A personal note from Don on the coalition

"Taking the decision to work with the Conservatives was not easy. I have fought against them for my entire political career. Nonetheless, when it was explained to the parliamentary party the deal we had been offered, not one of us felt able to turn it down.

I fought this election on Liberal Democrat policies: fairer taxes helping lower and middle-income earners; extra investment in schools; a new green, sustainable economy; and reform of the political system, including an elected upper house.

All these policies, and many more, are included in the coalition agreement we have signed with the Conservatives. After well over half a century outside of government, Lib Dem policies are now going to be implemented. We have seats around the cabinet table and real power.

Of course, we have had to compromise on some of our manifesto points, and in some areas we will still be able to oppose proposals in parliament. For example, we will still be arguing that we do not need the like-for-like replacement of Trident.

The Lib Dems have long argued for proportional representation, which would regularly lead to coalition government. At this election our discredited system has provided us with a hung parliament. We could have walked away and refused the compromise, but this would have weakened our position on proportional representation for future elections. Proving that coalition government can be strong, stable government will prove to sceptics that this can be done, and that coalition governments in the future are nothing to be afraid of. The alternative would have been a Tory minority government. A deal with Labour simply wasn’t on the table.

Finally, I know despite this that many of you might be uneasy about doing a deal with the Conservatives. I fully understand your point of view. I hope that, like me, you are able to conclude that we have done what is right for the country, but also that we now have the issues and principles we have fought for many years for actually being carried out in government".

You can read the full coalition agreement at www.libdems.org.uk