Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey, 57, falls out of kayak at party conference amid smear row with Labour

Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, made quite the splash at the party's conference in Bournemouth. On the second day of the meet-up, Sir Ed, who is 57 years old, took an unexpected dip when he fell out of a kayak.

A plan to sink the Tories

Despite his unintended plunge, Sir Ed is determined to make the Conservatives sink in the polls. He has proposed a campaign to drop a pledge to build 380,000 homes a year, with the aim of winning over voters. The motion will be voted on at the conference tomorrow, and could have significant implications for the party's future strategy.

Labour's smear row

Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats have found themselves embroiled in a smear row with the Labour party. Labour has threatened to report the Lib Dems to the police over alleged "smear" tactics in the Mid-Bedfordshire by-election. A cease and desist letter has been sent, accusing the Liberal Democrats of "cynical" behavior against their candidate.

Labour's hopes of an upset win in the by-election, where they hope to overturn a 24,000 Tory majority, are being jeopardized by what they consider to be a "smear campaign." Labour MP Peter Kyle, who is leading the campaign, has accused the Lib Dems of descending into the gutter with their tactics.

The Liberal Democrats, however, have dismissed these allegations as nothing more than "dirty tricks." They see Labour's actions as a desperate ploy to derail their own campaign and maintain that they have done nothing wrong.

It remains to be seen how this smear row will affect both parties' political standings.