Argh - how to vote !

[rookiemere]

In scotsnet as this is a uniquely Scottish problem - apologies if there's a politics area somewhere that I should be in.

My postal vote has been sitting staring at me for days.

I know who I don't want to get in. As a non-scots British person with an English DH, I'll do everything I can to avoid another referendum.

Our local Labour MP actually does a lot for the local community and seems like a good egg. But the overall party is a disaster and SNP are talking about going jointly with Labour so they can push through another independence vote.

I cannot bring myself to vote Tory after what they've done - also every time they think up a remotely fair taxation idea i.e. making self employed pay same taxes as employed or making rich OAPs pay for care, even though Ruth Davidson seems very different from the conservatives in England, can't bear to watch the Westminster crowing when/if they get a huge victory.

My heart says Lib-Dems and in fact I've done some campaigning for them at local level, but pre voting questionnaires seem to suggest it's a 3 way race between Lab/Con/SNP so it would be a wasted vote.

Is anyone else really struggling to decide for this election?

I'm voting Conservative to make the strongest statement against Indyref2

Be quite clear - you're voting Conservative to say yes to more poverty, more inequality, dismantling the NHS even further, and decimating our public services. Don't dress it up.

I don't know either. My local MP is SNP and is doing a good job.
I'm ideologically a lib dem voter but there's really no chance of them getting in. I still feel instinctively that I should vote with my heart.

in your opinion olly. The labour manifesto could easily result in higher unemployment and hours cuts for people (minimum wage policy, swift corporation tax increases) which will hardly protect the working poor.

free university tuition in RUK as Scotland knows comes at the expense of spending for all earlier in life on primary and secondary education and doesn't do much to widen access.

How are public services and the NHS going to fare under the turbo charged austerity that Corbyn thinks independence would bring Olly? Tory cuts are reversible, Indy would be irreversible. Sturgeon is forcing people into voting Tory because of her determination to railroad through another indyref against the wishes of the majority.

I'm spending a lot of time sitting on my hands while on Facebook when people are posting stuff about voting for SNP to stop the Tory austerity and Food Banks etc etc. it is as if the SNP being in power for the last 10 years never happened.

I'm voting SNP. They are the most realistic party of all. Ok they want another referendum...that doesn't mean to say we will vote "yes", does it?

Wankers, it's a good job the SNP have been in power in Scotland otherwise the Tory austerity would be just as bad here as it is in England. Currently a large part of Scotland's pocket money, sorry, I mean budget, goes towards mitigating the worst Tory policies in Scotland.

If we could bump the Tories then we could allocate our money wherever we decide, not on trying to protect people from cruel policy decisions.

Ok they want another referendum...that doesn't mean to say we will vote "yes", does it?

No it doesn't, but it does mean a cost for the taxpayer in having it, and another reason for the SNP to fuck about organising it instead of actually doing what they are paid to do which is run the country.

I'd rather we just got them to the level that is representative of the actual votes they get and got a few checks and balanced into our country and stopped them from pissing my taxes up the wall on shit schemes and idyrefs.

So you'd rather vote for a party who is more likely to fuck us all up? No thanks. I've not seen one failing from SNP yet and shudder to think how the other parties would have faired.

Someone bloody help me. I honestly don't understand it all enough to make a good decision.

Seems I'm in a tory seat(mundell) , closely followed by snp, then trailing labour then lib dems..

Don't really want to vote for either tory or snp this time. My heart actually says libs but its a total wasted vote isn't it?

Yep

I am voting ABN (anyone but Nicola).

They have:

Fucked up Education, increasing class sizes (max 20 in S1 and S2 for English and Maths under Labour in Scotland, no longer under SNP. Brought real hardship to schools, cutting teacher numbers and ignoring all the warning signs of failing standards.

Spent on projects that further independence - Nicola's little trips to Europe and the US to make herself look like she is on the world stage.

Manipulated the EU referendum for their own ends.

Failed to use most of their devolved powers so they can continue to blame Westminster.

Have some pretty corrupt MPs.

In my constituency it is LibDem but my vote would ho anywhere to keep their numbers low and keep them away from another referendum.

One more and I am out - and good luck with replacing me...teacher in a shortage subject struggling in a remote area with colleagues being "redeployed" to cover up for budget cuts.

iwantablue

If you don't want tories then take a look at this:
secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/uk_vote_smart_loc_cp

Also if you go to voteforpolicies.org (I think) then that's a good tool to use to figure out how you should Vote for.

