Chip

Every time a Labour MP, minister comes on to explain their appalling results of the local election they all place the blame squarly on the war in Iraq.

Nothing to do with 7 years of spend, spend, spend with no results then is it?

Chip.

NotoriousREV

I didn't vote for Labour because I'm sick of stealth taxes, underhanded Government and excessive spin from Number 10, NOT because of the Iraq war.

MooseRacer

Well presumably every waster who voted for Lib Dems did so because of the Iraq war as they campaigned on nothing else. Pathetic of them imo.

Abdabz

Having labour in power is like having the country run by the shop stewards rather than the boardroom (the tories)...
The working classes in the main voting for the shop stewards purely as a result of class and a feeling of distance from the boardroom.
Maybe the labour old school is realising again (20 years after they last cottoned on) that no matter where labour shifts its politics to try and appeal to the masses it will always be run by "shop stewards" who are not equipped to run a business as large as the UK.
Whatever the reason, praise be to Mikey boy Howard and his tory barmy army - Ooo ahh barmy army!!!!

I still voted UKIP in the Euro's though

Chris L

Yep - they always show their true colours eventually. As my Dad is very fond of saying: "every generation has to go through a Labour government" - in other words, looking through rose tinted glasses, they get voted in on the premise that everything will be better. You then actually realise that they don't actually know what they are doing. No party is perfect, but Labour has a fundamental problem in running the finances of the country and can't help itself to tax people. Labour still has an obession with the class system (witness John Reid's comments on banning smoking last week) and still sees it as wrong, if you make money or are sucessful.

Anybody under 30 won't remember this, but Labour got this country into such a mess in the 70s that we were reduced to borrowing off the International Monetary Fund to keep the country afloat! The IMF is normally there to bail out 3rd world countries and dodgy South American economies!

Just remember this come the general election.

Chris

Diesel

Couldnt agree more - it is EASY for me to criticise the Iraq deal with hindsight and if Tony was fed duff gen, but its Council stealth Tax measured in thousands that particularly gets me, and the pensioner next door. I'll be masking sure they understand that too...

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

The local councils round here have just gone conservative after being under Labour for almost 30 years (with the odd single NOC or CON thrown in). Yet I doubt nothing will change because of it.

Who was the idiotic politician/PR who came up with blaming Iraq. They must be so departed from reality that they can't see why or what is going on in their own country and has to blame a foriegn conflict in which we participated in.

Obviously the countless millions of taxpayers money that vanishes out the system rather than going to where it's needed, Immigration, transport infrastructure, taxation, contant lies, spin or scapegoating and just general inefficiency has nothing to do with it. God I wish I could slap those politicians with a wet kipper and remind them that they were voted in to address the publics interests. Not to go against them, ignore them, lie to them, blame them and generally make things worse!

unclebuck

LOL They just don't get it, do they?

I like their attitude of "ok, you've had your protest over Iraq, now let's put it all behind us and carry on"

In your dreams matey! We won't stop until you're lot are out of office.

UB

hedgehog

I agree, they want you to think it was about Iraq because, basically, Iraq is finished and so they can claim that Iraq is in their past. What about the 24 million motorists, including almost everyone on here I'd guess, who are not happy having the highest petrol taxes in Europe, and perhaps the world, and having a camera on every corner to monitor their movements?

In the end the things that made people vote for parties other than Labour have not gone away and the very fact that Labour are trying to spin that they have just highlights the fundamental problem.

You may have seen in the Sunday times, for example, that they are looking to enforce more points and higher fines on people who don't go quietly when they get a speeding NIP. This is a move to counter the fact that the ECHR may have decided that the motorist is right and has no need to complete the NIP. This is merely persecution on the part of the government, if they were doing it to Irish people, or Muslims or people from Mongolia there would be an outcry. I just can't work out why they are getting away with doing it to you and me. What I do know is that although we may not be rioting in the streets we will certainly be thinking about to to vote for next time around.

jjones

they are all as bad as each other.

||VaNDaL||

err....... wasn't it uncle Tony who put us there???????

