'Smell my spaniel!': Tim Farron gaffe becomes 'catchphrase of the General Election'

Tim Farron has unwittingly come up with the catchphrase for the General Election after a bizarre clip of the Liberal Democrat leader surfaced in which he asked someone to "smell my spaniel".

In 2015, the phrase everyone remembered from the election was "hell yes I'm tough enough", spoken fiercely by Ed Miliband as he took part in the televised interviews during the campaign.

This time around, it could be "smell my spaniel".

Mr Farron does have a spaniel, a Springer named Jasper, who makes frequent appearances on his social media page.

However, today he was out campaigning in Cambridge, and he did not have his dog with him.

He made the strange remark as he greeted people out on the campaign trail.

A dog can be seen in the video, but it is not a spaniel.

It appears he was saying the other dog could smell Jasper.

A Lib Dem spokesperson said that Jasper was not out on the campaign trail on Thursday.

They said: "Jasper the Spaniel is safely at home in Milnthorpe- no doubt out delivering for the Country Council Elections next week."

Many on social media mocked his odd remark.

One person said: "I was really dispirited with the election when I woke up. Then Tim Farron invited someone to smell his spaniel, and I feel like a new man."

And another wrote: "I would not let Tim Farron smell my spaniel."

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