Now showing "Luvvies Labour Lost".
Miliband celebrates by ordering new granite work-tops for his kitchen. In which Shakespeare proves more accurate at predicting voting than MORI, ComRes, Populus, Ashcroft or any of the other professional pundits.
Was it really only yesterday that activists were telling us that ‘everyone must get out and vote’?
We did. Blimey, you truly don’t want to listen to the whining, vitriol and bile pouring out of ‘Comment is Free’ this morning – so I shan’t give you a link. Apparently they didn’t mean ‘Vote Tory’. They should have said so…
The BBC’s Nick Robinson said ‘It’s as if an electoral firing squad has taken out a generation of Labour politicians’.
Labour laughed when they wiped out the Tory vote in Scotland years ago, activists chanting ‘How does it feel, you bastards?’ at Conservative HQ. This morning they are finally getting the answer to their question. Even Gordon Brown’s ultra safe seat went to the SNP. The Twitteratti were quip to quip that at this rate there would be more Pandas than Labour MPs in Scotland – pray they have the same inability to breed.
Historically the party of trade unions, Labour is now the party of Islington hand-wringers, fashionable Luvvies and theatrical gestures. Only in that Westminster bubble could it have been thought the meeting with Russell Brand – or ‘Rusty Rockets’ as his narcissistic Twitterfeed has it – would persuade Joe and Mrs Average their future was better with Labour. Whoever cooked up the idea of sending Miliband sliding down the mountain of disaffected voters with his tablet of stone can only have been a closet Conservative – it was a master class in reducing the population to helpless laughter. The reality that the Twitter bubble might not be totally representative of the rest of the nation must slowly dawn on people who don’t get out of Westminster enough.
George Galloway, a brief 8 days ago, said: In my 8 parliamentary elections over the last 30 years, I fought dozens of opponents. But I’ve never fought one quite as poor as Naz Shah.
One of the earliest results to come in was that of ‘poor’ Naz Shah’s jubilant election as Labour MP for Bradford West. It didn’t take George long to blame his defeat on Zionist lackeys, craven Bankers, and racists – difficult to square that last with Naz Shah’s Muslim background….
Then this morning we had the icing on the cake – Miliband lost his Balls. Actually it was the icing and marzipan, for the man who couldn’t add up the nation’s finances also demanded a re-count, so we got to see him lose twice. VE Day, 70 years ago today would have been hard pushed to improve on the cheers of a grateful nation, spared a horrific future.
The unseated MP for Morley
Was resoundingly beaten and surely,
It’s an end to his brawls
For Mr Ed Balls
And a life as a Peer prematurely.
With Douglas Alexander also gone in the overnight bloodbath, Miliband has lost his Shadow Chancellor and his Foreign Secretary which proves how right he was to steal the Labour crown from his brother David; not even Gordon Brown, a man universally disliked and mistrusted, managed to wedge himself quite so comprehensively up the electoral nostril. Surely EdStone was doing it all for the sake of the nation? David might have fooled us again.
In the last election (2010) Nick Clegg was being talked up as the new Obama, the coming man; 5 years of power sharing and he only held onto Sheffield Hallam by the skin of his teeth, but despite diligently ensuring that there were not enough Lib-Dem MPs left standing to form a quorum to unseat him as leader – he has decided to step down anyway.
Ah, Nicky, Nicky,
If you can keep your seat when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you.
As has Nigel Farage. Dammit Thanet! There will be many who will say that since UKIP got 14% of the vote and only one seat, whilst the SNP with 4% have 56 that we should change the system. It may seem unfair to UKIP – but that same ‘unfair system’ was successfully managed by the SNP so looking to see how they did so rather than whinging about the system might be more productive.
Cameron has increased his vote share, that is first time this has happened in 60 years for an incumbent prime minister. A quite remarkable achievement for a Prime Minister who had no choice other than to bring in hugely unpopular ‘austerity’ measures.
It seems voters prefer ‘austerity’ to politicians squandering their children’s future earnings! Who’da’thunk’it?
