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Lib Dems can stop Tory landslide - Tim Farron

Tim FarronImage source, PA

Tim Farron is urging people to vote tactically for the Liberal Democrats to prevent a Conservative landslide.

The Lib Dem leader launched an eve-of-poll tour of England with an "anti-hard Brexit" breakfast at a Solihull cafe that specialises in German sausage.

He said voting Lib Dem would send a "powerful message" to Theresa May that she did not have a "blank cheque".

He insists his party can double their tally of MPs to 18 on Thursday despite relatively sluggish poll ratings.

Mr Farron is campaigning for a second referendum on the terms of any Brexit deal and has said he will campaign to stay in Europe if such a vote was held.

The Lib Dem leader claimed the Conservatives could not be trusted to handle EU withdrawal negotiations.

"They can't even write a manifesto they can stand by, yet they want you to trust them with the biggest negotiations this country has ever done.

"What we need is a set of MPs after this election that will hold the government to account to prevent Theresa May taking us all for granted."

Theresa May has said she would walk away from Brexit talks rather than return from Brussels with a bad deal. She has also insisted she wants a bigger Commons majority to strengthen her hand at the negotiating table and says only the Conservatives can make a success of Brexit.

But Mr Farron is urging supporters of other parties to "lend" their vote to the Lib Dems on Thursday to prevent the landslide he claims Mrs May is seeking.

"We are saying to people in areas where you know the Liberal Democrats are the main challengers, as we seek to minimise Theresa May's majority, then backing the Liberal Democrats is a powerful way that you can send a message that she does not have a blank cheque to bring in the dementia tax, cut the police and do the damage that she is going to do to our health service."

He also criticised the Conservative leader over her announcement that she would change human rights laws if they got in the way of combating the terror threat.