Nick Clegg has been accused of blaming 'everyone but himself ' after making a series of excuses for the party 's disastrous poll ratings . In an interview , the Lib Dem leader listed a range of reasons why different groups of former supporters are ' p***** off ' and have deserted the party since 2010 . And he said all those reasons were more important than any policy decisions he made including on tuition fees . Scroll down for video . Collapse : Nick Clegg has told the Economist there was a range of reasons why different groups left . Pictures : The Lib Dem leader on the campaign trail in north west England on Tuesday , April 7 . Blame game : But Mr Clegg has said none of them were to do with his policy making decisions . He was asked in an interview with the Economist magazine why Lib Dem support had 'collapsed ' in the last five years . He blamed protest voters who supported the party but deserted it after it entered coalition because they did n't want to take any 'responsibility ' . He also blamed the fact the Lib Dems had entered into coalition with one of the major parties . He said going in with Tories meant it was 'inevitable ' that support would fall in 'anti-conservative ' parts of Britain . And he said public sector workers had left because their pensions were hit and some faced job cuts . Mr Clegg said there was 'clearly a section of the support we had in 2010 that was virulently anti-Conservative ' . Coallition : Mr Clegg said going in with the Tories meant they would lose 'virulently anti-Conservative ' voters . Cuts : Public sector workers had left because their pensions were hit and some faced job cuts , he claimed . He said : 'They 're the ones who still scream and shout blue murder and have done so without pause for breath for half a decade . And they 're loud and they 're noisy and they 're angry . 'And that was a significant chunk of support that basically wanted to be associated with any party that did n't have the remotest sniff of power . 'There just is a constituency out there that wants to be entirely bereft of any responsibility . So they 're clearly also very pissed off . It was 'wholly predictable and totally unsurprising ' that public sector workers were at risk of being 'disenchanted ' . He added that those factors are 'probably more important explanations than tuition fees , or this decision or that decision , although those obviously play a part ' . Mr Clegg said some areas of country are a Lib Dem 'desert ' and the party is now running a 'defensive ' campaign focusing on winning where it retains support . 'Petulant ' : A Tory source has told the Daily Mail : 'This sums Nick Clegg . Its everyone 's fault but his own ' He admitted there are 'great parts of the country now where there is just no Liberal Democrat presence ' citing the North of England and areas where they are fighting against Labour . He added : 'We 're not going to waste any time , any effort , any money , any energy on places where we 're not going to win—which , by the way , is the vast majority of the country . ' In 2010 the Lib Dems won 23 per cent of the vote but national polls in recent months have put them on single digits . A Tory source said : 'This sums Nick Clegg . Its everyone 's fault but his own . He is like a petulant child . ' Despite his party facing the prospect of losing dozens of seats , Mr Clegg used the interview to stake a claim for a particular government department his party would like to run if he is back in coalition after May 7 . He said he would call for the Lib Dems to be given control of education , and criticised the 'fruitless and fruitcakey ' policy 'spasms ' under former Education Secretary Michael Gove .
Lib Dem lists why Nick Clegg support 'collapsed ' in Economist interview . Blames 'protest voters ' who did n't want to take responsibility for collation . Claimed public sector workers left because pensions hit and jobs cut . Says those reasons were more important than policy decisions he made . Tory source says interview 'sums up ' Clegg , who 'is like a petulant child '