Optimistic liberals look for more influence

Times are difficult for the EU, liberalism and free trade, but the mood was upbeat at the European liberals' congress in Warsaw on Friday and Saturday (2-3 December).

First because the Liberal Democrats, the UK member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (Alde), won a by-election in Richmond Park on Thursday, their first win since the June EU referendum.

"It's an anti-Brexit vote," according to Alde's president Hans van Baalen, who said that the by-election was t...