UK 2015 General election

[STEED]

OK first up you want to take the piss use this thread.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...93711&page=255

This one is the serious thread

OK their out the blocks but its slow at the moment so anyone watch SKY the leaders debate?

To be honest I was like the audience after Dave & Ed did their bit still not sure. I noted one thing which was a bit of a surprise UKIP leader Nigel Farage went with Ed!

I think we are heading for another Hung Parliament and UKIP SNP & Lib Dems will have there role to play and maybe the DUP and Green Party as well.

[Oberon]

That was this week?

Whoops, time to visit youtube I think...

[Tchocky]

I'm terrified of all possible outcomes.


God help me I'd probably vote Green.

[Oberon]

Most of the way through watching (well, listening to be honest) to it now.

I will say this for the Tories, they probably have done better work on the economy than Labour could have done within this time period. However, the economy is only part of a government strategy and the rest of their strategy has failed. They have taken the money from the wrong parts of society in order to cushion the impact on their power-base. Unfortunately though, it's a Catch-22 because if they tried to take the money from those who have lots of money then they'll move out of the country, so they have to target those who can't move. The easy target.

Milliband...the wrong brother won, and I think it was the Unions that put him there, and regretted it later when the Tories tore Labour a new one for being in the pockets of the Unions and Labour was forced to go through their membership ties with a fine tooth comb after the debacle in Scotland.
Since this he's really struggled to climb out of the shadow of Blair and Brown (and his brother for that matter), and has found himself unable to put forward a plan to help keep the economy intact without stealing parts from the Conservative economic plans.
I like the idea of Labour taking on some of the monopolist companies, but honestly I don't think that they have the power to do that, and I think that if they got into power they probably would water down the plans or not enact them at all.

Now the interview is coming to a close. I'd say that Milliband did better than Cameron, he was certainly trying to shed his timid panda image and come out fighting. However, he's still vague when it comes to actual facts and figures. That's partly understandable because you don't want to commit to something when you have the risk you might not be able to deliver it, but it's undermining his image when the Tories are putting out their 'Long Term Plan' (TM) and stating what they want to cut and where and by how much.

Honestly though, I will likely end up voting Labour. I voted Lib Dem in the last election, and whilst I'll admit that the economy has recovered partly due to the actions of this government, the sheer betrayals undertaken by Nick Clegg and his general weak-willed attitude. Well, he's done more damage to the Liberal Democrats than any sex scandal ever could.
The Greens are dreamers, and I don't agree with them wanting to scrap Trident, I believe we need a sea based nuclear deterrant as long as the world contains nuclear weapons. The nuclear genie is out of the bottle, and as other nations are advancing technologically and economically they are going to want to develop their own nuclear weapons systems. North Korea has (as primitive as it is) and Iran is likely to do so, and that will mean that Saudi Arabia will probably want to go nuclear next, and so on and so forth.
If we are to make any nuclear cuts it must be done so as part of a global inititive rather than as a selfless act (which comes back to bite us in the arse later).
UKIP...I won't dignify them with a response, the worse possible outcome of this election would be a Tory/UKIP alliance.
And, despite my slim approval of their economic achievements, I just can't agree with the damage that the ConDem alliance has done to the social fabric of this nation. Not that I expect Labour would have done much better, to be honest.
So, it will be Labour I vote for, not that my vote will really matter at all, I live in an area which has been a Conservative safe-seat since the Conservative Party was created, so really I might as well make the ballot form into a paper aeroplane and throw it in the sea, but a) I always believe that if you don't vote you can't complain about it, and b) there's always that sneaking risk of UKIP getting its claws in around here, and if my vote can help slow that down then that's something at least.

[BossMark]

The battle ground with all the 650 constituencies

http://news.sky.com/election/constituencies

Labours target seats

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/labourtargets/

Conservative target seats

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015gui...ative-targets/

Liberal Democrat target seats

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/lib-dem-targets/

My seat Elmet and Rothwell and I have been out door knocking for past month and the impression I get so far is it will be close but Labour could edge it,
http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015gui...etandrothwell/

[Oberon]

Look at this, this is the kind of thing I'm talking about:

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/region_eastern/

This is my local council:
http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/suffolkcoastal/

The seat was created in 1983 and it's been Tory since then.

[STEED]

What I found about the difference between Dave and Ed on the leaders debate was Ed was more open and more human while Dave no real emotion not a twitch it was like he was running off a script.

