New politicians: Whiter than white?

In an era where politicians are held in general contempt, it’s tempting for newer parties to adopt a ‘holier than thou’ attitude saying ‘we’re not like those established parties’.

The Lib Dem campaign at the last election was a classic example of this – even inventing the term “Labservative” to infer that the two “old” parties were both the same and they were very different. There was a short term benefit to the party – so-called “cleggmania”. One advert – the litter of broken promises – summed up the campaign theme: http://tinyurl.com/y2bo3hl

Then came the tuition fees debacle. It wasn’t just their broken promise – we’re used to that from politicians. It was more than that: Nick Clegg had told everyone that the Lib Dems were different . When they turned out to be just the same, people were angry, far more than they had been with Labour or the Tories. Nick Clegg became a hate figure up and down the country

My comment at the time (search the linked article for “Turvey”) now seems spookily prescient:

“The problem with donning the “whiter than white” mantle is that it all looks a bit hollow if and when the lib dems break one of their own manifesto pledges. Even if the lib dems won every single target seat they still wouldn’t have a majority, so the best they could do would be to be a minor party in a coalition – and they would be forced to compromise on their manifesto.

Sounds to me like setting yourself up for a fall.”

My question, for the other parties (Greens, UKIP etc): are they going to fall into the same trap?