You are indeed different - that’s why I want so desperately to live back in Scotland. My father was from Kirkcaldy - Ole Gordon’s stamping ground. I think the Scottish philosophy of what makes a good life is a very different one to that where I live at the moment in “Middle England” where what one’s husband does and what one wears to lunch is the prime importance and as long as Arrabella and Harriet can keep their ponies and the Hunt can continue, then nothing else matters!!
Please don’t take any offence anyone over this - I am just stereotyping my neighbours - they probably think that I am the rough and ready leftie northerner who has no class!
Good for you Cathy. I love living in Scotland - my husband is from North London but an honorary Highlander now. I live in the Highlands and do think we are much more laid back than many down South - no offence to anyone. It does make you wonder what mandate the Tories would have in Scotland when they have only 1 MP.
At least health is devolved to the Scottish parliament and already there are improvements on the English system - free car parking at hospitals & free personal care.
How exciting, i watched most of the night, then had to work this morning so am knackered lol, Well, what a night?, have to say i do think the people have spoken, and they have certainly made it clear who they dont want anymore , no offence to anyone .
I realy dont think a hung parlimant is good for anyone ,and definately moraly dont think its right for the Lib Dems to prop Labour up in order to keep the conservative out,in any event they will proberly still fall short of a majority even if the Lib Dems go with Labour.The facts are the people have rejected Labour So a Lab/Dem deal is a desparate measure for Gordon Brown and if thats the case, wheres the democracy? and whats the point in voting?
Conseratives have by far the most seats so i am pleased Nick Clegg is honouring what he has always said that the party with the most seats should have the chance to form a government and he will be speaking to the conservatives in the first instance, hope for the sake of the country we get a conclusion ASAP .
Was realy surprised that the Lib Dems did so poorly after the hype!!
Linda
Indeed exciting election have been hooked to tv and internet all day!
The people of Scotland have made it very clear who they do not want (1 Tory seat) yet will probably be ruled by a Tory government - where’s the mandate there?
Will be very interesting to see how things develop and if Nick Clegg. Like you Linda was very surprised at the Lib Dem vote.
I for three years in Forres and then lived for six years in Nairn and my youngest was born at Raigmore. Happiest time of my life although a bit nippy at times!! The Scots know how to throw a party!
As I feared the centre left vote was split and the Tories are creeping back in. Cameron’s public love letter to Clegg at lunchtime made me heave.
Poor Scotland and Wales - still being bossed about by Tories eventhough you didn’t vote for them! With Cameron in No 10 you can bet he’ll try out his public service cost cutting on you lot first- just like Thatcher roadtested the poll tax!
This is worrying -
UKIP - 914,811 total votes
British National Party - 562,977 total votes
The far right have secured nearly one and half million votes. I am very sad that so many of my fellow country men and women have been seduced by the hate-filled propaganda of these people.
How many seats in Parliament would these people get under a PR system?
Hi Cathy - I live in Inverness and know Forres and Nairn very well -
yes we certainly know how to party and I plan to tonight (birthday on Mon).
msmolly - like you Clegg groveling to the Tories makes me sick and it’s an absolute disgrace that so many voted for the far right and for me shows the need for a united socialist party. The BNP & UKIP make their policies sound so sensible and hide behind their real racist right wing views.
Tories came fourth in Scotland after Labour, Lib Dem’s and SNP! Can see a lot of unrest in the future when they try and impose their cuts there is real anger brewing already.
I feel so sorry for Scotland. I lived there when Thatcher used us as guinea pigs to try out the Poll tax with no thought to how it would affect us. No wonder the Scots hate the Tories. As you say, MsMolly, it is so scary that the BNP and UKIP managed to get so many votes. I can’t comprehend why anyone with any sense of decency towards their fellow man could vote for them. Like you say, the managed to disguise their nasty, vile policies to hoodwink the public or perhaps people really do want to see blood on the streets and families being torn apart and where would it all stop?
I too thought Cameron was a slimely little toad. All I can hope for is that Clegg listens to his party and joins with the Labour party to ensure that the BNP and their ilk crawl back under their nasty little stones.
Yes, this is not good at all.
I would expect most Liberal Democrats would be in despair that Clegg has moved towards the Tories, they are so far removed from each other’s core principles. Maybe I was naive to expect that LDs with their left of centre position would naturally ally themselves with Labour.
The growth in right wing influence just disgusts and disturbs me.
We are probably in for a rough ride and I’m very sorry for it.
It always disappoints me when people vote for what is best for themselves rather than what is best for society as a whole. Again, probably just naive.
monica
A highlight was Barking which is supposed to be a BNP haven. Margaret Hodge got a massive majority. BNP were bumped into 3rd place and Hodge told Griffin to “Pack your bags and go. Get out and stay out!”
What I found really horrifying was the National Front in Rochdale - they got 2,236 votes. I thought the NF were a thing of the past. No wonder Gordon was primed to encounter bigotry there.
