TIMES ONLINE: David Cameron and Nick Clegg introduced Britain to a radical new political landscape yesterday as they committed their parties to a five-year marriage of consensual government.
The Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister ushered in an era of “new politics” as they promised a stable and durable coalition to take the country in an “historic new direction”.
The scale of their revolution became clear as the Conservative and Liberal Democrat leaders staged a remarkable show of jovial but determined unity in the Downing Street rose garden. Fresh from handing five Cabinet jobs to Lib Dems, including two key economic portfolios, and planning to give Mr Clegg a minister in every department, Mr Cameron vowed to place the national interest above party interest and co-operation above confrontation.
“Compromise, give and take, reasonable, civilised, grown-up behaviour is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength,” he said.
Mr Clegg said that there would be “bumps and scrapes” along the way as two parties with different instincts joined themselves at the hip for an experiment that risks angering right-wing Tories and left-wing Liberal Democrats. He added that both leaders had taken “big risks” in going into full-blown coalition, but he insisted: “This is a government that will last.” >>> Roland Watson, Political Editor | Thursday, May 13, 2010
