Re: The UK General Election Thread

[Merlin]

What does anyone think of the possiblity of a hung parliment will do for the country?

A disaster - again, take Italy as a prime example.

Constant in-fighting and disagreement while the country gets deeper into a mess.
And Finance Markets loathe it.

Compromise can be a good thing - but to have continued compromise over a 7 year parliamentary term is asking too much - which ultimately leads to yet another short term election.

[Shoeshine]

I'd be a lot more worried if people really, genuinely believed in a party.

Now I'm interested !!
Why would you be worried?

Or is a ringa ringa roses, knit one pearl one every 6 years considered the more appropriate way ... as with Italy, for example?!

Because by its very nature, a party is a coalition of competing interests, and whilst they might have a slant to the way they operate, anyone who genuinely believes that they can do all they say they can is either a fanatic or naiive. "Least bad option" seems to me a healthily sceptical approach to politics.

[Shoeshine]

What does anyone think of the possiblity of a hung parliment will do for the country?

A disaster - again, take Italy as a prime example.

Constant in-fighting and disagreement while the country gets deeper into a mess.
And Finance Markets loathe it.

Compromise can be a good thing - but to have continued compromise over a 7 year parliamentary term is asking too much - which ultimately leads to yet another short term election.

Or take Germany where it's anything but a disaster.

The reason it spooks the markets here is because it's so rare, and there is uncertainty. But in this country a hung Parliament would likely result in another election later this year, just as in 1974.

What honestly surprises me (and I ain't no Tory) is that it's even a possibility this time round - I still don't think it will happen - given the astonishing ineptitude of the Labour government in the last few years.

[Merlin]

Shoey (re. your previous post) - We'll agree to disagree!

[Shoeshine]

Shoey (re. your previous post) - We'll agree to disagree!

On what bit mate?

[JKLever]

To be honest, can anyone say with any certainty that after 15 years of Tory rule in the future they won't be as hated, loathed, incompetent, as the current bunch?

Seems there's a definite shelf life to any government.

[Basil]

I will personally guarantee that if the Tories win the next election, they'll be lucky to survive 5 years - never mind 15.

Being handed the reins of government after the next election will be a bit of a hospital pass - they will have to enact all the unpleasant cuts in public expenditure that everyone knows is coming, but the politicians are too scared to talk about in any detail.

[Merlin]

Shoey (re. your previous post) - We'll agree to disagree!

On what bit mate?

"Least bad option" seems to me a healthily sceptical approach to politics.

Whilst in the short term, this might be possible to work, I personally don't hold by it.
Putting it simply, to agree with policies just to appease a 'situation' is not, certainly in my book, a "healthy" option if it happens to conflict with ones own principles and beliefs.

[Shoeshine]

To be honest, can anyone say with any certainty that after 15 years of Tory rule in the future they won't be as hated, loathed, incompetent, as the current bunch?

Seems there's a definite shelf life to any government.

I'm absolutely certain they would be. The Tories were despised in the late nineties for exactly that reason. Governments run out of steam.

[Shoeshine]

Shoey (re. your previous post) - We'll agree to disagree!

On what bit mate?

"Least bad option" seems to me a healthily sceptical approach to politics.

Whilst in the short term, this might be possible to work, I personally don't hold by it.
Putting it simply, to agree with policies just to appease a 'situation' is not, certainly in my book, a "healthy" option if it happens to conflict with ones own principles and beliefs.

In any party you have a basket of policies. To agree with them all would be......unusual. What is a problem, a definite problem, is the lazily cynical "they're all as bad as each other" type of approach.

[Merlin]

I will personally guarantee that if the Tories win the next election, they'll be lucky to survive 5 years - never mind 15.

Being handed the reins of government after the next election will be a bit of a hospital pass - they will have to enact all the unpleasant cuts in public expenditure that everyone knows is coming, but the politicians are too scared to talk about in any detail.

Will you offer me 5/1 odds if they reach their 7 year tenure and 10/1 if they go beyond?

Aye, the state of this country is a total mess.
What it needs is a confidence boost - the core of which lies in the financial markets.
Screw the Markets up by either re-electing Labour or a having a hung parliament, and the black hole gets blacker.
Should the Tories be elected with a clear majority, then hated as they will be after the severe but necessary measures are adopted, IMO they will steady the ship. They are, at least, a party aligned to the Markets and Private enterprise ... Labour have, over 13 years of rule, dictated to and taken said Markets and the private sector for granted., and when the sh*t hit the fan 20 months ago, floundered in despair, totally losing control of the free fall. If they truly wanted to return to power, THAT was the time they should have called a snap election - and, when (as was expected) re-elected, turn to repairing the damage without looking over their shoulder for the next 7 years.

Brown's cowardice to hold by his principles back then might well turn around and bite im in the arse come May 6th....

[Merlin]

The Tories were despised in the late nineties for exactly that reason

I'd suggest it was the rampant sleaze under a fast fading and inept John Major that f**ked it for the Tories.

