Thoughts on the General Election

 My thoughts on the forthcoming general election. Finally, people can take control of the ineffective parliament. It is clear that MP’s think they know better than the people. Brexit is the quintessential proof of this. This election will be for the people, in my opinion, a second vote on the EU referendum. I back this up by saying that the very, and the only reason we are having this general election is because parliament in the main wish to remain in the E.U. and they have continually and actively tried to either block, delay or reverse the referendum vote.

Democracy

However, for that very reason, the real reason when you bottom out the purpose of this election is not Brexit, but whether we want to uphold democracy. There have been many examples of this where unelected members and servants of the establishment have tried or are trying to take over democracy. A great example of this is when the Chief Executive of the Labour Controlled Wigan Council tried to illegally sack a democratically elected local councillor. This councillor was Steve Jones and I supported him, we went to the high court and won a unique and unprecedented case in British justice.

If the people do not gain back control and deliver a parliament that recognises the people’s voice and their democratic will and wishes then it will be disastrous.  Whether they agree or not with the people's voice they have to see how it fits in with their party’s pledges and deliver it. We are in a position now where politicians are putting the party before the people.

Party before the people

Wigan is a great example of this where 64% of people voted leave, but Lisa Nandy Labour MP has consistently blocked or tried to reverse the Brexit result, meaning that she has utterly ignored the wishes of her constituency. Therefore people like this need to be voted out as they are undemocratic, and anti democracy.

Don't take it for granted

In the last General Election, the Conservative’s were on a 20 point lead, Boris Johnson's conservatives currently enjoy a 13 point lead. Labour did well in the last General Election and therefore say they are 7 points ahead of where they were last time it gives them a great chance. However, parties do not always win elections,  you can mess up. Meaning that the candidate's or leaders blow it. A quintessential example of this is in 1992 when Labour Leader Neil Kinnock believed the win was in the bag and I think it was in Sheffield when he said, 'We are OK, we’ve done it' and people thought we haven’t even voted yet, and because he thought he had done it, supporters thought I don’t need to go and vote as they say they have done it, and other people that were going to support him said don’t take my vote for granted and either didn’t vote or voted elsewhere.

In the last General election Theresa May lost that 20 point lead because of her social care tax that she thought she could get through because of the lead. She attacked the very voters – the blue rinse brigade, so to speak. That would be like Labour saying we will scrap all benefits if we win. It was disastrous!

I am sure that many from all parties will have learnt from that stupid action by Theresa May, which was just like Neil Kinnock did in 1992 believing it was in the bag. Nobody should ever treat it as in the bag and still work until the end when they ring the bell. I would back that up with 2012 in my local election, it was clear I had overwhelming support and was highly probable that I was going to win, and many said; 'why are you doing another leaflet?' 'Why are you still canvasing?' Everyone should answer; it is never over as things can change overnight, and it did in 1992.

Double standards

Labour say that under the Tory's the NHS will be privatised. That is too late in many cases, as under Tony Blair it was Labour who not only privatised the NHS but gave parts of it away for free. I use Standish Medical Centre to back that quote up. This is where the previous building owned by the Council was sold to a private provider for £400,000. In that deal the private provider said they would build a great health centre fit for purpose. When the building was built it was not fitted out. The private provider then said to fit the building out it will cost, guess how much? You got it £400,000. Therefore handing back the £400,000 that the taxpayers had just received for the asset they have sold. 

On the matter of this election, people will be thinking that they are sick of Brexit and it comes down to who they believe they feel will deliver Brexit, but  by respecting the result of the 2016 referendum.  

Labour said they would go back to get another deal to leave the EU. How long will that take? They will put the result back to the people. What if they reject it? Would it be no deal then?

Lib Dems just want to give two fingers to the electorate who delivered the result to leave by saying sod you lot – we are going to do what we want – not what you want! Given that in 2010 they also said that if in power they would get rid of tuition fees and when they were in coalition with the Tories they failed to deliver that. So why believe them now? People say it is about who you trust and the partner of  the Lib Dems Leader works for a company that is funded by the EU, so therefore they need to be open and transparent.

On the Tuition failed promise the Lib Dems are thinking that those angry students are now 9 years older and they will not be voting in university cities were the Lib Dems think they are strong. But they know that they cannot count on that cohort so they came up with a new plan. Labour agree with this new plan – to allow 16 yr old's to be given the vote.

On this matter it is particularly interesting to me that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens say we want 16 and 17 Yr old's to vote. They have to say why it is important to them?  Especially when 18 – 80+ is a larger group to go at. The answer is that these parties know that they have lied so much over the years the larger group (18-80+) don’t trust these parties anymore, so they have to try to trick and lie to another newer group, this time the 16-18 yrs old's. A Good example of this is given that the students of 18+ back in 2010 who voted them into power, with the Tory’s, are now 27+, you have to ask yourself how many of those will be voting for the Lib Dems? I would guess not many given that the Lib Dems had lied and let this cohort down before.

A striking example

On 16 yrs old let's look at what Labour have said about the terrorist Shamina Begum, who went to Syria to join ISIS, Labour said: she was too young to have known her own mind when she went to join ISIS. Therefore how will 16 yrs old's know their own mind and who to vote for? Or are Labour hoping that their parents will tell them how to vote? We have all heard the phrase, I've voted Labour all mi' life, mi' dad was Labour and mi' granddad was Labour, we've always been Labour. 

Enter the Brexit Party

Therefore, you would think the Tory’s will run away with the election so long as they don’t do a Theresa May stupid trick. However, we have Boris saying the Do or Die, Die in a ditch, we will leave come what may on the 31st and here we are not leaving. So you have to think that the Brexit Party could do well. But given they are UKIP under a new name and UKIP never got an elected MP, therefore you wouldn’t think they would pull any off this time. But given that many people will see this election about Brexit, simpler to in the European elections for MEP’s  then this could be the best and last time for them to get elected. In seats like Wigan where it is a Leave constituency and the Labour MP has ignored them and voted to remain and block Brexit, the people of Wigan are unlikely to vote Tory, so if the Brexit candidate is a good, effective and charismatic one, then I might give them good odds on winning the seat.