Politics: Can the coalition survive the crises ahead?

Can the coalition survive the crises ahead?

For something cobbled together by eight sleep-deprived men over four days, the coalition agreement has proved remarkably durable. Even now, with relations between the Tories and Lib Dems arguably more strained than ever, the document’s writ still runs. Both parties know that if they didn’t abide by its terms, the show would collapse.

But the document can’t cover every crack, and the coalition has shown itself to be particularly vulnerable to events. In May last year no one expected, for instance, that there would be mass looting on the streets of London. When the riots happened, the coalition struggled to agree on a response: the two parties’ visceral reactions to the disturbances were just too different. With nothing in the coalition agreement to guide them, the government remains at odds over much of the post-riots debate.

In the coming weeks and months, we can expect plenty more divisive events.