To think this, is how the Tories could win?

[madamreign]

Sunak is setting out his stall as pro-car:

www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/sep/28/rishi-sunak-expected-to-limit-powers-of-councils-in-england-to-curb-car-use-20mph-speed-limit-traffic-camera-fines

This could actually swing it for him. People sink vast amounts of time and money into their cars, they're aspirational status symbols. The UK loves it's cars.

Notice the word Britain. Some pp are encouraging a Labour vote don’t even live here it seems.

I'm certainly in favour of lower speed limits and restricting the places cars can access. Sadly I believe that you and I are in the minority, this populist pro-car, anti-public transport approach will probably win him more votes than it loses.

@Lastchancechica crickey you do hate Keir Starmer don’t you ! how many posts 😂

@x2boys

I hated Tony Blair for many reasons but I can certainly see why he won and stayed in power for so long he made people really believe thing could get only get better and they did for a while

I voted Blair in his first GE. Yes, he was a breath of fresh air and his first term of office was good. Trouble was, his first term was basically "steady the ship" as he and Brown were tied by election promises re spending etc. It was after the second win that things went downhill when they were free of the shackles of spending and other promises (which they didn't make in the second election), and spending went out of control, however much Brown tried to fiddle the figures (trying to claim tax credits weren't benefits and trying to claim a nurse's wage was an "Investment" are two of his classic failures!).

I’ve no dog in the hunt (got no vote anymore), but we are very rural and there is no public transport. Even in decent sized towns it’s limited at best. Impossible for your kids to participate in sports if they have to rely only on public transport. Shopping would be a nightmare too.

Cities have the kind of public transport and delivery services that make being car free an option (to the extent I never had to face my fear of cars and learn to drive because from 18-35 I was in London, Bangkok & Milan).

In some big towns it might be an option as long as you’re fairly near the centre.

But smaller towns or outskirts and either you have a car or you and your family all lose most opportunities to participate in anything that is not work/school.

And supermarket shopping by bus is a horrible, stressful and sweaty endeavour. Just no to that. It’s mashed up wrists from shopping bag handles, or fighting the stupid trolley down the aisle (once you’ve lugged it up the bus stairs) with everybody tutting at you.

Can’t drive, don’t want to drive, walk the 4k to town rather than get a lift. But can totally understand why most people, in most places, view policies that curtail their opportunities to drive at a price point they can afford as a deal breaker.

Personally I’d like to go back to donkey and cart. But have failed to convince the mayor to let even me do it, let alone all the car drivers who regard donkeys with unnecessary amounts of suspicion.

Yep, sat here waiting with baited breath for that answer too!

I hope not.
I don't think people in the UK particularly love their cars. Most people I know have little interest in them. They just want to get from A to B quickly and cheaply. And I know many people who have given up driving or have decided not to learn.
I think good public transport that is cheap and reliable going to places people want is much more of a vote winner

Anyone who votes tory will get exactly they they deserve

I think its great that tory voters are now having to deal with the consequences of their vote....historically its only been the poor and vulnerable affected

And HOW exactly would labour be worse than the absolute shotshow of the last 13 years?

I don't like kier starmer.
But afaic it's a case of get labour in then get him out.

This. I lived for twenty years in a city with superb public transport and that was easy to cycle around and never owned a car. I didn’t need to. Public transport was cheap, reliable and extremely frequent.

Now I live semi-rurally. Buses are infrequent, unreliable and I use my car every day. You cannot live here without a car.

I’d much rather cycle. I’d rather use public transport. I hate driving everywhere. But there isn’t an alternative

Now they are threatening to remove the shit infrequent bus as it’s not used. But if buses were frequent and reliable they would be used!

@Lastchancechica obviously you don't have to answer this. But are you a name changer who used to be a very active Leave poster on here? Just idle curiosity-and I won't mention it again if you ignore me.

There's no reason to think the Tories are going to win, no. Recent polling continues to have them a loooong way behind. Historically, incumbent governments do badly when the economy has tanked, and also people tend to get fed up of them when they've been in a long time regardless of performance.

Fucking hell

Risho sunak has done a very good job of amassing more money for him and his wife.

He has also made lots of his friends very rich, too

He's very good at lining his own pocket - I'll give you that

I'm predicting a repeat of 1992

I'm terrified tbh

5 more years of tory slash and burn rule will finish this country. We will be the 21st century Argentina.

