How are you voting in December?

[MaMaMaMySharona]

Apologies if there’s already a thread on this - I did look and couldn’t find one.

So now it’s been confirmed that we’re having a GE in December, how are you voting? And what are your predictions on the results?

I’ve seen quite a few posts on here over the past couple months from people saying they wouldn’t vote now as they are politically homeless - wondering if these people still feel that way?

I’m voting labour - albeit in a very safe Tory area (so feel very much as though my vote doesn’t count). Reasons being I would never vote Tory and I don’t like a lot of what the Lim Dems have said recently. I also couldn’t bring myself not to vote at all.

Sunshine9
My husband and I didn’t get in to fuck loads of debt going through uni to get a high paying job which we work bloody hard at so it can get taken off us again.
What’s the incentive in that ??
Selfish ? Ok if you say so but we’re trying to keep a roof over our heads like anyone else so what you say doesn’t affect me

Just a reminder: it's not a proportional representation system, so unless you live in Islington North or Uxbridge and South Ruislip you won't be voting for Jeremy Corbyn or Boris Johnson. Take a look at your local candidates, look at your MP's voting record, look at the voting history in your constituency.

Private health care might work for you in middle age but I am not convinced that it provides any extra protection in older age or for anything other than the simplest operations. My very wealthy in-laws found the premiums too high once they hit mid 70's. They had to cancel their coverage and were reliant on the NHS (multiple heart operations).

So you can think you are immune (pun intentional) to cuts in the health service and corresponding reduction of beds/nurses/doctors but it doesn't make it fact.

Social care is a whole other can of worms.

I voted Tory last time, had a lot of respect for May, but I could never vote for BJ. I don’t understand how anyone can. He’s done nothing at all for his constituents (I know someone there). He’s got no integrity and will say or do anything to further his career.

He’s been sacked twice for lying. He undermined and humiliated May the entire time he worked for her. Even his family are embarrassed by him. He lied to Queen and illegally shut down Parliament to try to stifle debate, then pretended that judges had made ‘new law’ (they hadn’t). He whips up the tabloids against judges and fellow MPs for just doing their job.

Even his girlfriend says he’s spoiled and selfish. He wrote an article saying Britain should stay in the EU, then started campaigning for Brexit only days later to boost his career. He was a disaster as Foreign Secretary: his only real impact was to lengthen the sentence of that British woman in Iran by making a public statement with errors in it.

When he was Mayor of London he was an embarrassment who eg badly offended Chinese officials. Mostly he just took credit for other people’s works like “Boris bikes” (that project was started by another).

He massively cut the fire service then blamed the firemen for Grenfell. He exploits the police for photo opportunities. He voted against May all the time, but when his colleagues refused to bow to his unreasonable demands he fired loads of them from the party.

BJ is a tyrant who shrugs off the violence and division he’s caused and has cost the country a fortune.

I’m not gonna say Corbyn is the answer. Clearly, Corbyn is a bit of a batty OAP with some unrealistic ideas (although I do believe he’s retained his integrity which is no small thing). I’ll probably vote LibDem or Green unless it looks like a tactical vote for Labour might help dethrone BJ.

Maybe Labour can fund some parts of their manifesto (when it's released and there is something concrete to review) from not bunging the DUP a billion.
The last labour manifesto included their costings and how they intended to raise the money so presuming they do the same this time around we can look at it.

I'm not even a Labour voter but find the ongoing "Conservatives are better with money" lines tiresome.

Yeah, I gave some credence to the Tories and economy trope until this decade. No longer. Austerity hasn't worked. This is not an inherently pro-Labour point either, but the Tories have fucked up.

The working population can't actually bear much more income tax though, not with the increasing cost of living. Sooner or later we're going to have to tax wealth.

My husband and I didn’t get in to fuck loads of debt going through uni to get a high paying job which we work bloody hard at so it can get taken off us again.
What’s the incentive in that ??

