VINCE Cable has announced his long goodbye from the Liberal Democrat leadership as he laid out proposals to turn the party into a “big centre ground movement” of moderate, liberal-minded people.

The party leader said his intention was to step down after Brexit was "resolved or stopped" and the process of reforming the party was underway. This could mean a leadership contest as early as the summer of 2019.

But Jo Swinson, his current deputy, indicated that, at present, she was not interested in the job as leader and, because of the proposed reforms, stressed: “Vince is carrying on.” Talk of the leadership, the East Dunbartonshire MP insisted, was for another day.

She told The Herald: “Look, there is not an election at the moment.

“I wrote a blog last year for the Lib Dem Voice when there was a vacancy on why I don’t want to do it and, frankly, from my perspective in my life, not a lot has changed since then apart from the fact I have a 10-week-old baby, so this is not a question for now because we are not at that stage.”

She went on: “My priority at the moment is stopping Brexit and Vince is carrying on. Frankly, that agenda is a huge amount of stuff to reform the party.”

Asked if she would like to be her party’s leader, Ms Swinson replied: “I’m not going there.”

However, her colleague Alistair Carmichael, the former Scottish Secretary, was more categorical and made clear he was not interested in the leadership role. “No, I’m not,” declared the MP for Orkney and Shetland - forcefully.

In a keynote speech at the National Liberal Club in central London, Sir Vince, who became leader after the 2017 General Election and in the wake of Tim Farron’s resignation, described reports of his imminent departure as "very wide of the mark".

The 75-year-old politician made clear he would stay on to steer the party through any Brexit-related turmoil, including a possible snap election.

Sir Vince explained he did not want to follow in the footsteps of Liberal Prime Minister William Gladstone, who served into his 80s or, indeed, those of Robert Mugabe, who led his party and country until he was 93.

"Now is not the time for an internal election,” declared the Twickenham MP. “There is serious work for me and the party to do. Once Brexit is resolved or stopped, that will be the time to conduct a leadership election under the new rules."

The core of his speech was about turning the Lib Dems from a party with around 100,000 members to a mass centre ground movement, appealing to the body of Brexit opponents. The Lib Dems already have 200,000 supporters online.

The party leader said “two big steps” faced the party.

“First, I want to bring values back into our politics providing a rallying point for those who are committed to defend liberal democracy, challenge extremes of inequality and barriers to opportunity, uphold our civil liberties, maintain an open, outward-looking country and protect our environment…

“Secondly and crucially to making those things happen, I want to work with our party – its governing board, and the membership – to transform the way we work with people so that we engage more actively with the millions of voters who currently share our values but feel disenfranchised.”

Citing the Canadian Liberals who rose from being the third party to one of government, Sir Vince said one of his proposals was to widen the membership with a new class of ‘supporters’ who paid nothing but who signed up to the party’s values.

These registered supporters would enjoy a range of entitlements, including the right to vote in a leadership contest and to shape the party’s campaigning online.

Another key proposal was to open up the party leadership to a wider field than MPs by allowing party members to put themselves forward.

“There many talented people with proven leadership ability - in the professions, the armed forces, the voluntary sector and business - and who share our values but who have not pursued a parliamentary career…

“My intention, therefore, is to ensure the next leader is chosen from the widest possible pool of talent and to put him or her at the helm of a far bigger, more open, movement than any previous leader has been.”

Asked under the new proposed registered supporters’ scheme what would stop Scottish Nationalists from infiltrating the Scottish Lib Dems to push the party towards supporting independence, Sir Vince spoke about preventing a “takeover”.

“I used this phrase of ‘[opening windows but]not letting the flies in’. Of course, we have to have safeguards and part of the consultation will be how to make sure that happens without turning a lot of people away who were a value to the party,” he added.