UK IX: This Economy Will Self-Destruct In...

[Asura]

People do know what a coalition is, right? These are the ones where you don't get to enact all your key policies.

The point of being in power is to govern. Parties have policies, and people vote for them (in a perfect world, anyway), so if the LibDems couldn't guarantee their manifesto (which is what people voted for), then they shouldn't have accepted going into coalition.

When faced with the choice to go into coalition or not, Clegg should've considered that the only reason he got to even consider that approach was because a bunch of people voted for the policies they were going to enact. So he should've gone into that decision knowing that if they had to shelve any of them, that wasn't acting in good faith.

The country voted for a minority Tory government, and that's what we should've got. I don't buy that whole "we tempered the Tories" line, because couldn't they have done that with the Tories in minority anyway by just voting in the Commons?

I say this because I voted for LibDem that time around, and I feel as though the party chose to be in government over the desires of its voters.

I won't say "I'll never vote for them again" but it would take a lot. As it happens I now live in a safe Labour constituency, but I also happen to like the MP, so I'll be voting for him.

[MartyG]

I just don't see it like that. We don't live in an ideal world and realistically, especially with FPTP a LibDem government is never going to happen. The coalition gave the chance to push forward electoral reform, this was the key policy compromise, which as it turns out people voted against. The expectation that LibDem would somehow be able to enact all their key policies was and is fantasy.

A LibLab coalition may also be one of the few chances we get to see PR in the UK - if such a coalition was to go ahead, LibDems would again be pushing for this as the price for forming that coalition (the one thing I do think Clegg should never have agreed to was to watering down the PR referendum to STV, tho I still have my doubts it would have passed), and should we ever get PR, everything will be a compromise on key policies because majority governments are far less likely.

PR reform will never happen with either a majority Labour or Conservative government because it wouldn't be in their interests to do so. Tories have the complete opposite in their manifesto and Labour voted against it as a policy at their last party conference.

[Golgo]

People do know what a coalition is, right? These are the ones where you don't get to enact all your key policies.

Could you endeavour to be more openly patronising, please? I wouldn't want to miss your intent.

[MartyG]

I can try.

[Protocol Penguin]

I don't trust the Lib-Dems at all after their Cameron-era coalition shenanigans and immediate reneging on all key policies, but if a Lab-Lib coalition could oust this Tory cabal I'd be well up for it. I don't think I can take any more of these braying liars, snides and crooks.

I didn’t trust LibDems for a while, but when they turned overtly anti-Brexit while Labour became overtly pro-Brexit, I switched my voting habits, TBH. And going forward, my main concern when voting is reversing Brexit in any form.

(Not defending the coalition, BTW. I mean, I support coalition governments as an idea in general as being better than single party governments, but that one stank. Suppose it didn’t help that the LibDems at that time had a leader who was far more right-wing than the actual party base.)

[Cassius_Smoke]

Was the con-dem coalition a 50/50 split of the partys? If so then Clegg didnt have an excuse, but I guess if your out numbered then it's pretty much a coalition in name only.

We definitely need to see more parties supporting each other. I know they all vie for power but if one party believes in what another is saying then they should come out in support. Its probably too socialist an idea though.

[QualityChimp]

I can never get my head around the anti-LibDem attitude after their coalition.

They weren't the majority party. They weren't solely governing the country. They had to make compromises and people will forever punish them at the ballots for it.

Look at how tempered the Conservatives were during the coalition, then contrast it with now. They're untethered and practically free to do as they please, very rarely held to account for their actions.

People need to decide on the lesser of two evils if they've had enough of this government and want change.

[Brad]

I can never get my head around the anti-LibDem attitude after their coalition.

They weren't the majority party. They weren't solely governing the country. They had to make compromises and people will forever punish them at the ballots for it.

Look at how tempered the Conservatives were during the coalition, then contrast it with now. They're untethered and practically free to do as they please, very rarely held to account for their actions.

People need to decide on the lesser of two evils if they've had enough of this government and want change.

This. Going back on one policy (unavoidably) vs the daily evil of the tories. Come on ffs.

[fuse]

Relenting on policy is one thing, and I understand the inevitability of this as the minority within a coalition government. The issue for many was more around them making the big attractive pledge in the first place, splitting the votes of more left-leaning folks, when behind closed doors they already knew they wouldn't be able to deliver on it even if they were to get into power.

Folks voting for one of many lesser (most definitely not just two) evils instead found their votes being used to form a coalition that undermined the single biggest issue they were voting for in the first place, that then went on to promise the public a referendum on Brexit.

Fully accept that Labour is far from blameless here, but yes, chalk me up as someone that's still mad at the Lib Dems - Nick Clegg and his speedy retreat to the private sector in particular. I'm not going to say 'never again', but certainly not lightly.

[Cassius_Smoke]

But we are getting that £350m a week right?


Right?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/jun/25/what-have-we-done-six-years-on-uk-counts-the-cost-of-brexit

[Nu-Eclipse]

I can never get my head around the anti-LibDem attitude after their coalition.

They weren't the majority party. They weren't solely governing the country. They had to make compromises and people will forever punish them at the ballots for it.

Look at how tempered the Conservatives were during the coalition, then contrast it with now. They're untethered and practically free to do as they please, very rarely held to account for their actions.

People need to decide on the lesser of two evils if they've had enough of this government and want change.

The Lib-Dems shouldn't have promised things that they couldn't deliver, period. And you are quite frankly p1ssing in the wind if you are somehow suggesting that people should have sympathy for Nick Clegg considering where he is now.

That said, I agree with you to an extent that the Left of the British Political spectrum are going to need to work together to oust the Tories. This is critical and crucial.

[Neon Ignition]

Voting is pretty simple these days assuming the Lib Dems won't agree to sit with the Tories again:

1 - Vote Labour

2 - Vote Lib Dem/SNP whilst being okay with them having a coalition with Labour

3 - Any other option as voting for anything else is a vote for the Tories. It's fine to side with the small party's policies but the practicalities of getting the Tories out are simple.

[Neon Ignition]

Boris Johnson aiming to stay in Downing Street until 2030s (msn.com)
Summing up what the Tories are dealing with, Johnson says he plans to remain PM into the 2030's

[fishbowlhead]

Errrrrrm, no.

[charlesr]

Dictatorship incoming