The “incentive”, if you need one, is surely the decent job and presumably salary you get, which is generally always going to be more than you’d get on benefits

Why spoil your ballot? It's just the same as not voting, but stupider.

Oh dear, why did I come on this thread! People's attitudes make me so nervous about the future.

Not sure how to vote. In a Tory area, but not voting Tory myself (years of austerity and no decrease in the deficit, hardly a job well done!), although probably pointless voting for this reason. I still will though, but I am waiting to see the manifestos first as I'm not voting for a football team. For me personally, I will vote on the basis of building more affordable housing, not selling off public services and increasing spending in this area, maintaining worker's rights and increasing the minimum wage, and a people's vote or revoking.

Sadly, I think we will see a Tory majority. They knew exactly what they were doing by having a GE before leaving EU. It is unwise for this GE to be about Brexit as there are so many other issues that need urgent attention. I just hope people consider this at the ballot boxes.

I'm with you on that DawnOfTheDeadleg. I can't believe people aren't more angry about this.

I usually vote lib dem but their stance on things is a little shaky at the moment in my view. I'll be voting SNP I think. The more SNP MP's we have in Westminster to oppose the Tory shitstorm, the better!

The Tories/ coalition have reduced the deficit by the way although still not eliminated it nor paid back any national debt so we have a long way to go.

" In 2005 the UK “current budget deficit” was less that £20 billion. But then came the worldwide financial crisis of 2008 and subsequent recession. The budget deficit skyrocketed to £50 billion in 2009 and £103 billion in 2010. In the subsequent recovery the deficit has steadily declined, down to £1.9 billion in 2018. At the end of March 2019 the “current budget deficit” was a surplus of £19 billion.

In terms of Gross Domestic Product the UK “current budget deficit” in 2005 was less than 2 percent of GDP, and declined to about 0.6 percent GDP in 2007 and 2008. In the Great Recession the deficit ballooned, to 6.9 percent of GDP in 2010. Since then the deficit has steadily declined, to less than one percent GDP in 2017. At the end of March 2019 the “current budget deficit” was a surplus of 0.9 percent of GDP. "
www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/uk_national_deficit_analysis

"As a share of economic output, the deficit fell to 1.2 percent, its lowest since the 12 months to March 2002 and down from nearly 10 percent during the depths of the global banking crisis a decade ago, the Office for National Statistics said. "

As an American, let me tell you that you DO NOT WANT TO LOSE THE NHS. That's where I see the Tories going, starving it to death and plotting to sell it off to the US. Remember what Trump said about everything being on the table, including the health system? Do you truly believe he wasn't encouraged at all by the government in this belief?

Tories. Always. I also know Of someone who does through an act of terrorism, and Corbyn supports them so 🤷🏻‍♀️.

The Tories were in bed with the political wing of loyalist terrorists ffs. Or do Irish lives not matter?

Sadly, I think we will see a Tory majority. They knew exactly what they were doing by having a GE before leaving EU. It is unwise for this GE to be about Brexit as there are so many other issues that need urgent attention. I just hope people consider this at the ballot boxes.
The reason they are having a GE before leaving the EU is because Labour didn't vote for Teresa Mays deal, even after they managed to guarantee workers rights and environmental protections into it, siding with Brexiteers and then didn't vote for the current deal and having an election after it. They couldn't vote for their own deal, because they lost the last General Election so don't have the right to make one. I agree the election is going to be fought on getting Brexit done, then we'll be lumbered with the government for 5 years afterwards. But that's Parliaments doing for not agreeing a deal, or agreeing what they wanted, when they had chance after chance, including indicative votes where they decided precisely nothing because we have poor MP's all round who don't compromise.

I'm a comfortable middle class leftie and work with a lot of comfortable middle class people - the majority of whom are Tories. Never yet heard a reason for this beyond "I'm well off and I don't want anything to change". Can't understand "I'd vote Labour if not for Corbyn but I'll be voting Tory instead". It's like saying "I don't want people to die but I don't like the person in charge of that party so I guess I have to vote for people to die." What???

