Tag Archives: GE2010

Is it Bromance; Carl on the Coalition {Politics}

Posted on by

Since the first press release by Nick Clegg and David Cameron on Wednesday, it has dawned on the media that any coalition conflict in the near future is unlikely to come from these guys, and their so-called ‘love-in‘.

Tweedledum and Tweedledee; Ant and Dec; these are just some of the names to appear on the blogosphere or from the tweets of the twitterati to refer to our Prime Minister and the deputy. The BBC and ITN have taken to showing constant replays of David Cameron calling on Clegg to ‘come back‘ during one of their jokes in the back garden of number 10, and Henry McLeish, Labour’s former first minister in Scotland, even accidentally uttered the name “David Clegg”.

If you think Clegg will be Cameron’s nagging Aunty you can think again.

However that is not to say there will be no conflict within the coalition. On the same day as the press release Vince Cable was awaiting confirmation of the equal patch he will have with George Osborne as chair of the committee in charge of banks, only to find that those were not the plans at all.

Osborne’s sources were quick to brush the incident off by saying there had been some confusion on the matter, but it is clear for anyone to see why Ozzy Osborne wants his fingers on the banks, and not to share with his new pal Cable.

In spite of the fact that Osborne in the past has waxed lyrical about getting tough on the banks, and that the Libservatives have drawn up and agreed on a pledge to curb earth shattering bank bonuses, giving Cable the back seat is indicative that our new Chancellor finds dubious some of Cable’s tough plans for banks, namely the separation of high street and investment banking, and his no nonsense measures for banks’ lending requirements.

Sean O’ Grady of the Independent suspects that the honeymoon period inside the cabinet will be over by the 25th of June – the date of the emergency budget setting out a frame for public finances – when key differences in the party will come to the fore.

Cable has already agreed to back down on his plans for a mansion tax on properties worth over 2m, which would’ve saved money for those on the lower end of the tax scale, and Osborne compromised on raising inheritance tax exemption to 1m. Of those two compromises it is not difficult to see which measure could be for the purpose of softening the blow for the poorest in times of austerity, and which measure is in-built ideology.

If you want to identify where that coalition split will be, don’t look at Clegg and Cameron, who have to wear different coloured ties so we can tell them apart, it’s the economy, stupid.

by Carl Packman

You can read more of Carl’s thoughts and articles on his blog Raincoat Optimism.

BBC to project real time results onto 'Big Ben'

Posted on by

I say Big Ben, what I mean is St Stephen’s tower.
The BBC are projecting an unbranded bar chart of the results as they come in and it “will feature a “winning line”, representing the 326 seats that any party will need to win to be sure of an outright victory”
It’ll provide a count of the number of seats won by the main three parties as well as those won by smaller parties and independent candidates.
It’ll be up until around 0530am on the 7th.

Here’s more info on the BBC site.

Alternative Election Night {TV Preview}

Posted on by

It’s only a couple of days until Britain goes to the polls for the closest general election in a generation. On Thursday night, the BBC will begin an epic 20-hour broadcast from it’s huge studio set, ITV will have Alistair Stewart and Julie Etchingham surrounded by virtual reality graphics and Sky will have it’s presenters at constituencies across the country. Meanwhile, Channel Four will be taking an entirely different approach to election night.

Lauren Laverne, David Mitchell and Jimmy Carr will present a four-hour special, taking an entertaining and provocative look at the results as they come in. They’ll be joined by Charlie Brooker who’ll provide typically acerbic and hilarious comment, an array of guests including a bookmaker with the latest odds and a live studio audience. Viewers at home will also be able to join in on Twitter as night unfolds by sending tweets to @c4altelection and using the hashtag #C4altelection.

As well as the live broadcast from the studio, there’ll be pre-recorded segments using some of the channel’s most popular programmes. Throughout the night there’ll be segments from a special edition of Come Dine With Me featuring the unlikely combination of Edwina Currie, Brian Paddick, Derek Hatton and Rod Liddle. At ten o’clock, just after the exit polls come in, Charlie Brooker is joined by Robert Webb, Sharon Horgan and Peter Serafinowicz for a special edition of You Have Been Watching, looking at election coverage and the world of political television. Plus, from time to time the Fonejacker’s cast of characters will be popping up with prank calls.

The last time an alternative, satirical election broadcast was attempted, it was the utterly fantastic Election Night Armistice in 1997, where Armando Iannucci, Peter Baynham and David Schneider introduced Alan Partridge with the latest results from Norwich, a “prostitute in a helicopter” ready to land wherever the first result is declared to try to produce the first scandal of the new parliament, and a male voice choir performing popular news theme tunes. It’s hard to imagine that Channel Four’s effort will be able to come close to Iannucci’s genius, but with David Mitchell and Charlie Brooker on board, it should be definitely worth watching.

The Alternative Election Night on Thursday 6 May, 9pm on Channel Four.

New video from Yahoo! Politics. How much do people know about voting and politics?

