General Election 2015

[spring hall convert]

About the only coalition not yet ruled out is a Labour/Tory one.

 

[spring hall convert]

It was all down to non Labour supporters in the audience sticking the knife in deeper to Miliband than non Tory supporters doing the same to Cameron. Cameron was reminiscent of Chamberlain returning from Munich in 1938 waving a scrap of paper that was worthless but Miliband missed out on the trick by not waving about the letter Maudling left in the Treasury for Callaghan in 1964 which basically said the same thing.

Doesn't every Government leave a note to this effect? I think it's called a 'joke.'

 

[pb21]

About the only coalition not yet ruled out is a Labour/Tory one.

Labour wouldn't allow a vote on Europe.

Also Dave said he wouldn't lead a government that wouldn't have a vote on Europe. I kind of got the feeling that the Tories would potentially get back into bed with the lib dems, but with a new leader and no vote.

Dave doesn't have to be PM.

 

[spring hall convert]

Labour wouldn't allow a vote on Europe.

That's a positive for the Tories then. They still need to find a way to worm out of it before it's too late.

 

[Seagull on the wing]

There's lots of benefits, both macro and micro, and economically and for everyday relatively small things, which when all added up come to a great sum. I did once try and make a case for this but the anti-EU people picked on the really small items and ridiculed them. It's often these small things which I like as they're aimed fairly and squarely at making joe-public's life easier.

One issue UK residents have is the fact is the UK vetoes a lot of these everyday small things so you don't get the benefit. One example which for some reason sticks in my head was an EU vote on the minimum number of bicycles which have to be carried on trains. This came in some time ago and is supported by virtually every nation except England which vetoed it for 15 years. I concede this is not a big deal on it's own but when aligned with numerous other rulings it creates a rather easy environment for me to live my life. And one does have to ask why the UK didn't support this. But someone will say "what, we pay 60bn a year for Herr Tubthumper to be able to carry his bike on a train?" I could also tell you about the funding the EU provides for clinical studies into areas which are not lucrative enough for big-Pharma to get involved in. And if you want to talk economics there's a lot to be said in this area as well; my industry is something the UK can be proud of and benefits hugely and enormously from stream-lined pan-EU wide legislation.

I'll happily make a good case over a beer but I cannot be arsed to do it on here anymore.

Well=,appreciate your answer Herr Tub,but really...are we paying £60billion a year so we can limit bikes on trains and it makes life easier for you...or as you say,they help the clinical studies....I'm sure £60bn would cover that and a lot more besides...does that really make up for the loss of our fishing grounds...we vote for a parliament to make our rules and laws...and the EU overule our choice,be it Labour or Tories...the EU is the most undemocratic organisation ever to rule..they do not write off their accounts..it is rife with nepotism and fraud and corruption..you cannot vote on which Italian,German,French politician you want. We import from the EU more than we export to them,we lose out either way
Go to the South West of the country to see Spanish fishing boats registered in the UK so they can fish in our inland waters then go back to Spain with their catch.
Sorry,you'll never convince me that the EU is good for Britain. We should've stuck with our commonwealth,the EU will not put taxes on our exports as we import more than we export,they put taxes on us,we retaliate and put import taxes on them...they lose.
PS, What is Angela Merkel saying about the spying scandal on the French when she said after America was caught spying on the Germans and she said "You shouldn't spy on your friends". Not trying to score political points here,just interested what she has said in the German press.

 

[Gwylan]

Well=,appreciate your answer Herr Tub,but really...are we paying £60billion a year ...

No, we're not. According to the ONS, the UK's net contribution is currently £11.3 billion. I don't disagree with anything you say about it being a corrupt institution but I think any argument is harmed if you quote inaccurate figures

 

[Machiavelli]

I should have been working this afternoon, but have distracted myself looking at these two pages:

http://may2015.com/featured/electio...gets-to-323-seats-and-becomes-prime-minister/

http://lordashcroftpolls.com/constituency-polls/

The New Statesman article is extremely persuasive, and indicates that ED M at just below evens is a good bet. The graph in the NS article indicates the key CON-LAB swing seats that will really determine the number of seats, who ends up as PM, how and where. I’ve double-checked those key swing seats on Ashcroft’s constituency polling site, and it’s looking pretty solid. Doing this has also firmed up a former suspicion, expressed on here a few times previously: Ashcroft is being remarkably coy about either producing polls for the key CON-LAB marginals, or is doing the polling, but not releasing them. Very few of these have been released in March and April, whereas there have been plenty of Scottish polls, constituencies for Clegg and Farage, and so on.

