What do you think of John Pugh?

John Pugh, the Lib Dem MP for Southport, has a short article on Lib Dem Voice about the party's newspaper Liberal Democrat News.

The article has provoked some discussion, though I have not joined in. I have to declare an interest as the paper's (albeit unpaid) weekly columnist.

What I will says is that the useful debate that has followed is despite the article, not because of it. Pugh writes:

In current circumstance the party needs to do some serious soul searching and balanced stock taking and reflect the sceptical, mature rationalism that is so much part of Liberalism. I am not sure where Liberal Democrat News fits into that.

I suppose serious soul searching is to be preferred to frivolous soul searching. And balanced stock taking must be better than the unbalanced variety. But what does Pugh want?

Is he calling for Lib Dem News to be closed down? Or is he full of exciting ideas about how it can be improved?

If the latter, it's a shame that he could not find time to share even one of them with us.