/or Conservatives	58.97%
Just as damaged as Labour and Conservatives	40.60%
Don't know / No opinion	0.85%

Q2: How well do you think the Lib Dem party leadership has handled the MPs’ expenses scandal? (On a scale of 1-5, where 1 is extremely poorly, and 5 is extremely well).
Answer	Percentage
1	4.27%
2	13.68%
3	43.59%
4	35.90%
5	2.56%

Q3: What effect do you think the MPs’ expenses scandal has had on public support for electoral reform?
Answer	Percentage
Increased public support for electoral reform	45.73%
Decreased public support for electoral reform	2.99%
No real difference either way	49.15%
Don't know / No opinion	2.14%

Q4: If the result of the next general election is that the Lib Dems hold the balance of power in a ‘hung parliament’, what do you think should be the party’s response if Labour/Conservatives offer some form of deal which includes the promise of a referendum on electoral reform?
Answer	Percentage
Steer well clear of any form of negotiations or coalition with Labour or Conservatives	26.50%
Be ready to negotiate only with Labour on that basis	5.13%
Be ready to negotiate only with the Conservatives on that basis	5.98%
Be equally ready to negotiate with either Labour or the Conservatives on that basis	59.40%
Don't know / No opinion	2.99%

Q5: In the event of a 'hung parliament', and if the Lib Dems were prepared to cooperate with Labour/Conservatives in some way, do you believe a referendum on electoral reform should be a 'deal-breaker'?
Answer	Percentage
Yes - electoral reform is fundamental to the Lib Dems. No deal of any kind is possible without it.	65.81%
No - electoral reform is important, but should not be a deal-breaker compared with other big issues the public cares about more.	29.91%
Don't know / No opinion	4.27%

Q6: If the result of the next general election is that the Lib Dems do not form the next government, either on their own or as part of a coalition, which of the two other main parties do you think would be most likely to advance the Liberal Democrats' electoral reform agenda?
Answer	Percentage
Labour	33.33%
Conservatives	1.28%
Neither party	61.54%
Don't know / No opinion	3.85%

Q7: In the next budget, what do you think is the single most important action the Chancellor should take to address the UK’s current economic situation?
Answer	Percentage
Increase taxation as a proportion of national income only on the well off to address the budget deficit and/or safeguard spending on public services	41.45%
Increase general taxation as a proportion of national income to address the budget deficit and/or safeguard spending on public services	11.97%
Decrease public spending as a proportion of national expenditure to address the budget deficit and/or to avoid any further rises in taxation	29.91%
Maintain taxation and public spending at roughly the same levels, and allow the budget deficit to continue to increase.	8.97%
Don't know / No opinion	7.69%

Q8: How do you feel Nick Clegg has emerged from the political and economic crises of the last few months?
Answer	Percentage
Much stronger	5.13%
Stronger	38.46%
Roughly the same	45.73%
Weaker	8.97%
Much weaker	0.85%
Don't know / No opinion	0.85%

Q10: What in your view is the most important issue facing the political parties in this election year?

This was an open ended question, with two major issues surfacing as dominant. Unsurprisingly, they were the economy, and public confidence in politicians and the political system. You can read all of the responses by downloading the full results (.pdf).

234 respondents took part in the poll.