Scotland has sent a message to Westminster that is loud and clear. They have voted overwhelmingly for an ‘anti-UK’ party but they don’t wish to be unhooked from the financial umbilical cord; basically they want a divorce but for us to support them indefinitely. Time for another referendum – this time for the English. Do we want to keep them in the Union?
1826 days until the next general election…
- Dioclese
May 8, 2015 at 12:52 pm -
Loved the granite worktop picture!!
Seems I was right that the EdStone would do for Miliband what the baseball cap did for Hague… Hoorah!
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 5:39 pm -
+1
Installing a kitchen cabinet will be beyond him too.- Dave H
May 9, 2015 at 2:24 am -
Much easier than if he’d won. As I understand it, when in opposition, the Cabinet is elected by the members so it will be installed without any effort on his part. Except it won’t be his kitchen because he’s quit.
- Dave H
- Moor Larkin
- JuliaM
May 8, 2015 at 1:05 pm -
“Blimey, you truly don’t want to listen to the whining, vitriol and bile pouring out of ‘Comment is Free’ this morning …”
It’s gone full retard!
- Crazed Weevil
May 8, 2015 at 3:55 pm -
So just another normal day then?
- Ted Treen
May 9, 2015 at 12:37 am -
Nice one, Crazed, old lad.
- Ted Treen
- Crazed Weevil
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 1:06 pm -
Perspicacious point about the fishy politics of the far north, but Cameron has side-stepped the need for Westmnster confrontation by ceding more devolutionary rights after the referendum so a Tory government can quite justifiably welcome them into the mother of all Parliaments but remind them that if they want to change Scotland then to go and do it in their own Parliament. Maybe like Sinn Fein they’ll stop bothering to turn up eventually; they’ll still get their wages so what’s two hoots mon.
- JuliaM
May 8, 2015 at 1:06 pm -
Shame about Hemming. He did a lot of good shining a light on the Family Court stuff.
- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 1:22 pm -
Apparently, this morning he has been quoted as saying “I will rise from the political grave.”
One could all too easily imagine that there might be quite a queue of people, with stakes, starting to form, asking where he’s buried.
- Ho Hum
- JimmyGiro
May 8, 2015 at 1:07 pm -
Rotten little boroughs. Wee treacherous beasties.
Nowt wrong with FPTP, as long as each constituency is of similar size. The system is locally focussed, therefore takes the democracy further away from the machinations of national party executives, who would foist upon us the likes of Nick Griffin, or Silvio Berlusconi, whether any constituency wanted them or not.
- Mudplugger
May 8, 2015 at 4:05 pm -
Accepting equal constituency sizes as the fifrst objective (a Chartist idea, I seem to recall), my ideal refinement on FPTP would be a two-stage election.
After the first vote, if no-one achieved 50% of the turnout, you have run-off between the top two the next week. That way, every seat gets a member elected by a majority, a truly ‘popular’ MP.- therealguyfaux
May 8, 2015 at 8:59 pm -
Nevah hoppen. It’s a Yank idea, and too many people think there’s too much “American” about the political system already.
But it’s a good idea nonetheless, and one that falls under the heading: “They would never come up with such ideas, because such ideas make too much sense.”
- Ted Treen
May 9, 2015 at 12:42 am -
“…many people think there’s too much “American” about the political system already…”
There is indeed: like our rebel colonials’ system, ours seems to ensure the election of tosspots, morons, and venal self-serving nasties.
- Mudplugger
May 9, 2015 at 9:28 am -
It’s actually closer to the French system of electing their Presidents, a two-part system with a run-off between the top two.
- therealguyfaux
May 9, 2015 at 8:52 pm -
It is the way many offices below the Federal Government level are contested in the various States of the Union, and my suggestion that it was a Yank system was predicated on its being a uniform one for ALL offices in that particular state, legislative as well as executive. In theory (though because of gerrymandering, hardly likely), you might not know the control of one or both chambers of the State Assemblies for a week if there were more than just (R) and (D) candidates.
