Lib Dems in crisis

RJP33

robin_banks wrote: »

Everything is in the countries interests ?

Not always, but the overriding objective of putting us on a sound financial footing is certainly in our interest. It's never going to be popular but it is right.

StevieJ

RJP33 wrote: »

At least the LDs are doing what is actually in the countries’ best interests rather than what is popular.

Yes I remember, removing tuition fees was popular in university towns What about the U turn on selling off the forests?

abaxas

Populace in 'give us free things' shocker.

What do you expect, the more you bribe, the better you do in elections.

blueboy43

Out,_Vile_Jelly wrote: »

Yes, that was an option, but not a very good one for the country to have such weak and uneasy governance at a time of financial crisis elsewhere in Europe. In all likelihood another election would have been called within a few months, which the Conservatives would almost certainly have won outright, mainly because they're the only party with the coffers to support another such undertaking.

Crucially, the LibDems' two core pledges were PR and tuition fees. Neither Tories nor Labour were at all likely to budge on these issues.

Interestingly, 58% of grassroots Tories are reported to be unhappy with what they perceive as Cameron pandering to the LibDems, while the latter probably feel equally aggrieved. Who's right? Neither Cameron nor Clegg can properly fulfil any of their pre-election promises as neither are fully in power.

I think the difference is that for the Tories the Lib Dems are a convenient excuse for things that economically just can't be done at the moment. Eg the grass roots may want tax cuts, but it is untenable from an economic point, not a political point.

Lest me forget;

The Lib Dems manifesto 4 promies

• Fair taxes that put money back in your pocket.
• A fair chance for every child.
• A fair future, creating jobs by making Britain greener.
• A fair deal for you from politicians.

Break up Banks ? No
£10k tax free allowance ? No
Cutting class sizes No
Closing tax loopholes for the Wealthy ? No
Green Growth ? No
Student fees ? No

This is before we get to the things like scrapping Trident - a long standing Lib Dem wish.

Have the Lib Dems actually acheived anything so far ?

I suggest the new bank holiday is inaugurated by placing Nick Clegg in a giant Wicker Man and setting fire to it. Lembit Opik can entertain Britt Eckland.

RJP33

StevieJ wrote: »

Yes I remember, removing tuition fees was popular in university towns [IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/go78/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG]What about the U turn on selling off the forests?

The tuition fees thing is living in the real world where the current system is completely unsustainable and asking people to contribute even more to fill the gap in the current circumstances is ridiculous. It’s all well and good having these crazy policies when you don’t think you’re ever going to be in power, but once they were reality hit.

The forest thing was a consultation and they did the right thing by dropping it, which is a good quality to have in a government.

RJP33

Also to be fair to the LDs in the above post they'll more than likely get their 10k tax allowance, it's going up hugely for the next tax year. So there's one positive thing the LDs have delivered.

Wheezy_2

StevieJ wrote: »

I expected one before now.

Same here.
But the ability of the libdems to u-turn and bend over has surprised me.
I wonder if a pummeling in the local elections and a no-vote on AV in May will change that.

StevieJ

RJP33 wrote: »

The tuition fees thing is living in the real world where the current system is completely unsustainable

When we discussed this on here people suggested that it wasn't a money saver but an ideological move by the Tories. This (they hope) will encourage the Universities to behave more like the private sector, after all the fees are paid back well into the future so won't be reducing that deficit for some time yet.

StevieJ

Wheezy wrote: »

Same here.
But the ability of the libdems to u-turn and bend over has surprised me.
I wonder if a pummeling in the local elections and a no-vote on AV in May will change that.

Back benchers will be worried, Front benchers will probably be Tory at the next election.

RJP33

StevieJ wrote: »

When we discussed this on here people suggested that it wasn't a money saver but an ideological move by the Tories. This (they hope) will encourage the Universities to behave more like the private sector, after all the fees are paid back well into the future so won't be reducing that deficit for some time yet.

I don’t think it’s entirely fair to call it ideological, the main problem is that with so many people going to university (which is great) the strain on government funding increases so something has to give.

It’s more bringing a rapidly increasing expense to a halt rather than an actual money saver.

It’s a pretty reasonable compromise, students pay a bigger contribution and the state still supports so it’s not a US style system.