Liberal Democrat leadership race: Layla Moran gets support from former MPs who lost seats in 2015 and 2019

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran has received a boost in her bid for the party’s leadership with a joint statement of support from four former MPs who lost their seats in 2015 and 2019.

The MPs, two of whom lost to Tories and two to Labour, said Moran was best-placed to win voters from across a broad spectrum of opinion in the way that former leaders Paddy Ashdown and Charles Kennedy were able to. And they warned that “the future of our party is at stake”.

The Oxford West and Abingdon MP is currently the outsider in the race to succeed Jo Swinson against acting leader Sir Ed Davey, who won 1,870 nominations from members across 343 local parties, compared to her 1,329 nominations from 330 local groups.

But she is seeking to present herself as the candidate who can appeal to voters from both sides of the political divide by shedding the party’s “baggage” from the years of coalition with Tories, when Sir Ed was energy secretary in David Cameron’s cabinet.

Signatories to the joint statement backing Moran include Julian Huppert and former equalities minister Lynne Featherstone, who lost their seats of Cambridge and Hornsey & Wood Green respectively to Labour in 2015, along with Martin Horwood, who lost Cheltenham to the Conservatives the same year, and Stephen Lloyd, whose Eastbourne seat went to Tories last December.

“The Liberal Democrat party is at a crossroads,” the four MPs said. “At this leadership election, we have the opportunity to elect a leader who will move our party and our country forward. To free ourselves from the baggage of coalition, to rebuild that crucial trust with the electorate we have lost.

“As former Liberal Democrat MPs, we represented seats in both Leave and Remain and Conservative and Labour-facing areas. We are convinced that electing Layla Moran as leader would be the best way to win these seats back. Because to win back former Liberal Democrat strongholds and become competitive again across the country, we need to build a broad base of support amongst voters. That means we need to send a clear message we are renewed as a party.

“We must start listening to voters again, and show that we have learnt the lessons of the past decade. Layla Moran will provide the strong, liberal voice the party needs to cut through in the media and to stand out from the crowd.

“Together we can build a progressive message that appeals to voters across the political spectrum, just like Paddy Ashdown and Charles Kennedy did.”

Moran’s team pointed to the fact that both Eastbourne and Cheltenham are in the Lib Dems’ top 15 list of target seats for the 2024 general election.

And they said Ms Moran had also won the support of Paula Ferguson, the prospective 2024 election candidate for another top Lib Dem target seat Winchester, who hailed the party education spokesperson for having “honesty, clarity of thinking and understanding of what needs to be done to ensure the Lib Dems become a real political force in Westminster again”.

The endorsements come after former Lib Dem leader Tim Farron threw his weight behind Davey. Mr Farron’s successor Sir Vince Cable is expected to remain neutral in the race, as is Ms Swinson, who stepped down from the leadership after losing her seat in December.

Ms Moran said: "I am delighted to have the support of former MPs who agree it's time we moved the party forward from the past decade.

“Under my leadership, the Liberal Democrats can and will do better than our current 6 per cent in the polls. Together we can move on from the coalition, rebuild trust with voters and build a greener, fairer and more compassionate country."

Online ballots are being sent out to Lib Dem members on 30 July, with voting closing on 26 August and the victor announced the following day.