(by lying and cajoling about a "war on terrorism",funny how he put the world more at risk by that)

Tony Blair->

Chris L

True - the point being that Labour do not learn from their mistakes. They cannot shake off their trade unions roots - the modern era of which started in the 70s. Thatcher was far from perfect, but she did her upmost to destroy most of the major trade unions and remove their powerbase. They caused untold problems and did more to destroy this countries manufacturing base than any political party. The reason that Labour today has a relatively easy ride from the unions is because of Thatcher! If you doubt me, there haven't been any moves by a Labour administration to restore their power within the Labour party.

Labour will never totally shake of those roots (although god knows, Blair has tried) and that is why it is relevant to remember what happened 30 years ago. People have amazingly short memories and they would do well to look beyond the last 7 years.

Chris

Flat 4x4

I can't wait to hear the spin-line when the Euro results are released and UKIP etc has received all the ' isn't it about time you we started standing up for ourselves in (or out of) Europe '

Let's think, "This was a protest vote", "we are making great inroads with our Asylum policy (rather than economic migrancy) that people are yet to see the benefits of"

Echo

Am I alone in finding Michael Howard a bit creepy?

DEEDEE

These people only think of them selves not the people who put them there. We elect a party to do what their manifesto says, not change their minds and do what they think is best. If they listened to the people we would not have gone to Iraq, petrol would be cheaper, taxes would be less, and I would be happier. UKIP for me and stop the invasion - payouts.

jetskidia

Isn't it amazing how quickly people forget???????
What are the current unemployment figures???
What were they under Tory??

How many homes have been repossed in the last year due to negative equity??
How many were repossed under the Tories??

What currently is the interest rate???
What was it under Tory??

What is the current inflation rate??
What was it under Tory??

Can you ever ever seriously vote for the man that was the MAIN man behind the Poll Tax fiasco ??

If your happy to vote for a party that thinks Archer is a good egg, carry on !!

DEEDEE

If your happy to vote for a party that thinks Archer is a good egg, carry on !! --- (Mandelson) every party has their own, I did not vote last time and think it will be the same this time.

jetskidia

I accept your point Dee, but no-one comes close to Archer and his carrying on, apart from several other Tories

ajm

I'm still voting Conservative

Chip

Now that is funny.So what about:

Blair and his flats

Ron Davies- say no more

Peter Mandelson, Geoffrey Robinson and that mortgage

Robin Cook

Claire Short

Lord Irvine and his wallpaper to name but a few ministers

Hindanju brothers scandal

Bernie Ecclestone scandal.

And Tony said his party would be beyond reproach.

Chip.

jetskidia

Again, very good points,, but.................... have any of them been charged and convicted with serious criminal offences?????

jetskidia

Just proves the point that it doesn't really matter who or what anyone says to some people ?!?!?!?!?

ajm

Not really, out of a sample size of one it merely proves the point that it doesn't matter to me what you say

Sub97

jetskidia - of course none of that has anything to do with outside influences in the world economy at all, does it mate?

Im not saying that the governments dont have a hand in these things, but they arent the only factor in this. Plus, if you want to go back a bit, I dont think you'll find the labout government in the 70's exactly excelled at the points you're making either.

NicoRossi

Well, all of the above owes more to a healthier global economy and the introduction of the MPC since 1997, rather than better economic-management by Labour.

pugoetru

yes and the unemployment figures are doctored to look good

they are not

OllyK

That's a matter of opinion. Governments are renowned for re-defining what is considered as "un-employed" to try and ensure the figures look good.

pugoetru

**** me there must have been 10 million unemployed when maggie was in power then

Senior_AP

I voted Conservative cos I am not a pikey.

Senior_AP

Famous quote:


"If you're not a Socialist by the time you're 20 you've no heart. If you're not a Conservative by the time you're 40 you've no brain".


Calling someone a "Labour voter". Its an insult like "You're a pikey" or "You scramble through bins trying to find some old KFC Hot Wings for your dinner you Chav underclass scum".