To think the tide may be turning...

[Goldenhandshake]

Apparently under twenty fives have been registering to vote in high numbers, assuming because lots of Tory policies have hit this age group negatively. AIBU to feel optimistic that they will turn out to vote and possibly prove the poll predictions wrong?

Any under 25's here who have registered with this intention?

And for all those who talk about Tory election fraud. It's not just them. Great one on Twitter this morning...

Proportional representation mentioned on this thread is far fairer

It's also potentially dangerous. Hitler only got into power because of PR as it caused a large number of small political parties, none of which had any power on their own, causing a power vacuum that Hitler exploited, as there was no effective opposition.

Not to mention that a constituency could end up with an MP who only a small proportion of that constituency actually voted for, maybe 3rd or 4th place. PR "may" be OK on a national level, but pretty poor on a local, constituency level.

I'm a nurse and DO believe in the NHS! Yes I would, of course be willing to pay more in taxes to a system which can offer safe, effective, timely patient care at the point of need. Yet this is not the experience of many patients. My point being that it does not simply need more cash it needs better organisation to succeed and ideally for the NHS to suceed ALL political parties should come together to offer solutions and formulate a plan. For a start they could train more UK nurses and doctors rather then import foreign workers to plug a huge shortfall in staffing. They could make it mandatory and a priority to adequately staff frontline services and they should make sure that patients who use the NHS have a right to do so.....

I'm a nurse and DO believe in the NHS!

I would imagine that vast majority of the population believe in the NHS.

But probably not in it's current form of being a money pit.

As well as sorting out increasing numbers of training positions in the UK for doctors and nurses, and improving efficiencies, charging non eligible patients, etc., there also needs to be a cross-party review of just how far the NHS goes in terms of treatments/support offered.

At one end of the spectrum, we probably all want emergency and urgent life threatening treatments free for all to the highest standard possible. But at the other end, I suspect relatively few will want "lifestyle" issues treated by the NHS such as tattoo removal, facelifts, fertility treatments, etc. Then you have a vast area in the middle where there'll be more mixed opinions such as treating those who have damaged themselves through lack of care such as smokers, alcoholics, drug abusers, etc. (where cost of treatment has to be weighed against cost to society of non treatment), or those engaged in dangerous sports (who arguably should insure themselves for their injuries), or those injured in road accidents (whose insurance should arguably pay for treatment).

If we just raise taxes AGAIN, and just throw more money at it, there'll be the short term improvement but in a few years, it'll be back cap in hand for more. After all, Labour "saved" the NHS twice by raising NIC contributions, and trebling the money spent in the NHS over around a decade, but here we are again!

If the conservatives had followed Labour methods they would likely have Andrea Leadsom as leader now , fighting off questions about definitions of sin along the lines of Tim Farron.

Instead, we have Theresa May wading into an argument about fucking Easter eggs. Definitely preferable

I must have missed the battle of Teresa's Easter egg.

I think TM would actually love a coalition , she would still be able to spout 'the will of the people ' line and bemoan the fact that had she had her way she would have given it to us hard and fast , but due to 'the will of the people' she no longer has a mandate and so everything that happens re Brexit is not her fault .

I can't understand this idea that T May is perceived as better at getting the Brexit deal.
She hasn't done a very good job thus far.

Pissed off most of the other 27 ( who's support she needs)

Didn't get her stated wish of parallel trade negotiations along with exit agreement

Will have to accept EU Court of Justice arbitration in any transitional trade deal in spite of her promises

I could go on. Where has this reputation of competence come from? She is hog tied by the Hard Brexit brigade ( Liam Fox etc) if the election is to get her a large personal majority so that she can step the negotiations towards a softer Bre it then I am in favour. I think however that we may go through all this and the numbers will be much the same

Where has this reputation of competence come from

I feel fairly sure it's come from her.

Like I know someone who is the best teacher in the world. because he says so.

I think we should send in Ivanka Trump. They seem to like her in Europe.

I Like Beans
Quite so. The woman turns to jelly on any occasion she is not reading from a script.

I quite like Therea May but I have a mental picture of her practising her speeches over and over again like a young Hermione Grainger.
" no, no, that's wrong - more determined look. COME ON".
She is scared of meeting people who might not agree with her or participating in the rough and tumble of an open debate.
How does that make you a competent negotiator?

