Scottish voting coming up soon and I think I am voting reform

[ScroogeMightHaveBeenOnToSomething]

Scottish elections coming up next month. I think I have decided to vote reform.

I guess my reasons are (in no particular order)

1. Policing - I am getting really worried by the lack of law and order. I live in a decent place and there is constant trouble at the bus station at night with buses getting their windows smashed. Police have been seen riding the buses to try and get it under control. However I just don't think our current police force is fit for purpose. The job is too dangerous for what it pays and so it can't attract people. They don't have enough powers to deal with the little scrotes and there is no respect. I mean look at the whole shoplifting chaos and the tik tok riots. The whole thing is start to feel quite dangerous and reform are saying they will have more police with more powers and be more strict with law and order. This is what I want - more jails, more police, tougher sentences, respect brought back
2. Housing. Okay so we all know about the housing situation and it's long been an issue. Tonight I was watching an old episode of 'how to get a council house' and I felt so angry and helpless and outraged. Family of romanians come to UK with no money. Mum and Dad and 5 kids. The dad has no particular skills so has been doing odd jobs at a car wash but currently not working. Both have broken english and missing teeth (in other words I don't think they will find getting work easy). So what does the council decide. Well the man is claiming job seekers allowance which maintains his 'work status' and so because of this and the fact he has 5 kids he gets a 4 bed council house. Presumably paid for then by benefits since neither he or his wife are working. They were both very, very pushy and aggressive and then when they got the house waxing lyrical about 'how generous english people are'. You couldn't make it up. Update on how they were getting on a few months later. Neither parent had started working so them and their 5 children were just in their paid for house living on their benefits with no skills that the UK needed. I mean seriously if you want to see what is wrong with the UK this is a good place to start. British people homeless and this outrage going on. So yes give me reform who can hopefully do a Trump and start rounding the fuckers up. I have no issues with people moving to UK and coming with a plan and money and getting jobs and supporting themselves etc. This family came to the UK with no money, no jobs and literally were outraged when they thought they were not getting their free house. The housing lady said they were getting a house through gritted teeth. I got the impression that it was to shut them up and get rid of them but totally unfair on homeless british people.
3. Benefits/Welfare - well I guess I have touched on that above. I think most of us used to have real sympathy and no issue with real disabled people or genuine out of work people being helped. They were in the minority, it was often short term as it was something they were embarrased about. Now I feel like because there are so 'many of them' I have no empathy at all. Which means the genuine folks are being lumped in with the scroungers and I sort of hate them all now if that makes sense. So another reason for voting reform.

Now I'm no doubt going to get told how terrible I am and that the kids are just having fun throwing bricks at buses, that I'm racist for not wanting unskilled romanians and their 5 children to live life free on our tax pounds. I'll also be a monster for being sick of the benefits issue and woah is me little johnny is going to be out on the streets with his 25 disabilities. Fuck me though. Surely voting for more of this shitshow would be insane.

Will it be better under reform. Yeah probably not but at least it's someone different and it might be better and yes I have read their manifesto.

(By the way one episode of get a council house had a boy with multiple sclerosis and he was getting a council house which of course was right. However you saw him crying and telling his dad he didn't want to live on his own (he was about 20) and it made me think of the posters here who are dead against homes or institutions for their disabled kids. I just thought what a disaster giving this boy a house on his own with careers 4 times a day was going to be (he was in trouble with police alot and was always drunk and getting brought home by them). He was just far too disabled to be living alone even if he was getting a house plus benefits. Sure enough the update was he had been moved into supported accomodation. So for this chap some kind of home was the right place to be and where he wanted to be. I've digressed a bit with this point as it's not really about reform and voting but I just wanted to throw that in there to see why people don't want their kids to go into homes. I mean do they really want to live alone in a council house with benefits. This one definately did not. Anyway might need a seperate thread for that issue or I guess we can discuss both issues here)

Reform is deeply racist and they pretend all the problems you identify will be solved by kicking out the Romanians with 5 children, etc. Its a crock of shite and the oldest lie out there.

For example I have Romanian ancestry and go to Romania about once a year to see family. My mate here moved from Bucharest with his family and is already working hard, paying tax and contributing to society. Hes a smart, articulate, knowledgeable man. Youve clearly got no idea what Romania is like. Its deeply rooted in culture, history, intellectualism, courageous leadership, and so much more. Many parts of the country are extremely beautiful. There is a lot of innovation. Reform make you think its all toothless greedy stupid beggars Im sure.

There are some independents, some small parties I've come across before (Scottish Socialist Party, Scottish Family Party etc.) and some parties I've never heard of (Independence for Scotland Party, Equality Party, Alliance to Liberate Scotland Party...)

You actually have a point there. We're having elections here in Suffolk because of Reform's court challenge. Aside from the fact that this means a waste of my taxes because we will have to have council elections again in two years when the councils are restructured, the upside is that Reform are likely to get in. And then they will have two years to utterly fuck things up the way they are already doing in the councils they control. Let's give them the rope.

Thanks.

Agree I’m in Suffolk too and the stupidity around these elections has been staggering. I am half tempted to vote reform just to watch them make a hash of it, but I don’t think I could bring myself to put the cross in the box 😂

im also mind blown at the number of people that think local elections are going to spark a change in national immigration, or treasury spending policies 🥴

This thread isn’t about council elections in England?

So when you said earlier in the thread you were voting both votes reform in Scotland, how did you manage to get registered to vote in another country? @MyLuckyHelper

Good lord @Differentforgirls, I already told you I was being facetious. No wonder you struggle with comprehension when you have such a short term memory.

If @Differentforgirls wants to ne the thread police, they can fill their boots. I'll post about the stupidity of anyone voting Reform wherever I want to, thanks.

So you lied? 👍

Sorry, I’m not sure I noticed you. Apologies.

And crucially can they tell me how to become 'not disabled' now, so I only claim benefits (just pip) for a short time. That would be fabulous. I'd love to go back to my able bodied & well state so I can go back to work. But the medical profession have no magic undisabling medication.

but she can be sure I'll only be scraping by & living with bare necessities. God forbid a disabled person should have anything better than that.

I despair, there is no problem that charlatan, grifter, commodities trader Farage is the answer to. I try to avoid insulting people on mumsnet and sm generally but the sheer lack of brainpower by people who think that Reform can successfully run a bath is terrifying. Stop reading the Daily Heil, Express, Torygraph etc - please.