Lib Dems sleepwalking to irrelevance under Davey, says council leader

A Liberal Democrat council leader has said the party is "sleepwalking into irrelevance" and questioned whether Sir Ed Davey was the right leader.

Julian Brazil, the leader of Devon County Council, told the BBC the party was "lacking ambition" and "not saying the things that people can relate to".

Asked whether Sir Ed was the right leader for the party, Brazil said "I wish he was" but "all the evidence is no".

A Lib Dem spokesperson said the party was in "an incredibly strong position" under Sir Ed's leadership because he was focused on the "issues that really matter" such as the cost of living and the health service.

"Under Ed's leadership we had our best result for a century, and achieved a record breaking streak of remarkable local election results," they added.

"We are the most united party in Westminster and with Ed as leader we will stop Reform and the Conservatives and change our country after a decade of failing governments."

Sir Ed led the party to record 72 MPs in the 2024 general election, but it has slipped to fourth or fifth in national opinion polls, behind the Greens and Reform UK.

Brazil told the BBC the Lib Dems had "allowed other parties to go steaming past us," adding that "something has to change within the party if we're going to move to the next level and it's not happening at the moment".