Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable to stand down before 2022 election

Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable announced plans to stand down before the 2022 general election, as he urged the party to adopt sweeping new rules.

The 75-year-old confirmed he wanted to give non-members a vote in future leadership contests and – most controversially – allow a non-MP to take that top job.

Sir Vince said he would lead the Lib Dems through any general election forced by “the Brexit chaos”, saying: “Reports I have read of my imminent departure are very wide of the mark.”

But he added: “Once Brexit is resolved or stopped, and if the new rules are agreed, that will be the time to conduct a leadership election under the new rules.”

Sir Vince refused to give a more definite timetable for his departure, arguing that depended on events and saying: “It may be smoothly and quickly or over a longer period – I can’t control that.”

It would appear to depend on how quickly the Lib Dem party – which prides itself on its democratic structures – agrees to the dramatic reforms.

The leader said he had no desire to “emulate Gladstone, who kept going until his mid-eighties” and was definitely not trying to “outlast Robert Mugabe”.

And he insisted he was “not pushing anybody forward” to replace him, also saying existing MPs had nothing to fear from allowing outsiders to run.

Sir Vince also warned off various figures exploring a new centrist party not to “try to compete”, confirming he had held discussions with them.

“They have a certain naivety about the first-past-the-post system and the barriers it creates. We are in a much stronger position and have a strong base.

“The idea that you stand dozens of candidates and spend a lot of money – that’s not a recipe for success.”

Despite the party’s staunch anti-Brexit stance – and some success in local elections – the Lib Dems remain dormant in the polls, at as low as 6 per cent.

Sir Vince, who took over has leader in July last year, said his reforms could connect with “the vast swathe of voters in the centre ground whom we are yet to persuade”.

They will be seen as an attempt to mirror the success of the left-wing pressure group Momentum, which attracted thousands of new supporters to Labour under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.

Labour’s membership has soared to 540,000 since Ed Miliband allowed anyone to sign up to vote in a leadership contest by becoming a registered supporter for a small fee.

The Lib Dems have around 100,000 members, but also 200,000 online supporters who, said Sir Vince, “loosely identify with us and campaign with us but currently have no say”.

It was time to “offer our movement a political arm within parliament, so it is not just a protest group on the outside banging at the door, but a mass movement with a voice on the inside – our parliamentary party.

He denied it was a recipe for an extremist takeover, arguing “the Tories are being taken over by extremists even with their narrow, exclusive membership base”.

“Of course, we have to be careful but we cannot be afraid of opening windows lest a few flies get in. In any case, the Liberal Democrats are different,” Sir Vince said.