Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

[Graknorke]

And there was a resounding shockwave of not-surprise that rippled across the country.

[lijacote]

Why is Labour’s result so poor? It is not because of the overweening strength of Conservatism. Overall, the Tory vote has barely shifted from 36.1 percent in 2010 to (as of writing) 36.8 percent. The Tories have been in a crisis since 1992, since which time their vote has oscillated between the low to mid-thirties. In previous elections, a vote share of this scale would have left the Tories on the opposition benches. This is not, chiefly, a Tory surge, but the confirmation of a Labour collapse. Labour’s total enervation is also reflected in the turnout, which at 66.1 percent was barely a point above what it was in 2010. And while relatively affluent voters turned out to support Cameron – with a 75 percent turnout in Thornbury and Yate, where the Tories overturned a 7,000 Liberal majority ­– working-class constituencies had some of the lowest turnouts in the country. In Manchester Central, turnout was 52.9 percent. The exceptions to this pattern are where there was some sort of alternative. Across Scotland, turnout was 71.1 percent. In Bristol West, where the Greens came second, turnout was projected to be approximately 85 percent.

So, Miliband’s failure is a confirmation of Labour’s degeneration, its crisis, not of Tory strength. In fact, both Labour and the Conservatives are in the middle of a long-term crisis, which neither has done anything to reverse: the question in this election was, whose crisis is worse?

[Owlbread]

I still can't quite grasp/process exactly what's happened, I've only had 3 hours sleep in the last 2 days but I thought I'd show this to anyone that's interested.

These are the SNP MPs that won last night.

21 out of the 56 are women, 1 is the first Muslim Female MP in Scottish history (Tasmina Ahmed Sheikh), 1 is the youngest MP in about 200-300 years of British political history (Mhairi Black), at least 2 or 3 are LGBT (Stewart MacDonald, John Nicolson, I think Mhairi Black), rather a lot seem to be of Irish descent (at one time in the distant past the SNP were associated with the Protestant vote) and the "Left" of the SNP are also very well represented among them. Mhairi Black, Chris Stephens, Tommy Sheppard, George Kerevan are all key figures of that particular grouping - Chris Stephens is leader of the SNP Trade Union Group.

Spoiler: This man is now MP for Dundee West. (click to show/hide)

That should say everything. If you don't believe me you can watch the declaration of the votes.

[Descan]

I aspire to be half the person that man is. Clothes definitely included.

[MonkeyHead]

Why is Labour’s result so poor? It is not because of the overweening strength of Conservatism. Overall, the Tory vote has barely shifted from 36.1 percent in 2010 to (as of writing) 36.8 percent. The Tories have been in a crisis since 1992, since which time their vote has oscillated between the low to mid-thirties. In previous elections, a vote share of this scale would have left the Tories on the opposition benches. This is not, chiefly, a Tory surge, but the confirmation of a Labour collapse. Labour’s total enervation is also reflected in the turnout, which at 66.1 percent was barely a point above what it was in 2010. And while relatively affluent voters turned out to support Cameron – with a 75 percent turnout in Thornbury and Yate, where the Tories overturned a 7,000 Liberal majority ­– working-class constituencies had some of the lowest turnouts in the country. In Manchester Central, turnout was 52.9 percent. The exceptions to this pattern are where there was some sort of alternative. Across Scotland, turnout was 71.1 percent. In Bristol West, where the Greens came second, turnout was projected to be approximately 85 percent.

So, Miliband’s failure is a confirmation of Labour’s degeneration, its crisis, not of Tory strength. In fact, both Labour and the Conservatives are in the middle of a long-term crisis, which neither has done anything to reverse: the question in this election was, whose crisis is worse?

The fact that turn out was so low in traditional working class Labour strongholds is symptomatic of their whole crisis which last night brought sharply into focus - they simply do not inspire support in many their traditional bases. "Normal" (whatever that means) Brits on the whole are disillusioned and disenfranchised by our political apparatus, hence the rise of the SNP - where a credible alternative exists to Labour that is not Tory/LibDem, people go for it, or simply do not show up, unlike Tory voters. Oh how I wish Plaid could tap into this in some way. Wales is showing a worrying tribalistic Loyalty to Labour as it goes through what are the Death throes of its middling.

[Caz]

Well, that apparently didn't take long.

tl;dr, it looks like the newly elected government has immediately started looking into shitting on the disabled, in more or less direct contravention to campaign promises. Y'all are going to have a fun half decade :V

Can't we just attach rockets to Scotland and sail off into the night? You know, like that Doctor Who episode.

[Frumple]

As amusing horrible amorrible as turning scotland into a KKV directed at the heart of toryland, I'm afraid that's currently not a fiscally viable plan of action. Perhaps for the next election cycle.

