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New Co-operation?

Labour and Lib Dems to Work Together

Labour and the Liberal Democrats have agreed on closer co-operation. They have created a new Cabinet committee including members of both parties.

Downing Street has stressed the committee does not mean any form of pact or coalition. But it is described as being part of the Prime Minister's new 'inclusive' politics.

Ashdown
Paddy Ashdown
RealAudio
It's for the good of the country and a gamble worth taking
The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Paddy Ashdown, said people were "fed up with politicians always fighting each other, instead of working together for the good of the country." He said he had always argued for a "more rational way of politics", and the committee was a way to deliver it.

The two parties have joined forces before. In March this year Labour and the Liberal Democrats published a joint communique on constitutional reform. Both parties claim that the new committee is a logical progression of this kind of co-operation.

Taylor
Ann Taylor, Leader of the House
RealAudio
It's about "inclusive politics"
Ann Taylor, the Leader of the House of Commons, said Labour wanted to be inclusive and involve other people into government, in order to make the "right kind of decisions and have the right kind of approach".

A Downing Street spokesman said the Liberal Democrats would make a contribution but would not make policy. He said: "On issues of mutual concern, the most obvious being the constitution, there is no reason why they should not have an input."

The committee will be chaired by Tony Blair and will also include the Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown. The other Labour members will be the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, Chancellor Gordon Brown, Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, Home Secretary Jack Straw and the Leader of the Commons, Ann Taylor. The Liberal Democrat participants will be announced shortly.

The committee has no formal title yet, but is likely to meet on a monthly basis and will begin work after the summer break by discussing constitutional issues.

The committee will then move on to other issues agreed by the two parties. It is thought they could include European Policy and Northern Ireland.

The workings of the committee were agreed in an exchange of letters between Mr Blair and Mr Ashdown.

But the agreement falls well short of the co-operation which existed in the late 1970s when the Labour government agreed a pact with the Liberal Party in a bid to remain in power. On that occasion Liberal leaders sat round the full Cabinet table with members of the Labour government. But the deal collapsed in acrimony.

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