A LibCon pact is back on the rails

The BBC's Laura Kuenssberg reports that the Tories are looking "very jolly" as they resume talks with the Liberal Democrats. The resumption of talks was announced by William Hague on Twitter;

I'm not one of those people who think it was duplicitous for the LibDems to talk to Labour. I think it was important for Team Clegg to look like they had explored all possibilities and it should be said that a LibLab pact is certainly not dead yet.

If, if, if, if, if a LibCon deal does now go ahead - and the FT Westminster blog is suggesting it is most likely to be a formal coalition - then the big learning I take from the last 24 hours is that there are many LibDems - led by Lord Ashdown - who don't have their hearts in it. The country needs stability but I fear that any arrangement will be vulnerable to the smallest of trigger events.

I fear this all sets up Labour quite nicely to be the only party of opposition to a weak government, responsible for taking very difficult decisions.

Tim Montgomerie

2.15pm: On the BBC News Channel Michael Gove says any deal will ideally include Liberal Democrats sitting in the Cabinet alongside Conservative ministers.