Furious Jo Swinson complains to ITV after being left out of election debate

The Lib Dem leader accused rivals Johnson and Corbyn of being 'scared' to take her on in the November 19 showdown.

The Lib Dems have made a formal complaint after ITV excluded the party from an election debate between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn.

Party president Sal Brinton said leader Jo Swinson should appear alongside the Tory prime minister and the Labour leader in the November 19 showdown.

In a letter to ITV’s chief executive Dame Caroline McCall, Baroness Brinton said voters ‘deserve to hear from a Remainer.. not just from the two men who want to deliver Brexit.’

She said Ms Swinson’s exclusion risks ‘misrepresenting the current political reality’ and urged ITV to change its mind.

The broadcaster announced yesterday it would be hosting the first debate in the run up to the December 12 election.

Their plan is to host a head to head between Johnson and Corbyn, followed by a live interview-based programme that would allow other parties to comment on the debate.

Shortly after the news was announced, Ms Swinson accused the Tory and Labour party leaders of being ‘scared’ to take her on and started a petition demanding to be included in the debate.

Ms Swinson has promised to stop Brexit from happening if she gets in to No 10.

In her letter, Baroness Brinton said: ‘There is no reasonable justification for excluding Liberal Democrats from the debate. Liberal Democrats are the strongest national party of Remain.

‘We secured more votes than both Labour and the Conservatives in the European elections earlier this year and have enjoyed fantastic local and by-election successes across the country.’

An ITV spokesman said: ‘ITV intends to offer viewers comprehensive and fairly balanced General Election coverage.

‘This involves a wide range of programming, including a live debate programme in which seven party leaders are invited to take part, as well as a live debate between the Labour and Conservative leaders.’