Two weeks to go
Two weeks today is polling day in one of the most important general elections I can ever remember.
People involved in politics always describe the current election as important, but this one really is.
Cynics often say that there is little real difference between the parties but you cannot say that this time. The policies offered by the major parties are more different than any I can ever remember.
The Conservatives will deliver Brexit: a Conservative majority government will leave the EU with the deal which is on the table, on or before 31st January 2020.
Conservatives will also increase government spending by a moderate amount to pay for 20,000 more police, the biggest every programme of building and improving hospitals, increasing the number of nurses by 50,000 compared with what will happen if nothing is done (partly by recruiting more, partly by making the profession more attractive so that fewer nurses leave) and improve school funding.
The Lib/Dems will stop Brexit: a Liberal Democrat majority government will revoke article 50, stop Brexit and effectively tell 17.4 million people that they don't give a f*** about their votes, as Caroline Lucas so eloquently put it.
They will increase government spending by a considerable amount.
Labour will spend months and years arguing about Brexit. Labour are talking about negotiating yet another different deal with the EU and then putting it back to the British people in a referendum in which they can't appear to decide which side they would be on. At one point Labour appeared to be saying they would vote against their own deal and they still have not ruled this out. The one aspect of Labour's Brexit policy which is certain is more delay and more argument, prolonging the uncertainty which is doing more damage to British business than almost any Brexit policy could.
Labour will also spend a vast amount of money, doubling the size of the state, which it is clear they don't have the faintest idea how to pay for: Labour claims that this could be funded by taxes on business and those who earn more than £80,000 a year have been exposed as nonsense.
Half way through the campaign Labour offered an extra £58 billion bribe which they don't even pretend to have included in their costings, not just to those WASPI women who actually need help but to all women of a certain age whether they need it or not: for example, former Prime Minister Theresa May would receive £22,000 under this policy. Labour have no idea how they would pay for this: it would probably mean people on low incomes paying more tax to give Theresa May and
women in her financial position a £22,000 payoff!
However, Labour have not repeated their previous promise to cancel student debt and have even tried to pretend Jeremy Corbyn never said he would like to do this (which he did.)
The one thing of which we can be certain: whatever the opinion polls suggest, the one poll which matters is a fortnight today on 12th December.
People involved in politics always describe the current election as important, but this one really is.
Cynics often say that there is little real difference between the parties but you cannot say that this time. The policies offered by the major parties are more different than any I can ever remember.
The Conservatives will deliver Brexit: a Conservative majority government will leave the EU with the deal which is on the table, on or before 31st January 2020.
Conservatives will also increase government spending by a moderate amount to pay for 20,000 more police, the biggest every programme of building and improving hospitals, increasing the number of nurses by 50,000 compared with what will happen if nothing is done (partly by recruiting more, partly by making the profession more attractive so that fewer nurses leave) and improve school funding.
The Lib/Dems will stop Brexit: a Liberal Democrat majority government will revoke article 50, stop Brexit and effectively tell 17.4 million people that they don't give a f*** about their votes, as Caroline Lucas so eloquently put it.
They will increase government spending by a considerable amount.
Labour will spend months and years arguing about Brexit. Labour are talking about negotiating yet another different deal with the EU and then putting it back to the British people in a referendum in which they can't appear to decide which side they would be on. At one point Labour appeared to be saying they would vote against their own deal and they still have not ruled this out. The one aspect of Labour's Brexit policy which is certain is more delay and more argument, prolonging the uncertainty which is doing more damage to British business than almost any Brexit policy could.
Labour will also spend a vast amount of money, doubling the size of the state, which it is clear they don't have the faintest idea how to pay for: Labour claims that this could be funded by taxes on business and those who earn more than £80,000 a year have been exposed as nonsense.
Half way through the campaign Labour offered an extra £58 billion bribe which they don't even pretend to have included in their costings, not just to those WASPI women who actually need help but to all women of a certain age whether they need it or not: for example, former Prime Minister Theresa May would receive £22,000 under this policy. Labour have no idea how they would pay for this: it would probably mean people on low incomes paying more tax to give Theresa May and
women in her financial position a £22,000 payoff!
However, Labour have not repeated their previous promise to cancel student debt and have even tried to pretend Jeremy Corbyn never said he would like to do this (which he did.)
The one thing of which we can be certain: whatever the opinion polls suggest, the one poll which matters is a fortnight today on 12th December.
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