Well, here we are with a hung, or balanced, parliament. As they wheel and deal to decide who should form a government, how to unravel the tangled mess we have given them, let's hope they got and remember the message: we aren't all that happy with any of them.
Mr Brown has decided to go; do we have Mr Clegg to thank for that? Despite comments in my previous postings, I do wish him well; I believe him to be a decent and genuine human being. We still have no idea of who we are likely to get in place of him. It won't be Mr Clegg. It could still be Mr Cameron. If the Lib-Dems ally themselves with Labour, who will lead the country while Labour elects its new leader? I guess Mr Brown...
There is always the danger, of course, that the Lib-Dems will hang themselves out to dry by whatever decision they make. If they go with the Tories it will give a genuine majority in the house but I can't see either party tolerating the alliance for long. The Lib-Dems could be accused of compromising their principles. The Tories will complain that they are being restrained from implementing their more radical policies (no bad thing, from my point of view). If they go with Labour, there will still be no clear majority in the House. Government will be reliant on the good will of smaller parties such as the SNP and Plaid Cwmru who will be in a position to manipulate Parliament to suit their causes (a good position for them). They will be seen to have pushed the losing Labour party back into power.
Chances are we will have another election in October. By then, if we get another Lib-Lab Pact, we may have a form of Proportional Representation in place. It will be interesting to see how politicians sort out the ensuing hung parliament. Still, it works in Europe and New Zealand. At least they will have a mechanism for sorting out who is in charge and the horse-trading won't be necessary. Labour may be left wondering how they would have faired in a First Past the Post election with a new leader. Of course, they could wait and see how their new leader inspires the public and, if favourably, call an election before they have chance for a referendum on electoral reform, thus stabbing the Lib-Dems in the back...
Interesting, isn't it?
Mr Brown has decided to go; do we have Mr Clegg to thank for that? Despite comments in my previous postings, I do wish him well; I believe him to be a decent and genuine human being. We still have no idea of who we are likely to get in place of him. It won't be Mr Clegg. It could still be Mr Cameron. If the Lib-Dems ally themselves with Labour, who will lead the country while Labour elects its new leader? I guess Mr Brown...
There is always the danger, of course, that the Lib-Dems will hang themselves out to dry by whatever decision they make. If they go with the Tories it will give a genuine majority in the house but I can't see either party tolerating the alliance for long. The Lib-Dems could be accused of compromising their principles. The Tories will complain that they are being restrained from implementing their more radical policies (no bad thing, from my point of view). If they go with Labour, there will still be no clear majority in the House. Government will be reliant on the good will of smaller parties such as the SNP and Plaid Cwmru who will be in a position to manipulate Parliament to suit their causes (a good position for them). They will be seen to have pushed the losing Labour party back into power.
Chances are we will have another election in October. By then, if we get another Lib-Lab Pact, we may have a form of Proportional Representation in place. It will be interesting to see how politicians sort out the ensuing hung parliament. Still, it works in Europe and New Zealand. At least they will have a mechanism for sorting out who is in charge and the horse-trading won't be necessary. Labour may be left wondering how they would have faired in a First Past the Post election with a new leader. Of course, they could wait and see how their new leader inspires the public and, if favourably, call an election before they have chance for a referendum on electoral reform, thus stabbing the Lib-Dems in the back...
Interesting, isn't it?
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