The 2015 General Election

[Condimentalist]

Unless we can import Podemos, I think it'll be the Greens for me - not because I think they'll win, but because if they poll well enough they might persuade Miliband to strap a pair of balls back onto the Labour Party.

 

The problem we've got is that there are two parties with pretty much the same policies - Neo Liberalism, the movement of money toward those that already have it and the erosion of national ownership and public services in favour of corporate greed - and we're pretty much fed up of em. The alternative though is a couple of parties that offer something different but each have something bolted on that makes you worry about them.

 

UKIP don't actually offer anything different, in fact, they're the Tories on steroids but with an added dash of racism and a gurning comedy monkey up front.

 

The Greens have very good policies on most of the things that matter to me - but they've bolted on a lot of nonsense about Green issues that I'm not fussed about.

 

We really need an alternative vote that's not a bit mad - it's worked in Greece, it's going to work in Spain, it could work here - the party that could do it is Labour, but not this Labour Party - we've got the Labour Party of Tony Blair, that we voted in, it's the Labour Party Britain deserves, but not the one it needs right now. 

 

I think it'll be interesting to see if either of the two big parties get enough votes to make a two party coalition work, and if they don't whether anyone is capable of holding together a three party coalition. I suspect not, and if we get the latter of those situations, we might end up with another 2015 Election thread.

 

Ultimately, I'd like to see Labour take their lead from the Greens and remember that they're the Labour party, I'd like to see them take their lead from Europe and realise it's okay to be the Labour Party again - sadly what I suspect is that this election won't give us a Government and that the Tories will take their lead from UKIP and put a gurning comedy monkey out front, leading to a soaraway Sun victory in a second election - life under Prime Minister Johnson will be fun. (as long as you're not sick or earning less than £100k.)

 

I'm interested by this OBE. Do you not believe in human-induced climate change, or do you just think that it's not important? Or is it something else entirely? 

 

In any case, they've hardly 'bolted it on', they are the Green party 

Edited January 27, 2015 by PatrickCousens

[rendelc]

The Green Party ?  Crikey . Did anyone watch Andrew Neil tear Natalie Bennett apart on sunday morning ?   Jeez .

[darrenm]

Unless we can import Podemos, I think it'll be the Greens for me - not because I think they'll win, but because if they poll well enough they might persuade Miliband to strap a pair of balls back onto the Labour Party.

The problem we've got is that there are two parties with pretty much the same policies - Neo Liberalism, the movement of money toward those that already have it and the erosion of national ownership and public services in favour of corporate greed - and we're pretty much fed up of em. The alternative though is a couple of parties that offer something different but each have something bolted on that makes you worry about them.

UKIP don't actually offer anything different, in fact, they're the Tories on steroids but with an added dash of racism and a gurning comedy monkey up front.

The Greens have very good policies on most of the things that matter to me - but they've bolted on a lot of nonsense about Green issues that I'm not fussed about.

We really need an alternative vote that's not a bit mad - it's worked in Greece, it's going to work in Spain, it could work here - the party that could do it is Labour, but not this Labour Party - we've got the Labour Party of Tony Blair, that we voted in, it's the Labour Party Britain deserves, but not the one it needs right now.

I think it'll be interesting to see if either of the two big parties get enough votes to make a two party coalition work, and if they don't whether anyone is capable of holding together a three party coalition. I suspect not, and if we get the latter of those situations, we might end up with another 2015 Election thread.

Ultimately, I'd like to see Labour take their lead from the Greens and remember that they're the Labour party, I'd like to see them take their lead from Europe and realise it's okay to be the Labour Party again - sadly what I suspect is that this election won't give us a Government and that the Tories will take their lead from UKIP and put a gurning comedy monkey out front, leading to a soaraway Sun victory in a second election - life under Prime Minister Johnson will be fun. (as long as you're not sick or earning less than £100k.)

I wish I had written that.

[brommy]

Sky Predicting a hung parliament with  286 Labour265 Tory20 libs2 ukip53 SNP24 others ...   

Labour will be the largest party in a hung parliament after May's General Election, according to a Sky News projection based on the latest poll of polls.

 still 100 days to go of course , plenty of time for Argentina to invade the Falklands or somethingEDIT: Split from the current government topic because... it's about the election, silly! Bicks

I think it will be close but with the tories having the most seats. I think Milliband will have the same unfortunate 'last minute' affect that Kinnock had in 1991. I can see the tories with a larger vote (by a few percent) but with only a few more seats.

