General Election - 8th June

[Stephen]

Never assume you have all the winning cards.

I can never understand why there has to be set figure to have a majority. Surely whoever gets the most votes wins, be that by one or one hundred votes.

I might put my name down for the job

[david63]

Surely whoever gets the most votes wins

Only if you have a system of proportional representation - in the UK we do not therefore it is the number of "bums on seats" that matters and you need to have more bums (yes I know what I have said!) than the others have bums in order to win the votes in the House of Commons - simples

[towny44]

I think I had better throw my crystal ball away, it totally failed me this time.
Interesting comment from my 11yr old granddaughter as I was trying to explain how the Govt did not have any money of its own but relied on our taxes, and that they could only spend what we gave them, "You don't know Grandad, maybe they have a secret supply somewhere"
Clearly an awful lot of labour voters also believe the same thing.

[towny44]

Surely whoever gets the most votes wins

Only if you have a system of proportional representation - in the UK we do not therefore it is the number of "bums on seats" that matters and you need to have more bums (yes I know what I have said!) than the others have bums in order to win the votes in the House of Commons - simples

I think we all know that David but maybe, like a company board, there should be a casting vote available for the governing party with the highest share of the vote.

[Meg 50]

but if the largest party have 100 bums ( for the sake of argument), but all the losing parties between them have more than 100 - then the winner can't do anything without some of the others saying they'd cooperate

[Manoverboard]

The only good thing about this election, from my standpoint, is that we should hear less about another Scottish independence vote anytime soon.

[towny44]

The only good thing about this election, from my standpoint, is that we should hear less about another Scottish independence vote anytime soon.

I agree with your logic and reasoning Moby, but you forget that Mrs Krankie possesses little of either.
But it was good to see her get a bloody nose.

[oldbluefox]

Diane Abbott gets in again with a majority of 35,000. Says it all really.

Amazing Diane.jpg

Bye-bye (and good riddance) to Anna Soubry, Alex Salmond, Nick Clegg and Angus Robertson plus half of the SNP mob who behaved so abominably at Westminster and did Scotland no favours at all.

Listening to the aftermath of this fiasco it's always heartening to hear that no matter what happened everybody was a winner.

[barney]

What strange times we live in chaps!

Labour promise rainbow unicorns and the Tories promise a bucket of sick, yet they still remain the largest party.

Anyone over 70 should have voted Labour to get their rainbow unicorn and hope that they have popped their clogs by the time the bill comes in.

An odd result down here in the Garden of England was Conservatives losing Canterbury and it now being the only Labour seat in Kent.
Now, you may or may not know, but Canterbury was the longest standing Tory seat in the country.
so, what swung it to Labour?
40,000 students who were promised that their student debt would be written off.
How many of these 40,000 students will remain in Canterbury when their studies finish?
So a solid blue seat is turned red by a transient population and the residents have to put up with a hard left MP who the locals didn't want.

As I say, strange times

[oldbluefox]

so, what swung it to Labour?
40,000 students who were promised that their student debt would be written off.
How many of these 40,000 students will remain in Canterbury when their studies finish?
So a solid blue seat is turned red by a transient population and the residents have to put up with a hard left MP who the locals didn't want.

A promise he cannot fulfil because he doesn't have a majority so now you are left with an MP nobody else wants and those very students will have disappeared in a few years' time to be replaced by another set.

[Whynd1]

Very strange times indeed.
Its unbelievably bad.
The conservatives ran such a poor campaign.

[barney]

Absolutely Foxy.

The UK electorate have gambled away their future for a bucket full of sweeties that will never materialise.

The German MEP (Weber) was on Radio Four this morning saying this outcome was the worst possible for the EU, as they cannot negotiate with nobody and the clock is ticking.
It was the first time I've heard anyone them their side say that no negotiated deal would be the worst possible outcome for the EU.

For so long they assumed that they had the upper hand and the UK would conceded most points.
Now it looks like they don't have anyone to play with, for some time.
They are now fearing the hardest of Brexits and the massive impact that this will have on both sides.
This is certainly a new stance from the EU.

[screwy]

Us golden oldies can breathe a sigh of relief i suppose, At least maggie may cant push through her Social Care policy or get rid of the triple lock, would be very difficult to push it through. Comrade Jezzer wont be able to bankrupt us again either. Seems to me its time to get more Centarist and end the Polarity.
Lots of University Cities/Towns will feel the same as you Barney,lumbered with an MP they dont want because of the student vote.Perhaps they should be made to vote from their home Address not student address.

