Sir Ed Davey has used his keynote speech to warn that the UK has a choice between “the real change people crave”, and a Reform government turning Britain into “Trump’s America”.
The leader of the Liberal Democrats has sought to paint a picture of the country at a crossroads, and has heaped accusations on Nigel Farage – suggesting he would reverse gun laws and scrap the NHS.
Sir Ed has spent the past few days of the party’s conference in Bournemouth attacking tech titan Elon Musk and the Reform UK leader.
But now he has used his speech to try and tie the ideas of Mr Farage and President Trump together in voters’ minds.
He said: “Imagine living in the Trump-inspired country Farage wants us to become.
“Where there’s no NHS, so patients are hit with crippling insurance bills. Or denied healthcare altogether.
“Where we pay Putin for expensive fossil fuels and destroy our beautiful countryside with fracking – while climate change rages on.
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“Where gun laws are rolled back, so schools have to teach our children what to do in case of a mass shooting. Where social media barons are free to poison young minds with impunity.”
Sir Ed also accused Mr Farage’s party of allowing “the government [to] trample on our basic rights and freedoms” by saying it will pull the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) – and of giving “tacit support” to racism and misogyny.
The Lib Dem claimed a Reform government would be “where everything is in a constant state of chaos”.
Under Mr Farage, those with mental health problems would be told they are “making it up”, and children with special educational needs that they have “been wrongly diagnosed”, Sir Ed said.
“That is Trump’s America. Don’t let it become Farage’s Britain,” he warned.
But Sir Ed has not only attacked Reform UK for what could happen if they came to power, but also for the “crisis”, which he accused Mr Farage of having already caused.
He pointed to the Reform leader’s support for leaving the EU, which led to 27 existing migrant return agreements being abolished.
Sir Ed said: “He caused this [small boats] crisis, and he should apologise.
“And look at this hypocrite’s big announcement on deportation last month.
“Look at what his plan really means. Sending men, women and children who have fled the Taliban back to Afghanistan to be murdered by them. And even paying the Taliban to do it.
“That isn’t patriotic. That isn’t British. That isn’t who we are.
“So much that is broken in our country today is broken thanks to Nigel Farage. And now he wants to break it even more. Unless we stop him.”
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In fact, Sir Ed directly mentioned Mr Farage by name in his speech 30 times, a point made by our political editor Beth Rigby, who has argued that the Reform UK leader is living ‘rent-free’ in the Lib Dem’s head.
Farage is allied with Musk, Putin and Trump, Davey claims
But Sir Ed also had tech billionaire, Elon Musk, in his sights once again.
The Lib Dem leader repeated his allegation that the X owner was “inciting far-right violence” with his speech at the “Unite the Kingdom” rally last weekend.
He called for the UK to stand up to Mr Musk, and for the government to “properly enforce our laws so he can’t get away with inflicting harm on our kids”.
“Nigel Farage is on the side of Elon Musk, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump,” he alleged. “Liberal Democrats are on the side of the British people.”
Sky News has approached X and Elon Musk for comment about these comments that he has made previously, but as of publication has received no response.
X maintains it has “zero tolerance for child sexual abuse material” and claims tackling those who exploit children is a “top priority”.
Read more:
UK faces ‘crisis’ of child-on-child sexual abuse
Trump is ‘the biggest threat to the fight against cancer’
Another person to face Sir Ed’s ire was President Trump, who the leader accused of becoming “the biggest threat to the fight against cancer”.
“The US is by far the world’s biggest funder of cancer research – mostly through its National Cancer Institute,” the leader said.
“But since Donald Trump returned to the White House, he has cancelled hundreds of grants for cancer research projects.
“He’s slashing billions of dollars from the National Cancer Institute’s budget.”
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Sir Ed appealed for scientists who have had projects cancelled or funding cut to “come here and finish it in the UK”.
He said a dedicated scheme should be established to allow them to move to work at British research institutions, without having to pay large visa fees.
He also used his speech to pledge to boost healthcare and cancer research more widely.
He told party members: “The UK should step up and say: if Trump won’t back this research, we will.
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“We’ll boost funding for cancer research in the UK. We’ll rebuild a National Cancer Research Institute, after it was closed under the Conservatives, to coordinate research and drive it forward.
“We’ll pass a Cancer Survival Research Act to ensure funding for research into the deadliest cancers.”
He also announced a “cast-iron guarantee” that each patient in the UK diagnosed with cancer will start treatment within two months under the Liberal Democrats.
Sir Ed also:
