"We have put down the placards, and picked up the reins of power"

That was Nick Clegg's rallying call to his Liberal Democrat party yesterday, reported by the BBC here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-12720315

It was an evocative choice of words as public opinion of the Lib Dems continues to angrily plummett.

They have gone back on their manifesto promises on cuts and tuition fees. They have tried to shift focus on to electoral reform - though even that has come with concessions to their Tory masters.

Barely a word is uttered now about the Proportional Representation that they actually favour. Instead we have a referendum on the Alternative Vote system - this is far from the same thing, and it is not what the Lib Dems really believe in.

I refer you to Chris Huhne MP, who surmises this better than I can:

http://www.libdems.org.uk/news_detail.aspx?title=Liberal_Democrats_will_fight_for_proportional_representation_says_Huhne&pPK=700bb819-e9c5-443f-9d77-8612c33044fa

But who cares what they believe in. They have "put down" their beliefs and "picked up" their role in the Coalition Government.

That, it seems, is Nick Clegg's real message to his party: forget your principles, it's all about power.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5