LONDON, March 10 (UPI) -- A Liberal lawmaker in England is calling for a retooling of the British Constitution as a precondition of any future power-sharing deal in Parliament.
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, said electoral reform would have to be accompanied by a spate of other changes if his party were to talk to their Conservative and Labor rivals in the event of a hung Parliament, the Independent reported Monday.
Clegg said he wanted to call a constitutional convention to replace Britain's centuries-old Constitution.
"This is the end of the line for politics as usual," he said. "If we want a political system that works for the future, we need to start again, from scratch."
As for a power-sharing deal, Clegg said he would enter into an agreement on his own terms.
"Will I ever join a Conservative government? No. Will I ever join a Labor government? No. I will never allow the Liberal Democrats to be a mere annex to another party's agenda," Clegg said.
"But am I interested in building a new type of government? Yes, based on pluralism instead of one-party rule? Yes, a new system that empowers people not parties," he added.
