To not understand why people hate David Cameron and the Conservative Party?

[SuperWifeANDMum]

Just that really.

I am a Conservative voter.

PM Cameron has disappointed me in some ways such as his lax approach to curbing immigration, deporting foreign criminals and addressing the alarming benefit culture but he has implemented a fair few positive changes.

For example:

Reducing our Debt.
Introducing Bedroom Tax.
Cutting corporation tax.
Frozen Council Tax.

Of you vote labour, why?

I am deeply concerned at the thought of another Labour government next election.

hate not have

Down
Do try doing some reading dear. The banks took us into debt.
I do not want life handed to me on a plate. I voted Labour, used to be a Labour councillor. Worked hard. As did dh. He has been disabled for a few years now, this government decided that a man that can't dress himself or toilet himself was capable of work for a while. Fortunately I'm articulate and know my way round the system, it still took me nine months. What I want handed to me on a plate is a safe place, with a safe (and reasonable, not breadline) income, help in my caring capacity and a lot more than the sixty quid a week that is carers allowance. So yes, I'm cross and vocal, but that's because I'm Doctor Dawndonna, I can see what is happening and I work twentyfour hours a day, seven days a week, no holidays, no respite because this government has cut such things to the bone. I shall continue to be cross and vocal.

all they are trying to do is rebuild our country after the last Labour government left it on its knees.

Were you in primary school in 2007? The banking industry left it "on its knees" by holding governments to ransom. The very same banking industry that employed so many of our current Ministers, and espouses Tory values (which amount to something like 'winner takes all'.)

If you could understand figures, you'd know the ConDems have increased our debt and fallen over 40% short of their own targets.

Sign, you told your story very well. I empathise.

Tories have no concept of social responsibility or the common good.

Not everyone who lives in a council house is a benefit claimant you know. What a disgusting, ignorant and offensive comment. As someone who's parents both grew up in council houses, and who still has friends and relatives who live in social housing, I think your comments are ignorant and and highly ill informed.

Where I live you'd be hard pushed to find a Tory voter, or at least anyone who's publicly admit to it anyway. An old industrial town that's heart was ripped our by the evil old witch Thatcher, people have very long memories around here, put up a sign in your window saying "vote Tory" and expect them to get bricked.....

I should also add that the housing crisis exists because of the Tory's ludicrous "right to buy" policy. Council houses were built for people who couldn't afford to buy their own homes. Duh.

Successive Labour governments had opportunities to overturn the 'right to buy' policy and didn't take it. It was a vote winner.

Down - actually, yes, I do want life handed on a plate. I worked and was 'rich', happily paying taxes and National INSURANCE because it mattered to me that the country I worked in had a stable, healthy population & economy. I paid a lot into the system - I'm still a net contributor, eleven years after losing my earning capacity through ill health.

This National INSURANCE, just like my private policies, now tries to avoid paying out. I have to submit to endless humiliating interrogations by box-tickers who neither know nor care about my personal circumstances, and I lose because I'm ill and have inadequate resources. The interviews, the forms, the court cases, the research, the phone calls all make me more ill and less capable. I'm homeless because I have no money and no landlord wants a tenant on benefits. Even when I'm housed, my housing benefit can stop at any time, on a number of pretexts, so there's no stability. (Last time I was homeless, it was thanks to a fraud report which stopped my payments during investigation; the investigation took too long and I was evicted.)

I feel conned. Both personally and collectively.

1. The way the law was written with regard to Right to Buy, it would cost any government far more than the original implementation cost to reverse the decision.

2. The tories blocked Capital Receipts, local authorities were only entitled to 28% of their council house sales the rest went to government coffers, thereby causing a housing shortage: councils didn't have the money to build more.

3)The 1989 Housing Act in which Thatcher stated that if you lived on a council estate, you were a criminal, took powers from local authorities, and with regard to private rental, gave the landlord far greater powers than they had had up until that point. It enabled landlords to set their own rents, look where that's got us...

I think most politicians these days are regarded with distrust. Most of them seem to be self-serving or working for the tiny majority of rich people or corporations, rather than the interests of the people they are meant to represent.

Cameron and the Tory party do a lot of things that are not economically or socially pragmatic but for ideological reasons. For example, rather than continuing to spend billions on housing benefit which goes to their rich landlord friends (and the bill has increased significantly under their watch), they could have used the money to build millions of social homes. They won't do this because a) They want the rich to remain and keep getting richer as many are landlords themselves and the rich tend to vote Tory and b) building social housing would reduce house prices and high house prices are the only thing pushing the economy these days and encourage the older generation to vote Tory (to maintain the status quo).

The bedroom tax is a prime example of Tory spite and economic spendthrift. I agree that people living in social housing should not be entitled to more rooms than they need but at the end of the day this policy is just increasing the cost to the taxpayer since someone booted out of social housing moves into the private rented sector and their housing benefit doubles. If the problem is that there is not enough social housing then the obvious answer is to build more, create an asset that belongs to the country and generates regular income. Instead the taxpayer ends up footing the bill so that Cameron can keep giving his landlord friends free money.

