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Election 2015


Gardian
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Thibault, do you mean that you can't trust Nigel F?[:D]

Anyway, now the brouhaha has died down a little, I see that the person responsible for the BBC is known for saying the licence fee is on a par with the poll tax, Gove is charged with somehow doing away with Human Rights, the Education Secretary remains despite all the complaints about failing schools and parent dissatisfaction, IDS remains to finish off his plan of savage cuts to Welfare and Theresa May is also left to run the Borders Agency and continue to be unaccountable for illegal immigrants!

Lots for everbody to look forward to then? (sarcasm ++)

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Now that it seems extremely likely we are going to have a referendum on whether the UK leaves the EU what will happen to UKIP once that result is known.

If the vote is to leave the EU then UKIP will have achieved its purpose and so there is no need for it.

If the vote is remain in the UK will UKIP accept the result and fade into insignificance.

Either way it seems UKIP will be irrelevant by the time of the next election,
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[quote user="PaulT"]To add to Pickles post:

SNP has 56 seats with 1,454,436 votes

LD has 8 seats with 2,415,888 votes

UKIP has 1 seat with 3,881,129

Plaid Cymru has 3 seats with 181,694 votes

- yes one hundred and eighty one thousand and six hundred and ninety four votes gives them 3 seats.[/quote]

It has just struck me that I don't know who many people were registered to vote, or how many should have been registered to vote, because 'just' those that vote skews these figures.

Maybe we should all be made to vote and that all constituencies should have equal numbers of voters, surely this would be as fair as having PR??????????

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[quote user="idun"][quote user="PaulT"]To add to Pickles post: SNP has 56 seats with 1,454,436 votes LD has 8 seats with 2,415,888 votes UKIP has 1 seat with 3,881,129 Plaid Cymru has 3 seats with 181,694 votes - yes one hundred and eighty one thousand and six hundred and ninety four votes gives them 3 seats.[/quote]

It has just struck me that I don't know who many people were registered to vote, or how many should have been registered to vote, because 'just' those that vote skews these figures.

Maybe we should all be made to vote and that all constituencies should have equal numbers of voters, surely this would be as fair as having PR??????????
[/quote]

Fraid not, Idun. Let's take your hypothetical situation one step further.

Because of your 100% equal size constituencies, the proportion of the vote is the same for all parties. Because of the First Past the Post, the same party would win every constituency. There would be no other parliamentary representation. You would a One Party State.

With PR, a party which consistently polled 20% and never won any constituency with FPTP, should expect to occupy about 20% of the seats in Parliament.

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I think there was a hint of things to come, in his resignation speech. He said that unusually for a politician he was a man of his word, he was resigning and he intended taking a holiday over the summer and may put his name forward for a leadership contest in the Autumn! Now you see me , now you don't!!
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Mint wrote:

' IDS remains to finish off his plan of savage cuts to Welfare'

Where my OH worked they had a number of staf who would not work one second over 18 hours 'cos I'll lose me benefits'.

There was no physical or come to it mental reasons why they could not work more than 18 hours and the work was there. No, they preferred the taxpayer to make up their income. Why should I as a taxpayer pay them not to work?
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[quote user="PaulT"]Mint wrote:

' IDS remains to finish off his plan of savage cuts to Welfare'

Where my OH worked they had a number of staf who would not work one second over 18 hours 'cos I'll lose me benefits'.

There was no physical or come to it mental reasons why they could not work more than 18 hours and the work was there. No, they preferred the taxpayer to make up their income. Why should I as a taxpayer pay them not to work?[/quote]

Yes, I do realise that welfare cuts are always going to be controversial.  We all know examples of claimants who are just plain idle but I also know people who proudly soldier on in some dead end job that pay little more than benefits.

Undoubtedly an overhaul is needed but there are many cases of genuine hardship that get lumped with those that abuse benefits.

When MPs legislate to reduce their salaries or even their expenses, then I might support wide-swinging and ill-considered cuts in the welfare budget.

