Describe the imaginary political party you would want to vote for

[Cuppasoupmonster]

For those of us fed up of the sad selection on offer!

The left are toxic, the right are toxic. I want a pragmatic ‘centre’ party. A bit like the early days of New Labour. A focus on average working people and families, long-term plans for the environment, healthcare and cost of living/housing. No identity politics twattery, no TWAW, no taking the knee type gestures. Straight talking people who can be honest with the public about what is and isn’t possible rather than offering the moon on a stick then failing to deliver it. Standards and transparency and an oath to resign the moment they’re caught lying about their tax affairs. A leader with gravitas that doesn’t look like he or she is about to burst into tears at any moment Kier or have a constant lame grin like they can’t really believe they’ve been made Head Boy and are enjoying wearing the badge Rishi. Maybe a sort of British Barack Obama?

What about you?

OP I'd vote for your party but with "the environment" as a much broader brush than some of the wankery that gets pushed through because of "climate change". I'd like to see environmental policies determined by proper science not just virtue signalling.

What a great idea for a thread, especially right now!
I’m quite conservative in my politics but hate this Tory party, corrupt, elitist and selfish.
I’d like a party that looks after children in poverty better, it’s not their fault and I feel like they get demonised in the press.
I’d like a better run NHS (that’s not necessarily more money, it’s haemorrhages money), but proper leadership.

I want more tax on the very wealthy, I know this can be unpopular because ‘they pay loads of tax and will just leave’, but someone shouldn’t be earning 1000 x someone else’s salary and the disparity between rich and poor has got so much worse.

I want someone who spends more on defence, our armed forces has wilted to almost nothing and we’re seeing a new world order with putin (and China). You never went to up spending when you need to, as by then it’s too late.

I’d also like less corruption! I run a business and was appalled by all these private VIP lane contracts. My MP won’t engage with me on it and I’m done with the tories.

A bit like the early days of New Labour

Lost me at that.

Mine is the Labour party, with the following changes:

• scrap the gender ideology crap and stand up for women's rights
• rejoin the single market
• get rid of dickheads like Lloyd Russel Moyle and Richard Burgon, and those who dabble on the edges of groups that are antisemitic (tbf they've not done badly on the latter since getting rid of JC, but more to be done imo)

It’s a bit of a pointless reply unless you say why..?

Something so refreshing and new that it turns society as we know it upside down.
Redistribution of wealth and power from the billionaires and corporations.
Make wealth beyond your needs something to be ashamed of, not aspire to.
I don't know how it would happen, but it's the society I'd like to see.

The UK needs to come out of its economic downward spiral. I'd vote for the party that figures out a way to seamlessly trade with the biggest (and closest) economic bloc in the world. Don't care how you call it, just do it.

Housing sorted in a meaningful way.
More social housing, affordable housing and a system where the government will be guarantor (with conditions.) If you have paid rent for 5 years, you should be able to get a mortgage at up to the value of the payment you have made with no deposit or a very small one.

Public services overhauled.
There are too many bosses in the nhs. So much wasted money. Put it where it's needed. On that note - health secretary must have worked in nhs. Likewise education secretary should have worked in education.

Scrap MATs - the money needed is in schools for TAs and resources not for CEOs!

Ban intensive farming.

One flight allowed per person, except for very specific purposes. Allow flight 'credits' to be sold so that if I don't want to fly I can sell my flight to someone else that wants it.

Increase food security. Stop importing things we can produce here.

Some kind of system that would allow a parent to be a sahp while children are small if they want to.
Affordable childcare if they choose not to.

I'd like a party that canvassed the people across the U.K. and developed policies where there was areas of consensus. Often it feels like policies are determined by lobbyists or people stuck in a Westminster bubble.

See this is very much ‘the mumsnet view’ but how on Earth would you attract investment with that??

You sound like Nigel Farage.

How?

The party that recognises its own limits and gets experts in for big decisions like NHS and schools.

As well as asking the lowest down people in an organisation for their feedback.

A party which categorically understand women rights and safeguards my dd future.

One that is balanced and understands we need more schools not less.

We need far more primary schools and smaller classes with proper steps to identity children with sen and get them proper support. That's where children's educational inequality lies not with grammar. Make sure every child can actually read before they leave primary and use a range of methods if phonics isn't working, drop it.

We need a party that understands rose Smith is not able to suddenly head up education because she's got no experience of it.. We must have experts and I don't mean politically driven tribal political ones.

Sorry, not you, the OP.

No ‘identity politics’, ‘Straight talking people’, ‘average working people and families’

I can’t say I was surprised to see them go on to say

‘This is exactly how I feel. Life is not ‘free’ yet there seem to be an awful lot of people who expect it to be,’

’Nobody should be out of work because they’re ‘depressed’ or similar. I can see the need for being signed off on a reasonably short term basis through depression but not a life of doing nothing and being on benefits.’

I knew some nastiness about trans people would be headlining there somewhere. What is it with people at the moment 😡🤯

I would like religion to be removed from party politics. I live in Northern Ireland and while politics here is meant to be secular it really bloody isn't. I am utterly fed up with the tribalism.
I'd also like to be able to vote for the same parties that actually rule in Westminster and not feel like some sort of parochial backwater (which NI currently is).
I absolutely love where I live but I bloody hate the factionalism that festers here.

Which part of that is either wrong or like Nigel Farage?

If the main focus of your imaginary parties is women's right issues then they won't be parties for most people, not me either. So they won't get in power. But good luck with that. You all should start your ideal party & see how you get on. Prove me wrong.

People who talk about ‘straight talking’ and ‘average working people’ are usually neither. Those who talk about ‘identity politics’ being divisive are often the kind of people that make identity politics a necessity. There’s a definite intersection of those who shout the loudest about people on benefits wanting something for nothing and those who have accountants to assist their tax avoidance and regard paid maternity leave as a step too far.

I wish I earned enough to employ an accountant for tax avoidance purposes 😆

Plus I’m on maternity…

And a remainer.

I’d make a rubbish Farage, wouldn’t I?

Its almost like the idea that somebody has mixed views and doesn’t 100% align to the right or the left really confuses people.

Nice name change. Did you mistype when you went to change back?

I quite liked where the coalition were, that may make me unique. I wasn’t a fan of Blair/Brown they spent too much, but there was good there too. I don’t want a link to trade unions nor vested interests able to give £100k+. I don’t like state funding of political parties but think it might be the bests option. Dislike ERG types but also Corbyn types. If the Lib Dem’s did what it said on the tin then I’d be quite happy if they came through the middle but they are pretty bonkers these days. I liked Clegg, Alexander Laws - the Orange Bookers.

No, I was going to start a thread about my housing woes but started typing and couldn’t be bothered!

Identity politics are why we have equal pay and paid maternity leave.