This may be a coalition, but the numbers are still Tory-heavy. This goverment is, in effect, already operating as a minority - albeit it one with tacit approval from another party.
It's unreasonable of the Liberals to expect all of their policies to get through, in much the same way as it's reasonable to expect policy generally to be loaded more towards the Conservative-end of the spectrum.
This, in my view, is broadly a good thing. It best reflects the way people voted at the Election, and has generally assured that some of the more 'exotic' or contraversial policy-positons that both hold, are not part of the agenda.
In my opinion, both parties are aware that this is a marriage-of-convenience, but they keep-up the facade for the greater good. Whilst they haven't gotten everything right, they managed to get the patient sitting-up in the bed, rather than reading him the last rites.
People have short memories, and seem to have forgotten just how badly f*cked this economy was when the coalition inherited it. That Brown can be viewed as some kind of white-knight on the back of the crisis, still mystifies me.
It's my belief that decrepit state of the countries finances more-or-less compelled them to partner-up, because any other outcome and the UK would be in the same position as the PIGS. Clearly, though, there needs to be some softening of the deficit-reduction policy, in order that the economy starts to grow. Such a move would seem in the offing, and would represent one in the plus column for the Liberals.
When it comes to the next general election, their main problem is more about the public's ability to notice the subtlety of their contribution. IMO.