 

[Soulman]

Another one bites the dust.
Labour's Wellingborough candidate Richard Garvie suspended over fraud.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-england-32545431?SThisFB&fb_ref=Default

 

[Triggaaar]

Ok, fair enough. I agree what you say about Miliband et al and the cost of living. However my point is that you would be better judging it on what they did before a global meltdown.

Before the global meltdown the UK economy was booming, but Labour didn't pay any of our debt off, it kept growing. I don't think that was good.

 

[Triggaaar]

The Labour Party won't tell us how much they are going to borrow, the Tories won't tell us what they are going to cut. This is the contempt that the mainstream political parties have for us.

I don't think it is contempt. Neither side can predict the future economy, so neither know how much they'll have to borrow/cut, and if either come up with figures now they'll get cross examined and made to look silly and lose votes.

We complain that politicians lie and avoid answering questions, but they do it because the alternative would lose them votes. Do not under-estimate how stupid the voting public are.

 

[Hampster Gull]

They didn't leave a mess, that is just Tory propaganda and listening to Clegg LibDem propaganda, another Greece indeed, what a load of old rubbish that was and seen through straight away

Good point. The largest economic crisis in 100 years under labours watch was all conservative propoganda. Lol

 

[Ernest]

Good point. The largest economic crisis in 100 years under labours watch was all conservative propoganda. Lol

You haven't got a clue have you ? Is your name George Osborne ?

 

[Hampster Gull]

OK, the world was in a mess, a mess not the fault of the incumbent UK government. But no doubt your blue tinted specs will determine otherwise.

There was a simpleton on the radio today who said he was going to base his vote on whether he was better off now then he was in 2010! Perhaps he should exhibit some intelligence and look at whether he was better off in 2008 than he was in 1997. Perhaps then he can make a reasoned judgement.

Yes, another good point,the crisis apparently was nothing to do with Labour,it was all global, the government has no say in regulation of the financial city, it is all those bad people somewhere else. I think the next line is even the uk government was in part at fault, which it isnt, then the conservatives would have done exactly the same so it doesnt matter. And then of course the huge deficit during the boom time doesnt matter, government deficits are not like other deficits, they can keep rising forever, debt doesnt matter so fill your boots. And even if it does matter, which it doesnt, then the conservstives would dothe same. Blah blah blah

 

[Hampster Gull]

You haven't got a clue have you ? Is your name George Osborne ?

Possibly not but i suspect far more than most. And i guess the last economic mess Labour left us in 1979, the last time they were in power, had nothing to do with them. The IMF loan was a mirage, the winter of discontent conservative propaganda. I am starting to get this Labour thing, its quite fun making things up. Love George xx

 

[Hampster Gull]

So would you have let rbs and Lloyds go to the wall? What about northern Rock?

They all needed rescuing, gordon brown did a great job in crisis management. Just wish he had spent more time on the economy when he was chancellor before the crisis rather than fighting with Tony

 

[Ernest]

[MENTION=409]Herr Tubthumper[/MENTION] happy weekend

NEW Survation @dailymirror

HEADLINE (chg vs Apr 23)
LAB 34 +5
CON 33 nc
UKIP 16 -2
LD 9 -1
SNP 4 nc
GRE 3 -1

 

[Westdene Seagull]

A bit like the 1 (4 max) that UKIP will hold will have much sway either.

Labour seem to think UKIP will hold some power.

 

[Hampster Gull]

Why it’s so hard for Cameron to win

https://yougov.co.uk/news/2015/04/29/why-its-so-hard-cameron-win/

So, Labour only need 270 seats to get in. The Tories need 290. Shows what nonsense FPTP is.

Agreed HT. Difficult explaining to my kid why UKIP could get 13% of the vote and one or two seats and SNP 58 or so seats for 3 or 4% of the votes. I am not making a points of the merit of those parties, just the failing of democracy

 

[Hampster Gull]

Just read that, how on earth are our young people ever going to understand politics and the way that we vote. I would sooner a clear Labour majority than what is likely.

Just read this, agree 100% as i had to try and explain a bit of this on the school drop off run

 

[Hampster Gull]

Lovely exchange on Politics Show with BNP leader and Andrew Neill and BNP saying they could have the next PM, now that would cause a binfest

I predict a riot