I see that the LibDem and Tory topbods are meeting secretly tonight to see how they can scratch each others’ backs.
Honestly, is this a way to run a country?!
Personally, I think Clegg will be happy to get into bed with anybody if he thinks it is worth his while. I find it a bit sad that at the moment all poor Mr Brown seems to have are the SNP and Plaid Cymru. Another reason I could not have voted for Brown is that at last count 65% of the working population in Fife are public sector workers, mainly employed by Fife Council which is absolutely scandalous. This area has a history of voting for Labour MPs who never attract any private sector investment or jobs.I also see the damage Labour’s free and easy welfare policies have caused via the voluntary job I do(I see people who have no intention of giving up benefit culture). It is absolutely soul destroying to witness at times, especially when it is teenage girls with babies as a lifestyle choice.
We work with a lot of people who are about 10 years younger than us or more and none of them seem to have any comprehension of how bad the economy actually is in this country - they all keep saying things like “well, we’re all responsible for it” and seem to think it is just going to go away after a while.
And sadly, I do actually know people in Barking who were voting for the BNP last night - OH’s brother in law was one of them, his views are outrageous, but whilst it’s wrong I can see why some people have been tempted to go down that route, especially in places like Barking.
Don’t post on here much these days [dx in 2004].
But have been reading this thread and really have to say I haven’t read such a interesting thread/debate for ages, so refreshing to read, this is exactly how the forums used to be, absoluately wonderful…wish I’d found this thread before.
What is important about Barking is not the racist muppets that have made that town synonymous with neo-fascism, it is the fact that last night Margaret Hodge got a 16,000 majority with a 1.7% swing.
I like to belive that the great British people don’t do bootboy fascism - however many suits and ties they like to dress it up in.
WOW, lots been said, ts been a interesting and good debate for sure.
Guess the outcome was always going to cause some upset .
Did anyone honestly believe that Labour would get back in?? i dont think the result was a surprise at all, lets remember Gordon Brown was never elected to be Priminister in the first place ,not in 2007 and definately not now.
He certainy looked deflated earlier in his speech, and oviously grossly misread the feelings of the country.
I expect hes packing as we speak, time to go Gordon the country have spoken and they want change.
Good to see you back on the forums karen, hope you are keeping well .
Linda
Er yeah let’s not get carried away here! Brown may have no mandate now - but then neither has Cameron.
Gordon increased his majority in his own constituency and Scotland has remained resolutely Labour wih one lone Tory MP.
8,604,358 voted for Labour. 6,827,937 voted LibDem. 10,706,647 voted for the Tories.
That means 15,432,295 people voted for left of centre policies (that’s not including other parties of the Left like Plaid Cymru and the Greens. We left leaning Brits are now going to be lumbered with a bunch of right wingers who want to slash public services (including the NHS).
The country has spoken Linda - and on a person by person basis it actually hasn’t spoken in support of Tory policy.
The Tories are only standing a chance of governance because of our idiotic FPTP system.
Clegg has to guarantee electoral reform. Cameron is offering diddlysquat to the Libs - a cross party committee on the topic.
Brown is offering him immediate legislation. If Clegg gets into bed with the Tories without LOTS of guarantees he will definitely split his party. Speaking to LibDem activist friends of mine they are furious that he is even considering an alliance with the Tories.
I don’t think they’ll manage to create a functioning Govt and we’ll see another election in a matter of months.
The country has spoken, and they have made it crystal clear what they do not want,and thats another Labour government, if by any chance that the Lib Dems sell out to Labour to prop them up,( by the way Nick Clegg has always said that he wouldnt do so unless Gordon Brown went anyway) there will be a lot of quite rightly discust and anger in this country, and either way there will more than likely be another General Election .
The figures speak for themselves ,2 million more people voted for the conservatives than Labour , lets not continuely look at Labour through rose coloured glasses.
I realse this thread has become a political one but has anyone been prescribed Emend on the NHS for nausea? i’ve just been told I cannot have it. I suffer intense nausea each time and have just had 4th chemo.
Sorry don’t know about Emend - did your onc say why you could not be prescribed it?
Cathy you will be disappointed to hear that Nairn swimming pool is under threat of closure as are 7 community centres in Inverness all of which are vital to the communities. Already there are campaigns in place and people are getting together to fight the closures. With nowhere to go the kids will just have the streets to play in and then peope will not be happy. We need more youth facilities - not less.
I think the Lib Dems will tear themselves apart if they join with Cameron. OK I can’t stand Gordon Brown but a right wing Tory government will kick our public services and NHS into the dark ages. If the Lib Dems support this they will loose all credibiity. I also know Lib Dem activists who are horrified at the idea of sooking up to Cameron to get a position of power. If only they worked for the people - not the rich minority.
In Glasgow East Margaret Curren (Labour) won the vote but refused to make an acceptance speech whilst BNP were on the platform and all the candidated walked off - brilliant. Also great they lost all their councellor in Barking.
Great thread which affects each and every one of us.