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The UK General Election
57 replies
MiracleMan said on April 6, 2005 17:46:
I think I’d like it better, at least you in the UK only have a month. In the US it seems to be at LEAST 6 months of ads and twaddle and then comes the Party Conventions, after that the the ads get more backbiting and nastier—from the federal level all the way down to the state and local races. It gets so you hate to turn on the TV or radio.
Jud (moderator) said on April 6, 2005 17:04:
ain’t the announcement a bit.. short of time? or is it always like that in UK? :)
MiracleMan said on April 6, 2005 17:25:
—Computer was acting odd yesterday. The post submit wouldn’t cycle through, so I edited it while I was waiting and then posted again. Lo and behold, both were here today. Yay, technonogy!
zaine said on April 6, 2005 17:47:
i got a load of stuff through the post the other day telling me who I should be voting for and stuff.
I dont turn 18 for another 5 months
Santi said on April 6, 2005 17:49:
I agree with that, the shorter the better. Less propaganda and “pre-campaigns”, and news filled with void stuff and void words, and false intentions and... well all that politics means...
ally77 said on April 6, 2005 19:09:
4 months is more than enough time.... I’m bored with it on the news now and it’s only been 24 hours!
Jud (moderator) said on April 6, 2005 19:45:
Ah I thought you had campaign only one month. I mean for me that’s more than enough, was just a bit surprised :P
xarrrr said on April 6, 2005 20:38:
aaaaah i dont care about all this election crap...... i keep gettin junk mail lol.... how annoyin. i just hope blair gets booted out....
ally77 said on April 7, 2005 07:01:
Thankfully I did not vote Mr Blair previously.... never did like the Labour party....
on_a_mission said on April 7, 2005 12:25:
@Ally, thanks for reminding me! I just remembered to post off the application for a postal vote.
Cheers, oam
rox-kuryliw said on April 7, 2005 13:17:
I think its a wonderful ideas they dont have to much time promoting there lies and promises and all that bitching with each party, unlike the US they seem to spend more money on party promotion than spending it on the people that need it. Its gonna be interesing, im really thinking of voting charles kenady , but im just gonna hear and read facts before i make up my mind. Have fun everyone ;)
per_mson said on April 7, 2005 14:32:
I think it is strange that Blair is even considdered to be reelected after being so Bush friendly...
Well, Here’s a nice song he and Bush did together (coming from a Swedish TV program called Kobra):
http://www.snabbstart.com/film/bush-och-blairs-fina-saang.aspx
Watercolours said on April 7, 2005 15:35:
I already know who i will be voting for and am not going to be swayed by the false promises that the 3 main parties make.
ncurran said on April 7, 2005 15:37:
i wont vote for Labour, but at the same time....would you really want that right wing fascist Michael Howard in power? I’m not really sure which i would prefer, blair or howard, as i hate them both. Luckily in my area, i live in a marginal seat, which labour currently have, but the SNP came a close second last time, so I’ll vote for them.
Jud (moderator) said on April 7, 2005 16:14:
i don’t trust politicians.. I always try to choose what could be bad the least :P
ally77 said on April 7, 2005 17:30:
I think Labour will get in! AGAIN.. which is just so sad...
I have 101 reasons why I would never vote Tony Blair...
coyboyusa said on April 8, 2005 08:30:
are you guys basing you opinion of blair on his standing by bush or on his domestic uk policies there are 2 different aspects to look at if he’s been good or the uk domestically you should really take that into account
rox-kuryliw said on April 8, 2005 14:14:
Your from the US so you would say that, your country voted a lier in power AGIAN , i havent come across anyone this year who likes blair and his LIES that he feed us all on war, plus no one likes his close relationship with bush in the UK , although im sure someone from the UK may prove me wrong in this forum , but i hope not.
ncurran said on April 8, 2005 14:57:
anyone who votes Tory simply because of Blair’s support of Bush is a bit silly, since the conservatives voted for the war aswell
Oldag75 said on April 8, 2005 15:40:
It’s amusing how the American Left (also known as American’s Adolescents) always championed Tony Blair as a brilliant statesman, just SO much more wonderful than GW Bush – until Blair supported Bush in the war against terrorism. (America’s Adolescents, you see, have no problem with terrorism.) Blair is now just another inarticulate rube, a lapdog for Bush, according to America’s Democra-communist Party.
