If you're an undecided voter, what are the issues that are stopping you from deciding?

[tomatoesatbreakfast]

As an 'undecided voter', I was watching the Sky News interviews last night and felt myself warming more toward KS. When he started talking honestly about the possible impact on his kids...he suddenly seemed really human, a dad who wanted to pursue this opportunity but wanted to protect his children from the worst of it. However, I'm still undecided.

My politics are usually centre/middle and over the years I've voted Tory and Labour...basically whichever party I felt most aligned with my values.

All I know for sure is that I don't want more of the same and while I am definitely warming to Labour (as well as my local candidate who seems nice) I'm not keen on some others within the party.

I worry that by voting in the seemingly nice people, that it's a door opened to something I can't get on board with. You could equally say the same of the Tories though!!

So I'm wondering if there's any other 'undecided voters' out there (from any side of politics) and what are the issues/policies that are preventing you from being able to make a decision?

I want to know

1. Will Labour legally protect women’s single sex spaces and sport based on biological sex and not on gender

2. Labour’s plans for taxes- new taxes they will impose and any increases/decrease in current taxes

once I have a direct answer to these questions I will be able to decide how I will vote.

I’ve not rtft but I want to vote labour, broadly their policies best align with what I think is right and needed. BUT I’m gender critical and don’t want to vote for their gender reform proposals. And in all honesty, we run a business and the Tory stance on corporation tax is appealing. But I can’t vote Tory because the county has been fucked by them, I have no alignment with the vast majority of their other policies, and absolutely don’t want them back in power. But voting Labour feels personally ethically wrong, but only on a single issue and I don’t want my vote to contribute towards the erosion of women’s safety. So I’ve no clue what I’m going to do.

I also want to know this.

Have you written to your MP to ask?

I’ve just written to mine to ask.

The issue of the safety of women and girls and the implications of self ID are a big concern to me and none of the parties are being very clear on their stance on this. I want to vote Labour but I'm not sure I trust them on this issue.

My local Labour candidate has been asked questions about this and has answered them. Sort of. But ultimately the direction of the party would not be decided by that candidate and it is the party as a whole that I do not have confidence in.

I would be more concerned where the Tories are going to find £Billions of savings in welfare budget from.

It is 100% clear that if the Tories get back in our NHS, Dentistry & all public services will be cut to the bone and we will be getting a 3rd world service.

We should learn from our European neighbours such as Scandanavian countries and places like Austria & Germany. They pay relatively big taxes but they have amazing public services, can see a Doctor/ Dentist at drop of a hat and their roads and infrastructure are superb.

You cannot squeeze blood out a stone despite what the Tories may tell you. If you want world class public services and infrastructure you have to all be willing to pay that bit extra or else borrow £Billions.

The Tories have destroyed our public services, NHS and wrecked the economy thanks to Liz Truss.

I agree that we probably do need to pay higher taxes if we are going to get better public services. One of the problems though is that for decades now there has been a mantra that there is lots of waste in the public sector and people are resistant to paying higher taxes to fund that. We need to give people confidence that higher taxes would result in visibly better public services.

How much waste can there be left when they’ve been cut to the bone? If you want to cut waste the answer is to stop vanity projects like HS2 and Rwanda. And they’re just the ones we know about. God knows what Reeves will discover when the books are examined. I could weep at the wasted money and the thought of how that could have been used for better quality of life.

I don't think there is much waste, but there has been a mantra for decades now about waste in the public sector, particularly managers in the NHS. I think the public need to be given confidence that any higher taxes are going to result in better public services for all.

I’ve emailed my MP and asked them about Self ID and taxes. No answer so far. I watched the interview by Nick Ferrari with Keir Starmer on LBC. He asked KS what he considers the working people who he won’t impose additional taxes on. Sir Keir said: "The person I have in my mind when I say working people is people who earn their living, rely on our services, and don't really have the ability to write a cheque when they get into trouble." So from that, I think most middle class households where both parents work in professional but not highly paid jobs like mine will be paying additional taxes under Labour because we live relatively frugally, have some savings for a rainy day and put some away for the dcs future.