But I suppose there would be a possible election fatigue factor nationally in the UK if not enough seats were won outright by 50%+1. If control of Parliament were in the balance in the run-off, though, what would the turnout be, versus a who-cares-it’ll-only-cut-into-a-too-huge-Parliamentary-majority-to-be-toppled runoff held in very few constituencies? Nobody knows, which is why they won’t do it– they’re afraid to see that maybe there WOULDN’T be a fall-off for Rd 2 and indeed an increase. Would there be a law mandating you needed to vote in RD 1 or you are barred second time? These would ALL need to be debated– good luck, getting an honest debate on anything to do with the system of elections.
- therealguyfaux
- Ted Treen
- therealguyfaux
- Mudplugger
- Duncan Disorderly
May 8, 2015 at 1:18 pm -
“It seems voters prefer ‘austerity’ to politicians squandering their children’s future earnings! Who’da’thunk’it?”
Austerity measures are strikingly popular, possibly on the basis that “if something tastes bad, it must be good for you”. I read the blog by economist Simon Wren-Lewis, and he makes a very convincing case that austerity measures have been hugely damaging to the economy. It was only the partial relaxation a couple of years ago that allowed the economy to grow at all. Ed Milliband really missed a trick in not articulating an unashamed anti-austerity agenda.
http://mainlymacro.blogspot.in/- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 1:40 pm -
Isn’t the point about “national debt” the same as any other debt? You remain solvent so long as you retain the confidence of whoever you are in debt to. In global terms that means whatever government is in place they will have to comply with “international money” and it’s requirements. It is only at the point where the government is trading on a real current account supplied by the taxation of it’s own people that that government will then become beholden TO those people, for WE then become their Banker. It is vital to the very existence of democracy that big governments make “the country” debt free to the rest of the world and it’s financiers.
Easier said than done, but remortgaging your house only works for a while, like any other Ponzi Scheme and then you get evicted.
- Mr Ecks
May 9, 2015 at 1:14 pm -
Austerity is a joke. The tiny pathetic cuts BlueLab made are not worth bothering with . They have had zero impact on the ever growing debt and only served to give ZaNu a “narrative”–which didn’t work as it turned out. If anybody thinks what has gone before is austerity wait until it really hits the fan.
- Mr Ecks
- Moor Larkin
- Flaxen Saxon
May 8, 2015 at 1:19 pm -
Thankfully, I live in Nuzzyland. Last time I looked we have less days to the next election than yours. As usual, I’ll be voting National Bolshevist in any forthcoming election.
- Chris
May 8, 2015 at 1:31 pm -
I worked the full day yesterday, and witnessed plenty of voters proudly plumping for UKIP. Not because their own MP is a bad apple – Alan Johnson is the one New Labour ‘star’ that was probably worthy of a safe seat in a Labour stronghold and his image suited the fact he inherited the decent side of the city too compared to the other two gobshites that represent the place – and not because they are, as Twitter & the media would have it, ignorant bigots. It appears that many ordinary working folk living ordinary lives in ordinary homes feel conned by the party they voted for and see UKIP as worth a shot. Mr Johnson was not in danger of losing his seat, but throughout the day it grew apparent to me that your traditional Labour people not on Twitter were voting UKIP – people who, like many of us, are bemused and sickened by the ‘descent of man’. The young people – as physically immature as they are emotionally, many of these 19/20 years resembling the 12 year olds of 20/30 years ago – were keen to vote, but sadly didn’t know why or who they should vote for. I was told several time “there should be someone here to tell us who’s best”. The future is bleak.
I despise Labour myself, more than any other party – my eyes are open wide enough to see how they conned their own supporters 20 years ago, and then conned the entire nation. There is nothing more insidious than that kind of treachery, and some idiots are still clinging on to their root belief they are ‘the workers party’ – I noted how they have maintained this yesterday. You have your middle-class socialite (sociopath in some cases) Labour MP’s and lobbyists, and you have your Labour councillors. Karen Danczuk was one side of that coin, Google ‘Nadine Fudge’ to see what I mean about the other – she and her daughter are councillors ‘for the people’. Ma Fudge looks like Jim Bowen in drag and smokes roll-ups, and speaks to the proles in their own language whilst enjoying the perks of being their spokesperson, year in year out – helping maintain the illusion of a party that effectively died 21 years ago with John Smith.
