The election is panning out as such: the Tories will finish first in terms of the vote and have the second most number of seats. The Lib Dems will finish second in terms of the vote and have the least number of seats. Labour will have the least share of the vote and the most number of seats. No one will have a majority.
We are going to have a hung parliament. Someone will have to form a coalition. That coalition isn’t going to be Tory – Labour. The Lib Dems have to decide. We will have this power by virtue of the number of votes we got. We got those votes by virtue of the platform we stood one (we hope, at least). The platform we stood on is centrally our 4 manifesto pledges: fair schools, fair taxes, green jobs and clean politics. Our mandate to form a coalition comes from the mandate the voters will have given us to deliver these pledges.
It stands to reason therefore that we will make our coalition decision according to the possibility of doing this, and according to the democratic will of the voters. Labour will be more likely to deliver our pledges, but will have the lowest share of the vote. We can’t go with them because then we betray the mandate of the electorate as a whole. The Tories have the electoral mandate, but won’t allow our pledges to be delivered. We can’t go with them because then we betray the mandate of those who voted for us.
In fact, it is not that the Tories would block all our manifesto commitments. Pupil premium: fine. Green jobs: fine Balanced taxes: tricky but do-able. It’s the final one that is the problem. The Tories just will not accept PR, or so their manifesto says. Isn’t it just ironic? The reason the Tories can’t go into coalition is the same as why they have to form a coalition: our ridiculous voting system. The Tories will have the democratic right to be in government but not the maths. They should be complaining about the appalling fact that Labour have the most seats and least votes, but they can’t because they are fundamentally committed to the system that created this situation.
I have no wish to ally with the Tories, being more an anti-Tory than a pro-Lib Dem voter. It could happen however, if the Tories wouldn’t be so pig-headedly reactionary. Their stance is a clear reminder to me of why they are an abhorrent part led by abhorrent individuals. PR is so necessary because currently the voices of our voters are being silenced: making a joke of our democracy. That the party with the least votes has the most representation is a mockery of the principle of rule by the people. That there are only ever two parties in a constituency which it is worth voting for (3 in a very select few), and any other vote is wasted and ignored makes the EU look democratic.
To be opposed to PR is to be opposed to democracy, and that the Tories are is a disgrace and a shame.
Monday 26 April 2010
Monday 19 April 2010
Cleggmania
It's a good time to be a Lib Dem, no bones about it.
It's a confusing time, though. Having always been the outsiders, the ones desperately trying to get people to pay attention to what we're saying, to our ideas, to our policies, we're not very used to this. I think the general state among us Liberals right now is shock and disbelief - we're a bit worried to go to sleep in case we wake up and it was all a dream.
The shock and disbelief is not - in my case at least - because our ideas and our party is popular. I have never had any doubt that our policies are the best strategy or dealing with the countries problems. I have never had any doubt that our leader is the best, most honest individual to lead the country and our leading the team the most accomplised and ethical. That probably goes without saying; if i didn't think so, I would never have joined the party. The suprise is that the press are paying us attention. THAT I never thought i'd see.
It's no suprise that Nick won the debate, though. Comments afterwards were along the lines of 'he appeared so honest' and 'he looked like he actually wanted a new type of politics'. Bigwigs at Labour and Tory HQ('s) might have been scratching their heads about how he managed to do this, but the answer is quite simple. He is honest. He does want a new type of politics. Clegg has nothing to hide going into these debates: the Lib Dems have the policies, we have the costings, and we have the record. We came across well not because of good spin, but because we are good.
It is interesting that Labour and Tories now think they can now de-rail us by telling people our policies wont stand up to scrutiny. Please, everyone, scrutinise our policies! That is exactly what the Lib Dems have wanted people to do for the entire 20 years of their existence! We want the media to talk about our proposals. We want voters to consider our policies. We've thought them through, and actually they are pretty good. It's totally true that you can't win an election without substance or style. Gordon and Dave think that because we showed the style in the debate, we must be lacking the substance and thats how they'll get us. I'm sorry, lads, but we've had the substance for years. It's the style we've been waiting for, and now we have that as well, we're going to take some stopping.
