So here we are. Liberal Democrats find themselves locked into a deadly embrace with a thatcherite anti-european tory party led by that trickster David Cameron. He is determined to destroy the Lib Dems with a toxic gift of austerity and broken promises, as well as follow a stealth Thatcherite agenda which will marginalise Britain forever. The Lib Dems are trying to stick to the coalition to help the country over the next four years and hoping that the party's fortunes will revive. With the prospect of worse economic news this looks unlikely. Time for a plan B.
Clegg and Cabinet colleagues should treat this political marriage, just like a real one and in the face of the serial political infidelity of the tories move out of the happy home - ie move out of the government and cross the floor into opposition. A constructive opposition where Lib Dems would support the government in confidence motions and then flex their veto powers to obtain concessions from the government on Europe, economic growth, student tuition fees as well as getting troops out of Afghanistan in 2012.
If the Conservatives refuse to play ball, then re-open negotiations with Labour on an agenda for growth and fairness. Whilst a Lib-Dem, Labour, Green, SNP, PC and Northern Ireland anti-cuts minority government might lack a strong majority, the Rainbow coalition of the progressive centre left could be backed up by an electoral pact where the most popular anti-tory candidate could be fielded and would see an additional 28 Lib Dem MP's and 97 Labour MP's if the tories voted the government down in a confidence motion followed by an election. Perhaps such an alliance might include a genuine offer of proportional representation from the pro-PR Milliband. Time to bury caesar. Anyone got a knife?
Analysis of Election Results from a Lib-Dem-Labour-Green Party-SNP-PC Electoral Pact*
*Based on 2010 election results the following constituencies would have changed hands.
Conservative to Lib Dem (+28)
Bath
Bosworth
Bournemouth West
Bridgwater and Somerset West
Bristol North West
Broadland
Camborne and Redruth
Canterbury
Chelmsford
Colne Valley
Congleton
Cornwall South East
Devon West and Torridge
Harrogate and Knaresborough
Hereford and Herefordshire South
Hexham
Montgomeryshire
Newton Abbot
Oxford West and Abingdon
Reading East
St Albans
Shrewsbury and Atcham
Tewkesbury
Truro and Falmouth
Watford
Weston-Super-Mare
Winchester
York Outer
Conservative to Labour (+97)
Aberconwy
Amber Valley
Basildon South and Thurrock East
Battersea
Bedford
Blackpool North and Cleveleys
Brentford and Isleworth
Brigg and Goole
Brighton Kemptown
Broxtowe
Burton
Bury North
Calder Valley
Cannock Chase
Carlisle
Carmarthen West and Pembrokesh
Chatham and Aylesford
Chester, City of
Cleethorpes
Corby
Crawley
Crewe and Nantwich
Croydon Central
Derbyshire South
Dewsbury
Dover
Dudley South
Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale
Ealing Central and Acton
Elmet and Rothwell
Enfield North
Enfield North
Erewash
Filton and Bradley Stoke
Finchley and Golders Green
Forest of Dean
Gillingham and Rainham
Gloucester
Great Yarmouth
Halesowen and Rowley Regis
Hampstead and Kilburn
Harlow
Harrow East
Hastings and Rye
Hendon
High Peak
Hove
Ilford North
Ipswich
Keighley
Kingswood
Lancaster and Fleetwood
Leicestershire North West
Lincoln
Loughborough
Milton Keynes North
Milton Keynes South
Morecambe and Lunesdale
Northampton North
Northampton South
Norwich North
Nuneaton
Pendle
Peterborough
Plymouth Sutton and Devonport
Portsmouth North
Preseli Pembrokeshire
Pudsey
Reading West
Redditch
Rossendale and Darwen
Rugby
Scarborough and Whitby
Sherwood
Shipley
Somerset North East
South Ribble
Stafford
Staffordshire Moorlands
Stevenage
Stockton South
Stourbridge
Stroud
Swindon North
Swindon South
Tamworth
Telford
Thurrock
Vale of Glamorgan
Warrington South
Warwick and Leamington
Warwickshire North
Waveney
Weaver Vale
Wirral West
Wolverhampton South West
Worcester
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