Clearly not you
Hang Brown for Treason!!
- Thread starter Teki187
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Clearly not you
Associate
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Australia has proportional representation. It's definitely the way to go.
I was surprised to find that you guys don't have it over here.
we already do, each constituency with an average size of 74k people (smallest is around 30k and biggest is like 110k), its just the whip system means it might as well be that the party gets the % of the seats they get votes... infact due to the whip system thatd actually be more fair, because for example labour got 35.3% of the votes but has 55.2% of the seats.
No, you don't have proportional representation. PR is a very specific model (see the Wiki article here) and the UK does not have it.
Don't like PR when you have 3 big political parties like we do. Would just mean a hung parliament every time with the Lib Dems as kingmaker - why should the 3rd placed party have more power than the second placed party? Potentially you could even end up with the party that finished 2nd and 3rd forming the government, with the winners in opposition.
I don't think you really have three big parties. You have Labour and Tory... and that's about it. The Lib Dems are pretty small, and they're effectively frozen out of government by the current voting system.
As for the third party being the kingmaker... it's not quite that simple.
Australia also has three major parties: Labour, Liberal (equivalent to Tory) and National (a conservative party representing rural voters). The Libs and Nats compete for votes (which they can do safely, thanks to Australia's preferential ballot), but have traditionally formed coalition governments. A fourth party (the Democrats) is much smaller, but helps to maintain the balance of power within Parliament. The Democrats will ally with the Greens and Independents when necessary.
I have never seen a winning party end up in opposition.
Soldato
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Wrong, in part. We voted for the party and its current manifesto. When Gordon I'm a dictator Brown came into power, he introduced his manifesto. Indeed, when Tories challenged for a election, Brown chickened out and said he needed time to show HIS manifesto working.
**** ***! We didn't vote for his manifesto.
Soldato
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How to hold lying politicians to account? Firstly the word "lying" in that sentence is pointless as it goes without saying. How can you tell when a politician is lying? His lips move!
Secondly, voting against them next time doesn't "hold them to account" so is not enough. Tragically, a judge recently refused permission for UKIP to sue the Labour party over their broken manifesto promises saying that a manifesto is not a legally-binding document. I disagree strongly. Someone offers to do something. On the basis of that offer I vote for them, thereby accepting their offer. Failure to then do it is at the very least a breach of trust and possibly a breach of contract. I'd like to see the party leader in such a situation impeached and barred from all future office. And whipped. And put in the stocks in all mainline stations. And made to apologise personally individually to everyone who voted for the lying weasel.
They're public servants and are there to do what they promised to do.
Oh, and I agree about the LibDems. Spineless. If they can't vote on something this important how can we vote for them to represent us ever again.
Secondly, voting against them next time doesn't "hold them to account" so is not enough. Tragically, a judge recently refused permission for UKIP to sue the Labour party over their broken manifesto promises saying that a manifesto is not a legally-binding document. I disagree strongly. Someone offers to do something. On the basis of that offer I vote for them, thereby accepting their offer. Failure to then do it is at the very least a breach of trust and possibly a breach of contract. I'd like to see the party leader in such a situation impeached and barred from all future office. And whipped. And put in the stocks in all mainline stations. And made to apologise personally individually to everyone who voted for the lying weasel.
They're public servants and are there to do what they promised to do.
Oh, and I agree about the LibDems. Spineless. If they can't vote on something this important how can we vote for them to represent us ever again.
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thatcher didnt promise to do a full other term though, blair did.
As far as I was aware her trouble came off the back of the poll tax(which I campaigned against with the SNP aged 5!
), she resigned. He took over. Labour called for an election, which was played down by the government.Tony Blair pokes the hornets nest, resigns. Gordon Brown takes over, with calls from the opposition for an election played down by government.
I can't remember MT pledging period in office. Six and half a dozon, pledges or not as both sides clearly dont stick to them. Westminster is not to be trusted.
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agreed. imo, changing a policy from the manifesto should always be a referendum to stop politicians putting one thing on a manifesto then changing the policy asoon as they get into office. although id also like to see mandatory voting but itll never happen because the government would be afraid of it increasing the number of votes the nationalist parties get.
LOL, it's not that bad.
I know, but it is a consideration when you have a 2 year old. One more thing to worry about as it were.
Just come back from spending 5 weeks there, including Christmas with a cousin who has lived there for 5 years. We wouldn't be going in blind to the differences and problems. But that is a decision for another day, too close to the holiday still, we would be on the next flight out!
We also have the party whip system. The crucial difference is that our government whips do not hold official office.
The party whip system makes sense if you have PR, after all, you are voting for the party. It doesn't make sense with the system we currently have. It should be either/or.
The ignorance about politics displayed in this thread is exactly the reason why people aren't revolting against the government. Everyone lives in dreamland as we slowly move into a worse and worse regime.
My plane leaves in May and even that seems like too long, as I just feel embarrassed to still be in this country
My plane leaves in May and even that seems like too long, as I just feel embarrassed to still be in this country
Soldato
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Interesting question. Strikes seem to work for the French.... ish.
Imagine what would happen if people refused to go to work until he resigned. He'd have to resign that day even if say... 10% of the working class refused to go to work.
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he would just sell off the remaining 50% of the gold reserves.