OllyK

Ahhh - a Lib Dem supporter

SJ_Skyline

Pea Whistle

Iain Young

NoooooOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo............

Complete bunch of wasters IMO

OllyK

I couldn't agree more, but they are the most left wing party we have since NL leap frogged over them.

Brit_in_Japan

but if people are in a constituency where the Lib Dems have a chance of winning, their vote shoots right up

lies, damned lies and statistics.... there's only one vote which counts

paulr

Neither.

OllyK

I see, so GB will be paying back the money he has "Maxwelled" (TM) and the country isn't in debt at all?

TheBigMan

I disagree.

There is a very educated gentleman by the name of Michael Howard who runs a party that actually give a damn about this once great country. Yes they're not perfect but a perfect government would be a bad government - you cannot please all the people all the time.

Vote Conservative.

....unless you're either an asylum seeker, work dodger, lay about, state scrounger in which case Blair and his cabinet of misfits fit the bill perfectly.

TheBigMan

You can say that again. Olly!!!!

Never ceases to amaze me how much of a short memory and how blatantly fickle British people really are.

D70

I don't fit into any of those categories yet I'm voting labour. Not that I agree with them per say but the tories are unfit to govern leaving labour the only other choice. Great having a two party 'democracy' isn't it?

TheBigMan

"unfit to govern".

Please explain this huge statement?

As for demcracy, with 60 million people in the country it's nothing more than a word nowadays. Unfortunately, it's the only way it can be.

suprabeast

so what category do you fit into then??

OllyK

What gives you the impression that the tories are unfit to govern, is there some basis for that statement or is it bias?

Personally I think it's time to kick NL out, even if it's only for 1 term, just to show that people in this country are not happy.

We will end up with the lowest voting turn out in history this time because people don't think there is an alternative, NL take this to mean that the public are blissfully happy with the way they are running the country, booting them out is the only way they will start to listen to what WE want.

D70

A person with a vote if you feel categorisation is needed.

I regard the tories as unfit to govern based on their track record and their current inability to even convincingly manage their own party.
I also have a strong personal dislike for many of the individuals and for what they stand for.
The personality issue is of course a problem with labour as well but I'm prepared to vote for them as there is no other choice.

suprabeast

and labour dont have an 8 year track record of this??

D70

They have an 8 year track record of running their party pretty well compared to the tories.
As for their record in office the economy is booming etc etc. I'm actually not voting on their performance in govt, merely a tactical vote to deny the tories power.

Should add that I don't think labour have done a good job at all.

suprabeast

thats crazy...

a booming economy doesnt normally consist of HUGE debt does it??

TheBigMan

This "booming" economy is very short term. This has been discussed on here before.

Next?

D70

Not usually no, I don't actually believe the economy is in a great state, I was merely trotting out the line that seems to be believed by the 'man on the street'.

For me it's a question of ideology, as there is no anarchist/libertarian party to vote for I'm forced to vote for tony and his band of war mongering rabid right wingers rather than howard and his.

suprabeast

i know, i agree with you

Holy Ghost

... or indeed one of the extra 600,000+ unnecessary public sector paper-shifters whose votes blair has deliberately bought in urban constituencies by creating 'fat government' jobs we don't need.

OllyK

Interesting reading:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2.../html/grid.stm

D70

That's largely irrelevant to the matter in hand though, all governments indulge in such nepotism. As I remember the tories were pretty good at it as well.
The only arguments for voting conservative rather than labour I've seen here are based on

corruption- all parties behave like this so irrelevant

track record of incompetence-see above

etc etc etc

The only argument for voting tory that stands up to scrutiny is that of voting for change. It will be all too easy for Labour to fall into the trap of being even more arrogant given a 3rd term. Shame there is no other choice than them then.

Spring Heeled Jack

600,000+ bought votes is anything but irrelevant IMO. These people know their jobs will be axed when the Tories regain power, so like it or not there is only one way they can vote.

The Tories are the party that always cut down on bureaucratic waste within the public services. This time they will do it again to the tune of £35 Billion. Money that will be redirected where it is needed, namely in front line services and tax relief.

D70

Jack, really!

So all 600,000 will vote labour will they? Obviously you can't believe that to be a statement of fact so it's what you surmise.
In any case the tories would just do the same thing, nepotism and cronyism is endemic in politics. In fact it's probably a pre-requisite.

Your statement about spending cuts is also unproveable. What they say and what they do are 2 completely different matters. In addition to this many people don't want to see cuts in their services and will thus vote against the tories for this policy.

It's irrelevant who is actually in power so you may as well go for the most professional of the options available.
"Better the devil you know" is a cliche that fits the bill

Obviously there are always going to be people driven by ideology or principle who won't vote for one party or the other because of them. Like myself.

What I'd find interesting would be some comments from people who voted for Labour in the last 2 elections and who are now voting conservative.

Spring Heeled Jack

So much for your ideologies then.

That 'rabid rightwinger Howard' has been told by Bush that he will not be welcomed at the White House when he becomes Prime Minister because of his stand against Bush's pal Tony. To me that reason alone is good enough to win my vote

OllyK

They just know the Tories will cull them in a big way, but not who will go, so in an *** saving operation I would expect the large majority of civil servants to vote for whoever is currently in government - now that is guess work

You accuse SHJ of assumption and guess work then do it yourself - nice!

NL - professional, professional what?

Ahhh - now we're getting there - apathy. I don't like things as they are but I can't be arsed to stand up and force a change. I can't say things would be better under cons, nobody can, but NL are getting far to cocky and need to be brought down a peg or two.

Iain Young

Maybe for you, but I'm sure that the many people working in this country that rely on trade / good relations with the USA for their income might disagree. It's not healthy to be at odds with any country, (not just the USA) and we have been known to do rather a lot of business with them in the past...

Spring Heeled Jack

Unless it happens to be Arab of course. We can do what we want to them. I think we've done rahter a lot of business with them in the past too.

So your vote is decided by fear of George W. Bush then? Interesting.

D70

in answer to the question: what are new labour professional at?

Professional at playing the game of politics and moving almost everything under the control of the executive.

You might not like them but if they pull off the third term, which looks like a certainty, that proves they are a class act. Some might say booting the tories out in 97 was proof enough.

I don't understand your quote or comments spring but you and I both know that in the unlikely event of howard winning he will be trying to get into bed with the americans at the earliest possible opportunity.

Choosing between labour and conservative is like choosing between being beaten to death by a hammer or by a baseball bat. The end result is the same and equally as painful.