What price for supporting a Labour government?

[Anarcho-Socialist]

Imagine you're in the Lib Dems' shoes, what do you think they could obtain in concessions from Gordon Brown?

Some sort of PR is a gimme, although a strong showing by the Lib Dems could allow AV+ to be put back on the table.

Some of the media suggest that they could even ask for Gordon Brown to go as PM.

[T_i_B]

1. Vince Cable as Chancellor?

[Anarcho-Socialist]

2. I'd go for that

If Lib Dem conference votes for coalition and the Lib Dems do well electorally then I'm sure they could demand some key jobs.

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. Being chancellor in a cabinet with nearly all others from another party must be a tricky job

verging on a poison chalice. You're the one who says unpopular things about raising taxes (let's face it, there's no chance of doing a 'giveaway' budget in the near-to-medium future), while the health, education etc. secretaries either take the credit for their area doing well, or have a ready-made excuse of "the chancellor refused to give us enough money to fix things" (even if that's not strictly true).

Still, if it happened in tandem with a genuine PR reform, ie either STV or AV+ (as opposed to just AV on its own), then whatever happened, the Lib Dems would still have a chance in the future. If Cable became chancellor, and we still had FPTP in the next election, I fear it'd be used by both other main parties as a chance to say "look what happens with coalition government, we're better off with FPTP and a majority govt from Labout or Tory". Whether a coalition cabinet is particularly successful or not, I think the spin doctors will be able to get traction with many voters claiming that it isn't.

And as far as proportional representation goes, I agree with what most seem to say - that it'd have to be put to a referendum (unless the unprecedented happened, and the Lib Dems got an outright majority - even then, a referendum might be a good idea, constitutionally). So there couldn't be a guarantee of getting PR before Cable starts being chancellor.

[non sociopath skin]

3. I think that a change of PM is definitely on the cards

But not Mandelson, please!

The Skin