I agree that TM doesn't give the impression that she's good at negotiating. She comes across as my way or no way to me.

I also agree about the nhs not being able to offer all the services it currently does. We need proper discussion about what it can be expected to offer. I say this as 'bleeding heart liberal'. The fact is things have changed since it was set up - longer life expectancy and more treatments available which are very expensive such as organ transplants and cancer treatments such as mri and pet scans and expensive chemo drugs. I also agree about the organisational problems eg my oncology consultant hadn't been told that I had been in hospital for a week and was annoyed. During that week the medics were confused about why I was so sick - em, that would be because standard procedure is to remove patients' meds on admittance, including anti-sickness meds. x-rays, tubes etc followed probably unnecessarily. Then there are the people who have to spend an extra night in hospital because the pharmacy hasn't given them their meds etc etc etc. The system seems very inflexible with individual consultants unable to authorise much without it going through several other departments.

I would like a discussion about preventative health strategies such as rewarding people for having a healthy lifestyle and charging patients who go to a+e as a result of drinking too much. More importantly trying to change our horrendous alcohol culture. Rewards for cycling to work? It would be very difficult, but something other than spending more money on frontline services needs to be done. Fast. No politician is ever brave enough to raise this though.

The NHS does not concern me

Jesus wept And therein lies the problem. I'm sure there are many Tory voters who do give a shit about the NHS. But this comment shows why so many people have to distance themselves from fellow Conservative voters ... aswell as switching to parties where it isn't full of self serving idiots

And TM not condoning Trump, Erdogan, Saudi Arabia etc ... Corbyn not condoning the IRA, Extremists ... no wonder people have no idea who to vote for. Two idiots at the helm of both major parties

Weirdly, I have recently discovered two friends of mine have met TM, one in fact, many times through a family connection with her husband.

Neither of them are Tory voters by any stretch of the imagination but both say they found/find her to be a really nice person. Go figure.

And TM not condoning Trump, Erdogan, Saudi Arabia etc ... Corbyn not condoning the IRA, Extremists ...

Slight difference in being a back bench rebel MP who had no justification in meeting with the IRA and actually being the prime minister who is engaged in realpolitik

Shatners _ I am sure she is!

I have met Nicola Sturgeon. many years ago. She also was very nice. And very very funny.

I bet most of them are actually quite nice people : public service and all that?

rogueantimatter - I have been saying much the same about the NHS. But no one is having that debate. Privatising it by stealth will just lead to some expensive treatments being offered because people can and are willing to pay, and piecemeal services elsewhere, with no real accountability.

Interesting opinion piece for anyone still here.

www.politics.co.uk/comment-analysis/2017/04/27/a-vote-for-theresa-may-is-not-a-vote-for-women

I'm still here!

Interesting read indeed...

"Proportional representation mentioned on this thread is far fairer"

It's also potentially dangerous. Hitler only got into power because of PR as it caused a large number of small political parties, none of which had any power on their own, causing a power vacuum that Hitler exploited, as there was no effective opposition.

It's a bit late for Godwins now.

If PR was so dangerous, you'd imagine that maybe the Germans would have ditched it - but they haven't. The version of PR that was in place at the time was faulty - not least as it allowed parties with almost zero support to stand, but for a number of reasons.

PR would at lest address the ludicrous situation we have here where even a majority of those voting have voted for something other than the winning party most times.

This is what she had to say about the rape clause. It's an eight page form to fill in should you be in a position to be able to state that rape was the case:
We know that what the SNP want to do is scrap the policy in its entirety.

We believe that people who are in work have to make the same decisions as those people who are out of work. So that those people who are on benefits should have to decide whether they can have more children.
<a class="break-all" href="//*www.thecanary.co/2017/04/27/theresa-may-stand-indefensible-comments-rape-video/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">pmqs rape clause

Recent poll changes, Labour up, Conservatives down

I'm under 25. I voted Remain in Brexit and I'll be voting in June. Not sure between Lib Dems and Conservatives. Lib Dems feel like a wasted vote but Conservatives feel too right. We'll see.