NEWS
Tory 'benefits cuts' plans leaked
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tory-benef...4.html#i8Z0UcV

Miliband's NHS Pledge At Campaign Launch
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/miliband-l...4.html#EsIT5oI

Conservatives pledge 'seven-day NHS' services by 2020
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/conservati...s.html#ZTFiuQi

While the big two have bought up the NHS here's my input. The NHS is under funded and always has been and the Tories & Labour use the NHS as some sort of shield to hide behind or used as a weapon against each other. No government has truly got to grips with the NHS and needs to be addressed.

[MGR1]

This is my local Westminster constituency:

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/aberdeennorth/

It's been a Labour safe seat since 1935, but the corresponding Holyrood seat, Aberdeen Donside, is held by the SNP.

Frank Doran's stepping down as well so the incumbency factor isn't going to apply. He hasn't even been seen in my local area since he was elected anyway!

Some of the more affluent areas have been stripped out and are now included in the neighbouring Gordon constituency (the one Salmond is going for). At the very least, Labour may hold on with a reduced majority. If they lose the seat to the SNP, then it's odds-on that they're going to get a hiding elsewhere in their traditional Scottish heartlands.

Here's the neighbouring seat, Aberdeen South:

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/2015guide/aberdeensouth/

Much, much harder to call, this one. Although like the North seat it has some of the socially deprived areas in Aberdeen (they're split between both constituency's), it also includes the affluent and very affluent areas along the Dee Valley. There's also a strong Polish community in the Torry area now as well. I've met Anne Begg and I can't say I'm impressed. I've always had the feeling she uses her disability as a weapon.

The corresponding Holyrood constituency, Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, is also held by the SNP.

Mike.

[bertieck476]

I think labour have got a problem in scotland and they have to work very hard at distancing themselves from the snp, salmond is not helping their cause with his well timed interventions.
I believe there are many many voters wary of the snp threat within westminster and there ambition to destroy the union.

[Jimbuna]

I'm reckoning on a hung Parliament but the $million question is....who will be the king maker?

[nikimcbee]

This one is the serious thread

Wut? Steed, have you been drinking?

Which tory candidate are you voting for Steed?

[MGR1]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

I'm reckoning on a hung Parliament but the $million question is....who will be the king maker?

I think we all know who the 'Eckster thinks it'll be. I'm wondering if he's deliberately playing the "Bad Cop" to Sturgeon's "Good Cop"?

On the surface at least, Sturgeon's charm offensive in England seems to have born some fruit (I know this is the SNP site, but I saw the original report in the Sun):

http://www.snp.org/media-centre/news...ader-across-uk

"A YouGov poll in today’s Sun makes clear that the First Minister has a net approval rating across the UK of +7, compared to David Cameron’s net rating of -5, Ed Miliband’s net rating of -39 and Nick Clegg’s net rating of -47

Amongst respondents in England alone, Nicola Sturgeon is the only party leader who has a positive approval rating – with a net rating of +5."


In any event, the Tories "Miliband in Salmond's pocket" posters are an absolute gift to the SNP and will probably increase the number of people voting for them. It damages Labour and the allows the SNP to thump the Tories for being being anti-Scottish.


I think this article from The National makes a good point:


http://www.thenational.scot/comment/...obia-rife.1293


The way a fair chunk of the English press is behaving is actually strengthening the SNP's support whilst at the same time they're actually dancing to the SNP's tune and doing their work for them.


Mike.

[BossMark]

The first poll since the leaders debates last Thursday

Labour 36% (+2)
Conservatives 32% (-4)
UKIP 13% (nc)
Liberal Democrats 8% (+1)
Green Parties 6% (+1)

Also

Sunday Times Poll also found of those who saw the TV programme 49% thought Miliband came across best to Cameron's 34%

Some good news there for Ed and us Labour supporters.

[STEED]

There was muted response from both sides on Saturday night.
Speaking to Sky's Murnaghan programme, the vice-chairwoman of Labour's campaign, Lucy Powell, said: "Polls go up and down, so we don't get disheartened when they go down and we don't get buoyed when they go up."
The Prime Minister's spokesman said polls were "all over the place", pointing out that the latest Opinium study had them leading.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/labour-ahe...5.html#5EoiGSU

I don't trust polls this leaders debates proves it first one comes out Dave wins now a few days latter Ed wins. I don't trust where these polls are conducted and most of them are thousand odd people they rung up.

[STEED]

News
Tory deal 'difficult' for Lib Dems

A Liberal Democrat Cabinet minister has cast doubt on another coalition with the Conservatives

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tory-deal-...9.html#ySu4UNo

I think its more to do how many seats they loose. If they loose a lot they will probably cut the cord with the Tories knowing they got burnt big time. But if they loose a few seats that could be a different matter.