We must have an elected House of Lords, greater Freedom of Information and a culling of unelected quangos. We must also have more powers for the Scottish Parliament.
Today is a proud moment for me.
I was inspired to go into politics by Jo Grimond.
And here I am today a Scot standing for leader of our great party – speaking to a great gathering of Scots.
As our position in the Scottish Executive, our strong electoral support across Scotland and the great win in Dunfermline and West Fife shows – we are the party on the rise and on the up in Scotland.
We have come a long way in a comparatively short time.
Transformed in my time in politics – we have much to thank those great Scots David Steel, Malcolm Bruce, Jim Wallace and Charles Kennedy for.
Consider what they used to say of us Liberal Democrats?
Think now what they say of the other parties here in Scotland?
The SNP – a party of protest, a one-man band.
The Tories – they can promise anything because they’ll never be in power.
Labour – the trouble is we just don’t know what they stand for.
I am serious about politics and so is this party.
My mission is to spread the Scottish success of our party to the whole of Britain.
Not just the political success, not just the policy success but the government success.
Under my leadership the Liberal Democrats we will be hammering on the doors of national power.
The general election result – the best in eight decades, raised the standard – this party expects and I intend to deliver.
The removal van may not yet have arrived at Downing Street – but the house of Blair will not be here for much longer.
Already British politics has moved on, in search of a new home. And that home will be built on liberalism.
That liberalism can dominate our politics and inspire our country.
The leader of the Liberal Democrats will have to argue the liberal case head to head with Gordon Brown and David Cameron, and of course here in Scotland with whoever happens to be leading the SNP at the time!
I relish the fight – we had a dry run in Dunfermline and West Fife – “Dave” came to see us once, smiled and left.
Gordon lives there and masterminded the Labour campaign, didn’t smile and lost.
We fought as a united, campaigning and radical party, smiled alot and won decisively.
So I say – bring them on.
I am ready to take on both David Cameron and Gordon Brown anytime, anyplace, anywhere.
So we now have a fantastic new Scottish Liberal Democrat MP, in Willie Rennie, to join the ever growing ranks of Scottish Parliamentarians who now play such a key part in our public life.
In every era the glittering talents colonise one political party.
It is our great fortune that this bright generation has chosen the Liberal Democrats – the new Scottish colleagues in Westminster underline this – Jo Swinson, Danny Alexander and only last week Willie Rennie.
My mission, as Leader, would be to harness their ability to ensure it is our party that becomes the rallying point, the catalyst, of this new political era.
I am passionate about my politics, determined to lead this party, not for my own sake but for what together liberals and liberalism can achieve.
I firmly believe that there is no glass ceiling for our party, no limit on our aspirations, and no anchor on our ambitions.
I will lead a progressive liberal party, even more determined than when I entered politics in the 1970s and even more energised than when I entered Parliament in 1987.
We must renew our liberalism in the context of the world we are in.
As a radical I will pursue the war on poverty. Britain is more unequal than in 1997. We need an urgency on issues like housing, local economic regeneration and pensions that we simply have not seen from this Government. This Government has promised much but it us who will have to deliver.
As a liberal I will champion constitutional reform – proportional representation for each and every election in Britain so that every vote will finally count. We must have an elected House of Lords, greater Freedom of Information and a culling of unelected quangos. We must also have more powers for the Scottish Parliament. This Government has promised much but it is us who will have to deliver.
As an environmentalist I will be relentless in my emphasis on tackling the environmental crisis we face. At home we must give a big boost to energy saving technology and use the tax system to give incentives to change individual behaviour. By investing in renewables and clean coal we can say no to nuclear power. This Government has promised much but it is us who will have to deliver.
As an internationalist I am determined that Britain must co-operate with other nations to ensure a safer, more prosperous and more secure world. Britain has a unique role to play at the heart of our international system. I still want the ethical foreign policy that Robin Cook talked about. This Government has promised much but it is us who will have to deliver.
As a decentraliser, I will reduce the power of the over-mighty state – with our great public services locally provided and democratically accountable. I stand by the key principles for Scotland of greater fiscal autonomy, reward for good governance and an end to the dependency culture. This Government has promised much but it is us who will have to deliver.
So this is my vision for the Liberal Democrats.
A fairer, greener, more democratic Britain.
A strong, distinctive, principled party.
Under my leadership we will think strategically, work professionally and campaign exhaustively.
Let a vote for the Liberal Democrats be a powerful vote – a vote for change, a vote for reform, a vote for a better Britain.
Let us move quickly from the leadership fight to the real fight.
A fight for Britain and a campaign which is ambitious for the Liberal Democrats, but more is ambitious for Britain.
