Nick Clegg is Right. Again.

Monday, 14th February 2011

Last week's civil liberties bill was hardly perfect but it's still a step in the right direction. And, frankly, it's bonny and startling in equal measure to have a Deputy Prime Minister who says things like this:

"I need to say this – you shouldn't trust any government, actually including this one. You should not trust government – full stop. The natural inclination of government is to hoard power and information; to accrue power to itself in the name of the public good."

I'm quite happy to oblige Mr Clegg. I don't trust this government either. I think it's intentions are often fine but I doubt whether it has the courage of those convictions. Government necessitates trimming and compromising but the troubling ease with which this crew can be blown off course does not bode well for stormier times ahead. It needs to make a proper - muscular, you might say - defence of its liberalism. Thus far it has been too wimpy by far and, for that matter, too content to try and blame everything on its predecessor. That dog won't hunt anymore.

Cameron, Clegg, Clarke, Grieve, Gove, Alexander, IDS and so on are, on the whole, decent men with decent ideas. Their government still has a surprising amount of potential and the ability to do some good. But that doesn't mean they can be trusted.

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