Lib Dem spin doctor resigns after policy gaffe

The Liberal Democrat's top spin doctor announced his resignation yesterday after a storm over claims that Sir Menzies Campbell was dropping his historic insistence on voting reform.

Mark Littlewood, the party's head of press, will step down within weeks after sparking fury among senior MPs by saying that electoral reform was not "a deal maker or a deal breaker" for any possible future coalition deal.

Senior MPs were forced to deny the story within hours, amid confusion which overshadowed Sir Menzies' spring conference speech at the weekend.

The row was potentially damaging for Sir Menzies, who has insisted that voting reform is a top priority. He will attempt to limit the fall-out from the row today, using a speech to the party's Welsh conference to declare that the party still regards proportional representation as an overriding priority. He will declare: "Be in no doubt that my commitment to proportional representation - for every election - is absolute."

Yesterday the party's chief executive Lord Rennard said Mr Littlewood would leave in the next two months, insisting that he had told the party in November that he would move on. Lord Rennard said: "The party is very grateful to Mark for playing an invaluable role in the party in the last general election campaign and in Menzies Campbell's first year as leader.

"During his time as head of media the party expanded considerably the size and effectiveness of its media team. Mark indicated to the party his intention to move on last November."

The party has already appointed Jonathan Oates, a director of Bell Pottinger, as new director of policy and communications.

Sir Menzies, pledged during his leadership election campaign to vote down any Queen's speech "without a clear and unambiguous commitment for proportional representation".

He will say today: "Don't forget that it was by positioning ourselves as the driving force in the government of Wales's first term that over 100 Liberal Democrat policies were put into action. You know, it was proportional representation that made that possible.

"Both the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament are elected by a proportional system. A system that encourages parties to work together more, and to work against each other less. A system that ensures that every vote counts. A system which is fair, democratic and inclusive. So be in no doubt that my commitment to proportional representation - for every election - is absolute."

Yesterday the former Liberal Democrat leader Sir Paddy Ashdown insisted that he remained fully committed to voting reform.

Hesaid that he would not "dine with God" if proportional representation was not on the table. He told GMTV that he had vowed not to offer advice to his successors. But he said: "One thing I would say, however, and it's the only exception I make to this rule, and I suspect Menzies would say it too, is this: you know the old phrase in English - 'If you dine with the Devil, you take a long spoon' - I would not dine with God if PR was not on the menu, but I would dine with the Devil if it was."

A party spokeswoman said: "That is not really Ming's language. It's not the words he would use. What we are talking about is that proportional representation is at the heart of the Liberal Democrats' priorities."