Sir Ed Davey has said people are “changing their mind” on Tesla electric cars and he would not buy one.
Asked if people should boycott Tesla – run by Trump adviser Elon Musk – Sir Ed said: “Let’s get tariffs on them first.”
The Liberal Democrat leader told Sky News: “People who would have liked to believe that Teslas were the way forward are now saying, ‘well, hold on a minute, we don’t want to be associated with someone with these horrible views’.”
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The Lib Dems have called for the UK government to put retaliatory tariffs on Tesla and other American goods because President Donald Trump is “not a reliable ally”.
Launching their local election campaign in Henley-on-Thames, Sir Ed said the Lib Dems were now “the party of Middle England”.
He denied this meant they were the “posh party” or that their appeal was limited to those with middle or higher incomes.
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Asked who he sees as Middle England, Sir Ed said: “Vast amounts of people, everybody needs good care, everybody needs a good health service, we’re appealing to everybody.”
To mark the launch of his party’s campaign, Sir Ed was taught how to “hobby horse” – and was photographed jumping over miniature fences on a stick horse at the walled garden of an Oxfordshire golf club.
May’s local elections should bring a good set of results for the Lib Dems, with the party aiming to overtake the Conservatives in the number of councils they run.
Lib Dem officials said the party currently leads 37 councils with a majority, compared with 49 run by the Conservatives.
They are helped by the fact that 20 Tory local authorities are holding votes this year, including in areas like Shropshire, Devon and Hertfordshire where the Lib Dems performed well at the general election.
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Even if the Lib Dems can surpass the Conservatives in the number of councils won, they will likely still trail them in the total tally of individual elected councillors.
Since winning a record number of seats at the general election last July, the Lib Dems have continued to focus their campaigning on local issues, with the NHS and social care a key topic.
But in recent months, Sir Ed has become more vocal on foreign affairs, upping his criticism of Mr Trump and calling for closer economic ties with the EU.
With Labour constrained by government and the Conservatives trying to stop voters switching to Reform UK, the Lib Dems believe they have identified an opportunity to strike a more pro-European and anti-Trump tone.
The party also seized on comments made by Kemi Badenoch when the Tory leader appeared to dismiss Lib Dems as “somebody who is good at fixing their church roof”.
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Sir Ed said he took that as a “compliment” and accused Ms Badenoch of “sneering” at voters.
A majority of the party’s target areas for the local elections are traditionally Tory-held councils in rural and more affluent areas.
However, the party is also hoping for a strong result in the Hull and East Yorkshire mayoral contest.
The Conservatives called the Lib Dem launch “a joke” and said Tories “are working day in and day out to provide this country the opposition it deserves”.
