Issue 396 of Liberator will soon be on its way to subscribers and the free sample article for this issue is Ed Davey and Jo Swinson giving their answers to Liberator’s questionnaire to Lib Dem leadership candidates.

The topics here are intended to get both to think about what the party is for and what it should do now that it has unexpectedly and suddenly recovered its political standing from the post-coalition doldrums.

Here’s what we asked the two candidates. For their answers see: www.liberatormagazine.org.uk

1. Were the European election results a one-off or can the support gained be kept and what other issues would you raise?
2. Should the party seek to establish a core vote and if so from which parts of the electorate should this be drawn, and not?
3. If you were in the same position as Nick Clegg was over tuition fees (a pledge made then broken) how would you handle the problem?
4. Can the Liberal Democrats really ‘win everywhere’ or does this approach necessarily mean they can lose everywhere too?
5. Would you regard your election as leader as a mandate to take the party in a particular political direction, and if so what?
6. What policies should the party put forward to address climate change?
7. If Brexit does take place should we become the party of ‘back in’ the EU?
8. How are we to raise the resources to fix crumbling public services?
9. Do you regret the Coalition’s austerity policies and what should be done to address the dismantling of the welfare state?
10. Who is your current political hero?

Also in this issue:

IN – OUT – PENDING – Whoever becomes the next Liberal Democrat leader, they can look forward to an overflowing in-tray. Sarah Green takes a look inside

WHAT THE BBC WON’T TELL YOU – Liberals saw a renaissance in the European Parliament elections, despite the media emphasis on the populist right, says David Grace

IDENTITY POLITICS BEYOND BREXIT – Everyone at York was given a copy of Vince Cable’s pamphlet, which raises issues of realignment, political identity and the B word. Susan Simmonds discusses why

TIANANMEN AND DARFUR COME TO KHARTOUM – The bloody crackdown on democracy activists in Sudan was encouraged by other Arab dictatorships as a warning to their own people, says Rebecca Tinsley

“WHAT THE F*** JUST HAPPENED?”– Losing contact with ordinary voters cost Labor an Australian election everyone expected it to win. Steve Yolland reports

IT’S MORE THAN MONEY – Inequality is not just financial, liberals should tackle unequal power too, says Oliver Craven

NO CASH FOR SCHOOLS – A funding crisis has emerged in education. John Bryant suggests some ways to solve it

POOR PERFORMANCE – Have the Liberal Democrats got anything to say to people in poverty, and would they listen anyway? Geoff Payne sets the scene for this year’s Social Liberal Forum conference

IT WASN’T JUST BREXIT- Howard Sykes looks at how local election success set up the European election results, and even got some national help

Also, news and gossip in Radical Bulletin, letters, reviews and Lord Bonkers’ Diary.

Back issues of Liberator from 2001 onwards are available free, together with subscription details (£25 a year) on our website.  See: www.liberatormagazine.org.uk