Friday, November 27, 2009

Reasons to join a Tory coalition

6 comments:

James Schneider said...

If the Tories are clearly the largest party by share of vote and if offered: STV in local council elections, no cut to inheritance tax, closing tax loopholes like the directors divend to take the lower paid out of income tax, increase local authority control over budgets and expenditure, increased powers for the Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament, a program which allows 1 million homes to be built over the course of a Parliament by altering planning regulations, and Lords reform: then I don't see why not. We don't like them but we're happy to govern in coalition with them at local level (e.g. Camden) why not national level if we can get a good policy agreement.

James Schneider said...

Forgot to click the follow up box.

Linda Jack said...

Hi James

Good to hear from you, how are you? Well, I am surprised the price you would extract is only STV in local elections - what would be the benefit to us of that? Why not parliamentary elections? I have to confess this is an issue I am not quite as blank about as my blog may suggest :-) and immediate electoral reform may be worth holding one's nose for............but unlikely the Tories would ever agree to that so probably all semantic.

James Schneider said...

I'm keeping extremely well; are you?
I'd obviously prefer to get STV on a national level but I'd be willing to sacrifice it for one Parliament to get some other things. If the coalition was broadly successful and continued then getting a national STV agreement would be easier. I think its a balancing act and a question of priorities. STV is a high priority but unlikely to be accepted so we should try other formulae of our policies and see what we can get through.
Being in Government with the Tories won't be fun but I think we should (if the situation arose) try to make the most of it.

We are definitely a left of centre party, but if we can only conceive of cooperating with Labour then we might as well pack up and become the largest faction within the Labour movement. Up and down the country we cooperate with several parties sometimes formally and sometimes on an issue by issue basis. I think no party is beyond the pale. If UKIP were proposing STV I see no problem allying with them on that issue. Sure we don't agree with them on practically everything else but there is crossover. For parties to be relevant in the 21st century they need to be able to form fluid issue alliances with one another.

Linda Jack said...

Now, "fluid issue alliances" I would agree with. For example I was at the Youth Justice Convention last week where David Burrowes was outlining some really liberal approaches which we would have to support. But propping up a government with priorities such as abolishing inheritance tax.......now that is another thing!

Shilpa Abrol said...

If we got what was outlined by james schnieder above we would prove governance capabilities that in the public's eye we seem to lack. If the Tories want to equalise some of the outrageous inbuilt problems of the current voting system, we could back it if for every seat they equalise we get one also. The though of moderating the horrendous outcomes of a Conservative geverment, even if it was a minority goverment, is too great to be sneered at. Just think of the votes that we can gain for the income tax plan, both proving fairer to the lower paid and providing an incentive to work that satisfies the right wing elements of Middle Britain.