Inside the conference centre, everything continues as it used to do in government and, to be fair, as it did before government. Lib Dems take things very seriously. Yesterday they debated unilateral nuclear disarmament (they voted against). Today it's housing and social care. In each case the debate takes place in a vacuum-sealed alternate political reality, where they have the slightest ability to decide such matters. This is a party with eight seats behaving as if it was leading negotiations at the UN. It’s not that they don't recognise their radically diminished status. It’s that the emotional reality hasn't sunk in. They're like someone still numb from a bereavement.

The ideal time for a proper Lib Dem flap would have been late 2014, when a new leader could have limited some of the damage and turned an eight-seat score card into a 20-seat one. But failing that, now might be a good time. This is a party which should be asking big questions. Those questions should include whether the Lib Dems are happy to accept the economic policy of parties they go into coalition with. They might also ask if they want to appeal to a broader electorate with policies like free school meals, or a narrower but uncommitted electorate by standing up for civil liberties and an egalitarian system of law.

Those questions aren't being asked. Instead there is a lot of talk of whether the British system can incorporate diverse politics and the various tactical or communication errors of coalition. These are good questions, but they are not the main ones.

Not that anyone knows. The conference centre seems entirely removed from the world outside. That's always the case at conference, but it is particularly the case at this one. The sad thing is one imagines that next year it'll be even worse. There'll be even fewer journalists and their deep debate about national security or solar energy will look even more cut-off from reality.