The next step, now being gingerly debated in Lib Dem circles, might be actual entry into government.
The first became memorable because of the temporary surge it brought in Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg's poll rating.
But VAT is not the only source of potential discomfort in Lib Dem ranks, or possibly between Lib Dem ministers and their grassroots members.
"It means if you take an area one degree by one degree, latitude by longitude, which at the equator is roughly 100km by 100km, you can take any two points in the DEM and the error between the two points is less than two metres, " he told me.
In 2009, Lib Dem activists voted in favour of allowing state-funded faith schools to continue selecting pupils by faith despite opposition from some senior figures.
BBC: Nick Clegg's son to go to London Oratory Catholic school
Another view is that the aim is to woo potential Lib Dem voters in advance of the coming poll, and perhaps persuade Lib Dem MPs to form a coalition or alliance with Labour afterwards in the event of a hung parliament.
The new prime minister and his deputy probably agree with each other at least as much as they do with many in their own parties (on the unreconstructed Tory right, in Mr Cameron's case, and the Lib Dem left in Mr Clegg's).
To the narrow obsessives in the Lib Dem ranks, however, impotence is a price well worth paying to preserve their treasured purity.
Kingston, Richmond and Sutton all went Lib Dem in 1994, and so did all the parliamentary seats in the boroughs in 1997.
Of those who voted Lib Dem in local elections but not in the general election, up to three-quarters appear to have voted Labour in the general election.
Can it survive so long as Michael German remains outside the Cabinet and will the current compromise of one Lib-Dem in the cabinet be sustainable after Christmas?
Mr Dewar was willing to offer concessions, such as a package of aid for rural areas which would please voters in the Lib Dem heartlands of the Scottish Borders and Highlands, and indeed delivered Labour support to elect Sir David Steel, a former Liberal Party leader, as the Parliament's presiding officer (speaker).
ECONOMIST: From now on, Britain will have to get used to coalitions
The peer said he knew of no complaints against him in his 27 years working for the party but he has temporarily stood aside from the Lib Dem group in the Lords to avoid "embarrassment" to the party.
There have been grim by-election results, including a jaw-dropping sixth place in Barnsley Central (where the Lib Dem candidate was spat at in the street).
In them, the Lib Dem local vote was a full ten points higher than in the parliamentary contest.
In a 45-minute debate, three Lib Dem activists did speak in favour of ending national pay deals but the mood of the hall was more in tune with those, largely from Cornwall and Wales, who feared the impact in their areas.
Treasury Secretary Danny Alexander said financial stability was a "foundation" for Lib Dem objectives in government.
She denies perverting the course of justice by taking points for the ex-Lib Dem minister in 2003.
So expect Lib Dem candidates in the south west of England and other assorted regions, but not everywhere.
And Mr Wallace, an easy-going fellow, is a living embodiment of the Lib Dem belief in consensus politics.
ECONOMIST: In one part of Britain a Liberal Democrat is in charge
She denies perverting the course of justice by taking speeding points for the former Lib Dem minister in 2003.
BBC: Vicky Pryce felt 'practically suicidal' when Huhne left
Among the largest underlying components of DEM, in trading today SK Telecom Co.
While Mr Blair remains in office, Lib Dem hopes of a more proportional electoral system for Westminster live on.
Chancellor George Osborne was said to have agreed to Lib Dem demands in return for a freezing of benefits.
Such thoughts will concentrate the minds of some of the delegates at this weekend's half-yearly Lib Dem conference in Southport.
ECONOMIST: The party is either being very clever, or very stupid
Charles Kennedy quit as Lib Dem leader in January 2006 after a frontbench rebellion having admitted he had a drink problem.
Among the largest underlying components of DEM, in trading today KT Corp ( NYSE: KT) is off about 2.1%, SK Telecom Co.
Among the largest underlying components of DEM, in trading today KT Corp ( NYSE: KT) is up about 1.1%, SK Telecom Co.
Lib Dem faith in the beneficence of public-sector producers knows no bounds.
When he became Lib Dem leader In 2007, he said he was "not an active believer" but had enormous respect for those who were.
BBC: Nick Clegg's son to go to London Oratory Catholic school
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