The UK election thread

[Feck]

And Plaid Cymru want 300 million because they think they've been short-changed... .... erm.. yeah ok..

Plaid do have some pretty good reasons for asking for that 300 million. Firstly, they're not asking for any of the other 3 billion that's being cut, they just want the 0.3 billion. The reason they're asking for that figure is because that's the amount the independent Holtham Commission says Wales should have, the amount is also and backed up by the recent budget report.

They're not trying to get more money, just the fair share.

Sorry Pappa but if Wales wants their own parliament they should have that and manage themselves. Having Wales and Scotland involved in an English election where members actions do not affect their own constituents and have influence over what happens in England is an unfair system. Wales and Scotland have no prescription charges yet we do in England still there are other issues as well. The whole system is fucked up

Welsh or Scottish MP's should not vote on issues that have been devolved to their respective parliaments but Westminster decides many things for Scotland and Wales . A lot of people still think it unfair that England keeps voting the Tories in down there ...... thank you for Thatcher BTW

On 1st April 2010, the cost of an NHS prescription was reduced to £3.00 per item. The reduced Scottish prescription charge will apply only to Scottish prescriptions dispensed in Scotland.

[RuleBritannia]

In fact it's the policy of the SNP to not vote on issues that don't effect Scotland.

[Pappa]

In fact it's the policy of the SNP to not vote on issues that don't effect Scotland.

I agree with their policy, but I did also wonder earlier about the idea of actually disallowing them... a Cornish MP would expect to vote on an issue effecting only Northumbria, so why shouldn't a Scottish MP too?[/devil's advocate]

[RuleBritannia]

In fact it's the policy of the SNP to not vote on issues that don't effect Scotland.

I agree with their policy, but I did also wonder earlier about the idea of actually disallowing them... a Cornish MP would expect to vote on an issue effecting only Northumbria, so why shouldn't a Scottish MP too?[/devil's advocate]

The West Lothian Question's been messed for a long time, but none of the "main parties" seem to care much.

[RuleBritannia]

Another bizarre hurdle of the English votes on English laws situation, is that if the Prime Minister (as is with Gordon Brown) or cabinet ministers are not an English constituents, then they can't can't vote on English laws, even though they actually live in England and are effected by those laws.

There's also the matter of the fact that Wales and England actually have a combined legal system. And there doesn't seem to be much support for either full Welsh autonomy (like Scotland), or an English parliament.

[Rum]

May I suggest that a mod merges this thread with the 'The now the election is over the fun starts thread'. I thought they would diverge but they ain't.

[Horwood Beer-Master]

I say we just cut the Celtic fringe loose if they try to leech off us, see how they like that.

[Pappa]

I say we just cut the Celtic fringe loose if they try to leech off us, see how they like that.

Fine by me.

Do Scotland get to keep their oil and Wales their water?

[Azathoth]

Good luck without north sea oil and gas and welsh water

[Horwood Beer-Master]

I say we just cut the Celtic fringe loose if they try to leech off us, see how they like that.

Fine by me.

Do Scotland get to keep their oil and Wales their water?

Scotland has no oil left, and no Welsh water ever makes it as far over as Kent, so sure, fine.

If the Midlands dries-up I'll just bail-out of this craphole and sod-off back to civilisation (which has it's own water shortage problems, but not ones Wales is likely to help with).

[Elessarina]

BIGOT: Brown Is Gone On Thursday


It's all Sue's fault!

[Deep Sea Isopod]

I say we just cut the Celtic fringe loose if they try to leech off us, see how they like that.

Fine by me.

Do Scotland get to keep their oil and Wales their water?

And Cornwall can keep it's pasties.

[JimC]

At last, Great Britain will get to experience the joys of Italian-style politics!

[CJ]

If we had been running a Proportional Representation model this would have been the outcome (making the huge assumption that the electorate behaved the same if offered a PR system). The top 3 parties, in any combination, would form a huge percentage of the seats and lock out any other combination. Interestingly UKIP and the BNP would be the 4th and 5th respectively taking 32 seats between them. I think that says a lot about some groundswell opinions in the UK.

[ficklefiend]

If we had been running a Proportional Representation model this would have been the outcome (making the huge assumption that the electorate behaved the same if offered a PR system). The top 3 parties, in any combination, would form a huge percentage of the seats and lock out any other combination. Interestingly UKIP and the BNP would be the 4th and 5th respectively taking 32 seats between them. I think that says a lot about some groundswell opinions in the UK.

Ugh, that's about enough to put me off. Although, surely changing the system would change the ways the parties operate too - the BNP seem to have spread themselves right across the country this election. I didn't even know they would be standing in my constituency. If it was just most votes=most seats, then would every party would do the same and spread themselves absolutely as wide as possible?