It makes no sense to vote Conservative as a protest, Unionist vote. This is a GE, not an independence referendum. If and when there is a further ref on independence, cast your vote on that matter then. If you support public services at all, you cannot consider voting Tory.

Oh that's right Hamlet. Because no other first minister will have little trips away or have corrupt mp's. Lol

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/tory-cuts-force-city-academy-hackney-to-reduce-lesson-time-by-30-minutes-a-day_uk_59369c41e4b013c4816ae35f

Due to tories.

Whiskey. Many councils in Scotland have been considering cutting the school day too. Due to SNP council tax freeze.

twitter.com/pinkandpurple69/status/871753597788336131

"Scottish Labour Provost blocks Plan From SNP To Save 198 Classroom Assistant Jobs in North Lanarkshire
@Jenemm3
And let me guess - when the schools underperform due to short staffing the chorus will be #SNPbad again
Classy!
snp have also been blocked from putting a motion to the council on the 22nd of June

Paste from Twitter fail but you get the gist!

Ruth Davidson is the leader of the Scottish Tory party and she's consistently been good at opposing the shady things the SNP are doing on education - dropping any measure that doesn't go their way in - PISA, SSLN whilst waffling about positive outcomes.

I don't think you have to vote conservative just for Indy reasons either - she provides effective opposition to the SNP and she points out accurately time and again that Sturgeon is railing at Westminster time and again for matters she has the powers to change.

Labour has missed a huge opportunity to plough the money they're spending on free tuition into primary and secondary education.

Labour is also hiking corporation tax exactly when Brexit effects are likely to kick in, 2020. There are plenty of reasons to vote conservative that don't involve Indy or being pro cuts.

"<a class="break-all" href="http://go.mumsnet.com/?xs=1&id=470X1554755&url=twitter.com/pinkandpurple69/status/871753597788336131" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/pinkandpurple69/status/871753597788336131

"Scottish Labour Provost blocks Plan From SNP To Save 198 Classroom Assistant Jobs in North Lanarkshire
@Jenemm3
And let me guess - when the schools underperform due to short staffing the chorus will be #SNPbad again
Classy!"

SNP trying to save jobs and stop the austerity driven wreckage of classroom staffing. But it's going to be ignored and SNP voted against by people who want more classroom staffing. So that an independence referendum which gives people a choice re: what to do once terms of Brexit are known, can be blocked.

It happens all the time. How unionists can do it beats me. The SNP are doing everything for Scotland and although they could be better at some things, they are miles ahead of any other party for Scotland.

She is the first Minister Nyx so not sure who she can be compared with. She has been travelling, pressing the flesh while my kids suffer under her new curriculum, subjects are cut and results fudged. Her MSPs are dodgy. Take one near me, for example. Claims to be local (wee crofter etc) yet is actually an ex-banker. Their fiscal policy is right wing. They spend loudly and publicly on baby boxes (low cost, no proven impact, big noise) while allowing class sizes to rise in key subjects.

Left wing, my arse. Mike Russell's book (hushed up during the referendum) advocates further privatisation of the (devolved) NHS. There was a huge fuss about helping refugees yet just 5 families have been allocated to my council area - 5. When so many are suffering.

Oh, and try getting an appointment for mental health support for a teenager.

Oh, yes, and the dreadful (and quietly being shuffled into the corner) Named Person Scheme.

Plus the vile online rhetoric and anti-English feeling. All in the name of independence.....but not actual independence, just part of one (fragile) union (EU) and not the much stronger U.K.

You are sticking your fingers in your ears going la la la if you are still voting SNP for left wing reasons.

Oh, and they don't care what they promise. They will promise anything to get independence. They will even promise not to hold another referendum on independence (remember that "for a generation"promise) in order to get independence.

Vote Nicola for higher taxes spent on the middle class and rich (tuition fees, baby boxes, free prescriptions) while the poor suffer. Vote Nicola for division. Vote Nicola for a poor education for your children.

Yes! On you go. Pat yourself on the back for your caring, left-wing policies while the next generation prepares themselves for low status jobs in a crashing economy because they can't read. But, at least they got to sleep in a cardboard box wrapped in a crap poem.

Or low status jobs in a crashing economy because of Brexit. Voting SNP because of independence thanks.

Like the turnkey, voting for Christmas.

Brexit is not ideal. But it is the will of the people....the vote was unequivocal.

What is it about the SNP and ignoring a referendum, while bleating loudly for another one? It is like playing a dice game with a 3 year old who wants to roll again whenever the number he needs doesn't come up.