10.27am: Even if Nick Clegg is not officially in charge – David Cameron has insisted he remains the boss while on holiday – the Liberal Democrat leader will be keen to demonstrate his prime ministerial qualities over the next fortnight, beginning today. The coalition government has not been kind to the Lib Dems so far, with the party's popularity and that of Clegg floundering.
A Downing Street spokesman played down Clegg's role while Cameron is at the seaside, commenting: "Nick will be around and picking up some events." But for Clegg the next two weeks could be key to trying to turn around the fortunes of his party and how he as an individual is viewed within the coalition government.
First on the agenda today, at 11.30am, is a "virtual town hall" Q&A at the offices of MSN in London. You can put your questions to Nick Clegg by emailing asknickclegg@live.co.uk or on Twitter by using the #asknickclegg hashtag. More details of how you can submit questions can be found here.
I'll be following today's events as Clegg, the man the Mail on Sunday yesterday called "probably the most leftwing person ever to hold such high office [by standing in as PM]", takes charge ... sort of.
10.57am: Many of the today's papers preview Clegg "taking charge". The Daily Mail says he faces a "coalition backlash", citing the comments of Lib Dem deputy leader Simon Hughes, who has ruled out the prospect of any electoral pact with the Tories at the next general election. The Mail writes that at the Q&A today "Clegg will argue that the Lib Dems have been able to push for radical political reforms – including plans for the referendum [on changing the voting system] – only because they are in government."
The Times also refers to Hughes's comments and "tensions" within the coalition. It says:
Clegg will spend much of the next two weeks trying to resolve outstanding spending rows. They include an argument between the Treasury and the Ministry of Defence over who pays for Trident, the nuclear deterrent.
There are cold crumbs of comfort for those who believe the Lib Dem leader has sold the party's soul to the right in the Daily Telegraph's assertion that Clegg will "push the government to the left as he takes charge". The paper says:
He will use his fortnight at the helm to promote his party's pet policies, such as electoral reform and social equality.
The Telegraph describes the unveiling of former Labour cabinet minister Alan Milburn as the government's new social mobility tsar as the "centrepiece" of Clegg's week.
11.10am: If there are tensions within the coalition, and more pointedly within the Liberal Democrat party itself, an analysis in the Liberal magazine is likely to pour fuel on the fire. Simon Kovar writes that the party leadership's has neglected its political and philosophical traditions, thus creating "the neo-Liberal Democrats". Kovar writes:
Successive generations of Liberal Democrat leaders and politicians, whether of the party's left or right, have held the following in common. They have fought privilege and corruption; they have argued for a redistribution of wealth and opportunity from the rich to the poor; they have regarded the market as a (limited) means and not an (un-checked) end; and they have recognised the moral limits of markets. They have argued in support of public services and, when they have spoken of public service reform, they have meant alternative means of public provision, not privatisation. They have regarded proportional representation as the absolute precondition of a more pluralist and cooperative politics. And they have argued for a realignment of the left. Every one of these commitments has been abandoned by Nick Clegg.
11.25am: The Clegg Q&A is due to start shortly. It is being streamed live on the No 10 website.
11.34am: Clegg has begun speaking.
11.41am: First question: what have been the highlights and lowlights of the coalition so far and how long will it last?
It will last five years, Clegg says. Parliamentary terms shouldn't be the plaything of the prime minister.
We need five years to sort things out ... We have to take a lot of very difficult decisions.
Clegg says there are "glimmers" of good news.
The highlights are the creation of the coalition itself, he says. It's a government that "has a very strong sense of purpose". The government has legislated for important changes in education. Plans for political reform are his third highlight.
Clegg doesn't name any specific lowlights.
11.46am: Q: Are the cuts too harsh?
A: "You have to do it...there's no easy way out of this." Clegg refers to problems in Greece and Spain and says it is "morally wrong" to hand over debt from one generation to the next.
Clegg says the coalition has shown its commitment to fairness. He cites the raising of the personal allowance and the increasing of capital gains tax and refers to the "triple lock" designed to protect the value of pensions.
11.47am: Q: What are we going to do to get banks lending?
A: "It's arguably one of the greatest restraints on recovery of the British economy," Clegg says. It is clearly not right when small and medium-sized businesses are crying out for credit and not getting it.
11.48am: Q: What's going to happen about businesses being over-regulated?
A: Clegg refers to the coalition's one-in, one-out rule – whenever a new regulation is brought in, an existing one will be scrapped.
11.50am: A 16-year-old asks when she is going to get the vote.
Clegg says he personally supports 16-year-olds getting the vote but it was not part of the coalition agreement. The case has become stronger over time, he says; it shouldn't be a party political issue. It's a debate that should be had.
11.53am: Q: How will voting reform strengthen our democracy? How much will the referendum on changing the voting system cost?
A: The vote will cost £80m to £100m but there are also reforms to reduce the number of MPs which would save money. The alternative vote electoral system (which the government wants to put to a referendum next May) provides more choice by ranking candidates in order. It offers more choice and control.
Anyone trying to follow the feed on the Downing Street website will have trouble: Clegg's microphone is crackly and almost inaudible. But at least they've got a feed: here's a screenshot of the MSN page.
11.58am: Q: What is Britain doing to help those affected by floods in Pakistan and why is it not doing more?
A: A quarter of the aid donated by the international community so far has come from Britain. The response from some sections of the international community has been "lamentable", Clegg says. He says people are struggling to grasp the extent of the damage inflicted, maybe because the damage is underwater. Britain has allocated £30m so far and is taking a lead in the international effort.
