国际英语新闻：British deputy PM wins continued party support for coalition government

LONDON, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on Monday delivered a speech to his party's annual conference, which secured the support of rank and file members for the coalition government.

He praised the coalition government which was formed in May by the Conservatives headed by Prime Minister David Cameron, and said that "we have become more than the sum of our parts, in life two heads are usually better than one -- and in politics too. This is the right government for right now."

Clegg is leader of the Liberal Democrats as well as deputy prime minister in the coalition government, which came to power in the wake of the inconclusive May 6 general election which ended 13 years of Labor rule.

The principal objection his party members have with coalition government policy is the scale and speed of government budget cuts.

In a bid to cut the current spending deficit of 153 billion pounds (about 240 billion U.S. dollars) by 111 billion pounds before the next scheduled general election in 2015, most government departments have been ordered to prepare for cuts of between 25 and 40 percent of their budgets, with only health and overseas aid completely exempted.