The Week in Review: It's wonderful being Nick - politics.co.uk

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It must be wonderful being Nick Clegg. I know this isn't a popular point of view, but I feel it really must be something special. Watching him give his conference speech on Wednesday, I was struck by a man who absolutely believed in everything he was saying. He's not known for his honesty I know, but I really got the impression that for that hour at least, he genuinely believed in every word. I mean it was all nonsense obviously. His claim that he has battled every day to stop right wing Tory policies is obvious and transparent hokum. He's done nothing of the sort. But you could tell that he believed it. You could tell that, in his own mind at least, it all made sense. It was a marvellous construction. A fantastic world in which the public are endlessly grateful for all the hard work he has put in over the past three years. An intoxicating idyll in which voters' main concern is that whoever wins the next election, Clegg must somehow be part of it. But it was all a construction. The public are not grateful for the Lib Dems' influence on government. Far from it. In fact a poll this week found that an overwhelming majority of voters would rather anything but another five years of Clegg. Asked whether they would prefer a single-party government, 67% agreed and just ten per cent wanted another coalition. And as for the Lib Dems' great influence in government? Forget it. The poll found that 51% thought the Tories had benefited most from the coalition while just 19% disagreed. Even worse, just one in three thought that Clegg had reined in the worst excesses of the Conservatives. Now you may not agree with this. You may like Clegg, believe that the world really would fall apart if he stops being deputy prime minister. But the truth is the British public have had a good hard look at life under a coalition and they've decided they've had enough. In many ways I sympathise with Clegg. Like him, I believe that overly powerful governments are a bad thing. Like him, I believe that our current political system puts too much power in too few hands. But Clegg has had three years to change that system and he's got precisely nowhere. And the reason for that, is however much the public may not be keen on the status quo, they are even less keen on the alternatives. Ask most people whether our current electoral system is fair and they will tell you no. Ask them whether they would prefer a system of alternative votes with preferential ordering and they will look at you as if you're mad. And what was true for the AV referendum is true for the coalition government as well. The public may not like overly powerful governments, but they like the alternatives even less. They understand that while they may not have loved everything about the Blair or Thatcher governments, they at least knew who and what they were voting for. With coalition governments, we basically have no idea. There was a brief time before the last election when it looked like we were finally entering a genuinely three party system. At the time it seemed very exciting. Three years later, the excitement has very much gone. Trouble blooming for Ukip Of course you could argue that we're actually in a four party system. The rise of Ukip means the final result of the next election is harder to predict than ever. But while Nigel Farage's party may have an impact in splitting the vote, they still look as far away from winning parliamentary seats as ever. The revelations this week about Farage's shady past can be easily brushed off, but footage of a senior figure shouting and attacking a journalist cannot. There was a period about five years back when the BNP looked on the cusp of making serious progress. The far right party won two MEPs, one London Assembly member and even became the second biggest party on the Barking and Dagenham council. It didn't last. A series of scandals, disastrous public appearances by Griffin and a concerted effort from the three major parties mean that they are now close to extinction. If Ukip don't quickly smarten up their image, the same could very easily happen to them. Best of news Nick Clegg warns of the danger of Grand Theft Auto Video games like Grand Theft Auto can have a "corrosive" effect on people's behaviour, the deputy prime minister has warned. Ukip conference in chaos after Godfrey Bloom hits journalist Ukip's annual conference was hit by chaos today, after one of its MEPs hit a journalist and called a room full of women "sluts". The last bastion: Smoking to be banned in prisons The last bastion of free smoking in the UK is set to be shut down, after the Prison Service confirmed it was considering plans to ban smoking in prisons. Police struggling as 'trolling' offences soar The police are struggling to crack down on online abuse as the number of reported offences soars, a senior police officer has said. Veiled threats: Boris hits out at school niqab rules Boris Johnson has hit out at private schools in London which insist their female pupils wear the full face veil. Tory membership halved since Cameron became leader Tory membership has halved since David Cameron became leader, with just 134,000 constituency members remaining with the party. All infant school pupils to be given free school meals All children at infant schools will receive a free, hot meal at lunchtime, Nick Clegg announced today. Firefighters to stage first strike in over a decade Firefighters in England and Wales will go on strike for four hours next Wednesday in a row over pensions, the Fire Brigades Union have confirmed. Cameron takes on FA over Tottenham Hotspur 'Yid' chanting David Cameron has defended the right of Tottenham Hotspur supporters to chant the word 'Yid', in a move challenging the Football Association's (FA) concerns over the issue. English fans 'not bothered' by racism in football Racism in football remains a major problem in England, a survey suggests - but English fans are not especially concerned by it. Tory MP in family jibe at former colleague Liberal Democrat Sarah Teather was a poor families minister because she doesn't have any children of her own, a Tory MP has suggested. Best of Comment and Analysis Comment: Banning smoking in prisons is a threat to public health The anti-smoking movement has always been hysterical and unhinged. But now it has become a threat to public health. Nick Clegg's conference speech as-it-happened All the news, comment and gossip from the run up to Nick Clegg's 2013 autumn conference speech in Glasgow. WATCH: Manu Tuilagi gives David Cameron bunny ears David Cameron is the most powerful man in the country - but that didn't stop England and British Lions rugby star Manu Tuilagi playing the classic 'bunny ears' prank on the steps of Downing Street yesterday. Analysis: Three lessons from the Lib Dem 'lines to take' cock-up Emailing out the confidential 'lines to take' document to journalists wasn't actually a noble-spirited effort to cut out the middle man. This really was an accident - as a close look at the text reveals. Lib Dem conference sketch: Clegg on song in grey Glasgow The Lib Dems were ready to start putting some ink on the 2015 manifesto - and many on the left were gearing up for what they considered a fight for the party's core. Infographic: Best and worst MPs on Twitter It's the party conference season - a special time of the year for tweeting MPs to provide us with more examples of their vitality, wit and intelligence. Or, in the case of some, their lethargy, predictability and tediousness. Here's an infographic recap of our best and worst MPs on Twitter for your consideration... The Political Week Online The Political Week Online: Nasty Nigel, nice Nick? Is the UKIP conference full of "sluts"? Was Farage a fascist as a teenager? Will Clegg ever be loved again? Is the prime minister allowed to have a nap? Is Tommy Robinson oppressed? Do burkas oppress men?	CIOB video: It's all about people NASUWT comments on GCSE results Commenting on the GCSE results, Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, the largest teachers’ union, said: NUT Wales comment on GCSE Results Commenting on this year’s GCSE results, NUT Secretary, David Evans, said: NUT comment on GCSE results Commenting on today’s GCSE results for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers’ union, said: NASUWT comments ahead of publication of GCSE results The fact that GCSEs are challenging and demanding qualifications is buried in an avalanche of politically motivated, false claims of grade inflation, dumbing-down and easy options, say the NASUWT. CIOT: Institute warns of ‘dangerous precedent’ over tax code for banks Government proposals for a strengthened Code of Practice on Taxation for Banks1 will set a “dangerous precedent” by giving HMRC power to determine and publicly announce non-compliance with the Code without any right of appeal, the Chartered Institute of Taxation has warned.

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