11.59am: Q: Would you like to hear more from the country on their ideas on what they could do? (The type of question the Cabinet Office would love to have planted ... )
A: Clegg refers to the online forum where members of the public can make suggestions to the government. He also refers to the website where people can suggest rules to be abolished.
12.01pm: Q: Shouldn't we be going after tax avoiders and evaders?
A: Tax is too complex and has become a "paradise" for lawyers helping their clients to reduce their tax bills.
12.02pm: Q: You're acting prime minister; what are you going to be doing this week?
Clegg laughs. He is "holding the fort" but is not acting prime minister – seems like a fine line.
He's asked if he could imagine himself in this position a few months ago. "No," he replies to laughter.
12.05pm: Clegg is taking questions from the audience now.
Q: How have house prices risen so much and does it matter that they are so high?
A: It's heartbreaking that people can't find homes they can afford. Housing policy has been too centralised.
12.08pm: Q: How is it fair on taxpayers if more money is going to pensioners who are not contributing under the triple-lock guarantee?
A: Clegg says the policy is morally right and pensioners have contributed all their life. He says he disagrees with the questioner referring to them not contributing.
12.12pm: Q: Isn't the VAT increase going to hit poor people the hardest?
A: We looked at many different ways of avoiding this, Clegg says. He thinks Labour is saying we have to do it but not now. You can't "duck" difficult decisions by not doing them now, he says. Apart from referring to maintaining zero-rated products he makes no reference to the impact on the poorest sections of society.
12.12pm: Q: What should happen about Trident?
A: The equipment for troops on the frontline should be the priority. Clegg says his views on Trident are well-known and there is high-tech equipment that is no longer relevant to current warfare.
12.13pm: Q: When will we be withdrawing from Afghanistan?
A: There is a pledge to leave by 2015 but he would like them to come back as soon as possible without jeopardising the mission. "I want them to come back with their heads held high," Clegg says. The acid test is the stability of the country.
12.14pm: Q: Is it going to be any easier to find an NHS dentist?
A: The NHS budget is being protected to allow people to gain access to services.
12.15pm: Q: Are mixed-sex wards being scrapped (as was reported today)?
A: We are going to change it and Andrew Lansley will make a detailed announcement tomorrow.
12.17pm: Q: What's your favourite biscuit?
A: If dunked rich tea, if not HobNobs. "That's what it's about being in charge for two weeks." Whoops, Freudian slip?
12.18pm: Q: What is the commitment to creativity in the UK (with reference to the arts)?
A: Where the government can't carry on giving money, we're trying to encourage philanthropists and donations from the national lottery fund.
12.19pm: Q: Are cuts to the police force the right thing to do given crime and anti-social behaviour?
Clegg repeats the Tory-Lib Dem mantra of getting more officers out on the streets and not stuck behind desks.
12.22pm: Q: What would success mean at the end of the five-year parliament?
A: The economy would be growing again, we would not be relying on any particular sector for growth. We would be a greener nation with more freedom.
12.24pm: Clegg is asked about the water summit he is attending as part of the UN Millennium Development Goals programme.
The government will continue to meet its promises on international development despite the recession. He will "continue to beat the drum" for those goals, he says.
12.26pm: Q: Should conscription be introduced?
A: No, says Clegg. He refers to "some of the things we've introduced" to get young people involved but does not seem to have the same passion as Cameron about the Tory leader's vision of a army of volunteers, part of his "big society" scheme.
12.28pm: Q: What will former Labour minister Alan Milburn be doing in his new role working with the government?
A: He will not be part of government, he will be an independent reviewer on social mobility. We've got to remove barriers to social mobility. Clegg hopes there will be an annual debate on how to increase social mobility.
12.31pm: Q: What level is acceptable for immigration and is there too much?
A: There is no magic number, says Clegg. But he then refers to the upper limit in the coalition agreement – not very convincing. I've always argued for a fair system and for proper policing of our borders, he says.
And that was the final question of the session.
12.44pm: It wasn't the Clegg who everyone agreed with after the first election leaders' debate but equally it wasn't the Clegg who blundered in parliament when referring to the "illegality" of the Iraq war. He looked strangely nervous at the start; maybe it was the enormity of being in charge (or not). But he was soon out of his chair waving his arms about. Oddly, his biggest stumble seemed to be when he was asked to name his favourite biscuit and initially confused his preferred "dunker" with his favourite "non-dunker". During the same answer he also referred to being in charge after earlier rubbishing the reports that he was acting PM. Perhaps that was the hardest question because most of the others required him to do little than trot out the coalition line. He seemed to become most animated on Pakistan, criticising the "lamentable" international response to the floods. He also seemed passionate about plans to improve social mobility, and confirmed government plans to end mixed-sex wards. But it is unlikely there was anything there that will have changed anyone's perception of Clegg on either side of the debate. The outsider status that served him so well in opposition is now but a distant memory ...
2.15pm: Michael White was at the Q&A session and has filed a blogpost here.
He notes:
Michael White. Photograph: Linda Nylind
The Lib Dem leader and deputy prime minister hasn't had the practice – or the exposure – that David Cameron has had, and it shows.
His answers are more hesitant, less polished and more prone to safe generalisation, though that's understandable after his being hammered for "gaffes" like his assertion that the Iraq war was illegal. It's a point of view, widely held, but not what you're meant to say in coalition with a party that disagrees.
You have characters left
Please read our community standards.
Closing this window without pressing "Post your comment" will result in your words being lost.
Are you sure?
Thank you for your comment. This has been submitted for moderation.
Your comment has been successfully posted.
Sorry, something has gone wrong and this action cannot be completed. Please try again later.