I see now the other leaders have quit, Hamhead is PM and leader of the totalitarian Brave New World.
My prediction: Slater & Moron personal injury lawyers will launch a military coup and overthrow the monarchy with the help of their friends on the Labour backbenches, whilst “Rusty Rockets” tries to organise a “Trews Love-in” by shagging all the Tory MP’s gwandaughters – but he is suddenly imprisoned as Queen Liz III raises the Age of Consent to 25 by Royal Charter, and once a formality of a trial (Victim’s Law meaning the accused has no defence) has finished he is executed publicly in Parliament Square.- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 1:43 pm -
The left have always been con artists. The SNP are no different from their political forebears. Man, but it’s depressing to see how many people can still be sold the notion, by a bunch of small minded, authoritarian, bigots that their ‘oppression’ will be overturned and that they will inherit some promised land of ‘mair purruge ‘n kilts’.
- The Jannie
May 8, 2015 at 8:51 pm -
There seems to be the necessary supply of nonthinkers among my countrymen and women who don’t recognise a socialist dictatorship when it waves a saltire at them.
- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 10:12 pm -
O wad some Pow’r the giftie gie ’em
To see thimsels as others see thim!
It wad frae monie a blunder free them
An’ foolish notion:
What airs in dress an’ gait wad lea’e ’em,
And ev’n Devolution!And, BTW, that’s ‘our’ countrymen
- Ho Hum
- The Jannie
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 2:00 pm -
@Chris
Interesting to ponder the real source of the beating heart of that perticular beast.“We will never know how many lives we changed for the better because we had the courage to step up at a time of crisis. But we have done something that cannot be undone because there can be no doubt that we government with Britain a far stronger, fairer, greener, and more liberal country than it was five years ago.”
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/generalelection/nick-clegg-resigns-the-liberal-democrat-leaders-resignation-speech-text-in-full-10235830.html
“Those words revealed a selfless dignity which is very rare in politics but common amongst Liberal Democrats. If our losses today are part payment for every family that is more secure because of a job we helped to create, every person with depression who is treated with a compassion they deserve, every child who does a little better in school, every apprentice with a long and rewarding career to look forward to, every gay couple who know that their love is worth no less than anyone else’s and every pensioner with a little more freedom and dignity in retirement then I hope at least our losses can be endured with a little selfless dignity too.We continue to live in interesting times.
- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 2:56 pm -
‘there can be no doubt that we [leave?] government with Britain a far ………….. more liberal country than it was five years ago’
Assuming that, after the correction, that was what he did say, that’s just not true. I’m a paid up LD member. Primarily because of my liberal leanings. Much the same reasons that I visit this blog. Regardless of its general political stance, most people here write, or at least seem to, with convictions which are resonant with the notions of freedom, justice, individual responsibility, and the like.
But I nearly quit the LDs on a few occasions over this last 5 years, because this country is definitely less liberal than before. Sure, the LDs spoke up on many issues that mattered to our country being able to continue to pass itself off as some semblance of a liberal democracy. And they held back some of the worst measures that threatened the future freedoms of you, me and, if you are so privileged, our children.
But some of the LD MPs who have been sent out to grass probably deserve it, given their, apparent, compliance in helping to let pass some of the more draconian stuff, particularly with regards to free speech – the American notion of that concept, which includes both personal speech and personal behaviours – those from the ‘Ministry of Justice’ possibly being amongst the worst in that regard
My worries for our future are that the sort of liberal approach many writing here seem to take to life is now likely to be under more direct threat than ever before and, with Labour and, possibly even more so, the SNP, being two sides of the same, even more authoritarian, coin, there is no longer any significant voice that counts which will rise up to challenge what will now happen.
I appreciate that soothsaying is not a popular pastime , but in looking at the big picture, medium term, forecast that’s where I see that we’re headed.
