The Lib Dems are ready to take up the progressive mantle

With bold manifesto pledges on tax, Brexit and immigration, Ed Davey’s party could push the incoming government to be more radical

Max von Thun was a political adviser to the Liberal Democrats from 2017 to 2019

With the Conservatives in self-destruct mode, Labour is expected to win a sweeping majority in the upcoming general election. Yet, despite the Tories’ implosion, Labour has insisted on sticking to an increasingly conservative economic script, notwithstanding the huge challenges facing the country – from rising inequality and crumbling public services to low investment and stagnating productivity. This raises the worrying prospect that, once in government, the party will fail to seize a rare opportunity to steer the UK’s economy towards a more prosperous and equitable future.

Robust opposition in parliament will be key to ensuring that Labour does not end up stuck in a bland centrism that is unable or unwilling to grapple with the root causes of the UK’s malaise. The Tories, consumed by infighting and the prospect of a takeover by the far right, will certainly not provide this. But the Liberal Democrats, who according to recent polls may win more than 60 seats, could.

Max von Thun was a political adviser to the Liberal Democrats from 2017 to 2019. He is Europe director at the Open Markets Institute, an anti-monopoly thinktank