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[quote user="Jazzer"]I think there was a hint of things to come, in his resignation speech. He said that unusually for a politician he was a man of his word, he was resigning and he intended taking a holiday over the summer and may put his name forward for a leadership contest in the Autumn! Now you see me , now you don't!![/quote]

That was before he was implored to stay on and his resignation was rejected.

Just goes to show that Ukip is a one man party as their executive appear to think they cannot cope without old Nige.
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[quote user="Thibault"]

That was before he was implored to stay on and his resignation was rejected.

Just goes to show that Ukip is a one man party as their executive appear to think they cannot cope without old Nige.[/quote]

Strange though that the story appeared in the Telegraph on Monday 11 BEFORE it was on the BBC as a breaking news item.

So, it could be that Farage had planned his "sensational deresignation" and was looking for news headlines or the TORYgaph had some secretive Conservative source trying to make him seem indecisive and not to be believed?

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Interestingly in his latest book, Farage went on at length as how it would be impossible to lead a party without having a seat in the Commons and therefore if he lost Thanet, he would resign. The cynic in me feels this was a veiled threat to the electorate to elect him or lose him.

In the event, he lost and Nigel (I'm a man of my word) Farage had to resign or risk any credibility he might have. Of course, it was generally expected he would throw his hat in the ring in the September elections for a new leader, but it seems he and Ukip couldn't wait.

What is more interesting is the difference of opinion between Carswell and Farage over the Short money......
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[quote user="Thibault"]Interestingly in his latest book, Farage went on at length as how it would be impossible to lead a party without having a seat in the Commons and therefore if he lost Thanet, he would resign. The cynic in me feels this was a veiled threat to the electorate to elect him or lose him.

In the event, he lost and Nigel (I'm a man of my word) Farage had to resign or risk any credibility he might have. Of course, it was generally expected he would throw his hat in the ring in the September elections for a new leader, but it seems he and Ukip couldn't wait.

What is more interesting is the difference of opinion between Carswell and Farage over the Short money......[/quote]

Thibault what is the "Short money" money, please?

I don't follow the British news as closely these days and am not always au courant with what goes on.

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Short money is a grant opposition parties receive from the state to pay for their offices. It is related to two things, the number of seats a party has and the number of votes cast for the party overall. On the basis of having one MP and having had around 4 million votes cast, Carswell is entitled to receive £650,000 per year for the next five years. He has said he doesn't need all this money to run his office. Ukip are saying they want the money and will decide how it is to be spent.

I don't know who true it is, but the papers are saying there is a serious disagreement over this. Ukip have briefed against Carswell. Carswell is reported as being unhappy that Nigel didn't resign as he had said (permanently, that is).

How much of it is exaggerated is hard to tell. But it is interesting,

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Thank you for the explanation, Thibault and, yes, it is very interesting.

Meanwhile, I read that all the MPs who lost their seats will be receiving 66k redundancy[6]

It's no wonder that they will do anything to be elected.........[+o(]

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Not just UK MPs - there was a piece in the paper this morning about the people who compile the official French dictionary who work one day a week and are entitled to multi-million euro flats in Paris free of charge.....and presumably a salary as well.
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I think I read somewhere that if they do not contest their seat then they lose out on redundancy hence even if there is no hope of being re-elected still stand.

As for Carswell, do you think he might say 'Dave, I have seen the light' :)
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[quote user="PaulT"]

As for Carswell, do you think he might say 'Dave, I have seen the light' :)[/quote]

Wouldn't surprise me in the least!

Just like changing their tie a different colour for some of these people.

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I understand the smart money is on him becoming an Independent by the end of the year. I believe it is UKIP policy in such events to stand down and force a by-election.

Carswell had told the leadership he did not want 15 extra staff, to carry his bags!

I also understand that as they consider themselves not part of the old "establishment" they are not wishing to get on any gravy trains!!!!
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