[palsch]

Well, that apparently didn't take long.

tl;dr, it looks like the newly elected government has immediately started looking into shitting on the disabled, in more or less direct contravention to campaign promises. Y'all are going to have a fun half decade :V

Eh, more exactly what they promised.

Seriously, people should have known exactly the shit they were asking for. Even being generous and saying the fund would have grown by more than 10% this year that's still only 1% of the promised benefit cuts, and it's already hacking at critical services as opposed to vague 'waste'.

Looking at some of the other suggested options for cuts;

• Getting employers to contribute more to the cost of statutory maternity pay – or as an alternative abolishing it entirely.

• Freezing benefit payments at current levels across the board.

• Limiting welfare payments by family size.

• Forcing single parents on income support to seek work when their youngest child reaches the age of three (currently five).

• Making it harder for sick people to claim state aid when they are out of work by introducing “stricter” fit-for-work tests and/or tighter limits on eligibility. [ahem]

• Increasing the bedroom tax on certain categories of renters.

• Barring under-25s from claiming incapacity benefit or housing benefit.

To that last one, I can think of several people who would have been on the street under those rules in the last few years.

[Dutchling]

hey they're like our liberals

[MorleyDev]

Well, on the plus side: I now have an opinion on Scottish Independence.  "Save yourselves before it's too late, and can I come too?" So that's something.

*sigh* I liked it better when I just didn't bother to vote, at least I could just not engage with the great mess. Trying to actually pay attention just makes even more cynical about everything.

[MonkeyHead]

Well, on the plus side: I now have an opinion on Scottish Independence.  "Save yourselves before it's too late, and can I come too?" So that's something.

*sigh* I liked it better when I just didn't bother to vote, at least I could just not engage with the great mess. Trying to actually pay attention just makes even more cynical about everything.

I can agree with the former, with the latter, I'd say it doesn't make me cynical, but it's certainly proved eye-opening in regards to politics. Well, I say eye opening. Thanks to my general upbringing and the internet I thought politicians were all lying scum. Now I know they're either lying scum or delusional.

I would go with delusional. Most Tory MP's represent the model of an over-privileged upper class twit who appeals to those who have an overly romanticised view of how the UK used to be in "the good old days", completely detached from what it is like to live and work in relative deprivation in a grim urban area - some of them probably have no idea what it is like to try and live in Newport, Manchester or Glasgow. The 2 worrying things with this is that firstly, this actually appeals to people (Boris Johnston, for example. I "like him" as a figure of fun, but in no way would I ever want him to represent me - how in the hell could he?), and that secondly Labour have hit on the idea that to get into power they need to be more like them.

[Caz]

I would go with delusional. Most Tory MP's represent the model of an over-privileged upper class twit who appeals to those who have an overly romanticised view of how the UK used to be in "the good old days", completely detached from what it is like to live and work in relative deprivation in a grim urban area - some of them probably have no idea what it is like to try and live in Newport, Manchester or Glasgow. The 2 worrying things with this is that firstly, this actually appeals to people (Boris Johnston, for example. I "like him" as a figure of fun, but in no way would I ever want him to represent me - how in the hell could he?), and that secondly Labour have hit on the idea that to get into power they need to be more like them.

The voting system is just screwed. Tories got 36% of the vote and 100% of the power in government. Labour was +1.4% in their voting share and lost 25 seats, while the Tories gained +0.7% and /gained/ seats.

FPTP sucks. Worked well for SNP this time around, though that's ok because they're working towards voting reform. Usually, it screws them over too.

[smjjames]

The voting system is just screwed. Tories got 36% of the vote and 100% of the power in government. Labour was +1.4% in their voting share and lost 25 seats, while the Tories gained +0.7% and /gained/ seats.

FPTP sucks. Worked well for SNP this time around, though that's ok because they're working towards voting reform. Usually, it screws them over too.

Welcome to the system that we have in the US. Wonder how long it'll take before you settle into a two party system.

[martinuzz]

Well, on the plus side: I now have an opinion on Scottish Independence.  "Save yourselves before it's too late, and can I come too?" So that's something.

*sigh* I liked it better when I just didn't bother to vote, at least I could just not engage with the great mess. Trying to actually pay attention just makes even more cynical about everything.

Lol. Next referendum on independence will be won because of the british voting in favour, all planning to emigrate to the new independent, Cameron-free Scotland.

[MorleyDev]

Welcome to the system that we have in the US. Wonder how long it'll take before you settle into a two party system.

We've had a two party system for a long time now. Lately it's also become more personality driven and about the leaders than the parties, with Televised debates between PMs who are just regurgitating what they've been told by the people in their party who are the actual 'experts' in what's being asked that inevitably let to things devolving to being less about issues and more about "I am not as big of a Country Matters as that Country Matters over there". So...more American, I guess. Yeah.

At it's current rate, I have this horrible feeling the current political system is going to lead to riots again.