[CaroleF]

I'm afraid the young will have to live through a period of Labour policies before they fully understand what a Labour Government means and what, eventually, it will mean for the economy of this country. I'm also afraid it means there will have to be another General Election this year, probably October. I think the Tories will have to have a new leader in place before then but not a Leadership Election now - please! Now which cruise can we book for October?

[Manoverboard]

Certainly some very interesting results this time round, many with very high turnouts which historically favours Labour.

Dorset generally achieves a Tory result so no surprises there but in one ward / district second place has been gained by three different Parties in the previous three elections. In that same ward / district Cons + Lab + LDems all increased their votes this time by significant percentages with only the Greens falling by the wayside.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I imagine Jezzer was crapping himself when the exit poll came out, worried that he might actually get into power and have to pay up on his unaffordable bribes!

In the end he's achieved what I believe he set out to do. Damage limitation.

[oldbluefox]

Lots of University Cities/Towns will feel the same as you Barney,lumbered with an MP they dont want because of the student vote.Perhaps they should be made to vote from their home Address not student address.

I 100% agree.

[screwy]

So what happens now.? May says she will form a govt backed up by the DUP..She also says that she will be starting Brexit Negotiations in 10 day time..! There is talk of another Election in the Autumn ? and maybe a leadership contest.?

Ok, she has screwed up big time,underestimated Corbyn but didnt we all.? Plus it was a shocking campain and a betrayel of Tory core voters with the Manifesto for what that was worth.
She isnt going to be able to implement the policies that were in there and Comrade Corbyn wont be able to push his False Hope policies on the Country, so we hit a stalemate of sorts.

Think we need to let her get on with Brexit while softening the tone of her policies. Now is not the time for 3 month leadership contests or anothe GE.
Certainly once Brexit is sorted a new leader should be sought to carry on till the end of this Parliament..

Well, thats what i think....for what it's worth. but what do i know..

[Mervyn and Trish]

I think she needs to lead us through Brexit with no further delay. No GE until that's sorted. Then consider her position after that and with the passage of time. Personally I still think she's a potentially good PM, but a rubbish and poorly advised campaigner.

[david63]

I believe that it has always been the plan that TM would get the Brexit negotiations done and give a time for things to "settle down" and then stand aside for a new leader (Boris?) to take the helm at the next General Election.

[Mervyn and Trish]

At any rate we can save ourselves the effort of starting a new thread. Just keep this one going and get the Plods to change tbe date in the title.

You opening a book OL?

[Stephen]

So what happens now.? May says she will form a govt backed up by the DUP..She also says that she will be starting Brexit Negotiations in 10 day time..! There is talk of another Election in the Autumn ? and maybe a leadership contest.?

Ok, she has screwed up big time,underestimated Corbyn but didnt we all.? Plus it was a shocking campain and a betrayel of Tory core voters with the Manifesto for what that was worth.
She isnt going to be able to implement the policies that were in there and Comrade Corbyn wont be able to push his False Hope policies on the Country, so we hit a stalemate of sorts.

Think we need to let her get on with Brexit while softening the tone of her policies. Now is not the time for 3 month leadership contests or anothe GE.
Certainly once Brexit is sorted a new leader should be sought to carry on till the end of this Parliament..

Well, thats what i think....for what it's worth. but what do i know..

Sounds about right to me screwy.

I bet Brussels are having a good laugh at our expense though. And who can blame them.
What a co*k up.

[oldbluefox]

I don't think Corbyn himself believed he stood a chance of winning the election. In consequence he could make a whole shed load of promises which he knew he would not have to realise (and if push came to shove he would borrow) but these were initiatives which would appeal - get rid of tuition fees, more money for the NHS, Education, do away with foodbanks etc etc: policies which would damage the Tories who were struggling with austerity measures taken as a consequence of the last Labour spending free for all.
May made it easier for him by scoring own goals for fun. I hope she shows stronger mettle when it comes to negotiating our exit from the EU.
I see China has steamed past US in trading with Germany. I didn't realise they were part of the single market.

[Onelife]

I think Theresa May is on a hiding to nothing whatever she dose from this point on and it can only be a matter of time before she is forced to move house.

As for our Brexit dealings, we might just as well get used to the fact that we won't be getting anything like what the majority of the UK voted for.....a very watered down version at best.

In a nutshell Brexit is dead in the water... as are the conservative party who will come under ever increasing amounts of pressure to call another election....Oh! and my last prediction will be that Jezza and Abbots love child Laura Kuenssburg will get the job of labours spokesperson.

So there you have it..... fairy tales can come true.

[qbman1]

I don't understand all this socialist triumphalism. OK, Labour did better than expected but, at the end of the day, Jezzer lost - and marginally less badly than Mrs Krankie, Shrek and Cleggy. The Conservatives are still in power so why all the whooping and hollering?!