Four politicians battling to lead Britain's centrist Liberal Democrats outlined their manifestos today to bring change and greater electoral success to the party.
During a meeting of party activists at the London School of Economics the four men had ten minutes each to make their mark. The conference had been arranged before former party leader Charles Kennedy resigned last week.
The Liberal Democrats' interim leader Menzies Campbell, who was the first to declare his candidacy last weekend, started by paying tribute to his former boss Mr Kennedy, who quit on January 7th after admitting he was a recovering alcoholic.
"Today we salute Charles and wish him well and look forward to him returning to the front line," Mr Campbell said.
As the fight to replace Mr Kennedy heats up, the interim leader called for a "vigorous contest" but said people should not become distracted.
"The real battle is against Labour and the Conservatives."
Although Mr Menzies was seen as an early favourite, his performance in the House of Commons at Prime Minister's Questions earlier in the week was viewed as lacklustre by many political commentators.
The race has broadened out in recent days with candidates from the right and left wings of the party declaring their desire to build on the electoral success of Mr Kennedy.
In last May's parliamentary elections the Liberal Democrats, the only mainstream party to adopt an anti-war stance on Iraq, secured 22 per cent of the popular vote.
Party members say the Liberal Democrats must define their direction in the face of the threat from a revived Conservative party, where new leader David Cameron is trying to move the Tories into the political middle ground.
Liberal Democrat economics spokesman Chris Huhne yesterday became the fourth candidate to declare, even though the 51-year old only became a MP in 2005.
Party president Simon Hughes, one of the best-known figures in the Liberal Democrats, announced he would stand on Thursday, and home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten is also a contender.
Candidates have until January 25 thto enter the leadership race, with the more than 70,000 members voting from February 6th until March 1st. The winner will be named on March 2nd, the day before the party's annual spring conference.