WEEKS of turmoil face the Liberal Democrats and many members are bewildered by the speed in which their party became engulfed in the worse crisis since its formation in 1988.

Amid the prospect of a divisive leadership battle, the party faces a sweeping review of policy and has to prepare its strategy for the local government elections in May. The first challenge for the interim leadership comes on Saturday at a conference in London for hundreds of members at which Charles Kennedy had planned to invite views on a policy review, which has already threatened to become a tussle between social and economic liberals.

Although very much Mr Kennedy’s initiative, the review will determine priorities for future work on policy development. Unless the new leader gets a grip on it, unrepresentative activists may take it over.

The Lib Dems must also mobilise a by-election campaign in Dunfermline & West Fife after the death last week of its Labour MP, Rachel Squire, from a brain tumour. Although she held the newly redrawn seat with a majority of 11,562 last May, it is the type of constituency in which Lib Dems would expect to mount a serious challenge to Labour.

The Lib Dems lie in second place and have a local government base in the area, but they face a tough fight with the Scottish National Party, which came just behind the Lib Dems in the seat in May last year. Tony Blair is likely to hold the election with all possible speed.

In early February local Lib Dems hold regional conferences, chiefly for activists and councillors, but they may be the first time large numbers gather since the resignation of Mr Kennedy. If there is a contested election, these are likely to become the focus of campaigning.

The biggest gathering of members will be for the Lib Dem spring conference at Harrogate, on March 3 to 5, which will need to be planned with the utmost care to avoid the event being overtaken by recriminations or splits on policy. The conference is likely to debate plans to privatise the Royal Mail, which triggered a row between economic and social liberals at the autumn conference last year.

Sir Menzies Campbell can expect to deliver a formal speech at each as acting leader, but any rival candidates will be entitled to claim a platform speaking slot of equal prominence. Much more campaigning will take place on the conference fringe.

The Welsh Lib Dems hold their own spring conference at Wrexham from March 10 to 12 and the Scottish Lib Dems at Aviemore from March 24 to 26, although the new leader may by then be in place.

The greatest immediate electoral challenge facing the party, however, is the local elections on May 4, in which they ought ordinarily to do well. Many of these contests are in the metropolitan boroughs and cities in which Lib Dems have made dramatic inroads into Labour’s inner-city vote.

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