On the evening of May 7th, I plan to sit up all night with a selection of craft ales (from various rural constituencies) watching the results coming in. I am genuinely excited by the prospect of change, and am looking forward to the entertainment value of it all - it beats Britain's Got Talent any time (and I enjoy BGT).
But as for to who vote for, that's something of an open field, and none of the TV debates made that any clearer,
Obviously, I'm a teacher, so I simply cannot vote for the current ruling party, as they have ruined the heart and soul of my profession. What's more, their whole election message has been based on slagging off Ed Miliband at every given opportunity. "On May 7th, you have a choice," they tell us. "The stability of a David Cameron, or the chaos of Ed Miliband." How do they know? Yawn. Tories, I truly expected better from you. I don't even know what you stand for. And you didn't turn up for the debates, which to me speaks volumes.
So what of Labour? Traditionally, this is the party that is supposed to represent me as a teacher. They got my vote last time around. This time, I'm unsure. I like many others was disappointed that Ed Miliband became leader. Yes, he won in a democratic process but I thought his brother was more statesmanlike. Did he shaft his brother? That's not for me to say, but I'd like to think that family loyalty counts for a lot. After winning the vote, Miliband was quick to take away some of the powers of the unions that had guaranteed him his role. So it could be said he's shafted his brother AND the unions. Would he do the same to the country? I don't know but I do get the feeling that he's power hungry and is in it for personal gain. If his colleagues were more dynamic, then I might think twice. But there is no-one in the Labour shadow cabinet who excites me.
And then there are the other kids on the block. I can't vote SNP or Plaid Cymru for obvious reasons. I can't vote for UKIP for even more obvious reasons. The Greens have lots of wild ideas that will never add up. And then we're left with the Lib Dems, the party that is seen as the Judas of the political scene.
I've always felt a little sorry for Nick Clegg. He had a big decision to make in 2010, but what choice did he have? Since then, many of his key principles have been uprooted. Many students will never forgive him for what happened with tuition fees. But as a minority party in power, that's probably to be expected. For all Nicola Sturgeon talks about Trident being a red line issue, there is absolutely nothing she will be able to do to stop it if she is in a coalition government.
Clegg may be clinging on to the scraps of what he has achieved (and there are some good policies that he's pushed through), but can you imagine what life might be like if the Tories had secured an overall majority? I'm glad the Lib Dems have been in there to offer an opposite view, and to be honest, I'd be glad of it again this year.
And after all that's happened over the last five years, Clegg still stands out as the most honest of the main party leaders, and that says a lot! I hope he keeps his seat, because I think they will have a big part to play on May 7th.
So I havcn't really said much about policy, but the key areas for me are education; family; and lifelong care as my parents are approaching retirement.
With that in mind, I looked at an election policy guide for education. I'm close to making a decision on where my vote is going. Five years ago, this decision would have shocked me to the core.
Anyone got any good suggestions of craft ales?
But as for to who vote for, that's something of an open field, and none of the TV debates made that any clearer,
Obviously, I'm a teacher, so I simply cannot vote for the current ruling party, as they have ruined the heart and soul of my profession. What's more, their whole election message has been based on slagging off Ed Miliband at every given opportunity. "On May 7th, you have a choice," they tell us. "The stability of a David Cameron, or the chaos of Ed Miliband." How do they know? Yawn. Tories, I truly expected better from you. I don't even know what you stand for. And you didn't turn up for the debates, which to me speaks volumes.
So what of Labour? Traditionally, this is the party that is supposed to represent me as a teacher. They got my vote last time around. This time, I'm unsure. I like many others was disappointed that Ed Miliband became leader. Yes, he won in a democratic process but I thought his brother was more statesmanlike. Did he shaft his brother? That's not for me to say, but I'd like to think that family loyalty counts for a lot. After winning the vote, Miliband was quick to take away some of the powers of the unions that had guaranteed him his role. So it could be said he's shafted his brother AND the unions. Would he do the same to the country? I don't know but I do get the feeling that he's power hungry and is in it for personal gain. If his colleagues were more dynamic, then I might think twice. But there is no-one in the Labour shadow cabinet who excites me.
And then there are the other kids on the block. I can't vote SNP or Plaid Cymru for obvious reasons. I can't vote for UKIP for even more obvious reasons. The Greens have lots of wild ideas that will never add up. And then we're left with the Lib Dems, the party that is seen as the Judas of the political scene.
I've always felt a little sorry for Nick Clegg. He had a big decision to make in 2010, but what choice did he have? Since then, many of his key principles have been uprooted. Many students will never forgive him for what happened with tuition fees. But as a minority party in power, that's probably to be expected. For all Nicola Sturgeon talks about Trident being a red line issue, there is absolutely nothing she will be able to do to stop it if she is in a coalition government.
Clegg may be clinging on to the scraps of what he has achieved (and there are some good policies that he's pushed through), but can you imagine what life might be like if the Tories had secured an overall majority? I'm glad the Lib Dems have been in there to offer an opposite view, and to be honest, I'd be glad of it again this year.
And after all that's happened over the last five years, Clegg still stands out as the most honest of the main party leaders, and that says a lot! I hope he keeps his seat, because I think they will have a big part to play on May 7th.
So I havcn't really said much about policy, but the key areas for me are education; family; and lifelong care as my parents are approaching retirement.
With that in mind, I looked at an election policy guide for education. I'm close to making a decision on where my vote is going. Five years ago, this decision would have shocked me to the core.
Anyone got any good suggestions of craft ales?
