Dear Nick Clegg...

[CUNextTuesday]

e.g.

This is the most fascinating election I've ever voted in - I feel a buzz in the air from giant bees a genuine 3rd option.

Please don't let the hype of your last TV debate make you either complacent or nervous. People who genuinely want a choice are relying on your popularity sustaining itself. So...er.... no pressure or owt.

Love C. U. N. Tuesday (Ms)

[alicatte]

Seem less 'edgy' I really enjoyed last week but we need to see your statesman mood now (I've been watching too many ALW shows haven't I?)

[Tashtodd]

Just looking at some of the front pages for tomorrows press. Expenses and associated stuff - looks awful for Mr Clegg (Telegraph). I expect he might be spending some of his debate preparation time defending himself.

[MrsCosmopolite]

Meh, the Telegraph is a complete non-story. Clegg receives donations as contributions towards a researchers salary, declares payments in MPs register of interests.

This is a front page story how exactly?

[crystal123]

Curlycasper..the freindly ghost..vote UKIP!

[mmrsceptic]

It's not a non-story..I'm afraid that's wishful thinking.

[Tashtodd]

It is front page news in the Telegraph the paper that brought us the expenses scandal. The media will make something of it, as will they with the other stories starting to ciculate of leaked documents from party officials telling LD MP's to exploit taxpayer funded expenses to the maximum for party propaganda purposes. If those docs are revelaed to the public it will smack of rank hypocrisy given the platform this party is campaigning on.

[Tashtodd]

sorry revealed not revalaed

[snowlady]

I won't even bother reading the telegraph or daily mail headlines between now and the election. Its obvious they will go to any length to discredit the lib dems as they want the tories to win. If they looked at the tories or labour in the same way they would find dodgy headlines for them too. It would be nice if it all backfired and people ignored the papers but I expect a lot of daily mail readers are stupid enough to believe the headlines.

It is good that there are these leadership debates as we can hear what the leaders have to say without them either being shouted down by the mob in parliament or interupted by Dimbleby, Paxman and the like.

I was very impressed with ITV last week..right leaning broadcaster but handled the debate objectively and alastair stewart was excellent.

[cornsilk]

Dear Nick
Boxers, briefs or commando ? I kind of want to know.
Thanks

[vesela]

Dear Nick - just carry on doing what you're doing. Explain, argue, explain, argue &c&c. This is why I voted for you as Lib Dem leader - because you're bloody brilliant at this sort of thing.

He got a complete grilling on Radio 1 yesterday and totally stood by what he believed in, argued why illegal immigrant amnesty was a good thing. This is what I like and this is the sort of person we need.

Re. expenses - his claims were all legal and within the allowance (and he published his expenses way back, when he didn't actually have to). When he sells on his constituency house that's been done up, the taxpayer will reap the profit.

[dizietsma]

Dear Nick,

Labour and Conservatives have both been modeling their campaign on the American presidential campaigns. Cameron with his rolled up sleeves in "town hall" meetings etc.

They're stealing the style, but missing the point. What really worked for Obama IMO was his ability to always take the high ground, more adult attitude whenever the mud was being slung. His team would just ignore the more pernicious attacks, roll their eyes, rise above and talk about the issues. This is what you need to do now they've set their attack dogs (Murdoch et al) on you.

I'm very excited about the opportunity this election holds. I desperately want PR, I desperately want something other than Labour or Conservative government over and over.

Good luck,

diz

[CLeggyBlonde]

I luv 'im just rooting for him to root for me by sticking on message on Trident AND **ing Nuclear Power. I THINK her really does know in his bone(s) that Labour's cave-in to the Nuke Power lobby will hobble real economic recovery by generating a titchy number of jobs (a few thousand, and more in France than here) instead of hundreds of thousands in the UK for decades to come if invested in distributed renewable energy ...

