I wrote about the flailing Tory campaign last night. It really is incoherent and pathetic- lurching from one random theme to another. Dispatching Osborne afar (obviously a liability) to to see his buddy Lagarde. Negative and positive in equal measure, austerity and giveaways, clutching at something, anything that could provide traction. Maybe the SNP bogeyman might do the trick, maybe not.
If nothing much happens between now and the 7th, the last straw will be the 1992, Netinyahu factor. Shy voters. Kieran's excellent article will provide for some last ditch hope in Tory heads if everything else fails.
I was at a party on Saturday night full of South London late 20/30 somethings. All very middle class but all with standard London issues around rents/property.
Pretty much all of them said they were going to vote Tory, and looked aghast at me when i said i was voting Labour.
The most common line was "Can you see Miliband standing up to Putin?".
Quite depressing as a Labour voter on reflection.
As a matter of interest, do you find that many of your London friends take a more global - longer term view of matters than perhaps others?
Well in terms of occupations it was very mixed. One worked for the police and admitted that if he was voting purely for self-interest he'd be better off with Labour. If i was voting on self-interest I'd probably vote Tory, so I guess its refreshing that people are voting on values still.
Most of them lived in Wandsworth, and the Tory brand (low council tax) still seems to be pretty significant.
I was at a party on Saturday night full of South London late 20/30 somethings. All very middle class but all with standard London issues around rents/property.
Pretty much all of them said they were going to vote Tory, and looked aghast at me when i said i was voting Labour.
The most common line was "Can you see Miliband standing up to Putin?".
Quite depressing as a Labour voter on reflection.
What nonsense, although my perception is that DC is by far the better dissembler. I suspect Putin would see right through that however.
Welcome to PB Keiran. A great piece though I take issue with the shy Tories assertion where I don't think there's the evidence. The shy voters are the LDs to which you do not refer.
I think there may be shy Lab voters as well as shy LDs.
What makes a voter "shy" when responding to a poll? I suggest it is embarrassment in supporting an unpopular party or leader.
It was embarrassing to support the Tories in 1992; they were in such disarray - hence shy Tories then.
Now it is embarrassing to declare support for Lab (or LD). "What! You are are going to vote for Miliband/Clegg!" But it is quite respectable to declare support for the Tories who are "competent and just need to finish the job."
If there is any shyness in the polling I think it is more likely to be Lab or LD supporters (possibly UKIP as well) but not Tories.
I think you might be confusing the tories of 1992 with the tories of 1997.
They were still fairly united in 92 following the fallout of removing Thatcher.
And Major's popularity was not far off Blair in 97
I remember 1992 well. Major and his frustration with his "bastards". The in-fighting. Black Wednesday. He got a boost of popularity ("aw bless" said my mother) when he took his little wooden crate out and stood on it. His popularity was nowhere near Blair's. It was embarrassing to be a Tory in those days.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies - one rural and a very marginal LD and the other very strong Labour, ex-mining with high unemployment and high disability claimants and many children classed at school as 'deprived'.
The people in the LD seat were mostly concerned about falling milk prices and the prospect of dairy farms going out of business and the UK importing more milk and no party offering a solution. Otherwise keep the ship of state steady.
The ex-mining community people were very willing to chat whilst we admired the view and had our picnics. They see no solution to generations of unemployment as "the immigrants get all the jobs going." However, they were not bothered too much as they could manage on jsa (for 2), child credits, housing benefit etc, and there was always £50-£100 a week cash in hand odd jobs they could do which mainly paid for their holidays in Spain etc. Some of those also had disability allowance due to stress, bad leg/back etc.
However, whilst not really interested in any political party but may back Labour as usual, they were well informed on the waves of African immigrants trying to enter Europe and would back any party that kept them out of Britain as they did not want that culture change (their language used was far stronger).
The teenagers were equally relaxed about a life on benefits - one said that as he is classed as dyslexic, he could get disability as well. All did some cash in hand jobs for pocket money (up to £50 per week). Very few of them showed an aspiration for life improvement as they are happy as they are.
It's amazing that you managed to find so many people that share and confirm your prejudices.
Strange. I worked in social care for 20 years with the socially deprived, 10 at the face, and I never discovered this level of detail about the financial lives and aspirations and habits of the people I was working with.
Maybe all those 'hideously white' people didn't feel comfortable enough in your presence to talk openly?
Andrew George, who is seeking re-election as Lib Dem MP for St Ives, has said that another Conservative/Lib Dem coalition “is not going to happen”, my colleague Patrick Wintour reports. George told a public meeting:
We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.
The fact that a lot of people in Scotland will agree with what I just posted will, I predict, mean that tactical voting in Scotland on 7 May will be unprecedentedly high, as many people vote for whoever they think has got the best chance against the SNP.
Will one of the polling companies measure this? The findings would be interesting.
I know many Scots who strongly agreed with me at the time of the indyref that a SLAB-CON-LD coalition in Edinburgh would be preferable to an SNP government. And I am talking about people ranging from left-Labour to long-term readers of the 'Scotsman' newspaper.
What angers me so much is that none of the Unionist parties was able to address the issue of improving the Union.
Mr. Tyson, I don't think any campaigns been especially good. I don't buy the line that the Conservatives' campaign has been notably worse than any others.
[NB The SNP will have a great night, but that's for strategic reasons. They were riding high in the polls before the campaign even started].
I was talking to a bunch of babies yesterday, and they all told me to a boy and girl they were voting Conservative because of the child care obligation.
I was at a party on Saturday night full of South London late 20/30 somethings. All very middle class but all with standard London issues around rents/property.
Pretty much all of them said they were going to vote Tory, and looked aghast at me when i said i was voting Labour.
The most common line was "Can you see Miliband standing up to Putin?".
