Coalition on bumps to earth

It's true the Coalition started with warmth and good will in the media and all governments get a honeymoon. But the reality is now seen. A fiscal tightening and retrenchment was inevitable. But increasing the regressive VAT to 20%, cutting benefits (thus increasing child poverty and relative poverty overall) and now raising the retirement age.

It is pretty certain that many of these things were not raised in the election campaign and many voters would not have voted this way had they known.

These are the most cynical tricks in the book and to an extent we expect it from the Tories. What is happening now is we are seeing it from the Lib Dems who really have sold their soul.

That's before we think about departmental cuts of 25% or more over several years which we have never seen in time of peace. This will devastate many services on which people rely.