I am 33 and have never voted...don't know anything about the policies and manifestoes....so need some straight talking summaries please

[YouMightKnowMe]

So...I shall look further at the comparision on the BBC web site etc. but I figure an easy way to see what the policies mean to me the voter is to ask you lot. So I have two simple questions with a couple of simple rules.

1. a) Which party (in your opinion) should I be voting for tomorrow.

b) please give no more than 3 reasons why

1. Please give 2 reasons why I shouldn't vote for the other 2 main parties.

(P.S. I am counting the main parties as Labour, lib dem and conservative before anybody offers a sarcastic answer to this)

Ta

2 reasons for each of the other 2 main parties that is...

Gosh, you've left it a bit late to get all the angles now.

All you need to know, in essence, is that racists vote for the BNP. David Cameron is an odious arse, Nick Clegg seems like a nice chap and Gordon Brown is crapping himself.

CES beautifully put.

Hence the reason that I am look for a quick analysis rather than trying to read 3 full manifesto's in 1 night

I am 28 and have never voted , i will be voting tomorrow but i am still not sure who for.

I have watched all the tv coverage, listened to what they all have to say but i am still confused , from what i can make out all parties are offering the same (or very similar) changes for the future.

My main concerns are for my dd's future, both my dd's have special needs so i want the best outcome for them, i wan't more places to be available in SN schools (which conservative are saying they will make possible) but then labour have done a great job of creating more benifits for disabled families and without the extra money they have provided i would not have been able to stay at home and care for dd2.

I also like the way lib dems come across, they seem more honest than the other two and maybe its time they had a go at being in power.

All so confusing, i hope i can decide by tomorrow .

They're all shit, skin up.

I am voting Conservative tomorrow.

It is the first time I will have voted (am early 20s).

I am voting for the Conservatives as I believe what Britain really needs now is people in charge who really understand wealth creation (as that is what will REALLY help fill the deficit).

I also REALLY like their emphasis on the family, and their plans for education. I work in education and it all makes absolute sense to me.

Ideologically I believe that people are generally best off being responsible for themselves and making their own choices rather than the state.

I won't be voting Labour because:

1. Gordon Brown has mismanaged the economy - had it been managed better over the past 13 years we would not be in nearly as much trouble now. He destroyed a world class pension system, failed to get the best price for gold, let the banks run riot, allowed house price inflation to run riot so that he would have to create a whole other group of middle class benefit recipiants who could vote for him as they needed the money to pay the ever higher mortgages, he has kept the tax system too complex and too high for business which has meant that the UK has failed to attract big businesses like Google, and many have left or are leaving.

1. Ed Balls and Peter Mandleson are two of the worst non-criminal people I have ever seen.

I won't be voting Lib Dem because:

1. Their stance on Europe - joining the Euro would be completely wrong for Britain. And further integration in to the most undemocrating governing organisation is not something I want.

1. They want to give prisoners the vote.

Phew. Prepares for flaming - views like mine are not welcome on Mumsnet.

FYI Im left wing, but also a pragmatist.

Labour have bankrupted the county.

Labour have mortgaged children's future, who will have to pay off that debt.

If Labour are re-elected the country will go the route of Greece as Labour have no plan to put the countries MASSIVE DEBT in order.

Labour inherited a healthy economy from the last Conservative government.

It's a terrible choice but only a Conservative government has a hope of stopping us going the way of Greece.

Listening to Gordon Brown, cant help think he is either deluded or evil.

Elenor I think he might be both

you're not serious?!?!

you're looking to an online forum for voting advice? really the wrong place to for a run down on manifestos and policies.

why have you never voted before?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKFTtYx2OHc&feature=player_embedded

Have a look at www.pocketpolitics.co.uk

They have a compare facility which allows you to compare up to 6 political parties' policies against each other. There are tabs for all areas - Crime, Heath, Education, Foreign Policy etc. Very staight forward and easy to read.

Make an informed decision. Make your own mind up.

Well done for using your vote this time EleanorRigby

YOu could just go here and find out.

Prinnie - wish I had been as politically rational at 20. You are bang on about the deficit being paramount.

Just a word of caution about conservatives. The wealth tends to be maintained at the top. When it's lost from the top it's bailed out from the public sector and ultimately the ordinary person. The Tory government is entrenched in the pockets of big banks and business...it's the small guys that need help. Pensions have been eroded by both Labour and Tory, but big bonus culture stays at the top.

Think Lib Dems can do better as they can start from scratch.

Also not sure about Europe stance but they have promised to ask us first.

At least you are voting.

Look here for what your local candidates are saying and if you agree with them - do the easy quiz.
Don't be complacent. Vote. It is your right.
www.theyworkforyou.com

Labour has deliberately dumbed down education, using targets and incentives to allow all kids to pass, leaving a generation of illiterate high school graduates. This has increased the disparity between rich and poor as the difference in results between a private and government education has widened further.

The tories have a deep-seated "survival of the fittest" philosophy where anyone who has fallen on hard times, is elderly, disabled, or mentally ill, can damn well fend for themselves. They support a heartless society and an even further entrenchment of the embarrassing class divide in this country, along with it's awfully low social mobility.

The Lib Dems, through policy, their tired old slogans, and their record in local councils, promote fairness.

Easy choice, I suppose. Depending on how many cars you have in your driveway.

At the moment....based on both my gut feeling and all the various surveys on what policies you agree with etc. it is a toss up between Conservative and Lib dem...

Go to the BBC election page. There is a good summary of policies on there. Well worth a look. It compares the three main parties.

Yes that is what I have been looking at.

What I was trying to get from this thread was the "this is what REAL people, with REAL homes and REAL jobs think" without being paid to think it IYSWIM.

What you have to realise is that a vote for Lib Dem will not result in a Lib Dem govmt or PM, it will pretty much be a wasted vote. Also, let's face it, Nick Clegg might look and sound like a lovely chap but his policies are full of holes. He would be a threat to our security apparently, as well as to immigration and the economy and I don't think he's even mentioned schools.

Gordon Brown, as per previous labour govmts, has just spent, spent, spent and left the country and our children saddled with a debt that needs sorting unless we want to see the sort of riots they're having in Greece in our country. I just don't think it's fair to give him another 5 years to do more of the same.

The Conservatives are trying to promote entrepreneurship, creativity, encourage business and commerce etc. amongst other things, and all of these will help our economy to recover and grow. They are about low taxation, not high (as per labour) but will cut public spending as any govmt would have to do because that's the first way to get a hold on the debt spiralling out of control.

The only real option is conservative, IMO.

Well, you'll find MN as polarised in essence as most other sites.

You have posters who think the only real option is conservative and then rational, normal folks who think that voting conservative is the last thing they would ever do.

Not easy is it?

Hmmm, so you're saying that those planning to vote conservative are not rational, normal folk?

I was being tongue in cheek about how polarised political discussion is.

Sometimes I find myself wanting a conservative government just so delusional folks like Prinnie and Snobear4000 have to face the truth.

But I couldn't. If you care about children's welfare you must vote Labour.

I do care about my children's welfare. That's why I don't want them to inherit a mountain of debt run up under Labour ...