The difference an electoral system makes
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uk politics
UK Election; the lessons.
Like a punch drunk boxer, the pollsters didn’t see it coming. Three leaders could be writing their resignation letters over night. David Cameron is pinching himself at how easy it all turned out. And Scotland had another referendum.
Some brief thoughts on the UK Election and what can be learned.
Update: Ed Miliband resigns. Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage have also quit.
Congratulations Mhairi Black of the SNP
One of the outstanding results in the UP election was the result in the seat of Paisley where a young 20 year old woman Mhairi Black defeated Labour heavyweight Douglas Alexander.
The Whisky’s In.
Before the turgid post-election hell that the British Establishment will undoubtably unleash…
#milifandom! Labour are going to win the UK Election. Fact!
Ed Miliband is dominating social media in the UK on the eve of the election. #milifandom is the meme of the day!
UPDATE: Exit Poll suggests Tory win, Lib Dem’s smashed. SNP dominate in Scotland, Greens may win 2 seats. UKIP stuffed, Farage to lose in his seat. Labour still a possibility to govern.
UPDATE 2: Rumours that both Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg will resign in the morning. George Galloway loses his seat, UKIP have flopped and it appears Nigel Farage will not be an MP. However, Tory win not yet confirmed.
UK Election
The UK votes tomorrow. A hung Parliament is predicted, and the UK enters uncharted warters, guided only by a cabinet manual. Will Cameron dig in at No. 10?
UK media and the election
Miliband:Dangerous Muppet?
Is Ed Miliband fighting democracy? Well…
Swings
A snippet on Labour’s prospects in Scotland.
A Very British Jamboree
Is Thatcherism finally to be laid to rest?
The UK Greens election video
Well worth a watch even if some do not necessarily agree with it. Hat tip Adam.
Trident
Nothing will shift the main UK parties’ attitude on nuclear weapons. Right?
UK Labour to crack down on tax cheats
UK Labour have promised “all-out war on tax avoidance and evasion”. NZ Labour should follow suit.
The British Election
Britain is just over a month away from an election that looks like it will go down to the wire. And the recent leaders’ debate has displayed some very impressive leaders of progressive minor parties who may hold the balance of power after the election has been completed. In particular Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon may be able to determine who the next Prime Minister will be.
The War Club Family
There’s a fascinating article in the latest New Statesman titled “An Empire that speaks English: the right’s dream of a new world order.” Suddenly UK Foreign Minister Philip Hammond’s recent visit here makes sense. So does John Key’s references to sending troops to Iraq on behalf of the “club” or the “family” – he’s at the heart of the Empire.
But which club?
I think when justifying sending troops to Iraq the club John Key is really talking about is the group of right-wing political parties known as the International Democratic Union. Today Key chairs its Executive in Sarajevo, his first meeting as President. This move by Key to the IDU is calculated; he sees himself as leader of the world right-wing club and this is the first step to his international political career post New Zealand politics.
Protecting our Freedom
UK PM David Cameron thinks freedom will be enhanced by monitoring everything – something we used to call totalitarianism. We need more encryption and to make sure the internet is built for the people, not the data-miners – be they our security agencies, criminal gangs, or facebook.
Exploiting the Charlie Hebdo attack
How many governments are using the Paris / Charlie Hebdo attack as an excuse to increase surveillance or otherwise remove civil protections? The UK and Australia for starters…
Rupert Murdoch on Charlie Hebdo
Rupert Murdoch has tweeted questioning if most Moslems are peaceful and saying they are responsible for extremists within their ranks.
UK Labour is in an interesting position
As the United Kingdom prepares itself for a general election later this year Labour and the Conservatives are neck and neck in the polls, some within Labour are suggesting that the party should move to the right.
How the Sex Pistols saved Christmas – republished
Reprinted from last year. How the Sex Pistols saved Christmas for striking Huddersfield fire fighters and their families.
Europe & the anti-austerity left
The UK Green Party is gaining in popularity as many people turn away from the 3 established parties. The radical left Syriza party in Greece could possibly gain power in their election – what powerful international right wing forces would then be unleashed?
Why does the right control the English speaking world?
Jason Wilson in the Guardian has asked a very relevant question. Why is the right currently dominant in the English speaking Western World and what does the left have to do to change this?
Bilateral mobility a bad idea
Who wouldn’t want the option of easy access to Britain, and hence Europe? But, hang on…
The 4th estate & its pretenders
Some journalists continue to try to fulfill the fourth estate ideal of pursuing truth & speaking truth to power. Others, with powerful links to corporate media & governments, work to suppress debate and democracy, often using threats, abusive nastiness & fear mongering.
The Scottish Referendum
The polling booths are closed and the count has started in what may be an historic day for Scotland.
John Oliver on Scottish Independence
The Scottish vote on independence this week. Will The Yes vote win? Will it create a liberal bastion or will it cause the United Kingdom’s economy to disintegrate? Last Week Tonight’s John Oliver discusses the issue.
TolleyOil?
NetworkOnNet posts about the Ministry of Education under Tolley bullying good principals though WhaleOil. And also in Education news: this week all 4-7 year olds will be eligible for a free hot school lunch… in the UK.
GCSB, privacy & Facebook messaging
How private are communications on social media platforms such as Facebook? It is claimed that the GCSB law’s definition of “privacy” leaves a loophole for warrantless surveillance of messaging by Kiwis on platforms like Facebook.
Polity: Poor pay more tax than rich in UK
The British public estimates the poor pay around 24% of their income in tax, while the rich pay around 35%. The truth is very different. Once you add up all taxes, the poorest actually pay around 43% of their income in tax, compared to only 35% for the rich. We have the same perceptual issues in NZ especially if you listen to the whining of Kiwiblog. Here the poorest pay the same tax rate as the rich, and the middle classes have the lower tax rate.
NRT: GCHQ’s bag of dirty tricks
The UK intelligence agency GCHQ has developed sophisticated tools to manipulate online polls, spam targets with SMS messages, track people by impersonating spammers and monitor social media postings, according to newly-published documents leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
Bryan Gould: An impartial press
Ed Miliband is competent, has the support of his party, but has abysmal poll ratings. The right-wing British press has played a significant role. For instance a messy bacon sandwich. In New Zealand, we all know that the British press is notoriously biased and that our own press may have their own allegiances but are reasonably impartial. Which is why there are some disturbing features about the press treatment of the supposed “scandal” (as it is regularly referred to) of Donghua Liu and David Cunliffe.
NRT: UK police spied on politicians
Police and security forces often seem to consider themselves to be beyond the law. Their propensity towards excessive surveillance of people who are following peaceful and legal paths towards societal change without any evidence is rather legendary amongst activists on the left. The impression that most activists have is that some police just don’t like their politics. However surveillance of a councillor in the UK after they have been elected and while they are monitoring police activities as part of their job does mark a new low.
The smoke & mirrors of the surveillance-military-economic-complex
There are a range of issues, which are part of a GCSB-intelligence-surveillance-military-complex. Some significant elements seem to be posing as diversions from other parts of the complex, and the way all parts hang together. What will he offer Obama to advance NZ’s position in the TPPA?
NRT: A disease the world over
New Zealand isn’t the only place currently seeing a cash-for-access scandal. In Australia, the federal Treasurer has a similar arrangement to the National Party, selling access to a donors by membership of a “club”. And in the UK, the co-treasurer of the Conservative Party has said publicly that £250,000 gets you a private dinner with the Prime Minister.
September 18th
The 18th of September 2014 is a big day.
On that day, people living in Scotland will decide if they want to become citizens in a nation that will have reclaimed its sovereignty.