He hasn't done anything about immigration, he hasn't done much to reduce welfare dependency and he hasn't done anything to deter take avoidance by big business/rich individuals. Instead he has reduced the higher rate tax threshold so those on PAYE earning not very much are now taxed even more, while the rich have many ways to avoid tax.

I just think Tory policies are very obviously made at the behest of those who have donated to the party and for their minority benefit rather than what will actually be good for the people of GB and the country as a whole.

Nancy, I'm disillusioned by Labour too! I fear all our mainstream parties are now controlled by private financial interests, and there aren't enough strong people left in politics to stand up to them :(

Also, MODS please DON'T delete this thread. The OP has as much right to ask this question as anyone else and it is a good question.

I wish people would remember that we have a coalition government, not a Tory one!

OP is not coming back, she's put the spoon back in the drawer for now.

"Alarming benefit culture" indeed. The only thing alarming about benefits is the barbaric way they are "managed" via pointless sanctions and constantly moving the goalposts. Sure there's a culture - one of utter terror and stress about them being stopped.

This government targets the most vulnerable and mashes them into the ground.

As for reducing the deficit, public sector net debt is at its highest ever level. Osbourne's targets are a distant memory.

OP, perhaps you could inject some of your millions into the economy. Buy a few handbags and give it a boost.

Fedupbutfine - my post was in response to this: BelleOfTheBorstal 'more bedrooms than they need'?What about all those rich people, who have more houses than they need??Should we not be addressing that first? I don't look down on anyone. What I ment was I own more than one house but the difference is I bought them, I have not claimed benefits to do so.

MrsTerryPratchet i don't know of any Labour voters but of course I know other part voters such as UKIP and The Green Party.

PetulaGordino - of course there are other parties however Conservative and Labour are the big two therefore I wanted to know the opinions of Labour voters.

spidey66 - 'Council housing was built to be homes for life you know' Really?

MrsPnut - I would actually happily pay more tax to protect pensions.

DontDrinkAndFacebook - my username is supposed to be sarcastic.

Kentishgirl - I have no idea why I have no Labour voting friends. I would hazard a guess at thinking that a Labour government and their policies are not really applicable to us.

Bedroom Tax to my understanding is anyone who claims housing benefit, who live in a larger than necessary house pays the extra for these additional rooms but if you have a disabled child or foster a child you can have one additional room.

I just cannot agree with people claiming benefits from the state and living in a large council house rent free when there is plenty of people on the wait lists who actually need the room.

GolblinLittleOwl - I share your sentiments. Michael Gove was a disgrace and made a complete utter shambles of his post as Education Secretary. I too join you in disbelief at why Margaret thatcher was vilified yet Anthony 'Tony' Blair who led us into two costly wars remains unscathed.

CuttedUpPear - If you are claiming benefits then yes I think it's fair.

TheFairyCaravan - I agree with you on Student Debt, Public Servants redundancies and the cuts to our Armed Forces. Do you think if Labour was back in power these issues would change for the better?

Chippednailvarnish - I have no experience of any of those things. I have never claimed benefits nor know anyone who has, I own my home and have had no issues finding employment.

Effinandjeffin - exactly why shouldn't children share a room if you are living off the state.

Dumbledoresgirl - my thoughts exactly. If you vote conservative you are the devil according to mumsnet. If I was questioning why people voted conservative I guarantee the responses and tone of the thread would be completely different.

Vdbfamily - I know this is moving off thread but it is totally wrong to assume that families in social housing always have less money than everyone else.I have just been looking at some statistics online and 20% of those living in social housing earn more than the average wage in this country. I personally object to the 'house for life' attitude. Social housing should be there for those who can least afford it and if they come into money they should be prepared to hand the house back for someone who needs it.

what ghost said plus the 9% pay raise when people who wipe arses deal with blood feces dead/dying sick scared generally people at their worse get less than 1%

ummm bedroom tax kicks out disabled children but granny and grandad can live down stairs in there huge housing association/council properties for the rest of their lives living in dismal conditions unable to reach the bathroom so they have to have a stairlift unable to do the gardens so they have to pay for it unable to maintain the property they get to stay and families get crammed into flats which are coincidentally all on one level and far more suitable for someone who can't manage the stairs it sounds harsh but if you want a house for life buy it

disabled people being forced into jobs there are not enough jobs for able bodied now we have to find work for disabled people too? where are the jobs WHERE ARE THEY???

job centre programs where you have to sit in a room all day everyday and do nothing as if being unemployed wasn't depressing enough great ideas like working 30 hours a week for your benefits because now the company doesn't even have to employ people it gets them for free

successfully turning the nation against each other

riots we had riots with thatcher we have riots with him

war one minute we are getting out (gordon brown) the next he is putting more people in then we are getting out (again) then iraq kicks off again and we are not getting involved (except we are getting involved)

zero hour contracts i would vote for him if he outlawed them he wont therefore i wont (im sure thousands of people say they are fine but they usually have someone in the house with steady wages or you just cant budget for bills)

maidofstars I also live in a town that was ripped apart by the Tories under Thatcher in a way it's never recovered from. However, it's always been a Labour council and we had 24 years of Labour in government. During that time, while towns all around us were being regenerated, our council did precisely nothing except spend millions of pounds on 'plans' and 'consultations'. My town is a still a shithole, whilst the leader of the council has been knighted. Which is just one of the reasons why I will never vote Labour. The Tories started the job and Labour finished it off.

