Tim Farron

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:00:21. > :00:33.A wonderful crowd, welcome to Tim. Ed and I are coming back... And what

:00:34. > :00:39.I hear on the doorsteps and I have done a lot for ready is that phrase,

:00:40. > :00:47.welcome back and what we are seeing Krmas of upsurge in membership, in

:00:48. > :00:51.support, enthusiasm more than last time and all the momentum now is

:00:52. > :00:58.with us. You may remember two years ago we had had five years of strong

:00:59. > :01:01.and stable government and the coalition and let -- letters went

:01:02. > :01:05.around saying we need strong and stable government and a David

:01:06. > :01:15.Cameron and where is he? It is a mess. They created a mess. We are

:01:16. > :01:19.now out of the European Union, massive disruption of jobs,

:01:20. > :01:23.destroying our potential science base which is important around here

:01:24. > :01:29.and now they are saying against, Theresa May, I want strong and

:01:30. > :01:32.stable government, I want a massive majority supposedly to negotiate

:01:33. > :01:37.with the European Union. What they are racing as they want a blank

:01:38. > :01:41.cheque, they do not want criticism, they do not want backbenchers who

:01:42. > :01:46.will challenge who will tell her what she needs to be told rather

:01:47. > :01:50.than what she wants to hear. And if you really want to know what the

:01:51. > :01:54.conservatives think about you, I don't whether you read the

:01:55. > :02:01.Conservative press but that phrase crush the saboteurs, that is ours.

:02:02. > :02:06.But the country needs us, it needs an effective opposition who will

:02:07. > :02:12.challenge and when at the end of this we get a bad outcome or no

:02:13. > :02:18.outcome, somebody needs to say when you're in a hole, stop digging. Let

:02:19. > :02:30.the public have another say on this disastrous exit we are pursuing. And

:02:31. > :02:36.this election is not just about Brexit. I have been going around

:02:37. > :02:41.local schools in Twickenham and they are under incredible financial

:02:42. > :02:47.pressure. It is as bad as it was in 1997 when I first became an MP and

:02:48. > :02:51.we had a long period of Tory government starving schools of cash.

:02:52. > :02:55.It is happening all over again and they are foisting on the local

:02:56. > :03:00.schools a funding formula which aired and I stopped when we were in

:03:01. > :03:05.government because it was unfair and damaging and the same thing is

:03:06. > :03:10.happening to the decline of social care because the Tories tore up an

:03:11. > :03:15.all-party agreement to sort it out so there are big big battles to

:03:16. > :03:18.fight and we need a very strong Lib Dem representation in parliament and

:03:19. > :03:22.that is what you will get from the three of us in this area so thank

:03:23. > :03:33.you for coming, thank you to Tim and let's get on with the fight.

:03:34. > :03:40.Thank you, Vince, thank you everybody, thank you, Tim. This is

:03:41. > :03:44.an exciting day will stop here in Surbiton we are launching the

:03:45. > :03:47.campaign to make sure we take back Twickenham, keep Richmond Park and

:03:48. > :03:58.get back Kingston and Surbiton for the Lib Dems. Vince, you were too

:03:59. > :04:04.gentle on the Conservatives. It is not strong and stable, it is weak

:04:05. > :04:08.and fragile. The Tories are as divided on Europe as the Labour

:04:09. > :04:13.Party. It is only the Lib Dems are united and have a clear position and

:04:14. > :04:19.have held that position for decades. And therefore the country needs us,

:04:20. > :04:24.it needs us to have that voice, that strong voice on Europe and needs us

:04:25. > :04:27.to hold whoever gets elected to account. And if it is the

:04:28. > :04:31.Conservatives as opinion polls show, if they have a huge majority it will

:04:32. > :04:36.be disastrous for the Brexit negotiations because this

:04:37. > :04:42.Conservative government does not understand Europe. It needs Lib Dems

:04:43. > :04:45.like Vince and Sarah and myself who have negotiated in Europe,

:04:46. > :04:52.negotiated in the single market and free trade to make sure we get a

:04:53. > :04:55.good deal for the UK but also as a Vince said, whatever deal emerges in

:04:56. > :04:59.two or three years' time, it should be the British people who decide

:05:00. > :05:11.whether that is the right thing for this country. Vince rightly talked

:05:12. > :05:17.about the problems in our schools, hospitals and public services like

:05:18. > :05:20.police and public transport Corps we have lost 27 police officers in

:05:21. > :05:25.Kingston, the budget is going down by 6 million thanks to the Tories.

:05:26. > :05:31.Waiting times at Kingston a and he has shot through the roof, this is

:05:32. > :05:35.the Tory party in action starving resources to public services. And if

:05:36. > :05:41.they get a huge majority, what will happen? It will get a lot worse.