Maybe we’re just products of our time, and past our sell by date, but for what some of us may regard as being the right to personal liberties, the times ahead may well be interesting
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 3:18 pm -
Well, given that Tories themselves have largely been at the sharp end of the False Accusation Industry, if they cannot see the legal/civil rights “system” has been corrupted then nobody will. Nigel Evans as the new Attorney General would be cool as a Schrodingers cat amongst the pigeons and their legal stooges.
- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 3:28 pm -
With Paul Gambaccini as his Special Adviser….
- Ho Hum
- Mudplugger
May 8, 2015 at 4:08 pm -
Does LD stand for Liberal Democrats ? After yesterday, it may now stand for ‘Lost Deposit’.
- Moor Larkin
- Ho Hum
- Ted Treen
May 9, 2015 at 1:00 am -
“…a party that effectively died 21 years ago with John Smith…”
If only it were that recent: many of the tribal ‘working class’ who vote Labour, do so since they and their families for quite a few generations have been conditioned by handed-down legend that the Labour party is still led by the spirit of Kier Hardie and cares for the workers.
The party was hi-jacked some eighty years ago by middle-class ‘intellectuals’, referred to by Joe Stalin as “Useful idiots”, and it has remained in their hands ever since.
- Ho Hum
- Ed P
May 8, 2015 at 1:37 pm -
Love “Edstone”! Or maybe “Goebbels”, as now he has no balls at all?
- The Blocked Dwarf
May 8, 2015 at 1:47 pm -
Return of THE BASTARDS *underlining in notebook*
There is no political force more savage, diabolical even, than the Communards of ’22. I forsee a public debagging and caning for Cameron Junior sometime soon.
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 1:50 pm -
Thought they were all in UKIP now…
- Moor Larkin
- binao
May 8, 2015 at 2:10 pm -
A sigh of relief despite having no party affiliation whatsoever.
But I cannot stand the arrogant self righteous whining of the left that the awful Tories were playing scare tactics over Labour getting in bed with the SNP. First because why wouldn’t they? Second because how is it the left can accuse everybody else of a vast range of nastiness, but won’t take it themselves? Because only they can be right.
It’s this rabid denial of any other opinion or point of view that is so telling.
And in the end they found we aren’t all as stupid, gullible & ill informed as they’d hoped.
That’s how it seems to me.
As an aside I dipped in to the Paxman prog a couple of times last night. Was this the most embarrassing toe curlingly bad prog ever made at election time? - Wigner’s Friend
May 8, 2015 at 2:13 pm -
An excellent post Ma’am, if I may say so, and surely a contender for Julia’s “post title of the month”.
- JuliaM
May 8, 2015 at 3:18 pm -
I might even do a special Election issue..
- macheath
May 8, 2015 at 3:51 pm -
Hear, hear! (And ‘Dammit, Thanet!’ is pure genius).
If you are opening up the floor (after your superb example):
As Lib Dem and Labour seats fall
And Miliband goes to the wall,
We hear with elation
Of Morley’s castration;
The cut that’s unkindest of all.- Engineer
May 8, 2015 at 4:10 pm -
Wahey! A Macheath limerick – and a belter, too! The blog is back to it’s best….
- Mudplugger
May 8, 2015 at 4:24 pm -
The two Eds have proved they can cop it,
Give either a Ball and they’ll drop it.
But their greatest curse
Is our Macheath in verse,
And the limerick above, I can’t top it.- JuliaM
May 9, 2015 at 6:38 am -
/applause
- JuliaM
- Engineer
- JuliaM
- BritInMontreal
May 8, 2015 at 2:39 pm -
Three things Dave should asap.
1. repeal the Climate Change Act (& start building power stations, coal, oil, gas, nuclear, whatever)
2. redraw constituency boundaries so the bias towards Labour is removed.
3. grant Scotland independence.- Davidsb
May 8, 2015 at 5:09 pm -
Well said, BritInMontreal.
If I may offer some suggestions for next Tuesday (I assume your three will be passed on Monday):-
4) replace the HRA with a British Bill of Human Rights, with the UK Supreme Court as the final arbiter (sadly, this may get us thrown out of the EU…)
5) give M Gove authority to abolish 90% of the UKs quangos (that’s 90% by cost, not numbers…)
6) locate a copy of UKIP’s manifesto, identify the page containing the policy on funding the BBC, and adopt it as Government policy, effective immediately.
