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Category: Coalition

What if 458 Tory voters in these seats had acted differently?

What if 458 Tory voters in these seats had acted differently?

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General Election May 6 2010 CON>LAB/LD switchers required Warwickshire North 28 Camborne & Redruth (LD) 34 Thurrock 47 Hendon 54 Oxford West & Abingdon 89 Cardiff North 98 Sherwood 108 Total switchers needed ***458*** Would Labour have hung onto power? As we all are no doubt aware the May 2010 general election finished up with party seat totals that meant that only a combination of the 307 Conservative MPs with the 57 Lib Dem ones could produce a majority government….

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The Patrick Perspective: “If the LDs sink then Dave is out”

The Patrick Perspective: “If the LDs sink then Dave is out”

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A guest slot on the future of the coalition The above chart shows the actual poll shares achieved at the general elections from 1979 onwards. The 2015 numbers are the current PAPA numbers (Mike’s polling average). It also shows the GE turnout % (green line) and the combined share of Labour plus the LibDems (dotted line). What does it tell us? Firstly, it shows that there is quite some truth in the notion that Labour and the LibDems have historically…

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Is ConHome right to be getting excited?

Is ConHome right to be getting excited?

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Is this the politics for those who believe the Diana conspiracy? The Daily Express is not one of those papers that often gets cited on PB, or indeed other political sites, for its most noted for its front pages on the Diana conspiracy and regular new cures for one form of cancer or another. So how are we to regard it’s launch of a campaign crusade today to get the UK out of the EU? Is this going to resonate…

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What are the Lib Dems for?

What are the Lib Dems for?

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A guest slot by ex-Labour MP, Nick Palmer First a quick word on where I’m coming from. I’ve been a Labour partisan for 40 years, but not one of the ultra-tribal kind who hates everyone else. In particular, if Labour didn’t exist, I’ve always assumed I’d vote LibDem. I’d also concede that they’ve sometimes been right in the past when we were wrong (Iraq is the obvious case) and that they’re traditionally better and more interested in some things that…

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Will it be the council cuts that hurt the coalition most?

Will it be the council cuts that hurt the coalition most?

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HenryG looks at where the political battle-grounds will be Over the years I’ve noticed that one of the biggest misconceptions the public have is that their council services are funded almost entirely by the council tax they pay. In good times this isn’t so much of a problem, but it will be the cause of a major headache for the coalition too. The realisation that government spending cuts at Westmininster will hit their council’s services is starting to emerge as…

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Is the plan for Aaron to be Labour’s by-election candidate?

Is the plan for Aaron to be Labour’s by-election candidate?

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Is this what the NUS president was hinting at? There’s been a lot of speculation that the NUS might be planning to run a candidate in the Oldham East & Saddleworth by election following strong hints by the president, Aaron Porter, in an interview on The Politics Show yesterday afternoon But surely the idea of a separate NUS challenge is a nonsense because the last thing that Porter, an aspiring career Labour politician, would want is to take any action…

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MBE asks: Was it English votes for English fees?

MBE asks: Was it English votes for English fees?

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MPs regional breakdown Aye votes No votes Abstentions Total England 311 209 8 528 Northern Ireland 0 12 6 18 Scotland 6 51 2 59 Wales 8 32 0 40 ALL MPs 325 304 16 645 A guest slot on the big vote and the West Lothian Question Linlithgow and East Falkirk includes much of the late, lamented constituency of West Lothian. Last week its Labour MP, Michael Connarty, was one of 51 Scottish representatives to vote against Higher Education…

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Why’s Dave’s “contract” being honoured but not Nick’s pledge?

Why’s Dave’s “contract” being honoured but not Nick’s pledge?

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Could the differing treatment be what undermines the pact? In the run up to polling day on May 6th the Tories sent out a mailer to selected voters in key marginal seats headed “A contract between the Conservative Party and You”. It was designed to ease voters’ concerns about certain key areas of spending that the red team said were being cut. Most of the items listed were directed at pensioners – keeping free bus basses, the winter fuel allowance,…

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