Crunch weekend for Cameron and Clegg

Make no mistake about it, what Cameron and Clegg decide to do in the coming hours will seal the fate of their Coalition, the economy of the country and the future potential (if there is to be any) of their political parties.

First the easy bit. Resulting from the need for a further Government re-shuffle following the resignation of the Government's Chief Whip, the glaring necessity to remove Osborne as Chancellor cannot be dodged a further time.

A new Governor of the Bank of England is urgently required to salvage the wreckage left by New Labour and their appointee, Sir Mervyn King; One option being reportedly considered by Osborne is his Deputy, Paul Tucker, obviously an insane impossibility. The second choice supposedly is Osborne's head, Adair Turner, which seems at first look even less acceptabale than Tucker.

In this blogger's view there is only one individual in the country with the necessary experience and qualifications, and that is Nigel Lawson. Should he feel unable to fill the post, even on an interim basis, then perhaps he should be assigned to find a successor while the Government crisis unfolds.

I will be posting later today, on this blog, on the other options available for the Coalition. The effect of the now crucially important EU crisis will be a major consideration and this summary of the situation from Ralf Grahn, posted this morning provides some good background.