Rennard set to come back as general election director?

The Lib Dems are looking for a Director of General Election Strategy and the job description makes interesting reading:

Essential Skills and Experience

1. The ability to articulate a vision for Liberal Democrat electoral success in 2015

.

2.A record of delivering national electoral success.

 

3. 10 years’ experience of providing strategic leadership for a national political party .

 

4. A deep understanding of UK electoral politics.

 

5. A background and 5 years’ experience of delivering political marketing and market

research.

 

6. 10 years’ experience of leading political communications or campaigns for a political

party, including for a national general election.

 

7. A passion for and a commitment to campaigning.

 

8. Experience of working with and inspiring volunteers and staff.

 

9. A demonstrated commitment to liberal values

.

10. A proven track record of success within electoral politics.

 

11. 5 years’ experience gained working in a senior role within government.

 

12. 10 years’ experience gained working in a senior strategic role within a political party.

 

13. An understanding of the political dynamics of coalition government.

 

14. An established understanding of the internal dynamics of the Liberal Democrats

Could this be the reason for Rennard's unexpected apology last week?  If it's not going to be Rennard - who ticks pretty much all the boxes - then who else could it be? 

The Rennard crisis from afar

The Lib Dems have been hit by a fire storm in the run up to vital elections on Thursday - not just in Eastleigh but in a number of local by-elections including the very marginal Berrylands in Kingston.

I've just watched the closing statements of the second ever Presidential debate in Kenya - where more than 14 million voters go to the polls a week today - and the minutiae of the scandal seems somewhat irrelevant.  Elections in Kenya are closely fought and last time round ended in a bout of ethnic violence that killed 1,300 and disposessed many thousands of others.  And the repercussions of which are still troubling Kenya today.

But what the Rennard crisis does show is that small volunteer organisations - dominated by a few big and professional personalities - have an inbalance in power and influence and when you add in tribal loyalties create an atmosphere where ranks easily close around the key figures.


But there is a longstanding problem in the party - wider than just the Rennard allegations and how they may or may not have been dealt with - that we really do not value the input of our members and supporters properly. Most local parties only use people as delivery or canvassing machines, a small clique carry on running the local party and new ideas are frowned upon. 

Nationally the party makes almost no effort to engage with the membership - other than to ask them for cash. Our heamorrage of membership post coalition has been exacerbated by the way we treat our wider membership. So I hope that whatever comes out of the specific investigation also leads to a wider debate about how we value and enthuse our membership in future.