Posted on by

Yahoo! Launches 'The People's Policies'

Posted on by

Yahoo = Peoples Policies. YAHOO! LAUNCHES ‘THE PEOPLE’S POLICIES’

  • The best ones will be advertised across the site for free to Yahoo!’s monthly UK audience of over 20 million users

  • Election site aims to be UK’s most comprehensive and accessible, with blogs from comedian Steve Punt.

(London, April 6th) Tired of the same old political promises in the lead up to an election?  Convinced you can do better than the politicians?  On the day the General Election is announced, Yahoo! – the UK’s #2 online news site* –  is launching ‘The People’s Policies’ at http://thepeoplespolicies.co.uk – offering you the chance to get your  burning issue out to a UK audience of over 20 million.

‘The People’s Policies’ gives you the chance to have your policy selected as an advertising banner which could then be shown throughout the Yahoo! UK site.  Twenty-two million people see Yahoo! ads online every month in the UK, meaning your policy has the potential of reaching an audience that even Brown, Cameron and Clegg would struggle to reach.

For your policy to have a chance of being featured on Yahoo!, simply submit your own policy for the UK – be it silly or sublime – and watch the votes pour in from Yahoo! users.  As well as potentially being selected to be included in advertising space on Yahoo! UK, each policy will be given its own individual link for self-promotion on your own Twitter and Facebook pages.  The best policy of the week will also potentially be spotlighted on the Yahoo! UK homepage for even more publicity.

In the final week of voting – timed to align with the week before the General Election – advertising will be focused on the best ten People’s Policies for a big finale. These ten will be made up from the top five on the leader board as voted for by Yahoo! users, plus Yahoo!’s five favourites, selected in accordance with the rules of the Site

Yahoo!’s General Election Site

The People’s Policies are one part of a new Yahoo! General Election website (www.yahoo.co.uk/elections) that seeks to be the most accessible source of current and relevant political information in the run up to the General Election– capturing everything that’s going on in the Election in an easy and informative way.

Direct from BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and sitcom The Party Line, comedian Steve Punt will be casting his satirical eye over the unfolding drama of the Election campaign.  The ex-star of The Mary Whitehouse Experience and one half of Punt and Dennis will be the writer of a blog aimed at providing political observation and a laugh (or two) among the serious issues of the day.

Throughout the build up, the site will be home to interviews with political leaders, live streaming of political debates and Yahoo!’s very own constituency map.  You will be able to get all the background on the politicians with party and candidate profiles and essential information.  You’ll also be able to access analysis on the highs and lows of the main parties and read in-depth articles on their policies and manifestos.

Rich Evans, UK News Editor, Yahoo! said “Over the next month, there’ll be an awful lot of coverage of parties and politicians but very little about the individual and their concerns.

The People’s Policies is Yahoo!’s way of putting you at the centre of the election campaign and giving you the chance to have your voice heard by over 20 million people.”

*As measured by monthly unique users (Comscore)

The Great Political Debate: Part 2: Labour.

Posted on by

By Alain Lewis

When I was 12 it was necessary for me to become a Labourite. My father was a Postman and a Trade Unionist and my mother a Home Help for the local council.
Mrs Thatcher was about to become Prime Minister and I believed that in her haste to cut taxes she would also make public services suffer. This made me in direct opposition to my best friend Simon Jones, I believed though that my convictions were far more important than that.
I became then a back seat supporter of the Labour Party, I’ve never actually joined the party.
My belief in a fairer society came not only as a counter to Mrs Ts unfairness but partially as a result of my, then, Christianity. I have since lost my belief in God, but I still believe we should make our world more equal for more people. That we shouldn’t discriminate against people because of their race, religion, age, sexuality, gender, class or political convictions. It does though seem a long time ago that Tory MPs were openly racist, apart from Boris that is.
Through my political adolescence I despaired of what was happening. The choices were so obvious, how could Neil Kinnock have lost in 1987 and 1992? When John Smith died big changes were allowed to happen on the Labour Party. It became more attractive to more people in the UK, even some Tories.
I think though this is what’s been happening since the war. The leadership has been to the right of the party, with the exception of 1983 and 1945.
There is also no denying that Labour won in 1997 under the banner of New Labour. They abandoned clause 4 and adopted PFIs.
New Labour though has revitalised the NHS, improved standards in Education. It introduced the Minimum Wage and gave families new opportunities with Sure Start. Professionally I prospered under New Labour as a worker in Information, Advice and Guidance with Adults. For a time I worked in close collaboration in a mult-agency setting, collaborating and not competing with a range of organisations. Those were some of the most joy filled and bitterness free times of my career.
Because of the cylical nature of our politics and the blame attached by the Tories to Gordon Brown for the economic meltdown; we’re now threatened by the return of Thatcherism under the guise of David Cameron. He, as most Tories are, is obsessed with choice and has an unpalatable zeal to force private schools into the state sector.
On May 6th I will be very happy to put my cross next to the Labour Party candidate’s name, Gary Heather, on the ballot paper in the Tunbridge Wells constituency. I know full well that I’m not to be too disappointed if by some chance he fails to get elected.