Quite depressing as a Labour voter on reflection.
Depressing, really- the very middle classes voting Tory, en masse (bears and woods come to mind). You would have been less depressed if you would have stuck to conversations around holidays and restaurants- these are my two safe areas when I am surrounded by Tories.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
Hating the Daily Mail is a substitute for doing good Want to be virtuous? Saying the right things violently on Twitter is much easier than real kindness
This is an attempt to get tactical Lab voters isn't it?
Another coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is not going to happen, Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for the highly marginal seat of St Ives has declared.
His leader, Nick Clegg, has insisted his party is determined to form a coalition with either the Tories or Labour. Clegg is due to campaign in the seat for George on Monday.
But George told a public meeting last week a second coalition with the Tories “is not going to happen. We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.”
He'd have my vote as an independent - but isn't prepared to say that he wouldn't serve in a Lib-Tory coalition and unfortunately his voting record on the bedroom tax shows classic Lib Dem manouevres: "rebelling" against a disliked government policy, but not at the cost of the slightest embarrassment to the coalition united front as soon as it's a question of voting with Labour.
Locally it seems hard to call. The signs count ranks roughly thus:
1. LD 2. Conservative (though the candidate is from my village so we may have a greater number of signs in this part of the constituency as a result) 3. Labour, quite a way behind but more noticeable than at previous elections 4. Green, almost equal with Labour 5.UKIP, one or two only
Assuming that the increase in Labour and Green representation has come at the expense of the yellows, you'd have to think Mr George is LD toast.
Polruan is in SE Cornwall though , no? Are you in St Ives in fact?
Good spot. Yeah, I'm right out west of Penzance. Polruan is a childhood holiday loyalty.
This is an attempt to get tactical Lab voters isn't it?
Another coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is not going to happen, Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for the highly marginal seat of St Ives has declared.
My uncle, a former UKIP constituency executive member (and previously a Liberal council candidate - we get around in my family...), is one of Andrew George's constituents too, and is a bit torn - he wants to be out of Europe, he thinks AG is a great MP, but he may vote Tory as "a sort of compromise" (?). I like AG myself and if I lived there and I wasn't active in another party I'd be tempted to vote for him.
I was at a party on Saturday night full of South London late 20/30 somethings. All very middle class but all with standard London issues around rents/property.
Pretty much all of them said they were going to vote Tory, and looked aghast at me when i said i was voting Labour.
The most common line was "Can you see Miliband standing up to Putin?".
Quite depressing as a Labour voter on reflection.
Depressing, really- the very middle classes voting Tory, en masse (bears and woods come to mind). You would have been less depressed if you would have stuck to conversations around holidays and restaurants- these are my two safe areas when I am surrounded by Tories.
I can add to that.
My 80+year old dad is a life long Labour supporter, ex party member , union member, said this weekend whilst he still supports Labour, there's no way he could vote for them with "that fool" in charge.
Sample of one, but if someone as steeped in Labour as he is, is thinking that way, labour may well have big hidden problems with their vote.
Mr. Jessop, brave of them, given the favoured Tory diet.
Ha! Brilliant. You'd think Cameron would have put a stop to that as part of the detox campaign, but I guess some things are just so integral to a party it would be absurd to get rid of it. It'd be like having Labour not torching business barons every night while personally importing 100 migrants each, the SNP without their secret plans to march on England and put all the sword, or UKIP without their 'I'm not a racist, but' tattoos. Or the LDs without...something, probably.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
The political classes is us. Amazingly for a profession, there are no qualifications. Just turn up.
I agree about the different points of equality, and the hypocrisy. But you pays your money and makes your cross on the ballot paper for that.
One might ask, why on earth should a party with hardly any all-UK policies have so much power at Westminster and possibly even get seats in the cabinet? This question illustrates how, as I've said, how the English question (or the revision of the Union, if you like) will raise its head in the near future. UKIP have obviously also got a big part to play in this.
So some loony English party with maybe 2 or 3 MP's would have a big part to play but a party with many multiples of that should not have. Warped sense of democracy down south it seems, what happened to all the bullsh** about Better Together and UK family etc. That just go out the window because we don't do as we are told. Did you actually read what I wrote? I'm not favouring anything "English" over anything "Scottish". What gave you that idea? I'm just as Scottish as you are.
The British parliament is not supposed to be a central body for local councils.
The issue I raised - and you can address it or not, as you wish - is whether it's a good thing or not for a party with very few all-UK policies to have a lot of power at Westminster. I'd say the same if we were talking about Mebyon Kernow.
We the Scottish people rejected independence. If the SNP government wanted to show real leadership, they would concentrate on improving the Union. They should either do that or leave office.
Unfortunately, the Unionist parties couldn't get it together to come up with any big ideas about how to improve the Union, which looks as if it will mean that the SNP will now win seats from them at Westminster. There is a big element of the absurd in that positon, and it comes from the pathetic, shyster, short-termist, ideas-free character not just of the SNP but of the main Unionist parties too (of one of which, namely SLAB, I happen to be a member).
So some loony English party with maybe 2 or 3 MP's would have a big part to play but a party with many multiples of that should not have. Warped sense of democracy down south it seems, what happened to all the bullsh** about Better Together and UK family etc. That just go out the window because we don't do as we are told.
@Financier - "You do not seem able to read - this is what the people I met told me. Just go out there and listen to what people are saying without giving your own views - hard that it may be for you."
Of course. And everything that was said to you confirmed your oft-expressed views that generous benefits and lazy people with low aspirations are the source of this country's ills. It's amazing. Funnily enough, the conversations I have confirm my own view that the vast majority of people are hard-working and want to get on in life, and that one of the things holding them back is the refusal of the wealthiest in society to countenance paying a little more in tax to help achieve a level playing field. Whoever would have thought it?
