Your candidates for Party President - statements

Both the candidates for Party President have responded to our invitation, and have sent us short statements.

Please do take a moment to check these over before you cast your vote in the Presidential election.

The voting deadline is 5pm on Friday 8th November.

MARK PACK

The contest for Party President is rather different from that for Leader, or for members of our Federal Policy Committee, in that the President's role primarily is not about policy.

That's why in this statement I will concentrate on how we need to support and encourage party bodies such as Humanist & Secularist Liberal Democrats, as getting our organisation and strategy right is at the heart of the President's role.

Groups like yours have so much to contribute to the party, by giving people passionate about your issues another way to get involved and to campaign, and by bringing expertise and diverse perspectives to our decision-making.

I know also through from talking to members of many different party bodies, including HSLD, that there are some common frustrations - such as over the difficulties in being able to communicate with other members and local parties about your work, and the way our membership processes do not encourage party bodies likes yours to go out and bring in more new members who share our views on the issues you concentrate on.

That's where the President can come in, because these sorts of issues cut across the different boundaries within the party and go beyond the remit of party staff. The President is therefore ideally placed to listen to those concerns and then make sure we work together to address them. Which is exactly what I'd do.

I'd be very happy to discuss these or other issues further: mark.pack@libdemnewswire.com

CHRISTINE JARDINE

For me one of the most important words in any language is 'people'.

I believe people should be at the heart of everything you do in politics and in life.

That is why I so respect the work of humanists and find it reassuring that we have a strong Humanist and Secularist Group in our party.

As President I will stand up for the people who are this party whether that is members, staff, parliamentarians or those who put their lives on hold to be a candidate.

The job is not to be the leader or the chief executive. We already have both.

It is to communicate, facilitate and negotiate on between and on behalf of all sections of the party, chair the board and line manage the CEO to ensure our strategy gets delivered.

At a time when we have more MPs and a growing party it is also vital to be the bridge that keeps MPs and party working as one.

There are times when that will mean telling the leader that they are getting it wrong. I think my track record shows that I have no problem speaking the truth to power. I do not sit on the sidelines and wait. I get involved.

I'll listen to arguments, research the evidence and make the case that the people in this party want me to make.

And I'll use all my broadcasting skills on TV, Radio social media and from the conference platform to make sure it gets heard.