7) allocate the International Aid budget solely to disaster/emergency relief, and use part of the budget to pay the Army, Navy and Air Force to deliver said assistance to wherever it is neededAny other suggestions out there?
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 5:32 pm -
Withdraw from all “Human Rights”. It’s all a bloody fiction like a gift from a God who doesn’t exist.
Concentrate on Civil Rights. They can be real but they rely on a decent society that never forgets that there but for the grace of God…. - Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 6:03 pm -
With reference to your 4) above, are you really serious about having a blank piece of paper, written by Daily Mail readers?
- Ho Hum
May 8, 2015 at 6:05 pm -
And as for 7), I want soldiers trained to shoot bullets, not deliver Sainsbury’s Basics
- Engineer
May 8, 2015 at 6:07 pm -
Adopt UKIP’s Energy Policy.
- Moor Larkin
- Davidsb
- Engineer
May 8, 2015 at 3:08 pm -
In 2010, the Labour stated economic policy was to halve the deficit in five years, and use the money borrowed as an economic stimulus. The electorate rejected this plan, noting the point made that it would increase the National Debt to unprecidented levels, placing a massive burden on future generations. Instead, they plumped for a mish-mash of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.
Fast forward five years. The deficit has been pretty well exactly halved. The money borrowed has been spent on an undeclared but nonetheless real fiscal stimulus. The National Debt has risen to unprecidented levels, placing a massive etc. etc. The larger part of the Coalition government responsible for this has just been returned to power with a slim majority.
Funny old world.
- Cascadian
May 8, 2015 at 4:17 pm -
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 5:35 pm -
Spend it (or give it away) while you can is the best financial advice, and there seems to be a window of opportunity just opened.
- Moor Larkin
- Cascadian
- Daft Lassie
May 8, 2015 at 3:17 pm -
Rather fascinatingly, SNP could only take seats away from Labour (all except a handful) and thus their chances of forming a coalition with Labour, however well they did, were influenced by Labour’s strength or weakness in England (as complained about by Wee Nicola). The Conservative’s victory is all the more remarkable given that they faced a big UKIP threat to their voter base, the system is somewhat stacked against them anyway, and the latter is even worse than it should be because the Lib Dem support for the Boundaries review. I look forward to seeing the modelling of what the 600 seat, more balanced, HoC would have looked like today. Probably nowhere near so marginal.
If I were Cameron, then I would push forwards financial autonomy for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as far as the specific national spends are concerned, keeping only a balanced contribution on a basis yet to be decided for those things run centrally, for example, defence, overseas aid, and so forth, and distribute the national debt on the same basis. I think I might also toy with an English referendum on whether the English want to remain tied to those other places, and I’d certainly legislate to fix the West Lothian question. Plus, the Boundaries would be updated ASAP.
Redwood was good on the EU thing this morning, pointing out that we are partly responsible for the EU role in our lives by taking EU rules and regulations far too seriously.
- binao
May 8, 2015 at 4:25 pm -
I still think Cameron should promptly call for commitment from Scotland, Wales & N.I.
Terms to be agreed, but please commit to be with England in a partnership, or let’s get on with our separate lives. We’re better off together I’m sure, but we can’t be forever debating these special arrangements while those paying the bills never get a say on their own affairs.
Pandering to the separatists isn’t democracy, it’s giving autonomy without responsibility; that’s all carried on the backs of the English.
Time to take the initiative instead of being forever on the defensive.
No wish to offend, but we can’t sort out our relationship with Europe until we sort this one out.
Just how I see it.
- binao
- Furor Teutonicus
May 8, 2015 at 4:39 pm -
XX and racists – difficult to square that last with Naz Shah’s Muslim background….XX
What race is “Moslem” then????
- Moor Larkin
May 8, 2015 at 5:33 pm -
Dunno, but wearing burkhas and praying a lot means they’re never likely to win it.