What is a Tory ?
rox-kuryliw said on April 8, 2005 16:14:
george michaels video for ’shoot the dog’ says it all . Im not voting for michael howard either lol
ncurran said on April 8, 2005 16:36:
Olddag, Tory=conservative
the main opposition party to Tony Blair’s “new” labour party. Although the UK has 3 main parties (4 in scotland and wales), it is only labour or conservative who have a chance of winning the election, mainly due to our undemocratic voting system
ally77 said on April 9, 2005 07:40:
Me not voting Labour has nothing to do with Bush or the war or the fact I don’t like nodding dogs! Lol!
I never voted for him the past two times and I am quite proud to say that....
Reasons.... well I can list a few…. VOTE LABOUR
You like it easy on the benefit system,
You’re a pensioner, who likes to moan a lot,
You good at faking disabilities because you don’t want and cannot be arsed to find a job!
You’re a good liar that you can get away with anything!
The amount of stuff he has introduced for pensioners alone in the past couple of years is just so over the top, free TV licences, Heating Allowances, Pensions Credits and now the extra Council Tax discount for them, anything for a quite life Mr Blair!
Prime example a single person over 18 years old up to 59 years old has £55.65 a week to live on if they are claiming Income Support or Job Seekers Allowance + if they rent a house they would get full rent (depending on costs) and full Council Tax Benefit (because Income Support and JSA are called Passported Benefits) First of all how is anyone suppose to live on £55.65 a week and secondly why when you hit 60 does the rate for a single pensioner increase to £79 + when pensions credits and extra premiums are added for NI contributions. When all these are applied they have over £120 a week to live on plus if they have no savings under £6000 they would get full housing benefit and full council tax benefit if they rent, add to that TV licence, Heating Allowances and I see pensioners are lot better off than they where 10 years ago under the Tory government – yet they still bloody moan!
Why does a single pensioner need more than someone who is looking for work? Has Mr Blair ridden on a bus lately going for a job interview? Does he know how much it might cost to go to a job interview? About time HE tried living in the real world!
By the way Mr Blair, does not do anything for single people? Nope, I still have to pay 75% of my council tax, full rent and when they are paid I live on less than someone on JSA or Income Support lives on, yet he bangs on about saving for a pension… who is he kidding! I have no chance of contributing to a pension on my income (I only work 24 hours a week). I also do not qualify for Working Tax Credits because I am single and I work less than 30 hours a week – no premiums there for people added who might choose to work part time because they care for another person. But hey if I have kids low and behold I’ll be given Child Tax Credits!
And as for Mr Blair policys on Benefit Fraud that is a joke in it’s self. He talk about cutting back benefit fraud and yeah they do occassionly do spot checks on people but not often enough! The local fraud team at my local authority have only 6 fraud squad members on a team to cover the whole of my town, they are overworked and underpaid and the fraudsters are getting away with it. Prime example I could name a shame a person living near me who had just claimed Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit for over 2 years whilst she had a partner living with her. That is over £4000 in benefits alone to one house. The likes of these people are cheating the system and getting away with it. However she would not have got away with it if (a) The Fraud Team had taken on the case in January when I told them and (b) They would have visited her in the evening when her hubbie to be was at home rather than visiting during the day when he was at work. Now she has chosen to tell them he has moved in from 4th April 2005 and case closed she gets away with it. This is just 1 example and I can name another 8 off the top of my head!
The way he goes on about getting people back into work, its crap there are people out there who have no intention of ever working because they can simply not be arsed…and half the time they will even admit this.
