Elsewhere, the manifesto offers that typically Lib Dem combination of the idealistic and the opportunistic. The party wants a smaller House of Commons and the right to remove corrupt MPs, both of which measures we support. But their demand for "fair votes", as they insist on calling proportional representation, is specifically designed to give them, the least popular of the three main parties, a whip hand in the formation of governments. Where is the fairness in that? Some ideas are simply risible. While the manifesto sensibly calls for a greater emphasis on energy conservation, it also says that all Britain's energy should come from renewable sources within 40 years. This fantastical aim would be achieved by closing down nuclear reactors and dirty coal-fired stations. If we want to return to a peasant economy, then this is the route to follow.