Hopefully, the day that policy is made based on conversations SouthamObserver and Financier have with people are a long way off.
Mr. Jessop, brave of them, given the favoured Tory diet.
Mr Morris. How do you feel about MOTGP? I watched the Rossi win in my local last night- it was just so exciting. The place went mad, literally erupted when Rossi won, and when he knocked over Marquez, my god it was like Hurst's winning goal. One girl ran over and picked up poor Trotsky, hugging her and waved her up and down. Poor Trotters was traumatised.
Apart from that mad race when Hamilton won his first title, I cannot imagine how F1 comes remotely close to generating this level of exhilaration.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
It's true, actually, I was out on a walk along the cliffs only this weekend when I chanced upon a local Labour party group out for a team building hike, and all they wanted to talk about was how there was just too much equality of opportunity in this country and how they had to do something to get back to outcome-only policies. Of course they acknowledged they wouldn't want it to apply to them personally.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
When have we ever had equality of opportunity in the UK?
I know many Scots who strongly agreed with me at the time of the indyref that a SLAB-CON-LD coalition in Edinburgh would be preferable to an SNP government. And I am talking about people ranging from left-Labour to long-term readers of the 'Scotsman' newspaper.
Presumably you mean at the time of the 2007 Holyrood election, by 2011 it was too late for that sort of pie in the sky. Or are you predicting that for 2016?
What angers me so much is that none of the Unionist parties was able to address the issue of improving the Union.
Perhaps you should ask yourself why these parties that are haemorraging support or flatlining are unable to address this issue. Is it such a difficult case to make?
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
It's true, actually, I was out on a walk along the cliffs only this weekend when I chanced upon a local Labour party group out for a team building hike, and all they wanted to talk about was how there was just too much equality of opportunity in this country and how they had to do something to get back to outcome-only policies. Of course they acknowledged they wouldn't want it to apply to them personally.
Makes you think.
Might one of them have been called 'Gareth', a software developer from North London?
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up.
Mr. Tyson, I've only ever seen a tiny bit of one race of MotoGP, found accidentally whilst channel-hopping.
I found it rather enjoyable, but I don't have the time for multiple motor series.
The 2008 Brazilian race was certainly exciting, but there have been many others, including Canada 2011 and Bahrain 2014. Those two were utterly fantastic.
The problem F1 has is aerodynamic. It makes following a car harder, so reduces passing potential.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
It's true, actually, I was out on a walk along the cliffs only this weekend when I chanced upon a local Labour party group out for a team building hike, and all they wanted to talk about was how there was just too much equality of opportunity in this country and how they had to do something to get back to outcome-only policies. Of course they acknowledged they wouldn't want it to apply to them personally.
Makes you think.
Might one of them have been called 'Gareth', a software developer from North London?
Thanks for the reminder, I'll edit my previous post to emphasise that that was always the case.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up.
Tyson you're relatively new here (belated welcome). You should be aware that state schools do better than public schools (ask any leftwards-leaning person here).
The problem with public schools is...that...um...they...toffs....the few not the many...um....nothing to do with the life chances they bestow upon their pupils.
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
It's true, actually, I was out on a walk along the cliffs only this weekend when I chanced upon a local Labour party group out for a team building hike, and all they wanted to talk about was how there was just too much equality of opportunity in this country and how they had to do something to get back to outcome-only policies. Of course they acknowledged they wouldn't want it to apply to them personally.
My uncle, a former UKIP constituency executive member (and previously a Liberal council candidate - we get around in my family...), is one of Andrew George's constituents too, and is a bit torn - he wants to be out of Europe, he thinks AG is a great MP, but he may vote Tory as "a sort of compromise" (?). I like AG myself and if I lived there and I wasn't active in another party I'd be tempted to vote for him.
I would like to vote for him in many respects, but the degree to which he's campaigning for the LD party he'd like to represent rather than the one that he will (apparently) loyally represent if returned again just seems too disingenuous. As a stance he could argue that, like his electors, he was taken in in 2010 and would have campaigned differently had he known what was coming. There's no such excuse this time so it's a case of knowing deception rather than accidental deception.
Still, on the plus side I got my first ever (massive) general election poster board up yesterday
As it was a fine weekend, decided to walking in the hills and valleys of two adjacent constituencies
You'll miss all that when your company decides to relocate to Barbuda.
Would never choose Barbuda - is that where you are based?
I am based somewhere close to England's lovely hills and valleys.
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
There is nothing wrong with the UK except its political classes and the desire of some to destroy equality of opportunity in favour of equality of outcome - but of course not applying that to themselves and their friends and families.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up.
Is the best way to improve equality really to cost the taxpayer more money to make some people worse off? Would it not be better to use the same money to make the lower performers better off?
The fact that a lot of people in Scotland will agree with what I just posted will, I predict, mean that tactical voting in Scotland on 7 May will be unprecedentedly high, as many people vote for whoever they think has got the best chance against the SNP.
Will one of the polling companies measure this? The findings would be interesting.
I know many Scots who strongly agreed with me at the time of the indyref that a SLAB-CON-LD coalition in Edinburgh would be preferable to an SNP government. And I am talking about people ranging from left-Labour to long-term readers of the 'Scotsman' newspaper.
What angers me so much is that none of the Unionist parties was able to address the issue of improving the Union.
I'm sorry to disappoint you John but when it comes to tactical voting in Scotland, the brutal reality is that however much Tories and SLAB hate the SNP, they hate each other more. The SNP the one party not calling for tactical voting, will likely be the net beneficiary as Scottish Tories bang the last few nails into SLAB's coffin. Given how close the UK polls are why would Scottish Tories lift a finger to save any SLAB MPs, thereby increasing the likelihood of SLAB being the largest party.
