UK Elections

[Morgan]

May the 5th, our big chance to dump President Blair, lapdog of Bush.

Not alot of confidence especaily after reading this. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4408101.stm

I don't want to vote for the bastard that ended the rave scene in the UK or the drunken scotty, and i defo don't want to see that grinning jackanpes get a 3rd term.

[rewing3]

Re: UK Elections

Morgan,
I take it you don't like Blair very much. Well just to let you know there are a lot of americans that don't like bush either. I am personally one of them. I was really hoping that bush would lose the election. But remember to vote either way. It is important to vote or you will have dumbasses like George W or Blair make decisions for you that you don't agree with.

[thesightless]

Re: UK Elections

Here i go again on my own

[sammwalk]

Re: UK Elections

God...and I thought the UK's election process was a bastion of hope for the US. Aside from the mail in ballot hullaballoo, aren't candidates in the UK restrcted heavily in their campaigning? Like, they only have a certain amount of time on TV, and only so much money?

please explain, if you will.

[MJ]

Re: UK Elections

I don't want to vote for the bastard that ended the rave scene in the UK

Wankers of the highest form.

[ian]

Re: UK Elections

It's a case of best of a bad bunch, which in my opinion has to be Mr Howard. Anythings better than another term of Labour - they've shown themselves to be wholly dishonest in recent weeks. But on the other hand, not only have the Liberals got no chance in hell of being elected, as Morgan said - who'd want a drunken scotty as PM?!

[Morgan]

Re: UK Elections

God...and I thought the UK's election process was a bastion of hope for the US. Aside from the mail in ballot hullaballoo, aren't candidates in the UK restrcted heavily in their campaigning? Like, they only have a certain amount of time on TV, and only so much money?

please explain, if you will.

It is true the UK's voting system is considered one of the best in the world. Unfortunalty, like alot of other laws they are outdated and have not kept up with the progress society has made. It's a small scandal that can be easily recified.

In general the 3 main UK parties don't spend a lot on election campains. For one thing, there are only a certian number of slots on the television for policatical broadcasts. Usually each party will get a two minute slot on the 5 main TV channels several times a day, but for only one day in the run up to an election, i think these are free slots to the 5 biggest political parties. There is no mass TV adverts like the states and usually never any negative campaining. There are poster campains and the usually grassroots mailshots etc.

i think the labour party spent about ?20 million on the last election, much less than in America.

I take it you don't like Blair very much

I don't, in my opinion he is dishonest and has lied to us, the public. I think he promised bush that he would go to war months before it happend. Not only that he has appointed Peter Mandleson again, again and again after he resigned under a cloud. Pensions, he's allowed Gordon Brown to rob pensioners left and centre, i'm convinced he's managed to artificallcial inflate the growth of the enconomy. Labour has lied about raising taxes.
Mainly it's the touchy feely lesbian outreach programs you see Labour have started and are wasting money on. I just don't like the way they think.
Crime as well, it's all ASBO's and Community Support Officers.

I just think Labour suck, they seems more interested in chasing public opinion rather than running the country, like the fox hunting bill, who the fuck cares, it was huge waste of every ones time. Why? just to molify some animal rights left wing liberals.

Any way enough is enough, rant over. you want to know something interesting? I was too lazy to put myself on the electorial role, so i can't even vote.
Not the it matters the conseratives allways win with a 20000 majority here anyway!

[davetlv]

Re: UK Elections

God...and I thought the UK's election process was a bastion of hope for the US. Aside from the mail in ballot hullaballoo, aren't candidates in the UK restrcted heavily in their campaigning? Like, they only have a certain amount of time on TV, and only so much money?

please explain, if you will.

It is true the UK's voting system is considered one of the best in the world. Unfortunalty, like alot of other laws they are outdated and have not kept up with the progress society has made. It's a small scandal that can be easily recified.

In general the 3 main UK parties don't spend a lot on election campains. For one thing, there are only a certian number of slots on the television for policatical broadcasts. Usually each party will get a two minute slot on the 5 main TV channels several times a day, but for only one day in the run up to an election, i think these are free slots to the 5 biggest political parties. There is no mass TV adverts like the states and usually never any negative campaining. There are poster campains and the usually grassroots mailshots etc.

i think the labour party spent about ?20 million on the last election, much less than in America.

Political spending for elections in the UK can be divided into two clear areas - constituencies and the national party.

Unless i'm mistaken prospective candidates for constituencies are only allowed the paltry sum of about ?8900.00 (this is an approx. figure allowed for the 1997 campaign under the Representation of the People Act) to be spent on their election campaign.

The only reason why this figure remains so low is to allow all citizens to be able to stand for a seat in parliament, unlike in the US where it seems that you have to have millions backing you. This money not only has to cover the costs of printed material but also office costs etc (in the 1997 election Fiona Jones, who won her seat as a member of the Labour Party, got disqualifies by the courts for over spending on her campaign; she was the first MP prosectuted for 'electorial fruad' in over 140 years.)

National funding for elections is organised slightly differently, but there are still caps on how much can be spent. TV slots are free to the major parties in the three weeks running up to an election, each party receiving an amount of coverage previously agreed upon.

By far the largest amounts spent by the national party is on advertising in the print media and billboards.

Hope this helps!

I for one look forward to casting my absentee ballot this year and i look forward to a third historic term for the only credible political force left in the UK!

[sammwalk]

Re: UK Elections

^^^ Now here in the US, we'll probably never get our campaign finance into that small of a limit (we can dream), but I think it's because the representatives would never vote for it, because they keep themselves in power this way. My question would be: what prevents this behavior in the UK parliamentary system?