Uk politics

So says Benedict Brogan, who rightly describes this as a "smart appointment": "Mr Fallon is being brought in to CCHQ to help Lady Warsi, who has not so far succeeded in establishing herself as a media voice for the Coalition. Mr Fallon is an adept media performer (and a regular and fluent commentator in the Telegraph – would more politicians could write like him). My sense is that this is much more about creating an unofficial minister for the Today programme, available at all times to go into the studios and defend the Government or duff up the Opposition, or both. Those who wondered as we approached Tory conference what Dave was doing to give the Tory side a stronger voice will be applauding him tonight.

There was one notable bit of kite flying in Vince Cable’s speech earlier, an indication that he wants the next Liberal Democrat manifesto to contain a commitment to a land tax. This would give the party a distinctive policy going into the next election. With the proceeds of a land tax, they could abolish stamp duty and still have a lot of fiscal wriggle room allowing it to propose increasing the income tax threshold or spending more on certain public services. There's already work going on in Lib Dem circles on how to model a land tax and to find how much revenue it would raise.

There is a reason why the coalition has used the Lib Dem conference to step up its rhetoric about the bankers and their bonuses. The coalition believes, rightly, that balancing the budget is a matter of political economy. It is acutely aware, and has been for some time, that the sight of banks paying out huge bonuses later this year just as the public sector begins to lay people off and cut services would be disastrous. This view is shared by everyone in the coalition from Cable to Osborne. Bumper bonuses would increase calls for new punitive measures against the banks and produce precisely the kind of political atmosphere that the more aggressive trade union leaders want.

In the early hours of this morning, Lib Dem conference looked like any other party conference. A throng of people—mostly men in suits—standing around outside the conference hotel having come from the various media parties. Indeed, it is surprisingly hard to tell the difference between Lib Dem conference and the others now. There are a large number of lobbyists here and a whole host of corporate types.   But there are some activists trying to keep the flame of the traditional Lib Dem conference alive.

Few observers would have expected Simon Hughes to tear into the coalition with full force in his speech today. The mood in Liverpool is geared towards support, not destruction. But the deputy Lib Dem leader's effusiveness was still fairly surprising. He reassured the audience that he is a "rock solid supporter of the coalition – which our party has democratically agreed will last for five years". He echoed one of Clegg's central messages from yesterday, saying that "when you move from the touchline to the pitch, there is a risk you may get some knocks and pick up a few bruises – but on the touchline you never get the chance to change the game." And he finished with a flourish of optimism: "This is the best opportunity of our lifetimes".