The splits are once again appearing

My mole let slip an interesting piece of information today though I couldn't tell if it was deliberate or not..

It appears that in preparation for committees, or at least for the Health, Social care and Housing committee which met today, the coalition parties have separate briefings from officials. It seems that they are divided enough on some of the big issues for their suspicion and paranoia about leaks to include each other.

The really big issue is the review of home care which is the thin edge of the privatisation wedge. I am aware that the unions, at least the grassroots elements, are fundamentally against this but the libdem part of the administration plan is to play the union leadership off against their membership, whilst the SNP, though pro privatisation generally, given their more Thatcherite leanings, are struggling with the problem that their main objective is crass populism.

Hence the separate briefings. Mind you, that's better than no briefing which is what we were treated to, on the instruction, I hear, of the Leadership. And they were going to be so much more transparent that we were...