Sadly, however, there is one thing which may stop us. This next debate is going to be a tricky one, as all the Labservative pundits are predicting. Not because, like they say, our policies are patchy. We've got some very very good policies. They just aren't policies the majority of the public agree with. It will be a tragedy if we don't do as well as we hoped in this election because of our brave, defensible and very much correct policies on topics such as trident, immigration and the EU. On all of the topics, we have been the only main party to stand up to the false media bias that sways the argument against them, and formulate a policy which will serve the needs of this country and not pander to the electorate. Because the electorate are not positive about immigration and they are not friendly to the EU. But the immigration system we have now is irrational, costly and cruel; and the EU is the only way to recover British economic growth and the major avenue for proper solutions to continuing problems (ironically, one of those being immigration).
If this is a time of change, if the public really are tired of the spin and deceit that passes for politics these days, then they will listen to what we are saying on these topics. They will think seriously and not listen to the tripe that comes from the other parties or indeed the right-wing press. I've got faith they will, and if they do, they will see the rewards.
It's a confusing time, though. Having always been the outsiders, the ones desperately trying to get people to pay attention to what we're saying, to our ideas, to our policies, we're not very used to this. I think the general state among us Liberals right now is shock and disbelief - we're a bit worried to go to sleep in case we wake up and it was all a dream.
The shock and disbelief is not - in my case at least - because our ideas and our party is popular. I have never had any doubt that our policies are the best strategy or dealing with the countries problems. I have never had any doubt that our leader is the best, most honest individual to lead the country and our leading the team the most accomplised and ethical. That probably goes without saying; if i didn't think so, I would never have joined the party. The suprise is that the press are paying us attention. THAT I never thought i'd see.
It's no suprise that Nick won the debate, though. Comments afterwards were along the lines of 'he appeared so honest' and 'he looked like he actually wanted a new type of politics'. Bigwigs at Labour and Tory HQ('s) might have been scratching their heads about how he managed to do this, but the answer is quite simple. He is honest. He does want a new type of politics. Clegg has nothing to hide going into these debates: the Lib Dems have the policies, we have the costings, and we have the record. We came across well not because of good spin, but because we are good.
It is interesting that Labour and Tories now think they can now de-rail us by telling people our policies wont stand up to scrutiny. Please, everyone, scrutinise our policies! That is exactly what the Lib Dems have wanted people to do for the entire 20 years of their existence! We want the media to talk about our proposals. We want voters to consider our policies. We've thought them through, and actually they are pretty good. It's totally true that you can't win an election without substance or style. Gordon and Dave think that because we showed the style in the debate, we must be lacking the substance and thats how they'll get us. I'm sorry, lads, but we've had the substance for years. It's the style we've been waiting for, and now we have that as well, we're going to take some stopping.
Sadly, however, there is one thing which may stop us. This next debate is going to be a tricky one, as all the Labservative pundits are predicting. Not because, like they say, our policies are patchy. We've got some very very good policies. They just aren't policies the majority of the public agree with. It will be a tragedy if we don't do as well as we hoped in this election because of our brave, defensible and very much correct policies on topics such as trident, immigration and the EU. On all of the topics, we have been the only main party to stand up to the false media bias that sways the argument against them, and formulate a policy which will serve the needs of this country and not pander to the electorate. Because the electorate are not positive about immigration and they are not friendly to the EU. But the immigration system we have now is irrational, costly and cruel; and the EU is the only way to recover British economic growth and the major avenue for proper solutions to continuing problems (ironically, one of those being immigration).
If this is a time of change, if the public really are tired of the spin and deceit that passes for politics these days, then they will listen to what we are saying on these topics. They will think seriously and not listen to the tripe that comes from the other parties or indeed the right-wing press. I've got faith they will, and if they do, they will see the rewards.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