- Moor Larkin
- Carol42
May 8, 2015 at 5:25 pm -
I managed to stay awake until 7am and was delighted we didn’t have Milliband and Sturgeon, I know she’s not an MP but would be pulling the strings. I am not a great Cameron fan but he was definitely the lesser of two evils, at least now he can get the boundary changes through they are long overdue. My best moment was getting rid of Vince Cable, never could stand him.
- binao
May 8, 2015 at 8:29 pm -
Ah, Vince Cable.
A fate well overdue. Like a self appointed saloon bar expert, he’d dined too long on what would seem to be an occasional opinion that came true. Unfortunate that he was able to present himself as the old buffer that, tap of the nose, knew what was what. He didn’t.
Did he do anything? Do tell.I think the failure to back the boundary changes were Clegg’s most unforgiveable dereliction. Maybe he couldn’t get his yellow perils to do it, but it was more important for democracy than his plan to stuff the Lords with a another load of long term party placemen.
Unforgiveable.- therealguyfaux
May 8, 2015 at 9:22 pm -
The story I always enjoyed about Vince Cable was that, as an MP commuting from an outlying area of Greater London, and one without a pied-a-terre near Westminster, he failed to claim certain expenses related to maintaining a second home (as he did not need nor did he have one). But he didn’t know that he ought, according to the rules, have claimed a different allowance– so he didn’t, and when same was brought to his attention, he then looked to recoup some of the dosh he’d forgone. Beauty of a move, right? But I could have told you, Vincent, this world was never made for one of cluelessness like you….
Then, under the coalition, he became a Minister for Business. Well, he sure gave the taxpayers “the business” when he sought the back allowances, didn’t he?
- Daft Lassie
May 8, 2015 at 10:31 pm -
So what would have been the results if the LDs had gone along with the boundary changes and reduction in the number of seats to 600? Anyone know? Apparently they would have done better in 2010 than they did.
- binao
May 9, 2015 at 8:31 am -
Lassie, I think if boundary review were advantageous to the LDs it would have happened during coalition.
Having a pet over the failure to get voting reform & the LD version of an elected Lords through was perhaps understandable when it would have boosted LD representation.
Their appetite might be a little diminished now by seeing UKIP ahead of them on that basis.
As with MEPs.
- binao
- therealguyfaux
- binao
- Chris
May 8, 2015 at 5:48 pm -
- JimmyGiro
May 8, 2015 at 6:32 pm -
He’s a cat person, how can he have any real empathy!?
- JimmyGiro
- jaded48
May 8, 2015 at 6:40 pm -
The lefty scum didn’t import enough votes to win this time and they had 13 years to do it.Imagine what will happen if they ever get in again.
- Mudplugger
May 8, 2015 at 8:17 pm -
I heard that their plan was to send all the fleet into the Med to ‘rescue’ the next million or two of their voters – ship them straight here and cut out the middlemen in Calais.
- Mudplugger
- Bernard from Bucks
May 8, 2015 at 6:45 pm -
“It may seem unfair to UKIP – but that same ‘unfair system’ was successfully managed by the SNP so looking to see how they did so rather than whinging about the system might be more productive.”
No thanks Anna, I don’t think it is a good idea for UKIP to ‘manage’ the system by re-branding themselves as ‘British Nationalists’ or even ‘English Nationalists’. The good people of the UK will most certainly give us the thumbs down for that. We are patriots.
The SNP used this election as a re-run of the recent referendum to break up the UK Union.
The ‘U’ in UKIP stands for ‘united’. - Joe Public
May 8, 2015 at 7:32 pm -
Every little helped!
“A winning Conservative candidate in Britain’s general election said on Friday he would like to thank the anonymous voter who drew a penis next to his name on the ballot paper and had it counted as a valid vote.”
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/05/08/uk-britain-election-penis-idUKKBN0NT1YP20150508
- Joe Public
May 8, 2015 at 7:37 pm -
“Amazingly, because it was neatly drawn within the confines of the box the returning officer deemed it a valid vote.”
