Editing David Steel (section)

===SDP–Liberal Alliance===
In 1981, a group of Labour moderates left their party to form the [[Social Democratic Party (UK)|Social Democratic Party]]. They were joined by the former Labour deputy leader, Chancellor and Home Secretary [[Roy Jenkins]], who had previously had discussions with Steel about joining the Liberals. Under Jenkins' leadership, the SDP joined the Liberals in the [[SDP–Liberal Alliance]]. In its early days, the Alliance showed so much promise that for a time, it looked like the Liberals would be part of a government for the first time since 1945. Opinion polls were showing Alliance support as high as 50% by late 1981. Steel was so confident that he felt able to tell delegates at the Liberal Assembly that year: "Go back to your constituencies, and prepare for government."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3185313.stm | work=BBC News | title=Conference season's greatest hits | date=10 September 2003 | access-date=7 April 2010 | first=Ollie | last=Stone-Lee}}</ref> In the wake of the [[1981 Croydon North West by-election]], where Liberal candidate [[Bill Pitt (politician)|Bill Pitt]] came from third position to easily gain the Alliance's first by-election victory, Steel's reaction to the result was to state that his belief "that we are now unstoppable."<ref name="GH23October1981">{{cite news |last1=Parkhouse |first1=Geoffrey |title=Alliance triumph at Croydon |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=19811023&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |access-date=13 January 2022 |work=The Glasgow Herald |date=23 October 1981 |page=1}}</ref>

Steel had genuine hopes at that stage that the Alliance would win the next general election and form a [[coalition]] government. However, the beginning of the [[Falklands War]] the following spring radically shifted the attitude of the electorate, and the Conservatives regained the lead in polls from the Alliance by a wide margin.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epolitix.com/latestnews/article-detail/newsarticle/top-ten-lib-dem-breakthrough-moments/ |title=Top Ten: Lib Dem 'breakthrough moments' |publisher=ePolitix.com |date=24 April 2010 |access-date=19 September 2013 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100512171830/http://www.epolitix.com/latestnews/article-detail/newsarticle/top-ten-lib-dem-breakthrough-moments/ |archive-date=12 May 2010 }}</ref> The Alliance secured more than 25% of the vote at the [[1983 United Kingdom general election|1983 general election]], almost as many votes as Labour. However, its support was spread out across the country, and was not concentrated in enough areas to translate into seats under the [[first past the post system]]. This left the Alliance with only 23 seats — 17 for the Liberals, and six for the SDP. Steel's dreams of a big political breakthrough were left unfulfilled.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393313.stm | work=BBC News | title=1983: Thatcher triumphs again | date=5 April 2005}}</ref>

Shortly afterwards, the former Labour Foreign Secretary [[David Owen]] replaced Jenkins as leader of the SDP, and the troubled leadership of the "Two Davids" was inaugurated. It was never an easy relationship—Steel's political sympathies were well to the left of Owen's. Owen had a marked antipathy towards the Liberals, though he respected Steel's prior loyalty to his own party contrasting it with Jenkins' lack of interest in preserving the SDP's independence. The relationship was also mercilessly satirised by ''[[Spitting Image]]'' which portrayed Steel as a squeaky voiced midget, literally in the pocket of Owen. Steel has often stated that he feels this portrayal seriously damaged his image.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article346544.ece|title=Politicians beware! 'Spitting Image' set to return|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|first=Robert|last=Verkaik|date=20 February 2006|access-date=11 May 2010|location=London|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081122055748/http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article346544.ece|archive-date=22 November 2008}}</ref> This portrayal of Steel as weaker than Owen was also present in other satires, such as ''[[Private Eye]]''{{'}}s ''[[Battle for Britain (Private Eye)|Battle for Britain]]'' strip. The relationship finally fell apart during the [[1987 United Kingdom general election|1987 general election]] when the two contradicted each other, both on defence policy and on which party they would do a deal with in the event of a [[hung parliament]].