57Varieties But we want decent jobs to make money so we can live comfortably and not have to worry .
Are you telling me people just work hard for the kudos?
Don’t be ridiculous.

Tories. Always.

I never understand this. Not about voting Tory (although I won't), that's up to you, but the 'always'. How can anyone say they will always vote for the same party? The current Labour party is so different to the Labour party of 35 years ago when I started voting that I could never vote for them at the present time. Surely you don't vote for a party just because you always have? I'm convinced so many voters have no idea of the fundamental beliefs of the party they are voting for.

There's a different attitude in Scotland I think due to the free tuition. Graduates don't have this chip on their shoulder that they struggled to make ends meet to get through uni to then pay higher rate tax to fund the 'lazy' people. There's generally more of a sense of compassion and thankfulness that some people chose not to go through uni and instead go right into work and pay tax which essentially funds free tuition. If everyone went to uni, there would be much less income tax being paid in younger generations and only graduates that get good jobs paying income tax. Let's face it too, not everyone can have an 'educated' job. Who does all the vocational jobs then? No matter what, we need people to take vocational routes. The world can't spin with people purely being solicitors, teachers, doctors, HR managers, market executives etc. The core route of society depends on cleanliness so cleaners do a vital job as do bin people. That admin assistant in the company is probably doing one of the most vital roles also. There's so little respect from Tory voters towards these people but without them, society would be F'd. They get low wages and may rely on tax credits or UC to survive but they are branded lazy and not motivated by educated Tory voters. They have a child and are branded as 'having kids they can't afford'. Why do you have to be on £50k a year to have a child? So they should take the same route and go to uni and flood the graduate market to possibly end up in a vocational job anyway? Pushing you educated Tory voters into vocational jobs as well because someone has to do it?

I think people need to be a little more thankful to the people that pay the council tax in the absense of students not paying it, pay higher fares to allow cheap fares for students etc. The attitude is disgusting. For so many people being 'educated' you'd think they could learn the basic understanding of compassion and respect for people in different circumstances to them. Yes there is people that are lazy and milk the system but very few. The biggest group of people milking the system are corporate companies and advanced rate tax payers!

But yeah, keep voting for poverty by voting conservative. That is what you're voting for. Those Tory members and MP's haven't a bloody clue what it's like to live on minimum wage and think everyone should strive to get a career forgetting that someone has to do these jobs! The working class/low wage population are setting the foundations to let the educated people strive. They're processing your applications at uni, they're keeping the canteen with food, they're printing your textbooks, they're keeping your areas clean, they're setting up the meetings and booking your interviews, they're helping to look after your kids so you can work, they're working at reception in the schools playing a big role etc. A bit of respect for these people wouldn't go a miss. I couldn't give a shit if you have a degree or not or what rate of tax you pay, manners and compassion are the only thing really vital in society but not according to the Tories and their hoards of selfish, nose up in the air voters.

As someone in an educated job, it disgusts me to see the attitudes I'm around. They'd rather pay less tax and let someone go without just to make theirselves richer. Totally disgusting and more disgusting than someone claiming a benefit to get a little bit of luxury in their dreary poverty stricken lives!

No, which is why I also said the salary, which even if you pay a significant amount of tax on, is still going to be better by far than a life on benefits, @fizzyice.

Again although you’ve not come across as badly as @DBML earlier in the thread you’re hardly anything special or unusual in being in a professional role, educated, hard working and on a decent salary. Many of us still get that paying tax is part of the cost of living in a civilised society rather than whine about it. You never know when you’ll need the support the welfare state brings.

Watch out for the Tory rags ramping up the bile against labour, especially Corbyn in the coming weeks. I’m especially intrigued to see the usual tedious anti semitism claims! That’s always a given.

Well said @JenniferM1989

@JenniferM1989 @57Varieties Hear hear.

Well said Jennifer