It wasn't a great debate, but it was a great result.

Vince Cable made the speech of the day, in that familiar low-key, reassuring style. Steve Webb and Paul Holmes contributed greatly to the result, and Malcolm Bruce once more persuaded me that we should be making much more use of his talents. On the 50p side of the debate, Evan Harris stood out.

The scale of support for the Tax commission proposals surprised me. Virtually no one voted for the Cantebury amendments, the Harris amendment got the support of about 15~% of the hall as far as I could see. So this was a triumph for the leaderswhip and a big step forward for Lib Dem economic policy.

As you would expect, Stephen Tall has already identified the relevant quote.

Sam Brittan wrote last week that:

While [the Liberal Democrat] party’s main attraction still lies in its greater commitment to personal freedom and due process than the Labour or Conservative megaliths, there is now at least a chance one might be able to vote for the party because of, rather than despite, its economic policies.

And that is how it feels to me. We haven't reached nirvana yet, but we are united and moving in the appropriate direction.