A Coalition Agreement

In their first press conference together, the Prime Minister and the Deputy PM, outlined their vision for coalition government over a fixed five year term of Parliament. They launched their seven page document detailing the agreement, which can be viewed in full below.

The atmosphere between the two leaders was warm and supportive, almost too much at times, with some journalists suggesting all that was missing was the confetti! Joking aside, the press conference gives us a brief taste of the style of coalition to expect. A final Coalition Agreement, covering the full range of policy including foreign, defence and domestic policy will be published soon. 

Interestingly, it appears the Lib Dems will have a minister in every government department, these ministers and the four secretaries of state can only be sacked by the Deputy PM. Update: This has since been denied, the PM will have the power to sack any member of government.

Agreement.12.5.10
The coalition cabinet is taking shape; the following appointments have been confirmed thus far:

• Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs - The Rt Hon William Hague MP Chancellor of the Exchequer - George Osborne MP 
• Secretary of State for Defence - Dr Liam Fox MP 
• Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice - Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke 
• Chief Whip - The Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP 
• Secretary of State for the Home Department and Minister for Women and Equality -Theresa May MP 
• Secretary of State for Health - Andrew Lansley CBE MP 
• Chief Secretary to the Treasury - David Laws MP 
• Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills - Dr Vince Cable MP 
• Secretary of State for Education - Michael Gove MP 
• Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport - Jeremy Hunt MP