The Liberal Democrats of today are the product of a merger between the Liberals and the Social Democrats. Though the old Liberal emphasis on local government persists, the prevailing ethos of the party is that of the defunct SDP: conventionally (though not fashionably) dressed, affluent and reasonable.The party has another characteristic It is generously represented in the House of Lords. Not only are former party leaders or cabinet ministers there, as they have every right to be under the curious conventions which we follow in these matters: Lords Jenkins, Rodgers and Steel (there is no Lord Thorpe), together with Lady Williams. Thinking of the occasion as the Liberal Assembly is no more really than an exercise in sentimentality. Vision 2020 sets a goal of average growth of 7.5 per cent a year over the next 23 years, bringing income per head to $16,000.At 72, and not in the best of health, Dr Mahathir might be expected to step down soon. He talks tantalisingly of handing over the reins of power, but is notoriously vague when asked when this might happen. He has presided over the enormous economic growth of his country, which has per capita income of $5,000 today, compared to just $350 on independence in 1957.

The population then was just five million, compared to today’s 20 million. It has won him a following in developing countries, but Dr Mahathir is not in the classic mould of Third World leaders who were suspicious of private enterprise and statist in their outlook. He believes, up to a point, in free markets, and wants Malaysia to compete in the world market on equal terms. “We are not going to be allowed to do this because you don’t like us to have big ideas,” he complained “It is not proper.

It is impudent for us to try, or to even say we are going to do it.”This was classic Mahathir, combining wit with a sense of self-righteous indignation. But instead of acknowledging that these grandiose schemes are at the root of Malaysia’s massive debt problems, leading in turn to the currency crisis, the Prime Minister says it is all the fault of speculators.In Hong Kong he defended the mega-projects as being “basic infrastructure”, not “monuments”. Then he launched into a tirade against those who questioned the “big idea” strategy. Malaysia has the world’s tallest building and is still planning to build Asia’s largest airport, though several other mega-projects, such as the Linear City project, the world’s longest building, and the “Multimedia Super Corridor”, a high-tech concentration intended to rival California’s Silicon Valley, have been cancelled or put on hold as a result of the latest upheavals. The New Economic Policy, as it is called, has been declared a success, and the theme is now “Vision 2020″. This is designed to make Malaysia a fully-developed country in the next 23 years, thrusting it to the forefront of Asia’s high-tech and manufacturing industries.The aim is to create a society of entrepreneurs and skilled workers, but so far Vision 2020 seems to have been more about size than anything else.

“My task as finance minister,” he said pointedly, “is, of course, to deal with specific measures.”The problem for Mr Anwar is that he is not in charge. Dr Mahathir has been Prime Minister for 16 years, during which he has survived two serious challenges within the ruling party and emerged in a far stronger position.Dr Mahathir is identified with the aggressive advancement of the majority Malays – though he does not hesitate also to berate them for passivity and lack of enterprise – at the expense of the ethnic Chinese and Indians, who make up over a third of the country’s population. Clearly embarrassed, he said that notwithstanding any impression given by the Prime Minister, there would be no change in the rules about currency trading. Mr Anwar, who has been waiting for years to take over the top job, was left to explain. His furious lashing out at those he sees as the architects of Malaysia’s misfortune has seriously damaged the country’s attractiveness to foreign investment, on which it has relied so heavily for its economic development.It is hard to escape the conclusion that Mr Soros was right when he said the Malysian Prime Minister would never have got away with his outbursts if he had not been an autocrat living in a country with a politely subservient press.Malaysian officials accompanying the premier were appalled, none more so than his deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, who also serves as finance minister, and had apparently not been told in advance. If we make a noise or act in any way to frustrate them they would be annoyed.