The 2015 Popularity Contest (aka UK General Election )

[daylightrobber]

He barely answered a question at all until, bizarrely, the NHS one, which had every appearance of being staged to me.

Surprised the concensus is Cameron won - he had a 'mare to me, but I was looking for substance over style. All I saw was a man lie and evade questions over and over again, especially over Europe.

I got shot down for mentioning this last night. I've been to enough hustings and other political debates in my life to see it. (I know people who've been involved in it) The question itself wasn't even directly related to the original question from another member of the audience - just a tenuous link. Cameron went from being flustered, defensive, hot, sweaty and aggressive, to calm and too well informed almost instantly. No hesitation, just a well rehearsed answer. I know that the audience was independently selected as 25% Conservative, 25% Labour, 25% LD and 25% Idiot last night. Its not beyond the realms of possibility that a party activist could've been selected by chance but then offered their services for such purposes.

 

[Groucho]

He barely answered a question at all until, bizarrely, the NHS one, which had every appearance of being staged to me.

Surprised the concensus is Cameron won - he had a 'mare to me, but I was looking for substance over style. All I saw was a man lie and evade questions over and over again, especially over Europe.

I agree - many of you know my reasons for protecting the NHS.

And I wouldn't say Cameron won either. Methinks the reports that he won are a case of "the person I wanted to win before the debate, won" from Tory voters. Everyone is guilty of that thought, though, if we're honest.

 

[The Mighty Quint]

I agree - many of you know my reasons for protecting the NHS.

And I wouldn't say Cameron won either. Methinks the reports that he won are a case of "the person I wanted to win before the debate, won" from Tory voters.

Cameron got absolutely pummelled by that audience, we all watched it, read the comments back on here as it happened.

Milliband slips on a pool of Cameron's sweat that he left and Murdoch's Sky and The Sun are hammering that home to the lowest common denominator masses, the Tory bias though Murdoch's various media arms is a massive advantage for the Tory spin machine.

One thing I've learnt this election is the Tory spin machine absolutely trounces Labour's, the Tories have doubled the national debt in 5 years and are still seen by the public as doing a good job, world class spinning is that, I take my hat off to them.

 

[daylightrobber]

Cameron got absolutely pummelled by that audience, we all watched it, read the comments back on here as it happened.

Milliband slips on a pool of Cameron's sweat that he left and Murdoch's Sky and The Sun are hammering that home to the lowest common denominator masses, the Tory bias though Murdoch's various media arms is a massive advantage for the Tory spin machine.

One thing I've learnt this election is the Tory spin machine absolutely trounces Labour's, the Tories have doubled the national debt in 5 years and are still seen by the public as doing a good job, world class spinning is that, I take my hat off to them.

It's indicative of the depths that one party are prepared to go to compared to another.

 

[Tubey]

I agree - many of you know my reasons for protecting the NHS.

And I wouldn't say Cameron won either. Methinks the reports that he won are a case of "the person I wanted to win before the debate, won" from Tory voters. Everyone is guilty of that thought, though, if we're honest.

This was a sentiment "worm" for Twitter - basically corresponds with my thoughts on it.



As for focussing on a stage slip, that's TOWIE Britain for you. Collective idiots.

 

[evilwebby]

Cameron got absolutely pummelled by that audience, we all watched it, read the comments back on here as it happened.

Milliband slips on a pool of Cameron's sweat that he left and Murdoch's Sky and The Sun are hammering that home to the lowest common denominator masses, the Tory bias though Murdoch's various media arms is a massive advantage for the Tory spin machine.

One thing I've learnt this election is the Tory spin machine absolutely trounces Labour's, the Tories have doubled the national debt in 5 years and are still seen by the public as doing a good job, world class spinning is that, I take my hat off to them.

Not really true. But hey, don't let facts get in the way of spin.

