Michael Howard's new Tory leadership will not condemn the Liberal Democrats to third place, Charles Kennedy has claimed.

The Liberal Democrat leader rejected suggestions that a rejuvenated Conservative Party had stalled his hopes of making progress.

Kennedy used an interview at the weekend to dismiss opinion polls putting the Conservatives strongly ahead of his party after months of Lib Dem gains.

He claimed the Hutton report could undermine both the government and his Conservative rivals.

"I think that at the end of this week, what we will have seen is a further erosion in terms of public credibility and trust both for the prime minister and the government," he told the BBC's Breakfast with Frost.

"But equally I think that the veneer of plausibility that has attached itself in recent weeks to Michael Howard and the Conservative Party will also be shown to be rather threadbare, because... the Conservatives were the principal cheerleaders for a war that is looking extremely dubious to justify."

The Liberal Democrat leader renewed his comments in his Christmas interview with ePolitix.com, saying Michael Howard had not brought changes in his party's strategy.

"There is no fundamental revision going on within our ranks whatsoever,'' he said.

"We are sticking to the plot, the strategy, which is to carry on building up the Liberal Democrats. I think it is fair to say that the Conservatives have got a spring in their step, but the prism of attention as seen from Westminster doesn't bear much resemblance to what is happening in the real world outside, where our support remains steady and consistent around 20 per cent."

He predicted the party would continue to make progress because it was in tune with voters.

"We are continuing to win by-elections, where real votes are cast by real people," he said. "I think that on the big issues of the day, the Liberal Democrats have got very distinctive positions which resonate with people."