On distinguishable precedents

It's most helpful of John Ivison to be concerned about the NDP's well-being only when it serves to promote continued Con government. But there are a couple of points worth making in response to his attempt to paint a coalition as more distant than it actually is.

To start with, there's the question of whether the NDP is in fact interested in pursuing a coalition, such that it's a viable strategy for the Libs to work toward forming one. And on that point, one would expect Ivison to read up on the NDP's past and present plans to bring together Canadians who want something better than continued Harper government.

That does leave the question of whether the NDP should be taking any cautionary messages from the UK Lib Dems' experience. But it's not hard to see how the parties' priorities differ - and how that would figure to affect public perceptions once a coalition is in place.

After all, the Lib Dems entered into their coalition as both the junior partner and the relatively nonideological partner, which left them with effectively no basis to make policy demands. As a result, they traded off virtually all of their policy commitments, treating high-profile positions within the coalition government as the main apparent goal - leaving little discernible benefit for supporters to point to as an achievement resulting from the coalition, and shedding voters who saw them as an alternative to Labour on the left.

Needless to say, that couldn't stand in much more stark contrast to the NDP's position, which has regularly focused on policy gains over personal profile, including by declining to be a junior partner where it would have resulted in a right-wing party taking power. And one can most clearly see the difference in the NDP's 2008 position - where it readily sent the message that it wouldn't pursue positions like finance minister or deputy prime minister, but held firm to a progressive set of policy priorities.

Of course, the above isn't to say that there wouldn't be some challenges in managing a coalition from the NDP's perspective. But there's plenty of reason to think the outcome of a coalition will be far better for a party which actually has some ideological grounding by which to measure government policy - and every reason to think the NDP's past efforts to bring progressive Canadians together will continue past the next federal election.