Sh*t, even I despised them for what Major and his suits were doing at the time ... which kinda reflects my attitute to this current New Labour shower of trough snouters and sleaze bags - controlled as they are by an un-elected Europhile.

[eowyn]

When did we change to having to have an election every 7 years? What do you mean by all this 7 year tenure business, merls?

[Shoeshine]

The Tories were despised in the late nineties for exactly that reason

I'd suggest it was the rampant sleaze under a fast fading and inept John Major that f**ked it for the Tories.

Sh*t, even I despised them for what Major and his suits were doing at the time ... which kinda reflects my attitute to this current New Labour shower of trough snouters and sleaze bags - controlled as they are by an un-elected Europhile.

Those issues were the symptoms rather than the cause. Remember that the economy was (accidentally) chugging along nicely, but no-one gave them credit for it. Rightly.

But the party was in meltdown at the time, and I think Major got a bit of a bum deal. He did well to hold them together as long as he did. If the judgement of a Prime Minister is to leave the country in better shape than when he took office, Major passed that. Even so, they were rightly thrown out.

I still find it astonishing that Labour aren't in the same position now. It's true that they've created something of a client state amongst a large swathe of the population, all of whom stand to lose out, but that's not the whole story.

[eowyn]

The Tories were despised in the late nineties for exactly that reason

I'd suggest it was the rampant sleaze under a fast fading and inept John Major that f**ked it for the Tories.

Sh*t, even I despised them for what Major and his suits were doing at the time ... which kinda reflects my attitute to this current New Labour shower of trough snouters and sleaze bags - controlled as they are by an un-elected Europhile.

I think you'll find he was elected in his own constituency, the only place you can elected so far in this country. Even if the election is taking on a more and more of a presidential election feel to it.

[Merlin]

When did we change to having to have an election every 7 years? What do you mean by all this 7 year tenure business, merls?

Sorry - for some obscure reason I had the frogs tenure of 7 years in my head ...
You are, of course correct, Ange - 5 years !

[JKLever]

I just hope that whoever gets in takes full advantage of the fact the UK government now owns a large chunk of some huge banks.

I hope they either wait long enough to get a really top price for them, or keep them and they could be raking in profits every year in a decades time for the taxpayer.

As a side effect of the financial crisis, they have an opportunity to take a huge chunk out of the national debt by doing either - I fear the Tories will do a firesale though and sell them as soon as possible ( and have another Gordon Brown style gold fiasco)

[Merlin]

I think you'll find he was elected in his own constituency, the only place you can elected so far in this country. Even if the election is taking on a more and more of a presidential election feel to it.

He resigned from Parliament (viz as an MP) in September 2004, and is therefore not a standing MP - hasn't been since he swept off to become the Chairman of the EU (or summat similar), returning as a Lord courtesy of his close mate Our Tone's grace and favour - then was called in by Bwown to bail out the sinking ship.

He is not elected as things currently stand but is in control of 5 different high ranking offices in Parliament.

[Basil]

I wonder when the Tories will focus on Mandelson's role - he seems to be everywhere like a rash at the moment.

Also, Ken Clarke has been conspicuous by his silence.

[eowyn]

Oh, you were talking about Mandleson, not Brown! My apologises for not knowing who the leader of the Labour Party is.

[Shoeshine]

Oh, you were talking about Mandleson, not Brown! My apologises for not knowing who the leader of the Labour Party is.

I thought he was talking about Brown too.

[Merlin]

I wonder when the Tories will focus on Mandelson's role - he seems to be everywhere like a rash at the moment.

Also, Ken Clarke has been conspicuous by his silence.

Was on Question Time a week or so ago.
Still huge, but Jeez, he's quietened down a lot.... though still extremely articulate and puncturing with his replies...

[Merlin]

Oh, you were talking about Mandleson, not Brown! My apologises for not knowing who the leader of the Labour Party is.

I thought he was talking about Brown too.

Two clues ........
a. Brown could not be PM without having first been elected!
b. Brown is not a rampant europhile.

[Shoeshine]

Oh, you were talking about Mandleson, not Brown! My apologises for not knowing who the leader of the Labour Party is.

I thought he was talking about Brown too.

Two clues ........
a. Brown could not be PM without having first been elected!
b. Brown is not a rampant europhile.

Two replies: Brown is constantly criticised for being an "unelected" PM because he took over from Blair. Brown is criticised for reneging on his referendum commitment.

[eowyn]

Oh, you were talking about Mandleson, not Brown! My apologises for not knowing who the leader of the Labour Party is.

I thought he was talking about Brown too.

Two clues ........
a. Brown could not be PM without having first been elected!
b. Brown is not a rampant europhile.

Two replies: Brown is constantly criticised for being an "unelected" PM because he took over from Blair. Brown is criticised for reneging on his referendum commitment.

I'm glad it wasn't just me who read it like that.

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