Looking forward to Holyrood 2016, the self-styled mainstream parties, SLAB-CON-LD are going to get squeezed even further, as the AMS system designed to keep the SNP out comes back to bite them all in the a**. The mainstream parties will be left fighting for regional list seats with the Greens and UKIP.
Any thought that a Unionist Conservative Labour Alliance Party (the CLAP), might come to the rescue is ridiculous and is only being discussed by the self-styled Westminster elite, for starters what would be the CLAP's economic policy ?
I do not think this is accurate. The UK is large enough as an economic power that we could probably negotiate a better deal than the Swiss. That said, it would be easier trying to get better limits on immigration from inside the EU first.
Mr. Topping, Mr. Tyson's an old hand, he just disappeared to Italy for a bit before returning more recently.
That said, I disagree entirely with the idea of destroying public schools.
Ah then I am the relative new boy.
As for MotoGP - much much more exciting IMO than F1 plus the commentaries are as enjoyable as the races themselves (that said, I haven't watched for a year or three..)
The Electoral registration data will be telling - and hopefully all pollsters will start asking if voters are registered from tommorow.
Anecdote alert: I was up in Shipley yesterday, staying with some friends. Both under 35. They moved in 3 weeks ago. One is a Liberal Democrat party member, and he hadn't yet registered to vote. I reminded him the deadline was tomorrow - which he knew - but wasn't sure he'd have time to do it.
The other - his wife - is a Labour Party supporter. She asked me how I thought the election would go. When I said I thought Ed Miliband would probably be PM she seemed astonished. She assumed Cameron would get back in.
Conclusion? Can't really draw any on the basis of that, but I did walk away with the sense that not everyone has given this particular election a whole lot of thought.
My uncle, a former UKIP constituency executive member (and previously a Liberal council candidate - we get around in my family...), is one of Andrew George's constituents too, and is a bit torn - he wants to be out of Europe, he thinks AG is a great MP, but he may vote Tory as "a sort of compromise" (?). I like AG myself and if I lived there and I wasn't active in another party I'd be tempted to vote for him.
Still, on the plus side I got my first ever (massive) general election poster board up yesterday
Glad you managed to get it up yesterday Nick, although size isn't everything you know.
This is an attempt to get tactical Lab voters isn't it?
Another coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is not going to happen, Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for the highly marginal seat of St Ives has declared.
His leader, Nick Clegg, has insisted his party is determined to form a coalition with either the Tories or Labour. Clegg is due to campaign in the seat for George on Monday.
But George told a public meeting last week a second coalition with the Tories “is not going to happen. We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.”
He'd have my vote as an independent - but isn't prepared to say that he wouldn't serve in a Lib-Tory coalition and unfortunately his voting record on the bedroom tax shows classic Lib Dem manouevres: "rebelling" against a disliked government policy, but not at the cost of the slightest embarrassment to the coalition united front as soon as it's a question of voting with Labour.
Locally it seems hard to call. The signs count ranks roughly thus:
1. LD 2. Conservative (though the candidate is from my village so we may have a greater number of signs in this part of the constituency as a result) 3. Labour, quite a way behind but more noticeable than at previous elections 4. Green, almost equal with Labour 5.UKIP, one or two only
Assuming that the increase in Labour and Green representation has come at the expense of the yellows, you'd have to think Mr George is LD toast.
Polruan is in SE Cornwall though , no? Are you in St Ives in fact?
Good spot. Yeah, I'm right out west of Penzance. Polruan is a childhood holiday loyalty.
I have done the Hall Walk several times - friend of my Dad's is an emmet with a cottage in Bodinnick and we've stayed there several times :-)
The other - his wife - is a Labour Party supporter. She asked me how I thought the election would go. When I said I thought Ed Miliband would probably be PM she seemed astonished. She assumed Cameron would get back in.
I have had exactly that reaction from a number of people, of all parties.
One is a Liberal Democrat party member, and he hadn't yet registered to vote. I reminded him the deadline was tomorrow - which he knew - but wasn't sure he'd have time to do it.
Simply staggering, his vote could be material as to the Lib Dems saving their deposit there.
This is an attempt to get tactical Lab voters isn't it?
Another coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is not going to happen, Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for the highly marginal seat of St Ives has declared.
His leader, Nick Clegg, has insisted his party is determined to form a coalition with either the Tories or Labour. Clegg is due to campaign in the seat for George on Monday.
But George told a public meeting last week a second coalition with the Tories “is not going to happen. We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.”
He'd have my vote as an independent - but isn't prepared to say that he wouldn't serve in a Lib-Tory coalition and unfortunately his voting record on the bedroom tax shows classic Lib Dem manouevres: "rebelling" against a disliked government policy, but not at the cost of the slightest embarrassment to the coalition united front as soon as it's a question of voting with Labour.
Locally it seems hard to call. The signs count ranks roughly thus:
1. LD 2. Conservative (though the candidate is from my village so we may have a greater number of signs in this part of the constituency as a result) 3. Labour, quite a way behind but more noticeable than at previous elections 4. Green, almost equal with Labour 5.UKIP, one or two only
Assuming that the increase in Labour and Green representation has come at the expense of the yellows, you'd have to think Mr George is LD toast.
Polruan is in SE Cornwall though , no? Are you in St Ives in fact?
Good spot. Yeah, I'm right out west of Penzance. Polruan is a childhood holiday loyalty.
I have done the Hall Walk several times - friend of my Dad's is an emmet with a cottage in Bodinnick and we've stayed there several times :-)
Exceptionally lovely part of the world
It gets even better going west, too. I spent yesterday on the beach at Porthcurno, then went to Trengwainton & up Sancreed Beacon later on - all within 10 minutes of home. Sounds cheesy but it really does feel like a privilege to live here.
