Justice minister Simon Hughes clarified the party’s stance on Snapchat. Not entirely sure how we ended up here.
David Cameron has declared he does not want to allow any form of encrypted messaging that cannot be monitored by the security services.
Speaking in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the Prime Minister said he does not want any means of communication which is completely secure and cannot be read by the security services and cannot be read with "a signed warrant from the home secretary personally".
That strict definition of communication could include common encrypted messaging services such as WhatsApp, Apple's iMessage, and everyone's favourite picture messaging app Snapchat. There's various reasons why such a ban may not actually happen but a lot of people are concerned for the future of their Snapchats.
Snapchat
This is what happened in what is probably the world's first political interview conducted entirely over a service designed largely for its ability to send self-destructing images of your private parts.
Start off with a failed attempt to do a quizzical, Paxman-esque selfie.
Add straightforward question. Press send.
Jim Waterson / BuzzFeed
And we have a reply! From Simon Hughes, in an incredibly yellow room.
The Lib Dems did indeed block the Snoopers' Charter, their name for the 2012 Communications Data Bill.
Simon Hughes / Snapchat
