Hung Parliament

I was asked on the doorstep the other day, what I would do if elected and there was a hung parliament.   There is also an organisation contacting all Parliamentary Candidates asking a series of questions.  For the record, this is where I stand.

The Liberal Democrats believe that it is the British voters who decide who governs Britain – not political parties making secret deals or pre-empting the outcome of the election.

If voters decide no party deserves an overall majority, then the party with the strongest mandate will have the right to seek to govern – alone or with other parties.

I believe it will be abundantly clear after the election which party has the strongest mandate and it is pointless for me to speculate on possible outcomes.

Whatever the election result, if I am elected I will be working to deliver the things I think will make a difference to the people I represent: fairer taxes, a fair start for every child, a green, sustainable economy and clean, reformed politics, so that things like the expenses scandal never happen again.

We are proposing that the first £10,000 earned should be income tax free, we want £2.5bn directed into education to support children who are struggling, we want to build a green economy, than not only provides jobs for the future, but does so with clear environmental objectives and we want real political reform.  The Liberal Democrats have not picked up political reform like the latest fashion, it has been at the heart of our politics for decades.

And we are not making proposals on spending without having through about how to fund them.  So we have identified £15bn savings and have identified other shifts in taxation to pay for our proposals.

Those are the issues I am campaigning on and if you support them, vote for them.

45 million voters are the kingmakers in the forthcoming general election

During Nick Clegg’s keynote speech at the Lib Dem Spring Conference, he made it clear that the Liberal Democrats are not doing deals behind the scenes with either the Conservatives or Labour Party on who should be in Downing Street, in the event of a hung parliament.   He made it clear that it is the voters that get to decide who they want to run the country – it is not up the politicians to predict outcomes and make deals in secret.

The one thing that Nick Clegg was prepared to predict is that the two old parties are going to make claims – designed to scare people into voting against their best interests.  The Conservatives will say – vote Lib Dem … get Brown.  Labour will say – vote Lib Dem … get Cameron.

How desperate must Labour and Conservatives be!

A vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote for change

A vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote for fairness

A vote for the Liberal Democrats is not a vote for anyone else

We’ve made it clear how our Party will change Britain.

Under the Liberal Democrats, no one will pay tax on the first £10,000 they earn.

We will give every child the fair start they deserve

We will rebalance the economy so that Britain is no longer just betting on things, but Britain is building things again

And we will build a clean, open, fair politics

And last night – Labour said  that the next government will either be Tory or Labour.  So accustomed are they at passing the keys to 10 Downing Street between the two of them, they just assume it will carry on.  In 1951, only 2% of voter chose someone other than Labour or Conservatives.  At the last general election, it was 32%.

And Conservatives say we are confused about what we stand for and how we would deal with the economy – that’s rich coming from a party that failed to see the crisis coming and who have flip-flopped on what to do.

The Queen is said to have asked why no one warned about the crisis in the banking system.   Actually, we did.

Ten years ago a group of Lib Dem activists, fought the demutualisation of building societies: a consequence of Conservative legislation which led to the disasters of Northern Rock, Bradford and Bingley and HBOS.

We told Gordon Brown to curb the excess profits of banks which were dependent on a taxpayer guarantee.

We warned him for years that he was in denial about the build up of household debt and the bubble in property prices. He took no notice; nor did the Conservatives.

And most people I meet know that Vince Cable, our Shadow Chancellor, has been at the forefront of the debate about the financial crisis and more importantly ahead of the game in putting forward solutions.

Almost 1 in 4 voters chose the Liberal Democrats at the last election.  If that increased to 1 in 3, we could lead the next government.  So don’t accept that voting Liberal Democrat won’t change anything.

Whatever you do … don’t settle for the way things are.

Be demanding

Vote for what you believe in

If you want a fair tax system

If you want a better chance for your children

If you want clean and open politics

If you want green jobs

Then vote for them – vote Liberal Democrat.