Sir Ming favourite after Oaten rent-boy shame

Published on Monday 23 January 2006 11:58

SIR Menzies Campbell today emerged as the clear favourite for the leadership of the scandal-hit Liberal Democrats.

As the party reeled from the claims that former home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten paid for sex with a rent boy, members rallied behind the veteran Scot.

The 64-year-old Fife North East MP, once considered too old for the job, is now seen as the steadying hand needed to cope with the crises sparked by the resignation of ex-leader Charles Kennedy over his drinking and Mr Oaten's admission of an affair with a 23-old-old male prostitute.

At the weekend, the party's leader in the House of Lords, Tom McNally, also admitted to having a 20-year drink problem.

William Hill have installed Sir Menzies as 5-4 odds on favourite and have not taken a single bet on either of the other two candidates, Simon Hughes and Chris Huhne, since Mr Oaten, a 41-year-old father of two, quit.

The scale of the task facing Sir Menzies - or whoever gets the job - was shown by a new opinion poll at the weekend which showed support for the party on 15 per cent, a third less than its General Election height of 22 per cent..

The double scandal has left the Liberal movement in its deepest crisis since the 1970s, when Jeremy Thorpe quit as leader following allegations of a homosexual affair and attempted murder.

Sir Menzies called on the party to show "unity and purpose."

He said: "No party is entirely subject to what happens to any one individual. The party's bigger than that."