The Tory right are the true liberals of this parliament 

In yesterday’s speech to commemorate 12 months of the coalition, Nick Clegg promised a stronger liberal identity in the future. His party was ‘not left, ‘not right’ but ‘liberal’ and would judge other parties by their commitment to liberalism. Above all, and despite professed disavowal of tribal politics, he claimed that the Lib-Dems were ‘more committed at heart to fairness than the Conservatives’.

Critics of the coalition on the Tory backbenches are often dismissed as the Tory Right, a term intended to paint them as disgruntled reactionaries who can’t reconcile themselves to partnership with the Lib-Dems. But a closer look at the issues being raised by the Tory rebels shows that it would be more accurate to characterise them as the only true liberals in parliament.

They defend democratic self-government against encroachments by Brussels. They champion the right of the people to make their own laws instead of having them imposed by the unaccountable Strasbourg Court.