We have been calling for a realignment of politics for decades.  I have welcomed the courageous move by 11 Members of Parliament to sit as independents.  We now must seize the moment and maximise this opportunity to reshape British politics.

Those MPs who have defected to the newly formed “Independent Group” come from different political traditions to our own.  We should respect them for being honest about the fact that their former parties no longer articulate their values.  Thankfully, our party, is different and still articulates the values that we have always held.  In the politics of Brexit, we agree on a lot and have a shared desire to see a People’s Vote.  We shall cooperate in achieving that.

However, I want us to be open to the possibility of a shared agenda beyond the immediate Brexit debate. We will not agree on everything and where we do not agree we should not be afraid to say so.  We can, however, concentrate on what unites us and how we can work together issue by issue to bring about change.  I hope to work closely with The Independent Group in Parliament.

Politics, of course, is not just what happens in Westminster.  As leader of this party I value enormously the work done by our parliamentarians in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Brussels and our thousands of hard working and effective councillors.   We all, I believe want to seize the opportunities this moment presents to build a broad movement for change in the country and seek to maximise political representation to advance the values we share. 

Together, we will need to decide how we engage with any new political force.  Under our present electoral system that will mean in some cases people in different parts of the country having to take difficult decisions to avoid damaging electoral contests. However, that is clearly a matter for local parties in consultation with HQ to decide working within our established structures, while keeping our eye on the bigger electoral prize.

The overriding lesson of the week is that British politics is changing.  That is good news for the country, good news for liberal, open values and good news for our party. 

Today I’m supporting a Private Members’ bill to give people seeking asylum the right to work.

The numbers don’t lie. 2019 presents the biggest set of local elections for the Lib Dems in several years. Many of those candidates will be under the age of 26. That’s where we come in.

I’m Charlie, campaigns officer for the Young Liberals – the party’s youth and student wing. We want to see more young people getting elected – and that’s why today we launched Young and Winning 2019.

Do you want to get our Brexit message to voters in your area? Check out our new bulk buy deals to find out how.

The deadline to order is Monday 25 February.

Today, 7 MPs left Labour to form an independent group. I felt they were brave and said I hoped we’d be able to work together.

What I didn’t say is I felt the answer to many of their reasons for leaving are addressed right here, with the Liberal Democrats.