Could this be the life-size inspiration:
- Joe Public
- Jack-the-Grad
May 8, 2015 at 9:48 pm -
“It didn’t take George long to blame his defeat on Zionist lackeys, craven Bankers, and racists – difficult to square that last with Naz Shah’s Muslim background….”
1] What has religion to do with race?
2] It’s ‘difficult to square’ only if you’re as thick pig-s*** and/or sufficiently brainwashed to accept the outrageous principle enshrined in law by that nice Scotchman Macpherson [knowing his own country wouldn’t be affected since there are no immigrants to speak of north of the border] that only white people can be ‘racist’ and in practice only English people [since you have to be white to be English as we know]. If there’s anything else you’re struggling to understand please don’t hesitate to ask.- Michael
May 8, 2015 at 11:07 pm -
Ah yes, Bradford. That well know hotbed of Zionist activists.
- Michael
May 8, 2015 at 11:08 pm -
** well known, sorry
- Michael
- Michael
- Michael
May 8, 2015 at 11:04 pm -
Mixed emotions. Sad that UKIP’s support didn’t get translated into seats (especially for Farage). Pleased that they are becoming a major political force and have set the agenda on the anti-democratic cabal that is the European Union. Relieved that we don’t have Ed / Nicola running (or ruining) the place. Very chuffed that Danny Alexander, Vince Cable and especially the unpleasant Ed Balls is gone. As for Ed Miliband – little sympathy. He’s a student politician who has never grown up or spent a day in the real world. Waiting to see how Cameron is going to wiggle out of his commitment to hold a European referendum.
- Michael
May 8, 2015 at 11:05 pm -
Oh, and shedding no tears for Galloway, obviously…
- Overthehill
May 9, 2015 at 5:42 am -
Not even tears of laughter or joy, Michael? His porcine bristled face was a joy to behold as his defeat was declared.
- Michael
May 9, 2015 at 5:32 pm -
You got me there.
- Michael
- Overthehill
- Michael
- Dave H
May 9, 2015 at 2:22 am -
Well done to Morley and Outwood for getting their Balls out.
- Engineer
May 9, 2015 at 8:19 am -
The odious wife of said Balls is still about, and a contender for the leadership, if rumours are to be believed. Thus, Labour have ‘one ball left’ as it were…
- macheath
May 9, 2015 at 9:10 am -
What is perhaps more frightening, given the shameless nepotism of the New Labour elite, is that we only have a decade or so before the offspring of this pair are foisted onto the electorate.
- macheath
- Engineer
- hereward
May 9, 2015 at 12:56 pm -
Quote ” It may seem unfair to UKIP – but that same ‘unfair system’ was successfully managed by the SNP so looking to see how they did so rather than whinging about the system might be more productive. ” A Scottish vote was worth 4 votes to one English vote And with that short comment 4 million voters are written off . Still who cares ?
They supported UKIP . A Party I disapprove of ! - Bill Sticker
May 9, 2015 at 6:34 pm -
Brown getting it in the neck has made my year. Possibly a decade.
- Furor Teutonicus
May 9, 2015 at 10:04 pm -
Sorry, I appear to heve missed that… You mean Incapability (Gordon) Brown?
He lost his seat??
When that is correct, I would have LOVED to be a fly on the wall at THAT count!
- Furor Teutonicus
- Pete in Whanganui
May 10, 2015 at 9:18 am -
I wish people would stop assuming the SNP speak for Scotland. As far as I can see, all that’s happened is that most of the ‘yes’ voters in the referendum (1.4 million of the 1.6 million) voted SNP. The ‘no’ voters were split among the remaining parties, or just stayed home (turnout was down on the referendum). As Anna noted the SNP have managed this very well to win (almost) all the seats, but I’m still certain that there is no majority for independence.
- Andrew Duffin
May 11, 2015 at 12:47 pm -
What Peter in Whanganui said.
There were almost as many votes cast in Scotland against the SNP, as for them (some people are saying more but I think that is not quite true).
Again it’s FPTP that has enabled this extraordinary outcome.
“Not in my name” – just as the anti-war protestors said of Blair, so say I of wee Nicola and her puppet-master big Alex.
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