:05:42. > :05:47.This is not just an ordinary Tory government, it is right wing pulling

:05:48. > :05:54.out of Europe, guess what they will send us back to be the dirty man of

:05:55. > :06:00.Europe again, even now since May 2015, voting against climate change

:06:01. > :06:03.measures, to think no protect the environment, with a act on climate

:06:04. > :06:09.change? I saw them in government other did not want did not want to

:06:10. > :06:14.do the measures the Lib Dems delivered on. We kept our promise on

:06:15. > :06:18.climate change, we'll keep our promise on those and public services

:06:19. > :06:23.and tackling hard Brexit. Please work hard every hour between now and

:06:24. > :06:32.June the 8th to achieve that. But I'm so delighted that 1-party has a

:06:33. > :06:36.leader of principle. A leader who is speaking for the majority of British

:06:37. > :06:41.people, who do want to see a change in the direction of our country and

:06:42. > :06:46.I could not be more delighted to introduce my friend and colleague,

:06:47. > :06:56.the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Tim Farron.

:06:57. > :07:02.APPLAUSE Welcome! Can I say an enormous thank

:07:03. > :07:06.you to all of you, especially for laying on Lake District weather for

:07:07. > :07:11.me, it makes me feel massively at home. Yes, this is a chance for us

:07:12. > :07:14.to change colour for the British people to change the direction of

:07:15. > :07:20.our country. Let's not pretend Theresa May has called the selection

:07:21. > :07:26.for any other reason than that she expects a landslide. Our job is not

:07:27. > :07:31.to give it to her. Not to let her take you for granted. What could be

:07:32. > :07:36.worse for south-west London and the country as a whole than a

:07:37. > :07:40.Conservative majority, Coronation on the 8th of June that allows her to

:07:41. > :07:45.ignore the plight of local hospitals, ignore the plight of

:07:46. > :07:48.local schools and the reduction in police officers and ignore the

:07:49. > :07:53.reduction in the strength of our Armed Forces and ignore the growing

:07:54. > :07:57.clamour for Britain to remain as members of the single market. The

:07:58. > :08:01.worst governments are the ones with the weakest positions and there is a

:08:02. > :08:09.vacancy for an opposition in this country and the Lib Dems are here to

:08:10. > :08:13.fill it. So, if you believe Britain can be better than this, if you

:08:14. > :08:17.believe it is wrong that we should be taken out of the single market

:08:18. > :08:23.without the British people having the final say, if you are concerned

:08:24. > :08:26.the revelations overnight about Theresa May's complacency, her

:08:27. > :08:29.complacency as she tells European leaders she has won the election

:08:30. > :08:35.something that will be news of the British people and offensive to be

:08:36. > :08:40.heard but also complacent about the consequences of no deal whatsoever.

:08:41. > :08:44.Theresa May was once home secretary, she knows what a lack of security

:08:45. > :08:50.co-operation across Europe means for the safety and security of the

:08:51. > :08:57.British people. She knows what dropping out of the single market

:08:58. > :09:01.means for the lack of jobs for the rising prices, lack of stability and

:09:02. > :09:05.the danger to our economy, she needs the impact on local families here

:09:06. > :09:10.and the impact on families around the country, she must not care. She

:09:11. > :09:15.knows being outside the free trade deal will mean less money in fixed

:09:16. > :09:19.jacket, less money for schools, hospitals and police forces. She

:09:20. > :09:23.knows those being the case and she must not care. Complacent government

:09:24. > :09:25.heading for what Theresa May believes is a Coronation is an

:09:26. > :09:46.incredibly dangerous situation to be as you're here to say today

:09:47. > :09:49.this will not be a Coronation, this will be a contest and as the Labour

:09:50. > :09:51.Party fights the next leadership battle, fighting inwardly against

:09:52. > :09:53.themselves, rather than standing up against this divisive Conservative

:09:54. > :09:55.government, we say we will stand in the place of a decent opposition,

:09:56. > :09:57.things can change and change dramatically, just over a week ago

:09:58. > :10:01.the two biggest parties, the main parties in France came third and

:10:02. > :10:08.fifth, do not let anyone tell you dramatic things cannot happen. We

:10:09. > :10:15.have seen enough of this or ready. Two anniversaries today, a half

:10:16. > :10:20.anniversary, firstly six months ago here we were in south-west London

:10:21. > :10:24.and we saw the dramatic victory of Sarah in Richmond Park taking the

:10:25. > :10:28.seat of the Conservatives reminding us that 80 months beforehand Sarah

:10:29. > :10:34.had not even been a member of the party because if you are one of

:10:35. > :10:37.those out there concerned and exasperated and anxious about the

:10:38. > :10:41.way our country and world is going, do not just sit there and weep into

:10:42. > :10:46.your latter-day, do something about it. Do something about it and this

:10:47. > :10:54.is your chance to do something. And a final controversial note, today it

:10:55. > :10:58.is 20 years, Ed and Vince enter parliament and since Tony Blair

:10:59. > :11:03.entered ten Downing St. A reminder whatever we think of Tony Blair and

:11:04. > :11:06.his outrageous illegal and counter-productive war in Iraq, it

:11:07. > :11:10.is a reminder 20 years ago that there was a time when a Progressive

:11:11. > :11:14.party was determined to get out there and win because if you do not

:11:15. > :11:18.win, you cannot change the country. We have a Labour Party not

:11:19. > :11:22.interested in winning, Liberal Democrats who are. Your job is to

:11:23. > :11:24.ten Theresa May's Coronation into a contest for the good of the British

:11:25. > :11:35.you.