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| Opik to step down from party post | Opik to step down from party post |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| The leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats Lembit Opik has announced he is to stand down from the post. | The leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats Lembit Opik has announced he is to stand down from the post. |
| He told the party's autumn conference that he was doing so after six years so that the positions of assembly group leader and Welsh party leader could be decided at the same time. | He told the party's autumn conference that he was doing so after six years so that the positions of assembly group leader and Welsh party leader could be decided at the same time. |
| Assembly group leader Mike German is due to announce his intentions about his own future to delegates on Sunday. | Assembly group leader Mike German is due to announce his intentions about his own future to delegates on Sunday. |
| Mr Opik, speaking in Aberystwyth, also appealed for critics to be more open. | Mr Opik, speaking in Aberystwyth, also appealed for critics to be more open. |
| The Montgomeryshire MP went on to say: "To those who are prepared to criticise me and others behind our backs, I ask you what's the point of doing that? | The Montgomeryshire MP went on to say: "To those who are prepared to criticise me and others behind our backs, I ask you what's the point of doing that? |
| "A little more openness will go a long way to make us a more cohesive force in Welsh politics. If you've something to say, the most effective thing to do is to be open about it." | "A little more openness will go a long way to make us a more cohesive force in Welsh politics. If you've something to say, the most effective thing to do is to be open about it." |
| We're happy with each other - be happy for us Lembit Opik MP | We're happy with each other - be happy for us Lembit Opik MP |
| Mr Opik, an MP since 1997 and the party's industry spokesman, has made regular headlines for his relationship with Cheeky Girls singer Gabriela Irimina. | Mr Opik, an MP since 1997 and the party's industry spokesman, has made regular headlines for his relationship with Cheeky Girls singer Gabriela Irimina. |
| He told delegates about the "unpleasant" experience of reading "inaccurate, salacious and libellous" press reports about his private life. | He told delegates about the "unpleasant" experience of reading "inaccurate, salacious and libellous" press reports about his private life. |
| Mr Opik said he had been advised not to complain about false stories about his relationship with Ms Irimia. | Mr Opik said he had been advised not to complain about false stories about his relationship with Ms Irimia. |
| "With hindsight, I'm not sure this was the best approach," he said. | "With hindsight, I'm not sure this was the best approach," he said. |
| He thanked Ms Irimia, who listened to his speech from the front row of the conference hall, for "putting up with all the rubbish and misrepresentations". | |
| "We're happy with each other - be happy for us," he said. | "We're happy with each other - be happy for us," he said. |
| Mr Opik said the Lib Dems made a mistake in May when they tried to pursue two sets of assembly coalition talks, with Labour on the one hand and with Plaid Cymru and the Tories on the other. | Mr Opik said the Lib Dems made a mistake in May when they tried to pursue two sets of assembly coalition talks, with Labour on the one hand and with Plaid Cymru and the Tories on the other. |
| He said the Labour option was "discarded prematurely". | He said the Labour option was "discarded prematurely". |
| German to reveal intentions But the party should strive for a distinctive voice. | German to reveal intentions But the party should strive for a distinctive voice. |
| He called for a campaign to re-categorise drug addicts as patients not criminals. | He called for a campaign to re-categorise drug addicts as patients not criminals. |
| Giving addicts drugs on prescription would destroy the drug trade, he said. | Giving addicts drugs on prescription would destroy the drug trade, he said. |
| Mr Opik said he wanted to concentrate on work in his constituency. | Mr Opik said he wanted to concentrate on work in his constituency. |
| Lib Dem assembly leader Mike German paid tribute to Mr Opik as "a fantastic colleague and a fantastic communicator". | |
| He said: "He has great talents and I know that he will use them to maximum effect in the wider party." | |
| Mr German, who heads the party's six-strong assembly group, is due to reveal on Sunday whether he wants to carry on doing the job he has held since 1999. | Mr German, who heads the party's six-strong assembly group, is due to reveal on Sunday whether he wants to carry on doing the job he has held since 1999. |
| He said he wanted to inform party members meeting in Aberystwyth of his decision first. | He said he wanted to inform party members meeting in Aberystwyth of his decision first. |
| Lib Dem party rules state that a leadership election must be held within a year of an assembly election. | Lib Dem party rules state that a leadership election must be held within a year of an assembly election. |
| Meanwhile, delegates voted to change the rule that cost the Lib Dems a place in the proposed "rainbow coalition" with Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives after the assembly election in May. | Meanwhile, delegates voted to change the rule that cost the Lib Dems a place in the proposed "rainbow coalition" with Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives after the assembly election in May. |
| From now on, the chair of the party's national committee will have an additional and casting vote in the event of tied votes at meetings. | From now on, the chair of the party's national committee will have an additional and casting vote in the event of tied votes at meetings. |
| In Lib Dem discussions about forming an assembly government, a proposed coalition deal was not endorsed because of a vote tied at 6-6. | In Lib Dem discussions about forming an assembly government, a proposed coalition deal was not endorsed because of a vote tied at 6-6. |
| One delegate at Aberystwyth told BBC Wales: "Even the most obscure golf club has a rule allowing the committee chair to have an additional casting vote when votes are tied. | One delegate at Aberystwyth told BBC Wales: "Even the most obscure golf club has a rule allowing the committee chair to have an additional casting vote when votes are tied. |
| "Had the party had such a mechanism when the coalition deal was up for discussion, recent political events in Wales would have turned out very different." | "Had the party had such a mechanism when the coalition deal was up for discussion, recent political events in Wales would have turned out very different." |