The self-preservation society

How quickly Nick Clegg is adapting to government doublespeak. He hailed a radical constitutional reform programme this week and declared that he is ‘taking away the government’s right to throw out parliament’. The reverse, in fact, is true. The coalition government proposes changing the constitution so it takes 55 per cent of MPs — rather than a straight majority — to force a general election, and all in the name of ‘stability’.