Election debates should be set independently

The staging of leaders debates for general elections should be written into law, with the format and inclusion based on independent rules, the Liberal Democrats have said.

The party is calling for existing rules to be overhauled to wrest control away from the two old parties who have shown time and again that, whilst they will claim to oppose everything the other says, they are very happy to do backroom deals to shut out other voices.

Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

“It should not be in the gift of any political party to decide whether the public deserve the opportunity to scrutinise those who seek to lead this country. That is why TV debates should be mandatory, and the format should be decided by an independent commission.

“The current situation in which the Labour and Conservative parties stitch up how debates work is utterly intolerable.

“Jo Swinson is the only women candidate to be Prime Minister, the only one campaigning to stop Brexit and the only one who has the plan to build a brighter future.

“Jo must be part of the debate, and a Liberal Democrat government will ensure that an independent commission is tasked with creating the format for future mandatory debates.”