Bill Newton Dunn delighted about new Lib Dem party leader

3.27.56pm GMT Tue 18th Dec 2007

Bill Newton Dunn (Liberal Democrat MEP for the East Midlands) welcomes the outcome of today's Liberal Democrat party leader election and congratulates Nick Clegg.

Speaking from the European Parliament in Brussels this afternoon, Bill Newton Dunn expressed his delight at the election of the new party leader:

"I have worked with him, side-by-side as fellow MEPs, for several years. I am delighted at his election because he is of such high quality. He will lead our party with distinctive policies to a higher share of public support. And, because he is a very knowledgeable European, he will - for the first time of any party leader at Westminster - demonstrate to the British public with real authority how vital it is for Britain to play a positive and leading role in the European Union as opposed to the grouchy resentful opting-out performance of the other two parties, Labour and Conservative.

"In a few years' time when people look back to today, they will realise that this was the moment when the Lib Dems began to make the distinctive changes that subsequently so benefited the British people - from the saving the environment, decentralisation of power away from Whitehall, constitutional change, voting by proportional representation, defence of individual rights, and much more ."