Rise in Membership

[BertiWooster]

2000 people joined the labour Party last night and an additional 600, this morning .

Any of them defectors from the other places - do you think

[rov1200]

Maybe its because Brown has resigned and hot footed it back to Scotland rather than because of the con-dems.

[naomi24]

Doubt it.

[Gromit]

I would assume so. I can imagine many Lib Dems are horrified by getting into bed with the Tories. When Blair moved the Labour Party to the middle ground and ceased to be socialist, the natural home of lefties was the Lib/Dems. They must feel betrayed at the moment. I certainly regret having voted for them.

[mike11111]

"I can imagine many Lib Dems are horrified by getting into bed with the Tories."

And vice-versa. I didn't vote Tory for this and I won't be doing so ever again.

[VHG]

>And vice-versa. I didn't vote Tory for this and I won't be doing so ever again.

So what do you suggest?

A minority government (tory or labour) that gets defeated any time it tries to get anything through parliament (and plunges the country into a financial mess like Greece).

If we move towards a PR type system then the liberals are likely to get more seats in future, the lab and tory less, so it is very unilkely any party will ever get 326 seats in future, and we will have more parties working together, so get used to it.

[naomi24]

I didn't vote Tory for this either. I think a lot of people are dismayed at the outcome of this election.

[VHG]

Anyway, the last time we had a coilition was during the second world war.

As far as I am concerned Brown has left this country in such a mess (financially and socially) it needs a similar coilition to get us out of the mess.

I dont now how Brown can sleep at night knowing how much he has cost this country.

[jake-the-peg]

Maybe it's because he knows more about finance and international politics than you do.

Just a thought.

Anyway Berti - interesting fact - presuming that it's reliable and the source doesn't turm out to be Peter Mandelson. (I'm cynical about convenient news stories from either side)

People do make knee jerk reactions on principal. Success though is a great attractor. If they do well I dare say at least half of those will go back.

If they do badly more will follow - especially if the Labour party get a more charismatic leader

[jackthehat]

I would like to see (at greater length than I believe will actually occur) just how this coilition will fare when dealt with fairly by the opposing parties.

If the Labour party and the Independents can resist sniping and undermining proposed reform and legislation, seeing, for once, that the greater good of 'Country' ought to be served before either 'party' or 'personal' glory, we might get somewhere.

However, the fable of 'The scorpion and the Frog' springs to mind..............:o(

[sp1814]

I'm a bit thrown by this...I thought the last coalition government was in the early 70s (the LIbLab pact) - or wasn't that a true coalition? Was that just an agreement?

[mike11111]

If, as expected, the Tories are returned in Thirsk and Malton the Tories alone will have 47% of seats in the Commons. Under plans for a fixed 5 year parliament, even if the LDs withdraw from the coalition and go into opposition, it will be impossible to get the proposed 55% majority required to remove the government without defections from their own party. This means that the government will limp on for the full term, never knowing if any of its measures will be passed, without giving the PM the opportunity to throw in the towel and go to the country. This is a most unsatisfactory stae of affairs and very bad for democracy.

[Quinlad]

Actually, as I understand it, that's confusing a confidence motion with a dissolution resolution.

The 55% threshold stops Cameron calling an early election (which he might if he thinks he'd win a majority) without the consent of the coalition.

A vote of no confidence would need a straight majority, same as it always has.

[Dodger666]

""Maybe it's because he knows more about finance and international politics than you do.
""

Jake, Perhaps we should be grateful that Gordon Brown knows more about finance and international politics than we do. Can you imagine what state the country would be in now if he didn't? In fact, would we have a country at all?

Just a thought!