Ming rated as 7 out of 10 by Lib Dem president

Last updated at 14:30 22 September 2006


Liberal Democrat President Simon Hughes reignited rumours of rifts at the top of the party by rating Sir Menzies Campbell's keynote speech as only "seven or eight out of 10".

Sir Menzies was widely regarded as having enjoyed a good week at the party's conference in Brighton after sailing through a crucial vote on tax policy and receiving strong backing from grass-roots activists.

He also garnered plaudits and a five-minute standing ovation for his speech yesterday, in which he launched a strong attack on the Tories and insisted he wanted to transform the Liberal Democrats into a "party of government".

But speculation about friction and disagreements with former leader Charles Kennedy and Mr Hughes have refused to go away.

Asked on the BBC's Politics Show today what he thought of Sir Menzies' performance, Mr Hughes gave a lukewarm assessment.

"Ming's speech - I mean how do you judge leaders' speeches?" he said.

"I guess it was a seven or eight out of 10 speech, in terms of speech, but it did the necessary for the party, and it created what Ming wanted to do, saying we are a serious party by contrast to some others who won't face the serious issues."

Mr Hughes stood against Sir Menzies for the leadership after Mr Kennedy stood down, and has previously caused anger by suggesting he had until the conference to prove he was the right man for the job.

Most watched News videos