No, not the Grand National...

The General Election.

I love it, all the campaigning, the gaffes, the rogue polls, the election night (swingometer etc) when I won't go to sleep. Don't think the gut wrenching feel of 1992 will be there this time, nor the joy of 1997 (how long ago does that seem!).

I think the Tories will end up with a majority of 20 to 30 seats.

I have a rudimentary understanding of economics, social policy and the global political situations. i also have strong opinions on taxation and the ethics of society.

but the truth is, despite all this knowledge...

i am voting, in essence, anti-david-cameron's-f***ing-face

which is default labour

How erudite

touche

Loved the graphics on election night back in '97 with all the red towers smashing through the blue onesicon_biggrin.gif

Gonna be an interesting one as most people seem fed up with Labour but the torries dont really seem to be offering a decent alternitive. Makes me laugh though how the torries think the public are so stupid that the're trying to make everyone believe resession was all Gordon Browns fault.

Really we need this alternative voiting system brought in. That way voting Lib dem in tory/lab strongholds, or smaller parties anywhere isn't a total waist of time as it is under the current system

I was delivering newspapers when I read the infamous headline 'If Labour wins today, will the last person to leave Britain please turn out the lights'. Even then, in my tender years, I thought that was a very powerful message. I expect more of these fun and games over the next month - the TV debate should be a corker.

Why dont thay just bring Donald Tusk in (polish pm) and have done with it. I shall not be voteing as if i vote for a party that wants all these forigners out we get classed as raceist... can win!! countrys on its .

I await the Conservative manifesto with baited breath.

I think years of Brown taking credit for the good times and the famous quote of "abolishing boom and bust economics" make it fair game.

Labour coalition with Lib Dems for me...Vince Cable as Chancellor

One thing, regardless of your allegiance, everybody agrees on.

Anyone but labour and i'm happy.

Politics bores me to tears, whoever gets in will do a similar job to the other, we will still end up paying the same crazy taxes regardless of who is squatting in number 10.

He's a flip flopper, he can say what he wants as he will never be in power. It's a myth that he is some kind of wise man of economics.

Politics and Religion are areas of little interest to me.
Lots of -wipes willy waving, enduring endless pointless debate after debate, all of which ultimately have the same outcome for the majority of us. Either tax hikes or war, or both.

I must say however, that TV show spotlighting David Cameron recently had a moment of brilliance. He addressed a group of police officers who were stood inside the reception at the Conservative annual up ball in Brighton and said:

< voice> "Hi there, thanks for coming. Your doing a fine job boys, keep it up"
There was a unamonous look of "" starring back at him.

He turned back to the camera with a big grin on his mush as if to say "look at me peeps, I care, looked them in the eyes and everything.. PS Vote for me"

That's politics, baby kissing and flesh pressing

I'm looking forward to a nice 4 year stint of public spending cuts, slashing of waste/beaurocracy, more involvement of the private sector in the provision of pubic services and general austerity.

For me some headline policies would be :-

1. Postponement/scale down of Trident programme
2. Elimination of/(means tested) child allowance
3. Elimination of/(means tested) winter fuel allowance
4. Clamp down on incapacity benefit work dodgers
5. Complete military withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan
6. Reduction in breadth, increase in depth of NHS services to get it back to Aneurin Bevan's vision. (i.e gastric bands, fertility treatment, none health related cosmetic surgery etc).
7. Introduction of a fee to see a GP.
8. Increase in taxes on alcohol and fags.

They should bring in a policy to narrow the isles in supermarkets of high-fat produce to stop greedy fat ers going down them too often.




Fruit and Veg isle = wide as you like.



Also ban shop mobility scooters.. lethal those buggers are.. If they go faster than I can walk they should be done for speeding.

Saw some old fella in Boots clean out an isle of deodrant with his hooligan antics on Saturday.

Fat/unhealthy food tax?

Removal of final salary pensions for public sector workers (they will bleat but unlikely to move into private industry)

Incremental car tax for households with more than 2 cars.

Removal of taxable allowance coupled with a fairer, linear tax system.

No party could get elected with that as a policy. It'll happen anyway as the liabilities of the schemes grow too big to handle.

(EDIT: Just checked the figures. There are 7 million people employed in the public sector out of a total electorate of 46 million. 7 x 100/46 = 15% of the electorate).

Just pure Fat Tax for those without a medical condition would do me. I am of course, not joking.

Something really extreme like that is going to have to happen to meet the carbon reduction targets.

I agree with Wires71's manifesto. Trident, Eurofighter and the war in Afghanistan are immediate costs we can't afford.

I also think the taxation system needs to be reformed and made a more simple linear system. Overall yield is key, there's no point having a progressive taxation system where the top earners avoid it. A flat rate system looks competitive to investors but when loopholes are pulled out of it it pulls higher earners back in. I would like to see the emphasis of taxation shifted away from earned income and more onto inheritance/capital gains, plus put onto spending where you can hit alcohol/cigarettes and things that pollute. I would favour legalising some soft drugs and prostitution and bringing them into the taxation system. Aside from that I think you need to look at about 3p on the basic rate of income tax and VAT up to 20% while the deficit is so high.

I would also be willing to risk a bit of controversy and bring in a Poll Tax type system for local rates rather than Council Tax. One of the reasons Council Tax is so high is because so many people don't pay it, so those of us who do pay a high premium to cover for it. There is too much of a dependency culture where people want to live off public services whilst expecting others to foot the bill....share the burden across more shoulders and the bills will come down.

Public sector pensions need to be capped at about £30000, it is ludicrous that people can retire at 55 and get a £50000 or £60000 pension at the taxpayers expense. Its not the people actually providing public services who get these pensions either, its the managers who know how to work the public sector system and maximise their own personal gain.

I would freeze public sector pay for the full duration of the Parliament apart from the lowest grades and also essential workers like police, nurses, firemen etc. At any salary level above £26000 it has to be frozen completely for five years. Then I would change the inflation target for the Bank of England to 5%. We don't want inflation going out of control but a level of 5% would allow us to bring down wages in real terms and would also reduce the total value of government debt. New student loans would not be index linked at 0% in real terms, but would pay back about 4% above the rate of inflation.

could`nt of put it better....i wont be voting for any of these rogues..its not as if my life would change for the better..

Legalise, then put duty on cannabis/amphetimines.

Higher education tax increment instead of student loan. The debt puts working class kids off from going to University (disproportionately from middle class kids) whereas a, say, 1% incremental in income tax for those that have had post aged 18 education would hardly be noticeable over the long term. Bring into effect for all placements beginning Sept 2011.

Poll tax - I'm all for that being 'individual based' rather than 'size of house based'.