WILL HE BE MERCILESS TO MING?

As the Lib Dems gather in Brighton, the rumour mill is working overtime on the prospect of Menzies Campbell hanging on to the leadership. The less likley a snap election, the more it seems that he's in trouble. At 66, Ming is hardly in the first flush of youth. But that is hardly a reason to get rid of him. A better one is that since Charlie Kennedy was forced to pack it in the Libs have plummeted in the polls.
The latest opinion poll for the Independent shows them marooned on 15 points, down seven points since April. Labour continues to flourish on 37 per cent and the Tories are on 34. However, the gloomy findings echo a Sunday Times poll which said 63 per cent of Lib-Dem supporters believed the party would do better with a younger leader. The bad news forMing is there is now talk of David Owen re-joining Labour and his gang Of Four colleague Lord (Bill) Rodgers says he is " disappointed with Sir Menzies's leadership." Just a thought, but I suppose if Rodgers, Owen and Shirley Williams all jump ship and head back to Labour, then Ming is surely doomed....