General Election 2019

I was making a study on the government of Wilson and Callaghan a few weeks ago, and was very surprised at what I found out. Callaghan had been trying very hard to get an agreement between the large manufacturers in the car industry and the unions to limit pay awards. All part of the attempt to get Britain to live within its means. The general opinion was that the unions refused to go along with his plans of limiting increases to 5%. The actual truth was that the management at Cowley, Oxford refused to the pay cap as they felt it would stop them from poaching workers from other car plants. Without their support of course no other car plant would agree. The news we are given is so distorted sometimes that you have to dig quite deeply sometimes to find the truth.

 

As you will know Scully I was in the south of England for three weeks, and was passing the time while stuck in traffic jams counting the placards from the parties. My totally unscientific survey showed that if numbers were a guide to how the election would go, then the LibDems were a mile ahead. Places such as Aylesbury and Hemel and Watford all had masses of yellow placards, but almost none from Labour, and in three hundred miles of travelling spotted just two for the Tories. I don't take this as anything about how the result will turn out, but did get a feel of just how fed up many people were with the two main parties. Two years ago I had a lengthy discussion with a pub owner who was a great supporter of Brexit. When I went back in for a beer and sandwich he remembered our previous discussion, and admitted that he was wrong, but would not vote as he couldn't bring himself to vote for anyone but the Tories. To be truthful the thing I heard most was a plague on both Tory and Labour.

 

The 2017 election saw 82% of the votes cast for either Conservative or Labour. With the LibDems drastically losing support from their position at the start of campaigning I expect the two main parties to dominate once again. There currently appears to be no appetite in the UK for a new centre party. It would probably take the splitting of the Labour Party and a new LibDem leader to ignite any real interest.

 

We have already seen the splitting of the Tories and Labour from the traditional parties by MPs saying they are no longer what they believe in. Many people went to the camp of Farage which encapsulated the right wing of previous Tories and the less bright members of the Labour party. That statement is actually supported by strong evidence of educational standards which I hesitate to use, but is out there if you are interested. Under the FPTP electoral system as Farage has found out it is very difficult for a new party, left, right or centre to make a breakthrough, which is why he is calling for PR to be brought in. The old tribal politics still exist in the UK where people will vote for what their parents voted for, which is one reason why the country is stuck in its rut, while many other countries have moved on.

 

Good to see that Johnson is bringing both the Russians and Americans together along with the European press. All are reporting on #frigdegate. What an embarrassment he is to the country. Still some think he is wonderful, while others say not in my name thank you.

 

Before the previous election you said the two main parties were losing support. In fact they both had best percentages of votes for decades.

If you are trying to repeat the same mistake you will be proved wrong again. There is no discernible increase in support for the LibDems and the Greens. The Brexit party's support is plummeting as Farage will soon see a culmination of his decades of work come to fruition.

The domination of the two main parties will continue.

 

Make your mind up

 

[QUOTE="duggie2000, post: 13404213, member: 1029375"]Make your mind up[/QUOTE]

I have, I'm voting CONSERVATIVE

 

I have, I'm voting CONSERVATIVE[/QUOTE]
I wouldn't bother if I were you SH. Berkhamstead must be a safe seat and heavy rain is forecast in the area so just relax and put your feet up for the day - encourage your friends to do the same

 

I really just know how to get through to you sometimes SH. I am making a point about how it is very difficult for a party, not from any particular position to breakdown the tribal loyalties that exist is the UK. As an example you think that Johnson is wonderful, so you ignore all of his many gaffs and behaviour, simply because he is a Tory. This makes little sense if you have an enquiring mind. Others will change their vote on the basis of evaluation of what is being proposed for the future and how a government has performed over the past years, but if they disapprove of both main parties they have little place to go. This way you have a country where 60% or so of the population are against the government from day one. It is very poor to want to accept something because someone else tells you lies, but because of your loyalty you have to try and defend what often is beyond defence.

 

I wouldn't bother if I were you SH. Berkhamstead must be a safe seat and heavy rain is forecast in the area so just relax and put your feet up for the day - encourage your friends to do the same [/QUOTE]

I could encourage thousands to stay at home without affecting the result. Mike Penning, our Tory MP, is exceptionally hard working on local issues and has been an effective government minister in several posts. The opposition candidates might as well stay at home to watch the telly.

 

For several years you have wrongly predicted the demise of the leading two parties. You will no doubt be wrong again tomorrow.

 

I was talking about you saying in one post that Labour is finished and in another that they will always be one of the two biggest party
Reading the posts on here without taking part is like eavesdropping on a bunch of 6 year olds arguing whose dad is biggest and strongest
I am not sure why posters on here who have chosen to leave their beloved home country to live somewhere else should comment on our Elections
The Torys have always looked after the rich and the poor is an unfortunate problem they hope will go away by itself, but they do ensure the economy is strong
Labour always promises to cure everyones ills but never ever succeeds and still manages to destroy the economy which results in the Torys having to come back in to repair the damage
To my dismay the Libs Dems have elected a shrieking banshie as their leader and I have voted for them in every election since I was 18
My fears are that if the Torys get in again Boris will be a buffoon figurehead to amuse the public while the real dirty work is carried out behind the scenes
If Labour get elected then Corbyn will be a glove puppet with McDonnells hand up his backside or he will be shifted to the Peers while McDonnell and the union leaders will return us the the unlimited strikes of the 70's to destroy what is left of our Industries and bankrupt our country for the third time since the end of WW2
Not much of a choice then, but I do believe my Pension income would be safer under the Torys than Labour
I will and always will vote Lib Dem in the slight hope they can get enough votes to stop Labour and the Torys from carrying their election "promises/threats"
Here endith the first lesson
Mock all you want, deep down you all know I am speaking the truth

 

You still do not understand what I was saying. I have made no prediction on what will happen tomorrow so I cannot be wrong.

 

A Tory majority will not only secure Brexit but will ensure FPTP will remain for the foreseeable future. The Tories also have some unfinished business with the electoral boundary changes previously highlighted. These changes would correct some unbalanced constituencies and reduce the number by around 50. It has been reported that the changes were likely to benefit the Conservative party.

Under FPTP there was nothing stopping the LibDems from gaining power, they just needed enough people to vote for them. Their 'revoke' message really bombed with the electorate, a clear disregard of political democracy.

 

I fully understand what you are saying but your long term prediction of the demise of the two main parties being replaced with a mythical 'centre' party is nowhere to be seen.

You may well be right eventually but none of us will be around to witness it.

 

It isn't the point of making predictions about tomorrow SH. The question is- do you feel happy about getting a majority in parliament knowing that the majority of the country is against it ? If so then you have very little understanding of what democracy should be about. Are you happy about supporting a party which propagates fake news, bribes opponents to withdraw their candidature, and which suppresses publication of reports until after elections ? Do you feel happy about the rest of the World seeing that the British could be about to give a majority to a known lier and cheat ? Do you care nothing for Britain's image ?

 

You speak a great deal of sense duggie. In my case I still pay taxes in the UK, and there is an old saying that you shouldn't pay tax if you have no say in how it is spent. I also have family in the UK that I listen to, and know the fears that they express about the future under this current cabal.

 

I love the above description of the 'temporary' LibDem leader, the public really dislike her.

Surely she cannot last very long.

 

Seeing as I have a driving license that I don't have to renew until I am 101 speak for yourself.