[mmrsceptic]

permitting myself a wee at nick clegg fan club

enjoy

[vesela]

oh we will, we will

roll on May 7th

[Accm]

X Factor-style democracy has made people worship style before substance. When Mr Clegg's performance was analysed in terms of substance, he said little of value, but the media talked up his performance and suddenly everyone thought it was right to go with Clegg.
This is NOT a X-Factor Competition ..
(E.B.)

Vote XXXXX XXXX: calls cost 35p a minute from a landline and considerably more from a mobile. (Suddenly everyone wants to vote in this election)

[dizietsma]

Accm, if it were about style over substance then I think DC would have won, non? Looked very pretty on stage, said bugger all.

This is the substance I care about- representative democracy with PR. Until we have that all we can do is trust demonstrably corrupt politicians to deliver what the people want. But they wont and don't because they are far too busy feathering their own nests, chasing power and influence. Ideology is dead to the political class, has been for a long tie.

I have no illusions that the Lib Dems are blameless in any corruption, but they do have a very strong vested interest in PR. That means it's something I can trust they deliver which will transform the political map of the UK for the better.

[Chil1234]

Just keep one eye on history Mr Clegg. David Steele famously told his Liberals to 'go back to your constiuencies and prepare for government'. He was the likeable type, up in the polls, offering a third way. Expect policies to be examined a lot more closely from now on by opponents and supporters alike. If a week is a long time in politics, two weeks is going to be an eternity.

[Mystro]

Madame Castafiore, if you're still there, I'd genuinely be interested to know from your DH why interest rates going up would necessarily be a bad thing? I don't particularly want to see repossessions, it's a horrible thing to lose your home, BUT house prices are far far too high in this country - and prudent savers are currently being shafted, basically. All politicians foster the illusion that house price growth makes us richer. It doesn't, on the whole it makes us poorer as we have to work ourselves silly to pay ridiculously inflated mortgage costs. Many people are priced out of the market altogether, couples put off having babies, etc. High house prices also foster consumer-led booms which are unsustainable and thus contribute to an unstable economy.

A rise in interest rates which may cause prices to head downwards again would undoubtedly be painful for some but in the end, if prices could be kept fair and then stable, this would benefit many more people in the long run. Of course you rarely see this opinion in mainstream media, presumably because many journalists are home owners and there is a strong vested interest to ramp prices up. One of the most hilarious things is that the so-called help for FTBs has apparently caused prices under £250K to rise meaning that overall they are probably no better off.

I realise this may seem like a slight digression but I think it's fundamental to our economy and well being. So my advice to Nick Clegg is that any politician who would admit this fundamental paradox and do something about it would get my vote. GB won't because he refuses to accept that he presided over a boom and bust economy fuelled in part by very rapid house price growth. And in reality, I could never vote for DC even if he promised to buy a house for me! So that leaves you Nick!!!! Please?

[vesela]

Accm - it's the opposite of the X-factor. Have you not seen this site on Facebook? (We can get Rage Against the Machine to #1 - we can get the Lib Dems into office!). 134,000 members and rising (shameless plug, it's a great site, met another mumsnetter on there the other day but don't know who she is on here yet!)

It's exactly that sort of X-factor manipulation that people are rebelling against. Of course Nick Clegg gets media coaching, he'd be mad not to, but he's also good at articulating a big fat no to the sort of "this is what you're getting" that the current political set-up represents.

[dizietsma]

What Mystro said.

[Heathcliffscathy]

chil1234 the libdems are being FAR more specific than the other two main parties in terms of how they will acheive their manifesto pledges...the tories are positively detail lite!

[snowlady]

yes my local tories have sent round their first election leaflet which fails to mention the word education at all let alone what the policy is.

[SkaterGrrrrl]

Dear Nick,

Listen to the New Economics Foundation. They speak the truth.

www.neweconomics.org/sites/neweconomics.org/files/From_the_Ashes_of_the_Crash_1.pdf

[reeva]

I don't get it Mystro and dizietsma! Why would higher mortgage repayment costs make it easier for FTB? Sure the capital value of the houses would fall but that would be offset by a rise in interest payments..