I do like however his approached to disabled people, not fully as although he is going to stop the cheats – something I think he has been saying for some time now and I agree with this. Because the 1000’s of cheats out there are stealing money off the real people who DO need it. However I think perhaps his TV licence scheme and Heating Allowances should be given to vulnerable disabled people also because of the low income they are on.
So nope never will Labour get my vote, and as you can see it has nothing to do with Mr Bush!
ncurran said on April 12, 2005 18:15:
Ally, i agree with a lot of what you said, but the problem is...what is the alternative. Would you really want Michael Howard as PM? He would alienate us in Europe and even withdraw the UK from the UN refugee convention.
Looking at your individual situation, working part-time and caring from someone, do you really think that you would be better off under the tories?
Personally I cant stand Labour or the Tories. Luckily in scotland we have a viable alternative in the SNP, and in fact since devolution the UK elections arent really as important as most of the main issues such as health, education, crime are devolved to the scottish parliament. So the only things that scottish people are voting for in this election are defence, social security and taxation.
On a UK level, it is basically a choice between labour and the Tories and if i needed to choose it would be labour for me as i would never ever want a conservative govt again as i could never forgive what they did under Margaret Thatcher. If nothing else at least the UK economy is very healthy under labour, and Gordon Brown is a pretty good chancellor.
ally77 said on April 12, 2005 20:20:
Being only 27 I don’t really remember living under Margaret Thatcher, except to me I could see no real wrong.... I had a happy life being brought up under the tory goverment... yeah I know it had it’s problems but for me it was all good.... I could not fault them!
I don’t know who to vote, I am keen on the Libs but I think it would be a wasted vote... and I am pretty certain Labour will get in again....
ncurran said on April 12, 2005 20:56:
Exactly, and thats the problem. Labour and the Tories are just as bad as each other in many ways. Its just that I hate the Tories even more than I hate Labour. I would love to see the Lib Dems in power at westminster, but its just impossible under our current voting system which is very unfair.
ally77 said on April 14, 2005 20:29:
The party I agree with the most is the Tory’s, okay not everything I agree with they say but pretty much come close...
on_a_mission said on April 14, 2005 20:56:
the tories have been a shambles since thatcher stepped down, they’ll never hold it together. oam
ally77 said on April 22, 2005 21:05:
Well I finally made my choice on who to vote for, I never really thought I would be into politics but I am amazed and some of the stuff I have read recently... that I feel I have to cast my vote!
However I still think Mr Blair will stay in power for a lot longer which would be a real shame...
lvninabx said on May 2, 2005 21:02:
I’m 27 also and I remember the devastating effects on me and my family during the Thatcher years. The Miners stike was something that even as a child will stay with me forever. My village in Barnsley has turned into a awful place when it used to be so homely and loving. This is all due to a Tory govenment and if they get back in we will see many more stupid and avoidable things happen. The torys stance on homosexuality and immigration should be enough to make you vote Labour. But hey we all have our own views and I respect everyones decision, although may not agree with it.
x
ally77 said on May 3, 2005 06:53:
Already casted a postal vote a few days ago! :) guess the UK will know by Friday morning who is the new Prime Minister...
zaine said on May 3, 2005 11:13:
I hope so much that Michael Howard will not get in. I would be more ashamed having him representing us than I would be to have mr.Blair.
I think I would be voting Lib Dems if I was voting. To me, he seems like he genuinely wants to make the UK a better place, and as a student for sure I would be getting a better deal from it.
I have a feeling the tories will get in though, just through the fact that not many people will be voting labour now, and no-one really believes in the Lib Dems. it’s a shame really, I think they would do us a lot of good and if everyone who says ’oh it would be a wasted vote on them’ actually voted who knows what would happen.
