Lib-Dems have to face up to realities of power

Mr Clegg's speech yesterday aimed to win over his critics in the party: he defended the need for the breakneck speed of the Coalition's deficit reduction programme but avoided divisive issues such as tuition fees and Trident. Deputy leader Simon Hughes has today pointedly emphasised Lib-Dem differences from the Tories on just those questions. Yet this conference has given the impression of a Lib-Dem party at last looking more like the party of power it now is.

The real challenges still lie ahead, starting with next month's spending review. That will put pressure on both Lib-Dem ministers and those activists who feel the party is selling its soul.

There will be growing strains too around a number of policy flashpoints — not just Trident and reform of university funding but also the Coalition's free and academy schools, which the conference yesterday voted to campaign against.

The greatest threat to the Coalition's cohesion, though, is May's referendum on voting reform. The AV system of proportional representation is the prize that has eluded Liberals since Lloyd George's day. If the "No" campaign triumphs, powered in part by Tory MPs, activists and even ministers, many Lib-Dems will wonder whether the sacrifices made for power have been worthwhile.

Yet Mr Clegg has brought an overdue dose of realism to his party. In truth, the Lib-Dems have always been far more pragmatic at local level: indeed, Tory and Labour rivals have long complained of their slipperiness both as electoral enemies and as town hall policy-makers.

That may reflect the Lib-Dems' intellectual incoherence in recent years, but it is also a simple function of power and its inevitable compromises. If they are now learning to face up to that at national level too, that can surely only give them greater credibility in the long term.

It's not cricket

The fiasco of Pakistan's cricket tour of England comes to an end tomorrow, with the last one-day international match between the two countries amid a flurry of accusations. If cricket's reputation is to be salvaged — let alone that of the Pakistani side — it is essential that the International Cricket Council (ICC) now thoroughly investigates the conduct of some of Pakistan's players.

Make no mistake: the accusations from Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt that England deliberately lost last Friday's match are absurd. He is reported to have claimed that "talk in bookie circles" pointed to England throwing the match — yet has offered not a shred of evidence. By contrast, three Pakistani players were sent home last month following newspaper allegations that they had taken bribes in a spot-betting scam. The ICC is also probing alleged irregularities in Pakistan's scoring patterns in last week's match.

The England and Wales Cricket Board has demanded an apology from Mr Butt and hinted at legal action should he refuse. Apologies aside, we need a proper investigation and action by Pakistan to clean up its game if it is not to tarnish cricket's wider reputation.

Fashion statement

Samantha Cameron, wife of the Prime Minister, is to take on an ambassador role for British fashion, wearing clothes by young designers and using Downing Street for future London Fashion Week functions. She is well suited to the role — and it is good to see her supporting fashion, one of Britain's great international success stories.