Sir Ed Davey speaks about his disabled son as he formally announces his candidacy to lead the Lib Dems

Sir Ed Davey has spoken about caring for his disabled son as he formally announced his bid to lead the Liberal Democrats.

The former Coalition minister this morning called for a “caring revolution” and spoke about the need to raise his son John, 12, who suffers from an undiagnosed neurological condition.

In an interview with the Mirror, he said: “It has been the biggest challenge of my life.

“And thanks to my amazing wife, we made it through and John is doing incredibly well and is an inspiration to me.”

Sir Ed, now 58 and seeking re-election as MP for Kingston and Surbiton, added: “I know what it’s like to be a day-to-day carer. I do massages, their care needs.

“When I look at other parents, my constituents and the challenges they face with care, I just feel like we’re not supporting them enough. »

Sir Ed’s father died when he was four, and eight years later he and his brothers cared for their mother when she became terminally ill.

He added: “Too often, carers are mistreated – as I have seen through my own experience caring for my immediate family over the course of my life. I am determined to change this and build a truly caring society.

The MP for Kingston and Surbiton lost the last leadership race in July 2019 to Jo Swinson who replaced Vince Cable when he retired.

Sir Ed has been interim leader of the Lib Dems since Ms Swinson lost her seat in the December 2019 election, in which the party fell from 21 MPs to just 11.

A scathing internal report into the party’s general election performance blamed the anti-Brexit campaign’s over-optimism and some improbably positive poll results for a campaign that devolved into a “high-speed car crash “.

Sir Ed added: “I am determined to lead the Liberal Democrats to meet the challenges of today. »

Sir Ed has been an MP since 1997 with a break from 2015 to 2017. He was Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from 2012 to 2015 as part of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition.

In another interview with the Guardian today, he accused Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings of lacking the compassion and empathy needed to rebuild the UK after coronavirus.

He also said Labour’s Keir Starmer was a leader he could work with.

Lib Dem MPs Christine Jardine and Sarah Olney have both backed his bid to lead the party.

Two other Lib Dem MPs also said so, Layla Moran and Wera Hobhouse.

The race was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic but will continue through the summer and the winner will be announced in August.