A lot can change from the current predictions over the next 100 days, especially with the media mostly set to favour the right wing parties. Remember this?

[OutByEaster?]

I'm interested by this OBE. Do you not believe in human-induced climate change, or do you just think that it's not important? Or is it something else entirely? 

 

In any case, they've hardly 'bolted it on', they are the Green party 

 

 

I believe in it, it's just that it's not top of my list, probably for reasons that are very selfish. I for one don't want to miss the coming environmental apocalypse because the tiny window of human history that is my life flickers out moments before Norwich slips into the sea.

 

If anyone wants me I'm out the back burning stuff.

[tonyh29]

 

 

If anyone wants me I'm out the back burning stuff.

 

can i suggest you start with that beard 

Edited January 27, 2015 by tonyh29

[Rodders]

no idea. Will have to check the polls in my area, I moved last year which put me in a slightly different ward I think, and so my local MP has gone from a LD to a Tory. Temptation is always there to vote negatively against which party ( Tory ) I fear the most. But who knows? Might vote for a batshit independent as a protest. May spoil it. Who the chuff knows at all? I simply disagree with the key raison d'etre of the green party, even if I like their other policies. It's about what your vote endorses too: Is it the leader, the central premise of the party, a local issue? I mean if you had a populist statement from the BNP about something bizarrely provincial like local roadworks, which was a particularly strong issue in a local area - you still aren't going to vote for them and tell yourself that the vote doesn't endorse xenophobia. That's my concern with the greens. 

 

sigh, at the moment I'm more concerned with the next council elections and voting out all the bastards who are trying to aggressively cut the libraries / youth services in Cardiff. Feckers. 

Edited January 27, 2015 by Rodders

[Condimentalist]

 

I'm interested by this OBE. Do you not believe in human-induced climate change, or do you just think that it's not important? Or is it something else entirely? 

 

In any case, they've hardly 'bolted it on', they are the Green party 

 

 

I believe in it, it's just that it's not top of my list, probably for reasons that are very selfish. I for one don't want to miss the coming environmental apocalypse because the tiny window of human history that is my life flickers out moments before Norwich slips into the sea.

 

If anyone wants me I'm out the back burning stuff.

 

 

Fair enough - I'm sure you're not alone. It's important stuff though, and it provides a good basis to have related discussions about the sort of society and economy that we want. 

 

 

The Green Party ?  Crikey . Did anyone watch Andrew Neil tear Natalie Bennett apart on sunday morning ?   Jeez .

 

I've just watched it, I think it's fair to say her inexperience shows, especially to know so little about the figures, she must have known Andrew Neil would go after her. In truth though it's not just her, how many within the Green party administration have significant experience of high-level public affairs? How big is their back office/research staff?

 

Like I say, you don't vote for Green's because they are a genuine party of government but as a much needed counter-balance to the depressing status quo of the major parties. That would be my rationale anyway, I haven't decided which way to go yet.

 

As an aside though, I'm not huge on Natalie Bennett anyway, Caroline Lucas is far more impressive. 

[AVFCforever1991]

Went Lib Dem last time, will probably go Greens this time..

 

But in reality there needs to be something new, not just a new party with fresh ideas that soon becomes corrupted by modern politics, but a new system that is good for the people and not set up to pander to corporations...

 

Buuut that another discussion for another thread...

Edited January 27, 2015 by AVFCforever1991

[Mantis]

I'll probably be voting Conservative. While I do agree with quite a few of their policies, the desire to keep Labour out is also quite a big motivator for me.

[sharkyvilla]

no idea. Will have to check the polls in my area, I moved last year which put me in a slightly different ward I think, and so my local MP has gone from a LD to a Tory. Temptation is always there to vote negatively against which party ( Tory ) I fear the most. But who knows? Might vote for a batshit independent as a protest. May spoil it. Who the chuff knows at all? I simply disagree with the key raison d'etre of the green party, even if I like their other policies. It's about what your vote endorses too: Is it the leader, the central premise of the party, a local issue? I mean if you had a populist statement from the BNP about something bizarrely provincial like local roadworks, which was a particularly strong issue in a local area - you still aren't going to vote for them and tell yourself that the vote doesn't endorse xenophobia. That's my concern with the greens. 

