To have put in my (postal) vote today for the Tories?

[IonaNE]

I agree with their education policy (especially grammar schools) and a lot of their criminal and immigration policies. I have done the "isidewith" quiz (uk.isidewith.com/political-quiz) and I side 58% with Conservatives, 48% with Labour and 40%, 36% and 34% with UKIP, LibDem and the Green Party, respectively. But in general I have done it because it seems to me that the Conservatives are clever people (mostly Oxbridge educated), and you have to trust the leading of a country to clever people. (We all remember a certain Labour prime minister and his "bigoted woman" remark, when he thought his mic was off, don't we?) The Tories support working people, as opposed to second- and third-generation lifelong benefit claimers (large estates of high deprivation in my region) and they have already proved themselves by decreasing unemployment levels to those in the 70s, if I remember well (I wasn't in this country then, I'm an immigrant).

Disclaimer: I mostly use MN at the weekends, so I will come back and read replies today but I can't promise anything from Monday onwards...

I think it's rather shocking for ALL MPs. I was just pointing out that there were fewer Labour ones.

41% of lib dem MPs went to oxbridge though

But that is 41% of about 3 people though isn't it?

You used your vote - own it. No need to broadcast to the world who you voted for. If you can live with yourself that decision then its all good, no one elses business at all. I just find it interesting that you feel the need to justify it to strangers.

The thing is,for the qualifications that they have MPs are not paid particularly well and have terrible job security. With some notable exceptions (Osborne and to a lesser extent Ed Balls ) it can be difficult to find a job if you lose your seat.

Most of their peers who also got double firsts in PPE from Oxbridge will be earning well into 6 figure salaries before they are 30. It's not difficult to see why we get the kind of people going into it that we have. Many have family money to back them up. 50% of candidates in 2015 were privately educated. And many of the ministers are from very privelidged backgrounds.

Clegg is more posh than Cameron. But Cameron, Boris and Osborne all went to Eton. Lord sainsbury (labour peer and ex minister) is worth about 400M.

SnickersWasAHorse

I did say that those figures were before the lib dem apocolispe in 2015.

We all remember a certain Labour prime minister and his "bigoted woman" remark, when he thought his mic was off, don't we?

We also remember a certain (Oxford educated) Foreign Secretary referring to black people as 'picanninies' with 'watermelon smiles', who also, when editor of The Spectator, gave the go-ahead to an article saying that black people are less intelligent than other races.

The thing is,for the qualifications that they have MPs are not paid particularly well
They are not that well-qualified - plenty of people have better qualifications and are paid less. Job security can be a problem but I think the best MPs tend to be those who have other work experience before being elected, rather than the career politicians.

Well, it is your vote.

If you want to waste it you are fully entitled to do so.

Who is better qualifications than a first in PPE from oxbridge and is paid less at the same time after graduating?

Kind of irrelevant anyway because my point was about the average wage of people with the same qualifications. They've chosen to do a less paid job because they want the power. My local (labour) MP has a PhD, I assume there are others. She also went to a very expensive private school and then oxbridge. She could be earning much more than 74k as an MP and it now looks likely that after 2 years she could lose her seat.

I wouldn't want to be an MP (although I do work in Westminster).

Of course yanbu to vote for whoever you want.
The reasons you have given are rubbish though.

Lots of people have PhDs - even I have a Phd! - and don't earn anything like as much as an MP does. People don't become an MP for the money but it's really not a bad salary.

But in general I have done it because it seems to me that the Conservatives are clever people (mostly Oxbridge educated), and you have to trust the leading of a country to clever people.

Oh dear...

I've lived in Oxford my entire life. I have so many anecdotes that I could share about thick Oxford students that I wouldn't know where to begin!

Oxbridge educated = fit to run the country PAHAHAHA

One Oxbridge educated friend is very intelligent, but you wouldn't leave them in charge of a cat for a week, let alone the country. There's a difference between being book smart and actually having the sort of sense that's needed to run the country.

Everyone makes mistakes dear.

Shame

As a teacher what percentage of 3rd generation workless family members do you hope to see getting into Oxbridge under the new grammar system? (Neome)
Percentage? You mean like we have to have so many women in leadership, regardless of whether they can do it; so many black people regardless of whether the actual BEM candidate was better than the caucasian applicant; so many transgender, gay and Jewish people, to fulfill the diversity criteria? This is exactly what I would not like to happen. I do not expect a predictable percentage of 3rd-generation workless family members to get into Oxbridge because getting into Oxbridge is multifactorial (being academically intelligent, having character traits like perseverance, etc., being able to take advantage of the benefits of a good education) and thus unpredictable. What I expect under the new grammar system is that a child from any background can get into a school where they are able to concentrate on their studies; a school that is not a zoo because of behaviour issues; where kids are not mocked for wanting to study; where there are decent teachers (e.g. mfl teachers who can actually speak the language they are trying to teach). I expect the new grammar system to provide every child with a chance.

I just find it interesting that you feel the need to justify it to strangers. (MissDuke)
I don't, Miss Duke.

Clegg is more posh than Cameron. (Rhayader)
Is he? Cameron is related to the Queen. What does Clegg have to trump that? (Otherwise thanks for the informative posts, Rhayader.)

Well, it is your vote. If you want to waste it you are fully entitled to do so. (Topseyt)
Well, Topseyt, that was always going to happen. Thing is (drip-feed alert! ): where I live is so heavily Labour that it does not actually matter how I've voted.

Oh, please, let this thread die!

What is it you want from this thread, Iona?
Validation of your chosen party?
Changing the mind of somebody who is not planning on voting Tory?
Goading those easily goaded??

Entertaining as it has been, please enough of this rabid rubbing of Tory voting thighs.

I do know that to search someone's posting history is bad form but it would seem, Iona, that for the 15 or so years you taught, 10 of them were outside the UK. When you did teach in the UK it was a good many years ago.
I don't think you can really talk much about your experience as a teacher given that most of it happened in a different country a while ago.

also as someone living in a council house it seems rich you yakking on about people claiming benefits. I do know that you do not need to be claiming benefits to have a council house

What I expect under the new grammar system is that a child from any background can get into a school where they are able to concentrate on their studies; a school that is not a zoo because of behaviour issues; where kids are not mocked for wanting to study

Its sad that you think grammar schools were ever like this.

where there are decent teachers (e.g. mfl teachers who can actually speak the language they are trying to teach).

Apart from the fact they they can't recruit or retain teachers

I expect the new grammar system to provide every child with a chance.

You mean the 15% that will be selected, have no SEND and their parents have the cash to pay for a tutor or pay for entry to the school.

You're not being unreasonable but unless you're extremely rich you will find that's your life gets more difficult with a Tory Government and all their plans for further unnecessary cuts that will bring the NHS, public service and etc to their knees. I hope that you worked through both manifestos carefully and that the media (who are owned by self serving millionaires) played no part as they are duping many people into believing that the Tories will improve their lives and scaremongering with fake news about Jeremy Corbyn. Just remember the lies on the side if the bus during Brexit, we can't let people be duped this time, it is so important!