Westminstenders: From Uxbridge to...? Part deux GE 2019 special.

[placemats]

New thread.

General election 12th December 2019. Results out on Friday 13th. Unlucky day for some.

So this election is unusual in that it will focus primarily on Brexit and referendums with domestic issues tagged alongside, for some parties.

excited about the labour manifesto it's going to be excellent.

Steady on ...

So how exactly does anyone set up a podium in Downing Street? Because when I was there the other month the only way in was through armed police guarded railings.

Flatpack ?

We've had doorstep canvassers for the Labour Party twice in 48 hours.

Each time I confused the person by (having delighted them first by 1. knowing who my MP is, 2. saying that I've been in correspondence with him and am pleased with his work so far, and 3. saying I am definitely going to vote) pointing out that no manifestos had been released yet, so how was I supposed to decide? I did explain that I will be voting primarily on Brexit Is Shite, so I couldn't promise to vote Labour, but that I was open to being convinced.

I wonder if Labour are worried they're not going to retain this constituency, seeing the amount of effort they're going to 🤔

I think Jo Swinson is a bit annoying but I also think it's silly of the SNP to target her seat. The Libdems are solidly remain, if also solidly unionist, but I think the SNPs priority should be to stop Brexit at this juncture. They'll still get loads of seats. They'd be better off working with other remain parties to oust the Tories in Scotland, a job which should be fairly easy, given Ruth has gone.

They want to ban Ofsted, that protects children from bullying in the classroom

The only thing that protects children fro bullying in the classroom is effective school management - of both bullying kids and bullying teachers. Nothing at all to do with Ofsted. Ofsted tick boxes and check paperwork.

Apart from the canvasser bit (we don't seem to attract them) I could have written TheElementsSong post word for word.

Every time I have contacted my MP, I've got a response - sometimes personal, in more pressing matters.

I used to be able to say the same of my (Tory) councillors. But they gave up replying to me when I suggested their job was to represent me, not score party political points over a local issue that affected tens of thousands of people.

They'd be better off working with other remain parties to oust the Tories in Scotland

Thats why they want to oust Swinson, she's likely to put Johnson in if she gets the chance, all he needs to do is promise her a 2nd ref and she'll jump at it

Great list DGR.
Things that make this election ... unprecedented (and thus one to be very wary of calling ...). In no particular order

Can I dare to add:
8) Stronger engagement /awareness /opinion among the voting public?
Whether that will improve turnout I don’t know.

They want to ban Ofsted, that protects children from bullying in the classroom

No, it really doesn’t.

Ofsted is not fit for purpose.

I'm debating leafleting for labour.

I know.

I'm surprised too.

Ofsted does fuck all to prevent bullying

Just seen Ed Vaizey isn't going to contest wantage again for the conservatives. He's been mp since 2005 and has recently lost and regained the whip over Brexit. The Lib dems must be in with an unexpected chance!

Mims Davies, former MP for Eastleigh, stood down and announced she would no longer contest the seat with the following statement:

The decision to step down as Eastleigh MP has been tremendously difficult for me but it is entirely a personal decision and not a political one. I am a single parent of two wonderful girls and, over the last few years, it has been become increasingly difficult to juggle the responsibilities have I first and foremost as a mother and, secondly, as an MP and minister. My children are based largely back in Sussex, my working week is largely in London or travelling in my role as a minister and my weekends are in Eastleigh, or more accurately, attempting to look after my daughters, their interests and also look after and support my constituents. Sadly, it has become impossible for me to do both and, as any parent knows, if it comes down to making a decision, it is always the children who must come first. I hope everyone will understand this conflict and understand my decision in the light of it.

Got that? Did you spot it? Perhaps you need a clue:

www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/18018192.mims-davies-shortlisted-mid-sussex-tory-candidate/

8) Stronger engagement /awareness /opinion among the voting public?

It might appear that way. But nationwide ?

And all the political awareness in the world won't make a jot of difference if people won't vote. That stubborn 1 in 3 which simply has to be accepted as systemic. Nothing - not Brexit, not the fear of Labour, not the hatred of Tories - nothing seems to be able to eat into it.

If I allowed my cynicism free rein, I'd start to suspect that the electoral roll has been inflated by 30% for years and years. If I ever discovered that local authorities had a financial kick per registered voter, it would pretty much make my mind up ....

Speaking of Hibernia ...

Just to repeat: Nicola Sturgeon was not leader during the Indyref campaign . Alex Salmond was.

And as I've said, I've no problem with branded campaign buses (I agree that "battlebus" is not a good name, especially in these divisive times) - or even helicopters - since they are often the only way that large mileages can be covered quickly by the respective parties' leaders (as long as the cost is included in election expenses of course ). I don't even have an issue with photos of leaders on the buses, if people identify with them. although god help us if there are ones with blown up photos of BJ or Faragit

I don't think Brexit is going to happen.

There, I said it.

Johnson would rather fight a piss poor election campaign with everything to lose than deliver the deal that had a Commons majority.

I object to Catholic bashing. We are not all like Smogg In the case of the judicial review I mentioned many Catholics were part of the community activism and contributed to the funding of it, because they recognised the unfairness. However it does not alter the fact that a Lord who leads a prominent Catholic charity worked with the Catholic church to establish an exclusive secondary Catholic School that gave Catholic parents the privilege of a school place when the parents of "ordinary children" were faced with the prospect of being in black holes of school place provision.

I reserve the right to bash anybody who feels entitled to that sort of unfair privilege.

A question: supposing that Boris loses his seat in the election (please!) what then happens about the Tory leadership? I mean, who gets it? Because if they have to go through the selection procedure and so on, they'd better have lost the whole election or HMtheQ will be sitting twiddling her thumbs and humming a little tune waiting for a Conservative leader to come and ask her permission to form a government!

Seriously: what is the drill if the leader of the party loses his or her seat in a GE but the party wins?

Only MPs are eligible to lead the Conservative Party, so that would automatically triigger a leadership contest. There's a but:

But, a loyal old duffer could be offered a knighthood/peerage/lucrative quango non-job and persuaded to step down triggering a by-election, so BJ is back in time to re-contest the leadership, and blow me, there are no contenders...

Gove

I don't think Brexit is going to happen.

In which case you can join DW, Gore Vidal (from beyond the grave) and some interesting characters I know from elsewhere who have been adamant from before the referendum (which intriguingly they said Leave would win by a sliver) that Brexit won't happen.

It'll look like it. It might even be made to feel like it. But it won't.

When the 31st October extension was secured, they all said (practically in unison) "That's nice deal. Will never happen".

Current thinking is whoever wins the election, we still aren't leaving.

DW reasoning is "I just don't think it will happen". Which is infuriating, but consistent.

I have a question...

Let’s say the world gets even more crazy and the Brexit Party Ltd win on a landslide.

Who would be PM? Farage? Even though he wouldn’t be an MP?

Who would be PM? Farage? Even though he wouldn’t be an MP?

Any MP can be PM, they don't have to be a party leader. It's whoever can get a majority in the Commons.