Ed Davey vows Lib Dems will ‘fight’ against cynicism and division to ‘fix the country’
Sir Ed Davey has announced that the Liberal Democrats are in the 'fight of our lives' as he pledged to take on 'hopelessness and cynicism' and stop Britain becoming 'Farage’s Britain'
Sir Ed Davey has announced that the Liberal Democrats are in the “fight of our lives” as he pledged to take on “hopelessness and cynicism” and stop Britain becoming “Farage’s Britain”.
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In his speech to the Liberal Democrat conference in Brighton, the party leader said he would battle populists “who profit from division” and the “forces who would tear our country apart”.
Sir Ed told the conference: “We will stand and fight for the country we love.”
“It is us who will give the British people the power and the freedom to take our country forward.
“Not Reform, with their politics of grievance and blame. Not a tired Conservative Party that has learnt nothing from its failures. Not a Labour Party that just doesn’t understand so many parts of our country.
“But us, Liberals, that is our task. To change our broken politics so we can fix our country, to win the fight of our lives.”
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Sir Ed used his speech to unveil plans to raise the tax-free personal allowance threshold to £15,000, which he said would lift two million people out of income tax altogether and give most taxpayers a £680 cut.
He explained that the funding would come from economic growth from a new agreement to join the EU single market and customs union.
The Liberal Democrat leader also pledged to lift the threshold for paying the 40p higher rate of income tax to £56,000, which again would be funded by growth from closer economic ties with Europe.
He contrasted these plans with those of Reform UK, which he claimed would be paid for by cuts to disability benefits.
“We say no,” he said. “We can cut taxes and support the most vulnerable people in our country.”
Sir Ed also used the speech as an opportunity to launch a tirade against Nigel Farage, who he accused of giving “oxygen and heat and fuel” to the far-right movement.
He said: “That is not our country. That is not who we are. It is the worst of Trump’s America.
“We must not let it become Farage’s Britain.”
Sir Ed also warned of the risks of artificial intelligence, calling for a global treaty to “press pause” on superintelligent AI and proposing a new International AI Safety Agency modelled on the nuclear watchdog.
He concluded his address with a rallying cry to party members, saying: “This is a fight for the future of our country, a fight for liberty, equality and community.
“This is the fight of our lives, and we are going to win it.”