We're bracing for a new generation of Poldark tourists this summer.
My uncle, a former UKIP constituency executive member (and previously a Liberal council candidate - we get around in my family...), is one of Andrew George's constituents too, and is a bit torn - he wants to be out of Europe, he thinks AG is a great MP, but he may vote Tory as "a sort of compromise" (?). I like AG myself and if I lived there and I wasn't active in another party I'd be tempted to vote for him.
Still, on the plus side I got my first ever (massive) general election poster board up yesterday
Glad you managed to get it up yesterday Nick, although size isn't everything you know.
I'll have you know I managed to get it up with no assistance whatsoever from Nick. And anyone who's seen it will be realising that it really is size that matters.
I don't how much difference individual registration will make.
A lot of names that get removed from the Register will be people who've died, moved, registered in more than one place etc. People who don't register to vote would probably not vote, even if they were on the Register.
This is an attempt to get tactical Lab voters isn't it?
Another coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats is not going to happen, Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for the highly marginal seat of St Ives has declared.
His leader, Nick Clegg, has insisted his party is determined to form a coalition with either the Tories or Labour. Clegg is due to campaign in the seat for George on Monday.
But George told a public meeting last week a second coalition with the Tories “is not going to happen. We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.”
He'd have my vote as an independent - but isn't prepared to say that he wouldn't serve in a Lib-Tory coalition and unfortunately his voting record on the bedroom tax shows classic Lib Dem manouevres: "rebelling" against a disliked government policy, but not at the cost of the slightest embarrassment to the coalition united front as soon as it's a question of voting with Labour.
Locally it seems hard to call. The signs count ranks roughly thus:
1. LD 2. Conservative (though the candidate is from my village so we may have a greater number of signs in this part of the constituency as a result) 3. Labour, quite a way behind but more noticeable than at previous elections 4. Green, almost equal with Labour 5.UKIP, one or two only
Assuming that the increase in Labour and Green representation has come at the expense of the yellows, you'd have to think Mr George is LD toast.
Polruan is in SE Cornwall though , no? Are you in St Ives in fact?
Good spot. Yeah, I'm right out west of Penzance. Polruan is a childhood holiday loyalty.
I have done the Hall Walk several times - friend of my Dad's is an emmet with a cottage in Bodinnick and we've stayed there several times :-)
Exceptionally lovely part of the world
It gets even better going west, too. I spent yesterday on the beach at Porthcurno, then went to Trengwainton & up Sancreed Beacon later on - all within 10 minutes of home. Sounds cheesy but it really does feel like a privilege to live here.
We're bracing for a new generation of Poldark tourists this summer.
I get down there as often as I can, hopefully six weeks this year, already been twice. My wife's Grandad was Cornish, he worked at Holmans and down South Crofty, when he died they kept his cottage on and renovated it.
My daughter got married at Tregenna Castle two years ago, outside in the most glorious weather imaginable, it was like a fairy tale wedding, one of the best days of my life.
I was in the Rugby Club around 2.30am yesterday morning, steaming drunk, when about eight youngsters (early to mid twenties and some nubile young blonde women there too) were discussing UKIP. I was surprised, because nobody ever talks politics, and more surprised to see that five or six of them were all voting UKIP. None were Labour - one older fella who runs his own business was Tory but said he wasn't bothering to vote.
They like Farage and they like the anti-immigrant sentiment but knew nothing about UKIP really.
On the run-up to the 2010 I had the same thing with younger kids all saying they were voting Lib Dem. So it's clearly a protest thing.
And in the grand scheme of events in matters not one bit anyway because Labour would get in here (Caerphilly) if Wayne David dressed up as one of the Village People and courted votes.
My vote, and those of those young, drunken Kippers, sadly count for zilch.
Mr. Topping, Mr. Tyson's an old hand, he just disappeared to Italy for a bit before returning more recently.
That said, I disagree entirely with the idea of destroying public schools.
Ah then I am the relative new boy.
As for MotoGP - much much more exciting IMO than F1 plus the commentaries are as enjoyable as the races themselves (that said, I haven't watched for a year or three..)
I'm still stranded in Italy Morris, ergo the adoration for Rossi last night.
There was an experiment in Top Gear to see which attracted the girls: Richard Hammond I think ostentatiously drove a Ferrari and another time walked around with a white fluffy dog. You can guess which won. No contest.
I can certainly vouch for that last night. Mrs T is away, and I was harassed (yes harassed) by stunning Italian girls wanting to pet young Trotters at the pub. To single blokes, get yourself a white fluffy dog and go to Italy. On the other side, if you take the said dog out with a mate, people naturally assume you are couple.
I heard on the radio today that up to 7 million people have not registered to vote this time around, as we approach the deadline.
This is surely going to affect the vote big time...??
"Some 7.5 million eligible citizens have until midnight tonight to register to vote in May’s election.
Millions of citizens face being turned away on May 7 because they are not on the electoral roll.
A change of system has led to the number of registered voters dropping by more than 900,000 in a year, with the list of voters in the UK falling by 2 per cent.
The biggest falls have been among people who have moved home recently, students no longer registered to vote at their parents’ homes and teenagers voting for the first time.
The worst affected constituencies include Brighton Pavilion, the seat of the Greens’ only MP Caroline Lucas, where the number of voters fell by 7,500, and Education Secretary Nicky Morgan’s Loughborough seat – which has seen a drop of 8,500 voters.
This Victoria Derbyshire programme is a dogs breakfast. SNP Manifesto discussion left till final 10 minutes and they have NINE members of the public. Just introduing them took out two minutes of the running time.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
Just looking at the graphic above and it really highlights some of the demographic changes in London. It seems astonishing that Kensington and Fulham were once Labour targets. On the other hand Eltham, Erith and Edmonton have all clearly swung away from the Tories.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
You're not leaving any of your substantial fortune to your daughter?
