So, this is my second/third attempt at a blog. In a couple of months we'll see if my dedication to the contribution of shit to the already shit-saturated expanse of the world wide web has faltered or not. My prediction is that it probably will have, although I don't think the bookies will be offering odds on this one.
Thursday was election day (Yes, stop groaning, this is another election blog, deal with it or piss off), and after a month of campaigning for political activists it was pretty much a slap in the face, if I'm honest. Of course, my own time would have been much better spent revising for impending exams, but where's the fun in that?
The Conservatives, by all reckoning should have got a majority. But they didn't. The Liberal Democrats should have gained vastly more seats, but instead they lost 7. Labour was clinging on for dear life, and we actually didn't fail as miserably as we thought we would. Thursday night was a terrible night for everyone, and the look of defeat in the eyes of all the political activists at any ballot count you care to consider (including my own constituency in Chingford and Woodford Green) would tell you as much.
Cameron's 'Big Society' idea did him no favours. Look at how Conservative controlled Hammersmith council has treated the poor, vulnerable and mentally ill and you'll have an idea of what Cameron and his cronies want to do nationally. That's not the sort of country we need or want.
His "change" agenda was equally unconvincing. It's easy to say "change", especially when we don't qualify what we actually mean by change. The fact is, there was certainly no progressive change in any of the Tory plans. Marriage tax breaks, inheritance tax breaks for the rich, repeal of fox hunting ban, cutting support for families and businesses just when they most need it? How about cutting funding from schools in order to fund shabby "community-run" schools that have no access to science and sports facilities? Not forgetting the fact that the parents who Cameron ultimately proposes should run these schools have jobs and lives to lead.
The Conservative party hasn't changed. Philippa Stroud was curing gay people, Chris Grayling reckons gays shouldn't be allowed in B&Bs (just in case they play with each other's willies!), and Lord Ashcroft thinks he's above paying taxes.
In fact, even the party's members are happy to admit they haven't really changed; Tebbit has slaughtered Cameron for his Cuddly Conservativism (numerous times, in fact). What now? The conservatives ideally need to make it past the 326 mark to form a credible government and now we're facing a possible sell out from the one hit wonder, Nick Clegg. I mean, if there's one way to piss your party off, it's to agree to a coalition with the Tories.
But considering that Cameron has ruled out PR, will Clegg still agree to work with him? After all, Nick has already called Brown a failure - it's hardly the best of working relationships to start off on. In some respects, Brown and Clegg have both shot themselves in the foot by keeping up the slagging match. There's a good chance that Clegg will be brushed aside by the Tories and refuse to form a coalition with Brown leaving Cameron will attempt to lead a minority Government.
How long it would be able to govern for is anybody's guess, but the idea that there won't be another General Election for 4/5 years is unlikely. The problem is that whoever calls it will need to time it carefully so as to avoid pissing off the public who are unlikely to vote much differently unless one party really makes a royal fuck up of itself.
I've raised more questions than I've even attempted to answer, and that's the very problem with what's become known as #GE2010 - it's been one of the most confusing elections this country has ever had. Nobody knows what to expect and most of the talk is just pure speculation, probably fuelled by a bit of relevant party political propaganda.
And that's just it. This election hasn't changed since April 6th.
It's still way too close to call.
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