im not sure i would vote for labour either the man has no spine i don't rate him as a leader im really not sure who i want in power i only know it is not who is there now

im hoping a strong leader emerges someone we can all get behind or im afraid people will protest vote UKIP and what if they win? (im asking scotland if i can join them)

I hate all this 'labour left the country on its knees' shit.
There was a banking crash.
Greedy dishonest bankers and their corporate friends (backed by Tories and New Labour alike) that destroyed the country, and just about every country too.
But its a handy line to trot out and people have such short memories, especially if you fill the papers with scapegoated poor and disabled...

we should have done what Iceland did - hold the bankers accountable, shove them in jail, sack the government and start again from scratch - ground up.

Nancy You mentioned Right to Buy. The Tories brought it in, so I mentioned the Tories.

I am voting for Scottish independence. DC and company are cunts. Ed Milliband is a backstabbing snake in the grass. Nigel Farage is a fascist. Nick Clegg is a lair.

What a stupid and goady thread.

dawndonna - yes, wasn't aimed at you. just a general aside.

I have a close friend (raving leftie!) whose mother lived in a 3 bed council house in Richmond overlooking Thames.

If she'd taken up the right to buy she could have purchased it for silly money and sold it on the open market making a tidy six figure profit. But she refused as she opposed the right-to-buy policy.

Never admired a person's principles more in my life. no way would I have been able to resist that!

Subhuman

It's always the same. Tories get voted in, things pick up for a short while, then stagnate, then dip, the public get annoyed and want change, Labour get voted in, things pick up for a short while, then stagnate, then dip, the public get annoyed and want change, Tories get voted in...

It works the same in USA with Republicans and Democrats. Just two sides of the same coin. Some voters are dead set either way and the middling voters swing every 8-10 years. The actual policies almost become irrelevant as enough of the middling voters will just want change for the sake of it.

^^
This

And that is why democracy doesn't actually work. It's never about doing the right thing. It's about one upmanship.

No OP, I cannot see anything improving if Labour get in either,

But back to bedroom tax or whatever you want to call it. You cannot see why anyone should need extra bedrooms so you back the bedroom tax as so many people are waiting for housing. Okay....but the people affected by the bedroom tax HAVE NOWHERE ELSE TO GO. There is a major shortage in my area of two bedroom properties so people are shoved into three bedroom places...and now stung for bedroom tax....even though realistically they can do nothing about it,

People with disabled children do NOT have an automatic right to an extra bedroom. It all depends on the needs of the dependant child. Nor do those with extra rooms filled with medical equipment find themselves exempt.

In fact this reason alone makes me realise that those in power have absolutely NO understanding of how difficult the lives if the most vulnerable are.

I think the housing crisis should be sorted by limiting the amount of holiday homes in any town, a village near me has had its post office, 2 shops, pub and school close as over 50% of the village is holiday homes. It is a particularly pretty village, a ghost town now though
Limit and heavily tax second homes
People will cry nanny state but are happy to support policies that favour the rich and make them richer

Wow, OP, you're either a goady arse or seriously thick. You've gone through the responses you've had so far and not once have you empathised with anyone's hardship or shit that they've had from DC and his band of merry fuckwits.

I hate him because of his 'we're all in this together'. No, we're not. If you're born into privilege and wealth and continue to live that wonderful life (as he and his mates all do) you have no idea what it's like for the little people to struggle along from day to day.

I work, part-time, and I've had more trouble with the DWP since going back to work than I had previously. I've left the job centre in tears umpteen times recently having been told my training at work is 'worthless', I'm 'still unemployed' (no, I'm fucking not!) and, despite the fact that I have set working hours Mon-Fri I've now been told I have been moved on to a Work Programme (how close to the Workhouse are we actually getting?) and they will expect to see me 3-4 times a week.

I was told, when I started work, that my work is more important than signing on (as I actually earn wages for working), but have then been belittled and patronised when I've been unable to sign on due to WORKING. My JSA has been sanctioned God knows how many times. I have 3 kids. My ex dumped us all (for OW, how original) but it's my kids who bear the brunt of it all, when there's no money due to sanctions. I've been told, dismissively, when questioning my sanctions (which incidentally have been overturned every single time because they were never correct) that I would have to contact a food bank. In 2014. In a developed country.

And speaking of food banks. What a wonderful idea! When your benefits get sanctioned and you can't pay your rent/gas/electric/council tax simply get a box of food from the food bank and offer to barter your bills away with items from the food bank! Except you can't.

So Cameron and his scumbag friends can fuck off to fuck. They have no idea how people live - and neither do you OP. Your attitude (and some others on this thread) are ignorant, lazy and disgusting.

If nothing else, though, this thread is useful for showing who on MN is an arse and should be avoided at all costs - quite a few on here, who can't wait to put the boot in to those damned spongers!