Last Lab govt inherent the BEST economy that this country has ever known. Debt was falling thanks to the restructuring done in the 90s. however but the time they left it had doubled (largely in the last few years) and has only marginally risen since the current Govt took office.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_national_debt

 

[Groucho]

This was a sentiment "worm" for Twitter - basically corresponds with my thoughts on it.



As for focussing on a stage slip, that's TOWIE Britain for you. Collective idiots.

I would actually say that, if the only thing they have to use against Miliband was a mild slip (not even Gerrard standards), that he obviously has them seriously rattled.

 

[The Mighty Quint]

It's indicative of the depths that one party are prepared to go to compared to another.

But why don't Labour hammer home the Tories record on increasing the national debt, whenever the Tories attack on the economy Labour should be hitting back with "800m to 1.4 trillion on your watch, STFU!".

 

[The Mighty Quint]

Not really true. But hey, don't let facts get in the way of spin.

Last Lab govt inherent the BEST economy that this country has ever known. Debt was falling thanks to the restructuring done in the 90s. however but the time they left it had doubled (largely in the last few years) and has only marginally risen since the current Govt took office.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_national_debt

http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2013/11/the-tories-have-piled-on-more-debt-than-labour/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...me-to-come-clean-about-our-national-debt.html

http://www.politics.co.uk/comment-a...ill-leave-more-debt-than-all-labour-governmen

"The coalition will leave more debt than all Labour governments since 1900"

 

[evilwebby]

You wanna pretend that Labour can be trusted on economic competence?

EVERY single LABOUR government that ever existing left Office with a HIGHER rate of unemployment that when they entered. Every single one.

 

[evilwebby]

http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2013/11/the-tories-have-piled-on-more-debt-than-labour/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...me-to-come-clean-about-our-national-debt.html

If you wanna quote gross numbers then the economy grows 10% a year. ^_^
If you want to be taken seriously, talk about relative changes, ie %age. Abosolute numbers means nothing.

 

[Tubey]

Not really true. But hey, don't let facts get in the way of spin.

Last Lab govt inherent the BEST economy that this country has ever known. Debt was falling thanks to the restructuring done in the 90s. however but the time they left it had doubled (largely in the last few years) and has only marginally risen since the current Govt took office.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_national_debt

It has risen by approximately £500bn, a 50% increase in the last five years on numbers in 2010. Debt and deficit are not the same thing.

 

[The Mighty Quint]

If you wanna quote gross numbers then the economy grows 10% a year. ^_^
If you want to be taken seriously, talk about relative changes, ie %age. Abosolute numbers means nothing.

You posted this...

Look at the spike while the Tories have been in power

Growth in the UK was 0.6% before the Global Financial Crash, it's 0.3% and reducing at present, Labour were doing fine on the Economy at the end of their last term.

"The current government’s now responsible for £517 billion of the trillion-plus-pound UK public debt, compared to £472 billion accrued during the 33 years Labour led the country since the turn of the twentieth century".

And lets not forget, Labours debt was spent on a lot of improving of services in this conutry, new schools, new hospitals, new sure start centres in every town and city in the land, the spending was investment in peoples everyday lives.

 

[daylightrobber]

You wanna pretend that Labour can be trusted on economic competence?

EVERY single LABOUR government that ever existing left Office with a HIGHER rate of unemployment that when they entered. Every single one.

Don't get me started on this one. Workers are poorer than ever. Figures are being manipulated and massaged by the tories to currently include people who have no guarantee of work as being employed - people on zero hours contracts are not employed. The number of people made redundant from well paying jobs since the tories came to power who are now scraping by on part time jobs is a disaster for this country.

 

[Tubey]

You posted this...

Look at the spike while the Tories have been in power

Growth in the UK was 0.6% before the Global Financial Crash, it's 0.3% and reducing at present, Labour were doing fine on the Economy at the end of their last term.

They really weren't mate

I actually agree with Miliband that they didn't overspend that severely in government, and the crash was the major cause of the deficit, but they could have done better than they did and failed utterly to react when things started to go south.