THE PRIME Minister, we report today, is facing a full-blown Cabinet revolt over House of Lords reform - and not before time. Mr Blair and his government have had the best part of four years to meet their manifesto commitment to make the Lords "more representative and democratic" and, although the majority of hereditary peers no longer sit in the Lords as of right, the reform is far from complete. Worse almost than its incompleteness, however, is the impression - which Mr Blair has done nothing to dispel - that the Government has either lost the will to complete it or cannot decide how to proceed.

Sir: Julien Evans (letter, 1 February) asks how many votes a political party would receive if its manifesto were to include a pledge to increase petrol tax to safeguard the future for our children. The answer is at least one million votes - the number of people who voted Green in the European election of June 2004.

A shake-up in the way MPs are elected is to be proposed today by the Leader of the House of Commons, Peter Hain, who wants a form of proportional representation.

CHARLES KENNEDY and his Liberal Democrat colleagues yesterday filed into 10 Downing Street for their first meeting with Labour ministers at the joint cabinet committee since Mr Kennedy became leader of his party. Mr Kennedy was, he told us at the weekend, looking for an "honest, friendly, frank appraisal of where we've got to and where we go from here". He also wanted to issue a threat to the Prime Minster: "If Labour are not able to reconfirm, as it were, a commitment to a referendum on proportional representation for Westminster, I certainly don't see any future prospect for further constitutional co-operation between our parties."

Sir: Your account of the d'Hondt procedure used to allocate ministerial portfolios on the Northern Ireland Executive includes several inaccuracies ("Sharing of seats devised in 18th century", 30 November).

`If I were the Tories, I would clutch at proportional representation. It may be the only way back'

Statutory codes of conduct for councils

MICHAEL BROWN'S NOTEBOOK

CHARLES KENNEDY'S first conference speech as Liberal Democrat leader turned out to be a dignified affair. The affable blokiness that his admirers take for charisma and his enemies for superficiality was kept sternly in check. After a week in which he was at times in danger of being drowned out by the noisy demands of activists, the assiduous self-promotion of the defeated but unbowed challenger Simon Hughes and an emotional farewell from Paddy Ashdown, Mr Kennedy succeeded in regaining control of the proceedings. His assured performance reminded a party that is instinctively allergic to deference that its immediate future belongs to him, and that it owes him loyalty and respect.

PR DEBATE

THERE IS one test above all against which this week's speech by the new leader of the Liberal Democrats should be judged: will Charles Kennedy call the Prime Minister's bluff on New Labour's commitment to a new way of doing politics?

TONY BLAIR has made clear to the newly elected Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy that the Government will not introduce proportional representation for Westminster before the next general election.

CHARLES KENNEDY has held talks with Tony Blair to discuss further co-operation between the his party and Labour, the Liberal Democrat leader revealed yesterday. In a 45-minute meeting at Downing Street 10 days ago, the two leaders agreed to continue the dialogue the Prime Minister established with Paddy Ashdown.

Sir: The election of some hereditary peers by their fellows introduces, for the first time, the concept of the hereditary voter. MPs are chosen by the voters, life peers by the Prime Minister, but now this radical government has opened up this Third Way to get into Parliament.