Heartbreaking 💔

Yep I agree, the answer is to improve public transport, not to wage a war on motorists. None of the political parties have grasped this fact. Make public transport affordable, reliable and actually going to places people want to go, at times they want to go, and you can then wage your war on motorists. Until then, they're just going to alienate more and more voting motorists if they continue with anti-motorist policies.

Positive reasons for voting conservatives in my humble view are:

They are competent and experienced- Labour are not remotely prepared having been out of office for 13 years. We need especially at this point in time, for someone more professional than Angela Raynor running the ship, we have too much to lose to take the risk.

Conservatives will focus on growing and supporting the economy. It’s actually growing at the moment, thankfully with plentiful jobs etc. This could dry up overnight with labours historical mismanagement economically.

Conservatives will continue to fight and increase rights for women and girls. This is a disaster for Labour who won’t even recognise women at all!

Conservatives will continue to fight to control our borders and immigration. Labour have pledged to allow MORE migrants here in an eu treaty.

Conservatives will protect our green belt and wildlife. Labour have promised to bulldoze the green belt, and build all over it.

We retain and expand our leading presence in world alliances. For so many years Labour pledged to take us out of nato. It’s insane their indifference to our security.

International investment will be extended under the conservatives and incentivised. I can see the world running a mile from a zombie woke government with starmer flip flopping all over the world stage.

That is just a few reasons why I will be voting conservative.

I don’t think so but how do you think Labour will improve things. They’ll need funding too - but where from?

Most motorists aren't "petrol heads", they drive because public transport is too unreliable, too expensive, and doesn't operate an adequate timetable!

@user1497207191 who do you think has been responsible for public transport cuts? Who has either been Second or First Lord of the Treasury for most of the last 3.5 years?

R. Sunak. It's his cuts (incompetently aided by the arch-idiot Shapps) that have resulted in industrial disputes on the railway. It's his cuts to maintenance that have resulted in more frequent infrastructure failures. Cuts to bus funding are why early morning and late evening services no longer run on many routes.

His predecessors blew billions on burying the first phase of HS2 in tunnels to appease Chiltern NIMBYs, so now there is apparently no money left to connect Leeds, Manchester, or even London itself! Not that he's worried, he flies everywhere by helicopter so he doesn't have to suffer Avanti.

The economy hasn’t tanked though.

Mmmhmmm.

The progress on Sunak’s five promises is pretty underwhelming. Perhaps Tory stalwarts are expecting a miracle. Highest taxes since records began too, according to the IFS.

Rishi Sunak's five promises: What progress has he made? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/65647308

Can you link to the latest economic statistics where it confirms the U.K. is in recession please?

@Cerealforever

Now they are threatening to remove the shit infrequent bus as it’s not used. But if buses were frequent and reliable they would be used!

Nail on the head. Our village lost it's bus service in around 2005! Apparently it wasn't used enough. No shit sherlock. It was just twice a day into our nearby city just 5 miles away - at around 10.30 in the morning and around 2.30 in the afternoon. So no bloody use at all for workers, school kids, etc. It was only useful for OAPs and unemployed who fancied a jolly into town for an hour!

When I first moved into the village, 35+ years ago, it was a proper service, kids could use it to go to school, workers could use it to go to work, but the council just cut and cut and cut it until it was completely useless then used lack of use as justification for cancelling it.

They did the same with the village library - used to be open 9-5 Mon to Sat, then gradually cut it's hours until it was only open 10-2 on two days per week, then closed it because no one used it anymore.

Councils are utterly clueless. And yes, before anyone asks, it was Labour run councils that did it, all in Blair/Browns so-called wonderful years!

Here we are! Economy has made a strong recovery.

https://amp.theguardian.com/business/2023/sep/29/uk-economy-makes-stronger-recovery-from-pandemic-than-first-thought-germany-france

Some recent polling. Bear in mind Sunak has been making motorist noises since Uxbridge.

https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html

https://www.politico.eu/europe-poll-of-polls/united-kingdom/

https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/47410-voting-intention-con-27-lab-43-21-22-sep-2023

None of this is specifically anti Tory or pro Labour either. It's just what's happening out there.

Great news don’t you think!

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-economy-grows-02-q2-2023-2023-09-29/