The other - his wife - is a Labour Party supporter. She asked me how I thought the election would go. When I said I thought Ed Miliband would probably be PM she seemed astonished. She assumed Cameron would get back in.
I have had exactly that reaction from a number of people, of all parties.
Same here. I find it astonishing, quite frankly. Even if I am wrong in predicting a Miliband win, it is at the least close and more people should uncertain. The only people I know who seem to think the Tories aren't a shoe in are actual Tory political figures.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
What do you mean by they are buying a leg up? Are you admitting that public schools are better than state ones?
The Scottish Government is clearly not a local authority as it carries legislative competence and if it hadn't been run competently then Salmond would have not achieved the once thought to be politically impossible - an absolute majority in a proportional system.
The Health Service according to the UK Social Attitudes Survey carries 15 per cent higher public confidence in Scotland than in England - another reason for the SNP success perhaps?
I don't how much difference individual registration will make.
A lot of names that get removed from the Register will be people who've died, moved, registered in more than one place etc. People who don't register to vote would probably not vote, even if they were on the Register.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
LOL. On a one million estate that would still be quite some party.
I don't how much difference individual registration will make.
A lot of names that get removed from the Register will be people who've died, moved, registered in more than one place etc. People who don't register to vote would probably not vote, even if they were on the Register.
In the 2001 General Election I cast my first vote (having turned 18 in the previous year). I was surprised not to have to register to vote. Living at the time in a University Halls of Residence I was automatically registered to vote along with every other student living on campus. Almost everyone I spoke to that day cast their vote - but how many would have registered individually I'm not as certain about.
For marginal constituencies with large residential campuses it could make a difference.
I don't how much difference individual registration will make.
A lot of names that get removed from the Register will be people who've died, moved, registered in more than one place etc. People who don't register to vote would probably not vote, even if they were on the Register.
Probably a lot of people will not realise until too late they are not registered to vote, especially students who might assume they are still registered at home. And according to some reports, the new online registration is not foolproof either as there is a manual part of the process, but I'm not sure if that is true.
" Again, as with the SNP vote, it will be interesting to see if this [UKIP] support turns up on the day."
Interesting but basically irrelevant. UKIP's impact is pretty much limited to Con-UKIP and Lab-UKIP switchers causing seats to flip between major parties. Whether previous non-voters stay at home or vote UKIP is a sideshow (in all but a few interesting seats, that is)
He'd have my vote as an independent - but isn't prepared to say that he wouldn't serve in a Lib-Tory coalition and unfortunately his voting record on the bedroom tax shows classic Lib Dem manouevres: "rebelling" against a disliked government policy, but not at the cost of the slightest embarrassment to the coalition united front as soon as it's a question of voting with Labour.
Locally it seems hard to call. The signs count ranks roughly thus:
1. LD 2. Conservative (though the candidate is from my village so we may have a greater number of signs in this part of the constituency as a result) 3. Labour, quite a way behind but more noticeable than at previous elections 4. Green, almost equal with Labour 5.UKIP, one or two only
Assuming that the increase in Labour and Green representation has come at the expense of the yellows, you'd have to think Mr George is LD toast.
Polruan is in SE Cornwall though , no? Are you in St Ives in fact?
Good spot. Yeah, I'm right out west of Penzance. Polruan is a childhood holiday loyalty.
I have done the Hall Walk several times - friend of my Dad's is an emmet with a cottage in Bodinnick and we've stayed there several times :-)
Exceptionally lovely part of the world
It gets even better going west, too. I spent yesterday on the beach at Porthcurno, then went to Trengwainton & up Sancreed Beacon later on - all within 10 minutes of home. Sounds cheesy but it really does feel like a privilege to live here.
We're bracing for a new generation of Poldark tourists this summer.
I get down there as often as I can, hopefully six weeks this year, already been twice. My wife's Grandad was Cornish, he worked at Holmans and down South Crofty, when he died they kept his cottage on and renovated it.
My daughter got married at Tregenna Castle two years ago, outside in the most glorious weather imaginable, it was like a fairy tale wedding, one of the best days of my life.
Addictive, isn't it? By the time we moved we'd ended up averaging 6-7 weeks a year here. I think we partly made the decision to relocate so that we would use our holidays to start going overseas again.
That's a great setting for a wedding; 2013 was an amazing summer, particularly May and July.
The answer I would say is that the Prem teams tend to be based in the big cities which tend to vote Lab. If you drop down to League 2 then you get a lot more suburban or small town clubs and the picture is different. In League 2 I count 9 teams in Tory constituencies for definite and 3 possibles (would have to look up which seat Portsmouth, Plymouth and Burys' grounds are in)
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
What do you mean by they are buying a leg up? Are you admitting that public schools are better than state ones?
Roger Wish list of leftie things. Obviously kicking out the royal spongers and re-housing the Romany population at Buck House. Banning the use of the word Sir in any setting.
Nige Doh. Of course public schools are better, much better. That is why the rich pay for them. And that is why there is no quality of opportunity in the UK, and will not be until they are erased to the ground. We need to collectivise education- get all the kids from birth and send them to meritocratic establishments for 15 years or so, and then we might get the best coming through, instead of just the rich ones like we have in the UK at minute.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
What do you mean by they are buying a leg up? Are you admitting that public schools are better than state ones?
Roger Wish list of leftie things. Obviously kicking out the royal spongers and re-housing the Romany population at Buck House. Banning the use of the word Sir in any setting.
Nige Doh. Of course public schools are better, much better. That is why the rich pay for them. And that is why there is no quality of opportunity in the UK, and will not be until they are erased to the ground. We need to collectivise education- get all the kids from birth and send them to meritocratic establishments for 15 years or so, and then we might get the best coming through, instead of just the rich ones like we have in the UK at minute.