I also watched Rosie Duffield’s interview with Andrew Neil on Times Radio and I was completely shocked by how completely sidelined she had been by the Labour Party and Keir Starmer. I have listened to Rosie Duffield a lot and agree with her on women’s issues. Apparently there was some Labour Party election campaign in Kent where she is the only Labour MP and she wasn’t even invited to it. Actions speak louder than words and in this issue Labour has shown me what they think of biological women.

Apparently there was some Labour Party election campaign in Kent where she is the only Labour MP and she wasn’t even invited to it.

That's true. Keir Starmer started the Labour Party's election campaign in Kent and didn't invited Rosie Duffield to attend.

So as a middle class working women with a few savings, a Labour government will mean I will most probably pay higher taxes and see my rights eroded. No thanks!

No good saying “No thanks”. If everyone else’s taxes go up, yours will too. I fully expect to be taxed more. I’d rather have functional public services than a few quid in my pocket.

As a woman I can't vote for any party who can't say what a woman is and promise to protect single sex spaces. Which seems to be everyone other than the Tories.

As a woman, and a single parent who relies on benefits to live, I won't ever vote Tory.

Are you spoiling your ballot then?

I’ve never felt in a voting quandary as I have this coming election. My local conservative MP is not standing to be re elected. She lives in her/our constituency, she knows exactly what’s going on where and will fight for what we want. She’s easily accessible, she’s often in our local Sainsbury’s doing her shopping. She always has time for every one. I’d not hesitate to vote for her again, but I can’t. The new Tory candidate doesn’t even live in the constituency. We’ve seen or heard very little of him. Can’t vote for him. Can’t vote labour either. I’d like labour to have a chance……but…….
Im almost thinking of not voting at all, but that goes against the grain as my grandmothers generation got us women the vote, we should use it.

If you think just pouring more money into the NHS will make it function better you are very optimistic. Having worked in it for 30+ years the level of dysfunction even during the moneyed Blair years was mind boggling I’d rather I decide how to spend the money I earned than give it to a government to spaff it up a wall.

No idea. Depends if they sort my free voters ID out in time, unlike the last election when they let me know AFTER the deadline that my photo wasn't right. Or I'm going to have to make an actual decision somehow.

I worked in the NHS through the Blair years too. You must have been working in a very weird, unrepresentative corner of it if you perceived it as dysfunctional. Where I worked there was enough money to improve services and our feet were held to the fire to hit the targets. At no point were there people on trollies in the corridors or waits of hours for ambulances. You can’t buy prompt effective emergency healthcare with the money in your pocket.

I asked my Labour candidate what working people means and he couldn’t answer!

I agree with this - I don't think the Tories deserve to be in government - they have made a complete hash of it from the environment and people's point of view although I guess their mates are all happy.

I would like to see a government where there is a more equal share out of the seats amongst all the parties and less dominance by one party. They need to start relearning how to debate and discuss and convince rather than shouting slogans and delivering empty platitudes and get some serious governing done to sort out the shitshow we have become.

I wish people would just vote for their best local candidate irrespective of party so we get decent, honourable MPs with a vocation for public service back into the houses of parliament.

And I include Rosie Duffield in the honourable MP class - I would vote for her if she was standing in my constituency.

As it is, I have a long list of 13 to choose from including Count Binface and the Monster Raving Looney Party. But I will probably vote Labour or Green (we still have a Green Party who are focused on the environment thank goodness). But I think only Labour can realistically unseat Rishi but the candidate appears to live in London so what do I do?

One of my children and their spouse earn fairly high incomes. They have an expensive home, but also save hard because they have two teens who will be going to university within the next few years, and they will have to support them. The oldest who is studying for A levels already has a part time job, just as their parents did.

Both came from ordinary homes, then fortunately made good career choices, waited to have children when they were established, and IMO, have made responsible decisions. They both pay higher rate Income Tax. They are exactly the kind of household Labour will target.