Clegg to go?

[DynamicSpirit]

This. The Liberal Democrats never stood a chance - the Tories were always going to throw them in front of a bus.

They should've forced them to form a minority government, really.

The trouble is - if they'd done that, there would almost certainly have been another general election within a year, which the Conservatives would most likely have won outright. (There was no way Labour was going to win in 2010-11)

While, with hindsight, that would probably have been better for the LibDems' popularity, I'm sure if that had happened, most LibDem and Labour supporters would have viewed it as disastrous for the country, and many would then probably have been angry at the LibDems for not taking the coalition offer (and so being able to moderate the Conservatives) when they had a chance.

Personally, as a Labour party member, I think the LibDems have been unfairly blamed for a lot of things that weren't really their fault. (I'd say that's quite a minority viewpoint within Labour though).

 

[Oswyntail]

....
Personally, as a Labour party member, I think the LibDems have been unfairly blamed for a lot of things that weren't really their fault. (I'd say that's quite a minority viewpoint within Labour though).

The benefits for the Labour Party of the coalition are rarely pointed out. It has given them an easy target, and meant they have not really had to a) defend their recent (appalling) record in detail or b) oppose the Government line (useful, as they seem to have few alternative strategies, and actually agree with most of what is being done). Instead, they have sat back and left internal dissent from the fringes of the government parties do their work, only stirring the pot to remind the nation (usefully?) that the Tories are "Toffs". Sadly, in the next year, they are going to have to do a bit more, and they might find this testing.

 

[DarloRich]

In my own view Clegg is too delusional, he won't resign until the last Lib Dem MP loses their deposit. If Labour got in, whether as a minoity or as a coalition, expect this country being ruined all the more as Milliband will not allow us a referendum, Labour wants in the EU they are a dangerous party who have brought this nation close to being a dictatorship. Never again.

What world do you live in? Dictatorship? Funny I seem to recall several elections between 1997 and 2010. And how I missed the jack booted storm troopers marching the streets is beyond me :roll:

 

[Yew]

Why I wont be voting Lib-Dem

"The Liberal Democrats are different. Not only will we oppose any raising of the cap, we will scrap tuition fees for good, including for part-time students . . . Students can make the difference in countless seats in this election. Use your vote to block those unfair tuition fees and get them scrapped once and for all." -Nick Clegg - Whom voted Yes when the tuition fee increases where passed through parliament.

 

[deltic]

Why I wont be voting Lib-Dem

"The Liberal Democrats are different. Not only will we oppose any raising of the cap, we will scrap tuition fees for good, including for part-time students . . . Students can make the difference in countless seats in this election. Use your vote to block those unfair tuition fees and get them scrapped once and for all." -Nick Clegg - Whom voted Yes when the tuition fee increases where passed through parliament.

While the Lib Dems were daft to propose such a policy they in the end had no alternative but to support the opposite as part of the coalition government. That's what happens in coalitions you have to compromise on your policies.

Worse was the previous Labour Govt that stated it would not introduce tuition fees and then did so when the whole matter was in its control. Text below is taken from the Guardian

June 7 2001
Labour is re-elected with a manifesto pledge stating that it "will not introduce top-up fees and has legislated against them"


January 22 2003
Less than two years after pledging not to introduce top-up fees, Labour publishes a white paper setting out proposals allowing universities to set their own tuition fees up to a cap of £3,000 a year.

While the Conservatives stated

May 12 2003
Conservative party leader, Iain Duncan Smith, pledges that all university tuition fees would be abolished under a future Conservative government, condemning tuition fees as "a tax on learning".


So I'm not clear why the Lib Dems get trashed on this issue when 1) the policy change was not totally under its control and 2) both Labour and Conservative parties have equally failed to live up to their promises when unlike the Lib Dems they had greater control over the issue.

 

[Oswyntail]

One should remember that opposition parties do not have access to all the financial information that is available to government. When they do, policies have to change. So the Conservative and Liberal "broken pledges" are venial. On the other hand, the Labour one is not.

 

[deltic]

One should remember that opposition parties do not have access to all the financial information that is available to government. When they do, policies have to change. So the Conservative and Liberal "broken pledges" are venial. On the other hand, the Labour one is not.

I dont buy this idea that opposition parties dont have full access to financial information. Its just an excuse used by parties to change their policies. Govt expenditure and income data is readily available by department - what the opposition may not have is the resources of the civil service to analysis and understand the implications of that data.