Michael Howard has a face I want to smack with a spade.
ally77 said on May 3, 2005 11:38:
The Lib Dems would be my choice and a lot of people I speak to of my age all same the same, but also a lot think voting Lib Dems would be a wasted vote because sadly they seem to stand no chance of getting in.... which is a real shame as I think CK has everything right on his policys and would be an ideal choice!
ncurran said on May 3, 2005 16:07:
zaine, i wouldnt worry about the Tories getting in...they dont stand a chance. A Labour victory is guaranteed, albeit with a reduced majority. The voting system for the UK parliament is pretty crap...meaning that your individual vote doesnt tend to make much difference unless you live in a marginal constituency. I would never vote conservative, but i hate labour aswell....and in my constituency we currently have a labour MP, but with a very slim majority...it looks like the SNP will beat them this time, which is the party i will be voting for. However if you were a Conservative or Lib Dem supporter in my constituency there would be no point in voting for them as neither of them stand a chance of getting in, so you would have to vote tactically for either Labour or SNP.
For the Scottish parliament we have a PR voting system which is a lot fairer...i think we should have this at westminster aswell as it means that everyones vote counts, and no longer would Blair have a 100+ seat majority in the house of commons with less than 40% of the vote. If we had such a voting system then labour would have been forced to work in coalition with another party, and would probably have never got away with the war/tuition fees, etc.
ally77 said on May 3, 2005 18:13:
>>
Yes (how did you guess) the same as I chose for all the votes I have made since I turned 18! although like ncurren says I think Labour will win either way....
ncurran said on May 3, 2005 18:58:
Dont worry Zaine, it isnt going to happen...thank God. Blair is bad enough, but i dont think i could deal with Howard as PM. Lets just wait and see how long it takes before he loses his position and they have to elect yet another new Tory leader
zaine said on May 3, 2005 19:08:
Neil, I wish I had you’re faith but I got a bad feeling about this one!!
I’m not even 18 yet and I’m already worried about it!
Jud (moderator) said on May 4, 2005 05:27:
yukers, we only need a conservative UK now :/
But these parties know how to get to people, they just see the stuff people talk in the streets and what they think is the problem. For example, with employment , they hear people blame inmigrants, and then such parties just pronounce themselves against it. That’s why most of them are called “popular party” or the “party of the people”.
But there is more than meets the eye, it is scary when you find out what kind of people are behind these parties.. in Spain most of the ex-ministers (PP) belong to Opus Dei!
ally77 said on May 4, 2005 20:40:
I guess tomorrow could go either way for the two main parties involved...
ncurran said on May 4, 2005 21:30:
nah, sorry ally but the tories dont stand a chance....
They need a 5-10% lead in the popular vote to get a majority in the house of commons, because of the way that the constituencies are organised. In the most recent polls labour are ahead by at least 5%. I’ll come out as straight if the tories win this election. The very very most they can hope for is a hung parliament with no party having a majority but labour being the biggest party. Even this is a very long shot, but i think it would be good news for britain if it did happen as labour would be forced into a coalition with the lib dems like we have in scotland
ally77 said on May 6, 2005 01:27:
Tony Blair on TV wah wah loos like he is worried.... although don’t why he is looks like it will be the Labour goverment for another term..... bye bye sanity!
ally77 said on May 6, 2005 07:01:
Okay so I am a little pissed off today to say the least that once again Tony Blair made as the Prime Minister of the UK (however it was only ever gonna be one of two parties).... however it was close and I am only hoping now he might learn by his mistakes made in the past and listen to what the general public have to say..... I guess only time will tell, can we please fast forward the next 4 years.... :-
lvninabx said on May 6, 2005 07:28:
HOOOOOOORRRRRRRAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!
I agree that he should now learn from his mistakes but this has to be the best outcome!!!!
I for one am very happy!!!!
I stayed up all night awaiting the results and at 3am I just gave up and thought we had won anyway, albeit very close.
Respect Ally
x
ally77 said on May 6, 2005 07:53:
No worries, I can respect everyone’s views on politics... I just hope he will learn from mistakes esp those on Iraq, it might also be nice if he made some attempt to apolgise, but I don’t see that happening...
lvninabx said on May 6, 2005 08:28:
It was a nice birthday treat for me too 05/05/05
I wanted the Libs to become the 2nd party but no luck.