 

sigh, at the moment I'm more concerned with the next council elections and voting out all the bastards who are trying to aggressively cut the libraries / youth services in Cardiff. Feckers.

Don't get me started about **** local councillors, that's the one place my vote is going to count. My GE one won't matter as it's one of the safest Tory seats going (Francis Maude, he's in the cabinet I think). I'm not sure I could take Milliband and Balls, I wish Labour had someone that doesn't make my guts turn to water when I think of them running a country. It's really too close to call at this stage, it would take something special to happen for a majority.

[chrisp65]

Nobody has yet suggested looking how it all stacks up locally and tactical voting?

[bickster]

I'll probably be voting Conservative. While I do agree with quite a few of their policies, the desire to keep Labour out is also quite a big motivator for me.

I'm curious, why is the anti-Labour stance a big motivator? Would you like a more privatised NHS? Are you desperate for an EU referendum? Or do you think that Ed Millipede would be useless as PM?

I just wonder what motivates people to make their choices.

I'm fairly anti Labour myself these days but thats because I'm anti any neo-liberal party which they became under Bliar and even though they've tip toed to the left they still are essentially New Labour and I wouldn't trust most of them not to sell their own Granny. I however wouldn't turn my dislike of them into voting for the Tories who I view as even worse

[Xela]

A yukka plant could stand for the Conservative party in my ward and still win comfortably. 

[mjmooney]

Labour have got multiple issues. Old school lefties like me think that Blair moved them too far to the right. Floating voters think they are probably too inept to handle the economy, and will run up another public spending deficit. People who aren't interested in boring policies think that Milliband is personally, erm... unattractive and has a weird voice. Can't see them winning outright.

[Mantis]

 

I'll probably be voting Conservative. While I do agree with quite a few of their policies, the desire to keep Labour out is also quite a big motivator for me.

I'm curious, why is the anti-Labour stance a big motivator? Would you like a more privatised NHS? Are you desperate for an EU referendum? Or do you think that Ed Millipede would be useless as PM?

I just wonder what motivates people to make their choices.

I'm fairly anti Labour myself these days but thats because I'm anti any neo-liberal party which they became under Bliar and even though they've tip toed to the left they still are essentially New Labour and I wouldn't trust most of them not to sell their own Granny. I however wouldn't turn my dislike of them into voting for the Tories who I view as even worse

 

It's not a massive motivator - I'm still voting Conservative primarily because I believe in a lot of what they stand for but Labour do have a real chance of taking my seat and I don't want that to happen for a number of reasons. I think for most people there's always an element of voting against a certain party along with voting for another.

 

No I do not want a more privatised NHS (but I don't think that's what the Conservatives are offering anyway). Yes I want an EU referendum but I'm not "desperate" for it. I haven't even made my mind up on how I'd vote in such a referendum but at the very least it needs to be held firstly because what we actually voted for back in the 70s was vastly different to what we have now and secondly our membership of the EU is something that has hung over British politics for ages - it needs to be addressed once and for all so we can move on. Yes I also think Miliband would be a dreadful PM and there are very few members of his shadow cabinet which I rate either.

 

I wouldn't expect you to vote for the Tories out of dislike for Labour, but then again you're clearing coming from a different direction on the political spectrum to me.

Edited January 27, 2015 by Mantis

[dAVe80]

I've met and like my local MP, and will very likely be re-elected, as I live in a Labour strong hold. That said, I'm really going to struggle voting for her, due to my dismay at the direction the party has moved in. I'm considering voting Green, but I'm yet to be swayed. I'll certainly not be voting, Tory, UKIP or Lib Dem, so I guess that doesn't give me much of a choice!  

[Chindie]

I'll be spoiling my ballot as per.

[tonyh29]

Burnham caught out lying again about the NHS on BBC2 just now ( talked about how the coalition had privatised all areas of the NHS , pointed out to him it's actually 6% )

Clearly labour see NHS as the thing that is going to clinch it for them ....

[chrisp65]

At what point did you hear Burnham talk?

 

It was just a 10 minute Kirsty Wark ranty monologue. He actually put his hand up at one point and asked to be allowed a turn to speak.