Mark Pack has blogged here on LDV the 14 Lib Dems appointed to ministerial poisitions in the Lib Dem / Conservative coalition government, in addition to the five cabinet members, including Nick Clegg as Deputy Prime Minister.
So who does that leave from the Lib Dem shadow cabinet who has yet to find a position within ministerial ranks? Well, by my reckoning there are 11 Lib Dem MPs who might have some cause to be disappointed, including two of our women MPs, Jenny Willott and Lorely Burt:
Previously in Lib Dem shadow cabinet, so far without position (11):
Simon Hughes MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Norman Lamb MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Health
Tim Farron MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Stephen Williams MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
Don Foster MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
John Thurso MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Jenny Willott MP Lib Dem Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Michael Moore MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for International Development
Roger Williams MP Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for Wales
Mark Hunter MP Leader’s Parliamentary Private Secretary
Lorely Burt MP Chairman of the Parliamentary Party
For me the three most surprising omissions so far from this list are the first three: Simon, Norman and Tim. It will be interesting to see what roles they do occupy in the coming parliament. It also seems a shame that Jo Swinson, previously on the front-bench but not in the shadow cabinet, has yet to receive a call to office.
What do others think: who are the surprise omissions from your point of view?
And here’s another intriguing question: which of the defeated Lib Dem MPs would have been dead-certs for government if they had retained their seats?
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8 Comments
Norman Lamb, Lorely and Jo Swinson are two who would have made excellent ministers. However it makes sense for the purpose of maintaining our party’s distinct identity to keep some of our best spokespeople outside of the government and thus the bounds of collective responsibility.
If anything I am worried that too many of our best people are inside the government rather than outside. It is like at local level where you elect too many of your hardest working activists, and their local government duties keep them away from flying the party flag.
I understood, that the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats will share the whip, but does anybody know, if the Lib Dem parliamentary party will have its own chairman?
Surely Julia Goldsworthy is the missing Lib Dem MP, lost in action, who should have made it into a junior ministerial post
@Ben the Lib Dem whip will be Alistair Carmichael. He was previously shadow Secretary of State for Scotland and Northern Ireland. I had hoped that he would become Northern Ireland secretary as he is one of the few politicians from GB who can navigate the labyrinthine complexities of NI politics, but it was not to be.
Fair enough. But what about the chairman?
It would be useful to know who our spokespeople are going to be for those departments without a Liberal Democrat Minister.
Someone give Simon Hughes a position? Please?
I think Jo and Jenny are taking time out from front-bench politics, certainly in the latter’s case for a mini-Willott…