Old timer or newbie...public schools are not better.
If you had returned a few weeks earlier you would have seen this hashed out. Right now I don't have the energy to re-hash.
Bottom line: state schools do better than public schools.
tories currently best priced 1/2 to win most seats. miliband best priced 10/11 to be PM.
but ladbrokes offering 4/1 special on tories most seats and ed pm. this currently seems the most expected outcome so I think i'll have a dabble.
Yes - I was pondering that bet myself. To convince myself the 4/1 is value, i'd need to be able to make a 100% book out of these 5 outcomes;
Lab most seats Ed PM Lab most seats, Dave PM Con most seats, Ed PM Con most seats, Dave PM Any other most seats/any other PM / no govt formed within 14(?) days
I tried it yesterday & fried my brain, so I've passed on the bet.
Comments
If nothing much happens between now and the 7th, the last straw will be the 1992, Netinyahu factor. Shy voters. Kieran's excellent article will provide for some last ditch hope in Tory heads if everything else fails.
Most of them lived in Wandsworth, and the Tory brand (low council tax) still seems to be pretty significant.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/general-election-2015/politics-blog/11541326/The-senior-politicians-who-could-lose-their-seats-in-the-2015-general-election.html
*innocent face*
Perhaps you should ask some of your colleagues along on your next walk to show them how wonderful the UK really is.
Andrew George, who is seeking re-election as Lib Dem MP for St Ives, has said that another Conservative/Lib Dem coalition “is not going to happen”, my colleague Patrick Wintour reports. George told a public meeting:
We have had enough of it. The Tories would not want it and I am sure my party would not go for it.
http://newstonoone.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/other-parties-and-independents.html
Some are so stupid they put apostrophes in plurals...
Will one of the polling companies measure this? The findings would be interesting.
I know many Scots who strongly agreed with me at the time of the indyref that a SLAB-CON-LD coalition in Edinburgh would be preferable to an SNP government. And I am talking about people ranging from left-Labour to long-term readers of the 'Scotsman' newspaper.
What angers me so much is that none of the Unionist parties was able to address the issue of improving the Union.
[NB The SNP will have a great night, but that's for strategic reasons. They were riding high in the polls before the campaign even started].
I was talking to a bunch of babies yesterday, and they all told me to a boy and girl they were voting Conservative because of the child care obligation.
Honest truth, guv'nor.
Interesting independent there
My 80+year old dad is a life long Labour supporter, ex party member , union member, said this weekend whilst he still supports Labour, there's no way he could vote for them with "that fool" in charge.
Sample of one, but if someone as steeped in Labour as he is, is thinking that way, labour may well have big hidden problems with their vote.
And with that, farewell.
I agree about the different points of equality, and the hypocrisy. But you pays your money and makes your cross on the ballot paper for that.
Did you actually read what I wrote? I'm not favouring anything "English" over anything "Scottish". What gave you that idea? I'm just as Scottish as you are.
The British parliament is not supposed to be a central body for local councils.
The issue I raised - and you can address it or not, as you wish - is whether it's a good thing or not for a party with very few all-UK policies to have a lot of power at Westminster. I'd say the same if we were talking about Mebyon Kernow.
We the Scottish people rejected independence. If the SNP government wanted to show real leadership, they would concentrate on improving the Union. They should either do that or leave office.
Unfortunately, the Unionist parties couldn't get it together to come up with any big ideas about how to improve the Union, which looks as if it will mean that the SNP will now win seats from them at Westminster. There is a big element of the absurd in that positon, and it comes from the pathetic, shyster, short-termist, ideas-free character not just of the SNP but of the main Unionist parties too (of one of which, namely SLAB, I happen to be a member).
Of course. And everything that was said to you confirmed your oft-expressed views that generous benefits and lazy people with low aspirations are the source of this country's ills. It's amazing. Funnily enough, the conversations I have confirm my own view that the vast majority of people are hard-working and want to get on in life, and that one of the things holding them back is the refusal of the wealthiest in society to countenance paying a little more in tax to help achieve a level playing field. Whoever would have thought it?
Hopefully, the day that policy is made based on conversations SouthamObserver and Financier have with people are a long way off.
Apart from that mad race when Hamilton won his first title, I cannot imagine how F1 comes remotely close to generating this level of exhilaration.
Makes you think.
I found it rather enjoyable, but I don't have the time for multiple motor series.
The 2008 Brazilian race was certainly exciting, but there have been many others, including Canada 2011 and Bahrain 2014. Those two were utterly fantastic.
The problem F1 has is aerodynamic. It makes following a car harder, so reduces passing potential.
Bit late, but welcome to pb.com, Mr. N. Ironic that our first Scottish Labour contributor appears just as the party is facing serious woe.
The problem with public schools is...that...um...they...toffs....the few not the many...um....nothing to do with the life chances they bestow upon their pupils.
They are a symptom not a cause.
Still, on the plus side I got my first ever (massive) general election poster board up yesterday
That said, I disagree entirely with the idea of destroying public schools.
Looking forward to Holyrood 2016, the self-styled mainstream parties, SLAB-CON-LD are going to get squeezed even further, as the AMS system designed to keep the SNP out comes back to bite them all in the a**. The mainstream parties will be left fighting for regional list seats with the Greens and UKIP.
Any thought that a Unionist Conservative Labour Alliance Party (the CLAP), might come to the rescue is ridiculous and is only being discussed by the self-styled Westminster elite, for starters what would be the CLAP's economic policy ?
I do not think this is accurate. The UK is large enough as an economic power that we could probably negotiate a better deal than the Swiss. That said, it would be easier trying to get better limits on immigration from inside the EU first.
