THE Liberal Democrats should consider dumping Nick Clegg as their leader if they want to avoid electoral disaster at the 2015 General Election, a senior party peer has said.
Lord Oakeshott, the former LibDem Treasury spokesman, referred to the continually bad opinion polls, which have put the party across the UK on around 10% and in Scotland around 7%.
"We have lost over half our market share since the election," said Lord Oakeshott. "Any business that had done that would be looking very hard now at both its strategy and its management to see how we get some of that back because otherwise we are going to lose a large number of seats at the next election."
A poll of 500 party activists had 46% suggesting Mr Clegg should step down before the next election.
Last night, Mr Clegg hit back, labelling Lord Oakeshott a "backseat driver."
He said: "For as long as I've been in politics and for as long as I will be in politics, you always have backseat drivers, who sit there making endless comments about people who actually have to lead and take decisions and take responsibility."
Earlier the party leader said: "I am going to lead this party through the next General Election and beyond."
Lord Oakeshott made his intervention after a recent survey, which suggested if the LibDems polled 10% at the next election, they would lose 47 of their current 57 MPs.
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