Elections 2005

[Mushroom]

With Blair slumping in the polls since the war in Iraq, the Hutton Report coming up alongside the House of Commons vote on university top-up fees, Michael Howard seemingly abandoning the Conservatives' previous pledge to scrap tuition fees and the Liberal Democrats' recent victory in the Brent East by-election, what do you make of the UK political scene at the moment?

Can Blair survive to the next election, and if so, can he survive through it?
Will the Tories make a major comeback under Howard?
Could the Liberal Democrats become the official opposition?

Personally i think Blair's future currently rests on the Hutton Report and the vote on top-up fees... if both of those go against him, he may have to eventually step down as Prime Minister. If that does happen, would Gordon Brown make a better PM? Would he be able to win the next election?

It's going to be interesting to watch, to say the least.

[plattbridger]

i hope and pray that the tories will be voted into save us all from tonys insanity and its fair to say the lib dems will make their usual slight gains here and there

i think the big linch pin in the GE comes with whether tony will step down and given the number of times he said "ive considered it" or "i will step down if so and so" has happened i cant see him doing it

lets hope there is a massive vote of no confidence and labour bungs the chancellor in as the new leader then he will truely be the son of thatcher :D


...the grinning arsehole

[Magpie]

Idealy i'd like to see the liberal democrats in power, but as many people view voting for them as "throwing away your vote" I doubt i'll be seeing this any time soon.

Then I must say, although it goes against popular opinion, I'd still like to see the Labour party in power, yes Tony Blair messed up with the war on iraq, but we I think we also have the lowest unemployment rate since 70-something.

Please don't let the tories back in power.

[Mushroom]

Originally posted by Magpie
Idealy i'd like to see the liberal democrats in power, but as many people view voting for them as "throwing away your vote" I doubt i'll be seeing this any time soon.

Then I must say, although it goes against popular opinion, I'd still like to see the Labour party in power, yes Tony Blair messed up with the war on iraq, but we I think we also have the lowest unemployment rate since 70-something.

Please don't let the tories back in power.
This more or less echoes my sentiments exactly :)

[Ouroboros]

And mine...

How strange...

The only point I differ (very slightly) on, is that I think Blair is pretty much almost as bad as the Tories.

[Zin]

Personnally, I want Lib Dems in power

I know this is probably unlikely, but if you have a look at Conservatives and Labour's track records over the years, it isn't very impressive. Both parties are falling apart and go back on their word about polocies they promise around election time.

Now take the Lib Dems. They haven't been in power for a while and some of their polocies are quite good. So putting condom machines in every public toilet (including schools) and having a proportional representation style of voting (much like the voting system in Weimar Germany, after WW1), but personnally, I'd like to see them in power as Charles Kennedy would make a good Prime Minister.

If the Lib Dems don't win (which is probably likely), I'd like to see them as the main opposition, as the Tories have really gone downhill

[Tommuz]

It'll be between the tories and lib dems for me. Tuition fees and living in the south east have made me hate tony blair. However if Michael Howard has also decided to drop the pldege to abolish tuition fees, i'll probably be voting for lib dems

[Evilone]

Originally posted by Dumples
And mine...

How strange...

The only point I differ (very slightly) on, is that I think Blair is pretty much almost as bad as the Tories.

he IS a tory. pfft.

[NIGHTCOW]

I also think Charles Kennedy would make a good PM but I don't think they have enough policies to win round the middle classes, who are invariably the ones who decide which party gets in. I don't think their stance on increasing income tax would sit particularly well with this group for example. Also, as you mention, the old stigma of the lib dems being a waste of a vote is going to be very difiicult to overturn.

The way I see it, labour has such a large majority, that in order for the Conservatives to turn this around there would have to be the biggest change in policy and image in a very long time. I hope Blair does go, the slimey little git, but I dont know if Brown would be any better. Dennis Skinner would have made a great prime minister (well it would have been a laugh anyway) but of the current party I would like to have seen Robin Cook as leader. Always seemed like a good egg to me

[Zin]

Originally posted by NIGHTCOW
I hope Blair does go, the slimey little git, but I dont know if Brown would be any better. Dennis Skinner would have made a great prime minister (well it would have been a laugh anyway) but of the current party I would like to have seen Robin Cook as leader. Always seemed like a good egg to me

Blair would probably go from the hiatus over tution-fees (man he got a grilling on Newsnight last night :D ) and Gorden Brwon of the Deputy PM, John Prescott will take over.

To be honest, whoever takes over will get some botes back for Labour, just because of the fact that it isn't Blair. However, Blair screwed up the Labour party's image so much with his 'New Labour' that nobody trusts him, but will vote for him because of the Thatcher's rule still haunting the Tories. Lib Dems will probably gain ground because nobody trusts Labour or Tories

[Tommuz]

Actually, you know who would make a good PM?



BORIS JOHNSON!!! ;)

[NIGHTCOW]

Yer, he should have run for leader. PMQ's would have to have been broadcast prime time cos they'd be so legendary

[Zin]

Originally posted by Tommuz
Actually, you know who would make a good PM?



BORIS JOHNSON!!! ;)

What about Angus Deaton?

He'd fit the criteria

[Hydralisk]

Paul merton!

He's got more sense than any 5 politictions put together :p

Failing that.... I dont care, 'coz I'm 14

[eleanor]

I read in the Independent today that the Lib Dems propose to tax every earner of £100,000+ 50%. They would use this tax money to remove tuition fees and top-up fees, and to replace loans with good old-fashioned grants. My vote's for them next year, because I've been put off Labour by the dodgy mess surrounding Dr Kelly and top-up fees. That's if I sort out postal vote, because I'll be in France next year.

The boyfriend made the very good point that if no-one took the view that a vote for the Lib Dems is wasted, then they would probably stand a much higher and much fairer chance of winning. I agree.

[leeroy]

Originally posted by Tommuz
Actually, you know who would make a good PM?



BORIS JOHNSON!!! ;)

you are so right, i love boris

[Mushroom]

Yes, i think there's no doubt that i'll be voting Lib Dem at the general election (i'll be old enough to by then \o/).
Oh, and the only way you'd ever get me to vote tory is to have Boris Johnson as leader... then perhaps i might think about it :D

http://www.nosox.org/b3ta/bbcbojo.png
click for full :p (http://www.nosox.org/b3ta/bbcnews4.png)
(Please bear in mind i made this just after they'd got rid of IDS!)

-edit- if your browser doesn't like opening .pngs, there's a bigger jpeg version here (http://www.nosox.org/b3ta/bbcnews4.jpg)

[sack the chimp]

Ahh, the wonders of the two party system. Lib dems would be good, Boris, yeah, but its not gonna change much either way.
Personally i think they're all so far off the mark it wont make any real difference.
Most people are stupid, and Howard actually looks quite strong. The futures bleak, the futures red/blue. Purple maybe.

[Mushroom]

Originally posted by sack the chimp
Most people are stupid, and Howard actually looks quite strong. The futures bleak, the futures red/blue. Purple maybe.
I do agree with you that he looks strong, but I also agree with Anne Widdecombe on this one - there definitely is something of the night about him!

[sack the chimp]

Of course theres something of the night about him - he's a politician - and a tory at that.

Cool sig by the way.