I really cannot stand the tories in anything they have to say. They choose the wrong leaders for a start. If they had Portillo as a leader, I’m sure they would have got in this time. But he admitted to a gay relationship once so he was a no goer in their eyes.
Howard creeps me out!
I agree that Blair should apologise or at least say he was wrong with somethings. I think that Gordon would make a much better PM so my vote wasn’t for Tony, but for the Party.
Not name dropping but in my current job I meet alot of the local MPs and Clare short (Labour candidate who is anti Blair re Iraq) is one of the most easy going, intelligent and caring people ever. She would make a great PM one day, methinks
rox-kuryliw said on May 6, 2005 10:07:
I think the good thing is they won BUT got the record for winning with the least majority vote ever, which is terrible news for them as huge support for them has gone. ?! which shows people are not happy.
PLUS record for most female mps 127 i think now, which is great.
where i live lib dems missed winning by 7 % up 12 % and the rest down 7% .
ally77 said on May 7, 2005 07:43:
I just now dread the re-banding of the council tax, the pension crisis, and the taxes....
For me I struggle already on my income and I work for the bloody goverment so am on an excellent hourly rate, but the rent on my house costs a small fortune and along with everything else I fork out I am pretty much skint every month!
I was contributing to a pension when I started this job but came out of it for two reason (a) I could really not see me living in the UK when I was 60) and (b) I just could not afford nearly £70 a month..... and it ain’t like I was chosing to blow that money on nights out etc instead... in fact the only bit of pleasure I seem to get now is planning a holiday a few times a years and they are no as frequent as they once was!
Even thought I rent my house, my council tax is likely to go up two bands because it’s a new house which more than likely is gonna mean an extra increase of £40-50 a month!
I have no chance of buying my own house, because I have no funds to save for a desposit, so god only help students who are leaving university with lots of debt! I hate forking out rent money when I know I could easily cover a mortage with the same payments...
But we can only see what the labour goverment turns out this time....
rox-kuryliw said on May 7, 2005 19:45:
ally i cant aford to live with my parents lol, my sister (32, just divorced) and neice have moved in cos they cant aford a house where we live ect she works full time aswell, its shocking some storys you here about stuff.
ally77 said on May 7, 2005 20:54:
@ rox-kuryliw - and it don’t help that the local council will only house single people in a flat.... well my council will! they will under no circumstances give a single person a 2 bed house! but that a whole other story with me and the arse of a manger that runs the housing in my town...
I could never move back home (nothing to do with the fact my mum stole my bedroom!) but I do love living on my own, admiting I am not keen on living to close to my parents (over the road)! and I really want to move into a 2 bed house and am hoping this year to perhaps move into a private landlord house if I can find a decent landlord.... but we shall see what happens!
I currently live in a 1 bedroom house newly built (1999) shoebox! hence why I am selling half my roxette stuff cause I have no room!
Okay back to topic... I see Mr Blunkett is already talking about reforming Incap Benefit and Housing Benefit! YEAH! perhaps we’ll see some positive changes... in fact in regards to his reforms to Housing Benefits I intend to email him to give him my thoughts and the 1000000’s of HB cheats there are! More checks needed to avoid fraud!
Okay rant over...
on_a_mission said on May 8, 2005 01:00:
I’m apathetic, really. I mean Labour are the only ones in the position to run the country.
(havent read the above discussion. will do so later.)
oam
rox-kuryliw said on May 8, 2005 11:43:
lol @ ally , you go girl, nothing like a good rant sometimes :-D
ally77 said on May 8, 2005 12:16:
Considering I work for the council, as you guessing I hate the wait the housing side of it runs, and since I started working there I can see just exactly how it is run from behind the scences and I am far from impressed, in fact me thinks half of Bolton would be unhappy with how it works and am tempted to tell the paper just what goes on behind the scenes! lol :)
ally77 said on April 6, 2005 07:19:
So we have 4 weeks of seeing perhaps the main 4 parties bombard us with all the waffle, until the general election on May 5th!
Think I’ll be sleeping a lot....