General Election 2019

LibDems in Hitchin and Harpenden constituency have claimed that Labour voters should vote tactically for them as they are the only ones who can beat the Tories in that seat.

Their data is drawn from local election results, I was told.

 

Hundreds and hundreds of thousands of them are now dead. Not arrogance. Sorry they are dead, but thankful their votes have been replaced by young remainers, tilting the country’s beliefs in favour of staying in the EU.

 

Have a good voting day one and all..

This is our very limited democratic right to have our say.

I just hope that the future brings a government that cares for the populace...

 

Hi Duggie, if I joined Bori's new cabinet I would campaign to simplify the rules on residency and voting rights.

I would disqualify any expats not resident in the UK for more than 10 years from voting in general elections and referendums. I would also give the right to vote to any LEGAL immigrant residing in the UK for more than 10 years. This would ensure only those substantially effected by the result would be allowed to participate.

 

I'm afraid you lost, accept the democratic result.

 

This is something which needs to be standardized over the EU. As far as I am aware a person cannot be disenfranchized completely - that is the theory, but the practice is different. Currently British ex pats living abroad lose their voting rights for UK elections after 15 years absence from the country - this would be ok. if they then have full voting rights in their adopted country, but that isn't always the case. In Germany you get full voting rights only if you have German nationality - so a Briton who has been here for over 15 years but hasn't naturalized would have no full voting rights anywhere. So this needs to be standardized internationally - which isn't currently the case because the EU has always refrained from interfering with the internal political arrangements of its member states. This is completely different throughout Europe. I would say that, on principle, there should be no taxation without representation - ie. if you pay taxes you vote, simple as that. However - voting rights without knowledge of the language is problematic. In Belgium nearly all foreigners are naturalized and this is coupled with compulsory voting - which leads to the parties there having to print all their material in several languages.

 

Not ''one and all'' Yorkie. I hope that all Tories in rural areas suffer from their cars not starting this morning - I am trying to put a jinx on this at this very moment !

 

I am interested in the politics of all countries Duggie. By your way of thinking only those who live in a country would want to express opinions about the politics there - so SH has no right to say anything about France and none of us can criticize Trump because we don't live in the USA. It also implies that all the Poles and Rumanians living in the UK don't have any interest in Poland or Rumania, and are remote from all developments there - so, if their 'interest' is now in Britain then give them all voting rights and settled residence.

 

So do you think my idea is fair?

 

My daughter has been struck down with tonsillitis, she will not be able to go out to vote Conservative.

Do you germanic witches power?

 

I've already answered that - 'no taxation without representation'. People should be allowed to vote where they pay their taxes - upon proof of the required linguistic knowledge. If you're not prepared to give foreigners the vote for the first 10 years then you shouldn't be taxing them either.

 

I don't agree. I think a 10 year probation period is fair. The taxes they pay is for the facilities the state provides for them. I also think after 10 years being non resident an expat should lose any influence over the UK. With my proposal the ex-pat's rights will simply be transferred to their new country of residence.

 

IMO.. A person should have the right to vote where they are resident.. As long as registered by a certain date.
A national should also be allowed to vote on referenda in their home country no matter where they currently reside

 

I wouldn't wish things like tonsilitis on anyone SH. I was thinking more about harmless things like a spluttering, and final giving up of engines The Valkyries and Rhine maidens over here are working on it. Hope your daughter gets better soon.

 

But simply transfering their rights to another country means international cooperation - the very sort of cooperation which you are destroying with Brexit. Immigrants automatically have a foot in both camps and are influenced by affairs in both their homeland and their adopted countries - particularly when those countries cease to be partners and become competitors, or there is a deterioration of relationships. Imagine the situation for British people living abroad if, suddenly, Britain no longer existed and they had to choose between applying to be English, Welsh or Scottish - all of this happening in the distance without any possible imput from yourself. I had experience of this because I was in Germany throughout the 90s when thousands of Yugoslavs suddenly had to become Croats Serbs or Bosnians (with the respective rights of those 3 new countries). Yugoslavs suddenly became Serbs and their legal status plummeted.

 

Clearly international cooperation does not rely on being a member of the EU. There is no chance of Britain not existing. Scotland and Wales will never leave, the financial reliance on London is simply too great. I can however see NI leaving within the next 20 years after a democratic referendum which of course I would fully respect.

 

This whole business of having a piece of paper saying where you were born, and using it to decide what you as an individual can do is quite ridiculous. What you actually do where you live should be far more important. Many English people by birth have become local councillors in France working for their communities. They have done a good enough job in some instances to become Mayor, and been re-elected many times. Yet because they still wish to remain Brits as well as European they will have to stand down because of Brexit. It is very small minded indeed to say that you cannot do something that is good for where you live because of a piece of paper. Agreements were accepted that people could live wherever they wished, but now we have people wishing to impose a different way of life for others.

 

You should complain to the French authorities.

 

Nothing to do with them. It is the UK government that is responsible for this situation, and the people who vote for them who wish to control the lives of others.

 

No, the Brexiteers voted to control what was happening in the UK. It is up to other EU countries to decide how much they value Uk expats. You will find any problems caused are because of the typical intransigence of the French government. I suggest you join the millions of others on the streets to protest against Macron's awful regime.