As for MotoGP - much much more exciting IMO than F1 plus the commentaries are as enjoyable as the races themselves (that said, I haven't watched for a year or three..)
The other - his wife - is a Labour Party supporter. She asked me how I thought the election would go. When I said I thought Ed Miliband would probably be PM she seemed astonished. She assumed Cameron would get back in.
Conclusion? Can't really draw any on the basis of that, but I did walk away with the sense that not everyone has given this particular election a whole lot of thought.
Exceptionally lovely part of the world
Top bloke,.
We're bracing for a new generation of Poldark tourists this summer.
This is surely going to affect the vote big time...??
A lot of names that get removed from the Register will be people who've died, moved, registered in more than one place etc. People who don't register to vote would probably not vote, even if they were on the Register.
https://twitter.com/philipjcowley/status/590083945666113536
My daughter got married at Tregenna Castle two years ago, outside in the most glorious weather imaginable, it was like a fairy tale wedding, one of the best days of my life.
I was in the Rugby Club around 2.30am yesterday morning, steaming drunk, when about eight youngsters (early to mid twenties and some nubile young blonde women there too) were discussing UKIP. I was surprised, because nobody ever talks politics, and more surprised to see that five or six of them were all voting UKIP. None were Labour - one older fella who runs his own business was Tory but said he wasn't bothering to vote.
They like Farage and they like the anti-immigrant sentiment but knew nothing about UKIP really.
On the run-up to the 2010 I had the same thing with younger kids all saying they were voting Lib Dem. So it's clearly a protest thing.
And in the grand scheme of events in matters not one bit anyway because Labour would get in here (Caerphilly) if Wayne David dressed up as one of the Village People and courted votes.
My vote, and those of those young, drunken Kippers, sadly count for zilch.
There was an experiment in Top Gear to see which attracted the girls: Richard Hammond I think ostentatiously drove a Ferrari and another time walked around with a white fluffy dog. You can guess which won. No contest.
I can certainly vouch for that last night. Mrs T is away, and I was harassed (yes harassed) by stunning Italian girls wanting to pet young Trotters at the pub. To single blokes, get yourself a white fluffy dog and go to Italy.
On the other side, if you take the said dog out with a mate, people naturally assume you are couple.
Millions of citizens face being turned away on May 7 because they are not on the electoral roll.
A change of system has led to the number of registered voters dropping by more than 900,000 in a year, with the list of voters in the UK falling by 2 per cent.
The biggest falls have been among people who have moved home recently, students no longer registered to vote at their parents’ homes and teenagers voting for the first time.
The worst affected constituencies include Brighton Pavilion, the seat of the Greens’ only MP Caroline Lucas, where the number of voters fell by 7,500, and Education Secretary Nicky Morgan’s Loughborough seat – which has seen a drop of 8,500 voters.
Presumably then you'd get rid of public schools. The greatest scandal in the UK for creating a meritocracy is that almost 20% of the wealthiest buy their children a leg up."
Come the revolution that would be second priority. First would be increasing IHT to 99%. The 1% that remains is so the inheritance less bastards can drown their sorrows.
Local councilor making dog whistle attacks on Facebook to say voting tories is a vote for "no dogs / blacks / Irish.
Classy - I was voting for him in the next locals - he can stuff that now.
Yeah! ...... It's the way I tell 'em.
The Scottish Government is clearly not a local authority as it carries legislative competence and if it hadn't been run competently then Salmond would have not achieved the once thought to be politically impossible - an absolute majority in a proportional system.
The Health Service according to the UK Social Attitudes Survey carries 15 per cent higher public confidence in Scotland than in England - another reason for the SNP success perhaps?
"long-term readers of the 'Scotsman' newspaper"
There are no long term readers of the Hootsman. There are no readers!
For marginal constituencies with large residential campuses it could make a difference.
but ladbrokes offering 4/1 special on tories most seats and ed pm. this currently seems the most expected outcome so I think i'll have a dabble.
Interesting but basically irrelevant. UKIP's impact is pretty much limited to Con-UKIP and Lab-UKIP switchers causing seats to flip between major parties. Whether previous non-voters stay at home or vote UKIP is a sideshow (in all but a few interesting seats, that is)
https://t.co/UEPy1euzbh
That's a great setting for a wedding; 2013 was an amazing summer, particularly May and July.
Wish list of leftie things. Obviously kicking out the royal spongers and re-housing the Romany population at Buck House. Banning the use of the word Sir in any setting.
Nige
Doh. Of course public schools are better, much better. That is why the rich pay for them. And that is why there is no quality of opportunity in the UK, and will not be until they are erased to the ground.
We need to collectivise education- get all the kids from birth and send them to meritocratic establishments for 15 years or so, and then we might get the best coming through, instead of just the rich ones like we have in the UK at minute.
These "tease tweets" are frustrating.
SNP 45+ seats
Lib Dem 25- seats
Con 290- seats.
I'm on this heavily enough by proxy now though so I'll pass.
It certainly is NOT the most likely outcome though.
Why would ICM put out a tweet saying 'Look, were all bouncy, don't trust us!'?
Mr. 64, welcome to pb.com.
It's possible, but has a serious problem for Labour. Namely, it'd likely be an SNP deal. And Labour would have fewer votes and seats in England.
If you had returned a few weeks earlier you would have seen this hashed out. Right now I don't have the energy to re-hash.
Bottom line: state schools do better than public schools.
Lab most seats Ed PM
Lab most seats, Dave PM
Con most seats, Ed PM
Con most seats, Dave PM
Any other most seats/any other PM / no govt formed within 14(?) days
I tried it yesterday & fried my brain, so I've passed on the bet.
What %'ages would you give?
ps, welcome to PB